280 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE, 



Seedling No. 3. — FIo^rers irreproachable in form and attitude, very large and 

 free flowering, of dazzling purple-rose colour. 



Seedling JVo. 4. — Smaller flowers, but in other respects exactly the same as 

 Seedling No. 3. 



Seedling JVb. 5, — Flowers very large and flat, fine form, three inches in dia- 

 meter, petals finely cut and covered, colour snow white, very rccommendable plant. 



Seedling No. 6. — Flowers of a very fine pure white, from two to three inches 

 in diameter ; their rich blooms, held up on tall foot-stalks, give to this variety a 

 remarkably gay appearance. 



Seedling Ko. 7. — Fine formed pure white flowers, the centre of the petals 

 covered with small red spots, forms a red star on the white ground of the flowers. 



Seedling No. 8. — Flowers very large, fine formed and flat, the flower stalk held 

 far above the leaves ; coloured like small orchids, snow-white, with large round, 

 nicely bordered dark purple-red spots, splendid variety. 



Seedling No. 9. — The spots are smaller and less remarkable, than of Seedling 

 Ko. 8, in other respects of same merit, very fine. 



Seedling No. 10. — Large white flowers, with countless waxy red spots, forming 

 a star like Seedling No. 7. 



Preecox major. — Large snow-white flower, earlier than all the forenamed 

 varieties, very rccommendable on account of its free flowering qualities. 



SENDING FLOWERS BY POST. 



jOREESPONDENTS who send flowers for our opinion are greatly dis- 

 appointed when they learn that "your flowers were dried up when they 

 came to hand, and we can offer no opinion of their merits," yet such is 



a common occurrence, and one of the wonders of editorial experience. 



For it is a wonder, to say the least of it, that people who grow flowers, 

 and who know much about them beyond what may be seen and learnt in the 

 garden, should expect them to travel safely when merely wrapped in dry paper or 

 put loosely into chip boxes, and then committed to the post. As an experiment in 

 hay-making, this mode of transmitting bits of vegetation in hot weather may be all 

 very well ; but that is not the intention ; the senders of the dessicated scraps wish 

 ns to see them as they see them, fresh and bright, that we may say whether in our 

 judgment they are good, bad, or what else. Now, let any of these disappointed 

 correspondents consider for a few moments one aspect of the subject. Suppose the 

 flowers on which our opinion is desired are now growing at York, A, B, or C, the 

 grower thereof, purposes to forward them to us. He cuts them perhaps in the 

 morning, when they are at their best, puts them loosely into a chip or pasteboard 

 box of some sort, taken haphazard from a drawer or closet. He seals up the box, 

 and commits it to the post, and perhaps he attaches a proper number of stamps. 

 We say "perhaps" here advisedly, because sometimes we have to pay sixpence, 

 eightpeuce, or more, for these packages, and in every case of that kind wre fling 

 them away as far off as possible, and know nothing more of them ; time is too 

 precious to be wasted in asking people to refund what we have been mulcted of, and 

 experience has taught us to deal in a summary way with every species of annoyance. 

 But suppose they are delivered free (as we are bound to admit is the case generally 

 sneaking), they are as a rule twenty-four hours old when they are received at the 

 office. The next thing to be done is to send them on to Stoke Newington, and 

 there may be a little delay even to the extent of half a day or so between the 

 receipt and the despatch of the flowers. We will now allow three hours to elapse 

 ere they are delivered at Stoke Newington, whether by post or carrier, and we may 

 consider another day to have elapsed ere we see them, or say from thirty-six to 

 forty-eight hours from the time the flowers were cut. But here another delay 

 is possible. Editors occasionally leave home — not often, it is true — and another 

 whole day or so may pass just at that particular juncture when A, B, or C's 

 flowers, already worn out by travel, are seen by the person to whom they are 

 addressed. Here is the case as we are familiar with it, make what you please of it, 

 friends. This is not the first or second time we have endeavoured to make the path 

 easy for cultivators to obtain our opinion on their flo-Aers, and having shown how 

 the case commonly fails, we will proceed to remark on the conditions of success. 



