REPLY TO MR. SLATKR. 159 



rilous a matter should have gained admittance of such universally 

 acknowledged a publication to respectability. 



In the first, I beg to assure your readers that I have no know- 

 ledge of the writer of the article who signs himself" A Florist of one 

 of the Midland Counties ;" and Mr. Slater is also personally un- 

 known to me ; but as I have witnessed many instances of the 

 jealousy of the northern florists respecting the south country flowers, 

 I had determined to let my Don John win his way, which I firmly 

 believe he will yet do, in the northern counties. 



I now proceed to answer Mr. Slater's scurrilous insinuations and 

 queries. I went to London on the Saturday morning previously to 

 the Surrey show, which was on Tuesday, with some friends with 

 whom I had agreed to visit Chatham, and come back to London, 

 having requested my brother-in-law to cut my flowers and forward 

 them to London on Monday afternoon. I met them at the place 

 appointed, and proceeded to take tea with Mr. Headley and Mr. 

 George Glenny ; after tea the latter saw the bloom of my Don John 

 dressed, which I exhibited the next day at the Surrey Gardens. As 

 it was rather late that evening before Ave separated after dressing our 

 flowers, and as we agreed to breakfast together, I left my flowers in 

 Mr. Headley's charge. After I was gone Mr. H.put some camphor 

 to the water in the tubes to keep the petals stiff, but unfortunately 

 made the infusion too strong, which had the effect of closing the 

 whole of his flowers, as well as four out of the five blooms of Don 

 John. This latter bloom was so much injured, that I at first deter- 

 mined not to exhibit it ; but was told that the fancy would be much 

 disappointed if I did not, and I yielded. Fortunately the two blooms 

 I had of my seedling scarlet flake, Queen of Scarlets, had escaped 

 the mixture, and were well and fresh ; but neither myself nor did 

 Mr. Headley know that our flowers had sustained any injury till we 

 opened our boxes in the Surrey Zoological Gardens. I am an old 

 florist, and those who know me would scout Mr. Slater for his insi- 

 nuation, that the bloom I exhibited was given me by Mr. Headley, 

 or that I ever exhibited flowers I did not grow ; and Mr. H., who is 

 an independent gentleman, highly and deservedly respected by every 

 one who has any knowledge of him, is far beyond the reach of Mr. 

 Slater's poisoned shaft. 



I beg to inform Mr. Slater that this was the first London exhi- 



