PROTESTS 105 



(2) At Edinburgh in a Class for " Two Marguerites, 

 white," it was found, after the judging was completed, 

 that the first prize set had three plants in each pot. 

 A protest was lodged, and on the matter being pointed 

 out to the prize-winner, he abandoned his claim to the 

 prize. The Society now asks for " pots " of whatever 

 the subject may be. 



(3) On another occasion, first prize was awarded to 

 an Exhibitor of a dish of apples ; the latter, according to 

 the Schedule, were required to be from trees grown 

 wholly in the open, without any protection other than 

 coped wall or netting. A rival competitor protested, 

 and the Exhibitor to whom the prize had been awarded 

 had to acknowledge that his fruits were from trees 

 started indoors in pots and plunged outside. The 

 protest therefore was successful. In this case the 

 Society took the exceptional course of sending a deputa- 

 tion to interview the Exhibitor and report. 



(4) In a Class for "4 vases of early-flowering Chry- 

 santhemums," the first prize was awarded to four vases 

 of ordinary November flowering varieties, of the exhibi- 

 tion type. A protest was lodged. The defence was 

 that, as the plants flowered in September (which was the 

 month in which the Show was held), they were "early 

 flowering." The protest, however, was sustained. The 

 wording of the Class has since been modified. 



These several instances are but a few of many that 

 might be quoted. They mostly go to prove that lax 

 wording leads to misconceptions and errors, and they 

 allow a loophole for a certain class of competitors. Of 

 course the most perfect Schedule cannot prevent frauds, 

 or guarantee the integrity of the competitors ; but, 

 happily, the downright dishonest competitor is a variety 

 not often met with in these days. 



