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indeed it would be impossible to estimate how much this periodical 

 has done for orchid lovers and orchid growers. Collections 

 continued to increase. The celebrated Mrs. Lawrence of Baling 

 Park became widely famed as one of the most enthusiastic 

 and successful amateur orchid growers. Mr. S. Rucker of Wands- 

 worth, and Mr. Edwards, gardener to the Duke of Devonshire, at 

 Chiswick, and the Rev. John Clowes, Broughton Hall, Man- 

 chester, also held prominent positions amongst the cultivators of 

 the time. The travels of Galeotti in Mexico, and of Gardner in 

 Brazil, yielded large numbers of plants, Warscewicz also dis- 

 patching considerable consignments from Costa Rica. Mr. 

 George Ure Skinner, during a number of years before and after 

 this time, sent several important collections from Guatemala, 

 and sales in London became frequent. A few of the large collec- 

 tions began to be dispersed, the Rev. John Clowes' orchids were 

 left to Kew in 1846, and Mr. Bateman's were sold in 1850, but 

 the general increase continued rapidly. "The Cottage Gardener," 

 which subsequently developed into the "Journal of Horticulture," 

 was founded in 1848, and afforded another means of communi- 

 cation between orchid growers, Mr. Donald Beaton and others 

 contributing materially to the advancing interest in the plants. 

 It should also be here added, that subsequently, the " Gardener's 

 Magazine," and later still, the "Garden" have also contributed 

 largely to the extension of orchid culture. In the meantime a 

 distinguished cultivator of orchids was coming to the front, Mr. 

 B. S. Williams, gardener to C. Warner, Esq., Hoddesdon, Herts, 

 who was one of the most successful exhibitors of these plants at 

 that time. He contributed a series of articles to the " Gar- 

 dener's Chronicle," entitled " Orchids for the Million," which 

 were in 1852 reprinted as the first edition of his " Orchid Growers' 

 Manual," that has since then passed through five editions, 

 and a sixth is in course of preparation. Quite a little colony of 

 orchid growers was formed in the neighbourhood of Hoddesdon, 

 from which liberal contributions soon appeared at the Chiswick 

 and Regent's Park Shows. Mr. Woolley, gardener to H. B. Ker, 

 Esq., and Mr. Clark, gardener to Mr. Webb, being amongst the 

 principal, and from other districts came Mr. Hume, gardener to 

 Mr. H anbury, The Poles, Herts; Mr. Carson, gardener to F. 

 Farmer, Esq., Cheam ; Mr. Rae, gardener to J. Blandy, Esq., 

 Reading,who some years before had secured Mr. Barkers' collection; 

 Mr. Bassett, gardener to R. S. Holford, Esq., Weston Birt ; Mr. 

 Pass, gardener to T. Brocklehurst, Esq., Macclesfield ; Mr. Dean, 

 gardener to J. Bateman, Esq., Knypersly ; Mr. White, gardener to 

 H. Kenrick, Esq., Birmingham, and Messrs. Gedney, Ivison, 

 Keele, Dunsford, Green and Dodds. In 1853, considerable 

 interest was given to the Chiswick exhibitors by the Horticultural 

 Society offering some valuable prizes for collections of twenty 



