May 21, 1908. 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



19 



feet in form, and. still, such is the mild- 

 ness of the climate of the south coast of 

 England, more than one winter passed 

 without the fires being lighted to heat 

 this house. 



In this beautiful garden were not 

 only the rarest exotic plants, including 

 for those days a grand collection of or- 

 chids, almost all the economic plants, 

 and exotic fruits, grown to perfection, 

 but the highest type of landscape art 

 was exemplified. The beauty of the place 

 attracted many visitors and Mr. Scott was 

 privileged to see many of the illustrious 

 men and women of Europe who came 

 there to enjoy that beauty. 



When the subject of this sketch was 

 17 years of age his father removed to 

 Chichester, where he rented the North- 

 gate Nurseries. Mr. Scott worked in 

 the nursery, greenhouses and seed store 

 of his father till the spring of 1868, ex- 

 cept for two years during which he was 

 employed in the seed store of W. H. 

 Eogers, of Southampton, famous as a 

 most estimable man and as a good grow- 

 er of rhododendrons. In the spring of 



1868 a spirit of adventure came over 

 the young man, his brother, Alex, and 

 his friend, E. I. Mepsted. Canada was 

 settled upon as the place to which to 

 emigrate, but the good father said: 

 ' ' Boys, the United States is the place 

 for you, and I have many friends there. ' ' 

 James Fleming, then in partnership with 

 Peter Henderson, was one of the old 

 Leigh Park men. Robert Buist, of 

 Philadelphia, and Mr, Brackenridge, of 

 Baltimore, were old associates of the 

 older Scott in Edinburgh. David Fer- 

 guson, of Philadelphia, was another 

 Leigh Park man, and there were others 

 in the United States. 



The watering can was thrown down one 

 Saturday night in March, with the expec- 

 tation that it was never to be handled 

 again, and the trio were off for the back- 

 Avoods of Canada to trap and hunt and 

 get in close communion with the redmen 

 of the primeval forest. A look at the 

 forest, about three miles up Yonge street, 

 Toronto, was enough for the party, and 

 through the kindness of George Les- 

 lie, the nurseryman, the party was quick- 

 ly back at the old trade. The follow- 

 ing winter Mr. Scott was in the employ 

 of James Pape, who grew plants for 

 the Toronto market. The summer of 



1869 they tried market gardening and 

 the seed business in Stratford, Ont. There 

 were too many in the firm, as was evi- 

 denced during the dull months when the 

 gross receipts of the day amounted to not 

 over $1.25. So they paid their bills and 

 through his old friend, George Vair, Mr. 

 Scott engaged with George Bailey, of 

 Buffalo, who was then one of Buffalo's 

 most prosperous manufacturers and was 

 building a fine private place. Mr. Scott 

 was ' ' imported ' ' to work for him in 

 1870. 



In 1876, through the declining business 

 of his employer, he was almost compelled 

 to rent the houses, quite a little com- 

 mercial growing having been done in the 

 preceding two years. These houses he 

 conducted profitably for three years, but 

 in the second one he secured the prop- 

 erty on Balcom street, where he lived 

 for more than three decades. Mr. Scott 

 always spoke modestly of his establish- 

 ment as of but moderate size, but while 

 • this may be true to a certain extent, his 

 place always ranked with the larger ones 

 and nowhere were plants and flowers bet- 

 tor grown. Quality always was sought 

 rather than quantity, and the former 

 ^^as found to pay better than the latter. 



mia 



William Scott. 



though Mr. Scott came pretty near get- 

 ting both. 



A beautiful note in Mr. Scott's charac- 

 ter was his sincere affection for his ex- 

 cellent wife. In referring to his early 

 struggles in business he freely accorded 

 her the credit for his success, and said 

 that without the help of his most true 

 and loving helpmate he never could have 

 accomplished what he did. 



Mr. Scott carried on a general florists' 

 business in Buffalo, the home place being 

 almost in the geographical center of the 

 city, but after a few years the demand 

 for more stock caused him to acquire 

 a piece of acre property at Corfu, a 

 few miles outside the city, where a range 

 of glass was put up for cut flowers. 

 The business covers all the various di- 

 visions of the trade and, together with 

 his early training, this accounts for his 

 familiarity with such a wide range of 

 subjects. This being supplemenl:ed by' 

 a wonderfully retentive memory and a pe- 

 culiarly happy, clear and graceful style 

 of composition, made him the most val- 

 ued contributor to the trade press. The 

 art of telling a great deal in a few words 

 was possessed by Mr. Scott to a remark- 

 able degree. BuJ his popularity does 

 not rest solely upon his writings. He 

 beUeved in visiting his fellow craftsmen, 

 and traveled extensively. He was good 

 fellowship personified and to meet him 

 was to feel he was your friend, if you 

 were worthy of such friendship. We 

 question if anyone in the trade was more 

 generally known or more universally es- 

 teemed than William Scott. 



Mr. Scott was an active participant, 



up to the last couple of years, in the 

 affairs of our trade societies. He was 

 president of the Society of American 

 Florists in 1896 and his ready wit, 

 coupled with his grasp of the situation, 

 made him a prominent figure in the an- 

 nual conventions of that society, the 

 Carnation Society, and other trade bodies. 



In speaking of himself, Mr. Scott has 

 said : " I do not wish to be judged by 

 what I am worth, but by what I have 

 earned and done," and one of the chief 

 accomplishments of his life, and that of 

 Mrs. Scott, was the raising of a splendid 

 family. As the sons grew to manhood 

 they assumed the father's business cares, 

 both at the city place and at Corfu, 

 where David Scott now lives with a fine 

 family of his own. R. A. Scott manages 

 the home place. The business was incor- 

 porated as the Wm. Scott Co. about five 

 years ago, when the boys took the active 

 management. One son, Phil Scott, went 

 to Denver several years ago and eventu- 

 ally started in the retail business for 

 himself. One daughter also survives, with 

 the widow, and there is a sister, Mrs. 

 Henry Sadler, at the old family home 

 at Chichester, England. 



The funeral will be held today, May 

 21, and will be attended by the Buffalo 

 Florists' Club in a body and by many 

 members of the trade from outside Buf- 

 falo. 



Mystic, Conn. — J. Henry Schaffer is 

 becoming well established in business here 

 and is winning a steadily increasing 

 patronage. He does a general plant 

 and cut flower trade. 





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