314 Policy pursued in the Management of 



have been alive some where, and the most elegant of them, 

 such as many Proteas, Banksias, Dryandms, Ericas, &c. 

 would have been in the common trade of the nurseries. 



The most effectual way to attain any object is to enlist 

 men's interest in its favour ; for which reason I entirely approve 

 of your postscript to the valuable paper on the Horticultural 

 Society in a former number. (Vol. I. p. 149.) The garden at 

 Kew, and the Horticultural Garden, ought not only to give 

 away all new things to the nurserymen, but to the different 

 public botanic gardens. By these means all handsome things 

 would be immediately brought into trade by the nurserymen 

 for the sake of their own interest, and all things whatever of 

 the plant kind preserved in the botanic gardens, from the 

 ambition of each particular curator to increase and maintain 

 his collection. 



What aggravates the illiberality complained of is, that it is 

 not practised towards foreigners. A gardener from any of 

 the German courts may, as I am informed, get any plant he 

 asks for ; but an Englishman, unless he is a courtier, or has 

 some very especial recommendation, has no other means of 

 procuring a plant or a cutting from Kew than such as are dis- 

 graceful to the profession. It is painful to reflect on the 

 moral evils which have been produced through this illiberality, 

 and for which I certainly think the guardians of Kew are to a 

 certain extent chargeable : — at any rate, in estimating the 

 merits or demerits of the Kew system, its moral effects ought 

 to be taken into consideration, as well as those upon the bo- 

 tanical commerce, riches, and enjoyments of lovers of plants 

 and gardening. 



I have not been able to ascertain whether the gardens at 

 Kew are the private property of George IV., or his property 

 as King. If the former is the case, then it may be said the 

 public have no right to complain ; all that they are entitled to 

 say is, that George IV.'s gardener is not so liberal as gardeners 

 generally are ; but if the Kew Garden is royal property, I 

 should think the botanical world have as good a right to expect 

 liberal treatment from its director (by which I mean cut- 

 tings, seeds, or plants of such new things as can be spared, 

 instead of destroying the things, as is now done,) as the inha- 

 bitants of the metropolis have a right to walk in Kensington 

 Gardens. But whether Kew Gardens are public or private 

 property, it is certain the King must have sufficient influence 

 with the director to induce him to act like other directors 

 of botanic gardens ; and I repeat, that if the propriety of 



