116 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ Augnst 10, 1876. 



annual or biennial. Seed may be sown next month or the 

 following, and the plants allowed to winter in the open in well- 

 drained dry beds, to which they have transferred from the seed- 

 bed, or they may be potted into small pots, and kept over in a 

 cold airy house or frame for next season's bedding. Like other 

 Portulaceous plants, it loves to display its beauties in dry ex- 

 posed spots, and under Btrong sunshine. The colour of the 

 flowers, rich purple magenta, is intensely brilliant, and the 

 quantity of colouring matter in the stalk of one of its little 

 flower umbels is quite remarkable. One of them placed in a 

 small glass vase will dye the water of a most beautiful magenta 

 -tint. — (Irish Farmers' Gazette.) 



EOTAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



August 2nd. 



On Wednesday the 2nd inst. a special general meeting of the 

 Fellows of the Royal Horticultural Society — a summary of 

 which appeared in last week's Journal of Horticulture — was 

 held in the Council Room, South Kensington, " for the purpose 

 of hearing a statement by the President as to the financial 

 position of the Society." The chair was taken at three o'clock 

 by Lord Aberdare, the President, who was supported by the 

 following members of the Council : — Lord Alfred S. Churchill, Mr. 

 Henry Webb (Treasurer), Dr. Hogg (Secretary), Mr. Haughton, 

 Dr. Denny, and Mr. Campion. There was a large attendance of 

 Fellows, and amongst them were the Hon. C. S. Butler, Mr. H. 

 Guedalla, Mr. Grote, Mr. Dyer Edwards, Mr. Liggins, Mr. Barr, 

 Dr. Masters, Mr. Shirley Hibberd, Mr. I. I. Wheble, Mr. S. H. 

 GodsoD, Mr. Alfred Smee, Mr. Godwin, Mr. Edgar BowTing, 

 Mr. J. Lee, &c. 



The Pbesident said : — "When last we parted in this room, 

 ladies and gentlemen, it was in the hope that through restored 

 harmony by means of a common and united effort we should 

 be enabled to provide a sufficient income for the maintenance 

 and support of the Society. We thought the Royal Com- 

 missioners would assist us, and they did make offers of assist- 

 ance, accompanied no doubt by certain specific conditions. The 

 Commissioners made offers to the Society, giving us, so to 

 speak, three years' grace as to rent, but binding us to have 

 raised, or to exert ourselves to raise, during those three years 

 -the subscriptions to the amount of £10,000, which would have 

 been ample for all purposes. Well, animated by the appearance 

 of r?stored good feeling on all sides, we exerted ourselves to the 

 utmost to raise the subscriptions to the amount of £10,000 

 annually ; but I now very much regret to have to state that the 

 result has not answered the expectation we had when last we 

 met, or the hopes we certainly held out to the Fellows. We 

 have received since the beginning of the year about £'4500, and 

 we have now in hand only the sum of £1000 to enable us to 

 carry on until the close of the year, and in order to do that we 

 must very materially reduce our expenditure, eo that we shall 

 close the gardens without dishonour. Committees have been 

 appointed both by the Royal Commissioners and by the Society, 

 but, unfortunately, they have never met. Well, under all these 

 distressing circumstances we addressed the following letter to 

 the Secretary of Her Majesty's Commissioners of 1S51 : — 



" Royal Horticultural Societv, South Kensington, S.W. 

 July 25th, 1S76. 



" Sib, — I am directed by the Council of the Royal Horticultural 3ociety to 

 inform you that their efforts to raise subscriptions sufficient for the main- 

 tenance of the gardens, have fatled, and that the amount obtained will not 

 enable them to continue their present expenditure to the end of the year. 

 Under these circumstances they would have been prepared to surrender the 

 lease of the gardens at South Kensington to the Commissioners if they could 

 have done so with propriety and safety to the Society. They are, however, 

 advised that the debenture-holders, whose only security for the payment of 

 their interest is the continued mainteoauce of the gardens, may object to 

 this surrender, and may take legal measures to prevent it. 



" This being the case, the Council have decided upon holding a meeting of 

 the debenture-holders on the 1st Augnst, and of the Fellows of the Society on 

 the 2nd August, in order to acquaint them with the position of the Society, 

 and to inform them that the Society may be compelled in future to abstain 

 from all expenditure on the gardens, and virtually to close them. 



"The Council, however, are unwilling to take this grave step without 

 previously informing the Commissioners of their intention to hold these 

 meetings. 



"I am also desired to add, that the committee of the Council which was 

 appointed to discuss with the committee of the Commissioners any arrange- 

 ments for tie future which it might be expedient to make, is prepared and 

 desirous to meet your committee on as early a day as possible. — I have the 

 honour to be, sir, your obedient servant, Robeet Hogg, Secretary. . 



" Secretary H.M. Commissioners, Exhibition of 1851." 



Xow that being the state of the case let me say one word as to 

 the cause of it. One gentleman in a very short sentence, yes- 

 terday at a meeting of the debenture-holders, suggested that the 

 Society was unable to carry on its proceedings because it did 

 not receive sufficient subscriptions. Well, we unfortunately 

 know it is too true. Since the last meeting — and I will gladly 

 bear testimony to the excellent temper shown by the Fellows 

 ■on that occasion — the fact has been brought out that there is a 

 -very great unwillingness on the part of the inhabitants of this 



neighbourhood to subscribe anything to these gardens as long 

 as they are connected with the Horticultural Society. It was 

 only the other day one gentleman assured me he had in his 

 possession some three hundred letters from persons who live in 

 this neighbourhood, in which was expressed their willingness to 

 subscribe to these gardens as soon as their connection with the 

 Royal Horticultural Society was severed. That shows pretty 

 well the state of feeling which exists. Then, on the other side 

 of the question, we are also aware that there is no inconsiderable 

 number of persons who take an interest in horticulture, who 

 hold back from this Society so long as it is connected with South 

 Kensington. They think that the interests of horticulture are 

 sacrificed to those of South Kensington [hear, hear]. Whether 

 that be bo or not, this feeling is very strong and deep among 

 many horticulturists, and there cannot be a doubt it has been 

 very much increased by the dissensions of last year [hear, hear] . 

 I think you will agree with me that, considering the position in 

 which the Society is placed, the Council have not called you 

 together one moment too early in order that the affairs of the 

 Society may be placed before you. Indeed, you should have 

 been called together sooner if we had not had a hope that those 

 who suggested this union between South Kensington and horti- 

 culture, and who are entrusted with a large amount for the 

 promotion of science and art, would to some extent at leaBt do 

 what they have hitherto done. They have decided. They con- 

 sider they have given us as much assistance as they can. It is 

 not for me to find fault with their decision, but I tell yon plainly 

 you cannot look to them for assistance. Well, then, on the 

 other side, we cannot, with only .£1000 in hand, meet the ordi- 

 nary expenditure of the gardens up to the end of the year. In 

 order to carry on the gardens to the end of the year we must 

 reduce our expenditure. Speaking for myself as a resident, I 

 am not without hope that arrangements may be made with the 

 Royal Commissioners under which Borne portion of the gardens 

 shall be kept as an open space — an ornamental space. The 

 Society, partly through the substance of the unfortunate deben- 

 ture-holders, spent £73,000 on the gardens. The Royal Com- 

 missioners themselves have spent no less a sum than £63,000, 

 and so it seems to me pretty obvious that there has been 

 £140,000 expended on these gardens. I therefore do not think 

 they will be absolutely destroyed, but that some arrangement 

 will be made between the Society and the Commissioners to 

 keep as much of them as an open space as they think proper. 

 As regards the Royal Horticultural Society, I should be ex- 

 tremely sorry the union between the members enould end. I 

 should indeed be extremely sorry it should end. I know many 

 persons connected with the Society who are extremely hopeful 

 that if this connection with South Kensington should be dis- 

 solved they can start again on a broad basis. No doubt they 

 might maintain the gardens at Chiswick. There is an increasing 

 interest in horticultural subjects. There are a number of persons 

 who bear strong testimony to the services to horticulture ren- 

 dered by the Royal Horticultural Society. I do hope, however 

 disastrous may be the end of this union which has now existed 

 some fifteen or sixteen years, it will not be fatal to the interests 

 of the residents of South Kensington on the one hand or of the 

 Society on the other. I sincerely hope it may fall to my lot to 

 make a more cheerful and satisfactory statement on some future 

 occasion [applause]. 



Mr. S. H. Godson. — My lord, I rise on the present occasion to 

 Bubmit a resolution to the meeting, and it wiU be something to 

 this effect, that a committee should be appointed — make it as large 

 as you pleaEe — to go through the accounts of the Society, and to 

 discover the amount of money advanced to the Commissioners 

 of 1S51 for certain works — earthworks and arcades — which had 

 to be carried out under agreements made with the Society. The 

 fact, my lord, is that this Society has paid £125,000 to the Royal 

 Commissioners, who at the time were in want of funds. All 

 these points connected with the accounts, and the money ad- 

 vanced by this Society, should be made the subject of strict 

 investigation by a committee. As to the present Council I 

 exonerate them from all blame for the position in which the 

 Society is placed. I have asserted nothing which cannot be 

 proved. I then beg to move, my lord — 



" That a committee of five Fellows be appointed to go through the accounts 

 of the Society to discover the amount of money advanced to the Commis- 

 sioners of 1851 to pay for certain works, earthworks and arcades, which the 

 latter had to carry out under their agreements with the Society, and which 

 they were not able to pay for in consequence of their being in want of funds 

 at the time, and which sums are still owing by them to.the Society. 



" That the committee report to the Council the amount so owing, and that 

 the Council shall then at once call upon the Commiesioneis of 1851 to refund 

 with interest thereon such sums of money so ascertained to be still ow?ng by 

 them to this Society." 



I think if that resolution is agreed to and acted upon it will 

 result in some advantage to the Society. 



A Fellow seconded the resolution, and said he thought there 

 was some truth in what Mr. Godson said. At all events the 

 Society's property at Chiswick had been shamefully misused, 

 so that it was really necessary to have a committee of investi- 

 gation appointed [hear, hear]. 



