226 THE BOOK OP THE ROSE chap. 



and the legend "Flowers in water this side up, with 

 care," is not much heeded if there is no one pro- 

 minently visible from whom a tip may be expected. 



On one occasion Mr. Burrell of Cambridge and I 

 were travelling together by night to the Northern 

 Provincial Show of the National Eose Society. At a 

 certain station we had to change, and after keeping 

 guard over our pile of boxes for a while, we thought, 

 as all seemed quiet, we might leave them for a little. 

 We were not absent more than five minutes, but on 

 our return all the boxes had absolutely disappeared. 

 It was not till just as our train was starting that we 

 were assured, and satisfied ourselves by the dim light 

 of a lamp, that our boxes were all in the van. We 

 thought it was all right, but my pet twenty-four, on 

 which I had spent a great deal of trouble, travelled 

 the whole of the rest of its journey actually upside 

 down. My companion, who had arranged to take 

 care of the boxes on our arrival, during the small 

 portion of the night that remained, discovered the 

 mishap soon after I had left him : and with a kind- 

 ness I shall not readily forget, did his best to restore 

 order, and comfort, and cleanliness to the poor Eoses, 

 with such success that they gained a third prize. 



At another of the N.E..S. Northern shows I was 

 going to show " six new Eoses." A six box is, or at 

 least mine was, nearly square, but that does not seem 

 a legitimate reason why a porter should have rolled 

 that poor box out of the van just as if it were a 

 cheese. Though my remonstrance was meant to be 

 severe, the man hoped I should "remember him," 

 and I have done so. 



Truly much depends upon the setting up and final 

 arrangement of the Eoses at the place of exhibition. 



