^REPORT, 



Natal Botanic Gardens, 



Berea, Durban, January, 1899. 



To the President and Committee, 



Durban Botanic Societt. 



GeNTLENEN, 



In presenting my seventeenth Annual Report, I have again 

 much pleasure in being able to say that we have had in all 

 respects a most successful season, the rainfall for the year as 

 will be seen from the Abstract of Meteorological Observations 

 kindly supplied by the Government Astronomer has been 42*48 

 inches which is 8*09 more than the fall for 1897, which was 

 also a good year. We have not suffered damage from drought, 

 flood, or gales of wind, and though the locusts have visited us 

 on several occasions, they stayed but a short time, and did no 

 material damage. 



The year has been again an exceedingly busy one, and im- 

 provements, other than the erection of the new Jubilee Palm 

 House could not be undertaken. The attempt to provide a 

 Palm House and Conservatory which should be worthy of the 

 Gardens and the town was commenced in 1897, and a sub- 

 committee consisting of Mr. T. W. Edmonds and Mr. M. S. 

 Evans, M.L.A., was appointed to obtain subscriptions for this 

 purpose from the public, and as will be seen by the statement 

 of accounts submitted herewith their efforts were met with 

 very distinct success, especially when it is considered that all 

 the subscriptions were obtained from Durban residents, and 

 none were asked for, from either the Government or the Cor- 

 poration. As soon as it was found that sufficient funds would 

 be obtained, tenders were called for at Home, several designs 

 were sent, and that of Messrs. Jas. Boyd & Son, of Glasgow, 

 was finally selected as being the most suitable, tenders were 

 then invited for the brick work, &c, &c, and for erecting the 

 superstructure on its arrival. 



