JtJNfiJ, 1912.] 



523 



Horticulture, 



two or three competent friends to do so 

 also ; or if there is a show Committee, 

 then each of its members should revise it, 

 for when once issued, they are both 

 collectively and individually responsible 

 for its smooth working. By this means 

 many doubtful points, or points capable 

 of diverse interpretation, and inexact 

 definitions are sure to be discovered, and 

 can be rectified which would otherwise 

 remain undetected, until misunderstand- 

 ing and heart-burnings arise on the show 

 day itself. 



During the last year or two I have been 

 carefully collecting examples of errors 

 in Schedules which have come under 

 my own supervision, and of the difficul- 

 ties arising therefrom :— and this paper 

 has been written in order to bring a few 

 of these actual examples to your notice. 

 For just as the interpretation of the 

 common law of our land is based upon 

 the cases tried in the Courts, as explain- 

 ing and establishing it, so, somewhat 

 similarly, the interpretation of the laws 

 governing a Flower Show will be better 

 understood if examples of defective, 

 inexact, or erroneous wording of Schedu- 

 les or the misunderstanding of them by 

 exhibitors, are considered. And as the 

 R.H.S, Code of Rules for Judging, the 

 latest revision of which was published 

 this summer, has become, or is becoming 

 the generally accepted code throughout 

 this country, and the Colonies, I shall, as 

 far as possible, bring these Rules to bear 

 on the points considered. 



As I open this Code of Rules, my eyes 

 immediately catch these lines in the Pre- 

 face: "Too great stress cannot be laid 

 upon the necessity which exists that 

 Schedules should be framed with the 

 utmost care and exactness, Too frequ- 

 ently indefiniteness, or looseness and 

 ambiguity of expression .... are respon- 

 sible for much of the dissatisfaction 

 which so often arises." 



The following are actual examples of 

 such inexactness of expression :— 



1. Class for "The Best Display of 

 Preserved Fruits," 



This immediately suggests the question 

 ** What is meant by the word ' preset 



ved '?" Is it bottled fruit, or is it jams, 

 or is it dried fruit— or is it all or any of 

 them ? The Schedule nowhere gives any 

 clue to the interpretation of the word, 

 and an intending exhibitor must decide 

 for himself which he will show, and risk 

 loss of points or even disqualification. 

 The Schedule could so easily have used 

 the word ' bottled ' instead of 'preserved,' 

 if bottled fruits only were intended ; or 

 if the wider scope of "any preservation" 

 was allowed it should have run "Dis- 

 play of Preserved Fruits; Bottled, Dried, 

 and Jams all admissible." 



Perhaps you will say, " But anyone 

 could have written to the Secretary." 

 Well, now, as it happens, one exhibitor 

 did so write, and the reply was that 

 "Bottled fruit was meant"— and, of 

 course, that exhibitor showed only 

 bottled stuff. And what was the issue ? 

 That exhibitor's bottled fruit was super- 

 ior to anyone else's, but the judges gave 

 the first prize to a collection of bottled 

 fruit and jams, with one or two speci- 

 mens of dried fruit, holding that the 

 larger and more varied exhibit over- 

 passed the slight superiority of the 

 other's bottled fruit, and that as the 

 variation was distinctly permissible, 

 according to the Schedule, they could 

 not accept the interpretation of the 

 Secretary, especially as it would dis- 

 qualify all the other exhibitors, who, 

 had, one and all, included jam in their 

 display. 



2. A Class for "A Basket of Vege- 

 tables." 



There were several entries for this ; 

 all the competitors but one showed their 

 produce in boxes, and the box-staged 

 vegetables happened to be best, and got 

 all the prizes awarded. Thereupon the 

 one basket exhibitor lodged a protest— 

 and rightly— but was told that " basket " 

 simply meant a "receptacle of any 

 kind " I Now, if that was meant, why 

 did not the Schedule say so ? The word 

 " basket " has a definite and specific 

 meaning in horticulture, and in our 

 language, and cannot possibly be inter- 

 preted to mean " any " receptacle, 

 which might be a tin-pot or a basin, 



