CONCERNING ROSE-SHOWS 201 



* poured their treasures into St. James's Hall.' There 

 were twenty boxes from Sawbridgeworth alone. There 

 were glorious collections, large and lovely, from Ches- 

 hunt and Colchester, Hertfordshire and Hereford, 

 Exeter and Slough. But I had brief time, as secre- 

 tary and supervisor, that day for * idle tears ' or other 

 private emotions. Had I been editor of Notes and 

 Queries^ the Fields and the Queen conjointly, I could 

 not have had more questions put to me. Had I 

 possessed the hundred hands of Briareus, not one 

 would have been unemployed. Then the censors 

 reported their verdicts ; the prize-cards were placed 

 by the prize-Roses ; and then came 



The momentous question, Would the public endorse 

 our experiment? Would the public appreciate our 

 Show? There was a deficiency of ;^'iOO in our funds, 

 for the expenses of the exhibition were ^300 ; and as 

 a matter both of feeling and finance I stood by the 

 entrance as the clock struck two, anxiously to watch 

 the issue. 



No long solicitude. More than fifty shillings — I 

 humbly apologise — more than fifty intelligent and 

 good-looking individuals were waiting for admission ; 

 and these were followed by continuous comers, until 

 the Hall was full. A gentleman, who earnestly asked 

 my pardon for having placed his foot on mine, seemed 

 perplexed to hear how much I liked it, and evidently 



