England's Queen toward the United States dates from that happy 
moment. 
The Rosa Hugonis is as lovely, I will concede. The long 
sprays of single yellow flowers, the color of primroses, are 
quite as beautiful as the same long sprays of the semi-double 
Harrison rose. The two are charming together, and I would 
have them both. 
I recently met one of our great rose growers and his enthusiasm 
for the Rosa Hugonis made me champion the Harrison rose with per- 
haps too great emphasis. At last he silenced me with this withering 
remark "The Rosa Hugonis is a perfect ancestor 1" (See Mr. ^Mc- 
Farland's article.) 
Gladiolus Primulinus 
It may be desirable to place on record, before they are forgotten, 
the facts connected with the above group of flowering plants, as 
these constitute some of the most beautiful and decorative flowers at 
present grown. During the construction of the important railway 
bridge across the gorge of the Zambesi in Rhodesia — of which Sir 
Charles Metcalfe, Bart., and Sir Douglas Fox and Partners were the 
engineers — the resident engineer, Mr. S. F. Townsend, found certain 
flowers which were growing under the spray of the Victoria Falls, and 
which seemed to thrive notv^dthstanding the deluge of water, which 
ver}^ soon soaked the discoverer to the skin in obtaining them. He, 
being a gardener, kindly sent in 1902 four bulbs or corms by post to 
Wimbledon; but, not knowing what they were, was unable to give 
any clue as to the treatment they required. As, however, they came 
from Central Africa, and were therefore accustomed to heat and to 
almost continual rain from the Falls, my head-gardener, Mr. John 
Richards, and I decided that we would give them both a high tem- 
perature and wet treatment. 
On December i, 1903, we were rewarded by the appearance of 
three or four spikes of bloom of a deHcate and beautiful growth, viith 
leaves xery similar to those of Montbretia, the plants standing about 
2 feet in height. The flower was of a rich butter yellow, self-coloured, 
the centre petal of which was bent down or depressed, forming a hood 
over the pistil and stamens, thus protecting the pollen from falling 
rain. It was e\idently due to this pecuharity and provision of such a 
remarkable character that the plant thrived and increased under 
apparently most unpromising conditions. 
One of the spikes was immediately sent by messenger to the then 
Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, Sir William Thiselton- 
25 
