April 7, 1881. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
275 
remarkable. While there was any moisture either in the atmo¬ 
sphere or in the soil near the surface, we had sharp frosts (several 
degrees) every night, with scorching hot sun during the day, 
and a persistent dry north-east wind. At present, with a view 
from our windows of several miles, I cannot perceive anything 
green. Had the dreaded simoom from the African deserts paid us 
a visit I cannot imagine an effect more parching. I have been 
watering my outdoor hardy plants for the past week to keep them 
alive until more genial weather comes. Early buds and tender 
flowers have been dried up from the combined causes named. 
At present there can be no frost, because there is no moisture to 
freeze.” 
- W t e learn that at a recent meeting of the Darlington 
Gardeners’ Institute Mr. J. Bousfield read an excellent 
treatise on the “ Mixed Flower Border,” in which he gave par¬ 
ticulars of the plants to be employed, and the mode of arranging 
them to provide a succession of flowers from early spring until 
late autumn. In the course of his remarks he thus referred to 
Tropmolum Hunteri—“ I saw this fine Tropmolum at Raby 
Castle. It was dwarLas a Viola, and a mass of scarlet flowers 
even surpassing Vesuvius Pelargonium. Mr. Westcott valued it 
highly, and said he would propagate some thousands of it. He 
had it from Mr. Hunter of Lambton Castle, but though called by 
his name it was not raised by him.” 
- The following gardening appointments have recently 
been made—Mr. W. S. Campbell, late gardener to Wm. Garnett, 
Esq., Lucan House (Fair Lawn), Ripon, has been appointed gar¬ 
dener to R. S. Donkin, Esq., Camp Ville, North Shields ; Mr. 
Charles Warden, late foreman at Sarsden House, Chipping Norton, 
succeeds Mr. Frisby as gardener to Col. Bathurst, Clarendon 
Park, Salisbury; Mr. D. Judd, late gardener at The Castle, 
Warwick, succeeds the late Mr. Gray as gardener to C. Seeley, 
Esq., M.P., Brooke, Isle of Wight; Mr. William Hazel, late fore¬ 
man at Warnham Court, Horsham, has been appointed gardener 
to Lady Ormathwaite, Warfield Park, Bracknell; and Mr. J. 
Legge, late foreman at The Castle, Warwick, succeeds the late 
Mr. Broadbridge as gardener to Sir Charles Mordaunt, Walton 
House, Warwick. 
-At the recent annual meeting of the NewcASTLE-on-Tyne 
Botanical and Horticultural Society Mr. Gillespie, the 
Secretary, read the report, which stated that to place the Society 
on a firmer basis it had been resolved to incorporate it under the 
Board of Trade, with powers to form a botanic garden, should 
there be an opportunity at any future date. The Treasurer’s 
report was read, which showed a deficiency of £234 3s. Id. On this 
account the Committee have decided not to hold an autumn show 
this year. The loss from that source last year was £300. Mr. J. 
G. Riddell, Swinburne Castle, was elected President, and the 
Mayor of Newcastle, Alderman Angus, Vice-President for the 
present year. 
- “ W. R. K.” writes as follows on the Effect of the 
Winter on Roses near Manchester— “ The last two winters 
have been the more disastrous to outdoor Roses than any since 
1860, and amongst others I have lost many of the older varieties 
that have weathered all seasons till the last, notably Charles 
Lefebvre, Etienne Levet, Madame Charles Wood, Victor Verdier, 
Madame Victor Verdier, General Jacqueminot, John Hopper, 
Eugene Appert, Francois Michelon, Sbnateur Vaisse, Beauty of 
Waltham, and Mrs. Rivers, also the Baronne de Rothschild, which 
till the last frost appeared to have weathered the winters. Out of 
forty-eight varieties planted last season I have lost nearly three- 
fourths ; the season of 1879-80 not quite so many. Last season 
many were cut down to the snow line, and afterwards made noble 
plants. This they appear to have suffered a little below the surface ; 
but as I plant my Roses rather deep I hope to see good strong 
growth again, but expect very few flowers except on those planted 
this month, which so far look very well indeed.” 
MR. WILLIAM ROBINSON. 
Mr. William Robinson is apparently galled at losing his 
action for libel against us, and shows his chagrin in the last issue 
of his paper in a manner which we have no intention of imitating : 
we therefore will not bandy personalities with him. With reference 
to his puny threat “ to notice our doings ” in the future, the public 
when they see these “ notices of our doings ” will judge henceforth 
by what spirit our critic is actuated, and whether it is to gratify 
a feeling of rancour or to advance the interests of “ the pro¬ 
fession.” As the statements he has made are only the puling of 
a twice-defeated person we let them pass, with an expression of 
regret that horticultural journalism should have been made the 
vehicle of so much ill-feeling engendered of disappointment. The 
charge he has brought against Dr. Hogg is absolutely false, and 
is of a very serious nature. It accuses him, while holding an official 
appointment in the Royal Horticultural Society, of using influence 
which that appointment was supposed to give him to injure Mr. 
William Robinson. He says, “ Dr. Hogg when Pomological 
Director of the Royal Horticultural Society would not allow the 
Garden to be taken at Chiswick for the young men’s reading or 
for the office.” We are in a position to state that this is untrue, 
that all orders are and have been carried out through Mr. Barron, 
and that the following letter to Dr. Hogg received from Mr. 
Barron is a complete refutation of this base calumny— 
“ Royal Horticultural Society, Chiswick Garden, W., 
“ April 4th, 1881. 
“ Sir,—I observe a statement in the Garden of Saturday last, that 
whilst you were Pomological Director of the Royal Horticultural 
Society you ‘ would not allow the Garden to be taken at Chiswick 
for the young men’s reading room or for the office.’ I think it is 
due to you for me to say that this statement is untrue. As a fact 
the Garden was not one of the gardening papers taken in at Chiswick 
at that time, but I was never forbidden by the Board or yourself to 
order it, and since you have been Secretary it has been taken in 
regularly. I shall write to Mr. Robinson to correct the statement. 
“ I am, Sir, your obedient servant, 
“ A. F. Barron.” 
We are at a loss to conceive what good purpose can be served 
by the course Mr. William Robinson is pursuing. Horticultural 
journalism has for the present generation at least been conducted 
with every sense of propriety, good feeling, and good taste; 
but the course he has adopted, not only towards ourselves, but 
with one or two exceptions to every one of his contemporaries, 
is devoid of either of these. He assumes the part of a censor 
of men superior in every respect to himself, and he criticises 
his contemporaries in a style which can only be characterised 
as impertinent. We will not treat our antagonist as he at¬ 
tempted to treat us, believing as we do with a daily contem¬ 
porary that “ there is no more pitiable confession of weakness 
than for one journal to appeal for legal protection against another. 
How can a newspaper which has so little faith in its own ability 
to defend itself expect to be respected by the public generally as a 
powerful organ of opinion?” We now part with Mr. Robin¬ 
son as Uncle Toby parted with an overgrown fly that buzzed 
about his nose one day at dinner. “ Go, I’ll not hurt thee, says my 
Uncle Toby, rising from his chair and going across the room with 
the fly in his hand—I’ll not hurt a hair of thy head : Go, says he, 
lifting up the sash, and opening his hand as he spoke, to let it 
escape. Go, poor creature, get thee gone ; why should I hurt thee ? 
This world surely is wide enough to hold both thee and me.” 
ABOUT FLOWER SHOW SCHEDULES. 
Some time since an esteemed friend of the writer, who is well 
known as an excellent contributor to your pages, drew the atten¬ 
tion of your readers to certain matters in connection with the 
framing of schedules of prizes at flower shows. Many of the 
smaller societies which hold shows in the months of August and 
September will now be constructing or reconstructing their prize 
lists ; therefore if the subject of classifying the various fruits 
and vegetables that are usually shown in collections could be 
discussed in the pages of the Cottage Gardener much good might 
be done, much dissatisfaction at the judges’ awards avoided, many 
reflections on flower-show committees would be stopped, and 
generally speaking everybody interested, from the visitor to the 
judge, would be more certain of the objects aimed at and better 
satisfied with the results. 
Collections of fruit or vegetables are one great source of annoy- 
