110 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. [ February 8, 1883. 
first picking. As a rule, enough Beans of all kinds are annually 
saved here for seed, as well as Onions, Parsnips, Tomatoes, Melons, 
Cucumbers, and Marrows. Spinach does not find much favour, 
so 1 oz. instead of four would be ample ; therefore 4^ pints of 
Beans and eleven packets of other seeds would be useless to me, 
and in an order would c f course be left out. Last year was not 
favourable for saving seeds ; still those mentioned were secured 
with little extra trouble. 
Whilst I was away a seed catalogue arrived for ray host. I 
remarked, “You still deal with Messrs.-- I suppose?” The 
answer was, “ No, I used to have a guinea box, but there were so 
many things I did not care for that I have given up that mode.” 
Since that, when walking through a friend’s houses, I asked the 
head gardener if he bought collections of seeds. He said, “No, 
because there are so many things I don’t want. When seedsmen 
first sent out their boxes they would take out sorts I had and put 
in a quart or so of Peas instead. They won’t do that now, conse¬ 
quently I never buy them.” I am in this dilemma : I must either 
buy, say, a guinea box containing many things which I have in 
abundance, or pay 26s. or 27s. for a far less quantity. 
It has been suggested that if we were to send our orders, as 
proposed in my former letter, not later than the middle of Novem¬ 
ber it would give plenty of time to execute them before the busy 
season, and then perhaps seedsmen might see their way to allow 
a good per-centage off catalogue prices when they made their “ own 
selections,” the same as florists do with varieties of plants.— 
C. T. H., Dorset. 
A CHRYSANTHEMUM ELECTION. 
In compliance with the frequently expressed desire of many 
cultivators, we a few weeks ago invited all who were disposed to 
do so to select what they considered the best forty-eight varieties 
of incurved Chrysanthemums for exhibition purposes, arranging 
them in three groups—first twelve, second twelve, and remaining 
twenty-four varieties. The response has more than equalled our 
expectations. No less than eighty returns have been sent in from 
the leading cultivators, and we think all the districts are repre¬ 
sented in which special attention is given to the culture of this 
increasingly popular flower. In addition to selections from many 
successful growers in what may be termed the metropolitan area, 
lists have reached us from Liverpool, Birkenhead, Birmingham, 
Bristol, Chesterfield, Southampton, Newcastle-on-Tyne, North¬ 
ampton, Manchester, Leicester, Plymouth, Lublin, and Guernsey. 
The election, therefore, is of wide scope, and as it embodies the 
judgment of prizewinners and adjudicators at most of the prin¬ 
cipal exhibitions the results are entitled to some weight; indeed 
we may go further, and say that the outcome of this united effort 
to determine the relative merits of the different varieties is the 
best, most complete, and authoritative selection of incurved Chrys¬ 
anthemums that has ever been published. 
Counting the votes in elections whether of individuals or of 
flowers not infrequently leads to surprises. Confident antici¬ 
pations are often rebuked and foregone conclusions shattered. If 
anyone asks, What is the use of an election of Chrysanthemums ? 
the reply is, The increasing number of requests for lists of the 
best varieties after selections have been given again and again by 
ourselves and others well able to give them. Something more 
than the choice of one or two individuals has been required, and 
now it is afforded. But it may have been, and has been observed 
by some, that “any grower knows which are the twelve best 
varieties, and therefore an election is not needed.” The facts are, 
however, decidedly against the accuracy of this judgment: for so 
far from “anybody” being in possession of this information we 
find, as the first surprise, that not one of the eighty electors named 
all the varieties that received the aggregate number of votes for 
placing them in the highest position. Again, it was thought by 
not a few that only a very limited number of varieties would be 
selected, and the majority of those in commerce, good as they 
might be, would remain unnoticed. The contrary has been the 
case ; and this brings us to the second surprise and curious fact, 
that in the seventy-seven lists submitted, of which the votes were 
counted, just seventy-seven varieties were named as worthy a 
place in the first twelve. The three remaining lists arrived too 
late to be included, but we have satisfied ourselves by a careful 
examination that they would not have altered the relative positions 
of the best flowers. The total number of Chrysanthemums that 
have been named in the lists is 156, which exceeds the varieties 
of the same type enumerated in the majority of catalogues. Many 
varieties have been named by several cultivators as identical with 
others that are named, or too closely resembling them. The 
returns under this head, or an analysis of them, will be published 
in a future issue, and will certainly not be the least interesting 
and instructive feature of this election, although it is not unlikely 
that the accuracy of some of the individual decisions may be 
questioned ; still there will be such a consensus of opinion in 
regard to many of the flowers that will amount to a verdict that 
will meet with general acceptance. 
It only remains to be explained that the figures in the first 
column of the following table indicate the number of first-class 
votes, or votes recorded in favour of the varieties being placed in 
the first twelve ; the number in the second column representing 
second-class votes, or those entered for the second twelve varieties ; 
the third, as is apparent, containing the total number of votes 
recorded for each variety in the list. We have not tabulated 
any varieties that received less than five votes, but we add 
them at the foot of the list ; nor, considering the great 
number of sorts included, has it been necessary to add a 
column for third-class votes for the remaining twenty-four varie¬ 
ties, as those that do not find a place in either of the two twelves 
Daturally fall into the remaining category, and the general estimate 
of them is expressed by the relative number of votes recorded 
Result of the Tolling. 
1st 
Class 
Votes. 
2nd 
Class 
Votes. 
Total. 
1. Prince Alfred 
61 *■ 
13 
74 
2. Golden Empress of India 
64- 
9 
73 
3. Princess of Wales 
65 * 
7 
72 
4. Empress of India.. 
65- 
6 
71 
5. Jardin des Plantes 
45 . 
25 
70 
6. Queen of England 
50 
19 
69 
7. Barbara 
37 . 
30 
67 
8. Princess of Teck .. 
27. 
39 
66 
9. Hero of Stoke Newington 
41 . 
21 
62 
10. Mrs. Heale. 
41 , 
17 
58 
11. Mr. Bunn .. 
31 . 
25 
56 
12. Ladv Hardinge \ . 
25 
31 
66 
13. John Salter 
41 
11 
52 
14. White Venus 
17 
32 
49 
15. Refulgence. 
32, 
15 
47 
16. Nil Desperandum 
18 
27 
45 
17. Mrs. G. Rundle .. 
16 
18 
44 
—18. Prince of Wales .. 
15 
28 
43 
19. Alfred Salter .. .. 
28 
16 
42 
20. Venus 
9 
27 
36 
21. Mrs. Dixon 
11 
21 
32 
22. Cherub . 
8 
24 
32 
23. Mr. G. Glennv 
8 
21 
29 
24. Princess Beatrice.. 
5 
24 
29 
25. Lady Slade 
6 
22 
28 
26. Bronze Jardin des Plantes 
6 
21 
27 
27. White Globe 
7 
17 
24 
28. Novelty 
7 
16 
23 
29. Mr. Brunlee? 
6 
16 
22 
30. White Beverley '.. 
8 
13 
2L 
31. Golden Queen of England 
11 
9 
20 
32. Eve .. 
7 
13 
20 
33. Isabella Bott 
6 
14 
20 
34. Mrs. Haliburton .. 
6 
14 
20 
35. Baron Beust 
5 
15 
20 
36. Golden Beverley .. 
4 
15 
19 
37. Empress Eugenie.. 
7 
10 
17 
38. Lord Derby 
5 
12 
17 
39. Emily Dale. 
6 
10 
16 
40. Beauty 
5 
10 
15 
41. Mr. Howe .. 
11 
3 
14 
42. Mrs. Shipman 
3 
11 
14 
43. Miss Mary Morgan 
5 
7 
12 
44. Guernsev Nugget.. 
5 
7 
12 
45. Lady Talfourd 
1 
10 
11 
—46. Pink Venus 
3 
7 
10 
47. Beverley. 
0 
10 
10 
48. Pink Perfection .. 
2 
7 
9 
49. St. Patrick.. 
1 
8 
9 
- 50. Mabel Ward 
2 
6 
8 
"51. Sir Stafi T ord Carey 
2 
6 
8 
52. Blonde Beauty 
2 
6 
8 
53. Golden Eagle 
0 
8 
8 
54. Lord Wolseley 
G 
1 
7 
55. Mr. Gladstone 
4 
2 
6 
56. Incognito .. 
2 
4 
6 
57. Antonelli .. 
1 
5 
6 
58. Mr. Cullingford .. 
2 
3 
5 
59. Golden John Salter 
1 
5 
6 
60. Beethoven. 
0 
5 
5 
61. Angelina. 
0 
6 
5 
62. General Bainbrigge 
0 
5 
5 
The varieties that secured less than five first and second-class 
votes were as follows :—White Queen of England, Hercules, Le 
Grande, Duchess of Manchester, Mr. Corbay, Belladonna, Enamel, 
Countess of Dudley, Virgin Queen, Lilac Princess, Queen of the 
Isles, Fingal, Gloria Mundi, Snowball, Monarch, Clarissa, Orange 
Perfection, Mount Edgcumbe, and Aimee Ferriere. 
The following were only included in the lists of second twelves, 
and each obtained less than five votes :—Aureum multiflorum, Miss 
