March 3, 1892. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
159 
freedom from overcrowding. Should any of these conditions be broken 
the Council may, after giving the owner an opportunity of remedying 
the breach, if it is capable of remedy, cause the holding to be sold. Any 
such sale may be made either subject to the charge in respect of pur¬ 
chase money or free from it. In either case the sale will be like the 
first sale of a small holding. After satisfying themselves, the Council 
are to pay the remainder of the proceeds of sale to the person appearing 
to be entitled to receive it. Under special circumstances, to be recorded 
in their minutes, the Council may sell under this clause, free from all or 
any of the conditions imposed by it. Where a holding is Ut by the 
Council it is to be held subject to the same conditions of this clause as if 
it were sold, except so far as concerns the purchase money. If any such 
condition or any term of the lease is broken the Council may, after 
giving the tenant an opportunity of remedying the breach, determine 
the tenaney. 
Where it is practicable the Couneil must sell or let as small holdings, 
and in accordance with the Bill, any land acquired under the Bill. But 
if they are of opinion that any such land is not needed for or is 
unsuitable for small holdings, or cannot be sold or let under the fore¬ 
going provisions, or that some more suitable land is available, they may 
sell or let the land otherwise than under those provisions, or may 
exchange it for other land more suitable for small holdings, and may 
pay or receive money for equality of exchange, and may erect such 
buildings and execute such other works as will in tae opinion of the 
Council enable the land to be sold or let without loss. Any such letting 
is to be at the best annual rent that can be obtained without any 
premium or fine, and on such terms as may enable the Council to resume 
possession of the land within a period not exceeding twelve months. 
Also while any sale is pending they may temporarily let or manage the 
holding. Upon any sale under this Clause 8, the sections 128-132 of the 
Lands Clauses Act, which relate to the right of pre-emption of super¬ 
fluous lands, are to apply. Thus the land is to be first offered to the 
owner of the lands from which it was originally severed, and secondly 
to the owners of the lands immediately adjoining. In case of any 
difference the price to be paid by either of them would be settled by 
arbitration. 
Where a Council provide small holdings of such a sisse that dwelling- 
houses cannot, by virtue of the conditions of the Bill, be erected thereon, 
they may delegate, with or without restrictions, their powers with 
respect to the adaptation of land for the .holdings, and the sale, letting, 
and management of them, to a Committee. This Committee will consist 
of the County Councillor representing the electoral division in which the 
holdings are situate, two other members of the Council, and two of the 
Allotment Managers under the Act of 1887 for the parish or area in 
which the holdings are situate, selected by those managers, or, if there 
are no Allotment Managers, two persons appointed in manner provided 
by that Act for the appointment of Allotment Managers. The Council 
are, however, not to delegate any powers of making or levying a rate 
or of borrowing money. 
The second part of the Bill deals with loans to tenants. Where a 
tenant of a “ small holding ” has agreed with his landlord for its pur¬ 
chase, the County Council may advance to the tenant on the security 
of the holding an amount not exceeding three-fourths of the purchase 
money. The provisions of the Bill with respect to the purchase money 
secured by a eharge on a holding sold by a County Council, and with 
respect to a holding so sold, are to apply to an advance made and to a 
holding purchased under this clause. The exception, of course, is that 
the Council will not guarantee the title. However, no advance is to be 
made by the Council under this clause unless they are satisfied that the 
title is good, that the sale is made in good faith, and that the price is 
reasonable. 
In Part III. it is laid down that a Council are not to acquire land 
under the Bill, save at such price that in their opinion all expenses 
incurred by the Council in relation to it will be recouped out of the 
purchase money or rent for the land sold or let by the Council. They 
are to fix the purchase money or rent at such reasonable amount as will, 
in their opinion, guard them against loss. The Council are required 
not to take proceedings under the Bill whereby the charge for the time 
being on the county rate, including the annual payments in respect of 
the loans raised for the purposes of the Bill, is in their opinion likely 
to exceed in any one year the amount produced by a rate of a penny 
in the pound. Where the charge is at any time equal, or nearly equal, 
to that amount, no further land is to be purchased in pursuance of the 
Bill until the charge has been decreased so as to admit of the further 
purchase without exceeding the amount. 
For the purposes of the Bill the Council borrow money in accordance 
with the Local Government Act of 1888, or. if the Council of a county 
borough, with the Public Health Act of 1875. But money so borrowed 
must be repaid within such period, not exceeding fifty years, as the 
Council, with the consent of the Local Government Board, determine in 
each case. The Public Works Loan Commissioners may, in manner 
provided by the Public Works Loans Act of 1875, lend any money 
which may be borrowed by a County Council for the purposes of the 
Bill. Every such loan by the Loan Commissioners will bear such rate 
of interest, not less than £3 23. 6d. per cent, per annum, as the Treasury 
may authorise as being in their opinion sufficient to enable loans to be 
made without loss to the Exchequer. Any capital money received by a 
Council in payment of purchase money for land sold, or in repayment of 
an advance, is to be applied, with the sanction of the Local Government 
Board, either in repayment of debt or for any other purpose for which 
capital money may be applied. The expenses incurred by the Council 
of a county borough are to be defrayed out of the borough fund of 
borough rate, and any money borrowed by such a Council is to be 
borrowed on the security of that fund or rate. 
For the purposes of the Bill the expressions “agriculture" and 
“cultivation” include horticulture and the use of land for any purpose 
of husbandry, inclusive of the keeping or breeding of live stock, poultry, 
or bees, and the growth of fruit, vegetables, and the like. 
The Bill extends to Scotland, with regard to which country there are 
some modifications in Clauses 14 and 15. To Ireland the Bill does not 
apply in any way. 
THE FLORIST’S RANUNCULUS. 
[Read before the Wakefield Paxton Society, Pebruary 12th, 1802, by KfiV. F. D. HORNBB.] 
(^Continued from jpage 143.^ 
From its nature as a moisture-loving plant, the Ranunculus 
delights in a soil that is firm and retentive of moisture without 
being soured by it. I do not think colour is of so much importance 
as texture and coolness. Soil that will grow good Buttercups will 
suit Ranunculuses ; but the most wondrous success I ever knew 
was that of a Halifax grower, many years ago now. A^. the lower 
part of his garden was a plot of black greasy bog earth. Not a 
sour marsh, but a fat black paste never dry, nor yet water-logged. 
He used to win as many prizes almost as he liked to try for, and 
the vigour of the plants was wonderful. The stems were 2 and 
2^ feet high, giving very fair side blooms, and unapproachable 
crown flowers of splendid depth, substance, form and colour. 
Those who have known the Ranunculus can appreciate a result 
like this. The foliage was in splendid condition, and the increase 
good. Mr. Lightbody accomplished something similar once, but 
never again, by treating his Ranunculus bed in part with the high 
stimulant of guano. He said the plants were marvellous, and the 
flowers also ; but when they died down, there was not a tuber 
among them. They had perished like so many annuals. The 
Ranunculus loves a cool firm bottom to the bed, and it is a mistake 
to dig over ground that suits them—I was going to say, again—but 
at any rate not later than after they are recently taken up, that it 
may have plenty of time to settle. I only ruffle mine over to a 
depth of 3 inches at planting time, and a sufficient enrichment, if 
such be required, is a thin dressing of cow manure laid on as soon 
as the bed is at liberty in summer. It is no worse for bning still 
rather fresh, for between July and February the summer rai-ns will 
wash it in, and the winter weather mellow it. It is better than 
horse manure, as giving a more cool and retentive nature to the soil. 
When the young foliage appears, it is apt to loosen the soil 
round the tuber neck, and therefore any such exposure should be 
remedied by carefully pressing the soil round the leaf growths. 
Snails are very fond of eating ofE the young leaves as they appear, 
and this quickly weakens or destroys the plant. The best preven¬ 
tives are sprinkling the bed pretty freely with soot just before the 
leaves appear, and in addition hunting for slugs by lantern light on 
favourable nights. Large earthworms create disturbances, and 
may be captured at the same time if they face the soot. 
Speaking of Ranunculus foliage leads me to mention, as I 
promised, one of the most delicate points in Ranunculus cultuie—- 
namely, the management of this moisture-loving plant in a spell of 
dry hot weather in May or June. 
Here we must not argue from the Chrysanthemum another 
moisture-loving plant—to the Ranunculus. Chrysanthemums must 
have water in dry weather, and Ranunculuses must not ; Chrys¬ 
anthemum foliage will suffer if you do not water in dry weather, 
and Ranunculus foliage will suffer if you do ! You can only 
safely water Ranunculuses when it rains ! But suppose no sh iwery 
spell breaks in upon a drought. How then? Well! if you feel 
that you cannot resist the temptation to water the Ran^unculus 
bed, beseech a neighbour to borrow your water cans, or hide them 
for you till it rains ! To meet this summertide contingency of 
drought, which is pretty sure to happen in some degree or other, 
the Ranunculuses should have been forearmed against it. You 
may run the shading material for blooining under, over the ^d, 
and it will save the plants some distress in bright suns me. a 
there should be means provided beforehand for withstanding droug t 
by a preventive to excessive evaporation. The bed should e covere 
about quarter inch deep after planting with either ne san or 
sifted leaf mould with flakiness still in it. Rub it through a quarter- 
inch sieve. Either will look desperately dry in dry weatner, but 
you will find that, at less than 1 inch below, the soil is moist 
enough, and will remain so through any probable 
the sifted leaf mould better than sand, because sand ^as to be 
taken off again, lest in time it make the soil too > 'Iv.Qf Uaf 
mould works in, and retains moisture better. More ’ 
mould is a worse conductor of heat than dry hot san , P 
the bed cooler. , ,, iBan 
Now I will mention why watering in dry weather is w 
