455 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER,- 
Ui; S3,189S. 
Messrs. Barr & Son towards the middle of last week. “ Then, why 
not have said so without so many tinkling ‘ t’s ’ ? ” That, it may be 
assumed, is what some sharp critic of the “ Saynor” type may be 
asking. Well, let him try to accomplish the literary feat, and if he 
succeeds not, to at once admit the necessity of the predominating 
consonants in the interests of veracity. But, again, it may be 
urged that the number of Tulips indicated is nothing extraordinary, 
that nearly as many may be seen in some of the London parks 
earlier in the season, and more in some market growing establish¬ 
ments, to say nothing of the hundreds of thousands of blooms 
glittering in the sunshine in the bulb farms of Holland. Granted, 
but with an important qualification, that they are not the real, true, 
genuine, English florists’ Tulips, of which the Ditton collection 
numbers nearer 30,000 than 20,000, or probably the largest assort¬ 
ment in the world. 
Yet two other questions may be asked. 1, Why are they grown 
in such numbers ? 2, Why are they accorded the specific detigna- 
tion—English ? To the first question it may be said that they 
afford much pleasure to the senior bold bulbaiian and to his son 
Mr. William Barr, who knows them and grows them so well. But 
this is not all, for others, many others, enjoy them too, and find 
their way to the canvas-covered beds at Tulip time. Nor is that 
quite all either, for it would seem as if a compact had been entered 
into and a determination arrived at to popularise these very 
distinct, often erratic, certainly beautiful, and in some respects 
wonderful flowers, and to distribute them far and wide. And why 
not ? The desire is perfectly legitimate. It was, to say the least, 
a bold step to buy collections, large or small, named and untamed, 
at home and abroad, wherever obtainable, when the flowers were, if 
not on the down grade, certainly not in demand. 
And then the after labour in marking, sorting, selecting, 
rejecting, classifying, and naming has been such as few could 
conceive, and not one man in ten thousand would undertake and 
carry out as Mr. William Barr has done. Only an actual deep- 
seated love for the flowers and a sense of duty in attaining the 
object in view could have impelled him to persevere with untiring 
persistency year after year, for assuredly he could have spent bis 
time more profitably if profit had been his immediate object. If 
ever this highest type and most distinguished class of Tulips should 
become popular and generally grown in gardens the result will be 
due to the critical acumen, care, patience, activity, and industry of 
this ardent young Tuliparian more than to any other man ; and if, 
perchance, he should at some distant day find the pursuit a 
commercial success, it will have been so well won that no one will 
begrudge him its enjoyment. 
But to the second question. Why are these particular Tulips 
called English ? The answer is very simple : Because they are 
English. All the best florists’ Tulips at Ditton and elsewhere have 
been raised by English amateurs. They are the result of fertilisa¬ 
tion and years of care in preservation and waiting for the develop¬ 
ment of their final characters. There are florists’ or amateurs’ 
Tulips in their “ broken ” form, as b'zarres, with their golden 
ground and rich crimson to black markings ; bybloemens witn their 
violet, purple, or maroon colouring on a white ground ; also the 
translucent roses, the white of which is more or less covered with 
the most delicate tracings of rose crimson and soft scarlet—there 
are varieties of all these, not of English but Dutch origin ; but it 
is rare to find one having the short smooth cup and clear basal disc 
of yellow or white that invests the flowers with value. Some of 
the Dutch flamed and feathered Tulips are showy enough, but in 
most the petals are too long, thin and irregular, while the flakes of 
colour run down to the base of the cup. These are faults which 
the true English fancier cannot endure. The clear central disc is 
the hall mark of excellence, and while the seedlings are in the self 
stage imparts to them their value and beauty—in fact some of 
them are so charming that it seems almost a pity they should 
change. Yet change they will, and do, sooner or later ; but no 
one knows when nor what they will be when the mysterious 
transformation occurs. This breaking is sometimes a sudden, 
sometimes a deliberate process. In rare instances the colouring 
is first seen as if through a cloud; in others one or more pttals 
may gain a year’s start of the rest, then comes the period of 
rectification. Moreover, there is to the trained eye a change in the 
leaf when the breaking is in process, and then dees the florist 
watch with interest the unfolding of the petals, as he may have a 
gem of the first water, or on the contrary he may have simply lust 
a charming “ mother ” flower by this change. 
Just as Tulips are slow in showing their true character, so are 
the majority of persons who .admire the flowers for decoration 
slow in turn to appreciate their highest attributes. It is as well 
so, cr what would become of the varieties that are lacking in some 
of the esseatial properties which the advanced amateur seeks? 
These, in many respects beautiful fugitives, may ba regarded as so 
many letters in the Tulip alphabet which play an initial part in 
floral education. The learner of music does not at first purchase 
the moat costly instruments, but is content with those of moderate 
price. So it is with flowers, including Tulips, and these are classed 
to meet the means of beginners in their culture. Time and the 
superior examples exhibited by experts at shows, or in home 
collections, do the rest, and the new growers, if their love is 
strong, gain knowledge as they go, and eventually “ break ” into 
florists. There is choice enough in Tulips in the Ditton collection, 
not alone in the English florists’ varieties in the var’ous grades, 
but in the gay “Darwins”—valuable for borders and cutting, 
the gorgeous Gesnerianas, the delicate “Picotees,” the quaint 
“Parrots," and sundry others, but while all are beautiful, and have 
their admirers increasing in number yearly, the refined and correct 
English florists’ Tulips bear the palm, or did a week ago, but they 
are practically over now. Varieties cannot be usefully named 
here, as price is a governing factor, and both the cheapest and the 
rarest can be found in lists which all who may desire can obtain 
and make their own selections. 
BOTHIANA. 
Habits. 
^.Concluded from page 422.) 
Relevant to the subject of bothy studies, and not unconnected 
with this, is the necessity of working on a plan—a system. This 
has been previously alluded to. I refer to it again, as it is a matter 
in which I should like to assist you. Yet it is one for which no 
hard and fast lines can be laid down, so varying in character are 
persons, places, and circumstances, and in all cases, for obvious 
reasons, it must be more or less of an elastic nature. This is its 
weak point. To counteract this do not fail to mark progress 
periodically, weekly or monthly. Pause on these occasions ; sit in 
judgment on yourself and your efforts. This habit of reviewing 
will be of material assistance, and enable you to continually adjust 
the burden to your strength and opportunities. Do not let your 
mind be deprived of that rest which is its due on the seventh day, 
nor allow the freedom of bothy life to lure you from the observance 
of those duties you have paid respect to at home. 
We are advised not to judge the man by the coat that he wears. 
This advice will never prevent criticism. Then court the verdict 
of common sense. Choose some good, honest tweed, suitable to 
your work and your means. Never allow the want of clothes to 
present itself to your mind until the means of payment is in your 
pocket. Have nought to do with the credit sjstem. Pay as you 
go for everything, and you will pay the least and obtain the most 
for money. Acquire the habit of neatness in dress, and of tidiness 
pertaining to your belongings in the bothy. This is too often 
disregarded, but means much to all concerned. 
I do not think a young man is rightly imbued with that respect 
due to himself and to his superiors, who turns out morning after 
morning with dirty boots and a general appearance of deshabille, 
daily increasing till Sunday brings a grand cleaning up. Clean up 
those boots every night, lad ! Are they wet ? Have two pairs, 
one off, one on. This is economy. You cannot afford to despise 
economy. Endeavour to have a margin over your expenses, 
however small. 
“If youth but knew what age would crave, 
How many a sixpence it would save.” 
Ah ! but age is a long, long way off, jou will say. True, but 
remember the subject : Habits, 
Have you ever heard of the Gardeners’ Royal Benevolent 
Institution ? Inaugurate, when bidding farewell to the bothy, 
your new dignity by becoming a member of it. Do, I beseech you, 
for your own sake, for pity’s sake, of some worn and weary 
brother, whom you can aid with your votes. Am I anticipating ? 
This is not relevant to bothy life. Then make it so ; begin at 
once and you will not begin too soon. Anyway, let it be a thank- 
offering when you become a head gardener, and a tangible 
possibility to lean on in the future. It appeals to the highest and 
noblest of human feelings. It has a moral claim on your sympathy. 
I cannot think that you, you that have followed my humble 
endeavour to assist yo i in your journey through bothydom, are 
devoid of this feelinj. No, it cannot be ! Then you will not 
refuse. 
My bothy career was commenced when a wave of the 
temperance crusade swept through the county where I had 
migrated to. I was engulfed in it, became one of “ them 
teetotallers,” and remained so for the bothy period. After many 
years, now, in calm reflection I come to the conclusion this wai not 
a mistake. The subject is one of principle, but embraces a far 
wider field than that of temperance ; that p’hase of the question 
may present no temptations to you, nor did it to me. Here I offer 
