448 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
r November 15, If8 
Punica Granatum and Ceratoni asiliqua belong to the flora of these 
islands, so does Olea europma. 
We think that Ceratonia should be more extensively cultivated for 
the sake of the abundant Carobs it produces, called Harrub, which are 
eaten by the poorer classes, especially in times of dearth, and form a 
nourishing food for all kinds of cattle. A very considerable quantity is 
consumed yearly by horses. It is, therefore, largely imported from 
Sicily and Cyprus, the quantity of pods produced in Malta being 
insufficient for this purpose. The Malta Carobs are sold from 2s. 6d. to 
5s. per cwt. The Carob tree does not require any particular culture ; it 
is slow in growing and lives for many ages, especially if care be taken 
to screen it from the cold northern winds which visit us during winter, 
by planting the young trees on the northern sides of the ravines. 
THE BRITISH FRUIT GROWERS’ ASSOCIATION. 
A meeting of the above Association was held in the Balloon Boom) 
Royal Aquarium, on Thursday last, November 8th, to discuss the 
subject of railway rates in relation to fruit transit. Mr. T. F. Rivers 
took the chair at 5 P.M., and amongst those present were Mr. W. Roupell, 
Brixton ; Mr. Albert Bath. Sevenoaks ; Mr. J. Laing, Forest Hill ; Mr. 
ll.Ivatt, Cambridge ; Mr. R. Dean, Ealing ; Mr. J. Cheal, Crawley : Mr. 
C. J. Goldsmith, Beckenham ; Mr. E. Butts, Streatham ; Mr. A Dean, 
Bedfont ; and the Hon. Secs., Messrs. L. Castle and W. Earley. In the 
course of a few introductory remarks the Chairman said—I have to 
congratulate this Association on the very encouraging success which 
has attended its formation. We have received greater support and 
sympathy than we expected, and I think we may say that the Associa¬ 
tion has become an established fact. We have succeeded in drawing 
public attention to the necessity of thoroughly examining the possible 
outcome of the decadence of industrial fruit-growing in this country, 
and I hope of arresting the serious loss which would undoubtedly occur if 
sneasures were not taken to arrest such loss before the evil had gone' 
too far to mend. This Association will not have been formed in vain if 
it can succeed in attracting the serious attention of cultivators to the 
best means and methods by which the country can hold its own in the 
competition with which it is threatened, and the objects of our Society 
are to obtain the best possible information from fruit growers in different 
parts of the country, and to distribute this information as widely as 
possible. With this end in view we propose in the ensuing year to hold 
meetings in the provincial districts to invite the co-operation of all who 
are willing to help us in the good work by reading papers and assembling 
to discuss matters which are of vital importance to the particular in¬ 
dustry. Our meetings will be held on the understanding that they 
will be entirely non-political, and this salutary abstinence will, I hope, 
meet with the hearty approval of all who join us. We intend to deal 
with matters of important interest in a thoroughly impartial spirit. 
One of the important points is the cost of the conveyance of fruit, and 
we shall be glad if we can, by obtaining information, enable growers, 
handicapped by distance from the centres of distribution, to compete 
with those more happily situated. We trust that we shall be able to 
•obtain by reports from competent persons sufficient knowledge on 
this head to submit our case to the Board of Trade. We are not 
accustomed in England to make a grievance, but to examine and 
endeavour to remove an existing one. In this particular case there 
are good grounds for believing that the cost of the transport of fruit 
is much greater than it need be, and that this cost pressess heavily on one 
of our native industries. There can, however, be no doubt that the 
question will be fairly dealt with. I must remind those who make 
the reports that the facts must be accurate, and that a case which is 
to be submitted to the Board of Trade must be very clear and 
distinct. 
We also hope by inquiry and discussion to raise the s f andard of 
quality of fruits sent to market, and as planting is likely to be carried 
on for some years on a more extensive scale than has hitherto been 
known, any information as to the relative value of sorts in different 
districts will be of very great importance to the planter, and it will, I 
hope, be one cf the aims and objects of the Society to classify and deter¬ 
mine as far as possible the suitability of sorts of fruits to different 
localities ; the fewer sorts the better, both for the fruit tree grower and 
the planter. It is, I think, known to many that a very decided liking 
is exhibited by certain fruits to particular districts. I may instance the 
Winesour Plum in Yorkshire, the Apple orchards of Herefordshire and 
Devonshire, the Bullaces of East Anglia, and in my own district the 
singular success of the Early Prolific Plum. A Society which can visit 
the different fruit-growing districts will be able to gather more facts 
than a Society which is fixed permanently in any one locality, and will, 
I imagine, much extend its sphere of usefulness. 
Several letters were read from members of the Association and 
others interested in the subject, and it appeared that those who lived 
sufficiently near all sent their fruit by road as cheaper and safer, one 
stating that it would be to his interest if all the railway rates were 
increased. The majority, however, at a distance from towns condemned 
the present charges strongly, Mr. Watkins of Hereford remarking that 
the present rates are amongst the greatest hindrances to the extension 
of fruit cultivation. Mr. J. Udale, Tamworth, wrote —“ Railway rates 
for the transit of fruit and vegetables under some circumstances are 
quite prohibitive. Twelve months ago I was in the habit of sending all 
classes of fruit to two fruiterers in Birmingham. Cnoice fruit was sent 
by passenger train, coarse fruit and vegetables by goods train, thinking 
it would be much cheaper. However, after one or two consignments 
had been delivered at the ordinary goods rate, I received notice from my 
customer—whom I have known for many years, and is a strictly honest 
and truthful man—that the railway company had a higher tariff for 
fruit and vegetables, and that they demanded extra payment of either 
Is. 3d. or Is. Cd. on previous payments for the same weight of the same 
class of goods in the same hamper. This additional charge, in conjunction 
with a rate upon returned empties, caused me to cease sending such 
goods to Birmingham, and I dispose of them nearer home. This 
excessive charge by the railway company causes a direct loss to four 
classes of the community :—First, the grower ; second, the railway 
companies themselves ; third, the fruiterer ; fourth, the public. My 
experience is, that the railway rates are prohibitive of the rapid 
transport and wider distribution of all classes of garden produce except 
fruit and flowers of the highest quality, beyond a distance of twenty 
miles ; and I have long been of opinion that the time had come when 
it was desirable that growers should combine for the purposes of dealing 
with railway rates, selecting the most suitable markets, and disposing 
of their own produce, if possible, direct to the consumer.” 
From Mr. W. E. Bear a suggestive letter was received in which he 
said—“I am sorry that I have too much in hand for the next fortnight 
to help your useful Association by preparing and reading a paper on 
railway rates. It seems to me that the only really important thing for 
your Association to do in this connection, is to form a Parlia¬ 
mentary Committee, and to get the Association recognised as a 
body entitled to be represented before the Board of Trade. All members 
who have real grievances should send details to the Committee, and 
those that prove on examination to be valid should be brought before 
the Board of Trade. It is of no use to read a paper showing that rates 
on fruit are too high ; everybody knows that. The time has come 
to get such rates reduced.” 
Mr. Albert Bath said he was not prepared to treat the subject fully, 
but he had made some careful comparisons between the rates per ton 
for fruit conveyed by rail from different stations at an equal distance 
from London, and he showed by a series of figures the extraordinary 
disproportion that existed on some lines. He contended that a system 
of equalisation was needed in the interest of growers who had to send 
their fruit long distances. 
Mr. R. Dean followed with some facts and figures relating to the 
irregularities of railway charges, showing how the foreign preferential 
rates press very heavily on the home producer, the difference in a railway 
rate often meaning the whole of the profit. It was stated that English 
Potatoes and fruit cost 23s. 4d. per ton to bring from Selling to London, 
yet foreign produce of the same character were brought to London via 
Selling for 20s. per ton. 
Mr. R. Ivatt, Mr. J. Cheal, and Mr. A. Dean also gave many state¬ 
ments of a similar character, but Mr. Figgures of the Railway Clearing 
Office remarked that the railway companies were mostly willing to make 
any reasonable concessions, and that there was a danger if rates were 
much decreased it would have a tendency to flood some markets, with 
a consequent reduction in prices to the producers. He thought the 
best plan was to encourage people to send their goods to the nearest 
markets. In the course of a prolonged discussion many interesting 
and important facts were elicited, and the business of the meeting 
was concluded by a resolution, proposed by Mr. Ivatt and seconded by 
Mr. Roupell, to the effect “that the Executive Committee of the 
British Fruit Growers’ Association be requested to collect all avail¬ 
able information on the subject of railway rates in fruit transit and 
distribution, to enter into communication for this object with the Rail¬ 
way and Canal Traders’ Association, and to submit the results in the 
form of a report at the earliest convenient meeting.” 
THE CHRYSANTHEMUM CENTENARY. 
As the result of a letter sent by Mr. W. Holmes to one of the daily 
papers, some comments upon which have already appeared in this 
Journal, a meeting of the Judges at the Crystal Palace Chrysanthemum 
Show was by permission of the Secretary, Mr. Gardiner, held in the 
Board Room on Friday afternoon last. Mr. E. Sanderson occupied the 
chair, those present being Messrs. W. Holmes, R. Ballantine, J. Laing, J. 
Douglas, G. Gordon, J. Douglas, L. Castle, R. Dean, and \V. G. Head. After 
some discussion respecting the desirability of celebrating the centenary, 
concerning which there was not the slightest difference of opinion, it was 
proposed by Mr. Laing and seconded by Mr. Earley—“ That considering 
the year 1889 is the centenary of the introduction of the Chinese Chrys¬ 
anthemum into Europe, it is advisable that the National Chrysan¬ 
themum Society be requested to prepare a scheme for the proper 
celebration of the event.” This was adopted unanimously, and several 
suggestions were made as to the best way in which such a celebration 
could be best effected, one point being strongly pressed— i.e., that it 
was desirable as large a collection of plants as possible should be grown 
with a view to their careful comparison and the determination of 
synonyms and the correction of nomenclature. 
