156 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ Febrnary ii, 1888. 
confidence is accorded to them by their employers, the garden being 
looked upon as a convenient sort of shop to supply the family with fruit 
and flowers, «kc., at the cheapest rate, and otherwise being looked upon 
as an expensive necessity, being as it were part and parcel of the 
establishment, and must have the semblance of being kept. Under 
these conditions the gardener’s position becomes irksome, to which 
may be added the whole catalogue of petty annoyances incidental 
to such a position, one of the worst being, that whilst the gardener 
is looked upon as a sort of useful lalx)urer, the inhabitants of 
flunkeydom and the stables are pampered in everything, and by reason 
of better pay and its equivalents, they are tacitly allowed to assert them¬ 
selves as the gardener’s superiors. If by the sheer force of character he 
avoids falling to their level, he places himself between two stools ; he 
will have considerable difficulty to repel invasions of his legitimate 
rights in the garden proper, to which, if he submits, he loses his self- 
respect, and if he does not submit he will eventually become the victim 
of their intrigues. This sort of thing is the “ gall and vinegar ” which 
makes the bonds of servitude so bitter, and which a high standard of 
education of itself would rather intensify than mitigate. It is no use 
blinking the fact, our position is that of a servant purely and simply, a 
little lower than the position of the artizan. How is it that other classes 
of the community combine to make their influence felt ? I have no desire 
to raise the bugbear of trade’s unionism with its pernicious doctrine of 
strife and strikes, which under no conditions could be applied to garden¬ 
ing and gardeners, I would rather trust to the united voice appealing to 
the newer doctrine of “ Right prevailing over Might,” which is novv 
bringing about the general improvement and amelioration of mankind. 
That the force of public opinion is now becoming the arbiter, not only 
of differences between employer and employ^, but it is also, in a large 
measure, the ruler of events both social and political, inclines us to the 
opinion that if gardeners were organised to give effect to their aspira¬ 
tions, it could be made the engine to lift them on to a higher social 
level. It is an axiom that “ Knowledge is power ; ” so also would 
unity multiply that power in the proportion that as a man standing 
alone, no matter how eminent he mav be, he represents but a unit; 
where if he call upon others to join him, he multiplies his own indi¬ 
viduality, and by the force of his knowledge lifts up the others to his 
own level. It is this sort of levelling upwards which we require. That 
there is abundance of good material in the aggregate for the beginning 
of this movement there can be no doubt. To the ignorant and lazy 
I would give fair warning, to which, if they paid no heed, I would 
trust to the law of the survival of the fittest to push them out of 
existence. 
The question now arises. By what means can this revolution be brought 
about? I answer. By organising a National Horticultural Society 
embracing the whole of the United Kingdom, something on the lines of 
the “ Yorkshire Association of Horticulturists,” of course, with higher 
aims and further reaching in effect. An example might be taken from 
the Foresters and other friendly societies, with individual societies 
wherever practicable, with districts parcelled out so that a ?Mmd Jida 
representative body to discuss matters of special interest for the general 
good. In addition to practical essays and discussions thereon, and the 
further extension of the library movement to the fullest extent, by the 
combination of districts, botanical and other teachers might be engaged. 
Every district at least should be the headquarters of a Natural History 
Museum, giving prominence to such subjects as entomological specimens 
injurious to garden and farm crops, and models of pomological speci¬ 
mens. 
If gardeners would really bestir themselves, taking into confidence 
their employers, and show them that the movement was for their mutual 
interests, both sympathy and substantial help might be accorded. Once 
they are convinced of its genuineness a greater degree of confidence 
would be established between them, which would make them more 
accessible in all cases of difficulty ; and many a misfortune could be 
explained where for want of this confidence it would probably be 
magnified into a fault. A better state of things would eventually be the 
result. The gardener with a good library at his service, opportunities 
for joining in discussions, giving more confidence and a better address, 
a knowledge of physiological botany, and able at all times to give an 
intelligent reason for effects by tracing them to their true causes in 
matters relating to the garden, with the whole fraternity of gardeners 
at his back, would no doubt rise above his fellows in the same est iblish- 
ment, and he would thus be better able to hold his own. So, as you may 
see, Mr. Editor, the only difference between “ Experientia docet ” and 
myself is a difference of methods, his being isolation and self-schooling, 
mine combination, unity, and general advancement.—G ajio. 
“Experientia docet ” has not spared the rod in his castigation of 
illiterate gardeners, and I shall be much surprised if he does not have 
some bad writing and spelling to wade through in the next few days. 
But has he not made a mistake in supposing that all men are endowed 
with the same natural gifts ? I have no doubt he has penned his 
remarks from actual experience, but one can hardly understand men in 
good positions as gardeners making such public displays of their igno¬ 
rance as pointed out. I know some good gardeners and unassuming men 
who have told me it is a laborious business for them to sit down and 
write a letter, but neither of these men would think of publicly 
exhibiting their inabilities, and I think they do their gar'ening work 
with enthusiasm and regard the other part as quite a secondary affair. 
Still, they are good servants for all that. Has not your correspondent 
started this controversy rather late in the day ? The men he has brought 
to the pillory, I take it, had but a poor education. I quite agree that 
they might have gone to some evening classes, as I did until I was 
twenty-five years old ; but the rising generation of gardeners ought to 
be good scholars, seeing that the Board School officers look after even 
the poorest lad’s education. Even then there will be some illiterate 
men, who will still get good situations, while others who have tried 
hard to fit themselves for good places will have to stand aside. I know 
this is the experience of some good men, and also of one who left school 
at the age of ten, when copy-books were lOd. each.—D. T. 
I WAS much pleased with the leading article on page 99. It con¬ 
tains capital advice for us all, and should be the means of making some 
of us try and improve ourselves. There are few young men that have 
the same opportunities for improving themselves that young gardeners 
have. If a young fellow has an aveiage amount of ability, and con¬ 
tinues to be a dunce all his life with so many opportunities within his 
reach, it is his own fault. It is quite true—as stated in the article in 
question—that there arc many gardeners holding good places that 
cannot write an intelligent letter to their employers or to anybody else- 
It is a pity when such is the case, as such men lower the standard of 
gardeners ; and gardeners, as a rule, are in my opinion the most intelli¬ 
gent class of people on the face of the earth.—P. C. 
CHRYSANTHEMUM W. G. DROVER. 
Messrs. W. & G. Drover, Fareham, Hants, send us two large 
blooms of the Japanese variety which was awarded a first-class certifi¬ 
cate at the January Show of the National Chrysanthemum Society, 
This seems to be naturally a late-flowering variety, and is much better 
now than it was in November. The florets are 3 to 4 inches long and 
half an inch broad, incurving, white, streaked with purple. 
CHRYSANTHEMUM SHOWS. 
We have received notices of the following fixtures for the Shows of 
1888 
National Chrysanthemum Society, September 12th and 13th ; 
November 7th and 8th ; and January 9th and loth, 1889. 
Kingston-on-Thames, November (ith and 7th. 
Portsmouth, November 7th, 8th, and 9th. 
Brighton, November 13th and 14th. 
Putney, November 13th and 14th. 
Winchester, November 13th and 14th. 
Lindfield (Sussex), November 16th and lOth. 
Sheffield and West Riding, November IGth and 17th. 
Birmingham, November 21st and 22nd. 
Liverpool, November 21st and 22nd. 
Hull, November 22nd and 23rd. 
Pontefract, November 23rd. 
NATIONAL CHRYSANTHEMUM SOCIETY. 
As stated last week, an important meeting of this Society was held 
at Anderton’s Hotel, Fleet Street, on February 13th, but we could only 
give a brief reference to the business then transacted. There was a 
large attendance of the members of the General Committee, including 
the representatives of several affiliated provincial shows, R. Ballantine, 
Esq., presiding. 
The principal matters for consideration at the meeting were the 
Provincial Show and Catalogue schemes, which have been previously 
alluded to. The Hon. Secretary, Mr. William Holmes, read the following 
report with regard to the 
Provincial Show. —Pursuant to the resolution passed at the 
annual general meeting, “ That the whole question of a provincial show 
be referred to a Sub-Committee, to consist of Messrs. Bevan, Wynne, 
Castle, Dean, Gordon, and Rundell, with the offieers, to consider and 
report to the General Committee,” the Sub-Committee novv report that 
they met on Friday, February 3rd. The whole of the correspondence 
that had transpired was first read, and then the question as to th-i 
desirability of this Society holding a provincial show was debated in all 
its bearings, with the result that your Committee unanimously arrived 
at the opinion that it is most desirable in every way that the National 
should hold provincial shows, providing the Society can be secured 
against heavy or substantial loss in so doing. 
It w'as further agreed that several Societies in the North should be 
communicated with, with a view of ascertaining their opinions as to the 
desirability of holding provincial shows, and also their willingness to 
co-operate in 4;he matter. Amongst the towns so selected were Y’ork, 
Sheffield, Leicester, Newcastle, Manchester, and Darlington. 
The following basis of terms was then agreed upon to cn.able the 
Secretary to institute negotiations with any society that might bo 
