February 11, 1886.] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
Ill 
“ After twenty-six weeks full allowance, half the amount is allowed for 
■twenty-six weeks more, he is then transferred to the Benevolent Fund, to 
receive such sum as the Committee deem fit. Curing the time he is on the 
Benevolent Fund no money is taken from his deposit. Ste Rule 14. No 
sum is provided for at death, as the member's deposit (see Rule 16), with 
the interest accumulating, will more than counterbalance any funeral 
money. Should any member die in straitened circumstances, the Committee 
are empowered to assist the widow and children (if any). See Rule 18. 
After attaining seventy years of age the member ceases to pay into the Sick 
Fund at all, and he is provided for from the Benevolent Fund in case of 
sickness or distress, irrespective of any sums he may have invested. See 
Rules 14 and 18.” 
Relative to the constitution of the Society, Rule 3 states : — 
“ That this Society shall consist of an unlimited number of members 
•who follow the calling of gardeners, whether in nursery gardens, private 
gardens, market gardens, or seed warehouses ; none other but gardeners to 
be eligible to become deposit members and recipient of relief from the Sick 
and Benevolent Fund.” 
The admission of members is made clear in Rule 13 :— 
“ That no person shall be admitted a member of this Society under the 
age of eighteen or above the age of forty-five years ; and has worked not 
less than three years in a garden. Any gardener wishing to become a 
member of this Society shall forward to the Secretary his name, age, and 
residence, and whether married or single ; also accompanying it, if required, 
procured at his own cost, a copy of the register of his birth (or baptism if 
before the register was first used), or some other evidence as to his age 
which shall be satisfactory to the Committee, and a certificate from a 
properly qualified medical practitioner as to the state of his health, this 
■certificate to be forwarded in a sealed cover if the surgeon deems it 
advisable. If residing at a distance from London the medical certificate to 
be countersigned by a clergyman of the Established Church, or a magistrate, 
or a well-known gardener or nurseryman, as would be most convenient, that 
dhere may be no doubt as to the right person being described.” 
Rule 14 points out — 
'• Whilst a member is in receipt of sick-pay,' no larger amount than two 
days’ sick-pay monthly maybe received from him, but at all other times lie 
may pay in any sum he can afford to lay by, and the same will be carried to 
his account as stated in Rule 16. As all members pay the same contribu¬ 
tions, and no entrance fees are required, a member’s deposit, while he is 
in receipt of sick-pay, shall be liable to the following deduction, for the 
benefit of the Benevolent Fund, viz. :—For every Is. he receives, a deduction 
of one halfpenny, if he was under twenty-five years of age when admitted ; 
Id. if between twenty-five and thirty five; ljd. if between thirty-five and 
forty-five. 
“ The payments in case of sickness to be made in full from the Sick 
Fund for twenty-six successive weeks, half the amount for the next twenty- 
six weeks, providing the member’s deposit can supply the above dednctions ; 
if not, and his sickness continues, he shall be considered as permanently 
-disabled, and transferred to the Benevolent Fund, and he will not again 
have a claim for sick-pay from the Sick Fund until he has been free from 
illness for six months. 
“ Any member allowing his subscription to fall twelve months in arrear 
will be considered to have left the Society, and his account will be closed in 
the books ; lie will not lose his deposit—it will not, however, be paid to him, 
but be retained by the Society until he attains the age of sixty years; or 
ehould he die before that age be paid to the person nominated by him; the 
amount paid will be the sum total that stood in his name at the time of his 
allowing his subscriptions to fall in arrear; all interest on such amounts 
after this period will be handed to the Benevolent Fund. 
“ Should the amount of sickness during any one year be more than the 
subscriptions of members will defray, the deficiency to be deducted from 
each member’s deposit in equal proportions. 
-I? " P a J men * ;s l> e received from any member on account of the Sick 
bund after he reaches the age of seventy years, and he ceases at that age 
to have any claim on it in case of illness, being provided for by the Benevo¬ 
lent Fund.” ' 
According to Rule 15 :— 
“ A member is considered sick and entitled to sick-pay when he is 
wholly unable through _ illness to do his usual work. No member to be 
entitled to sick-pay until he has contributed twelve calendar months. 
If the sickness of a member is not such as wholly to disable him from work, 
or if he becomes convalescent and able to earn a little, though still unable 
to follow his customary employment, the Committee may, if they think fit, 
on a recommendation in writing from a properly qualified medical prac¬ 
titioner, allow him to do such work as he can, and make a proportionate 
deduction from his sick-pay.” 
We now come to a distinct and very important provision—namely, that 
the surplus of every member’s contributions, after the yearly demands on 
the Society for sickness, Ac., are met, is invested for him, and the sum, 
with all interest accruing, is his own property absolutely, payable to him 
it he attains the age of seventy years, or to his nominee (whom he appoints 
when joining) whenever his death may occur. That is the substance of 
Rule lb. As examples of its practical working we inspected the account 
of one of the oldest members, which amounts to nearly £50, the yearly in¬ 
terest on which is a substantial approach to the amount of his contribu- 
tion. That is the member’s own money, and will go on inereasing as long 
as he contribute 0 . The total share of liability of each 16s. a week member 
is this year 2s. 5d. ; of 10$. a week members, Is. 10Jd., their payments 
beyond that going to their deposit accounts. An example of a member’s 
deposit being actually paid during the year to his nominee is afforded in 
the case of the late Mr. Edward Rowe, who died at the age of forty-six, 
and whose widow received £34 12s. 34d.. apart from the sum of £8 16s. 
paid during the member’s illness. 
Rule 18 governs the Benevolent Fund, and is worthy of being quoted 
m its entirety, as follows : — 
“ This fund shall consist of all moneys handed over by the United Horti¬ 
cultural Society in conformity with their rules ; also the annual contiibn- 
tions of members, as stated in Rule 14, and the donations of patrons and 
contributions of honorary members specially given for this purpof e. Honorary 
members’ subscriptions to be one guinea per annum, or ten guineas paid in 
one sum. 
“The sum so raised year by year shall he applied towards rendering 
a°sistanceto members who have passed their seventieth birthday, to such an 
amount as the state of the funds will admit and the Committee deem advis¬ 
able, consideration being given to those who have used the best exertions to 
lay by a provision in old age by keeping a good deposit balance. 
“ Every member also who has the misfortune to be ill for a longer period 
than fifty-tvo weeks will be eligible to receive relief from this fund, the 
Committee to determine the amount to be allowed. Subscribers of 21s. and 
upwards per annum,being professional gardeners, shall also be eligible as 
recipients from this fund, should they be at auy time placed in such a posi¬ 
tion as to require assistance. 
“Should any memben or subscriber, being a gardener, die in straitened 
circumstances, leaving a widow or widow and children, the Committee shall, 
on the case being brought before them, investigate it, and afford such tem¬ 
porary relief as they may deem requisite and necessary. 
“ Should any member receiving sick-pay from the S : ck Fund meet with 
any accident, such as a broken limb or dislocation, the Committee shall have 
power to pay such sum towards his surgeon’s account a3 they may deem 
expedient from this fund. 
“ The Committee of Management to have power to relieve members of 
this Society from this fund as they may deem advisable.” 
That this fund is freely applied when nece-sary is shown by the case 
of Mrs. Rowe, who die! within three months of her husbaDd, leaving four 
children quite unprovided for (one seriously afflicted), the Commitfe°, 
with a full knowledge of the circumstances of the case, granted £20 from 
the fund in question to meet the urgent wants of the orphans. 
It will be seen that the Society is established on a broad basis for the 
benefit of its members ; and that it is sound is testified by the results. As 
intimated, whatever surplus there may be in the Management Fund is 
granted to the Secretary. It is the Benefit and Benevolent Funds that are 
tbe test of stability ; and last year the amount of the former was 
£1986 2s. 74d.; this year it is £2241 6s. 4^-1., while the Benevolent Fund 
last year was £972 15s. 104d , whereas this year it is £1038 2°. lid. A 
isum of £300 has been invested in 3 per cent, consols duiing the year, mak- 
ng a total of £3300. And all the business of this healthy society is trans¬ 
acted at a cost (including the gratuity to tbe Secretary) of £23 16s. lid., 
this beiag the total of the Management Fund. If by any means this fund 
coul l be increased, there is little doubt that a great accession of members 
might be secured, and the institution become in a br >ai sense a National 
Gardeners’ Benefit Society. Possibly, if honorary members had the option 
of contributing to this fund their numbers might be increased ; at present 
they are disproportionately small—namely, W lliam Marshall, Samnel 
Mirley, James Brand, H. J. Atkinson, and A. H Lancaster, Esqs.; Messrs. 
Clay & Levesley, R. Dean, W, Paul, G. Paul, Jas. Yeitch & Sons, B. S. 
Williams, and J. Wright. A donation of £10 10s. constitutes a life mem¬ 
bership, honorary members’ annual subscriptions being £1 Is. 
The election of the Committee—Messrs. Cole, Scott, Coates, Wood, 
Morland, and Campbell—with sundry votes of thanks, brought the meet- 
ng, which was largely attended, to a close. 
STRAWBERRY PLANTS IN WINTER. 
I WAS pleased to see the contribution from Mr. T. Challis on this sub- 
j’ect (page 61). I am, however, sorry he did not state as near as possible 
the time he stacked his plants in autumn and the time they are stood upon 
the surface in spring. This is a matter of some importance in carrying 
out this principle of preserving the plants in winter. If stacked too 
early in autumn they become unduly dried even before the approach of 
severe weather, but this in a measure I know could be guai-ded against. 
Again, in early spring, even before the winter has well passed, I have seen 
the plants almost shrivelled by the influence of drying winds. I have 
tried this system, and the last time I stacked the piaats I took them all 
down early in February and found fully three parts of them dust dry, 
this being the result of a week’s drying winds. For the plants to be in 
this condition during the resting period is not natural. Are plants 
placed in the soil outside in this condition during the winter ? They 
certainly have more moisture at the roots during that period than 
probably at any other. I have just examined the condition of the soil of 
the plants plunged upright in pots and that of those planted out, and 
there appears very little difference, if any. 
Lately we have had some peculiar weather here—frost, snow, rain, and 
frost again day after day at intervals of a few hoars. Such weather, 
frost and thaw in rapid succession, is certainly bad for any plant whether 
in a pot or planted out ; but during the seven years I have practised the 
system advocated I have never found the plants injured in the manner 
described by Mr.' Challis. I reside in a very damo wet locality, and have 
up to tbe present time found the plan of plunging the pots upright to 
answer perfectly, and therefore I have no reason to change it for one 
liable to subject the plants !o a system of drying which I consider un¬ 
natural to the Strawberry.—A Northerner. 
MILDEW ON ROSES. 
Having read much in the Journal about mildew on Roses for the 
past two seasons is the only excuse I have for giving you my experience 
on this matter. Eleven years ago I took my first charge of a garden, 
(vhich was in the county of Durham. I went there on the 4th of June, 
and found about fifty pot Roses so badly infested with mildew that I 
