436 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
March 15, 18S0. 
princes can the scheme he realised. There is 
absolutely no prospect of any form of hall or 
home being procured in any other way than 
through this scheme. The voluntary principle 
alone it is certain •will never succeed in fur¬ 
nishing the money. The hall is neither a- 
church nor a chapel; and the strong sectarian¬ 
ism, so powerful an influence where religious 
objects are concerned, is wanting in this case. 
Horticulture is a beautiful art and well worthy 
of worship, and worshipped it doubtless is by 
many ; but it lacks those potent forces which 
somehow succeed so thoroughly in other cases. 
W e do not at all despair that this worthy and 
most desirable object may not be realised, but 
still, we should much like to see promises of 
help coming in faster. Those who have but 
little of the world’s wealth to boast of, stand 
aghast at the thought of offering their small 
sum of £5 or =£10, when not only hundreds 
but thousands are needed. If the rubicon 
was turned, and £20,000 were promised, then 
the smaller sums would tell with effect. A Ye 
hope to learn speedily that the rubicon is 
passed, and that the wishes of the promoters 
are shortly to be realised. 
TP ESTRICTION IN HORTICULTURAL SOCIETIES.-— 
That small rural horticultural societies, 
devoted chiefly to the promotion of gardening 
amongst cottagers, should find it needful to 
limit their operations to a prescribed range or 
area it is easy to understand. Their object 
first and foremost is to sustain the cottager 
element of their own immediate district, and 
beyond that aim they are not called upon to 
go. In the case of more pretentious bodies a 
similar form of restriction is to be deplored, 
because it indicates narrowness of spirit, which 
is selfish and objectionable. Flower shows 
primarily may be, indeed are, promoted for the 
purpose of encouraging gardening, in all its 
forms, in the respective districts. The various 
competitions provided at the shows are intended 
to bring together the best cultivators and pro¬ 
ducts* and so far are successful. But if the 
average of ability in production in the district be 
low, the average quality at the shoAv will always 
be poor if restricted to that particular district, 
hence the wisdom of throwing open the bulk 
of the classes to a wide area ; indeed, very 
many of our shows have the bulk of their 
classes open to all comers, and in that way 
they succeed in maintaining their shows up to 
the highest point of excellence. 
There is something deplorably and almost 
despicably selfish in the conduct of those 
exhibitors who, whilst willing to grasp at 
every possible opportunity to exhibit elsewhere, 
yet, dog-in-the-manger-like, close the classes in 
their own local show against all outsiders. But 
the subscribers to a society have good reason 
to complain seriously when such restriction is 
adopted. The show so materially suffers, and 
is so defective in quality and interest, that it is 
hardly worth subscribing to. AA’e cannot con¬ 
ceive of a greater evil in connection with our 
myriads of provincial or suburban flower 
shows than that the committees should adopt 
the narrow policy- of restriction or protection. 
Let those who so. thoroughly merit it-share the 
odium which attaches to* miserable restriction, 
whilst let all praise and credit be given to 
those who hold broad and generous views as to 
exhibitors. 
^he AATldsmith Memorial. — So heartily 
should the object which the promoters of 
this proposed memorial to one of our best 
gardeners have in view commend itself to 
readers of The Gardening AVorld, that it 
seems almost a superfluity to draw special 
attention to it. And yet, so busy are men, and 
so many are the demands upon them, that it is 
needful to invite their special attention to 
what’ is a doubly meritorious proposal. 
The objects are two : first, to create a me¬ 
morial worthy a good friend and gardener, of a 
kind in which his whole heart was in life 
deeply concerned ; the second, to render noble 
service to some poor orphan child of a dead 
gardener, by] placing it on the Gardeners’ 
Orphan Fund. Air. AATldsmith, it is now 
made known, had, prior to his death, promised 
to do his utmost to get a second child of the 
late Air. Hyde, of Fareham, Hants, on the 
fund, as it is a most deserving case. That 
child the Alemorial Fund Committee has 
adopted, so far, that if the sum which is 
needed, about £130, can be raised, the child 
will be the one placed on the fund as the 
AATldsmith Alemorial Orphan. 
AA'ho can tell but that the good example thus 
set in creating this form of memorial may later 
on find frequent copying, and thus great good 
may result from what at the outset was a 
matter of pure sentiment] Air. AAT J. Palmer, 
of Reading, is the chairman of the Alemorial 
Committee, and has given £5. Air. Arthur 
Sutton, of Reading, is one treasurer, and Air. 
II. J. AT itch, of Chelsea, the other, and both 
have given handsome subscriptions. AA”e pub¬ 
lish a list of subscriptions in another column, 
and trust we may soon be enabled to announce 
that the amount required has been given. 
emale Apiarians. —ATry much more to the 
purpose than was the recommendation as 
to female occupations in relation to gardening, 
upon which we commented last week, is that 
received from America in relation to bee 
keeping. The adviser in this case is also a 
lady, but she, at least, writes with such an air 
of common sense, and shows such admirable 
knowledge of the facts in relation to bee 
keeping by women, that our respect is at once 
assured. And yet it seems now superfluous to 
urge that women should embark in bee keep¬ 
ing, for long experience of rural life has shown 
that in the majority of cases bees and poultry, 
with usually the dairy, have been women’s 
special departments, in which they have shone 
to advantage and come out successfully. 
To undertake the charge of either a farm or 
market garden is indeed, as a rule, far beyond 
a woman’s power. She may have the requisite 
knowledge and skill, but the physical labour 
needed is beyond her capability to furnish. 
AATth bees and poultry—analogous subjects— 
and both, as it were, indissolubly allied to both 
gardening and farming, woman reigns supreme. 
AATth bees especially, her gentle nature and 
delicate handling are of the greatest value, 
whilst in neither case is arduous labour needed. 
The labour of men may prove too costly, and 
will eat up the profits, which after all are 
slight, but women’s labour may render occupa¬ 
tion of this sort productive. 
Bees have special associations with garden¬ 
ing. They do not, as a rule, need one-half 
the handling and fussing which the scientific 
apiarian would have us to believe ; but still, 
they require care and attention. There is little 
in regard to bee-culture, so called, that women 
cannot perform neatly and cleanly. Leave to 
men the rough occupations, the labouring in 
which is not woman’s work, and let the gentler 
sex labour in those vocations which are so 
much closer identified with our domestic Jife^ 
To many women there is no higher ideal 
life than is found in attending upon bees and 
poultry, joined to ordinary household duties. 
-►«&*«- 
The Scottish Pansy Society’s annual exhibition will 
take place in Dowell’s Rooms, Edinburgh, on June 
20th. 
A Grand Chrysanthemum Show and Musical 
Fete is announced to be held at AYest Hartlepool in 
November next. 
Gardening Engagement.—Mr. James A'oung, for 
twenty years gardener to B. L. Barrow, Esq., of 
Sydnope Hall, as gardener to R. J. Aspinall, Esq., 
Standen Hall, Clitheroe, Lancashire. 
Messrs. Alfred Peel <fc Sons, who have long carried 
on a successful business as horticultural builders at 
Wood Green, N., have just opened a branch establish¬ 
ment at U pper Tooting, Surrey, for the convenience of 
their numerous customers in the South London district. 
Eccles, Patricroft, Pendleton, and District Chry¬ 
santhemum Society.—The committee of the above 
society has decided to hold their annual Chrysanthemum 
show this year on November 14th and 15th at the 
Town Hall, Eccles. 
The Haarlem Quinquennial Bulb Show.—We are 
informed that from the 21st to the 25th inst. there will 
be opened at Haarlem, Holland, a large show of flower¬ 
ing bulbs and tubers, especially of Hyacinths, Tulips, 
Narcissus, Amaryllis, and miscellaneous articles. The 
exhibition is held every five years by the General 
Union of Bulb Cultivators, and the forthcoming show 
promises to be a very successful one. It will doubtless 
be of great interest to those foreign horticulturists who 
may pay our Dutch friends a visit. 
Laurel Leaves and Insects.—At a recent meeting of 
the Ealing and District Gardeners’ Mutual Improvement 
Society, Air. E. Fountain described a method of dealing 
with insect pests infesting hothouses. What he did was 
to get a quantity of leaves of the Cherry Laurel, and 
smash them up with a hammer, or otherwise thoroughly 
bruise them. They were then placed in the confined 
atmosphere of a stove, pit or other house infested or 
likely to be infested with insects. The poisonous 
properties of the leaves diffusing themselves through 
the house killed or drove away all such pests as green, 
fly, red-spider, thrip, &c., and Air. Fountain sa : d he 
could guarantee the efficacy of the operation if properly 
carried out. 
The Mayor of Worcester. Mr. Smith Carington, on 
the 5 th instant entertained at dinner, thirty of the 
foremen and clerks of the firm of Richard Smith & Co., 
in commemoration of his mayoralty of “ the Faithful 
City,” this year. The company sat down to an 
excellent repast, and after doing ample justice to a 
liberal menu, the rest of the evening was spent in 
speech-making, songs and music. The healths of his 
AVorship and of Mr. R. C. S. Carington, the managing 
partner of the firm, were proposed in eulogistic terms, 
and most cordially acknowledged by both gentlemen. 
Altogether a most enjoyable evening was spent, the 
company separating at 11 o’clock with hearty good 
wishes for the continued prosperity of the firm. 
We are always glad to hear of these pleasant reunions, 
which so much tend to strengthen the bonds of sym¬ 
pathy and interest in common between employers and 
employed. 
Presentation to the Treasurer of the Kingston 
and Surbiton Chrysanthemum Society.—Mr. John 
Drewett, who for the last fifteen years has been 
treasurer of the Kingston Society, and one of the 
hardest workers on its behalf, has recently been pre¬ 
sented bythe members with a gold watch, a “ Tantalus” 
stand for the sideboard, and an inscription on vellum. 
The two articles first named bore inscriptions setting 
forth why they were given, and on the vellum the same 
was stated, with the subscribers’ names appended. 
This last, which was mounted and framed, was quite 
an artistic production, and in the bordering was intro¬ 
duced a faithful representation of the flower which is 
the raison d’dtre of the society’s existence. The pre¬ 
sentation was made at the Kingston Hotel, by Air. 
G. C. Sherrard, J.P., and the recipient of the gifts 
acknowledged them very feelingly. 
Electric Lighting at Reading.—On the evening of 
the 6th inst., several of the leading inhabitants of 
Reading met by invitation of the Messrs. Sutton, to 
inspect the incandescent lighting of a portion of their 
premises lately completed. This is the first installation 
of the electric glow lamp in Reading for business 
purposes, and between 50 and 60 of these lamps have 
now been in complete working order in Alessrs. 
Sutton’s premises for about a fortnight. Not only was 
admiration expressed of the quality of the light and its 
perfect steadiness, but surprise and satisfaction was felt 
at the very marked difference in the temperature, as 
much as 15° less heat being registered in rooms where 
the electric light was installed. This lower temperature 
was accompanied by greater purity of the air itself 
where the gas was not burning. 
The New Zealand International Exhibition.—The 
Otago Daily Times of January 1st states that in the 
British and foreign section the largest exhibitors are 
Alessrs. Sutton & Sons, of Reading, whose display is 
agricultural as well as horticultural, and equally inter¬ 
esting in both branches. In the centre ot the court is 
a large and handsome show case—the most handsome, 
in fact, in the whole exhibition—chiefly devoted to the 
display of vegetables, grasses, flower seeds and models ; 
a large number of samples of seeds packed in special 
tin cases for export; a number of cabinets of seeds 
arranged for educational purposes ; and an apparatus 
