838 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
January 27, 1894. 
GARDENERS’ ROYAL 
BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION. 
Through pressure of time we were unable in our 
last issue to give a report of the annual general 
meeting of the supporters of this Institution held on 
the 17th inst., and could give only the report of the 
committee and statement of accounts, which were 
adopted nem. con. The treasurer, Mr. H. J. Veitch, 
was called upon to preside, but the meeting as is 
usually the case was not a large one. The report and 
accounts which showed a very healthy condition of 
affairs having been adopted, and the committee 
warmly thanked for their arduous services during 
the past year, the treasurer was re-elected and most 
cordially thanked also for the ability and assiduity 
with which he had discharged the important duties 
of his office. Then as members of the committee, 
Mr. J. Douglas, Mr. W. Denning, Mr. N. N. 
Sherwood, Mr. J. Laing, and Mr. G. Wythes were 
re-elected, and in addition Mr. James H. Veitch and 
Mr. G. Bunyard were elected to fill vacancies created 
by resignations. Messrs. Manning, Swift, and 
Willard were re-elected auditors, as were also the 
retiring arbitrators. On the motion of Mr. John 
Lee (whom all were glad to see again looking so 
well), Mr. G. J. Ingram was again unanimously 
re-elected secretary. Three candidates were then 
elected to the benefits of the Institution by resolution, 
and the poll declared open for the election of twelve 
others, Messrs. H. J. Cutbush, G. Monro, J. 
Webber, A. Outram, and B. Wynne being appointed 
scrutineers. 
The result of the poll was declared as follows, the 
first twelve being the successful candidatesJames 
Burt, 3,227 ; Thomas Gooch, 3,051 ; John Comber, 
2,992; Margaret Tindall, 2,934 ’> William Pamplin, 
2,655 '< Emma Kendall, 2,620; Sarah Buckham, 
2,615; John Mackay, 2,498; Jane Nichols, 2,346; 
Ann Harding, 2,321; Richard King, 2,300; Francis 
Woodhams, 2,209; Clara E, Brown, 1635: John 
Collier, 519 ; Henry Fielder, 1785 ; Thomas Thomas, 
2,133; Thomas Bundy, 437; James Clarren, 2,100; 
David Cornell, 184 ; Hester Falconer, 790 ; Ambrose 
Minty, 253; John Pearcy, 1,336; Robert Petitt, 
1,407; Eliza Webb, 663; Thomas Bannister, 873; 
Robert Begbie, 413 ; Thomas Cawley, 1,195 ; W. 
Croshier, 947; Alexander Duncan, 37; Charles 
Harris, 796; Samuel Hicks, 71; Emma Hvery, 
1,244; Joseph Monk, 173; Thomas Parry, 27; 
Joseph Shearn, 575 ; and Charles Smith, 956. 
In the evening a large party of subscribers and 
friends sat down to the annual Lark Pudding Dinner 
under the genial presidency of Mr. N. N. Sherwood, 
who, after the usual loyal toasts had been duly 
honoured, proposed “Continued Success and 
Prosperity to the Gardeners’ Royal Benevolent 
Institution,” and in so doing remarked how pleased 
he was to be in a position to congratulate the 
supporters of the Institution, after such a terrible 
year of commercial depression, on the flourishing 
state of the accounts, which showed their receipts 
to have been nearly as large in amount as the 
highest sum they had received in their previous 
good years. Too much could never be said in 
favour of the Institution, and when he stated that 
since its foundation ;^65,ooo had been paid in 
pensions, and that the average age of the pensioners 
was seventy-two, he hoped he had said sufficient to 
convince every lover and supporter of horticulture 
that it was his duty to continue to do his best for 
the Institution. They could not stand still, they 
must go forward, and everyone could help in the 
good work in some way or other. He had always 
maintained that gardeners as a class could not do 
much in the cause of charity themselves, but they 
could do a great deal more than they did in bringing 
the claims of the Institution under the notice of 
their employers. He felt sure from his experience 
in his own neighbourhood that there were a great 
many gentlemen who would be pleased to send an 
annual subscription to such an institution if they 
only knew of it. An idea had somehow got abroad 
that they were too rich, but how could they be con¬ 
sidered too rich while as that day there were twenty- 
five candidates for whom they could not provide 
pensions. He hoped the day would come when they 
would be able to provide for all, but in the mean¬ 
time they wanted more annual subscribers to enable 
them to add more largely to their list of pensioners. 
He had the greatest possible desire to see the Royal 
Gardeners’ Orphan P'und continue in the prosperity 
that had distinguished it from its birth, but he 
hoped sincerely that the older Institution would not 
be forgotten, or the claims of their poor old 
pensioners be neglected. The new rule which 
enabled the committee to give votes to candi¬ 
dates according to the number of years they had 
subscribed, had apparently given satisfaction to 
everyone, for they had not received a single com¬ 
plaint, and he felt sure as it became better known it 
would be still more greatly appreciated. 
Mr. W. J. Nutting responded. 
Mr. H. J. Veitch proposed “ The Executive and 
Honorary Workers of the Institution,’’ coupled with 
the names of Mr. George Monro and Mr. Herbert 
J. Cutbush; and Mr. Arnold Moss gave "The 
Chairman,’’ who, in acknowledging the compliment, 
paid a graceful tribute to the energy, ability and 
unfailing courtesy of the secretary, Mr. G. J. 
Ingram, and proposed'his health, which was received 
with the greatest enthusiasm. 
-- 
RAASAY WEATHER 
REPORT. 
The following table, being a meteorological sum¬ 
mary of the year 1893, may be of some interest to 
your numerous readers both south and north of the 
Tweed ; for while farmers and gardeners in some 
parts of England were languishing during the 
greater part of the summer for the want of rain, 
we in the North-west of Scotland have since the 
month of August been having too much of it. 
Months. 
Thermometer 
mean. 
Max. Min. 
Rain 
Fall. 
Prevalent 
Winds. 
Days Sun 
Appeared. 
Jan. 
41" 
30° 
552 
N. & E. 
17 
Feb. 
49° 
37 ° 
6.41 
E. 
20 
March 
50° 
38'* 
3.60 
W. 
22 
April 
59° 
41° 
2.15 
W. 
20 
May 
63° 
49° 
3 -II 
S. 
20 
June 
69°- 
50° 
2.29 
s. & w. 
22 
July 
69° 
53° 
541 
s. 
28 
August 
70'’ 
55° 
5-64 
w. 
17 
Sept. 
62° 
46° 
9.20 
s. & w. 
21 
October 
53° 
42° 
8.91 
N. & W. 
19 
Nov. 
43° 
33 ° 
8.86 
N.E. 
16 
Dec. 
44° 
38° 
12.06 
w. 
5 
Totals 
73 -i 6 
227 
Rain fell on 265 days from 01 inch upwards. The 
heaviest rainfall in twenty-four hours was on Sep¬ 
tember 13th, I 60, November i8th, ^'33, and 
December ist, 1-31. The highest readings on the 
thermometer were on April 21st, 78°, June i8th, 80°, 
July 4th, 80, August 9th, 82'*, 13th, 84°, and 14th, 
82°. The temperature in April was abnormally 
high, but August was the warmest month. 
It will be observed from the above table that 
March, April, May and June were the driest months 
of the year, and even during them we had sufficient 
moisture to keep vegetation from suffering to any 
great extent, although early vegetables did not 
grow with that vigour which one looks for in an 
ordinary season. Brassicas, including Turnips, were 
very much given to clubbing. Onions and Carrots 
were almost a failure, owing to the comparatively 
dry weather being so favourable to the propagation 
of the fly ; late vegetables did fairly well. Small 
fruits were excellent and abundant; fruits on wall 
trees, were good in quality, but not so numerous as 
at one time anticipated, a great many having dropped 
off during the dry weather. The hay crops were 
much lighter than usual, but the cereal crops on the 
other hand were the best on record, for many years, 
and were secured in excellent condition. Field 
Turnips on the West Coast were almost a failure 
owing to clubbing or finger-and-toe, although in 
other districts of Scotland, the crops are good. 
The latter part of the year was generally charac¬ 
terised for its unusually high temperature and heavy 
rainfall. Rhododendrons of the ponticum type were 
flowering freely in October and November on wood 
made during the summer, and I noticed on New 
Year’s day a quantity of gorse in full bloom on an 
exposed place facing westward, within a stones- 
throw of the Sound of Raasay. Snowdrops are now 
(January 15th) in flower, and Crocuses will soon 
follow suit. The rainfall was seven inches more 
than that of 1892, which was considerably above the 
average, and on the whole last year will be remem¬ 
bered as one of the most phenomenal and record- 
breaking extant. 
Vegetation has now got a much needed check ; we 
had several sharp frosts since the first of the month, 
so much so that winter Greens have suffered, as did 
Wallflowers, and other spring bedding plants gener¬ 
ally. Work in the kitchen garden is in rather a 
backward condition owing to the heavy rains, which 
I may say were accompanied with severe gales, which 
on more than one occasion attained hurricane force, 
notably that of November 17th, which will be long 
remembered for its great destruction of forest and 
ornamental trees, and the more recent one of January 
13th current.— William Minty, The Gardens, Raasay. 
--*•- 
QUOTATIONS. 
On p. 325 of your last issue there are no less than 
three quotations. I suppose that in commenting 
on Roses it would, in a poetic temperament, be 
almost impossible to dispense with such phraseology. 
The " Queen of flowers” demands them; and Mr. 
Mackay, in his admirable review of " Modem 
Gardening,” has appropriately placed them. Quota¬ 
tions are evidently not necessary to him, for he 
writes, as Butler puts it,— 
“ As those who, with less art and pains. 
Can do it with their native brains.” 
Mr. Steel, however, who essays a neat little 
article on “ A visit to Cragside,” after entering into 
some details with reference to the natural beauties 
of this “ romance in stone and mortar.” with which 
I am in full sympathy, says :—“ When my visit was 
made, the gorgeous autumn tints made the scenery 
one mass of bright colour, and it must have been 
such a scene as this that made the poet exclaim : 
" Who can paint like Nature ? 
Can imagination boast of hues like these ?” 
Now, to all who are acquainted with Thomson's 
Seasons —and who is not ?—I think it will be admitted 
to be a little unfair to the poet to curtail his senti¬ 
ments in any degree. If it be necessary to quote a 
passage, let that passage be quoted in full. If it is 
desirable to quote at all—and I think it is—one 
ought to endeavour to represent the author at his 
best ; to transcribe, in fact, a literal rendering. 
Between poets and " common ” people there is a 
great gulf—an infinite difference in respect to the 
loftier shades of thought and feeling. Hence my 
contention for the whole verbatim. The true version 
runs thus :—■ 
“ But who can paint 
Like Nature? Can imagination boast 
Amid its gay creation, hues like hers?” 
Moreover, the context shows that these sentiments 
were uttered in allusion to the beauties of Spring 
—“ rosy-footed May ”—and, therefore, could not 
apply to “the pale descending year.” But the 
application is immaterial—the picture is equally 
beautiful. Perhaps I am too exacting, although I 
would submit that, if quotations are given, they 
should at least be accurate, pithy, apposite, and 
good. 
I admit a predilection for them, as they serve, not 
only to illustrate a text, to provide a fund of 
philosophy, but to " point a moral, or adorn a tale.” 
Prior, however, hints at this in no unmeasured 
language, for he says of one who was given to citing 
that,— 
"He ranged his tropes, and preached up patience, 
Backed his opinions with quotations.” 
While Butler, with no more generosity, writes of 
the same individual that he always had a reason— 
" And ready ever was to quote 
Authorities for what he wrote.” 
If, then, quoting partakes of the nature of 
plagiarism, I must confess a fault. But if I sin, I 
sin in very good society; for one of your most able 
contributors, Mr. Editor, is addicted to it; while Sir 
John Lubbock, who is eminent in the world of 
science, and for whom I entertain profound respect, 
is facile princeps, i.e., the admitted chief.— C.B.G., 
Acton, W. 
--f-- 
Vegetable Refuse.-—During summer a heap of 
rubbish is always collecting as it gets wheeled from 
the flower and kitchen gardens. If it has been turned 
once or twice during the summer and autumn it will 
now be in excellent trim, for the most part as a rich 
vegetable manure to wheel on to various quarters. 
Fruit trees. Gooseberries, Currants and Raspberries- 
would derive much benefit from it where no stable 
manure can be spared. 
