September 10, 1892. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
1 1 
digging up and selling the choice Ferns of the 
neighbourhood. I myself saw offered for sale on a 
table in front of the principal inn, tufts of Holly 
Fern (Polystichum lonchitis), which is now getting 
extremely rare in this country, and also Parsley hern, 
Black and Green Spleenwort, Bladder Fern, and 
several others. One is almost provoked to say that 
it would be preferable not to go to church at all, 
than to one which is subsidised in this manner. 
What Constitutes an Amateur P—"Juarezi” writes : 
— " This knotty question cropped up in a somewhat 
novel way at theNational Dahlia Society’s Show at the 
Crystal Palace last week, and afforded another illus¬ 
tration of the fineness of the line which often divides 
amateurs from professionals. It seems that a well- 
known gardener and Dahlia grower who has been a 
very successful exhibitor at the National Society’s 
Shows in the past, some time ago, in conjunction 
with hisemployer, issued a catalogue or list of Dahlias 
for sale, which was subsequently withdrawn. 
Naturally when he entered in the recognised ama¬ 
teurs’ classes at the late shew, the question was im¬ 
mediately raised, ' can he be allowed to compete as 
an amateur ?' and the committee on his assurance 
that the list had been with¬ 
drawn and that no plants 
had been sold, decided the 
question in his favour. 
It was a nice point and 
very properly raised, but 
still the dividing line was 
very fine.” 
"Annals of Horticulture ” 
is the title of a work of 
some value as a record of 
horticultural progress in 
North America during the 
year 1891. The author is 
Prof. L. H. Bailey, of 
Ithaca, N. Y., and the 
publishers are the Rural 
PublishingCo.,New York. 
The first part deals with 
fruit, vegetables and gen¬ 
eral interests, ornamental 
subjects, plant diseases 
and insects, and national 
and education interests, a 
mass of interesting read¬ 
ing matter; but perhaps to 
English plant lovers the 
most valuable matter will 
be found in Part 2, in 
which is given a list of the 
species of plants native to 
North America, North of 
Mexico, which have been 
commercially introduced 
to cultivation. When 
possible the date is given 
when the plant was intro¬ 
duced into England. 
The Cyclone of April 29 
in Mauritius: Remarkable 
Velocity of the Wind. —Writing in " Blackwood " for 
September, Lieut.-Governor H. E. H. Jerningham, 
C.M.G., says :—Nothing could withstand in places 
the terrible force of the wind on that fatal day of the 
29th of April. It will be for scientific men to explain 
how trees firmly planted more than a century back, 
and of 8 ft. and 12ft. in diameter, were felled to the 
ground ; how the iron-like teakwood branches were 
snapped and cut and broken as mere brushwood; 
how girdles of iron 18 in. thick were indented and 
twisted so as to become useless, as in the case of the 
great pulley-ladders of a sea-dredger ; how, in fine, a 
column of stones, each weighing more than a ton and 
fast riveted with iron girders and cement, was thrown 
down like a pack of cards; and it will be for 
meteorologists to explain how an island of thirty- 
three miles by thirty-one in extent, through which 
the centre of a cyclone is passing, can escape at all 
from a wind so violent as the above denotes. In 
tables of observations, the velocity of the wind is set 
down at 121 miles at its maximum, which corres- 
sponds to a pressure of 67 lbs. to the square foot. 
Noble trees that had stood the first blast went down, 
and in a short two hours upwards of 200,000 trees 
had been overthrown, and all the rest bereft of their 
bark, their leaves and their branches, throughout 
the island. Such velocity had been unknown. The 
storm had come from the N.E., and there are only 
two instances of a cyclone having approached the is¬ 
land from that quarter : in January, 1863, and in 
January, 1868, when little damage was done. 
-—- 
BATEMANNIA BURTII. 
According to the Geneva Plantavum there is only 
one species of Batemannia, a native of Guiana, and 
while acknowledging that Huntleya Meleagris and 
several other allied species were relegated by Reich- 
enbach to Batemannia, yet that both in habit and in 
character they differed and were to be referred to 
Zygopetalum. Some of them however that have 
appeared before the British public are certainly very 
different in general appearance from the typical 
forms of Zygopetalum. That under notice is one of 
them. The flatness of the flower and its peculiar 
arrangement of colours is very marked. The sepals 
are ovate lanceolate, rugose on the surface or having 
numerous elevated areas; they are yellow at the 
base, and this is followed by a brown band, and that 
in turn by a yellow one, while the upper portion is 
marked with brownish-yellow and white. The petals 
are smaller with a crimson blotch at the base, but 
are otherwise similar. The three-lobed lip has an 
ovate laminawhich is white in the lower part and brown 
in the upper, tinted with purple. The crest consists 
of a curious fleshy cup, with incurved purple fringes 
and white at the base. The species is a native of 
Costa Rica, from whence it was introduced in 1872. 
Autumn is the usual season of flowering, but this is 
not absolute as we have seen it flowering in March. 
-- 5 -- 
NATIONAL DAHLIA 
SHOW. 
As usual the National Dahlia Society held their 
annual show at the Crystal Palace, on Friday and 
Saturday of last week. No fruit show was held in 
conjunction with it this year, a fact which may ac¬ 
count for the comparatively scanty attendance of 
visitors on the opening day, as against that of former 
years. The show itself was as good as on previous 
occasions notwithstanding the boisterous weather 
immediately preceding it, and which did much 
damage to the plants in the open ground, disfiguring 
the blooms by lashing them about. 
The first prize for 60 distinct blooms was carried 
off by Messrs. Keynes, Williams & Co., Salisbury, 
who showed a fine lot including Gloire de Lyon, the 
best white in the show, Maui Fellowes, Mrs. Glad¬ 
stone, Duke of Fife, T. S. Ware, Shirley Hibberd, 
Mr. Glascock, Eclipse, Harry Keith, all good show 
kinds. Good fancy varieties were Duchess of 
Albany, Dandy, Rev. J. B. Camm, Buffalo Bill and 
Mrs. J. Downie. Mr. C. Turner, Slough, was a 
close second with many fine blooms such as Mrs. 
Saunders, Agnes, Flag of Truce, Glowworm, &c. 
Mr. Arthur Rawlings, Romford, Essex, was third, 
and Mr. M. V. Seale, Sevenoaks, came in fourth. 
Messrs. Keynes, Williams & Co., again led in the 
class for 48 blooms, many of which were smaller 
than in the class for 60 blooms, but were otherwise 
of good quality. Mr. C. Turner and Mr. Arthur 
Rawlings also held their previous positions, without 
dispute. Messrs. Saltmarsh & Son, Chelmsford, 
toon a leading place in the class for 36 blooms with 
some very fine light coloured varieties. Mr. George 
Humphries, F.R.H.S.,Kington Langley,Chippenham, 
was second, and the third place was taken by Mr. S. 
Mortimer, Rowledge, Farnham. Mr. G. Humphries 
came to the front with 24 blooms in fine order. 
Messrs. Saltmarsh & Son took a second place, and 
Mr. S. Mortimer held his previous position. In the 
class for 12 blooms Messrs. J. Cheal & Sons, Craw¬ 
ley, were first with a well- 
selected variety of blooms. 
Mr. J. R. Tranter was a 
good second ; and Mr. H. 
Harris, Chelmsford, was 
third. Messrs. J. Cheal & 
Sons again took the lead¬ 
ing position with i8Cactus 
and decorative Dahlias in 
bunches, including Rayon 
d'or, Beauty of Arundel, 
Duke of Clarence and 
Black Prince. Mr. C. Tur¬ 
ner wassecondwithagood 
stand, but the colours 
were less telling. Messrs. 
Keynes, Williams & Co. 
led with 12 blooms of Cac¬ 
tus ai.d decorative sorts, 
showing among others 
a beautiful warm lilac 
variety named Countess 
of Pembroke; Messrs. J. 
Burell & Co , Cambridge, 
were a good second. The 
class for 12 Cactus varie¬ 
ties only showed that exhi¬ 
bitors even are not agreed 
as to the exact delimitation 
between a Cactus and a 
decorativeDahlia. Messrs. 
Keynes, Williams & Co. 
were first in this class,and 
Messrs. J. Cheal & Sons 
came in second. The class 
for 24 bunches of Pom¬ 
pons was an attractive 
one, the neat little blooms 
being set up in bunches, 
The first award went to 
Mr. C. Turner, who had some pretty bunches of 
Golden Gem, Mars and Lady Blanche. Messrs. J. 
Cheal & Sons followed, having amongst others a dis¬ 
tinct and beautiful sort named Iolanthe, buff yellow 
tipped with lilac. Mr. M. V. Seale had the best 12 
bunches, and Mr. G. Humphries was second, both 
showing pretty lots. Messrs. J. Cheal & Sons took 
the leading place for 24 singles in bunches, the 
striped varieties being numerous and fine. Mr. M. 
V. Seale was second, and Mr. E. F. Such, Maiden¬ 
head, was third. Mr. G. Humphries was first for 
12 singles, and Messrs. Paul & Son, Cheshunt, 
followed. 
In the amateurs’ classes Mr. J. T. West, gardener 
to W. Keith, Esq , Cornwallis, Brentwood, took the 
leading award for 24 show and fancy blooms, mixed, 
showing fine blooms of Queen of the Belgians, 
Glowworm, Duke of Fife, and Lustrous. Mr. Arthur 
Ocock, gardener to Mrs. McIntosh, Havering Park, 
Romford, was second. Mr. Sidney Cooper, Hamlet, 
Chippenham, had the best 12 show blooms, the best 
12 fancy varieties, and the best 6 Pompons in 
bunches of six. Mr. J. Couzens, Langley Burrell, 
Chippenham, took the first place for 6 show blooms, 
and Mr. G. Boothroyde, Red Hill, Havant, had the 
best 6 fancies. Mr. J. T. West again led in the 
class for 12 Cactus and decorative varieties, and 
Batemannia Burtii. 
