January 7, 1899. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
299 
IPSWICH HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
The annual meeting of the Ipswich and East of 
England Horticultural Society was held at the Town 
Hall, Ipswich, rn Friday evening, December 30th. 
The chair was taken by the Mayor (E. P. Ridley, 
Esq.), and there was a large attendance. 
The Secretary presented the following report for 
1898, which ran as follows :— 
" At the termination of another twelve months' 
operations, your committee have to report to the 
members that steady and satisfactory progress is still 
being made by the society. During the year two ex¬ 
hibitions have been held, at which the entries num¬ 
bered as under :—Summer, 1898, 626, as against 
summer, 1897, 402; winter, 1898, 559, as against 
winter, 1897, 362, the net increase being 331. The 
attendance of subscribers and the general public has 
been satisfactory, but it is felt that in order to give 
more comfort and greater opportunities for inspect¬ 
ing the society's exhibitions, larger places in which 
to hold the summer and winter shows must, of 
necessity, be found sooner or later. In this con¬ 
nection special efforts by a sub-committee appointed 
to consider sites for the summer show were made 
with a view to obtain by loan or hire the use of the 
society’s old site at Christchurch Park. The Estate 
Committee of the Corporation gave a very patient 
hearing to the deputation which attended, and very 
kindly granted the use of the Park. It has to be 
recorded with great regret that the Corporation in 
general meeting assembled, refused to endorse the 
grant; although permission had been previously 
given to advertise the site. Your committee express 
the hope that a renewed application may meet with 
better success. It has also been suggested that the 
Chrysanthemum show might be held in the Drill 
Hall, and the adjacent buildings used by the Fat 
Cattle Club. At the autumn exhibition your com¬ 
mittee instituted a catalogue of entries and awards, 
which was very much appreciated. The detail work 
of the committee has this year been very largely 
divided, and sub-committees appointed for the pro¬ 
per carrying out of the special sections, with a con¬ 
siderable measure of success. The committee desire 
to place on record their thanks to the president, 
Capt. E. G. Pretyman, M.P., and also to the donors 
of the special prizes ; whilst to the Great Eastern 
Railway Co., and the Horticultural Press your com¬ 
mittee are also greatly indebted. A proposal has 
been formulated that the society should affiliate with 
the National Chrysanthemum Society, principally 
for the purpose of admitting the society to participa¬ 
tion in the Challenge Trophy Competition at Westmin¬ 
ster for affiliated Societies for forty-eight blooms. It 
is also desired that the society should affiliate with 
that of the Royal Horticultural Society.” 
The abstract of accounts for the year, which had 
been audited by Mr. A. Turner and Mr. J. B. Cul- 
lingham, showed that there was a balance in hand of 
£81 13s. sd. The total receipts amounted to £543 
7s. 7d., and the principal items of expenditure were : 
prizes, July Show, /122 5s.; ditto, November Show, 
£85 12s. 6d. ; bands, £80 15s. 3d. 
The report and statement of accounts were 
adopted without discussion, and the rest of the usual 
business was quickly transacted. Capt. E. G. Prety¬ 
man, M.P., the president, was re-elected, as were also 
the vice-presidents, with the exception of four who 
had ceased to become subscribers. Mr. H. E. Archer 
was re-elected secretary amidst applause. In return¬ 
ing thanks, Mr. Archer said that when he first became 
secretary, in 18S6, they had a balance in band of £79 
14s. rod., and during the whole thirteen years they 
had never been able to reach that figure till the pre¬ 
sent year. One year they got up to £65 6s. 7d., and 
another they got down to an overdraft. It was 
very gratifying to see such a good balance at the 
bankers now, and the fact was that after all a good 
deal depended upon the weather. The last two years 
they had been favoured with fine weather for the 
summer shows, and if they had similar good fortune 
in the future there was every hope of maintaining 
their present satisfactory position. 
In accordance with notice of motion previously 
given, Dr. Casley then proposed, " That the present 
rules of the Ipswich and East of England Horti¬ 
cultural Society be rescinded.” The fact had been 
brought to their notice, he said, that their present 
rules were in many respects obsolete, and that it was 
for many reasons desirable to come into line with 
more modern ideas. The motion was seconded and 
carried almost unanimously. Dr. Casley then pro¬ 
posed " That the Society be affiliated with the Royal 
Horticultural and the National Chrysanthemum 
Societies.”—Mr. Stubbs, in seconding, said it was felt 
that the time had come when the Society ought to 
bring itself into line with the parent societies of the 
country. (Hear, hear.) 
The motion was carried after some questions 
had been asked and answered as to the advantages 
that would be derived from the proposed affiliation. 
Later on Mr. Stubbs said that one advantage of 
affiliation with the N.C.S. was the right to compete, 
as a society, in the Trophy class for the best forty- 
eight varieties of Chrysanthemums, twenty.four 
Japanese and twenty-four incurved. Every member 
could contribute one or more blooms to the general 
stand, and he asked the Chrysanthemum growers, for 
the honour of the good old town and of the society, 
to make a united effort to bring this trophy to 
Ipswich. 
The rules which had been been drawn up by the 
committee, and of which copies were distributed, 
were then considered seriatim. Most of these were 
adopted, with only slight alterations. 
The committee had also drawn up a number of 
regulations "to govern the conditions of shows.” 
One of these in its amended form was as follows :— 
" Everything intended for exhibition must be staged 
ready for the judges by n o’clock a.m., when all 
exhibitors other than members of committee must 
retire from the show.” 
Another regulation was, " All exhibits to be 
correctly named.” This created an amusing dis¬ 
cussion which ended in the addition of the words, 
" as far as possible.” 
Another regulation which evoked much discussion 
was as follows:—" Exhibitors, making entries and 
failing to exhibit them, shall be liable to a fine of 
2S. 6d.” 
Mr. Stubbs pleaded with " sweet reasonableness” 
in favour of this rule, and it was ultimately adopted 
after it had been modified somewhat by the addition 
of the phrase, " unless notice of withdrawal reach the 
secretary not later than 6 p.m. on the evening 
previous to the show.” 
The whole committee of fifteen were then chosen 
by ballot, Mr. O. Haxell and Mr. H. Kerridge 
acting as scrutineers of the papers. There were 
thirty-one nominations, and the result of the voting 
was that the new committee consists of Messrs. 
Messenger, W. Holden, J. B. Cullingham, T. E. 
Mayhew, J. Talbot, R. C. Notcutt, E. C. Sayer, 
A. E. Stubbs, I. Battram, A. Bennett, G. Gilbert. 
W. J. Catchpole, Alan Turner, A. Ranson, Dr. R. 
K. Casley. 
It was decided that the first five to retire next 
year should be Messrs. Alan Turner, Talbot, Stubbs, 
Sayer, and Ranson. 
A hearty vote of thanks to the Mayor, who had 
been an excellent chairman, closed the meeting. 
- — 
A CANADIAN SCHOOL OF FORESTRY. 
The pressing need for a systematic scheme of forest 
preservation, and of reforestation, is agitating the 
authorities in Canada. In the Dominion, as in 
the United States and in the old country, forestry 
matters have been allowed to drift and take care of 
themselves. With the enormous increase in popu¬ 
lation, however, and the proportionate increase in 
the demand for timber, this policy ollaissez faire will 
no longer answer, for woods and forests cannot be 
made in a day, but must be systematically planted, 
and as systematically attended to and nursed into 
vigorous maturity. Both the planter and the con¬ 
servator have, indeed, to be called into action if the 
woods and forests of Great and Greater Britain are 
to be maintained. 
During a visit recently paid by Mr. Peter Barr to 
the Central Experimental Farm at Ottawa, he ex¬ 
pressed himself very decidedly as to the value of the 
work being carried on at that station, particularly in 
the department of forestry. Mr. Barr has visited 
during the course of last summer's travels similar 
institutions in the United States, and the comparison 
he drawn between these and the farm at Ottawa is 
very flattering to the latter. Naturally enough, at 
this time of the year, winter's snowy mantle hides a 
good deal of the interest from sight, but Mr. Barr 
evidently saw enough to satisfy him, for he said 
“ you are doing a work here, which, as a foundation 
for something better and greater, is of a thoroughly 
practical and beneficial nature. I have not met with 
any institution in the United States which touches 
forestry at all. At Cornell, it is true, they are com¬ 
mencing a school for forestry, having just procured 
the necessary land ; but if your people here keep on 
as they are going the Central Farm here will keep a 
long way ahead of Cornell, which is the best 
example of practical work being done in the United 
States. They have active and efficient men, but 
they are only • sawing wood ' at present.” 
Incidentally referring to the great depletion of the 
forests of the United States, Mr. Barr added, that if 
he were a Canadian he should not worry about 
getting lumber free into the “ States,” for before 
long they would be almost begging for Canadian 
lumber. 
He strenuously advised the formation of a School 
of Forestry at Ottawa, and suggested that if the 
movement were carried on in the right way they 
might be able to get an imperial subsidy ; this more 
particularly so, because the old country wanted an 
opportunity for her people to be trained in forestry 
for the sake of India and the colonies. 
PESTS. 
I was staying for a day or two with a friend in the 
country, and being glorious weather in early May, I 
got up, and went out the first morning at five 
o’clock. 
" I hope you enjoyed your early ramble ? ” was my 
host's greeting as I entered the breakfast-room three 
hours later. 
" I can't say I have,” was my reply, as I seated 
myself at the table. 
“Why on earth not ? " he asked, gazing at me in 
astonishment. " I should have thought with your 
love of a garden you would have revelled in this 
lovely spot.” 
" It is simply because I do love a garden in every 
sense of the word that I have not enjoyed myself this 
morning,” I rejoined. “ When one hears discon¬ 
tented murmurings wherever one walks, it does not 
add to one's happiness.” 
" You speak in riddles," was my friend’s reply," as 
he poured out the coffee. 
" Well, my dear fellow, this is how it is. Many 
years ago that old saying, • He that hath ears to 
hear, let him hear,’ was impressed deeply on my 
mind. I think I applied a different meaning to it, to 
the generality of people, and that was, to open my 
ears so that I may understand the conversations of 
either plants or animals.” 
" You certainly are a strange chap, and if I did not 
know you better, I should say you were decidedly 
'off it.' But you always lived in a world of your 
own, and have been different from the ordinary run 
of mortals. Who, but you, would say that plants 
talked ? However, if you have no objection, I should 
like to hear something of what they said.” 
" I will tell you with the greatest of pleasure, only 
do not be vexed, for there was general grumbling in 
your garden from the Chestnuts to the Radishes. It 
appears to me that pests of all kinds abound in this 
place, and, as nothing seems to be done to check 
them, the ravages they are making is very bad, and 
naturally the plants are complaining. The first 
grumble I heard was from one of your Carnations : 
‘ Look at the pitiable condition I am in,' I heard it 
say to its neighbour, ' that old hare has been here 
again this morning, and nibbled away nearly all my 
grass, I shan’t have any left soon.’ ' Neither shall 
I,’ was the reply from another. ‘ And yet we are 
always expected to look well. I am perfectly in¬ 
different now about my appearance, and although I 
am Dean Reynolds Hole, my blooms will be poor, 
both in size and colour.’ 1 Serve the master jolly 
well right for letting the hare go free so long. He 
carries his kindness to animals to an extreme, why 
cannot he either shoot or trap the creature when it 
is doing so much mischief? ’ ” 
" I strolled on towards the kitchen garden ; here, 
everything seemed to be chattering at once." 
* ' I fancy we are the only Radishes left in this 
row,’ I heard one exclaim to another, ‘ and I don't 
see any in the next, or the next; the chaffinches have 
had a rare good feed this week. Well 1 I have no 
patience with the master, I have heard several 
people tell him to stretch black cotton along the 
rows, but he rarely puts any, and if he does, uses 
white, which is no good at all.' " 
" A few steps further I heard the same complaint 
