1013 
THE OAR DEIS'I NO WORLD. 
December 5, 1903. 
Nephrolefis Piehsoni. —From “Gardening,” an American 
contemporary/we learn that this handsome new Fern is liable 
to revert to the original. It is stated, however', that observant 
growers affirm that the variety remains constant when not grown 
too warm in winter. 
* * * 
Electric Light and Trees. —The electric light is having a 
curious effect upon a row of black Italian Poplar trees planted 
by the side of the parade at Westcliff-on-Sea. Those close to the 
lamp are in full leaf, whilst the remainder have for a long time 
been leafless. 
* * * 
Salvia splendens.— Along the coasts of France and Italy this 
shrub grows and blooms in the open, attaining a height of 5 ft., 
with spikes 12 in. to 18 in. in length. The numerous varieties 
which have made their appearance in this country during l’ecent 
vears have all been reared from seeds upon the Continent. 
v 4i * * 
Aretha j,grata. —The leaves of this climber consist of three 
leaflets and the fruit of an ornamental character, being 3 in. to 
4 iu. long, and purple in colour. It belongs to the Barberry 
family, and comes from Japan. A plant was recently fruited in 
a Nottinghamshire garden. The better-known A. quinata does 
not often fruit, although it flowers freely enough, both under 
glass and on an outside wall. 
* *• * 
Danger in Watercress. —The Public Health Committee of 
Hackney stated in a report issued on the 24th ult. that, as a 
result of investigations made by their medical officer, it was 
proved that a recent outbreak of enteric fever in the district had 
been caused by the consumption of sewer-polluted Watercress, 
and that a large portion of the Watercress supplied to the Metro¬ 
polis is sewage-polluted. The committee recommend that the 
Metropolitan Borough Councils and the London County Council 
should ask the Local Government Board to hold an inquiry as 
to the sources of Watercress supply. 
* * * 
Tropical Flowers in Australia. —In Westralia, South Aus¬ 
tralia, and Victoria the choice blooms that we shelter in our 
greenhouses away from the icy breath of winter grow 
out of doors the year through in lavish profusion. Pelargo¬ 
niums, the delicate blue and white blossoms of the 1 lum¬ 
bago, and the sweet-scented Oleander run riot in every 
garden. In Sydney, and still more in Brisbane, the vegetation 
is of a sub-tropical description. Stephanotis flings its waxy 
flowers over trellis and verandah-post; Hibiscus flaunts its 
crimson bells in the, burning rays of the sun, from' which the 
delicate Eucharis lily shrinks abashed ; Bananas and graceful 
Japanese Bamboos wave in the heavily-scented air, while Palms 
and Roses flourish everywhere. 
* * * 
Tomato as a Possible Preventive of Malaria. —The re¬ 
searches of Dr. Schoo as to the immunity of mosquitoes in certain 
areas offer an interesting explanation as to the cause of the 
malaria trouble. Dr. Schoo observed that so long as they were 
fe i on acid fruits it was extremely difficult to infect mosquitoes 
with the malarial parasite, while they are easily infected when 
the a®id food was withheld. This observation accords with a 
point noticed by Professor Celli, who has stated that one of the 
Italian immune areas is remarkable for an enormous develop¬ 
ment of the cultivation of the Tomato, a fruit rich in vegetable 
acid, and: an attractive food for the mosquitoes. The necessity 
for further investigation of this matter is clear, for, if confirma¬ 
tion is obtained, such knowledge may be of much importance in 
its practical application for the prevention of malaria. 
Presentation to Mr. Alexander Dean.— On the evening of 
the 24th ult. the members of the late executive committee of die 
gardeners’ dinner and reception entertained Mr. A. Dean, the 
hon secretary, at dinner at the Holborn Restaurant, London. 
Mr."Owen Thomas, V.M.H., the Chairman of the committee, pre¬ 
sided on this occasion. The Chairman, after a brief speech, 
asked Mr Dean to accept an address and a suitably engraved 
silver salver. Mr. Dean suitably acknowledged the gifts, and, m 
an admirable speech, recounted some of liis earlier experiences 
in gardening, creating a. lively interest in the audience. With 
one°exception, all the members of the late committee were pre¬ 
sent. The address contained an allusion to the dinner, an ac¬ 
knowledgment of the valuable services rendered to the cause in 
his capacity as honorary secretary, and the untiring labour which 
he gave to the organising of the movement. Financially it w s 
a great success, and the balance was handed over to the garden 
charities. It therefore asked his acceptance of the address, with 
a piece of silver and their sincere good wishes. 
Aberdeen Chrysanthemum Show.- —In our account of the 
Aberdeen Chrysanthemum Show, by some oversight our cor¬ 
respondent had omitted to mention the fine floral exhibit of 
Messrs. Ben. Reid and Co., Ltd., 28, Exchange Street, Aberdeen. 
The exhibit was admitted generally to be far ahead of any other 
miscellaneous exhibit staged. 
* ■* * 
Rampant Lucerne.— “Macmillan’s” says that the roots of 
Lucerne have been found penetrating the loose soil of the Argen¬ 
tine pampas for a distance of more than 60 ft. Fields that have 
been laid down for 30 years show no signs of falling off, even 
when continually grazed by cattle. The land subjected to irri¬ 
gation yields 10 tons to 15 tons of hay per acre annually. 
* * * 
Apples from North America.^ —Apples from the United 
States and Canada still continue to arrive in large quantities. 
The Nomadic, of the Dominion Line, which arrived on the 24th 
ult., brought about 17,000 barrels from Portland (Me.). Two 
other steamers of the line word expected on the 27th—the Com¬ 
monwealth from Boston, with about 21,000 barrels, and the 
Roman, from Montreal, with 4,000 barrels. The Allan liner 
Parisian, from Quebec and Montreal, and which left Rimouski 
on the 22nd ult., is bringing 8,000 barrels and 200 cases of 
Apples. It is estimated that from Canada and the United States 
200,000 barrels of Apples would be dealt with in Liverpool last 
week. Although 60,000 barrels were disposed of on the 25th, 
the prices remained firm, and did not break even Is. a barrel. 
National Chrysanthemum Society: 
Annual Dinner. 
The annual dinner of the above society was held at the Holborn 
Restaurant, London, on November 25th, 1903, under the pre¬ 
sidency of Charles E. Shea, Esq., F.R.H.S., who was recently 
elected president in succession to the late Sir Edwin Saunders. 
'The usual loyal toasts were proposed by the chairman, and in 
due course he proposed “ The National Chrysanthemum Society.” 
He gave a resume of the principal events of the society from its 
foundation to the present time. He reverted to 1846, when a 
small body of men met at the Amherst Arms, and formed the 
Stoke Newington Chrysanthemum Society. Mr. Robert James 
was the pioneer, and practically the founder of this society. 
At that time it was impossible to set up stands of 24 and 18 
blooms distinct. In 1862 and 1864 the chairman humorously 
stated that the society got into a critical condition as the officers 
began to present testimonials to one another, including an 
honorarium to the screstary, and this was followed, unfortu¬ 
nately, by other societies. 
In 1874 the society changed its name to that .of the Stoke 
Newington and Hackney Chrysanthemum Society. In 1875 the 
name was again changed to that of the Borough of Hackney 
Chrysanthemum Society. About that time Mr. R. Ballantine 
joined the society, and, happily, was present that night. The 
first show was held at the Royal Aquarium in 1877. In 1878 
the late Mr. William Holmes the younger joined the society. 
His singleness of purpose, tact, and courtesy made him one of 
the most valuable members the society ever had. In 1884 the 
name was changed to that of the National Chrysanthemum 
Society, and all praise was due to Mr. Henry Cannell, of 
Swanley, for the suggestion of adopting that title. 
Since then the Chrysanthemum has advanced by leaps and 
bounds, other countries imitating in a measure what was done 
by the National Chrysanthemum Society here. Australia, 
France, and the United States all joined issue in advancing the 
Chrysanthemum. In the last mentioned year Mr. C. Harman 
Payne became a member, and has since proved to be one of the 
most valuable assistants, being at present, as he has been for 
years, the honorary foreign corresponding secretary. They also 
elected Lord Brooke as their first president that year. Another 
milestone in their history was that of the death of Mr. Holmes 
and the appointment of Mr. Richard Dean as secretary. Last 
year the Wesleyan body bought the Royal Aquarium, and the 
society had perforce to leave^their old home in which they had 
been so successful for many years. 
They had been obliged to go to the Crystal Palace, and they 
found it much more roomy a place, with every accommodation, 
and their first show there was fairly successful, but he felt con¬ 
fident that they would ultimately settle down to look upon that 
as their new home, and he had every confidence that they would 
be able to carry on their shows successfully there. It was a 
national shame that we had no large hall of horticulture m 
London. That being built by the Royal Horticultural Society 
