December 19, 1903. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
1051 
the results contained therein would be of general benefit. Mr. 
S. B. Dicks seconded the motion, and it was carried unani¬ 
mously. 
The election of officers was proceeded with, and Mr. Henry 
Eckford was elected president, Mr. N. N. Sherwood honorary 
treasurer, Mr. Whitpaine Nutting chairman, and Mr. Horace 
J. Wright honorary secretary, each for the year 1904. Thq 
retiring officers were thanked for the services they had ren¬ 
dered to the society. 
Some discussion ensued towards the close of the meeting 
relative to the judges at the 1904 meeting, Messrs. W. Cutli- 
bertson, S. B. Dicks, J. House, J. Green, G. Gordon, and C. II. 
Curtis speaking, and it was eventually resolved that the judges 
be selected equally from the amateur, professional gardeners, 
and trade elements. 
A vote of thanks to the chairman closed the proceedings. 
NATIONAL ROSE SOCIETY. 
Report of the Committee for the Year 1903. 
The report for the past year, which the committee have now 
the pleasure of presenting, must be regarded as, on the whole, 
a most encouraging one. 
" The Rose season of 1903, like that of the previous year, 
proved extremely backward, and, as the date of the Metro¬ 
politan Show, July 1st, was again unusually early, it appeared 
likely, only a week before the exhibition, that tlierei would be 
few Roses out in any part of the country in time for it. Fortu¬ 
nately, with a change to warmer weather, the prospects became 
more favourable, and the teaits were, after all, fairly well filled. 
As, however, might have been expected under such unfavourable 
conditions, the general quality of th-e flowers and the number 
exhibited fell short of what one naturally expects to see at this, 
the leading Rose show Of the year. The number of exhibition 
Roses staged was even smaller than last year—indeed, smaller 
than in any year since 1893, or for 10 years. 
“ The committee gratefully acknowledge their indebtedness 
to the Treasurer and Benchers of the Inner Temple for again 
allowing the show to be 'held in their gardens. They also tender 
their best thanks to the President and Council of the Royal 
Horticultural Society for so considerately placing their staff 
of assistants at the society’s disposal on the show day. Both 
of these concessions are warmly appreciated by all in any way 
responsible for the success of the society’s Metropolitan exhibi¬ 
tion. 
“ As to the future prospects of that show, the committee feel 
convinced that when once this grand display of Roses comes to 
be regarded as an established annual institution it will be much 
more largely patronised by the general jjublic than at present. 
In a huge city like London three years is scarcely sufficient time 
to allow of an exhibition of this kind, held on only one day in 
the year, to become generally known. The committee have 
pleasure in recording that at the Temple Rose Show this year 
there was a gratifying increase in the number of classes for Roses 
staged in other ways than in the regulation boxes ; indeed, only, 
half the classes in, the schedule were devoted to Roses staged in 
the latter way, whereas only five year’s ago the box classes 
claimed four-fifths of the schedule. 
“ The Northern Show, which took place .at Glasgow on 
July 15th, proved in all respects a magnificent one, and the 
resources of St. Andrew’s Hall were taxed'to the uttermost to 
provide room for the exhibits; 3,970 blooms of exhibition Roses 
were in all staged, which is, with three exceptions, a greater 
number than at any previous northern exhibition held by the 
society. Every credit is due to the committee of the West of 
Scotland Rosarian’s Society, and particularly to their new secre¬ 
tary, Mr. John Lindsay, for the arrangements made on that 
occasion. These were rendered unusually difficult owing to the 
extent of the show, and to its being held away from Helensburgh, 
the home of the society. 
“ Early in the year a subscription was set on foot in order 
to raise a fund in memory of that keen rosarian and generous 
friend of the society, the late Mr. Charles J. Grahame. Through 
the kind exertions of the Rev. G. E. Jeans and Captain Ramsay, 
secretary and treasurer of the fund, the sum of £52 11s. 6d. was 
collected. The first Grahame Memorial Prize was competed for 
at the society’s Temple Show in July last. It is with much 
regret that the committee record the death during the past year 
of Mr. J. D. Pawle, a vice-president of the society, .and one of 
its earliest and warmest supporters. 
“ Finance.— Considering that the takings at the Temple Rose 
Show were only about the same as in 1902, and that £62 had to 
be paid for the printing of the new edition of the official catalogue, 
which was issued to members last year, the present state of the 
society’s finances must be regarded as highly satisfactory. The 
total receipts, including a balance of £14 19s. 3d. from the pre¬ 
ceding year, amounted to £1,179 7s. lid., and the expenditure to 
£1,126 0s. lid., leaving a balance of £53 7s. in the treasurer’s 
hands. Consequently, there has been this year no occasion to 
make any call upon the guarantee fund. With a view to obtain 
the nucleus of a reserve fund, no provincial exhibition will be 
held by the society in 1804. Previous to 1901 there was no 
necessity for a reserve fund, but since the society began to hold an 
independent show in the Temple Gardens the need of such a fund 
lias been keenly felt. In the opinion of the committee this will 
be a much more satisfactory plan than relying from year to year 
upon an annual guarantee fund. In the latter case any deficiency 
that may arise has to be made good by the guarantors alone, 
whereas with a reserve fund this would be defrayed, as it should 
be, out of tlie general funds of the society. There has again been 
during the year a veiy gratifying increase in the number of 
members. In 1900, the year before the Metropolitan show was 
first held in the Temple Gardens, the number of members was 
only 584, whereas now there are over a thousand members on the 
society’s books, showing a total increase in the three years of 72 
per cent. 
“ Arrangements for 1904.—The Metropolitan show will again 
take place, by the kind permission of the Benchers of the Inner 
Temple, in the Temple Gardens, on Wednesday, July 6. There 
will be no provincial exhibition next year, but an autumn Rose 
show will be held at the Crystal Palace on Tuesday, Sep¬ 
tember 20. This is a new departure, and should the season 
prove favourable a most interesting and attractive exhibition of 
autumn-flowering Roses may be anticipated. 
“ Members’ Privileges.— Members subscribing one guinea will 
be entitled to six five-riiilling tickets, and subscribers of half a 
guinea to three five-shilling tickets of admission to the society’s 
exhibition in the Temple Gardens. In addition to this, each 
member will receive an admission ticket for the society’s autumn 
Rose show to be held at the Crystal Palace. Members joining 
the society for the first time in 1904 will also receive copies of the 
following publications : The new edition of the ‘ Official Cata¬ 
logue of Exhibition and Garden Roses,’ the new and revised 
edition of the ‘ Hints on Planting Roses,’ the ‘ Report of the Con¬ 
ferences on Pruning and Exhibiting Roses,’ the ‘ Report of the 
Constitution of Rose Soils,’ the ‘ Conference Report on the 
Decorative Use of some Garden Roses,’ and to a symposium on 
‘How to Grow and Show Tea Roses.’ All members will receive, 
during tOie course of the coming year, a new treatise on pruning 
Roses, which will be prepared by a special committee of experts 
appointed for the purpose. Members alone are allowed to com¬ 
pete at the shows of the society. Members will be entitled to 
purchase tickets for their friends for the Temple Rose show at re¬ 
duced prices. 
“ The committee convey their best thanks to the donors of 
special prizes, the keen competition for which adds so much to 
the attractiveness of the society’s Metropolitan exhibition, and 
especially to Captain Ramsay for the handsome cup he has now 
given for six consecutive years as the leading prize in one of the 
most popular classes in the show. The local secretaries have 
again done good service, the most successful being Mr. C. Barber, 
Mr. H. S. Bartleet, Mr. H. E. Molyneux, Rev. R. Powley, and 
Mr. J. Wakeley. For the largest number of fresh subscribers 
obtained by any one member during the past year the committee 
gratefully acknowledge their indebtedness to Miss Willmott, a 
vice-patroness of the society; in fact, during the last three years 
Miss Willmott has succeeded in adding to the list no fewer than 
fifty new and influential subscribers.” 
BALANCE SHEET, YEAR ENDING NOVEMBER 30, 1903. 
Receipts. 
1902. £ s. d. 
Dec. 1. Balance at bankers.. 14 19 3 
Subscriptions. 626 li S 
Affiliation fees and medals 
from affiliated societies .. 64 10 6 
Advertisements.19 16 0 
From West of Scotland Rosa- 
rians’ Society. 80 0 0 
Special prizes .. .. ..83160 
Proceeds of Temple Show .. 262 16 0 
Sale of publications .. .. 10 18 6 
Guarantee Fund—balance of 
call not paid last year .. 8 10 0 
For proposed treatise on 
“ Chemical Manures for Tea 
Roses,’' from A. Hill Gray .. 5 5 0 
£1,179 7 11 
Expenditure 
& s. d. 
Printing, stationery, and ad¬ 
vertising . 131 14 3 
Postage, telegrams, and sun¬ 
dry expenses.54 16 5 
Expenses Temple Show .. 397 1 5 
., Glasgow Show .. 6 10 0 
Medals.22 19 10 
,, for affiliated societies . 47 4 0 
Prizes Temple Show .. .. 220 17 0 
„ Glasgow Show .. .. 150 5 0 
Purchase of plate for prizes .. 59 13 0 
Assistant secretary and ac¬ 
countant . 35 0 0 
Balance at bank. 53 7 0 
£1,179 7 11 
