THE GARDENING WORLD. 
19 ? 
March 5, 1904. 
National Fruit-growers’ Federation. 
The usual monthly meeting of the council wasi held at the 
Westminster Palace Hotel on Monday, the 15th uit. The fol¬ 
lowing were present: —Col. C. W. Long, M.P., chairman; 
Messrs. J. Idiensi, Evesham ; C. 1). Wise, Gloucestershire; H. F. 
Gatting, Herefordshire; W. Idiens., Cambridgeshire; Hon. and 
Rev. A. Baillie-Hamilton, Guernsey; S. Boorman, Surrey; F. 
Smith, T. May, A. Meskin, A. S. White, W. Horne, and Percy 
Manwaring, from Kent; A. H. H. Matthews, secretary to the 
Central Chamber of Agriculture; and A. T. Matthews, seorei- 
tary. Communications w r ere read, and twenty-five new mem¬ 
bers were elected. 
The coming departmental inquiry into the fruit-growing in¬ 
dustry was discussed, and in response to an invitation from the 
Board of Agriculture', an official witness to represent the federar 
tion was appointed. 
An important discussion took place on the question of the 
assessment of agricultural land being raised when planted with 
fruit. A typical case was brought forward from Kent, in which 
the rent is £120, and, because it lias been planted with fruit 
trees, the income tax assessor raised the assessment to £358, 
which was maintained by the Commissioners, and from, which 
decision the tenant was told there was no appeal. Mr. C. D. 
Wise said this was a mistake, and that such cases could be 
carried to the higher courts. He alsoi gave two instances 
which had occurred ini his neighbourhood when similar 
attempts to raise the assessment had been successfully 
resisted. Another well-known case In Norfolk was cited, ip) 
which the tenant had gained his case on appeal. Mr. Thos. 
May said that such land should he treated as farmland under 
Schedule B, and mentioned a case at Bromley when it was 
so decided. The council agreed that the whole subject re¬ 
quired careful investigation, and it was referred to the 
departmental inquiry for 'consideration,. 
The Railway Advisory Committee then presented a report 
stating that-the Great Western Company have agreed to place 
a few of their ventilated fruit vans, now only used on passenger 
trains, on the goods train service on trial, the Advisory Com¬ 
mittee to, report on their suitability. The van is an excellent 
one, and a very great improvement on the open trucks which 
have to be sheeted. The railway authorities admit that the}- 
will also save much time by dispensing with the sheeting, ana 
that, they will thus be able to run the trains more punctually. 
This being the case, there is every hope that sheeted vans will 
soon become things of the past, 
_ The Midland Company have been asked to add torpedo ven¬ 
tilators to the roofs of their passenger fruit trains, and so pre¬ 
vent, much damage from the heating of soft, fruits, which also 
leaves a smell in the van detrimental to the next load. Mr. 
Eaton, the superintendent, has promised careful consideration 
of this.suggestion. 
The committee has followed up the question of evening 
special passenger trains to pick up fruit from sending stations, 
and so enable late afternoon picking of soft fruit to be per¬ 
formed, and the fruit landed in northern markets in the morn¬ 
ing almost equal to morning-picked fruit. 
Revised passenger and goods service rates have been, issued 
by nearly all the companies in pamphlet form, handy for the 
pocket, enabling the grower to see at a glance if it would 
answer his purpose to pay slightly more and so catch an earlier 
market. 
All these matters were brought before the Board of General 
Managers by the deputation from this federation! about, fifteen! 
months ago. 
Hopes were felt that the growers would now recognise t,He? 
value of combination as ai means, of making known their wants, 
or which the federation is soi well adapted. It was decided 
that in future all members should be welcome a,t, the meetings) 1 
of the council, Monday, March 14th, a,t 2.30 p.m., bebrm the 
next fixture. 
Readers Competition.- —Particulars of weeklv prize see 
tentre page. 
Economy.—IL 
In a former article I endeavoured to point out what con¬ 
stituted the best kind of employer, or, at least, the employer 
that enabled a, gardener to produce the very best results. I 
will now endeavour to explain what I consider true economy 
in working a garden. I was once foreman to a man who con¬ 
sidered it very economical to spend as little as possible on, 
flower pots. When you had t,o shift a plant into' ai bigger 
pot, you had first to take a walk through the houses 
Aconitum Wilsoni. (See p. 195.) 
to discover a sickly plant growing in the size of 
pot you wanted, then empty and clean that pofj 
before you could pot, on, the plant that required a shift. 
This is no exaggeration, but the simple truth, and yet this 
same man bought huge quantities of artificial manures every 
year, and made very little use of them. Was that economy 1 ? 
A certain, place I once took charge of had had a man in charge 
with curious notions of economy. The seed press was literally 
stuffed with packets of seeds that had never been opened, and 
yet, nearly a half of the flower pots, were held together with 
wire® or hoops of sheet iron, and the houses rotting for want of 
a coat of paint and a little putty. Now, to my mind, real 
economy is not ®o much saving of expense as the laying out 
of the money allowed in a proper manner. It is very poor 
