
Scarce Roses of Great Mert 
You don’t find nm most nursery catalogs those lovely 
and dependable old favorites such as the Banksias; Dev- 
oniensis, William R. Smith and Mme. Lombard in Teas; 
General Jacqueminot and Paul Neyron in the Hybrid Per- 
petuals; Marechal Niel and Reve d’Or in the Noisettes. 
Rather, most nurseries offer you Radiance, Talisman 
and a few others, with which we have no quarrel. And 
while admittedly some of the patented Roses are good, 
many of those shown in glowing colors will hardly justify 
the extravagant descriptions. 
We agree that there is a fascination about the new. 
And our gardens should have new varieties. But, lest 
failure dampen our enthusiasm, let’s plant more of those 
that are time-tested and dependable. 
If, today, the old Tea Rose William R. Smith were a 
new variety, it would be featured in catalogs and ad- 
vertisements throughout the land. The flower is more 
double, more fragrant and more lasting than Radiance. 
And the plant will be living after Radiance and other 
Hybrid Teas have passed on. 
Despite the highest production and distribution costs 
in the long history of our business, and taking into con- 
sideration that the quality of these Thomasville-grown 
plants is above the average, we are offering these Roses 
at very low prices. In dozen fots we sell them at 75c 
each, by parcel post prepaid. One large nursery and seed 
house offered to take, at our retail prices, ali the Marechal 
Niel and Yellow Banksia plants we have. But we never 
operated our business just to make all the profits we could. 
We preferred to render a wider service by supplying one 
or a few plants to many different customers. 
After fifty-one years we have come to believe that often 
there is little merit in the new, and to love old Roses like 
old friends. And speaking of the past and “‘old,” Jet us 
quote these Imes from Mrs. Keays’ “‘Conversation at a 
Garden Club’’: 
“What do vou call old?”’ 
“Old Roses are those of type and class 
Used in good gardens of the past.” 
“But when did the past end?”’ 

SOUV. DE LA MALMAISON 
24 THOMASVILLE NURSERIES 
