16 
marks or darker pencillings on the ground 
colour, they should be bright, dense, dis- 
tinct, and retain their character without run- 
ning or flushing or mixing with the ground 
colour; and the white, yellow, or straw- 
colour should be pure. 
5. The two upper petals should be per- 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER. 
fectly uniform, whether dark or light, or 
fringed or blotched. The two petals im- 
mediately under them should be alike; and 
the lower petal, as before observed, must 
have the same ground colour and character 
as the two above it; and the pencilling or 
marking of the eye in the three lower petals 
BOBSS 
“TBE 
BRIARS. 
OcTOBER 1, i902. 
must not break through to the edges. 
6. In size there is a distinct point, when 
coarseness does not accompany it, in other 
words, if flowers are equal in other respects, 
the larger is the better, but no flower should 
be shown under one inch and a _ half 
across. 
®RIVING in at the entrance gates of “ The 
Briars” the visitor enters upon fourteen” 
acres of an estate almost upon the boundary 
of the City of Adelaide. Situated on the 
crest of a hill in the fashionable suburb of 
Medindie the tower of the house gives un-. 
interrupted view of the. city, suburbs, hills, 
seacoast, and northern flats, as far as the eye 
can reach, without exception the most 
charming panorama of scenery possible to 
imagine on a clear’spring day. The variety 
and charm of the landscape beggars descrip- 
tion, which neither pen, camera, nor brush 
can in any sense depict. To be in any 
degree appreciated it must be seen. No one 
could possibly appreciate it more thoroughly 
than the present owner, and his vanity on 
the point is quite pardonable. Mr. Cowell 
is nothing if not hospitable, possessing as he 
does that characteristic of the true type of 
the Australian, a true and hearty hand- 
grip, a full wealth of greeting, warm and 
cordial, summed up in the refrain which he 
frequently repeats—‘‘ Glad to see you ; make 
yourself at home.” The pleasure of it all 
is that the visitor is impressed with the belief 
that he thoroughly means it, because if he 
did not he would not mind telling him so in 
a very few words. ‘The partner of his joys 
and sorrows (if perchance such a thing as 
sorrow could possibly find a corner anywhere 
in such a delightful place), Mrs. Cowell is 
Residence of Mr. James Cowell. 
just like him in hospitality, only more so. 
Selfishness seems to have no place at “The 
Briars.”. Thousands of pot plants of one 
order alone go out of the glasshouses in the 
course of a year for bazaars for the poor, and 
to help the church, all on the quiet, the right 
hand not knowing what the left doeth. Occa- 
sionally the grounds are thrown completely 
open to some charitable fete, and that not 
merely of a parochial character. That 
famous institution in England, Dr. Bar- 
nardo’s Homes, one year recéived a hand- 
some cheque from Mr. Cowell in this way ; 
and coming nearer home, for the sake of 
charity, he opened the grounds for the street 
boys of Adelaide, when the members and 
friends of the Adelaide University Shak- 
speare Society transformed a lovely little 
corner of the’ garden into a perfect ideal of 
the Forest of Arden wherein to play Shak- 
speare’s pastoral drama, ‘As you like it.” | 
This was performed at ‘The Briars” in the 
open grounds for the first time in South 
Australia, and those present had never before 
seen anything so charming. Though a 
thorough Churchman, Mr. Cowell is 
thus seen to be no narrow-minded 
religionist. He says he is not rich, but 
wishes he were. Of this we know nothing, 
but he seems to make the most of what he 
has, whether much or little, for the benefit 
of those less fortunate. We are afraid to 
say any more of this happy couple, who, by 
the way, have a fine family of children, 
always to be seen deporting themselves 
as happy as only children can under such 
circumstances. Suffice it to say that in 
public spiritedness Mr. Cowell is a worthy 
successor to the former owner and builder 
of “The Briars,” the late Hon. George C. 
Hawker, the mention of whose name gives 
those who had the honour of his acquaint- ~ 
ance an instant inclination to raise the hat, 
for he was an English gentleman of noble:. 
birth and character. He was one of the . 
fathers of South Australia, and the legislative 
halls of Adelaide reverberated some of the 
finest spells of oratory that have ever been 
heard there in the true interests of his 
country. Much as we should like to remind 
Australians of the debt they owe to such 
men as Mr. Hawker, our space must be 
devoted to a description, inadequate as it 
must necessarily be, of the grounds around 
whose seclusion he delighted to ramble 
during the quiet hours snatched from a 
busy public and private life. 
Upon being introduced to the head gar- 
dener, who is new to ‘‘ The Briars,” our re- 
presentative noticed at once that there was 
very much in the garden to be undone before 
he could make any headway in bringing the 
place up to what the present gardener in- 
tended it to be. It was quite evident that, 
