JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
June  23  1900. 
5:)0 
Recent  Weather  In  Xondon. —  There  have  been  thunderstorms 
in  the  metropolis  during  the  past  few  days,  accompanied  generally  by 
heavy  rains.  Throughout  Monday  these  conditions  prevailed,  terridc 
rainstorms  occurring,  bub  no  serious  damage  is  recorded.  Tuesday 
was  calm,  but  sunless,  and  Wednesday  opened  bright  and  warm,  though 
occasionally  overcast. 
Royal  Horticultural  Society. — The  nezt  fruit  and  flower  show 
of  the  Koyal  Horticultural  Society  will  be  held  on  Tuesday,  July  3rd, 
in  the  Drill  Hall,  James  Street,  Westminster,  1  to  6  p.m.  On  this 
occasion  special  prizes  will  be  offered  for  Roses.  At  three  o’clock  a 
lecture  on  “  Bedding,  Hedge,  and  Pillar  Roses  ”  will  be  given  by  Mr. 
George  Paul,  V^.M.H.  ;  and  at  4  p.m.  a  special  general  meeting  will  be 
held  to  consider  the  new  bye-laws. 
Death  of  a  Shrewsbury  Arboriculturist. — Mr.  W.  H.  Dove, 
who  lived  in  Shrewsbury  Quarry  Lodge,  died  recently  at  the  age  of 
sixty  years.  For  many  years  Mr.  Dove  had  had  the  Quarry  under  his 
control,  and  it  was  undoubtedly  greatly  due  to  his  knowledge  of 
arboriculture  and  taste  in  the  gardener’s  art  that  that  now  delightful 
place  was  transformed  from  barrenness  into  sylvan  and  floral  loveliness. 
His  death  is  regretted  by  a  very  large  number  of  friends. 
Injury  to  Nursery  Stock.— In  the  case  of  Cull  and  Rooke  v. 
the  Great  Eastern  Railway  Company  an  application  was  made  in  the 
Court  of  Appeal  by  the  defendant  company  for  a  new  trial  or  Judgment 
for  them.  The  action  was  tried  before  Mr.  Justice  Grantham  and  a 
special  Jury  in  March  last.  It  was  brought  for  an  injunction  to  restrain 
the  defendants  from  permitting  their  engines  to  remain  stationary  at 
intervals  in  a  siding  alongside  the  plaintiffs’  nursery  gardens  at  Coleraine 
Park,  Tottenham,  and  emitting  smoke,  smuts  and  vapours  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  cause  destruction,  injury,  and  damage  to  the  plaintiffs’ 
Vines,  plants,  and  flowers,  or  from  using  their  engines  in  such  a  way 
as  to  be  a  nuisance  to  the  plaintiffs.  The  plaintiffs  also  claimed 
damages.  The  Jury  retilrned  a  verdict  for  the  plaintiffs,  assessing 
the  damages  at  £400,  and  Judgment  was  entered  accordingly. 
Mr.  McCall,  Q.C.,  and  Mr.  A.  C.  Niooll  appeared  for  the  defendants  in 
support  of  the  application,  and  argued  that  theie  had  been  misdirection 
on  the  part  of  the  learned  Judge,  and  the  verdict  was  against  the  weight 
of  evidence,  and  that  the  damages  were  excessive.  Mr.  Robson,  Q.C., 
Mr.  Atherley -Jones,  Q.C.,  and  Mr.  Crispe  appeared  for  the  plaintiffs 
We  learn  from  a  contemporary  .that  the  court  ordered  that,  on  the 
plaintiffs  consenting  to  have  the  damages  reduced  to  £320,  the  appli¬ 
cation  should  be  dismissed. 
Royal  IVIeteorologlcal  Society. — The  second  afternoon  meeting 
of  this  society  for  the  present  session  was  held  on  Wednesday,  the 
20th  inst.,  at  70,  Victoria  Street,  Westminster,  Dr.  C.  Theodore  Williams, 
president,  being  in  the  chair.  Mr.  W.  Marriott  read  a  paper  on  “  Rain¬ 
fall  in  the  West  and  East  of  England  in  Relation  to  Altitude  Above  Sea 
Level.”  This  was  a  discussion  of  the  mean  monthly  and  annual  rainfall 
for  the  ten  years  1881-90  at  309  stations,  which  the  author  had  grouped 
according  to  the  altitude  of  the  stations  above  sea  level.  The  western 
stations  were  considered  to  be  those  which  drained  to  the  west  and  the 
eastern  stations  those  which  drained  to  the  east  of  the  country.  The 
diagrams  exhibited  showed  that  there  is  a  general  increase  in  the  annual 
amount  of  rain  as  the  altitude  increases,  and  that  the  rainfall  is  con- 
siderablyjgreater  in  the  west  than  in  the  east.  The  monthly  diagrams 
brought  out’prominently  some  interesting  features,  amon^  which  were 
(1)  that  the  monthly  rainfall  in  the  west  is  subject  to  a  much  greater 
range  than  in  the  east ;  (2)  that  in  the  west  the  maximum  at  all 
altitudes  occurs  in  November,  but  in  the  east  it  is  generally  in  October  ; 
(3)  that  in  the  west  the  spring  months  April,  May,  and  June  are  verv 
dry ;  and  j(4)  that  both  in  the  west  and  east  there  is  a  very  great  increase 
in  the  rainfall  from  June  to  July.  A  paper  by  Mr.  J.  Baxendell  was 
also  read,  giving  a  description  of  a  new  self-recording  rain  gauge 
designed  by*Mr.  F.  L.  Halliwell  of  the  Fernley  Observatory,  Southport. 
This  rain  gauge,  which  the  author  believes  approaches  very  closely  to 
an  ideal  standard,  has  also  the  merit  of  being  constructed  at  a  moderate 
price. 
The  Cherry  Sales. — The  annual  Kentish  Cherry  sales  concluded' 
on  Friday.  They  made  over  £30  an  acre.  Cherries  and  Strawberries 
are  now  being  railed  to  London  and  the  North  in  large  quantities,  ajnd 
according  to  a  daily  paper  a  glut  of  Cherries  this  season  is  probable. 
Kent’s  Strawberries  Spoiled. — Kent’s  Strawberry  crop,  which 
partly  supplies  London  and  the  Midlands  with  the  luscious  berries,  is- 
being  ruined  by  the  heavy  rain  of  the  last  few  days.  All  the  supplies 
from  the  open  fields  are  soft  and  totally  unfit  for  transit,  and  at 
Orpington,  Swanley,  and  other  centres  the  whole  industry  is  at  a 
standstill.  Thousands  of  pounds  have  already  been  lost,  and  should  the 
wet  weather  continue  the  whole  of  the  outdoor  crop  will  be  completely 
ruined.  The  growers  who  raise  the  best  kinds  of  Strawberries  under 
glass -covered  frames  are,  on  the  other  hand,  reaping' a  rich  harvest. 
Royal  Sympathy  and  Fruit.  —  The  Queen  sent  a  special 
messenger  to  Windsor  Royal  Infirmary  on  Friday  to  inquire  as  to 
the  progress  of  the  sufferers  from  the  Slough  railway  disaster,  and  to 
ask  what  would  be  most  acceptable  to  the  patients.  Her  Majesty 
was  informed  through  Dr.  Farquharson,  the  house  surgeon,  that  fruit 
would  be  much  appreciated,  and  the  Queen  has  therefore  ordered  a 
daily  supply  to  be  sent  from  the  Frogmore  Gardens. 
Plum  Prospects. — Reports  from  some  of  the  most  important  Plum 
districts  in  England,  including  Kent  and  Oxfordshire,  as  well  as 
Evesham,  now  state  that  there  has  been  an  extensive  loss,  of  promised 
fruit  as  the  result  of  frosts.  The  crop,  therefore,  will  be  a  partial  one. 
Cherries  are  said  to  have  escaped  injury,  and  the  “Agricultural  Gazette” 
has  seen  many  plantations  in  which  the  trees  are  thickly  covered  with 
young  fruit.  Early  Pears  were  injured ;  but  Apples  at  present  promise 
to  be  abundant.  In  most  districts  Gooseberries  and  Currants  show 
well,  and  for  Strawberries  the  recent  dry  and  cold  weather  has  not  been 
propitious,  though  there  are  great  shows  of  bloom  in  some  places. 
Anotber  Dung. — Open  spaces  in  London  are  being  secured  wherever 
possible,  and  another,  the  transformed  churchyarU  of  Christ  Church, 
Southwark,  was  declared  free  to  the  public  a  few  days  ago.  Its 
dedication  ceremony  was  performed  by  the  Bishop  of  Rochester,  sup¬ 
ported  by  the  Earl  of  Meath,  who  presided,  the  Rev.  A.  H.  Fontaine, 
rector,  and  a  large  gathering.  In  declaring  the  space  open  for  ever, 
the  Bishop  said  there  had  been  discussion  about  the  propriety  of 
turning  consecrated  ground  into  a  place  of  recreation  and  pleasure. 
Yet  whatever  debate  had  taken  place  public  conscience  was  perfectly 
satisfied.  Let  the  highest  and  lowliest  among  them  remember  that  they 
could  not  do  anything  higher  and  nobler  than  in  softening  the  lot  of 
indigent  toilers.  What  could  give  greater  pleasure  in  anticipation  than 
the  Joy  of  the  young  and  the  quietude  of  the  old  in  having  such  a 
beautiful  place  of  recreation  ?  The  Metropolitan  Public  Gardens  Asso¬ 
ciation  have  laid  the  graveyard  out,  and  St.  Saviour’s  District  Board  of 
Works  have  undertaken  to  maintain  it.  Christ  Church  was  founded 
in  1627.  It  was  erected  upon  some  part  of  the  ancient  Paris  gardens, 
famous  in  their  day  for  bear  pits,  and  for  a  play-house  associated  with 
the  stage  authorship  of  Ben  Jonson,  Marston,  and  James  Shirley. 
Richmond  Research  Daboratorles. — An  influential  deputation 
waited  on  Mr.  Hanbury  at  the'  Treasury  on  Friday  afternoon  with 
reference  to  the  proposal  of  the  Government  to  erect  a  National 
Physical  Laboratory  in  Old  Deer  Park,  Richmond.  The  deputation 
represented  a  number  of  members  of  Parliament  who  are  opposed  to 
the  proposal,  the  Corporation  of  Richmond,  and  the  following  societies  : 
Commons  and  Footpaths  Preservation  Society,  Kyrle  Society,  Metroj 
politan  Public  Gardens  Association,  National  Trust,  Selborne  Society, 
Society  for  the  Protection  of  Birds,  and  the  Kent  and  Surrey  Commons 
Preservation  Committee.  It  was  pointed  out  that  a  tacit  understanding 
had  always  existed  since  George  III.  was  permitted  to  close  the  public 
rights  of  way  running  through  the  park  that  the  land  should  always 
remain  unbuilt  on.  Objection  was  also  taken  to  the  scheme  on  the 
ground  that  the  buildings  would  seriously  impair  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  views  in  the  neighbourhood  of  London,  and  that  it  would  also 
prevent  any  extension  of  Kew  Gardens  which  might  become  necessary. 
The  site  selected  for  the  laboratory  almost  adjoins  the  Queen’s  Cottage 
Grounds,  which  was  presented  by  her  Majesty  to  the  nation  on  the 
occasion  of  her  Diamond  Jubilee.  It  was  felt  that  the  amenity  of  the 
land  thus  given  to  the  public  would  be  greatly  injured  if  any  building 
were  erected  in  its  immediate  vicinity,  and  expression  was  also  given  to- 
the  fears  of  the  societies  that  the  many  rare  wild  birds  which  frequent 
Old  Deer  Park  would  be  driven  away.  Mr.  Hanbury  promised  to 
carefully  consider  the  views  of  the  deputation. —  (“  Morning  Post.”) 
