486 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
June  3,  1897. 
to  help  the  Treasurer,  Mr.  Veitch,  by  their  subscriptions,  not  only  to 
pay  annuities  to  old  gardeners,  but  also  to  the  widows  of  gardeners. 
This  Society  is  co-existent  with  the  reign  of  her  Majesty  the  Queen, 
so  that  we  might  be  celebrating  its  Diamond  Jubilee  (cheers).  If 
those  who  are  present  here  will  cast  their  memories  back  they  will 
not  fail  to  recognise  that  during  the  last  sixty  years  horticulture  has 
made  tremendous  strides.  The  extending  of  the  Empire,  the  steamship, 
and  the  telegraph  have  all  in  their  way  helped  us  to  get  plants  from 
all  parts  of  the  world.  We  have  the  beautiful  Water  Lily,  Victoria 
regia,  named  after  Her  Majesty,  and  in  the  Show  which  has  to-day 
opened  in  the  Temple  Gardens  there  is  a  lovely  Orchid,  which  bears  the 
name  of  the  Princess  of  Wales,  and  there  are  many  others,  the  presence 
of  which  we  owe  to  the  last  sixty  years.  No  doubt  when  our  successors 
meet  here  sixty  years  hence  they  will  gloat  over  the  strides  made  and  the 
plants  introduced  during  that  time  as  we  do  now,  and  l  hope  they  will 
be  able  to  look  back  on  the  last  sixty  years  with  a9  much  pleasure  and 
pride  as  we  can  to-night  (cheers)  Gentlemen,  1  will  conclude  by 
asking  you  to  drink  with  me  to  the  prosperity  of  the  Gardeners’  Royal 
Benevolent  Institution,  coupling  with  it  the  name  of  the  Treasurer,  Mr. 
Harry  J.  Veitch.” 
Mr.  Veitch  in  replying  heartily  thanked  Lord  Rothschild  for  the 
honour  he  had  conferred  on  them  by  his  presence  on  that  occasion, 
adding  that  they  were  all  aware  of  his  Lordship’s  fondness  of  gardening, 
and  his  advocacy  for  the  Institution.  He  did  not  propose  wearying 
them  with  details,  as  information  would  be  gladly  given  to  anyone  who 
care  to  have.  They  had,  however,  at  the  beginning  of  this  year  161 
pensioners,  the  largest  number  they  had  had  at  any  one  time,  half  of  which 
were  meD,  and  half  women.  Two  of  these  have  passed  away  since  the 
election,  both  residing  in  the  same  county,  and  he  (Mr.  Veitch)  felt  sure 
that  it  would  be  a  comfort  to  those  present  to  know  that  the  declining 
years  of  their  lives  were  made  happy  in  the  knowledge  that  not  only 
were  they  provided  for.  but  also  the  widows  they  left  behind  them. 
Up  to  1885  they  had  paid  £16  a  year  to  men,  and  £12  to  women,  but 
then  the  amounts  had  been  increased  to  £20  for  men  and  £16  for 
women.  The  sum  of  £3000  per  annum  was  required  to  carry  on  the 
work.  The  Secretary's  salary  and  office  expenses  were  practica'ly  the 
only  cost  they  had,  as  they  had  no  expensive  buildings  to  maintain  and 
keep  in  repair.  Since  the  Institution  was  inaugurated  £71,000  bad  been 
paid.  Sometimes  the  executive  exercised  its  power  in  making  special 
grants,  and  not  long  ago  they  received  a  letter  from  an  old  woman 
whose  husband’s  only  means  of  existence  for  years  had  been  the  annual 
£20  received  from  the  Institution,  beggiDg.  for  a  little  further  help  so 
that  the  parish  would  not  have  to  bury  her  husband.  He,  Mr.  Veitch, 
felt  sure  that  those  present  would  agree  with  the  action  of  the  Committee 
in  sending  her  £5. 
They  have  a  great  many  applications  for  relief,  some  of  whom  have 
been  trying  for  four  or  five  years,  and  next  year  they  will  have  many 
more.  In  drawing  comparison  between  the  year  1851,  when  Her 
Majesty  became  patron  of  the  Institution,  the  Treasurer  stated  that 
in  1851  there  were  thirty-five  pensioners  ;  this  year  there  are  161.  Then 
fifteen  candidates  were  elected  against  fifty-one  this  year,  and  the 
highest  number  of  votes  then  was  480  ;  this  year  the  highest  number 
is  over  3000.  In  1851  the  j  mount  paid  in  pensions  was  £512,  against 
the  sum  of  over  £3000  now  paid.  At  the  time  he  had  chosen  the 
invested  funds  were  £2250.  now  they  are  £26  700.  The  Committee, 
continued  Mr.  Veitch,  had  deciled  to  celebrate  the  Diamond  Jubilee  by 
raising  what  is  called  the  Victorian  Era  Fund,  by  the  aid  of  which  they 
proposed  sending  the  sum  of  £5  to  each  unsuccessful  candidate.  They 
asked  for  the  sum  of  £8000,  which  would  be  invested,  and  the  interest 
devoted  to  giving  temporary  relief  to  unsuccessful  candidates  who  have 
subscribed  to  the  Institution,  and  would  receive  assistance  according  to 
the  amount  they  had  paid  in. 
Mr.  Veitch  reminded  them  that  the  fund  remained  open  till  the  end 
of  the  year,  and  though  he  well  knew  that  Jubilee  claims  affected  every¬ 
one,  yet  he  had  hoped  that  the  amount  would  be  raised.  He  could  not 
close  without  reference  to  two  friends  of  the  Institution  who  had  passed 
away  since  the  last  anniversary  dinner.  Ooe  (the  late  Mr.  James 
Webber)  an  able  member  of  the  Committee,  and  to  whose  good  manage¬ 
ment  much  of  their  success  was  due  ;  the  other  was  his  dear  friend  Dr. 
Hogg,  a  man  who  was  ever  ready  to  help  a  worthy  cause.  The  late 
Doctor  was  ooe  of  the  Trustees,  and  he  was  pleased  to  tell  them  that  in 
his  stead  the  Hon.  Walter  Rothschild,  son  of  the  Chairman,  had  kindly 
consented  to  act.  The  family  had  long  been  connected  with  these 
functions,  and  in  1884,  when  Mr.  Leopold  Rothschild  occupied  the  chair, 
they  had  a  record  subscription  list  of  £3400.  He  thanked  his  Lordship 
again  for  his  presence,  and  hoped  in  honour  of  it  this  evening  would  be  a 
record  one  for  the  Institution.  (Loud  cheers.) 
Mr.  G.  A.  Dickson  gave  the  toast  of  “  Gardening,”  and  in  doiDg  so 
spoke  of  the  occupation  as  one  which  gave  pleasure  to  all,  rich  and  poor 
alike.  He  further  referred  to  the  strides  that  had  been  made  during  the 
rti  gn  of  Her  Majesty,  evidence  of  which  could  be  seen  in  the  show  in  the 
Temple  Gardens.  The  Royal  Horticultural  Society,  said  Mr.  Dickson, 
had  had  its  nps  and  downs,  and  now  he  was  glad  to  say  it  was  up.  Gar¬ 
deners  also  had  their  ups  and  downs,  and  though  “  Hope  deferred  maketh 
the  heart  sick,”  they  are  a  class  of  men  endowed  with  patience,  and 
always  do  what  they  can  to  help  themselves  and  those  about  them.  He 
would  couple  with  the  toast  the  name  of  Sir  Trevor  Lawrence,  and  he 
knew  of  no  one  more  capable  of  acknowledging  it,  being,  as  they  knew, 
a  true  patron  of  gardening  and  President  of  the  Royal  Horticultural 
Society.  . 
S  r  Trevor,  in  reply,  said  he  had  been  connected  with  gardening  all 
his  li’e,  and  remembered  as  a  boy  knowing  the  names  of  many  plants, 
and  when  he  took  visitors  round  his  mother’s  garden  he  thought  he 
knew  a  great  deal  on  account  of  this,  but  since  he  has  found  that  he 
knew  very  little.  He  had  also  had  some  experience  in  gardening,  and 
rememberei  going  into  the  valleys  in  Inlia  an!  bringing  home  some 
branches  covered  with  Saccolabiums — but.  alas  !  the  goat  of  a  neighbour 
came  and  eat  them.  We  owe,  continued  Sir  Trevor,  a  debt  to  gardeners, 
and  a  great  one,  as  we  ask  them  to  cultivate  plants  from  all  parts  of  the 
world,  and  though  the  burden  is  heavy  it  is  one  which  they  discharge 
well.  In  no  country  in  the  world  has  more  interest  and  intelligence 
bien  brought  to  bear  on  horticulture,  with  the  result,  that  our  country 
smiles  like  a  garden.  In  concluding  his  speech  Sir  Trevor  asked  those 
present  to  drink  the  health  of  the  Chairman,  adding  a  few  remarks  on 
the  interest  which  he  (Lord  Rothschild)  and  other  members  of  the  noted 
family  took  in  all  things  appertaining  to  gardening. 
Lord  F„oth3child  thanked  those  present  for  the  kind  and  hearty 
manner  in  which  they  had  received  the  toast,  and  congratulated  them  on 
the  subscription  list,  which  he  was  pleased  to  see  amounted  to  over 
£5000  (cheers). 
Mr.  G.  J.  Ingram  then  read  out  the  names  of  the  chief  subscribers, 
which  included  Lord  Rothschild  (Chairman),  £50  ;  Messrs.  Rothschild  and 
Ron,  £210  ;  H.  J.  Veitch.  £250  ;  Jas.  Veitch  &  Son*.  £250  ;  J.  G.  Veitch, 
£250;  J.  H.  Veitch,  £250  ;  N.  Sherwood.  £500  ;  P.  Crowlev.  £15  15s.  ; 
W.  E.  Gumb’eton,  £52 10s. ;  T.  W.  Webley,  £26  5s. ;  J.  Sweet,  £25  ;  J.  Roch- 
ford,  £25  ;  Cecil  Rhodes.  £25  ;  Arthur  Sutton,  £100  ;  H.  Low  &  Co., 
£52  10s.  ;  A.  Waterer,  £40  ;  W.  Robinson,  £52  10s.  ;  G.  Bunyard  &  Co., 
£10  103.;  R.  M.  Hogg.  £20;  Lord  Wandsworth,  £20;  J.  C.  Geisel- 
berecht,  £12  12s.  ;  J.  Jennings.  £92  18s.  ;  W.  Iceton,  £11  11s.  ;  Duke 
of  Westminster,  £100  ;  Baron  Schroder,  £200  ;  Geo.  Monro,  £100  ; 
collected  at  Mr.  Monro’s  table,  £29  8s.  ;  C.  Czarnikow,  £100  ;  Thames 
Rank  Iron  Co.,  £21  ;  Protberoe  &  Morris,  £21  ;  Wills  &  Segar,  £10  10s.  ; 
G.  H.  Richards,  £10  10s.  ;  Worcester  Auxiliary,  £68;  Wolverhampton 
Auxiliary.  £50  ;  J.  Weeks  &  Cx,  £10  10s. ;  Sir  T.  Lawrence,  £10  10s.  ; 
F.  Debenham,  £10  10s.  ;  W.  Farr,  £12  12s  ;  W.  Howe.  £10  10s.  ; 
F.  Sander,  £15  15s.  ;  Bailey  Wadds,  £35  ;  F.  Harris,  £14  14a.  ;  W.  J. 
Stacey,  £12  ;  Exeter  Auxiliary,  £8  8s.  ;  G  Burt,  £12  ;  Miss  Parker,  £5  ; 
J.  Herrett,  £21  ;  with  numerous  other  sums  already  acknowledged. 
The  health  of  the  Secretary  was  proposed  by  Sir  Trevor  Lawrence,  to 
which  Mr.  G.  J.  Ingram  made  an  appropriate  response.  Music,  instru¬ 
mental  and  vocal,  was  supplied  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  George 
Ashton. 
THE  PEAR-HALL  GNAT. 
Of  all  the  destructive  enemies  of  the  Pear  this  is  the  most  speedy  and 
certain,  as  well  as  singularly  disastrous.  Happily  it  is  but  local  in  this 
country,  and  mainly  has  home  in  the  south-western  counties  of  England, 
It,  however,  may  at  times  be  found  in  places  over  a  wide  extent  of 
country,  and  appears  to  be  unusually  prevalent  this  season. 
The  Pear  midge,  or  Pear-gall  guat  (Diplosis  pyrivora,  Riley'),  is 
decidedly  British,  the  well-known  Sciara  pyri  of  older  times,  and  of 
recent  Diplosis  nigra.  It  was  first  noticed  in  Connecticut,  United  States 
of  America,  about  1877.  hence  must  have  beea  an  introduction  from  the 
mother  country,  as  it  has  be-n  known  in  Eng'and  for  c.nturies.  From 
Connecticut  it  cpread  into  a  number  of  neighbouring  States,  and  has 
become  in  many  localities  the  most  destructive  enemy  of  the  Pear. 
Thun,  whether  af  home  or  al'road.  the  British  Pear-gall  gnat  maintains 
its  thoroughly  national  characteristics,  ani  acts  in  a  certain  business¬ 
like  manner ;  yet  hss  its  likes  and  dislikes,  for  both  in  this  country  and 
elsewhere  it  prefers  the  roundish  or  D  >\enod-shaped  to  the  pyriform 
fruited  varieties  of  Pear,  and  is  more  prevalent  in  valleys  than  on  hills. 
The  effect  of  an  attack  on  Pears  by  the  Pear  midge  is  to  produce  an 
abnormal  swelling  of  the  young  fruits,  causing  them  to  have  an  ill- 
shapen  appearance.  This,  however,  does  not  always  follow,  for  the 
affected  fruits  sometimes  swell  evenly.  One  of  such  Pears  is  shown  in 
the  illustration,  fig.  95,  at  A,  natural  size.  The  observant  cultivator 
notices  the  rapid  swelling  of  such  fruit,  and  unable  to  account  for  the 
speedy  growth,  rightly  attributes  it  to  an  alien  cause.  This  leads  to 
examination,  and  on  cutting  an  affected  Pear  in  half  longitudinally.it 
is  found  black  at  core,  and  in  the  cavity  or  gall  there  formed  are  seen 
small  whitish  maggots  (b  at  These  aad  the  condition  of  the  fruit 
convince  the  examiner  of  the  destructive  nature  of  the  Dest,  and  while 
some  know,  others  desire  information  respecting  its  life  history,  with 
mode  of  prevention  and  remedy. 
The  Pear-gall  goat  is  a  small  two-winged  fly,  intermediate  in  form 
between  a  m  hge  and  a  gnat — that  is,  the  wiogs  resemble  a  midge,  and 
the  body  and  legs  a  gnat.  Its  wings  are  blackish,  so  is  the  frontal  part 
<>f  the  body,  but  the  abdomen  is  paler  or  slate  coloured,  altogether  a 
oretty  little  fly.  The  female  possesses  an  ovipositor.  Eggs  white,  just 
or  scarcely  visible.  Larva  at  first  whitish,  soon  turning  orange  or  reddish  ; 
length  one-sixth  of  an  inch  when  full  grown,  then  yellow  in  colour,  with 
a  brown,  horny  breastbone  on  tie  under  side  just  behind  the  head.  The 
body  tapers  towards  both  ends,  most  pointed  in  front,  with  segments 
well  defined,  and  when  removed  from  the  infested  fruit  moves  about 
rapidly,  bsnding  quite  double  by  drawing  the  tail  forward  until  it 
touches  the  head,  aad  then  jeikiog  or  springing  upward  and  outward 
several  inches  at  a  time.  Pupa  yellowish  brown,  with  darker  markings ; 
legs  folded  under  the  body. 
The  Pear-gall  gnate  appear  in  the  early  spring,  commonly  before  the 
(lowers  of  the  Pear  trees  open,  and  remain  about  ten  days.  After  pairing 
the  female  deposits  her  eggs  inside  the  blossom  envelope  when  the  Pear 
flower  has  opened  sufficiently  for  the  insertion  of  her  long  ovipositor. 
The  eggs  are  placed  at  the  base  of  the  blossom,  and  sometimes  in  the 
