38 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
Januar}'  13,  1898. 
admission  of  competitive  classes  outside  the  special  scope  of  the  Society's 
objects  or  within  it,  or  deciding  where  and  when  the  exhibitions  shall  be 
held  ;  and  if  the  Committee  fail  to  discharge  the  duties  devolving  upon 
it  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  Society,  the  members  have  the  opportunity  of 
passing  their  judgment  ui)on  the  matter  at  the  annual  meeting,  and  the 
power  of  electing  to  serve  upon  the  Committee  men  who  are  pledged  to 
carry  out  their  duties  in  accordance  with  the  views  of  those  who  elect 
them. 
It  is  after  all  only  natural  that  a  committee,  responsible  for  the 
government  and  finances  of  a  society,  should  be  cautious  in  undertaking 
any  new  departure  that  would  involve  pecuniary  loss  or  prestige  to  it. 
But  if  the  members  exercised  their  rights  of  attending  the  annual  meeting, 
and  electing  men  on  the  Committee — men  pledged  to  finding  a  new  home 
for  the  N.C.S.  exhibitions — the  new  Committee  would  be  strengthened 
with  the  assurance  that  whatever  they  did  in  providing  new  headquarters 
would  meet  with  the  approval  of  the  members  ;  and  if  any  loss  occurred, 
no  blame  would  be  attached  to  them. 
By  all  means  then  let  every  member  who  is  opposed  to  the  present 
policy  of  the  executive  attend  at  the  annual  meeting  in  February,  and 
see  if  it  is  not  possible  to  take  active  steps  to  put  a  stop  to  the  present 
regime.  It  is  of  no  use  grumbling  at  the  apathy  of  the  present  executive  ; 
better  by  far  attend  the  annual  meeting,  and  by  voice  and  vote  decide  the 
question  one  way  or  the  other. 
It  is  not  only  in  the  matter  of  election  of  Committee,  but  also  in  that 
of  Secretary,  Chairman,  Vice-Chairman,  and  other  officials  that  the 
members  should  exercise  their  choice  of  selection.  It  is  evident  from  the 
correspondence  in  your  pages  that  the  present  Secretary  is  not  v,  persona 
grata  with  a  vast  number  of  the  members.  Well,  the  latter  have  their 
remedy,  though  it  be  a  drastic  one.  Let  them  come  forward  and  elect  a 
capable  man,  who  will  give  his  unqualified  consent  to  carry  out  the 
instructions  of  the  Committee  ;  in  fact,  do  what  he  is  authorised  to  do 
and  no  more.  Pay  him  a  suitable  salary,  and  let  it  be  understood  that  he 
is  the  servant  and  not  the  master  of  the  Committee,  and  of  course  has 
no  vote  at  the  board. 
One  correspondent  has  suggested  that  the  son  of  the  late  Secretary 
(Mr.  W.  Holmes)  would  be  a  suitable  person  to  fill  the  post.  I  beg  to 
differ.  With  all  due  respect  to  this  young  gentleman,  I  say  that  it  would 
be  a  serious  mistake  to  appoint  anyone  connected  with  the  trade  to  the 
post.  Better  by  far  go  outside  the  trade  and  get  an  able  man  accustomed 
to  book-keeping,  recording  minutes,  and  conducting  correspondence,  to 
fill  the  post,  the  same  as  in  the  case  of  the  Gardeners'  Boyal  Benevolent 
Institution.  The  exhibitions  can  be  managed  by  a  sub- committee,  and 
as  to  the  control  of  the  finances,  it  would  be  better  to  place  this  in  the 
hands  of  a  competent  sub-committee. 
As  to  the  Chairman  and  Vice-Chairman,  good  and  worthy  men  only 
should  be  elected  to  these  posts,  men  who  show  no  aptitude  for  airing 
their  own  personal  views  and  opinions  and  “  leading  the  Committee  by 
the  nose,”  but  who  know  the  art  of  conducting  the  business  of  the 
Committee  with  absolute  impartiality.  Nothing  whatever  should  be  done 
by  Chairman,  Vice-Chairman,  or  Secretary,  on  behalf  of  the  Society  without 
first  consulting  the  Committee. 
There  is,  undoubtedly,  too  much  of  the  “  one  man  ”  element  in  the 
management  of  the  N.C.S.  at  present ;  in  fact  this  feature  has  been  a 
predominant  one  in  the  management  from  the  period  when  the  Society 
was  inaugurated  as  a  “  National  ”  one.  No  society  can  hope  to  prosper 
for  long,  or  give  entire  satisfaction,  where  such  an  objectionable  feature 
exists. 
Get  rid  of  these  anomalies,  0  ye  “  N.C.S.-ites,”  by  exercising  your 
prerogative  rights,  and  then,  and  then  only,  will  you  achieve  the  goal  of 
j^our  ambition,  see  the  Society  once  more  on  the  high  road  to  prosperity, 
its  exhibitions  held  in  a  more  appropriate  place,  and  its  prestige  as  the 
premier  society  of  its  kind  in  the  world  well  and  worthily  upheld. — 
An  Un-lookee. 
Kingston-on-Thajies  Cheysanthemuji  Society. 
This  once  leading  Southern  Society  seems  to  have  fallen  on  evil  days, 
and  is  just  now  beset  with  a  series  of  troubles.  It  does  not  apj)ear  to  have 
overcome  the  blow  administered  when  Mr.  George  Woodgate  lelt  Coombe 
Warren  for  his  more  distant  home,  and  the  secretaryship  fell  into  entirely 
amateur  hands.  Mr.  Woodgate  was  so  well  known,  had  the  full 
confidence  of  a  large  body  of  exhibitors,  and  the  efficient  assistance  of  a 
first-rate  collector,  hence  in  his  time  the  annual  exhibitions  flourished. 
Since  then  they  have  been  gradually  drooping.  The  present  year’s 
account  will  show  a  heavy  balance  to  the  liad.  Then  it  is  understood 
that  the  present  estimable  Secretary,  Mr.  Douet,  is  shortly  leaving  the 
neighbourhood,  and  now,  not  least,  the  Drill  Hall  authorities  have 
resolved,  after  the  end  of  March,  to  let  the  Hall  no  further  in  order  to 
escape  the  heavy  rates  which  burden  them.  For  that  reason  the 
Chrysanthemum  Society  will,  of  necessity,  have  to  seek  another  home  if 
the  shows  are  to  be  continued.  Of  late,  too,  it  has  been  the  practice  too 
frequently  to  hold  the  annual  show  on  the  same  day  as  the  November 
show  of  the  N.C.S.  That  has  proved  to  be  very  detrimental,  and  unless  in 
the  ensuing  autumn,  wherever  held,  the  show  takes  place  during  the 
week  previous — that  is,  the  first  week  in  November — it  had  better  be 
suspended  altogether,  which  would  be,  of  course,  a  grave  misfortune. 
Practically  the  only  other  place  suitable  for  an  exhibition  locally  is 
the  fine  Assembly  Booms  at  Surbiton,  a  far  more  desirable  place 
undoubtedly,  and  much  more  conveniently  situate  than  is  the  Drill  Hall, 
but  these  rooms  would  be  more  expensive.  Doubtless  a  general  meeting 
of  subscribers  will  soon  be  called  to  determine  the  course  of  action.  It  is 
high  time  that  such  course  be  made  known.— -A.  D. 
Lady  La  whence  Spoet. 
I  HAVE  a  primrose  sport  on  Lady  Trevor  Lawrence.  Would  someone 
kindly  inform  me  if  this  is  already  in  existence  ?  Should  this  be  new,  I 
think  it,  like  its  parent,  will  become  very  popular,  as  late  varieties  of 
primrose  colour  are,  I  believe,  scarce. — A.  E. 
Chkysanthehums  foe  India. 
I  AM  desired  to  send  some  Chrysanthemums  to  a  gentleman  in  India. 
Can  any  reader  of  the  Journal  oblige  by  informing  me — first.  What  kind 
of  plant  would  best  travel^ — the  old  stools  shaken  out,  or  young  plants 
raised  from  cuttings  ?  Second,  How  should  they  be  packed  to  insure 
their  arrival  in  good  condition  ? — T.  C. 
Cheysanthemum  Madame  Caenot. 
Having  attended  the  N.C.S.  Show  last  November,  and  admired  the 
magnificent  blooms  of  kladame  Carnot,  I  was  more  than  ever  disappointed 
with  my  own.  I  grew  two  plants,  and  the  buds  were  taken  in  August. 
A  long  bloom  stem  and  a  large  bud  on  the  top.  Just  under  the  bud 
smaller  buds  formed,  as  many  as  fourteen,  hen  and  chickens  fashion.  I 
have  spoken  to  several  gardeners  about  it,  and  as  many  as  nine  told  me 
that  their  plants  came  the  same  as  mine,  and  they  did  not  get  a  bloom 
at  all,  but  the  buds  dwindled  away.  My  object  in  writing  this  note  is  to 
ask  if  some  of  the  practical  readers  of  the  Journal  of  Horticulture  can  tell 
me  how  this  variety  should  be  treated  to  avoid  failure.  Although  I  am 
not  an  exhibitor  I  like  to  have  something  good  to  invite  my  friends  to 
see.  It  is  very  hard  to  labour  at  anything  for  nine  months  in  the  year  in 
one’s  leisure  time  and  get  nothing  in  return.  I  feel  certain  that  if  we  can 
be  told  how  to  successfully  flower  this  fine  variety  many  growers  who 
have  tried  and  failed  will  be  thankful. — LOVEE  OF  Flowees. 
The  “Best”  Yaeieties. — Who’s  to  Decide? 
“Please  send  catalogue  and  mark  the  best  twenty-four  Japs”  is  a 
request  I,  and  no  doubt  other  trade  growers,  often  receive.  In  a  contem¬ 
porary  klr.  W.  H.  Lees  gives  a  list  of  the  best  fifty,  and  a  selection  of 
twenty-four  is  again  made  from  this  number.  Mr.  "Wells,  on  page  624, 
December  30th,  of  the  Journal,  favours  us  with  his  selection  of  the  best 
sixty,  from  which  again  selections  of  the  first  twelve  and  twenty-four, 
and  so  on  are  made.  To  say  which  is  the  very  best  twelve  or  twenty-four 
is  a  Jask  I  have  no  wish  to  undertake,  for  some  varieties  do  well  one 
season  and  almost  fail  the  next,  while  situation  and  method  of  culture, 
even  among  experts,  have  much  to  do  with  success  or  failure. 
In  the  first  twenty-four  as  given  by  both  these  experienced  growers, 
we  find  Madame  Carnot,  Yellow  Madame  Carnot,  Mrs.  J.  Lewis,  Mutual 
Friend,  Simplicity,  Mrs.  H.  Weeks,  Phoebus,  Chas.  Davis,  Viviand  Morel, 
Edith  Tabor,  Edwin  Molyneux,  Mons.  Chenon  de  Lechd  ;  with  this 
choice  we  all  agree,  except  that  some  Avould  perhaps  prefer  a  little 
more  colour;  still,  as  twelve  varieties,  they  are  unequalled. 
In  the  remainder  of  Mr.  Lees’  selection  are  Dorothy  Seward,  Miss 
Dorothy  Shea,  James  Bidencope,  kirs.  W.  H.  Lees,  Modesto,  Lady 
Byron,  Col.  Smith,  Eva  Knowles,  Elsie  Teichmann,  Western  King, 
Oceana,  and  Lady  Eidgway.  The  first  four  of  these  last  twelve  Mr. 
Wells  does  not  even  place  among  his  selection  of  sixty,  which  must  be  an 
oversight.  Mrs.  W.  H.  Lees  is  generally  of  a  poor  colour  and  form,  but 
has  size,  and  in  spite  of  all  that  is  written  and  said,  size  is  the  first 
consideration  with  most  judges,  and  this  variety  is  very  frequently  found 
in  winning  stands.  Mr.  Wells'also  places  Miss  Elsie  Teichmann  at  the 
bottom  of  his  list  of  sixty,  which  calls  for  comment,  as  most  growers 
consider  it  one  of  the  best  yet  introduced,  while  to  omit  Oceana,  Lady 
Eidgway,  and  Modesto  from  the  first  twenty-four  most  persons  will  con¬ 
sider  a  mistake. 
Those  given  by  Mr.  Wells,  and  omitted  by  Mr.  Lees,  are  Georgina 
Pitcher,  Julia  Scaramanga,  Australian  Gold,  Pride  ofMadford,  Australie, 
Thos.  Wilkins,  Mons.  Hoste,  Mdlle.  Laurence  Zdde,  Lady  Hanham, 
Madame  G.  Bruant,  Madame  Louis  Eemy,  and  Mons.  Panckoucke.  The 
first  named,  after  a  two-years  trial  with  me,  is  undoubtedly  good.  The 
last  but  one  is  a  white  sport  from  Mrs.  C.  H.  Payne,  and  is  also  being 
sent  out  as  Lady  Ellen  Clarke,  and  may  be  considered  a  novelty. 
Varieties  that  I  should  place  among  the  first  twenty-four  are  Sunstone, 
Mrs.  Maling  Grant,  Master  H.  Tucker,  Werther,  Mrs.  F.  A.  Bevan,  and 
Ella  Curtis,  the  first  four  of  which  are  excluded  from  Mr.  Wells’ 
collection  of  sixty,  whilst  such  varieties  as  International,  Mrs.  C.  H. 
Payne,  Madame  M.  Eicoud,  and  Amiral  Avellan  find  a  place  therein. 
Strange  to  relate,  Etoile  de  Lyon  is  missing  both  from  Mr.  Lees’  fifty  and 
Mr.  Wells’  sixty,  and  yet  very  few  prize  stands  are  without  it. 
In  addition  to  those  mentioned  above,  and  not  quoted  by  Mr.  Wells,  I 
prefer  the  following  to  many  to  be  found  in  the  list  of  sixty — Dr.  Ziebert, 
Joseph  Brooks,  Geo.  Seward,  A.  H.  Wood,  John  Seward,  V.  Roger  de 
Chezelles  (tall,  I  admit,  as  are  others  recommended),  Mrs.  J.  J.  Glennen, 
Mrs.  Chas.  Key ser,  Wilfred  H.  Godfrey,  John  Neville,  Duke  of  Wellington, 
Madame  J.  Bernard;  but  stay!  the  “best  sixty”  is  a  much  longer  list 
than  I  thought,  and  to  give  a  list  of  either  the  best  twenty-four,  thirty-six, 
or  even  sixty,  is  a  task  I  will  not  set  myself. 
In  conclusion,  I  would  like  to  recommend  Topaze  Orientale  as  a  true 
incurved.  Mr.  Molyneux  omits  this  from  his  list  on  page  624.  Of  course 
he  may  not  have  grown  or  seen  this,  and  he  wisely  mentions  only  those 
which  come  within  this  category.  The  variety  is  of  easy  culture,  requires 
little  dressing,  is  of  fine  form,  delicate  colour,  and  large  in  size.  I  am 
doubtful  as  to  whether  Madame  Edmond  Eoger  should  be  placed  in  this 
class  any  more  than  Louise,  Robert  Owen,  and  others  now  shown  as  Japs. 
Still  another  season  will  definitely  settle  this  matter. — W,  J.  Godfkey, 
Exmouth. 
