1'ecember  2?.  1808. 
473 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
MEN  AND  MEDALS. 
I  am  a  medallist — a  Victoria  medallist.  Cal!  me,  after  a  trusty 
servant  of  the  revered  and  beloved  monarch  whose  name  the  Jubilee 
horticultural  medal  bears,  John  Brown.  My  name  is  not  really  John, 
nor  is  it  Brown,  but  that  by  the  way.  John  Brown  is  a  type,  and  a 
right  good  type  too,  faithful  and  loyal  to  his  sovereign  and  his  friends. 
I  am,  then,  John  Brown,  V.M.II.  Some  of  my  correspondents  “Mr.” 
me,  others  give  me  the  seductive  “  Esq.”  I  can  truthfully  declare 
that,  whatever  my  faults  may  be,  I  am  not  a  snob,  therefore  I  think 
no  worse  of  the  person  who  makes  mo  plain  “  Mr.”  and  no  better  of 
the  one  who  gives  me  the  other  title.  If  neither  term  was  used  I 
should  eat,  work,  and  sleep  with  an  equally  tranquil  mind,  arguing 
that  the  littlenesses  of  the  world  are  abundant  enough  without  iny 
adding  to  them. 
But — and  believe  me  it  is  no  little  but — when  I  receive  a  letter 
from  that  eminent  horticulturist,  Mr.  William  Smith  (sometimes  known 
as  William  Smith,  Esq.),  who  won’t  let  my  poor  little  medal  be  seen 
outside  the  envelope,  while  he  makes  his  own  very  prominent  inside 
it)  I  am  fain  to  rub  my  eyes  a  little.  I  perform  the  same  operation, 
in  the  same  spirit  of  bewilderment,  when  I  see  a  fluent  article  in,  let 
us  say,  the  “Gardening  Mail,”  which  makes  a  ref  rence  to  “my  friend 
Mr.  John  Brown,”  and  signed  W.  Smith,  V.M.H.  I  ask  myself  this, 
Which  would  a  man  who  had  earned  a  university  degree  be  the  more 
likely  to  do — give  a  friend  who  had  won  a  similar  distinction 
the  M.A.,  and  withhold  it  from  himself,  or  dignify  himself,  and  (by 
omission)  belittle  the  other  by  refusing  tho  courtesy  of  acknowledging 
him  as  an  equal  ?  There  can  only  be  one  answer  to  this  question,  and 
it  is  an  awkward  one  for  W.  Smith,  V.M.II. 
Onr  other  medal  friend,  Mr.  T.  Jones,  is  seen  rather  more  fre¬ 
quently  writing  in  the  “  Mail”  than  Mr.  Smith,  V.M.H.  He  is  not 
exactly  a  writer  by  profession,  but  he  is  one  of  the  clever  men  who 
know  how  to  handle  a  pen,  and  if  he  makes  it  pay  it  is  not  to  his 
discredit  at  all.  Only,  he  always  pops  on  V.M.H.  Now,  one  of  the 
most  important  conditions,  or  perhaps  I  ought  to  say  points  of  honour, 
in  connection  with  the  medal  was  that  it  was  not  to  be  employed  for 
purposi  s  of  advertisement.  An  interesting  question  arises.  If  a  writer 
puts  V.M.H.  at  the  foot  of  his  articles,  is  he  advertising  or  not:  I 
do  not  say  that  he  is.  I  do  not  make  any  assertion  at  all.  I  merely 
plead,  like  Piosa  Dartle,  for  information.  Employing  the  phrase  of 
that  interesting  lady,  I  ask  :  “  Won’t  somebody  please  tell  me  ?  ”  If 
Mr.  Jones  is  not  advertising,  why,  then,  I  should  like  to  be  informed 
what  sin  a  tradesman  is  committing  in  putting  V.M.H.  pretty  promi- 
n.  ntly  in  his  catalogue.  Up  to  the  present — 
The  difference  I  fail  to  see 
’Twixt  tweedledum  and  tweedledee. 
— John  Brown  !  !  ! 
THE  HORTICULTURAL  CLUB. 
The  usual  monthly  dinner  and  conversazione  took  place  at  the  rooms 
of  the  Club  on  the  13th  inst.,  and  there  was  a  good  attendance  of 
members.  Mr.  Harry  J.  Veiteh  (Vice-Chairman  of  the  Club)  presided, 
and  there  were  present  the  Rev.  W.  Wilks,  Messrs.  Martin  R.  Smith, 
P.  Crowley,  Selfe  Leonard,  James  H.  Veiteh,  Gosling  Salmor.d,  Geo. 
Monro,  Peter  Kay,  J.  Tillman,  Geo.  Bunyard,  Shoults,  Bassett,  and  the 
Secretary. 
Tho  discussion  was  on  size  in  flowers,  fruits,  and  vegetables,  and  was 
opened  by  an  interesting  and  amusing  paper  by  the  Rev.  W.  Wilks,  who 
deprecated  the  vulgar  taste  for  large  things  in  tho  strongest  terms.  He 
alluded  to  the  absurd  size  to  which  Chrysanthemums  are  grown,  and 
asked,  what  lady  would  use  them  for  the  purpose  of  decoration  .’  It  was 
the  same  with  fruits.  The  huge  Gros  Column  in  Grapes  had  almost 
superseded  all  other  kinds  in  tho  market.  And  so  in  vegetables  ;  immense 
Onions  were  grown,  from  which  nearly  nil  true  Onion  flavour  had  been 
eliminated  ;  and  Pru-sels  Sprouts,  like  young  Cabbages,  had  superseded 
the  delicate  flavour  of  those  of  former  days.  He  hoped  that  there  were 
signs  of  returning  common  sense  ar.d  clearer  perception  of  beauty,  and 
said  that  probably  tho  worst  offenders  were  provincial  societies,  with 
whom  size  was  everything,  and  the  man  who  could  produce  the  biggest 
Cucumber,  Vegetable  Marrow,  or  Onion  generally  came  off  victorious. 
Mr.  Martin  R.  Smith  said  that  sometimes  tho  size  of  Souvenir  do 
Malmaison  Carnations  was  adduced  as  a  proof  of  this  vulgarity,  but  the  fact 
was  that  this  race  was  entirely  distinct  from  the  ordinary  type  of  Carnati  n, 
of  which  its  foliage  was  a  clear  proof  ;  its  origin  was  unknown,  but  of  its 
distinctness  there  could  be  no  doubt.  Mr.  Geo.  Bunyard,  as  a  fruit 
grower,  said  the  same  thing  held  true  with  regard  to  fruits.  Big 
Gooseberries,  whose  only  recommendation  was  their  size,  had  in  many 
gardens  superseded  the  fine  flavoured  sorts,  and  such  fine  flavoured 
varieties  as  Warrington,  Ironmonger,  White  Champagne,  Venus,  Cheshire 
Lass,  Yellow  Golden  Ball,  and  others  had  to  give  way  to  huge  tasteless 
things.  Mr.  George  Monro  stated  that  probably  the  British  public  was 
responsible  for  a  good  deal  of  this,  and  while  big  things  sold  well,  ho 
supposed  the  growers  would  cater  for  it.  Many  other  members  took  part 
in  the  discussion,  which  was  of  a  very  interesting  character,  and  a  vote  of 
thanks  was  cordially  given  to  Mr.  Wilks  for  his  address. 
SCOTTISH  GRAPE  GROWING, 
The  glowing  reports  of  Mr.  Lunt’s  success  in  Grape  culture  do 
not  embrace  afl  that  he  has  achieved.  J I  is  management  in  recuperating 
old  Vines  has  been  attended  by  signal  success.  Some  of  us  who  have 
seen  Lthe  grand  examples  of  Mrs.  Pince  Grapes  grown  at  Iveir  by  Mr. 
Lunt  can  give  testimony  to  their  excellence.  Bunches  from  3  lbs.  to 
G  lbs.,  handsomely  finished  in  every  respect,  were  no  mean  objects,  and 
were  equal  in  credit  to  the  fine  examples  which  have  been  cut  from  the 
new  vineries. 
In  some  of  the  establishments  where  Grapes  have  been  cultivated 
in  the  north  for  marketing,  evidence  of  great  skill  has  been  exemplified. 
Clovenfords,  of  course,  holds  an  exalted  position,  as  many  of  us  can 
bear  witness  to,  without  any  detraction  in  weight  and  quality  of 
Grapes  for  more  than  thirty  years,  and  some  visitors  who  have  been  lo 
that  great  establishment  during  the  past  season  state  that  all-round 
excellent  management  was  never  more  in  evidence  than  during  this 
year. 
The  name  which  has  been  raised  for  high-class  cropping  of  Vines, 
and  the  excellent  results  on  the  exhibition  tables  by  Messrs.  D.  &  W. 
Buchanan  at  Forth  Vine¬ 
yard,  is  maintained  in 
very  high  order.  It  is  one 
thing  to  get  fine  bunches 
by  moderate  cropping, 
but  to  have,  year  by  year, 
such  enormous  crops  as 
are  produced  by  the  culti¬ 
vators  indicated,  testify 
that  skill  is  not  lacking. 
Another  exhibitor  and 
grower  for  market  has 
toon  for  nearly  twenty 
years  in  the  van  of 
success,  not  only  with  ex¬ 
cellent  exhibition  bunches, 
but  such  crops  as  we  have 
seldom  seen  equalled. 
'This  Grape-growing  was 
by  Mr.  William  Murray 
at  Parkhall,  Stirlingshire. 
In  the  earlier  years  of 
this  cultivator  friends  and 
neighb  nirs  thought  that 
the  success,  so  pronounced,  would  soon  be  at  end,  but  for  the  sixteen  years 
we  have  visited  the  establishment,  the  heavy  crops  and  excellence  of 
the  fruit  have  in  no  way  exhibited  any  signs  of  retrogression,  but 
be  lieve  the  past  seasen  has  been  one  of  the  best  which  Mr.  Murray  has 
experienced  in  the  production  of  Grapes.  The  fine  exhibits  (or  many 
years  past  at  the  Wavcrley  Market,  Edinburgh,  and  elsewhere,  especi¬ 
ally  in  the  class  of  four  bunches,  gave  evidence  of  what  is  produced  at 
Parkhall.  Gros  Colman,  cut  from  Vines  year  by  year  bearing  twenty 
to  twenty-five  bunches,  averaging  fiom  4  to  5  lbs.,  of  such  excellent 
finish,  is  something  worth  recording.  Alicantes,  Lady  Downe’s,  Gros 
Maroc,  and  others,  are  just  as  fine  examples  as  the  first-named;  indeed 
they  are  unique  for  size  of  bunch  and  fine  colour. 
Large  green  leathery  foliage  is  always  a  special  feature  of  the 
Vines.  In  1600  feet  run  of  fine  houses,  showing  such  a  profusion  of 
good  Grapes,  is  a  sight  which  is  not  easily  effaced  from  one’s  memory. 
At  any  time  during  the  autumn  many  hundred  hunches  of  exhibition 
Grapes  can  be  taken  from  these  Vines  without  being  missed,  the 
crops  being  so  enormous.  Much  is  done  by  the  removal  of  old  rods 
and  filling  their  place  with  young  Vines.  Houses  planted  one  season 
may  he  seen  the  following  year  filled  throughout  with  fine  Grapes, 
and  no  supernumeraries  in  use  as  auxiliaries. 
The  firm  (now  Messrs.  W.  Murray  &  Son)  also  make  a  speciality  of 
Tomato  growing,  and  the  long  ranges  of  low  houses,  at  the  time  of 
our  latest  visit  in  October,  were  filled  with  thousands  of  large  brilliant 
fruits  of  Parkhall  Favourite.  Rhubarb  forcing  and  Strawberry  grow¬ 
ing  are  also  among  the  specialities,  and  done  as  well  as  may  be  seen 
anywhere.  The  portrait  (fig.  81)  represents  the  founder  and  present 
head  of  this  up-to-date  establishment. — M.  T.,  Carron,  N.B. 
-  Metropolitan  Public  Gardens  Association.— At  a 
recent  meeting  the  progress  was  reported  with  regard  to  the  laying-out 
of  the  Paragon,  New  Kent  Road,  and  Albion  Square,  Dalston.  It 
was  agreed  to  plant  trees  in  Upper  Street  and  Hameiford  Street,  Isling¬ 
ton,  and  to  offer  trees  for  certain  sites  in  the  Strand  and  the  City.  It 
was  resolved  to  offer  seats  for  the  churchyard  of  St.  Andrew  Undershaft, 
to  memorialise  the  Metropolitan  vestries  and  district  boards  respecting 
tree  lopping  in  London,  to  urge  the  Hornsey  District  Council  to  preserve 
the  Queen’s  Wood  in  its  natural  state,  to  continue  negotiations  with 
respect  to  the  proposed  opening  of  Finsbury  Circus,  Christ  Church 
Churchyard,  Blackfriars,  and  other  spaces. 
Fig.  si.— Mr.  Wm.  Murray. 
