162 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
August  24,  1899. 
observed  a  silver  medal  awarded  to  a  dish  of  Dryden  from  the  garden  of 
Mr.  A.  H.  Smee,  as  the  most  meritorious  exhibit  in  a  showot  considerable 
d  mensions.  Pineapple  is  one  of  the  best  known  as  a  valuable  successor 
to  Pitmaston  Orange,  and  Humboldt  is  larger  than  Pineapple,  while  most 
cultivators  know  that  Victoria  and  Stanwick  Elruge  are  among  the  best 
and  latest  of  Nectarines. 
Mr.  HNcio  jttioed  an  equal  number  of  Peaches,  and,  as  has  been  said, 
materially  extended  the  season  of  this  delicious  fruit  by  the  distinctly 
early  varieties— Early  Louise,  Early  Rivers,  Early  Beatrice,  and  Early 
Alfred,  all  producing,  if  small,  yet  excellent  Peaches.  He  also  introduced 
the  first  American  varieties,  Alexander,  Early  Amsden,  and  Waterloo! 
but  thought  the  first  named  was  sufficient  of  the  similar  trio.  Ot  the 
later  Sawbridgeworth  seedlings  such  established  varieties  as  Goshawk, 
Sea  Eagle,  and  Gladstone,  among  others,  will  curry  their  raiser’s  name 
into  futurity. 
Plums  also  came  within  the  scope  of  his  genius,  and  as  a  result  wre 
have  such  varieties  as  Grand  Duke,  Monarch,  The  Czar,  Early  Trans¬ 
parent,  Golden  Transparent,  and  Late  Transparent,  Early  Rivers,  Sultan, 
and  Primate.  Already  many  of  the  Sawbridgeworth  seealiDgs  have 
become  standard  varieties,  and  shown  beyond  question  that  they  have 
come  to  stay. 
Among  the  best  known  of  Mr.  Rivers’  Pears  are  ^Fertility —  not  a  high- 
class  fruit,  but  a  recognised  profitable  market  variety — Beacon,  Dr.  Hogg, 
Conference,  Magnate,  and  Princess,  most  or  all  of  which  have  been 
honoured  by  the  Emit  Committee  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society. 
Less  numerous  are  the  Apples  which  were  raised  in  the  famous  Herts 
nursery,  yet  there  are  some  half-dozen  of  them,  three  at  least  having 
been  honoured  by  the  R.H.S.,  namely,  Thomas  Rivers  (or  Rivers’  Codlin), 
St.  Martin’s,  and  Prince  Edward;  while  one  Cherry  is  worthy  of  the  name 
it  bears — the  valuable  Early  Rivers,  though  its  author  introduced  other 
fine  varieties  from  the  Continent. 
It  can  be  said  of  Mr.  Francis  Rivers  that  he  had  faith  in  his  own 
fruits.  He  often  had  them  in  bearing  for  years,  and  made  extensive 
plantations  of  some  of  them  before  the  world  knew  of  their  existence! 
reaping,  as  he  deserved,  advantage  by  his  judgment.  Mr.  Rivers) 
though  he  preserved  a  fine  collection  of  Grapes,  including  many  little 
grown  varieties,  we  do  not  remember  that  he  was  the  raiser  of  any  ; 
but  it  was  through  his  agency  that  the  popular  Gros  ColmaD,  and, 
later,  Gros  Maroc,  were  placed  in  commerce,  and  btcame,  especially  the 
first  named,  extensively  cultivated. 
The  deceased  gentleman  is  the  second  Victoria  Medallist  of  Honour 
to  pass  aw'ay.  He  was  Chairman  of  the  British  Fruit  Growers’  Associa¬ 
tion,  and  was  one  of  the  prime  movers  in  the  celebrated  Exhibition  of 
British  Grown  bruit  held  in  the  Guildhall  in  1890  under  the  auspices  of 
the  Worshipful  Company  of  Fruiterers,  and  was  placed  on  the  Livery  of 
that  Company  in  recognition  of  his  services. 
At  intervals  Mr.  Rivers  put  forth  new' and  revised  editions  of  “  The 
Miniature  Eruit  Garden  ”  and  “  The  Orchard  House,”  incorporating 
therein  the  latest  information  gleaned  in  the  course  of  his  experiments  at 
bawbridgeworth.  When  in  1888  the  British  Eruit  Growers’  Association 
came  into  being,  Mr.  Rivers  was  elected  one  of  the  vice-presidents.  The 
speeches  he  has  made  and  the  papers  he  has  read  at  its  meetings,  and  also 
at  those  of  the  bruit  Conferences  held  at  the  Crystal  Palace  and  in  other 
parts  of  the  Biitish  Isles,  have  become  the  subject  of  much  Pi  ess  com¬ 
mentary,  not  even  excepting  the  “Times.”  It  is  to  be  regretted  that 
his  accustomed  place  at  these  gatherings  will  know  him  no  more. 
With  him  the  accumulations  of  a  long,  varied,  and  unique 
experience  vanish  from  the  world,  and  English  horticulture  loses 
one  of  its  worthiest  representatives.  East  Monday  afternoon,  in 
the  parish  churchyard  of  the  picturesque  village  of  Sawbridgeworth, 
b  rancis  Rivers  was  laid  to  rest  beside  his  forefathers.  In  the  warm 
broken  sunlight  of  a  perfect  summer  day,  amid  troops  of  sorrowing 
friends  and  mourning  dependants,  were  consigned  to  earth  the  remains 
of  a  man  of  gentle  heart  and  polished  mind,  who  was  known  to  many, 
understood  by  some,  and  respected  by'  all.  Worthy  son  and  worthy' 
sire  !  What  more  appropriate  epitaph  can  we  find  for  them  than  this  1 
“  By  their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them.” 
Spartium  junceum. — The  Spanish  Broom  is  a  fine  plant  for 
the  front  ot  shrubberies  or  any  place  where  a  touch  of  bright  colour 
is  needed.  A  group  of  it  at  a  little  distance  in  full  flower  has  a  very 
fine  appearance,  the  full  clear  yellow  of  the  blossoms  beinw  very 
unusual,  excepting  in  the  Brooms.  The  plant  is  very  free  growing, 
making  long  Willow-like  shoots  that  flower  most  abundantlv.  It  thrives 
well  on  almost  any  description  of  soil,  and  is  easily  propagated  by 
cuttings  of  half-ripened  wood  inserted  in  autumn  or  by  seeds. _ H. 
Recent  Weather  in  London. — Though  the  amount  of  rain  that 
has  fallen  in  London  has  been  very'  small,  the  cooler  atmosphere  makes 
things  much  more  bearable.  The  sun  at  midday  is  still  powerful,  but 
nights  and  mornings  are  decidedly  cool.  At  the  time  of  going  to  press 
on  Wednesday  it  was  bright  and  warm. 
-  Royal  Horticultural  Society.  —  The  next  Fruit  and 
Flower  Show  of  the  Roval  Horticultural  Society  will  be  held  on  Tuesday, 
August  29th,  in  the  Drill  Hall,  James  Street,  Westminster,  1  to  5  P.M. 
At  three  o’clock  a  paper  on  “The  Soil  Considered  as  Plant  Food,  and 
Its  Exhaustion,”  by  Monsieur  Georges  Truffaut,  will  be  read. 
-  Ailanthus  glandulosa. — In  France  it  has  been  found  that 
the  Ailanthus,  which  multiplies  itself  so  rapidly  by  suckers  from  the 
roots,  is  well  adopted  to  rocky  and  sterile  hill  and  mountain  sides  where 
other  vegetation  will  not  exist.  In  such  locatio.es  it  sends  out  its  roots 
between  the  rocks,  and  from  these  spring  new,  young  plants,  clothing 
such  hillsides  with  forest  growth.  The  wood  of  the  Ailanthus  is  soft  and 
light,  and  of  little  value  hitherto  known,  either  for  fuel  or  manufacturing 
purposes,  but  it  has  been  found  that  it  serves  admirably  for  broom 
handles,  and  is  proving  so  useful  for  this  purpose  that  the  cultivation  of 
the  tree  is  being  extended  even  beyond  the  limits  of  poor  lands. 
-  Kew  Appointments.— Mr.  Isaac  Henry  Burkili,  M.A.,  late 
temporary  assistant  in  the  Herbarium  of  the  Royal  Gardens,  has  been 
appointed  principal  assistant  in  the  director’s  office.  Mr.  Burkili  was  a 
scholar  of  Gonville  and  Caius  College,  Cambridge,  and  assistant  Curator 
of  the  University'  Herbarium.  He  received  the  Walsingham  medal  in 
1*94.  Mr.  Henry  Harold  Welch  Pearson  has  been  appointed  by  the 
Secretary  of  State  for  India  in  Council,  assistant  (for  India)  in  the 
Herbarium  of  the  Royal  Gardens,  in  succession  to  Dr.  Stapf,  promoted 
to  be  a  principal  assistant.  Mr.  Pearson  was  assistant  curator  of  the 
University  Herbarium,  Cambridge,  Frank  Smart  student,  Gonville  and 
Caius  College,  and,  as  Wort’s  travelling  student,  visited  Ceylon  in  1897. 
Mr.  Aiee  Arthur,  a  member  of  the  gardening  staff  of  the  Royal 
Gardens,  has  been  appointed  by  the  Municipal  Council  of  Shanghai, 
Superintendent  of  Parks  and  Recreation  Grounds  in  that  town. 
Mr.  John  Gossweiler,  recently  a  member  of  the  gardening  staff  of  the 
Royal  Gardens,  has  been  engaged  by  the  Portuguese  Government  for  the 
curatorship  of  a  botanic  station  in  Loanda,  Angola. — (“  Kew  Bulletin.”) 
-  Schedule  Wording. — In  making  schedules  for  local,  and 
especially  for  cottagers’  show’s,  so  many  persons  employ  words  not 
only'  very  superfluous,  but  are  often  misleading,  because  voluminous.  It  is 
so  much  better  to  use  the  simplest  terms,  and  as  few  as  possible. 
Thus  I  find  the  word  “best”  commonly  used  to  every  class.  That  is 
a  term  that  need  never  be  employed,  because  it  is  so  well  understood 
that  the  object  of  judging  exhibits  i3  to  find  not  the  best  one,  but  the 
best  several.  “  Bunch, ”  again,  is  often  needlessly  used,  as  is  also  the 
term  “dish.”  Thus,  the  “  best  bunch  of  Carrots,  six  to  form  a  bunch,’ 
appears  in  a  country  schedule,  when  all  the  words  needed  are,  “  six 
Carrots,”  specifying  whether  long  or  short,  if  there  be  different  Carrot 
classes.  “Best  dish  of  Broad  Beans,  twelve  pods  in  number,”  is 
peculiarly'  superfluous  language,  when  twelve  pods  of  Broad  Beans 
would  be  ample.  Potatoes  continue  to  be  divided  into  white  and  red, 
kidney  and  round.  It  is  better  to  call  them  white  and  coloured,  as 
some  judges  would  refuse  to  admit  a  purple  Potato  to  be  a  red  one. 
The  distinction  round  and  kidney  should  be  abolished,  as  the  dividing 
line  does  not  exist.  But  in  one  case  I  met  with  classes  for  round,  for 
kidney  shaped,  and  for  intermediate  shaped  varieties.  I  think  it  is  so 
much  better  to  have  classes  for  white,  and  for  coloured,  as  it  is  not 
possible  with  these  to  show  the  same  variety  in  both  classes,  and  then 
have  single  and  double  dish  classes  in  each  section.  The  same  superfluous 
language  is  frequently  found  in  classes  for  fruits  and  flowers,  tender 
vegetables.  “Best  dish  of  Apples  (cooking),  five  to  form  a  dish,”  is  very' 
cumbrous  for  a  class  which  should  be  simply,  five  Apples  (cooking),  or 
five  Apples  (dessert).  It  is  not  merely  that  such  verbosity  unduly 
hampers  a  schedule,  but  it  also  renders  printing  more  costly.  In  spite 
of  all  that  has  been  written  from  time  to  time  on  the  subject  a  real  reform 
of  schedule  construction  and  phrasing  seems  much  to  be  needed  still. 
— Wanderer. 
