Apfii  23,  1898. 
375 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
PRESENTATION  TO  MR.  BARRON. 
Tuesday,  the  21st  inst.,  was  a  busy  day  at  the  Westminster  Drill 
Hall,  as  besides  the  fortnightly  exhibition  of  the  Royal  Horticultural 
Society,  the  National  Auricula  show  was  held  there.  The  two  events 
brought  together  an  unusually  large  number  of  horticulturists,  and  the 
occasion  was  thought  convenient  for  presenting,  with  as  little  ceremony 
as  possible,  what  may  not  unfittingly  be  termed  a  national  testimonial 
to  Mr.  Barron  at  a  midday  luncheon  in  the  Hotel  Windsor,  wfiich  is 
contiguous  to  the  Hall.  Though  the  “  Auricula  dinner  ”  was  held  at 
the  same  time  in  an  adjoining  room,  every  chair  was  taken  in  the 
“  Barron  room,”  about  fifty  persons  attending  on  the  interesting  occasion. 
Dr.  Maxwell  T.  Masters,  Chairman  of  the  Testimonial  Committee, 
presided,  Mr.  Barron  sitting  on  his  right  and  Mr.  Harry  J.  Veitch, Treasurer, 
Barron — surmounting  all  difficulties,  and  winning  success  in  the  end. 
For  those  reasons  they  had  cause  to  regard  Mr.  Barron  not  with  senti¬ 
ments  of  respect  and  esteem  merely,  but  of  affection.  Therefore,  he 
(the  Chairman)  felt  it  a  great  honour  to  be  entrusted  with  the  duty  of 
asking  of  their  friend  the  acceptance  of  an  oblong  slip  of  paper  as  a 
token  of  their  feelings  towards  him,  and  as  it  had  inscribed  on  it  £500  all 
hoped  it  might  be  of  some  use,  as  well  as  embodying  the  best  wishes  for 
the  health  and  happiness  of  Mrs.  and  Mr.  Barron  by  their  many  friends.’ 
The  Chairman’s  apposite  remarks  were  received  with  much 
applause,  and  the  subject  of  them  greeted  with  musical  honours,  under 
the  leadership  of  Mr.  W.  Poupart. 
Mr.  Barron  on  rising  to  accept  the  gift  received  an  ovation.  He 
said,  and  evidently  in  all  sincerity,  “that  though  he  had  encountered 
difficulties  from  time  to  time  he  never  felt  himself  in  such  a  difficult 
on  his  left.  After  the  toast  of  “  The  Queen”  Dr.  Masters  lost  no  time 
in  discharging  his  agreeable  duty,  which  he  did,  as  might  be  expected, 
in  a  very  pleasant  manner.  There  was  no  time  for  elaborate  speeches, 
and,  as  the  Chairman  observed,  the  occasion  demanded  none.  He  said 
he  might  almost  do  the  same  as  a  friend  of  his  once  did,  who  was 
not  a  very  fluent  speaker,  in  having  a  presentation  to  make,  and  who 
after  a  few  hesitating  words  found  relief  in  the  simple  but  very 
practical  formula,  “  Here,  take  it  1  ”  The  Doctor  was  in  no  Buch 
difficulty  yet,  evidently  endeavoured  to  compress  what  hp  bad  to  say  in 
the  fewest  possible  wordB.  These  were  to  the  following  effect  : — 
“  Like  several  friends  in  the  room,  he  had  known  Mr.  Barron 
for  thirty  years,  and  they  all  admired  him  for  his  loyalty,  his  faithful¬ 
ness,  his  straightforward  dealings,  his  uprightness,  and  his  manly 
character.  He  had  not  failed  in  anything  he  had  undertaken,  either  as 
manager  of  great  shows,  or  of  the  extensive  gardens  so  long  in  his 
charge.  He  bad  often  to  work  under  depressing  circumstances,  especially 
in  the  South  Kensington  days,  but  he  persevered  —  cheered  and 
encouraged  he  (the  speaker)  was  sure  by  an  excellent  helpmeet — Mrs. 
position  as  at  that  moment.  He  was  simply  astonished — amazed — by 
the  extraordinary  kindness  of  his  friends,  and  it  made  him  ask  of  himself 
‘  Who  am  I  ?  What  have  I  done  that  I  should  be  the  recipient  of  this 
splendid  gift  ?  ’  Going  on  to  say  that  words  failed  him  to  express  the 
gratitude  of  his  heart  for  all  that  had  been  done.  He  had  filled  a  public 
position  as  a  horticulturist,  and  he  would  take  the  gift  not  only  as 
personal  to  himself  but  as  a  compliment  to  horticulture.  In  the  work 
in  which  he  had  been  engaged  he  could  not  say  more  than  that  he 
had  tried  to  do  his  duty — ^cheers) — and  if  he  had  succeeded  it  was 
because  he  loved  his  occupation.  That  day  was  a  red  letter  day  in 
his  life.  The  slip  of  paper  might  pass  away — he  rather  thought  it 
would — (laughter) — but  the  present  proceedings  and  the  goodness  of  his 
friends  would  always  remain  in  his  memory  ;  he  could  do  no  more  than 
again  thank  them  for  their  generous  feelings  towards  him,  which  he 
did  with  all  his  heart.”  (Loud  cheers.) 
Hearty  votes  of  thanks  to  Mr.  Veitch,  the  Treasurer  of  the  Presentation 
Fund ,  also  to  Mr.  Marshall  and  Mr.  Wynne,  the  indefatigable  Secretaries, 
and  to  Dr.  Masters,  the  Chairman,  brought  the  proceedings  to  a  close. 
