December  30,  1897. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
625 
Supposing  an  amateur  wishes  to  make  a  selection  he  should  take  the 
first  dozen,  and  so  on. 
Papa  Viellard,  which  “  A.  D.”  recommends,  is  a  lovely  colour,  and  I 
have  no  doubt  he  must  have  taken  a  fancy  to  it  while  at  Earlswood,  but  I 
only  had  one  plant,  and  that  had  but  two  blooms,  so  that  I  should  not 
recommend  it  on  that  test.  It  is  of  Viviand  Morel  shape,  and  must  come 
to  the  front. — W.  WELTiS. 
The  N.C.S. — Why  not  the  Agricultural  Hall  or  Earl’s 
Court  ? 
From  the  controversy  that  has  been  and  is  being  carried  on  in  the 
columns  of  the  Journal  of  Horticulture  respecting  the  present  home  of  the 
National  Chrysanthemum  Society,  it  is  apparent  that  a  change  is  desired. 
To  know  that  our  strongest  floricultural  society  is  without  a  suitable 
place  in  which  to  hold  its  shows  is  by  no  means  creditable  to  the  country, 
which  is  as  much  a  nation  of  gardeners  as  it  is  a  nation  of  shopkeepers, 
as  our  French  neighbours  dub  us.  By  no  stretch  of  imagination  can  the 
Hoyal  Aquarium  be  considered  a  really  suitable  place  for  an  exhibition 
of  flowers.  It  is  better  than  no  place  at  all,  and  that  is  as  much  as  one 
can  say.  No  one  could  find  a  worse,  and  equally,  no  one  as  yet  has  come 
forward  to  sing  the  praises  of  a  better. 
Our  kith  and  kin  “  down  under,”  and  friends  on  the  Continent,  as  well 
as  those  in  America,  with 
their  advantages  of  horti¬ 
cultural  halls  and  similar 
institutions,  must  look  down 
on  poor  England,  which  has 
nothing  of  the  same  kind. 
Foreign  and  colonial  visitors 
who  come  to  London  in  the 
Chrysanthemum  season  go 
away  convinced  that  though 
we  can  grow  magnificent 
flowers  we  have  no  place  in 
our  vast  metropolis  where 
we  can  show  them.  What 
do  they  think  of  the  Koyal 
Aquarium  for  a  flower  show  ? 
Personally,  I  should  be 
sorry  to  ask  them,  for  I 
know  the  answer  would  be 
strongly  condemnatory.  At 
the  conclusion  of  the  big 
November  show  I  asked  an 
opinion  of  it  and  its  sur¬ 
roundings  of  one  of  the 
truest  flower  lovers  in  the 
country.  Ilis  reply  was  to 
the  effect  that  no  doubt  it 
was  a  magnificent  show  if 
it  could  be  seen,  but  that  it 
was  sacrilege  to  take  a 
flower  within  the  doors  of 
the  Royal  Aquarium.  Em¬ 
phatic,  is  it  not  ?  and  some 
will  say,  “  perfectly  true.” 
However,  one  and  all 
must  recognise  the  necessity 
of  utilising  the  Royal 
Aquarium  for  the  time  being 
— until,  in  fact,  a  change 
can  be  made.  There  can  be 
no  doubt  that  some  of  the 
officials  of  the  N.C.S.  are 
decidedly  averse  to  a  move 
in  any  direction,  and  it  is 
impossible  to  see  why  this  is 
so.  Figures,  it  is  true,  have  been  given  as  to  the  cost  to  the  Aquarium 
Company  of  the  shows  by  the  Secretary  of  the  N.C.S.,  but  it  was 
observed  that  these  were  merely  estimates  based  on  supposition,  and 
therefore  valueless.  Possibly  the  items  are  too  insignificant  to  appear  in 
detail  in  the  financial  statement  of  the  Aquarium  Company.  If  they  are 
stated,  then  Mr.  Dean  as  the  Company’s  one  and  only  champion  should 
give  them,  if  only  to  annihilate  Mr,  Moorman,  who  has,  by  keeping  to 
authorised  figures,  certainly  got  the  whip-hand  of  the  Secretary,  who  was 
first  adroitly  “  drawn  ”  and  then  so  effectively  used  as  evidence  against 
his  own  claim  for  the  “  independence  ”  of  the  N.C.S. 
But  let  us  leave  the  contioversial  aspect  of  the  question  for  a  moment, 
and  see  if  another  place  can  be  found  for  the  show  season.  So  far  it  can 
be  said  we  have  had  two  suggestions.  The  first  emanated  from  Mr. 
Alex.  Dean,  who  names  the  Agricultural  Hall,  and  the  second  from 
Messrs.  H.  Cannell  and  “  H.  II.  R.,  Forest  Hill,"  each  of  whom  advocates 
“  A  Home  or  Hall  of  Horticulture.”  For  the  latter  it  seems  almost  futile  to 
hope.  Some  few  years  ago  the  energy  of  Baron  Schroder  placed  us  within 
measurable  distance  of  this  consummation,  but  now  we  seem  a  very  long  way 
from  it.  The  scheme  is  feasible  if  worked  by  business  men,  but  the  longer 
the  question  is  shelved  the  more  difficult  of  solution  becomes  the  problem. 
With  regard  to  the  first  proposal — that  of  adjourning  to  the  Agri¬ 
cultural  Hall — I  am  of  the  opinion  that  many  practical  men  will  support  it. 
The  building  is  admirablpr  adapted  to  such  an  exhibition  as  that  of  the 
N.C.S.  But  is  it  sufficiently  accessible?  Though  there  is  no  railway 
station  near  the  Hall,  I  think  there  are  five  main  line  stations  from 
which  the  cab  fare  to  it  is  only  a  shilling.  Can  more  be  said  for 
the  Aquarium  ?  For  visitors  little  objection  can  be  found,  as  the  tram 
and  omnilms  services  to  the  Hall  are  excellent.  As  showing  the  accessi¬ 
bility  of  the  great  building,  I  see  it  recorded  that  68,000  persons  passed  the 
turnstiles  on  Bank  Holiday  this  week.  Did  anything  like  half  so  many 
visitors  find  their  way  to  the  Aquarium  ?  or  did  the  Arjuarium  numbers 
equal  the  attendance  at  the  Crystal  Palace,  26,217  ? 
Looking  over  the  existing  buildings  in  the  metropolis  two  others 
appear  suitable,  and  these  are  Earl’s  Court  and  ( llympia.  Of  these  the 
former  seems  to  be  preferable.  It  is  spacious,  easily  accessible,  and  no 
possible  objection  can  be  taken  to  it.  As  has  been  repeatedly  proved  in 
bygone  days,  excellent  shows  can  be  got  there  simply  because  the  rail¬ 
way  accommodation  is  excellent.  There  are  three  stations  practically 
in  contact  with  the  building,  these  being  Earl’s  Court,  West  Brompton, 
and  West  Kensington,  and  to  the  former  one  can  readily  get  from  all  of 
the  great  termini.  In  this  respect  it  is  preferable  to  the  Royal  Aquarium, 
to  which  the  nearest  station  is  St.  .Tames’,  which  is  not  so  well  served  as 
Earl’s  Court.  It  may  be  said  that  many  who  go  to  the  Aquarium  would 
not  go  to  Earl’s  Court,  and  this  may  be  true.  On  the  other  hand 
hundreds,  possibly  thousands,  who  would  not  endure  the  crush,  smoke, 
and  noise  of  the  Aquarium,  would  go  with  pleasure  to  Earl’s  Court. 
The  building  contains  ample  space  for  the  effective  arrangement  of  a 
show  of  the  National  Chrysanthemum  Society,  and  for  convenient 
inspection  by  far  more  persons  than  jostle  against  each  other  at  the 
Aquarium  on  a  November  show  day.  I  should  be  glad  to  see  the  opinions 
of  others  on  the  suggestions  made,  and  if  favourably  received,  no  doubt  the 
N.C.S.  Committee  will  consider  the  whole  matter  on  its  merits. 
If  I  remember  rightly  Mr.  R.  Dean  has  been  the  manager  of  large 
shows  at  Earl’s  Court  ;  but  whether  that  is  so  or  not,  after  what  he  has 
said  he  would  not  be  likely  to  sever  himself  from  the  Aquarium  Com¬ 
pany  if  it  should  establish  shows  in  opposition  to  the  N.C.S.  at  Earl  s 
Court  or  elsewhere.  On  that  point  it  need  only  be  said  that  if  the 
prosperity  of  any  society  is  dependant  on  any  one  man,  however  able,  it 
cannot  possess  permanent  strength. 
I  could  understand  Mr.  Dean’s  reluctance  to  leave  the  Aquarium  if, 
as  he  seems  to  feel,  he  would  be  responsible  for  a  share  of  any  possible 
loss  that  might  by  chance  be  incurred  through  a  change.  He  has  an 
undoub.ed  right  to  protect  himself  from  any  such  contingency.  But 
would  he  incur  any  risk  whatever  ?  I  have  been  told  that  members  of 
committees  are  alone  responsible  in  that  direction,  and  that  secretaries 
who  are,  and  very  properly,  paid  for  their  services,  are  quite  free  from 
financial  liability.  Will  someone  who  knows  kindly  say  if  this  is  so  ? — 
An  Exhibitor. 
The  N.C.S.  and  Its  Dungeon. 
Seeing  the  pointed  manner  in  which  that  class  of  visitors  is  referred 
to  in  the  recent  correspondence,  as  conspicuous  by  their  absence  from 
