-Mareli  6,  1902. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
203 
United  Horticultural  Benefit  and  Provident  Society. 
Tlie  annual  meeting  of  the  above  Society  will  be  held  at  the 
'  Caledonian  Hotel,  Adelphi  Terrace,  Strand,  on  Monday  next, 
March  10,  at  8  p.m.  Mr.  Herbert  J.  Cutbush  has  kindl5'  con¬ 
sented  to  preside. — W.  C. 
The  Scottish  Horticultural  Association. 
On  Friday  evening,  March  21,  at  7.30,  in  “  F.  and  F.’s” 
Rooms,  129,  Princes  Street,  a  dinner,  to  celebrate  the  semi¬ 
jubilee  of  the  Association,  will  be  held.  Mr.  A.  Chalmers,  24, 
Frederick  Street,  Edinburgh,  is  convener  of  the  dinner  com- 
.  mittee. 
Horticulturai  Club. 
The  usual  monthly  dinner  and  conversazione  A\  ill  take  place 
at  the  Hotel  Windsor,  Victoria  Street,  on  Tuesday,  March  11,  at 
6  p.m.  The  subject  for  discussion  Avill  be,  “Birds  in  tlieir 
Relation  to  Horticulture,”  to  be  opened  by  Mr.  Charles  E.  Pear¬ 
son,  postponed  from  December  17. 
Show  of  E ritish-grown  Fruit. 
The  Prize  Schedule  for  the  Crystal  Palace  Fruit  Show  will  be 
issued  by  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  on  March  31,  post  free 
one  penny.  Donations  towards  the  prize  fund  will  be  gratefully 
received  by  the  Secretary  R.H.S.,  117,  Victoria  Street, 
London,  S.W. 
The  Nursery  and  Seed  Trade  Association. 
The  general  meeting  of  this  Association  will  be  held  at 
.  30,  Wood  Street,  Cheapside,  on  Tuesday,  March  11,  at  5  p.m., 
to  transact  the  following  business : — To  submit  for  adoption  the 
report  of  the  committee  of  management.  To  elect  committee  of 
management  and  auditors  for  the  current  year.  To  discuss  and 
consider  any  subject  which  may  be  beneficial  to  the  nursery  and 
seed  trades,  and  to  the  Association.  After  the  above  meeting 
has  been  held  the  committee  of  management  so  appointed  will 
immediately  afterwards  hold  their  first  meeting  to  elect  the 
officers  of  the  Association  for  the  current  year.- — J.  P.  W. 
Royal  Horticultural  Society. 
The  next  Fniit  and  Flower  Show  of  this  Society  will  be  held 
on  Tuesday,  March  11,  in  the  London  Scottish  Drill  Hall, 
Buckingham  Gate,  Westminster,  1  to  4  p.m.  The  Committees 
will  meet  at  noon,  as  usual.  A  lecture  on  “  The  New  Soil 
Science  ”  will  be  given  at  three  o’clock,  by  'Mr.  R.  Hedger 
Wallace.  *  *  At  a  general  meeting  of  the  Society,  held  on 
Tuesday,  February  25,  seventy-two  new  Fellows  were  elected, 
amongst  them  being  the  iVfarchioness  of  Bath,  Lady  Ebury,  Lady 
Lewis,  Lady  Peel,  Lady  Ridley,  Hon.  Mrs.  Parker,  Hon.  John 
Wallop,  Lieutenant-Colonel  James  Campbell,  Major  N.  D. 
Garnett-Botfield,  Surgeon-General  A.  Eteson,  Captain  B.  J. 
St.  George,  and  A.  H.  Lyell,  M.A.,  F.S.A.,  making  a  total  of 
255  elected  since  the  beginning  of  the  present  year. 
Horticulturists  and  the  Sale  of  Poisons. 
At  the  Newcastle-under-Lyme  Police  Court,  on  Monday, 
March  3,  Moses  Jenkinson  and  Ernest  Jenkinson,  florists  and 
horticulturists,  of  Newcastle,  trading  in  the  style  of  M.  Jenkinson 
and  Sons,  were  summoned  at  the  instance  of  the  Pharmaceutical 
Society,  under  section  17  of  the  Pharmacy  Act,  1868,  for  selling 
a  poisonous  vegetable  alkaloid  without  a  label  being  attached  to 
the  vessel  in  which  it  was  supplied  bearing  the  word  poison  and 
the  name  and  address  of  the  seller.  A  pint  of  XL  All  insecti¬ 
cide  was  supplied  in  an  old  brandy  bottle  ■without  any  label  except 
one  relating  to  brandy.  No  w'arning  was  given.  Morgan  used  a 
little  of  the  insecticide  and  placed  the  bottle  on  a  bench  in  the 
potting  shed  at  his  employer’s  garden.  On  January  23  a  man 
named  Thomas  Bullock  was  w'orking  in  the  garden,  and  some 
beer  which  he  sent  for  was  also  put  in  the  potting  shed.  The 
beer  was  in  a  bottle  vei-y  similar  to  that  containing  the  insecticide, 
and  Bullock  in  mistake  drank  some  of  the  latter  and  died  in  a  short 
time.  After  a  long  hearing  the  chairman  said  the  Bench  were 
unanimous  that  an  offence  had  been  proved,  and  fined  the 
defendants  £2  and  costs. 
Potato  Planting  in  "Watervllle. 
Potato  planting  is  now  in  full  swing  in  the  Waterville  district, 
Co.  Cork.  Previous  to  the  late  frost  and  snow,  many  farmers 
and  cottiers  had  large  plots  of  Potatoes  already  down,  and  it  is 
feared  that  some  damage  has  been  done  by  the  very  hard  and 
penetrating  frost. 
Weather  In  S.  Perthshire. 
There  was  a  slight  frost  during  the  night  of  the  25th  ult.,  and 
the  surrounding  hills  were  again  whitened  during  tlie  following 
night.  Generally,  the  past  week  has  been  one  of  dull,  and 
frequently  showery  weather,  the  exceptions  being  the  1st  and 
2nd  inst.,  which  were  both  very  fine  for  the  season.  Monday 
kept  up  a  per.sistent  drizzle,  with  a  rather  high  and  cold  .south¬ 
westerly  wind  in  the  later  part  of  the  day. — B.  D.,  S.  Perthshire. 
Sussex  Weather. 
The  total  rainfall  at  Abbots  Leigh  for  the  past  month  was 
1.45in,  being  0.45in  below'  the  average.  The  heaviest  fall — .snow — 
was  0.26  on  the  6th.  Rain  or  snow  fell  on  twelve  days.  The 
maximum  temperature  was  53deg  on  the  28th,  the  minimum 
12deg  on  the  16th.  Mean  maximum,  40.10deg;  mean  minimum, 
29.23deg ;  mean  temperature,  34.66deg,  -which  is  2.78deg  below 
the  average.  During  the  first  Hvo  days  of  this  month  we  had 
slight  falls  of  snow'  (the  first  of  this  winter),  and  from  then  to 
the  20th  the  ground  was  frost-bound.  We  had  rain  daily  during 
the  last  w'eek,  and  March  has  come  in  fine,  and  much  milder. 
February  Weather  at  Belvoir  Castle. 
The  Wind  w'as  in  an  ea.sterJy  direction  twelve  days.  The  total 
rainfall  was  1.17in;  this  fell  on  fifteen  days,  and  is  0.64in 
below'  the  average  for  the  month.  The  greatest  daily  fall  was 
0.19in  on  the  22nd.  Barometers  (corrected  and  reduced) :  highest 
reading  30.797  in  on  the  l.st  at  9  a.m.  ;  lowest  reading  29.233in 
on  the  27th  at  9  a.m.  Thermometers:  Highest  in  the  shade, 
53deg  on  the  28th;  lowest,  lldeg  on  the  13th;  mean  of  daily 
maxima,  38.82deg;  mean  of  daily  minima,  28.17deg;  mean 
temperature  of  the  month,  33.49deg ;  lowest  on  the  grass,  8deg, 
on  the  13th;  highest,  in  the  sun,  98deg,  on  ,  the  28th;  mean 
temperature  of  the  earth  at  3ft,  37.67deg.  Total  sunshine, 
75hr  5min.  There  w'ere  thirteen  sunless  days.  This  has  been 
the  coldest  February  we  have  had  since  1895,  when  the  mean 
temperatures  w'ere — Maximum,  34.53deg ;  minimum,  20.00deg  ; 
mean,  27.26deg.  We  had  snow  on  the  ground  twelve  consecutive 
days,  from  the  8th  to  the  19th.  The  early  spring  flowers  are 
much  later  than  usual. — W.  H.  Divers. 
Presentafon  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  H.  G.  Cox. 
A  pleasing  ceremony  took  place  at  the  ordinary  meeting  of 
the  members  of  the  Reading  and  District  Gardeners’  Mutual 
Improvement  Association,  on  Monday,  February  24,  at  the  Abbey 
Hall,  Reading,  Mr.  H.  G.  Cox,  the  energetic  and  courteous 
secretary,  being  the  recipient  of  a  handsome  testimonial  at  the 
hands  of  the  Pre,sident  (Mr.  L.  Sutton)  as  a  token  of  the  apprecia¬ 
tion  felt  by  the  members  of  his  valuable  sen'ices  to  the 
Association,  w'hich  have  now  extended  over  a  period  of  some 
years.  Mrs.  Cox  also  was  recognised  in  this  gratifying  mark  of 
esteem,  she  being  presented  w'ith  a  handsome  solid  silver  tea 
service  (consisting  of  teapot,  cream  jug  and  sugar  basin)  in 
morocco  case,  while  to  Mr.  Cox  himself  a  valuable  half-hunter 
gold  watch  W'as  handed.  The  gifts  were  accompanied  by  a 
framed  illuminated  address,  bearing  the  photographs  and  the 
names  of  all  the  working  members  of  the  Association.  The 
presentation  was  made  in  the  presence  of  a  large  gathering  of 
members,  Mr.  Leonard  Sutton  presiding.  The  inscription  on  the 
address  was  as  follows : — “  We,  the  undersigned  members  of  the 
Reading  and  District  Gardeners’  Mutual  Improvement  Associa¬ 
tion,  wishing  to  express  our  appreciation  of  the  services  rendered 
by  Mr.  H.  G.  Cox  as  secretary,  have  this  day  jiresented  him  and 
Mrs.  Cox  with  a  silver  tea  seiwice  and  gold  w'atch  as  a  token  of 
our  esteem  and  regard.”  Mr.  Cox  responded  on  behalf  of  him¬ 
self  and  wife.  He  said  it  might  interest  the  members  to  be 
reminded  that  the  first  meeting  of  the  Association  was  held  on 
December  6,  1888,  when  54  members  were  elected.  There  were 
now'  229  names  upon  the  books,  and  there  were  three  new  mem¬ 
bers  to  be  elected  that  evening.  Ho  had  no  doubt  that  at  the 
presnt  time  the  Association  was  the  strongest  of  its  kind  in  the 
country.  It  would  be  his  endeavour  to  try  and  keep  up  the  tone 
of  the  Association. 
