August  8,  1901. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
125 
He  Oriental  and  Occidental  Planes. 
Mr.  Abbey’s  reference  to  these  Planes  as  suitable  town  trees  (see 
July  25th  issue)  reminds  me  of  the  several  fine  specimens  of  the  Eastern 
Plane  growing  alongside  one  of  the  principal  streets  in  Derby,  and 
which  were  much  admired  by  the  Birmingham  Gardeners’  Association 
members  when  proceeding  to  Elvaston  Castle  recently ;  the  long  and 
gracefully  depending  branches,  with  their  deeply  lobed  leaves,  and  the 
combined  robust  glaucous-barked  boles  of  the  tall  growing  specimens  in 
question,  lent  a  most  ornamental  effect,  and  certainly  gained  in  contrast 
with  the  albeit  younger  specimens  of  several  thriving  trees  of  the 
Western  Plane  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  street,  the  habit  of  the  latter 
■being  more  rigid  and  the  foliage  more  bluntly  lobed  and  of  a  darker 
green  colour. 
It  has  been  averred  that  the  Eastern  Plane  is  less  hardy  than  its 
congener  the  Western  variety,  bat  such  does  not  appear  to  be  warranted 
by  facts,  inasmuch  as  at  Harborne  (situate  about  three  miles  from  the 
centre  of  Birmingham),  there  are  two  fine  old  specimens  of  the  former, 
and  which  apparently  have  never  suffered  from  cold  weather.  The  one 
is  growing  at  the  junction  of  three  public  roads,  with  its  branches 
nearly  reaching  to  the  ground,  and  with  a  seat  beneath  affords  a 
pleasant  shade  to  the  pedestrian  ;  the  other  is  growing  inside  of  the 
extensive  grounds  of  a  residence  near  at  hand.  Re  town  trees,  the 
Planes  in  question  appear  to  be  equally  suitable,  as  illustrated  by  the 
vigorous  specimens  of  both  forming  the  avenue  in  Broad  Street,  Bir¬ 
mingham,  where  they  were  planted  upwards  of  twenty  years  since. 
The  Canadian  Poplar  is  also  an  eminently  suitable  subject  for  towns, 
and  in  St.  Martin’s  Churchyard,  situate  in  the  centre  of  smoky  Bir¬ 
mingham,  a  fringe  of  thriving  specimens  are  most  effective. — W.  G. 
Scarcity  of  Journeymen  Gardeners 
Every  now  and  then  there  is  a  considerable  shedding  of  ink  in  the 
horticultural  Press  over  the  condition  of  the  gardener.  The  hours  he 
works,  the  low  wages  he  receives,  or  the  inconveniences  he  has  to  put 
up  with,  are  a  few  of  the  topics  discussed.  Injured  ones  let  off  a 
certain  amount  of  pent  up  steam  and  relieve  their  feelings,  the  com¬ 
munications  are  read  with  more  or  less  interest,  grievances  are  aired, 
and  then  the  whole  thing  settles  down  again,  and  matters  go  on  much  as 
they  did  before.  Nothing  is  done,  very  little  that  is  practical  is  suggested, 
but  these  outbreaks  come  from  time  to  time  like  an  epidemic  ;  but  the 
man  or  the  institution  is  not  yet  forthcoming  who  will  champion  the 
cause  of  the  gardener,  and  bring  about  the  desirable  changes  pointed 
to  by  your  various  correspondents.  I  do  not  think  there  is  any  need 
to  trouble  about  the  alleged  soaroity  of  journeymen,  they  have  been  too 
numerous  in  the  past,  and  head  gardeners  too  ready  to  engage 
journeymen  to  do  the  work  that  ordinary  labourers  could  readily 
perform.  In  soores  of  establishments  there  are  young  men,  ranging, 
say,  from  two  or  three  to  a  dozen,  to  one  head  gardener.  They  are  all 
aspiring  to  the  latter  position,  and  the  supply  exceeds  the  demand, 
with  the  result  that  some  have  to  be  disappointed,  or  take  small  and 
inferior  places.  The  scarcity  of  journeymen  may  possibly  thin  the 
numbers  of  candidates  for  head  places,  and  raise  the  value  of  their 
services. 
Several  correspondents  have  recently  railed  against  the  pay  of 
journeymen,  but  in  this  respect  I  think  they  are  a  good  deal  better  off 
than  head  gardeners,  in  comparison.  A  young  man  from  eighteen  to 
twenty-two  gets  from  16s.  to  18s.  per  week  with  bothy  and  perquisites. 
It  does  not  sound  much,  according  as  artisans  are  paid,  but  how  much 
worse  off  is  he  than  a  clerk  or  shop  assistant  in  London,  who  has  to  pay 
lodgings  and  train  fares,  and  appear  respectable  on  25s.  per  week  ?  It 
is  not  the  journeyman  so  much  as  the  head  gardener  who  has  room  for 
complaint  on  the  score  of  wages.  It  certainly  is  a  poor  return  for  a 
man  who  has  spent  long  years  in  learning  his  business  to  be  offered  the 
magnificent  stipend  of  £1  per  week,  and  no  wonder  he  lets  off  steam  in 
the  Press  when  the  opportunity  occurs.  “A.  W.  D.”  asks,  “Why  are 
gardeners’  wages  so  low  ?  ”  Many  a  man  has  pondered  over  that 
question,  but  he  has  not  succeeded  in  raising  the  rate.  Unfortunately  a 
private  gardener  is  a  luxury.  He  is  not  necessary  to  the  requirements 
of  society  in  the  same  sense  as  a  miner  and  an  artisan.  The  private 
gardener  cannot  set  a  value  on  his  services  and  demand  a  price  in  the 
same  way  as  those  who  form  an  indispensable  part  of  the  great 
combination  of  capital  and  labour.  Not  being  a  commodity,  he  is  in 
the  hands  of  the  employer,  and  as  there  is  no  great  dearth  of  his  kind 
he  has  to  accept  rather  than  demand.  The  gardener  may  chafe  at  his 
lot  and  air  his  grievances,  but  he  can  do  no  more,  because  there  are 
others  ready  to  step  into  his  shoes  if  he  gives  up.  It  would  be  difficult 
to  set  a  standard  of  wages,  as  it  is  not  easy  to  define  a  gardener.  It  is 
also  a  question  of  capital,  and  if  a  man  can  only  afford  to  spend  so 
much  on  his  garden,  and  pay  his  gardener  £1  per  week,  where  is  the 
remedy  to  come  from  ?  There  is  scaroely  any  comparison  between 
the  position  of  a  private  gardener  and  an  artisan,  and  the  means  for 
each  to  improve  his  position  are  widely  different.  A  coalowner,  for 
instance,  cannot  do  without  his  miners,  because  his  own  income  depends 
on  them  ;  but  he  can  dispense  with  his  gardener  without  being  financially 
the  loser.  This  is  the  position  of  gardeners,  and  ministering,  as  they 
do,  to  the  luxuries  of  their  employers,  their  financial  position  can  only 
improve  when  the  former  realise  that  a  good  man  at  30s.  per  week  is 
more  economical  than  an  inferior  one  at  25s. — H. 
• - - 
Nettle  Stings. 
I  was  struok  with  a  short  paragraph  on  Nettle  stings  in  your  issue 
of  July  25th  (page  76),*  attributing  the  effect  of  the  sting  to  formic 
acid.  Undoubtedly  the  poison  of  many  insects  is  formic  acid,  or  some¬ 
thing  similar,  but  it  has  been  generally  supposed  that  the  effect  of  the 
Urtica  was  caused  by  an  alkali.  In  proof  of  this,  it  has  been  pointed 
out  that  the  application  of  Dock  leaves  affords  relief,  whioh  seems  to 
be  due  to  the  oxalic  acid  they  contain.  I  think  there  cannot  be  a  doubt 
that  the  juices  of  Urtica  contain  soda  or  potash,  and  are  therefore 
alkaline  ;  still  it  is  possible,  I  own,  that  an  acid  might  be  contained  in 
the  sting  bulbs.  Surely  some  competent  authority  will  be  able  to 
clear  up  the  matter  for  us.  Do  any  plants  secrete  formic  acid  ? 
J.  R.  S.  Clifford. 
- o#* - 
Exhibitors  as  Committeemen. 
I  was  very  much  surprised  to  read  Mr.  Woodgate’s  views.  He  must 
have  been  hard  hit,  for  he  gives  himself  away,  and  even  mentions  two 
of  his  colleagues,  and  the  Derbyshire  Horticultural  Society.  I  believe 
at  this  society  there  are  three  committeemen-exhibitors  out  of  seven 
committeemen,  and  the  other  four  may  as  well  be  exhibitors,  according 
to  Mr.  Woodgate’s  views.  First  let  me  go  through  Mr.  Woodgate’s 
letter.  He  gives  me  the  honour  of  being  the  last  out  of  a  certain  show. 
If  Mr.  Woodgate  reflects,  he  may  remember  that  there  were  three  of  us. 
A  certain  committeeman-exhibitor  brought  a  dish  of  Peaches  ;  he  put 
f  hem  down,  he  looked  round,  took  them  away,  and  brought  another  lot. 
We  were  ordered  out  before  he  came  back,  and  we  asked  Mr.  Wood- 
gate  to  go  and  bring  him,  and  to  put  his  cards  on  the  various 
exhibits.  We  then  went  out,  and  on  our  way  noticed  that  Mr.  Wood¬ 
gate’s  men  had  not  finished  mossing-up  their  group,  and  we  were  nearly 
knooked  down  by  men  bringing  into  the  tent  some  large  Ferns.  At  any 
rate,  I  was  not  in  the  tent  to  see  my  own  stuff  judged. 
I  must  also  strongly  protest,  though  not  against  insinuations,  but 
against  Mr.  Woodgate’s  use  of  the  word  “  judges.’’  Exhibitors  have 
always  to  digest  the  verdict  of  the  judges,  and  it  does  not  matter  what 
exhibitors  may  say  or  think,  we  take  their  veniict.  I  must  bring 
Mr.  Woodgate  back  to  our  heading,  “  Should  Exhibitors  Act  as 
Committeemen  ?”  This  I  maintain  is  what  we  are  writing  about,  and 
I  think  most  gardeners  will  agree  with  me  that  exhibitors  should  nob 
be  allowed  on  oommittees.  Does  it  sound  right  ?  for  “  W.  S.  .  main¬ 
tained  they  were  fatal  to  the  progress  of  the  work  of  the  day  if  there 
were  too  many  of  them  on  societies.  Now  we  will  take  the  schedule 
of  the  great  show  at  Shrewsbury.  This  year  they  have  altered  the  gieat 
Grape  class,  and  if  the  Shrewsbury  committee  contained  any  exhibitor 
who  entered  this  particular  class,  would  it  not  appear  like  furnishing 
an  advantage  to  him  over  the  outside  exhibitor  ?  1  will  stick  to  my 
remarks  that  committeemen  exhibitors  do  look  after  their  own  interest, 
and  I  will  leave  it  to  the  readers  of  the  Journal  to  think  whether  they 
do  or  do  not.  I  do  maintain  that  exhibitors  ought  not  to  aot  as 
committeemen,  and  let  Mr.  Woodgate  consider  this,  that  a  good  and 
genial  secretary  is  the  making  of  a  good  show.  In  conclusion,  I  hope 
Mr.  Woodgate  will  be  a  little  more  careful,  and  not  let  all  the  readers 
of  the  Journal  know  there  are  three  first-olass  gardeners  acting  as 
committeemen-exhibitors,  and  that  some  of  them  go  round  with  the 
judges  to  see  their  own  stuff  judged.  Is  not  one  exhibitor  as  good  as 
another  ?  The  request  at  olearing  time  should  be,  “  All  exhibitors 
outside,”  and  not  merely  “  All  outside,  please,”  as  Mr.  Woodgate  wrote. 
— George  Wadeson,  Doveridge  Hall  Gardens. 
[It  is  well  to  be  earnest,  but  the  tone  of  some  of  our  correspondents 
shows  an  inclination  to  become  striotly  parliamentary  is  we  now  know 
Parliament.  We  would,  however,  be  loath  to  administer  the  closure,  so 
long  as  there  is  anything  useful  to  be  said. — Ed.] 
lavender,  Sweet  lavender. — Within  the  last  few  weeks  London 
has  been  invaded  by  Lavender.  A  sweeter  maurauding  force  could 
scarcely  be  imagined ;  it  has  met  one  everywhere — in  the  streets,  in 
the  shops,  in  the  houses  of  one’s  friends,  and  everywhere  with  the 
same  subtle  odour  of  many  flower  gardens,  the  sime  blue  and  grey 
tints  it  has  made  especially  its  own. 
