JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
267 
JMarcli  L6,  1903 
Sir  William  Temple. 
Sir  William  Temple  was  the  son- of  Sir  John  Temple,  and  was 
born  in  1(328  at  Blackfriars,  London.  He  commenced  his  educa¬ 
tion  under  his  maternal  uncle,  the  learned  Dr.  Hammond,  con¬ 
tinued  his  studie.s  at  Bishop  Stortford  School,  and  concluded  them 
under  Dr.  Cudworth  at  Kmmanuel  ('ollee;e,  Cambridge.  Frcm 
the  I'niversity  ho  proceeded  abroad,  and  at  the  Itestoration  was 
cho'en  a  member  of  the  Irish  Parliament.  In  1(3(35  he  went  on  a 
secret  mi.ssicn  to  the  Sovereign  Bishop  of  Mun/ster,  in  West¬ 
phalia;  was  employed  afterwards  in  forming  the  triple  alliance 
1628— Sir  William  Temple  — 1699. 
between  Sweden,  Holland,  and  this  country,  and  became  resident 
Minister  at  the  Hague,  in  which  capacity  he  promoted  the  union 
between  the  Prince  of  Orange  and  Princess  Mary.  In  1(379  he 
became  Secretary  of  State,  but  in  the  following  year  retiretl  from 
office  to  his  country  seat.  Sheen,  in  Surrey,  where  he  was  re- 
Ijeatedly  visited  by  his  Sovereigns,  Charles  II.,  James  II.,  and 
William  III.  He  died  in  1699  on  January  27. 
His  works  have  been  published  in  twO'  vols.  folio,  and  four 
vols.  8vo.  In  the  first  volume  of  them  is  contained  his  essay  en¬ 
titled,  “  The  Garden  of  Epicurus  ;  or  of  Gardening  in  the  Year 
1685.”  This  essay  is  devoted  chiefly  to  inculcate  that  taste  for 
formal  design  in  gardening  which  was  the  prevailing  one  of  his 
time.  When  we  compare  it  with  the  plan  giveii  by  Lord  Bacon  in 
a  preceding  age,  for  a  similar  construction,  we  fincl  but  this  differ¬ 
ence,  that  if  both  plans  were  reduced  to  practice.  Sir  William’s 
would  be  rather  the  mo.st  mathematical  and  undeviatingly  formal. 
Sir  William  Temple’s  beau  ideal  of  a  garden  is  that  of  a  flat  or 
gently  sloping  plot  of  an  oblong  shape  stretching  away  from  the 
front  of  the  hou.se,  with  the  de.scent  to  it  from  a  terrace  imnning 
the  whole  length  of  the  house,  by  means  of  a  flight  of  steps.  Such 
a  garden,  he  .says,  existed  at  Moor  Park,  in  Hertfordshire,  formed 
by  the  celebrated  Lucy,  Countess  of  Bedford,  one  of  the  chief 
viits  of  her  time.  It  was  on  the  slope  of  a  hill,  with  two  terraces 
rising  one  over  the  other,  and  united  by  a  magnifleent  flight  of 
steps.  A  parterre,  wilderness,  highly  ornamental  fountains, 
.statues,  alcoves,  and  cloisters,  wei'e  its  prominent  parts  and  orna- 
jiients. 
When  he  descends  to  more  practical  .speculations  he  is  seldom 
in  erpr,  among  which  we  may  specify  hi.s  observations  upon 
Ijlanting  Peaches  in  the  north  of  Britain,  which  experience  has 
demonstrated  to  be  correct.  Sir  William  improved  his  knowledge 
of  gardening  during  his  .stay  at  the  Hague.  He  introduced 
several  new  fruits,  especially  cf  Grapes.  His  name  still  attaches 
to  a  variety  of  the  Nectarine,  and  everjmne  knows  the  Moor  Park 
Apricot.  He  had  a  garden  at  his  seat  at  Sheen,  in  Surrey,  to  the 
good  cultivation  of  which  Evelyn  hears  this  te.stimony : — “  The 
most  remarkable  things  are  his  orangery  and  garden,  where  the 
wall-fruit  trees  are  exquisitely  nailed  and  trained.”  Nothing 
can  demonstrate  more  fully  the  delight  Sir  William  took  in  gai” 
dening  than  this  direction  in  his  will,  that  his  heart  should  be 
buried  beneath  the  sun-dial  of  his  garden  at  Moor  Park,  near 
Farnham,  in  Surrey,  affording  another  instance  of  the  ruling  pas- 
•sion  unweakened  even  in  deatli.  Nor  was  this  an  unphilo^-oiihical 
clinging  to  that  which  it  was  imiio^sible  to  retain.  Imt  rather  a 
grateful  feeling  common  to  our  nature.  In  his  garden  Sir  William 
lemple  had  spent  the  calmest  hours  of  a  well-spent  life,  and 
where  his  heart  had  been  most  peaceful  he  wished  its  dust  to 
mingle,  and  thus  at  the  same  time  offering  his  last  testimony  to 
tlie  sentiment  that  in  a  garden 
Kepo.se  is  setured,  and  life,  unnoted,  slides  .away. 
Temple's  love  of  gardening  peeps  out  in  all  his  letters.  Writing 
in  1688,  Evelyn  says  he  went  to  see  Sir  William’s  orangerj'  and 
garden  at  Sheen,  and  that  he  observed  the  trees  were  “  most  ex¬ 
quisitely  nailed  and  trained.”  This  excellence  of  practice  we 
attribute  to  his  gardener,  for,  though  he  notes  with  approbation 
Epicurus  living  in  his  garden,  yet  it  is  with  the  addition  that  such 
a  life  promotes  “tranquillity  of  mind  and  indolence  of  body.” 
Gadding  and  Gattiering. 
“IIeue  awa’.  There  awa’.” 
Though  the  pre.sent  head  of  the  firm  of  B.  S.  Williams  and 
Son,  at  the  Paradise  Nurseries,  Fpper  Holloway,  London,  is 
developing  tlie  hardy  plant  side  of  his  busine.ss,  the  old  nursery 
at  Holloway  is  still  devoted  to  Orchids  and  stove  and  greenhouse 
foliage  and  floAvering  plants.  The  new  branch  nursery  at  Finch¬ 
ley,  a  short  distance  from  the  head  office,  is  where  the  hardy 
plants  and  shrubs  are  grown,  and  of  it  there  may  be  something 
to  report,  at  a  later  date.  But  amongst  the  tender  foliaged,  one 
always  finds  soinething  to  note,  even  in  a  short  run  through. 
Take,  for  instance,  Russellia  juncea,  that  green-stemmed  some¬ 
what  Rush-like  climbing  plant  with  its  crimson  tubular  flowers : 
how  seldom  one  finds  it  in  private  collections.  It  likes  heat  and 
moisture,  and  a  good  friable  soil,  when  its  long,  .slender,  whip¬ 
cord  shoots  are  freely  produced.  ’J’he  Swainsonias  were  also 
noticed,  but  the.se,  of  course,  are  already  well  appreciated. 
B.  S.  Williams  &  Son. 
The  beautifxd  golden-amber  coloured  corymbs  of  Tecoma 
capensis,  a  showy  greenhou.se  subject,  w’ere  in  evidence,  and  the 
collection  of  species  of  Tecomas  at  Holloway  seemed  to  me  to  be 
very  large.  It  may  be  remembered  that  the  subject  I  name  was 
illustrated  in  the  Journal  for  May  2,  1901.  It  is  easily  culti¬ 
vated,  and  certainly  deserves  some  attention.  Then  there  was, 
amongst  other  Acacias,  the  old-fashioned  A.  cultriformis,  now 
scarcely  seen,  yet  a  gorgeoas  thing  at  its  best.  I  do  not  know 
whether  it  is  averse  to  flowering  or  no,  but  when  one  can  succeed 
with  it  to  the  same  degree  as  Mr.  A.  G.  Gentle,  the  gardener  at 
Little  Gaddesden,  it  is  doubtful  if  there  is  another  occupant  of 
the  greenhouse,  at  the  same  time  of  the  year,  that  is  more 
decoi’ative  or  valuable. 
My  cicerone,  Mr.  Wart,  ruefully  pointed  to  the  numerous 
stock  of  fine  healthy  Camellias.  “  Don’t  sell,”  he  said  with  an 
outward  turn  of  his  hands,  and  shrug  of  the  shoulders.  “  Twenty 
years  ago  things  were  different ;  we  hadn’t  then  enough  to  meet 
demands.”  I  consoled  him,  or  tried  to,  with  the  fact  that  every 
cloud  has  its  silver  lining,  and  even  now  the  lift  seemed  rising, 
and  a  hopeful  dawn  appearing.  He  only  shook  his  head.  One 
should  think  that  with  Camellia  flowers  selling  at  4d.  a  piece  for 
buttonholes,  they  might  pay  to  grow  commercially.  But  beyond 
this,  in  all  earne.stne.ss,  what  lovelier  flower  have  we  than  the 
single  C.  reticulata?  It  is,  indeed,  an  ennobled  scarlet  crim.son 
Pseonia,  and  the  latter  is  surely  popular  enough  for  the  moment. 
The  double  Camellias,  too,  even  formal  and  scentless  though  they 
be,  are  unsurpassed  for  the  brilliancy  and  enormous  profu.sion  of 
their  floral  yield  ;  besides  which,  they  flower  so  consistently  well. 
Amongst  bulbous  plants  there  are  hero  a  splendid  selection  of 
Nerines,  all  well  developed  and  ripened.  The  Cape  and  Au.stra- 
lian  shrubs,  in  which  we  include  the  Epacrids,  Ericas,  Boronias, 
Chorizemas,  and  the  Acacias,  are  fully  represented.  Forced 
shrub.s — Pninus,  Wistarias.  Azaleas,  Lilacs— are  numerously 
housed,  and,  of  course,  the  Palm  houses  and  stoves  contain  end¬ 
less  variety.  The  extensive  choice  of  subjects  is  indeed  one  thing 
that  the  visitor  cannot  fail  to  ob.scrvo.  The  famous  Cyrtanthus 
rutilans,  with  its  drooping  crimson  racemes,  was  staged  side  by 
side  with  shapely  Crotons,  Dracsenas,  Aralia  (Veitchi  being  very 
neat  and  robust),  and  other  well-known  subjects.  A  plant  re¬ 
sembling  Reidia  glaucescens,  and  here  named  “Xyophylla  angus- 
tifolia,”  had  the  pinnules  of  the  leaves  edged  with  yellow  bead- 
like  bodies,  giving  it  both  beauty  and  greater  interest. 
The  newer  CaTlas  are  about  to  be  started,  and  of  them  a 
goodly  stock  is  grown.  The  Den’drobiums,  Cypripediums, 
Lycastes,  and  other  popular  genera  were  vigorous  and  brightly 
flowered,  even  amid  unfavourable  surroundings,  the  district  now 
being  so  largely  built  upon.  Lycaste  lasioglo.ssa  was,  in  more 
than  one  instance,  a  picture  of  health  and  floriferousne.s.s,  while 
there  were  also  good  pieces  of  Coelogyne  cristata  alba,  the  true 
white;  Cypripedium  Williamsi  Pitcherianum,  and  some  noble 
Vandas.  The  ground  here'  commands  an  enormously  high  price 
in  these  days,  and  it  is  imssible  that  Mr.  Williams  may  greatly 
limit  his  stock  of  Orchids  and  ]dants,  in  order  to  part  with  sonu' 
of  the  land,  a  portion  of  which  has  been  already  cleared  for  some 
years.  He  would  then  confine  most  of  his  attention  to  the 
Finchley  nursery,  which  I  mentioned  in  opening  these  notes.  V  . 
