384 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
April  30,  1903. 
The  Wisley  Estate. 
We  are  re(jue.Ae(l  to  state  that  Messrs.  Alex.  Turner  and  Co. 
will  offer  to  stl!,  on  May  6,  at  1  o’clock,  at  the  Mart,  E.C.,  the 
Oakwood  estate,  near  Ripley,  the  property  of  the  late  Mr.  G.  F. 
Wilson,  F.R.S.  Further  particulars  will  be  found  in  our  adver- 
ti.sement  columns. 
The  Proposed  Gardeners  Dinner. 
As  much  interest  has  been  aroused  by  mention  of  a 
gardeners’  reception  and  dinner  in  London  in  association  with 
the  fruit  and  vegetable  show  at  Chiswick  on  September  29  next, 
it  may  be  well  to  intimate  that  the  function,  which  is  expected 
to  become  a  large  one,  is  promoted  by  a  committee  of  gardeners 
selected  from  the  R.H.S.  Fruit  and  Floral  Committees  solely, 
and  it  is  further  purposed  by  them  to  invite  by  circular  the  co¬ 
operation  of  one  hundred  provincial  gardeners  to  act  as  stewards 
in  their  respective  localities,  in  aid  of  the  dinner.  This  wil]  take 
place  in  the  fine  King’s  Hall  of  the  Holborn  Restaurant,  and  the 
London  Pierrot  Compiany  will  furnish  the  entertainment.  It  is 
hoped  a  distinguished  amateur  horticulturist  will  preside,  and 
with  other  eminent  m?n,  hold  a  reception  of  all  attending  at  6.30, 
the  dinner  being  at  7  p.m.  Ladies  will  be  included ;  moniing 
dress.  Every  effort  will  be  made  to  render  the  function  one  of 
exceeding  pleasure  and  enjoyment  to  all ;  but  to  country  gardeners 
especially. — A.  Dean,  Kingston. 
Royal  Horticultural  Society. 
Minute  of  Council  adojited  April  21,  1903. 
The  subject  of  photographing  at  shows  was  brought  up  on  two 
new  applications  for  permission,  and  the  following  statement  and 
resolution  was  drawn  up  and  proposed  by  Mr.  J.  Gurney  Fowler, 
and  .seconded  by  Mr.  F.  G.  Lloyd,  and  carried,  viz.  :  In  conse- 
(pxence  of  (1)  the  very  crowded  condition  of  the  Society’s  exhibi¬ 
tions,  and  (2)  the  increasing  number  of  applications  for  permission 
to  photograph  at  such  exhibitions,  the  Council  have  felt  com¬ 
pelled  to  order  that  in  future 
1.  All  persons  taking  photographs  at  the  Society’s  shows  must  hold 
an  authority  to  do  so  issued  by  the  Council. 
2.  All  such  photographers  must  place  themselves  unreservedly  in 
the  hands  of  the  Society’s  Superintendent,  and  act  entirely 
as  he  directs. 
3.  In  case  of  any  block  or  engraving  being  made  for  publication 
from  photographs  thus  made  at  the  Society’s  shows,  the 
principal  .sending  and  employing  the  photographer  must 
undertake  to  present  to  the  Society  a  duplicate  of  every 
.such  block,  which  the  Societj'  will  be  at  liberty  to  use  in 
its  own  publications  (but  not  otherwise),  acknowledging  the 
source  from  whence  the  block  was  received,  or  stating  in 
whom  the  copyright  vests.  The  Council  feel  it  necessary 
that  this  regulation  .‘rhould  be  applicable  to  all  journals  and 
photographers  without  any  distinction. — W.  Wilks, 
Secretary. 
The  next  fruit  and  flower  show  of  the  Royal  Horticultural 
Society  will  be  held  on  Tue.sday,  May  5,  in  the  Drill  Hall,  Buck¬ 
ingham  Gate,  Westminster,  at  l.o  p.m.  A  lecture  on  “Peculiarities 
of  the  Cape  Flora  ”  will  be  given  by  the  Rev.  Prof.  Geo.  Henslow, 
M.A.,  V.M.H.,  at  3  o’clock. 
At  a  general  meeting  of  the  Society,  held  on  Tuesday,  April  21, 
fifty-nine  neiv  Fellows  were  elected,  among  them  being  the  Mar¬ 
quis  of  Granby,  Counte.ss  Cairns,  Lady  Evelyn  Scott,  the  Hon. 
Mrs.  Heywood-Lonsdale,  the  Hon.  Mrs.  Mark  Napier,  the  Hon. 
Mrs.  Henry  Gladstone,  the  Hon.  Mr.s.  Pennant,  and  Prof. 
James  Ward,  D.Sc.,  making  a  total  of  60-3  elected  since  the 
beginning  of  the  present  year. 
Prizes  for  Tulips. — At  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society’s 
fortnightly  meeting,  to  be  held  in  the  Drill  Hall,  Buckingham 
Gate,  on  May  19,  special  prizes  will  be  otfered  for  Tulips  by  the 
Royal  National  Tulip  Society.  For  .schedule  of  prizes  see  R.H.S. 
Book  of  Arrangements  for  1903,  pages  63  and  64.  Copies  sent 
free  on  application  to  the  Sec.  R.H.S.,  117,  Victoria  Street, 
London,  S.W.,  or  separate  .schedules  can  be  obtained  from  A.  D. 
Hall,  Esq.,  The  Oast  House,  Harpenden. 
National  Primula  and  Auricula  Society— A  Correction. 
In  your  report  of  the  exhibition  of  the  National  Primula  and 
Auricula  Society  your  reporter  has  mixed  up  two  classes,  viz.,  for 
twelve  Fancy  Polyanthus  and  for  twelve  Primro.ses.  He  represents 
that  I  was  awarded  a  third  prize  in  the  former  class,  but  I  did 
not  exhibit  in  it  ;  there  were  two  competitors  only,  nameljq  Mr. 
P.  D.  Williams  and  Messrs.  J.  Stokes  and  Son.  My  plants  were 
true  single  Primro.ses,  and  I  was  awarded  the  first  prize  for  twelve 
specimens.  The  difficulty  of  keeping  Primroses  over  for  this 
show,  with  the  frost  searing  the  corollas  as  if  by  fire,  and  cold 
winds  curling  them  up  as  if  struck  with  “  floral  ”  paralysis,  was 
very  great. — R.  Dean. 
Retirement  of  Mr.  James  Hunter. 
As  announced  on  page  362,  the  presentation  ceremony  in  con¬ 
nection  with  Mr.  Hunter’s  retirement  from  the  gardens  at 
Lambton  Castle  took  place  on  April  16.  The  chairman’s  remarks 
on  that  occasion  conveyed  a  brief  resume  of  Mr.  Hunter’s  garden¬ 
ing  career.  He  said  his  first  recollection  of  Mr.  Hunter  was  in 
18.59.  He  also  knew  his  father  and  his  mother  in  the  beautiful 
little  village  of  Dirleton  in  East  Lothian,  where  Mr.  Hunter  was 
born,  and  (continued  Mr.  Thomson),  “as  a  child  I  can  well 
remember  his  coming  to  work  in  the  gardens  at  Archerfield  under 
my  father,  who  was  gardener  there  for  many  years  previous  to 
going  to  Drumlanrig.  He  was  not  long  employed  in  the  gardens 
before  my  father  found  out  the  natural  abilities  of  his  appren¬ 
tice  lad,  who  soon  worked  himself  up  to  the  position  of  foreman 
there. 
“  Scotland  had  produced  many  eminent  agriculturists  and 
horticulturists  who  have  taken  up  prominent  positions  not  only 
in  the  British  Empire,  but  all  over  the  world,  and  amongst  the 
latter  was  Mr.  Hunter.  In  a  letter  which  I  had  from  my  father 
the  other  day  when  I  wrote  and  told  him  I  had  been  asked  to 
make  this  presentation,  he  said :  ‘  You  can  tell  them  that  out  of 
the  many  men  I  have  sent-  out  in  the  gardening  world,  I  am 
prouder  of  no  one  more  than  my  old  friend  and  pupil,  Jimmy 
Hunter.’  When  I  was  applied  to  by  the  late  Mr.  Henderson, 
of  Thoresby  Park,  to  send  him  up  as  good  a  man  as  he  could  find 
to  gssist  him  in  laying  out  the  new'  gardens  at  Thoresby,  I  sent 
up  our  friend  of  this  evening ;  and  after  a  few  years,  when  the 
late  Lord  Durham  asked  my  father  to  recommend  him  an  able 
man  to  go  to  Lambton  to  renew  the  gardens,  he  had  no  hesita¬ 
tion  in  putting  forward  Mr.  Hunter.  Perhaps  some  of  you  may 
remember  what  Lambton  Gardens  were  when  he  went  to  them, 
and  will  be  able  to  compare  them  with  ivhat  they  are  now  to-day. 
He  had  not  been  long  at  Lambton  before  he  made  his  mark  in 
the  horticultural  world.  He  astonished  horticulturists  by  show¬ 
ing  in  1875  at  Belfast  International  Show  a  bunch  of  Black 
Hamburgh  Grapes,  which  turned  the  scales  at  201b,  which  has 
been  admitted  to  be  the  finest  bunch  of  Grapes  that  has  ever 
been  produced.  His  success  as  an  exhibitor  is  probably  as  well 
known  to  you  as  it  is  to  me,  and  for  many  years  Mr.  Hunter  was 
invincible  as  a  fruit-grower  in  the  United  Kingdom.  In  addition 
to  all  this  he  holds  the  distinguished  honour  of  being  the  first 
in  the  horticultural  world  to  raise  a  new  seedling  hybrid  Pine¬ 
apple,  which  was  named  Lady  B.  Lambton,  and  which  to  the 
present  day  is  admitted  to  be  the  best  Pineapple  in  cultivation. 
It  was  awarded  a  First  Class  Certificate,  and  I  had  the  honour  of 
sending  it  out,  and  it  has  been  described  as  being  the  most  hand¬ 
some  and  best  flavoured  Pineapple  in  cultivation.  In  addition 
he  made  the  gardens  of  Lambton  Castle  famous  throughout  the 
country  by  the  original  and  effective  .stjde  of  bedding  he  carried 
out.” 
Mr.  Bernard  Cowan,  of  South  Shields,  presented  him  with  a 
gold  bracelet  for  Mrs.  Hunter  and  a-  spade  guinea  for  himself. 
The  latter  spoke  feelingly  of  the  high  tone  he  had  given  to 
gardening  in  the  district,  his  willingness  to  render  young  gar¬ 
deners  every  assistance,  and  his  general  urbanity  to  all  gardening 
visitors  to  Lambton,  and  the  popularity  he  had  attained  as  a 
resident  for  thirty-five  years  in  the  district.  The  recipient  most 
feelingly  responded,  and  was  veiy  much  touched  by  the  kindness 
of  his  friends  and  admirers.  Votes  of  thanks  to  the  .secretaries, 
chairman,  committee,  subscribers,  and  to  the  speakers  brought  a 
most  .successful  gathering  to  an  end. 
