September  20,  1900. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
267 
Recent  IVeattaer  In  Iiondon. — The  heat  in  London  since  last 
Saturday  has  been  quite  oppressive,  and  on  Sunday  a  shade  temperature 
of  upwards  of  80°  was  registered.  There  have  been  intervals  of 
brilliant  sunshine,  but  the  nights  and  mornings  have  been  somewhat 
raw  and  cold.  Rain  fell  for  a  short  time  on  Tuesday  night.  At  the 
time  of  going  to  press  on  Wednesday  it  was  clear,  bright,  and  very 
warm. 
Royal  Bortlcultural  Society. — The  next  Fruit  and  Flower  Show 
will  be  held  on  Tuesday,  September  25th,  in  the  Drill  Hall,  Bucking¬ 
ham  Gate,  Westminster,  1  to  5  p.m.  At  three  o’clock  a  lecture  on 
“  Saving  and  Using  the  Rain,”  will  be  given  by  Mr.  Peter  Kay.  The 
great  Show  of  British  grown  fruit  will  take  place  at  the  Crystal  Palace 
on  Thursday,  September  27th,  and  two  following  days.  On  each  day  of 
the  show  Fellows  of  the  Society  on  prodncing  their  tickets  will  be 
admitted  free  to  the  Palace  at  10  a.m.  The  committees  of  the  society 
will  not  sit  at  this  show.  All  fruits  for  certiBcate  must  be  exhibited 
at  one  of  the  fortnightly  meetings  at  the  Drill  Hall,  Westminster. 
Summer  Dies  Hard. — The  Indian  summer  which  we  have  been 
enjoying  of  late  almost  rivalled  in  temperature  the  balmy  days  of  July. 
The  brilliant  sunshine  on  Sunday  attracted  large  numbers  to  the  parks, 
where  the  Brst  breath  of  autnmn  has  as  yet  scarcely  seared  the  foliage^ 
and  even  in  the  grateful  shade  the  thermometer  recorded  82°.  In  many 
parts  of  the  country  the  thermometer  rose  yet  another  degree,  and 
there  was  every  indication  of  settled  weather.  In  Paris  people  were 
complainim;  on  Sunday  that  the  heat  more  resembled  that  of  torrid 
midsummer  than  the  days  of  the  waning  year. 
Tbe  Xiate  Mr.  B.  R.  Cant. —  We  understand  that  a  movement  is 
on  foot  to  institute  a  memorial  to  commemorate  the  regard  in  which 
this  distinguished  rosarian  was  held  by  his  brothers  in  the  craft,  on  the 
same  lines  as  the  George  Prince  Memorial  Fund  was  founded.  The 
Very  Rev.  the  Dean  of  Rochester,  the  Rev.  A.  Foster-Melliar,  Messrs. 
Charles  J.  Grahame,  George  Paul,  George  Prince,  and  others  have 
already  signified  their  intention  of  contributing  to  the  fund. 
Contributions  will  be  gladly  received  by  the  hon.  secretaries,  the 
Rev.  H.  Honywood  D’Ombrain,  Westwell  Vicarage,  Ashford,  Kent,  or 
Edward  Mawley,  Esq ,  Rosebank,  Berkhamsted. 
The  Centenary  of  the  Dahlia. — Florence,  the  city  of  flowers,  is, 
says  the  “  Express,”  about  to  celebrate  a  floral  centenary — that  of  the 
Dahlia,  which  was  first  imported  to  Europe  fn  m  Mexico  in  1790  by 
three  Spanish  explorers,  who  planted  it  in  Madrid  in  the  hope  that 
the  tubers  might  prove  a  cheap  food  for  the  starving  peasantry. 
Instead  of  that,  the  beauty  of  its  flowers  attracted  the  attention  of  the 
rich,  and  in  1800  some  specimens  were  taken  to  Paris.  From  this 
time  the  Dahlia  became  one  of  the  glories  of  European  gardens.  It 
also  then  first  received  a  name,  adapted  from  that  of  Dahl,  the  leading 
botanist  of  the  day,  which  was  unselfishly  suggested  by  one  of  the 
original  importers.  The  celebration  will  take  the  form  of  an  exhibition 
of  Dahlias,  and  it  is  hoped  that  the  finest  blooms  in  the  world  may  be 
gathered  together.  The  exhibition  opens  on  September  20th. 
Gardening'  as  a  Diversion. —  One  of  the  great  advantages  of  a 
love  of  gardening  is  the  break  it  makes  on  the  continuous  strain  of 
business  thought.  No  real  lover  and  possessor  of  a  garden  ever  died 
of  insomnia.  This  is  a  disease  which  follows  those  by  night  who 
cannot  throw  off  the  thoughts  of  daily  life.  They  retire  to  think 
instead  of  to  sleep,  and  the  darkness  and  quietness  of  the  night  favour 
the  thought.  To  leave  behind  the  business  of  the  city  for  the 
pleasures  of  the  trees  and  flowers  of  the  suburbs  has  saved  numerous 
lives  that  would  otherwise  have  been  broken  down.  This,  says  a 
transatlantic  journal,  se»ms  better  understood  in  the  Old  World  than 
with  us.  The  famous  jurist,  Lord  Penzance,  did  not  take  his  law 
studies  to  his  countiy  home.  There  he  thought  only  of  his  garden  and 
the  floral  treasures  it  contained.  One  of  his  hobbies  in  the  garden  was 
the  improvement  of  the  Sweet  Brier,  and  the  many  beautiful  varieties 
he  raised  obtained  as  much  fame  for  himself  as  did  his  legal  opinions,  to 
say  nothing  of  the  pleasure  the  flowers  brought  him. 
Tbe  Fenn  Testimonial. — We  are  requested  to  acknowledge  the 
receipt  of  contributions  to  the  above  from  Mr.  N.  Kneller  of  Malshanger 
Gardens,  Basingstoke,  and  from  “  N.  N.,”  Northumberland. 
Death  of  Mr.  J.  R.  Jefferies. — We  regret  to  have  to  announce 
the  death  of  Mr.  John  Robert  Jefferies,  of  the  well-known  Ipswich 
firm  of  Ransomes,  Sims  &  Jefferies,  who  died  at  his  residence  on 
September  I2th,  and  was  interred  at  the  Ipswich  Cemetery  upon 
Sunday  last. 
Only  One  Gold  Medal. — At  an  important  meeting  like  that  of 
the  Royal  Caledonian  Society  at  Edinburgh  last  week,  it  is  noteworthy 
that  but  a  single  gold  medal  was  awarded.  This  fell  to  the  lot  of 
Messrs.  Sutton  &  Sons,  of  Reading,  whose  exhibit  of  vegetables  and 
flowers  which  won  them  this  distinction  was  more  than  usually  admired. 
The  Thames  Bank  Iron  Company. — We  are  informed  that  this 
company  has  taken  over  the  engineering  works  of  Messrs.  B.  W. 
Davis  &  Sons,  Ebenezer  R  )w.  Lower  Kennington,  and  the  title  of  the 
firm  in  future  will  be  the  Kennington  Engineering  Works  (Thames 
Bank  Iron  Company).  All  patents  and  special  manufactures  will 
be  retained  ;  as  well  as  the  leading  employes  in  all  sections  of 
the  works. 
Gardening  B.ppointments. — Mr.  F.  L.  Thurston,  for  the  past 
three  years  foreman  at  Burwood  House  Gardens,  has  been  appointed 
head  gardener  to  A.  Morris,  Esq’,  Court  Green,  Streatham,  S.W.  Mr. 
Frank  Noyce  has  been  appointed  (through  Mr.  H.  W.  Ward,  of  Ray¬ 
leigh),  as  head  gardener  to  Captain  E.  A.  Adcock,  R.N.,  Redlands, 
Bi'oadsiairs.  Mr.  Noyce  has  been  foreman  for  the  last  four  years  in  the 
gardens  at  High  Trees,  Redhill. 
Messrs.  “Wood  &  Son  and  the  Poisonous  Compounds  Act. 
— In  referring  last  spring  to  certain  efforts  which  are  being  made  to 
obtain  the  repeal  of  this  Act  we  expressed  astonishment  at  the  present 
unfair  working  of  the  Statute.  We  are  now  informed  by  Messrs.  Wood 
and  Son  of  Wood  Green,  London,  N.,  that  they  have  succeeded  in 
obviating  the  difficulties  presented  in  the  Act  by  establishing  a  whole¬ 
sale  and  retail  manufacturing  chemistry  department  in  their  own 
business  under  the  management  of  a  qualified  pharmaceutical  chemist. 
Gardeners  dealing  with  Messrs.  Wood  &  Son  will  now  therefore  find 
themselves  relieved  of  the  necessity  of  going  out  of  their  way  to  obtain 
“  weed  killers  ”  and  insecticides  from  the  local  chemist. 
Ramie  Fibre  as  a  Substitute  for  Cottor. — Mr.  D.  Edward 
Radcljffe,  Regent’s  Park,  writes  that  Lancashire  is  threatened  in 
connection  with  the  cotton  industry  with  a  serious  loss,  and  he  asks 
why  this  country  does  not  profit  by  its  lessons.  When  the  last  great 
famine  took  place  during  the  American  war  Great  Britain,  he  says, 
was  shown  the  folly  of  relying  on  one  country  for  its  supplies.  We 
have,”  he  adds,  “  a  vast  territory  in  which  we  could  grow  Ramie, 
which  is  a  fibre  far  superior  to  cotton.  It  will  grow  where  cotton 
grows,  and  where  it  will  not.  The  possibilities  of  this  plant  are 
enormous.  It  grows  wild  in  India  and  many  other  of  our  possessions. 
It  will  make  anything  that  can  be  made  by  ffax,  cotton,  wool,  or  silk. 
If  our  Colonies  would  turn  their  attention  to  Ramie  growing,  the 
possibility  of  a  vast  industry  being  crippled  for  the  want  of  supplies 
would  be  a  thing  of  the  past.” 
Cocoa  In  the  Philippines — The  Cocoa  plant  grows  in  great 
abundance  in  the  Philippine  Islands,  and  it  is  stated  that  there  is  a 
good  opening  for  the  manufacturers  of  chocolate  products  of  all  kinds 
in  the  islands.  The  Cocoa  plant  in  the  Philippines  is  more  like  a 
shrub  or  bush,  being  about  10  feet  in  height,  than  the  plant  in  South 
America,  which  averages  about  25  feet  in  height,  and  forms  quite  a 
tree.  The  reason  for  the  bushes  not  growing  taller  is  to  be  found  in 
the  lack  of  proper  cultivation,  as  the  farmers  of  the  islands  give  little 
attention  to  their  farms.  The  large  planters  have  as  yet  done  little  to 
develop  the  Cocoa  industry,  though  their  other  crops  are  large  and 
often  well  cultivated.  The  Cocoa  plant  grows  near  the  protected 
towns,  and  will  furnish  two  crops  a  year  without  cultivation.  In  the 
mountains  tons  of  Cocoa  go  to  waste  every  year.  The  leaves  at 
certain  periods  of  the  year  have  a  deep,  rich,  green  appearance,  while 
the  flowers  take  on  different  colours  and  are  most  striking.  The  fruit 
is  a  large  pod,  oval  in  shape,  which  contains  the  beans  from  which  the 
chocolate  is  manufactured.  If,  says  an  authority,  modern  methods  of 
working  the  product  were  introduced,  much  of  the  waste  occurring 
through  primitive  appliances  could  be  avoided,  and  the  profits  be  large. 
