October  23,  1902. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
879 
Journal  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  So:iety. 
Part  1  of  the  twenty-seventh  volume  of  the  above  has  been 
published,  and  contains  a  number  of  excellent  and  very  useful 
articles  on  gardening,  botany,  and  other  cognate  sciences  by 
experts.  'the  volume  is  well  illustrated  and  contains  some 
coloured  plates  illustrative  of  plant  diseases. 
King  Edward's  Gift  to  Horticulture. 
It  is  with  the  greatest  satisfaction  that  we  print  the  following 
letter,  which  we  take  from  the  “  Times  ”  of  Thursday,  October  16, 
our  publishing  day  :  “  His  Majesty  the  King,  having  heard  of  the 
project  in  hand,  has  commanded  the  following  letter  to  be  sent 
to  Captain  Holford,  C.V.O.,  C.I.E.,  a  member  of  the  Council 
of  the  Society,  enclosing  His  Majesty’s  contribution  of  100  guineas 
to  the  fund  :  — 
“  ‘  Balmoral  Castle,  September  30,  1902. 
“  ‘  My  Dear  Holford, — The  King  has  been  much  pleased  to  hear 
of  the  intention  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  to  commemo¬ 
rate  its  centenary  in  1904  by  the  erection,  of  a  new  horticultural 
hall  for  the  use  of  the  Society. 
“  1 I  showed  the  King  Sir  Trevor  Lawrence’s  letter,  and  His 
Majesty  commanded  me  to  tell  you  that  he  perfectly  remembered 
having  addressed  the  Society  in  1890  as  Sir  Tfievor  states  ;  and 
you  are  to  tell  him  from  the  King  that  the  words  His  Majesty 
spoke  in  1890  he  repeats  now,  if  possible,  with  a  stronger  feeling 
than  ever,  not  only  of  the  desirability,  but  of  the  actual  necessity 
of  such  a  building  as  it  is  proposed  by  the  Society  to  erect.  Sir 
Trevor  and  the  Society,  the  King  commands  me  to  say,  have  His 
Majesty’s  best  wishes  in  their  undertaking,  and,  as  a  small  dona¬ 
tion  from  His  Majesty  by  way  of  showing  the  interest  he  takes 
in  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society,  I  am  now  commanded  to 
forward  you  a  cheque  for  100  guineas  towards  the  fund  which  is 
being  raised  for  the  new  building. — Believe  me,  my  dear  Holford, 
very  truly  yours,  D.  M.  Probyn. 
‘“To  Capt.  George  Holford,  C.V.O.,  C.I.E.’ 
“  Subscriptions  may,  if  desired,  be  made  payable  half  at  once 
and  half  at  midsummer,  1903.  Cheques  should  be  drawn  in  favour 
of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society,  and  .crossed  ‘  London  and 
County  Bank.’  W.  Wilks,  M.A.,  Secretary. 
“  117,  Victoria  Street,  Westminster.” 
Prince  of  Wales  and  -  The  Hall.” 
Following  the  King’s  gift  announced  in  the  above  paragraph, 
we  learn  from  the  “  Morning  Post,”  of  Wednesday  last,  that  the 
Prince  of  Wales  has  graciously  contributed  £50  towards  the 
Horticultural  Hall  fund. 
A  National  Park. 
What  is  described  as  a  National  Park,  108  acres  in  extent, 
was  opened  with  no  little  ostentation  and  the  gracious  smiles 
of  royalty  on  the  16th  inst.  The  spot  is  the  Brandelliow  Estate, 
on  the  shores  of  Derwentwater,  a  scene  of  beauty,  as  all  the 
scenes  in  Lakeland  are.  The  movement  is  certainly  deserving 
of  praise,  and  the  promoters  deserve  the  thanks  of  the  nation 
for  their  patriotic  endeavour.  But  surely  the  opening  of  this 
National  Park,  108  acres  in  extent,  might  make  people  think. 
It  is  but  a  mere  clipping,  less  than  a  small  farm,  and  hardly 
larger  than  a  Highland  crofter’s  holding.  Is  this  the  only  strip 
of  hillside  in  England  which  the  nation  can  call  its  own?  Is 
every  mountain  top  in  England,  Scotland,  Wales,  and  Ireland 
private  property,  from  which  an  inoffensive  tourist,  seeking 
health  and  the  privilege  of  looking  upon  the  face  of  his  native 
country,  may  be  warned  off  by  a  gamekeeper?  In  the  Scottish 
Highlands  there  are  thousands  upon  thousands  of  acres  of 
mountain  to  which  the  present  possessors  are  said  to  have  no 
better  title  than  a  Court  of  Session  judgment  settling  disputes 
about  “marches”  among  themselves  or  their  grandsires.  It  is 
too  late  to  assert  the  right  of  every  Briton  to  the  mere  privilege 
of  roaming  these  solitudes,  and  ascending  mountains  sacred  to 
the  red  deer,  the  blackcock,  and  the  eagle.— (The  “Leeds 
Mercury.”) 
Scottish  Horticultural  Association. 
M<  mbeis  subscriptions  of  2s.  6d.  for  the  current  year  are 
now  due.  All  members  who  pay  their  subscription  before 
November  1  are  entitled  to  a  season  ticket  for  the  Chrysanthe¬ 
mum  Show.  Members  who  have  paid  ten  annual  subscriptions 
may  become  life  members  by  the  payment  of  One  Guinea. _ 
M  .  Mackinnon,  Treasurer,  144,  Princes  Street,  Edinburgh. 
Birches  Diseased  in  Epping  Forest 
A  peculiar  disease  has  made  itself  manifest  among  some  of 
the  Silver  Birches  in  Epping  Forest,  which  have  been  attacked 
by  a  fungus  growth.  So  far  the  mischief  caused  is  not  on  the 
extensive  scale  suggested  a  clay  or  two  ago  by  a  contemporary. 
There  is  no  probability  of  Silver  Birches  dying  out  in  Epping 
Forest,  where  they  flourish  in  large  and  increasing  numbers, 
especially  in  the  direction  of  High  Beech  and  Theydon  Bois. 
Convicts  for  Road  making. 
At  the  present  day,  in  the  southern  States  of  North 
America  they  employ  the  convicts  in  gaol,  or  such  as  are  able 
and  only  in  for  short  terms,  in  building  new  reads  or  rebuilding 
old  ones,  and  they  find  the  system  beneficial  to  the  counties 
and  to  the  prisoners  also,  who,  by  labour  out  of  doors,  acquire  a 
vigour  and  strength  and  capacity  for  earning  an  honest  living 
that  they  would  not  gain  in  the  cells.  This  is  said  to  save  much 
money  every  year.  It  also  helps  to  keep  the  tramps,  who  have 
a  constitutional  disinclination  to  hard  labour,  away  from  that 
section. 
Seeds  and  Plants  for  the  Argentine  Republic. 
The  importation  of  plants  and  seeds  into'  the  Argentine  Re¬ 
public  is  permitted  under  a  special  law  of  Jury  this  year,  says 
“  Commerce,”  subject  to  previous  inspection,  and  to  disinfection 
or  destruction  as  the  case  may  require.  Regulations  have  been 
made  which  amplify  the  law,  and  from  which  it  appears  that 
Buenos  Ayres  is  the  only  port  at  which  such  importations  may 
be  effected.  Persons  desiring  to  import  plants  or  seeds  arc 
required  to  address  a  petition  to  the  Agronomical  Section, 
setting  forth  the  name  and  address  of  the  importer,  the  name 
and  place  of  origin  of  the  plants  or  seeds,  the  means  of  intro¬ 
duction  and  date  of  arrival,  and  the  purpose  and  (if  possible) 
the  place  for  which  the  goods  are  intended. 
Californian  Crops. 
The  weekly  report  of  the  U.S.  Weather  Bureau  says  that 
Grapes  and  late  deciduous  fruits  have  ripened  rapidly  in  most 
places,  and  the  crops  are  being  gathered  and  cured  as  rapidly 
as  possible.  The  fruit  and  Grape  crops  are  remarkably  heavy 
in  nearly  all  sections,  ancl  in  some  places  the  largest  ever 
raised,  but  owing  to  the  scarcity  of  labour  ancl  refusal  of  some 
of  the  canneries  to  handle  the  fruit,  there  will  be  a  heavy  loss, 
especially  of  Peaches,  which  ripened  rapidly.  Raisin  growers 
are  said  to  be  short  of  trays,  and  some  of  the  Grapes  will  be  sent 
to  wineries.  Present  indications  are  that  the  Grape  crop  will 
be  above  average.  Prunes  are  yielding  heavily,  but  are  small 
in  size  in  some  localities.  Apples  of  excellent  quality  are  plenti¬ 
ful.  The  Almond  crop  is  unusually  heavy.  Citrus  fruits, 
Almonds,  and  Walnuts  are  in  good  condition.  Hops  are  yield¬ 
ing  an  excellent  crop  in  the  northern  counties.  Corn,  Potatoes, 
Beans,  and  sugar  Beets  are  doing  well. 
Waste  in  Edinburgh  Public  Gardens. 
A  correspondent  to  “The  Scotsman”  writes  as  follows: — “May 
I,  through  the  medium  of  your  columns,  draw  attention  of  our 
City  Fathers  to  what  I  think  is  a  shameful  waste  in  our  public 
gardens  of  valuable  plants,  viz.,  Pelargoniums,  Fuchsias,  Ac, 
which  at  this  time  of  the  year,  when  taken  up  to  make  room  for 
spring  flowers,  are  thrown  into  the  rubbish  heap.  Now,  instead 
of  allowing  such  plants  to  rot,  might  I  respectfully  suggest  to 
the  Corporation  that  they  would  give  instructions  to  their 
gardeners  to  send  these  plants,  also  any  surplus  plants  that 
they  may  not  require,  to  the  Board  schools  to  be  distributed 
amongst  the  pupils,  who,  I  am  quite  certain,  would  be  delighted 
to  have  them.  I  would  also  invite  ladies  and  gentlemen  that 
have  private  gardens  within  the  city  and  neighbourhood  to  send 
their  spare  plants  for  the  same  purpose.  By  so  doing  they 
would  have  the  thanks  of  many  school  children.”  London  parks 
always  dispose  of  their  bedding  plants  by  free  distribution. 
