JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
December  4,  1902. 
512 
Brussels  Sprout,  Solidity. 
I  am  posting  you  a  small  box  of  B.S.  Solidity,  which  was  sent 
out  last  year  by  an  enterprising  local  firm  of  seedsmen,  Messrs. 
Alexander  and  Brown,  Perth.  I  consider  it  is  by  far  and  away 
the  best  Sprout  I  have  grown,  and  send  these  few  to  be  tested 
by  the  Editorial  palate,  and  I  have  not  the  least  doubt  but  that 
you  will  find  them  Al.  The  plants  are  sturdy,  2 1ft  in  height,  and 
literally  crowded  with  sprouts.  The  enclosed  were  just  picked 
at  random. — Albyn,  Bridge  of  Earn,  Perthshire. 
The  Horticultural  Hall. 
Allow  me  to  express  my  surprise  at  the  plan  and  elevation 
selected  for-  the  new  hall.  In  an  undertaking  of  national  im¬ 
portance  the  very  best  design  that  can  be  obtained  should  be 
secured,  and  I  venture  to  suggest  that  an  open  competition  for 
architects  would  lead  to  that  result.  I  offer  no  criticism  upon 
the  drawings  referred  to,  but  am  convinced  that  better  designs, 
both  for  the  interior  arrangement  and  the  exterior  effect,  would 
follow  if  competitive  plans  were  prepared  by  expert  architects, 
and  might  suggest  that  a  prize,  or  prizes,  should  be  awarded  to 
the  successful  exhibitors. — James  L.  Wood. 
Illegal  Shtwing. 
There  is  more  or  less  rottenness  in  the  whole  state  of  horti¬ 
cultural  Denmark — north,  south,  east,  and  west,  I  believe;  that 
is,  if  seeing  is  believing,  and  if  Mx\  W.  R.  Raillem,  or  anybody 
else,  “  lirmg-  down  south  ”  doubts  it,  it  merely  shows  that  they 
have  not  been,  privileged  to  peep  behind  the  scenes.  He,  at 
least,  has  not,  apparently,  by  the  very  pertinent  manner  in  which 
he  points  out  to  “A  Yorkshire  Grower”  (on  page  490)  his  duty 
in  the  matter;  but  “A  Yorkshire  Grower”  is  probably  a  York¬ 
shire  gardener,  and  what  gardener,  may  I  ask,  would  dare  bring 
such  a  hornets’  nest  about  his  ears  as  any  stir  he  made  in  the 
matter  would  inevitably  do?  I  venture  to  assure  Mr.  Raillem 
on  behalf  of  others  besides  “  A  Yorkshire  Grower,”  and  myself, 
that  there  is  not  the  slightest  doubt  about  our  duty  in  the 
matter  ;  but  men  who  have  their  livings  to  get  and  have  to  live  in 
“  Denmark  ”  find  discretion  the  better  part  of  valour.  This 
matter  has  cropped  up  before  in  the  Journal  of  Horticulture,  as 
it  has  cropped  up  now,  and  will  crop  up  again,  but,  cui  bono  ? 
The  most  a  gardener  can  do  who  knows  all  about  it/(and  is  there 
one  who  has  been  exhibiting  for  thirty  years  in  the  capacity  of  a 
gentleman’s  gardener,  or  the  gardener’s  assistant,  who  does  not 
know?) — the  most  he  can  do  prudently  is  to  do  as  “A  Yorkshire 
Grower”  has  done  viz.,  keep  well  in  the  background,  and 
cautiously  stir  up  the  nest  of  malignant  practices  with  a  long  pen, 
covering  his  head  the  meanwhile  under  the  bushel  of  a  nom  de 
plume.  This  gives  an  honest  exhibitor  some  little  relief  for  his 
outraged  feelings  in  the  buzz  that  arises.  More  he  cannot  expect, 
nor  more  will  he  get  until  the  executive  of  societies  takes  more 
stringent  measures  to  protect  him,  and  stop  winking  at  such  prac¬ 
tices  themselves.  This  advisedly,  for  when  a  journeyman  in 
“  Stonewallshire  ”  most  of  the  Asparagus  shown  in  the  collections 
of  vegetables  was  grown  by  one  great  market  grower,  who 
indirectly  supplied  it,  not  openly,  of  course,  nor  yet  so  secretly 
but  what  the  secretary  of  the  ‘‘Royal  Stonewallshire  Society” 
knew ;  unless,  indeed,  he  was  one  of  “  the  innocents  abroad,”  and 
I  don’t  think  he  was,  neither  is. — Quiz. 
I  congratulate  “  Yorkshire  Grower  ”  on  his  pluck  in  bringing 
this  important  subject  to  the  front.  It  is  sad  to  think  educated 
and  polished  men  in  the  gardening  profession  stoop  to  such 
degradation.  I  call  it  by  no  less  an  ugly  name  than  thieving; 
depriving  an  honest  exhibitor  of  his  rights.  I  am  aware  that  I 
am  making  a  serious  accusation  against  a  large  body  of  men, 
whom,  for  my  part,  I  should  like  to  be  able  to  respect.  Silence 
only  encourages  them,  and  the  only  way  to  touch  some  of  them 
is  to  prick  their  conscience  through  the  medium  of  the  press. 
At  local  shows  this  roguery  is  performed  to  an  alarming  extent, 
and  unless  the  committees  are  more  keen  in  investigating  cases 
brought  before  them,  and  having  their  schedules  drawn  up  so 
that  the  members  have  power  to  inspect  any  garden  after  entries 
are  in  and  previous  to  the  show,  I  am  afraid  a  great  many  small 
exhibitions  will  soon  be  a  thing  of  the  past.  I  endorse  what 
“  Yorkshire  Grower  ”  says  about  men  collecting  fruits  and  vege¬ 
tables  here,  there,  and  everywhere,  and  I  believe  the  remedy 
is  for  the  staunch  or  honest  exhibitors  and  committeemen  to  keep 
the  subject  to  the  front  at  their  meetings,  and  to  expose  all 
proved  cases  as  much  as  possible,  and  permanently  disqualify 
any  person  from  exhibiting.  Now,  a  word  to  those  who  assist  in 
this  dishonest  practice,  either  by  giving,  lending,  or  selling 
expressly  for  the  purpose,  and  then  sharing  the  prize  money  or 
not,  are,  in  my  opinion,  as  bad  as  the  person  who  exhibits  them. 
— G.  G.  H. 
I  am  afraid  the  evil  to  which  “  Yorkshire  Grower  ”  calls  atten¬ 
tion  is  more  difficult  to  cure  than  “  W.  R.  Raillem”  appears  to 
think.  I  have  occasionally  known  instances  where  the  committee 
of  a  society  were  energetic  enough  to  take  action  on  information 
received  and  withhold  prizes  which  were  fraudulently  won,  but 
such  a  thing  'involves  a.  great  deal  of  trouble,  especially  when 
the  exhibitor  hails  from  a  distance;  and  many  people,  it  is  to  be 
feared,  shrink  from  the  task.  Again,  I  have  known  a  lady  who, 
on  reading  that  her  gardener  won  a  prize  for  a  collection  of  fruit 
in  which  Figs  were  included,  wrote  to  the  secretary  informing 
him  that  she  had  no  Figs  in  her  garden,  with  the  result  that  the 
said  gardener  lost  his  prize,  and  as  he  was  insolent  about  the 
matter,  he  also  lost  his  situation.  On  the  other  hand,  I  have 
myself  been  an  unwilling  contributor  to  fraud.  Most  expert 
cultivators  of  Grapes  can  recognise  their  own  fruit  wherever  they 
may  see  it,  and  I  have  on  more  than  one  occasion  seen  fruit  at 
an  exhibition  which  I  had  previously  sold  to-  a  tradesman.  But 
my  evidence  in  such  a  case  would  not  be  sufficient  to  convict. 
Once  I  had  a  very  clear  case  and  made  up  my  mind  I  was  sure  of 
revenge.  A  neighbour  in  the  trade  who  was  a  regular  customer 
for  flowers,  Tomatoes,  &c.,  wanted  two  bunches  of  Grapes.  I 
remembered  that  a  show  was  to-  be  held  the  next  day  some 
distance  away,  and  I  was  to  be  a  judge.  I  therefore  cut  the 
Grapes  close  to  the  bunches  without  leaving  any  stem,  thinking 
that  if  evil  intentions  were  aimed  at  I  should  frustrate  them. 
But  in  this  I  was  completely  baffled.  When  judging  time  came 
I  found  these  very  Grapes  in  a  collection  of  fruit  arranged  neatly 
in  a  basket,  and  I  had  no  alternative  but  assist  in  awarding  them 
the  first  prize.  The  next  thing  was  to  see  the  secretary  and 
acquaint  him  with  the  facts,  telling  him  that  I  was  willing  to 
take  all  responsibility  if  the  committee  would  do  their  part.  But 
my  offer  was  not  accepted,  and  the  fraudulent  winner  received 
his  prize. 
Two  or  three  exhibitors  at  the  Bristol  Show  were  in  the  habit 
of  carrying  away  prizes  for  produce  year  after  year  which  had  not 
been  grown  by  them.  The  show  committee,  which  is  composed 
principally  of  practical  gardeners,  inserted  a  clausei  in  the 
schedule  reserving  to  themselves  the  right  to-  refuse  entries  fro-m 
any  person  without  giving  reason  for  such  refusal,  and  in  this 
way  they  have  shut  out  suspected  fraudulent  exhibitors.  I  know 
of  one  rather  amusing  case  relating  to  illegal  showing.  A  had 
entered  at  the  Crystal  Palace  to  show  Asters.  B  had  also-  entered 
in  the  same  class.  A  had  his  flowers  arranged  at  home  when  B, 
who  was  a  near  neighbour,  called  to  see  him.  Says  B  :  “I  am 
short  of  that  particular  colo-ur,  you  might  give  me  a  bloom  or 
two.”  A  in  a  weak  moment  yielded  ;  with  the  result  that  lie  was 
placed  second,  and  B  was  first.  A  told  me  of  the  incident, 
f^pecting  sympathy,  but  I  said,  “Served  you  right.” — 
Wm.  Taylor. 
A  Mild  Seaion. 
I  here  send  you  a  few  Peas.  I  have  been  gathering  every 
week  up  to  November  17,  and  I  have  sent  you  a  piece  of  the  stem, 
or  haulm,  and  a  few  Runner  Beans,  with  a  piece  or  two  of  the 
foliage.  I  also  enclose  a  few  flowers  gathered  from  outdoors  in 
the  open  on  November  17  and  18.  Dahlias  I  have  had  in  abun¬ 
dance — that  is.  flowers.  We  have  had  a  change  here  now,  how¬ 
ever,  which  will  cut  everything  off.  I  have  sent  you  a  few  Straw¬ 
berries;  they  are  green,  if  the  weather  had  but  kept  open  and 
fine  I  should  have  soon  had  them  ripe.  I  have  only  finished 
putting  my  bedding  plants  up  to-day,  November  18. — Johnson 
Mayhew,  The  Gardens,  Woodbank,  Stockport,  Lancs. 
Woodbank,  Stockport,  Lancs. 
Enclosed  please  find  two  spikes  of  Raspberries,  cut  this  morn¬ 
ing,  November  19. — R.  Burrell,  Westley  Hall,  Bury  St. 
Edmunds,  Suffolk. 
Gloriosa  supeiba. 
I  am  sending  you  a  few  flowers  of  Gloriosa  superba  as  grown, 
here,  thinking  they  may  prove  interesting  at  this  late  date. 
For  some  few  seasons  we  have  pursued  a  practice  of  starting 
a  quantity  of  this  plant  late,  and  we  have  been  rewarded  with 
a  truly  glorious  display  at  a  time  when  they  are  very  useful, 
i.e.,  end  of  September  till  nearly  Christmas.  I  think  it  of  note. 
