6 
JOUBNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER.  January  7,  1904. 
County  Council  Instructors. 
Devonshire. 
Mr.  Charles  Berry,  staff  instructor  in  horticulture  to  Devon 
County  Council  Education  Ceminittee,  comes  of  an  East  Suffolk 
agricultural  family,  -who  lived  many  years  at  Debenham,  on  the 
ifiver  Deben,  the' circuitous  course  of  which  ends  in  the  German 
Ocean,  two  miles  north-east  of  Felix.stowe.  Along  its  banks  lies 
some  of  the  best  soil  in  mid-Suffolk,  and  over  which  a  light 
railway  i.s  being  built,  with  a  station  at  Debenham. 
Mr  Berry’s  school  days  were  spent  at  Sir  Robert  Hitcham’s 
Endowed  School,  in  the  above  beautiful  old  town,  once  the  seat 
Mr.  C.  Berry. 
of  the  kings  of  East  Anglia.  His  father  and  mother  had  ten 
children  (eight  boys),  to  ensure  the  education  of  whom  meant  a 
daily  sacrifice.  Tlie  boys  were  sent  to  an  evening  school  kept  by 
a  young  man  named  Tanham,  whose  pupils  paid  sixpence  a  week. 
Charles  was  the  youngest  but  one,  and  he  was  the  last  or 
the  family  to  leave  the  country  (which  he  did  at  the  age  of 
sixteen)  for  London,  entering  a  business  house  kept  by  his  sister. 
Not  happy  in  this,  his  brother  Joseph  secured  a  situation  for 
him  in  the  firm  of  I.  and  I.  Wilson,  Wood  Street,  London,  E.C., 
licsiers.  Illness  compelled  a  departure  for  home,  and  upon 
recovery  he  entered  the  service  of  his  eldest  brother,  Mr. 
George  Berry,  nursei’jnnan,  Ipswich,  and  afterwards  had  charge 
of  his  glass  houses  and  frames. 
During  these  years  the  young  man  worked  and  studied  at 
the  Ipswich  Working  Men’s  College,  the  principal  of  which  was 
the  learned  linguist,  the  late  Dr.  Christian. 
Some  years  later  Mr.  Beri’y  won,  in  open  competition,  the 
prize  of  “  Burlington  ”  Mutual  Improvement  Society,  for  an 
essay  on  “Thrift.”  The  young  gardener  competed  with  an 
independent  young  lady,  a  teacher  at  the  above  college,  an 
engineer,  and  others,  all  of  whom  were  much  better  placed  in 
social  life.  Young  gardeners. in  bothies  and  others  should  hope 
on,  never  giving  up  in  their  endeavours. 
While  with  his  brother,  the  latter  thought  (at  least,  he  often 
said)  that  Mr.  Berry  would  never  do  any  good,  for  he  was  always 
reading  at  every  spare  moment.  And  the  aged  father  thought 
that  “  Shakespeare  ”  would  never  ,sei*ve  any  good  purpose.  The 
Bible  and  “Bunyan”  would..  When. the  young  fellow  took  a 
holiday,  on  one  occasion,  however,  a  very  valuable  Tree  Fern, 
worth  about  £10,  was  lost  through  neglect ;  it  was  one  of  a  pair 
that  often  figured  at  shows,  near  and  far. 
From  the  nurseiy  Mr.  Berry  went,  through  his  brotheFs 
influence,  to  be  head  gardener  at  Hill  House  Park,  Ipswich, 
w'here  his  eldest  daughter  was  born.  After  a  short  stay  he  pro¬ 
ceeded  to  Beccles,  noted  for  printing  works.  That  change  was 
a  mistake,  and  a  great  warning.  A  I'ich  man’s  flattering  pro 
mi.ses  were  poor  in  fulfilment.  Soon  after  this  Mr.  Berry  went 
to  Loughborough  Park  Nurseries,  London. 
Mr.  F.  J.  Bugg,  of  Ipswich,  §ent  one  of  his  sons  to  Mr. 
Berry,  with  a  view  to  his  becoming  gardener  for  him.  A  service 
of  eleven  years  of  happiness  resulted  from  that  engageinent. 
Thence  he  went  to  the  Goldrood,  with  the  Hon.  Stanhope 
Tollemache,  B.A.,  whose  book  on  British  trees  was  so  well 
reviewed  by  the  Press  a  little  time  ago.  For  four  years  Mr. 
Berry  was  engaged  in  alterations  and  the  general  work  of  a 
large  garden.  “^TTie  Goldrood  was  purchased  by  Mr.  W.  Pretty, 
so  that  two  more  vears  were  spent  in  still  more  extensive 
alterations;  large  sums  of  money  were  spent  on  the  already 
lovely  spot.  Thus  passed  six  busy  years,  years  in  which  many 
men  were  dealt  with,  extensive  road-making  forming  part  ot 
the  work.  During  the  last  five  of  those  years  Mr.  .Berry  was 
lecturing  for  tlio  Kcist  Suffolk  County  Council  TocnniCcil  Jiicluc^- 
tion  CoTnniittee  in  the  evenings.  Hi.s  thanks  aro  felt  to  be 
continual  for  the  kindness  ot  the  Hon.  Stanhope  Tollemache  in 
suggesting  the  idea  that  he  ought  to  lecture,  and  to  Mi.  H. 
Fairfax  Harwood,  J.P.,  G.C.,  for  inducing  him  to  give  the  n^st 
lectui'es.  And  Mr.  Pretty  was  equally  kind  in  allowing  Mr. 
Berry  for  two  years  to  continue  the  work. 
Mr.  Pretty  was  veiy  generous  in  giving  his  gardener  a  free 
hand,  and  in  always  'placing  full  confidence  in  him.  yie.se 
things  ought  not  to  be  omitted  in  any  notice  of  a  man  s  life 
efforts.  There  were  some  drawbacks  in  those  later  years,  but 
Mr.  Pretty  was  not  in  any  way  responsible  for  them.  Mr. 
Pretty  is  a'  master  worthy  of  a  man’s  full  confidence,  for  he 
bestowed  that  confidence  on  his  old  servant.  The  gladness  of 
those  days  comes  in  the  knowledge  that  not  any  money  profit 
came  into  the  hands  of  Mr.  Berry  froin  any  tradesman  con- 
oGmed  in  the  \vork?>.  Tliis  lie  owes  to  bis  fatber  s  cind  motbers 
conduct  througliput  their  long  life. 
In  1895  Mr.  Berrc^  was  elected  staff  instructor  in  horticulture 
to  Devon  County  Council  Technical  Education  Committee;  The 
syllabuses  of  lectures  in  the  first  year’s  work  contained  ten 
lectures.  For  some  time  past  no  syllabus  has  contained  more 
than  six  lectures  at  any  one  place,  and  some  have  had  only  four. 
For  the  last  two  sessions  Mr.  Berry  has  been  assisted  by  an 
extra  lecturer,  Mr.  Huntley,  of  Somerset  County  Council,  giving 
the  lectures  last  winter  in  North  Devon.  With  thi.s  additional 
help  there  are  lectures  .standing  over  until  1903-4  session.  Truer 
testimony  is  not  possible  to  the  steady  perseveranc'e  of  the 
committ^s  work,  through  their  instructor.  Patimice  and  good 
temper  have  wrought  much,  as  exercised  by  the  instructor  and 
his  classes.  A  lecturer  makeis  mistakes,  and  sometimes  mis¬ 
statements  ;  then  nothing  but  the  common  .sense  of  both  parties 
can  put  things  right.  Mr.  Berrv'  .speaks  of  the  politeness  of 
the  Devon  people,  for  be  has  had  many  proofs  of  it.  Their 
strong  point  is  caution  in  dealing  with  strangers. 
Seventeen  garden  centres,  with  a  total  of  about  300  pupils, 
are  under  the  care  of  some  local  gardener,  at  a  fixed  payment, 
with  bopus  of  Is.  6d.,  2s.,  or  3s.,  for  each  well-cultivated  garden, 
the  bonus  depending  upon  the  report  of  the  staff  insti-uctor, 
who  visits  the  gardens  about  three  times  during  the  summer. 
Some  of  the  older  pupils  are  now  in  the  Channel  Islands,  and 
some  have  gone  to  Canada. 
A  tool-house,  with  tools,  and  seeds  are  provided  by  the 
central  committee  at  Exeter.  That  committee  also  provides 
book  prizes  for  the  best  cultivated  gardens.  In  this  way  much 
garden  and  Nature  reading  is  made  possible  for  the  rising  race. 
Spraying  demonstrations  on  Potato  plots  and  on  Charlock  are 
given  to  the  public  from  time  to  time.  Correspondence  over 
the  whole  county  on  matters  of  interest  to  farmers  and  gardeners 
and  to  the  general  public  takes  place,  and  much  labour,  that 
few  only  know  of,  keeps  Mr.  Berry  engaged.  Many  testify  to 
good  received. 
The  instructor  owes  much  to  three  organisers  under  whom 
he  has  served — ^Messrs.  T.  D.  Cowan,  W.  E.  Watkins  (Ea.st 
Suffolk),  and  J.  F.  Young,  M.A.  (Devon).  He  wdio  w’orks,  and 
learns  what  he  can,  when  brought  into  contact  with  men  of 
w’ell-balanced  brain  power,  soon  knows  the  extent  of  his  own 
attainments;  that  worker  appreciates  the  larger  advantages  of 
his  brother,  the  more  fortunate  student.  Mr.  Beri’y,  like  thou¬ 
sands  of  others,  soon  learned  to  care  for  the  company  of  those 
who  knew  infinitely  more  than  himself  on  many  subjects  of 
common  interest. 
No  doubt  work  and  study  produce  a  practical  student.  Those 
young  gardeners  who  desire  to  grow  into  useful,  if  not  brilliant, 
men  (brilliancy  is  rare)  can  only  do  so  by  following  in  the  foot¬ 
steps  of  gardeners  like  the  late  Sir  Joseph  Paxton,  gardener  to 
the  Duke  of  Devonshire,  whose  first  sketch  cf  the  Crystal  Palace 
was  made  on  a  sheet  of  blotting  paper  in  the  rooms  of  the 
Midland  Railway  at  Derby.  That  idea  was  “  slowly  and  patiently 
elaborated  by  experiments  extending  over  many  years.”  Tliat 
is  the  only  method  of  true  progress  along  any  line  of  life. 
In  conclusion,  we  would  add  that  Mr.  Berry  occasionally 
contributes  to  our  own  pages,  and  he  has  much  work  before  hiiii 
in  bringing  up  to  the  highest  standard  the  practices  of  Devon¬ 
shire  small  cultivators.  Hi.s  work  is  of  the  same  nature  as  that 
to  which  we  have  drawn  attention  in  our  past  reviews  of  the 
horticultural  instruction  given  by  Oxfordshire,  the  Isle  of  Wight 
and  Middlesex.  ’ 
