ANNUAL EXHIBITION OF THE OUTHLAND HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY.

Southland Times, Issue 1121, 10 March 1869, Page 3

ANNUAL EXHIBITION OF THE OUTHLAND HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY.

Yesterday, Tuesday, 9th March, the Theatre Royal was the point of attraction fo* a great rri nber of pleasure seekers, the occasion being tliu show of cue Horticultural society, rre are •>n our space compels us to be very brief on this occasion in our remarks. We must, therefore, ■ ontent ourselves with saying that, upon the whole, it "Wts equal to any of its predecessors. Che arrangements for the >!isplav of exh bits wpre similar to tho*e. of former years In some departments, particularly in cut flowers, th<?re was a noticeable falli \<x off, owin^ probably t> the time of the year while in otuers, vege a.bl s especially, there was equally apparent improve ment. Vtaiv r >f the exhibits stn»e linth -fl -mX Iftpart->n-nt were a!s.> ilants of rfo >>xj ilUn -e an I t.ix.'ii^ifc ..•.[■••-,• | 1 1- •• i j :\ bo > a ii I r> h • n aid luxuriance o r foliage, anything of the ihl >d p iluva">l' e'-ewht»re; one rare pia-it, M Cle.i.ri ,ius Dnnperu," or Sturt's dessert p; i of Australia, exhibited by Mr Hall, of Ek^nsteen and Hall, at'raoted a v ry sjreaf, deal of a' teution, principally from the brilliant contra^ 1 afforded by its flower a d foliage ; th* latter, of course, being of that soft jjreen, peculiar to the »ea tribe, whi'e the large pendulous and peculiarly shaped flowers were of the bri^heat scar-let, with a large black spot of jet black in the centre of eaoh leaf. Puschias, and Q-eraniiims, as usual, made the largest and most effective display, but there we-e also representatives present of many other less known varities of the rl iral kingdom. Two very unpretending greenhouse plants, shown by Mr J. S. Sfewir — the only plants of th -ir kind in the room — attncterl our attention by their delightful aroma, although it did not appear that they ha I gai ed a pr zo, or otherwise drawn much attention, we allude to a specimen of the Oakleaved scented geranium, an I another of scented verbena, which fillel the room with th;ir rich perfume. B~>uqu ts and floral devices were also in considerable numbers a id showed much taste and patience in their preparation. Offruit there was likewise a good display, sh)wing that even in a backward season Southland can produce fruits equnl to that of -iistricts whose climates bear a more favorable reput tion in this respect. Of the vegetable productions shown suffice it to say that a description of the ; r qualities and development would seem exajrgerat 'd h >wever mildly we mii^ht pur it. Amongst the prize winners the old fr . miliar names appeare I with remarkable f.jquenoy, embracing those of Miss Sinclair, Mrs R. Millar, Messrs Cowper, Morton, Preston, Si, wut, Al' Arthur, Mountier, Calder, Broad, ML ;an. The judges were : — Messrs Patterson and P ( v.Bton for nowcrs, an i Messrs Taylor and Findlay Tor vegetables. Tlvey must have had a iliffii'ult.y frequently in deciJing the relative merits o" c .hibits all so excellent as to app> oach • i]iiaity yet thi-ir awards seemed to give very 0 oral satisfa fron. The Committee also deserves great praise for che very perfect nature of their arrangements, whiih, in a great measure, ensures the success, not only of the Annual Exhibitions, but of the •Society itself. They are, however, peculiarly fortunate in possessing a Secretary pre-eiminently saited for his post, and who enters con amore into the work After the Judges bad concluded their part of the work, they, the Committee, and a few friends adj .'urned to the Provincial Hotel tor dinner, to which about twenty gentlemen altogether sat down. The chair was occupied by John B.acklock, Esq., President of the Society, T. M. Macdonald, Esq., acting as croupier. After due attention had been paid to the abundant repast, the following toasts were duly given and responded .to: — By the Chairman, " The Queen " and " The Prince of Wales." By the Vice-Chairman, ," His Honor the Superintendent," replied to by Mr C-ilder. " The Provincial Council," proposed by Mr Butts, and acknowledged by Mr Longuet. The " Ho> ticuli ural Society" proposed by Mr Stewart, and Y replied to .by Mr Blacklock. By the Chair — " The J udges" , responded to by Mr Preston. " Kindred Societies" , from the , Chair, and acknowledged by Mr i Scandretfc, on, behalf of the Agricultural A-socia-tiqn, and by,, Mr Butts on the part of the , Acclimatisation .Society, Mr Preston nex ipro{■&&^y&*Wm M - X»Mttf«," tsa MW* ■pi ! ' t&m-g,, .4- «\> <'«i». • •■•• ••• «=-v«-V

„ by Mi- Stewart, and by Mr G-il ' I mour. "The Chairman," given by M> Miller, I was duly acknowledged by Mr Blaeklock, whc . noxfc prooosfl'd the " Vine-Chair," to which Mi , Ma^ 'onald'i eplied. " The Ladies/'lby Mr Grilmour brought this part of the day's proceedings to ar end, and the company again returned to the more immediate business of the day. In thf> evening t ieve was a very large attendance of visitors, the area being too crowded to allow of comfortable locomotion, while upstairs was: well filled with 1 those preferring a quieter method of enj ">ying the stay and pleasing spectacle. The following is the