3 SEPTEMBER 1932, Page 13

These are but random examples that might be indefinitely extended.

The carnation (especially since Allwood's crosses produced both dwarf and border varieties) and the nemesia, extended far beyond its African origin, are classical examples of the florist's skill. It is a little surprising that a public which jumps very quickly to a new variety or species of flower should be reluctant to acknowledge a new sort of vegetable. How delicious is the Mange-tout pea, the butter-bean, the custard marrow, salsafy, scorzonera, the yellow tomato and chicory as a bleached vegetable, or the garden kohl-rabi—a cabbage, though it looks like a turnip—and how rarely any one is seen ! Indeed as a nation we seem to be much more interested in beauty than in use. The vase on the table matters more than the dish. * *