The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1849-12-04 00:00:00

GREAT SALE SALE AT HOOTON HALL

On Tuesday the sale of the effects of Sir W. M. Stan-
ley commenced at Hooton Hall, when a pretty fair as-
semblage of persons were attracted. The sale took place
in the dining-room. Several of the neighbouring gentry
were present on the occasion, as well as parties from
Liverpool, and some dealers from London.
The glass was first put up, and the prices, though not
high, were fair. The Bohemian glass service was the first
to excite attention. The auctioneer stated on his honour
that it had cost 300 guineas, exclusive of duty. The bid-
ding commenced at £lO, and rose rapidly by guineas till
it attained 86 guineas, at which figure it was knocked
down to Mr. Nathan, of London, who attended on behalf
of several of the nobility.
The French china desert service, with painted flowers,
fruits, and portraits, excited a spirited competition, com-
mencing at 20 guineas, and it finally fell to Mr. Haus-
burg, of Church-street, for 105 guineas.
The Worcestershire china breakfast service, in 82 nieces,
brought 10 guineas; Mr. Winch, of Liverpool, being the
purchaser. Mr. Blake purchased the Worcestershire
china tea and coffee service, with the painted flower pat-
tern, for 20 guineas. The handsome claret jugs to which
we have already alluded were sold for 35 shillings each.
The dessert plates brought from two shillings to half-a-
crown each. An imperfect blue and white and gold
breakfast service, in 107 pieces, brought £6. Two richly
painted blue and gold ice pails sold for £3 ss.
Sir Edward Walker purchased lot 125—a white and
purple and gold breakfast service, in 164 pieces, £lB 18s.
He was also purchaser of lot 126—a luncheon service, in
the same pattern, consisting of 112 pieces, for £l7 10s.
Mr. Kearsley, of Liverpool, bought lot 127—a white
ground gilt edged dessert service of 56 piecea, for £lO 10s.
Articles of ornament were next laid before the purchasers.
Lot 145—a set of six Derby spar ornaments, presented to
Sir William Stanley by an intimate friend in Derbyshire,
being articles of exquisite workmanship, were sold to Mr.
Blake for £3 ss.

Lot 156, a gilt incense tray, probably used in the family
for religious purposes, was sold to Mr. Heath for twenty-
four shillings. Lot 170, a rosewood casket, covered with
green velvet, and richly ornamented with ormolu, was
bought for £4 by Mr. Ford. Lot 171, a casket, covered
with ormolu, and lined with crimson velvet, sold for
£3 7s. 6d. A toy conservatory, with flower stands and
pots, lot 172, sold for fifteen shillings. Lot 173, a pair of
polished horns, of great beauty, went for ten and sixpence.
Lot 174, an oval French casket, or rare workmanship, was
knocked down for ten guineas to Sir Edwara Walker. A
pair of blue and white oriental china flower pots and
stands brought £1 ss. Lot 183, " The Hoot on Letter
Box," went for half a guinea to Mr. George Enson.
Lot 213, a pair of highly-polished horns, richly mounted
in silver gilt, upon silver gilt stands, and Italian marble
pedestals, were bought by Mr. Nathan for £6 15s.

- The foregoing wei:e the principal lots. Upon the whole,
the first day's sale may be considered as satisfactory.
Wedneday's sale consisted of the linen, blankets,
napkins, table-cloths, &c., and the prices obtained were
good. Amongst the visitors we noticed John Harrison,
Esq., Edward J. Walker, Esq., J. Ford, Esq., H. Hornby,
Esq., Robertson Gladstone, Esq., and many others.
The large-sized and splendidly worked linen sheets
fetched from 325. to 40s. a pair. The beautful damask
table cloths, of the most elegant patterns, sold at prices
varying from £2 to £3, and diaper table oths fetched 19s
a pair. Damask dinner napkins fetched 4s. 6d. each, and
luncheon napkins is. 6d. each. Fish and oyster napkins
were sold at 3s. 6d. per dozen, and glass cloth napkins
were freely bought at 6s. 6d. per dozen. Good large-
sized Witney blankets varied from 31s. to 435. per pair.
On Thursday, the sale comprised the kitchen utensils
and other articles of domestic use, with the useful imple-
ments of the brew-house, dairy, wash-house, and other
outbuildings, which are considered indispensable to a
nobleman's mansion. The books, &c., were sold on Fri-
day. They included 585 lots, of all sizes. A classification
had not been made, as sufficient time was not afforded for
that purpose. In the list were works on Roman Catholic
Divinity, English and foreign literature, the chase, the
turf, and the field, besides many topographical and ilus-
tmted publications, and a large quantity of music, engrav-
ings, prints, &c.
Yesterday, the sale of the furniture in the entrance
hall, staircases, &c., took place, and to-day, no doubt, a
considerable number of persons will be present, as the
sale will comprise the costly furniture of the dining room,
drawing rooms, library, &c.

THE
agricultural
_auk 31?ortirtilturat

COLUMN

The internal arrangement of conservatories, and other
plant structures, is well worthy the most serious considers-
tiqkof Horticultarists. Plants are procured at a costly
price, grown and flowered with much difficulty and labour,
and then their beauties are lost in an over-crowded con-
servatory or stove. This is so common a fault that in nine-
tenths of the places we visit in our peregrinations we find
it the case ; in some instances the gardener is to blame,
but in most cases it is attributable to the employer, who
wishes to have more plants, and more use made' of his
glass-houses, than they are calculated for.
In all cases a few well grown plants will always look
better than a multitude of poor specimens ; besides which,
it is impossible to have that cleanliness which is essential
to the well-being of plants, when they are crowded
together ; green slime will cover the pots, and dead leaves
will escape notice until they have occasioned mischief,
by disseminating mildew ; and vermin of all kinds will
carry on their depredations, because it is impossible to
inspect all the plants, or even see they are infested until
the mischief is almost irremediable ; whereas in a limited
collection, where every plant is grown as a specimen, any
fault is speedily detected and remedied. Many plants
have nothing to recommend them but novelty, and how-
ever valuable such plants may be in a botanical collection,
they should not be admitted into one where ornament and
beauty are the main objects,—every one should in itself
be worthy an examination, and should be able to stand
the test ; it is not necessary that enormous size should
be attained, but whether large or small every specimen
should bear the marks of careful cultivation ; to insure
this, the gardener must not undertake or be charged with
more than he can do justice to, his houses should be well
filled, and the results will be much more satisfactory.
Many employers think the only thing necessary in plant
culture is just to strike a cutting, pot it, and give it water
occasionally ; every good gardener, whether he be a prac-
tical or an amateur one, knows that in order to grow plants
well, the care is unceasing, every new shoot must be
watched and encouraged to grow in a particular direction,
and then stopped when it has attained certain limits.
Premature flower buds must be nipped off as soon as they
appear, cleanliness must be constantly maintained, both
in the pot and plant, which must be re-potted as often as
the plant requires it. Nothing is so conducive to the
healthiness of plants as clean pots, and this must be se-
cured by good drainage and wholesome soil, as much as
by washing the outside. A great deal of mischief is done
by potting plants in highly manured composts ; good
fibrous loam, well rotted-, from a rich meadow, and a
small proportion of healthy soil will answer every purpose
of plant culture better than all the compost yard mixture
so strongly recommended by our forefathers, whose love
for cow-dung, rotted hot-bed manure, leaf-mould, char-
coal, cum multis aliis, was far stronger than their love of
fine plants. Many plants are much improved in appear-
ance by having the soil covered with nice clean feather
moss, especially those requiring a moist soil, and it looks
exceedingly well when carefully applied, and is doubtless
beneficial.

PAPERS ON AGRICULTURAL CHEMISTRY
NO. X.

The power of plants to take up mineral substances from
the soil being clearly demonstrated, it becomes one of the
primary objects of the agricultural chemist to ascertain
what minerals are found in the largest proportions, and
for this purpose it is necessary to proceed with some care,

_
selecting only such specimens as are the most perfect of
their kind. The plants are incinerated, or burned, by
which means the organic particles are dissipated, and the
inorganic constituents remain in the ashes. These ashes
are readily analysed, and will shew the various salts of in-
organic bases which exist in plants. These for the most
part are found to consist of combinations of potash, soda,
or magnesia, with the organic acids of the plant, besides
other minerals mentioned in our last. In examining the
saline constituents of plants, it is necessary to be cautious
that we do not form hasty conclusions, because a salt may
be present accidentally in large proportion—thus, a salt
not at all necessary to the economy of the plant may have
been distributed in the manure, and thus brought into
contact with the plant, and will be absorbed ; but if it be
not a necessary constituent, it is in a short time thrown
off again. That such is the case, is easily proved by co-
louring a saline solution with any scarlet vegetabie co-
louring matter, and placing it in contact with the roots of
the plant. The roots will absorb it, and convey it to all
parts of the plant ; but after a few days it will all be found
to have disappeared; therefore. in trying to ascertain the
true organic salts, it is essential to extend the experiments
to a great number of specimens from various soils and si-
tuations. If we then find one salt invariably present, we
may conclude that it performs some important part in the
economy of the plant; but should we at any time be sur-
prised by the presence of a new salt in quantity, we should

off by the excretory organs of the plant, which have the
power of ejecting all matters which cannot be assimilated
by the internal organs of the plant. That both the orga-
nic and inorganic products are of the utmost consequence
to the well-being of the plant there is no doubt ; thus si-
lica exists in large quantities in many plants which have
but a small proportion of woody fibre, for which it seems
to compensate ; we need only instance wheat, and other
cereals, and grasses generally. Without its silica, the long
wheat straw would not possess strength to bear its own
weight, or the ear of ripened corn. The lofty column
which is projected from a minute seed, carrying aloft its
valuable load to meet the ripening influences of the solar
rays, is, indeed, a wonderful study for man, all of whose
boasted powers could never with the same small amount
of matter form a tube of such beauty, strength, and ex-
tension. In this organism silica performs an important
part ; it therefore necessarily follows that silica is a ne-
cessary constituent of soil in which we cultivate the cereal
grasses, while its absence constitutes one of the best qua-
lities of the grasses used as fodder.