172 Missouri State Horticultural Societ'y. 



lovely Eve would not have had the disposition to listen to his 

 seductive words, and Adam would not have come to grief. Flori- 

 culture as it is understood by the amateur has become one of the 

 necessary adornments to every home, the simple method of propa- 

 gation by cuttings leaves little excuse for any home to be without 

 •a few flowers. 



The tired house wife, witii the cares of the different depart- 

 ments of the house resting upon her as nurse — seamstress and 

 queen of the culinary kingdom — is sadly in need of the bracing 

 fresh breezes of spring to aid in building up this weary and over- 

 taxed system. An hour spent in the morning of the early spring 

 months in her garden, equipj)ed with her pruning knife, trowel and 

 spade, she will drink in pounds of oxygen, sufficient for tlie most 

 delicate constitution; while it adds strength to the physical, and value 

 in dollars and ceijts to the grounds ; it is instructive from a bota- 

 nical standpoint, and very attractive to the eye; for a bed of well- 

 kept roses is a thing of beauty and a joy forever. There are few 

 people in this age of the world but admire the beautiful in nature, 

 and lovers of some of the many arts seen decorating the inside of 

 almost every home, from the useful little doyly with the etching 

 stitch, the indispensable table cover and sofa cover in Kensington, 

 tidies of every design, stitch and color. K\\ these things make the 

 little things jjretty and the larger ones more beautiful. Thanks to 

 printer's ink these patterns come to us gratitously tlirough the 

 medium of our Bazars and Magazines. 



These things may not strike the over-practical mind as of much 

 importance, only as they compare with that which is truly beau- 

 tiful and useful, and will ask the question, "does it pay?" Let 

 us see. The inventive genius of those who liave given much of 

 their time and money for what is called the finer arts, have con- 

 ferred a blessing on the women of this age, who are the leading 

 spirits in this industry; which is surely a new departure from our 

 grandmother's idea of what a woman should be taught. That we 

 should be instructed in all that is proper for a woman to know in 

 any situation in life is well enough so far as it goes ; but this plan 

 exclusively acted upon would doubtless produce very good com- 

 mon place domestic drudges, that when our race would be run, we 

 would be like the tired woman when she came to die, wished the 

 resurection to be ten thousand years off, that she might have her 

 rest. But there higher attainments equally useful for an immortal 

 soul. 



The New York society of decorative art, which gives instruc- 



