182 MISSOURI STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



and in all places, we turn with delight, as being the object and the scene 

 of our fondest cares, labors and enjoyments ; whose humble roof, whose 

 shady porch, whose verdant lawn and smiling flowers, all breathe forth 

 to us, in true, earnest tones, a domestic feeling that at once purifies the 

 heart and binds us more closely to our fellow-being." 



I once heard an itinerant preacher say, that as he rode through his 

 district, when weary and worn, seeking some place to rest, he always 

 choose those where he saw flowers in the yard and in the window. 

 They were an index to what he found in the details of the household. 



The absence of flowers is not always to be attributed to the want 

 of appreciation and love for such luxuries. Necessities and rush for 

 greater needs often drive from the little home these refining influences. 

 And now, from this sketch, you will see that the love of flowers is 

 not necessarily confined to the mothers, daughters and sisters of the 

 family. The love of flowers and true refinement go together. 



Show me a man who is fond of flowers, one who is ready to make 

 some little sacrifice that his wife may indulge her fancy, and I will show 

 you an enchanted home ; I will show you a kind, loving, tender father, 

 whose sympathies are ever open to the wants of those entrusted to his 

 care. I will show you cultured sons as well as daughters, and almost 

 without an exception, a harmonious family. 



W. R. Laughlin, of Elm Grove, next told " The Story of the 

 Leaves," in a highly interesting manner. 



THE STORY OF THE LEAVES. 



BY W. R. LAUGHLIN, ELM GROVE, MO. 



The highest authority on Ihc definition of English words says, 

 "Every part of a plant that is not stem is leaf." Most comprehensive def- 

 inition. It is written "All flesh is grass," it is true because all animal 



