30 



THE GARDENER'S MONTHLY 



[January, 



:a cross-fertilized one, and the theoretical advan- 

 tages of a cross must be immeasurably over- 

 borne by the actual fact of numbers. It would 

 'be the old story of the Lilliputians against 

 Brobdignag. Indeed, it is in the reasonings on 

 the objects and uses of structure, and the design 

 'in the arrangements that one may expect to see 

 :the greatest advance made in future editions. 

 When, for instance, we are told that the gluti- 

 nous coating in the bud of the old-world Horse 

 ♦Chestnut is to " ward off water more effectually," 

 we cannot but see that the buds of the Ameri- 

 can kinds which have no viscidity, ward off 

 water equally as well ; of course there are some 

 good reasons for all these things. Dr. Gray 

 does well in suggesting the best that can be 

 thought of now. We may learn more in the 

 'future than, as the progress made in this work 

 •shows, we have known in the past ; and this fact 

 is encoui'aging to students who may feel that 

 -even to the best and wisest, all things are not 

 yet made plain. 



The Window Flower Garden. By Julius 

 Heinrichs, New York. Orange Judd Company. 

 'This is a prettily bound work, illustrated pro- 

 fusely, well printed, and containing a great deal 

 -of useful information. The great trouble with 

 'books of this kind is that they are costly if 

 rlarge, and obscure if brief. If this little book 

 -of 92 pages has any fault it is brevity. For in- 

 stance the window gardener is told that if the 

 window plants are kept constantly syringed 

 .Tthey will not be much troubled with insects; 

 but how to syringe the plants without destroy- 

 ing the furniture about the window is not ex- 

 plained. Again, under the head of insects refer- 

 ence is made only to the green fly and the mealy 

 'bug, while there are others equally destructive 

 that might have a few words spent on them. 

 (However a nice little book at a small price can- 

 .not be expected to tell everything. The many 

 useful hints it contains will be well worth all 

 that is asked for it, and prove very useful to 

 housekeepers. 



Report of the Department of Agricul- 

 ture .FOR 1878. — Commissioner Le Due must 

 be congratulated on having produced in this, one 

 •of the most valuable reports ever issued by the 

 • department. Too often the bulk of these reports 

 has consisted of the correspondence of irresponsi- 

 ible parties whose opinions are of no importance, 

 .and whose communications should be admitted 

 .to respectable agricultural papers only because 



they might " bring out" something better from 

 more intelligent readers. In a work of a na- 

 tional character like the Report of our Depart- 

 ment, they are wholly out of place. There is 

 very little of this style of blemish in this issue. 

 The work is for the most part, by persons in 

 whom intelligent people have confidence, and 

 what they reported will stand good for reference 

 during all time. A good proportion of the work 

 is taken up with Notes on Tea, Coffee, Sugar, 

 and other subjects that may possibly be produced 

 in our country. The Commissioner has been 

 made the butt of many newspapers which mis- 

 take wit for wisdom, because of his investigations 

 in these directions. Some of the investigations 

 may not have been wisely pursued, and we be- 

 lieve occasionally there have been needless repe- 

 titions to find out what has been already learned ; 

 but these faults are generally inseparable from 

 tasks like these. No one knows better than those 

 who have been many years in editorial positions 

 how new and good ideas have to be dragged be- 

 fore the public over and over again before they 

 make much impression. We have no idea that 

 all the so-called '' hobbies "' of the Commissioner 

 will become practical. Some of them we feel 

 sure will scarcely be. But if even one new 

 "staple" shall be added to what we now have, 

 by his efforts it will be worth all his administra- 

 tion has cost, and he may well be proud of the 

 results. 



The reports of the Botanist, Chemist, Super- 

 intendent of Gardens and Grounds, Entomolo- 

 gist, Swine Doctor and Statician are all full of 

 useful information ; and the illustrations of 

 grasses and other subjects make the text clear. 



We learn for the first time, that the " beggar- 

 ticks " which the newspapers have been telling 

 us, is a sort of Boragewort, is really a legumin- 

 ous plant, a species of Desmodium ; and the 

 Canaigre root — a Mexican plant, and we may add 

 a famous medical drug in dysenteries, is found 

 to be a Polygonaceous plant allied to the Rhu- 

 barb or Dock. The statement that the olive 

 will grow where the thermometer falls to zero, 

 is a mistake. It has been known to stand this 

 temperature in France ; but in Pennsylvania, as 

 we can speak from personal knowledge, it will 

 die under 15° below freezing point. The day is 

 gone by when the thermometer is to be taken as 

 an absolute guide to a plant's hardiness. 



Another interesting matter has been brought 

 out by this report in regard to the .Japan Per- 

 simmon ; while some have been easil}' killed by 



