well to praise the Pines and Hemlocks; and our countrj' dwellers — on propitious soils 

 will do equally well to plant, and train them to the finest development of their luxuriance 

 and beauty. 



A neio Slratcberry from the South. — New-Orleans is a good ways off, and this is a 

 pretty big story, Mr. Pardee. " Six months" of steady bearing is great work for a 



strawberry. I don't doubt it, however; I don't doubt anything in the strawberry line 



till I see it. When your strawberry gets well into bearing, my good sir, just send me 

 word, and I'll take a morning run up to Palni3'ra, and look at it. 



On the Prizes at our Horticultural Shows. — Your " AYoiking Gardener" talks both 

 sensibly and practically on the subject. Frequent and manifest injustice is practiced by 

 the "judges," or viewing committees, at all our exhibitions, both horticultural and agri- 

 cultural. One difficulty, I imagine, arises from the want of a standard by which to judge 

 of the just properties of the thing in competition, which is the fault of the managers of the 

 concern— yet not always their fault, for they do often try to establish that standard. But 

 the main difficulty is, in obtaining disinterested and conip-f. 71/ judges of the article under 

 examination. And this, in Vnc present low state of the requisite judgment in such mat- 

 ters, in this country, is hard to be corrected. We are improving somewhat in this parti- 

 cular, but it is a most difficult thing, now, to select competent to judges, as those who are 

 at all experienced in these exhibitions, are aware. When we shall have educated a suffi- 

 cient number of our people to understand what the proper qualities and characteristics of 

 the articles which come under their review should be, then we shall have something like 

 truth and justice in their awards; — but not till then. True, there are many such in 

 attendance upon our exhibitions; but they are usually professional men, who are either 

 competitors, or if not so, are directly or remotely interested in the success of certain things 

 exhibitc-d, and thus are uisqualitied in the minds of more or less of the competitors, from 

 passing an opinion. 



The proper indviduals to settle all such questions, are amateurs, who possess sufficient 

 knowledge and taste in the various subjects of display, to decide upon correct principles. 

 Their position and judgment would then give to their decisions an authority quite sa- 

 tisfactory to all fair competitors. 



A Chapter on Dogs. — T haven't been " Coon hunting" for many years. I never fol- 

 low the hounds after fox or deer — the only trailing game we have in this countiy, save 

 now and then a wolf or bear, in the new settlements. Neither do T go out shootino-, ex- 

 cept to exercise my old fowling piece at a henhawk, or that viler brute, the carrion crow- 

 I love dogs, however, and always keep a useful one of true breed, by me. The common 

 curs that are kept in such quantities in every straggling village, and on many of our farms 

 are a standing nuisance, which ought to be abated. But it won't be, so long as there are 

 neighbor's sheep to kill, and pigs to run at large, where a dog fence is necessary. 



Landscape Gardening in New-England. — Mr. Jaques is a bold man, and talks to the 

 point. Our Yankee friends are getting on however. There have been great improvements 

 in lawn-dressing in New-England, within twenty years past. But they know, practical- 

 ly, nothing of parks, nor will they, until they give up that universal habit they have, of 

 squatting themseves right onto the highway, as if no one could be content without knowino- 

 who passed his door overy hour of the day. Mr. Jaques can discourse further on this 

 subject, with profit to all who have to do with ornamental grounds. 



Heat and Ventilation of Houses. — This subject will bear a good, sound chapter in your 

 pages, as often as once a quarter, at least, to the great edification of your readers 

 into a country church, the other day, at the afternoon service, and I was almost stifled 



