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HORTICULTURE, 



Mai-cli 14, 190S 



Notice to F lo rists 



THE FRUIT AUCTION COMPANY, New York 

 City, beginning at an early date this Spring, will inaugurate 

 daily auction sales at wholesale of plants, etc. 



Exceptional facilities provided in our new building, cen- 

 trally located at 200, 202 and 204 Franklin Street (corner 

 Washington Street). 



Date of initial sale will be announced in next issue of this 

 paper. 

 For terms and all other detailed information, address: — 



THE FRUIT AUCTION CO., 



^ 



P. O. Box 640 



NEW YORK CITY 



Correspondence and personal interviews cordially invited. Payments will be made to 



sellers oj plants the day following sale. The movement to sell plants by 



auction at wholesale has the support and commendation 



of leading growers and importers. 



Importance of Industry. 



Now, a few words on the importance 

 of indiistry. From the very earliest 

 times, the great men have extolled the 

 value of industry. "Go to the ant 

 thou sluggard, consider her ways, and 

 be wise" has served for the text of 

 many a powerful sermon; the expres- 

 sion that "Genius in only an infinite 

 capacity for work" has been endorsed 

 by many thinkers. Napoleon said "I 

 have never found the limit of my 

 capacity for work." In short, the men 

 who have made their mark in the 

 world have been at a loss for words to 

 express themselves strongly enough on 

 the subject. Don't be afraid of work 

 and don't forget that "Folks who 

 never do more than they are paid for, 

 never get paid for more than they do." 

 Let not the amount of pay be your 

 main consideration: rather see how 

 much and how well you can do the 

 work; the real reward that life holds 

 out for work is the Increased capacity 

 to do more and better work, and con- 

 sequently greater satisfaction and en- 

 joyment. The man who wants an In- 

 dolent life is not fitted for a gardener. 

 Many good men fail to do their best 

 for want of courage and faith in them- 

 selves, and from lack of energy and 

 ambition; there are not so many fail- 

 ures from want of capacity. Herrick 

 says: — "The great man is not so great 

 as folks think, nor the stupid man so 

 stupid as he seems." 



The late Peter Henderson, a great 

 gardener, close observer and successful 

 business man often said that he did 

 not think there was so much difference 

 in the mental capacity of men as in 

 their courage, ambition and industry. 



Have faith in yourselves and loyalty 

 to your employer. I am fond of the 

 saying of Fra Elbertus "If put to the 

 point, an ounce of loyalty is worth a 

 pound of cleverness." Don't be afraid 

 to undertake all tbe time bigger 

 things: your ability will grow in youi 

 earnest attempts to accomplish; and, 

 don't be afraid of manual labor if oc- 

 casion rtijuire: it will not lessen, but 

 increase your mental power; a stiffen- 

 ing and strengthening of the spinal 

 column begets no weakness of the 

 mind; "A sound mind in a sound 

 body." The immortal Lincoln split 

 rails, and it was only recreation for 

 Gladstone to cut down immense trees 

 with an a.xe. The advantage of out 

 door exercise is recognized every- 

 where. The orator in the English 

 Parliament exclaimed "the Batlefields 

 of England were won on the cricket 

 fields of Eton;" there was as much 

 force in the rejoinder of the Irish 

 Member, "They were won on the bogs 

 of Ireland." 



Better Greenhouses. 



One of the most encouraging points 

 in gardening is the improvement in 

 greenhouse architecture since the 

 days of small glass and heating by 

 brick flues. ^lany of the more ambi- 

 liovis structures of early date were 

 failures for practical purposes; archi- 

 tecturally effective, they were fre- 

 quently poorly heated and otherwise 

 defective from a cultural standpoint; 

 thanks to frequent consultations in 

 recent years between architects and 

 advanced gardeners, the more modern 

 houses have gained in appearance and 

 are almost perfect in producing re- 

 sults. 



The problem of compensation for 

 gardeners is an interesting one; most 

 gardeners think it is a poorly paid 

 work and perhaps it is, considering 

 how much has to be learned. I think, 

 however, the money reward rests 

 largely with the individual; there can 

 be nothing like a uniform scale of 

 wages. I had, for instance, paid my 

 foreman about twelve hundred dollars 

 a year, but I must say that one to 

 whom I paid two thousand dollars 

 per annum was the most profitable 

 one to nie. 1 think, on the whole, the 

 outlook for first-class gardeners is 

 good. Never in the history of nations 

 has wealth increased so fast as in the 

 United States during the past quarter 

 of a century, and a majority of the 

 wealthy men will, in the future, I 

 venture to say, find their highest 

 pleasure in developing their gardens 

 and country estates. 



On the fine old estates in England, 

 France and Germany, no one is more 

 respected, nor in closer, kindlier 

 touch with the owner than the head 

 gardener. As fast as men fit them- 

 selves in character, deportment and 

 ability, this is coming to pass here; 

 but, admitting that salaries might in 

 some cases be justly increased, we 

 must not forget that gardening has 

 many advantages for those who are 

 fond of it: it is the most healthful of 

 all occupations; it is one of the fine 

 arts. Ruskin has defined Fine Art as 

 any in which the head, hand and heart 

 work together. I cannot see why the 

 gardener cannot take as much pleasure 

 as the owner. "He who admires is 

 the real possessor." "There is no aij- 

 eient gentlemen, but gardeners." 



