December 26, 1887. 1 



JOURNAL OF HORTICDLTOaB A^D COTTAGE GABDENEB. 



17,- 



A FEW WORDS SUITABLE FOR THIS 

 CHRISTMAS. 



UR Editors began tlieir last 

 addicss " To Our lieatlers," 

 with these words — " Tiiere 

 are periods wlien we would 

 not, if we could, be pay. and 

 this is one of them." I re- 

 echo tlicse sentiments, for there is little cause for gaiety 

 just now throughout Grent IJritain, even less than when 

 the sentences 1 liave quoted were written. 



Many of tliose who road our pages are struggling man- 

 fully and womanfully (to coin a word), struggling in humble 

 homes with largo families, to make both ends meet. I 

 allude to some gardeners by profession, those who, in this 

 periodical, are our lirst care and consideration. To all 

 such I would say. This is scarcely the time to indulge am- 

 bition, bo thanliful if you have a settled home, a blessed 

 roof-tree over your head, and weekly incomings ; small — 

 would that thuy were larger — yet still, remember, certain. 

 iJor is this a time for encouraging emigi-ation. 



" It iH bettor to bear tbc ilis yon have 

 Than fly to otbei-9 which you know not of." 



Many have recently gone abroad with a little capital, 

 and that being soon sp<nit, have become labourers in a 

 land where a labourer has fewer comforts and more hard- 

 ships than he has in England. Such could have done 

 better by remaining at home. Sending boys abroad is too 

 often simply sending them — to starve otit of sight. Oh ! 

 motliers ! it is a sad state of things to liavo poor, faint, 

 depressed, perliaps even sick sons starving out of sight of 

 those who could have given comfort even by their very 

 presence. 



But if , as I believe, this is no time for indulging am- 

 bition, or for emigrating, it is a time for exercising content- 

 ment and economy ; and especially for cutting ofl' all un- 

 necessary expenses, and putting an end to wasteful habits, 

 and, to point the moral, let me tell a tnie tale. 



A friend of mine called the other day upon a humble but 

 bottermost family. Tliere were a husband, a wife, anil eight 

 children, the earnings were now only l."is. a-weck, l.i. Oi/. 

 ahead — that is not much. " Well, how are you getting on 

 these dear times '.' sorry you are not so well off as formerly." 

 " Why, sir," came the reply from the husband, " pretty 

 fair ; I've a good wife you know, and she brings up the 

 girls well, and 1 do what I can with the boys. We work 

 of an evening, and we read aloud, and by great care just 

 keep the wolf from the door." " I hope you also keep all 

 in of an evening." " Yes, sir, you know we all must meet 

 at tea, and after t 'a our rule is. the door is never opened. 



Parent.^ ! that is a great point. " After tea the door is 

 never opened." 



So S52.— Vol. Xin., New Seeies. 



The visitor than said, " I suppose you still enjoy j'our 

 pipe." " Oh ! no, I am too poor fur that now." Here was 

 an instance of a man unseltishly putting an end to a waste- 

 ful habit, and which requires groat self-denial to relinquish. 

 I hold that every woman is unselfish. We all had 

 mothers, and were they not unselfish '.' Some of ns have 

 wives, and I ask. Are not they unselfish ? But man is 

 naturally selfish. In that body of his there is— and if he 

 is honest he vnXl own it — there (.< seliishncss. A few men 

 conquer it, but iu all it has been : and if conquered many 

 an indulgent, useless, expensive habit may be got rid of, 

 and more left for wife and family. 



So, let a household reform hill be passed this Christ- 

 mas in your cottages, and with far better results, I am sare, 

 than any extension of the suii'rage. Talk it over in low 

 quiet tones, suggest it in peaceful evening conversations, 

 let not one talk at another, for that provokes a tart reply ; 

 hut so talk tliat dispute there is none, bnt eyes looking 

 through a soft mist show heart-acquiescence. Brother 

 men ! do not be sellish. While you keep the door shut 

 after tea, also put out the pipe, if these are hard times with 

 you. 



But to turn to other subjects. There is that one of 

 " French and English Gardening." Remember it is not 

 now-a-days as in our father's time, when ICnglishraen used 

 to talk of our natiind enemies across the Channel : or 

 that one Rnglisman rould beat six Frenchmen : and so on. 

 Even the game of " French and English " is given up now. 

 Do you not remember how the old pictures represented it? 

 A thin— so thin — Monsieur, fed entu-ely on frogs, as was 

 believed, a kind of daddy-long-legs-man pulling with both 

 hands and all Ids might at one end of the rope, straining 

 back most earnestly until head and heels were nearly on 

 the earth ; while at the other end was a jolly laugliing 

 Englishman mth '• fair round belly." who ouly holds with 

 one hand, tlie other being in his poocket. How aD at 

 ease he seemed, and not pulled out of the perpendicular 

 in the least. But now it is all quite different, Frenclimen 

 and Englishmen have hold of the same end of the rope, 

 they together are pulling with civilisation, while at the 

 other end are uncivilisation and all evils. So no opposition, 

 please. The GalUo cock does not crow defiance at us, bnt 

 gallantly spreads his wings, and dear old John Bull does 

 not get red in the gills at the sight of a Frenchman. 



The allusion to the cock spreading his wing reminds me 

 of poultiy, and tliat of the Hewitt Testimonial. What 

 wealthy people poultry fanciers must be. and warm-hearted 

 witlial." to subscribe so largely. I shall ask for the words 

 " Poultry Chronicle." to be printed in larger type, for I 

 have road in somebody's writings — I mean somebody's 

 inmpilitwn.t—lhai the '• Poultry Chronicle " is " defunct." 

 Or, again, considering how sadly small is the Thompsoa 

 Testimonial, I might even ask for the name of "our 

 .lournal " to be in future " The Poi'LTRV CiiRCNici.K and 

 JoiiiNAi. OF HoBTiciLTUiti;,'" for the supposed lesser has so 

 thoroughly beaten, in generosity, the supposed greater. 



I dare say many readers have with me felt it a positive 

 relief to have taken in one paper this year which hod not 

 one word about Reform debates, or Fenian, or Bcalial 

 No. 10)1.— Vou XXXVIIL, Ou> SsEiaa. 



