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JOUBNAIi OF HOBTIOOLTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ December 24, 1374. 



two sorts — soils of disintegration, arising from the waste and 

 decay of the immediately underlying rooks, together with a cer- 

 tain admixture of vegetahle and animal di'liris ; and soils of 

 transport, whose ingredients have been brought from a distance, 

 and have no geological connection with the rocks on which 

 they rest. Under the former are comprehended such as arise 

 from the disintegration of limestones, chalks, traps, granites, 

 and the like, and which are directly influenced in their compo- 

 sition, texture, and drainage by the nature of the subjacent 

 rocks from which they are derived. Under the latter are em- 

 braced aU drift and alluvial materials, such as sand, shingly 

 debris, miscellaneous silt and clay, which have been worn from 

 other rocks by meteoric agencies, and transported to their ex- 

 isting positions by winds, waters, or ancient glacial agencies. 

 Besides these there are also soils of organic origin, such as 

 peat earths and vegetable mould or humus, which is to a 

 great extent also of animal origin or elaboration. Indeed, in 

 all superficial soils there is a certain amount of vegetable and 

 animal matter — the decay of plants, the droppings of animals, 

 the exuvife of insects, the casts of the earth worm, and the 

 like, conferring upon them that dark, friable, and loamy 

 character so indicative of richness and fertility. — (Page's 

 Geology in its Relations to the Arts and Manufactures.) 



A FLOWER MISSION. 



Five or six years ago a young girl, at that time a teacher, 

 noticed in her daily rambles the great waste of fruit, and 

 especiaDy of flowers, in the gardens of the wealthy. Myriads 

 of blossoms that might gladden sad hearts and tired eyes are 

 allowed to fade through the long summer days, sometimes be- 

 cause their owners are absent abroad ; oftener still because of 

 the superabundance resulting from liberal culture. Each week 

 our thoughtful girl came into the great city, always bringing 

 with her a basket or a bouquet of fresh flowers, sure, even on 

 her way from the station to her home, to be asked for flowers 

 by a score or moie of little children, ragged, yet with the love 

 of the beautiful in their hearts. 



The summer passed away, but not the happy thought bom 

 of the summer. In the city are vast numbers of poor suffer- 

 ing souls, not alone in hospitals and on sick beds in narrow 

 straitened homes, but hundreds of sewing girls spending their 

 lives in hot stifling work-rooms in the heavy woollen manufac- 

 tures for fall and winter trade. Where is their summer ? 

 What do they know of Nature's gracious bounty in field and 

 wood, on hill and glade? On the one hand the need, on the 

 other the demand and its possible fulfilment. Not only in the 

 fields and woods ready for the harvest, but also in the conserva- 

 tories and greenhouses, and gaily blooming flower beds of the 

 suburban gardens environing the great metropolis, are count- 

 less superfluous blossoms that were not " born to blush un- 

 seen," and should not "waste their sweetness on the desert 

 air." 



The first Sunday in May, 18G9, in several of the city churches 

 a brief notice was read, inviting all having either fruit or 

 flowers to spare, or time to gather wild ones from the woods, 

 to send their gifts to the chapel of Hollis Street Church, which 

 would be open on Monday and Thursday mornings from eight 

 till twelve for the reception and distribution of flowers and 

 fruit to the sick and poor in the city. Any and aU who might 

 have leisure and incUnation to assist in tying-np bouquets, or 

 in carrying them to their destination, were invited to meet at 

 the chapel on that Monday morning ; a curious example of an 

 organisation almost self-created ; entirely composed of volun- 

 teers ; no membership or qualification for membership other 

 than the desire to lend a helping hand ; no president, no 

 official red tape ; each did that which seemed light and fitting, 

 and in keeping with the beauty and fragrance which, week after 

 week through the long summer, made the old chapel blossom 

 like the Rose. We quote a few words from an account of the 

 first day's experiment : " The first to come were two girls, 

 who, glowing with the air of their country homes, and excite- 

 ment from the thought of the pleasure they had the means of 

 giving, appeared with baskets filled with Houstonias, Cowslips, 

 Violets, and Anemones, nicely tied up in pretty bunches ; then 

 two more with basketsful of Violets, and again another with 

 field flowers. So far all were personal friends ; the next con- 

 tribution, however, was from a stranger — hothouse flowers 

 and ripe red Strawberries. Again, a silver-wedding gift of 

 twelve beautiful bouquets, seeming to the donors the pleasant- 

 est memorial they could convey of their own happiness. 

 Again, a Lady Bountiful sent her carriage laden with cut 



flowers, pot plants, and branches of flowering shrubs, placing 

 her carriage also at the service of the members — a welcome 

 gift indeed, for it is no light task to carry the large, flat, flower- 

 laden baskets to their destination." This was a good begin- 

 ning for such a quiet, unostentatious charity : contributions 

 from thirteen sources ; distributions to 150 persons. 



The work begun under such favourable auspices never flagged 

 throughout the summer. The givers were liberal ; the workers 

 also. School children in the surrounding towns made excur- 

 sions to woods and fields, and sent in generous collections of 

 wild flowers, Mosses, and graceful Ferns. Regular contributions 

 were also sent from private conservatories, sometimes carefully 

 and tastefully arranged in little bouquets ready for distribu- 

 tion, sometimes in huge bunches of individual flowers, easily 

 separated ; sometimes a large basket held many varieties of 

 flowers in layers, with moist cotton between ; the flowers 

 having been sorted in the gathering, the Pinks, the Roses, the 

 HeUotropes, &c., which rendered the work at the chapel much 

 simpler, and lessened greatly the risk of breaking the stems, 

 always to be feared in separating indiscriminate masses. The 

 essentials for work in the chapels were a long table, broad 

 enough to turn the flowers out in heaps, with room for assorting ; 

 shallow tanks of water in which to place the bouquets as fast as 

 prepared until the hour of distribution ; plenty of string, and 

 scissors and chairs. It is unwise to attempt to work standing ; 

 the fatigue is great, and should be lessened as much as possible. 

 Large flat baskets, Uke market baskets, are the most con- 

 venient for carrying the flowers without injury. It seemed as 

 though everyone had been waiting for just this chance; for 

 not alone were the flowers provided, and busy, willing hands 

 to arrange and distribute them, but corporations (supposed to 

 be soul-less) became Uberal and generous to an unwonted degree. 

 Railroads transported free of expense the baskets and parcels 

 for the Flower Mission, not only over the roads, but always 

 finding among the employes at the stations someone to carry 

 them to the chapel. If the baskets were marked with the 

 owner's name and residence they were returned also by the 

 next train free of charge. Many a basket twice a-week made 

 its journey to and fro in this way from Dedham, Newton, 

 Wellesley, Hingham, Lexington, and even as far as Plymouth. 

 From Quincey twice a-week came two or three huge wash-tubs 

 full of garden flowers and wild flowers. In the gathering 

 everyone united — catholic and protestant, orthodox and uni- 

 tarian, all for the love of God and His children. 



We copy a few statistics from the report of the ladies con- 

 nected with the Flower Mission at the close of the first season 

 in October, 1809 :— 



CoutribatioQS in BowerB .... 356 



„ in p]ant3 30 



„ in fruit 30 



Number of contributors 106 



Number of towns sending con- 

 tributions 26 



Number of bouquets distri- 

 buted 6,718 



Of these 1132 were sent to people confined to the city during 

 the warm weather. The plants were scattered among various 

 homes. The remainder of the flowers were taken to the 

 hospitals and asylums, and sometimes to the gaol and State 

 prison. 



In the spring of 1870 the ladies of Cambridge proposed to 

 co-operate with the Hollis Street Chapel by establishing a 

 branch mission for the distribution of surplus fruits and 

 flowers in their vicinity. In 1871 Chelsea followed suit. Thus 

 the country was brought to the city — close to thousands who 

 are never permitted to " go a-Maying," or to look upon the 

 full glory of summer time. 



During the second year of the mission the contributions, 

 and consequently the distributions, were more than doubled. 

 Over 11,000 bouquets were distributed, besides 1800 Pond 

 LUies, chiefly from one friend. These last wrought a " special 

 work of grace " among the denizens of the North End, to quote 

 the words of the resident missionary in that apparently god- 

 less region. There were men, and women too, whose hearts 

 seemed like nether millstones, impervious to all good in- 

 fluences, baffling every attempt at sympathy or enhghtenment, 

 to whom the sight and smell of the Water Lilies brought tender 

 memories of childhood perhaps, when, young and innocent, 

 they too had gathered the pure white blossoms. The Lily 

 brought to them its message of beauty, grace, and sweetness, 

 rising above the waters, reaching heavenward even from the 

 black oozy depths below. Who shall say that some human 

 heart to-day is not purer for the silent lesson of those Water 

 Lilies? Beauty, the gift of the All-Beautiful as well as the 

 All-Bountiful, is an evangel for ever to human hearts. Surely 

 they need it most whose lives are rendered the most unlovely 



