FARMERS GARDENS. 339 



There is sometliiug agreeable to oxir better nature in having a home that we can 

 call our own. It is a form of property that is more than property ; it speaks 

 to the heart, enhsts the sentiments, and ennobles the possessor. The associa- 

 tions that spring up around it as the birthplace of children, as the scene of life's 

 holiest emotions, as a sanctuary where the spirit cherishes its purest thoughts, 

 tend to improve and exalt the moral sensibilities. Our happiness of to-day i? 

 increased by a view of the place where we were happy yesterday. The scenes 

 and circumstances by which we are surrounded have much to do, not only with 

 our character, but with our happiness. On this account we should do all in our 

 power to make our homes attractive ; to adorn them with those charms which 

 good sense and refinement so easily impart to them. It costs little to surround 

 our homes with those simple beauties that delight the eye far more than ex- 

 pensive objects. Nature delights in beauty ; she loves to brighten the land- 

 scape and make it agreeable to the eye ; she hangs the ivy around the ruin, 

 and over the stump of the withered tree twines the graceful vine. Beauty is a 

 divine instrumentality ; it is one of God's chosen forms of power. He who 

 does not appreciate and enjoy the beauties of nature, loses one of the most 

 precious gifts of his being. 



Perhaps there are few things that mark the progress of civilization and the 

 arts more than a correct taste in architecture and gardening. So long as men 

 are indifferent to the appearance of the house they live in, and the grounds that 

 surround it, they will rarely exhibit a true taste in anything else. We are 

 happy in the belief that our farmers are gradually impi-oving in this respect. 

 As intelligence and wealth increase, so do refinement and good taste. During 

 a recent ramble in the western part of Massachusetts, I found much to strengthen 

 this belief. The houses are of a better class, well finished and painted ; the 

 fences better; smooth and velvety lawns, instead of door-yards filled with rub- 

 bish ; shade trees around the houses and along the highways ; land set apart 

 for garden purposes, into which a few hardy shrubs are introduced, with small 

 fruits, asparagus, and other esculents; and a variety of apples, coming into use 

 from July to July. The garden on the farm was one evidence of the happy 

 changes that have taken place, ana was observable all along my route. 



The cheerful influences of better buildings and productive gardens have 

 developed a taste for the cultivation of flowers, 



"Whose voiceless lips are living preachers, 

 Each cup a pulpit, aud each leaf a book." 



There is scarcely a farm-house now but has its flowers. They give a pleasant 

 and cheerful aspect to the homestead, and attract the grateful admiration of the 

 passing traveller. Their almost universal cultivation indicates a refined taste 

 and higher intellectual attainments. Such evidences of improvement are full 

 of promise for the future. The thi-iviug occupants of residences in the vicinity 

 of all our large towns and cities are doing much by their example to stimulate 

 the farmers in this direction. The creations of beauty which wealth and taste 

 have produced, attract their attention, awaken in them the love of the beautiful, 

 and lead them to attempt their reproduction on a cheaper and simpler scale. 



The garden should conform in style and character to the homestead and its 

 surroundings. It should be in the immediate vicinity of the house, so that it 

 may be readily accessible, and under the constant supervision of the household. 

 If a portion of it is devoted to the culture of flowers, that should, if possible, be 

 so located that the passing neighbor and stranger may enjoy its beauty and 

 fragrance. Flowers are like sunlight'and pure breezes — we enjoy them none 

 the less because others enjoy them too. A good garden needs a variety of 

 soil, and if it can be so managed that it will embrace a high and dry soil, and 

 that which is lower and more moist, it will be an advantage. Early vegetables, 

 as lettuce, peas, beans, and early potatoes need a warm, dry location. Those 

 which come later in the season, as strawberries, pears, and some other plants, 



