A Southern Aspect. 55 



importance. We all know how a gardener in 

 Northern Europe loves a southern aspect ; this is 

 because it is the sunny side, and also because it is 

 sheltered from the bleak north winds. In Southern 

 India, however, the cold winds come from the 

 south. Any one who has made the long sea voyage 

 to India will find it hard to forget the dreary 

 gales encountered when rounding the Cape of Good 

 Hope : the wild disturbed sky, the chilly atmosphere, 

 and the groaning timbers alike betokening approach 

 to a region cold, bleak and inhospitable. When, 

 therefore, we consider that the south-west monsoon 

 collects its forces in such a quarter, we can hardly 

 be surprised that its influence on tropical vegetation 

 should be injurious, even were the invasion charac- 

 terized with less headlong violence. 



The next point to be considered is what is 

 technically termed the "lay" of the land. That 

 there are estates situated on surfaces greatly 

 differing in character, yet all apparently yielding 

 results equally satisfactory, might at first sight 

 appear to argue this subject as unimportant ; but 

 similarly an inference might be drawn that eleva- 

 tion was of slight conseqnence, from the fact that 

 some estates situated at 1000 feet above the sea 

 and others situated at 5000 appear to be equally 

 profitable, which, however, simply arises from one 

 drawback being often compensated for by some 



