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Critique on the January Numder. — /-^z// afid Spring Planting. — One 

 after another, Mr. Editor, you seem to be summoning to your aid the best horti- 

 culturists in the country ; and right gla.l am I to see a new volume introduced by 

 an article from Mr. Saunders. No douljt hundreds of your readers, who, like 

 myself, have found out by experience the advantages of autumn planting, but 

 had not got so deep as the reason for it, will be equally glad to be told by Mr. 

 Saunders the principle on which it rests. And this brings me to say, that his 

 remarks on the necessity of deducing, from the facts which centuries of horticul- 

 tural experience and thousands of observers have accumulated, the principles 

 which govern and explain these facts, are of even more importance than the spe- 

 cial application of principles to the particular subject of transplanting. " Surely 

 we are not to be forever debating about vv'hether orchards should be cultivated 

 or not ; whether fall or spring planting is best ; whether we should prune in 

 summer or in winter, or not at all." Certainly I hope not ; and yet, if we exam- 

 ine our horticultural literature, or listen to the discussions at a meeting of horti- 

 culturists, how much of it we shall find to consist of attempts to settle just such 

 questions as these ! There seems to be no end of diversity of opinions, and " lost 

 guides calling, left and right," so that the beginner is fairly bewildered. Now, we 

 cannot suppose that this is to last forever ; and the remedy is, to seek out the prin- 

 ciples which harmonize and simplify the facts on which these diverse practices 

 are based, — conflicting facts they are sometimes called, — but this only because, 

 with our partial views, we fail to see them in all their relations to other truths, 

 Perhaps it will require a different order of mind to generahze all the facts which 



VOL. VII. 13 97 



