Numerous Early Comers 



of beauty if only one side of the block be bedded up with 

 earth), aided and abetted by river silt from the lake's mouth 

 and chips of all sizes from the mountain side, were only 

 waiting for Mr. Farrer's master mind to plan their com- 

 bination and lo ! a new era dawned. The most discon- 

 tented of his alpine treasures flourished, the great news 

 went forth to the world, a series of books in slate-coloured 

 covers became the foundation of conversation, even at 

 dinner, to the great annoyance of those who wait and there- 

 fore should expect all things to come to them. This is a 

 fact: a head gardener, in speaking of the extraordinary wave 

 of the fashion of gardening, told me that the men in the 

 house complained bitterly that, whereas once upon a time 

 they picked up innumerable sporting tips and had much 

 interesting gossip to listen to, nowadays the talk at dinner 

 was all Latin names and about soils and gardening books. 

 Now the moraine holds the field. I wonder will the name 

 live unrivalled until these words are published, or will 

 someone invent a terse term for the bed with underground 

 pipes that promises to replace the plain granite chip 

 arrangement ? I hope it won't be called the glacier j it is 

 bad enough to misname as moraine a square yard or two 

 of a hole in the ground filled up with road-mending 

 material and bristling with labels, but underground-water- 

 bed savours of chronic invalids and hospitals, and is also 

 cumbrous. Melting-snow sounds Japanesque and is what 

 one is trying to imitate, but as I did not invent the system 

 I do not feel bound to name it, and I hope it will be in 

 common use and have gained a familiar name before this 

 is read. Mr. Grove has perfected the idea in his marvel- 

 lous garden near Henley, and I have seen hosts of plants 

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