Ch. XLV.] THE COTTAGER'S GARDEN. 555 



gain*;'' and, " as a working man would gain more in wages than he could 

 save in the price of bread and beer, the occupation would be an unprofitable 

 waste of time." To the justice of this general reasoning we give unquali- 

 fied assent ; but it does not apply to the present case ; for the work would 

 be committed — as it invariably was in former times — to the wife, who lost 

 no wages by the employment, as she seldom earns any in money, and the 

 saving to her family of the baker's and brewer's profit would be clear 

 gains. Could the cottager brew his own beer, he would also drink it in 

 domestic comfort by his own fire-side, without being driven to the ale 

 house ; and in both these instances it appears to us that the change is for 

 the worse. 



Another great change took place among farm-servants during the period 

 alluded to by the author of " Cottage Economy," — namely, the custom of 

 boarding the men-servants out of the house. This was brought about, in 

 most instances, more from the desire of the men to have the comniaud 

 of their own money in purchasing their food, than it was that of either 

 their masters or mistresses to drive them from their tables. This change 

 has injured both parties : the masters have neither so much attention or 

 time from such servants; nor are the servants so orderly in their conduct, 

 in consequence of being allowed to go to the village for every article they 

 may want, where they form alliances often ending in improvident mar- 

 riages, which entails poverty as their lot for life ; as well as habits of 

 drunkenness, poaching, and other acts of demoralization contracted in the 

 village beer-shop. 



By far the greater number of farm-servants are now-a-days married men, 

 at weekly wages regulated by the price of bread ; and who, with a boy or 

 two, who sleep in the farm-house, do all the principal and regular work 

 of the farm. Their condition has been considerably improved within these 

 last few years, by many patriotic landlords and farmers allotting to each 

 cottager a piece of garden-ground ; and has had the best efl'ects, not 

 only in supplying the cottager's family with plenty of wholesome vege- 

 tables, but employing himself and children in their leisure hours at home. 

 The possession of a bit of land gives the owner a stake in the country : it is 

 a source of amusement as well as profit, and, in short, makes his home 

 much more attractive than it otherwise would be. The quantity should be 

 just so much as will occupy his hours of leisure with the assistance of his 

 family, if he has one, and no more. " The British Almanac " for the years 

 1834 and 1837, contained a paper on the subject of cottage gardening, 

 which is here subjoined ; but as this is necessarily a very brief manual, it is 

 requisite in this place to add somewhat more on the general subject. 



THE cottager's GARDEN. 



" Many, however well inclined to have a garden, do not know the best 

 mode of setting about cropping and managing it, and are ignorant of the 

 best sorts of seed to sow, and the time and mode of sowing. We have 

 given a plan which contains about a quarter of an acre ; and those who 

 have gardens of half this size will be able to manage them by this plan, 

 onlv using half the space for each crop, or leaving out some crops that are 

 less profitable for those of potatoes and cabbages, which are the most pro- 

 ductive and useful. Suppose, therefore, a piece of ground 51 yards long 

 by 24 wide, which is about a quarter of an acre, and is represented by the 

 plan, lay out a border all round, four feet wide, Nos. 9, 10, and 11 of the 



* Working Man's Companion, p. 35. 



