82 WORCESTER COUNTY HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. [1900. 



But we will not further describe the place, because it is not a 

 pleasure to behold it and you have all seen it. We say that a 

 poor man lives there — ah yes, poor indeed in heart and in soul 

 is he who cannot grow a plant beside his door. He may have 

 plenty of money, but he does not love plants. 



These, then, are the two types of rural places which we wish 

 to improve by a little good taste and energy, well directed. It 

 would perhaps be easier to do it if we had money to buy the 

 trees and plants, but this is unnecessary, and a home made 

 beautiful by its master's own hands always possesses a charm 

 and an interest, at least to each of his friends and family, that 

 purchased beauty can never have. 



I greatly enjoyed hearing your president, Mr. Hadwen, tell 

 about the trees on his place, which were planted, or grown from 

 seed planted, by his own hands, and which many years later 

 were cut and the lumber used to build his house and construct 

 the furniture therein. When we have men contented to spend 

 their lives on one place and it passes down to other generations 

 of the same family ; when we build houses and plant trees for 

 posterity, instead of for a single generation, — then we can have 

 beautiful homes in America, as they have in England. 



One trouble with our grounds is that too little shrubbery is 

 used in the planting. Trees are usually present, but shrubbery 

 is scarce. 



I hope my listeners will not think that I am discriminating 

 against country homes when I show how they may be made 

 more attractive. 1 know that the city home is just as bad, but 

 there is a better excuse for its being bad. Many houses are 

 crowded on to a small piece of land and there are not the room 

 and the good soil that can be found about the country home. 

 Then, the city resident is obliged to purchase each plant and 

 tree, unless some friend gives it to him ; he cannot go and dig 

 it from his own fields. 



I need not here present any arguments in favor of beautifying 

 the home. You all know, that the more beautiful and attractive 

 the home, the more loath to leave are the inmates ; that a love 

 of beauty increases, as culture and refinement progress ; that all 



