288 POT-POURRI FROM A SURREY GARDEN 



or pictures that you may happen to have to show your 

 guests. It is impossible to do this with any comfort 

 without a good roomy table on which to spread them . 

 Showing books to children of different ages often provides 

 an excellent topic for conversation, and even, I might 

 say, for instruction ; only this, I am afraid, sounds so 

 very priggish. 



A distressing feature of modern civilisation is the 

 utter waste, both in town and country, of the precious 

 rain-water that runs off our houses. It will be argued 

 that in London it would be black ; but it is not very 

 difficult to remedy this sufficiently, at any rate, for 

 use in washing. In the country it is priceless. No well- 

 cared-for baby ought ever to be washed in anything but 

 rain-water ; and yet, rather than make tanks, rich people, 

 who will buy every luxury, get their water (which in 

 nine cases out of ten is as hard and full of chalk as it 

 can be) from the nearest water company. Eain-water is 

 even more essential for the plants than for the baby. I 

 was told last year by a good gardener, who had been 

 peculiarly successful in growing the rare and beautiful 

 Table Mountain Orchid, Disa grandiflora, that he 

 attributed his success entirely to keeping it very moist, 

 but never allowing one drop of water to go near it 

 that was not rain-water. This is the case, in a minor 

 degree, with many other greenhouse and stove plants. 



