206 MY GARDEN 



of course, like nearly everybody else ; but try bowls 

 of the different sorts alone, and you will perceive the 

 force of this advice. A dinner-table of one rose 

 is a pleasant thing ; but adorn it with a dozen 

 varieties and you sink into the commonplace at once. 

 Never overdo the leaves in your vases. It is a relic 

 of mid-Victorian times, when we used maiden -hair 

 with everything and thought it lovely. I should like 

 to write a list of a hundred notable combinations 

 for you ; but it is improbable that you would value 

 them. You have your own ideas. Yet try some 

 good feathery chrysanthemum of medium size with 

 flowering eulalia zabrina. Mingle them deftly in a 

 large Munstead vase, and you cannot fail to be 

 pleased. And once more my own favourite for 

 winter work. Pluck iris stylosa and pure white Christ- 

 mas roses ; deck your dinner-table richly, and people 

 of soul will give no thought to the baked meats. 



Here then, at the gate of my garden, permit me to 

 take courteous leave to bow you out, in fact. We 

 have spent overmuch time with my toy, and I ap- 

 preciate the compliment that you have paid me. 

 Yet you and I shall agree that no sensible man puts 

 away all childish things. Gardening may be per- 

 mitted as a recreation even to the sober-minded and 

 serious spirit. It is not an intellectual pursuit, but 

 it can be conducted in a very intelligent manner ; and, 

 as an occupation for the amateur, it holds its own 

 against games of skill, against sport, and even against 

 politics. A time indeed must come when a man's 

 ardour cools a little ; when his amusement is to put 



