HORTICULTURAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN. 171 



iu business, if they have received a part of their school education 

 in a school garden. We know that the late Hon. Marshall P. 

 Wilder returned to his early interest in horticulture, when he had 

 become what has been called " forehanded." 



In an essay entitled " Horticultural Reminiscences" published 

 in the Transactions of this Societj', is an account of a school 

 garden, established more than half a century ago, in connection 

 "with a boarding school in the city of Providence, R. I. At least 

 four pupils of that school became eminent in agriculture, Joseph 

 Brown and Obadiah Brown, of Rhode Island, and O. B. Hadwen 

 and Hon. Daniel Needham, the latter two being distinguished 

 members of this Society. In a letter to me, Mr. Needham wrote, 

 "I have always believed that the training which I received in 

 that school, did more for me than it would be easy to write. It 

 gave me habits of punctuality and industry which in mj^ life of 

 today, are as apparent to me as they were forty or more years 

 ago. I consider an}- boy poorly educated, who has not enjoyed 

 the privileges of a technical or agricultural school." We can 

 imagine what an influence for horticulture might be felt, if the 

 common schools throughout the country should make good use of 

 school gardens. Then children would get that general knowledge 

 of horticulture that would lead to a demand for agricultural 

 colleges, such as we have never known, and to the horticultural 

 education of women. 



Plants and flowers enter constantly and intimately into girls' 

 and women's lives. Women have been interested in flowers since 

 human beings came upon the earth. Some fill their windows with 

 flowering plants the 3'ear round. Others cultivate them in their 

 rough little gardens before the log cabins and shanties on the 

 frontiers and in the wilderness. Some suggestion from plant life 

 is always present in women's lives — embroidered flower decora- 

 tions, flower painting, floral decorations, bouquets, and myriads 

 of designs for needlework, wall papers, carpets, and prints, — and 

 they should have some regular instruction in what they will 

 always see and use ; and the school garden would be the most 

 efficient means of giving them instruction suited to the lives they 

 are destined to lead. 



Probably two-thirds of the public schools of Boston at the 

 present time, have adopted the no-recess plan, and the number is 

 increasing, not only in Boston, but throughout the country ; in 

 short, the recess is no longer considered necessary. 



