THE LURE OF THE GARDEN 



as to the rooms reserved in the house for the same 

 young people. In this garden each child has a section 

 for whose appearance and use he is responsible. There 

 is usually a lawn for a playground, trees that can be 

 climbed, and a pavilion or summer-house where lessons 

 can be studied out-of-doors or games played on rainy 

 days. Sometimes there is a stretch of smooth turf for 

 bowls or croquet, or even a tennis ground, according 

 as a greater or less amount of space is available. But, 

 small or great, the place belongs to the children. They 

 raise what they choose, fruits or flowers or vegetables, 

 make their mistakes, and do all the work. They can 

 have all the advice and guidance they want, but they 

 are left free to make their own decisions and follow 

 their own taste. Sometimes there are prizes for the 

 prettiest bed, the choicest flower or finest vegetable, the 

 contests being properly handicapped with regard to age 

 and experience. The tiny plot belonging to the young- 

 est toddler may present a rather bare and uneven ap- 

 pearance, to be sure. All the more do those belonging 

 to the older ones witness, in color effects, neatness, and 

 their well-cared-for state, how rapid is the advance 

 made and how easily these outdoor lessons are 

 learned. Some children undoubtedly develop more 

 taste, more natural skill and feeling for garden work 

 than others. But the child who does not take more 

 than a perfunctory interest in the subject is almost 

 always the child who has never been given the chance. 



