298 ARISTOCRATS OF THE GARDEN 



for wealth, power, or ephemeral pleasures ever craves 

 for something outside itself, for those innocent joys 

 and objects of beauty which bounteous Nature has 

 furnished in forest and woodland, in meadow and 

 swamp, in valley and on hill-top. And the more 

 cultured a race or nation becomes, the more incessant 

 grows the spirit. 



The present-day energy of each of these four ele- 

 mental forces could be subjected to criticism, for 



wholesome criticism is healthful; yet rather would 



I, 



I urge each to consider its function and resolve ac- 

 cordingly. 



Arboreta, Botanic Gardens and all plant experi- 

 mental institutions have a value not yet properly under- 



\ 



stood, for their collections and experiments demonstrate 

 the wealth of material available and its adaptability 

 to garden needs. 



Horticultural exhibitions are a potent agency in 

 furthering the knowledge and love of plants, but if 

 the exhibits were more generally and more legibly lab- 

 eled the educational value of such exhibitions would 

 be enormously enhanced. 



Societies founded for the advancement of horti- 



i 



culture generally and for that of particular flowers 

 are a natural and inevitable outcome of the desire for 

 gardens and for mutual help and intercourse. Garden 



