PREFACE 



S I have no literary ability or prac- 

 tise, and know very little about 

 gardening, I suppose I ought to 

 apologize for presenting this crude 

 production to an intelligent public. At all events, 

 I should like to put forth my thoughts and 

 reflections with a demeanor of becoming mod- 

 esty. 



I have never been in the habit of expressing 

 my intimate thoughts and feelings, or of laying 

 bare my soul, and if I did, it would not be fit for 

 the public to gaze upon. But occasionally, like 

 others, I express certain desultory opinions. I 

 am sometimes honest and more often try to be, 

 as far as the exigencies of circumstances allow. 

 On this occasion, at any rate, I have no interest 

 or wish to sail under false colors, and were I to 

 do so some of my readers would be sure to find 

 me out. 



I have no confidant but " Nature, the deep- 

 v 



JVJ95627 



