for a Garden Library. 1 1 1 



minds of those who are, or seem to be, destined to live by bodily labour ; 

 but such is the progress of mind in this age, that opinions which it was 

 necessary to argue and discuss only a few years ago, are now taken for 

 granted. Gardeners, from their isolated situation and the nature of their 

 employment, always have been, and always will be, a sober, moral, 'harmless, 

 and comparatively reasonable and even polished class of servants. Women 

 are much better judges in this matter than men, and we would ask any 

 female servant in a gentleman's family, whether the conversation of grooms 

 and other attendants on dogs and horses, and the conversation of gardeners 

 are the same sort of thing ? The same question might be put in the draw- 

 ing-room, with reference to the tastes and pursuits of gentlemen. There 

 is scarcely any instance of revolution being attempted, or any of the more 

 atrocious crimes committed by gardeners, and this must always be the case 

 from their isolated situation, and the nature of their profession. Notwith- 

 standing this, we do not expect that every master will come at once into 

 our scheme, but a number, we trust, both of head gardeners and of their 

 employers, will give it their serious consideration, as being proposed for the 

 good of all parties ; some, we have no doubt, will act upon it, not only for 

 the reasons we have mentioned, but on general principles of benevolence; 

 and others from the rational motivr that more confidence is to be placed 

 in the skill, honesty, and attachment of intelligent and comfortably circum- 

 stanced, than of ignorant and depressed dependants. 



Having shown, as we think, the necessity of garden libraries, we shall 

 next submit some general ideas of the mode in which they ought to be 

 formed, premising that we think them equally necessary in nurseries, and 

 other commercial gardens, in horticultural, botanic, or other public gar- 

 dens, as in private gardens, and that wherever the master has under him 

 a single hand, whether journeyman gardener, or garden labourer, male or 

 female, in short, wherever there is a tool-house, there ought to be a library, 

 and every garden, however small, ought to have its books as well as its tools. 



In the gardens of private gentlemen, the head gardener, having got the 

 consent of his employer, should get a room of suitable size, dry, and well 

 lighted and aired, fitted up with book shelves, &c. in the garden, or where 

 his men are lodged. If a suitable room already exists, which is not likely 

 to be the case in one garden of a hundred, then all that will be necessary 

 is a proper book-case ; but gardeners in general, both masters and journey- 

 men, are very indifferently lodged in the back sheds of hot-houses, and 

 therefore, we think it likely that in many cases a room will require to be 

 built, or one already existing devoted to and fitted up for the particular 

 purpose of containing the books, and as a place of reading and study. 

 But as, whether a new or old room is used, the books will be best kept in a' 

 portable book case, that may be prepared by any carpenter immediately, 

 and one made of deal eight feet long and six feet high with moveable 

 shelves, will hold all the essential and desirable elementary books ; a com- 

 plete professional collection will require a second case of the same size. 

 Such a book-case, or even one of half the size for a small collection, may 

 be kept in any convenient place, till a proper one is prepared for it. We 

 leave this part of the business at present entirely to the management of 

 master gardeners, till we can find time to give some plans for gardeners' 

 dwelling houses, and the arrangement of garden sheds, fruit-rooms, &c. 

 improvements in which are very much wanted in every part of the country. 

 In the mean time we would urge the necessity and advantage of every 

 garden, however small, having its garden book-case. It is almost needless 

 to add, that in the changes of master gardeners, the books should be in- 

 ventoried from the one to the other, in the same manner as the tools. 



Where the master is unwilling, and the head gardener willing but unable, 

 to sink the money necessary to purchase a proper garden library, we would 



