THE WELL-CONSIDERED GARDEN 



forced upon the innocent and ignorant and much 

 do I wish that a seed and bulb list might be given 

 us in which there should not be a single actual 

 error of taste in suggestion, even though that 

 taste could not meet the wishes of all readers. 



Under luxuries in garden books falls a group 

 whose contents are an addition to letters as well 

 as to gardening. How rare and choice these are, 

 and what a pity that all books on so beautiful a 

 topic cannot be beautiful in themselves, I mean 

 in their manner of writing! When such do fall 

 in our way we have very real reason for thanks- 

 giving, and first in my own affections always stand 

 the writings of the Honorable Mrs. Boyle, "E. 

 V. B." — those books 



"whose names 

 Are five sweet symphonies " — 



"A Garden of Pleasure," "The Peacock's Pleas- 

 aunce," "Sylvana's Letters to an Unknown 

 Friend," "Seven Gardens and a Palace" — ^prose 

 as beautiful as any poetjy, wandering on over 

 page after page, all on the delectable matter of 

 flowers; and in A. F. Sieveking's book a "Proem" 

 from the same golden pen, which for charm and 

 grace exceeds all that I have ever read on gar- 

 dening. It is my fixed belief that the more we 



