GHENT. ;>7 



houses consist almost entirely of glass in front, and partly 

 in the roof. But the roof glass slopes so little, or rises so 

 near to the perpendicular, as to cover a space only of about 

 four feet ; the rest of the roof is slated. At the same time, 

 the slated part of the roof is of a concave shape, and the 

 upper part projects as far forward as the front of the slid- 

 ing glass. In this way it happens, that by 11 A. M. (the 

 hour at which we examined it, 16th August), a shade three 

 feet broad is cast over the glass. All the roofs of hot- 

 houses on the Continent which we have hitherto seen, par- 

 take more or less of this concave or projecting structure. 

 The motive doubtless is, to guard as much as possible 

 against the destructive effects of the showers of large hail- 

 stones, which much more frequently occur in continental 

 countries than in Britain. There are two pine-pits, of 

 small dimensions, and without any provision for fire-heat. 

 The pine-apple plants were not in a flourishing state. 



About mid-day we proceeded towards Leerne, which is 

 about ten or twelve miles from Ghent. We passed through 

 a rich country, well clothed with trees. Oaks and beeches 

 have been alternately planted by the road-side. In gene- 

 ral, the oaks are pollarded, the cuttings being much in de- 

 mand for fuel. Long and spiny shoots of bramble were in 

 some places tied around the stems of young trees situated 

 near the margin of the road, evidently to save them from 

 being injured by droves of cattle passing along. There 

 arc few inclosures. Divisions are sometimes made by 

 ditches ; sometimes by rows of fruit-trees. All the fields 

 are small ; but even in what appeared to be very small 

 fields, perhaps of two or three acres, we were, at first, ra- 

 ther surprised to observe perhaps five or six different kinds 

 of crops, — rye, buckwheat, pease, potatoes, clover, flax. 

 It turned out, that the ground occupied by each of these 



