A SIMPLE FLOWER GARDEiN-. 



75. 



bas the control of a piece of ground, be it ever so small, or, 

 - lacking that, has but a window, should cultivate a few 

 plants ; should go out under the open skj, and work in the 

 ground with her own hands. 



What a monstrous idea ! " exclaims the fine ladj reader. 



" Young ladies work on the ground, — dig in the dirt! 

 It is not to be thought of a moment." 



No doubt of it. Neither is health to be thought of 

 beside the demands of fashionable and elegant society. It 

 is not the thing to have ruddy cheeks and vigorous limbs. 

 To be able to walk five miles over the open country, to row 

 a boat across the pond, or swing a rake in a breezy, fragrant 

 hay field, may be well enough for girls, but young ladies 

 never do such things." 



At this we are utterly extinguished. We haven't 

 another word to say. 



But this may fall into the hands of. some young men 

 or women who are so fortunate as to care for flowers, and 

 who are aware of the rich mine of pleasure, health, study, 

 and amusement to be found in a flower garden. It may be, 

 too, that they belong to that large class known as semi- 

 invalids." For them we have a word. 



" Come into the garden, Maud," Jenny, Edward, and all 

 the rest of you. Get out into the open air and unfashion- 

 able sunshine. Shut your books and study nature ; leave 

 your needle and take the trowel and rake. A hoe-handle 

 is an excellent tonic, and the smell of the ground is an 



