GARDENING FOR WOMEN 87 



marry or have homes of their own. This applies 

 to women with means who are not obliged to 

 earn a living. They are considered, with a know- 

 ledge of fruit culture, flower and vegetable garden- 

 ing, jam making and fruit preserving, to become 

 valuable adjuncts to the household. The word 

 " Hausfrau " nowadays includes these garden 

 matters, and we in England might profitably follow 

 this example. If a young woman marries well 

 and has servants w^ho do all these things for her, 

 she will still never regret having herself mastered 

 difficulties, and probably she will be better served 

 by being able with experience to criticise the work 

 of others. Then, too, we notice in the foreign 

 syllabuses that a doctor's certificate of health is 

 required before a young girl thinks of studying 

 gardening. 



It is certainly advisable that the family doctor 

 should give advice before any decision is made as 

 to the vocations of young women. This should 

 be all the more insisted upon, when the would-be 

 student suffers from some malady, whether it 

 appears to be but a trifling one or not. It is a 

 practical certainty that many minor maladies and 

 symptoms are entirely removed when a suitable 

 life is led. On the other hand, others apparently 

 equally insignificant are harbingers of grave ill- 

 ness. It is possible that these remain dormant, 



