484 



THE E D ITO R' S OUTLOOK. 



relatives, the broader his ideas. A constricted 

 horizon means constricted thought and methods of 

 work. It means a life spent upon incidentals, while 

 some of it, at least, ought to be spent upon princi- 

 ples. It means mere testing of varieties and cut. 

 ting of seed-potatoes. We wish that every agricul- 

 tural college and experiment station in the land had 

 Professor Beal's words painted on the gate-posts : 

 "No horticulturist without a thorough knowledge 

 of the principles of several departments of botany 

 is capable of planning and conducting and inter- 

 preting experiments." 



Horticulture can never rise to the dignity of a 

 polite art, nor to the position of a science, so long 

 as it smothers itself in ignorance. Men do not rise 

 above their aspirations. Horticulture is intrinsi- 

 cally a noble profession, and as soon as it is freed 

 from narrowness and bigotry, it will assert itself. 

 All education must come to its aid, but botany must 

 come first and be foremost. " It will make him a 

 good observer, improve his reason, strengthen his 

 judgment, cultivate, his taste, broaden his views, 

 weaken his respect for the traditions of his fathers. 

 It will sharpen his wits, make him a reliable inves- 

 tigator. It will enable him to become a leader in- 

 stead of a follower." 



A NEW CHARM FOR 

 COUNTRY LIFE. 



"pOD made the country." 

 Men will some day learn 



the truth of this aphorism. 

 They will learn also to combine with it the thought 

 that broad fields, sunshine, the rains and the dews, 

 are in no way incompatible with a high life and 

 social culture. So we regard every movement 

 looking in this direction as an evolution in civiliza- 

 tion. The latest proposition for the socializing of 

 the country comes from California, and it is known 

 as the "ten-block system" of numbering land and 

 houses. " The system is to divide each mile along 

 the roads into ten equal parts, or imaginary blocks, 

 of 528 feet, 176 yards, or 8 chains each, and assign 

 to each block two numbers, one on each side of the 

 road. Any and every house located within a block 

 is given the number of the block. The first one — 

 and in nearly every case it will be the only one in 

 the block — has simply the number ; the second one 

 has the same number, followed by the letter A; the 

 third by the letter B ; the fourth by C, and so on — 

 Nos. 196, 196A, 195B, 196C, etc. If there is no 

 house in the block, the number is assigned to it just 

 the same, and it remains in readiness should a house 

 be built at a future time." 



The further details of the system are few, but we 



cannot present them here. This is the first practi- 

 cable attempt yet made, so far as we are aware, to 

 know and record the inhabitants of the country. 

 The movement is spreading in the Golden State, 

 and it ought to spread in every township in the 

 land. The advantages it presents are numerous 

 and important. The traveler could instantly com- 

 pute distances and acquire directions. The numbers 

 on the gate-posts or over the doors would be mile- 

 stones. Country directories could be published. 

 But above all, it would quicken communication and 

 intercourse in the country. It would be a powerful 

 civilizer. 



To make this feasible, a system of naming 

 country roads must be inaugurated, and this, too, our 

 California friends are perfecting. In Contra Costa 

 county, lying against San Francisco, are such charm- 

 ing bits asthefoUowing: Contra Costa Highway, run- 

 ning through the county and striking the county seat ; 

 Rio Vista, Mountain Drive, Willow Pass Road, 

 Golden Gate Way, Lime Ridge Crossing, Stanley 

 Road, and the like. We know of nothing so good 

 as this since the efforts of dear old Jacob Bigelow 

 in naming the walks and drives of Mt. Auburn. 



All this could add much charm to the country, 

 for it would personify nature, commemorate events, 

 and localize sentiments. The ten-block system idea 

 originated with A. L. Bancroft, of San Francisco, 

 who has large orchards in Contra Costa county. 

 He wondered why the country in these respects 

 could not pattern after the city. Now we are won- 

 dering why we had not thought of it ourselves — but 

 this is always the way with good thoughts ! 



PROTECTION TO 

 PLANTSMEN. 



'T'HE most important discus- 

 sion now before the hor- 

 ticulturists of the country is 

 the agitation looking toward the protection of 

 originators or owners of new varieties of plants. 

 This agitation is by no means a new one. A num- 

 ber of years ago Jacob Moore, of Attica, N. Y., 

 printed and distributed a circular calling for a 

 "plant patent. " Mr. Moore introduced the ques- 

 tion before various horticultural organizations, and 

 his plans were considerably discussed by the press. 

 Early this year the question was revived by A. L. 

 Bancroft, of San Francisco, and the California 

 horticultural and floral societies took the matter up, 

 and a committee from those organizations now has 

 it in charge. Mr. Bancroft's idea of protection, or 

 propagation-right, as outlined in the committee's 

 circular, is not very different from Mr. Moore's. 

 Neither of the parties, so far as we know, have 



