300 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



problem. At first sight it would appear to be a matter of no great 

 difficulty to decide upon the qualities which make a man suitable or 

 unsuitable for the purpose in view. The most obvious of the desirable 

 personal characteristics are judgment, foresight, resourcefulness, 

 industry, determination, and unfailing optimism; but whilst it is quite 

 easy to reel off a list of this sort, it is an entirely different matter to 

 correctly label an untried man. Who can say whether or not an average 

 man possesses all or any of these qualities in a sufficient degree until 

 he has been put to the test? We have to remember that the great 

 majority of the aspirants for small-holdings have worked all their lives 

 under direction, for weekly wages, and whilst this fact may be used 

 as an argument against their fitness for a pursuit which needs qualities 

 they have seldom or never been called upon to exercise, and in which 

 the rewards are fluctuating and uncertain, it would be a mistake to let 

 such considerations have too much weight. A sense of responsibility 

 has a wonderful effect on most men, and in operation shows surprising 

 results, and hasty conclusions as to any man's fitness or unfitness 

 should be avoided. I have known instances of men who appeared to 

 be of very moderate quality when working under orders but who have 

 developed in a most surprising way on being released from leading- 

 strings and forced to act upon their own initiative ; and on the contrary 

 I know men who are all that could be desired when working under 

 direction and supervision, but who have proved to be complete failures 

 when obliged to depend entu^ely upon themselves. 



Still, the difficulties in the way of a selection of suitable persons 

 can be much reduced by a process of elimination. A character for 

 sobriety, honesty, and industry is absolutely essential, and those lacking 

 these qualities should be rigorously barred out. Those with a poor 

 physique or a weak constitution — especially the latter — must also be 

 classed amongst the unfit, because the long hours of labour and the 

 exposure which is often necessary will tell heavily against the chances 

 of either. No one past middle age, unless work on the land has been 

 his previous occupation, should be encouraged to become a small-holder, 

 because the work is never other than laborious, and after middle age 

 it is no easy matter to persuade a frame which has lost its elasticity 

 to respond satisfactorily to hard work of an unusual kind. \ 



It is necessary that the small-holder should have some knowledgej 

 — both theoretical and practical, if possible — of the particular branclii' 

 of agriculture or horticulture he intends to follow. Theory alone is,j 

 in the majority of cases, a very dubious equipment for the work to bej 

 undertaken, although I have known some do well who knew littlej 

 when they began beyond what they had learnt from books. At thei' 

 same time, such a result is possible only when the worker who is| 

 engaged in putting recommendations read in books into practice recogi- 

 nizes that all such are liable to modification under varying cncum 

 stances and conditions, and when by practical work theoretical know, 

 ledge is reduced to a simple chain of cause and effect. j 



Courses of instruction, especially designed for intending smallL 



