THE WAR GARDEN VICTORIOUS 61 
“As the season advanced,” said Mr. Burlingame, 
“a spirit of good-fellowship and the forming of new 
acquaintanceships among those who found themselves 
cultivating neighboring gardens, were features which 
added to the value of the garden project. It was some- 
times found that a laborer working side by side with a 
foreman could, from the gardener’s standpoint, turn 
the tables, become instructor, and set the pace. When 
illness prevented some man from working and there 
were no members of his family to help out, shopmates 
volunteered and cared for his garden or even harvested 
his crops for him. Often gardens cultivated by men hav- 
ing had experience adjoined those where the workers 
were beginners. In such cases the best good-will was 
shown in giving and taking advice and instruction. ” 
Regular inspections of the gardens were made and rec- 
ords kept. If a garden showed signs of being neglected, 
a notice was sent to the workman and this tended to 
spur the food growers on to keep their plots in such 
excellent condition that there would be no need for 
criticism. The men took their work very seriously. 
Some swamp land which had never been cultivated and 
which was considered absolutely useless for garden 
purposes was reclaimed and produced excellent re- 
sults. The largest crop of potatoes in a single garden, 
twenty bushels, was raised on a lot which the gardener 
enlarged by digging up land which had been a dump 
beyond the plowing. A number of prizes which were 
offered by the company for the best crops both as to 
size and quality aroused keen and friendly rivalry and 
