198 
GARDENS AND THEIR MEANING 
neighborhood of New York tells us that he can actually get 
whatever price he asks for his strawberries and early peas. 
One thing more must be taken into account. To-day a 
producer is decidedly looked up to in the community; sel- 
dom in history has there been a time when the progressive 
gardener has been re- 
spected as he is to-day, 
and never has his hand 
been so warmly grasped 
by scientists and busi- 
ness men. Still more 
encouraging, this in- 
dustrial comradeship 
is not prompted by 
patronage or philan- 
thropy ; it merely ac- 
knowledges the intrin- 
sic worth of those who 
are working the soil 
with brains as well as 
with brawn. The sum 
total of experience 
shows that it is the 
WHEN THE EARTH IS TREATED . 
trained man, whether 
working on a gigantic 
scale or on a small one, who, other things being equal from 
the economic standpoint, wins out. 
Yet, in spite of this general truth, a would-be expert does 
sometimes fail, no matter how quick-witted or how scientific 
he may be, because final success depends upon a market. 
Even the optimist, who from his lookout loves to call "All ’s 
well ! " and who predicts, for small lands intensively cultivated, 
triumphs that are little short of miracles, is shrewd enough 
