PARK AND CEMRTERY 
363 
ceedingly useful. Earl)- in March of the present year 
the matter was brought to the attention of the prin- 
cipals of Hartford public schools, who gave it their 
approval and hearty support. Application cards were 
printed, on which the applicant wrote his name, age, 
nationality, residence, his parent’s name ana occupa- 
tion, the school-room from which he came and its 
principal. These cards were sent to the various 
schools, and boys of the sixth, seventh, eighth and 
ninth grades who wished to take up garden work were 
given an opportunity to make application. These ap- 
plications were sent to the School of Horticulture, and, 
unless previously selected by the teacher, fifteen were 
chosen by lot to constitute a class from that particular 
school. The remaining applications were kept on file ; 
and any boy who got tired of his garden or who went 
to work after school closed or who was unable to keep 
his garden up, was dropped and his place filled from 
this file. Books were prepared of a very convenient 
which is numbered and has a hole for hanging it up at 
one end, and a plant stake at the other. Each tool is 
numbered, there being a set to each number. The 
hoys pass from the tool-room to their gardens, pass- 
ing by the observation plots of grass, wheat, oats, rye, 
barley, buckwheat and flax. In the gardens the boys 
follow the directions which they have received in the 
class-room ; but, of course, must be shown how to do 
a great many things. Probably 125 of the 178 pupils 
in garden classes never have had anything to do with 
a hoe or a rake before. The first few lessons are very 
trying, as the boys have to he shown many times, but 
they are intensely interested in their work and learn 
rapidly. The weeds, too, must needs get some start, 
and the first four weeks are spent in planting and in 
])reparing the ground, although it is plowed, manured 
and staked out before they come. Very few know the 
difiference at first between the plants and the weeds, 
and it is necessary to be constantly on hand, but the 
VEGETABLE GARDEN, SCHOOL OF HORTICULTURE HARTFORD. CONN. 
size to put into the pocket. On the outside of the 
cover was placed a number, which corresponded to the 
number of the garden. The name of the pupil and 
the school from which he comes is also on the outside. 
On the inside of the cover are the rules. The boys 
first enter the class-room, the books are given out, and, 
on the first page, each pupil keeps his own attendance 
by writing the date and marking himself present. On 
the second page is the diagram of the garden. On 
the third page the lessons begin, the boys writing them 
from dictation, always putting down the date so that 
each lesson is kept distinct. The directions are given 
in the simplest possible terms. Before the boys go out 
the seed is distributed among them in small packages. 
From the class-room they go directly to the tool-room, 
where they receive their tools. Each boy has a hoe, a 
rake, a hand-weeder, a line and an eight-inch stick for 
measuring. The hoe handles are marked in feet for 
measuring distances. The line is long enough to go 
around the garden. It has a twelve-inch pot-label. 
boys are as a rule very careful. When the pupils have 
finished their work in the gardens they take their tools 
in, clean them with cloths which are in the tool-room 
for that purpose, and hang them up in their proper 
places. They then go to the class-room, write in their 
books what they have done, and, after the crops begin 
to mature, what they take home with them. In this 
way a list of everything is kept. The books are then 
left on the table in the class-room and the boys go 
home. These books are looked over and the pupils 
marked on the appearance of the note books, their de- 
portment and on their work, as well as their attend- 
ance for each lesson. Each class comes once a week, 
coming after school on school days, with the exception 
of two classes on Wednesday and Friday afternoons, 
consisting of the seventh grade boys from two of the 
schools in the city, which come while the girls are 
having sewing lessons. On Saturday there are classes 
at 8, at 10, at 2 and at 4 o’clock, the latter a class of 
girls. 
