November 3. 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
85 
have had anything to do with him, because he had so long 
I been his master’s master. Webb, who was a widower, took 
a little cottage in the next village, to which belonged a 
| large piece of garden ground, and there he settled himself 
and three or four children. The cottage soon began to look 
pretty under his skilful hands. All sorts of shrubs and 
ilowers flourished and bloomed around it; and when he 
. was busy among them, on a summer’s evening, he seemed 
I to be really in a very snug, comfortable position. 
The first domestic affliction that came upon him was the 
' conduct of one of his daughters. She was engaged to be 
the wife of a young man of some property, but no principles. 
1 She fell into sin, and her partner in guilt deserted her. 
i Grief—and, it is to be hoped, repentance—tore her breast, 
and she died of a broken heart. This was a keen and 
heavy blow, without any softening circumstance, to the poor 
father. His own health had long been declining, and he 
had no partner to share and soothe his griefs. Possibly, 
man’s sterner materials prevent the degree of suffering 
that woman feels under affliction; but there is something 
very sad in seeing a man standing alone in sorrow; there is 
a coldness and desolation in man’s grief, when he has not a 
softer half attached to him, that excites our pity exceedingly; 
and poor Webb, in his loneliness, with broken health and 
infirm limbs, must have been the picture of woe, as he 
watched the death-bed of his child, and returned from 
laying her in the grave. 
Two or three years have passed since then; and Webb 
still dwelt in the same house. Sometimes laid up with gout 
and other complaints, and sometimes going about with a 
large bunch of seals to his watch. chain, and a flower in his 
button-hole, as he used to do in gayer and younger days. 
Some months ago there was a rumour of the sale of his 
furniture and effects. The day was fixed, and, if some 
friend did not come forward to help him with a sum of 
money, all was to go. The sale did not take place, however, 
and it was supposed that help had been afforded. Things 
have gone on cpiietly for a time. Webb is a man who keeps 
his affairs to himself; but, when difficulties begin, they are 
not easily ended. His son, who had a good situation in an 
extensive garden, returned some months ago, no one knew 
why, and has been living at home ever since. The last in¬ 
telligence of poor Webb’s movements was, that he is going 
away from the village ; some of his plants and effects have 
been sold, and he is, himself, about to depart too. The 
most distressing circumstance is, that both he and his 
family have long given up the public worship of God. For¬ 
merly they used to frequent the sanctuary, but now he is 
rarely seen there; liis son and daughter never. 
This is a pitiful end to a once flourishing gardener ! But 
it is the end of all who do not walk with God. It is seldom 
that men who act dishonestly and unjustly prosper in their 
latter days ; there is a canker at their root that causes their 
verdure to fail, perhaps without any apparent cause. Like 
j their own plants and flowers, they droop and dwindle; but 
they do not treat themselves as they treat them—they do 
not lay bare their own heart as they lay bare the roots of 
the diseased plant, and see how matters stand there. If 
they did, they would find the worm that destroys their 
prosperity; they would find the sin that brings down God’s 
wrath upon them, or, His gracious but “ severe mercy; ” 
they would find that His name despised, and His law 
abused, and His Word neglected, was the cause of all their 
misfortunes, and not this or that mischance and want of 
luck. Oh ! if we would but watch our own ways closely, we 
should see such wickedness in our dealings with our fellow- 
' men as would astonish us ! Trust abused; opportunities 
! of gain at another’s expense; little dishonesties, as men 
call them ; advantages caught at unlawfully; plans recom¬ 
mended for our own selfish purposes: Oh! such myriads 
| of wicked, unholy, vile practices, large and small, that we 
may well wonder at the patience and long suffering of the 
Lord, and not at our own disasters. “ Is there not a cause?” 
There may be many men going on, with a flowing sail, like 
! Webb in days gone by. Let them dig about their own roots, 
and search them closely, lest the Lord should cut them down. 
| Reader! what soil are you growing in ? Much depends upon 
I that. Are you planted in the stony places of the world, 
j or in the green pastures of the Gospel? Depend upon it, 
I if you have not chosen the Lord for your portion, your root 
will wither, and you will dwindle and die. It is He alone 
that can keep your hands from touching “the unclean 
thing,” and your hearts from going after your covetous¬ 
ness. What is a youth of prosperous wickedness, and an 
old age of poverty or sadness ? Is it worth the peril of 
your soul? Let us approve ourselves to God, then we shall 
have peace, even if we have not plenty. 
NORWICH AND HONITON POULTRY SHOWS. 
The first exhibition of a newly-established Poultry So¬ 
ciety is announced to be held at Norwich, on Tuesday, 
the 20th of December next, and the two following days. 
The committee, it would seem, have had some misgivings 
as to the prudence of exceeding the limits of two days for 
their show; since, to quiet the minds of intending exhi¬ 
bitors, the following rule has been introduced into the 
usual form of such documents :—“ The Committee, having 
witnessed the injurious consequences of insufficient cleanliness 
in previous Exhibitions, will see that ■particular precautions 
arc taken to ensure the comfort and health of the. exhibited 
birds. Ventilation will be especially attended to, and roosts 
provided for certain classes of birds." All this is highly praise¬ 
worthy; but we should have been better satisfied to have 
had these assurances (which every exhibitor, by the way, 
has a clear right to demand from the managers of such 
societies, even supposing the show lasts but a single day) 
guaranteed generally for the two days, and not find our¬ 
selves referring to them as a reason to justify the detention 
of the poultry beyond that time. 
Two days is amply sufficient for all such local exhi¬ 
bitions ; and any excess beyond this period will eventually 
damage their success, from the unwillingness of the owners 
of valuable birds to subject them to the hazards of pro¬ 
tracted confinement. They (the fowls) have quite enough 
to go through already; and few of us who are conversant 
with their condition after their appearance in public will be 
willing to add a single hour to their confinement, beyond 
what must be regarded as strictly necessary for the purposes 
of the different societies. 
We have quoted one regulation from the prize list of the 
Eastern Counties Association, and find ourselves, unfor¬ 
tunately, on one point, at variance with its managers; but 
these gentlemen have framed another rule which well de- 
i serves admission into the prospectus of every Poultry- 
Society :—this states, that “ Exhibitors are earnestly requested 
not to forward specimens in an unhealthy state, as they will be 
rejected.” Risks, indeed, are already sufficiently numerous 
for us to dread the evils to which our favourites must be 
exposed, without adding that of infection. It is proposed, 
we observe, on this occasion, to renew the attempt at selling 
the priced pens by auction at the close of the second day. 
At the Metropolitan this scheme proved a failure. It re¬ 
mains, therefore, to be seen whether or no it can be better 
managed on this occasion. The deduction of 10 per cent, 
on all sales is too high; the usual 5 per cent, was a much 
-wiser charge. 
We notice, also, as a novel feature in the prize-list, 
a “ Committee prize” for “the best Shanghae cock,” and 
“the best Shanghae hen;” to be shown separately. This 
I is, assuredly, a step in the right direction; and before 
j another year will probably have many imitators; for a 
distinct class of male and female birds, shown separately, 
! will be a boon to poultry-keepers generally. An error, 
I however, has been made in giving but one common class 
to the Coloured and White Dorkings, birds which should 
certainly stand apart. Turkeys, as might have been anti¬ 
cipated, have tempting premiums for both the young and 
the old birds; but why withhold similar encouragement 
from the Geese ? 
The “ Cottager” is invited to compete for “ the best collec¬ 
tion of useful Poultry, not less than six in number. But this 
is hardly explicit enough; for Turkeys, Geese, Ducks, Fowls, 
Pigeons, and Guinea Fowls, might, by this rule, each con¬ 
tribute one representative; and if the best of then- several 
classes, then present, this miscellaneous medley might claim 
the prize; yet this could hardly have been intended. 
To judge from the list of patrons, this initiatory step, on 
