OCTOIIER 14. 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
23 
would do much, for nature is alwa 3 ’S read}’ to give plenty, 
if due diligence is used. 
Once more, therefore, good Mr. Editor, have the goodness 
to do your best to improve tliis obstinate race of beings, 
you would add to their happiness, and to our comfort as 
masters, and you would bo raising your journal high in the 
scale of usefulness, A City Eiuau. 
Such is the letter we have just received from a gentle- 
mau wlioin wo know to he a man of sterling sense, and 
an indulgent master, but we are glad in the conviction 
that there are not many cases similar to his own, for 
wo have little power to help the employers of such 
gardeners as our friend endures. We cannot under¬ 
take the office of censor of gardeners, any more than 
we can undertake to educate them. All that wo profess 
to do, is to prepare weekly information appropriate to 
the season, conformably to the best gardening know¬ 
ledge of our time, and to answer such questions as are 
addressed to us. 
That information, and the answers to such questions, 
are given by some of the best practical gardeners of the 
day; and we can state, without any possibility of con¬ 
tradiction, that whoever has adopted their recommen¬ 
dations carefully, never failed in obtaining his object. 
Now, if a gardener, who has had none of the advantages 
which are possessed by our departmental writers, thinks 
that he knows as much as they do, and spurns at the 
information they can give, we can only pity him as a 
man that of all otliers is most hopeless of being im¬ 
proved, for ho is not only ignorant, but is ignorant of 
his ignorance. Such a man, perhaps, will be surprised 
to hear, that there is a correspondence continually 
being carried on between the most skilful of Rritish 
gardeners, who seek from cacli other advice, and sugges¬ 
tions, and information, when they are carrying out new 
plans, and when they encounter diificulties. Such men 
come also to The Cottage Garheneu’s pages, and one 
of the most distinguished of them has said that he 
never took up one of our numbers without benefiting 
by some of its information. 
We claim no especial merit for tins, because from the 
worst of publications some instruction must be gleaned. 
Above all, we have not the presumption to attempt to 
instruct gardeners. We address ourselves to the 
amateur, and we advise him, as in the case before us, 
never to attempt to teach bis gardener. There are 
always modes of conveying our wishes, without making 
it conspicuous that a man does not know his business, 
and if he carried our wishes into efiect, we should never 
enquire whence he derived the ncccssai’y knowledge, or 
what means be adopted. He may have plans of his 
own, and whilst wo are quite alive to what results the 
master has a right to require, we are quite as sensible 
that as the responsibility of failure rests iqion tbo 
gardener, the means to be adojited should be left to him. 
Mrs. Ashton 8mythe, it is said, requires grapes in the 
desert every day of the year, and Mr. Sanders, the 
gardener at Tidworth, regularly supplies the demand, 
but bis employer never thinks of dictating how it shall 
be done. Jf however, Mr. Sanders did not know how 
to effect such a succession, and refused to be instructed 
how Mr. Fleming, of Trentham, accomplishes the same 
object, then we should say he failed in his duty, and 
was unworthy of his position. 
COVENT GARDEN. 
I MUST not forget that in my last paper I promised 
to refer more at length this week to several subjects 
that were only alluded to in the report of last. And of 
these, the first we shall notice arc those varieties of fruits 
which arc most likely to bo soonest over, and which are 
not likely to come under our observations again this 
season. The Ilessle Pear, which we referred to last 
week, and which wo observed is not “ Hazel,” as written 
by Lindley, nor “ Hessel,” as in the Horticultural So" 
ciety’s Catalogue, is a variety which was first discovered 
at the village of Hessle, near Hull, in Yorkshire. It 
does not rank as a first-rate pear, nor is it to be com¬ 
pared to many others of the same season ; but being an 
immense bearer, and a respectable-looking article for 
the popular eye, it is admirably adapted for market- 
gardeners and orchardists. The tree is of very gi’aceful 
liabit, liaving slender pendulous shoots, of a very dark- 
purplish-black colour, and may easily bo distinguislmd 
from every other variety by its characteristic appearance. 
TiOmse d'Avranches, and not “ Jjouise Donne do Jersey,” 
as it is now erroneously called, is one of the very host 
and most delicious of our autumn desert pears. There 
have been a few of them in tlie market during tlie 
week, but ere our next report is written tlieir season 
will bo over, ft is generally stated, by writers on pomo¬ 
logy, that the origin of this variety is unknown; and 
having been introduced to this country from Jersey 
under the name of “ liOuiso Donne,” it was, to distin¬ 
guish it from the old TiOuiso Donne of Dubamel, called 
“ I.ouise Donne of Jersey.” Dut its proper name is 
Louise d’Avranches; and all who value correctness of 
nomenclature, may take my authority, if they think it 
worth taking, for stating that it was raised by a M. f.on- 
gueval, of Avrauches, and the original tree is still in 
existence in the garden Rue St. Germain, and now in 
the possession of M. Le Clcrc. 
Of Apples there has been a good supply during .the 
week, and the demand has been very brisk, Sorts, 
which the week previously made 2s. Cd. and 3s. per 
bushel, have last week been sold for -Is. and 5s. And 
who do our readers imagine is the cause of this great 
and sudden rise? The ilichaclmas goose. “ I could a 
sold twice as many as 1 had, sir, if f could a got ’em,” 
said a salesman to me. “ I never sec things go off as 
they did, never, all nnj life.” The sorts which were in the 
market were— Emperor Alexander, Alfriston, Ilanwcll 
Souring, Golden and 117/iter Pearmains, Scarlet Pearniain, 
Nonsuch, and many lots of mixed varieties. 
The Dears which have been most j)lentiful, arc 
Bishop's Thumb, but they were generally very small, 
and inferior in quality, their ilavour being styptic. 
Swans Eggs have made their appearance, but only to 
a small extent; there being only a few bushels of them 
ofl'ered. Everybody knows tlie Old Swan's Egg, as one 
