August 29.] 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
WEEKLY CALENDAR. 
325 
M : W 
D 1) 
AUGUST 29 —SEPTEMBER 4, 1850 . 
Weather near London 
in 184Q. 
Sun 
Rises. 
Sun 
Sets. 
Moon 
R.&S. 
Moon’s 
Age. 
Clock 
bef. Sun. 
Day of 
Year. 
29 Th 
St. John Baptist beheaded. Martins collect on 
T. 
72°—65°. 
N.W. 
Fine. 
9 a. 5 
53 a. 6 
10 a. 2 
22 
0 
49 
241 
30 F 
Red Bryony Berries ripe. roofs. 
T. 
76°—60°. 
S. 
Rain. 
11 
51 
10 38 
€ 
0 
31 
242 
31 S 
Peaches ripe. [Butterfly seen. 
T. 
75°—53°. 
N. 
Rain. 
12 
48 
11 22 
24 
0 
13 
243 
1 Sun 
14 Sun. aft. Trin. Giles. Clouded Yellow 
T. 
69°—58°. 
E. 
Rain. 
V 
25 
6 
1 2 M 
jLondon burnt, 1666 , O. S. Barberries ripe. 
T. 
77°—52°. 
s.w. 
Rain. 
15 
44 
0 15 
26 
, 3 Tu 
Traveller’8 Joy flowers. 
T. 
80°— 58°. 
s. 
Rain. 
1 7 
42 
1 22 
2 7 
1 4 w 
Horticultural Society’s Meeting. 
T. 
76°-5S°. 
N.E. 
Fine. 
19 
40 
2 36 
28 
1 
3 
24 7 
Who ever knew a bad man fond of gardening? As far as our expe¬ 
rience goes, we think the universal reply must be — No one. It is quite 
true that paid officers of societies connected with gardening, and the 
cultivators of any one tribe of florists’ flowers, may be excepted ; for we 
have known in both these classes of amateurs characters wicked like him 
who Milton describes as, while “each passion dimm’d his face,” moving 
among the flowers of Paradise. Some of such men’s love of gardening 
may extend no further than is necessary to retain their salary; or, as in 
the case of one tulip fancier we knew, may proceed only so far as a love 
of fine colouring and to knowing, according to his own phrase, “my 
neighbour has no such flowers as these.” Such men are not among “the 
true lovers of gardening ; ” for these are such—and only such—as prefer 
to all other modes of existence, “ domestic life in rural pleasure pass’d.” 
One such was John Locke. What! Locke the metaphysical philo¬ 
sopher, the analyst of the human understanding, the regulator of our 
coinage, the arbiter of education, the advocate of Christianity, and the 
Scriptural critic ? Even so : Locke was all this, and more than all, for 
he was that rare character—a good man ever acting up to what he con¬ 
sidered his duty. Even he was a gardener too ; he could trace out the 
minutest ramification of philosophic reasoning, yet took delight in “ his 
garden with its many cares.” He was naturally very active, says his 
biographer; he loved walking, but not being able to walk much, through 
the disorder of his lungs, he used to ride after dinner; and “ sometimes he 
diverted himself with working in the garden, which he well understood.” 
It is not this love of gardening, however, nor even his spotless worth, 
that would entitle him to a notice in this brief nook of our pages, if he 
had not written upon the cultivation of certain plants connected with 
our appropriate subjects. 
In 16/5 Mr. Locke, fearing that his asthmatic symptoms tended towards 
consumption, travelled to the south of France, and resided long at Mont¬ 
pellier. Whilst there, he noted down all his remarks and knowledge 
acquired whilst visiting the neighbouring vineyards, olive-yards, and mul¬ 
berry plantations. These notes were eventually published, with the title, 
Observations upon the growth and culture of Vines and Olives : the 
production of Silk : and the preservation of Fruits. It is a very small 
pamphlet, but interesting, not only because from the pen of such a man, 
but because it is a faithful narrative of the culture of the vine at the time 
when he wrote. Do any of our readers know this grape which he thus 
describes ? “ Grumeau negre, or the Black Grumeau—an excellent 
large grape, very fleshy, and well enough tasted, of the fashion of a pear. 
RANGE OF BAROMETER—RAIN IN INCHES. 
Aug. 
1841. 
1842. 
1843. 
1844. 
1845. 
1846. 
1847. 
1848. 
1849. 
B. 
r 30.159 
29.959 
30.037 
30.138 
30.303 
30.010 
30.145 
29.995 
29.896 
129.920 
29.956 
29.964 
30.113 
30.271 
29.929 
30.097 
29.97<> 
29.927 
It. 
— 
0.52 
— 
— 
— 
— 
0.01 
0.01 
— 
30 
ft 
r 29.998 
30.011 
30.138 
30.182 
30.295 
30.172 
30.06.5 
30.050 
29.858 
\ 29.840 
30.003 
30.092 
29.127 
30.262 
30.095 
29.976 
30.022 
29.822 
R. 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
0.06 
31 
ft 
/ 29-844 
30.151 
30.195 
30.293 
30.288 
30.178 
30.009 
30.058 
29.864 
129.729 
30.137 
30.158 
30.278 
30.266 
30.132 
29.951 
30.029 
29.844 
R. 
0.02 
0.22 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
1.31 
0.26 
ft 
r 30.092 
30.003 
30.282 
30.380 
30.278 
30.261 
29.896 
30.284 
29-782 
V 29.991 
29.902 
29.943 
30.335 
30.200 
30.180 
29.723 
30.140 
29.675 
R. 
— 
0.46 
— 
— 
— 
— 
0.01 
— 
0.24 
B. 
f 29.843 
30.175 
30.333 
30.322 
30.179 
30.287 
29.967 
30.352 
29.745 
1 29.752 
30.075 
30.300 
30.1Q2 
30.168 
30.269 
29.768 
30.340 
29-684 . 
R. 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
0.04 
ft 
129.691 
SO. 203 
30.284 
30.097 
30.201 
30.280 
29.967 
30.362 
29.953 
1 29.439 
30.153 
30.200 
30.020 
30.185 
30.227 
29.698 
30.254 
29.874 
R, 
0.48 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
0.03 
— 
0.12 
K 
r 29-775 
30.197 
30.330 
29.977 
30.205 
30.233 
29-879 
30.174 
30.064 
129.444 
30.193 
30.256 
29.926 
30.180 
30.163 
29.827 
29.929 
30.030 
R. 
0.32 
0.01 
0.02 
0.02 
— 
■ 
— 
— 
— 
Insects. —We have to-day represented the Garden Tiger Moth ( Arctia , or 
Euprepia caja ), chiefly because some particulars concerning its caterpillar will 
answer more than one query relative to the voracity of such larva generally. 
The moth is given of its natural size ; its fore-wings are a reddish brown, 
irregularly marked with creamy white ; hind-wings, bright red, with blue- 
black spots; thorax, brown, with a red neck-band ; abdomen, red, with blue- 
black bars. It appears in July. The caterpillar from which it arises is found 
in June, and is very destructive when it. occasionally occurs in numbers on the 
strawberry and lettuce. They are dark brown, densely covered with reddish 
brown hairs, and so stiff and pointed arc these, that it has been suggested 
they might be administered like Cowhage to destroy intestinal worms. The 
skin, when cast, is very entire—-so much so, that if saved you seem to have 
ten dilfercnt specimens of caterpillars, yet. all representing the same indi¬ 
vidual. They are very voracious, and will eat fully twice their own weight 
daily, which is about the same as if an ordinary sized man were to eat 3 cwt. 
of food per day. This arises from their only retaining the juice of the leaf 
they cat; for if their excrement is put into water the shreds of leaf uncoil. 
One of these caterpillars weighing 36 grains voided daily more than 15 grains 
weight of excrements, yet its own weight only increased two grains daily. 
*^ 0/01 
I have seen one single grape of this sort which was in compass above 3i 
inches English measure, and in compass the long way 3j£, and weighed 
of their weights halt an ounce, one drachm, three grains, and all the rest 
of the grapes of the same bunch proportionable ; but I have not observed 
it ordinarily planted in their vineyards.” It is like having to epitomise 
a folio volume Avithin the circumference of a sixpence to mark the career 
of such a man within our brief space, but we cannot resign our pen 
without some further notice. His introduction to Lord Shaftesbury, by 
one ot those events we thoughtlessly term an accident, influenced all his 
after life. Admitted to an intimacy with him and the leading characters 
ot the day, they appreciated and submitted to the spirit of appropriately 
applied wisdom that ever characterised him. Upon one occasion, when 
the noblemen assembled adjourned t,o the card-table almost without con¬ 
versation, Mr. Locke sat by them with his pencil and pocket-book before 
him ; and the reason being asked, he replied. “ My Lord, I am endea¬ 
vouring to profit, as far as I am able, in your company ; for having waited 
with impatience for the honour of being in an assembly of the greatest 
geniuses of this age, and at last having obtained the good fortune, I 
thought I could not do better than write down your conversation ; and, 
indeed, I have set down the substance of what has been said for this 
hour or two.” He was not called upon to read much of this record ; but 
enjoying the jest, and feeling the justice of the ridicule, they quitted the 
card-table, and passed the evening more suitably. We need uot here 
dwell upon the years of exile he endured; for whether right or wrong in 
his political opinions, he acted conscientiously, was certainly guilty of no 
crime, except in the eyes of such a king as James II., and therefore 
rightly declined to accept a pardon from him. “I have no occasion for a 
pardon,” was his reply, “ since I have not been guilty of any crime.” 
Under William III. he met with such treatment as his surpassing merit 
deserved ; but he resigned his reward — his Commissionership of Trade — 
so soon as he became unable to perform its duties. The king personally 
pressed him to retain it as a sinecure; but Mr. Locke replied that he 
could not reconcile this with his conscience, and persisted in his resig¬ 
nation. He did not survive his retirement, from office more than four 
years; and in an Essex church, that of High Laver, this epitaph, pre¬ 
pared by himself, may tell the rest :— 
“ Stop, Traveller. Hard by lies John Locke. If you ask what kind of 
man he was, he answers—that he lived contented with his own mediocrity. 
When initiated in literature, he progressed so far as to contend for truth 
only. Learn this from his writings, 
which will shew you what remains 
of him more faithfully than the 
suspicious eulogium of an epitaph. 
He would set forth whatsoever vir¬ 
tues he had far less for his own 
praise than for an example to you. 
Let his faults only be buried. If 
you seek an example of morality, 
you have one in the Gospel,—of 
vices, I could wish, no-where,—of 
mortality, surely, one which may 
profit you, here and every-where. 
He was born a.d. 1632, August 
2qth ; and died a.d. 1704, October 
28 th.” 
Meteorology of the Week. 
From observations made at Chis¬ 
wick during twenty-three years, 
the average highest and lowest 
temperatures of these days are 70.5° 
and 49°, respectively. The great¬ 
est heat, 88°, was on the 1st of 
September, 1843; and the extreme 
cold, 38°, on the same day, 1841. 
Of the days, 95 were fine, and on 
60 rain fell. 
No. C., Vol. IV. 
