THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, Jtro 10, 1860. 
227 
wo have declined allowing young ladies to inscribe our patronymic 
on their lists, for reasons best known to ourselves. Another 
being in white muslin, sprinkled with what appeared to be the green, 
scarlet, and gold, of butterfly wings, wearing a golden zone around 
her waist, employed herself very industriously as a “flying” 
stationer. Like most of that class who follow such loose, undis¬ 
ciplined occupations, she took to gambling, when she sold off 
her stock of note paper and envelopes. We were sorry to see 
her addicted to such propensities, as we had expected better 
things. Leaving her to her own reflections (before a pocket 
mirror), we again retreated under the caro of our “guide, philo¬ 
sopher, friend,” who rescued us on the first occasion. Tlierewas 
a weighing chair upon which to seat fat gentlemen of fifty, and 
ladies who have despairingly relinquished the art and mystery of 
compressing their lungs by stay machinery, having resigned that 
healthful (?) amusement in favour of their daughters, who would 
be very glad if some engine could be invented or discovered by 
which women could go without waists altogether, and become 
things of steel and tape, and hooks and eyes, and any horridity 
that would hide the inimitable outline of their own beautiful 
forms, strangle their development, and distort them to any 
monstrosity by which Nature’s loveliness in them would be 
entirely lost. 
One of the most amusing features of the place was a post office, 
where you could go and have a letter delivered through the 
window on payment of the small sum of 6d. Fair maidens went 
there in plenty. Some good jokes were well played. “ Con¬ 
firmed ” bachelors were presented witli the loveliest of blue-eyed 
flaxen-haired daughters, and cradles to put them in, mark that! 
whilst they, in their turn, retorted by such slight articles as a pair 
of-, we forget their name; but tho parish beadle who was 
on duty in the grounds vyore a magnificent “ turn out ” of the 
same article, in glorious red plush. He was grandly “ got up,” 
was the beadle, in blue, gold, and scarlet, not omitting his spotless 
cravat, and his once equally spotless hose; he was great enough to 
march before an emperor, and his appearance does that amiable 
woman, Mrs. Beadle, the highest credit. They should have 
reserved a prize for the bearer of the parish mace, we are sure he 
would have won easily. 
There was a photographic apparatus on the ground, but the 
unpropitious state of the weather prevented much patronage. 
We directed our attention to the “understandings” of the fair 
sex, and found them at least as thick in the soles as the back of 
a dessert-knife ! What a blessing for themselves and posterity—- 
their own special posterity—if they would so far allow their 
feelings to be violated as to wear, in such seasons as the present, 
a quarter of an iuch of leather between the soles of their feet and 
the mud, wet, and puddle of the streets. But we must not be 
too fault-finding even for the benefit of their own health, or we 
may have to answer for it in a way more practical than pleasant. 
Great praise is due to all who took part in the day’s proceed¬ 
ings, but especially to the ladies, who undertook the duty of 
engrafting a bazaar on the Flower Show, and presiding at the 
stalls. Whatever the proceeds may be intended for, we hope the 
object may be attained. 
On Saturday the amusements were continued, and wound by 
a regatta, to which the Duke of Northumberland contributed 
£50 as prizes. 
Mr. Justice Halliburton was not at home, but Mrs. Halliburton 
was, and rendered every possible personal assistance. The Com¬ 
mittee who organised the proceedings are entitled to all praise. 
Two military bands were on the ground—namely, the Isleworth 
Volunteers and. the 3rd Middlesex Militia, under tlie direction of 
Mr. Backwell, the bandmaster of the regiment. 
MIXING RED LEAD WITH CABBAGE SEED. 
Ik the early part of this season there was something said by 
two correspondents in The Cottage Gardener on the plan of 
mixing red lead with Cabbage seed, to prevent birds from taking 
it. I may have read or heard of the plan before, but gave little 
attention to it until this season ; and can now safely state that 
the plan is really worthy of notice. The seed before it is sown is 
readily mixed with the dry red powder in a dish after a little 
shaking. The operation, of course, should be repeated on each 
different kind of seed. In my own case, having weak faith in the 
plan, I did not spare the seed, in consequence of which my seed¬ 
beds were too thick of plants. I have the same to observe re¬ 
specting Radish seed, of which birds are very fond; aud though 
they appeared on the beds, I think that they seldom did so a 
second time. I need hardly observe that the red lead plan is 
very simple, and saves much trouble in covering the beds with 
nets. 
While on this subject, I may put in a word in favour of birds, 
especially of sparrows, which farmers often poison by wholesale, 
because they are blamed with rooks for injuring their crops. 
This charge against both is sometimes true ; but, on the other 
hand, the loss is often abundantly made up by the great quantity 
of grubs and insects they devour, which if let alone might have 
destroyed whole crops. But sparrows and some other kinds of 
birds must be kept in bounds, especially in small gardens. Those 
are often wrongly blamed for eating the buds of Currants and 
Gooseberries in spring, while the damage is done by bullfinches. 
When sparrows are hard pressed for food in spring, before cater¬ 
pillars abound, they will attack tho green tops of Peas just above 
ground ; and, if not prevented, may soon destroy a whole crop. 
—J. WlGHTON. 
THE CULTURE OF THE MELON. 
We remember the time full well when a “Rock Melon” was 
thought much of, and it certainly has a very pretty appearance 
when weighing seven or eight pounds, and is uniformly rough 
with warts; but, alas! for its flesh, which, if tolerably well 
flavoured, is so immensely hard and crisp, as to call forth every 
exertion on the part of our masticators ; and this, added to its very 
indigestible qualities, allowed few persons to indulge in eating it. 
But, happily for us, we have now other varieties, melting, soluble, 
and highly-flavoured, and which are, without doubt, as whole¬ 
some as ripe Peaches. We allude here to the various kinds of 
Green-fleshed Melons, and will now make a few observations on 
their culture. 
No plant luxuriates more than this in a gentle bottom heat, to 
maintain which is a great secret of success, particularly in cold and 
ungenial seasons, such as we have recently experienced. There 
are many modes of management in this respect, some of which 
we will pass in review. 
1st. There is a system of heating by hot-water tanks, which 
does not find favour in our sight for Melons, except so far that it 
is safe and regular; but we like to have a bed of good rotten 
materials for tho roots to revel in, when the growth of the plants 
is much advanced. 
2 nd. The great objection to the old dung-bed is the un¬ 
certainty with which fermenting materials change their tem¬ 
perature, and of getting too warm—a difficulty that happens to 
most tyros in gardening, and which requires the watchful care of 
a good gardener to prevent. 
3rd. There is another plan of chambering, covering the pits 
with thin slates upon which the soil rests, and surrounding the 
pit with a fining of very hot dung. This is an excellent plan 
for very early work,'giving ample command of heat without 
danger from an excessive bottom temperature. 
But, for Melons to ripen in July and August, we like a bed, a 
good thick bed, of leaves, with linings of hot dung. These 
decaying form a mass in which the roots ramify and enjoy them¬ 
selves, and from the persistent and gentle warmth produced 
assist materially in the swelling of the fruit. 
In ungenial seasons the cultivator is frequently much perplexed 
by the damping which takes place at the collar of the plant, and 
extends in various directions to the foliage. We think it a fun¬ 
damental error to stop the shoots too soon, and it is one which 
lays the foundation of canker in the plant afterwards. We also 
think it important to elevate the plant in planting a little above 
the surrounding surface, in order that the drainage may be from 
and not to the stem. We stop our plants after they have grown 
four joints, and thus secure four shoots, which are trained to the 
four angles of tho fight, and form tho framework of our plant. 
These four shoots arc stopped when they reach the outside of the 
frame, and, producing laterals, they furnish the supply of fruit. 
We limit our crop for one fight to four in number, and thus get 
fine fruit. 
We do not hold with the use of much shading for Melons. 
We believe them to be children of the sun, and to delight in its 
influence. We would, therefore, never accustom them to arti¬ 
ficial shade; believing that by such treatment they will organise 
tissues capable of bearing the sun’s unmitigated influence, and be 
thereby maintained in the finest health and vigour. Plants, like 
ourselves, are creatures of habit; if we are screened from every 
wind we are all rendered liable to disease from the slightest 
