April 15, 1905. 
THE GA RDENING WORL D. 
309 
decide the policy and the wording of the rules of the associa-- 
tion. 
it is unspeakably superfluous for Mr. 15. to say “ not even a 
membership of the B.G.A. will give a man that experience, ” 
etc. The primary condition of eligibility is at least five years 
traininy. On that point no more need be said. It is plain 
enough for the understanding of the most unspeakable “ garden 
boy ;/ on whom Mr. 13. ever wasted expletives. 
But let us get down to the rock-bottom of the matter under 
discussion. 
Both "Fair Play'’ and “Foreman” seem to agree that 
premiums are unnecessary. Of course, we may take it as a 
fact that neither have held the enviable position of a head 
gardener in receipt of apprentices’ payments for tuition. Any¬ 
how, we are getting on. 
The next point is: Is it necessary for a lad to serve three 
years under conditions binding him to do so? Will he not 
leam as well and as quickly if lie is a free agent? I say Yes ! 
Those who agree, “ show hands.” 
" Foreman ” strongly recommends all boys to “ serve their 
time in a nursery. He also says: “ A man in the nursery 
learns both private and public work.” Does he? What is 
meant by “ private and public work ”? 
So far as my experience goes, except in the small establish¬ 
ments, men and boys work in departments. They may be 
changed, though rarely, from one department to another, but 
the custom in nurseries is for men to “go in ” for one depart¬ 
ment and to stick to it. Clearly, this is not conducive to all¬ 
round knowledge. 
Just a word with regard to examinations. “ Fair Play ” 
cannot for a moment seriously think it “ fair play ” to judge a 
man by his methods. Obviously, the only possible criterion of 
a man s ability is found in the results he is able to produce. 
Acting on Mr. Blair’s advice, I have read “ Cabbager’s ” 
letter at least twice more than necessary, hoping for’ a glimpse 
of the " little light ” spoken of, but have failed to catch the 
smallest degree of illumination. 
If the luminary himself, or the abnormally perceptive 
Mr. B., will kindly indicate the locality of the luminosity, I 
promise to pay particular attention to the directions. 
Homocea. 
Gardening as an Employment for Women. 
To the Editor of The Gardening World. 
Sir, My admonitions, chiefly thrown out. to parents and 
guardians respecting the unfruitful character of gardening as 
an employment for their daughters or protegees, have, I feel 
sorry, offended the finer sensibilities of one of the reader 
friends of “ G.W. If anything more than another makes me 
unhappy it is the consciousness that I have done something to 
make someone else unhappy. In this case I wish my friend to- 
regard my offence as an unpremeditated one—a concession I 
have no doubt a person of his rare gifts and opportunities, and 
a gentleman, forsooth, will readily acquiesce. In point of fact, 
theie is no need whatever for the waste of energy in emphasis¬ 
ing one s opinions to such an extent as my friend does. 
The question is: “ Is gardening, or is it not, a suitable em¬ 
ployment for women? ’ Our friend endeavours to make out 
that it is. Now, let us examine the matter as it stands, and 
on the strength of his own statement, and if the case has 
merits, why, no person will deny them. The woman gardener, 
sajsniy monitor, “can dig, trench, wheel barrows, stoke fires, 
etc , in fact, can perform the duties which are required of the 
ma e biped. . Does that accord with our opinion of a- woman’s 
ideal place in nature? I can hardly think it does. He is 
sure y little short of being included in the categorv of brute 
cieation who should stand and see his sister engaged in duties 
so epraved. . Can he have the ordinary feelings of humanity 
m is bosom if he did so? It is no reason whatever that his 
woman subordinate is willing to accept such a position. The 
question is the rightness or wrongness of the situation. Woman 
is the fragrant and fragile flower which fills the home with 
sunshine the blessed thing of all creation ; and yet in the 
twentieth centuiy wo have, forsooth, advocates who un¬ 
abashedly resist all claims to woman for her rightful in¬ 
heritance. 
I am also exceedingly sorry to know that among those who 
deny her this place, unique m the universe, she is herself an 
active agent. This is a pity, a pity much to be deplored, but 
not to be despaired. Man, commonly called for distinction, 
Hindus mas, has been endowed with reasoning and guidin" 
qua ities sufficient for, at least, the proper government of one 
woman. It is therefore incumbent upon us to use our powers 
ot persuasion to guide young girls from taking a course which 
is unsuitable for them morally and physically. 
Let us think how our late beloved Queen would view the 
woman gardener depicted by my monitor, deference to the 
multifarious Acts for woman’s protection from brutal ism and 
slavery enforced during the Victorian reign will answer this 
However, if our friend of the B.G.A. will have our sister to 
s iare gardening with him, let him have her in such a capacity 
that degradation is impossible. Let her work be of a nature 
that her finest sensibilities will not be intei’fered with, nor her 
womanly feelings obtused. This is an impossible position if 
le so desires her to take her turn in the mucky trench, or in 
the dung barrow. The thing is opposed to her nature never¬ 
theless her assurances to the contrary. 
Imagine the woman so engaged all day, coming home at 
eventide to tend to the duties of the sick room. Grim and 
mud-bespattered, hungered and ill-disposed to be gentle and 
kind, our heroine of the spade is destined to be a'menace to 
the comfort of the sick one rather than the soothing aimel 
that she otherwise is. The delicate and soothing touches^to 
the sick one’s pillow ; the countless graceful, attentive nothings, 
which belongs only to the artfulness of woman, to the patient’s 
couch and coverlet; and above all, the cooling touch of the 
gentle hand on the patient’s hectic brow, are vanished in the 
case of the woman who has been all day combating with force 
to overcome inertia. And is it to be wondered ; by no means. 
The best of her energies have gone forth in this combat, and 
too often little but an acrimonious residue is left for the benefit 
of others. 
Moieover, women have attempted and failed to show that 
they have any extraordinary capacities for gardening : of 
course, they never did positive harm to the interest of their 
fellows, nor have they in their employment reduced the garden¬ 
ing monthly'bill to any very material degree. But as afore¬ 
mentioned, this is not the point, but the relevancy or irrele¬ 
vancy of gardening as an employment for women. D. C. 
A Plea for the Birds. 
To the Editor of The Gardening World. 
>Mr, Now that the sights and sounds of spring are around 
us, and the time of the singing of birds has come, I was sur¬ 
prised to see in a Sussex paper the other day of the wholesale 
slaughter during the past winter of our beautiful and useful 
songsters. 
1 he Sussex Daily News says that during the past winter 
members of the Bodle Street and District Rat and Sparrow 
Club, near Hurstmonceux (Sussex), killed 1,145 rats and moles, 
40 stoats, 40 rooks, jays, bullfinches, magpies, and hawks, 615 
blackbirds, larks, and linnets, and 2,994 sparrows, starlings, 
grevbirds, and chaffinches. The member who secured most 
heads and tails got a prize of £2, the second a. sovereign, third 
15s. 6d., and fourth 7s. 6d. The rules of the club provide that 
a fine shall be imposed on members failing to' bring in twenty 
units every fortnight. Rooks, jays, bullfinches, magpies, 
hawks, and stoats count three points ; rats, moles, blackbirds, 
larks, and linnets, two ; sparrows, starlings, grevbirds, and 
chaffinches, one. 
I cannot sav that I have any sympathy with the rats and 
sparrows, for both are very destructive and must be kept 
within bounds. But even the malicious and mischievous 
sparrow does some good during the nesting time by feeding his 
babies on caterpillars and other creepers and crawlers that 
