DECEMBER. 
When winter winds are piercing chill, 
And through the hawthorn blows the gale. 
With solemn feet I tread the hill 
That overbrows the lonely vale. 
Alas! how changed from the fair scene, 
when birds sang out their mellow lay. 
And winds were soft and woods were green. 
And the song ceased not with the day. 
But still, wild music is abroad: 
Pale, desert woods! within you crowd: 
And gathering winds, in hoarse accord, 
Amid the vocal reeds pipe loud. 
Chill airs and wintry winds! my ear 
Has grown familiar with your song: 
I hear it in the opening year,— 
I listen, and it cheers me long. 
—Lounfelloic. 
"We all say that the early spring anti summer months 
of the year, when everything is bursting into life and 
sweetness, when every tree, shrub ancl plant is loaded 
with sweet promises of delicious fruits and fragrant 
flowers, are the most beautiful months of the year. 
But does it never occur to us that the old song, “ Don't 
you think that winters pleasanter than all,” was the 
correct sentiment ? Very few will answer yes to this 
query. A very pleasant writer says: "We are taught 
from babyhood to dread the winter as if he were some 
cruel, invisible being, delighting in doing harm, while 
the plain facts are that he is a jovial old fellow, with a 
warm, kind heart under a rough exterior, doing as much 
good in a seemingly clumsy fashion, and that we should 
not prosper without him." Vinter kindly comes to 
give our plants a rest after the labor of a year. Every¬ 
thing that grows needs rest. Animals work by day 
and rest by night, having alternate periods of a few 
hours each, differing only from plants, whose alternate 
periods of growth and rest are months instead of hours. 
Ve will, therefore, let them rest this month without a 
word that might possibly disturb their slumbers. 
There are, however, a few plants that never rest— 
house plants—plants that are connecting links be¬ 
tween the pleasures of the past and the hopes for 
the future. Of them we would say, let all within 
resemble, as nearly as practicable, all without, and be 
thoroughly torpid. The tendency is to stimulate growth 
before it is time; although the plant is evergreen it 
wants a little time to adapt itself to its new situation in 
order to- secure a perfect development later in the 
season. To this end water should seldom be adminis¬ 
tered, and only in small quantities. At the same time 
but little heat is required, while all the air that is pos¬ 
sible should be given them on pleasant, sunny days, 
when the temperature does not fall below the freezing 
point. This will make the plants hardy, and will enable 
them to better withstand the cold weather later on. 
The season of flowers having departed, we bid it a 
kindly good-bye; it was full of rare enjoyment, with 
just disappointment enough to make the pleasures doub¬ 
ly sweet. Success and failure must always go together; 
without the latter there would be no appreciation of the 
former. The value of life is enhanced by the certainty 
of death. Our flowers are not in reality, dead; they 
have only ceased to exist in their present forms: life 
left, and in good time it will manifest itself again, 
brighter and more beautuul than over. 
Ve now beg leave to say a few words for ourselves, 
which is not a common thing, neither do we often print 
what our kiud friends say of us. Complimentary greet¬ 
ings, letters full of thanks, praises and good wishes, all 
of which are very gratifying, come to us on every side. 
These tokens of friendship are fully appreciated, and 
doubly welcome because real—real from the fact that 
our subscribers are inducing their friends and neighbors 
to subscribe. 
One of the duties of the editor is to point to the ac¬ 
complishment of past promises, and to register new 
ones for future fulfillment; to express gratitude for the 
encouragement already afforded, and to state on what 
resources he depends for perpetuating and extending the 
countenance with which he has been so largely and 
liberally favored. 
By glancing over the pages of the present volume, the 
reader will obtain a better opinion of its value than can 
here be expressed. To a very great extent we have 
treated on the plants most commonly cultivated in gar¬ 
dens and living-rooms of the true lovers of flowers 
throughout the country; giving an occasional notice of 
new and rare plants that can only be grown in plant- 
houses'. Ve have endeavored to show some of the 
plant's hidden beauty, and to point out its true useful¬ 
ness in the economy of Nature. In all cases we have 
endeavored to give our readers information of a lasting 
character, something they will be glad to read again, in¬ 
stead of articles that are but pleasing for the moment. 
We have ever been of the opiniou that the plant, as a 
study, is far more beautiful and interesting than the 
flowers and fruit it produces. In this respect many of 
our readers agree with us, and many, perhaps, do not. 
We shall continue to gratify all tastes, at least try to, 
and in this work shall have contributions from the most 
practical and experienced florists in this country. We 
are pleased to say that some of them freely promise us 
contributions because they consider the Cabinet the 
best floricultural and family paper in this country. 
We shall, during the coming year, extend the scope of 
the Cabinet, and include in its pages short notices of 
new vegetables and fruits, at least such as are worthy 
of special attention; giving, when practicable, such 
cultural instructions as may be deemed useful. 
Perhaps no part of our paper has been more highly 
appreciated than our “Answers to Correspondents,” and 
we again extend to our subscribers a cordial invitation 
to ask for the information they desire; our answers shall 
be plain, concise, and the results of long practice, in 
all cases avoiding theories, and shall give the desired 
information in as few words as possible. It often occurs 
that the inquirers themselves assist us greatly in the 
answers; in such cases we take the liberty of publishing 
them in full. 
We desire to make the Cabinet a publication in 
which every lady can find something of personal inter- 
