24 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
January  14,  189?.  s"} 
benefited  by  the  colonial  enterprise  of  Britain,  for  ha*  it  not 
provided  a  market  for  their  good*  and  a  home  for  those  who  seek 
their  fortunes  in  distant  lands,  where  the  security  of  a  protecting 
arm  gives  the  necessary  incentive  to  exertion  ?  Gardeners,  among 
other  classes,  have  largely  benefited  by  these  advantages,  for  when 
the  outlook  at  home  has  not  been  encouraging  they  have  sought, 
and  not  in  vain,  their  fortunes  in  other  climes.  Their  cultural 
knowledge  and  grasp  of  detail  has  often  in  such  instances  speedily 
secured  for  them  important  posts.  Others,  whose  inclination  ran 
in  the  direction  of  owning  a  “  bit  of  land  ”  of  their  own,  have 
succeeded  by  unflinching  perseverance  in  establishing  themselves 
upon  their  own  farm  or  fruit  garden,  there  to  gather  the  fruits 
of  their  early  labours  till  the  end  of  their  days.  The  stream 
of  emigration  continues  to  flow,  and  although  at  times  we  hear 
tales  of  woeful  failure,  I  think  if  we  could  trace  such  failures  to 
their  true  cause  we  should  find  but  little  reason  for  surprise. 
Failures  we  see  at  home  in  plenty,  but  the  man  with  “grit,” 
health,  and  a  clear  head  usually  manages  to  keep  his  head  above 
water. 
I  claim  in  my  humble  way  to  be  a  student  of  human  nature.  It 
has  always  been  my  hobby  to  mark  well  the  men  I  come  in  contact 
with.  Should  one  of  those  individuals  whom  some  call  “  lucky  ” 
cross  my  path,  I  find  a  good  opportunity  for  mental  notetaking, 
and  during  the  process  I  invariably  notice  that  the  so-called  lucky 
one  has  that  undefinable  “something”  about  him  that  must  lead 
to  distinction  in  one  direction  or  another.  These  lucky  ones 
could,  I  think,  often  tell  us  of  struggles  and  exertions  that  do  not 
appear  upon  the  surface,  neither  are  they  recorded  by  word  or  pen. 
We  are  all  perhaps  too  much  inclined  to  think  the  dark  days  of 
adversity  will  last  for  ever.  The  failing  of  the  age  seems  to  be 
the  want  of  a  strong  spirit  of  hope,  and  in  my  own  mind  I  doubt 
not  that  this  deficiency  is  the  cause  of  failure  with  not  a  few  ; 
certain  it  is  that  given  two  men  with  equal  advantages,  ability,  and 
tenacity  of  purpose,  the  one  with  the  greater  amount  of  hopeful¬ 
ness  will,  in  the  battle  of  life,  leave  the  other  far  behind.  How 
necessary,  then,  it  is  for  us  all  to  cultivate  the  habit  of  looking  on 
the  brighter  side  of  life.  No  matter  how  dark  our  prospect*  may 
be,  there  is  always  a  brighter  side  ;  and  the  blackest  clouds  have  a 
habit  of  passing  quickly  away,  to  be  followed  by  the  full  tide  of 
bright  prosperity. 
At  the  beginning  of  each  year  it  is  especially  desirable  for  all  to 
ook  forward  in  anticipation  of  a  prosperous  time.  Horticulture, 
like  agriculture,  has  been  passing  through  a  long  period  of 
depression  ;  happily,  however,  signs  are  not  wanting  that  the 
clouds  are  breaking.  The  value  of  land  is  steadily  increasing,  and 
many  uncultivated  farms  are  being  taken  in  hand  again.  We  also 
hear  from  various  sources  that  the  nursery  trade  is  in  a  fairly 
prosperous  condition.  These  things  are  as  little  gleams  of  light  to 
horticulturists  who  have  long  been  watching  for  such  welcome 
signs.  These  signs  will  also  be  especially  welcome  to  those 
gardeners  who  are  still  “looking  for  an  engagement,”  many  of  whom 
are  perhaps  well  nigh  weary  of  the  waiting.  ’Tis  a  sickening  task, 
■till  the  turn  of  the  tide  must  come,  and  he  who  stick*  close  to  duty 
will  assuredly  reap  in  »ome  way  hi*  reward. — Onward. 
PRECEPT  AND  PRACTICE. 
In  the  “  Canterbury  Tales  ”  Chaucer  describes  a  certain  dame 
as  one  “  who  often  took  lqave,  yet  was  loth  to  depart.”  This 
aptly  expresses  my  feeling#  on  being  called  back  to  a  congenial 
theme  by  the  hint  courteously  conveyed  at  the  end  of  “  The  Gar¬ 
dener's  Path”  (page  554,  December  10th,  1896).  It  would  ill 
become  me  not  to  respond,  and  at  least  try  to  furbish  up  some  little 
things  from  memory’s  storehouse  as  helps  to  our  young  men  who 
are  training  and  being  trained  in  the  glorious  vocation  of  a 
gardener. 
I  must  confess  to  having  been  a  little  mystified  when  considering 
the  lines  upon  which  to  proceed,  and  as  it  would  not  do  to  set  out  in 
a  mist  I  begged  of  an  older  boy  to  throw  a  light  upon  the  subject 
from  his  lamp  of  experience — to  define  the  boundaries  of  our  pere¬ 
grinations  in  the  pursuit  and  acquirement  of  knowledge,  and  we 
must  thank  him  for  his  illumination,  which  again  sets  us  going 
without  any  danger,  I  think,  of  getting  lost  in  the  fog. 
Probably  we  shall  not  follow  the  subject  upon  strictly  ortho¬ 
dox  lines,  nor  upon  those  more  sharply  defined,  over  which  you 
are  being  ably  conducted  by  the  most  experienced  guides,  such  as 
those  who  point  the  way  in  “  Hardy  Flower  Notes,”  Orchids, 
Roses,  Chrysanthemums,  fruit  culture,  and  the  principal  features 
of  elementary  or  up-to-date  gardening ;  but,  as  an  old  hand 
described  his  method  of  planting  as  “  zigzagging,”  we  will 
“zigzag,”  and,  I  trust,  set  down  many  little  things  which  may  be 
both  useful  ajnd  ornamental  in  our  vast  field  ;  so  vast,  indeed,  that 
diffidence  shall  not  prevent  me  in  again  tuning  my  pipes  for  that 
long  dance  I  fain  would  lead  you. 
Having  caught  the  flashes  from  my  esteemed  illuminator’s 
lamp,  they  may  be  turned  on  here  to  show  the  way  better  than 
any  further  preamble  of  mine  would  do.  I — an  Old  Boy — asked 
Mr.  Older  Boy,  as  before  mentioned,  to  define  the  boundaries  of 
this  fresh  survey  ;  what  he  sees,  what  he  does  not  see,  and  what 
he  says  are  as  equally  worthy  of  your  attention  as  they  have  been 
of  mine  ;  therefore  mark,  learn,  and  inwardly  digest  the  following> 
I  beseech  you. 
“  I  should  not  like  to  try  and  limit  the  boundaries  of  the 
illimitable — education.  I  can  see  no  boundary  but  the  grave,  if 
that.  The  gardeners  of  the  future  must  be  accomplished  ;  must  be 
educated  in  head,  hand,  and  heart  ;  as  proficient  as  they  can  make 
them*elves  in  the  arts  and  sciences  bearing  on  their  vocation. 
They  must  be  educated  in  discretion,  learn  to  know  themselves 
and  others  whom  they  serve  or  with  whom  they  associate.  Educate 
themselves  in  the  amenities  of  life — in  demeanour,  conversation, 
and  correspondence  ;  also  in  botany,  etymology,  vegetable  physio¬ 
logy,  geology — at  least  in  part  ;  in  the  laws  of  nomenclature,  and, 
in  fact,  in  everything  bearing  upon  their  duties,  and  in  the 
building  up  of  themselves  as  men  ;  in  arithmetic,  for  accounts  ; 
mensuration,  and  estimates  in  planning,  drawing,  and  execution; 
in  the  use  of  all  kinds  of  instruments  pertaining  to  the  art,  from 
the  spade  and  the  hoe  to  the  compasses  and  pen.  They  must  be 
skilled  artificers  in  everything  within  the  scope  of  their  duty, 
regarding  all  work,  light  or  heavy,  at  the  desk  or  on  the  land,  as 
intellectual  work,  and  glory  in  it.  It  is  only  then  that  it  will  be 
pleasurable,  and  only  when  it  is  so  can  the  highest  excellence  be 
attained.  For  this  all  may  and  should  strive,  and  those  who 
approach  the  nearest  to  an  ideal  of  scientific  and  practical  com¬ 
petency  are  the  best,  the  most  esteemed  men,  and  the  best  of  either 
men  or  material  always  did  and  always  will  find  the  way  to  the 
front.” 
“There  is  a  loud,  wild  cry  of  ‘too  many  gardeners.’  It  is  a 
hollow  sound — a  fallacy.  There  are  too  many  calling  themselves 
gardeners,  which  is  quite  another  thing.  But  how  is  all  this 
multifarious  kno'wledge  for  the  making  of  real  gardeners  to  be 
obtained  ?  There  must  be,  first,  desire — strong  yearning,  fed  by 
ambition  ;  secondly,  keen  cultivated  powers  of  observation.  Then 
acquired  quickness  of  perception  and  retention  of  impressions. 
Diligence,  not  of  the  common  fitful  order,  but  the  much  rarer 
constant  kind,  which  difficulties  strengthen.  In  the  pursuit  of 
these  attributes  health  must  be  maintained  as  far  as  possible  by 
prudent  habits  of  life.  Among  the  real  obstacles  of  life  one 
of  the  greatest  is  self-sufficiency  in  knowledge,  which  means 
ignorance ;  another  is  over-indulgence  in  pleasures  of  a  sporting 
nature.  If  bad  habits  cannot  be  prevented  or  overcome  their 
victims  must  be  swamped  in  the  great  deep  *ea  of  lost  opportu¬ 
nities.” 
I  mmt  claim  the  indulgence  of  Mr.  Older  Boy  for  having 
turned  this  powerful  light  upon  our  course  to  its  fall  extent — that 
is,  so  far  as  the  ray*  were  revealed  to  me.  How  much  candle  power 
there  might  be  in  reserve  I  will  not  contemplate,  but  to  our  readers 
no  apology  need  be  tendered,  for  I  would  not  have  deprived  them 
of  one  ray — one  light  or  shadow — he  has  thrown  upon  the  subject. 
And  now  young  travellers  I  move  that  we  adjourn  ere  I  trim  my 
flickering  taper  by  which  precept  and  practice  may  be  zigzagged 
through  the  daily  planting  of  a  young  gardener’s  life.  In  doing  so 
I  have  heard  more  than  one  of  you  propose  a  hearty  vote  of 
thanks  to  our  experienced  illuminator,  which  is  gratefully  seconded 
by— An  Old  Boy. 
(To  be  continued.) 
