Welsh Journals

WALES Vol. IV.] APRIL, 1897. [No. 36. IN THE GARDEN AND THE HOUSE OF REST. By Edmund J. Baillie. II.—GARDENING. TN the February number I endeavoured ■*■ to indicate, in the introductory re¬ marks I was privileged to make, that these papers would not follow any consecutive order, as to con¬ tinuity of subject, nor would they be confined to any one aspect of the activities of life, but we would be permitted to go here and there, as occasion sug¬ gested or allowed, and I have thought that it Would be well, as the days are lengthening and Nature is thus early astir, to direct attention to the garden. It is a pleasant subject, and one which has an ancient history, for Bacon tells us two things about gardening. His essay on gardens, even in these modern times, seems to cover the full field. He says,— "God Almighty first planted a garden, and in¬ deed it is the purest of human pleasures ; it is the greatest refreshment to the spirits of man ;" and Ruskin too, in a very beautiful 7 73 Powys Castle. passage, in speaking of the blessedness, or the happiness, of life and occupation has said,— " To watch the corn grow and the blossom set, to draw hard breath over ploughshare or spade, to read, to think, to live, to hope, to pray,—these are the things that make men happy. They have always had the power of doing this, they never will have power to do more; " so that I bespeak a loving interest in and for the art and occupation of gardening. There is a great deal of beautiful literature upon this delightful theme, and it is difficult to choose from such abund¬ ant material what is best calculated for our more im¬ mediate needs and purpose. And what is our immediate pur¬ pose ? Well, I think, as I have just said.toarouse an interest in, and love for, the thing itself; and, afterwards, to allude briefly to some points affecting the formation of a garden its care and cultivation, and to say some-