employment of their faculties, cut off from the influences which would humanise and civilise them, actually driven into temptation, forced into vicious courses, then lectured on the exceeding depravity of their nature, and punished for the commission of crimes which, under other circumstances, they might have abhorred. It is said that many clergymen are shareholders in the garden, and that it is owing to their votes or influence that it is closed on Sunday. I most sincerely hope that the reverend gentlemen will be so severely mulcted by their own foolish policy, worthy only of the dark ages or of a savage country, that in the course of time more enlightened notions may penetrate their crania through the medium of their pockets.

I am straying however, though not very widely, from the more immediate object of this letter, which was to suggest, with all due deference to your superior knowledge and experience, an addition to the usual contents of a botanical garden. I am inclined to think that, if hot-houses, and the fruit department in general, formed a part of the plan, the garden would be much more efficiently supported than those establishments usually are. In a manufacturing town, there is only a small minority who can be brought to perceive the use of any thing which does not either help to put money into their pockets, or to procure some palpable pleasure of the senses. That science (except the department which invents spinning-jennies) or art should be included in the category of the useful, utterly passes their comprehension, for they have yet to learn that the use of all created existences is to form, expand, and elevate the mind of man. To such men, botany seems as useless as astrology, and a collection of ferns or Orchidàceæ as little to be prized as an assortment of weeds. But it will be found to be far otherwise with fruit; there are few palates so obtuse as to be insensible to the charms of the perfumed grape, or not to prize the melting and the juicy peach. Many there are, therefore, who would encourage the cultivation of fruit, who would think themselves mad were they to give a single shilling towards a mere botanical garden. I am not sure whether a compliance with my suggestion might not even double the number of subscribers.

I think, too, the plan would be useful for other reasons. If both the forcing department and the management of the walls, were, as they ought to be, scientifically attended to, they would form at once a school for the young men employed on the premises*, and a model which all gardeners in the neighbourhood might advantageously and with confidence consult. Secondly, an opportunity would be afforded of studying the varieties of

*By the way, might not a horticultural school be advantageously appended, by taking, on the payment of a premium, other young men besides those absolutely necessary to keep the grounds in order?

each fruit tree, of classifying and ascertaining the qualities of those already known, of introducing new varieties; and, lastly, of reducing into order the apparently impenetrable chaos of synonymes, which presents so formidable an obstacle to the successful cultivation of this department of horticulture.

In your Encyclopædia of Gardening you allude to the imperfect knowledge possessed of the varieties of the vine. Now, it appears to me, that, if those places where botanical gardens are established would generally attend to this subject, and communicate with each other and with the Horticultural Society of London, much might be done to clear up all such difficulties. Thirdly, besides increasing our actual knowledge, this plan would greatly facilitate the diffusion of new and superior varieties. Although the practice of forcing has of late years become much more general than formerly, and few gardens are now without glass, it is to be feared that the quality of the fruit has by no means kept pace with the quantity. In grapes, especially, most people in limited establishments seem to content themselves with Black Hamburg, and one or two of the commoner white sorts. One of the principal reasons why rare and valuable kinds are not more commonly cultivated is, undoubtedly, the difficulty of procuring them genuine from country nurseries. Their lists abound, it is true, in names, but their grounds are miserably defective in the reality; and certainly nothing can be more disheartening to a purchaser, than, after having paid a high price for pretended choice sorts, and after having watched them for years with anxious care, to find that both his money and his pains have been thrown away upon either common or worthless varieties. On a small scale, this has happened to me. A Cannon Hall turns out a Black Hamburg, a Black Lombardy the same; some apricots purchased for Moor Park are Brussels, and a Ribston Pippin is some other unknown sort. A gentleman in this neighbourhood, of great horticultural skill, has for years been making a collection of choice plums, but he has long given up applying to the nurserymen, finding, as he says, that they always send him something, which, though dignified with the appropriate name, partakes of the qualities of the sloe and the damson. His plan is, whenever he meets with fruit of which he approves, to get grafts, and transfer them to his garden. In this manner he has succeeded in procuring the Impératrice, from a noble tree at Darnington, which annually produces abundant crops. But, although this method may with advantage be followed by those who have great horticultural zeal and skill, it is evidently unsuited for persons who wish to attain the same results with less trouble, and in a shorter time. If, however, at Liverpool, Birmingham, Sheffield, Derby, and all other botanical gardens, there were extensive depôts of all the most

approved varieties of fruit, kept in pots, for the convenience of customers, both nurserymen and proprietors of gardens would have an opportunity of procuring them at pleasure, and with full confidence in their being genuine. Or it might be found more convenient for one garden to confine itself to grapes, while another took peaches, a third hardy wall fruit, &c. As to expense, I can hardly anticipate any material addition, for the sale of fruit and young trees would evidently repay a part, at least, of their culture, while it is also possible that the subscriptions might be so much increased as to leave a profit. The example set to the nurserymen of precision and care in the selection of the sorts, would be an important lesson to them, and of no small service to the conduct of their business. It is a common complaint among these gentlemen, I understand, that small encouragement is shown to them, except to a few of the most celebrated in the vicinity of the metropolis. If so, it must be their own fault. Let them show a good article, and they will be certain to find plenty of customers. When a nurseryman once establishes a high name, he has always more orders than he can execute. But, as the public become enlightened, they grow more and more intolerant of Peter Pindar's razors, made to sell, not to shave. In short, the dealer in fruit trees will find it his best policy to imitate the industry of the dealer in florist's flowers, and in ornamental plants in general.

I cannot conclude this long, and I fear tedious, letter, without adverting to the subject of agricultural seeds. To obtain in their highest perfection every plant used in agriculture is evidently an object of the first importance. How much yet remains to be done, even in vegetables the most extensively cultivated, is demonstrated by Colonel Le Couteur's experiments on wheat. That enterprising and skilful agriculturist has proved that not only the produce per acre, but the quality and quantity of flour to be obtained from a given portion of wheat, are influenced, to a degree almost incredible, by the purity of the seed; that is, by its being of superior quality, and of one and the same kind. He has also shown, in a masterly and satisfactory manner, the essential differences in yield, straw, quality, &c., among several varieties not usually known. Now, there can be no doubt, that, were the same process pursued with other vegetables, similar results would be obtained; and we should find that our commonly cultivated varieties of almost every field plant might be improved to an almost indefinite extent. Nothing would give me greater pleasure than if you, or any of your correspondents, would suggest some plan of effectually preserving the labours of such men as Colonel Le Couteur, and also of imitating his efforts by applying similar means to other vegetables. The problem seems to be, "How is pure

seed of the best varieties of known plants, as well as of species yet untried, to be produced with certainty, and on a scale adapted to the wants of the farmer?" It is from the art of horticulture, rather than from that of agriculture, that any such improvement will probably emanate. Messrs. Lawson have already furnished an important contribution, but who will continue their labours, by continuing to experiment on the most important plants in the Manual?

Near Doncaster, Dec., 1839.

ART. III. Observations on the present Appearance and Prospects of Gardening in the Canadas. By ALEXANDER GORDON.

HAVING Occasionally troubled you with some passing remarks on the state of gardening in the United States of America, I now send you some observations on the present appearances and prospects of horticulture in the Canadas. In the years 1833 and 1834 I lived in the upper province, yet my sphere of observation was too limited to warrant my then attempting anything like a general statement; but, during the past summer, I have traversed the provinces to the extent of from 1000 to 1200 miles, and I believe my tour included all those places where gardening has received any attention, further than the planting of an orchard, or growing a few culinary vegetables.

My tour in the Canadas commenced at the justly celebrated Falls of Niagara, and thence to the city of Toronto. From Toronto I explored the country on to Hamilton, and from the latter place I traversed the shores of Lake Erie, and ultimately on to Lake Huron. From Lake Huron I returned to Toronto, but by a different route; and from that city I continued my journey on to Montreal, diverging, of course, very considerably from any given route. During this wide range, I believe I embraced almost every town or village of any importance. You will perceive that in the following remarks it frequently occurs, that a large tract of country is passed over without receiving even the slightest notice; the cause is obvious. The duties imposed on settlers in a new country are very multifarious; and absolute necessaries must naturally give precedence to every other consideration. The clearing of lands occupies considerable time; and, even when there is a latent taste for the art, gardening will naturally be nearly, if not entirely, neglected, except so far as its productions are subservient to some useful purpose. But when the harassing fatigues of a new settlement are, in some measure, overcome, then the man of refined taste will follow the natural bent of his inclinations; and, in the soil where grew the sturdy oak, there the fragrant rose, the gay lily, and the showy tulip will display their beauties, and exhale their fragrance around. The former wilds will display the ornamented parterre, and the corduroy roads must yield to gravel walks. Still, these metamorphoses, as I before remarked, must be the result of time; and, as much of my tour was through a country which has been but very recently a desert wild, the barrenness of gardens will be easily accounted for.

I shall commence my observations at Lake Huron, but, for a considerable tract of the most fertile country in the provinces, I am sorry to say my field is narrow, nay, in fact, without a single place worthy of even a passing notice. The western district in the province of Upper Canada has peculiar advantages for horticulture, and I venture to prognosticate it will, at no far distant day, stand high in the cultivation of choice fruits and vegetables. When the settlers properly appreciate the benefits which horticulture, when systematically conducted, is capable of extending to a country; when wealth shall enable the community to call into active exertion the latent powers and susceptibilities

with which nature has gifted this rich gem of the British crown, then we may here expect to see the choicest fruits and vegetables growing in full perfection under the influence of a Canadian sun. This district, from its southerly position, enjoys the mildest and most genial climate in the British American provinces; while its soil, in respect to fertility, is equal to any which has come under my observation on any part of the American continent. To the agriculturist, the western district offers very powerful inducements. Independently of its possessing the great advantages of a rich and highly productive soil, and genial climate, it has also the finest natural situation in all the Canadas, for harbours and water privileges of the most excellent description; thus rendering it a grand emporium for the interests of agriculture, manufacture, and commerce. On the north, it is washed by the waters of Lake Huron; on the west, it is only separated from an extensive and wealthy tract of the American frontier by the river St. Clair, Lake St. Clair, and the Detroit; on the south, by Lake Erie, and on the east by the flourishing district of London; while its interior is traversed by two of the finest streams in the province.

Goderich.-Ten or twelve years ago, and this tract of land, termed the Huron tract, was literally untrodden by the feet of Europeans, yet such is the rapid march of British industry and perseverance, under the guidance of the Canada Company, that several Ĥourishing towns now exist on it; among which Goderich stands proudly preeminent, indicating a rapid march to wealth and refinement. The town is situated on the shores of Lake Huron, and I was agreeably surprised to find a few spots ornamented with some of Flora's beauties; and, what was well worthy of imitation, several indigenous species were flourishing most vigorously in one or more gardens. I spent some days in this part of the country with Mr. M'- -, a Scotchman, enthusiastically fond of gardening, and from whose precepts and example I anticipate a good result. It was truly gratifying to witness the kindness and unanimity existing among the inhabitants of this place; which prompt them to display the most friendly attention to strangers, thus at once attesting their own respectability, and that genuine British hospitality extends itself even to the forests of Canada.

Sandwich is a town of considerable size, but, to a gardener, it has not one interesting quality. Chatham, in like manner, is also quite barren as regards gardening productions. From this place, along the margin of the Thames, to London, the singularly favourable nature of the country induced settlers, at an early period in the history of the province, to locate in it; yet such has been the lethargy of the settlers, that even now it cannot boast of any one production peculiar to itself, except tobacco and a few fruits. I am happy, however, to say that, in the early part of 1837, an Agricultural and Horticultural Society was organised in the western district, from which much good was justly anticipated; but, like every public improvement in Upper Canada, it has been completely paralysed by the recent disturbances in the colonies. About twenty miles above Chatham, on the river Thames, I found a very flourishing Indian village, which displayed a degree of neatness and comfort rather uncommon among the aborigines. This was, I understood, attributable to the exertions of a clergyman established in the village, and who was indefatigable in promoting the temporal, as well as the spiritual, interests of this Indian community. Nearly opposite to this village, I came to a small natural opening. I had experienced high gratification, during the previous part of my tour, from the botanical treasures which had come under my observation; but in this sweet spot I found the beauties of a vast extent of country concentrated, as it were, into a focus, even some species I never before had found north of Virginia were flourishing here in great perfection. To expatiate on the richness of this spot, according to its merits, would occupy too much space, and, in fact, my descriptive powers are incompetent to the task; it would require the pen of poetic inspiration, properly to describe its unrivalled charms. I rambled admiring, until darkness obscured the diversified hues of the various species, and even then I could not leave the spot. To me it possessed an indescribable fascination; so, in order to renew my researches with Aurora's