The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1879-02-12
AGRICULTURAL
IT he Moral Influence ofFIor;cu,,ur;


At the last annual meeting of the Oh,
state horticultural Society, Rev. A. C. Ba
rows, of Kent, o.. delivered a lecture on IN,
above topic. In our report of that meeting
we gave brief outline of the lecture, which
very lmperfectly represented the beautiful
thoughts expressed in glowing words. The
whole lecture is powerful argument for
esthetic culture and deserves a wider dis
seminatlon than it will get through the med
ium OF an official report, simply. We give
tne opening paragraphs, as follows:
am gao to speak to you on this subject
-nrst, because OF my interest in it; then as a
proof, by way of example, that the time has
passed when men OF my profession regard
home ornamentatlon as one of those yani
ties from which righteous mans ewes are
TO be devoutly turned away and also because
the existence of horticultural societies and
the recurrence OF their meetings are a de-
monstration that considerable degree of
agricultural prosperity has already been at.
tanned. Nature abounds in ornament. Nav
not rather say she delights in it? If mature
IS not utterly lifeless, soulless, heartless. If
she is pervaded by intelligence, we NAV saw
that she loves adornment; that she deiiebts
IN establishment, is lavish even in expendi
ture OF beauty. Nature is gorgeous, gentle,
brilliant, mild, magnificent, soft, variegated'
an at once, out each, by turns, most promi.
A.
terials the embodiment of beauty. Ont of
water, for example, she fashions the floating
wells OF clouds, the majestic masses of the
thunder's chariot. the sparkling surface of
ponds or rivers, the waving limbs and spark
ling feet OF cataracts, the gorgeous shows of
ice covered trees, the floating crystals of
snow, the imitable wreaths and traceries OF
frost-w work.
Thus it is That in nature the useful is clothed
with the ornamental; the most essential is
the lurking place of beauty. But nature has
done even more than this Not only ia the
serviceable absolved into the catalogue of the
beautiful, but flowers are proof that she
seeks pure adornments. Their colors show
her desire to charm the eye; their forms her
regard to elegant proportion; their fragrance
prove her determination to crafty another
sense; their numbers and variety show that
she is willing to be lavish of beauty: their
omnipresence reveals her unwillngness that
any portion of earth should be destitute of
charm. The question, elias Horticulture
any influence upon mans character ?" is
therefore only specialized form of the more
general question, "Has the beauty of nature
any moral influence different from what it
would be if everything were bald, desolate.
lonely, harsh, colorless and unattractiye.
though just as useful as now, if all colors
were dull ard leaden, if fields of waving
grain were not beautiful, II the tints of sun.
set were disagreeable, if moonlight and star
light were painful, if snowhakes and birds
were ugly, If motions were ungraceful. and
figures dsproportioned, if flowers and water
falls were homely? Mems characters, if
formed under such influences. would surely
be far more defective than now. Would yoa |
consent to have your children educated amid |
such tormenting. surroundings? Would |
your wife be as charming companion as
now if in early years her temper had been
fashioned by the everlasting vexation, discon-
tent and fretfulness aroused by such world?
l believe there is and could be no gospel to |
develop sweet dispositions in men whose
every hour was embittered by something
awry In the sights, sounds, edors and mo-
tions of the world. The question then which |
is before US is only branch of the general
question, "What is the moral influence of |
the beauty of natureT' Among those |
things which nature most prominently uses |
for decorative purposes are flowers. If then
we join with her in this decorative work.
what influence on our characters may the
flowers and the cultivation of them be ex-
pected to produce?