The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1885-12-16

nicely washed" They did so, and got
very much interested. Formerly there
used to be the greatest uproar in the
school-room at noon-time, but now
they would not run about it for fear
they might knock some of these plants
out If the window and destroy them.
1 remember one of the toughest and
most uncouth boys had in the school
knocked one of these pots down and
broke it, and he Immediately sat down
and began to cry. / went to him and
said Don't; it is your plant; it is not
mine; you can bring another one, and
it will be all right" do not think any
thing ever did in that school so toned
down the rough boys in it as getting
those plants there. This was done at
Lachine, and they had very many holi-
days down there; and when it was cold
on those days we required fire to keep
the plants from freezing. The trustees
said they would give us coal for it if the
boys would take turns in keeping the
fire up. This was agreed to, and each
boy, when it would be his turn, would be
there early in the morning and get the
place warm. Then when the SPRING
time came we took small portion of
the yard, and l got the boys to clear it
of stones, to bring manure up there,
and to fix it up nicely. They then went
and got seeds themselves-theirp parents
gave them to them-and we took some
geraniums that were in full bloom and
planted them out there; and then the
children went to the St. Lawrence,
which was not far, and brought water
in pals and kept them watered. am
now endeavoring, along with one of
our trustees in Renfrew, to have plants
set out in the school-ground there. We
have them already introduced into the
school-room, and now we are going to
try them in the open ground; and a
prize has been offered by our agricul-
tural association for the best collection
of flowers that have been raised in
school-grounds.
Mr.. BEADLE.-I never taught school
in my life; but the more / think of it
the more l think there is great need of
something being done in this direction.
l have believed what Mr.. Wright has
said without having seen it or having
it come as directly to me as Mr.. Wright
has given it this evening-that the re-
suit would be beneficial upon the school
discipline, beneficial upon the chill
dren, particularly the boys, in toning
down their natural roughness. 1 think
think it would be beneficial in creating
a taste in both boys and girls for plants
and flowers. l think that that taste
would last them longer than their
school-days, that it would grow with
their growth and strengthen with their
strength, and that when they have
homes of their own they will want to
adorn those homes and make them
pleasant and attractive, because they
have learned the lesson of beauty in
their school days and in their school
grounds; and l believe that is as much
a part of the education that we need to
give our children as teaching them
their A B C's or teaching them their
three RS. Now what we can do in
this matter is what is agitating my
mind. / have no occasion to think as
to whether it is desirable to do. / can
find places where there are farmers
well off, comfortable as can be, but if
you want to 90 TO the front door of their
house you will have to go through the
pui y dlu W SCu thClC' hHOW oCNCldi
such places. l think we can have a
better taste than that; and I believe
that if we can only establish little
more taste among our rural population,
so that our farmers will plant some
trees about their houses, and perhaps
some flowers also, and so that we can
get them to plant some roadside trees,
too, we shall get the whole country so
transformed in its appearance-nice
lawns and tlower-beds surrounding our
farmers residences, pleasant shade
trees, our roads without fences, as in
some parts of Europe that the value
of our farms will be increased more
than they can be in any other way. /
do not think, however, that we can ac-
complish that with the older heads; we
have to wait till another generation
grows up. Therefore l am strongly of
opinion we must go into our schools
and begin there, and see whether in
them we cannot bring out a taste for
flowers and agriculture which will de-
velop and grow. l believe if we could
make our school grounds beautiful we
would gain great point.