Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1891-01-10
GARDENS AND BOYS.
l.. the Country Let Thorn Have IA Con-
siderable Plot of Ground.

l.. the Country Let Thorn Have "a Con-
siderable Plot of Ground.
BY all means let the boy have a gar
den. If it be only bunch of sun.
flowers in six feet square city back
yard, let him have something of his
own to plant and watch the growing Of
But if you live in the country, you
can let him have a considerable PLOT of
ground, where he can raise flowers and
also edible vegetables Nothing will
ever taste so good to him as his own let
tuce and beats and radishes.
Don't imagine for a moment, how
ever, that your boy, unless he be gen
ius. will know how to take care of these
plants of his. No matter how much he
loves them, he will require good many
hours of careful teaching and training
before he is allie to do efficiently even
his small duty by his garden patch.
The trouble is that boys love SO many
only, or their lessons only, or ball play
ing only, or stamp collecting only; but
it is with them as with the perplexed
lover-"How happy could they be with
either were t'other dear charmer away!"
1t is a good deal more trouble to see that
the boy keeps his garden well than it
would be to keep it yourself; but it is
good deal of trouble to bring up boy
right anyhow, and that is something
that mother might as well understand
at the outset. Those who try to do it
by easy means generally rue it with an
guish of soul in the end.
II never knew boy who was fond of
a garden" said wise man who had
brought up many boys, "to go far astray.
There seems to be something about work.
ing the soil and loving its products that
does the boys good morally as well as
physically" And honest Jan Ridd says:
1.-The more man can fling his arms
around Natures neck, the more he can
lie upon her bosom like an infant, the
more that man shall earn the trust and
love of his fellow men," Again he says:
"There is nothing better fitted to take
hot tempers out of men than to go gar
dening boldly in the spring of the year.
And every one who has tried this can
testify that it is true.
A certain little boy, who left garden
at home to take trip with some friends,
wrote home to his mother, 81 am hav.
ing splendid time, but I wish every
morning that l was sitting on my little
green cricket in the hack yard, watching
my plants grow This little boy always
thought that some time, if he watched
closely enough, lie should see a flower
open, but, beyond a few four
o'clocks, he has never witnessed this ever
recurring but nagically secret phenom-
enon.
If possible, supply your own table
with your boys produce at ruling mar
ket rates, having it well understood be-
forehand how the money will be ex-
pended.
Praise whenever you consistently can;
offer prizes for the best fruits, flowers,
and vegetables, if you have several boys
at work; and in every way treat the EN-
terprise with MS Iteration and respect.
Many boy W no has put his best efforts
into his garden loses heart when he hears
it sneered at or made light Of. Your
garden? Oh dear! | never thought of
that! What does that amount to-"
1t can not he too early Impressed upon
n boy that " hatever he does should be
done we'll. Therefore make his garden
seem as important as you can without
dwelling undulv upon it; and remember
that the physica! and moral effects of
the garden are not all. The informa-
ton that boy gets from it concerning
varieties of seed and soil may be invalu-
able to him later on.