Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1908-04-30
GARDEN PHILOSOPHY.

Every one who owns n spot of cartli
pines in the natural course Of events
for a large garden, and who attains
such blesscdness must bear tho brunt
of 1t since he, at any rate, has what no
wanted. But the owners of very small
gardens may solaco themselves by do
ing all the work of their garden in
person. ard that Is great gain in it.
self. Kidding one, as it does, of tho
frettins contact of other pcrsonalitio $
and opinions Then there is the in
timacy of a small garden. a boon not
masses OF color ana large effect by
planting by the thousand, but in plant-
ing by the half hundred or the dozen
one establishes a personal friendship
with each separate plant: one knows
the faces Of the pansies. the exact
height of the dclphlnums. and the
business OF the phloX. In "A very short
time indeed, may such relation be cs-
tablshcd in tiny garden as resulted in
the poets finer sense Of things:
THE Red Rose cries, She is near,
she is near
And the White Rose wcops, she is
laten
The Larkspur listens. I hear, hear
And the LILY whispers, Il wait
1t was doubtless merely the exigcn-
cies of ALTERATION that led the lark
spur TO listen in that case, for In the
main he is an active ana aspiring plant,
reminding one. as he overtops the gem
tie Madonna lilies and waves over
bushy phloXcy. somewhat Of an as
s.rtive rising democracy still proud of
Its peasants blouse. And how like
life, after all, is n garden, and what
excellent discipline and training it is
for general existence. Gardening, in
deed, often leaves youth impatient, un-
willing to have such obvious morals
pointed at 1t. and keeping ever some
where hidden In the depths of it's
abounding vitality tiny, secret hope
of the miraculous, faint expectation
that the order of the universe Will.
after all, reverse its course. and come
about somehow in favor of the per-
sCnal hopes. 1t was In tho very youth
of the world that the kings Of Mexico
were won't at their coronation. To
swear to keep all the laws of the land,
and make the sun continue his daily
course 1t Is somewhat hoary and
sober lesson that garden teaches;
what We SOW. that yo shall reap: and
the wisdom. the cannincss of life, Is to
hitch your wagon and all your efforts
to star. for in the wake of the
courses of the universe you shall go
willy nilly, and 1t H. much better to go
with hearty assent, max ing the best
of the matter, whether it be good or
evil. Then. again, the garden, like life,
Is never "all we have hoped and willed
and dreamed OF good" Here, too, We
must postpone fulhlmcnt into the dim
future. and look forward to next year
and next for the completion of happi-
ness 1t Is never this year, hut next
that the hollyhocks will be properly
grouped and thick enough, that the
foxglovc will have attained the proper
height, and the dark blue columbines
be near the white lilies and the ceru-
lean columbincs on the side of the
spotted ones. Indeed. Il hardy garden
border Is perennial game of chess,
where year by year we move and re-
plant to attain better combinations of
color. more perfect gradations of
height. The garden Is the eternal APP
Proclamation; It keeps us up and doing.
over pursuing the still fleeing ideal
Harper's Weekly.