stalks. Gnaphàlium exímium very finely in flower. The front wall of the green-house concealed by a projecting oblique, or nearly horizontal, trellis, covered with passion flowers, which is thought better than seeing so much of the wall. Mr. Toward's dwelling-house is one of the smallest and lowest we have ever seen, and, on observing this to him when last there, he informed us that a new one was about to be built; for which reason we said nothing, though we had been blamed by certain gardeners who knew Mr. Toward's case, and sympathised with him, from not being much better off themselves. The truth is, that in this case, and several others, our silence has proceeded from a fear of doing more injury than good, by leading the employer to take offence at his gardener. Candour and sincerity, however, is doubtless the best for all parties in the long run, and we are determined in future to speak our own mind as to gardeners' houses, and every thing else, without considering whether it may be pleasing or otherwise to either ser vant or master. It is our duty to do so; and we are the more likely to do it without injuring any one, since we are always open to the correction of all our readers, from the most humble to the most learned or powerful. We have repeatedly stated that there is no class of servants so badly lodged as gardeners; and we are perfectly certain of this, that we cannot do masters a greater service than by inducing them to render their servants comfortable. We are not alluding to wages, but to those requisites and conveniences which every country gentleman may create on his estate, by the mere application of a little labour from those servants whom he already employs. A good and comfortable home is the first source of happiness to every man; and thereafter a good and well-furnished house, a certain quantity of fuel, of potatoes, of flour, of cow's milk, and the keep of a pig or a goat, will go much farther in rendering a married servant content than an increase of money wages. The skeleton of a new house is put up for Mr. Toward; but we regret to say that it is such as we cannot approve of. The situation is too shady and damp. The ground floor should have been raised at least 4 ft. above the surface, which, by sinking 4 ft. under it, would have given two useful cellars. The bed rooms cannot be much above 6 ft. high in the clear, whereas in the meanest cottage they should not be lower than 9 ft. We were informed the house was kept low, in order to prevent it from intruding on the view from the walks; but the humane way of doing this would have been to have had all the rooms on the same floor. This house is proceeding very slowly; it is not yet floored or plastered, and we would recommend its being pulled down, and a proper one built in a more dry, open, and airy situation. Mr. Toward will be deeply offended at our having mentioned his house at all; but we must do our duty. No servant ever spoke with more respect and attachment of his employer than Mr. Toward does of the Duchess of Gloucester, whom we firmly believe to be a most amiable woman. The defect we have complained of, we are persuaded, proceeds entirely from want of a little reflection on the part of her upper managers, and by no means from want of humanity.

The kitchen-garden here has a ruinous appearance; the forcing-houses seem to be tumbling down, and the tops of the walls would require to be weeded as well as the walks, which is the case, as we are informed, with the garden walls of that fine old place, Longleat. Notwithstanding these disadvantages, Mr. Smith continues to raise good crops of various articles. There is a bee-house with a good many hives, for the purpose of producing glasses of fresh honey every day: they are under the care of an enthusiastic and enlightened bee-master, once a lieutenant in the navy.

Knapp Hill Nursery; Mr. Waterer. August 6.- We had heard much in London, and from various gardeners in the country, of the splendid collection of new seedling azaleas which flowered here in June last, not one of which is yet given out to the trade; but, of course, at this season we could only see the foliage. Among other things we noted Andrómeda ar

bòrea, 10 ft. high, and finely in flower; Vaccinium Arctostaphylos, the Madeira bilberry, 6 ft. high, and richly covered with fruit; another species, unknown, bearing very large fruit. Both species well deserve culture, where peat earth is not scarce, as fruits for tarts and for eating with cream, like other bilberries. Andrómeda acuminata and mariana, Rhododendron caucásicum, Clethra alnifòlia, Gualthèria procúmbens, Córnus canadensis, Hypéricum Kalmianum, Stuártia Malachodéndron, finely in flower; Magnòlia auriculàta, very luxuriant; measured one of the leaves, and found it 22 in. long, and 11 in. wide. Lilium supérbum, 10 ft. high, coming into flower. The great art in getting this species to flower well, as Mr. Cameron of Bury Hill informed us, is to keep the bulbs single, by taking them up, separating, and replanting. It is evident that, by this practice, the greatest possible supply of nourishment will be obtained by each plant. Phlóx Thomsoni, a new variety, in flower. Daphne collìna, a variety with striped leaves. This nursery excells in the management of hedges, which are in some cases 8 or 10 ft. high, and not more than 8 or 10 in. thick: but, in general, it is not quite so neat and orderly as we could wish; and though we have never seen the weeds exceed the economic point (p. 372.), we would rather see weeding carried lower. We never yet knew a nursery or market-garden, where any money was made, that was not kept orderly, at all events, and most of them even neatly. We do not say that much is wanting at Knap Hill; but still we should like to see both principles pushed farther; a good many of the old things grubbed up, the walks and compartments more correctly lined out, and no weeds ever suffered to grow above an inch high. We hint this with the more confidence, knowing that Mr. Waterer will take it in good part, and that it will be in his favour with the hundreds of gardeners and gentlemen that will come from all quarters next June to see the bloom of new azaleas.

Goldworth Nursery; Mr. Donald. August 7.-The usual order and neatness prevails. Mr. Donald contemplates a carriage-drive through his Home Nursery, with a border on each side, containing a complete display of flowering specimens of peat-earth shrubs. He has lately erected a propagating pit on a very good construction. It is without Aues, but in the centre is a division of one light, which is destined to receive hot dung, and the separation walls being very thin, and the boundary walls hollow, the principal part of the heat is given out to the two divisions. The dung may either be thrown in from above, removing the sash, or from one side by an opening in the wall. Mr. D. having a number of large tubers of A pios tuberosa, thought of trying them as an esculent; and, boiling and roasting them like potatoes, found them very agreeable and wholesome. An ingenious mode of preventing pear-stocks from becoming mildewed, viz. that of intermixing them in the quarters of plum-stocks, at the rate, perhaps, of 3 or 4 per cent, deserves notice. Might not the same plan be adopted with cherry-stocks to preserve them from the black fly, thorns from the mildew, &c., and with other plants, herbaceous and ligneous, liable to be blighted from various causes, both in gardens and fields?

August 7. We met at Mr. Donald's Mr. John Damper Parks, F.H.S., late gardener to the Earl of Arran, at Bognor (p. 293), and at one time Voyaging Botanist to the Horticultural Society. He had just left his place, and was on a walking botanical excursion, calling at all the interesting gardens on his way, and gathering the more rare wild plants, and examining them, by Galpine's Compendium. Mr. Parks is a good botanist and gardener, and a prudent man. He was sent to China by the Horticultural Society some years ago, and gave us a good deal of curious information as to the customs and garden culture of that country; but we will not plough with the Society's heifer, but rather repeat our approbation of Mr. Park's mode of travelling through the country on foot, and procuring information in his profession; and recommend to all gardeners,

whether in or out of place, to call and see other gardens as frequently and extensively as they possibly can. We can assure them from the experience of others as well as our own, that they will, if they are men of any observation, learn more in a week spent in this way, than in a year of close attention, and even reading at home. We would lend our head gardener a horse, perhaps a velocipede might do, and allow him so much a day, say 20s., for a certain number of days in every year, and oblige him to make tours, and write in a journal, to be kept in the garden library, where he had been, and what he had seen. It would be a good thing, also, for every gardener to keep a list of the places he has seen from his earliest years upwards, and show it, when necessary, as a presumptive proof of his qualifications. No master ought to hire a gardener without being informed where he has served his apprenticeship, and what he has been doing since. The German gardeners have all this written in a little book, in which also are short characters from their different masters; and an English gardener might do worse than adopt the practice. We know some masters that are alive to the importance of what their gardeners may acquire by looking about them; and both the late Duchess of Dorset and the present Countess of Radnor, ladies fond of gardening, sent their gardeners, for some weeks, the former, we think in 1820, and the latter in 1829, to see the gardens of Paris, and its environs.

Mr. Parks informed us that he had found the Medlar an excellent stock for forcing the pear into early bearing: that Kálmia latifolia was not poisonous to deer, but so much so to dogs, that the entrails of some deer containing Kálmia leaves, having been eaten by dogs, killed them.

Guildford Castle ; Elkins, Esq. August 7.-The grounds round the ancient keep, to the extent of an acre or two, have lately been enclosed and laid out as a garden, in a mixed style, combining culinary crops, fruits, flowers, and picturesque scenery. The prevailing produce is fruit, and the whole is very neatly kept. A good many filberts have been planted and trained to single stems, about 3 ft. in length; the true method of bringing them to, and keeping them in, a bearing state. The bad effect of raising the earth about the roots of fruit trees is here strikingly exemplified in two large apricot trees trained against a wall, both of which a few years ago were excellent bearers; but the border in which one of the trees stood requiring to be raised about a foot, the tree has since ceased to bear. It might be easily raised and restored to a state of fruitfulness. We observed the carnations, pinks, and sweetwilliams, in the borders, to be of an extraordinary degree of luxuriance, such as we seldom recollect to have seen any where on examination of the soil, we found it to be deep, loose, dry, and principally composed of chalk and black earth; and recollecting that all the Dianthus family grow naturally on clalky soils, on the debris of limestone, and that such soils are invariably dry, the fact of the strength of these species in this dry chalky garden, seemed to point out the great importance, in preparing an artificial soil for any plant, of keeping in view its natural soil, and the condition in which such soil is likely to be with respect to water. From a seat near the keep some of the public buildings of Guildford, and, among others, the treadmill, come into view. It appears, from what Mr. Elkins stated to us, that this machine has no effect whatever in reforming the character of those who are punished by it; the utmost that it is calculated to do is, to prevent future offences, from the fear of a repetition of the punishment; but this it does not do to a great extent even on young offenders, several of whom, who have quitted the Guildford treadmill in the morning, having been lodged in Brixton jail in the evening. Even the society for reclaiming young offenders is not often successful in its operations, and especially, as we were informed, with the female sex. We are not surprised at these things, believing that they will take place in some degree, even in the most improved state of society;

but still they lead us to conclude, that, as it is found to be so extremely difficult to alter the habits of grown up people, the greatest exertions should be made to form in them good habits in their earliest youth, by properly conducted infant schools, and by cultivating the heart and mind of every individual to a high degree. It appears to us to be the duty of the legislature to facilitate the means of applying this degree of cultivation, by obliging every parish to establish proper schools, and to render it illegal to employ any young person after a certain year, who cannot produce a certificate, which may be a copy of the Parochial Gazette (Mag. Nat. Hist. vol. ii. p. 77.), proving that he or she has undergone a certain degree of education. Even this state of things would not extinguish crime from the annals of society, and especially from a society with an overflowing population, and in a progressive state of improvement; but it surely cannot be doubted that it would greatly lessen its amount, and that the description of crime committed would be less horrible. We think we can see something of its effects in the mild and philosophic character of the murders and suicides of the present day, as compared with that of those perpetrated before a sense of the influence of what is said in newspapers, and a knowledge of chemistry, was less perfect and less generally extended.

The Godalming Subscription School. August 7.- It is gratifying to know that some schools on the Lancasterian plan, supported by voluntary subscriptions, have been established in this part of the country. There is one in Guildford, which we had not time to look into; that at Godalming is principally supported by Quakers. It is a plain substantial building in a dry open situation, in the outskirts of the town; and at present is attended by 150 boys and 120 girls. We entered the girls' school, and saw them take their places, go through their preparatory manoeuvres, and execute a lesson in arithmetic, under the direction of Miss Elizabeth Mills, a most agreeable young woman, who, though not more than 16 or 17 years of age, seems to be a perfect mistress of the system of teaching, and to have her pupils in a state of excellent training. In proof of our approbation, we have sent Miss Mills Conversations on Botany, for her own perusal, and a small microscope for the purpose of gratifying the children with sights of flies and other minute objects, occasionally, and on holydays, as suggested in Magazine of Natural History, No. VIII. (vol. ii.) p. 286., which Number we have also sent her. We have sent the articles through Mr. Sawer, an ingenious young botanist, residing with Mr. Donald at Goldworth, who will be so good as to explain at length the uses of the microscope to Miss Mills.

Lea House, near Godalming; J. and E. Leach, Esqrs. August 7.- The Turkey oak-tree has been very extensively planted here between 60 and 70 years ago; and there is a fine plantation of them along the Haslemere road, which, from the size of the trees, must have been regularly thinned out as it advanced. Though not very extensive, it is still the greatest assemblage of this tree that we have hitherto seen.

A small villa

Stroud House, near Haslemere; Miss Perry. August 8. exhibiting a perfect model of order and neatness in the house and grounds, and quiet, elegant, rural retirement in the family. The road from Godalming to Haslemere, a distance of eight miles, is one of the most grand and romantic in Surrey or Sussex. It is chiefly through natural woods and open woody commons, and it passes over two or three hills, from the highest of which, between Stroud and Haslemere, a very extensive prospect is obtained. Stroud House (fig. 115.) is built in a glade in the skirt of an extensive natural oak copse near the road, with a lawn in front and behind, the kitchen-garden and offices at one side, and an orchard and gardener's cottage at the other. Two or three paddocks or ploughed fields, and extensive copse woods, with a winding brook and circuitous walk, complete the

leading features. The keeping of the lawn, and every thing about the house, is as high and perfect as any thing we have ever seen; and the walks in

the copse are kept as clean, dry, and open as copse walks can be. The various bridges over the brooks, and the consequent turns of the walk; the glimpses of the water and broken banks, caught here and there through the trees; the numerous wild plants, abundance of pheasants, singing birds, butterflies, dragon flies in their season, owls in the evening, &c. constitute the attractions of the wood. The house was formed by additions and alterations to an old structure by John Perry, Esq. the proprietor, an architect in Godalming, who has distinguished himself by several meritorious erections there and in the surrounding country. Among other contrivances in the interior which deserve to be mentioned, are bell-pulls in every room, which communicate with a bell placed at the head of the gardener's bed, in his adjoining cottage (seen in the right of fig. 115.). The communication of the wire from the house to the cottage is through a leaden pipe, sunk some feet under ground, and protected by brick-work, so that no intendedhousebreaker could easily dig down to it and cut it off. In the evening, this bell serves to call the gardener, who is married, when he may be wanted for any domestic purpose, and, in the night time, serves as an alarm. The family here consists of five sisters of highly cultivated minds; our reason for mentioning which is, to refer to them as an example of what may be attained to in botany by self-instruction, without a single hint of any kind from a botanist, or any person knowing the names of plants. Three of these ladies are acute systematic botanists, and discover the name of every British plant in flower which comes in their way, from Galpine's Compendium, and every exotic from the Encyclopædia of Plants; and one of them has commenced a series of outlines of British plants, nearly, or wholly, as large as life, so accurate and characteristic, that Mr. Don, of the Linnean Society, who has seen some of them, says they have seldom been equalled, and never surpassed. We hope they may one day be engraved and published; though we cannot help stating, that the pleasure of discovering the names of plants from descriptions, as now done by the Misses Perry, must be much greater than the lazy enjoyment of indentifying them with engravings of any kind. The labour is greater, and the reward is as the labour. The Misses Perry were the first who introduced the practice of archery into this part of the country, about fifteen years ago, and it is now become general in the neighbourhood among ladies.

The gardener here, Arthur Morrey, is a most industrious and valuable man, and every thing under his charge does him great credit. He has two boys and four girls, healthy children, to each of whom we have sent a school-book, and, to the father, a pair of French sabots for putting over his shoes in the pruning season. We would strongly recommend these sabots (wooden shoes) to all journeymen gardeners, as most valuable for keeping