Europe -- Description and travel; United States -- Description and travel
They are a curious people, these natives, as the Forester (an
Englishman, reared in Lord Denbigh’s garden at Newnham Paddocks, and
thirty years out here) told me, as we walked off to examine the English
garden, but I must keep his experiences and my own observation for
separate treatment. The English garden is the most advanced, and, I
think, the most important and interesting feature of this settlement.
If young Englishmen of small means are to try their fortunes here, it is
well that they should have trustworthy guidance at once as to what are
the best crops to raise. With this view, Mr. Hill was placed, in the
spring of this year, in charge of the only cleared space available. All
the rest is beautiful, open forest-land. You can ride or drive almost
anywhere under the trees, but there is no cultivated spot for many
miles, except small patches here and there of carelessly sown maize and
millet, and a rood or two of sweet potatoes. The Forester had a hard
struggle to do anything with the garden at all this season. He was only
put in command in May, six weeks at least too late. He could only
obtain the occasional use of a team, and his duties in the forest and in
grading and superintending the walks interfered with the garden. Manure
was out of the question, except a little ashes, which he painfully
gathered here and there from the reckless log-fires which abound in the
woods. He calls his garden a failure for the year. But as half an acre
which was wild forest-land in May is covered with water-melons and
cantalupes, as the tomatoes hang in huge bunches, rotting on the vines
for want of mouths enough to eat them, as the Lima beans are yielding at
the rate of 250 bushels an acre, and as cabbages, sweet potatoes, beets,
and squash are in equally prodigal abundance, the prospect of making a
good living is beyond all question, for all who will set to work with a
will.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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