down the middle, and on each side of it is a border composed of earth, manure, and any loose material, such as road-sand, or lime rubbish from old buildings, to keep the soil porous. The trees are grown in pots, and the pots are set on the borders. The roots pass through the hole at the bottom into the soil below, which furnishes additional nourishment to the plant during the growing season. In the autumn the roots which have passed through the pots are pruned away, and the growth of the plant is arrested. This has the effect of dwarfing the tree and inducing the production of fruit-bearing branches, instead of leafy luxuriant shoots. In former days it was considered to take nearly half a century to obtain a good crop of fruit from a pear, the old saying being • Plant pears For your heirs.' By the present process a pear may be made to produce fruit as quickly as an apple. The operation is assisted by grafting the faster-growing fruit on a slowgrowing stock. Pears are grafted on quince stock, apples on the Paradise apple from the East. These stocks make nu merous surface fibrous roots, which, from their being more exposed to the influence of sun and air, induce a less rapid and more healthy growth than crabstocks, which strike root deeply in the ground. The protection which the orchard-house affords the trees from the effects of the frost in spring is hardly more important than the protection it affords them from the wet in autumn and winter. 'The principal office of the root,' observes Dr. Lindley, is to attract food from the ground, and there is no period of the year when the roots become altogether inactive except when they are actually frozen. At all other times during the winter they are perpetually attract ing food, and conveying it into the interior of the plant, where it is at that season stored up till it is required by the young shoots of the succeeding year. The whole tissue of a plant will thus become distended with fluid food by the return of spring, and the degree of distension will be in proportion to the mildness and length of the previous winter. As the new shoots of spring are vigorous or feeble in proportion to the quantity of food that may be prepared for them, it follows that the longer the period of rest from growth the more vigorous the vegetation of the plant will become when once renewed, if that period is not unnecessarily protracted,' It is necessary, therefore, to stop the growth of the tree in the autumn to ena ble it to store up sap for the spring and summer campaign. For this purpose it must be sheltered from the rains, and then it is early put to rest. The additional heat afforded by the glass at the same time ripers the wood which has been already formed-an indispensable condition for its bearing in perfection. The glass-roof of the common orchardhouse is not made to slide or to open. Ventilation is effected by having one of the boards on each side hung upon a hinge. By letting down any or all of these boards a current of air is kept up. In the summer season this cannot be too abundant, and no fruit-tree will thrive without it. 'In the warmer parts of England,' says Mr. Rivers, I have heard of two or three failures in growing peaches and nectarines, owing entirely to the attacks of the red spider, brought on by the unskilful management of servants, calling themselves gardeners, who would persist in shutting up their houses at four o'clock in the afternoon in hot weather, and not opening them till nine in the morning. The poor trees were thus suffocated, and so enfeebled as not to be able to resist the attacks of this persevering enemy. Now, let me advise any one who has such a servant to open all the shutters about the first week in July, and have them nailed so that they cannot be closed. Thus they may remain till the first of September. The shutters should be open by day all through the spring and early summer months, and open night and day as soon as the peaches begin to colour, unless the house be in an exposed place and the weather cold and windy, when they should be only partially open.' An orchard-house 30 feet long, 14 feet wide, 4 feet high at the sides, and 8 feet high to the ridge in the middle, costs 271. 10s. This,' says Mr. Rivers, will hold from twenty-five to thirty trees. Thirty. trees will give sixty dozen and upwards of fruit when in full bearing. A small bush of the Pitmaston orange nectarine, four years old, produced, one season, four dozen of fruit, and brought them all to perfection. Still this is too many, as some of the fruit were small. Mr. Rivers lays great stress on the trees not being placed closer than three feet between stem and stem. If they are crowded or partially shaded, the fruit may be abundant, but the flavour will be poor. A well-skilled horticulturist, who has built a house on a grander scale, gives the following account of it: 'I am more than ever convinced of the superiority of fruit-houses, especially in this island (Ireland), over walls. I have adopted the opi nion that glass and timber are cheaper than brick and stone, that is to say that a given quantity of the superior fruits can be produced in a fruit-house, costing a less sum than walls producing the same quantity, even without taking into consideration the much greater certainty of crops from the trees being protected, but assuming the walls to give fair average crops. My new house is all timber and glass, with a triple span roof 84 feet long and 60 wide; the centre span 14 foot higher than the two side ones. In this centre division is a bed 19 feet wide, and here I have planted my pyrami dal pears, most of which are now 10 feet high -splendid trees and full of bloom. They are 6 feet apart. Altogether there are 60 of these in the house, and about 100 peach, nectarine, plum, and apricot-trees. The effect is very beautiful, all being now in bloom; some of the pears are magnificent. The sides of the house are glazed down to the ground, the sashes being hung on central pivots and all readily opened. I have more light than I ever saw in any other house, and the ventilation appears all I could wish; and these I take to be two cardinal points for producing good fruit. I propose to grow vines to all the pillars inside-straw berries in the side borders-and I know not what else I may try, for I still have much room to spare. I am keeping an account of the tem air. perature, to compare with that of the open chard-house in February. Banksian roses, the Mezereon, the early Dutch honeysuckle and many other plants may be grown in pots and will bloom freely from January to March, with only a very small quantity of water. In the latter month the apricots commence to bloom, followed by peaches and nectarines, and these for many weeks make the orchard-house all that can be wished for as a promenade. The late Lord Braybrooke in his declining health found it one of the most agreeable and beneficial places of exercise. In such dry and sunny counties as Surrey and Hampshire orchard-house Sanatoriums will one day be formed, and a fine dry air will be secured, more healthy and grateful than can be found in continental Europe-the air of Nice without its cutting winds. Such places should be built on the southern side of a hill, as appendages to lodging-houses for invalids; but they should not be too large, or they will be difficult to ventilate thoroughly in warm weather. for The number of trees which can be grown what are grown against a garden-wall alin an orchard-house as compared with lows a larger range of early and late kinds, and materially extends the season peaches. This may be further prolonged by taking the pots from the house before the fruit is quite ripe and putting them out of doors in a sheltered spot. It is the same with apricots :—— 'That very fine sort, the Peach-Apricot, generally ripens in the orchard-house about the first week in August, but by a simple method it may be had in perfection till the middle of October. The end of June some trees full of fruit should Half-standard be selected, and those that are to be very late shonld be placed under a north wall till the first Structures like these are as much for week in September, and then removed to the ornament and pleasure as for the cultiva- orchard-house to ripen their fruit. Those that tion of fruit. The dry air of a spacious sunny exposed place till the end of August, and are to ripen in September should be placed in a orchard-house is most agreeable in the au- then be removed to the orchard-house. The tumn, winter, and spring months for in- fruit from those trees that are much retarded valids. An hour's sunshine sends the ther-will not always prove good, unless the weather mometer up to 60. Early spring and win- be fine and warm; but that from trees set out ter blossoming shrubs may be introduced, of doors in a sunny place and then ripened in the but not evergreens, for to keep the latter house will be most excellent. in health they must be liberally watered, apricots may be made charming ornamental and this destroys the elasticity and dry-garden; for this purpose trees with nice straight ness of the air which makes it so agreea- stems about three feet in height should be seble to breathe. Some plants of Chimonanthus fragrans in large pots will give their sweet flowers in January. Jasminum nudiflorum and Forsythia viridissima, although quite leafless when in bloom, have a gay appearance. The flowers are yellow. Those of the Tartarian Honeysuckle (Lonicera Tartarica) have white or bright red flowers, and show in the or trees for the summer decoration of the flower lected, and planted in pots or tubs. They should be grown in the orchard-house, and about the middle of July be removed to the lawn or any part of the garden where such trees would be desirable. They can be pruned into round heads and employed for summer ornaments just as found equally ornamental and more useful, beorange trees are in many gardens: they will be cause their fruit is valuable. They will come in nearly at the same season as those on walls; for it must be understood that fruits in thoroughly ventilated orchard-houses are not much forwarded unless the season happens to be very sunny. It is not an early but a certain crop that must be expected. I have not named in my list any later kind than the Peach-Apricot, because it is so easily retarded and is always of the highest excellence; it is also the most abundant bearer of all.'-Rivers's Orchard-House, p. 32. Mr. Rivers occasionally grows his trees in the form of a single stem from three to five feet high; this he terms 'cordon verticale, or cylindrical growth. As the plants are pruned very close, they may be set only two feet apart, and a small house twenty-four feet long and fourteen feet wide, with a path of two feet in the middle, will well hold seventy-two trees. We have lately seen some which were trained in this manner bearing a full crop from the top to the bottom. There is some doubt whether the fruit produced in the orchard-house has as good a flavour as that grown against walls. As regards pears, we think that the flavour is at least equal to the very best which are matured out of doors. As regards peaches and nectarines, the flavour of some of the early varieties of fruit against a south wall in a fine season may perhaps be superior; but in cases of supposed inferiority it is still probable that the fault may rest with the cultivator, and not be inherent in the mode of cultivation. Overcrowding, deficient ventilation, or too large a crop, all deteriorate the quality of the fruit. It is notorious that when a crop is excessive, the flavour is weakened in the same proportion. Mr. Rivers has always found the fruit of the orchard-house delicious when the conditions necessary to success had been complied with, and our experience coincides with his. Mr. Rivers has a chapter on tropical orchard-houses, showing how delightful it would be to grow varieties of tropical fruits, such as the Mangosteen, the Cherimoya (a fruit represented as spiritualised strawberries and cream), the Lee Chee, Grenadilla Mango, dwarf plantain, &c. All this may be very delightful; but the indulgence in such luxuries requires, in addition to the superintendence of a skilled gardener, a considerable outlay for the house, the heating apparatus and coals to supply the artificial sun. The orchard-house proper is a luxury for the million. From actual experience we have found it even less costly than it is represented in the esti mates of Mr. Rivers. An orchard-house capable of containing 50 trees may be built for under 30%, and one sufficient for 100 trees for 60l. We have more than once heard of failures, but on inquiry we have invariably found the causes to be either prejudice on the part of the gardener against the admission of any novelty, or the departure from some essential rule of management. One half the care bestowed on an orchard-house which is shown in the cultivation of the cucumber or melon will ensure an ample crop of fine fruit to any one who makes the experiment. For the details of pruning and cultivation we refer to the valuable little work of Mr. Rivers. He was originally led to publish it that he might devote the profits to the restoration of his parish church, which was in a fearfully dilapidated state. The pious feeling which prompted the action is visible in the charming conclusion of his book, in which he points out the advantages and pleasures which he has himself derived from the orchard-house :- Each bud, leaf, and blossom, is brought close under the eye of the cultivator. All the minute and beautiful operations of Nature can be closely watched in a genial climate. The silvery covering of the peach's blossombud, the beauty of its fully-developed flowers (how fresh and happy they always look!), the anthers shedding their pollen, the germs gently swelling, the downy, ruddy, luscious-looking coat of its charming fruit,-are all calculated to give pleasure to the healthful, cheerful mind; for the varied works of Nature's laboratory are brought near to the eye, near to the mind, near to the heart, which is instinctively lifted in thankfulness to the Giver of all such good and beautiful things.' Representation of the People in England and Wales, and to facilitate the Registration and Voting of Electors. Prepared and brought in by the Chancellor of the Exchequer (Mr. Disraeli), Lord Stanley, and General Peel, and ordered by the House of Commons to be printed, 28th February, 1859. 4. Information for Reformers respecting the Cities and Boroughs of the United Kingdom, Classified according to the Schedules of the Reform Bill proposed by John Bright. Esq., M.P. Prepar ed, at the request of the London Parliamentary Committee, and also showing the Results of the Government Reform Bill, by Duncan McCluer. ment in the House of Commons, observed that,' He had every reason to hope, from the satisfaction it had already given, that the change that they had proposed would be permanent ;* and he added on another occasion: It appears to me that the good sense of the people of England will be satisfied when they see that the crying evil of the present system will be then got rid of, and that they will have their proper influence in the representation of the country. I am sure that the people of this country are not so fickle as to give reason to apprehend that when they have no practical evil to complain of, they will still wish for change, for the sake of change itself. It has been truly said that what this country requires is quiet, and a cessation from anxiety and agitation; and I consider this Bill as the most effectual means for attaining that object.'t During the discussions which followed in the House of Lords, Lord Grey remarked : In his speech at Aberdeen, Lord John Russell assigned it as a reason for discussing the principles upon which a Reform Bill should be framed, that we were now in the autumnal time, free from the heat of the House of Commons' debates. It is, 'It has been said that a measure of a more indeed, most desirable that the public contracted nature than this would have satisfied should arrive at some definite conclusions the people. I doubt whether, in such a state of upon this momentous question, and not things, this could have been reasonably expected. leave it to be settled according to the acIt seemed to me that permanent contentment cidental combinations and interests which could only be produced by a decisive and extenmay sway the House of Commons at the sive measure; and the object which the King's moment. If the good sense of the country Government had in view was to produce such a is brought to bear upon the subject, we settlement of this long-agitated question as might have no fear of the result. The danger is prevent its being brought into renewed discusin the apathy which abandons legislation sion in those seasons of distress and difficulty when experience has shown that it has constantly upon this vital topic to a few hundred per-revived, calling into action all the elements of sons, who will act according to their par- political division and discontent. It surely was ticular predilections and interests without desirable, if this question was to be entered into any effectual control from the community. at all, it should be done in such a manner as to We cannot but think that the mere fact, afford a hope that it might be effectually and that three such bills as those mentioned at permanently adjusted.' the head of this article have been brought into Parliament, by three different Ädministrations, within the short period of nine years, should furnish food for grave and serious reflection. Nor will the gravity and seriousness of that reflection be at all diminished, rather, we should say, it will be immensely increased, by a careful consideration of the fourth document-the Information for Reformers-published under the authority of Mr. Bright. These opinions, thus strongly expressed, were the declarations of statesmen who had the good of their country at heart. They knew full well that this was the first and only time in the history of this country when an attempt was made to remodel and define our representative system by statutory enactment. They believed that the real justification for such an attempt. was the existence of defects or the growth A quarter of a century has scarcely pass- of abuses, clearly acknowledged and praced away since the Reform Bill of 1832 be- tically felt, which could only be remedied came the law of the land. According to by actual legislation. They proceededthe opinions of those who framed it, the as our forefathers have always proceeded measure was both decisive and extensive not by theorizing on the best form of in its character; more decisive and more government, but by making that which extensive than it otherwise would have they thankfully enjoyed suitable to the been, in order that it might rest, so far at wants and wishes of the community. Thereleast as its principles were concerned, on something like a permanent foundation. Lord Althorp, as the leader of the Govern * Parliamentary Debate, Sept. 21, 1831. + Ibid., March 19, 1832. in its practice, but also in its theory; and with no demand for what is called Reform," which has yet assumed a tangible shape from any large section of the intelligent part of the community, we own we feel not a little apprehensive lest we should soon arrive at that state which Sir James Graham once described as the very worst in which Parliament could find itself-the state where everybody says that something must be done, but nobody knows what that something is to be. The fact is, that the moment Parliament shall really find itself in that condition, it can only be likened to those unhappy persons who live, if they can be said to live, in the statical chair-who are ever feeling their pulse, and who do not judge of health by the aptitude of the body to perform its functions, but by their ideas of what ought to be the true balance between the several fore they concluded, most wisely and most The healthy action, however, of the body politic, like the healthy action of the natural body, is not kept in order by such quackery as this. Our history is a remarkable one; and there is nothing for which it is more remarkable, than for the sound judgment and the resolute good sense with which the nation, as a whole, has always set to work to remove or to cure any positive malady that might disturb its functions. At the same time, it has never troubled itself with imaginary evils, nor sought to make itself speculatively better, when the result would probably only be to make itself practically worse. From the earliest times down to the present-from our Saxon institutions to the Great Charter, from the Great Charter to the Reformation, from the Reformation to the RevoluWe refer to these facts not with the tion, from the Revolution to the Act of view of throwing out taunts or casting Settlement, from the Act of Settlement to reproaches, but to recall to the recollec- the Reform Act-the two most significant tion of our present statesmen the leading features in our political annals unquestionprinciples upon which alone they can ven- ably are-first, that whenever a moveture to touch our representative system ment has been made for the purpose of with prudence. There is need of this demanding a change in the laws, or, at caution. With three Bills proposed by least, in the administration of them, that three different Administrations within the movement has always been directed last decade that is to say, from 1850 to against some palpable wrong, some tangi1860; with the prospect of a fourth from ble grievance, some proved abuse; and a fourth Administration before that decade secondly, that the demand for which this is brought to a close; with various schemes movement was commenced has always propounded by others, especially those of been urged in a Conservative spirit. So Mr. Roebuck and Mr. Bright; with differ-much has this been the case, that it has ent principles embodied in each of them, generally been confined to a declaration some of which are positively at variance of rights which have been called in queswith, and some of which are altogether tion, or to a restoration of rights which unknown to, the Constitution, not merely have been abused, or to an extension of * See the Letter, p. 27. * Burke. |