soil naturally I saw in Ireland. It has been remarked, that all the soils in Ireland contain stones. If so, they afford great facilities to draining.

All the rocks are applied to useful purposes. The chalkrock is sometimes used in building, but more frequently for lime to masonry and plaster work. The lime of it is not so caustic as that from the mountain or transition limestone, and therefore not so suited to masonry and the application to land. For the same reason it is better suited for plaster-work. It is invariably used for whitewashing the walls of any kind of house. When broken into road-metal, it forms a smooth road. Basalt is used in masonry, and for breaking down for the road, in which latter capacity it stands unrivalled. The greywackeslate is also used for masonry and the roads. The granite makes a fine building-stone, and, both from its colour and durability, it is well adapted for public buildings and bridges. The mountain-limestone is used both for building and for lime to masonry and the land, and also for road-metal, so that it is the most valuable rock in Ireland. It traverses a great proportion of the country; and were agriculture pursued as a system, its general distribution would greatly lessen the expense of general improvement. There are large well constructed kilns for burning it into lime at Dungannon, like the large draw-kilns of this country. But in many parts of the country, and particularly where the chalk-rock prevails, the country people construct slight rude-looking kilns at the side of a bank, which forms the back of them, and they build up the front with stones in the best manner they can. These are like small draw-kilns, in which the limestone is burned with peats. There is another kind of kiln, which is commonly called the "arch kiln." It consists of a face of masonry built quite plumb, at the bottom of which are left two oblong square openings. A kind of furnace is built of the limestone in the inside of each opening, and the blocks of limestone are piled above one another to the top of the kiln. The fire of peat is kindled in these furnaces, and is constantly supplied with fuel by a person who is stationed for that purpose, till the limestone is entirely burnt. Having no admixture of 3 F

VOL. III. NO. XVII.

fuel, the lime derived from this process is in the purest state, and fetches the highest price. Kilns are seldom erected at the quarries of limestone, but at places which are most conveniently situate for fuel. This plan has the disadvantage of imposing the heavy carriage of the limestone, instead of that of the shell, on those who want lime. Lime is very sparingly applied to land, though it would derive much advantage from a judicious application of it; but it is needless to talk of applying lime to land that has neither been drained nor cleaned. Sea-sand, whether it contains shells or no, is carried for miles up the country in panniers over the backs of asses, to be applied to the land as manure; and the country people assert that it is as good as lime for the land.

The wood-coal lying under basalt at Lemanagh, in the parish of Ballintoy, is worked for sale. It fetches only 5s. per ton, so little is the demand for it. At Ballycastle there is a considerable supply of glance-coal; and great efforts were at one time made by the Irish Parliament to encourage the working of the glancecoal mines near Dungannon. All the coal of Ireland emits a peculiar odour when undergoing combustion, which is an insuperable objection to its being used by the rich. Hence they get their supply of coal from England and Scotland; but the poor people, when they get a dry season to prepare peats, always prefer them to coal.

ON IMPROVING COTTAGE GARDENING IN SCOTLAND. By Mr JAMES STUART MENTEATH.

"And round about he taught sweet flowers to grow.”

SPENCER.

No country abounds more with seminaries for the education of youth than Scotland; and much of the successful enterprize of her inhabitants may be attributed to the instruction obtained in such places. Of these seminaries, parochial schools may justly be reckoned the principal.

But the education, how good soever it may be, acquired there, might be rendered more perfect by incorporating with it some things of a practical nature, to train the hand as well as the

mind. Many employments suited to this purpose might be suggested. But scarcely any could be at once more agreeable and beneficial than instructing the children in the operations of common kitchen-gardening. The proposal of such a new scheme may startle some, who are not aware that nearly every parochial schoolmaster in Scotland already possesses a garden of an extent fixed by statute, which might be employed for this purpose. In the schoolmasters' act of Parliament, for regulating the provisions for the parochial schoolmasters of Scotland, it is. required that a rood of garden-ground, Scots measure, should be given to each of them. Others, again, may suppose that the regular business at the school would be interfered with and interrupted, were such a method of school-gardening instruction introduced. But it will not be difficult to shew the contrary.

To introduce into our Scots parish schools the teaching of gardening to the children, we should require in the future appointment of all schoolmasters a knowledge not only of the first principles of botany, but of the culture and uses of all our common culinary vegetables and fruits, together with a slight acquaintance with flowers *. To assist those masters already appointed, but who may be ignorant of horticulture, the gardener of some landed proprietor in the parish, or if there be none, which very rarely is the case in Scotland, the gardener of some neighbouring heritor, might be called in to supply the want of information in these respects.

Supposing, then, the schoolmaster possessed of the requisite knowledge of common kitchen-garden cultivation, his garden.

A knowledge of the principles of botany may be acquired at college by those young men who are training for candidates for parochial schoolmaster. ships, or by personal application in the country, assisted by good elementary books on that science, of which Richard's Elements of Botany, translated by Mr Macgillivray, seems to be one of the most easily understood. And a knowledge of the culture of the useful vegetables and fruits could easily be acquired by them when in the country in summer with their parents, by attending to and partaking of the operations in gardening, in any gentleman's garden in their neighbourhood. A few hours so devoted in the morning would prove a source of amusement, as well as instruction and health, to the young student. There is no country gentleman in Scotland, who would refuse the pri vilege of attending in his garden to any young man, whose object was to acquire that knowledge which he was probably afterwards to impart to the rising generation in the country villages and farms.

would require to be increased to not less than half an acre of ground*, and should be divided into portions. These divisions should be of such a size as to admit in each of a regular rotation of the several vegetable crops to be raised. Over each plot or division of ground a certain number of children, not so numerous but that each individual might be able to put his little hand to the work himself, should be placed. Rows of gooseberry, currant, and raspberry bushes might separate the divisions; and a few apple, pear, and cherry trees, might have place both as standards, espaliers, and wall-trees. On these the processes of budding and grafting could be exemplified. In order that no interruption should be thrown in the way of the regular school business within the school, the cultivation of the schoolmaster's garden by the children attending the school should be only carried on during their play hours, and an hour on Saturdays, when all the other business of the school had been gone through, or whenever time could be spared.

In order to secure complete success to this new branch of parish school education, it will be necessary to interest all the parties, the schoolmaster, the children, their parents, and the heritors of the parish.

In the first place, the schoolmaster, receiving all the benefit of the largely increased produce of his garden, as improved by the children, may be supposed not unwilling to give every attention to instruct the children in gardening, were only sufficient ground or space afforded for the purpose.

Next, to stimulate the children to exertion and industry, there should be several examinations of the garden at stated periods of the year. To these examinations should be invited all in the parish who take an interest in such improvements. Various rewards should be distributed among the children, such as packets of seeds containing all the useful vegetables, and a few flowers. These packets to vary in importance or value, and to

The increase of the extent of the schoolmaster's garden could be accomplished, either by the landed proprietor whose grounds were adjacent to the garden giving a portion of ground to make it half an acre, or the schoolmaster could rent a piece of ground from the proprietor. In the latter case, the proprietor could let the piece of ground for a long lease, and enclose it with a suitable wall. The extraordinary produce of the garden would enable the master to pay the rent of the ground.

be so numerous, that nearly every child should be able to carry home one with him. Besides these papers of seeds, garden tools of different kinds, and books connected with gardening and rural subjects, might be distributed, as means to rouse and encourage the elder children to diligence and attention.

The parents likewise receiving, through their children, packets of seeds to be sown in their gardens by their little hands, possessing the skill and knowledge of raising them, will warmly co-operate in effecting the introduction of this system of school gardening into Scotland.

The proprietor, even although not immediately benefited, cannot fail ultimately of deriving advantage from improvements in this taste for gardening, which the children, acquiring at the parish-school, would spread over all the country. That their property would be more safe, and the people around them would be more independent, deriving more food from their gardens being well cultivated, must be obvious to all; and that the moral habits of the people would be greatly improved, as there would be no necessity for breaking into gardens, and stealing away their produce. At all events, farmers would derive much benefit from an extension of this species of knowledge. At present, their gardens being generally under the management of some of their ploughmen or the hedger, they appear like unsightly wildernesses; whereas, were these men instructed from their infancy in garden culture, farmers' gardens would become, what every garden should be, a place which their owners could resort to with delight.

Thus it will be apparent that this scheme of parochial-school gardening, interesting the schoolmaster, the children, the parents, and the landed proprietors, cannot but prove generally beneficial to every one.

The youth of the country will grow up with a love for rural affairs, and, instead of throwing away their money in low dissipation, they will be devoted in their leisure hours to useful pur suits; and Scotland, from being a country remarkable for its good agriculture, will become equally so for its cottage-gardening;-every cottage will then have its garden, stored with all the useful potherbs and vegetables for the food of its inmates, with fruits so desirable to all, and will be ornamented also with a