e in it. A note
should be kept of the various books reviewed in "The Spectator," and of
any books the reader might fancy to buy, and Smith's lists of second-hand
books, and also the lists of Messrs. Mudie and Co., should be procured,
and from these booksellers books may often be bought at a very moderate
price. Do not buy cheap editions of novels, but buy the original three
volume editions, which have good paper and print, and which may be bought
second-hand at most moderate prices.

It is of great importance that a planter should have some pursuit which
may be both useful and interesting, such as botany, natural history, or
geology, and drawing, too, would be most valuable. In the old days sport
filled up our leisure hours, but that, in these days, is not always to be
had without going far afield, as, from the number of guns in the hands of
the natives, the game within their reach has been mostly destroyed. It is
of great value, then, to have some pursuit to fill up time when there is
not enough of it to spare to go to a distance from home for sport.
Attending to, and taking an interest in a garden is a great resource, and
indirectly a source of great pleasure, which I am reminded of as I write
these lines, and at the same time listen to the warbling of the Bulbuls in
the flower garden in front of my bungalow. These charming little birds are
very active, and are now (February 28th), collecting materials for
building their nests. There are, too, many charming warblers which are
attracted by a garden so arranged as to attract birds. The beds in the
foreground should consist of a mixture of flowers and standard roses, and
those at the back of various flowering shrubs, and low trees which are
suitable for the birds to nest in. I have no carriage road in front of the
bungalow, and with this arrangement can have the beds quite close to the
foot of the steps of the inclosed veranda. I am much struck with the
persistent loquacity of these Indian birds, and at no time of day--not
even for a minute--is the sound of birds absent, and their notes are to be
heard all through the fine weather.

It is very advisable to take up waste paddy fields, i.e., abandoned rice
terraces, for cattle grazing, and I may point out that this is also of
advantage to the amenities of an estate, by providing snipe shooting close
at hand. It will also be found of advantage for feeding ducks and geese. I
have a stretch of such land on one of my propertie