Station Gardens in Scotland.

Pleasant though it was to spend the time in Edinburgh, it was a delightful change, after several mouths, to get away by train and visit the Scott country—Melrose Abbey, Abbotsford, Jedburgh, Dryburgh Abbey, and so on. But the most astonishing things to be seen during that trip were the railway stations with their bright flower beds and well-kept, tidy premises. In New Zealand one had been accustomed to bare, open yards, with a shingle-covered platform and dry, dusty approaches leading to the equally dry and dusty roads. These New Zealand stations were, of course, only of recent construction, the Scots ones were much older and more venerable; the newness of the buildings had been effaced by time, everything had the appearance of substantial strength and solidity, and all the portions not required for traffic seemed to have blossomed out into brilliant flower-beds set in restful areas of green grass. page 35 Naturally some were better kept and more attractive than others, but all, without exception, shewed signs of careful efforts to cover the bareness of railway activity with something to appeal to the passenger's love of the beautiful.

Later on we learnt that these station gardens were encouraged by the enlightened policy of the North British Railway Co. Inspection of all the stations was made periodically, and after consideration of the conditions of each case they were arranged in order, first, second, or third class, and prizes awarded the most deserving; the results being published in the Scotsman and other papers. Great rivalry and desire to excel was the result, and apparently all the employees at each station took pride in the condition of the station under their care.