THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA. 



195 



for maintenance and im- 

 provement. The board 

 has power to levy a tax 

 of l'-2 mills on all the 

 property within the city 

 limits for this purpose. 

 This levy has brought 

 to the district about 

 $100,000 per annum, and 

 from which must conic 

 the maintenance and all 

 improvements made in 

 the j)arks. 



It has been the aml)i- 

 tion of the park com- 

 missioners to keep the 

 district free from del)t. 

 Therefore only such im- 

 provements as could be 

 paid for have been un- 

 dertaken. This has not 

 meant undue retrench- 

 ment, but year by year 

 a steady advancement 

 has been made, until 

 Tacoma now can show 

 parks equal, if not su- 

 perior, to those of any 

 city of its size in the 

 country, and that with- 

 out a bonded indebted- 

 ness. 



All the small squares and triangles are plots of ground 

 with green grass, trees, shrubs and flowers. 



Situated between the residence and business section of 

 the city is Wright Park, consisting of 27 acres, one of 

 the most artistic artificial parks in any country. It is 

 notable for the extensive variety of trees and shrubs it 

 contains, tliere being 350 varieties of trees and shrubs, 

 or about 3,000 in all, giving pleasure and profit to the 



BIi.\C l[ AT POINi Dia-i.\Nch: P.-\KK 



lover and student of 

 botany and dendrology. 

 V e 1 V e t y green-lawn 

 areas interspersed by 

 walks and drives make 

 a beautiful landscape 

 effect, and l)ring to the 

 people who fre<(uent it 

 great pleasure. The con- 

 servatory in W r i g h t 

 I'ark is filled with flow- 

 ers, palms and many 

 rare plants. 



McKinley, Lincoln 

 and South, in the south- 

 ern part of the city, are 

 liH-al parks filled with 

 native trees and shrubs, 

 such as fir, oak, dog- 

 wood, maple, hemlock 

 and \arieties of spirea. 



\o city in the coun- 

 try has a park so unique 

 in situation, so varied in 

 scenery and rich in 

 beauty and possibilities, 

 as Point Defiance Park. 

 This park occupies the 

 point of land jutting in- 

 • to Puget Sound north of 

 Tacoma. It is 638 acres 

 in extent, has about 3^^ 

 miles of coast line on Puget Sound, and has an altitude 

 of from 100 to 300 feet above tide level. The natural 

 scenery within, and the view from the park are almost 

 unexcelled. Within the park are many beautiful scenes, 

 magnificent trees, fine masses of native shrubbery, flow- 

 ers and ferns, forming at places an almost impenetrable 

 wilderness. 



A drivewav 5 miles in length winds in and out around 



GI.\NT "DOUGL.\S FIRS" AS SEEN IN POINT DEI-I.\NCE P.\RK. 



