Mater 151 



part a lake, and in part a river, which has all the 

 expanse of the one, and all the continuation of 

 the other, each being strongly characterized to the 

 very point of their junction: if that junction breaks 

 into the side of the lake, the direction of the river 

 should be oblique to the line it cuts — rectangular 

 bisections are in this, as in all instances, formal; but 

 when the conflux is at an angle, so that the bank of 

 the river coincides with one shore of the lake, they 

 should both continue for some way in the same direc- 

 tion; a deviation from that line immediately at the 

 outlet detaches the lake from the river. 



"Though the windings of a river are proverbially 

 descriptive of its course, yet without being per- 

 petually wreathed, it may be natural; nor is the 

 character expressed only by its turnings. On the 

 contrary, if they are too frequent and sudden the cur- 

 rent is reduced into a number of separate pools, and 

 the idea of progress is obscured by the difficulty of 

 tracing it. Length is the strongest symptom of 

 continuation ; long reaches are therefore characteristic 

 of a river, and they conduce much to its beauty; 

 each is a considerable piece of water and a variety of 

 beautiful forms may be given to their outlines, but 

 a straight one can very seldom be admitted; it has 

 the appearance of a cut canal, unless great breadth, 

 a bridge across it, and strong contrasts between the 

 objects on the banks disguise the formality. A very 

 small curvature obliterates every idea of art and 

 stagnation; and a greater is often mischievous; for 



