176 GARDENS IN THE MAKING 



level with the ground, or the balustraded form 

 which is protected by stone balusters following its 

 outline. The former is equally suitable to the 

 centre of a lawn, a formal paved court, or an 

 enclosed flower garden. The pool in the formal 

 enclosure at Ascott House (fig. 30) is of this type, 

 and it is surrounded by turf, immediately adjoining 

 the stone. A level stretch of stone paving or turf 

 is, indeed, the ideal setting for water, variety being 

 introduced by the size and shape of the surface. A 

 great number of designs can be made, all of simple 

 geometric outline — long, square, circular, elliptical — 

 with the addition of a few re-entering angles, scrolls, 

 twists, or curves that serve to give them interest 

 and variation. 



Garden fountains are usually best arranged when 

 spouting from the centre of a pool, though there 

 are naturally many positions where the isolated 

 basin supported by an architectural or sculptured 

 base will be desired. Unending ingenuity has been 

 expended in the invention of wondrous fountains 

 and cascades for the princely gardens of the Renais- 

 sance, and there is infinite pleasure to be obtained 

 from fine combinations of sculpture and spraying 



