DECORATION OF THE APPROACH. 67 



draining is not very expensive — a good road may be 

 made, even on heavy lands, with the soil over which 

 it passes. All water-courses running across them 

 should be well and highly bridged, and carried away 

 as directly as possible, and the side ditches turned off 

 at every convenient opportunity. The manner of laying 

 out the road, or approach, as spoken of in a preceding 

 section, will materially affect the cost of making and 

 keeping it in repair. — Ed. 



Decoration of the Approach. — Much ornament 

 by means of trees and. shrubs is not required in the 

 approach, although a moderate degree of embellishment 

 may be considered necessary, and its amount should 

 be regulated by the extent and character of the domain. 

 G enerally speaking, nothing more of this kind is need- 

 ful than what belongs to the entrance-gate, or the par- 

 ticular portion of the park or dressed grounds passed 

 through. In relation to this point, and particularly in 

 regard to the exclusion of exotics, a good deal of finical 

 pedantry has been exhibited by writers, who seem to 

 have forgotten that the laj-ch and the horse-chestnut 

 were exotics in the early part of last century. It may be 

 conceded that rhododendrons, lilacs, and other flower- 

 ing shrubs are out of place in the open park ; but these 

 plants are out of place, not because they are exotics, 

 but because they are associated with the ideas of culture 

 and keeping which, in the situations referred to, they 

 are sure not to receive. It is certain that good ap- 

 proaches are often spoiled by excessive decoration. 

 Such is particularly the case when they are separated 

 fi'om the pastures on each side by slender or temporary 

 fences. The slight restraining effect which these fences 

 have on the continuity of the park is much augmented 



