has been considered florid and in bad taste, the result 

 being far from harmonious. The arrangement of 

 the terraces at the back and front of the house is 

 very remarkable, and admirably adapted to the forma- 

 tion of the land. There are some interesting fount- 

 ains, and the arrangement of the water-works in this 

 villa is very elaborately carried out. The villa garden 

 is quite shaded by enormous sycamores, and thus has 

 of course lost its character as a flower-garden, though 

 it has gained a certain picturesqueness and charm. 



The most interesting feature of this villa is the 

 manner in which the hill at the back of the house has 

 been cut out and formed into an architectural semi- 

 circle with fountains. The actual architecture of the 

 moment is very bad, the niche's and grottos being 

 filled with colossal and grotesque figures; but if one 

 can imagine something simpler in its place, preserving 

 the same general outlines, the scheme has very much 

 to commend it. It is particularly fine when viewed 

 from the doorway of the house. The eye is led to fol- 

 low the line of the fountains, through a deep cut in the 

 trees which supplant the circular terrace, over the hill 

 to two tall columns which mark the position of the 

 reservoir. 



The straight walk leading from the public road to 



84 



