THE PLEASURE OF A GARDEN 



you will find, by the account which I have al- The 



, .,. . Pindaric 



ready given you, that my compositions in gar- manner 



deningarealtogetherafterthePindaricmanner, 

 and run into the beautiful wildness of nature, 

 without affecting the nicer elegancies of art. 

 What I am now going to mention, will, perhaps, 

 deserve your attention more than anything I 

 have yet said. I find, that in the discourse which 

 I spoke of in the beginning of my letter, you 

 are against filling an English garden with ever- 

 greens; and indeed lamso far of your opinion, 

 that I can byno means think the verdure of an 

 evergreen comparable to that which shoots out 

 annually, and clothes our trees in the summer 

 season. But I have often wondered that those 

 who are like myself, and love to live in gardens, 

 have never thought of contriving a winter gar- 

 den, which should consist of such trees only as 

 never cast their leaves. We have very often little 

 snatches of sunshine and fair weather in the 

 most uncomfortable parts of the year, and have 

 frequently several days in November and Janu- 

 ary that are as agreeable as any in the finest 

 months. At such times, therefore, I think there 

 could not be a greater pleasure than to walk in 

 such a winter garden as I have proposed. In 



I 7 B 



