EARLY HISTORY 



"Little low hedges, round like welts, with some pyramids, I like 

 well ; and in some places fair columns, upon frames of carpenters' 

 work." Bacon. 



JUST how far back in the history of gardens and garden- 

 ing the art of Topiary was first practised there is no 

 means of telling, but we know that gardening was first 

 practised as a source of food supply, and that pleasure 

 gardening did not occupy a very prominent position 

 among the arts and sciences until civilisation had made 

 considerable advances. Architecture had progressed in 

 a wonderful manner and reached a high state of perfec- 

 tion long before horticulture assumed any great import- 

 ance. To use Lord Bacon's elegant words, " when ages 

 grow to civility and elegancy, men come to build stately, 

 sooner than to garden finely, as if gardening were the 

 greater perfection." This being so, it does not seem so 

 very unreasonable to presume that the ancient builders 

 of stately edifices would not in designing the surround- 

 ing gardens, plant trees and shrubs likely to mask, 

 soften, or detract in any way from the architectural 

 features created at so great an expenditure of time and 

 money. They would the rather be likely to plant the 

 more formal trees near the mansion, keeping the more 

 graceful at a distance. The love of the formal among 

 the Greeks may be evidenced from the writings of 

 Theocritus, the pastoral poet of Greece, who compares 

 the beauty of Helen to that of a Cypress. Following 

 up this idea, a reason for keeping evergreen and other 



