NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS 



the possibilities of landscape gardening, when directed by sound taste 

 and a proper sense of artistic proprieties, are singularly well illustrated. 

 Some years ago the late Lord Armstrong bought a large stretch of 

 moorland hills and valleys near Rothbury with the idea of building a 

 shooting-box there, but, before he died, he had converted this estate 

 into an unusually beautiful place with a character and charm entirely 

 its own. Behind the house is a high hill clothed with trees amongst 

 which great grey rocks stand out like the ruins of a castle. At the 

 foot of the hill is a dene through which wind paths that open up 

 delightful vistas of woods and streams and waterfalls, with here and 

 there rustic bridges spanning the water. At one point a bridge 

 crosses the valley at a high level ; at another point the stream runs 

 through thickets of trees and shrubs between tall, perpendicular cliffs 

 of rock which are overgrown with ferns and partly veiled with ivy. 

 Cragside is especially famous for its wonderful show of rhododendrons 

 three or four million bushes have been planted about the grounds, 

 and in the early summer, when the bushes are in flower, the display 

 of colour is exceptionally beautiful. 



Croxteth Park, the seat of the Earl of Sefton (Plates XL., XLL, and 

 XLIL), has a great deal of sumptuousness and dignity of effect, and 

 the gardens make an admirable setting for the house. This is built 

 on a high, broad terrace, paved with flagstones, from which a large 

 flight of steps descends to a long gravelled path that intersects the 

 garden in front of the house. Another path, below the terrace, leads 

 to the eastern and western lawns. The grounds are mostly laid out 

 in lawns studded with beds of flowering plants and with fine trees. 

 A winding walk runs on one side to a small lake, and there are other 

 walks, prettily placed, which connect the different parts of the garden. 

 Eller How (Plate XLIII.) deserves attention because it represents a 

 real achievement in garden-making. The house, which stands on the 

 side of a hill at the back of Ambleside, was built by the late Mr. 

 Boyle, who bought a couple of acres of meadow land and, having a 

 hobby for gardening, devoted himself to laying them out in accordance 

 with his own ideas. He planted a great variety of trees and shrubs, 

 he constructed miniature lakes and pools, and built rustic bridges ; 

 and by judiciously planning his winding walks he succeeded in creat- 

 ing an impression that the garden covers a much greater space than 

 it actually occupies. The pools, in which grow many varieties of 

 water-lilies, are made quite charming by being set in masses of greenery 

 and surrounded by clumps of fine ferns. 



For the present arrangement of the gardens at Farfield Hall (Plate 

 XLIV.), Mr. Mawson is responsible ; his assistance was obtained for 

 xxiv 



