x THE ARGUMENT 



particular situation and their spirit only could be re- 

 produced elsewhere, or because they belong to a class 

 existing by every country roadside, of which the general 

 scheme is too familiar to require explanation. Others 

 have been excluded as being too consequential and 

 elaborate to answer any but princely requirements. 



Nothing can be prettier than a cottage garden, or in 

 its way perhaps more magnificent than Chatsworth, but 

 neither of these comes within the scope of this work. 

 One is too practical, the other too ornate. 



The origin and early growth of all gardens are purely 

 conjectural, but in their first stages those in England 

 were not probably dissimilar to those in other parts 

 of uncivilized Europe. In the Middle Ages, after the 

 Norman Conquest, they developed certain distinctive 

 features. Later they passed more or less under the 

 influence of the Italian Renaissance, French, Dutch, 

 and Chinese styles, and to understand them it is neces- 

 sary to understand the characteristics of these different 

 schools. 



As their connection with the manners and customs of 

 the day is even more intimate than that of architecture 

 proper, to realize their purpose one must be able to 

 picture them peopled with the characters, many of them 

 historic, who made them what they were in their prime. 



The celebrated gardens are filled with historic asso- 

 ciations. Without being able to imagine the life of the 



