THE ELIZABETHAN FLOWER-GARDEN 147 



of black marble representing the river Thames, beneath 

 which is this Latin distich in letters of gold: 



" ' Me pones imperium, emporium sunt classis et artes, 

 Et schola bene floxens, florida prata rigo. 1 



It far surpasses the Parnassus Mount in the Pratolino 

 near Florence." Less pretentious mounts were capped 

 with arbours or summer-houses. 



Lawson favoured a mount built of stone or wood 

 " curiously wrought within and without," or of earth 

 covered with fruit trees. On such a mount, he says, 

 " you might sit and angle a peckled trout, or a sleighte 

 Eele, or some other fish " in the old moat outside the 

 wall, or in a stream meandering close by. Or if the 

 mount overlooked the park, there was " nothing to pre- 

 vent your taking an occasional shot at a buck." 



For the inner enclosure or "inward proportions," as The inner 



enclosure. 



they were called, " You may draw your garden into 

 what form soever you please, not respecting that shape 

 soever the outer verge carrieth : for you may make the 

 garden which is square without to be round within, and 

 that which is round without, either square or oval ; that 

 which is oval either of the former, and that which is 

 diamond any shape at all, and yet all exceedingly 

 comely." This enclosure might be formed by a railed 

 fence or by a low hedge of cypress, box, or juniper. 



The intersection of the paths and counterpaths Tn 

 usually divided the garden into four quarters. " These q ' 



