88 GARDENS IN THE MAKING 



simple break in wall or hedge, a tree or clipped 

 shrub, perhaps, standing near, is all that a modest 

 garden will require, and the choice of its situation 

 and the size of the opening will be the chief subject 

 of deliberation. Where, however, a little more 

 elaboration is desired, the arch or gateway provides 

 us with one of the most fascinating subjects in 

 garden architecture. Whether we look across a 

 lawn to the lofty hedge against which a broad 

 border of flowers heaps up its bloom, or pass along 

 a paved walk in the shelter of a high wall, it is an 

 equal delight to see a sunlit opening to the gardens 

 beyond, open to the eye save for a net of delicate 

 iron scrollwork fashioned after the beautiful models 

 of the early eighteenth century. The gateway as a 

 symbol has always had a supreme attraction for the 

 designer, and it is worth erecting a barrier if it gives 

 the occasion for all the pleasure of an alluring 

 passage through. How else shall we account for 

 the many archways of brick and stone, and the 

 elaborate and costly gateways hung to rich piers 

 with sculptured finials, which are the pride of so 

 many old-fashioned gardens ? They were not a 

 mere vain show, but were witnesses to the essential 



