354 MORE POT-POURRI 



individual plants, but so lovely as a whole. The beds 

 are all sunk. You walk between dwarf Myrtle hedges 

 on tiled, paved, or brick paths, and every now and then 

 you come to a round point with coloured tile seats. 

 Some of the outside Myrtle hedges are waist -high and 

 very fine. The beds are eighteen inches below the path, 

 and again divided by little Myrtle hedges six inches 

 high (no doubt the origin of our Box edgings). They 

 are mostly filled with Violets and sweet-scented shrubs, 

 and above tower great Magnolias, Lemons, Oranges, 

 Verbenas, Heliotrope, Jasmines in clumps, and a host of 

 other things I do not know the names of. Here and 

 there the path leads to a great raised marble tank or 

 Moorish bath. There are innumerable small fountains 

 sunk and tiled ; round one of these is a great tiled walk 

 with Orange trees sunk in round holes about two feet 

 deep, making a fine double avenue. I fancy the garden 

 is pretty much as it was originally laid out by the 

 Moors. I wish you could see it. The Spaniards have 

 added their favourite Carnations grown in pots, but little 

 else. It seemed to me that the style might well be 

 copied in England, making the beds much less ; cer- 

 tainly the little shallow fountains would look lovely 

 anywhere. We have seen one or two other gardens, 

 always the sunk beds and tiled or paved paths, and 

 always Violets used as grass round the roots of any- 

 thing. Where we are has been an eye-opener to me 

 about the English abroad and their narrowness in 

 household management. Our garden was made by an 

 Englishman, so all our beds are raised, and are washed 

 away in every storm, and the would-be gravel path is 

 most of it in the high road below. Your book has been 

 of the greatest use in our tiny garden. Even though 

 the conditions are so different, the spirit is the same.' 

 e My dear young friend a little misses the spirit of 



