Chap. VIII.] 



SQUARES, PLACES, ETC. 



119 



man to walk with his family in any of these gardens, he must first 

 live in a square and pay a high rent for the privilege, and then 

 contribute a pound a year towards the expense of maintaining it. 

 Practically these squares are useless, and nearly always deserted. 

 In London the squares are private property with which the State 

 cannot meddle. With us, on the contrary, it is the Government 

 that takes the initiative in these municipal improvements. It is 

 to the city of Paris that we owe their construction ; they have 

 cost a great deal, and the idea has to be yet further carried out. 





Acanthus on Turf in Paris Square. 



" It is only necessary to walk in the neighbourhood of any of 

 the squares of Paris towards the middle of the day to see with 

 what pleasing readiness they are frequented by the working-classes. 

 To give only an example, the Square des Arts et Metiers is so 

 crowded with people after four o'clock that it is impossible to pass 

 through it. It was at one time said that the establishment of a 

 public garden was an idea that was perfectly practical in London, 

 but not in Paris, where the inhabitants were so turbulent and 

 revolutionary that they would soon pull down the trees, pluck the 

 flowers, and pull up the plants by the roots. Experience, how- 



