THE LAWN. 



An English Lawn ! Who that loves the country, — soft 

 grass and fine trees, — verdant turf and beautiful foliage ; — 

 who, indeed, that has ever thought or reflected upon the 

 subject of sylvan art, has not his ideal of an " English lawn ?" 

 imperfectly formed, it may be, 'below its true merits, or exag- 

 erated, and beyond what it really is ; but, nevertheless, an 

 ideal of that lawn, which, from its softness, smoothness, em- 

 erald verdure, freshness, and beauty, has become as prominent 

 a characteristic of the Landscape Gardening of Great Britain 

 as the modern or natural style is itself a feature of the taste 

 and refinement of the art in that country. 



Few who have not seen or trod the "velvet turf" of Eng- 

 land can fully realize its surpassing beauty ; so short, so elas- 

 tic, so smooth is it in every part. Spread out like a velvet 

 carpet beneath the feet, nothing, indeed, but a brief walk on 

 such a lawn as Chatsworth, or one of similar extent and perfect 

 keeping, could ever convey a full impression of an " English 

 lawn." We never recall our visit to that princely residence, 

 without a feeling of regret that, at least, something like its 

 fine lawn is not within the immediate reach of our own 

 countrymen, that they might see how much might be en- 

 joyed by the harmonious combination of two such simple ele- 

 ments as grass and tre(?s. Divested of its Palladian architecture 

 — its fountains, its rockwork, its arboretum, its Italian garden, 

 and even its colossal conservatory — the extent of its lawn and 

 its diversity of surface, its massive trees and their grouping 

 and arrangement would still make Chatsworth one of the 

 most delightful of residences. Yes, simply grass and trees, 

 Avhen laid down and planted under the guidance of the land- 

 scape artist, are abundantly ample, without any artificial aid, 

 to give the greatest enjoyment to every lover of rural art. 



But, notwithstanding our perfect or imperfect ideas in re- 

 gard to the velvety lawns of England, of whose unsurpassed 



VOL. XXI. NO. IV. 21 



