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one of the splendid residence of the old French court ; 

 but the gardens, and especially the fountains, are con- 

 sidered by many as even superior to those of Versailles. 

 They are situated on the declivity of the mountain, 

 and are abundantly supplied with pure and pellucid 

 water from the springs above them. One of them, 

 called the Fountain of Fame, throws up a stream of 

 water to the height of a hundred and thirty feet, the 

 upper part of which may be seen from the city of 

 Segovia at six miles distance. 



Such was the state of Horticulture, as applied to 

 the disposition of grounds and gardens, in the time of 

 Lewis XIV. A better taste soon after grew up in 

 England, and spread itself thence over all parts of 

 Europe. The improvement lay in substituting a 

 more free and direct imitation of nature, for the 

 formal arrangements and fantastic decorations that 

 were in use before. Most of the grounds and gar- 

 dens that have been laid out in Europe within the 

 last half century, have been disposed upon this plan, 

 of which very beautiful specimens are to be found, 

 not only in England, France, and Germany, but in 

 Sweden, Poland, Austria, and Russia. The Wood 

 at the Hague, an enclosure of about a mile in length, 

 and half a mile in width, is justly considered as one 

 of the most remarkable of the number. 



Of the grounds, ornamented in the purer taste of 

 the present day, that have fallen under my observa- 

 tion, those of the royal residence of Aranjuez, in 

 Spain, are, however, the most beautiful. This is the 

 place where the Court usually repair to pass the 

 months of May and June, and it seems to realize, as 



