62 AN AMERICAN FARMER IX ENGLAND, 



Walking a short distance up an avenue, we passed through 

 another light iron gate into a thick, luxuriant, and diversified 

 garden. Five minutes of admiration, and a few more spent in 

 studying the manner in which art had been employed to obtain 

 from nature so much beauty, and I was ready to admit that in 

 democratic America there was nothing to be thought of as com- 

 parable with this People's Garden. Indeed, gardening had here 

 reached a perfection that I had never before dreamed of. I can- 

 not undertake to describe the effect of so much taste and skill as 

 had evidently been employed ; I will only tell you, that we pass- 

 ed by winding paths, over acres and acres, with a constant vary- 

 ing surface, where on all sides were growing every variety of 

 shrubs and flowers, with more than natural grace, all set in bor- 

 ders of greenest, closest turf, and all kept with most consum- 

 mate neatness. At a distance of a quarter of a mile from the 

 gate, we came to an open field of clean, bright, green-sward, 

 closely mown, on wluch a large tent was pitched, and a party of 

 boys in on one part, and a party of gentlemen in another, were 

 playing cricket. Beyond this was a large meadow with groups 

 of young trees, under which a flock of sheep were reposing, 

 and girls and women with children, were playing. While 

 watching the cricketers, we were threatened with a shower, 

 and hastened to look for shelter, which we found in a pagoda, 

 on an island approached by a Chinese bridge. It was soon 

 filled, as were the other ornamental buildings, by a crowd of 

 those who, like ourselves, had been overtaken in the grounds 

 by the rain ; and I was glad to observe that the privileges of 

 the garden were enjoyed about equally by all classes. There 

 were some who were attended by servants, and sent at once 

 for their carriages, but a large proportion were of the common 

 ranks, and a few women with children, or suffering from ill 

 health, were evidently the wives of very humble laborers. 



