JANUARY 5 



tion of lawn, being about an acre and a half, and in 

 shape a parallelogram, or double square. It lies on 

 the west side of the Cotswolds, which rise about 

 half a mile away to the height of 750 feet; and 

 about fifteen miles to the south are the Mendips. 

 These two ranges of hills do much to shelter us from 

 the winds, both from the cold north and easterly 

 winds, and from the south-west winds, which in this 

 part of England are sometimes very violent. I attach 

 great importance to this kindly shelter from the 

 great strength of the winds, for plants are like our- 

 selves in many respects, and certainly in this, that 

 they can bear a very great amount of frost if only 

 the air is still, far better than they can bear a less 

 cold if accompanied with a high wind. The garden 

 then has this advantage of shelter; it has also the 

 advantage of a good aspect, for though the undula- 

 tions are very slight, the general slope faces the 

 south ; and it has the further advantage of a rich 

 and deep alluvial soil, which, however, is so im- 

 pregnated with lime and magnesia, that it is hope- 

 less to attempt rhododendrons, azaleas, kalmias, and 

 a host of other things; and it has the further dis- 

 advantage of being only about 70 feet above the 

 sea-level, which makes an insuperable difficulty in 

 the growth of the higher Alpines. On the whole, 



