EEPORT OF COMMITTEE ON ORNAMENTAL GARDENING. 219 



one-fourth of a mile from the Lodge, thereby compassing the great 

 lawn, and opening to the eye many of the charming views with 

 which the place abounds. 



On that side, the planting for the sloping ground is dense ; and 

 paths, almost invisible, lead through thick evergreens or sunny 

 openings in the woods (where gold and silver hollies, cypresses, 

 and variegated shrubs are clustered), and suddenly emerge into 

 some broader walk, or open into the great lawn. Following one 

 of these, the visitor passes through a Druidical arch of rude stone, 

 with rock-work connected, over which the new vines Ampelopsis 

 VeUchii and Clematis Jackmanni are profusely creeping, and where 

 dwarf Musas, Cacti, Crotons, Begonias, Dracmnas, Echeverias, 

 ferns, and variegated hydrangeas find and form a home of sweet 

 content, pleasing to every one. Here and there in this skirting of 

 the green, new vistas open like a flash of sunshine ; now through 

 a roAV of purple beeches ; now to a remote statue or venerable 

 oak ; and now, through long lines of graceful elms, reaching the 

 purple mountain side, miles away ; or to the silvery bosom of the 

 lake ; or across the water, to the groves, turrets, and fine outlines 

 of Wellesley College. 



One sturdy oak, in dignified state and ample dress, stands out 

 in open space where most of these ways centre ; and where seats, 

 awnings, and extensive views invite to rest. This tree alone 

 remains, ancient and honorable, all the others having been planted 

 since 1852 by the present proprietor, whose fiat has converted, 

 under Providence, a scrubby plain into forest and garden, and 

 robed it with beauty. Let no man think it useless to plant trees 

 for his own enjoyment with such an example before him. 



After leaving the lodge and following the avenue to the crown 

 of the hill, in the month of June the eye is fixed by a vast belt 

 of Yellow Azaleas on the right ; which, in great numbers and 

 varietj', are wildly grouped together, seeming to fly out in a large 

 flock on a side path, all .in full feather, shaking their golden tops 

 and gorgeous wings above the foliage, dazzling the beholder by 

 their brightness and holding him so spell-bound for the moment, 

 that he is almost unmindful of the fine Kalmias, Magnolias, and 

 Andromedas in the back-ground ; and of the beautiful little grass 

 plot beyond, where grand specimens of the Picea Nordmanniana 

 stand, from eighteen to twenty feet high, conspicuously alone. 



Passing this enchantment and looking to the left, multitudes of 

 the most brilliant and fairy-like Rhododendrons, with their gauzy 



