308 Villa of Mrs. Lawrence, 



ably the most remarkable of its size in the neighbourhood of 

 London, on account of the great variety and beauty which 

 have been created in it, under the direction of Mrs. Lawrence, 

 F.H.S., the lady of the celebrated surgeon of that name. The 

 straggling little village of Drayton Green lies about seven 

 miles to the west of London, at a short distance from the road 

 to Oxford. The surrounding counti'y is flat, or nearly so ; and 

 it is principally under pasture, in very irregular enclosures, with 

 hedges, also very irregular in regard to height and breadth, and 

 abounding, in most cases, with English elms, oaks, and limes. 

 The soil is a thin loam on gravel, and the country generally is 

 considered remarkably healthy, and agreeably picturesque. 



The Lawrencian Villa may be said to occupy in all about 

 twenty-eight acres. The house, stable offices, and decorated 

 grounds stand on about two acres ; and at the distance of about 

 two or three hundred yards, across the road, are the kitchen- 

 garden, poultry-houses, and piggeries, occupying nearly two 

 acres; and two pasture fields, containing twenty-four acres. 



The house and the ornamented grounds are shown in the plan 

 ^g. 42. The surface is even, and has the disadvantage of rising 

 somewhat from the house to the further extremity of the lawn. 

 It is bounded on the south by another villa of the same kind (a) ; 

 on the north, by grass fields (6) ; and, on the east, by Sir James 

 Limond's grass field already mentioned (c). 



The disadvantage of the ground sloping to the house is 

 counteracted in a very efficient manner, by lowering the walk 

 that crosses immediately in front of the house, and sloping the 

 ground from the drawingroom veranda to that walk ; beyond 

 which the lawn rises gently and gradually, till, at the cross walk 

 at the farther extremity, it is probably 6 ft. higher than the level 

 of the drawingroom floor. Though, when the lawn rises in this 

 manner from the house, it detracts from the expression of dig- 

 nity, considering the villa as a whole, yet, viewing the lawn as 

 an arena for the display of plants, statues, and other interesting 

 objects, from the windows of the drawingroom, it has an ad- 

 vantage in that point of view over a falling surface. If we imagine 

 for a moment that this lawn, instead of sloping towards the 

 house, as it does, at the rate of 1 ft. in 50 ft., sloped from it at 

 the same rate, we shall find, on reflection, that it would appear 

 less in extent, and that the distant objects would be less distinctly 

 seen : this may be rendered palpable on paper by lines, thus : — 

 In the diagram Jig. 43., the line a e represents a level surface; 

 and the lines ad, a c, ah, represent ground falling in slopes at 

 different angles. The lines af, a g, and a h, in like manner, 

 represent ground rising at different angles. The point k repre- 

 sents the situation of the human eye, being 5 ft. higher than the 

 point a ; and the lines Jc b, k c, k d, &c., represent the angle at 



