1895.] ESSAYS. 107 



and there a most gorgeous burst of color, cousistiug in June chiefly 

 of islands of roses in the dark-green foliage. In the distance, to one 

 side, we see a rocky eminence covered with pines ; and on the other 

 side, what seems to be a snow-white mountain peak, one of the high 

 Alps apparently, transplanted into the lowlands. We will come to 

 that later in our round of the garden. From a grove on the left floats 

 the music of innumerable birds, and from the other side, in the dis- 

 tance, swells the no less pleasing music of children's voices shouting 

 and laughing at play. All about you seems bright and airy and free. 

 In many directions your view wanders out into ample vistas of grove, 

 lawn, lake and hill. Yet with every turn of the walk you find your- 

 self in the coolest shade. Nothing in the whole effect has the slight- 

 est intimation of being set, formal, conscious, studied. Everything 

 seems to be purely natural, " nature unadorned, adorned the most" ; 

 and yet you know that nature could not possibly in so limited a space 

 make so many hits with never a miss. There must be magic some- 

 where ; and gradually the realization dawns upon us that all is purest 

 art so slyly concealed in nature as to nowhere appear to the eye. 



We will not tarry in the animal-houses, although they contain the 

 finest specimens of lions, tigers and leopards to be found anywhere 

 short of their native haunts. The outside of the houses, however, 

 deserves our attention. They are built of solid stone, as if to stand 

 forever. Artificial, apparently natural, caves and grottoes can thus 

 be made in their walls, so that each animal would seem to be lying in 

 a den of his own selection. Almost every exposed wall is covered 

 with ivy or climbing roses, or concealed by trees. In architecture 

 many of the buildings are stamped with some characteristic of the 

 style of the country in which the animals are native ; and this is 

 helped out by frescos covering exposed walls from ground to roof, 

 giving you a view of a typical landscape of the region whence the 

 different animals come. Thus you see in the distance the sands of 

 the Sahara, groups of palms, the pyramids, on the horizon. You 

 approach, and naturally enough come upon a family of giraffes and 

 camels. All is thus in perfect harmony. 



A feature of the labelling deserves a moment's notice. Each label 

 consists of a porcelain chart of both hemispheres in bold outline, with 

 the geographical distribution, the habitat, of each species painted upon 

 each and burned into the plate. It makes a label, always bright and 

 clean, giving at a glance the correct scientific and common name of 

 each species with its home on the face of the earth. Art is said to 

 be long. Science is even longer, if possible, and any such simple 



