PRACTICAL BOOK OF GARDEN ARCHITECTURE 



at night. The immediate surroundings indicated 

 poverty, the house itself being poorly furnished, the 

 mats hard and uneven, and the attendants very 

 cheaply dressed. In the room where our meal was 

 served there was a circular window through which 

 could be seen a curious stone lantern, and a pine tree, 

 the branches of which stretched across the opening, 

 while beyond, a fine view of some high mountains was 

 to be had. From where we sat on the mats there 

 were all the evidences of a fine garden outside : and 

 wondering how so poor a house could sustain so 

 fine a garden, I went to the window to investigate. 

 What was my surprise to find that the extent of 

 ground from which the lantern and pine tree sprung 

 was just three feet in width ! Then came a low board 

 fence, and beyond this stretched the rice>-fields of a 

 neighboring farmer. At home such a strip of land 

 would, in all likelihood, have been the receptacle for 

 broken glass and tin-cans, and a thoroughfare for 

 erratic cats ; here, however, everything was clean and 

 neat and this narrow plot of ground, good for no 

 other purpose, had been utilized solely for the use 

 of the room within. ' ' 



There is no reason why the smallest of these 

 back-yard gardens should lack any of the indispen- 

 sable accessories; for they may all be reproduced 

 on a miniature scale. In fact, the great majority 



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