PRACTICAL BOOK OF GARDEN ARCHITECTURE 



tread, and one will immediately be impressed with 

 the effect of breadth in the visible spaces and an 

 agreeable air of mystery in supposed broader spaces 

 beyond the vine and the shrubbery screening. 



It is a mistake to use narrow stone slabs for 

 building the stairs up steep terraces in exposed posi- 

 tions. They may seem more appropriate than any 

 other material, because of the rocky formation of the 

 soil in which they are imbedded, and the wild, woodsy 

 surroundings ; but when set sufficiently far back into 

 the soil to keep them firmly in position, with the ends 

 secured in place, these shallow stone steps are almost 

 certain to be injured by frost heavings, that will 

 displace and often crack them during severe winters. 

 Big rustic logs, with bark-covered faces and smooth 

 upper surfaces, firmly set in the same positions, will 

 give better satisfaction at less expense; and should 

 they be occasionally misplaced by frost, there will 

 be no unsightly cracking, and nothing to prevent their 

 long-continued usefulness. 



Stone steps are more appropriate where short 

 lengths are used in winding up the foliage-screened 

 paths of woodland terraces, or among secluded gar- 

 den retreats. These short-length steps possess an 

 advantage in the fact that they may be carried off the 

 line of the direct slope in making the winding ascent. 



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