GARDENS OF VARIOUS NATIONS. 593 



buildings and pagodas, exhibiting the utmost diversity of scene, all 

 formed by the skill of man, who has obtained this by imitating the 

 beauties of Nature, instead of attempting to distort her. But this 

 nation is very partial to gardens. In Pekin over some of the houses 

 in the main streets are broad terraces covered with shrubs and flowers. 

 We read too that in Nagasaki, in Japan, most of the better class of 

 houses have gardens, but these, however small they may be, are said to 

 be laid out in the landscape style with rocks, miniature mountains, and 

 waterfalls. In the larger gardens in China are usually artificial lakes 

 or rivers, and fountains and cascades ; in some of them, too, are scenes 

 of spring, of summer, and of winter, where are grown those plants that 

 are suitable to the season, from which these spots have derived their 

 name. Flowers are not scattered indiscriminately along the borders, 

 but are tastefully disposed according to their colour and growth ; 

 and indeed the gardeners of this country show great skill, not only 

 in the arrangement of the different parts of a garden, but also in 

 the disposing of the plants and in the culture of the flowers. China 

 is everywhere highly cultivated ; even those parts which consist of bogs 

 and marshes this ingenious people bring into cultivation, by forming 

 on them rafts of bamboo, which they cover with earth, and on these 

 they are then enabled to produce vegetables. These rafts of bamboo 

 remind one of the so-called floating gardens of Mexico formerly 

 so numerous and which were made by branches of willows, or of 

 any other similarly light and buoyant material, being plaited and 

 twisted together ; this was covered by earth, or rather mud, obtained 

 from the lake Clavigero, on which these gardens floated. They are 

 said to have been made at the founding, or shortly afterwards, of the 

 city of Mexico, and were formerly numerous, as well as very productive. 

 Small huts were built on these rafts, for the cultivators ; and by means 

 of a boat these curious islands were moved wheresoever the owner 

 required. 



Near Canton are the celebrated Fa-tee gardens, where on a New 

 Year's day repair throngs of people to enjoy this holiday in the 

 " flowery land." But I think sufficient has been said of the gardens 



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