CHAPTER VII. 



Very gratefully do the average mind and eye accept the steadying foreground stroke 

 and clean-cut measuring line secured by the levelled areas and symmetrically planned 

 walls or banks of a well-balanced terrace scheme, against which to measure the freer 

 effects of foliage and the imaginative mellowness of distances. 



There are, of course, many capacious minds true to the characteristics of the rough- 

 and-tumble Briton, whose ideal is absence of regularity, and who prefer that everything 

 shall be spontaneous, fresh and warm from the fountain, with nothing in any sense 

 of the word conventionalized. Whatever the personal preference however, it may be 

 taken as an axiom that the immediate surroundings of an English home must, before 

 all things, possess and express a spirit of restfulness, a quality which is generally 

 secured most effectively by means of a more or less formal terrace scheme. 



Although some form of terrace is shown in connection with nearly all the gardens 

 illustrated in this work, it is not intended to insist on this feature as a necessity. There 

 are notable instances where there is no regular terrace scheme, but every landscape architect 

 whose work has obtained recognition agrees that, in all but the most exceptional cases, 

 to give a proper connection between the house and garden, a formal arrangement near 

 the house is essential, and domestic architects who have undertaken the design of the 

 garden have always made the terrace an important part of their scheme. 



A terrace is considered by most people as a raised platform, often a mere strip 

 of walk some eight or ten feet wide, occupying the ground between the house and garden, 

 the purpose of which is not very clear, as it can scarcely be considered as a part of 

 the garden scheme and the residence apparently disowns it. 



It is not in this restricted sense that I propose to deal with its design and construc- 

 tion, but rather as the whole plateau on which the house stands, together with the level 

 enclosures referred to elsewhere as outdoor apartments, forming a part of the archi- 

 tectural scheme. These, in many cases, include, in addition to the main terrace a 

 series of flower gardens at varying levels, each portion so arranged as to be com- 

 plementary to the others and the whole forming one comprehensive plan. 



The terrace scheme being in such close contact with the residence, and probably 

 the most prominent feature in the more ornamental portion of the grounds, it is neces- 

 sary that, in desiging a new garden, it should have consideration before other portions 

 are dealt with. While the terrace cannot be divorced from them, but must be designed 

 in relation to them, it will usually be found that, at the same time, its design very 

 largely decides the main lines of the whole scheme so far as they are not already fixed 

 by the contours and other natural features of the site. To what a great extent this is 

 true will be at once evident on examining the accompanying plan of gardens at Angle- 

 villiare, near Paris, designed by the Author (111. No. 107). Here vistas of paved walk, 



Restful 

 effect of 

 terraces. 



Terrace not 



always 



necessary. 



.Esthetic 

 purpose of 

 the terrace. 



Terraces 

 dominate 

 entire 

 scheme. 



87 



