ii2 THE ART AND PRACTICE OF LANDSCAPE GARDENING. 



finished in accordance with the plan, and I describe the work as it 

 will appear a little later. The River Perry, running from north-east 

 to south-west, divides that part of the property dealt with, and the 

 ground falls gradually towards the river from either side ; that part 

 to the north having a slope towards the south, the division south 

 of the river having a slope towards the north. The formation 

 varies somewhat, but generally on the higher ground it consists of 

 about a foot of loam on a clay subsoil, whilst on the lower ground 

 a gravelly or sandy soil is met with. The place is seven miles from 

 Shrewsbury, and two miles from the railway station at Baschurch. 

 Before the work was commenced, the land consisted of a number 

 of fields, opening one to the other, with high hedgerows in which 

 trees, chiefly oak of medium size, were standing. Mr. Aston Webb, 

 the architect, and I fixed the site of the mansion about half-way 

 between the public road, forming the northern boundary of the 

 property, and the river, on a nearly level plateau occurring in the 

 southern incline. The aspect of the site is south by east ; very 

 fine views of distant hilly scenery are obtainable towards the south 

 and west, and, in a less degree, towards the east. Dotted lines on 

 the plan show the direction of the principal lines of sight. The 

 house is built of a rich red sandstone, with the principal entrance 

 through an enclosed forecourt on the northern side ; the offices are 

 on the eastern side, the living-rooms on the southern side, the con- 

 servatory and drawing-rooms on the southern and western sides. The 

 stables were fixed 100 yds. north-east of the mansion in the direction 

 of the home farm, and the kitchen garden 300 yds. west of the 

 mansion on a nearly level piece of ground. Two approaches were 

 desirable, one from Shrewsbury, and the other from Baschurch. 

 For the former, advantage was taken of a sudden bend in the public 

 road to make this apparently lead to Peverey, as shown on the plan, 

 and for the latter, a slight bend in the public road enabled the 



