TREATMENT OF GROUND. — FORMATION OF WALKS. 261 



veo^etation, trees, rocks, etc., which, with the influence of 

 time, will often render many a scene that, stripped of its en- 

 riching drapery, would be positively harsh and ugly, ex- 

 tremely picturesque, mellow, and beautiful. Proofs of this 

 will occur to every one who will contrast in his mind 

 the appearance of a steep clayey river bank, or even open 

 pit, when bare, raw, and verdureless, and the same objects 

 when nature or art has clothed them with a luxuriant and 

 diversified garniture of trees, shrubs, and plants. In the 

 former case, all was positively ugly and displeasing to the 

 eye of taste ; in the latter, all is picturesque and harmoni- 

 ous. 



A perfect flat or level surface is often the most difficult 

 to improve of any description of ground. In some cases, as in 

 the example of a very large park, with an immense building, 

 a level surface may be in excellent keeping, giving an air of 

 grandeur to the whole scene : for both the simplicity, and the 

 wide extent of a level plain in such a situation, would be 

 highly expressive of grandeur when united to a fine pile of 

 building. But ordinarily, a flat surface is extremely dull and 

 uninteresting. One unbroken plain of green is spread before 

 the eye, varied by none of those changing lights and shadows 

 that belong to a finely undulating lawn. It is true that this 

 affects the mind differently in certain situations, as a broad plain 

 is a delightful contrast and source of repose in a mountain- 

 ous country. But we here speak of the greater part of the 

 surface of the United States, where county seats are located, 

 and where it will be found, that a diversified surface is great- 

 ly to be preferred to a dead level. 



Where such a level exists, in some situations, it is almost 

 impossible to improve it much. When, for illustration, the 

 whole surrounding country is equally tame and flat, the 



