338 ENGLISH COTTAGE GARDENS 



soul of an English cottage is its fireplace, and in that climate an 

 open hearth keeps a cottage warm enough. Not so with 

 us. Again, you cannot tell from the outside of an English house 

 what the different rooms are used for. This is because the English 

 have a passion for privacy. We do not, and our favourite 

 type, the Georgian or Colonial, frankly reveals the purpose of 

 every part. 



Other fundamental differences could be given, but I wish to 

 give more attention to the gardens than the cottages. It is suffi- 

 cient if my readers are persuaded that to make exact copies of 

 English cottages is foolish, and that we shall never have charming 

 cottage gardens in America until we have charming cottages in an 

 American style. 



How shall we get an American style of cottage? Many 

 people believe that we shall evolve it by adapting the English style 

 to our conditions. That idea is dear to my heart, but I would 

 rather abandon it entirely than see America filled with cottages 

 that cost too much or do not fit the lives of the people. The 

 first thing for architects to do is to satisfy American conditions, 

 e. g., our hotter summers and colder winters, the higher cost of 

 labour and of living, the dangers from mosquitoes and flies, our 

 passion for comforts, conveniences, air, sunlight, cleanliness, and 

 our desire to reduce housework to the minimum. Then, if there 

 is anything left of the English style, well and good, for it is pleasant 

 to be reminded that England was our mother-country. 



THE OTHER TENTH EXPLAINED 



It is my conviction that nine tenths of the charm of English 

 cottage gardens is due to the environment; only one tenth seems 

 to me intrinsic. The gardens themselves owe their beauty to two 



