BOOK I. 



GARDENING IN SYRIA, PERSIA, &c. 



seven or eight sorts spring up among lilies (LUium), lily of the valley, violets of all 

 colors, gilly-flowers, and jessamines, all of an odor and beauty far surpassing those 

 of Europe. But nothing can be more beautiful than the peach-trees, so completely 

 covered with flowers as to obstruct the view through their branches." Morier mentions 

 the garden of Azar Gerib, in Ispahan, as extending a mile in length, and being formed 

 on a declivity divided into twelve terraces, supported by walls, each terrace divided into 

 a great number of squares. This garden is devoted to the culture of the most esteemed 

 Persian fruits. The neighbourhood of Bushire was formerly famous for its gardens ; 

 but Morier informs us, " that in the whole territory of Bushire at this day, there are only 

 a few cotton-bushes (Acacia Julibrissin) ; here and there date-trees ; now and then a 

 konar-tree (a palm), with water-melons, beringauts (gourds), and cucumbers." These 

 date-trees, the towers, and the presence of camel-drivers, gave this town, when Morier 

 saw it, a truly Persian appearance. (Fig. 32.) 



460. The gardens of Kerim Khan are thus described by Morier : " An immense wall 

 of the neatest construction encloses a square tract of land, which is laid out into walks 

 shaded by cypress and chenar (Platanus), and watered by a variety of marble canals, 

 and small artificial cascades. Over the entrance, which is a lofty and arched passage, is 

 built a pleasure-house. In the centre of the garden is another of the principal pleasure- 

 houses. There is a basin in the middle of the principal room, where a fountain plays 

 and refreshes the air, &c. The whole soil of this garden is artificial, having been exca- 

 vated from the area below, and raised into a high terrace. The garden is now falling 

 into decay ; but those who saw it in the reign of Kerim Khan, delight to describe its 

 splendor, and do not cease to give the most ravishing pictures of the beauty of all the 

 environs of his capital." (Journey to Persia, 1812, p. 206. Johnson's Journey from 

 India, 1817, chap, v.) 



461. The gardens of the chiefs of India, now or lately existing, are of the same general 

 character as those of Persia. " In the gardens belonging to the Mahomedan princes, 

 which in some parts of India were made at a very great expense, a separate piece of 

 ground was usually allotted for each kind of plant, the whole being divided into square 

 plots, separated by walks. Thus one plot was filled with rose-trees, another with pome- 

 granates, &c. The gardens of this sort, most celebrated in India, were those of Ben- 

 galore and Delhi. The former, belonging to Tippoo, were made by him and his father, 

 Hyder Ali. As Bengalore is very much elevated above the sea, it enjoys a temperate 

 climate ; and in the royal gardens there were seen not only the trees of the country, but 

 also the cypress, vine, apple, pear, and peach ; both the latter produced fruit. Straw- 

 berries were likewise raised, and oaks and pine-trees, brought from the Cape of Good 

 Hope, flourished. Some magnificent palaces and walled gardens (Jig. 33.) are mentioned 

 by Morier and other oriental travellers ; but all agree in representing their interior in 

 a state of neglect. 



33 



462. The gardens of JTalimar, near Delhi, which were made in the beginning of the 

 seventeenth century by the Emperor Shaw Jehan, are said to have cost 1,000,000^. 

 sterling, and were about a mile in circumference. They were surrounded by a high 

 brick wall ; but the whole are now in ruins." (Edin. Encyc. art. India, p. 87.) 



463. Of the royal gardens of Shaw Leemar, near Lahore, a city of Hindostan, some 

 account is given in the Journal of the Royal Institution for July, 1820. They 

 differ," says the writer, " from the indigenous royal gardens generally found in India, in 

 belonging to the class of hanging-gardens." Their length is about 500 yards, and their 

 breadth about 140. They consist of three terraces watered by a stream brought upwards 

 of sixty miles, and irrigating the country through which it passes. The only thing 

 worthy of notice is the use of this water in cascades for cooling the air. There are large 

 trees, including the apple, pear, and mango, a border and island of flowers, among 



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