The House of W. L. Stow, Esq. 



Roslyn, New York 



|R. STOWS house is an Italian palace adapted to the exigencies of the American 

 climate. Ver\' large it is, and splendidly environed, and best seen from the south, 

 althovigh entered from the north. It is a stately pile, broad and firm in outline, 

 simply designed and sparsely ornamented, Init withal characterized by fine dignity 

 and charm. The main doorway, on the north, is modest enough, and is sheltered by a small 

 glass marquise that flares slightly upward. 



But the south side is palatial, with an effect of quite monumental grandeur. Like 

 man^^ Long Island country places, the house is built on high ground, with very beautiful natural 

 surroundings. On the south it slopes rapidly away from the house, falls quickly, indeed, so 

 that the terrace treatment is at once the most natural and the most effective. 



And most happih' this has been arranged. A spacious area is enclosed within a balus- 

 trade, with a flight of steps at each end. A wonderful space this is, with the great house 

 immediatelv behind, the steep cliff below, and, beyond, the rich farming lands of the near-by 

 estates, and farther on, again, if the day be clear, the view is veiled by the ocean. 



Down below, immediately in the foreground, is a second space, enclosed with a hedge 

 of evergreens. At the foot of each flight of steps is a pair of marble lions, standing on the 

 high pedestals of the balustrade. The upper terrace is supported by a wall, carried wholly 

 across the front, the center marked with three great arches. This lower space is a simple formal 

 garden, and with old ItaUan well-heads, great marble vases, and other decorative adjuncts. One 

 can here realize, if one has not reaUzed it before, that this is a superb mansion, a veritable palace, 

 happily designed, finely placed, and suitably environed. The greensward, the massive retain- 

 ing-wall of the upper terrace, the balustrade, and the enclosing stairways at the ends, the house 

 above, make an ensemble of stately beauty that few American country- houses possess. The 

 general effect is fine, and the im])ression one of much splendor. 



The house is palatial because it is large, excellently designed, and handsomely furnished. 

 The interior is eminently livable and enjoyable. The rooms are not vast, as rooms in houses 

 of this rank are measured, but are well proportioned to their uses, and the spaces have been 

 judiciously employed. The main doorway leads immediately into an entrance or stair hall 

 the full height of the house, and lighted above as well as by a window immediately over the 

 door. A flight of stone steps, with an imposing stone balustrade, leads to the upper floor. 

 Immediatelv in face is a monumental doorway to the hall. This is a splendid apartment, 

 the largest in the house, occup}'ing more than half of the main Imilding, with four great 

 windows opening on to the south terrace. It is paneled in black oak for two-thirds of its 



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