62 BERLIN : A STUDY OF 



in honor of the Empress Friedrich, has recently been be- 

 gun. Beautiful rural scenery is thus brought within con- 

 venient distance of nearly all parts of the city. The Thier- 

 garten, composed principally of a noble old forest, has 

 been greatly improved within the past few years, and is 

 now one of the finest parks of Europe. The other great 

 parks are the Friedrichshain, the Humboldthain and the 

 Teltower Anlagen. The latter runs along the Spree for 

 several kilometers to the northeastward of the city, and 

 shows what charming landscape effects can be wrought in 

 a perfectly flat region. The Humboldthain, being situated 

 where the river bottom in which the greater part of Berlin 

 is built rises to the surrounding upland plain, has the ad- 

 vantage of ground that is diversified by graceful undula- 

 tions. The park was named in honor of Wilhelm von Hum- 

 boldt, and contains a simple and beautiful monument to the 

 memory of the great naturalist only a heap of naturally 

 disposed boulders, amidst a clump of shrubbery, and 

 overgrown with ferns and moss. From beneath a stone, 

 simply inscribed to the effect that the monument was erect- 

 ed by the city of Berlin to the memory of her distinguished 

 son, there trickles a pretty little rill of clear water that 

 runs merrily through the bushes down the slope into a 

 calm pool. 



Throughout the city nearly all the open places are oc- 

 cupied by beautiful gardens, arranged with charming grace 

 and simplicity, the effect depending more upon harmoni- 

 ous groupings of shrubbery and graceful trailing of clam- 

 bering vines than upon elaborate flower beds. These 

 urban gardens are extensively used for children's play- 

 grounds, and here and there are placed great heaps of 

 sand upon the broad walks in which swarms of little ones 

 may be seen digging and burrowing all the day to their 

 heart's content. 



