Architecture in the United States. 257 



spots greater advantages of ground than in' others. These should he 

 seized upon and turned to the best account for beauty or conven- 

 ience, but particularly for beauty 5 for convenience vi^ill usually take 

 good care of itself. A proper use of these will insure sufficient varie- 

 ty to a city, and the remainder of the site may be occupied by squares 

 and rectangular parallelograms. Even these last however, if carefully 

 adjusted, will admit of very great variety, as I shall presently show : 

 Sameness should ahvays be avoided : if it is tiresome in a landscape, 

 it is doubly so in the plan of a city, in which walls and windows and 

 roofs are necessarily much alike, and uniformity is apt enough to 

 come without being sought. A city like the one I propose, would 

 unite convenience, symmetry, neatness, variety, and beauty : I add 

 also elegance, and shall now proceed to take it up in detail. 



We are first to study the ground, and ascertaining its several ad- 

 vantages, form the main features of our plan from these : I consider 

 rounded eminences of moderate elevation a very great advantage. 

 There are few towns that have not some heights : where there are none, 

 other spots may be selected for the same purpose, though they will not 

 suit so well. To show the reader what use I wish to be made of them, 1 

 will convey him for a few moments to Marseilles, in France. In the 

 new part of that city, are two wide streets, called Les allees des Cap- 

 uchins, and Les allees de Meilhan. They start from another called 

 Le Boulevard, and meet at no great distance from it, forming with 

 each other an angle of about thirty degress. Each is planted with 

 four rows of trees, forming three well arched and handsome avenues, 

 the ground below being firm, dry, and rounded from the middle to a 

 channel on each side : the parts outside and next the houses are ap- 

 propriated to carriages and wagons, which are excluded from the ave- 

 nues. At the point where the central avenues of the two streets meet, 

 is a fountain, cheap and plain, but of exceeding beauty. It is a 

 large basin of water, elevated five or six feet, and handsomely sodded 

 around : from the centre shoots up to a great height a single, deli- 

 cate, silvery jet. I have seen the splendid fountains in the portico 

 of St. Peter's, at Rome, but they did not affect me with half the 

 pleasure that was given by this simple small stream amid the green 

 well arched trees. It goes to prove what I have already said, that 

 great wealth is not necessary to the cultivation of taste. Indeed 

 most of the fountains at Rome err on this point. They pour forth 

 immense volumes of water amid marble basins and tritons, and sea- 

 horses and cars ; but I think taste would prefer even the siraplg 



Vor,. XVIL-— No. 2. 6 



