608 Retrospective Criticism. 



to a description which you have given there of this place. ■ lam not, at 

 present, at liberty to give any detailed account of the extensive and sweep- 

 ing alterations now going on ; and must therefore confine myself to the 

 notice of one or two mistakes into which you have fallen ; mistakes which, 

 but for reasons not now worthy of notice, would long since have been 

 corrected. In the first place, it is perhaps only fair to state that the time 

 you devoted to the inspection of the garden and grounds was exceedingly 

 limited; and some considerable misrepresentations have been the conse- 

 quence. In describing the situation on which the house has been built, 

 you say, " The grand misfortune is, that there is no natural marked situ- 

 ation for the house." Without mentioning that the situation on which the 

 house stands is the most appropriate that could have been chosen, I am 

 still very doubtful whether a more eligible site could have been selected, 

 at least within some miles of the present; and I do think, had time per- 

 mitted you to walk round the south and east fronts, the impressions pro- 

 duced upon your mind would have been somewhat different. With regard 

 to your prediction, that at some future time the house would be built at 

 the top of the valley, I can only say, that, had you ever seen the ground, 

 or were you at all acquainted with the geography of the place, you would 

 not for a moment have entertained such an idea. 



In allusion to the bank on which the house is placed, you also say, " as 

 this bank is confronted by another of similar character rising from the 

 narrow bottom of the same streamless valley," &c. Now the fact is, that 

 this valley has at least 70 acres of its surface continually covered with 

 water; and the stream, which is at all times passing through it, is found 

 sufficient, even during the driest seasons, to work several flour mills a little 

 beyond the boundary of the park, which are never at a loss for water, 

 although entirely dependent upon this stream for their supply. Again, a 

 little farther on, you have said, " As this valley, and consequently its 

 banks, lie in a direction more or less south and north, the hot-houses are, 

 in order that they may front the sun, obliged to be built across the slope." 

 Instead of the valley and banks lying north and south, they lie due east 

 and west; the one bank sloping from the south, and the other from the 

 north. On this latter bank are situated the gardens and hot-houses; but 

 why you should designate them " inharmonious," because built across the 

 slope, I am at a loss to know. The meaning which I thought the words 

 "slope" and "across" were generally intended to convey, when used 

 with reference to a sloping bank, or an inclined plane, was, to suppose 

 a line drawn from the bottom to the summit of a sloping bank, and, at 

 any given point between the higher and lower ends, to suppose another 

 drawn at right angles with the first. This would exactly correspond with 

 the idea -which I had entertained of an object of greater length than 

 breadth, when placed across a slope ; and would also represent the relative 

 position of our forcing-houses, which, it is needless to add, are all built 

 across the slope, with their fronts due south. As it will, to a certain extent, 

 account for some of the mistakes into which you have fallen, it may be 

 also proper to state, that, at the time you visited the place, three large span- 

 roofed pine-stoves were standing in a line with the slope; their ends 

 pointing north and south, the effect of which, it cannot be denied, was 

 very inharmonious : but at the time you called, a part of them was being 

 demolished, in order to give place to others then building; and, from the 

 arrangements at that time in progress, it was evident that their entire re- 

 moval was shortly intended. The coach road, which you have justly termed 

 pitiable, is now transformed into quite a new line. — Robert Marnock. 

 Britton Hall Gardens, July 14 1832. 



Cow Cabbage, as described by a Friend of Mr. Murray, Vol. V. p. 65. — 

 Sir, Having seen, some time ago, in your Magazine, an account of the 



