552 On Planting the Lawn, Shriihhery, and Floicer- Garden. 



The last paragraph on knockers might perhaps have been spared as of no 

 great use, but it will serve, by contrast, to enhance the value of those on 

 architecture and painting which preceded it. 



Now so entirely ignorant are most practical persons of these principles of 

 composition and their application, that we will venture to say that if any one 

 of the fifteen, or whatever the number may be, designs given in this article 

 were sent to a gentleman's gardener or nurseryman to be laid out, the first 

 thing he would do would be to get rid of all the smaller beds, swelling out 

 the larger ones so as to occupy an additional space equivalent to that gained 

 by obliterating the small beds ; or probably letting the large beds alone and 

 occupying the place of the small beds with lawn or gravel ; or perhaps with 

 some favourite tree or shrub that he might have and wish to dispose of. We 

 are justified in using strong terms when speaking on this subject, by what we 

 have seen in the neighbourhood of London, and in fact in every part of the 

 island. 



With regard to gentlemen's gardeners we can with still more confidence 

 say, that, if any of these designs were given to them to carry into execution, 

 they would do precisely what the nurseryman would do, unless prevented by 

 the peremptory fiat of the master or mistress, in consequence of either or both 

 having a knowledge of the principles of composition. 



But some gardeners will go much farther than this ; and, after the artist has 

 got his design laid out on the ground, explaining every detail to them as the 

 work proceeded, and after it has been finally approved of by the master or 

 mistress, will, when the artist is gone, make alterations according to their 

 own taste. A notable instance of this kind occurred to us about two years ago, 

 the details of which we may probably give hereafter. 



Let it not be imagined from this that we do not wish gardeners and nurserj'- 

 men to lay out flower-gardens and pleasure-grounds ; on the contrar}', the 

 whole of our publications, and more especially our various articles in this 

 Magazine, have been written with a view to bring forward young men in 

 gardening as an art of design and taste. It must be confessed, however, that 

 it is hardly possible for a young man to acquire much knowledge of gardening 

 as an art of design and taste, and at the same time get a competent knowledge 

 of the principles of horticulture as founded on botany, chemistry, geology, 

 and meteorology, together with sufficient time to apply these principles, or 

 see them applied in different parts of the country : in a word, to have sufficient 

 knowledge as a journeyman to qualify him for a master's place at the age of 

 twenty-five or thirty. The wonder is, that with such low wages, such 

 unhealthy gloomy lodgings, with so many hours work per day, and the neces- 

 sity of perusing a number of books, that they should have made themselves 

 what they are. We can, therefore, excuse them for their want of knowledge 

 in our department ; but we cannot avoid condemning that overweening self- 

 conceit so general among young gardeners, and especially Scotch ones, which 

 leads them to think that they know a great deal more than they do, and 

 hence to interfere in matters that they do not thoroughly understand. 



Nothing can be more common than when an artist goes to a country 

 residence and walks round with the gardener, to hear the artist who has been 

 last employed there decried, and any thing good that he did attributed to the 

 suggestion of the gardener or his employer. It is natural for persons who 

 have not had their moral powers properly cultivated, to wish to be able to say 

 such things of every man as may bring him down somewhat nearly to their own 

 level. This is human nature in an uncultivated state ; but young gardeners, 

 who ought to be phrenologists to a certain extent, and guided by such moral 

 principles as have been adopted by the West London Gardeners' Asso- 

 ciation, ought to know better. We intend to resume this subject in our next 

 Number. 



(Tb be continued.^ 



