342 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 392. 



garden just where it should not be, away from the house, 

 exposed to the dust of the roaas and to the easy depreda- 

 tions of any passer-by. An immense amount of money 

 must- have been spent upon this place — many times as 

 much as has been expended next door. But it has all 

 been spent in doing what ought not to have been done. 

 The result is far less pleasing than if the spot had been 

 left in its natural roughness, for now it has no dignity and 

 no consistency with its surroundings. Over-elaboration 

 and trumpery adornment are always out of place, but they 

 appear especially feeble and petty and vapid in the pres- 

 ence of the strength and sublimity of the sea. 



The Social Use of Gardens. 



WHY do we not have more garden parties; or, rather, 

 why do we not have more gardens where parties 

 worthy of the name can be held.? During our warm 

 American weather all other entertainments seem insignifi- 

 cant beside the elegance and beauty of an open-air recep- 

 tion vi'ith gardenesque surroundings of fitting character. 

 Attractive people may successfully entertain their friends 

 in a bare lot, but they vi'ill find it easier, and appear them- 

 selves to even better advantage, with surroundings of shade 

 trees, soft lawns, flower-scented air, sun-lighted fountains 

 and beds of blossoms. Accompaniments of this sort help 

 to inspire and develop the thought and sentiment suited to 

 festive occasions. There is no limit to the richness of the 

 setting that can be given to outdoor entertainment. Music 

 is never svveeter than in the open air, and the histrionic art 

 is never more effective — as has been proved from the days 

 of Grecian poets to those of our own actors — than it is with 

 a greenwood background. 



Gardens for entertaining must be gardens in a broad and 

 true sense, not mere collections of plants. They must be 

 fitted for human enjoyment rather than for the production 

 of crops of flowers. The most elaborate of temporary 

 decorations appear commonplace beside the living verdure 

 and fragrance of a well-ordered garden ; no tapestry or 

 embroidered hangings can compare in grace with vine 

 garlands and banks of foliage, and the shade of a silk 

 pavilion is vulgar when compared with that of a noble 

 ancestral tree. 



The formal style of gardening is in many respects well 

 adapted to social festivity, but it is not essential. Gardens 

 for such a purpose need not be of great size, for we cannot 

 hope to rival Versailles or Hampton Court, but we can have 

 open spaces of grass, broad walks shaded by trees and bor- 

 dered by masses of shrubbery and flowers. Only the very 

 wealthy can afford gr(5unds which rival in splendor those 

 of royal villas. It is not possible for all of us to have noble 

 avenues, broad terraces and elaborate gardens, but all 

 who have gardens of any kind can so arrange them that 

 they will be pleasant places for receiving our friends. 



With our varying seasons we should live in the open air 

 whenever it is possible, and when it is pleasant no country 

 on the earth has more bracing weather than the eastern 

 United States. For an impromptu party a delightful day is 

 often the only excuse needed, but elaborate functions, 

 where invitations must go forth some time before, may be 

 marred by capricious vi^eather. To afford shelter from 

 showers and for various other reasons garden structures 

 should have an important place in garden plans. These 

 structures may range all the way from rustic arbors to 

 elaborate banqueting halls with all the charms of architec- 

 ture and furniture that designers can create, but the most 

 desirable for American homes, it seems to me, is the old- 

 fashioned summer-house, built in a style to correspond 

 with the main structure, but detached and set in some 

 pleasant part of the grounds in such a way as to have the 

 charm of a separate place. Perhaps, the most useful ser- 

 vice these have rendered from colonial times until now is 

 as summer-parlors, where the family can enjoy the society 

 of friends amid surroundings that enhance the delights of 

 summer more than our winter quarters can do. As they 



are likely to be used more continuousl}^ than any apart- 

 ment in the dwelling while warm weather lasts, there 

 seems no good reason why thought and labor and money 

 should not be expended upon them according to the ability 

 of the owner. A musical family v/ould naturally give such 

 a place somewhat the character of their tastes, and musical 

 instruments would become a permanent belonging. Those 

 who love to entertain at luncheon would like it more of a 

 dining-room, and the five o'clock tea would rarely be taken 

 elsewhere. An abundance of seats to accommodate the 

 company, large or small, is essential, and furnishings in- 

 tended for permanent garden use are more in favor than 

 those brought out for a temporary occasion. 



Even now no places are more attractive than our many 

 gardens, from the first profusion of roses in June until the 

 rich autumn colors fade into the gray of November. If 

 our lives become more intimately associated with our gar- 

 dens the benefits to each will be mutual, and the results 

 will have a noticeable bearing on the social habits of the 



country. 



New York. 



John De Wolf. 



Notes on Western New York Woodlands. — I. 



THE changes made in the amount and character of the 

 forest covering of western New York within the past 

 fifty years have been very marked. Though the section 

 was old in the middle of the century when compared with 

 the regions farther west, it still retained much woodland 

 which has since been cleared. The land had mostly gone 

 into the hands of settlers in the first quarter of the century, 

 and the rapid removal of the timber had ceased, except in 

 the Pine-lands of the hills which form the northern termi- 

 nus of the Alleghanies. The pioneers and the children 

 who generally succeeded to their fathers' estates, grew 

 tired of their long struggle to subdue the wilderness, or 

 deemed a generous supply of timber necessary for the 

 farm. Hence there came a lull in the clearing process 

 when trees enough had been removed to suit the imme- 

 diate demands of agriculture. 



The region generally is one of hills and valleys, and few 

 farms were devoid of swampy land. Though the soil of 

 the swamps was rich, it was costly work to drain them. 

 The timber of the swamps was extra large and heavy, and 

 this made it more toilsome to clear them, so the trees in 

 the swamps were spared longer than those on the drier 

 uplands or on the hills. Then a good amount of swamp- 

 land was required for the oak and black ash it fur- 

 nished for fence timber, for the old-time rail fence made 

 liberal demands upon the forest. The timber of the upland 

 in the best agricultural sections was largely beech and 

 maple, which made the best of firewood, and an abun- 

 dance was left for this purpose. The fire-place was still 

 used extensively, and it demanded more wood than the 

 stove that was supplanting it. Nearly every farm, too, had 

 its sugar-bush, whose annual tapping was a matter of ne- 

 cessity, for the sugar for the household principally came 

 from the Maples, and this fact protected the trees. As the 

 Muscovado and the white sugars became cheaper, how- 

 ever, and labor more costly, less maple sugar was made, 

 and many sugar-bushes were cut down. The increase in 

 the price of maple sugar has of late rather stimulated its 

 production, and where trees enough are left it has become 

 a matter of profit once more, and the destruction of the 

 Sugar Maple is again checked. The use of wire for fenc- 

 ing has decreased the demand for timber, except for posts, 

 and even iron is taking the place of these in many cases. 

 So the preservation of trees for rail timber has nearly 

 ceased, although oak and chestnut are still required for 

 posts. 



As the cities and villages sprang up there came an in- 

 creased demand for firewood and charcoal, and the forests left 

 by the pioneer were more and more curtailed. With much 

 of the labor done in the winter, the coal-pit and the cutting 

 and marketing of wood became profitable to the farmer. 

 This continued till mineral coal checked, and has finally 



