The Natural Style in Landscape Gardening 



it appeals powerfully to practically all people, we 

 must regard it as the principal source in the world 

 of esthetic joy. It is the world's principal reser- 

 voir of beauty. It does more for the esthetic life 

 of mankind than all the painting, sculpture, po- 

 etry and architecture in all the world taken to- 

 gether. This is a large claim, but it is a simple 

 and obvious truth. 



For this reason we should all greatly reverence 

 the native landscape, should seek to conserve it 

 for human use and enjoyment, should endeavor to 

 make it physically accessible to all, should try to 

 make it intelligible to all, should work to open up 

 for it the way to men's hearts. 



Let us take the case of the young man who pro- 

 poses to become a landscape architect and who 

 hopes to do some of his work in the natural style 

 — or the informal form, if we prefer an exacter 

 nomenclature. In his earnest desire to know and 

 love the native landscape his first plain step will 

 be to associate wdth it. He will go out with the 

 landscape. He will spend hours, days and weeks 

 with it. Instead of going to the bowling alleys, 



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