loo The Art of Landscape Gardening 



of that palace of the mountains. Such was his inten- 

 tion with respect to the stream of water which flows 

 through Thoresby Park ; but since the lake presents 

 a magnificent expanse of water, the river below the 

 cascade should be restored to its natural character : 

 a rivulet in motion. 



At Wentworth, although the quantity of water is 

 very considerable, yet it is so disposed as to be Httle 

 seen from the present approach, and when it is crossed 

 in the drive on the head between two pools, the arti- 

 ficial management destroys much of its effect: they 

 appear to be several distinct ponds, and not the series 

 of lakes which nature produces in a mountainous coun- 

 try. But the character of this water should rather 

 imitate one large river than several small lakes; espe- 

 cially as it is much easier to produce the appearance of 

 continuity than of such vast expanse as a lake requires. 

 The following sketch [Plate ix] is a view of the 

 scenery presenting itself under the branches of trees, 

 which act as a frame to the landscape. 



To preserve the idea of a river, nothing is so effect- 

 ual as a bridge; instead of dividing the water on each 

 side, it always tends to lengthen its continuity by shew- 

 ing the impossibility of crossing it by any other means, 

 provided the ends are well concealed, which is fortun- 

 ately the case with respect to this water. Although the 

 upper side of the bridge would be very little seen, 

 because the banks are everywhere planted, yet, as the 

 bridge would not be more than fifty yards long, it would 

 be more in character with the greatness of the place to 

 have such a bridge as would nowhere appear a decep- 

 tion, and in this case the different levels of the water 

 (being only five feet) would never be discovered. 



