English Gardens 



aspect. On this account, if for no other, the immediate ap- 

 proach to the house is not so capable as other places of being 

 made livable. Considerations of utility are therefore paramount. 

 If it is a carriage entrance, a short drive and a convenient turn 

 are the things sought. This has resulted in a number of types 

 of which the most familiar are the simple in-and-out on 

 different lines, and the straight drive finishing in a circle. 

 Both these lend themselves readily to a formal treatment, 

 and trees planted regularly, hedges or walls give an element 

 of style to the simplest of plans. The kitchen approach is even 

 more utilitarian ; the chief object being to keep it separate from 

 the master's approach and screened from view. The most 

 direct approach is the simplest of turns ; privacy is obtained 

 by walls, fences, hedges, or, in the case of basement offices, by 

 sinking the road below the general grade. 



The formal planning of the early seventeenth century, 

 which developed the H and E plans, suggested the partial or 

 complete enclosing of the two approaches. It reproduced in 

 more regular form the early forecourt and basecourt. The for- 

 mer name is still generally in use, the latter is more generally 

 referred to as kitchen-court. The forecourt became at once an 

 interesting feature of the plan, but never lost its true status. It 



A WALK BEFORE THE HOUSE 



74 



