LONDON AND SUBURBS. 8'/ 



this tree had been planted on both sides of the road, 

 where it made a beautiful shade and a pretty appearance 

 with its widely-spreading branches. Outside most of the 

 gentlemen's houses there were allees or clumps, hinder, 

 of elms. Mr. P. Collinson had, in his beautiful garden 

 at Peckham, so clipped one of these trees that it, with 

 its twigs, formed the roof of one of his summer-houses 

 which stood on one side of the garden, and opposite, on 

 the other side of the garden, was an Esculus, Linn., or 

 Castanea Equina, C.B., Horse-chestnut, dipt in the same 

 way ; so that its branches spread themselves out on one 

 side, and formed a roof and shelter over the seat or bench 

 which was erected beneath it. In My Lord Tilney's 

 garden, which is described under Woodford, there were 

 high and long allees, made only and solely [T. I. p. 474] 

 of elm. They had there got to grow to some height. 

 Afterwards they had bent the tops towards one another, 

 and allowed them to shoot out branches, where they now 

 made a tolerably thick roof, so that when one stood at 

 one end and looked along this allee, it seemed as though 

 it were arched or vaulted with green trees. On many 

 estates these elms were likewise left to shoot out branches 

 on the inner side of the allee, through which they formed 

 a thick and leafy roof over the allee, so that it was very 

 lovely on summer days to walk along these allees, where 

 it was always shady and refreshing. When I went down 

 to Gravesend, in Kent, and in the part of Essex that lay 

 opposite to Gravesend, I found no tree, of which there 

 were so many planted by the streets and outside the 

 houses, in the towns, villages, and farms, and of which 

 there was such an abundance in the hedges around the 

 fields as of this. The reason why they in particular 

 choose this tree before others is said to be that it gives 

 the best shade, endures the coal smoke very well, stands 

 for a long time green, and keeps its leaves till the 



