302 THE CHURCHYARD. 



Irish yew, rich and dark and erect as a sentinel, as well as 

 its parent Taxus haccata, also dark, if not altogether statu- 

 esque. Other evergreens bear, of course,' their due relation 

 to this harmony of color and form. Graceful, grotesque, 

 weeping spruces, golden and fern-like Japanese cypresses 

 or retinosporas, columnar weeping silver firs, and fountain- 

 like weeping hemlocks, alike contribute each its separate 

 mark on the broad effect of the whole. It is a symphony 

 of trees as impressive in many ways as the swelling chords 

 of the church organ. Nor does the velvet turf, extending 

 in broad, unbroken spaces, fail to perfect the genei-al ap- 

 pearance of the scene. Statuesque dwarf evergreens, as 

 well as more lofty trees, occupy the space immediately 

 about the church walk, or fence, leaving wide openings be- 

 tween. The fence, carrying out the same idea, is low, with 

 but two rails, and as inconspicuous as possible. Care is 

 taken also not to overload the lawn with choice, low-grow- 

 ing, sombre evergreens, as represented by most of the yews, 

 spruces, and firs. Just as the effect of the graver elms, 

 oaks, and maples is lightened by the tints of the yellow- 

 wood and ginkgo, so the evergreens pass here and there 

 into bright golden forms, and again into low deciduous 

 trees, which are not, in any sense, shrubs. Thus the glow- 

 ing leaves of certain Japanese maples are used as single 

 specimens, and especially the low-grafted form of the Kil- 

 marnock weeping ^villow. This tree is veiy symmetrical 

 and even graceful, if properly pruned; but, as usually 

 known in its high-grafted form, its stem early decays. In 

 the sketch accompanying the church illustration is shown 

 the low-gi"afted form, which is comparatively free from 



