﻿August, 
  1907 
  

  

  AMERICAN 
  HOMES 
  AND 
  GARDENS 
  

  

  293 
  

  

  this 
  demand 
  that 
  a 
  contemporary 
  authority 
  

   has 
  written 
  : 
  

  

  "Passionate 
  collectors 
  of 
  antiquities, 
  and 
  

   affecting 
  when 
  they 
  do 
  not 
  cherish 
  it 
  an 
  

   enthusiasm 
  for 
  antique 
  life, 
  they 
  have 
  made 
  

   their 
  gardens 
  veritable 
  museums, 
  even 
  at 
  

   last 
  counterfeiting 
  antique 
  ruins 
  on 
  their 
  

   estates. 
  The 
  whole 
  thing 
  has 
  reduced 
  itself 
  

   to 
  a 
  question 
  of 
  commercialism. 
  People 
  

   that 
  can 
  afford 
  to 
  pay 
  two 
  or 
  five 
  or 
  eight 
  

   thousand 
  dollars 
  for 
  a 
  garden-ornament 
  are 
  

   numerous 
  enough 
  to 
  absorb 
  all 
  that 
  offers, 
  

   but 
  not 
  to 
  keep 
  the 
  machinery 
  of 
  the 
  aver- 
  

   age 
  antique 
  establishment 
  running 
  at 
  full 
  

   power. 
  

  

  "Far 
  larger 
  is 
  the 
  public 
  that 
  wants 
  to 
  

   get 
  its 
  antiques, 
  'new 
  and 
  old,' 
  at 
  low 
  prices. 
  

   Suppose 
  one 
  finds 
  that 
  a 
  font 
  or 
  basin, 
  that 
  

   looks 
  of 
  immemorial 
  age 
  to 
  the 
  uninitiated, 
  

   may 
  be 
  bought 
  for 
  one 
  hundred 
  dollars, 
  

   will 
  he 
  not 
  be 
  tempted? 
  If 
  he 
  be 
  a 
  sudden 
  

   and 
  ill-prepared 
  aspirant 
  for 
  garden 
  hon- 
  

   ors, 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  difficult 
  to 
  fancy 
  him 
  writing 
  

   his 
  check, 
  and 
  ordering 
  the 
  plausible 
  object 
  

   set 
  up 
  in 
  his 
  domain. 
  He 
  is 
  but 
  the 
  modern 
  

   instance 
  of 
  a 
  counterfeiter 
  of 
  antique 
  ruins. 
  

   The 
  blame 
  is 
  not 
  to 
  be 
  laid 
  wholly 
  upon 
  the 
  

   bargain-hunter's 
  shoulders. 
  The 
  original 
  

   sin 
  was 
  committed, 
  in 
  nearly 
  every 
  case, 
  in 
  

   Italy 
  itself. 
  Antique 
  designs 
  are 
  more 
  or 
  

   less 
  faithfully 
  copied, 
  the 
  very 
  chips 
  and 
  

   gouges 
  of 
  three 
  hundred 
  years 
  of 
  existence 
  

   being 
  reproduced 
  as 
  nearly 
  as 
  possible, 
  

   elaborate 
  care 
  being 
  taken 
  to 
  rub 
  down 
  cor- 
  

   ners 
  and 
  break 
  off 
  projections, 
  as 
  though 
  

   the 
  weather 
  and 
  the 
  petty 
  accidents 
  of 
  cen- 
  

   turies 
  had 
  left 
  their 
  scars. 
  The 
  next 
  step 
  is 
  

   one 
  that 
  stamps 
  the 
  practice 
  as 
  indefensible. 
  

   Diluted 
  acids 
  are 
  poured 
  over 
  the 
  stones 
  

   to 
  eat 
  away 
  the 
  surface 
  in 
  irregular 
  patches, 
  

   in 
  imitation 
  of 
  decay. 
  Finally 
  the 
  calendar 
  

   is 
  put 
  back 
  for 
  it, 
  by 
  rubbing 
  the 
  marble 
  in 
  

   damp 
  earth 
  and 
  thoroughly 
  impregnating 
  

   its 
  skin 
  with 
  a 
  dingy 
  color. 
  For 
  the 
  result 
  

   there 
  is, 
  of 
  course, 
  only 
  one 
  word. 
  That 
  

   word 
  is 
  counterfeit." 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  not 
  surprising 
  under 
  these 
  condi- 
  

   tions 
  that 
  those 
  who 
  could 
  afford 
  the 
  gen- 
  

   uine 
  antique, 
  and 
  even 
  those 
  who 
  have 
  a 
  

   passionate 
  love 
  for 
  the 
  genuinely 
  old 
  Italian 
  

   marbles, 
  will 
  sometimes 
  avoid 
  the 
  real 
  be- 
  

   cause 
  of 
  the 
  counterfeits. 
  There 
  is 
  little 
  

   probability, 
  however, 
  of 
  this 
  form 
  of 
  gar- 
  

   den 
  decoration 
  being 
  entirely 
  discarded 
  in 
  

   formal 
  landscape 
  gardening. 
  It 
  is 
  too 
  

   widely 
  appreciated 
  to 
  be 
  denounced 
  as 
  a 
  

   whole, 
  because 
  certain 
  ambitious 
  estates 
  dis- 
  

   play 
  imitations. 
  To 
  be 
  pleasing 
  and 
  effec- 
  

   tive 
  all 
  antique 
  garden 
  ornaments 
  must 
  be 
  

   well 
  proportioned, 
  harmonious 
  and 
  fitting 
  

   to 
  their 
  surroundings 
  — 
  in 
  other 
  words, 
  both 
  

   appropriate 
  and 
  impressive 
  — 
  or 
  they 
  will 
  

   fail 
  to 
  satisfy, 
  no 
  matter 
  how 
  "genuine 
  and 
  

   beautiful" 
  they 
  may 
  be 
  in 
  themselves. 
  In 
  

   many 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  beautiful 
  of 
  the 
  formal 
  

   Americans 
  gardens 
  of 
  to-day 
  a 
  few 
  fine 
  

   marbles 
  are 
  introduced 
  in 
  the 
  form 
  of 
  statu- 
  

   ary 
  and 
  mammoth 
  garden-vases, 
  but 
  no 
  pre- 
  

   tence 
  is 
  made 
  to 
  have 
  the 
  rarely 
  beautiful 
  

   formal 
  garden 
  other 
  than 
  it 
  appears 
  to 
  the 
  

   admiring 
  observer. 
  

  

  A 
  Semi-circular 
  Wall 
  of 
  Concrete 
  with 
  an 
  Outer 
  Border 
  of 
  Climbing 
  Roses 
  

  

  The 
  Architect 
  and 
  the 
  Gardener 
  Have 
  Been 
  at 
  Work 
  Ever 
  Since 
  this 
  Mansion 
  Was 
  Built 
  

  

  

  

  A 
  Lower 
  Wall 
  with 
  an 
  Attractive 
  Fountain 
  Recess, 
  Extending 
  Back 
  

   Under 
  the 
  Upper 
  Pavement 
  

  

  