320 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



August, 1907 



steps. In the center 

 of this sunken space 

 is a sun-dial, stand- 

 ing on a fragment 

 of an antique col- 

 umn planted on a 

 small circle of grass. 

 This is actually the 

 center of a vast 

 square bounded on 

 all sides by a raised 

 walk and reached 

 by steps. The 

 whole of this sur- 

 face is a mass oi 

 blooming plants ar- 

 ranged in huge beds, 

 giving a wonderful 

 effect of color, and 

 presenting a most 

 entrancing quantity 

 of bloom. The pre- 

 dominating quality 

 of this garden is its 

 intense floral activ- 

 ity. The masses of 

 the plants are so 

 great, and the plants 

 themselves brought 

 to such a high de- 

 gree of cultivation, 

 that the effect is one 

 of almost over- 

 powering brilliancy. 



A high brick wall 

 separates the formal 

 garden from the 

 avenue to the house. 

 The main path that 

 is directed toward it 

 leads to a handsome fountain against the wall, surmounted 

 by a statue of Neptune. Water lilies grow in the lower pool, 

 and before it at the side of the steps are two fascinating old 

 leopards of Venetian marble. The trees on either side of 

 this fountain and those beyond the wall make an effective 

 screen and background. As one stands near the sun-dial the 

 foreground is filled with great beds of Bowers. Beyond are 

 the steps with the guarding leopards. On either side are 

 raised beds of flowers, indicating the margin of the path that 

 runs abo\ e the outer edge of the garden. And then beyond. 



The Masses of Plants Are So Great, and the Plants Brought to Such a High Degree 

 of Cultivation, That the Effect Is Brilliant 



in Its surroundings 

 of richly leaved 

 trees, is the fountain 

 standing against the 

 brick wall, which is 

 here raised to suit- 

 ably support it. On 

 the left, overlooking 

 the brook, one has a 

 beautiful and ever- 

 changing view of 

 the ocean stretching 

 for miles toward 

 Marblehead. 



The bridge is but 

 the entrance, and 

 does not form a part 

 of the immediate 

 scheme of the for- 

 mal garden. The 

 arbor at the end of 

 the path from the 

 bridge is itself so 

 embowered with 

 vines and trees as to 

 be hardly more than 

 an outline in the 

 general mass. The 

 low brick wall that 

 surrounds the gar- , 

 den is simply a sup- 

 port to the bound- 

 ing paths, and is 

 terrace-like in its ef- 

 fect. The outer 

 wall of brick that 

 shuts in the garden 

 from the avenue is 

 scarcely more than a 

 necessary screen, 

 i he fountain of Neptune is thus a fitting climax, and an ex- 

 ceedingly happy one, to the symmetrical development of the 

 garden. It is interesting to note that fine as this garden is, 

 its chief dependence has been upon the plants within it rather 

 than upon the architectural frame or sculptural adornment 

 that are usually given to formal gardens. 



Hence it is a true garden of plants and flowers, and offers 

 a distinctive quality that the architectural garden, burdened 

 with structural embellishments, does not offer. The latter 

 have here their place, but it is a true place. 



