414 



PICTURESQUE I M P R O V E M ENT. 



BOOK I. 



SECT. 2. OF THE OCCASIONAL OR APPROPRIATE MATE- 

 RIALS OF LANDSCAPE. 



These are roads, walks, and fences of different kinds. 



Roads and walks have partly one of the effects of build- 

 ings ; that is, of giving spirit and force to scenes of verdure and 

 cultivation. Conveniency and propriety dictate their direc- 

 tion, and utility their width. Their margin, and the surface 

 and colour of the materials, are what chiefly concern pictu- 

 resque effect. Where the scene is avowedly artificial, the mar- 

 gins must be parallel to each other, and accurately defined ; 

 as in that part of the approach road which comes within the 

 parapet or fence that incloses the mansion, or in those walks 

 which are within the bounds of either the ornamental or useful 

 garden. Where the road or walk is not in these scenes, but is 

 either in picturesque or natural pleasure-ground, pasture fields, 

 park, forest, or dingle, the edges must be irregular, and more 

 or less rough or smooth, blending or ragged, as we see takes 

 place in paths through similar scenery in wild nature. Where 

 trees and bushes are loosely scattered over a lawn, the sweeps 

 or turns of the walk should be comparatively abrupt, and its 



