BRIDGES. 



713 



both sides with boarding, and that covered 

 with imitation basketwork, or designs 

 formed of larch, oak, hazel, or any other 

 wood, selecting the smooth branches ; or, 

 if desired, it may be covered with cones 

 of various species of pines, so arranged as 

 to produce a very pleasing effect. The 

 rough bark of trees — oak, for example — 

 may be used to cover the whole, or the 

 sides may be divided into panels, with 

 pieces of branches or cones, and the 

 panels filled in with smooth or rough 

 bark, according to fancy. 



Similar houses may also be constructed, 

 by covering the quartering with lath, and 

 plastering with good sound hair plaster, 

 the surface of which, while wet, may be 

 dashed with clean gravel, pebbles, small 

 shells, scoriae, spars, &c, sifted so as to be 

 of a uniform size. Shells of various kinds 

 are often used for such purposes, and are 

 stuck in while the plaster is soft, and very 

 pretty devices are often formed by them. 

 As this work requires to be done expe- 

 ditiously, it is necessary to have the shells 

 sorted and close at hand ; and to render 

 the pattern or design as perfect as pos- 

 sible, it should be traced on the plaster 

 first ; and this process will be much faci- 

 litated, if the pattern is cut out in sheet- 

 iron, thin boarding, &c, which being laid 

 on the plaster, the lines can be traced 

 with great accuracy and despatch. 



Again, great variety of design may be 

 given to the plastered walls. "Lines 

 may be drawn by the trowel, straight, 

 wavy, angular, intersecting, or irregular. 

 Stripes, checks, squares, circles, or trellis- 

 work, may be also imitated. Wicker- 

 work is a very general subject of imita- 

 tion, and this is produced by pressing a 

 panel, generally a foot square, of neatly 

 wrought wickerwork against the plaster 

 when moist. It is evident that this de- 

 scription of ornament might be greatly 

 varied and extended, and that, instead 

 of the panel of wickerwork, wooden 

 plates, of patterns such as those used by 

 room-paper printers, might cover the 

 walls with hieroglyphics, with sculptures 

 of various kinds, with imitation of natu- 

 ral objects, or with memorable or instruc- 

 tive sayings, or chronological facts." — 

 Encyclopedia of Villa Architecture, 



Such walls may have the appearance of 

 age given them by the process called 

 splashing ; but in this case they require 



VOL. I. 



to be thoroughly dried, if the splashing is 

 to be composed of glutinous material, or 

 in oil colours, which are by far the most 

 durable. If splashing is to be done in 

 water colours, it matters not whether the 

 walls be dry or not. As a general rule 

 in splashing or even plain-colouring walls 

 with oil colours or with glutinous material, 

 the walls should be thoroughly dry, and it 

 should be done at a season when they are 

 not saturated with moisture. " The reason 

 for these rules is, that water colours do 

 not impede the evaporation of moisture 

 from the wall, and the absorption by the 

 mortar of carbonic acid gas, by which it 

 is hardened and rendered durable ; while 

 glutinous colours, by closing up the pores 

 of the surface, do both." 



§ 4. — BRIDGES. 



Rustic architecture — that is, the build- 

 ing of bridges, covered seats, moss-houses, 

 &c, and the use of vases, baskets, and 

 arbours, made of timber in its natural 

 state, without or with the bark on — has 

 been deemed by some of our own country 

 a species of child's play, which may freely 

 be left to the fancy of those who indulge 

 in it ; and F. L. Von Seckyl, a German 

 author, is of the same opinion. We think 

 very differently, and consider that there 

 has been, in many instances, as much 

 taste and talent shown in designing and 

 erection of some of these, as in the erec- 

 tion of many architectural buildings for 

 the same purpose. To those who think 

 the English or natural style of laying out 

 grounds the perfection of principle, and 

 to such as cannot afford more expensive 

 erections, we would recommend the intro- 

 duction of rustic work in preference to 

 the more elaborate and classic, because it 

 harmonises with that style, and is compa- 

 tible with the means of the less affluent. 



Again, exotic trees, shrubs, and flower- 

 ing plants, are made use of in the compo- 

 sition of even what is called a natural 

 garden. They are introduced for variety 

 and effect, when those materials indige- 

 nous to our country are found inadequate 

 to the artist's purpose. The ground is par- 

 tially smoothed, the route defined by gra- 

 velled walks, form and shape given to the 

 borders, till at last nature is almost obli- 

 terated by art. Why then not introduce 



4 x 



