REASONS AND RULES 



The chief reason why drives and walks should be 

 curved in all places which make any pretense of 

 natural landscape, is because such drives increase 

 variety; and variety here, as elsewhere, "is the 

 spice of life." There are three leading reasons 

 why a curved drive augments variety, i. It pre- 

 sents different views from each part. 2. The drive 

 is hidden from itself : one does not look ahead over 

 a straight and monotonous roadway. 3. The curves 

 augment variety, because they force upon the rider 

 a constant change of direction and position. 



I often meet persons who fail to recognize curved 

 drives and walks as a part of a natural arrange- 

 ment. One can only reply that drives and walks 

 are at best almost entirely artificial, and the best 

 we can do with them is to throw them into natural- 

 like and varied forms. We simply treat an artifi- 

 cial object in a natural-like manner. Curves are 

 universally present in nature. Rivers and creeks 

 and ravines follow graceful curves. Even when 

 they appear at sight to be straight, a casual obser- 

 vation brings out flowing and varied lines of margin 

 and direction. Even cow-paths are not straight ; 

 and I have often remarked to students that the 

 trails which they make across large lawns as short- 

 cuts are always curved, and these curves are many 

 times sufficiently pronounced to answer all the pur- 

 poses of landscape gardening. I have often chal- 

 lenged a teamster to drive in a perfectly straight 

 line across an open ten-acre field, without taking 

 sight upon a fixed point. Not one has done it. 



But it is not every curved drive which is attrac- 

 tive ; in fact, I often think that more drives are 

 spoiled by curves than by straightness. A straight 

 drive always has the merit of directness and con- 

 venience, while the unusual curves and indirectness 

 of a poorly conceived curved drive distract the 



FOR CURVED DRIVES. 



attention and obscure any merits it may possess. 

 A few simple and general rules may prove useful. 



1. All curves should appear to be necessary or 

 useful. This rule really determines the whole char- 

 acter of the drive. The rest are corollaries to it. 



2. Avoid balanced curves — a cork-screw or snake- 

 like motion. 



3. The curves should be direct; their general 

 trend in the direction of the object to which they 

 lead. The drive should go where it appears to go. 



4. The successive parts should be hidden from 

 each other by tasteful plantings along the borders. 



5. The branches of a drive should diverge strong- 

 ly at their juncture, and they should usually be 

 wholly or partially concealed from each other by 

 plantings or other objects. If drives diverge, they 

 appear to lead in nearly opposite directions, and 

 therefore have the appearance of usefulness. If 

 the parts have the same direction, one portion ap- 

 pears useless. A broader statement is the following: 



6. No two drives, or parts of drives, should be 

 parallel or appear to lead to the same object. 



7. The nature of the curves should conform 

 somewhat to the character of the landscape. In 

 rough or bold grounds drives may have much bolder 

 and more spirited curves than in tamer places. 



The illustration is a good representation of a 

 poor drive. The bare and indirect curves stand 

 out painfully as one looks down the drive, and there 

 is no apparent reason or excuse for the twistings. 

 This illustration is made from a view in one of the 

 best campuses in this country. But the picture 

 illustrates another error often made in grounds 

 which frequently change management. The abom- 

 inable crooks in this instance are due to the "tack- 

 ing on " of one drive to another, without consulting 

 the genius of either one. L. H. B. 



