SECLUSION. 



273 



be elicited must "be determined by the taste of the pro- 

 prietor and a due consideration of the nature of the 

 ground. "While, then, we would refer the reader to 

 the earlier part of this work, we would offer some 

 special remarks in the way of aiding the application 

 of the principles already inculcated. These may fall 

 appropriately under the following heads : 



(1.) Seclusion.— This is a quality more or less de- 

 sirable in all small residences ; and in the vicinity of 

 large cities, it may be regarded as indispensable. Of 

 course it does not consist in the exclusion of light and 

 air; neither does it suppose the shutting-out of fine 

 views, whether at hand or at a distance. It is rather 

 the protection of the family from that exposure to pub- 

 lic gaze which would prevent them from using any 

 part of their grounds as freely and comfortably as they 

 would their drawing-room. A certain amount of 

 privacy, at least, is essential to that rural feeling which 

 is a principal charm in retirement from the bustle of 

 city life. Some individuals, indeed, seem to have a 

 particular fancy for displaying their flower-beds and 

 lawns to the eyes of the public ; a taste, we humbly 

 think, more suited to hotel establishments than to the 

 abodes of private families. We would have the greater 

 portion of the villa grounds to be possessed of the 

 characters of complete seclusion. At the same time, 

 the error arising from the excess of this quality — the 

 dull, gloomy insipidity caused by over-planting and an 

 over-affectation of privacy — is to be carefully guarded 

 against. On level or gently-sloping surfaces, the pro- 

 per amount of seclusion may generally be obtained by 

 building the boundary walls from eight to ten feet 

 high. On surfaces with a considerable declivity, such 



