245 
PARK AND CEMKTRRY. 
Beatitify tHe Small Towns. 
I want to enlist the aid of Park and Cemetery 
in behalf of the small towns. The cities, great and 
small, are doing their whole duty in providing parks, 
but the villages and small towns seem to think that 
parks are luxuries beyond them. We hear political 
economists bewailing the fact that the cities are grow- 
ing faster than the country, and they ask why it is. 
I think I can answer in part : Parks, boulevards, li- 
braries, addeil to the other attractions of the cities 
are sure to entice the country youth from the hum- 
drum life in a frowsy hamlet. And who can blame 
them ? But if Mr. Carnegie, or Mr. Rockefeller, or 
other of our rich men should assist and encourage our 
country towns to build parks, to plant trees and beaUj- 
tify their towns, thus making their homes pleasant, 
the glamour of the city would not be so striking. The 
building and endowing of great libraries is most com- 
mendable, but there are many things we need more. 
Those fine palaces filled with books are handsome 
monuments to the rich donor, but I believe the same 
amount of money expended in playgrounds about the 
city schools and in parks in country villages would 
bring more health and happiness than those stores of 
books that are only read by rich or well-to-do people. 
Our country people need to be educated along this 
line. Make the country towns more beautiful, and 
the desire to leave them for the great cities will not 
be so great. 
This town has only about 300 population, but we 
have a pretty park of eleven acres that I know has 
been a source of pleasure to our people and made 
them more contented with their homes. We have a. 
brass band, too, and often on summer nights and 
Sundays they play in the park, and our ladies light 
the trees with Chinese lanterns, making a charming 
scene. Moreover, it has improved the taste of our 
people regarding their homes, so that we have becoiue 
a model for neighboring towns. 
I believe the great benefactor of the future is the 
man who shall give city children good playgrounds 
about their schools, and teach country towns to make 
themselves beautiful. James Glover. 
VIEW IN THE PARK, BEUFF CITY, KAS. 
Lawn and SHmbbery 
The history of the development of the lawn and 
shrubbery upon residence grounds is interesting. 
It suffices for the present purpose to recall the 
fences and hedges which were common along every 
street and which have given way to a broad ex- 
panse of lawn bordered with sbrubs. The whole has 
developed into a certain style, more or less perma- 
nent, which may be termed the Landscape Method. 
It is the abuse of this Landscape Method which 
is under discussion in this paper. Especially is this 
true of small city residences, in extent an acre or 
less, where imitation of larger things has led to- 
ward the danger point. The type is outlined as fol- 
lows : Convenient beds of shrubbery are around 
the house and at the corners of the property, some- 
times with a border plantation around the whole 
field, thus leaving the body of the grounds, except 
for walks and a drive, a smooth continuous lawn. 
on Residence Grounds. 
This arrangement erdarg'es the lawn, gives a good 
mass of shrubs, and makes a clean design. The de- 
fect comes in the numerous imitations and these 
often without a clear understanding- of principles. 
There results a commonness which becomes vulgar 
just in proportion as the construction becomes me- 
chanical. Again, the cause is not in the curves. I 
sometimes meet owners dreaming of outlines and 
sweeps, as though an inch one way or the other 
would separate aristocracy from the commonplace; 
and yet, the construction of landscape depends upon 
more fundamental principles than gentle curves and 
the choice of fine plants. These alone do not sat- 
isfy the artistic sense. 
Much of the present style is due to the influence 
of large city parks, where we see beautiful scenery 
which we would gladly welcome at home. I have 
in mind one of the large fields in Hartford. There 
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