431 
PARK AND CEMETERlf 
way is suggested, and a radial curve is similarly controlled 
from its centre; both represent a single, controlling, physical 
force. Now nature never produces what is known as park- 
like scenes by single forces, but always as a resultant of many 
forces differing much from each other as to their nature and 
character, as seen in the forms of valleys and hills, of plains 
and mountains, the course of brooks through meadows, the 
shores of lakes, the paths of wild animals through the forests, 
and the natural distribution of plants, and in all the common 
results of nature's works. It is the result of the law, — that 
units of the same kind moving under a general law are so 
modified by lesser forces that they never individually produce 
exactly the same results, or reach their location of rest and 
stability in exactly the same form and position, — this is il- 
lustrated most admirably by a slight summer shower where 
the drops are few and far between. If w'e study the spatter 
marks of the drops on the sidewalk flags, if we watch still 
further, and as the shower increases see how the spatter 
marks run into each other, ana the outlines which the wet 
and dry places take, and their relation to each other, we may, 
if we will, understand in part at least, how the seeming ir- 
regularities of nature come about. There are equally good 
illustrations all around us everywhere, and wdien one comes 
to understand the workings of this law it solves many a diffi- 
cult problem. 
There is another law which seems to be a supplement to 
this; it is: Things which are entirely unlike may be so re- 
lated to each other in composition that they produce the ef- 
fect of likeness, or they may enter into a composition in such 
a way as to produce a unity and wholeness which is entirely 
unlike any of its parts. It would take too long to discuss 
this law now. I referred to it because it is needed to lialance 
the first one and shows its limitations. 
Let us see how these laws are applied l)y that master mind, 
Frederick Law Olmsted, to those common features of parks, 
roads and paths. One man has said : “The lines and grades 
of Mr. Olmsted's roads beat the world.” Another said : “No 
one has ever yet equaled the layout of the Olmsteds for 
drives and walks.” 1 agree with them, l)ut whether you do 
or not, let us analyze somewhat the curves and grades which 
have made the name of Olmsted famous, not that they are 
the only things which have made him so, yet as far as roads 
are concerned I think you will agree with me that they are 
wonderfully successful. I desire to state that what I have to 
say in regard to the Olmsted roads comes from the study of 
the roads themselves and not in any way from any statements 
they have made, neither am I at all sure they would agree 
with my explanation. 
I have tried to show that nature does not allow one force 
to overcome all others, therefore, in the naturalistic sections, 
straight lines, radial curves, and geometrical forms are not 
to he introduced, so they can have no influence in determining 
the road lines. Therefore, the question becomes a simple one 
of deciding certain locations where the road is to be and its 
direction at those points, and then connecting the intervening 
spaces. Now as nature allows every force with which its 
work comes in contact to modify it, so we must allow all the 
various incidents between the two points to influence its lo- 
cation, such as hills, valleys, trees, rocks, brooks, distant 
views and local beauty, anything, everything, that happens 
to be along the line under consideration and allowed their 
proportionate influence, and furthermore, if nothing exists to 
prevent it being a straight line then something should be 
introduced, such as planting or grading, which might have 
existed naturally by the conditions under which the land was 
formed, and then let these artificial constructions modify our 
lines as if they had been natural. Now, if this law was to be 
followed literally without any modification our road might be 
a perfect medley of twists and turns and grades, but this law, 
like all others, must not be allowed to operate alone. It is 
modified by the second law, — that dissimilar things properly 
united produce a whole. Our road is to be made up of curves 
which have no geometrical relations to each other and of 
grades which are free from all idea of straightness, but they 
must be harmonized in such a way that the result is pleas- 
ing. If to obtain this unification it is necessary to cut 
through hills and fill valleys, to cut down trees and move 
brooks, it is to be done, even if we apparently violate every 
one of the conditions of our first law. These two laws, if 
positively carried out, would destroy each other, but here 
comes in that saving grace which is everywhere abundant in 
nature. We never have to, and never have I known a case 
where these two laws so seemingly at war with each other, 
cannot be made to produce a harmony, and it is a man’s skill 
in adjusting these two laws, not only regarding roads, but to 
other park features, that decides his standing as a landscape 
architect. Now' comes the question of grades: Wherever 
there is an ascending grade there must be sooner or later a 
descending grade, and wdiere they connect is the summit. 
Wherever there is a descent, sooner or later, comes an ascent 
and their meeting place is a valley. Were straight grades to 
be established without modification at their junctions an 
eaves trough, ridge pole effect would result, so it is custom- 
ary with engineers to make curved connections both at sum- 
mit and valley, but in naturalistic roads it is necessarj' to do 
more than that ; the profile line must he studied by exactly the 
same laws as the location line has been, while the result will 
not he anyw'here near as violent as in the surface line, it may 
not even he noticeable to the ordinary traveler, yet if it does 
not exist a discordant note has been introduced into the com- 
position. 
There is a relationship betw'een the shorter curves with 
the valleys and summits, and the longer curves with the 
longer grades, and both with the trees, rocks and other ob- 
structions met in the layout. The law is this : Make the 
greatest change in direction and the greatest change in 
grades, and the greatest change in plantings at one and the 
same place, and let the distances between these points be as 
simple and continuous in effect as practical. This method is 
almost always follow'ed hy Mr. Olmsted in his w'ork, and, 
so far as I can learn, he was the first to intelligently apply 
it to park work. It is so much a character of his work that 
I have come to call them Olmsted curves, Olmsted grades and 
Olmsted compositions. Nature does her work in the same 
way; notice a twig of a tree, how all the intense life is con- 
centrated in one space, the node, the place where the leaf, the 
bud, the flower and the fruit all spring from, and between 
these places is the internode, which is just simply a stem 
plain and smooth, without a bunch or a break to disturb its 
simple form. Remember that beauty is not a blailket covering 
the earth as a whole, but is a ganglion having centers of at- 
traction with the simplest connecting scenery between. 
The next point I want to call your attention to is that a 
park is as much a construction as a city hall or a bridge. The 
idea that a park is a piece of ground outdoors which can be 
worked much as a farmer works his land should be ex- 
ploded, and cities should understand that when they under- 
take to build a park they have undertaken a work of a simi- 
lar character, of as great importance, fully as difficult and 
intricate as building a magnificent city hall. The city offi- 
cers can be housed in a barn which might be called a city 
hall, but it doesn’t help the credit or give character to the 
city. So any old piece of ground can be called a park, but 
A 
