influence of environment on the monument itself 
and the eCEect produced by the monument on its 
surroundings. The impression may be disagreeable 
and disturbing, or suggestive of satisfaction and 
repose according to whether or not their relationship 
is harmonious. Many an excellent monument, beau- 
tiful in its design and general characteristics, and 
faultless in its purity of style and proportions, has 
proven a disappointment merely because it was in- 
appropriate to location or out of harmony with its 
environment. One monument of inharmonious de- 
sign may ruin a large area or create a discord by 
dominating all other structures in the vicinity. 
The lot owner contemplating the purchase of a 
monument, if not skilled in this branch of art, 
should invite expert advice and a dealer or artist 
should first ascertain by personal obser\ation if 
possible the location of his client’s lot, its eleva- 
tion. distance from the avenue or points of obser- 
vation, general contour of the ground, the monu- 
mental structures and even trees intended to be per- 
manent in the vicinity, and, having determined to 
his own satisfaction, the style of monument best 
adapted, he should freely and fearlessly offer sug- 
gestions and submit designs he knows to be suit- 
able. 
My observations prompt me to offer a few sug- 
gestions in the selection and placing of monuments. 
For example, more than one monument of a design 
similar in general characteristics, although differing 
materially in detail, should not be erected in the 
same vicinity. A proneness exists to duplicate good 
designs, which is to be deplored. The practice is 
manifestly unfair to the original owner, creates 
monotony, suggests lack of interest or creative 
genius on the part of the designer and an indiffer- 
ence to expression of individual ideas and taste on 
the part of the purchaser. Duplications should 
therefore be avoided in the same neighborhood, or 
better still, in the same cemetery. Few spire monu- 
ments should be seen from any one point of view. 
A spire or obelisk is usually misplaced in the 
foreground, especially if close to the avenue. Low 
monuments should predominate in such locations. 
The spdre should never be set on a steep side hill. 
It is seen to best advantage on a gentle slope on 
comparatively high ground and at some distance 
from the avenue, not against an unbroken sky line, 
PARK AND CEMETERY. 
but backed by a good sized specimen or group of 
trees. A very artistic effect is often produced by 
a spire erected at the further end of a gradually 
narrowing vale. In itself the shaft may appear 
well in a hollow or on a level piece of ground, but 
in such a location it generally detracts from the 
landscape. Valleys niay be ruined in effect by 
erecting a shaft or other tall design in the fore- 
ground. Gentle undulating surfaces should be pre- 
served in appearance. The effect may be ac- 
centuated hy selecting low monuments for the lower 
levels and higher designs on the rising and more 
elevated ground. The crest of an abrupt rise, 
especially close to an avenue, suggests a low monu- 
ment. In referring to high and low monuments, 
the terms are used in a relative sense. There 
should never be uniformity of sizes in any group 
or locality. It would be as abhorrent as uniformity 
of design. Variety within well ordered and artis- 
tic limitations is most desirable. Except on very 
large lots in open sweeps of lawn or at an abrupt 
corner of a section very broad styles of monument 
such as the exedra are, I think, obviously out of 
place. These designs should be given a place in 
the background where a proper setting of shinibbery 
may be introduced without detriment to other lots 
in the rear. These remarks, however, are only gen- 
eral and merely intended to be suggestive. 
A careful study of these principles and 
the illustrations will show typical examples 
of how the ideals discussed have been at- 
tained in actual practice. 
Mr. Green gives us the following brief 
statement of the principles of development 
that have been followed in this beautiful 
cemetery : 
“From the artistic viewpoint Lake View 
Cemetery has been particularly fortunate 
in three things : 
(1) In the natural contour of its grounds. 
(2) In having Adolph Strauch as its first 
landscape architect. 
(3) In having a Board of Trustees with 
137 
enough sense to back Mr. Strauch, and to 
select as their first president a strong busi- 
ness man whose youthful aspirations had 
been for the career of an artist. 
While Spring Grove Cemetery, of Cin- 
cinnati will always stand pre-eminently as 
the first lawn plan cemetery, and as the 
greatest memorial of Adolph Strauch’s 
wonderful work, nevertheless Lake View 
Cemetery shows much evidence of his 
great talent. It is said that some years 
ago the late Mr. Frederick Law Olmsted, 
famous for his work on the World’s Fair 
grounds in Chicago in 1893, refused to 
have anything to do with cemetery plan- 
ning because of the impossibility of con- 
trolling the location of monuments. In 
Lake View, however, we have at least some 
spots where the monuments and the vege- 
tation dwell together in almost perfect har- 
mony. 
It will be interesting to the membership of 
the National Retail Monument Dealers’ As- 
sociation to know that plates illustrating the 
‘Chamberlain’ and ‘Wade’ monuments, from 
photos of today, show how Adolph Strauch 
solved this problem forty years ago, and 
that the other plates show how we are en- 
deavoring to solve it today. Although for 
many reasons, aside from the lack of Mr. 
Strauch’s great ability, we cannot hope to 
have our work in the same class with his, 
yet, with the development of the artistic 
spirit now happily implanted in this com- 
munity, some splendid work may still be 
accomplished in Lake View.” 
MILL CREEK, YOUNGSTOWN’S NOTABLE PARK 
An address before Ohio Cemetery Association, by 
J’olney Rogers, Park Commissioner, Youngstown, O. 
We have a stream at Youngstown 
named Mill Creek. Its source is in a ter- 
minal moraine of the Great Northern gla- 
cier, about eighteen miles south of our 
city. Its drainage area is about seventy- 
four square miles. It has very little fall 
until about three miles from its confluence 
with the Mahoning River in Youngstown, 
but in this last three miles it makes a 
descent of about 132 feet. The stream is 
what geologists call new ; that is, it has 
been formed since the great glacier, and 
we have here an opportunity of seeing 
what a small stream can accomplish by 
constant work through thousands of years. 
It has made fine waterfalls, a picturesque 
valley with meadows surrounded by cliffs 
and hills, varying from 60 feet to 120 feet 
in height, where, prior to the glacier, there 
was comparatively a level surface. 
I have been especially requested to tell 
you, in a few words, how it happened 
that this stream and its environments in 
V'oungstown became a public reservation 
for park purposes. 
One summer day I flecided to explore 
Mill Creek valley on horseback, and there 
being no road, trail or footpath which I 
could follow, I rode for the most part in 
the bed of Mill Creek from its mouth to 
Lanterman’s Falls, a somewhat hazardous 
but very enjoyable experience. Later, 
while engaged in professional work for 
the public, which required protracted, 
careful study, I spent two months in the 
country not far from Mill Creek, and my 
morning and evening walks were very 
often along the banks of that stream and 
its tributaries. I found the scenery de- 
lightful, the trees, rocks, cliffs, waterfalls, 
mosses, shrubs, wild flowers and birds en- 
chanting, the air invigorating, the cool 
springs clear and healthful, and I would 
return from these walks refreshed, happy 
in the remembrance of something new 
which I had learned from the book of 
Nature. 
I felt that this area, practically shut out 
from the world, which I had found so in- 
teresting, should he preserved, in the main, 
as made by Nature, and l)elieved that the 
only way this could he clone was for the 
public to own and protect it. 
There was then no law authorizing any 
public action to do this; so, finding that 
the forests were to he destroyed for liim- 
her, and the rocks and cliffs mutilated and 
made ugly by stone quarries, I proceeded 
to see if the entire area could be pur- 
chased for a public park by private effort. 
I was able to secure the private interests 
of 154 persons by negotiations. Written 
contracts were made with this number, 
but forty-two persons were unwilling to 
make contracts for their interests upon 
terms that I was willing to agree to. It 
will thus be seen that there were in all 
196 persons who had to be dealt with. 
I now prepared a bill, to he presented to 
the state legislature for enactment, pro- 
viding for a township park commission of 
three members, to he appointed by the 
Court of Common Pleas. The commission 
was given power by the proposed legisla- 
tion to locate and improve public parks for 
the township, including any municipal cor- 
poration within its limits; to levy taxes for 
park purposes, to acr|iiirc real estate hy 
gift, purchase or appropriation for park 
purposes, and to suitably improve and 
maintain such parks for the free use of 
the people. The I)il1, if enacted into law, 
was not to become effective until submit- 
ted to and approved hy a vote of the peo- 
ple of the township, at an election. 
