92 SUBURBAN GARDENS 
and a certain veneration which it commands, I 
hesitate to put it in first place — in other peo- 
ple’s gardens. It should only go where it is 
wanted — and where it will not oppress; yet it 
can ill be spared anywhere. Hence, if a posi- 
tion is available in open and unobstructed sun- 
light I always hope that the gardener will be 
moved to set up in it this most ancient of time- 
pieces. 
Bronze dials are of all the most permanent 
naturally; but a dial of cement well made is 
practically everlasting — and not beyond the 
possibilities of amateur construction, if one 
cares to take the trouble. The pedestal is im- 
portant and, from the esthetic standpoint, 
should be given as much consideration as the 
dial itself, or more. For it of course looms up 
in the garden vistas prominently. Solidity is 
essential to it, and only a deep foundation will 
insure this, as freezing and thawing affect the 
ground to three feet or more below its surface. 
Of outdoor statuary and images there are a 
vast number too dreadful to contemplate! 
Chief among these are the 1 cast iron dogs and 
hunters and swan and deer, and all the multi- 
tude of monstrosities of this character that were 
scattered extravagantly a generation or so ago, 
guarding front doors and gracing (!) the 
