LANDSCAPE GARDENING. 
409 
In viewing and speaking of the objects around us, their colour is 
always impressive; and if we approve or admire, we say they look gaily, 
or beautiful, or splendid; and if we dislike their colour, we condemn 
them as heavy, or dead, or cheerless. 
Every object has a natural, and therefore a befitting, colour; and as 
the landscape gardener has often to design structures or buildings of 
different descriptions for enriching or improving his scenery, he must 
study to give them that colour that will best harmonise with the 
scenery around. Massive buildings should be always of a sober grey 
or stone colour; lighter structures, as alcoves, seats, fences, &c., may 
be painted of any tint that will be most suitable. Many are fond of 
making these objects as conspicuous as possible, by the aid of the house- 
painter’s white brush, but this offends the landscape painter and every 
eye of taste; even a white chair or seat in a park or pleasure-ground is 
objectionable. According to the old distich :— 
“ Pour le repos du corps je ru’appelle une banc, 
Pour le repos d’ceil pourquoi suis-je blanc?” 
So that, as the eye as well as the body requires repose, it should not be 
irritated by any flaring colour. 
White objects are so conspicuous, that they quite destroy the har¬ 
mony of a picture, and no painter will admit them if he can avoid it; 
they look much worse, however, in a painting than in real scenery, 
because in the latter they are only temporary. No objects of park- 
scenery are more admired than the hawthorn trees while in blossom, 
though no painter could be persuaded to introduce such glaring patches 
into a composition. In this instance, the ideas of the painter and land¬ 
scape gardener are not in accordance; but this relates only to such 
plants which present, when in flower, broad masses of white: they 
agree respecting whitewashed buildings, which are always too con¬ 
spicuous, whether in real or painted scenery. 
Red brick or tiled buildings are not admired in landscape, being 
unsociable colours, and too far removed from the prevailing tints of sur¬ 
rounding objects. Mild colours and mellow hues are always the most 
pleasing in beautiful scenery, strong contrasts being only admissible in 
the picturesque. 
The power of producing or changing colours cannot be exercised by 
the gardener but on a very limited scale: he may give greater apparent 
depth to a recess in a wood by planting the inner end with trees of 
dark foliage, or in disposing his flowers in a parterre, in order to pro¬ 
duce the best effect; but, except buildings, fences, &c., there is little 
under his command. 
3 Gr 
VOL. V. —NO. LXV. 
