THE LURE OF THE GARDEN 
These high brick walls are characteristic of Charles¬ 
ton’s gardens. They are various in design, relieved 
by elevations and blind arches, by small turrets and 
square ends. Often they are entirely hidden under the 
English ivy, or softly pink from long standing in sun 
and rain. Some are coped with stone. All lend magic 
glimpses of the wonderlands they shelter, through an 
arched gateway or unexpected opening, or by spilling 
over a shower of wistaria or laburnum. But these 
places are essentially town gardens, made to lend se¬ 
clusion and quiet to the house, as well as loveliness, 
and to be lived in as part of the home. They are lova¬ 
ble, discreet, and sequestered, nor are they entirely sel¬ 
fish. For down the steps and beside the porches, over 
the walls and through the lattices, the flowers give every 
passer-by hints and promises and prophecies, no full 
revelation, but exquisite glimpses. Charm is the key¬ 
note, and the perfect relation of house and garden each 
to each, and both to their owners’ needs, whether of 
body or soul. 
Surely our grandmothers of the North and the South, 
working in a new land and under strange conditions, 
left us a worth-while heritage in these posy beds and 
garden closes of theirs, a heritage whose value we are 
growing to appreciate, and whose example we shall do 
well to imitate. 
40 
