I 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY 
bellished, wo readied the Camellia house, certainly one of the 
oldest greenhouses we remember having ever entered. It is 
a most curious and antiquated structure, carrying us hack, 
: in its heavy and cumbersome details, to days long prior to 
those of Miller or Abercrombie. It, no doubt, at one time 
constituted the principal, and, perhaps, the only greenhouse 
of the Dukes of Devonshire, or might have been graced, 
for aught we know, by the presence of the ill-fated Mary 
Queen of Scots, once an inmate of the mansion. At 
all events its gloomy and antiquated appearance forms a 
striking contrast to any other horticultural building at Chats- 
1 worth. It is chiefly filled with Camellias, now mostly in 
| bloom, and surrounded by an edging of other plants. 
In front is a highly ornamental geometrical garden, 
curiously decorated with pillars surmounted with statuary, 
some immense Chinese porcelain jars, a figure or two of 
Isis and Osiris of Egyptian extraction, and several other 
curiosities worthy of attention. 
Proceeding from this interesting spot over an extensive, 
lawn, commanding a beautiful view of the house and hills 
beyond, we reach' the foot of one of the most magnificent 
and romantic series of cascades and falls in Great Britain. 
Here Nature and Art revel in luxuriance, and, blended 
together by a nice combination of both, produce a grand and 
imposing effect. From the summit of a richly-wooded hill, 
some hundreds of feet in height, and nearly a quarter of a 
mile distant, commences this succession of sparkling falls, 
and terminates immediately at the feet of the visitor. Falling 
first over natural rocks and pr. jections for a considerable 
distance, the water is then conducted by an artificial aque¬ 
duct of several arches of great height to form a fine fall, 
and it again appears at a distance below in all directions, 
both internal and external, from a curious temple, through 
the mouths of immense dolphins, sea-nymphs, urns, &c., 
and forming in front of it two jets of spray not unlike waving 
plumes, or the drooping crest of a guard of honour. The 
pressure being great,' the water, in passing through the 
numerous jets of the temple, becomes a complete mass of 
feathery spray and foam, and from it descends, for about 300 
yards, a succession of steps in a perfect river,and is eventually 
lost or ingulfed below the roadway. No lover of the beau¬ 
tiful in Nature or Art can leave these falls without a lively 
impression of their picturesque beauty and happy effect. 
From thence we pursue, by an agreeable walk, our route in 
the direction of the conservatory to a part of the grounds 
! furnished with rockwork upon a scale not hitherto attempted 
! or equalled elsewhere in the kingdom. We halt a moment, 
1 however, before approaching it, for we must not forget the 
j “ Weeping Willow ” which so much amused Her Majesty 
i when a child at Chatsworth. The tree in question is a very 
good imitation of a Willow, which, from its somewhat 
singular appearance, seems to invite inspection. The incau¬ 
tious inspector of an apparently dead tree, however, will 
soon, to his cost, in all probability, if he approaches it, 
j perceive indications of its undoubted vitality and weeping 
j abilities, not only from above, but by an appropriate and 
i corresponding root action from below, and a complete drench- 
I iug, or a decided bolt, inevitably follows. The tree has a 
I very pretty effect when playing, and is often the cause of 
I considerable amusement. 
But we are now entering the boundaries of the rockwork, 
which, says a celebrated writer, “ is certainly upon the most 
stupendous scale of anything of the land in the world;” 
and its wild and natural aspect, aided by the shrubs and 
creepers with which it is in some parts overgrown, gives it an 
appearance worthy of a rugged Alpine glen; or, as it has 
not unaptly been said, “it appears as if Sir Joseph Paxton 
had, by some supernatural means, cut out a slice of one of 
the Derbyshire hills and transferred it to the spot.” We 
pass, on our way to the conservatory, immense, and what 
would seem almost immoveable masses of rock of great 
height, weighing unknown tons, and in one or two places 
with waterfalls over them, all disposed in the most wild and 
natural manner, whilst fine trees of Beech, Lime, Oak, &c., 
fringe the back and occupy the foreground; and, indeed, 
we should say, the grandeur of the whole can only be 
properly appreciated by a personal inspection. 
Through all this splendid scenery we pass to the “ colossal 
conservatory,” and, quitting the delightful walks of the rock¬ 
work by a rustic stone arch, we find ourselves immediately 
GENTLEMAN’S COMPANION, March 24, 1857. 427 
fronting the building which, until the erection of the one at' 
Ivew, stood alone in its magnificence in the world. Its length 
is about 282 feet, breadth 120 feet, and height (34 feet. The 
roof is on the ridge-and-furrow curvilinear principle, and its 
foundations are on arches. Upon entering this vast and 
gorgeous building we at once find ourselves transferred, as 
it were, into the tropics. Down the centre runs a spacious 
carriage-drive, and on either side wave the varied botanical 
treasures of a tropical clime, whilst at the east end a perfect 
thicket of Bamboo appears as luxuriant as if enjoying an 
Indian sun. Bananas, Palms, and tropical trees and plants 
of all descriptions form, in the broad borders on each side, 
the carriage-drive, groves which, for height and beauty, 
almost vie with the luxuriance of the forests of the torrid 
zone. On each side of the building a stage, a yard or more 
in width, is devoted to a collection of Ferns, Cacti, and the 
smaller stove plants. A balcony at a height of twenty.five 
feet runs entirely round the building, and is approached 
through a quaint and rugged mass of rockwork, densely 
covered with curious and beautiful creepers. In walking 
round this gallery a good view of the Palms and other plants 
may be obtained. The ventilation is secured by iron valves 
in the arches of the basement wall, again round the galleries, 
and occasionally by ventilators at the top. 
We cannot undertake, nor would it be advisable, to de¬ 
scribe individually the immense number of plants in this 
building. We will, therefore, only mention a few of those 
most deserving of notice. For instance, to the left upon 
entering is a magnificent specimen of the Araucaria Bra- 
siliensis, its top touching the roof, and further on an equally 
fine specimen of the American Cedar ( Cedrela serrala). 
The Podocarpus latifolia is the finest specimen in England ; 
Bombax aculeata, Silk Cotton tree; an immense and noble 
plant of the Australian Palm, Corypha Australis; Sabal 
umbraculifera; Phoenix dactylifera and sylvestris; Lantana 
Borbonica, or Bourbon Palm; Caryota ureas, East Indian 
Wine Palm; Arenya saccharifera; Cocos plumosa; Musa 
Caven dish'd, Chinese Banana; Musa paradisiaca, Plantain 
tree, and others ; Jambosa vulgaris, Rose Apple, now in fruit; 
Enceplialartos pungens , Caffre Bread, now in flower; and 
Cycas revoluta in fruit, are all worthy of notice. Here, too, 
are some splendid plants of Brugmansia Knight'd and sva- 
veolcns; Chrysophyllum Cainito; Cinnamomum verum and 
Zeylanicum, the Cinnamon tree; Draccena tuberosa ; Dombeya 
versicolor; Agatophyllum aromaticum, or Madagascar Nut¬ 
meg; Sapindus saponaria, Soap tree; Arabia papyrifera; Ne- 
phelium Longana, Litchi, and a multitude of other rare and 
fine plants that we have not either space or opportunity to 
mention. An abundant supply of water is laid on, and can 
be thrown by its own pressure to any height or distance 
required. The conveniences for heating the building are 
also perfect, and the smoke from the furnaces, which are 
approached by a subterranean passage, is conducted by a 
similar one to a considerable distance up the hill into the 
hanging wood. 
Leaving this splendid structure and its interesting con¬ 
tents by an elegant Grecian archway, we ramble on towards 
the Pinetum, not generally ghown to visitors; and as we 
follow the beautiful winding walks, which afford an occasional 
and delightful glimpse of some piece of lovely, landscape 
scenery, we come to a halt in our route, to view for a 
moment a monument, dear alike to the lovers ot classic 
learning and the collectors of the antique memorials of a 
classic age; we allude to a pillar, ornamented at the top by 
a bronze bust of his Grace the present Duke. The pillar 
once formed part of a column of the Temple of Minerva at 
Athens, and from its lofty height proudly overlooked for 
ages the mariner on the .ZEgean Sea. It is now placed in 
a" delightfully retired spot, and around its base are some 
beautiful and appropriate verses; but we must not forget 
the Pinetum. This occupies an extensive space of ground, 
well stocked with Pinuses, Abies, Cryptomerias, Deodars, 
Araucarias, &c.; some good plants of Picea vobilis , which 
have ripened their cones; fine ones of Abies Canadensis, 
Pinus Douglasii, and an abundance of Araucarias; and last, 
but not least, the Wellwgtonia gigantea, of which there are a 
number of specimens. The Pinetum is apparently well 
situated, and the whole of the younger plants appear promis¬ 
ing.—J. H. C. 
(To be continued.) 
