Hints on Landscape Gardening 
Fig. 19. Avenue at Hanslope Park. 
as it was in the last to plant them ; and yet 
the subject is so little understood that most 
people think they sufficiently justify their 
opinion in either case by merely saying, “ I 
like an avenue,” or, “ I hate an avenue.” 
It is my business to analyze this approba¬ 
tion or disgust. 
The several degrees ol pleasure which the 
mind derives from the love of order, of 
unity, antiquity, greatness of parts, and con¬ 
tinuity, are all in some measure gratified by 
the long perspective view of a stately avenue. 
For the truth of this assertion I appeal to 
the sensations that every one must have felt 
who has visited the lofty avenues of Wind¬ 
sor, Hatfield, Burleigh, etc., before experi¬ 
ence had pointed out that tedious sameness, 
and the many inconveniences which have 
deservedly brought avenues into disrepute. 
This sameness is so obvious that, by 
the effect of avenues, all novelty or diver¬ 
sity of situation is done away; and the 
views from every house in the kingdom 
may be reduced to the same landscape, if, 
looking up or down a straight line, betwixt 
two green walls, deserves the name of 
landscape. 
Among the inconveniences of long, straight 
avenues, may very properly be reckoned that 
of their acting as wind-spouts to direct cold 
blasts with more violence upon the dwelling, 
as if driven through a long tube. But I pro¬ 
pose rather to consider the objections in point 
of beauty. If at the end of a long avenue be 
placed an obelisk, or temple, or any other 
eye-trap, ignorance or childhood alone will 
be caught or pleased by it. The eye of taste 
or experience hates compulsion, and turns 
away with disgust from every artificial means 
of attracting its notice. For this reason an 
avenue is most pleasing which, like that at 
Langley Park, climbs up a hill, and, passing 
Fig. 20. Part of the Avenue at Hanslope Park cut down. This 
view shows that, in looking along an avenue, its effect will not 
be destroyed by cutting down a number of trees, unless the 
trunks of a portion of those that remain be disguised 
by bushes, such as thorns, hollies, etc. 
over its summit, leaves the fancy to conceive 
its termination. 
One great mischief of an avenue is that it 
divides a park and cuts it into separate parts, 
destroying that unity of lawn or wood which 
is necessary to please in every composition. 
This is so obvious that, where a long avenue 
runs through a park from east to west, it 
would be hardly possible to avoid distinguish¬ 
ing it into the north and south lawn, or north 
and south division of the park. 
But the greatest objection to an avenue 
is that (especially in uneven ground) it will 
often act as a curtain drawn across to exclude 
what is infinitely more interesting than any 
row of trees, however venerable or beautiful 
in themselves; and it is in undrawing this 
curtain at proper places that the utilitv of 
what is called breaking an avenue consists ; 
for it is in vain we shall endeavour, by remov¬ 
ing nine-tenths of the trees in rows, to prevent 
its having the effect of an avenue when seen 
from either end. Our figures 17 and 18 may 
serve to show the effects of cutting down some 
chestnut trees in the avenue at Langley, to let 
in the hill, richly covered with oaks, and that 
majestic tree, which steps out before its breth¬ 
ren like the leader of a host. Such openings 
may be made in several parts of this avenue 
with wonderful effect, and yet its venerable 
appearance from the windows of the drawing¬ 
room will not be injured, because the trees re¬ 
moved from the rows will hardly be missed 
in the general perspective view from the 
house. And though I should not advise the 
planting of such an avenue, yet there will 
always be so much of ancient grandeur in the 
front trees, and in looking up this long vista 
that 1 do not wish it should be further dis- 
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