if  1 1  op  /7n  nt  to 
March  lo,  1900. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
221 
The  Main  Drive. 
The  drive  leading  to  the  principal  entrance,  and  which  is  shown 
in  the  illustration  (fig.  57),  is  of  noble  proportions,  and  is  worthy  the 
most  splendid  conceptions  of  its  great  designer.  The  curving  sweep 
upwards  towards  the  point  shown  in  the  left  foreground  of  the 
picture  is  of  magnificent  scope,  and  is  far  superior  to  the  majority  of 
those  seen  in  different  places.  Standing  close  to  this  point  is  a 
bronze  figure,  of  a  favourite  horse  of  the  late  Baron  de  Rothschild, 
which  was  designed  and  executed  by  the  great  sculptor  Boehm.  This 
monument  rises,  as  it  were,  from  a  groundwork  of  Pampas  Grass, 
whose  waving  plumes  must  produce  a  charming  effect  on  a  pleasant 
day.  This  model  forms  a  really  striking  feature  from  several  points 
in  the  surrounding  pleasure  gardens.  On  the  right  of  the  drive 
as  one  approaches  the  mansion,  and  not  shown  in  the  photograph 
reproduced,  there  is  a  flank  of  various  trees  of  different  habits, 
amidst  which  stand  conspicuously,  like  sentinels,  upright  Junipers 
and  Cypresses.  Many  splendid  trees  are  to  be  observed  at  intervals 
hereabouts,  but  some  of  them  are  largely  obscured  by  their  strong 
growing  and  less  attractive  neighbours.  Thinning  has  been  done, 
and  will  have  to  be  still  further  practised,  but  Lord  Rosebery  has 
an  aversion  to  the  felling  of  trees  and  their  removal,  so  that  Mr. 
Smith  has  to  proceed  with  judicious  caution.  A  narrow  path  branch¬ 
ing  from  this  drive  leads  the  visitor  to  the  “  cottage  in  the  wood ,” 
wherein  the  Baron  and  Baroness  de  Rothschild  lived  during  the  time 
that  the  mansion  was  being  erected.  It  is  a  charmingly  secluded 
spot,  embowered  in  trees,  where  no  sound  could  come  save  the 
song  of  birds  and  the  sighing  of  the  wind  through  the  trees. 
The  Laurel  Banks. 
Though  the  appearance  of  our  illustrations  does  not  perhaps  suggest 
the  fact,  the  mansion  of  Mentmore  stands  on  a  somewhat  lofty  rise, 
whose  sides  fall  away  sharply  on  at  least  two  sides  of  the  house 
and  gradually  elsewhere.  In  one 
position  there  is  a  slope  of  grass,  but 
the  great  features  are  the  Laurel 
banks  that  cover  an  immense  area  of 
ground  and  which  must  contain 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  individual 
plants.  I  have  seen  something  similar 
before,  but  never  on  such  a  gigantic 
scale  as  this.  All  the  surfaces  are 
kept  quite  smooth,  and  the  labour  of 
cutting  them  over  must  be  very  con¬ 
siderable.  In  some  places  they  are 
quite  level,  while  in  others  they  fall  at 
a  sharp  angle,  but  everywhere  there 
is  the  same  regularity.  These  form 
cover  for  rabbits  innumerable,  and  a 
few  were  caught  sight  of  scurrying 
across  the  path  as  we  made  our 
journey  round  ;  the  whirr  of  the 
pheasant’s  wing  as  the  birds  rose  in 
flight  for  the  parkland  was  frequently 
audible,  both  telling  of  lively  sport  in 
their  proper  time  and  season.  The 
incline  from  the  lower  grounds  to  the 
terraces  and  mansion  between  the 
Laurels  is  very  steep,  and  our  advance 
was  not  particularly  rapid,  as  will  be 
understood  when  the  slippery  state 
of  the  grounds  from  frost  and  snow  is 
borne  in  mind. 
The  View  from  the  Terrace. 
There  was  a  time  when  the  ground 
immediately  at  the  foot  of  the 
slope  beneath  this  terrace  was  devoted  jo  parkltind,  but  some  score 
or  so  of  years  ago  a  portion  was  encljsed  for  the  extension  of 
the  pleasure  grounds.  Under  the  fosterbg  care  of  Mr.  Smith  this 
ai  ea  has  been  developed  until  at  the  praent  time  it  is  a  charming 
adjunct  to  the  gardens  that  were  previjusly  not  i  of  commensurate 
extent  with  the  mansion  and  estate.  However  it  is  not  to  these 
that  reference  would  be  particularly  mane  just  now,  but  rather  to 
■  the  magnificent  pastoral  panorama  cat  is  spiead  before  the 
eyes.  One  might  aptly  quote  the  words  of  the  famous  Roderick 
Dhu  to  FitzJames  when  he  said — 
.  .  .  .  where  lay, 
Extended  in  succession  gay, 
Deep  waving  fields  and  pastures  green, 
IVith  gentle  slopes  and  groves  between. 
We  must,  however,  to  appreciate  the  whole  scene  go  beyond  the  vallet'S 
and,  allowing  the  eye  to  follow  the  rising  of  the  ground,  find  the  view 
terminate  in  the  Chiltern  Hills.  This  noble  range  forms  a  fitting  back¬ 
ground  to  a  piece  of  typical  scenery,  than  which  none  need  seek  a  fairer 
in  all  the  broad  acres  of  England.  On  these  hills  is  situated,  as  is 
comparatively  well  known,  Halton,  the  residence  of  Mr.  Alfred  de 
Rothschild,  and  on  a  clear  day  a  glimpse  of  the  estate  can  be  had  from 
Mentmore.  The  intervening  space  is  beautifully  wooded,  as  all  real 
English  scenery  should  be,  and  one’s  eyes  may  roam  for  miles  without 
meeting  any  incongruous  object,  or  any  semblance  of  a  thing  to  mar 
the  harmony  of  the  whole. 
The  Fountains  Garden. 
On  this  terrace  too,  and  also  bounded  in  the  distance  by  the  Chiltern 
Hills,  is  an  enclosed  formal  garden  that  takes  its  title  from  the  fountains 
it  contains.  It  is  entered  by  a  broad  flight  of  stone  steps,  and  the 
illustration  (fig.  59)  will  convey  a  sufficiently  clear  conception  of  its 
extent  and  formation.  The  month  of  February  cannot  possibly  be 
regarded  as  an  ideal  time  to  see  such  a  feature  as  this.  There  it  is 
true  are  the  bold  beds,  but  they  are  destitute  of  those  plants  that 
contribute  towards  making  them  so  beautiful  at  a  pleasanter  and 
more  genial  period  of  the  year.  It  then,  one  can  readily  conceive, 
forms  a  most  desirable  feature  that  is  likely  to  elicit  admiration  from 
every  visitor  to  Mentmore.  Already  preparations  are  being  made  for 
its  adornment  during  the  coming  summer,  and  in  their  winter  quarters 
may  be  found  thousands  of  plants  whose  destination  will  be  the 
Fountains  Garden  when  the  proper  time  for  their  insertion  is  with  us 
again.  Naturally  the  design  is  formal,  but  no  one  need  cavil  at  this. 
Gardex. 
for  when  the  eye  tires  of  the  formality  there  is  always  the  view  beyond 
to  afford  change  and  repose  and  add  zest  to  the  beauties  of  the  garden 
that  have  not  yet  been  seen. 
The  Italian  Garden. 
Of  far  greater  extent  than  the  foregoing,  and  probably  even  more 
beautiful  in  the  summer  time,  is  the  adjacent  Italian  garden,  whose 
bronzes,  statues,  and  vases  are  now  encased  in  wooden  shields  tha>  have 
