ess so harmonious a
conjunction of art and nature without feeling that man is something
better than a mere beast of the field or forest. We see him turn both
art and nature to his service, and we cannot contemplate the lordly
dwelling and the richly decorated land around it--and the neatness and
security and order of the whole scene--without associating them with the
high accomplishments and refined tastes that in all probability
distinguish the proprietor and his family. It is a strange mistake to
suppose that nothing is natural beyond savage ignorance--that all
refinement is unnatural--that there is only one sort of simplicity. For
the mind elevated by civilization is in a more natural state than a mind
that has scarcely passed the boundary of brutal instinct, and the
simplicity of a savage's hut, does not prevent there being a nobler
simplicity in a Grecian temple.

Kent[117] the famous landscape gardener, tells us that _nature_ _abhors
a straight line_. And so she does--in some cases--but not in all. A ray
of light is a straight line, and so also is a Grecian nose, and so also
is the stem of the betel-nut tree. It must, indeed, be admitted that he
who should now lay out a large park or pleasure-ground on strictly
geometrical principles or in the old topiary style would exhibit a
deplorable want of taste and judgment. But the provinces of the
landscape gardener and the parterre gardener are perfectly distinct. The
landscape gardener demands a wide canvas. All his operations are on a
large scale. In a small garden we have chiefly to aim at the
_gardenesque_ and in an extensive park at the _picturesque_. Even in the
latter case, however, though

'Tis Nature still, 'tis nature methodized:

Or in other words:

Nature to advantage dressed.

for even in the largest parks or pleasure-grounds, an observer of true
taste is offended by an air of negligence or the absence of all traces
of human art or care. Such places ought to indicate the presence of
civilized life and security and order. We are not pleased to see weeds
and jungle--or litter of any sort--even dry leaves--upon the princely
domain, which should look like a portion of nature set apart or devoted
to the especial care and enjoyment of the owner and his friends:--a
strictly private property. The grass carpet should be trimly shorn and
well swept. The trees should be tastefully separated from each other at
irregular but judicious distances. They should