New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1865-08-02

which that usefulness has been attained with the Toast
effort. Take down and cart away all the stone WORK Oh
the Terrace and the land lies essentially as 1t lay before
the first bit Of freestone was set up there But now In
the first place Mr.. Hunts Gateways are each and ALL
We contend. unnecessary. They are not only Ugly ana
unmeaning but they not needed at a and In the
second place. TO get them We have to 1hro" away III
each some marked popularity ofthe ground-soe
natural condition which has been well turned 10 ae
count by the Architec.--n order TO get very unde
sirable set OF designs
Thus briefly In tie case of the Fifth.ave, Mr. VsuI
in excellent letter 10 The EreHins Post showed now
all the rural features developed with good deal OF care
about that entrance proposed to be remorselessy
sacrificed at immense expense, for wbata To secureh
miniature copy of the Versailles Waterworks, a very
unmeaDng doube.fght Of stairs not TO be descended
nor ascended account two squts OF water Issuing
from each STEP and sort of Cavern or Cioaca OUT Oh
which-will the reader believe tive have that oiu
worn out cast away device OF Neptune in chariot
with six horses prancing away In six different difec
tionsi Now to put up such thing as this whole srnc
ture would not only cost great deal oil money pu'
would simply make tho Commissioners laughed a'
There is too much really good taste among us-'oo
much common TO permit It, But our main op9cc
ton lies to the violent alteration Of the ground necessary
for this display of nothing-io the destroying OF "ha'
is already done and well done, TO make room Tor wha
is all bad
The Sirth.ave entrance again--when the trees ore
grown will be as pretty entrance for pedestrians as
could well be devised. 1t has several natural 40
vantages The water at the right the rocN al" 'io
rocky hill which meet tie visitor as he advances t'
all these take us at ont Of the city and plant US ID
the country and one characteristic OF TINS ehrhhceS
the fact that il is irregular and unsymmeteaL Dec
again how the architects have used what they ouhd
have changed as little essentially as they could and yet
how much they have developed from the material they
had. Now, Mr. Hunt has tried 10 wipe out oil thai
Nature put hereto substitute symmetry FOR her rreg
uarity and when ask for bread to give US stones
six stone figures. two lamppostsrhree hag'stahs as
much "Art" and as little Nature as possible Ana OF
the Art, not Bit good; not . bit simple, unaffected.
lead ne 10 Nature but artificial. Frenchiied. leading
nowhere--too weak to lead anywhere.
The Seyenth.ave is even worse. Here we actually
baye-two examples Of the Oldest most worn out de-
vices Of classcism-two stone Hermes-busts OF Mer'
curry on stone pillars with the original frencD add
ton of buttresses to each pillar. Well the un'echnica
public won't know what We are laughing at but the
public instinct would be quite sufficient to settle the
fate of these uhmeanine bgnfeheads. II II could once
see them. But they are almost eclpsed by 'De
highly original water.works Of this entrance; Tor
Immediately on leaving the gateways we are led
across a bridge % out OF tho middle OF The side
barriers Of which small fountains are made TO squirt
Think of the satisfaction Of crossing bridge On windy
DAY with jets OF water blown almost over face and per-
son and whs, becomes of the water For 1t falls into
nothing Mr. Hunt HIS squirted II up so that It would
look pretty in his fancy pcture-he didn't care what
became OF it afterwsrd.
We have lightly touched upon the unrcason OF these
designs; their uelness, their utter weakness. would
take us too long to consider But We must wonder how
the Commissioners who certainly have shown great
deal Of taste In the Park much OF their ase has
been merely manifested In accepting tie good taste OF
allow the public TO believe that they even
10 much a. contemplated the carving out OF designs
that contradict In every part tie spirit Of the rest OF
the Park. People would at say, There are New
Commissioners thcni Surely. the same men have not
commissioned Mr. Mould TO decorate the charming
music stand (bcat It, Paris. II you can D. to carve the
terrace with its lavish ingenuity Of design have not
allowed tho Architects to carry out tho admirably
sonsd plan farsnd now at this ate day they cannot
be denying all they have DONE contradicng tie spirit
of it by allowing these designs Of Mr. Hunts to 20 on
1t is too inconsistent. 1t be- there men,.
are not Just q. this time any rate inclined TO admit
that they important at all We think the good sense
that has looked upon the bounding wall a. necessary
evil and has made 1t as low and unobrusiye posi-
ble-would agree with in wishing the Gaieways TO
be kept simple IL our advice could so for anything
would beg the Commissioners TO put no arohways,
statues. columns nag-stafs nor fountains about the
entrances They tie very last places where people
want to nger when they reach the Park they want TO
go in at once. aud when they go out to out directly,
and get home Beside there In all twenty entrances
to the Park, OF which must be subordinate-why
not make them all simple. Put plain shafts Of stone at
the examinations Of the wall let these shafts be large.
handsome. dgnifed and with whatever ornaments will
most add to their dignity without detractng from their
smpliciiy-have suitable gates to them, plant trees
about them and let pass them quickly glad to forget
the city's noisy din