Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1873-12-15
THE HANGING GARDENS OF
BABYLON.


BABYLON.
Our pretty hanging baskets, with their
suspension-wires completely draped in
delicate climbing ivies and standing
moses, with their masses of beautiful |
trailing plants, their dropping grasses,
vincas, mimosas, musk-scented and COW
cred with brilliant golden flowers though
liliputian in size, are literally hanging
gardens. But, even should they be made
a million times larger, their plan is so
utterly different, that they could never
suggest the faintest notion of the hang
ing gardens of Babylon, about the very
name of which there is ring of poetic
grandeur and flavor of Oriental mag
nifcence. They were literally paradises !;
for, thoughDour word is directly from
the Greek, the Greeks borrowed it from
Persia, where to this day the rich sa-
traps rejoice in their paradises, or pleas
ure- gardens. Xenophon mentions those
of Belesis, governor of Syria and such
as he beheld them, apparently, we find
them described by Chardin and other
modern travellers. The hanging gardens
of Babylon were simply very costly
variety of the paradise, such as only
princely wealth could afford. The origin
is attributed to Semiramis by some 9TH
ers say they were invented by a king Of
Syria to charm the melancholy of one of
his wives, of Persian origin, who sighed
to behold again the verdant mountains
of her native land. Strabo and Diodorus
Siculus have written about these famous
hanging gardens. Philo of Byzantium-
if, indeed, he is the author of the treat
ise on the seven wonders of the world
by some attributed to him-and many
others.
They were called hanging gardens,
doubtless, because of the huge branch
ing palms and other trees, overhanging
the balustrade on the summit of the
high walls that enclosed the paradise.
7 These walls were about one hundred and
7 thirty yards long on each of the four
sides, twenty-five feet thick, and fifty
5 cubits high, or over ninety-one feet ac-
5 cording to the Hebrew cubit !; by the
l Roman or by the English cubit, little
7 less. Around the interior on all sides,
t rose terrace above terrace to the number
r of twenty, the top one resting on the
t outer walls, and even with the balus-
e trade. The terraces were upheld by i'm
t mensely strong galleries, whose ceilings
were formed of hewn stones sixteen feet
e long and four wide. Resting on these
e stones was layer of reeds, mixed with
o a great quantity of asphalt, and on this
e was double floor of fre-dried bricks
: laid in mortar finally floor of lead
e plates to prevent any moisture from pen
: etrating the foundations of the terraces,
d the soil of which rested directly on the
IS leaden floor, and was of sufficient depth
It to hold and nourish trees fifty feet high,
e and thousands of rare plants culled from
IS all parts of the known world. All these
y were kept in perennially fourishing
s condition, we are Informed, by water
It raised from the Euphrates through the
y aid of machinery concealed from view
d in certain rooms made in the galleries
a The galleries also contained many royal
apartments, variously decorated and fur
70 nished. Decently lighted they could
I'd not have been but one can easily i'm
Sc agine that walk around those upper
IN terraces on fine moonlight night, The
re scenes charmed by soft music and BY
d, waves of perfume rising from the wilder
u ness of flowers and shrubs below, mus
Il have been enchanting.
e. 1t is pity that the plan of ancient
n, structure, of such extent and grandeu
e. of proportion, should not in some way
II be utilized by the modern world. Th
e. designs for the centennial buildings o
u Philadelphia, presented by the competi
+, tors. are all characterized by imitation
'lr of great historical structures the dome
'e. the arch. the spire, seem to be the mo
st tives of every one. Why has not som
nd bold architect presented the centennia
d. committee plan of the hanging garden
at of Babylon ? To be sure, it might b
on questionable whether such a structur
lst would serve the requirements of moder
sr- civilization but then it would betra
n the one object dearest to the architect
er- soul-the study of model undeniabl
antique, grandiose, and classic to th
at- last degree.-lNdrse HoaUiand.
ro- Nauticus inquiries, eff a sea capital
les in cold weather and running short fu,