New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1886-06-16
HOPE FOR THE PARKS.

Ever since the sudden vi ""iN
at the Strangers Gate there have b zen rumors
that the Park Commissioners have invited
Mcssrs Olmsted and Vaux to give them counsel
as landscape architects advisory. Inc an
nouncement that such an arrangement is about
contaminated will be IN agreeable surprise to
every one who takes an intelligent interest In
the parks The real matter for wonder Is that
any board of commissioners should ever maze
ATTEMPTED to administer their trust without the
guidance of the artists who designed these
works. And yet since the time OF sweeney
they have only been consulted when some
patching up was needed in places which Official
ignorance had marred This neglect was not
due to any distrust of their ability. 1t Is uni
versally known that wherever the parks nave
suffered harm or loss the ruin has been wrought
where their counsel was not invited or was re-
iected. Notwithstanding the immense growth
of the city since the parks were planned and the
still greater change in its social customs no
competent authority has ever venturcd to criti-
else their work in any important particular
Other cities all over the country have been
providing themselves with pleasure grounds,
but neither IN their planning nor administration
has any one developed such marked ability that
the people would naturally turn to HIM us the
proper one to revise the work of the creators OF
Central Park or even to be their legitimate sue
cessor.
Just why the city has been deprived of their
counsel for all these years it is not necessary
here to state. II is enough now to announce
gratefully that the Park Board have been wise
enonrh TO accede to the demand for expert
ability so often insisted upon in these columns.
Their action will command unanimous ap-
prevail 1t is in the interest OF true economy
| for more than enough money has already been
| sauandered in doing and undolng worse than
useless work since commissioners followed their
own devisincs 70 pay the salai les OF experts for
a century. 1t will protect the parks from raids
by special interests, preserve their integrity
and insure their development in the line OF
their original purpose. Il will relieve the peo-
ple from Il shuddering apprehension that every
man who is seen in the Park with an axe or
spade or dump cart is on an errand OF deface-
ment 1t is 10 the credit of the commissioners
that they have abandoned all pretensions to
ability as landscape artists. Not one OF them
perhaps would assume to give advice to
friend who was about TO grade cemetery lot
or plant door yard. Outside of all problems
of design there Is an ample Hcli lOl InlcIliScHt
activity on their Part and the time has passed,
let it be hoped, when man with no qnaliica-
tons except q diploma from the Mayor and
Aldermen will glibly and with sweep of his
finger order path put in about here" or will
decorate the beach of the lake with curbstones,
or instruct an engineer" to lay ont a row at
such critical point as the gateway through
which will sweep the great drive that is to cen
meet Central Park with the others in the system.
The details of the arrangement are yet I'M
known. But 1t cannot be believed that
Messrs. Omsted and Vaux have consented
to any temporary or piecemeal tinkering with
special details. Their work will doubtless in
clude a comprehensive study of the entire park
system begun under their supervision. This
will take time and it is to be hoped that the en-
gagemcnt will be made for a term CT years. 1t
is to be hoped, too, that their work will include
a report on the present condition OF the parks
with an ella bolated scheme for tkeir development,
and thus add another to the noteworthy dOcu-
ments prepared by one or the other of these
gentlemen or both of them together, which
taken as whole contain consistent body of
doctrne-a systematic treatise on park cen
struction and kindred topics of rare, and in
deed of unique value.