Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1893-01-26
eEAUTlFY THE STREETS.
The Advantage OF Employing the Land
scnnc Engineer.

The Advantage OF Employing tne LAho-
scRpe Engineer.
While It is generally admitted that with
in the next few years certain radical
changes will need TO he mCde in the streets
of Boston in the way Of new constructions
and enlargpmentStECew who have advanced
plans Of this Kind 90 not seem to have
taken into account the way that such
things are considered in Europe, the desir
ability Of increasing the beauty Of our city
rs well as the convenience OF our people
At the present time two or three pTOpOSi
tions are before the London county cOun
I'll, having for their object relief Of the
congestion Of travel upon the Strand, u
thoroughfare which holds much the same
relation to Londonthat Washington street
lOes to Boston.
There have been propositions made to
widen the street, which, however, have re-
ceived little support in consequence of the
tremendous expense involved, and there are
other propositions to build relief or connect
ing streets, which will have the effect Of
DETECTING part at least of the travel
which now passes through the main thor
oughfare.
But in considering these propositions the
artistic effect of the proposed changes has
been kept carefully in mind. A plan has
been proposed of building highway Il
hundred feet in width, into which great
part Of the tide of travel may be turned,
but it is suggested that this street should
be laid out in such Il manner as to abolish
existing street frontages, so as to procure
theerection of new buildings, and that these
new edifices should be built under restric-
tions both as to height and materials used
More than this, care seems to have been
taken in the plans, not only to preserve GER
tain landmarks of London, such as one or
two of it's churches, but to add to the archi-
tectural effectiveness of these by providing
that they shall form the central objects at
the ends of broad, open stairways In "a
word the services of the landscape engineer,
as we'll as of the civil engineer, have been
brought into reqnisition, 80 that the money
when spent-for large expenditures are re-
quired-shall result in the largest and most
satisfactory returns.
We call attention to this phrase of the
street improvement question because it is
one which, it seems to u.s. should he borne
in mind In spite of the Inconvenience of
our thoroughfares there is II picturesque
ness in our Boston streets which does not
obtain in most American cities. Ii we are
to obtain needed conveniences, and these
can only be secured by large outlays, there
is no reason why we should rush rashly in
to expedients which have only conven-
ience to recommend them, and which have,
as an offset, u great deal of ugliness, when
by greater care and by iudicious arrange
ment both beauty and convenience can be
made to go hand in hand.
The general plan of construction adopted
in Chicago for the Worlds fair demon
strates conclusively that we have in this
country landscape engineers whose ability
is not surpassed by any members of their
profession in any other part of the world.
The park systems of Boston are also II proof
of this same genius in the way ofartistic de-
sign, and there is no reason why the same
talent might not be wisely employed in the
way of suggestion-at least on the subject
ofnew street construction. Boston Herald.