Evening star., 1932-07-02
DIGNITY PRESERVED
+. AT MOUNT VERNON
Design Called Supremely
Simple and Yet Rarely
Original Scheme.

Visitors to Mount Vernon are i'm
pressed with the dignity and serenity
which pervades the entire estate. The
design for Mount Vernon, planned in
1873, is supremely simple and at the
same time most interesting and a rarely
original scheme, according to the United
States George Washington Bicentennial
Commission.
1t is gracious and warm and inviting
and was all of this when its trees were
young and the ancient lockwood was
Just beginning to grow, for it is not
entirely to time that this garden must
lay its charm, the commission points
out
The symmetry or, to be more lit
orally exact. the formality of the gen.
eral design is preserved with the Scru-
pulous care which we should expect in
so fastidious a man as Washington.
Gen. Washington could no more have
made a garden that was informal than
he could have descended to act the
clown in cap and bells. His matchless
poise and grave and beautiful majesty
could only reflect in a creation of SIM
liar balance and statelineSs.
The Bigness of Washington.
"By studying Mount Vernon both in
its plan and in its endless beautiful
perspective and VstaS it is possible to
come nearer to an understanding OF
that quality in George Washington
which made all men stand little in
awe of him One sees in Mount Yer
non. as we'll as feels the bigness of his
mold, physical, mental and spiritual,
that set him apart from all his kind
and yet made him to be so greatly
loved" the statement continues.
I'm his own plan for the place Wash
ington calls both gardens kitchen gar
dens. but the inclosed garden on the
north side of the lawn is the flower
garden and the famous garden of box
wood. The kitchen garden lies opposite
on the south, back of its similar brick
wall, topped with white palings. Situ-
ated here, on the gentle slope where
the land begins to fall away toward the
river, this garden is terraced into two
levels its entire length. The gate in
the wall which leads in from the lawn
is met by walk that crosses the upper
terrace to steps which descend to the
common vegetable level. This upper
terrace entertains only the finer herbs,
the salads, simples and small fruits,
with the fine tree fruits against the wall
as 1t faces the south. Apricots, necta-
rines, peaches, fine plums, pears-al
these were trained against the wall in
Washington's time, as is the English
custom, and the generals table enjoyed
the earliest and richest delicacies as
consequence.
A Charming Garden.
"The upper terrace is a charming
garden. In addition to its herbs and
wall fruits, there are grapes trellised
along the terrace edge, and shrubs here
and there. A border of venerable, un-
kept lockwood. incloses the walk from
the lawn to the steps, and there are
old flowers, both annual and perennial,
Frightening the soberer beds of salad
and savory. Poppies, sweet peas, holly
hooks, sweet Williams, mingle in the
Oldest garden fashion with the cab
bages, lettuce, cucumbers, the sage,
marjoram, lavender and thyme. AL
though this garden is actually only a
easily be three centuries old SO con-
sistently does it conform to the earlier
modes. before purely pleasure gardens"
of flowers alone were made.
I'm the finer flower garden at Mount
Vernon, opposite the kitchen garden,
are old-fashioned flowers which would
be considered extremely modern when
compared to the sweet south garden
Backing this are the great green
houses where many rare eXotics found
a home. Gifts such as these came to
the idolized general and, of course, con-
tinued to come to the President in even
greater numbers. He was never too
busy to thank personally the giver"
The United States George Washing
ton Bicentennial Commission is spon-
soring a campaign for planting flowers
in every vacant strip of available soil
during this Summer Lists of Colonial
flowers, ANIMALS, perennials, etc, with
color combinations, will be sent free
upon request.