“Such was, e’en then, their look of calm repose.
As wafted round them came the sounds of fight,
When the glad shouts of conquering Athens rose
O’er the long track of Persia’s broken flight.
“Tho’ clasped by prostrate worshippers no more,
They yet shall breathe a thrilling lesson here;
Tho’ distant from their own immortal shore,
The spot they grace is still to freedom dear.”
Of this classic pedestal, with its crowning bust, we give an engraving on the preceding page.
Opposite to the Orangery is the French Garden, with its forest of pillars surmounted by busts, its grand old Egyptian figures, its Chinese beakers and vases, its sculptured figures and groups, and its raised parterres: near this are green-houses, conservatories, and camelia and orchid houses, with their endless store of beauties; while here and there an antique tomb, or sculptured figures, or groups of statuary, add their charms to the place.
The French Garden.
From above this part of the gardens a broad path to the right leads on to the Great Conservatory, passing on its way the Cascade, the Willow Tree, and other interesting spots. The Grand Cascade, of which we give an engraving, the Willow Tree, and other parts of the artificial water-works, were designed and executed, as already stated, in the early part of last century, by M. Grillet, and added to and repaired by the late Duke, under the direction of Sir J. Paxton. The water supplying the Great Cascade, the fountains, and the other portions of the works, falls, as will be seen in our engraving, from the summit of the wooded heights at the back of the grounds, and is then conveyed along a lofty arched aqueduct, from the end of which it falls with considerable force, and is then carried underground to the temple, at the head of the cascade. Here it rises to the domed roof of the temple, which becomes a sheet of water, and, rushing through the various carved channels prepared for it in the groups of figures, &c., makes its way down the cascade, formed of a long series of stone steps with flats at regular intervals, and at the bottom sinks into a subterranean channel at the spectator’s feet.
The Great Cascade.