A double suburban villa, with an ornamental garden, and the entrance porches at opposite sides

159. General Arrangement

Fig. 43. shows a common, and at the same time an effectual, mode of arranging and placing the entrances of two small suburban villas, so as to make them have the appearance of a single house. In this case, a square building, containing two houses, is entered by porches at opposite sides; and there are back entrances to each house, communicating with the area, and the garden behind each. The space in front of the houses is divided by a wire fence in the centre; so that a stranger entering from the street, and proceeding towards either house, sees across the whole width of the front garden; and both the houses and gardens appear to him to be one, and to be occupied by the same family. We have shown in this figure how shrubs and low trees may be distributed so as to aid this illusion. Each house contains an entrance-porch and staircase (a), dining-room (o), and drawing-room (c), with a recess, which, in Elizabethan houses, is called a bay (d), communicating with a small closet. Between the two houses there is a pedestal and vase, as indicated at e, and on the lawns (f, g,h, i, and j) there are no flower-beds, but only flowering shrubs and low trees: k and I are verandas; tn, the sunk area, communicating with the walk by steps, and leading to the door of the back kitchen; and n shows the descent, by a few steps, from the veranda to the garden.

The style of these houses, designed for us by E. B. Lamb, Esq., is supposed to be the Elizabethan; and fig. 44. is a perspective view, showing the front of both houses next the road, and the entrance front of one of them.

160. The object in laying out and planting these gardens we shall suppose to be a display of choice low trees and shrubs, but planted in such a manner as not to require much expense in keeping the garden in order. Flowering plants we shall imagine to be altogether dispensed with, except some in pots (which may be grown in a reserve ground, or supplied for a fixed yearly sum by a commercial gardener), for placing in the balconies over the bays, and under the verandas. The adjoining gardens we shall suppose to be planted much in the same manner; or, indeed, in any manner, provided a few trees, either fruit-bearing or ornamental, are sprinkled through them. Such gardens will not be offensive to look at, especially through a foreground of low trees; and, hence, it will not be necessary to proceed on the supposition that much requires to be planted out, that is hidden or partially concealed by trees. The ground being drained and levelled, and properly trenched and manured, the walks may be blocked out; but the gravel or the pavement should not be laid for a year; unless, indeed, the walks are formed of pavement laid on stone piers.