the Green Carpet glowed in its emerald
beauty among the clear waters of Versailles.
The furthest fountain that met the eye was
the Basin of Apollo, with its plunging
bronze horses. In the outer park, that held
the Trianon and the Menagerie, the royal
gaze beheld the cross-shaped Canal which so
often, in the revels that marked the first part
of this reign, bore gay Venetian barges
between the scintillating lights and fireworks
that illumined the shore. At the right side,
still looking from the rear of the chateau, the
King's beauty-loving eyes dwelt upon the
North Terrace, with its rich growth of
greenery, on the graceful Fountains of the
Pyramid and the Dragon, and above all on
the magnificently soaring fountains of
Neptune's Basin. At his left were the Terrace
of Flowers, the two stairways that flanked
the Orangery, chief work of Mansard and
especial pride of Louis, and the lake in the
small park named for the Swiss Guards.
Nowhere, it is safe to say, could a place be
found that embraced so many beautiful
garden views at one time.

Bordering the avenue that Le Nôtre
opened through the primitive groves where
Louis XIII once came to hunt--on either
side the broad lane of trees and leaping