set around the pool,--only then does the fountain become mystic. Even
then it suggests cosmogony, mechanics, physics, which are not romantic,
except in so far as there may be romance of the intellect. However, this
is Aitken, not Mullgardt. The allegories of the group are detailed in
the chapter on Fountains.



VIII.

The Court of the Seasons



A charming bit of Italian Renaissance--Its quiet simplicity--The alcove
Fountains of the Seasons, by Furio Piccirilli--Milton Bancroft's Murals
- The forecourt, with Evelyn Longman's Fountain of Ceres--Inscriptions.



In The Court of the Seasons, the architect, Henry Bacon of New York, has
shown us a charming mood of the Italian Renaissance. (p. 79, 80.) This
court, neither too splendid to be comfortable nor too ornate to be
restful, is full of a quiet intimacy. Nature's calm is here. It is a
little court, and friendly. Its walls are near and sheltering. People
like to sit here in the shelter of the close thickets around the still
pool in the center. I notice, too, that persons hastening across the
grounds come this way, and that they unconsciously slacken pace as they
walk through the court.