80. On the other hand, though they have not on the Continent the same
knowledge of the use and beauty of chimneys in the abstract, they
display their usual good taste in grouping, or concealing them; and,
whether we find them mingling with the fantastic domiciles of the
German, with the rich imaginations of the Spaniard, with the classical
remains and creations of the Italian, they are never intrusive or
disagreeable; and either assist the grouping, and relieve the
horizontality of the lines of the roof, or remain entirely unnoticed and
insignificant, smoking their pipes in peace.
81. It is utterly impossible to give rules for the attainment of these
effects, since they are the result of a feeling of the proportion and
relation of lines, which, if not natural to a person, cannot be
acquired, but by long practice and close observation; and it presupposes
a power rarely bestowed on an English architect, of setting regularity
at defiance, and sometimes comfort out of the question. We could give
some particular examples of this grouping; but, as this paper has
already swelled to an unusual length, we shall defer them until we come
to the consideration of street effects in general. Of the chimney in the
abstract, we are afraid we have only said enough to illustrate, without
removing, the difficulty of designing it; but we cannot but think that
the general principles which have been deduced, if carefully followed
out, would be found useful, if not for the attainment of excellence, at
least for the prevention of barbarism.
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