Radnor Township.

this, and none are better cared for or more velvety in texture. At one side, across a little brook which art has handled very gracefully, and beyond a crystal spring which has been given a beautiful housing, is the original forest, left in its native wildness. On the other side of the house the lawn slopes away to the more recently-acquired possessions of Mr. Childs, which constitute the farm, and of which we shall presently speak more specifically.

The house itself is entered by way of a massive door, which is both hospitable and formidable, over a vestibule floored with Roman mosaics, especially imported for the purpose. The style of the interior is substantial, curious, quaint, but the idea everywhere most strongly suggested is that of the home, and of hospitality and of comfort. All of constructive design, of ornament and art, seems subversive to the central thought of constructing a model home and a happy place of sojourn for friends. In such admirable taste has the general design been carried out, and lavishness of expenditure so well directed, that decoration has not fallen short of completeness and yet has not overstepped the limit of chasteness. We are told that Wootton had its origin in the desire of Mrs. Childs to build a simple home which should be a retreat for the family, midway in season and elaborateness between the Philadelphia residence and the establishment at Long Branch, and that from time to time, as the attractiveness of the locality became more and more apparent, the original simple design was amplified and elaborated, until it resulted in the present commodious and elegant house.

Here the hospitality which Mr. Childs ever delights in has had one of its principal theatres. The house has been the scene of a great number of entertainments of social and semi-public character, of the celebrated Farmers' Club dinners, and of elaborate yet unostentatious entertainment of the eminent men and women of our country and of Europe. In this connection the origin of the name of Mr. Childs' country home is interesting. The term is transplanted from England, and is commemorative of pleasant hospitality, of which Mr. and Mrs. Childs were there the recipients.

In Lyson's "Magna Britannia," vol. i. p. 673, there is the following account of "Wootton Underwood," in the hundred of Ashendon and deanery of Waddesdon. The manor was given by William the Conqueror to the Earl of Buckingham, and in 1097 it was brought by marriage to Richard de Grenville, from whom there has been an uninterrupted line of male succession, through twenty generations, to the present proprietor, the Duke of Buckingham. Wootton house has been from time immemorial the seat of the Grenvilles. The present house was built in 1705. The staircase and saloon were painted by Sir James Thornhill. It was the favorite home of the family. In the parish church are the ancient monuments of the Grenvilles, and the windows are ornamented with the arms and quarterings of the Grenvilles, the Temples, and the Chandos. It was at Wootton that the present Duke of Buckingham welcomed Mr. and Mrs. Childs, on their first visit to England, and there they made their acquaintance with English country life. In token of the pleasant memory of the hospitality there extended to them, their own lovely country home was called Wootton, and thus the American Wootton perpetuates the long years of hospitality for which the English Wootton is famous. The Wootton of Delaware County is an admirable type of American country homes, for there guests of all nationalities, the leaders in all that is great and good, are heartily welcomed, and it has already become famous as the seat of a generous hospitality not often equaled either in Europe or in this country. The house and the grounds are in admirable taste, and it is one of the stately homes for which Delaware County is fast becoming famous.

Interesting as is this home with its beauties of architecture and decoration of art, and of association, of books, and of costly and quaint bric-a-brac, the grounds and the farm are, after all, the strongest and most unique attraction, and, therefore, we emerge from a delightful house to its sumptuous surroundings.

And of these no hand but that of the painter or the most gifted artist in words can give an adequate idea, hence we will not attempt it.

In addition to the grounds originally constituting Wootton, Mr. Childs bought and brought under care, in 1883, land adjoining his, which he caused to be made an addition to his farm. Upon this, and upon lands which he formerly possessed, some of the most extensive improvements in the region have been made. It is here, southwest of the home and the grounds surrounding it, that the farm has been laid out and brought into nicely-ordered existence, principally through the management of Mr. John M. Hughes, chief gardener of the place. The farm consists of about forty acres of excellent land well tilled, and is supplied with all of the most modern and well-approved adjuncts and appliances. The barn here, while not so perfect in its appointments as the stable near the house (which is perhaps the best in the country), is exceedingly well adapted to its purpose, and contains every requisite of a thorough farm establishment. It is built of stone, and the yard is paved with the same material, while a massive wall surrounds the whole.

Near by is the farmer's house, a handsome cottage, and in close proximity to this the spring-house, which is a marvel of neatness, and a model scarcely approachable for all who would have a perfect dairy. It is built of white flint, which is as cool in effect as snow and ice could be, and consists of a work-room and a milk-room, the latter almost a chapel in appearance, and a place of absolute purity, both in fact and appearance. The milk from several pure and deer-like Alderneys, most carefully cared for, is kept here, and has a housing and protection in every way worthy of its unrivaled