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a ©ere means of decoration, to, in short, a mere accessory, as isevidenced in the use of engaged columns, and pilasters, andln ^e adoption of small columns, &c., for the adornment of® n v portions of an edifice. The latter is the method resortedo by the Italians , and though it may be said with some reason,at the columnar-fenestrated is an anonymous style, and thate terms astylar and fenestrated ought in practice to beynonymous, yet when we behold some of the beautifulructures raised in this style, we cannot yield ourselvestirely to this opinion. In our idea they may lawfully bewhen one is made clearly and distinctly an accessorythe other, and when the pre-eminence of the one is at oncePalpable and evident to the senses ; but they may not be so■uployed where they hold equally important positions in the"he edifice, one or the other must be ostensibly predomi-ht- The Italians have employed the orders as ornamentalc cessories, and have been in many instances eminently suc-s tul, as far at least as regards the production of eleganceh taste in the design ; if we were to criticize too severely,h enter into the question of the unity of design and con-0 ;«eti° n , we might not be so well able to vindicate the claimst'^tyle; it will not bear such rough-handling as the

some instances, which are indeed the least removedtij 0 ® 1 ^e classic in this respect; the entire edifice or at leastis tif rinc ipal portion of it, is comprised in one order, whichan ,' us made to embrace two or more stories of the building,tjj same number of ranges of apertures ; and sometimesmam body of the building is crowned by a single pedi-j e This is what some would have us call classical, or atrec 1 V . et T nearl y classical; but we must confess we do notH 0 °§ n ize the resemblance, and if there be a likeness, it is byto i! Deans a flattering one. This method would appear to usto tt 8 t *' e ^ rst bungling attempt at adapting the ancient ordersbe ** e alter cd requirements of that age; such a system cane v ertl >ed neither the columniated, nor the fenestrated, norUn’t 3 com bin a tion of the two, for there is no agreement orhot/, between the two principles so applied; you have themthe to S et her, it is true, but not in combination or unity;thev ar@ ’ n °P en war, and, destroying each other’s beauties,*Odi k°tb spoiled—self-destroyed. The two systems are

Jj e . i 'ally too prominent, they jar, and cannot blend together.s ev es this, it seems unnatural and ridiculous to comprisetheo a ?‘ st ' nct stories under one order; and if it seem so inTh ?> 11 has certainly no less the appearance in practice.

Uf )i v 18 system, however, was fortunately by no meansit s S p’ Sa * > it was a more usual practice to give to each story^pet' 3rate orc ' er > an( i this employment of different orders, or8ey er , lt 1 IOns °f the same order one above the other, in thefe atu 1 Tories of a building, affords us another importantlisiriti 6 ^ le st y> e - This practice led to some other pecu-ea Worthy of especial notice, amongst which may bethat of abandoning all proportion of intercolumnia-

h . >es, ot >ced,bon.

Piers ° s P acin g the columns according to the breadth of thethe a'l an ^ t * le a P el- tures between them. This again led toof e anf lonment of insulated columns, and. the substitutionrea Sonf 6( i columns of half or three-quarter projection ; theadopt j° r w bich is evident, for if insulated columns had beenthey w ’ ^ben placed at so great a distance from each other,es Peci n ^ have had an exceedingly tame and meagre effect,tiop ^ y when raised tier above tier. But another altera-ble e as . 8t 'A requisite, for with half or three-quarter columns,the Wall UtUre was ma( ^e to project so far from the face ofand we I.* 8 to Produce the appearance at once of heaviness®o g(1 a neSS ’ t ' 1<i over hanging entablature seeming to havethi s inp° rt b et ween the widely separated columns. To obviatey 0L ^ n8 >stency, the Italians fell into a still greater, by

breaking the entablature over each column, and recessing ;it in the intercolumn. We say a greater inconsistency, forthe nature and functions of the entablature are thus entirelydisregarded, but, as before observed, the designs of the Italians will not bear comparison with the requirements of construc-tive science. This objection, however, was somewhat lessenedby the introduction of pilasters in the place of columns, which,from their slight projection, allowed the entablature to becontinued without break or interruption. This was so faran improvement, but it will be noticed, that all this while, the jcolumns and other divisions of the order were losing their jnatural character and office, and had at last dwindled down |to nothing better than aids to decoration. Thus, by their j

diminution in size and projection, and by their loss of con- j

structive propriety, columns became of little significance when !compared with the windows and other apertures, which wereoften highly decorated with architraves and cornices, and jsometimes with small columns in the jambs supporting an jarchitrave and pedimental head, which was either triangular :or segmental. This method of decorating the windows wasemployed where each story of the edifice was arranged asa separate order; but not unfrequently the order was entirelyomitted, and columns employed only as decorations to aper-tures, and often were dismissed altogether, the windowshaving an architrave dressing only, with cornice supportedby ancones on either side of the architrave. These illustratethe triumph of fenestration over the combination of the twosystems; and if the former do not excel in appearance,which we are somewhat inclined to think it does, it at leastsurpasses in consistency. We have fair specimens in Londorin the Reform Club and Bridgewater House, by Mr. Barry,as also of the other system in the Carlton, Conservative, andArmy and Navy Club Houses, all of which, and several otherexcellent examples, are in close proximity to each other, andafford ample means of judging of their comparative merits.

The walls of Italian buildings are frequently formed ofrustic masonry of various descriptions, and this is moregenerally the case with basements, and the lower or lessimportant stories, and in such situation gives an appearanceof great strength and massiveness, where it is most required;it adds also to the apparent strength and durability of theentire edifice; not, however, without imparting at the sametime a degree of heaviness. This method of decoration, if itmay be so termed, is sometimes applied to columns, but it israther a barbarous ornamentation, as is also another practicevery prevalent, of leaving projecting cubical blocks surround-ing the shaft of the column at regular intervals in its height.

In edifices of the astylar system, the angles are often finishedwith quoins.

We must not forget to allude to a feature which is commonto almost all Italian buildings, and that is, the boldly projectingcornice, or cornicione, as it is termed, at the summit. It isof very unusual projection, proportioned to the entire building,and often very highly enriched; it forms a noble finish orcrowning, and adds considerably to the importance of thefacade. Sometimes the edifice terminates with an attic orcornice with a balustrade, which again is crowned at inter-vals by statues or other acroteria. Columns and pilasters inthis style are frequently set upon pedestals, which is an inno-vation upon classic art, copied from the Roman triumphal jarches, in which the practice was first resorted to. Columns |also are frequently fluted in a spiral direction round the shaft,which gives them an appearance of weakness; they are also itwisted and crooked, which produces an effect no lessdisagreeable, than the construction is unscientific and bar-barous. Another innovation upon ancient precedent con-sisted in breaking the outline of the pediment by cutting