,,if ,,you',,re ,,going ,,to ,,live ,,in ,,the ,,country ,illustration3 ,a ,,riverside ,,home ,,reconstructed ,,from ,,the ,,ruins ,,of ,,an ,,old ,,mill ,photo by ,samuel ,h4 ,gottscho ,robertson ,ward1 architect ,,if ,,you',,re ,,going ,,to ,,live ,,in ,,the ,,country ,,by ,,thomas ,h4 ,,ormsbee ,,and ,,richmond ,,huntley ,illustration ,,decorations ,,by ,,frank ,,lieberman ,illustration ,,thomas ,y4 ,,crowell ,,company ,,publishers ,,new ,,york ,,copyright1 #aicg ,,by ,,thomas ,y4 ,,crowell ,,company ,all rights reserved4 ,no part of this book may be reproduced in any form except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review to be printed in a magazine or newspaper4 ,,manufactured ,,in ,,the ,,united ,,states ,,of ,,america ,,by ,,the ,,vail-,,ballou ,,press1 ,,inc41 ,,binghamton1 ,n4 ,y4 ,to ,,carroll and ,,therese ,,nichols ,,acknowledgments ,no book that covers so many phases of human relationships could be compiled without taking advice from those who are specialists4 ,when we have wanted to know facts1 we have freely turned to others whose detailed knowledge represented long experience4 ,for this assistance we are particularly indebted to3 ,m4 ,shaler ,allen1 ,bruce ,millar1 ,mrs4 ,herbert ,q4 ,brown1 and ,george ,s4 ,platts2 also1 to ,house ,garden1 in which parts of this book appeared serially2 and to ,miss ,eleanor ,v4 ,searing for many hours spent reading manuscript4 ,new ,canaan1 ,conn4 ,april #aicg ,,contents ,,page ,,introduction xi ,,chapter ,i4 ,,why ,,live ,,in ,,the ,,country #c ,,ii4 ,,selecting ,,the ,,location #ai ,,iii4 ,,shopping ,,for ,,property #ce ,,iv4 ,,call ,,in ,,an ,,architect #eg ,v4 ,,building ,,versus ,,remodeling #gc ,,vi4 ,,looking ,,an ,,old ,,house ,,in ,,the ,,mouth #ia ,,vii4 ,,new ,,sites ,,for ,,old ,,houses #aje ,,viii4 ,,the ,,smoke ,,goes ,,up ,,the ,,chimney #aba ,,ix4 ,,the ,,question ,,of ,,water ,,supply #aci ,x4 ,,sewage ,,safety #aec ,,xi4 ,,decorations ,,and ,,furnishings #afe ,,xii4 ,,the ,,factory ,,part ,,of ,,the ,,house #agi ,,xiii4 ,,pets ,,and ,,livestock #aia ,,xiv4 ,,tightening ,,for ,,winter #bjc ,,xv4 ,,keeping ,,home ,,fires ,,in ,,their ,,place #bae ,,xvi4 ,,when ,,things ,,go ,,wrong #bbg ,,xvii4 ,,working ,,with ,,nature #bdc ,,list ,,of ,,illustrations ,a riverside home reconstructed from the ruins of an old mill ,frontispiece ,robertson ,ward1 architect4 ,photo by ,gottscho ,,facing ,,page ,the ,ogden house1 ,fairfield1 ,conn4 ,built before #agje1 it has been restored to preserve the original details #ab ,miss ,mary ,allis ,an old farmhouse in the rough #cf ,photo by ,john ,runyon ,a really ,early ,american interior4 ,the great fireplace of the ,wayside ,inn1 ,sudbury1 ,mass4 #fj ,henry ,ford ,once half a house and a hen roost #gf ,photo by ,whitney ,what can be done with a barn #gf ,robertson ,ward1 architect4 ,photo by ,gottscho ,as they built a chimney in the #ahth ,century #aah ,photo by ,john ,runyon ,a place for summer and week-ends #adh ,robertson ,ward1 architect4 ,photo by ,la ,roche ,true #ahth ,century simplicity4 ,now the authors' dining room #agj ,photo by ,john ,runyon ,entirely new1 but with all the charm of an old house #ahd ,robertson ,ward1 architect4 ,photo by ,gottscho ,snow has dignity1 but is the house snug and warm8 #bjf ,photo by ,gottscho ,an imposing country home of classic dignity #bbj ,robertson ,ward1 architect4 ,photo by ,gottscho ,skillful planting of trees1 shrubs1 and flowers make the setting #bdd ,robertson ,ward1 architect4 ,photo by ,gottscho ,illustration ,,introduction ,there is a beginning with everything4 ,so far as this book is concerned1 annual driving trips through ,central ,vermont are responsible4 ,they were great events1 planned months in advance4 ,with a three-seated carriage and a stocky span good for thirty miles a day and only spirited if they met one of those new contraptions aglitter with polished brass gadgets1 that fed on gasoline instead of honest cracked corn and oats1 we took to the road4 ,a newspaper man1 vacation-free from ,broadway first nights and operas sung by ,melba1 ,sembrich1 and the ,brothers de ,reszke1 was showing his city-bred children his native hills and introducing them to the beauties of a world alien to asphalt pavements and brownstone fronts4 ,it was leisurely travel4 ,when the road was unusually steep1 to spare the horses1 we walked4 ,if ,mother's eagle eye spotted a four-leaf clover1 we stopped and picked it4 ,if a bend in the road brought a pleasing prospect into view1 the horses could be certain of ten minutes for cropping roadside grass4 ,most of all1 no farmhouse nestling beneath wide-spread maples or elms went without careful consideration of ,father's constant daydream1 a home in the country4 ,these driving trips often included overnight stops with relatives living in villages undisturbed by the screech and thunder of freight and way trains1 or with others living on picturesque old farms4 ,afterward there was always lively conversation concerning the possibilities of ,cousin ,this or ,that's home as a country place4 ,this reached fever heat after visits to ,great ,aunt ,laura who lived in a roomy old house painted white with green blinds in a town bordering on ,lake ,champlain4 ,a pair of horse-chestnut trees flanked the walk to the front door1--a portal unopened save for weddings1 funerals1 and the minister's yearly call4 ,from here could be seen the sweep of the main range of the ,green ,mountains4 ,the kitchen doorway afforded a view of ,mount ,marcy and the ,adirondacks never to be forgotten4 ,it was the ancestral home with all the proper attributes1 horse barn1 woodshed1 tool houses1 and a large hay barn4 ,father's dream for forty years was to recapture it and settle down to the cultivation of rustic essays instead of its unyielding clay soil4 ,however1 he was first and last a newspaper man and his practical side told him that ,shoreham was too far from ,broadway4 ,so it remained a dream4 ,his city-born and bred son inherited the insidious idea4 ,four years in a country college augmented it and1 as time went on1 the rumble of trucks and blare of neighboring radios turned a formerly quiet street on ,brooklyn ,heights into a bedlam and brought matters to a head4 ,great ,aunt ,laura's place was still too far away but explorers returning from ventures into the far reaches of ,westchester ,county1 and western ,connecticut1 had brought back tales of pleasantly isolated farmhouses with rolling acres well dotted with trees and stone fences4 ,here1 thanks to the automobile and commuting trains1 was the solution4 ,a country place near enough to the city1 so that the owner could have his cake and eat it1 too4 ,after some months of searching and several wild goose chases1 a modest little place was found4 ,the original plan was to live there just a few weeks in the summer1 possibly from ,june into ,september1 but the period stretched a bit each year4 ,now it is the year around4 ,we are but one of many families that have traded the noise and congestion of city life for the quiet and isolation of the open country4 ,nor do all such cling to the commuting fringe of the larger cities4 ,a good proportion have their country homes some hours' distant1 and the city is only visited at infrequent intervals4 ,wherever his country place is located1 however1 there are certain problems confronting the city dweller who takes to rural life4 ,they are the more baffling because they are not problems at all to his country-bred neighbors4 ,the latter assume that any adult with a grain of common sense must know all about such trifles as rotten sills1 damp cellars1 hornets that nest in the attic1 frozen pipes in winter1 and wells that fail in dry seasons4 ,of course1 no one treatise can hope to serve as a guide for every problem that comes with life in the open country4 ,this book is no compendium4 ,it concerns itself only with the most obvious pitfalls that lie ahead of one inured to well-serviced city life4 ,,why ,,live ,,in ,,the ,,country8 ,illustration ,,chapter ,i ,,why ,,live ,,in ,,the ,,country8 ,the urge to live in the country besets most of us sooner or later4 ,spring with grass vividly green1 buds bursting and every pond a bedlam of the shrill1 rhythmic whistle of frogs1 is the most dangerous season4 ,some take a walk in the park4 ,others write for ,strout's farm catalogues1 read them hungrily and are well4 ,but there are the incurables4 ,their fever is fed for months and years by the discomforts and amenities of city life4 ,eventually they escape and contentedly become box numbers along rural postal routes4 ,why do city-bred people betake themselves to the country8 ,the surface reasons are as many as why they are ,republicans or ,democrats1 but the basic one is escape from congestion and confusion4 ,for themselves or their children their goal is the open country beyond the suburban fringe4 ,here the children1 like young colts1 can be turned out to run and race1 kick up their heels and enjoy life1 free of warnings to be quiet lest they annoy the elderly couple in the apartment below or the nervous wreck the other side of that suburban privet hedge4 ,the day and night rattle and bang of the city may go unnoticed for years but eventually it takes its toll4 ,then comes a great longing to get away from it all4 ,if family income is independent of salary earned by a city job1 there is nothing to the problem4 ,free from a desk in some skyscraper that father must tend from nine to five1 such a family can select its country home hours away from the city4 ,ideal6 ,but few are so fortunate4 ,most of us consider ourselves lucky to have that city job4 ,it is to be treated with respect and for us the answer lies in locating just beyond those indefinite boundaries that limit the urban zone4 ,with the larger cities1 this may be as much as fifty miles from the business center2 with smaller ones the gap can be bridged speedily by automobile4 ,going to live in the country1 viewed dispassionately as an accountant's balance sheet1 has attributes that can be recorded in black ink as well as those that require a robust crimson4 ,if you really want a place where you need not be constantly rubbing elbows with the rest of the world2 where you can cultivate something more ambitious than window boxes or an eight by ten pocket-handkerchief garden2 where subways and street clatter can be forgotten2 your black column will be far longer than the one in red4 ,but if nothing feels so good to your foot as smooth unyielding pavements2 if the multicolored electric sign of a moving picture palace is more entrancing than a vivid sunset2 you are at heart a city bird1 intended by temperament to nest behind walls of brick and steel4 ,there is nothing you can do about it either4 ,in the country the nights are so black2 the birds at dawn too noisy2 and ,nature when she storms and scolds1 is a fish-wife4 ,possibly you can learn to endure it all but will the game be worth the candle8 ,without true fondness for outdoors and an inner urge for a measure of seclusion1 life in the country is drear4 ,don't attempt it4 ,but for those who care for the cool damp of evening dew2 the first robin of spring hopping pertly across the grass2 or a quiet winter evening with a good book or a radio program of their own choosing rather than that of the people living across the hall2 country life is worth every cent of its costs and these bear lightly4 ,along ,fifth avenue1 ,new ,york1 not far from the ,metropolitan ,museum1 is a typical town house4 ,a man of means maintains it for social and business reasons4 ,but he does not live there4 ,his intimates know that only a few minutes after the last dinner guest has departed1 his chauffeur will drive him some twenty miles to a much simpler abode on a secluded dirt road4 ,here1 he really lives4 ,whistling tree toads replace the constant whir of buses and taxicabs4 ,most of us cannot be so extravagant4 ,we are fortunate to have one home1 either in the city or the country4 ,renting or buying it entails sacrifices1 and maintaining it has its unexpected expenses that always come at the wrong time4 ,what do those who live beyond the limits of cities and sophisticated villages gain by hanging their crane with the rabbits and woodchucks8 ,first1 country living is the answer to congestion4 ,even the most modest country cottage is more spacious than the average city apartment4 ,life in such a house may be simple but not cramped4 ,there is light and air on all sides4 ,this may seem unimportant but did you ever occupy an apartment where the windows opened on a court or were but a few feet from the brick wall of another warren for humans8 ,if the sun reached your windows an hour or two a day1 you were lucky4 ,in a country house there is sunlight somewhere on pleasant days from morning to night4 ,that difference can only be understood by those who have known both ways of living4 ,in town1 light and air cost money2 along the rural postal routes it is as much a part of the scheme of things as summer insects or winter snows4 ,and it may have a very definite bearing on the well being of all members of the family4 ,some suffer more than they realize from lack of sunlight4 ,frequently it is the children and1 with many families1 decision to move countryward is on their account4 ,in fact1 there be some1 where father and mother1 if they consulted their own preferences1 would stay in a city apartment convenient to theatres and shops1 with friends and acquaintances close at hand4 ,but their small children lack robustness4 ,the parents try everything1 careful diet1 adequate hours of sleep and all the other recommendations of scientific child rearing4 ,still the little arms and legs continue to be spindling4 ,tonics and cod liver oil fail to get rid of that pinched look1 the concomitant of too little sunlight and too many hours indoors4 ,in desperation such a family betakes itself to the country4 ,the children weather tan4 ,they respond to the more placid life and gradually gain the much sought after hardiness4 ,nature has been the physician without monthly bills for house or office treatments4 ,the children are not the only ones who gain4 ,healthy adults renew their energy and crave activity4 ,here opportunity lies close at hand4 ,it may be swinging a golf club or going fishing4 ,it may be such unorganized methods of stretching muscles and increasing breathing as pushing a lawn mower1 raking leaves or weeding the delphinium border4 ,all these sports and homely out-of-door duties and pleasures are nearby1 many of them just the other side of the front door4 ,those classed as sports may require a country club membership but even this is on a more modest scale4 ,in fact1 all potent are the economies made possible by leaving city or closely built suburb4 ,house and land1 either bought or rented1 comes cheaper and is more ample4 ,along with this basic saving there are a number of others that help to leave something from the family income at the end of the year4 ,clothes last longer in the country and wardrobe requirements are simpler4 ,similarly1 there is a distinct decrease in the money spent for amusements4 ,when the nearest moving picture house is five miles away it is easy to stay at home4 ,going to the movies is not a matter of just running around the corner and so done automatically once or twice a week4 ,then there are such things as doctor's bills4 ,while sickness1 like taxes1 visits every family no matter where it lives1 we have found that we actually have less need of medical care living in the sticks than we did in town4 ,also the charges for competent care by both doctors and dentists are lower4 ,for the family inclined to delve in the soil1 a definite saving can be accomplished by tending a vegetable garden1 raising small fruits and berries1 and even maintaining a hen roost4 ,some people 7,i would ,i could honestly include myself7 have a gift for making things grow and getting crops that are worth the work that has gone into them4 ,likewise there is such a thing as possessing a knack with that unresponsive and perverse creature1 the hen4 ,possibly good gardening and an egg-producing hen-yard are the result of willingness to take infinite pains but1 out of my disappointments and half successes1 ,i am more inclined to hold that it is luck and predestination4 ,so1 ,i have reduced agricultural activities sharply1 but ,i do know families where each fall finds cellar shelves groaning under cans of fruits and vegetables1 products of the garden1 and foretelling distinct economies in purchases of canned goods or fresh vegetables4 ,one of the largest single savings that country life makes possible is elimination of private school tuition4 ,theoretically city public schools are good enough for anybody's children4 ,actually most good neighborhoods have an undesirable slum just around the corner and the public school is for the children of both4 ,so1 many city-dwelling families1 not from snobbishness but because they do not want their young hopefuls to acquire slum manners and traits1 dig deep into their bank accounts and send their children to private schools4 ,seldom is this necessary in the country1 especially if the educational system is investigated beforehand4 ,instead1 the children start in a good consolidated graded school1 proceed through the local high school1 and are prepared for college with all the cost of tuition included in the tax bill that must be paid anyway4 ,the children are none the worse for this less guarded education4 ,they are1 in fact1 benefited for they have a democratic background that makes later life easier4 ,besides these creature comforts and financial gains1 there are the intangibles4 ,chief of these is that indescribable something1 country peace4 ,all the family responds to it4 ,it is impossible to maintain the highly-keyed1 nervous tension that characterizes city life when the domestic scene is surrounded by open fields or an occasional bit of woodland4 ,the placid calm soothes frayed nerves and works wonders in restoring balance and perspective toward family and business problems4 ,the harassed come to realize the inner truth of ,god's in his heaven1 all's right with the world4 ,along with this1 the family transplanted from the city gradually comes to know the genuine joys of much simpler pleasures4 ,separated from the professional recreations that beckon so engagingly in cities and the larger towns1 adults and children alike develop resources within themselves4 ,they learn that they can be just as contented with homely enjoyments as they ever were when they sat passively and were amused by some one who made it his profession4 ,a tramp through the woods in the fall when there is a tang of frost in the air2 the satisfaction of a long-planned flower bed in full bloom2 a winter evening with a log fire blazing on the living-room hearth2 are simple but as genuine as any of the pleasures known to city folk4 ,better yet1 they are not exhausting4 ,few people are strong enough to enjoy their pleasures1 a friend once wisely observed4 ,in the main1 however1 those of the country are less taxing and leave one refreshed which1 after all1 is the true purpose of recreation4 ,against these gains of country living the costs must also be reckoned4 ,these1 as stated earlier1 will hardly be felt if the individual really likes the country in its smiling moods as well as its frowning ones4 ,one which the family recently separated from city ways may find hardest to accept is a demand for self-reliance4 ,if the furnace will not burn1 a water pipe springs a leak1 a mid-winter blizzard deposits a snowdrift that all but blocks the front door1 father or some one else must rise to the situation4 ,the country home has no janitor4 ,the nearest plumber is two or five miles away4 ,no gang of snow shovelers knocks at the door with offers to attack the mislocated snow at a price1 albeit the highest they think the traffic will bear4 ,pioneer-like1 some or all of the family must turn to and cope with such situations4 ,doing so1 whether temporary like closing a pipe valve to stop the cascading water until the plumber arrives1 or permanent like mastering the idiosyncrasies of the furnace1 has its reward4 ,from oldest to youngest1 after a year or so there comes a sense of ability to cope with the unforeseen rather than to stand meekly by waiting for ,george to do it4 ,again1 it is not always smiling ,june with gentle breezes4 ,there are also ,january1 ,february and ,march1 the months winter really settles to his task and delivers1 as he will1 snow storms1 or spells of abnormally cold weather that make the house hard to heat and may freeze pipes4 ,there are also rainy spells of two or three days' duration that come any time1 spring1 summer or fall4 ,it is fun to be in the country when the sun shines4 ,there are so many things to do and see out-of-doors4 ,it is totally different when it rains and rains and still keeps on until everything outside is dripping and sodden4 ,then comes the testing time4 ,child or grown-up must accept such bad weather and make light of its restrictions1 or country living is hard indeed4 ,but did you ever put on boots and oilskins and go for a long walk in the rain just for the pure joy of it8 ,try it some time4 ,you will see fields and bushes with different eyes and hear that most musical of all country sounds1 the rush of tiny brooks in full flood4 ,even the birds have their rainy day manners and ways4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,ogden ,,house1 ,,fairfield1 ,,conn4 ,,built ,,before #agje1 ,,it ,,has ,,been ,,restored ,,to ,,preserve ,,the ,,original ,,details ,miss ,mary ,allis ,the most ardent country advocate1 however1 cannot deny that in some respects such a life has certain expenses not entered in the budget of families living in town4 ,first and foremost1 if father has his city job there is the monthly commutation book as well as the occasional railroad fares when other members of the family go to the city4 ,there is no argument about it4 ,these are added expenses but they are more than offset by reductions in the fixed charges4 ,also by selecting where you will live1 transportation costs can be controlled4 ,expenditures incident to entertaining are another matter4 ,one of the pleasantest things about living out-of-town is the week-end4 ,from ,friday night or ,saturday noon until ,monday morning the city is forgotten4 ,of course1 part of the time1 you will want to share these days with friends still cooped in apartments4 ,week-end guests vary the picture and are worth both the effort and money entertaining them involves4 ,but don't think that will be all4 ,no country-living family is safe from either friends or casual acquaintances in these days of motor cars4 ,they will appear most unexpectedly and assume that you are as delighted to see them as they are to have you as an objective for a ,sunday afternoon motor trip4 ,at first it is flattering to have people come so far just to see you4 ,then the novelty of it wears a little thin and you begin to realize that frequently ,monday morning finds the refrigerator swept bare4 ,in time it will dawn on you that part of the up-keep of a country home revolves around feeding your self-invited guests4 ,it would not be so bad if they would telephone ahead so that you could be prepared1 but that is not one of the rules of the game4 ,instead1 it is taken for granted that living in the country1 you have a never-failing pantry4 ,the solution lies in preparedness4 ,from early spring until about ,thanksgiving time1 have in reserve some simple supplies for an acceptable afternoon tea or ,sunday night supper4 ,one household of my acquaintance always has large pitchers of milk1 a supply of crackers1 two or three kinds of cheese1 a platter of sandwiches1 home-made cake and a hot drink4 ,as many as wish are welcome to come at the last moment for this standard ,sunday night supper4 ,its simplicity has earned this repast a wide reputation and it is considered a great lark to go there4 ,incidentally1 this truly rural supper is so inexpensive that it matters little how many are on hand ,sunday evenings4 ,also the chore of washing dishes after the last guests have gone is reduced to lowest terms1 likewise an item not to be overlooked4 ,this trend toward country living1 now so far flung as to be a characteristic of ,american life1 is not just a fad4 ,it has been a slow steady growth and has behind it a tradition of a century and more4 ,when our larger commercial centers first began to change from villages to compact urban communities1 there were those who found even these miniature cities far too congested4 ,it was incomprehensible to them that a family should exist without land enough for such prime requisites as a cow1 a hen-yard1 and a vegetable garden4 ,no family that really lived and properly enjoyed the pleasures of the table could be without them4 ,besides1 epidemics of yellow fever came with summer as naturally as sleighing with winter4 ,so for health and good living they began to move far into the country1--that is1 three or four miles out of town1--and stage coach routes were established to transport the heads of such families to and from business either the year around or for the summer months4 ,these stages or the private carriages of the more ostentatious were1 of course1 horse-drawn which limited the distance which could be traveled4 ,the next step was the railroads4 ,hardly were they practical means of transportation that could be relied on day in and day out1 before commutation tickets were offered for those hardy enough to endure daily trips of a dozen miles or more between home and office4 ,gradually the peaceful farming villages surrounding cities were transformed into something new to the ,american scene1 the suburban town1 but it remained impractical for most people to live farther from the station than a convenient walk4 ,when electric car lines were added1 the distance was extended materially and the farm lands just outside these suburban towns took on new value4 ,near car lines1 they could be sold to those not primarily concerned with agriculture4 ,the interurban electric roads also made many so-called abandoned farms in various parts of the country practical for families who wished to live farther from commercial centers either throughout the year or for the summer months1 since they provided that great essential1 a quick means of getting to shopping towns4 ,still great sections of back country1 too far from railroads and electric car lines1 remained strictly rural4 ,finally the automobile1 made inexpensive enough for families of average income and provided with that great innovation1 the self-starter1 changed it all4 ,this was not so very long ago4 ,approximately with the ,world ,war came the moderate-priced car that need not be cranked by hand4 ,driving it was no longer a sporting male occupation too often marred by broken arms and sprained wrists1 the painful outcome of hand-cranking when the motor back-fired4 ,with the self-starter car driving went feminine4 ,mother1 as well as father1 could and did drive4 ,it was now practical for automobile owning families to live farther from railroad stations and villages4 ,unnoticed at the time1 a new sort of pioneering began4 ,city-dwelling people turned hungry eyes toward the cheap country farmhouses located beyond limits of horse and carriage travel4 ,by #aibj1 this trend was in full swing and greatly expedited by the program of highway improvement and rebuilding that spread across the country4 ,with a quick and easy means of travel1 good roads1 telephone and electric service1 farmhouses which but a few years before had been as isolated as when ,horace ,greeley was thundering1 ,go ,west1 young man1 go ,west1 were isolated no more4 ,prices rose but not beyond the purchasing power of those who sought escape from city congestion or the restrictions of fifty-foot suburban lots4 ,the gasoline age had done it4 ,it had married rural peace to rapid transportation4 ,if you had to earn your living in the city1 it was no longer required that you and your family live in its midst4 ,a tranquil country home was yours if you would reach for it4 ,,selecting ,,the ,,location ,illustration ,,chapter ,,ii ,,selecting ,,the ,,location ,it is to be questioned whether any city dwelling family suddenly determines to move to the country4 ,such changes in one's way of life are not decided as casually as trading in the old car for a model of the current year4 ,usually the decision to pioneer backward is reached so gradually that those who take the step can hardly tell in retrospect just when the die was cast4 ,a vacation or summer in the country may have put it in mind4 ,then a period of vague indecision follows when city and country appear about equally attractive4 ,suddenly some chance happening turns the scale4 ,a week-end invitation for cider making in the ,hoosatonic ,valley in early ,november would seem harmless enough1 but from it dated our own determination to cease to be city dwellers4 ,it must be admitted that the stage-setting was perfect4 ,a twenty-mile ride on the evening of our arrival through the sharp clear air with a full harvest moon hanging high in the heavens1 while along the way lights twinkled hospitably from the farmhouses that dotted the countryside4 ,a bright crisp morning and a breakfast of sausages1 griddle cakes and syrup4 ,this would have been viewed with lack-luster eye in our overheated city apartment but was somehow just right in this fireplace heated country room with a tang of chill in the far corners4 ,later we were to find that plenty of ,november nights could be raw and stormy2 that fireplaces could sulk and give out such grudging heat as to make the room wholly chill4 ,but none of this appeared on that memorable week-end4 ,it waxed warm enough at midday for all of the outdoor pleasures that the country affords4 ,we were in congenial company and evening found us with a sense of peace and well-being that more than balanced the loss of a theatre or dinner party in town4 ,we were guilty of the usual platitudes about ,god's country and the normal way to live and knew they were that but didn't care4 ,however1 there was no rushing around to get a place right across the way4 ,a whole winter went by1 pleasantly spent doing the usual things4 ,then came spring1 a season that not even the city can wholly neutralize4 ,there were a number of seemingly aimless ,sunday trips beyond the urban fringe4 ,there was considerable casual comment on various houses in attractive settings4 ,one charming old place ideally located on a back road proved to be part of a water-shed reservation4 ,another equally charming plaster house was too far out4 ,as we admitted that1 we realized that we had joined that not inconsiderable group who want to have their cake and eat it too4 ,that is1 we really wanted a place in the country but we wanted it near enough so that the desk of the very necessary and important job could be reached without too much effort4 ,also the idea of an occasional evening in town was not to be dismissed lightly4 ,such humdrum items as railroad time tables were consulted4 ,having decided that the ideal location would be one in which the time required for train trip and motoring from house to station would come within an hour1 we limited our search to that section just beyond the suburban fringe in ,connecticut and ,westchester ,county1 ,new ,york4 ,we had no clear idea of the type of house we wanted1 save that it be old and of good lines4 ,we looked with and without the aid of real estate dealers4 ,we deluged our friends already living in the country with queries4 ,we found a disheartening number of fine old houses1 located just wrong4 ,there was a splendid1 two-story brick house with hall running through the middle4 ,but it stood in the commercial section of a village1 its door steps flush with the sidewalk1 and was hemmed in on one side by a gas station4 ,there was a neat little story-and-a-half stone house with picket fence1 old-fashioned rose bushes1 and beautiful shade trees4 ,it had once been the parsonage of the neighboring church4 ,unhappily the old churchyard lay between4 ,now1 we are not people who whistle determinedly when passing a marble orchard at midnight nor do we see white luminous shapes flitting among the tombstones4 ,but daily gazing upon one's final resting place1 we felt might1 in time1 prove depressing4 ,besides1 we were by no means certain that our friends had developed the callous indifference of a young couple we heard of years later4 ,curiously free of inhibitions1 these two people bought an attractive old farmhouse with a family burying lot located a fair distance from the house4 ,the little plot with its eight or ten simple headstones was unobtrusive and rather gave an air of family roots deep in the soil1 a quality all too rare in ,america4 ,these young vandals could not let well enough alone4 ,they uprooted the headstones and laid them end to end for a walk to their front door6 ,they were considering the plot itself as a possible tennis court when outraged public opinion forced them to put the stones back4 ,in fact1 the general hostility was so marked that they finally abandoned the place and it was later sold at a distinct loss4 ,but back to the little gray parsonage2 its location and the fact that train service in its vicinity was poor1 were the two deciding votes against it4 ,another attractive house in a good location was ruled out because our car got stuck in a spring hole practically in sight of it4 ,a mile or so of dirt road to the station is no drawback1 provided it is passable at all times of the year4 ,this one was obviously poor1 even in summer4 ,finally a real estate broker showed us a picture of a modest #ahth century farm cottage4 ,we visited the place one dreary sunless day in late ,march1 investigated the neighborhood1 determined the time required to drive to the nearest railroad station1 and bought it1 all in one week4 ,in general1 we are not sure that such haste is advisable4 ,there were certain disadvantages that we did not observe2 there were others where we turned a blind eye because we were infatuated with the place and determined to have it4 ,fortunately time has taken care of practically all of these4 ,in short1 we have come to believe that a place in the country is1 like marriage1 just what you make it4 ,in both cases1 though1 one's emotions should be under control1 so here are a few salient points for the searcher after a suitable location4 ,first and foremost1 decide on the sort of life you wish to lead4 ,then pick your location to fit it4 ,if you are not chained to a city desk five days a week but at best make only one or two weekly trips there1 a railroad journey of two or three hours is endurable especially when a highly attractive place lies at the end4 ,for such a person1 the radius in which to look for likely places is much extended and the farther out1 the more advantageous the prices4 ,but for one individual so fortunately situated1 there are more than a hundred who must choose a place near enough for daily trips to the city4 ,for the latter the ideal situation is1 as stated before1 an hour from house to office4 ,that is the ideal but1 in all honesty1 we must admit that few attain it4 ,the average country commuter is a born optimist on this point and will unblushingly distort facts in a manner to put the most ardent fisherman to shame4 ,but figures don't lie4 ,if the time table1 say between ,stamford1 ,connecticut1 and the ,grand ,central1 ,new ,york1 gives its fastest running time as fifty minutes1 it means exactly that4 ,you may plan to hurtle through the air at sixty miles an hour to the station but traffic and road conditions will not always let you4 ,besides1 what is the hurry8 ,allow twenty or thirty minutes instead of fifteen for a normal run of twelve miles and have peace of mind4 ,that gives you an hour and ten or fifteen minutes between your house and the city4 ,add the time needed to get from the train to your office and you know what is before you4 ,we mention this station trip of twelve miles as about the maximum for the hardy commuter although there are a few who take more punishment than that4 ,of course if the perfect place can be found only four to six miles from the station that is all the better4 ,transportation is an all important consideration both as regards time and expense4 ,there are beautiful countrysides fairly near large centers that are so hampered by poor train service as to be almost out of the question for the everyday commuter4 ,of course1 there may be an adequate service or it may be practical to drive to and from business4 ,the latter is not at all uncommon with the country areas near the smaller industrial centers4 ,here the fortunate commuter is free from exacting train schedules2 a five or ten minutes' drive sees him outside the city limits1 and another twenty or thirty may find him rolling into his own driveway4 ,smooth sailing between office and home depend only on a reliable car and good roads4 ,one should make sure the latter are passable in the winter at all times4 ,for instance1 are the ,town ,fathers liberal with the snow plow8 ,can its cheery hum be heard even at midnight if a heavy fall of snow makes it necessary8 ,does it come down the little dirt road where your modest acres are located8 ,these are questions all commuters should ask whether their journey cityward is made entirely by automobile or partly by train4 ,further1 whatever means of transportation are used1 the monthly cost should be reckoned carefully4 ,it is one of the largest single items involved in this scheme of living in the country and working in the city4 ,there is also the question of food and other household supplies4 ,granted one no longer expects to run around the corner for a loaf of bread or a dozen eggs that may have been left off the morning shopping lists1 just how far away is the nearest grocer8 ,is he at all receptive to the idea of making an occasional delivery in the outlying districts8 ,how about the rubbish collector1 if any2 the milkman2 the purveyors of ice1 coal and wood8 ,are there a lighting system in the vicinity1 telephone facilities1 and so forth8 ,these last need not be deciding factors1 all other things being equal4 ,they are simply matters to investigate4 ,it is then for the family to decide whether to do without any or all of them if necessary4 ,besides in a wisely chosen location1 these1 though lacking at first1 are soon added as the demand grows4 ,when we began our own experiment in country living1 it was with difficulty that we got even a telephone installed4 ,instead of electricity1 our evenings were lighted by candles or kerosene lamps and our meals were cooked on an oil stove4 ,grocers and other tradesmen didn't even know how to get to the little area4 ,yet within three years enough other people like us had moved into the vicinity to warrant extension of electric service through the neighborhood1 and a milk route1 rubbish service1 deliveries of laundry1 food1 ice1 and other household needs were soon added4 ,the ,fuller brush man has for years known the way to our door and now even our ,sunday newspapers are delivered1 although we are six miles from the nearest news stand4 ,this brings us to the question of neighborhood1 which is important4 ,beware of a place too near a small factory settlement4 ,the latter is apt to grow and destroy the peace you have come so far to get4 ,besides1 your property value will decline in direct ratio4 ,we once knew a charming place set high on a hill with neat hedges1 shrubs1 and arbors reminiscent of ,england1 birthplace of the man who built and developed it4 ,the family that bought the property forgot to look down at the foot of the hill4 ,if they had1 they would have seen a large and efficient looking factory and could have read the signs accordingly4 ,the disadvantages of a country home located close to a hamlet inhabited by old native stock families that have degenerated should be weighed carefully4 ,such people resent what they consider unwarranted intrusion by newcomers and have many underhanded ways of expressing their antagonism4 ,of course1 if these settlers are merely tenants and the region shows distinct signs that a number of city pioneers are about to buy property there1 it may be a gamble worth taking1 since one can always buy property cheaper before a boom than after it has set in4 ,also1 these settlements are frequently located in the most beautiful sections of the country4 ,some of the houses are quaint farm cottages that only need a thorough cleaning and a little intelligent restoration to make them attractive homes for any one4 ,again1 some of the most picturesque and desirable locations are off on by-roads4 ,they are much to be preferred to property directly on the main highway since they are well away from the roar of traffic2 and if there are children or pets1 one need not be constantly on the alert to keep them from straying off the premises4 ,however1 half a mile off the main highway answers the purpose as well as a longer distance and one must be sure that half mile is passable at all times of the year4 ,we have in mind one young couple who bought a place in ,vermont4 ,it stands well up on a hill and the view is worth going many miles to see4 ,a picturesque dirt road winds a crooked mile up to it4 ,very attractive for summer but these two live there the year around4 ,the snow drifts deep in winter1 and early spring and late fall find the mud so deep that the average car bogs down hopelessly4 ,thus1 they are virtual prisoners during these seasons4 ,of course that is an extreme case and even here the road can be made passable but only at heavy expense which must be borne principally by the householder4 ,lastly1 in selecting the locality for your experiment in country living1 if there are children consideration of schools is essential4 ,the ratings and relative standings of graded and high schools in various localities1 may be easily obtained through state educational authorities1 college entrance boards1 and similar organizations4 ,but even where the rating report is good1 personal investigation is advisable4 ,certain social elements enter in1 despite the sound and democratic principles underlying the ,american public school system4 ,for example1 a would-be country dweller leased a house1 with option to buy1 in a very good neighborhood4 ,house1 location1 and surroundings exactly pleased and it was a scant ten minutes from the station on a good road4 ,the school system was well rated but the graded school for this section drew a majority of its pupils from a textile mill settlement two or three miles away4 ,the children of the ,english spinners and weavers were decent1 well-behaved youngsters but their speech was distinctly along cockney lines4 ,within a few months the three small sons of the new country dweller had developed habits of speech native to the ,english textile towns4 ,stern correction at home availed little and their parents abandoned the idea of buying in that locality4 ,instead1 another was selected after personal inspection of the school to which the three boys would go4 ,the new home is not1 in some respects1 as attractive as the other nor is it as convenient for commuting1 but one cannot have everything4 ,they are content and the small boys are once more expressing themselves with a ,new ,england accent4 ,in inspecting both the graded and high schools of a neighborhood that pleases you1 the obvious things are the buildings1 school bus service1 play space1 provisions for school lunches and so forth4 ,these are tangible and can be readily observed4 ,much more important are the intangibles4 ,these include the scholastic standing of the particular school2 the pedagogical ability and personality of the individual teachers2 and1 finally1 whether those who manage village1 borough1 or town governments1 provide adequate school appropriations4 ,schools that really educate children can be operated on starvation budgets but1 more often than not1 the quality of teaching suffers4 ,likewise the schools of a town reflect the capacity and ability of those in charge4 ,to judge this1 make it a point to meet the local school superintendent4 ,if there is a parent-teachers association1 a frank discussion with its leader is an excellent idea4 ,from talks like these you can sometimes gather cogent information that neither superintendent nor member of the school association would or could put in writing4 ,if possible observe the school while it is in session4 ,the attitude of teachers and children should enable you to form an estimate of it as a whole4 ,in determining the scholastic standing of a high school1 its rating by college entrance boards1 the success in college of recent graduates1 and kindred data can be readily obtained and will tell a complete story4 ,however1 under present conditions1 there are some excellent high schools which pay little or no attention to college preparation because relatively few pupils intend to enter college4 ,if this condition prevails at the high school your children would normally attend and your plans for them include college or technical school1 recognition of it is important4 ,a year or two in a good private school that makes a specialty of college preparation is probably the answer4 ,but don't wait until a son or daughter is nearly through the local high school to discover this lack of specific preparation4 ,if1 on the other hand1 you do not intend to send your children to the schools where tuition is included in the tax bill1 be just as careful in judging the private school4 ,the term private means just what it says1 it is open to children whose parents make private or separate payment for their education4 ,this condition1 however1 is no guarantee that the quality of teaching will excel or even equal that of the free or public institution4 ,the private ventures are not under as rigid supervision as those supported by tax revenues and we have known of instances where the former were distinctly below standard4 ,with a private day school having relatively few pupils and a tuition revenue only slightly above the cost of operation1 it requires considerable strength of character for its owner not to gloss over a pupil's shortcomings4 ,if dealt with impartially1 these might mean that darling ,willie would be withdrawn and sent elsewhere4 ,loss of tuition is the nightmare of the head of such a school4 ,hence1 fear of financial loss1 dread of disagreeable interviews with parents1 or misguided leniency can have a very bad effect on the education and training of the pupils4 ,yet there are small day schools and larger institutions with both day and resident pupils that give superior training4 ,it is largely a matter of the attitude and capacity of the principal or head4 ,if he or she is a real teacher and has good assistants1 the children will be well taught1 regardless of the physical plant4 ,so1 in choosing a private school1 make sure the education it affords is worth the tuition father pays4 ,putting the children in a private school necessitates one thing more4 ,that is transportation4 ,sometimes a private bus takes care of this matter4 ,if not1 mother must be tied to a daily schedule of driving the youngsters to and from school4 ,this usually entails a second car4 ,here1 as with other matters1 the initial cost is by no means all2 there is the up-keep4 ,this should not be overlooked1 for in the twelve years between the first grade and the last high school year1 it becomes an increasing burden as school hours lengthen and athletic activities become1 to the children at least1 supremely important4 ,,shopping ,,for ,,property ,illustration ,,chapter ,,iii ,,shopping ,,for ,,property ,the early ,american pioneer pushed into the wilderness looking for a likely spot to settle4 ,when he had either found it or had traveled as far as he could1 he staked out land and built a rude shelter for his family until such time as he could afford better4 ,today's pioneer decides whether he will have a house and five or more acres in commuting distance of the city1 a farm several hours away from it1 or a sporting estate4 ,then1 still seated in an easy chair1 he reaches for real estate advertising as found in newspaper1 magazine or folder4 ,for the first1 nothing is better than newspaper classified advertising1 particularly that found in the ,sunday paper4 ,if he would have a farm far from the madding crowd1 there are the farm catalogues issued by a variety of real estate organizations4 ,these can be most helpful if intelligently read4 ,and the prospective buyer of a fancy farm or sporting estate will do best to turn to the advertising columns of those magazines where the editorial scope deals with that type of country life4 ,illustration3 ,,an ,,old ,,farmhouse ,,in ,,the ,,rough ,photo by ,john ,runyon ,consulting such advertising for whatever kind of country home is wanted will give the prospective buyer some definite impressions4 ,of course he won't know what any of the places actually look like1 though reading between the lines may give him some idea2 but he will at least have gleaned a little information as to prices in a given locality and have the names of brokers with offerings that might be of interest4 ,a decade ago1 if one really wanted a country place one began looking at actual pieces of property at this point1 either with or without a broker4 ,during the past two or three years1 however1 a novel source of information regarding such property has come into being4 ,it is somewhat of a cross between a news reel moving picture theatre and a real estate broker's office4 ,there is a projection room1 a small moving picture machine1 and an extensive file of films of various properties that are on the market4 ,here the prospective buyer is shown shorts of all those listed with that particular clearing house4 ,after the showing1 if one or more places appeal sufficiently so that the prospect wants to visit them1 he is given the broker's name and address4 ,this saves much time and hours of travel for all concerned4 ,in an hour or two spent so shopping1 you can get first impressions of more places than you could possibly visit in a month of week-ends4 ,thus you can limit your selection of places to be visited4 ,the cost of this novel method of showing property is met by an arrangement whereby seller and broker reward the picture house if the sale is consummated4 ,when you actually begin to look at property1 a few don'ts are in order if you would steer a fair course to the country home you have in mind4 ,don't expect any place to have all the requirements included in your mental picture4 ,don't buy a place that does not appeal to you4 ,each year you will like it less4 ,don't buy a bargain without finding out why it is below the prevailing price4 ,only too often it proves extremely expensive4 ,don't disparage a piece of property with the naive idea that by so doing the price will be lowered4 ,you only arouse resentment on the part of the owner4 ,don't make a pest of yourself by too frequent visits to a place that attracts you4 ,don't try to eliminate the real estate broker4 ,if he really knows his territory1 his services are worth far more than his fee which is paid by the seller anyway4 ,don't lose your temper during the negotiations that must precede the terms of sale4 ,you may lose the place that just suits you4 ,don't expect to buy property with wooden money4 ,that custom went out shortly after #aibi4 ,if you can subscribe to these points1 you are one of those who really want a country home and will eventually find one4 ,those who only think they do will stumble over some detail and then settle back with a plaintive1 ,we would love to move to the country if we could only find a place like yours4 ,castles in the air have everything1 for imagination builds them2 but those planted four square upon the earth always have certain outs1 even though you buy a perfect building site and put the house you have dreamed of thereon4 ,personally1 we have always wanted a little gray house mellowed by the summers and winters of at least a century4 ,what we bought was a small story-and-a-half farm cottage with outer walls of weathered shingles1 painted red4 ,it is old4 ,during the ,revolution1 a ,british soldier was slain in the very doorway as he came out with loot from the upper rooms4 ,it would undoubtedly be a haunted house in ,england but here our eyes are holden and we have never seen him1 nor have any of our guests4 ,we still admire gray stone houses of which there are plenty down in the ,pennsylvania ,dutch country but we are honestly suited with what we have4 ,its general outline is akin to the house we envisioned and the mellow tone of its red-shingled exterior has a charm of its own4 ,true1 the grounds are lacking in those little irregularities that enable one to develop secluded spots and charming rock gardens4 ,no brook runs through them and there is no high point of land where one looks off to a brilliant summer sunset or hills blue with haze4 ,it is just a pleasing peaceful spot and we like it4 ,in short1 have all the preconceived notions you want but keep an open mind as well as an open eye4 ,we know of two or three families that are absolutely satisfied with their country homes1 yet are perfectly frank in admitting that they are in no way the type of house or setting indicated by their preliminary specifications4 ,they saw them in the course of their search and1 despite the divergence1 recognized that they met their demands4 ,one of our friends had steadfastly insisted that his country house must sit on a hilltop where he could have a view1 see the sun rise and set1 and be cooled by a fine breeze on the most torrid day4 ,he bought an entire farm just to get an upland pasture with the required hilltop4 ,luckily he called in an architect and was mercifully prevented from getting what he wanted4 ,his house was finally built on a sightly but sheltered spot about halfway below the high point of his land4 ,he has since learned that during the winter months the prevailing westerly winds so sweep that hilltop that heating a house placed there would be expensive and difficult4 ,also1 these same winds would be apt to work havoc with his shrubbery and flower garden4 ,on the contrary1 don't let yourself be stampeded into buying something that definitely does not appeal1 just because you are a little tired of looking but are bound to live in the country anyway4 ,real estate dealers and would-be helpful friends may have rallied around and1 after showing you a score or more parcels of land1 begin hinting that you are hard to please4 ,possibly1 but just remember that your money purchases the place and that you1 not they1 will have to live there4 ,two people once spent years looking for a place within easy commuting distance of ,philadelphia4 ,friends and brokers became exhausted and fell by the way4 ,word was passed around among the latter that these people were just lookers and there was no use bothering with them4 ,one day a broker1 hoping to be rid of them1 showed a piece of property so unsightly and generally run down that he thought no one could possibly want it4 ,to his amazement1 they liked it1 saw its possibilities and1 after proper investigation1 bought for cash with never a quibble over the price4 ,they showed rare intelligence in restoring both house and grounds and are living contentedly there today4 ,most of us1 though1 who really want a country home are of no mind to spend years looking for one4 ,it may be that the lease on the city apartment is due to expire in a few months and one must decide whether it is to be renewed or not4 ,there may be children in the family who are in urgent need of the fresh air and outdoor life of the country4 ,under such circumstances1 it is often a real advantage to rent a place for a year with option to buy4 ,one learns both the good and bad qualities of a house in that time at probably no greater cost than continued rental for a city establishment4 ,further1 if you decide to buy it at the end of the year1 the rental paid may apply on the purchase price4 ,you can thus have plenty of time to look over other property in the vicinity4 ,perhaps it may be impossible to find a house that really pleases1 but you do discover an ideal site4 ,it may be a fine old orchard4 ,it may be a tree-shaded spot with an old cellar marking the place where a house once stood4 ,it may be an undeveloped hillside4 ,in such an event1 you have the advantage of either building a house to your liking1 or finding an old one and moving it there4 ,be very sceptical about bargains in your search4 ,relatively few people underestimate the value of their possessions4 ,perhaps they are really willing to sell at a sacrifice because father can't stand the cold winters any more or because we like to feel the place is in good hands4 ,but it would seem more reasonable that father's declining years in ,florida or ,california would be sweetened in direct ratio to the amount realized on his property4 ,so look well for the real reason4 ,the house may be unduly expensive to maintain4 ,it may be so badly built that bigger and better repairs become a constant drain on the family purse4 ,there may be something so wrong with the adjoining property that one must either buy that1 too1 or give up any idea of living on the spot with any comfort or pleasure4 ,back in #aibh1 a man bought a comparatively new house and eight acres of land for a sum far below the prevailing prices in the vicinity4 ,the grounds were attractive and the lawn well shaded with fine old maples4 ,he acquired this bargain in the late fall without benefit of real estate dealer4 ,in fact1 he boasted of his acumen to a broker who had originally shown him several other pieces of property in the section4 ,i told you there were cheaper places1 he chortled1 and the owner gave me the advantage of the broker's commission1 too4 ,come out next spring and see what a bargain ,i found4 ,in late ,may there came a wail for help from the cocksure buyer4 ,a few days of unseasonably warm weather and a strong east wind had revealed the reason for the bargain4 ,back of a wooded area to the rear of his holding1 was a combination hog farm and refuse dump4 ,the owner of it got little or no rental from the tenant farmer who carried on his noisome business but he was well aware of its nuisance value to his new neighbor4 ,here indeed was a situation requiring the services of that middle man1 the real estate broker4 ,the latter was a good business man and by using all his guile1 he eventually acquired the hog farm for his client at a fair price4 ,but even at that1 the man now had ten additional acres that he didn't want and couldn't use4 ,when the cost of the added land and clearing it of refuse had been met1 his place was not the bargain it had seemed originally4 ,this does not mean that there are never any country places to be had at real bargains4 ,it is a case of being keen enough or lucky enough to locate one4 ,there can be a number of legitimate reasons why a piece of property is on the market at a price below its general worth4 ,there may be urgent financial reasons why the owner must sell4 ,in this unhappy situation he cannot be too firm as to price and will usually accept a sum actually below the market value in order to salvage a fair proportion of what he may have invested4 ,another type of bargain is that of property that has only recently become available for country homes through the construction of a new motor highway or some other major development4 ,for example1 the electrification of the ,pennsylvania ,railroad and a concrete automobile road from ,trenton1 ,new ,jersey1 into ,bucks ,county1 ,pennsylvania1 have brought old farms in and around ,doylestown1 ,pennsylvania1 within an hour and a half of ,new ,york ,city4 ,this condition has not existed long and ,bucks ,county farms on an acreage basis may still be bought distinctly cheaper than in practically any other section equi-distant in travel time from ,new ,york4 ,again1 some particular place may be owned by an estate with a number of heirs who want their money4 ,none of them feels inclined to take over the property and pay off the others4 ,all are in a hurry to get their share of what ,uncle ,henry left4 ,eventually the property goes at a partition sale which is the bargain basement of real estate4 ,partition sales and heirs hungry for ready money are keenly watched by those who buy purely for investment and with the expectation of resale to some one wanting a country home4 ,hence the ultimate consumer rarely benefits4 ,but occasionally the regular investor finds the matter of resale neither as simple nor as rapid as he had expected4 ,for some years we watched a charming little place that a real estate investor had acquired at such a partition sale4 ,it was first offered in the rough4 ,then the abandoned household gear and accumulated trash were removed4 ,with growing nervousness the investor applied a coat of paint to the house and hung neat painted shutters at the windows4 ,he tore down dilapidated outbuildings and converted the barn into a garage4 ,the place still hung unplucked on his commercial tree4 ,after three dismal years he parted with it at a price but little above that paid at the partition sale4 ,it was a desirable property but the investor had been over greedy and had put his original asking price far too high4 ,by the time he was chastened enough to listen to reasonable offers1 most of the prospective buyers had crossed that place off their list4 ,the ultimate purchaser acquired a real bargain by happening along at the psychological moment when the investor was sick of his deal and ready to part with it at little or no profit4 ,this was1 of course1 very much a matter of luck4 ,it is also a matter of luck when buyer and seller deal directly with each other to mutual advantage4 ,for that reason it is poor economy to try dispensing with the services of a real estate broker4 ,a reliable one is an invaluable guide1 mentor1 and friend to the lamb fresh from the city4 ,let him know what you want and what you are willing to pay and he will do his best to find it4 ,if a place interests you1 look it over well but don't insist on so many showings that you wear out the patience of its occupants4 ,never1 never belittle any property in the hearing of its owner4 ,there are all too many people1 cocksure but ignorant of human nature1 who believe this helps to get a bargain4 ,it works just the opposite4 ,one would not expect to please a man by telling him that his son was wall-eyed and therefore no asset4 ,the same man is no better pleased at hearing that his house is ugly or that the interior is something to shudder at4 ,the prospective buyer who admits he covets the house but cannot quite meet the purchase price is much more apt to get the benefit of easier terms4 ,real estate buying is still a dicker business4 ,get your own idea of values and then make an offer--to the broker4 ,it is part of his job to negotiate this difference between asking and actual purchasing price4 ,theoretically buyer and seller should be able to meet and discuss the little matter of price in sensible and friendly fashion4 ,actually1 there is usually as much need of a diplomat here as between two nations4 ,one very successful broker recently admitted that he tries to keep buyer and seller apart as much as possible when negotiating the details of price1 terms1 concessions and the like4 ,he stated that it is amazing how ordinarily sensible people1 in the heat of a dicker over a piece of property1 can get at a practical deadlock over the disposal of a cord of wood or whether a cupboard1 worth possibly five dollars1 is to be left with the house or removed4 ,so keep your temper1 especially when it is a question of property you really want4 ,we have known people who were turned aside from an ideal place for which they had hunted months1 because the seller failed to fall in with some totally unimportant detail or because they didn't like something his lawyer said or the way he said it4 ,sellers may be cantankerous and their lawyers exasperating1 but remember1 you do not inherit them along with the property4 ,once the latter has been acquired1 which is your real objective1 they pass out of the picture along with your irritation at them4 ,in buying any property1 however1 make sure that the title is clear4 ,the author of the old hymn1 ,when ,i can read my title clear to mansions in the skies1 must have been familiar with the complications attendant on acquiring earthly domiciles4 ,in other words1 if the place on which you have set your heart is suffering from that obscure complaint known as a cloudy title1 it is something to be let alone unless the seller can clear it4 ,by this term is meant that somewhere in the chain of ownership from the original land grant1 some seller could not give a clear1 warranted title4 ,there are many contributing causes for such a condition1 particularly with country property in the older sections where wills and deeds were not always drawn with clarity and skill4 ,old second or third mortgages1 presumably paid1 for which satisfactions were never recorded2 tax liens that have not been cleared2 or possible interests of minority heirs under a will dating back a generation or more2 are some of the most common causes for imperfect titles4 ,but if one is patient and the seller is willing to cooperate1 such clouds can usually be removed4 ,sometimes one discovers a desirable piece of property with a cloudy title due to a family feud or the stubbornness of the present owner4 ,here it may be to the buyer's advantage to obtain an option on it and engage a local lawyer experienced in real estate matters to perfect the title4 ,for example1 two spinster sisters lived in their father's old farmhouse4 ,they were not at all averse to selling1 but under the terms of their father's will1 a niece in a state institution for the feeble minded held a life interest in the place4 ,her aunts grimly refused to sell and hand over the sum representing her interest to her guardian4 ,alice has cost us plenty and never been anything but a source of worry4 ,not a dollar more of our money goes to her as long as we live4 ,she is in an institution where she belongs4 ,besides1 her father was a rascal4 ,they were willing to sell at a price several thousand dollars less than like places in the neighborhood were bringing4 ,so a prospective buyer negotiated an arrangement whereby he acquired an option to buy the property at this low price1 provided he could make a settlement for the niece's contingent interest at his own expense4 ,it took about six months but at last a settlement was reached through the courts4 ,for about five hundred dollars paid to the guardian of the incompetent woman and an equal amount in court and lawyer's fees1 he obtained a quit claim deed of her interest that satisfied the requirements of the corporation that was to insure the validity of the title4 ,the day after the purchase was consummated1 the new owner was offered a price for the property that would have given him a substantial profit above his investment and expenses1 had he cared to sell4 ,under such circumstances1 however1 the buyer should be sure the property is a good enough investment to be worth so much time and trouble and he should never embark on such an undertaking without the best possible legal advice4 ,most important of all1 his contract to buy should be so drawn that ample time is allowed for the work of perfecting the title4 ,there should also be a provision allowing him to withdraw from the contract and to regain his option money1 if clearing the title proves impossible or there is too great expense4 ,another detail that should be taken into account1 especially with land once used for farming1 is the possibility of old1 half forgotten rights of way4 ,in the legal argot1 a right of way is a permission to cross property that has road frontage to reach fields1 pasturage1 wood lots1 or the like which are otherwise without means of access4 ,to be binding1 of course1 such agreements must have been recorded4 ,where they date back half a century and have been forgotten and unused for many years1 lawyers are sometimes careless in their title search and overlook them4 ,this is a serious omission since they can suddenly be revived to the discomfort of a totally innocent buyer4 ,some years ago a man bought a simple farmhouse as a summer home4 ,one spring he discovered that a neighbor had acquired a cow and1 night and morning1 was driving it across his lawn and flower garden4 ,at his indignant protests1 the neighbor sarcastically pointed out an old gateway in the stone wall dividing their property and cited an agreement almost a century old that provided for a right of way for cattle across what was now lawn and flower garden4 ,of course reviving this right was a case of pure spite and eventually there was a law suit4 ,the man with the cow came to terms1 his own of course1 and for a cash consideration relinquished his cow driving rights4 ,meanwhile the owner of the property had been put to some expense and plenty of annoyance4 ,with the final decision to buy a piece of property financial details come to the fore4 ,an all cash basis is not uncommon these days and often brings a sizable reduction in the asking price4 ,where a mortgage is desired1 fifty per cent of the purchase price must be cash for house and land1 or the entire amount on unimproved land4 ,with the latter1 the mortgage lender will expect you to provide at least half of the total cost of the land and the proposed house4 ,gone are the days when country homes could be bought with first and second mortgages and very little cash4 ,this type of financing was tried and found wanting during the late depression1 since it led many people to commit themselves to payments they could not continue if reverses were experienced4 ,there are various kinds of first mortgages now being used to assist in financing the purchase of a country home4 ,one of the oldest is the purchase money type4 ,this is given the seller as part of the total price paid by the buyer4 ,formerly such mortgages were for a short term1 three or five years1 and payable in full at the end of that period4 ,now some of them are for longer periods and provide for monthly amortization charges by which the mortgage is paid in full by the end of the time specified4 ,the ,federal ,housing ,administration mortgages1 which are a recent ,new ,deal endeavor to make funds for home buying or building safe and stable1 are issued by local banks with the payment of interest and principle guaranteed to the bank through the operation of this government controlled agency4 ,these mortgages are amortized over periods of ten1 fifteen1 and twenty years and the borrower must make specified monthly payments that include taxes1 interest charges1 and amortization4 ,they are not available in all sections because some local banks hold that they conflict in details with other banking regulations4 ,so far as the borrower is concerned1 these mortgages are no different from any other similar method of financing4 ,if payments are not made regularly and promptly1 foreclosure proceedings will be started4 ,large insurance companies or savings and loan associations also issue fifteen to twenty year first mortgages1 amortized over the period by monthly1 quarterly1 or semi-annual payments4 ,the interest rate varies from five to five and a half per cent4 ,if such a mortgage is arranged for a new house1 architect's plans and specifications must be submitted with the application for loan4 ,the site must be free and clear of all mortgages or other obligations4 ,your own financial rating is looked up by the lender and1 if satisfactory1 the company issues a commitment that you can take to your local bank where definite amounts are paid as the work progresses2 so much when exterior walls are complete2 such a proportion when rough piping for plumbing has been installed2 another amount when all lath and plaster has been finished2 and so on until the final payment when the house is finished4 ,then the formal mortgage is executed and recorded4 ,there are brokers who specialize in negotiating such mortgages4 ,their fee is about two per cent4 ,so much for the usual channels of financing4 ,in addition1 the buyer can still make his own mortgage arrangements with some investor who has money to loan if he knows such a person4 ,further1 although second mortgages should be avoided if possible1 they are sometimes issued where a buyer is considered a good risk but lacks sufficient capital to meet the fifty per cent cash requirement that prevails today4 ,such loans are not usually made for over twenty per cent of the appraised value and generally call for a higher rate of interest1 six per cent4 ,they are also apt to be for a short term1 two or three years1 when they must be paid in full4 ,with both first and second mortgages1 the lenders will inquire carefully into the financial responsibility of the would-be borrower4 ,they will want to know exactly how much of his own ready money he plans to use in the transaction4 ,this is to be sure that he has a substantial equity in the property and will not be struggling under too great a financial burden4 ,having perfected the method for financing your purchase1 now comes the formal contract to buy4 ,this is an agreement whereby you undertake to consummate the purchase at a future date1 generally thirty to sixty days1 at the agreed price4 ,on executing such a contract1 which should be reviewed by your lawyer before you1 as buyer1 sign it1 expect to pay the seller through the broker ten per cent of the total purchase price4 ,this is done on signing the contract4 ,the time between signing this contract and the date set for the title closing is employed for title search and insurance1 land survey and similar details4 ,if the title proves imperfect so that you cannot complete the purchase1 your check is returned to you4 ,as for the cost of title insurance1 the corporations issuing such policies have an established scale of prices4 ,these vary slightly in different parts of the country4 ,title policies have generally replaced the old independent title search by lawyers that had no elements of insurance4 ,where a company has already searched and insured the title1 reissue of the policy is made to you at about half the original fee4 ,the cost of surveying property is based on the amount of work involved4 ,for surveying five acres of what was formerly farm land and that has never had its borders so measured and defined1 the average charge today is from one hundred to one hundred and twenty-five dollars4 ,special conditions may raise or lower this4 ,an established surveyor who knows the locality is1 of course1 the best person to undertake such work4 ,his previous surveys of other adjacent properties can often enable him to locate and identify old boundary marks that some one not conversant with the locality might find baffling4 ,much country property is very vaguely described by old deeds4 ,fifty acres more or less bounded on the east by the highway1 northerly by land owned by ,jones1 westerly to that of or recently owned by ,smith1 and southerly by that of ,brown1 illustrates roughly an old title description4 ,you may get forty-five or fifty-five acres1 and it is up to you to establish just what fences and so forth are your actual boundaries4 ,a surveyor reduces all this to exact measurements and puts definite markers at the corners and wherever else the party lines change direction4 ,when finished1 he provides you with a certified copy of his survey in map form1 giving distances and indicating location of his monuments4 ,these are usually either iron stakes driven two or three feet into the ground or concrete posts about two inches square set in the ground and plainly visible4 ,it is illegal to move such marks4 ,with title clear and the survey completed1 everything is ready for the title closing1 as lawyers call the time when title to the property passes from seller to buyer4 ,the latter's lawyer should have investigated and passed on all steps prior to this and adjusted any minor details with the seller's lawyer4 ,the buyer and his lawyer and the seller and his lawyer should all be present at a title closing4 ,the paid tax bills for the current year are first presented and any minor adjustments made4 ,then the buyer presents a certified check or actual cash for the amount he has agreed to pay4 ,he also has a small amount of money on hand to meet any adjustments such as taxes1 insurance1 and the like4 ,lastly1 the deed1 which has been carefully reviewed by the buyer's lawyer1 is signed by the seller and1 for better or worse1 you have become a country property owner4 ,,call ,,in ,,an ,,architect ,illustration ,,chapter ,,iv ,,call ,,in ,,an ,,architect ,the prospective country dweller is now owner of a piece of property and his ideas are probably fairly definite as to how his home is going to look when his family is actually living there4 ,but seldom is it a simple matter of gathering the household goods into a moving van1 having them set down in the new place1 and then going out on the terrace to watch the sunset while deft workers within set things to rights4 ,there may be no house at all on his new holding1 much less a terrace4 ,at the time of purchase1 an old mill1 barn or other combination of walls and roof may stand in place of his imaginary home4 ,even a house in good condition usually needs a little renovation4 ,during the negotiations for purchase1 his lawyer kept him from legal pitfalls4 ,just as important now in bridging the gap between what he has and what he wants is an architect4 ,if he has been consulted before purchase1 so much the better4 ,if not1 it is high time to seek him out unless one happens to be a genius like ,thomas ,jefferson who could draft a ,declaration of ,independence with one hand and design a serpentine wall with the other4 ,such a person has no need of this book anyway and will long since have cast it aside4 ,most of us are just average citizens with some ideas which we want to put into concrete form but find difficult because we are either inarticulate or untrained4 ,that is what various specialists are for1 and it is a wise man who realizes his own limitations4 ,a sugar broker may have ideas about a portrait but he won't try to paint it himself4 ,he will commission a portrait painter1 in whom he has confidence1 to make a likeness of his wife or child as the case may be4 ,even more necessary are the services of an architect when building or remodeling a house4 ,trying to be your own architect is as foolish as drawing a sketch of little ,jerry on canvas and then calling in a house painter to smear on a daub of blue for his coat1 a bit of yellow for his hair1 white for his collar1 and just anything for the background4 ,at worst1 though1 this futuristic result can be taken to the attic1 turned face to the wall and forgotten2 but a botched house won't let you forget4 ,you have to live in it along with your mistakes1 day after day and1 possibly1 year after year4 ,when and if you finally call in an architect and have them remedied or obviated1 the cost will be considerably in excess of what his total fee would have been in the beginning4 ,so1 find the best man practicing in the vicinity where your future home is to be located and cast your burdens on his drafting board4 ,give him ample information as to what suits your fancy and conforms to your family needs4 ,then he can proceed with the preliminary sketches4 ,from these eventually will come the plan of action to be followed by the various artisans who will do the work4 ,but house plans1 whether for new construction1 remodeling or renovating1 do not spring from the drafting board complete and final overnight4 ,they are based on more preliminary effort than most people without building experience realize4 ,this is particularly true of the country home4 ,in cities and suburbs1 building plots are more or less standardized units in a checker-board with two controlling factors1 so many feet of street frontage and such and such depth4 ,local building ordinances sharply limit the type and size of structure4 ,the country offers much greater latitude4 ,such matters as topography1 location of existing trees1 and points of the compass with relation to the main rooms of the house play important roles4 ,we well remember a dismal example of what can happen when these controlling factors are ignored4 ,the owner was an opinionated man with a passion for economy4 ,house building was to him no mystery4 ,it was just foundations1 side walls1 roof1 stairways1 interior partitions and1 of course1 plumbing1 heating and so forth4 ,his house was going to cost just so much and people who paid architects' fees for plans had more money than brains4 ,besides1 he had seen a sketch and floor plans of a house in a magazine that were good enough for him4 ,he knew a builder who could follow them and what more did one need8 ,illustration3 ,a ,,really ,,early ,,american ,,interior4 ,,the ,,great ,,fireplace ,,of ,,the ,,wayside ,,inn1 ,,sudbury1 ,,mass4 ,henry ,ford ,the little matter of relating the structure to the site concerned him not at all1 nor did it enter his head that a house could face anywhere except towards the road4 ,as for the contractor1 it was not for him to reason why1 but to build4 ,so they went to work and a house entirely made up of good things done in the wrong way was the result4 ,an outcropping of rock meant expensive blasting1 so the magazine-pictured house was set firmly down almost on the roots of a fine row of old pine trees by the roadside4 ,through these the wind howled mournfully at night and by day their shade made the main rooms of the ground floor distinctly gloomy4 ,it was an ambitious house and the leaded glass windows of the living room faced north4 ,so keeping its temperature at a comfortable point in winter was an added difficulty4 ,the sunny southwestern exposure1 being at the back1 was given over to kitchen and servants' quarters4 ,lastly1 the one pleasing prospect1 a friendly little valley with a meandering brook1 could only be seen to advantage from the garage4 ,the architect's fee had been saved but when1 a little later1 the owner wanted to sell1 it took several years to find a buyer and then only at a price of half the money invested4 ,the new owner consulted an architect with a gift for rearranging and so succeeded in mitigating the worst features and in taking advantage of the cheerful aspects inherent with the site4 ,like a good doctor or lawyer1 an able architect can usually get you out of trouble2 but the ancient slogan1 ,an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure1 fits admirably here4 ,do not1 however1 engage an architect as lightly as you would select a cravat4 ,to him you are intrusting the task of putting your chaotic and half-expressed thoughts and desires into a set of plans that will guide and control masons1 carpenters1 plumbers1 electricians1 and painters in their work4 ,as your professional adviser1 it will be his job to bridge the gap between the date of purchase and the happy occasion when your household goods are deposited in a home embodying your ideas and wishes4 ,obviously he must be in sympathy with those ideas4 ,if you are building a new house on old lines or remodeling an existing structure with a century or more to its credit1 don't select a man to advise you who can see nothing but the newest and most modernistic types of architecture4 ,don't be afraid to ask for evidences of past performances4 ,since no architect discards his plans and renderings1 he will be glad to show you a few of them4 ,also in this initial conference1 names of clients for whom he has executed commissions within the fairly recent past may be mentioned4 ,it is sensible to consult two or three of these4 ,if he has pleased them1 he is probably fitted to undertake your problems4 ,for solving them and knowing how to get desired results1 you will pay him a fee that ranges from six to ten per cent of the total cost of the work undertaken4 ,for special cases that involve unusual work1 it may be slightly higher4 ,the amount of the fee1 as well as the dates at which portions of it become payable1 will be settled in your initial interview4 ,there are occasional men1 however1 calling themselves architects who are not qualified4 ,they have no degree from a recognized school2 cannot qualify for registration in states where architects1 like doctors1 lawyers1 teachers and other professional people1 must have a state license to practice4 ,like other charlatans1 such men are glib talkers but it takes real ability and thorough training to prepare practical plans and specifications4 ,here is where the dabster betrays himself4 ,a little independent investigation may prevent you from putting your building problems into the hands of such an incompetent man4 ,the need of an architect where a new house is to be built or an old one completely remodeled is obvious4 ,we are convinced that the same holds true where only minor changes1 replacements and the introduction of modern conveniences are the program4 ,our own little country home is an example4 ,the necessary alterations were so simple that it seemed ridiculous to ask architectural advice4 ,there was nothing to the job but to install plumbing1 move one partition1 patch the plastering1 and close chimney and other pipe openings cut in the days when stoves1 rather than fireplaces1 furnished heat4 ,we engaged a good local man who1 with his crew of four or five helpers1 was accustomed to doing everything from carpentry to plumbing4 ,his labor charges were on a per diem basis and considerably under the union scale that then prevailed4 ,nothing was left indefinite4 ,we understood exactly how the work was to be done and what materials we were to supply4 ,in due time it was finished and we moved in4 ,two or three years later1 we discovered some serious shortcomings4 ,for instance1 the kitchen sink was hung in the wrong place and1 because it was easier1 all of the water pipes were placed on outside walls4 ,this made no difference when the house was occupied only during the summer months but during the first winter we became experts in thawing pipes that caught whenever the temperature dropped to zero4 ,there was another economy that proved quite the opposite even before the work was finished4 ,we had agreed that wherever the old lath and plaster were in bad condition1 they were to be removed and replaced with a paper wall board then being widely advertised as an inexpensive substitute4 ,but we had reckoned without the idiosyncrasies of an #ahth century house4 ,when the old lath and plaster had been cleared away1 our handyman contractor discovered that the old beams and uprights were spaced at eighteen-inch intervals1 while our new wall board came in widths conforming to the sixteen-inch spacing that has been standard with ,american house construction for a century4 ,it was too late to return the wall board so new nailing strips1 sixteen inches apart1 had to be installed4 ,this took time and when the so-called inexpensive substitute was finally in place1 the total cost actually exceeded that of the more satisfactory lath and plaster4 ,further1 because nobody was at hand to prevent it1 we lost a good partition of feather-edge boarding4 ,it was between two of the bedrooms1 concealed beneath several layers of wallpaper4 ,when stripped1 two or three cracks were found through which one could look from one room to the other4 ,these could have been filled with wooden shims but the workmen did not stop to think of that4 ,they ripped it out and put in a tight and modest partition of that ultra-modern wall board4 ,it was well done mechanically and is still in place1 but we mourn that original paneling of native white wood and continually keep an eye out for some like it4 ,eventually1 when all the mistakes of ignorance and lack of supervision have been corrected1 we will have spent several times the total of the architect's fee4 ,so we are out of pocket and1 except for relocating the water piping1 we are still looking at and repenting most of the results of our false economy4 ,thus1 an architect is all-important with a house problem whether it involves a minor or major undertaking and it is logical to ask exactly what he does for his fee4 ,consider1 for instance1 his functions and services when a new house is to be built4 ,as a beginning1 owner and architect meet1 inspect the site1 while the architect1 like any good diagnostician1 asks questions4 ,these deal with the type of house the owner thinks he wants1 the number of rooms1 baths1 and so forth and1 finally1 the amount of money he is prepared to spend4 ,he offers few opinions of his own at this interview but rather tries to read his client's mind so that preliminary sketches and plans will approximate that mental picture4 ,a few days later1 tentative sketches of a house designed to suit the location are submitted4 ,out of them grow the revised ones4 ,it is highly improbable that his initial suggestions will suit you in every detail4 ,it takes time and interchange of ideas before this can be accomplished4 ,when they reach the stage where they represent the house you want1 the architect prepares a complete set of working drawings1 including floor plans and side wall elevations4 ,these are drawn on a scale of one quarter of an inch to the foot4 ,as soon as the drawings are finished1 he drafts the specifications or bill of particulars as to materials to be used in the construction of the house4 ,these with the plans form the basis on which contractors may submit bids for the work4 ,first1 however1 owner and architect should go over this material together4 ,making changes after the contracts are let and the work begun is both expensive and foolish4 ,if you find it difficult to visualize an actual house from the drawings1 a model made from wall board or similar material is a wise precaution4 ,fashioned on the same scale of one quarter of an inch to the foot1 it is your proposed house in the little1 and on seeing it no doubts are left4 ,windows and doors are all in their proper places4 ,the exterior is painted to match the color and simulate the material that is to be used4 ,finally1 the model can be taken apart so that you can study the interior of bedroom and living room floors4 ,such models1 of course1 are not included in the architect's fee but the cost of one for an average house is under #ajj4 ,if you can visualize your proposed home thoroughly by it1 the expense is well warranted4 ,the architect can be of great service in the matter of contractor's bids4 ,he knows the past performances of those operating in the vicinity where you propose building and can suggest the men or firms whose work is most satisfactory4 ,from four to eight general contractors1 that is1 individuals or firms competent to undertake the complete building operation1 ought to be invited to submit sealed bids4 ,each is supplied with a complete set of plans and specifications by the architect and given from ten days to two weeks in which to submit their bids4 ,in addition to the total price for the work1 these bids1 by common custom1 give the names of the chief sub-contractors such as plumber1 electrician and the like1 with the amount of money allocated for the work of each4 ,on a set day1 usually a ,saturday afternoon1 owner and architect meet1 open the bids1 and compare the offers made by the various contractors4 ,most of them include alternate provisions on condition that they be allowed to substitute materials or methods of construction not according to the specifications4 ,the contractor who submits the lowest bid would logically be the one selected but here again the architect's judgment is valuable4 ,first1 he can rapidly determine whether the provisional saving suggested by substitution of unspecified materials is a wise change4 ,second1 he knows whether the bidder under consideration is dependable or inclined to skimp in hidden but essential points4 ,there is1 also1 the possible chance that none of the bids submitted come within the sum the owner is prepared to spend4 ,then comes the task of revising plans and specifications and eliminating non-essentials to bring costs within the set figure4 ,from practical experience1 however1 architects have found that1 if the proposed house is just what the owner wants1 he will somehow find the additional money rather than have plans or details changed4 ,after a contractor whose bid and quality of work are satisfactory has been selected1 the architect1 acting for the owner1 lets the contract to him4 ,this includes provisions for partial payments at stated periods as the work progresses2 so much when the masonry is completed2 another amount when the exterior walls are finished2 and so on1 including plumbing1 heating1 plastering and electrical wiring4 ,with each payment1 fifteen per cent of the total is held back and does not become due until the entire work has been finished4 ,this is a standard practice and is intended to insure completion of the contract to the satisfaction of both owner and architect4 ,under this provision1 the architect certifies to the owner each month that certain work has been done and that the contractor is entitled to so much money for it4 ,from the day that construction starts1 the architect begins his work of supervision4 ,at least twice a week he goes to the site and observes the progress of the work and how it is being done4 ,special conditions may arise where the contractor or his foreman call hurriedly for the architect1 such as uncovering a large boulder at one corner of the excavation for the cellar4 ,there may be a fine point to be decided regarding the location of piping or some detailed instruction concerning the installation of the interior woodwork4 ,on these occasions it saves time for everybody if the architect or one of his associates is readily available4 ,watching the cellar excavation for unexpected subsurface water is also an item that no experienced architect neglects4 ,he sees to it that concrete for foundations is mixed properly and has the specified percentage of cement4 ,the installation of piping for plumbing and heating is supervised carefully1 as is the work of plastering4 ,as the house nears completion1 his supervision increases in direct ratio4 ,in fact1 during the last two or three weeks1 the architect is not infrequently there most of the time4 ,the last details of the interior trim are being completed1 decorating is under way1 and lighting fixtures are being installed4 ,all of these require direct supervision and the architect expects to be on hand4 ,these final details can make or mar the general effect more than is realized4 ,when your house is finished to the architect's satisfaction1 he gives his final approval and thirty days thereafter the final bill of the contractor is payable4 ,this period is to allow for minor adjustments1 such as windows that stick1 doors that will not latch and the like1 the small things that always need to be done with any new house and are generally attended to after the owner and his family have taken possession4 ,just as the general contractor is paid in installments1 the architect's fee is likewise liquidated4 ,there is a standard schedule which provides that one-fifth of the estimated fee shall be paid on completion of satisfactory preliminary sketches2 two-fifths when the plans and specifications are finished or on letting the contract for actual building4 ,the balance is paid monthly in proportion to the amounts paid the contractor4 ,when a house is to be remodeled1 the architect proceeds in much the same way4 ,he presents suggested sketches of the ways in which the desired changes can be accomplished4 ,when these are satisfactory1 working drawings are prepared that show what is to be removed and what new construction undertaken4 ,the working drawings are1 of course1 accompanied by a set of specifications1 and contractors are invited to submit bids for doing the work4 ,on letting the contract1 work proceeds about as with that of building a new house4 ,there are1 however1 more opportunities for unforeseen contingencies and so the architect often has to devote more of his time to supervision4 ,sometimes1 if the particular remodeling project is one requiring unusual care1 the percentage of his fee is a little higher by special arrangement4 ,where a house requires minor changes that qualify merely as renovation1 the architect's work is1 of course1 much simpler4 ,extensive preliminary sketches are unnecessary1 and complete floor and elevation plans not required4 ,but architectural investigation1 planning and supervision1 as stated before1 are highly desirable if not essential4 ,his fee is usually the same ten per cent as applies for new construction4 ,there is less actual plan drafting but the amount of supervision is so much in excess of that required for new construction that such a charge is by no means unreasonable4 ,besides1 the owner has the assurance that all changes and new installations will be done properly with no glaring errors of judgment to mock him as he settles down to life in his country home4 ,,building ,,versus ,,remodeling ,illustration ,,chapter ,v ,,building ,,versus ,,remodeling ,shall ,i build or remodel8 is a question with so many facets that it would be foolhardy to try to answer it categorically4 ,circumstances alter cases in all phases of life and particularly so when one is endeavoring to decide whether the country home is to be a new structure1 or an old one remodeled to make the best use of its desirable features and suit the requirements of its new owner4 ,one of our acquaintances was hung on the horns of this dilemma for several months while he and his wife spent most of their waking hours arguing it pro and con4 ,they had selected the vicinity in which they wanted to live1 had the requisite cash in the bank to finance either undertaking1 and there were two properties that pleased them4 ,the latter constituted the snag4 ,on the one hand1 there was a sightly piece of land with some nice old shade trees but no existing structure2 about a mile farther along the same road1 lay another holding of about the same size with a house in fair condition4 ,the price for this was naturally higher than for the undeveloped land1 on the theory that it would not cost half as much to remodel the house as to build4 ,i don't know what to do1 this perplexed man remarked4 ,on one side ,i hear and read that new building is much the best investment4 ,that it costs so much less to maintain a new house and if you want to sell1 you can find a purchaser quicker and at a better price4 ,but no sooner do ,i begin to believe that building is the only wise course1 than ,i run smack into an article on remodeling or meet some one ,i know whose experience in remodeling shows by actual figures a big saving compared with a new house of the same kind and size4 ,in my own case1 though1 the more ,i study what estimates ,i can get1 the more ,i am convinced that in the end ,i'll spend just about as much whether ,i build or remodel4 ,these two people finally built a new house4 ,there were good reasons for their decision4 ,first1 they could buy the land for so much money1 and a general contractor of excellent reputation was ready to build just the house they wanted for so much more4 ,the two figures1 plus the architect's fee1 added up to a definite amount4 ,having an accounting mind1 the knowledge that there would be no unforeseen contingencies and that1 ready for occupancy1 the cost of the house would be so much1 was the deciding factor4 ,in addition1 he and his wife both inclined towards something new4 ,a house that had not been lived in by other people1 had no scars and marks of age and use1 that embodied all the newest materials and construction methods1 was really what they wanted4 ,had remodeling offered them an assured saving of several thousand dollars1 this couple would probably have suppressed their subconscious leanings to be builders1 proceeded to remodel1 and been only moderately pleased with the result4 ,the answer to the age-old question of whether to build or to remodel is found in the preference of the individual4 ,some people are temperamentally builders4 ,they are happiest living in a home that was constructed for them4 ,in their eyes it possesses far greater charm than anything that has been mellowed by years of use4 ,there are others to whom nothing is more satisfying than to take an existing structure and alter it to their liking and needs4 ,an elderly acquaintance1 now a widow and living in a sleepy ,new ,england village1 is taking keen pleasure in an old house of almost doll-like proportions4 ,all my life1 she said1 ,i've wanted to live in a really old house but until now it has always been one new house or city apartment after another and ,i never got my roots down4 ,granted that building or remodeling1 like cheese1 is a matter of personal preference1 it is not improper at this point to set forth some of the merits of both4 ,with a fine old building1 there is that elusive something called charm4 ,time has mellowed it and the countless feet that have crossed its threshold have worn its floors4 ,the blackened bricks or stones of its fireplaces bespeak the generations that basked in the heat of the huge logs that once glowed there4 ,all these things have given it character4 ,illustration3 ,,once ,,half ,a ,,house ,,and ,a ,,hen ,,roost ,photo by ,whitney ,illustration3 ,,what ,,can ,,be ,,done ,,with ,a ,,barn ,photo by ,samuel ,h4 ,gottscho4 ,robertson ,ward1 architect ,don't expect a new house1 the day it is turned over to you by the contractor1 to look as if it had been a family home for several generations4 ,it can't4 ,it has just been built4 ,everything is fresh and shiny2 edges are sharp and even the bricks of the fireplace are untainted by flame and smoke4 ,but if you have been even moderately articulate1 the architect has been able to interpret your wishes and you have a house built as near as possible to your plans4 ,you also have the satisfaction of knowing that1 in the building1 the workmanship has been honest and thorough1 and that in materials used every advantage has been taken of the newest developments4 ,for instance1 behind the plaster is the modern metal lath so superior to the old wooden variety4 ,the exterior walls are as thoroughly insulated against heat and cold as any one of several highly efficient materials can make them2 windows and doors are products of large wood-fabricating factories noted for superior work4 ,all these are points of advantage with tangible merit1 but time and your own efforts are the only means by which your new home can acquire personality and charm4 ,this new structure is yours1 made to your desires2 and what you make of it is your own problem4 ,the house that you buy and remodel starts with certain attributes given by age1 as already stated4 ,here we must offer one caution4 ,it concerns houses built during the last quarter of the #aith century4 ,the majority were badly designed and the quality of workmanship was none too good4 ,such houses are apt to be perched on high foundations1 have exterior walls that offer the minimum resistance to winter winds1 while architecturally1 lines and proportions reflect an age when taste was either bad or lacking4 ,we know of several attempts to remodel country homes of such vintage and are convinced that better results could have been achieved for less money if the operation had started with wrecking the structure and building anew4 ,on the contrary1 except where decayed beyond salvage1 we have yet to see a country home of the #ahth or first half of the #aith century that did not respond admirably to remodeling4 ,but it is well to be practical and compare its cost with that of a new building4 ,among architects1 it is generally recognized that1 save for a house with unusually expensive details or added equipment1 definite figures per cubic foot of size may be computed that will cover the entire cost of construction4 ,to get the cubical contents of a house1 the architect takes the area in square feet of the ground floor and multiplies it by the height from the cellar floor to the eaves1 plus half the distance from that point to the ridge of the roof4 ,for example1 if the proposed house is thirty feet wide by twenty feet deep1 its floor plan area is #fjj square feet4 ,then1 if the elevation dimensions are seven feet from cellar floor to living room floor2 eight feet from living room floor to that of the bedroom floor2 and seven feet from bedroom floor to the level of the eaves1 which in turn measure eight feet below the ridge of the roof2 the cubical contents would result from multiplying #fjj square feet by the sum of seven1 eight1 seven1 and four1 or #ae1fjj cubic feet4 ,with this figure established1 it is simple to approximate costs as follows3 ,wooden construction #j4de per cubic foot ,brick veneer construction #j4ee ,solid brick construction #j4fe ,field stone construction #j4fj ,cut stone construction #j4ge to #a4ej ,this tabulation1 an average for the ,united ,states as a whole1 is as accurate as any generalization can be and a safe one for forming a preliminary estimate1 but local conditions may increase or decrease costs4 ,the architect can readily determine which4 ,this table1 of course1 does not include cost of land1 construction of driveway1 landscaping1 or expenses incident to bringing electric service or telephone wires to the house4 ,from these calculations1 it is an easy matter to take the outside dimensions of a house you are considering remodeling and compute its cubical content4 ,then you can ask your architect whether it can be remodeled as you wish for a price competitive with building a new house of like design and equal size4 ,in order for this to mean anything1 you should determine what proportion of the price paid for the property represents land value and what reflects the existence of the structure itself4 ,as a simple example1 we will concede that land in the neighborhood is held at #ejj an acre and you can buy a five-acre tract with a house on it for #c1gej4 ,here #b1ejj represents land value1 and #a1bej house value4 ,the question resolves itself into comparing remodeling costs plus house value with those for a new house of like size and kind4 ,if so much must be replaced or rearranged that the figures for house and remodeling are in excess of those for a new structure1 the wise course would be to abandon the idea and build instead4 ,but the old house may have certain details that make you willing to bear the added expense4 ,if so1 you at least know the comparative costs and have definite standards by which to shape your course4 ,from personal observation1 we believe that there are many instances where the total cost of house and rejuvenation is considerably below that of a new structure4 ,since confession stories are just as fascinating in home building as in the lurid fiction of the woodpulp magazines1 we cite the experience of a family that bought a home nearly two years ago within the ,new ,york commuting zone4 ,they were a larger family than the average and the house1 of desired size1 had once been a stagecoach halfway tavern4 ,it contained twenty-two rooms and was in better than average condition4 ,the exterior had been given two coats of white paint less than six months before4 ,the price for this old place1 including twenty-two acres of land and a barn usable for garage and chicken house1 was #h1bjj4 ,according to actual record1 only #b1gih was spent on remodeling4 ,there were almost no structural changes required4 ,two minor partitions were removed and five new windows cut4 ,otherwise1 this expenditure was largely devoted to the introduction of plumbing1 heating1 and lighting4 ,by type of work1 the costs for this remodeling were as follows3 ,two bathrooms1 each complete with shower2 a kitchen sink and laundry tub #eij4jj ,heating system1 including steam boiler1 piping and #be radiators1 totaling #fcj feet of radiation #hhi4jj ,water system1 cleaning well1 installing pump and #ejj gallon storage tank #bah4jj ,electric wiring entirely of armored cable and lighting fixtures #cjf4jj ,sewage system complete with septic tank and disposal fields #bcj4jj ,all carpentry1 including necessary work for plumber1 electrician1 etc4 #afj4jj ,masonry1 including repairs to fireplaces and chimneys #aje4jj ,decorations1 paint1 and paper for twelve rooms #aej4jj ,architectural supervision1 plans where needed and preliminary inspection of several houses #aej4jj ,total #b1gih4jj ,these are the actual figures for a livable and attractive country home4 ,there are1 of course1 some things that await a future time for their accomplishment1 but what place would be really enjoyable if there were not certain corrections and additions over which the owners could daydream and plan4 ,we admit the figures just quoted are so low as to seem hardly credible1 but they demonstrate what could be accomplished within fifty miles of ,new ,york during the summer of #aice4 ,the contributing causes for this happy result were that these people knew what they wanted1 hunted in a section that had not been too thoroughly combed by others like themselves and1 lastly1 happened to be ready to buy at just the right moment when the man who owned the property was anxious to sell4 ,but old country residences1 including structures built as taverns1 private schools and the like1 are not the only type of buildings that may be remodeled into acceptable homes4 ,we have seen old barns or stables1 disused sawmills1 general stores1 old stone buildings that once housed small industrial enterprises1 and even a church of the ,neo-,classic period remodeled with distinct success4 ,again1 in ,massachusetts there is a former textile hamlet4 ,the mill itself is now a community club and the workmen's cottages1 built about #ahae-bj1 are homes for a dozen or more families where1 daily1 the head of the house motors to his office in an industrial city about a half-hour away4 ,these story-and-a-half cottages1 executed along simple ,federal lines1 are owned by the families who occupy them4 ,they look out on a street lined with fine old elms and at the end is the stone mill with its belfry where still hangs the bell that once ruled the lives of spinners and weavers with its clanking iron tongue1 morning1 noon and night4 ,for picturesqueness1 if the unconventional has a greater appeal than the more standardized type of home1 remodeling an old barn into a country home has its advantages4 ,this is particularly so if one can find either a capacious one of roughly laid ledge stone1 once popular in parts of ,new ,jersey and ,pennsylvania and more rarely built in other sections1 or a large hay barn with hand-hewn framework and side walls of weathered boarding4 ,it takes only a little imagination to visualize such a building remodeled into a country home with a generous stone chimney and fireplace occupying one of the end walls of a former haymow4 ,invariably such remodeling includes construction of one or more wings to house dining room1 kitchen1 and servants' quarters as well as additional bedrooms and baths4 ,the actual barn structure seldom lends itself to more than a living room and possibly two bedrooms4 ,in summer this type of country home has much to offer4 ,it is light1 airy1 and spacious2 but when fall begins to indicate its arrival1 unless the structure has been made nearer weather tight than is the nature of barns1 life in the haymow is chill and sour4 ,for use the year around1 the old barn must be completely rebuilt with a cellar beneath for a heating plant and side walls and undersides of roof well covered with insulating material to prevent cold from entering or heat escaping4 ,one of the most successful methods of treating the front1 where once the old barn doors swung wide to admit a fully loaded haywagon1 is to substitute a many-paned window of almost cathedral proportions4 ,this lets in adequate light for what might otherwise be a dark interior4 ,in summer it can be screened to keep out flies and mosquitoes4 ,through it on fair winter days1 especially if it faces south or west1 pours that most valuable attribute of country living1 bright sunlight4 ,an old water-power sawmill makes an unusually attractive country home4 ,we know of at least one so adapted4 ,here the space once given over to sawing logs into boards has been completely enclosed and is now the living room4 ,on one side is a noble fireplace flanked by large casement windows that look out on the old mill pond4 ,bedrooms and service quarters are located in the end sections where lumber used to be seasoned and other special work done4 ,this unique bit of remodeling1 combined with the pond as a main feature of landscape development1 is both rare and enviable4 ,yet there are a surprising number of old commercial structures that lend themselves to remodeling into present day homes and by their very unconventionality take on added charm4 ,in ,new ,england there is a substantial stone building of no architectural pretensions except that width1 depth1 and height are distinctly related to each other4 ,it is now a country home but it began as a small textile mill in the early days of the #aith century when the industrial revolution was just getting under way4 ,later1 when the factory era became thoroughly established1 this lone little mill was left high and dry by the tide that swept toward the larger centers and it stood untenanted for years4 ,finally it was retrieved by some one with vision enough to see that1 with proper partitions1 both ground and second floors could be divided into satisfactory rooms4 ,here the new owner1 or his architect1 had the discretion to preserve as much as possible of the past4 ,the old mill owner's counting room1 on the lower floor1 is now the library and1 in almost untouched condition1 is complete even to the cast-iron stove that once warmed it4 ,converting buildings originally designed for other uses may take a still different course4 ,a house1 too small in itself for present day use1 can form the nucleus of a country home4 ,a most attractive place in ,maine was so assembled4 ,there were two or three other buildings on the property which were shifted from their original locations by jacks and rollers and skillfully joined to the little house to form wings4 ,by clever rearrangement of rooms and shifting or removal of partitions1 the assembled group became large enough for the new owner's uses4 ,even a modern structure1 designed originally for some branch of agriculture1 can be converted into an excellent house if an architect is inclined to undertake the necessary contriving of plans and builders can be found who will follow his directions4 ,several years ago1 a man was bitten with the urge to raise chickens according to the latest scientific methods of artificial lighting and forced feeding4 ,for this he built a substantial structure with steam heat1 electric lights1 and other elaborate provisions4 ,being nurse maid to thousands of chicks ranging from a week old to the proper size for broiling was a strenuous job4 ,further1 the creatures developed all sorts of maladies not provided for in the book and the mortality was so high that the project was finally abandoned4 ,the building stood vacant for some months until it came to the notice of a resourceful young architect4 ,he measured1 sketched1 and drew plans4 ,now1 what was once a factory for the raw material of broiled chicken is an attractive and compact ,cape ,cod cottage4 ,because of site and accessibility1 the original building had to be dismembered and moved about two hundred feet4 ,when re-erected according to the plans provided1 the result bore little resemblance to the original box-like structure except that the floor space was the same4 ,some country homes begin as week-end retreats4 ,then the habit of being in the country two or three days grows on the family until they see no reason for living in the city except for an occasional overnight ordeal with a stuffy hotel room4 ,to make the average week-end shack a permanent home calls for material expansion4 ,double-deck bunks have been installed to provide adequate sleeping quarters2 and for a limited time they find it fun to cook1 eat1 and live in one large room4 ,but1 when the house is used seven days a week1 such condensation is anything but practical4 ,so the establishment must be enlarged4 ,this can be done with ease1 especially if the original plans were drawn with such a change in mind4 ,that is1 the original structure now becomes the living room1 while new wings and additions provide the much needed space for service quarters and conventional bedrooms and baths4 ,but the week-end place is not always built particularly for the purpose4 ,many times it is a very small farmhouse acquired cheaply and made usable at a minimum of time and money4 ,when the decision is reached to convert it into a home of larger proportions1 whether one realizes it or not1 the plan of campaign follows the plan of no less a person than ,george ,washington4 ,mount ,vernon was not always a mansion but was the result of consistent enlargement4 ,when ,washington inherited it from his half-brother1 ,lawrence1 it was a story-and-a-half hunting lodge of eight rooms4 ,then he married ,martha ,custis1 richest widow in the ,virginia colony2 and1 to have a home suitable for her1 he had the roof raised and the house made full two stories4 ,shortly before the outbreak of the ,american ,revolution1 he planned two wings4 ,the first was that at the south end with library on the ground floor and master bedroom for ,colonel and ,mrs4 ,washington on the second4 ,as the revolt against the ,british crown progressed1 the construction of the north wing lagged somewhat but was worked on intermittently4 ,this1 the banquet hall1 when finished became one of the noblest private residence rooms in ,america4 ,washington1 however1 did not leave these steps in the enlargement and renovation of his erstwhile hunting lodge entirely to professionals4 ,whether away fighting in the ,french and ,indian ,wars or directing the course of action of the ,continental ,army1 he never forgot what was happening at his country seat4 ,his correspondence is full of minute directions regarding the finishing of certain rooms or of such injunctions as1 ,i beg of you to hasten ,lamphire about the addition to the north end of the house2 otherwise you will have it open1 ,i fear1 in the cold and wet weather4 ,when the ,revolution was fought and won1 the ,washingtons returned1 not to a ,mount ,vernon that was a stranger to them1 but to the country home they had so carefully planned4 ,this specific planning by the owner1 now as then1 has definite bearing on whether the house will be yours or just a beautiful structure1 perfect in all its appointments but totally lacking the impress of the owner or his family4 ,several years ago1 a man and his wife acquired one of the early ,dutch farmhouses of the ,new ,jersey back country4 ,they had long wanted just such a place and having taken possession1 they summoned an architect1 an interior decorator1 and a landscape architect4 ,a few days were spent with them inspecting house and grounds4 ,then the new owners left on a winter cruise around the world4 ,their final injunctions were to the effect that next ,may they would return and would expect everything done4 ,they did and everything was complete4 ,the old house was perfect4 ,its furnishings were all genuine antiques of the period4 ,the grounds had been graded1 trimmed1 and polished4 ,gardens1 shrubbery1 and hedges were just right1 but the final effect was as impersonal as a demonstration model4 ,in a year or two1 this property was sold to a golf club and its former owner bought another place and moved right in4 ,nearly two years were spent consulting and working with an architect and workmen1 supervising a garden or two1 and in buying antiques1 a piece at a time4 ,his second attempt at country living was not as sophisticated nor did it approach the museum standards of the former2 but1 when completed1 it had that prime essential of any home1 it reflected the character and personality of its owners4 ,,looking ,,an ,,old ,,house ,,in ,,the ,,mouth ,illustration ,,chapter ,,vi ,,looking ,,an ,,old ,,house ,,in ,,the ,,mouth ,buying an old house is a good deal like selecting a horse4 ,having found an animal of the desired type and breed1 the question arises1 ,is it sound of wind and limb8 ,houses nearing or past the century mark also have their spavins and these should be recognized by the prospective buyer4 ,he can thus form some estimate of how extensive replacements are needed1 even on first inspection4 ,this is of prime importance since it has direct bearing on the worth of the house4 ,whether built of stone1 brick1 or wood1 such structures may have rafters1 sills1 and main beams so decayed that new ones must be added4 ,the foundation may need rebuilding and door and window frames may be so weathered that they also must be replaced4 ,beware of a house where floors slope and side walls are out of plumb4 ,this means extensive shoring which is slow and expensive4 ,for a truly pessimistic report on the health of an old place turn to a trusted carpenter or contractor4 ,he congenitally dislikes old buildings and will point out all defects with ominous head shakings and subtle suggestions for new building4 ,in this way the prospective buyer will know the worst1 painted at its blackest4 ,somewhere between it and the rosy view of the real estate agent will lie the truth4 ,therefore1 it is well to do some inspecting independently4 ,knowledge of what are the weak spots in old houses and where to look for them will save much time and effort in the initial stages of house hunting4 ,the skeleton of an old house is akin to that of a modern steel structure4 ,hand-hewn timbers1 morticed and pinned together1 take the place of riveted steel beams4 ,since a timber frame is subject to rot1 either dry or damp1 one of the first places to look for unsoundness is the sills 7the beams which rest on the foundation and into which are set floor joists1 corner posts1 and other main uprights74 ,it is a simple matter to give them the jack-knife test at intervals of two or three feet4 ,stick the blade in as far as possible4 ,then try to turn it around4 ,with a sound beam this cannot be done4 ,if there is dry rot1 the beam will often crumble under a slight pressure of the fingers4 ,go over the sills on the north side of the building first4 ,here there is less sunlight and snow remains longer4 ,consequently decay from excessive moisture is not unusual4 ,roof rafters and plate beams 7the long timbers on which the lower ends of the rafters rest7 should also be knife-tested since long neglected leaking roofs eventually result in their decay4 ,unsound corner posts and other uprights connecting sills and plate beams are harder to detect since they are concealed between the outside boarding and interior plaster4 ,note the walls themselves and the corner boards extending vertically from foundation to eaves4 ,if a corner of the house is enough out of plumb to be visible to the eye1 or if the corner boards are loose1 examine further as it may indicate decay beneath4 ,with brick or stone houses1 the walls themselves carry the weight of the roof and so have no vertical timbers4 ,if the walls are out of plumb it means that the foundations are either gone or are in need of major repair4 ,whether a house is of brick1 stone or wood1 there is one further place for knife testing--the ground floor joists4 ,cellar dampness may have taken its toll4 ,the fact that a sill1 joist or other timber is unsound does not mean that the house is beyond repair4 ,many old houses with all their sills gone and some other principal beams no longer serviceable have been restored1 but the necessity of such steps ought to be realized in advance and the cost taken into consideration4 ,it is far from pleasant to discover that one has unwittingly bought the bill of expense this type of replacement means4 ,let the buyer beware generally rules in the selling of old places1 and the purchase of a knife and an hour or two of poking its point into the principal timbers may save time and money later4 ,the next time ,i buy an old house to put a new frame into1 you'll know it1 was the heartfelt declaration of a man who left his knife at home when he went house hunting4 ,the owner and the agent knew the sills and beams were rotten but didn't think it necessary to mention the fact4 ,what ,i didn't see wouldn't hurt me until after ,i had bought the place and begun repairs4 ,then ,i learned plenty about decayed timbers and the cost of replacing them4 ,after the timber frame1 consider the exterior4 ,the foundation will probably need some pointing-up1 that is1 replacement of mortar in the joints or cracks4 ,the question is1 how much8 ,will it have to be a complete job8 ,has frost worked such havoc that some sections must be re-laid8 ,if the cellar indicates standing water during heavy rains1 drainage must be provided4 ,notice whether any cellar windows have been closed4 ,countrymen are prone to do this as a cheap and easy method when the framework gets beyond repair4 ,replacing stoned-up windows is not expensive or difficult but just one more thing which must be done4 ,notice the extent of the cellar4 ,old builders sometimes did only a partial job of excavation because of economy4 ,such a cellar was ample for storing root crops1 preserves1 and hard cider in the days before furnaces4 ,it may be wise to complete the work of excavating4 ,do not expect to find cellars under wings and sheds4 ,it was never the practice4 ,if they are to be converted to uses for which excavation is desirable1 this is another item for the adding machine4 ,with the foundation and its needed repairs noted1 begin appraising the condition of the walls and roof4 ,sometimes a shingle roof will be found in good order or at most have one or two minor leaks which can be repaired4 ,more often an entire new roof is needed and1 in extreme cases1 new boarding beneath4 ,as with sills1 roofs sloping to the north and east are more apt to be out of repair and for the same reasons4 ,if door and window frames are so loose that they can be lifted out of the side walls1 the situation is serious4 ,putty and paint are of no avail4 ,rebuilding them is essential4 ,it is extravagant business trying to heat a house with wind whistling in around doors and windows4 ,if the fabric of the side walls is of shingle1 clapboard1 or other types of wood1 is the material sound enough to warrant repainting or must it be renewed8 ,the object of paint is to close the small cracks and preserve the wood4 ,an old house that has gone many years without painting will absorb much more than a new one1 but it is surprising what can be accomplished with two or three coats of paint on siding so weathered as to seem worthless4 ,besides1 a new exterior robs an old house of some of its charm1 so preserve the old if possible1 architects1 carpenters1 and contractors to the contrary4 ,where walls are of stone or brick1 the mortar of the joints has probably so disintegrated under wind and rain that repointing is indicated4 ,also1 frosts may have heaved individual stones or disintegrated bricks so they must be reset4 ,expect this in places where down-spouts have leaked for years4 ,if the walls have settled badly1 lintels or sills of doors and window openings may be cracked and need renewing4 ,sometimes an old house has exterior walls of plaster4 ,these are both picturesque and rare4 ,patch cracks and spots where it has come loose from the lath4 ,old plaster has a texture and patina that modern stucco cannot simulate1 so preserve it if possible4 ,indoors1 there are many things to be observed and appraised but fireplaces come first4 ,a country home without facilities for open fires is as uninviting as one without trees and flowers4 ,expect to find the fireplaces disused and closed with fireboards or bricks4 ,sometimes the mantels have been removed and new flooring laid over the hearthstones4 ,some detective work around the logical locations will tell whether fireplaces have been torn out or just concealed4 ,if mantels are missing1 look for them in the attic or on the rafters of a shed4 ,more than one fine old mantel has been rescued from such a hiding place4 ,we know of one fireplace complete with crane and iron cooking utensils that reposed for fifty years or more behind an unsuspected opening covered with lath and plaster4 ,where original fireplaces have been torn out and chimneys intended only to serve stoves put in place1 two courses are open4 ,the more costly is rebuilding chimney and fireplaces according to indications of original dimensions4 ,the alternative is a ,franklin stove1 a combination of stove and fireplace1 which can be installed and connected to the existing chimney at a very moderate expense4 ,incidentally1 the chimneys of an old house should be examined carefully4 ,built in the days before separate flues and flue tiles1 their mortar may have lost its binding strength and so a smoke test is advisable4 ,close all fireplaces except one and start a lively fire in it4 ,when it is well under way1 toss on some scraps of roofing paper4 ,then cover the top of the chimney4 ,if there are any fissures in the chimney1 your eyes and nose will leave you in no doubt4 ,you cannot mistake the pungent odor of burning tar and its bluish smoke is easy to see4 ,trace these to the points where they leak from the chimney and mark the spots4 ,complete examination will tell whether repointing will suffice or whether rebuilding is necessary4 ,the condition of the plaster on walls and ceilings of rooms can be easily appraised4 ,it is reasonable to expect cracks and that some of it will be so loose as to need replacing4 ,removing it all and starting afresh1 however1 is only advisable where a house has reached about the last stages of disrepair4 ,partitions of even the simplest feather-board paneling should be preserved as well as interior trim1 doors1 and flooring4 ,the same applies to old hardware1 as a house with all original wrought-iron hinges1 latches1 and locks is both rare and valuable4 ,notice whether the floors are of old wide boards laid random width and held in place by wrought-iron nails4 ,in houses antedating #ahjj1 the floors in certain localities were of hardwood4 ,sometimes several varieties were used indiscriminately4 ,with all their irregularities1 they become a very pleasing feature when well scrubbed and oiled or waxed4 ,like fireplaces1 they are sometimes concealed but it is an easy matter to remove the new flooring4 ,the soundness and safety of stairways can only be determined by direct inspection4 ,if treads move beneath the feet1 additional nailing is needed and possibly new supports4 ,step easily on those leading to the cellar4 ,they are often somewhat rotten and may collapse4 ,if window glass is of the old1 wavy1 off-color sort1 full of the bubbles1 sand pits1 and creases that characterized its production in early days1 make sure that such panes are not discarded4 ,workmen view them with complete scorn and will cast them aside if not put under stern injunctions4 ,i never found that it kept out the cold any better than a good new piece1 snorted one disgustedly when we suggested that he putty a fine bull's eye pane with a slight crack4 ,sometimes part of the interior trim will have been replaced by modern substitutes1 but a good carpenter working under an architect can match that still remaining4 ,likewise1 later additions not in keeping with the original1 such as porches1 sheds1 wings1 and illogical partitions1 can be readily removed with little damage to the house itself4 ,as one goes about an old house it is well to be on the look out for signs of vermin1 both animal and insect4 ,with the former1 traps and prepared bait will suffice4 ,the latter require the services of an exterminator or some one skilled in the use of hydrocyanic acid gas4 ,such insects go deep into the cracks of woodwork and beams4 ,ordinary fumigating will not eradicate them4 ,a single session with this deadly gas1 however1 will rid the house both of these pests and their eggs4 ,the things that may be the matter with an old house1 as enumerated here1 may sound very forbidding but circumstances alter cases4 ,it is doubtful if any one structure will be afflicted with all these ills of decay and neglect4 ,in our own house hunting we saw many that were sound enough so that1 with the addition of modern conveniences and a good cleaning1 they were livable4 ,in fact1 there is nothing equal to getting thoroughly acquainted with a house before radical changes are made4 ,live in the place six months or a year and then you will know better just what alterations or additions are wise4 ,in northern ,new ,england there is a delightful country home that has been renovated with great skill and charm4 ,the reason behind it is that the owners went for many years with as few repairs as possible4 ,then came a large and unexpected inheritance4 ,there was money enough to rebuild completely but relatively few major changes were made4 ,most of the expenditure was for restorations1 the owner stated4 ,once we day-dreamed of all kinds of changes but when the time came we knew most of them were impractical and would add neither to our comfort nor our convenience4 ,the most important thing about any house is1 does it please you architecturally and is its general plan suited to your needs8 ,if it seems to be well enough preserved so that renovation appears to be practical1 turn to an architect with the understanding that1 if you buy1 he will be retained4 ,he will then be willing to give the house an expert inspection and even submit tentative sketches of advantageous changes4 ,his report1 if the venture is to be financially good1 should indicate that structurally the house is about one-half sound and usable4 ,of course if you have found a house dating from the #agth or #ahth century1 you have something fairly rare and it is worth reclaiming even though very extensive replacements are needed4 ,in ,fairfield1 ,connecticut1 for example1 there is the ,ogden ,house1 built before #agaj4 ,its present owner paid #d1jjj for it in what seemed to be ruinous condition4 ,its renovation cost fully #ab1jjj2 but finished1 this old salt box house is so unusual that more than one buyer is ready and waiting to pay double the amount spent4 ,arrangement of the rooms of an old house1 and how they will fit the requirements of the prospective purchaser1 should be given more than passing thought4 ,most people when they begin looking at places have large ideas about moving partitions1 cutting new windows1 and changing the location of doorways4 ,these can be done but they are relatively expensive and if carried to excess rob the place of all character4 ,even the simplest of old houses has definite balance in its design and arrangement of rooms4 ,so think well before tearing out partitions indiscriminately or moving doorways and cutting windows4 ,in fact1 if some old house seems to you to call for drastic reconstruction1 you would do better to let it alone and look for one that more nearly fits your mental picture4 ,buying a house you do not really like is as foolish as marrying with the same reservation4 ,some hardy people go through life so mated but more get a divorce4 ,so it will be with the house4 ,after a season of dislike1 divorce by sale will be the end4 ,if it pleases you from the start1 however1 you and it will develop a mutual affection as the years go by and it will become the old home in more ways than one4 ,,new ,,sites ,,for ,,old ,,houses ,illustration ,,chapter ,,vii ,,new ,,sites ,,for ,,old ,,houses ,substantial houses built by old craftsmen who knew how to achieve beauty by restraint lined the straggling single street of a forgotten farming town4 ,despite weatherbeaten clapboards and sagging roofs1 the fine ornamental detail of doorways and window frames assured similar niceties within4 ,what good are they1 snorted practical grandfather4 ,if they were where people had adequate incomes it would be different4 ,but here6 ,once this was a prosperous town4 ,men made money breeding merino sheep4 ,now the town's dead and its houses falling apart4 ,better tear them down to save taxes4 ,twenty-five years ago many substantial old houses were doomed to die with their towns4 ,today1 people who want an old house but cannot find it where they wish to live have learned that it is practical1 financially and otherwise1 to transplant an old structure to a new location4 ,once this was the sport of eccentric millionaires or of amply endowed museums4 ,now it is done for people of average incomes4 ,the expense will about equal that of building a new house of the same cubical content and architectural detail4 ,sometimes it can be accomplished at a slight saving4 ,but whether the cost is equal1 a little higher1 or somewhat less1 the great advantages of a transplanted house are a certain mellowness of age and that charm of individuality which only old structures possess4 ,for those who want an old house on a site of their own choosing1 there are now men who deal in old buildings ready for removal4 ,just as pickers comb the back-country for antiques1 a related group search for untenanted old houses4 ,these men are a cross between practical builders and antique dealers4 ,they know ,early ,american domestic architecture and experience has taught them the point beyond which salvage is impossible4 ,also they are experts in dismembering such houses so they can be re-erected4 ,tearing down an old house is easy enough1 but to do it so that it can be rebuilt is a trade in itself4 ,from removing paneling and interior trim to taking apart the hewn timber frame requires care and understanding4 ,too much brute strength will split boards that should be saved4 ,similarly1 it is disastrous if mortice and tenon joints are sawed apart4 ,such are the short cuts of ignorance to be expected of ordinary carpenters and handy men4 ,and when the old house is on the ground they will display exasperating unconcern regarding what goes where and how to put the structure back together4 ,the most complicated jig-saw puzzle is simplicity itself compared with an ,early ,american house taken apart without predetermined marking and numbering4 ,having learned this by bitter experience1 these experts have evolved marking systems that prevent confusion and follow them rigidly4 ,likewise1 since old house lumber when taken apart and stored warps and splits so badly that it can only be used again with difficulty1 they leave their houses standing wherever possible until sold4 ,they are far from impressive in this state and it takes both imagination and enthusiasm to inspect the assortment offered4 ,usually the roof and possibly one or two of the sides will be covered with prosaic roofing paper4 ,the doors and windows will be securely boarded with coarse lumber4 ,the depredations of nature lovers who uproot shrubbery and rend such flowering trees as dogwood are as nothing when an amateur antiquarian finds an early #ahth century house unoccupied4 ,such enthusiasts steal and wreck like ,huns4 ,nothing is safe from them4 ,door knockers1 ,h and ,l hinges1 fireplace cranes1 wavy old window glass1 whole sections of paneling and even hearthstones are wrenched from place with light-hearted abandon4 ,what they don't make away with1 they generally ruin4 ,one visit from such a relic hunter may leave an old house a shambles4 ,how otherwise upright people with a modicum of interest in antiques will glory in looting old houses is truly remarkable4 ,we knew one whose pride was a collection of fireplace cranes so filched4 ,knowing this1 the old house dealer1 immediately he has bought a structure1 makes it as weather-tight and marauder-proof as possible4 ,sagging floors and weak stairways are braced1 as are fireplaces injured by dampness and frosts4 ,paneled partitions are stripped of layers of disguising wall paper4 ,any efforts to modernize that hide original conditions are torn out and the house cleared of the rubbish left by its last tenant4 ,even then such a house is not overly attractive to particular housekeepers4 ,to offset this1 the old house dealer first shows one or more albums of pictures of the houses he has for sale4 ,these contain complete snap-shots inside and out1 together with plans and dimensions4 ,if he is wise1 he also has simple typed statements1 giving all the data he has been able to gather concerning each house1 approximately when it was built1 its connection with local historical events1 and1 if possible1 the names of prominent personages who dwelt in it or were guests there4 ,knowing that buyers are much impressed by such facts1 he often makes a careful search of recorded deeds and books of local history for those few interesting facts that he may use advantageously4 ,for instance1 to be able to say that ,lafayette1 on his extensive old-age visit to the ,united ,states1 was entertained in a house may be just the right romantic touch that will close the deal4 ,with such an old house1 the dealer generally quotes a price for it dismembered and ready to be moved to its new site4 ,since the cost of transportation varies with the distance1 the trucking charge is customarily given as a separate item4 ,in general1 the dealer will undertake delivery at a lower figure than any one else4 ,also1 such a dealer or an associated contractor will set a sum at which he will re-erect the structure on the new site4 ,since he is accustomed to working with old materials and knows just what problems he faces1 his price will be lower than the combination of the cost of the old house and the price set for its rebuilding by a contractor unfamiliar with such work4 ,the latter1 to protect himself from unforeseen contingencies1 must naturally add a proportionately large sum to his estimated cost4 ,the exact cost of an old house re-erected on a new site cannot be given offhand4 ,there are too many elements to be considered4 ,how extensive are the changes1 how many baths1 what type of heating system1 are only a few4 ,all are important factors that must be determined before the final figure can be set4 ,so1 the prospective buyer must have patience and understanding4 ,also1 he should have his architect prepare plans for the work with just as much thoroughness as if it were a new building4 ,to the layman it may all seem very complicated but to an architect who knows his old houses1 it is no more difficult than new work4 ,he begins by making a careful set of measured drawings of the old house as it stands4 ,he examines the fabric to determine what sills1 beams and other parts are unsound and must be replaced4 ,he takes as many photographs of details of the construction1 both inside and out1 as seem expedient and labels the prints explicitly so that they relate directly to his plans4 ,later1 when rebuilding is under way these snap-shots will refresh his memory and make it easier to explain some special feature or unique construction to workmen who never saw the house before4 ,dismembering houses for re-erection is accomplished by two methods4 ,the more common is taking them apart board by board and timber by timber1 marking each piece by a system of numbers and colors so that it can be returned to its proper place4 ,the other is called flaking4 ,here roof1 side walls1 and partitions are cut into large panels and numbered and marked in colors4 ,at the new site they are put in place much as a portable bungalow is assembled4 ,with either method1 plans prepared by the architect are of prime importance4 ,one set of his blue prints is thoroughly annotated with numbers and colored marks4 ,this becomes the working key1 the solution to the rebuilding puzzle4 ,also1 the plans serve as the basis for rearrangement of rooms1 shifting of partitions1 and the introduction of plumbing1 heating1 and electricity4 ,invariably an old house has one or more tucked-up rooms that under present-day conditions can wisely be eliminated and the space added to adjoining ones4 ,a favorite arrangement with old ,new ,england farmhouses was the parlor bedroom1 located1 as the name indicates1 on the ground floor and connected by a doorway with that room of ceremony and funerals4 ,although it was often little larger than a double bed1 it was the master bedroom of the period4 ,our ideas have changed and such a room can wisely be eliminated4 ,again1 there is the problem of space for baths and closets4 ,the former were1 of course1 unknown and the latter woefully few when the house was young4 ,thus1 with the bedroom floor1 architect and owner have before them a problem demanding skillful contriving to devise locations for these two essentials4 ,when dismembering starts1 the man doing it and the building contractor1 unless by a happy circumstance he is one and the same person1 must work together closely4 ,the first thing is to remove doors1 window sash1 and as much of the interior trim as possible1 along with all the hardware4 ,numbered and marked1 these are stored in some dry shed or barn4 ,if feasible1 they can best be left at the old site until the reconstruction has progressed far enough so that they may be put in place when delivered4 ,all fireplaces are now examined carefully to determine the exact angles of sides and backs4 ,the individual stones must also be numbered and keyed4 ,paint is applied1 that will not rub off as the stones are removed4 ,now everything is ready for the dramatic tearing apart4 ,with flaking1 the roof and walls are marked off in great squares related to the timber framework beneath4 ,then it is only a matter of sharp saws1 muscle1 and patience before the house has been reduced to panels1 loaded on trucks1 and started toward the new location4 ,the task is not as simple with dismembering but it1 too1 starts at the ridge pole and gradually works to the foundation4 ,while one crew is clearing away the roofing1 another is taking off the exterior siding4 ,if this happens to be the original wide clapboards1 great care is exercised so they may be used again4 ,this may or may not be true of the boarding underneath4 ,even old builders were wont to use second-hand lumber where it wouldn't show4 ,on the other hand1 where the exterior is shingled the side walls underneath are often of wide soft wood plank which take the place of both weather boarding and supporting studs4 ,they are1 of course1 numbered and removed to be used again4 ,shingles1 whether roof or side wall1 cannot be saved as they are invariably too weatherbeaten4 ,lath and plaster are likewise destroyed in the dismembering but they are small loss as they are usually in bad order4 ,if the studding is in good condition1 it is used again but if it is badly warped or of oak1 it is left behind4 ,century-old oak is as hard as concrete and must actually be drilled for nails4 ,when the studding is taken out1 all window frames and doorways are removed and stored4 ,now comes removal of stairways1 feather-board partitioning1 flooring and paneling in the order mentioned4 ,offhand one would schedule the latter as one of the first things to be taken out but the building ways of the old workmen dictate otherwise4 ,as a means of stopping drafts1 they put all paneling in from joist to joist1 that is1 from below the upper surface of the flooring to above the lower surface of the ceiling4 ,after floors and ceilings are out1 it is a simple matter to loosen all paneling and remove it in large units4 ,wherever possible whole room-ends go intact4 ,the stairway is also taken out as a unit1 especially the more elaborate one in the front hall4 ,prying loose the old wide flooring is a difficult operation4 ,the original hand-wrought nails have rusted fast and if too much leverage is used1 the boards split4 ,men used to such work salvage the old flooring with little damage1 however4 ,at the same time that the paneling makes its exit1 the large hearthstones are pried from position and moved to a waiting truck4 ,all that now remain are the chimney and timber frame4 ,by this time each joint of the latter has been numbered and given its color code4 ,with a simple derrick and ropes and pulleys1 dismembering the frame commences4 ,the pins that make the joints tight are removed by driving or boring4 ,roof rafters and purlins come first2 then the yard arms that brace plate and summer beams1 followed by these timbers themselves4 ,second floor joists come after them1 followed by the corner posts4 ,each must be removed with caution and ingenuity4 ,there must be no sawing apart or proper re-erection will be impossible4 ,since first floor rafters and sills are usually badly decayed1 the general practice is to use new material4 ,so the old ones are left behind4 ,while this is in progress1 two men pry lintels1 cheeks1 and other large stones from the fireplaces1 as well as stones at the openings of brick ovens4 ,as many old bricks from the chimney are salvaged as possible4 ,large stone door steps are also removed but generally no attempt is made to take along the dressed stone of the foundations4 ,the cost of hauling to the new site is out of proportion to the advantage gained4 ,native stones uncovered in digging the new cellar are made reasonably square and used instead4 ,old houses antedating #ahjj are not usually over twelve or sixteen inches above the level of the ground and so little new stone is needed4 ,the chimney of the reconstructed house must outwardly resemble the original4 ,where it comes through the roof it is of ample proportions and built of old brick1 but except for old fireplaces and ovens1 it is otherwise modern4 ,with flue tile1 cement1 mortar and hard brick1 safety of construction is accomplished in much less space4 ,what is saved frequently becomes closets or the well for plumbing pipes4 ,finding space for baths is a nice game of ingenuity4 ,perhaps there is a small bedroom that can be divided and provide baths for two main bedrooms4 ,again1 shifting a partition a few feet may do it4 ,in one old house1 once a tavern1 the dance hall on the second floor was reduced nearly ten feet and the space became a combination bath and dressing room4 ,thus1 the rural ball room was translated into a large master bedroom with all present-day appurtenances4 ,in another house a storage space six by eight feet became an excellent bath by having a window cut in the exterior wall4 ,in the all-important question of kitchen and servants' quarters be modern from start to finish4 ,the old farmhouse kitchen was both living room and workroom4 ,it was large and cheerful4 ,accordingly the reconstructed house continues it as a living room4 ,the new kitchen can best be located in an extension either original or new but designed to be in keeping4 ,here the noises and odors of cooking will not permeate the main structure and with mouse-proof new partitions1 kitchen1 pantry1 and servants' quarters can be arranged so they will be logical and convenient4 ,wherever possible the garage ought to be a part of the service wing for ease of access and heating in winter4 ,because of the individuality of old houses1 returning doors and windows to the original location is not entirely mandatory4 ,one here and there can be moved a little without destroying resemblance to the original4 ,with the plans for re-erection complete1 everything is ready for a second raising of the frame4 ,new sills cut to the same dimensions as the old are put in place4 ,then corner posts1 summer and plate beams1 and other principal timbers are hoisted to their proper places4 ,by virtue of numbering and marking with colors--red for the ground floor1 blue for the second1 and black for the attic is one reconstructor's code--each mortice and tenon joint is put back just as it was originally and the whole frame made plumb4 ,now hardwood pins driven home at its joints make the skeleton firm and solid4 ,then comes the new roof of whatever type of shingles selected4 ,along with it starts the work of enclosing the side walls4 ,these steps1 of course1 apply to a structure taken apart piecemeal4 ,with a flaked house1 roofs and walls are returned to position as panels4 ,making saw-cut cracks tight is the only remaining step4 ,if possible1 the old studding and weather boarding are used1 although1 as neither will show1 new material can be substituted if desired4 ,similarly a rough flooring of cheap lumber is laid as a foundation for the old4 ,such features as the main stairway and paneling1 cleaned and repaired1 are now brought in through large openings in the side walls and put in place before enclosing the frame is completed4 ,there are two points of view about using old window frames4 ,one favors using them despite lack of mechanical means for raising or lowering the sash4 ,the other1 reasoning that many of the frames are bound to be badly weathered and not too sound1 recommends new ones complete with weights and cords4 ,with the latter1 the old effect is preserved by reproducing the exterior molding exactly and by using the original interior trim4 ,after enclosing is completed and the interior partitions are in place1 the house is ready for lath and plaster4 ,wood or metal lath or any one of the various plaster boards can be used as foundation4 ,now comes a fine point4 ,present-day plasterers produce a much finer finish than was the rule a century ago1 but if they understand the effect desired they will restrain themselves and possibly omit the final skim coat4 ,the next details are the window sash1 interior trim1 and the final exterior siding4 ,the latter can be either the original clapboards1 new ones of the same width1 or the long riven shingles4 ,whatever is used1 for protection against winter winds1 the boarding ought to be sheathed either with building paper or a quilting4 ,likewise1 the tops of all door and window frames must be properly flashed4 ,this prevents rain leaks which are bound to stain the plaster4 ,before the original flooring is re-laid it should be thoroughly scrubbed with a mild lye solution to rid it of old paint1 stains1 and dirt2 as many of the old nails removed as possible1 and injured sections discarded4 ,since there is bound to be an appreciable loss1 the attic flooring can be used to take the place of that discarded or an additional amount bought from some wrecker specializing in materials salvaged from old structures4 ,along with cleaning the old flooring1 it is frequently wise to have the edges re-planed so they will be straight and true4 ,it obviates wide cracks that gather dust and lint4 ,in taking the old house apart1 a bit of siding may give a clue to the original color outside4 ,under the various coats of paint and paper of the interior the owner may get glimpses of the scheme of decoration used when the house was young4 ,we may not realize it but ,colonial ,americans were partial to color in the home and used a number of very effective off-shades now largely forgotten4 ,if these can be discovered and samples preserved for matching1 the results will be authentic and at the same time give the house an individuality and atmosphere that will not be met with elsewhere4 ,illustration3 ,,as ,,they ,,built ,a ,,chimney ,,in ,,the ,,eighteenth ,,century ,photo by ,john ,runyon ,a house that can be purchased for removal will not often be completely equipped with its original wrought-iron hinges1 door latches and locks4 ,but the chances are that enough will remain to indicate what they were and replacements that match and fit can be bought from an antique dealer specializing in old hardware4 ,since electricity is entirely a modern convenience1 selecting fixtures must depend entirely on the owner's taste4 ,one of the most satisfactory restored houses we have seen has very few fixtures and many portable lamps chiefly made from old jugs and converted astral oil lamps4 ,in bathrooms1 kitchen1 cellar and garage1 no attempt was made to affect the antique4 ,being strictly utilitarian rooms1 simple fixtures that would provide the maximum of light were employed4 ,so if only has become an actuality4 ,the old house is now comfortably settled on its new site and like most transplanted things will thrive better if some faint flavor of its old surroundings is present1 such as an apple orchard or one or two fine old trees that look as if they and the house had grown old together4 ,,the ,,smoke ,,goes ,,up ,,the ,,chimney ,illustration ,,chapter ,,viii ,,the ,,smoke ,,goes ,,up ,,the ,,chimney ,remember that the new chimneys are not to smoke1 wrote ,general ,washington from ,new ,york in #aggf to his kinsman and overseer1 ,lund ,washington1 regarding the remodeling of ,mount ,vernon4 ,that admonition is just as necessary today as then4 ,a chimney is still an essential part of a house4 ,also1 despite the newest and most effective heating systems1 family life1 in the country at least1 still centers around the hearth4 ,old1 new1 or merely middle-aged1 no country home is considered properly equipped without at least one fireplace4 ,there is no use in pretending that they are needed for heat1 but the leaping flames and brisk crackling of burning twigs are a cheery sight and sound4 ,harriet will have her fireplace fire even though she has to open all the doors and windows1 chuckled one householder4 ,this ceases to be a pleasantry if doors and windows have to be thrown wide to let out smoke instead of excess heat4 ,then this center of family cheer becomes as exasperating as any other inanimate thing that doesn't work4 ,if1 by purchase of an existing structure1 a householder has become heir to such a problem1 simple things1 like fireplace hoods1 capping the chimney1 or increasing its height1 can be tried4 ,if these fail1 architectural counsel is the next step4 ,such trouble is more frequent in houses dating after the stove era than before4 ,the old masons built fireplaces for practical use rather than for occasional indulgence4 ,they had never heard of aerodynamics but they knew how to construct fireplaces that would give out real heat as well as chimneys that carried the smoke where it belonged1 up and out4 ,of course some unwise features are to be found in the old work but1 for the most part1 design and proportions cannot be improved4 ,the angles of sides and back1 size of opening and throat1 location of smoke shelf1 size and proportions of smoke chamber1 all were determined through years of rule of thumb experiment where only the best results survived4 ,therefore1 the owner of an antique country home with chimney and fireplaces intact should think twice before he gives orders to demolish them4 ,similarly1 he who is building a new house can well plan to reproduce the old fireplaces in size and shape4 ,building proper chimneys and hearths was slowly evolved through the centuries4 ,in the late #ahth century1 an ,american codified this masonic lore and established the scientific basis for a proper fireplace so cogently that even today his principles form the backbone of fireplace building4 ,he was born ,benjamin ,thompson1 ,march #bf1 #agec1 at ,woburn1 ,massachusetts1 but is better known as ,count von ,rumford of the ,holy ,roman ,empire4 ,the plague of a smoking fireplace is proverbial1 began ,rumford in his treatise on the subject1 written during his years in the service of the ,elector of ,bavaria4 ,stripped of the involved terminology characteristic of the natural philosopher of that day1 his specifications for a smokeless1 heat-radiating fireplace are very simple and depend on three fundamentals4 ,first1 the size of flue must be in proportion to the fireplace opening4 ,second1 the angles of back and jambs must be such that they will reflect heat into the room4 ,third1 throat and smoke chamber of proper size and shape are essential because the former improves the draft while the latter prevents smoke from being blown out into the room by a down draft within the chimney flue4 ,from this it is clear that the ,new ,england-reared count of the ,holy ,roman ,empire was really describing the type and design of fireplace in general use at home in his boyhood and explaining the scientific reasons for its superiority over ,european rectangular ones1 built throatless and without a smoke chamber4 ,as stated before1 technical men today generally go back to ,rumford's work and the ,american tradition behind it1 but in one particular they make a wise departure4 ,instead of a single common flue1 they advocate separate ones for each fireplace4 ,these modern specifications1 based on several centuries of good practice1 are as follows3 ,the fireplace should be at least #ah inches deep and have a hearth #bj inches wide4 ,the size of opening must of course be in proportion to the dimensions of the room1 but one with lintel less that #bf inches above the hearth is not practical because of difficulty in tending the fire4 ,a good maximum height is #db inches4 ,the width should be in accord and exceed it so that the opening is a well-proportioned rectangle with its greater dimension horizontal4 ,in our country home1 built about #agfe1 there are three fireplaces1 each of different size and proportions4 ,the largest1 where the cooking was done1 is #ej inches wide by #cg inches high and #ah inches deep4 ,the one in the old parlor has a width of #ch-a_/b inches1 a height of #bh-a_/b inches1 and a depth of #ac-a_/b inches4 ,the smallest has an opening just off the square which is #bg inches wide by #be-a_/b inches high with a depth of only #aa inches4 ,all three are non-smokers under all conditions of wind and weather4 ,with proper size of wood they are easy to tend and good sources of warmth except in real winter weather4 ,each is individualistic in hearth dimensions1 the largest of course being that of the old kitchen with a hearthstone over seven feet long by two feet wide4 ,whether heat radiates into the room1 or goes up the chimney along with the smoke1 depends on the angles of fireplace sides and back4 ,the former should be set at an angle of about #fj degrees so that they flare outward from the back wall4 ,there are two schools of thought regarding the back4 ,one would have the forward pitch begin one third of the distance from floor to lintel2 the other favors the slope starting at the bottom and continuing upward in an unbroken plane4 ,in the former1 the pitch should be about #bc degrees from the vertical2 with the latter1 #ah degrees will suffice4 ,from this point the consideration of dimensions goes up the chimney4 ,in its standard ordinance for chimney construction1 the ,national ,board of ,fire ,underwriters calls for fireplace flues with a draft area of one-twelfth of that of the fireplace opening and determines this area as a circle or ellipse that will fit within the tile used to line the flue4 ,as it is difficult to obtain flue linings of exactly the desired area1 it is better to select a size slightly larger1 rather than one smaller1 and so make sure of sufficient capacity under all weather conditions4 ,between the lintel of the fireplace and the point where the flue commences come the three structural features so stressed by ,count ,rumford4 ,they are the throat1 smoke shelf1 and smoke chamber4 ,as its name implies1 the throat is the opening through which smoke1 hot gases1 and some flames pass on their way upward4 ,experts hold that its correct construction contributes more to the efficiency of a fireplace than any other feature1 save proper flue design4 ,the area of the throat opening should not be less than that of the flue and its length must be equal to the width of the fireplace4 ,it should be located eight inches above the lintel4 ,under present practice1 a cast-iron throat with a damper which can be opened and closed to regulate the up-chimney flow is standard4 ,also1 when the fireplace is not in use1 this damper can be closed and so prevent loss of other heat4 ,the smoke shelf comes immediately above the throat and is formed by recessing the brickwork of the back the full width of the chimney for at least four inches4 ,with very large fireplaces1 it may be as much as twelve inches4 ,the object of this feature is to stop any accidental draft within the flue from going farther and blowing smoke out into the room4 ,the area in between this and the flue itself is called the smoke chamber4 ,here the walls are drawn in with a gradual upward taper to the point where the flue lining begins4 ,the chamber so formed can and does hold accumulated smoke temporarily when a gust of wind across the chimney top cuts off the draft for a moment4 ,in building chimneys1 the old masons varied their structural ways and materials according to the part of the country in which they worked4 ,new ,england workmen were partial to a central chimney1 the core around which the house was built1 and their usual material was stone4 ,occasionally brick was used but this material was more in favor with old houses of the middle states and the ,south4 ,here1 instead of the central stack1 a chimney was built in each of the two end walls4 ,the climate was milder and the style of architecture1 with central hall and stairway1 made such practice desirable4 ,the mark of an old chimney is its massive construction4 ,in those of the central type1 it is not uncommon to find a foundation pier of ten by twelve feet in the cellar4 ,this was laid dry and just below the level of the first floor1 large transverse beams were put in place to support the hearthstones of the fireplaces above4 ,here dry work stopped and1 from there to the chimney top1 all stones were laid in a mortar made of lime and sand4 ,at a point above the smoke chambers of the various fireplaces and the brick-oven flue 7always a part of the kitchen fireplace7 all came together in a common flue4 ,here the chimney gradually tapered to the top and was usually about three or four feet square where it came through the roof4 ,originally such chimneys were entirely of stone4 ,comparatively few are found in original condition today4 ,time and weather usually made repair or repointing of the portion above the roof line necessary and1 in the course of it1 brick was often used instead of stone4 ,by ample proportions the old masons achieved fire safety4 ,this can now be accomplished with a distinct saving in space if one is building a new chimney4 ,there are certain fundamental provisions as stated in the standard chimney ordinance cited above4 ,these are tedious and complicated reading for the layman1 but to architects1 builders and masons1 they simply mean standard workmanship and materials that have been used for years to insure correctly functioning chimneys4 ,possibly a brief resum of these fundamentals is not out of place in order that the prospective country house owner may not demand the impossible in his schemes for convenient closets1 cupboards1 or even a stairway4 ,the chimney may be built of brick1 stone1 reinforced concrete1 concrete blocks1 or hollow tile of clay or concrete4 ,all chimneys should rest on an adequate foundation located below the frost line and both chimney and flues should adhere strictly to the perpendicular4 ,if an angle is necessary1 it ought not to be greater than #de degrees4 ,no offset should be over three-eighths of the total width of the chimney4 ,in laying brick or other material1 care should be taken that all joints are tight and completely filled with mortar4 ,unlined chimneys are not prohibited but the best arrangement is one in which all flues are lined with fire clay tile1 joints well set in mortar1 and each flue separated by a partition of brick4 ,only sound1 uncracked tile should be put in place4 ,fireplace walls must be of ample proportions to support the chimney and at least eight inches thick4 ,it is further suggested that they be lined with fire brick4 ,the woodwork around fireplaces must not be closer than four inches to the back wall of a chimney and floor beams must be two inches away from a chimney wall4 ,the space between should be filled with loose crushed cinders or other porous incombustible material to form a fire stop4 ,plaster for exterior walls of a chimney should be applied direct or on metal lath4 ,no wood furring or lath4 ,the hearth1 which may be of brick1 stone1 tile1 or concrete1 must be supported by a masonry trimmer arch or similar fire-resisting construction4 ,both hearth and arch should be at least twenty inches wide and not less than two feet longer than the width of the fireplace opening4 ,if the mantel is of wood1 it must not be placed within eight inches of the jambs1 or twelve of the lintel4 ,the minimum height of chimneys above the roof line is two feet for hip1 gable1 or mansard roofs1 and three for flat ones4 ,chimney caps must not reduce the effective draft area of flues4 ,in connecting the smoke pipe of a heating plant1 incinerator1 or water heater to its flue in the chimney1 the opening must be built with a fire clay tile collar and the smoke pipe should not protrude into the flue beyond the collar4 ,otherwise1 the efficiency of the draft is materially impaired4 ,in addition1 home owners may have other features installed that will do much to increase heat production of fireplaces and convenience in the use of them4 ,one is the steel fireplace form1 built into the chimney4 ,this takes the place of jambs1 back1 throat1 smoke shelf1 and smoke chamber and is so designed that behind sides and back there is an air space opening into the room through intake and outlet vents on either side of the fireplace4 ,the cold air of the room is drawn into this space1 heated by radiation and returned4 ,it acts on the order of a hot air furnace and can be used to advantage in new fireplaces or in old ones too much out of repair to be used without rebuilding4 ,there is also the sheet-steel smoke chamber which comes complete with throat damper and smoke shelf and is put in place above the lintel where it extends to the point where the flue commences4 ,a common device for easy disposal of the ashes is the ash dump1 a small cast-iron vault located in the fireplace floor and connected with an ash vault built in the chimney foundation4 ,the vault is equipped with an iron door so that the ashes may be removed once or twice a year4 ,so much for chimneys and fireplaces4 ,for actual and even heating of all parts of the house1 some type of heating plant is necessary both for comfort and economy4 ,it is true that our forefathers lived1 many of them to a ripe old age1 with only fireplaces to heat their drafty homes and with no heat at all in their public buildings4 ,they did1 however1 fortify themselves well with a daily draft of rum and they wore a quantity of clothing that would be intolerable today4 ,further1 plenty of wood for fuel grew at their very door2 it was part of the normal farm work to cut it down and prepare it for the cavernous fireplaces4 ,but then1 as now1 a fireplace could only heat a comparatively small area4 ,further1 under modern conditions1 it is the most expensive heat that can be generated4 ,even though your holding includes a good sized wood-lot1 the cost of labor for getting fuel cut1 drawn1 and piled in your cellar may run to more than the same amount purchased from the local coal yard4 ,if you have purchased an old house with no heating plant or are building a new house1 the type of heating used will largely depend on what your architect considers practical and what you can pay for4 ,the chief systems1 viewed in descending order of expense1 are hot water1 steam1 piped hot air1 and the pipeless furnace4 ,all of these can be fitted to burn either coal or oil4 ,provided one can meet the initial expense of purchase and installation1 the ideal system is probably the oil burning1 electrically run1 hot water heating system4 ,barring the final perfection of the robot1 it is as near to a mechanical servant as one is likely to get even in this age of invention4 ,there is no shoveling or sifting of ashes4 ,there is no furnace shaking or stoking1 no puzzling over dampers4 ,periodically and for a price1 a man comes and fills the oil tank4 ,a thermostat regulates the heat4 ,you have only to set it for the desired temperature and forget it4 ,there is just one flaw with this perfect system4 ,it is dependent on electricity4 ,let that fail and there is trouble4 ,the fine copper radiators1 so efficient when all goes well1 spring leaks if the water in them freezes4 ,a few years ago an unusually severe blizzard in the ,north ,atlantic states worked havoc with all of the modern devices4 ,roads were blocked1 telephone and electric service lines were down1 and even train service was impaired4 ,one of our neighbors had built a new house two or three years before and equipped it with practically every appliance known to modern comfort1 including an oil burner4 ,in a few short hours this blizzard had set him back more than a century4 ,electricity1 of course1 failed and the heat in his fine furnace dwindled and died4 ,it grew colder and colder1 ultimately reaching twenty degrees below zero4 ,added to the discomfort of the family was the disquieting knowledge that the freezing point would mean cracked radiators4 ,luckily he had three fireplaces that really worked4 ,he had plenty of wood4 ,so for three days and nights1 he and two other members of his family worked in relays to keep roaring fires going in all three fireplaces4 ,in this way they maintained a temperature of at least #dj degrees and so saved pipes and radiators4 ,one may argue that1 if water freezing in radiators and pipes is all1 why not drain them in such an emergency4 ,this is a job for a plumber1 as it must be done with a thoroughness that leaves no moisture behind4 ,the average layman has neither the skill nor the tools for it4 ,therefore1 if there comes a winter when snow1 ice1 high winds1 and low temperatures cause you to wonder if living in the country the year around is quite sound and you decide that a few weeks in a nice city apartment would be a good idea1 close your house1 if it seems more expedient than leaving a caretaker behind1 but don't try to save the plumber's fee4 ,remember pipes1 radiators1 and valves cannot be mended4 ,they have to be replaced and that is expensive4 ,however1 blizzards that seriously interrupt electric service are so rare that one need not forego the decided comfort that an oil burner gives1 just because some such chance may arise4 ,also1 if the question of expense must be considered1 steam can be used instead of hot water and will cost from one-quarter to one-third less4 ,the initial expenditure for both hot water and steam heating is considerably less1 too1 if coal rather than oil is to be the fuel4 ,this calls for quite a little more supervision on the part of the householder4 ,he can cut down some of the drudgery of stoking by installing a gravity feed type of boiler4 ,this is equipped with a hopper and needs filling only once a day4 ,or he can use the old fashioned hand-fired type1 with or without the services of a man of all work4 ,there will be dust and dirt as well as the morning and evening rituals of stoking1 adjusting dampers1 shaking1 and cleaning out the ash pit4 ,there will be the periodic chore of sifting ashes and carrying them out for either carting away or for filling in hollow places in the driveway4 ,but his fire will burn1 no matter what happens to the current of the local light and power company4 ,however1 as already stated1 electricity is a faithful servant most of the time and there are devices that not only take away some of the drudgery of furnace tending but1 in the long run1 actually save money in coal bills4 ,one of these is the mechanical stoker which is electrically driven and burns the finest size of coal4 ,another way of reducing the coal bill is to install an electric blower4 ,this1 as its name implies1 is a forced draft controlled by a thermostat1 and with it the cheaper grades of coal can be used4 ,incidentally1 any coal-burning furnace that gets to sulking can be made to respond by placing an ordinary electric fan before the open ash pit4 ,we have done this with a pipeless furnace and have been able to burn the cheaper buckwheat coal almost entirely as a result4 ,there appears to be no mechanical device for removing the ashes out of the cellar4 ,so1 if the householder puts in a coal burning steam or hot water plant as a matter of economy1 and then in a few years covets an oil burner1 it is perfectly practical and possible to have one installed in his furnace4 ,whatever the fuel1 make sure enough radiation is provided with steam or hot water plants to heat the house evenly and adequately in the coldest weather according to your ideas rather than the plumber's4 ,he is usually a hardy individual who considers #fh degrees warm enough for any one4 ,theoretically it may be4 ,actually most people are more comfortable at a room temperature of from two to four degrees higher4 ,cheapest of all to install and operate is the pipeless furnace4 ,this is hardly more than a large stove set in the cellar4 ,an ample register in the floor directly above it is connected to a galvanized iron casing that surrounds the fire pot4 ,it is divided so that cool air from the house itself is drawn downward1 heated1 and then forced upward again4 ,this system will not work well in a house equipped with wings or additions so placed that the air from the central register cannot penetrate4 ,it is particularly effective in a house with a central hall4 ,in the #ahth century compact house with central chimney1 the pipeless furnace register can be set in the small front entrance and another register cut in the ceiling directly above it4 ,this carries part of the heat to the second floor and so makes for better distribution of the warm air4 ,as already stated1 such a furnace is quite inexpensive and so easy to install that the average handy man will not find it too complicated4 ,we put one in our country home some eight years ago merely as a means of keeping the house warm during the early spring and late fall4 ,we have since found that it can and does heat the entire house even at sub-zero temperatures4 ,in all honesty1 however1 one must admit that it has certain disadvantages4 ,first1 it is like the old-fashioned stove in that an even heat is hard to maintain4 ,second1 with coal or wood as the usual fuel1 there is a discouraging amount of dust generated4 ,third1 the doors to all rooms must be left open so that the currents of hot air can circulate4 ,one chooses between frosty seclusion and balmy gregariousness4 ,yet1 in spite of these very definite outs1 it is far better than no furnace at all4 ,it is1 in fact1 an excellent stop gap for the country house owner who is not prepared to invest in the more expensive heating plants at the moment4 ,the more effete system can always be added later and the faithful old pipeless junked1 moved to some other building1 or left in place for an emergency1 such as a public-utility-crippling blizzard or flood4 ,,the ,,question ,,of ,,water ,,supply ,illustration ,,chapter ,,ix ,,the ,,question ,,of ,,water ,,supply ,whether one lives in the country or the city1 geology and geography govern the source of the water that flows from the tap4 ,cities go miles for an adequate1 pure water supply and have been doing so since the days of the ,caesars4 ,such systems involve thousands of acres and millions of dollars for water sheds1 reservoirs1 dams1 pipe lines1 and purifying plants4 ,the country place is a miniature municipality with its own water system4 ,the latter need not be elaborate or expensive but it must be adequate4 ,nothing disrupts a family so quickly and completely as water shortage4 ,personally1 we would far rather see our family hungry and in rags than again curtail its baths and showers4 ,we can be careful and only use what is necessary1 sounds easy but before long everybody is against father4 ,he is mean and unreasonable4 ,save the water1 indeed6 ,it is all his fault4 ,he should have known the supply would fail when he bought the place4 ,a moron could see it was not large enough4 ,a six weeks' drought8 ,well1 what of it6 ,meanwhile water diviners1 well diggers and drillers add gall and wormwood to the situation4 ,oh yes1 that well always did go dry about this time of year4 ,saving the water wouldn't make any difference4 ,better not bother with it but dig or drill a new one4 ,expense8 ,why quibble about that when the peace of one's family is at stake4 ,there is1 of course1 only one outcome4 ,a broken and chastened man soon makes the best terms he can with one of his tormentors4 ,if he is wise it will be with the advocate of the driven well4 ,that solves for all time any question of water supply4 ,before deciding on a source1 however1 consider what the daily needs will be4 ,from long observation1 it has been found that the average country place requires fifty gallons of water a day for each member of the family1 servants included4 ,then allow for two extra people so that the occasional guest1 whose knowledge of water systems begins and ends with the turning of a faucet1 will not unduly deplete the supply4 ,for example1 a family of seven should have a daily water supply of from #djj to #ejj gallons depending on how much entertaining is done and how extensive are the outdoor uses4 ,this allowance will be ample for toilets1 baths1 kitchen and laundry1 as well as for moderate watering of the garden and lawn4 ,of course1 if cars are to be washed regularly1 fifty gallons should be added to the daily demand4 ,if there is a swimming pool1 its capacity should be figured by cubical content multiplied by seven and one-half 7the number of gallons to the cubic foot7 and allowance made for from fifteen to twenty-five per cent fresh water daily4 ,the daily production of a spring or drilled well can be easily gauged4 ,a flow of one gallon a minute produces #a1ddj gallons in twenty-four hours4 ,in other words1 a flow of ten gallons a minute means #ad1djj gallons a day which1 at fifteen gallons a bath or shower1 is enough water to wash a regiment from the colonel to the newest recruit4 ,estimating the daily production of a shallow1 dug well is more difficult4 ,the number of gallons standing in it can be obtained by using the mathematical formula for the contents of a cylinder1 but only observation will tell how quickly the well replenishes itself when pumped dry4 ,by long experience1 however1 country plumbers have found that if such a well contains five feet of water in extremely dry weather1 it can be relied upon for the needed fifty gallons a day each for a family of seven with enough over for safety4 ,in fact1 with all water sources except an artesian or driven well1 the question always is1 will it last during an abnormally rainless season8 ,never-failing springs and wells that never go dry are institutions in any countryside4 ,so consult some of the oldest inhabitants4 ,they know and if they give your well or spring a good character1 the chances are that even the most exacting of families will find such a water supply adequate4 ,whether it is pure or not is another matter but one that can easily be determined by sending a sample to your state health department or a bacteriological laboratory4 ,that this should be done before such water is used for drinking purposes goes without saying4 ,the driven or artesian well has two points that makes it worth the cost4 ,there is no question of purity or of quantity4 ,it taps subterranean water which is unaffected by local causes of contamination or by drought4 ,the kind of water system1 like the supply1 is governed by geography and geology4 ,if there happens to be a spring on a nearby hillside somewhat higher than the house1 nature has provided the cheapest and simplest system4 ,a pipe line and storage tank are all that are needed4 ,gravity does the rest4 ,on the other hand1 if the spring is on the same level or lower than the house1 a pump must be added to the equipment to force the water into the pressure tank and out of the faucets4 ,if the spring has a large flow and adequate drainage1 a water ram is advisable4 ,with this hydraulic machine1 three-quarters of the water that flows into it is used to force the balance into the storage tank4 ,the expense of operation is nothing and as water rams and pumps cost about the same1 such an installation has much to recommend it4 ,when the search for water goes below ground1 one must reckon with geology4 ,what lies below the turf is the deciding factor4 ,if it is sand and gravel with a high water table 7the level of subterranean water71 an excellent well can be had cheaply4 ,the practice is either to bore through to the water table with a man-operated auger and then insert the pipe1 or to drive the latter down with a heavy sledge hammer4 ,in either case1 water is but a few feet below ground and a shallow-well pump1 which can raise water twenty-two feet by suction1 will be adequate4 ,there are two types of well to be considered with less favorable subsoil formations--the shallow and the artesian4 ,with the former 7known to country people as a dug well7 a shaft from six to ten feet across is dug with pick and shovel until adequate water is reached4 ,then the shaft is lined with stone laid without cement or mortar up to a few feet from the top4 ,this allows water from the surrounding area to seep into the well where it is retained until it is drawn upward by the pump4 ,it is obvious that a well of this type cannot be built through ledge or solid rock4 ,in fact1 unusually large boulders sometimes force diggers to abandon a shaft and start afresh4 ,an old house with two or three of these shallow wells on the premises serves notice on the prospective buyer that repeated and probably unsuccessful attempts have been made to find a well that does not go dry4 ,dug wells are seldom deeper than fifty feet2 the majority are but little beyond twenty-two feet1 the suction limit for a shallow-well pump4 ,as is obvious from their construction1 they depend on the water in the upper layers of the subsoil and so are more readily affected by dry weather4 ,although not drought-proof like the artesian1 a dug well1 which costs much less1 can be an excellent water source and supply amazingly large quantities of water4 ,we have lived for ten years in a house served by a shallow well credited with being never failing and it has faithfully lived up to its reputation1 even through the driest of seasons4 ,once1 however1 it made real trouble4 ,over it stood a picturesque latticed well house4 ,on one of the beams a pair of robins nested annually4 ,in the middle of the third summer the water developed a queer flavor4 ,it steadily grew stronger until one night the steam arising from a hot bath caused the pajama-clad head of the house to seize a flashlight and move hastily to the well house4 ,one beam of light disclosed the horrid truth4 ,floating in the water far below were two very dead fledglings4 ,the next day a well cleaner collected twenty-five dollars for removing the birds and pumping out the well4 ,he also gave some excellent advice which was followed promptly4 ,the well house1 picturesque though it was1 gave way to a substantial masonry curbing equipped with a stout wire cover4 ,the peace of mind so gained has more than offset the trifling expense4 ,no longer need one peer fearfully down a twenty-five foot shaft when a pet cat fails to show up for a meal1 or shoo away from the spot the over-inquisitive offspring of visiting friends4 ,the drilled well1 against which there is no possible argument save that of cost1 is made by boring a hole in the ground with a powerful apparatus until sufficient subterranean water is reached4 ,there are two methods1 the chop and the core drill4 ,with the former1 a cutting tool exactly like the drill used to drive holes in rocks for blasting1 only larger1 cuts a circular hole downward4 ,the boom of the drilling rig as it raises and drops the drill provides the necessary impact4 ,with the core method1 as its name implies1 a hollow boring drill cuts its way aided by steel shot and a flow of water forced through the pipe that rotates the cutting tool4 ,with either method the results are the same4 ,sooner or later the drill will reach an underground water course of sufficient size to give an ample flow4 ,as such drilling is done on a charge of three to five dollars a foot1 the owner1 of course1 hopes for sooner4 ,except where there is an underlying stratum of sand or gravel beneath hard pan1 the drill has to go through rock4 ,how far depends on the kind4 ,sandstone is the best water producer2 limestone yields very hard water4 ,again1 drilling through till 7a heterogeneous mixture of clay1 gravel1 and boulders7 may or may not locate water readily depending on how densely it is packed4 ,the rocks known as gneiss and schist are readily bored and are considered fair water bearers4 ,granite is bad news4 ,it means slow work and a deep and expensive well4 ,it is one of the hardest rocks with little water content4 ,the only hope is that the drill will strike a vein flowing through a fissure4 ,whether it will be at fifty or #ejj feet is a pure matter of luck4 ,a dry well at #ajj feet may become a gusher at #aje delivering twenty gallons to the minute1 or it may stay dry for another two to five hundred feet4 ,tales of well drilling are many and varied4 ,good pure water has been found at fifteen feet4 ,in ,new ,hampshire there is a well #ijj feet deep that gushes so powerfully that it is capped and still flows at forty pounds pressure4 ,it supplies an elaborate country place and a large stock farm4 ,it is performances like these that indicate the water is there if one will just keep on drilling and paying until it is reached4 ,where to locate a well is very much a matter of guess4 ,even in the ,sahara ,desert there is water4 ,how far down is the question4 ,for generations much faith was placed in diviners4 ,they were supposedly endowed with some occult talent that enabled them to pick a sure spot for water4 ,they were known for miles around and were summoned when a new homestead was under consideration4 ,with a forked hazel wand held in both hands1 such an one would pace solemnly around until the stick gave a convulsive twist downward4 ,this indicated that water was directly beneath4 ,the spot would be reverently marked2 the diviner would depart and the well diggers who had followed his performance with proper awe would begin work4 ,as the ceremony failed to stipulate just how far down the precious liquid was1 a successful well was presumably the result4 ,the prowess of the well diviner is acclaimed even today by some people1 although scientific investigation has proved that his services are worth just about as much as those of a witch doctor4 ,after the country home owner has attended to the little matter of a well1 be it old or new1 dug or drilled1 the next step is installing a pump4 ,if the water level is less than twenty feet below ground1 a shallow-well pump will be perfectly adequate and as it is much less expensive than the more elaborate deep-well pump1 we recommend its use if possible4 ,most plumbers invariably advise the deep-well pump1 especially for driven wells4 ,they do this in all honesty and with no ulterior motive4 ,there is always a bare chance that the water level may drop below the suction limit of the shallow pump under abnormal pressure4 ,if it does1 an irate customer can descend on the luckless installer of the less expensive pump and cause general unpleasantness if not loss of custom4 ,the difference between these two kinds of pump1 aside from price1 is that with a shallow-well one1 suction is produced in the cylinder of the pump itself1 while the deep-well pump has its plunger and cylinder at the bottom of the well4 ,water is forced up the pipe by the up and down movement of the plunger within the cylinder4 ,this plunger is connected to a geared wheel by the well-rod that extends downward from well-head to cylinder in the center of the same pipe through which the water is forced upward4 ,because of its design1 a deep-well pump must always be located directly above the well itself4 ,with a suction pump1 on the other hand1 the pipe from well to pump may bend and turn to suit conditions4 ,these should be as few as possible since each right-angle bend of the pipe reduces the pump's suction power one foot4 ,illustration3 ,a ,,place ,,for ,,summer ,,and ,,week-,,ends ,robertson ,ward1 architect4 ,photo by ,la ,roche ,as for motive power1 electricity has distinct advantages over all other means4 ,the switch operated by pressure starts the pump when the supply of water in the storage tank drops below a certain level1 and also stops it when the proper volume has been reached4 7,ten pounds to start the pump and forty or fifty to stop it are the usual adjustments47 ,a nice little refinement here is the installation of a third faucet at either kitchen or pantry sink1 piped direct to the pump4 ,turn this and fresh water flows from the well itself1 thus consoling any sentimentalist with visions of a dripping moss-covered bucket4 ,also water so drawn seldom needs to be iced4 ,in summer if there are signs of a thunder storm it is wise to open this same faucet4 ,it starts the pump and that automatically continues until the storage tank is full4 ,then1 if electric service is cut off by the storm1 the household will have ample water until the damage has been repaired4 ,if the country home owner happens to live beyond reach of an electric light system1 he can put in his own plant1 use a gasoline engine for motive power or even a hand pump4 ,a gasoline engine should1 of course1 be located in an outbuilding and the exhaust pipe must extend into open air because of the deadly fumes of carbon monoxide gas4 ,the hand pump is1 of course1 the simplest and there are several excellent ones to be had4 ,they are not as practical as they sound1 however4 ,when we first bought our own country place we installed a very good one as there was then no electricity in the locality4 ,it worked excellently--when any one could be found to man it4 ,handy men hired for odd jobs around the grounds took it on for a set sum per time4 ,the labor turnover was unprecedented4 ,one by one they either resigned within a week or somehow managed to forget all about that pumping job4 ,members of the family pressed into service straightway became ardent water savers1 and guests who volunteered gallantly somehow never1 never came again4 ,yet it was not an exhausting or complicated task4 ,it was simply so monotonous that it wore down the most phlegmatic nature4 ,so the rural householder will do well to remember that1 after all1 this is a machine age and govern himself accordingly4 ,as for the storage tank1 the modern practice is to place it under ground or in the cellar4 ,the old custom of putting it in the attic had distinct disadvantages when an overflow or a leak occurred and either stained the ceilings or sent them crashing down on furniture and possibly occupants of the rooms below4 ,the best water system1 however1 cannot cope with faucets thoughtlessly left running4 ,even the largest tank will eventually become empty and then there will be water for no one until the pump has replenished the supply4 ,waste not1 want not is an excellent motto for dwellers in the country1 especially where water is concerned4 ,,sewage ,,safety ,illustration ,,chapter ,x ,,sewage ,,safety ,among the problems which his miniature municipality brings to the country house owner is the unromantic but necessary one of sewage disposal4 ,in a suburban area it is merely a matter of connecting the house to the street main and paying higher taxes4 ,with the country house1 each owner must cope with the question for himself4 ,he cannot leave it to chance or delude himself that any old system will serve4 ,some hot ,august day when his house is filled with guests1 the makeshift disposal system will suddenly cease to function and an otherwise tactful guest will ask whether that queer smell is just part of the regular country air or what4 ,of course1 nobody thinks of disposing of household waste by piping it to a brook or letting it flow down a sandy side hill some distance from the house4 ,those were the methods of the ignorant and unscientific past4 ,the means of disposal recommended by sanitary experts are those in which the wastes undergo a bacterial fermentation which finally renders the sewage odorless and harmless4 ,it can be accomplished by a septic tank or a tight cesspool4 ,the latter with its two chambers is really a variety of the septic tank itself4 ,the first vault is built of stone or brick laid in mortar and covered with a coat of waterproof cement4 ,with both supply and overflow pipes below the normal level of the liquids1 beneficial fermentation takes place in this compartment before the liquids pass over into the second chamber from which they gradually seep into the ground4 ,such an installation calls for more excavation and construction than a septic tank and1 since it accomplishes nothing that cannot be done with the latter1 is only used where there is not enough ground area for the disposal fields of a septic tank4 ,the latter is an air-tight cylindrical or oblong container placed below ground1 in which raw sewage purifies itself by the inherent bacteria4 ,the first stage takes place within the tank and the second in the porous pipes that constitute the disposal fields4 ,from the moment household wastes enter the tank1 fermentation begins its work of reducing them from noisome sewage to harmless water4 ,both intake and outlet pipes extend below the level of the contents1 with a baffle plate across the center which prevents direct outward flow4 ,the heavy solids sink to the bottom and anaerobic bacteria1 which develop only where there is no oxygen1 breed rapidly and break these up so that they rise to the top and provide the ever present scum which excludes all air and stimulates fermentation of the entire content4 ,meanwhile1 liquid from the tank is flowing into the disposal fields1 which are porous land tile laid in shallow trenches and covered with earth and sod4 ,here some air is present and aerobic bacteria 7those which thrive where there is oxygen7 develop and complete the process of transforming the wastes into clear water4 ,installing such a system is neither expensive nor complicated4 ,the tank itself should be large enough to hold the sewage of a household for twenty-four hours4 ,it can be bought ready to install1 or built of brick or concrete4 ,ready-made tanks are to be had of steel1 concrete1 or vitrified tile4 ,we installed one of steel 7which is the cheapest7 some ten years ago and have found it most satisfactory4 ,when it was delivered1 two husky truck-men placed it at the edge of the pit prepared for it by the waiting plumber4 ,they exhibited some curiosity and the plumber explained briefly about the bacteria and its action4 ,you mean one of these here bugs is into it already8 asked one of them as he applied an awe-struck eye to the aperture in the top4 ,he apparently expected to find an insect akin to a full-size cockroach running around inside1 and either decided the light was poor or that the plumber was a first-class liar1 for he went off shaking his head doubtfully4 ,the size of tank and length of disposal field is entirely a matter of size of household4 ,on an average1 the daily volume can be reckoned on the basis of fifty gallons per person and1 for every fifty gallons of tank capacity1 there should be thirty feet of disposal field4 ,thus1 for a family of eight1 a tank of five hundred gallons' capacity connected with a disposal field of three hundred feet will be ample1 allowing for guests as well4 ,in installing this system1 the tank itself can be as near the house as ten or fifteen feet but the piping connecting it with the soil line of the plumbing should be water tight4 ,the best way is to use four-inch cast iron pipe1 calking all joints with oakum and lead4 ,at a convenient point between house and tank1 this line of pipe should have a clean-out fitting so that rags1 solidified grease1 or other substances that might block it can be removed4 ,sometimes vitrified tile with cemented joints is used instead of cast-iron pipe2 but it has the distinct disadvantage that1 if the rootlets of trees or large shrubs1 attracted by the water1 find so much as a pin hole in the cement1 they will grow through and finally clog the pipe4 ,from the tank to the disposal field1 the first three or four lengths of pipe should be glazed tile with tight cement joints4 ,from these on1 three or four inch porous land tile laid in shallow trenches is used4 ,for proper action1 the trenches of the field should be not over eighteen inches deep so that the warmth and evaporation of the sun may be effective4 ,also in digging these trenches1 there should be a slight grade away from the outlet of the tank4 ,an inch to every ten feet is adequate4 ,the bottom of the trenches is covered with a two-inch layer of medium-sized crushed stone or clean gravel4 ,on this rest the land tile1 and the joints are covered with roofing paper to prevent bits of stone or gravel from lodging within the pipe4 ,the latter is covered two inches deep with more stone or gravel and over all go lengths of roofing paper cut slightly wider than the trench so that1 when in place1 the paper arches and fits tightly to the sides4 ,the purpose of the stone or gravel is to facilitate water seepage from tile to ground while the roofing paper cover prevents silt from reducing the seepage4 ,at the terminus of each trench is a leaching pool1 built by digging a hole about three feet across and five feet deep4 ,it is filled with crushed stone or small rocks to the level of the trench piping4 ,over it1 before replacing the dirt1 goes another piece of roofing paper4 ,into these pools drain what water has not seeped away in flowing from the tank4 ,as can be seen from the foregoing description1 the fermentation and bacterial action that takes place in a properly built septic tank system is automatic and needs no attention1 although every second or third year it is advisable to remove the mud-like sediment from the tank4 ,otherwise1 the latter's capacity gradually diminishes4 ,the steps involved in building such a system are so simple that1 while the services of a plumber are advisable1 it is possible for an intelligent handy man to do the work4 ,be sure1 however1 that he realizes that each step is important and necessary4 ,we knew of one otherwise capable workman who calmly omitted the crushed stone and gravel in the tile trenches4 ,the system worked well for about four years4 ,then1 one warm and sticky day in ,july1 it ceased to function4 ,a plumber demonstrated that the tiles were clogged with silt because the bed of crushed stone had been forgotten4 ,for a week the house was sewerless while the careless short cut was remedied4 ,the household had but two alternatives1 take a vacation or go primitive4 ,however1 if a properly installed system fails to work1 the cause lies in what it has to digest4 ,too much grease or too strong antiseptic solutions will reduce or prevent proper fermentation4 ,waste grease should therefore go into the garbage can4 ,also1 strong doses of germ-killing solutions poured daily down sink-drains and toilets can put the hardiest septic tank out of action4 ,the remedy for such misguided sanitary efforts is simple4 ,turn on all the faucets in the house and so flush the tank thoroughly4 ,then pour down a toilet one or two pails of warm water in which a dozen cakes of yeast have been thoroughly dissolved4 ,the bacteria of the yeast will re-establish fermentation in the tank and all will be well if no further doses of disinfectants come along to interfere4 ,when one stops to consider1 the septic tank is a remarkably simple and effective means of being rid of household wastes odorlessly and without contamination4 ,of course1 such a system should be placed as far as possible from a water source and the disposal fields should not be located in a low1 damp ground4 ,the drier the soil1 the better4 ,incidentally1 a lawn which turns brown during the dry weather of summer can frequently be kept green if watered by such a method4 ,the lines of the disposal pipes can be laid in practically any pattern desired4 ,fan-shaped or with parallel laterals is a favorite one4 ,here the branches should be so spaced that they are six feet apart4 ,this will give plenty of surrounding earth to absorb the moisture4 ,in using this system1 there are two things to bear in mind4 ,the action that goes on within a septic tank will only dissolve paper of tissue grade4 ,therefore1 old bandages1 pieces of absorbent cotton1 and the like should go into the incinerator4 ,otherwise1 they will clog the system and a thorough cleaning will be imperative4 ,secondly1 the leaders which care for the water from the eaves cannot be connected to it1 as entirely too much water would flow into the tank during storms4 ,however1 there are several ways of taking care of the water shed by roofs during heavy or protracted rains4 ,in some localities where the supply of water is excessively hard or is so meager that it is not sufficient for all household purposes1 pipes from the eaves are connected with an underground cistern1 thus conserving the prized rain water4 ,otherwise1 the common practice is simply to equip leaders or down-spouts with quarter-bend sections at the lower ends to keep water away from the foundation4 ,this is a cheap and easy way2 but if the land does not slope away from the house enough so that this water drains rapidly1 pools and mud puddles are the result4 ,worse still1 water may filter through foundation walls and leave a small lake in the cellar after every heavy rain4 ,the disadvantages of the latter are obvious4 ,the remedy is a dry well for each down-spout4 ,they are simple and inexpensive1 being small pits dug six to ten feet away from foundation walls and reaching below the frost line4 ,they are filled to a depth of about two feet with broken stone1 fragments of brick1 or like material and connected with the down-spouts by glazed tile pipes4 ,a cover of roofing paper is added and the earth then replaced4 ,the rain water is thus absorbed below ground1 instead of being left to wear small gullies into an otherwise well-kept lawn4 ,sometimes the contour of land about the house is such that it resembles a relief map of the ,finger ,lake country after each heavy rain or spring freshet4 ,subsurface drainage is the answer4 ,in other words1 a line of land tile like the fields of the septic tank4 ,through it this mislocated water may drain into a dry well1 open ditch1 or the gutter along the highway4 ,several years ago1 highway improvement presented us with such a problem4 ,the road gang put in a culvert through which flowed the drainage from a hill on the opposite side of the road4 ,there was no redress from the ,town ,fathers4 ,technically ours was farm land and the established custom was that highway water could wander as it would and drain as natural slope dictated4 ,it was be flooded or do something4 ,a subsurface drain1 some fifty feet long and connected with the gutter of an intersecting road1 took care of the lawn4 ,for the rest of the water to which we were made heir by the same fit of highway betterment1 two local odd-job specialists dug an open trench across a little-used field4 ,it terminated at an old subsurface drainage line constructed years ago when some one1 who had the gift1 brought forth fine crops of corn1 potatoes1 and beans there4 ,there is another drainage problem that concerns mosquitoes1 most exasperating of all summer pests4 ,these insects fly but short distances4 ,marshy land and stagnant pools are their breeding places4 ,if the latter cannot be drained1 oil spraying is the alternative and that is work for a professional4 ,again an old rubbish heap1 replete with tin cans and other discards that will hold water1 offers more encouragement to mosquitoes than is generally realized4 ,cart all such rubbish away or bury it2 then you can drink your after-dinner coffee in peace on terrace or lawn1 or enjoy the coolness of evening dew after a blistering hot day in the city4 ,,decorations ,,and ,,furnishings ,illustration ,,chapter ,,xi ,,decorations ,,and ,,furnishings ,the decorations and furnishings of a house depend largely on its style of architecture and the owner's taste4 ,further1 if in any doubt1 it is better to do too little than too much4 ,under such circumstances1 too1 an interior decorator is helpful2 but don't dump your problem in her lap and take a trip somewhere4 ,when you return1 a beautifully decorated and furnished house1 correct in every detail1 may greet you4 ,there may even be a few pieces of the furniture you brought from the city home scattered about1 but it won't be your house because you will have done nothing except foot the bill4 ,homes evolve4 ,they are not pulled1 rabbit-like1 out of a hat4 ,when you build a house1 the architect makes it yours by getting a word picture of your ideas and pulling them down to earth in a series of business-like blueprints4 ,if your ideas regarding decoration are nebulous1 a good interior decorator can help to make them concrete4 ,do not depend on her completely1 however1 because you are anxious that this country home should be just right and you are afraid of making mistakes4 ,there is nothing final about them and it is better to make a few and have a place that seems like your own home1 rather than attain perfection and find your family wandering around the rooms with that impersonal1 slightly bored look worn by the average visitor to a perfect home display in a department store4 ,the early ,american was not afraid of color in his home4 ,his fondness for it is evidenced by #agth and #ahth century rooms on display in various museums throughout the country and in the growing number of house museums that have been restored to original condition4 ,looking at a few of these will help to crystallize your own ideas4 ,you will notice that their furnishings are by no means limited to the year in which they were built or even the century4 ,a good example of this is to be found in a late #agth century house museum1 known as ,marlpit ,hall1 located on ,kings ,highway1 ,middletown1 ,new ,jersey4 ,here two nationalities actually mingle1 since the exterior with its details of roof and gable windows and two-part doors show the ,dutch influence1 while the woodwork within is ,english in feeling4 ,it is not a very large house but every room has a different color scheme4 ,the restorers discovered the original colors and reproduced them2 now the old blue-green1 light pink1 apple green1 yellow1 tones of red1 and the like form a perfect background for the furnishings which date from late in the #agth century until well into the #ahth4 ,for instance1 in the dining room a gate-leg table of the ,puritan years has settled down comfortably with a set of ,windsor chairs that are probably a hundred years younger4 ,other rooms are furnished with ,william and ,mary and ,queen ,anne pieces so arranged as to appear to be waiting for the owners of ,marlpit ,hall1 in its heyday1 to come back4 ,upstairs are bedrooms with four-post beds of varying ages mingled with other furnishings that are in harmony1 though not necessarily of the same period4 ,this is a very fair example of an ,early ,american home where two or more generations were born1 lived1 and died4 ,in those days the average citizen did not discard his home furnishings just because they went out of style4 ,he moved them to less important rooms and bought as he could afford of new pieces made in the neatest and latest fashion4 ,the home owner today can well plan to use what he has1 making a few additions as he and his house become better acquainted4 ,if he has a number of ,oriental rugs and some member of his family has a fixed idea that those of the hooked variety are the only kind suitable for a country home1 let him buy one or two good hooked rugs1 in the interests of peace1 and lay them down with his ,orientals4 ,both will be found in harmony because both have the same basic idea1 skillful weaving of colors into a distinct but variegated pattern4 ,besides1 the ,american colonists1 industrious as they were1 did not depend solely on the work of their hands for floor coverings and other accessories4 ,oriental rugs or ,turkey carpets1 as they were then called1 were used here in the late #agth and early #ahth centuries4 ,they were popular in ,england1 also1 as is shown by ,hogarth's drawings4 ,in fact1 most house furnishings are surprisingly adaptable4 ,as with people1 it is largely a matter of bringing out their pleasing traits and subduing their unattractive aspects4 ,a quaint piece of bric-a-brac that was a misfit in the city apartment may look just right on the corner of the living room mantel in your country home4 ,the old spode platter that reposed almost forgotten on the top shelf of a closet may come into its own on the ,welsh dresser of your dining room4 ,the same holds with pictures1 mirrors1 and clocks4 ,as for furniture1 don't discard a comfortable piece that you like just because it doesn't seem to fit into the scheme of decoration4 ,a chair or a sofa that appears to quarrel violently with all other pieces in a room can often be made to conform by a change in upholstery1 or in cases of extreme ugliness1 with a slip cover of heavy chintz1 denim1 or rep4 ,you see that chair1 said one country house owner1 a few months after settling in his new home4 ,sallie has thrown out every stick of furniture we had when we first went to housekeeping except that4 ,she keeps moving it around from one spot to another but so far has kept it because ,i like a comfortable chair to drop down in when ,i come home at night4 ,if ,i find it gone some day ,i shall know it is time for me to move on also4 ,illustration3 ,,true ,,eighteenth ,,century ,,simplicity4 ,,now ,,the ,,author',s ,,dining ,,room ,photo by ,john ,runyon ,the piece was an average example of the overstuffed1 leather-upholstered era4 ,it is still part of the family furnishings but it has merged quietly and inoffensively with its better born companions4 ,plain muslin has taken the place of the leather and over it has been fitted a heavy slip cover of sage green rep4 ,no one exclaims over its beauty but everybody sits in it1 even the most ardent admirer of the delicate ,hepplewhite side chair standing nearby4 ,this brings us to the question of whether the additions in furniture should be antiques1 reproductions1 or modern pieces4 ,again1 this depends on the type of house and the taste of those who occupy it4 ,the person who buys or builds the salt box or similar type of cottage will naturally want the furnishings in keeping4 ,consciously or unconsciously1 he will lean towards antiques4 ,further1 those that look best in the #ahth or early #aith century farm cottage are not necessarily expensive4 ,simple pine pieces1 made by the village cabinet-maker or1 sometimes1 by an ingenious farmer in his leisure hours2 ,windsor and slat-back chairs2 low four-post beds2 trestle or tuckaway tables2 even an occasional ,victorian piece2 all1 if on simple lines1 fit into such a house as though made for it4 ,one of the many advantages of furnishing with antiques is that there is nothing final about them4 ,if you buy a piece at a proper price and after due time do not like it or it fails to fit into your decorative scheme1 you can sell for as much as you paid for it and often a little more4 ,on the other hand1 new furniture or reproductions become merely second-hand pieces as soon as you have bought and put them to use4 ,only at distinct financial loss can you change them in six months or a year for others4 ,that is a good commercial reason for the growing tendency to furnish with antiques4 ,we believe1 however1 that the real reason is the effect of individuality gained by the use of pieces made by old craftsmen a century or more ago when things were built to last and mass production and obsolescence were unknown terms4 ,several years ago1 a family bought a house of the type prevalent in the region of ,cape ,cod1 ,massachusetts1 as a summer shack for three or four months in the year4 ,the floors with their wide boards were simply scrubbed1 waxed1 and left in the natural tone taken on by old wood in the course of a hundred and fifty years4 ,all trim and paneling were painted a soft apple green1 and walls and ceilings throughout were calcimined a deep cream color4 ,curtains of unbleached muslin were hung at the small1 many-paned windows4 ,the furnishings came out of the attic of their ,boston home where the contents of a great-grandfather's ,new ,hampshire farmhouse had been stored4 ,these were the average accumulation of family possessions from the turn of the #aith century down through the ,civil ,war period4 ,there was a pine tavern table1 #agth century in feeling but made nearly two hundred years later4 ,it had been used in the summer kitchen and bore the scars of harsh treatment4 ,a skillful cabinet-maker restored it to a condition suitable for a dining table4 ,at this point1 the antiquarian of the family spoke wistfully of some nice little rod-back ,windsors that ,cousin ,julie made off with when the old homestead was broken up some twenty years and how they would be just right for dining room chairs here4 ,but all were agreed that the attic contents were to furnish forth the ,cape ,cod cottage with no unnecessary additions4 ,here were eight cane-seated chairs of the late ,empire years4 ,four had been painted a dirty brown to simulate black walnut2 four represented the white enamel blight which1 in turn1 had chipped enough to display the grained painting of the golden oak years beneath4 ,a scraper applied to a leg revealed the mellow tone of honey-colored maple4 ,patience and paint remover did the rest4 ,brought up in the natural finish1 they blended beautifully with the old pine table and have been much admired4 ,yet they were only near-antiques1 made by early factory methods about #ahej4 ,so it went4 ,old pine bureaus1 an under-eaves bed1 one or two four-posters1 late but with simple urn-shaped finials and still covered with the old ,new ,england red filler1 two or three cherry light stands1 and several slat-back chairs went far towards furnishing the bedrooms4 ,the living room1 in spite of two or three good tables and ladder-back and ,windsor armchairs1 appeared to be threatened with a warring element in the shape of a red plush ,victorian sofa and matching armchair4 ,both were ugly but comfortable4 ,chintz slip covers changed them from blatant monstrosities to background blending items of hominess4 ,skillful grouping1 plenty of color1 and simplicity produced a highly pleasing whole that caused more than one guest to exclaim1 ,these things look as though they grew in the house4 ,yet there was not a piece of museum quality in the lot4 ,many of them could not even be classed as antiques4 ,they were simply the kind of things that the original owner of the house and his descendants would have been apt to accumulate and use through the years4 ,but it is those plus the associations1 real or imaginary1 that make the difference between a home and a house4 ,the original owner could1 of course1 have owned finer pieces such as a butterfly table1 a maple or cherry highboy1 a high-post bed with hangings of crewel-work1 a small curly maple and mahogany sideboard1 various chests of drawers and light stands made of cherry and neatly ornamented with inlay4 ,country cabinet-makers were as fine artists as those who catered to the urban taste but their public was satisfied with simple pieces and they wrought accordingly4 ,calcimined walls and near-antique furnishings are1 naturally1 not the only means of producing a homey effect4 ,their chief merit lies in the fact that they are effective1 inexpensive1 and easily changed4 ,no matter how pleasing the tone1 plain calcimined walls will probably pall after a while1 but by that time the home owner will know whether paper or paint is the better treatment4 ,with an old house1 either is historically correct4 ,the earliest were1 of course1 primitive affairs with walls of rough plaster or feather-board paneling in natural wood color4 ,by the #ahth century1 paint was already being used for decorating both4 ,here the wall treatment was not limited to a plain color but was varied by stencil designs4 ,a geometric pattern was usual4 ,then came wall papers of geometric or scenic design4 ,thus1 it is for the householder to decide just what manner of decoration he wishes to live with4 ,for instance1 a paneled room may be finished in the natural wood or painted4 ,the latter was customary in colonial days as life became easier and money more plentiful4 ,personally we consider painted paneling1 trim1 and other woodwork pleasanter and less monotonous to live with day in and day out but that is a matter of individual taste4 ,in the last analysis it is not what his neighbor likes1 it is what the home owner himself wants to live with that really matters4 ,in choosing wall paper1 one is limited by the type and size of room to be so decorated4 ,you may have a weakness for the old ,french scenic papers depicting1 in large squares1 historic or sporting events4 ,these are most effective in the large central halls of the more formal country home but produce a distinctly odd appearance in the tiny1 low-ceilinged rooms of the story-and-a-half farmhouse4 ,here small patterns and designs that tend to make the rooms look larger must rule4 ,over-fussy curtains and draperies at the windows should also be avoided4 ,we well remember an otherwise charming little place where the use of color and type of furnishings was most skillful4 ,one experienced a curious sense of gloom and stuffiness1 though1 even at midday4 ,a glance at the windows explained it4 ,they were of the #ahth century farmhouse type and into their #db by #bh inch dimensions had been crowded the modern roller shade1 fussy ruffled dimity curtains and heavily lined chintz draperies surmounted by a six-inch valance6 ,with all these1 the aperture left for light and air was limited indeed4 ,an able interior decorator could have controlled the over-zealous drapery buyer or she could have found out for herself by a little independent study of proper window treatment for a house of that type4 ,in other words1 whatever the kind of house1 remember that windows are intended to let in light and air4 ,both constitute excellent reasons for living in the country4 ,proper curtains and draperies lend a softening and pleasing effect but1 as in a stage setting1 they are only props and must not be allowed to dominate the scene4 ,further1 in furnishing or decorating any house it is an excellent idea to try and visualize the type of furnishings two or three generations living there would normally have accumulated4 ,we have already alluded at some length to the farm cottage type because1 like the common people1 they are more numerous4 ,but in the old country neighborhoods there was nearly always the man of affairs who knew how to make money and was prone to build a house as handsome as his purse could afford4 ,he was the squire of his vicinity and his house surpassed all others in size and ornamental detail4 ,if you have acquired such a house1 its furnishings must be in accord4 ,handsome antiques and ambitious reproductions go well in such a setting4 ,or it may be that your fancy runs to an ultra modern structure with interior decorations and furnishings in keeping4 ,your house is then its own ancestor and only time will determine whether such a scheme wears well4 ,whatever you choose1 take the furnishings best suited1 arrange them as pleases you1 and proceed to live with them4 ,if you like the general effect and are one of those people who like things to stay put1 probably one can enter your living room fifteen years hence and find the wing chair from the ,maritime ,provinces still standing in the northeast corner with a small tavern table on the right2 the hooked rug with geometric center still in front of the fireplace2 the ,sheraton table with mirror over it at its accustomed place between the two south windows2 and so forth4 ,on the other hand1 if you are of the restless type1 instead of throwing everything out and beginning over again1 you will have periodic attacks of rearranging1 realigning certain accessories1 adding something new1 or discarding some item bought in an emergency for something more in keeping with your changing ideas or manner of living4 ,we confess that this is one of our pleasantest pastimes4 ,it takes very little to start us off4 ,an old ,pennsylvania ,dutch cupboard1 stripped down to the original blue and inducted into an apple-green dining room1 obviously calls for a fine orgy with paint and whitewash2 a gilded ,sheraton mirror or another oil painting involves general commotion and often complete rearrangement of the living room4 ,all this is very painful for those who don't like change2 but1 for us1 it helps to answer the question so often propounded by innocent city visitors1 ,what do you do with yourselves in such a quiet spot8 ,,the ,,factory ,,part ,,of ,,the ,,house ,illustration ,,chapter ,,xii ,,the ,,factory ,,part ,,of ,,the ,,house ,the ,early ,american kitchen was the most important room in the house4 ,here the family spent most of its waking hours4 ,here the food was cooked1 served1 and eaten2 the spinning and weaving done2 the candles for lighting the house poured into molds4 ,it was the warmest room in winter and around its hearth the family gathered both for work and recreation4 ,cheerful and pleasant it undoubtedly was1 but there was little idea of making work easy or saving steps4 ,today we may furnish our living rooms in the #ahth century manner1 put #agth century dressers in our dining rooms1 and hang ,betty lamps and other quaint devices around the fireplace2 but when it comes to the kitchen1 we step forward into the #bjth century and are well content4 ,we have heard of enthusiasts who occasionally cook an entire meal in a fireplace and insist that it is far superior to any done by modern methods2 but even these devotees of old ways pale at the thought of three meals a day1 three hundred and sixty-five days in the year1 so prepared4 ,today's kitchen1 stripped of accessories and talking points1 is essentially a laboratory where semi-prepared food stuffs are processed for consumption4 ,the automobile industry has demonstrated to the nation what remarkable things can be done by having labor conditions and proper tools on a logical train of production4 ,with no waste of human effort1 no running back and forth1 work starts at one end of the assembly chain1 and off the other1 in about two hours1 comes a new car4 ,in the same way1 a properly planned kitchen eliminates waste steps and1 with plenty of light and air1 becomes a pleasant place to work4 ,in this domestic laboratory1 one expects1 of course1 to find a cook stove of some sort1 a sink1 a refrigerator1 a kitchen cabinet or compounding bench1 a table1 and plenty of storage space4 ,with the assembly idea in mind1 have these so planned that the work of cooking three meals a day progresses logically from the service or delivery entrance to the doorway of the dining room4 ,be sure1 too1 that added working space is available in the event of dinner parties or larger forms of entertainment4 ,the saving on tempers1 fine china1 and glass will be well worth it4 ,in other words1 have this most important working room compact but not too small4 ,as an example we cite another of our own errors in judgment4 ,having been brought up in a house with a large old-fashioned kitchen where the luckless cook walked miles in performing her culinary duties1 we went to the other extreme4 ,the room originally designed for the kitchen with its large old fireplace and sunny southern exposure was immediately chosen for the dining room4 ,directly back of it was the old pantry which1 without benefit of architectural advice1 we decided to fit up as a kitchen4 ,it was a good idea except for the fact that the room was really too small1 especially for the type of hospitality that rules in the country4 ,to be sure1 by moving a partition a little and by remodeling a small lean-to that adjoined it1 sufficient storage and working space was added to make conditions tolerable2 but it is at best a makeshift and the answer is1 eventually1 a properly designed service wing1 architecturally in keeping with the #ahth century but mechanically modern4 ,even under these makeshift conditions1 however1 the assembly idea has been followed and this somewhat mitigates the drawback of contracted space4 ,the most important tool in a kitchen is obviously the cooking range4 ,here the country dweller has a choice of bottled gas1 electricity1 or oil as fuels4 ,what he decides to use may depend on personal preference1 availability1 or cost of installing and operating4 ,where service is dependable and a reasonable cooking rate prevails1 there is no better method of cooking than by electricity4 ,clean1 odorless and easily regulated1 its advantages are obvious4 ,but no electric light and power company can afford to run its cables underground in the country4 ,the service lines are on poles and extend over a large area4 ,nature has no regard for the convenience of either the company or its patrons4 ,a thunderbolt may knock out a transformer1 or a tree may be blown down and carry nearby electric lines with it4 ,repair men are continually on the job with a well-run company and work speedily and faithfully but they cannot be everywhere at once4 ,service may be interrupted for ten minutes or for several hours4 ,in such emergencies1 it is well to have a stop gap1 such as an inexpensive two-burner oil stove4 ,it may not be used more than twice a year but it is there when needed4 ,the devotees of the tank gas method of cooking are many4 ,it works the same as gas from city mains except that your supply is piped in from an individual tank which is installed outside the house and replenished monthly by the company supplying such fuel4 ,the initial cost plus installation and operation about equals that of electricity but no cataclysm of nature will cause it to fail4 ,cheapest of all is the kerosene oil stove4 ,these range all the way from the modest two-burner table stove to the pretentious six-burner type with insulated oven and porcelain finish4 ,gasoline burning ranges are also to be had on this order4 ,the initial cost of even the most elaborate oil or gasoline stove is considerably less than for one designed for either electricity or bottled gas and the expense of operation is also less4 ,but they have certain disadvantages4 ,with the best of management there is a slight odor4 ,if out of adjustment they smoke or go out and they are unpleasant to clean4 ,further1 although we struggled with one for seven years1 we never found any satisfactory means of broiling meat with oil as a fuel4 ,no family relishes the idea of having porterhouse or sirloin steaks taken right out of their lives1 so some other device is necessary1 such as a charcoal broiler or the old-fashioned1 long-handled broiler held over the fireplace coals or1 in winter1 those of the furnace4 ,one may argue brightly that meat cooked by these primitive methods has a superior flavor1 but it is definitely veering away from the assembly idea and most certainly does not make for harmony in the kitchen4 ,if a charcoal broiler is employed1 somehow it never reaches the proper state of incandescence at the right time4 ,if the fireplace is the scene of operation1 it is invariably a roaring inferno at the time the steak should be cooked4 ,one waits for the desired bed of coals1 of course1 while ominous head shakings and rumblings from the kitchen proclaim that the rest of the dinner is done1 is dried up1 is ruined4 ,twenty years ago coal or wood burning stoves were usual in country homes4 ,they were disagreeable to tend and in summer made an uncomfortably hot kitchen4 ,but that same heat was most acceptable in winter weather4 ,for a kitchen not too well heated by the main house system1 there are ranges that combine coal and electricity4 ,thus1 in winter they serve the double purpose of a cooking tool and heat producing unit and also help reduce the electric light bill at the season of the year when it tends to be heaviest4 ,illustration3 ,,entirely ,,new1 ,,but ,,with ,,all ,,the ,,charm ,,of ,,an ,,old ,,house ,robertson ,ward1 architect4 ,photo by ,samuel ,h4 ,gottscho ,where electricity is available1 the problem of refrigeration is simple4 ,of course1 the initial cost of a good electric refrigerator may easily be more than double that of the ordinary icebox1 but the cost of operation is very small and food losses are materially cut down4 ,the old method of refrigeration calls for only a moderate outlay for a box1 but delivering ice three or four times a week to the average country home involves heavy overhead for the local ice dealer and he must therefore charge accordingly4 ,if one must depend on ice1 however1 there is an improved box now on the market so constructed that it needs to be filled but once a week4 ,it operates on much the same principle as the mechanical box as far as keeping an even temperature is concerned4 ,with the various storage cupboards1 closets1 and cabinets that make up the furnishings of this culinary assembly plant1 there are sundry built-in units1 widely pictured1 written about1 and advertised4 ,what type you will have is a matter of personal taste4 ,the main thing is to be sure they are well built and conveniently located4 ,the kitchen sink may also be of any type you prefer but let there be light where it is hung4 ,a window directly over it will make for cleaner dishes as well as less breakage4 ,another ounce of prevention for the latter is considered by many to be the sink lined with monel metal4 ,it is fairly soft and yielding so that a cup or plate is not readily shattered if accidentally dropped in it4 ,with porcelain sinks1 one may use a rubber mat designed for the purpose or one can be careful4 ,if the service wing plans do not include a laundry1 a set tub with cover forming one of the drain boards is practical for the occasional small pieces washed at home4 ,along with the sink may be installed an electric dishwasher1 depending1 of course1 on whether the family considers its benefits equal to the expense involved4 ,if mother is to do the work1 it may be warranted2 but where her efforts are limited to one or two sketchy meals on ,thursdays and ,sunday evenings1 one might well interview the person who is monitor of the service wing the bulk of the time4 ,dishwashers1 cake mixers1 complicated fruit juice extractors1 and similar gadgets are all excellent but they are not essential4 ,many servants do not even want them4 ,a few years ago we tried to introduce an orange squeezer designed to hang on the wall and operate somewhat on the principle of a pencil sharpener4 ,we showed it to our houseman who regarded it glumly4 ,i'll try to use it if you insist1 he finally said1 but ,i can work faster with that glass one from the ten cent store4 ,these little playthings are all right but you can seldom get the help to use them4 ,a kitchen should be well equipped with standard implements and cooking utensils1 but before putting in expensive labor-saving devices one should be sure that they really save work and that the proposed operator will appreciate them enough to make their purchase advisable4 ,the essentials of a kitchen are plenty of light and air2 enough space for working under all conditions2 well arranged and adequate equipment2 pleasing1 easily cleaned wall surfaces and floor2 and plenty of hot water4 ,there are several methods of obtaining an adequate supply of the latter4 ,it is automatically taken care of where the house is heated by an oil burning system4 ,with a coal burning steam or hot water plant1 there is now a cylinder that can be attached to the boiler below the water level4 ,in it there is a coil of copper pipe through which circulates the domestic hot water supply4 ,this works admirably4 ,there is always a sufficient supply but it is never so overheated as to scald the heedless person who plunges a hand under a boiling stream of water4 ,during the warm months1 however1 a supplementary means of heating water must be at hand4 ,electric water heating1 again1 involves the least supervision and is to be recommended if one can get a low enough rate4 ,the initial expense is a sizable item1 though2 and if operated at the usual rate per kilowatt hour1 the monthly charge can easily be double that of other fuels4 ,but many companies make a special rate for such devices and under such circumstances the operating costs compare favorably with those of coal and oil4 ,another excellent device is the little coal stove built especially for the purpose4 ,it requires only a small amount of fuel daily but1 of course1 must be faithfully tended4 ,this type of stove may also be adapted for burning range oil4 ,here the drudgery of shoveling in coal and taking out ashes is replaced by that of daily filling the two-gallon oil tank that feeds it1 periodic cleaning of wicks and burners1 and consistent adjusting of burner and draft to meet changing weather conditions4 ,there are also the kerosene oil heaters having a copper coil through which the water circulates in heating4 ,these may or may not be equipped with an automatic attachment4 ,they likewise require daily filling and occasional cleaning of both wick and copper coil4 ,they are easier to adjust than the other variety but the action of the blue flame on the copper coil causes a slight disintegration which over a long period of time may cause a leak4 ,when that happens no mending is possible1 not even of a temporary nature4 ,the family goes without hot water until a new coil is put in or a complete new heater substituted4 ,obsolescence is a term high in favor with ,american industry2 and only too often when one goes seeking a new part for a machine with a decade of good service to its credit1 one is met with1 ,oh1 we don't make that model any more4 ,we might be able to locate a stray coil but it would take about two or three weeks4 ,the disgusted home owner naturally goes out and buys another kind of heater1 one without a copper coil4 ,whether or not a laundry is part of the service wing depends1 of course1 on how much of that type of work is to be done at home4 ,there are two points of view here4 ,some households prefer to scoop the family linen into a bag1 make a list1 and hand it over to a commercial laundry4 ,others find a dependable laundress nearby or provide facilities for doing the work at home4 ,the clear air of the country and easy drying conditions influence many towards the latter course4 ,like the kitchen1 the room set aside for this purpose should have good light and air as well as easily cleaned wall and floor surfaces4 ,there should be at least two tubs as well as a washing machine and a small ironing machine4 ,there should also be space provided for indoor drying of clothes since1 even in the country1 a week of stormy weather is not unheard of4 ,some kind of a stove is also necessary for any needed boiling of clothes1 making starch1 or the like4 ,servants' quarters should be cheerful1 light1 airy in summer and comfortably warm in winter4 ,they may be part of the service wing2 they may be on a separate floor of the main section of the house2 or1 if the garage is part of the house1 located over that4 ,for best results they should not be in too close proximity to the rest of the family4 ,in the country1 servants are more confined to the scene of their labors than in the city4 ,consequently they need and like a certain amount of privacy as well as a place to relax and see their friends4 ,in addition to bedrooms and bath1 a sitting room of some kind is most practical4 ,it need not be large or expensively furnished4 ,a few comfortable chairs1 a table or two1 possibly a desk and a good reading lamp will suffice4 ,a small radio also adds to the general contentment4 ,in summer if the service wing boasts a screened porch so much the better4 ,if not1 some shady nook or arbor nearby where they may rest or read during their spare time may mark the difference between sullen service1 frequent change of personnel1 and the perfect servant who remains year after year4 ,,pets ,,and ,,livestock ,illustration ,,chapter ,,xiii ,,pets ,,and ,,livestock ,few country households are content with a bowl of goldfish4 ,something a little more responsive is demanded where the peace and quiet of nature press so close4 ,a cat to drowse on the hearth or catch an occasional mouse2 a dog to accompany one on walks and greet the head of the house ecstatically each evening2 these1 of course1 are the most obvious and popular pets4 ,both can be and are kept in city apartments and suburban homes but their natural habitat is the open country4 ,whether one or both become part of your household is1 of course1 a matter of personal inclination4 ,there are those who have an intense aversion for cats4 ,there are fanatical bird lovers who argue that because they once knew a cat which killed a bird1 the entire feline family should be wiped out4 ,however1 from the number of sleek specimens seen dozing on porch or terrace through the countryside1 it is safe to assume that the average household harbors at least one cat4 ,there is no room here for a treatise on why people keep cats4 ,besides1 we do not know4 ,we only know that cats were always about the place when we were young and that some sixteen years ago we rescued a half starved ,maltese kitten from a city pavement and kept her until she died of old age about a year ago4 ,she had beautiful green eyes and a very short temper4 ,she also upset several preconceived theories4 ,one is that a cat is attached to a place rather than people and that it is difficult if not impossible to take it along when moving to an old place4 ,our cat was approaching middle age when we acquired our country home4 ,yet after a few inquiring meows and a minute inspection of the new place1 she settled down contentedly4 ,further1 during the years that followed1 she made at least two trips a year to the city for sojourns of varying lengths4 ,inquiry among other cat owners has revealed that this is not at all extraordinary4 ,in fact1 this type of animal can become just as attached to its owner as the more flattering and responsive dog4 ,nor do all cats kill birds4 ,the average house cat is too indolent to hunt anything4 ,our own imperfect but individualistic animal was a mighty hunter of field mice but showed little or no interest in the birds flying about above her4 ,they have built their nests for years in arbor and summer house unmolested4 ,but a real killer of birds is hard to dissuade4 ,one can of course remove the bird from its jaws and administer a sound whipping but it is by no means certain that anything much is accomplished by so doing4 ,one cannot argue with a cat4 ,he is the one animal man has not been able to subdue4 ,possibly therein lies his fascination4 ,also1 barring a few bad habits1 he is little trouble and is a distinct ornament4 ,the dog can be a faithful companion or the worst pest on earth4 ,which he is1 depends on his environment and training4 ,he may be had in many breeds and sizes from the most expensive and delicate specimens down to the mongrel with a ,league of ,nations ancestry4 ,incidentally1 the most benign and intelligent of dogs is often some middle-aged hound of doubtful lineage who can tell your blue ribbon winner how to get about in the canine circles of the countryside4 ,pick the breed you prefer but have it in scale with your place4 ,you may have had a secret longing for a ,st4 ,bernard or a ,great ,dane but if you have settled your family in a little saltbox house1 it is going to be a little crowded when something only slightly smaller than a ,shetland pony starts padding restlessly up and down stairs or flings his weary length down in the middle of the living room rug where you must walk around or over him to turn on the radio or answer the telephone4 ,one member of our family has always wanted a cheetah or hunting leopard4 ,this desire is likely to go unfulfilled4 ,these beasts are easily domesticated and are gentle and affectionate4 ,they appear to have the best characteristics of both cat and dog4 ,they are no more expensive than many a thoroughbred dog4 ,yet we shall not have one4 ,not only is the climate of ,westchester ,county1 ,new ,york1 too unlike that of their native ,india for them to thrive1 but consider the task of soothing terrified tradesmen and casual visitors4 ,one may explain that although appearances are against him he is not really a leopard but just an overgrown cat4 ,they will not believe it4 ,they will not even hear because they will be a mile down the road4 ,other people must be considered even in the country4 ,so pick your dog and train him up in the way he should go4 ,you may prefer one of the terrier breeds4 ,they are bright and lively and make good pets but must be taught not to dig holes in the carefully groomed lawn4 ,it is as natural for them to delve for underground animals as for a setter or spaniel to flush birds4 ,retrievers are usually gentle1 well disposed animals and not only make good pets but are excellent in a family where hunting is a diversion4 ,very popular just now in this class are the spaniels1 especially the cockers4 ,they have beauty1 an affectionate disposition1 are most intelligent and are excellent watch dogs4 ,they fit into nearly any household large or small4 ,with the larger dogs there is1 of course1 the collie as well as his ancestor the old-fashioned shepherd4 ,here we would say a good word for a much-maligned dog1 the police or ,german shepherd4 ,only recently since the ,seeing ,eye has demonstrated their keen intelligence and sense of responsibility in guiding their blind owners1 have they begun to come into their own again4 ,even now there is an impression abroad in the land that they1 like the timber wolf they so much resemble but are not descended from1 are sly treacherous brutes with a particular delight in taking a piece out of the unwary stranger4 ,it is true that when first brought to this country they had no little trouble in adapting themselves to conditions here4 ,in their native ,germany they were what their name implies and as working dogs covered miles daily4 ,they ate coarse food and slept in the open either on the ground itself or a small heap of straw4 ,obviously such a dog cannot be shut up in cramped quarters and given almost no exercise without his disposition being somewhat affected4 ,they are highly intelligent animals and for the country dweller with two or more acres1 make affectionate and satisfactory pets4 ,they have a keen sense of guardianship1 are fine watch dogs and show but little tendency to roam4 ,the latter is an excellent trait for if you wish to remain on moderately pleasant terms with your neighbors1 train your dog or dogs to stay home4 ,worrying the cat of the man who lives just at the bend in the road to the south1 or killing the chickens of the neighbor to the north1 will not aid in establishing friendly relations4 ,barking at passing cars is not commendable nor is the tipping over of a neighbor's garbage can and scattering the contents about4 ,these are bad habits and should be corrected if your pet is to be any real comfort to you4 ,patient and intelligent training will mark the difference between a friendly well-mannered dog and a spoiled brute that even your most humane friends yearn to cuff4 ,when it comes to the matter of other livestock in this venture of farming-in-the-little1 the new owner is either treading unknown or forgotten ground4 ,dogs and cats1 even canaries and white rats1 were familiar enough in the city4 ,he has read books on their care and training4 ,he has consulted veterinarians and fanciers but until now the sources of his daily bottle of milk or his carton of graded eggs have been matters of indifference4 ,the venture with livestock may begin with chickens and end with saddle horses1 but it is nothing for the uninitiate to enter into lightly or unadvisedly4 ,personally1 we prefer to let the farmer down at the end of the lane wrestle with the recalcitrant hen and temperamental cow4 ,he has summered and wintered with them for years and knows the best and the worst of them4 ,if there is a way to make them worth their keep1 he knows it4 ,if his cow generously gives twelve quarts of milk and we can use but two1 it is no concern of ours what becomes of the other ten4 ,for the country dweller1 who feels that life is not complete without livestock of some sort and follows that by acquiring a barnyard menagerie1 we would recommend that he enter upon his course cautiously4 ,this is assuming that he knows little or nothing of farming either by theory or practice4 ,if1 on the other hand1 he has been reared on a farm1 he understands perfectly how to care for the various animals and the labor entailed in doing so4 ,he is in no need of any admonition from us1 and who are we to offer it8 ,but for the average person who is just beginning his experiment in country living1 a few chickens are suggested for the initial attempt4 ,there are two ways to embark on this4 ,with either1 it is well to subscribe to a good farm journal4 ,consult that or the farmer down the road as to breed4 ,as rank outsiders we suggest a well established and hardy kind4 ,then1 the easiest way for the novice would probably be to buy full-grown chickens that are just beginning to lay4 ,they are old enough to know their way about and any dry1 well ventilated shelter that is proof against thieving skunks1 weasels and similar wild life1 will be adequate for them along with a chicken run with a high enough fence to keep them within bounds4 ,for this type of fowl is no respecter of property4 ,not only does it take delight in working havoc with its owner's flower beds and borders but those of his neighbor as well4 ,they also eat incessantly4 ,the optimistic friend who has never kept chickens1 but thinks it a marvelous idea1 will tell you that scraps from the table will take care of all that and even save you the garbage collector's fee4 ,such a person is still living back in the #ahij's when food was cheap and seven course dinners and hearty suppers were the rule4 ,today's orange skins and banana peels are no diet even for a chicken4 ,so1 one must buy feed for them4 ,this should be offset in a measure by the eggs normally laid by well-fed and tended pullets4 ,also as time goes on and setting hens hatch chickens1 which in turn become eventually broilers or fresh producers of eggs1 according to results you will decide whether or not you want to continue in the chicken business4 ,another method widely advocated is to buy week-old chicks from a mail order house or other firm dealing in such stock and bring them up without aid of a mother hen to gather them under her wings4 ,here a brooder is necessary since the chicks are of tender age and must be kept warm4 ,these brooders are of varying sizes and prices and may be had from the same mail order houses that are glad to sell the chicks as well4 ,this is more complicated than the other old-fashioned method but a little guidance from some one understanding the procedure along with consistent care on your part will probably bring a majority of your brood to broiler size4 ,taking on a cow to support is a much more serious thing4 ,not only does a well-bred1 tuberculin-tested animal cost a fair sum to acquire1 but she must be comfortably housed in a clean1 comfortable cow barn4 ,bulletins from the ,department of ,agriculture will give the requirements not only for her shelter but for her proper care4 ,she needs at least two acres of pasturage and this can't be all stones and bushes4 ,she must be milked morning and evening without fail and at regular hours by some one who knows how4 ,she must be groomed4 ,her stable must be cleaned regularly4 ,when the yearly calf is born one must sit up nights with her4 ,all this1 if she is to remain in good condition4 ,in gratitude for it she will give milk1 three or four times as much as a small household can consume4 ,possibly a market can be found for this excess or one can turn to butter making and add a pig to the barnyard family4 ,even this accommodating scavenger cannot live by skim milk alone but must have it augmented by corn or prepared feed4 ,he must also have proper shelter and a run4 ,thus does one thing lead to another1 once one gets beyond the chicken stage of farming4 ,it is obviously nothing for the daily commuter to attempt unless he is prepared to pay for the services of a competent hired man4 ,farming even on the smallest scale is a full-time job in itself4 ,the tired business man will find it a toil or a pleasure4 ,the daily chores involved are relentless and unending4 ,a business appointment in town is no excuse for their non-fulfillment4 ,they must be done at a regular time1 if not by you by some one else4 ,of course1 with a family where there are three or more small children1 keeping a cow can be both practical and economical4 ,with the normal table and cooking uses the milk given can be consumed without difficulty4 ,further1 the expense of maintaining would probably fall much below the monthly milk bill under such circumstances4 ,for this purpose1 select one of the ,jersey or ,guernsey breed which gives rich milk rather than quantity4 ,for the family that can afford and enjoy saddle horses1 it is pleasant to have them1 but with their advent the country home becomes still more complicated4 ,there must be a stable with somebody to tend and groom the horses4 ,they must be exercised too1 which means systematic riding rather than an occasional canter on just the ideal day4 ,also with even one horse1 if a need for economy arises it is not always easy to dispense with him4 ,he is flesh and blood and1 humanely1 you cannot just sell him to the first buyer who presents himself4 ,you must be assured that your mount will be well-treated and not abused4 ,we have known of several instances where a number of excellent saddle horses were given away by owners1 who felt that they could no longer afford to buy their oats and hay1 but wanted to be sure the animals would be well cared for4 ,so1 before acquiring horses1 contemplate the up-keep and make sure you are prepared to maintain them whether business is good1 bad1 or indifferent4 ,for the first year or two a much wiser course is to turn to the neighborhood riding stable and rent4 ,these have become standard institutions in many vicinities and they frequently afford not only excellent mounts but sound teaching for those who know little or nothing about the finer points of riding4 ,,tightening ,,for ,,winter ,illustration ,,chapter ,,xiv ,,tightening ,,for ,,winter ,the wolf of winter was the arresting phrase originated several years ago by no less a practitioner of the art of advertising than ,bruce ,barton1 to drive home the merits of adequate domestic heating4 ,but no matter how efficient your heating system may be1 unless the country home has been made ready for the cold months1 insufficient heat and excessive fuel bills result4 ,against this1 there are a number of simple things the home owner may do himself or have done4 ,nobody begrudges money spent for fuel that keeps the house at a comfortable1 even temperature4 ,in the days when six dollars bought a ton of the best anthracite coal and the pea and buckwheat sizes were sold as waste products1 it may have been a matter of small importance that certain spots in a house leaked heat and let in cold4 ,besides1 in an era when windows closed tightly with the first cold blasts of fall and remained so until spring1 such ventilation was probably a life saver4 ,but at the present high prices for either coal or fuel oil1 these points about the house where heat is lost and winter cold crashes the gate should be taken seriously4 ,with a new house1 of course1 everything possible in the nature of built-in metal weatherstripping and thoroughly insulated exterior walls were included by the architect when he prepared plans and specifications4 ,but even he may have ignored one of the most practical means of conserving warmth4 ,this is a set of storm windows and doors carefully fitted so they open and shut at will1 yet are snug enough so that little cold penetrates4 ,these are remarkable conservers of heat4 ,measured scientifically1 the amount that escapes by radiation through ordinary window glass is amazing4 ,the storm window reduces this to a minor percentage because the dead-air space between the two thicknesses of glass acts as an efficient means of insulation4 ,storm doors and windows are now made in stock dimensions that fit practically any frame4 ,quantity production has made their price so moderate that the saving on fuel for a single winter can exceed their initial cost and the labor of fitting and putting them in place4 ,such windows and doors should be properly marked1 like the screens that replace them in summer1 with numbering tacks so that1 each fall1 they may be put in proper place without confusion4 ,the system is simplicity itself4 ,a duplicate tack bears the same number on the sill of each window and on the upright of each door4 ,this is a real saver of time1 for so small a variation as half an inch in width or height can make the difference between doors and windows that really fit and those that leak air4 ,such proportions vary even with a new house4 ,the only requisite for such a complement of double doors and windows is a proper place to store them during the summer months4 ,being largely of glass1 if they are not put away carefully1 the breakage can be both annoying and needlessly expensive4 ,so it is well to provide a special compartment1 located in the garage or other convenient place1 where these may be placed when not in use4 ,similarly1 the same section may be used in the winter for door and window screens as well as garden furniture4 ,except for the new country house or one that has been completely remodeled or renovated1 each succeeding fall brings minor repairs4 ,these ought to be undertaken during those cool crisp days of fall that precede freezing weather and penetrating winter winds4 ,they will vary with age and state of repair but they begin with the cellar and progress upward to the attic4 ,unless your house is unusually ailing1 probably not all of these will be necessary but at least there should be a careful examination and diagnosis4 ,here is the list4 ,illustration3 ,,snow ,,has ,,dignity1 ,,but ,,is ,,the ,,house ,,snug ,,and ,,warm8 ,photo by ,samuel ,h4 ,gottscho ,repoint the foundations1 inside and out1 with a rich cement mortar to seal any cracks through which the wind might penetrate4 ,a late ,october or early ,november day when there is a high wind is ideal for this work4 ,as one goes over the inside of the foundation1 the searching cold blasts will reveal the crevices that need attention4 ,mark each one with a wooden splinter as fast as they are found4 ,when all four walls have been thoroughly inspected1 the work of closing these cracks can be done as a single operation4 ,except for a solid brick or stone house1 inspect the point at which the sills rest on the foundation walls4 ,the fillet of mortar may have come loose or cracked in places4 ,any such breaks should be repaired4 ,before leaving the cellar notice the windows4 ,does cold air leak through joints of sash and frame8 ,if so1 make them tight with batten strips or1 if very loose1 calk them with oakum4 ,the window through which coal is delivered1 of course1 cannot be sealed so thoroughly as it may have to be opened now and then for additional fuel4 ,weatherstripping it as well as the hatchway door is advisable4 ,some houses built on side-hill sites have at least one cellar wall more exposed than the rest4 ,where this condition exists1 it is a real economy to cover the inside of it with insulating material4 ,either special plastering or fiber-insulating board can be used1 as individual conditions warrant4 ,at the same time any water pipe that is close to an outside wall should either be re-located or insulated1 lest it freeze some day when it is abnormally cold or a high wind is blowing4 ,freezing cold air blowing through a fine crack in an exterior wall acts about as does the flame of a welder's torch1 only in the reverse4 ,the flame cuts by melting2 the cold air solidifies the water in a pipe and sometimes does it so thoroughly that a cracked pipe is the result4 ,from the cellar one now goes to the attic4 ,are windows in place here and weather tight8 ,how about end walls and the under sides of roof8 ,if not insulated1 your house can lose a quantity of heat at these points4 ,remember1 heat rises and1 after a storm1 if the snow on the roof of your house melts quicker than on those of your neighbors1 it is a clear demonstration that you are wasting heat by letting it ooze through certain minute apertures4 ,another way to combat this upward radiation is to pour a loose1 featherlike insulating material into the space between the attic flooring and the plaster of the bedroom ceilings4 ,as it comes in bags prepared especially for this purpose and is very light1 sometimes it is only necessary to raise a small proportion of the attic floor boards and the insulating material can be spread evenly through these openings4 ,there remains still a major escape for heat1 the fireplaces4 ,if each is equipped1 as is customary with all built during the last half century1 with a cast-iron damper that closes the throat when not in use1 make sure it is in working order4 ,sometimes such dampers get clogged with soot and fail to close tightly4 ,for older fireplaces the problem varies4 ,some can have a throat damper installed2 others are of such size or shape that it is not practical4 ,with the latter1 if the throat is not too large1 it is possible to stuff it with tightly packed newspaper1 first crumpling the sheets to make them bulky4 ,the large fireplace1 once the scene of all family cooking1 generally has an opening into the chimney so large that there seems to be but one practical way to treat it4 ,this is the use of the time-tried fire board which fits tightly into the opening of mantel and shuts off the fireplace completely4 ,this causes much lamentation each winter in our own household1 as the picturesque effect of the fine old fireplace with swinging crane is blotted out by a none too ornamental expanse of board4 ,but it is so fitted that it can be readily removed any time a fireplace fire is desired4 ,when not in use such a cavernous avenue for escaping heat must1 of course1 be closed4 ,no heating system can compete with it4 ,stand beside such a fireplace for a moment and the cold breeze swirling out from it will convince you4 ,nothing is more uncomfortable in winter than cold and drafty floors4 ,much of this can easily be corrected by closing the cracks1 usually found in older houses1 between flooring and walls at the baseboards4 ,generally quarter-round molding1 carefully fitted and securely nailed is sufficient but occasionally wide1 uneven cracks have to be closed with oakum1 putty1 or crack filler before the molding is put in place4 ,again1 if the cellar has no plaster ceiling1 a drafty floor can be remedied by lining the under side of the flooring with felt paper or like material4 ,lastly1 inspect the heating plant4 ,has it been cleaned and put in order since last season8 ,if not1 it should be done without fail1 for no soot-clogged furnace or encrusted boiler can work properly4 ,you are simply wasting fuel and effort if you neglect them4 ,out of doors1 there are several minor things that can make or mar a winter in the country4 ,be sure the faucets used for the garden hose are disconnected and drained4 ,there is probably a drain valve in the cellar for this4 ,if your water supply is a shallow well1 notice the location of the supply pipe4 ,if it extends to within four or five feet of the top1 some sort of covering must be placed over the latter to prevent cold winter winds searching it out4 ,a cover of wall board with a small opening for ventilation is easily fitted to it and will avert later trouble4 ,it is far from amusing to awake some zero morning and find the house without water because the well pipe has frozen4 ,it can be thawed with a blow pipe but that means calling a plumber or a handy man who happens to have a tool of this sort4 ,one such experience will keep you from forgetting or neglecting to provide a well cover4 ,similarly1 if you are in doubt whether the pipes from water source to house are below the frost line1 a carpet of leaves about two inches thick on top of the ground along the course of the water pipe1 will obviate any such unhappy event4 ,thawing a frozen pipe plainly visible in the well is child's play compared to the task of arguing with any underground4 ,once1 such pipes had to wait for nature4 ,today1 they can be thawed very skillfully with special electrical equipment1 but not cheaply4 ,the standard charge ranges from #bj up1 mostly the latter4 ,the family living in the country will also find that cold weather puts a great strain on the automobile4 ,a car that has worked perfectly all summer simply refuses to start1 and the storage battery that operates the self-starter is exhausted and powerless4 ,the sensible course is to have the car put in condition for winter before the first cold snap congeals the crank-case oil4 ,replace the latter with one of lighter grade2 have the radiator filled with a good anti-freeze in sufficient quantity so that you will be safe on the coldest days against the hazard of a frozen radiator2 have the ignition system thoroughly overhauled and new spark points put in the distributor4 ,most important of all1 get a new storage battery if the one you have is more than a few months old4 ,this course of action saves annoyance1 is better for the automobile1 and less expensive than calling for garage help some abnormally cold morning when many others are also in trouble and you must wait your turn4 ,don't take just anybody's advice when changing to lighter and more freely flowing motor oil4 ,go to the service station handling the make of car you drive and have it done there4 ,they will know which is the right grade4 ,we once almost ruined a car by following a layman's advice4 ,with our own hands we refilled the crank case with oil that was rated as ,s4,a4,e4 #aj and was perfect for the light car of our well-intentioned adviser4 ,unhappily the lightest suitable for our make and model was ,s4,a4,e4 #bj1 practically twice as heavy4 ,fortunately we burned no bearings before our error was discovered and so learned a valuable lesson more cheaply than we deserved4 ,keeping the radiator protected against freezing is not complicated4 ,nearly any filling station has the necessary hydrometer4 ,to be sure the anti-freeze liquid has not evaporated unduly1 have the radiator contents tested about once in two weeks1 particularly after several days of abnormally warm weather4 ,for real safety1 it is wise to have any automobile radiator filled with enough of the compound so that its freezing point is fully ten degrees colder than the lowest temperature expected4 ,there are two reasons for this margin4 ,it allows for a slight percentage of evaporation and for a certain peculiarity of country highways4 ,there are sometimes points on the road where1 for some reason1 the actual temperature is a full five degrees colder than elsewhere4 ,we have seen many cars steaming and boiling in such places4 ,we have once or twice been in the same unhappy situation and know that thawing a radiator so frozen is slow work1 requiring blankets and plenty of patience4 ,a word as to the clothing especially designed for the cold of the country4 ,wool-lined mittens may seem to hark back to sleighbells and buffalo robes1 but driving a spirited span hitched to a cutter was a summer occupation compared to steering an unheated automobile ten miles on a below zero morning with ordinary gloves4 ,mittens are not graceful but in them the fingers are not confined and therefore do not chill as quickly4 ,further1 do not scorn the good old-fashioned arctics4 ,get the high four-buckle kind4 ,they afford real protection against cold and snow and a pair lasts for several years1 particularly in the sections of the country where snow and abnormally cold weather are intermittent4 ,sweaters and woolen mufflers should also be part of the added equipment1 for nothing makes for such misery as getting thoroughly chilled for lack of adequate outside clothing4 ,a walk or a drive becomes then just an endurance test4 ,we have one last warning4 ,the mitten and overshoe theory may seem to you but a sad sign of approaching age and debility--and so none of them for you4 ,granted they are not needed except for abnormal weather1 some bitter cold evening you may arrive home with fingers1 or ears1 or toes frostbitten4 ,don't under such circumstances go into a warm room before you have thawed them with snow and vigorous massage4 ,when you do go into the warm atmosphere continue to treat the bite with cloths wrung out in ice water4 ,otherwise1 this simple winter casualty may be as serious and painful as a bad burn4 ,,keeping ,,home ,,fires ,,in ,,their ,,place ,illustration ,,chapter ,,xv ,,keeping ,,home ,,fires ,,in ,,their ,,place ,in the good old days before the ,united ,states had a record of one fire every minute of the twenty-four hours1 grandfather and his father before him considered that a good citizen paid his poll tax1 served on juries1 and patrolled his home for fire4 ,going to bed without banking fires in stoves and fireplaces was unthinkable4 ,the rest of the household also had a proper respect for lighted candles and other possible fire breeders4 ,of course1 under this simpler mode of living1 light and heat were generated within view and what is seen cannot be readily ignored4 ,then came the development of modern household conveniences4 ,furnaces and steam plants took heating below stairs2 electricity replaced candles1 lamps1 and gas fixtures2 and the old cook stove gave way to modern ranges of various sorts4 ,the safer and easier the devices1 the more human vigilance relaxed4 ,today1 of our half billion dollar fire loss annually1 one-fifth of it occurs in the country1 and over sixty per cent of residential fires start in the cellar4 ,of course1 every home has certain fire hazards but they can be reduced to the minimum by a few elemental improvements and precautions4 ,some call for slight additions to the house equipment2 others are simply the old-fashioned art of self-fire policing4 ,this program of little things starts in the cellar and ends in the attic4 ,here is the list4 ,don't let piles of rubbish and papers accumulate in cellar1 attic1 closets1 and like places4 ,provide a metal container with hinged cover for storing inflammable polishes1 cleaning fluids1 chemically treated dust cloths1 mops1 oily cloths1 and the like4 ,make sure they are put there when not in use1 instead of being tossed into some convenient glory hole4 ,use metal containers also for hot ashes and the daily accumulation of papers and trash4 ,be certain that electric wiring fuses are in good order4 ,pennies behind burned-out fuses are a misuse of good money in more ways than one4 ,inspect the cords of all electrical appliances and portable lamps4 ,if they are frayed or broken1 replace them4 ,speaking of appliances1 the simple flat-iron in the hands of a careless or absent-minded person probably causes more fires than all the other more complicated work-savers combined4 ,for stage-struck ,seventeen1 then1 moodily pressing her pink organdy while mentally sweeping a triumphant course through a crowded ballroom in a sophisticated black model from ,paris2 or for dark-hued ,martha who thumps out on a luckless shirt the damage she plans to inflict on a certain ,pullman porter when he shows up at her back door again1 provide an iron that cannot over-heat4 ,with a thermostat that turns current on and off1 it and the ironing board can remain forgotten for hours4 ,the electric light company may benefit but no fire will result4 ,equip fireplaces with screens that fit4 ,if the hearth has begun to disintegrate from many fires1 it is time to renew it as well as loose mortar4 ,mount stoves or ,franklin fireplaces on metal-covered1 asbestos-lined bases4 ,don't put a rug over the register of the pipeless furnace4 ,it will cause dangerous over-heating and the effect will be disastrous rather than decorative4 ,be sure no draperies are near open flames such as candles and portable heaters4 ,if you have gas or keep any quantity of kerosene or gasoline1 don't examine containers by match or candlelight4 ,use an electric flashlight and turn it on before going near such explosives4 ,these dangers may seem obvious but it is astonishing how many times that faulty mechanism known as the genus homo has been guilty of just such follies4 ,if rubbish is burned on the grounds1 use an incinerator4 ,it keeps loose papers from blowing around and starting an incipient blaze in some cherished shrubbery or in the grass itself4 ,i once lost a fine row of small pine trees in such a manner4 ,they would have provided an ample screen from the main highway1 had ,i exercised a little care with my miniature bonfire4 ,install portable fire extinguishers4 ,they are inexpensive4 ,one to each floor with an extra one for kitchen and cellar is good fire insurance4 ,be sure every member of the family knows how to use them4 ,nearly all fires start in a small way and a shot or two of liquid from one of these machines usually extinguishes any but the most stubborn blaze4 ,sometimes1 however1 outside help is needed4 ,so post the number of the nearest fire department prominently near the telephone4 ,make sure every one knows where to call1 what to say1 and how to give clear and distinct road directions4 ,these are little things4 ,yet houses have gone up in smoke for want of their application4 ,i know of one instance where a competent but city-bred house man was sent to open a country house for the summer4 ,in the course of the day an oil stove in the kitchen was lighted4 ,the man went to get some drinking water4 ,he returned less than five minutes later to find a corner of the room was in flames4 ,there was no extinguisher at hand and his bucket of water was as nothing4 ,there was a telephone in the house and a fire department equipped with a high-powered chemical machine was less than six miles away4 ,unhappily the man neither knew of its existence nor how to direct it to the place4 ,by the time he had found help and the department had finally been summoned1 it was too late4 ,neighbors and firemen alike could only look on at a magnificent bonfire1 piously lamenting the loss1 of course1 but getting a vicarious pleasure out of the spectacle4 ,as an example of foolhardiness on the part of the owner it is perhaps beyond comment4 ,against it ,i know of another family that goes to the other extreme4 ,in addition to taking the fire precautions suggested here1 they have tacked a small typewritten notice on the back of the front door4 ,it reads3 ,,stop ,is the furnace checked ,is the water heater out ,is the range turned off ,is the oil heater upstairs out ,this little evidence of fire-policing has amused many of their guests1 but their house is still standing and the fire insurance inspector performs his annual duties in a perfunctory manner after reading it4 ,unless there are glaring defects in chimney construction1 electric wiring1 or furnace flues1 these simple details and a reasonable amount of old-fashioned caution will practically keep home fires in their place4 ,for those who wish to cut the fire hazard still further there are more elaborate precautions that involve some rebuilding and renovation4 ,whether any or all of them are advisable is a matter for the owner and his architect to decide4 ,illustration3 ,,an ,,imposing ,,country ,,home ,,of ,,classic ,,dignity ,robertson ,ward1 architect4 ,photo by ,samuel ,h4 ,gottscho ,if a fireproof cellar is wanted1 cover the ceiling with metal lath and a good cement plaster4 ,this should extend up the stairway1 and the cellar door should be of fire resisting construction4 ,firestopping all exterior walls and interior partitions not only cuts down fire risk but adds greatly to insulation from both heat and cold4 ,fires that originate in the cellar frequently travel upward in the dead-air spaces behind lath plaster4 ,for houses already built1 the best means is to pack the walls with pulverized asbestos4 ,there are contractors who specialize in this work and have equipment for doing the job quickly with minimum cutting and inconvenience4 ,an electric fire detector in the cellar acts much like a burglar alarm4 ,there are several now on the market4 ,the principle on which they work is thermostatic4 ,sensitive to increased heat1 an alarm bell sounds the moment fire develops4 ,the ,white ,house has one of the most elaborate systems of this sort1 which was installed shortly after the executive office fire of a few years ago4 ,checking chimneys comes next after leaving the cellar4 ,all chimneys should rest on a solid foundation in the ground4 ,those carried on wooden beams are never safe4 ,the normal settling will produce dangerous cracks in the joints of the brickwork4 ,likewise1 unused stove-pipe holes should be closed with bricks and mortar cement4 ,chimneys connected with open fireplaces ought to be equipped with spark arresters4 ,these are simply bronze or brass wire of sufficiently fine mesh to catch any sparks4 ,placed at the top1 they also serve to discourage chimney swallows from nesting in the throat of an old-fashioned chimney1 to the doubtful pleasure of the occupants of the house4 ,for the roof there are slate and non-burnable shingles as well as a system by which weather boarding under wooden shingles can be replaced with panels of fireproof plaster sheathing4 ,if there is any doubt regarding the condition of electric wiring it will be real economy to have a licensed electrician inspect it and replace any which is obsolete or not in accord with insurance regulations4 ,also1 if steam or hot water pipes go through flooring or are close to the wooden trim1 there should be at least three-quarters of an inch clearance4 ,otherwise1 the heat dries and carbonizes the wood4 ,then slight additional heat may produce spontaneous combustion4 ,then there are more elaborate rebuilding projects such as installing a fire sprinkler system in the cellar4 ,a built-in incinerator located in the cellar with chute opening in the kitchen is excellent for the immediate disposal of trash and rubbish4 ,two stairways connecting living and bedroom floors are always better than one4 ,either stairway should be accessible to any bedroom4 ,an emergency doorway will make this possible4 ,if the garage is attached to the house it should be lined with a fire resisting material4 ,metal lath and plaster or a good grade of plaster wall board is preferred4 ,the door between house and garage should1 of course1 be fire resisting and self closing4 ,there is one other refinement which the country house owner may take into consideration1 especially if he happens to own an historic old house4 ,that is the installation of a system of perforated pipes in the dead air spaces behind all walls connected with storage tanks of carbon dioxide under pressure4 ,if a fire breaks out1 turning on this system will flood the house with a gas that will smother all flame4 ,mount ,vernon is a notable example of a house so equipped4 ,so much for the more or less man-produced fire hazards4 ,there is1 however1 the occasional fire that comes down from heaven4 ,the ,national ,board of ,fire ,underwriters has proved by careful investigation that a properly installed and maintained system of lightning rods will give a house ninety-eight per cent protection4 ,it does not prevent the building from being struck1 but it does provide an easy and direct path to earth for the lightning discharge1 thus preventing damage and destruction4 ,this has nothing to do with the old school of lightning rod salesmen trained in medicine show methods4 ,proper equipment and competent men working under inspection by the ,underwriters ,laboratories are now available4 ,incidentally1 radio antennae should be properly grounded and have an approved lightning arrester4 ,there is one more possibility of disaster from lightning4 ,ordinary wire fencing mounted on wooden posts can become so highly charged with electricity during a thunder storm that no living thing is safe within thirty feet of it4 ,proper grounding is again the remedy and is relatively simple4 ,at every fifth post an iron stake should be driven deep enough to reach permanent moisture4 ,connect this to the fencing by a wire tightly wrapped around the stake and each strand of the fencing4 ,this causes the electricity generated during a storm to escape harmlessly into the ground1 just as it does through the cables of a properly installed set of lightning rods4 ,,when ,,things ,,go ,,wrong ,illustration ,,chapter ,,xvi ,,when ,,things ,,go ,,wrong ,with life in the country1 there are times when the innate perverseness of the inanimate asserts itself4 ,for one accustomed to city conditions this is almost a paralyzing experience4 ,there is no apartment house superintendent to call on1 no repairman just around the corner4 ,in itself it may be very simple2 but what to do1 how to do it and with what tools1 unless you have gone through the mill1 is soul-searing4 ,so1 almost as soon as you have established your sources of food and fuel1 address yourself to the problem of discovering the neighborhood handy man4 ,not all men of the usual mechanical trades can qualify4 ,such a jewel must have native ingenuity1 really enjoy coping with sudden emergencies and1 like the old-fashioned country doctor1 be possessed of a temperament that accepts sudden calls for help as part of the day's work4 ,he may have planned to take his family to the village moving picture show2 but if your plumbing has sprung a leak1 your pump has suddenly ceased to function1 or any one of a dozen other contingencies has arisen1 nothing is so comforting as his assurance that he'll be right over4 ,you know that within a reasonable time this physician to things mechanical will arrive in his somewhat battered automobile with an assortment of tools and supplies adequate for the majority of minor domestic crises4 ,sometimes he can repair the damage permanently then and there4 ,sometimes his service is of a temporary nature to tide your household over until the proper correction can be accomplished either by him or some other artisan whose specialty it is4 ,at the moment this makes little difference4 ,several summers ago1 our water supply failed most inconsiderately just at dinner time4 ,there was plenty of water in the well and the electric pump was functioning but the storage tank was bone dry4 ,what was wrong was beyond our understanding4 ,worst of all1 our village plumber could not be reached even by a fairly resourceful country telephone central4 ,we called our handy man and were greeted by a cheery if long suffering1 ,what's the matter now8 ,we told him and most assuringly he replied1 ,sounds like foot valve trouble4 ,i'll be right over soon as ,i finish supper4 ,and he was as good as his word4 ,half an hour later he was listening to a pump that could not lure water from well to tank4 ,then he went down the well and1 without aid1 came up with the supply pipe4 ,here's your trouble4 ,leather of the foot valve's gone4 ,i'll just cut another4 ,he dived into the rear seat of his car and returned with a square of sole leather4 ,using the old leather as a pattern he cut a new one with a sharp jack knife and before dark the supply pipe was back in place and the artificial drought was broken4 ,thanks to the skill and willingness of this all-essential neighborhood personage1 there was once more water for dishwashing and family needs4 ,this is but one instance of how he has come to our rescue and through the years taught us many things that we can now do for ourselves4 ,although not over-skillful with tools and things mechanical1 we have learned that doing them is sometimes the quickest and easiest way out of our difficulties4 ,some1 of course1 were beyond the limits of our simple abilities but we hereby enumerate some twenty of the more common difficulties that may arise inopportunely with country living1 and what to do about them4 ,a sudden break in electric service leaves your house dark4 ,the answer to this is a supply of candles and one or two kerosene lamps filled and ready for use1 as well as at least one electric flashlight1 in working order and hung in its appointed place4 ,often before the various lamps are assembled and lighted1 electricity will again be available2 but if service is interrupted for several hours1 as occasionally happens with a serious break in the line or real trouble at the power house1 you will have cause to bless the auxiliary lighting4 ,having it to depend on just once will well repay the trouble of making it available4 ,be sure1 also1 that you have at least one complete set of extra fuses to repair the damage of a short circuit caused by defective appliances or lamp cords4 ,never1 never put a penny into a fuse socket4 ,next to light1 the most important creature comfort is water and plenty of it4 ,the most common causes of failure lie with the pump itself4 ,if one of the deep well type gets out of adjustment1 repairing it is a professional job and unless you are unusually expert1 don't attempt it4 ,telephone for a plumber or handy man4 ,but with the shallow well pump1 you can1 in a pinch1 replace the leathers that make the valves exert the proper suction4 ,in any case1 it is good sense to have an extra set of the leathers always on hand4 ,near our own pump there is a glass preserving jar half full of neat's-foot oil and1 pickling in it1 a spare set of pump leathers just waiting for something to happen4 ,we also have a box of assorted faucet washers4 ,it is over a year since we have had to replace one2 but when a faucet suddenly refuses to close1 we know where the proper valve is located so that we can shut off the water long enough to replace the troublesome washer1 usually the work of a few minutes4 ,then there is the heating system4 ,here the most common demonstration of temperament is sulkiness on a heavy damp day4 ,in any event1 provided the fire is free from clinkers1 we have a standard remedy4 ,an average-sized electric fan is placed before the open ash pit door4 ,set in motion1 its breeze provides a forced draft and1 in from fifteen minutes to half an hour1 our furnace fire is once more glowing and throwing out heat4 ,also1 the country house owner1 who discovers that furnace or fireplace flues which have heretofore functioned properly are smoking1 should investigate the circumstances without delay4 ,the troublesome flue may only need cleaning1 or a dislodged brick or other obstacle may have blocked it4 ,whatever the cause1 the chimney should have immediate attention1 for excess soot is the common cause of chimney fires4 ,if an excess odor of coal gas indicates that the fumes are filling the cellar instead of going up the chimney1 open the hatchway and as many windows as possible4 ,then check the furnace completely4 ,investigate the cause of the trouble and you will find that the smoke pipe connecting the furnace and chimney is out of place4 ,don't try to replace the dislocated pipe until the cellar is thoroughly aired1 for furnace fumes can be almost as deadly as those exhausted by an automobile1 for the same reason1 the presence of carbon monoxide gas4 ,so when working on the pipe be careful to retreat out of doors on the slightest feeling of faintness or other disturbing symptom4 ,the safest way is not to attempt to replace the smoke pipe until the furnace fire is out4 ,there are one or two other things down cellar that can go awry when least expected4 ,one of the most common is flooding caused by abnormally heavy rains and leaks in foundation walls4 ,look first for these where the pipes from the eaves1 known as down-spouts1 reach the ground4 ,provide dry wells1 troughs1 or other means to carry this rain water away from the foundation4 ,after your cellar flood has either evaporated or been pumped out and the foundation walls are dry inside and out1 repair the cracks through which this water trickled1 as well as others that might have contributed to the trouble4 ,use a rich cement to which has been added the proper amount of water-proofing chemical4 ,one cannot be over-zealous in this1 for a flooded or even damp cellar is always a hazard4 ,under no circumstances attempt to turn on electric lights if you are standing where it is wet or damp4 ,ninety-nine times out of a hundred all that can happen is a mild electric shock but there is always the one chance in thousands that by so doing you may be your own electrocutioner4 ,it is safest to have all cellar lights controlled by one or more switches at the head of the cellar stairs2 but if there is a light that must be turned on in the cellar itself1 leave it alone under conditions of standing water and be sure the fault is rectified before the next heavy rain can cause a repetition4 ,just as storms can make trouble below stairs1 roof and eaves may develop faults4 ,where the roof is of wooden shingles1 one of the usual causes of leaks is a cracked shingle4 ,when this chances to be directly above a slight space left in laying the roof for expansion between the shingles of the next course1 rain1 instead of flowing off the roof1 runs through this crack and wet plaster results4 ,this does not mean that the roof must be re-laid if otherwise tight and sound4 ,get a sheet of roofing tin or copper1 locate the troublesome crack1 and gently insert a piece of the sheet metal1 trimmed to the right size1 beneath the cracked shingle4 ,properly done1 you should not find it necessary to nail the piece of sheet metal because the shingles themselves will hold it in place4 ,while making this repair1 be careful not to walk on the roof more than is absolutely necessary4 ,your weight and the pressure of your feet may crack other shingles4 ,it is better to work from a ladder4 ,this should have a large iron hook that will catch on the ridgeboard and keep it from slipping4 ,it also distributes the weight of the man making the repair4 ,sometimes eaves1 instead of providing drainage and conducting rain from the roof to ground1 work in the reverse4 ,the dampened plaster of the interior side walls soon betrays this4 ,when these spots appear it is probable that the opening where the down-spout joins the eaves-trough is clogged with leaves and small twigs4 ,remove this plug that has gradually accumulated round the strainer and once more rain water will flow merrily and noisily down the spout4 ,also1 in winters of unusually heavy snowfalls and cold weather1 if the eaves-troughs are hung too close to the edge of the roof or have not sufficient slope for rapid drainage1 the snow on the roof melts1 drips to the eaves-trough1 and freezes before it can flow away4 ,eventually some of this moisture creeps beneath the shingles and makes ugly damp patches on the plaster beneath4 ,immediate relief can be had by mounting a ladder1 clearing the trough of the ice1 and thawing the frozen down-spout with salt and kettles of hot water4 ,later1 the permanent remedy is to have a practical roofer rehang and adjust the eaves-troughs4 ,because of the very nature of winter weather1 there are other distressing things that may happen to make life in the country just a little bit less enjoyable4 ,the first of these is the possibility of an old-fashioned blizzard that may block roads and cut off the country dweller from the usual source of supplies4 ,before the days of the automobile1 one could travel roads several feet deep in snow with horse and sleigh4 ,an automobile has its limits and is more or less impotent in more than two feet of snow on a road unbroken by a powerful plow4 ,so1 if the oldest inhabitants can remember the winter of #ah-- when we had snow to the top of the fence posts1 it is a wise precaution to have an emergency supply of canned foods on hand4 ,in ,february1 #aicd1 we were snowbound for three days but lived in comfort1 thanks to a minimum reserve supply and1 by a happy coincidence1 liberal marketing done the morning the storm began4 ,several neighbors took to snowshoes and skis and so made their way to the nearest store to replenish essentials like milk1 meat1 eggs and the like4 ,winter sports are a great institution1 but trudging two miles for a quart of milk across a countryside waist deep in newly fallen snow is too great a mixture of business and pleasure4 ,similarly1 a medicine cabinet stocked with the primary remedies1 and a physician whom you know sufficiently so that you consult him by telephone1 are wise precautions against sudden crises of weather or health4 ,of course1 if a member of your family is seriously ill1 your doctor will come with all haste when summoned4 ,but he is a busy man who often works from before breakfast until nearly midnight covering unbelievable distances in his automobile4 ,so1 if you can report illness clearly1 give exact symptoms1 and have a stock of the simple medicines that you can administer as he directs1 both the sick person and the physician gain4 ,present-day country doctors show their appreciation for such cooperation by the speed with which they reach patients whose symptoms indicate more than a minor ailment4 ,but all the emergencies of country life are not serious even though they call for action4 ,there are scores of little things that the house owner can do for himself4 ,take rats and mice4 ,they will get into the most carefully built and best run house4 ,when this happens it is a matter of either traps or the new scientific poison baits that domestic pets will not eat4 ,there is also the old farm method of mixing equal parts of plaster of ,paris and corn meal1 an entree harmless in itself but with fatal results for the invading rodent4 ,in summer there is the possibility of a plague of ants4 ,for this there is now a cheap and scientific liquid bait that works rapidly4 ,in summer1 also1 come those occasional nights of abnormal heat when no breeze stirs4 ,bedrooms stay hot and sleep is difficult4 ,for this1 set an electric fan on the floor of each room1 pointed toward the ceiling1 with a chair before it to serve as a barricade4 ,the current of air so produced dislodges the hot air in the room that is above the level of the window openings and also provides a mild breeze that does not blow directly on a sleeper4 ,by actual tests with an accurate thermometer1 the temperature of a bedroom can be lowered a full five degrees4 ,it is this difference between #hj and #he degrees that can make an otherwise stifling night bearable enough for refreshing sleep4 ,also at the time you want it most1 usually with the house full of week-end guests1 the hot water supply turns tepid4 ,the means of heating the water is functioning properly but the storage tank is cold4 ,when this happens1 unless all water piping is of copper or brass1 the chances are better than even that your tank is clogged with rusty sediment4 ,this does not mean a new tank4 ,it is just a matter of draining and flushing until most1 if not all1 of the sediment is washed out4 ,turn off the pipe that supplies heater and tank4 ,then with garden hose attached to the faucet at the base of the tank1 drain out all the water that will come4 ,for a thorough job unscrew this faucet and the piece of pipe connecting it to the tank4 ,then turn on the water supply quickly for two or three minutes at a time so that a sudden flow of clean water disturbs the sediment4 ,at first it may be almost as thick as a heavy soup but gradually the water will become clearer4 ,when it is normal you can replace pipe and faucet1 relight the water heater1 and forget your hot water supply for at least a year4 ,of course1 it is better to undertake this chore when you are without company1 but one must have hot water and1 at that1 the operation should not take over an hour4 ,perhaps some of the guests will be big hearted and offer to help4 ,a plaster ceiling appears to fall without warning4 ,actually1 if you are observant1 weak spots can be detected before they reach the falling stage4 ,a slight bulge that gives if you press it upward gently with the fingers is an unfailing indication that the plaster has begun to loosen and that possibly the laths beneath are also loose4 ,the best method of correcting this is1 of course1 to engage a plasterer4 ,he will remove what is loose and probably much more4 ,then1 having replaced the defective or old lath1 he will re-plaster and a properly finished job will result4 ,there is1 however1 another course of action4 ,it is neither permanent nor as good but it will bridge a gap when the family exchequer can ill afford the luxury of a plasterer and his helper4 ,this is an old farm method of economical stop-gap repair4 ,take some new coarse muslin4 ,make a strong solution of glue sizing2 wash the calcimine or whitewash from the ceiling where it is weak2 paint with a coat of the size2 and when it is almost dry1 spread the muslin on like ceiling paper having first dipped it in the size4 ,when the cloth is dry1 re-calcimine the ceiling4 ,such work is not according to the best standards of journeyman work but we have known a ceiling so strengthened to remain in place for some years4 ,this unorthodox trick was taught us by the neighborhood handy man whose praises we sang earlier4 ,another was the practice of binding a water pipe1 that had developed a tiny pin-hole leak1 with the black sticky fabric known as friction tape used by electricians4 ,it held for half a year until it was more convenient1 financially and otherwise1 to have our plumber replace the leaking pipe4 ,incidentally1 knowing how to thaw a water pipe that has1 as countrymen say1 just caught1 on some abnormally cold night is also an accomplishment of ingenuity4 ,too much heat applied too rapidly can crack a pipe4 ,so such work should be done in moderation4 ,be sure the faucet of the stopped pipe is open4 ,then1 locate the spot by sense of feel4 ,it will be much colder than the rest of the pipe4 ,first try wrapping it in cloths wrung out in hot water4 ,if this does not produce results1 gently pour steaming but not boiling water on the pipe from a teakettle4 ,stop after a minute or two to let the applied heat become effective4 ,if necessary1 repeat several times4 ,for stubborn cases1 an electric heater directed at the frozen spot can be used effectively4 ,when hunting for the seat of trouble look at the spot where the pipe comes through the floor4 ,a crack between flooring and baseboard may be the air leak that has caused the trouble4 ,next examine the pipe along an exterior wall or in the direct range of a window4 ,frozen pipes concealed in partition walls1 unless they are accessible through a panel of removable woodwork1 are not for the amateur4 ,they are for a plumber who will know how to reach the trouble without doing other damage4 ,many are the expedients that life in the country and friendly chats with your own handy man can teach you4 ,some of them you will discover for yourself1 for necessity1 the mother of invention and country living1 often presents minor emergencies that the house owner must meet and conquer for himself4 ,that is part of the fun of living in the country4 ,you have escaped the stereotyped city where such things are the concern of apartment house superintendents4 ,in the country it is each man for himself4 ,,working ,,with ,,nature ,illustration ,,chapter ,,xvii ,,working ,,with ,,nature ,in the home owner's dream of country life1 green lawns1 rose gardens1 and shady terraces have loomed large2 but in the actual fulfillment1 his house has of necessity come first4 ,beyond a sketchy clearing up of the most obvious debris1 he may well come to the end of his first summer with practically nothing done to the grounds themselves4 ,this is not entirely a disadvantage4 ,it has been shown how too much may be done to a house in the first fervor of remodeling or restoration4 ,it is the same with the land surrounding it4 ,the old adage1 ,begin as you can hold out1 is an excellent rule to follow4 ,one of the advantages gained by living in an area just beyond the suburban fringe is that one's two1 five1 or ten acres may be developed as much or as little as one desires or can pay for4 ,this holds whether you have built a new house in the middle of a former pasture or have restored an old one with grounds well developed but long neglected4 ,illustration3 ,,skillful ,,planting ,,of ,,trees1 ,,shrubs1 ,,and ,,flowers ,,make ,,the ,,setting ,photo by ,samuel ,h4 ,gottscho4 ,robertson ,ward1 architect ,of course1 you will not lack for advice from friends and acquaintances1 most of the people who have never grown anything more extensive than a window box4 ,they will tell you that the old lawn that has withstood the tread of feet for more than a century is uneven and must be plowed under1 re-graded1 and a special kind of lawn-grass sown4 ,the driveway is all wrong1 too4 ,turn it back into lawn and build a new one winding through the field to the left where the family cow was once pastured4 ,they are also kind enough to suggest that a plowing1 grading1 and seeding of this additional acre or so will give you a piece of greensward worth having4 ,a lily pool and sun dial garden would go nicely over there to the east1 and how about that hollow place over in the south corner for a swimming pool8 ,all this and much more can be suggested but it is surprising how little of it is practical4 ,even long neglected grounds seldom require as thorough a job of face lifting4 ,a lawn free of hollows is difficult to achieve and almost impossible to maintain4 ,nature does not do things that way1 so work with her rather than against her4 ,it is surprising how old and seemingly worn-out grounds respond to kind treatment4 ,study them first before doing anything4 ,take stock of existing trees1 shrubs and the like4 ,notice the contour of the land4 ,then make a simple landscaping plan4 ,this1 well thought out1 will give direction to the eventual development of the plot of ground you have in mind4 ,work gradually4 ,if you are reclaiming an old place1 remember the original owner did not achieve everything in a week or a year4 ,nature cannot be hurried4 ,it is true that1 if one desires shade trees and cannot wait for them to grow1 experts can bring full-grown ones from their nurseries and plant them in the positions you designate4 ,such practices run into money1 however1 and would hardly come within the average family budget4 ,let us suppose that the home owner finds himself in possession of a house of uncertain age and between ten and twenty acres of land4 ,unless he is prepared to maintain a miniature conservation corps1 he will not attempt to keep over two acres in active cultivation4 ,even with those he will not push back the wilderness in one season4 ,the first step is a careful inspection of the grounds around the house4 ,if they have been neglected for years1 he may find practically anything except grass growing4 ,if the average tenant farmer has lived there any length of time1 the area at the back lying at easy tossing distance from the back door may contain a wealth of tin cans1 bottles1 broken dishes1 and other debris4 ,these1 of course1 must all be picked up and either carried away by the rubbish collector or otherwise disposed of4 ,we have read of clever people who managed to persuade members of their family and any visiting friends that such an undertaking could be made into a sort of treasure hunt and one's grounds cleaned painlessly and without added expense4 ,it did not work with our family4 ,a cache of twenty-five fine rusty cans nestling under the lilacs elicited nothing beyond a mild query as to the likelihood of lily of the valley thriving in the spot4 ,so we hired the man whose family had spent ten long years accumulating the debris1 to clean the half acre surrounding the house and he made a very neat workmanlike job of it4 ,afterward he commented on the improved appearance1 especially of the back yard4 ,yes1 it looks considerable better1 he said1 but of course ,i couldn't keep it that way4 ,i'm a poor man and my time is worth sixty cents an hour4 ,i can't afford to spend any of it picking up after myself4 ,his philosophy is apparently not uncommon and one may expect to find anything on the land from rusty scythe blades to broken down farm wagons and automobiles4 ,after these have been removed the place will look decidedly improved even though a mossy growth under the maples denotes sour soil1 and burdocks and milkweed in the back indicate good soil gone wrong4 ,along with ridding the grounds of rubbish comes the question of what to do with the various outbuildings4 ,those that can be put to practical use should be repaired and their foundations pointed up4 ,any others should be torn down as a dilapidated structure of any sort is not only unsightly but a breeding place for rats4 ,as this ordinary cleaning and furbishing progresses1 the new owner begins to get really acquainted with his place and discover what exists in the line of shrubs1 trees1 and vines4 ,there may even be a few flowers that have survived years of neglect4 ,if he is wise1 he will prune and preserve all these as a nucleus4 ,around them he can build his general landscaping plan4 ,preserve old trees wherever possible4 ,even those that appear so stricken by age and neglect as to be ready for firewood often take on a new lease of life after a good tree surgeon has ministered to them4 ,a long neglected lawn1 or even a field that has been allowed to run to tall grass1 can be reclaimed quite simply4 ,go over it early in the spring with a heavy roller to get rid of minor hollows and general unevenness4 ,thin1 worn spots1 where it is obvious that no grass has grown for years1 should be fortified with a load or two of good top soil1 rolled and planted to grass seed4 ,other spots1 usually under shade trees where there is the mossy growth of sour soil1 should be sprinkled liberally with lime4 ,repeated treatments will soon correct this condition and grass can again be made to grow there4 ,as soon as the grass is of proper length begin to cut it with the lawn mower4 ,also1 continued applications of the weighted iron roller throughout the spring will gradually improve the general contour and make for smoothness and ease in lawn mowing4 ,this is strenuous work both for the lawn mower and the person operating it4 ,the former will probably be nearly worn out by the end of the summer1 so in choosing this tool get a good but not too elaborate one4 ,later1 when the grounds are in good condition will be time enough to indulge in the better grades of hand or even power driven lawn mowers4 ,likewise1 we do not recommend the task of either rolling or breaking in a lawn to a man who has led a sedentary life for years4 ,it will be cheaper in the long run to engage a muscular individual in the locality who understands and is accustomed to such work4 ,whether such an one is engaged by the hour1 day1 week or year1 we would add a word of warning based on our own blundering experiences4 ,beyond being sober1 honest1 and willing1 make sure he is strong enough for such heavy work1 that he is reasonably intelligent and1 most important of all1 that he is not working to accommodate4 ,the latter is frequently voiced by members of decadent native families who resent the curse of ,adam and like to assume that any gesture toward the hated thing1 called work1 is purely voluntary rather than necessary4 ,if these words fall from the lips of a man you are considering for odd jobs and tilling of the soil1 leave him severely alone and look for a good energetic individual who knows he was made to work and is glad of it4 ,otherwise1 the accommodating one will condescendingly show up for work an hour late1 regard you with a pitying smile as you outline the job1 and then allow that of course you are the boss but you are going at it all wrong4 ,when1 after lengthy discussion of how an intelligent country-born person would arrange matters1 he senses that the evil moment of going to work can no longer be put off1 he directs his lagging steps to the spot where the tools are waiting4 ,these he regards with blackest pessimism4 ,his attitude is that only a city moron would provide such poor things but1 of course1 he will do the best he can with them4 ,in the course of the day he gets a little work done but in such sketchy fashion that most of it must be done over4 ,nor does he improve as the days go by4 ,when you decide to part with him1 probably soon after your first inspection of his work1 you will get a fresh shock at the size of his bill4 ,such people have an exaggerated idea of the value of their services4 ,it is difficult to get them to name a price at the beginning2 and in the rare cases where a set sum is agreed upon1 the final reckoning will invariably include certain extras or a plaint that the job was different than you claimed and ,i don't do heavy work like that for nobody without ,i get extra pay and ,i was just working to accommodate-- and so forth4 ,usually you end by paying him and charging it off to experience4 ,this does not mean that there is no good local labor4 ,it is just a matter of determining which man is actually a good worker and which would rather lean on a hoe and tell how the country ought to be run4 ,you can avoid much labor turnover and unsatisfactory work if you first ask a few questions of substantial members of the countryside who are in the habit of employing such men and therefore know their good and bad points4 ,one man may be strong and willing but so stupid and clumsy that he destroys more than he earns2 another may be deft1 ingenious1 have an uncanny way with flowers and vegetables1 but yet have such an utter lack of responsibility that one cannot depend on him for any length of time4 ,assuming then that a good1 dependable man has been found who understands and has a liking for the soil1 the task of helping nature to bring out the best in your grounds progresses to those parts afflicted by such rank weeds as burdocks1 thistles1 milkweed1 poison ivy and the like4 ,weeds with the long tap root like burdock and yellow dock can be eliminated best with a mattock4 ,with one sharp blow1 cut the root two or three inches below the surface4 ,then pull up the top and toss it aside where it will wither in the sun4 ,what is left in the ground also dies and will not sprout4 ,a ,canadian thistle is really a handsome sight especially in full bloom but it is a thoroughly unpleasant weed and must be eradicated4 ,dig up each plant with a spading fork or sharp shovel and leave it to wither in the ,july sun1 its roots shaken free of earth4 ,milkweed is persistent but will finally yield if the stalks are consistently pulled up as soon as they are three or four inches tall4 ,for poison ivy there is one preliminary4 ,be sure you are not one of the people readily susceptible to its poison4 ,if you are1 leave this luxuriant parasite alone and let some one else struggle with it4 ,its poison is most virulent in the spring when the leaves are just unfolding4 ,later in the summer it is not so treacherous4 ,tearing it up by the roots1 burning over old stone fences infected with it1 keep it from overrunning a place2 but the most satisfactory method of eradicating is to sprinkle the vines with sodium arsenite4 ,this1 by tests at various agricultural stations1 has lately been found a sure means of killing this most unpleasant of all vegetable pests that infect the countryside4 ,along with getting a reasonable expanse of green grass1 the simple landscaping plan already referred to should be kept in mind4 ,if you have but a vague idea concerning this and1 as time goes on1 tend to become more confused and undecided as to what kind of flowers1 shrubs1 and vines would be most suitable or how they should be arranged1 consult the best nurseryman in your vicinity1 if he has not already visited you4 ,all of the larger nurseries now have on their staffs experienced landscape architects4 ,many of them are recent graduates of the recognized schools in this field and1 for the asking1 you can have a simple landscape plan for your grounds4 ,such nurseries do this1 of course1 in expectation that if the plan is accepted the needed small trees1 shrubs1 and hardy perennials will be bought of them4 ,in fact1 when the plan is submitted1 it will probably be accompanied by a tentative list of the needed plants4 ,these you can buy either delivered ready for planting1 or a somewhat higher price will include this service by men from the nursery4 ,in the latter case1 the nursery usually guarantees that everything supplied will live for a year or be replaced without charge4 ,personally1 we have found that the nearer home we bought nursery stock1 the better were its chances of living and thriving4 ,there is no adjustment to different climatic conditions and such plants and shrubs are only a very short time out of the soil before they are planted in your grounds either by you or the man sent from the nursery4 ,nearly always they put their roots down and continue growing with little or no interruption4 ,the matters of gardens1 flower beds1 and borders again depend on the contour of the land and how it can best be related to the house4 ,further1 unless you are well versed in gardening1 it is best to get advice as to the flowers and plants that thrive best in a given spot4 ,it is discouraging to lay out a rose garden or a modest border of hardy climbers and find you have picked just the wrong place for them to thrive4 ,it is the same with certain perennials4 ,rock gardens are most picturesque and lend themselves to a large variety of hardy and interesting plants4 ,the most successful are those where nature supplies the framework4 ,one of the loveliest we ever saw had originally been a pigsty4 ,halfway up a hillside two large boulders jutted out and below them a rocky formation descended in shelf-like steps to a level surface4 ,ingenious planting and patient care transformed this into a mass of color and bloom that has been admired for miles4 ,its owner has gradually expanded it and has even added rocks dug from a neighboring field4 ,the farmer who supplied them shook his head resignedly4 ,well1 ,i've lived in these parts a long time and seen plenty of queer things4 ,i can understand paying a man to dig out rocks but this is the first time ,i was ever asked to dump them on good land4 ,the formal garden is usually part of the development of the very ambitious country estate4 ,such grounds are the result of plans prepared by a practicing landscape architect1 engaged on a fee basis as with other architects4 ,according to the arrangements he will prepare the plans or he will also supervise their execution4 ,while there are some remarkable formal gardens in ,america1 beautifully designed and kept in perfect condition by skillful gardeners engaged by the year1 most homes do not have such sophisticated settings4 ,popular indeed is an area of well-kept lawn surrounded by naturalistic plantings of trees1 shrubs1 and hedges that give privacy and frame the whole4 ,add to this borders of flowering plants1 annuals and perennials1 and from spring to late fall such a spot becomes an outdoor living room4 ,here the family spends most of its time4 ,real enthusiasts eat many of their meals here4 ,as for the vegetable garden1 keep it small4 ,the new country dweller's first garden is usually three times the size needed or that he can take care of4 ,vegetables have a way of either producing nothing or bearing in such abundance that the average family is swamped in plenty4 ,whether or not the excess is canned1 depends on the time and energy of the housewife or her cook4 ,with green vegetables now available the year around1 there are two schools of thought as to the real economy of home canning4 ,there is even plenty of controversy over the question of a family vegetable garden4 ,some hold that after the normal charges for fertilizer1 seeds and labor are met1 any vegetables that may result actually cost far more than if bought in the retail market4 ,to this the pro-gardenites retort that the charges for seeds and fertilizer are small and that a certain amount of struggle with spade and hoe is good for a man who has spent all day in a stuffy office4 ,let him do his own spading1 cultivating1 and planting4 ,a half hour or so every evening will keep the garden free of weeds and1 in due time1 vegetables fresh from the garden will result4 ,they will be superior in flavor and will actually have cost less than even the largest chain stores can afford to sell them for4 ,out of ten years' experience1 we can only state that both are right in a measure4 ,whether or not a vegetable garden pays1 breaks even1 or goes into the red1 depends to a large degree on the owner himself4 ,if he has a flair for making things grow and has a definite amount of time to devote to them1 his garden will not only thrive but pay dividends4 ,but if a business trip is imperative just at the time the garden should be planted1 or some pressing engagement causes him to defer transplanting his cabbages and his tomato plants beyond the proper time1 he must either get some one to take care of his garden or do without one4 ,there is a lure1 however1 to having your own vegetables1 so most of us close our eyes to any distressing figures on the household ledger and go ahead and have a garden anyway4 ,one busy man compromises by having his garden prepared for planting by a local man of all work who also keeps his grass cut and his borders trimmed4 ,then he plants a few easily grown and tended vegetables1 such as lettuce1 parsley1 string beans1 carrots1 spinach1 crookneck squash1 tomatoes1 and corn4 ,around these1 like a border1 he plants showy annuals like zinnias1 cosmos1 calendula1 marigolds and so forth4 ,his garden is a colorful1 attractive spot4 ,he has vegetables for the table and plenty of flowers for cutting4 ,the latter preclude any argument over whether his garden pays since1 oddly enough1 the subject of a flower garden never seems to take a mercenary turn4 ,distinct additions to the kitchen garden are an herb bed1 a few rhubarb plants1 and an asparagus bed4 ,the latter1 because it takes time to become established1 seems difficult but laying out a proper bed is not so hard4 ,also1 in two to three years the plants will have reached the stage where the larger stalks may be cut for consumption4 ,at first this should be done judiciously in order not to kill the plants but after another year or two the bed will yield consistently4 ,after it is well established1 it provides the first home-grown vegetables of spring and bears for about six weeks4 ,afterwards all it requires is an occasional weeding and fall mulching with fertilizer and leaves4 ,as for the tools that keep gardens and grounds in condition1 a special shed is advisable4 ,don't try to keep them in a tool house or section given over to saws1 planes1 chisels and bits4 ,they get in a hopeless jumble4 ,nothing is more discouraging than to go out to what should be a tidy little spot to do a bit of mending or minor job of carpentry and find earth encrusted garden trowels1 weeders1 and such gear scattered all over the work bench4 ,the grit so adhering is fatal to sharp-edged tools1 while sprays1 dusting powders1 and fertilizers give off fumes that rust them4 ,we would also add a few kind words for the various berries and small fruits4 ,except for strawberries1 which must be kept weeded and replanted periodically1 berries are our ideal of easily cared for fruits4 ,raspberries1 for instance1 never become really cheap in the market because of their perishable nature4 ,yet with the very minimum of care1 cutting out old canes after the bearing season is over and keeping weeds down with a mulch of hay1 a comparatively small patch of red raspberries1 within three years of planting1 will produce all the fruit an average family can eat or be willing to pick4 ,the other variety1 known as black caps1 are no more trouble and equally prolific4 ,these are at their best in pie and1 for the pleasures of a succession of fresh black raspberry pies each summer1 we heartily recommend planting a dozen canes at the same time that the red raspberry patch is started4 ,blackberry canes grow so rankly and bear such brutal thorns that the annual crop seems hardly worth the torn clothing and bad scratches that gathering them entails1 especially as they are to be had at such reasonable prices in the average market4 ,blueberries are another matter4 ,three or four good bushes of the kind offered by most nurseries will keep the family in blueberry pie with little effort on the part of the person who gathers them4 ,currants and gooseberries are easily grown but have one serious fault4 ,these bushes harbor plant pests that work havoc with evergreens and a number of the ornamental shrubs4 ,for that reason we long ago eradicated any growing on our place4 ,then there are the various fruit trees1 cherry1 peach1 pear1 and apple4 ,all of these1 for a successful yield1 require consistent care and pruning4 ,they must be sprayed at certain seasons for scale and pest or the crop will be meager and poor4 ,with dwarf trees now grown by all nurseries1 proper care can be given with simple equipment and there is no doubt that home-grown fruits that are tree-ripened are sweeter and of fuller flavor than those that come from the market4 ,so a few of these trees may well be an addition to your country place1 but plant them knowing the care required4 ,a grape arbor is a most attractive feature and since pruning can be done any pleasant winter day1 the work of tending a few vines is so small as to be hardly worth considering4 ,in ,september it is a real pleasure to stray past the arbor and pluck a bunch of ,niagara1 ,catawba1 or ,concord grapes and eat them on the spot4 ,so for decoration and fruit borne1 a few grape vines are more than worth the slight attention they require4 ,by working thus intelligently with ,nature1 you will enjoy her bounties--and this1 after all1 is the supreme reward offered by a country home4 ,illustration