Comyjinvt, llnlfalo, C .P. Dwyer, Arch f — 1/0*0 •> — BIIFFALO.<^%> WAMZER lit KIM & C? W. f (L, THE ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER : OR, COTTAGES FOR MEN OF SMALL MEANS, ADAPTED TO EVERY LOCALITY, WITH INSTRUCTIONS FOR CHOOSING THE MOST ECONOMICAL MATERIALS AFFORDED BY THE NEIGHBORHOOD. TO WHICH ARE ADDED MANY VALUABLE HINTS AND MOST USEFUL OBSERVATIONS. ILLUSTRATED WITH TINTED DESIGNS ON STONE. BY CHARLES P. DWYER, ARCHITECT AND CIVIL ENGINEER. BUFFALO: WANZER, M5KIM & CO. NEW YORK : J. C. DERBY. BOSTON : PHILLIPS, SAMPSON & CO. PHILADELPHIA : J. B. LIPPINCOTT & CO. CINCINNATI : MOORE, 'WILSTAOH, KEYES A CO. DETROIT : KERR, MORLEY * CO. 1856. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1855, By WANZER, M c KIM&CO., In the Clerk’s Office of the District Court for the Northern District of New York, TO THE toiling millions, WtM * uxt Sm!tU ’ »•» W»Kw. Bernes are ©real TO POSSESS A HOME, WHERE INDUSTRY AND CONTENTMENT SHALL EE HOUSEHOLD GODS, AXD IN DE P ENDENCE be alljed wjth HAppiNEgg) THIS TREATISE IS INSCRIBED, BY ITS author. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2016 https://archive.org/details/economiccottagebOOdwye CONTENTS PAKT I. PAGE. CHAPTER I. Material considered, 9 CHAPTER H. The Site, , 11 CHAPTER HI. The Foundation, 12 CHAPTER IY. The Sewer, 13 CHAPTER Y. The Basement,, 14 PAGE. CHAPTER YI. The Principal Floor, 24 CHAPTER VII. The Cellar, 25 CHAPTER VHI. The Main Walls, 26 CHAPTER IX. The Chimneys, 27 CHAPTER X. The Roof, 28 PART II. PAGE. CHAPTER I. Modes of Building, 29 CHAPTER II. Woodwork, 30 Pnn rvli T.CO 1 PAGE. Composition Brick, — 37 CHAPTER Y. Earthwork, - 38 Pisd, 38 Hewn Log, - 32 Frame 38 Adob6, - Cob Wall, — 42 Plank, 33 jjo3.rd - 34 1 CHAPTER YI. Gravelwork or Concrete, ...44 Gravel Buildings, 44 Pltink on 0 * 1 ^^ 34 Roofs, . 46 CHAPTER IH. Stonework, 35 Rubble, 35 Cobble, 35 CHAPTER IY. Brickwork, 36 Hollow Wall, 36 Hollow Bricks, 36 CHAPTER YH. Internal Arrangement of Dwellings, - — 48 CHAPTER VHI. Floors, 60 CHAPTER IX.. Cisterns, 51 CHAPTER X. Estimating, 63 CHAPTER XI. Hints worth having, 56 PART III. ILLUSTRATED EXAMPLES. PAGE. CHAPTER I. Log House, 63 CHAPTER H. Log on End, 66 CHAPTER HI. Frame, (with brick filling,) ..69 CHAPTER IV. Plank, 72 CHAPTER Y. Plank on Edge, 75 CHAPTER YI. Do. do 78 CHAPTER VII. Do. do 80 CHAPTER Yin. Cobble Stone, 81 PAGE. CHAPTER IX. Brick, 83 CHAPTER X. Pisd, 85 CHAPTER XI. Adob6, 86 CHAPTER XII. Gravelwork or Concrete,. ..88 CHAPTER XHI. Do. do. ...89 CHAPTER XIY. Double Cottages, 91 CHAPTER XY. Do. do 92 Useful Table, 96 APPENDIX. Artificial and Marbloized Granite, Heating and Ventilating, PAGE. ...100 ...105 Interior Decoration,. Painting, PAGE. ...110 ...118 PREFACE. Within the last few years, numerous books of designs in Domestic Architecture have been poured upon the public, as if to make instant amends for the extreme scarcity of any such monitors in time gone by. But, strange to say, amid this influx, the wants of the great majority of our citizens have been entirely overlooked, in the feverish anxiety to suit the desires of the smaller or more wealthy class of community. It surely is not for men abundantly able to fee an architect that hand-books are properly intended; it is rather for the benefit of those whose means will not allow them to procure professional assistance, and yet whose tastes are as worthy of being gratified, even in an humble manner. Exclusively to the latter is this book devoted; that, by pointing out how simple a thing is true beauty, the man of humbler means may, in his tiny cottage-homestead, enjoy the satisfaction of having secured it, when his aristocratic neighbor, after a profuse expenditure, still sighs for it in vain. There is no maxim more shunned than that which, in architecture, forbids the excess of ornamentation ; for the rich man loves to display his wealth, at the expense of good taste, upon his walls. The man of humble means, on the other hand, not having the power to make a gaudy show, is but too often led to neglect even the little field for fancy which is left him, and hence the insipid appearance of our villages with houses gorgeous or meagre in design standing forth in striking contrast to each other and palpably denoting the total want of anything like true taste in their outline or finish. 8 PREFACE. The object of this work is not alone to point out the most practical method of obtaining so desirable a thino; as a homestead, but to make O O' it, by proportion and judicious ornament, a thing worthy of notice from the wayfarer, and a satisfaction to the tasteful possessor. If any advantage shall be derived from its instructions and hints, by the class for which this book is intended, the desire of its author will be happily satisfied. C. P. D. w Buffalo, N. Y., August, 1855. THE ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 3? _A_ R T I . CHAPTEK I. MATERIAL CONSIDERED. The material which is easiest of access is tlie most economical; and, as localities differ widely in this respect, it will be our first duty to consider the readiest and cheapest to be had in each place. In some localities (as on our prairies) wood can not be had for building purposes; but stone may abound. In others, stone as well as wood may be wanting, yet gravel and sand can be easily procured. And again, all these materials may be out of immediate reach, but the clay fit for making brick might be plentiful. Thus, every locality possesses its material for building, and the one thing desirable is a knowledge of the best method of applying it to the purposes of building. Such a knowledge would often put the poor man in possession of a very desirable homestead, in which economy, space, and arrangement, might make up a cottage which would at once be a comfort to dwell in, and a pleasure to look upon. 10 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. There is no location in which man may be placed, that he may not have the material presented by the judicious and bountiful hand of nature to provide himself with a shelter; neither is there any position in which fortune may place him that he can not exercise his taste and skill, be they ever so small, in making the utmost out of the means given him. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 11 CHAPTEB II. THE SITE. Much depends on the selection of a site for a dwelling. Health, and accompanying happiness, are its most natural consequences. Eor, if the ground lies low, it is hard to drain it, and, in damp weather, exhalations are constantly around it, settling on the lungs of such as are unfortunately forced to breathe such air, and generating pulmonary com- plaints in a thousand forms. To the laboring classes, this is a subject of paramount importance; for, health is capital to them, and the first stroke of sickness is the harbinger of ruin to a dependent family. The site should therefore be as elevated as possible, that the drainage may be complete. If there be a choice of aspect, an eastern one should be chosen, so that the rising sun may throw its first rays upon your cottage porch, to enliven you to your daily toil, and may leave his golden blessing with you as he sinks at evening into his purple cushion in the west. 12 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER III. THE FOUNDATION. The material composing tlie foundation is dependent on that of which the walls of the superstructure are to be formed. In case the cottage is to be of wood, or even brick stud walls, then the foundation may be of fir-posts, set in the ground three or four feet deep, previously charred over a fire of chips, and six feet apart from each other, sustaining a framed sill of dimensions proportionate to the size of the cottage. But if the walls are to be of stone, brick, adobe, or com- position, then the foundation must be of stone or concrete. In the latter case, trenches are to be cut exactly as wide as the required thickness of the foundation, which, for a one story cottage, may be sixteen inch ?s. The foundations should never be less than three feet below the surface of the ground, so as to be out of the power of the frost, and not less than two feet above the surface of the ground, so as to keep the floor of the cottage sufficiently high to be free from ground damp in spring, arising from the melting of snow-drifts. In the cutting of the trenches, above spoken of, the sewer should be likewise cut, care being taken to give it a sufficient fall to the rear of the lot where the privy vault is sunk. In case the soil is sandy, planks must be put in to form a mould, and withdrawn when the sewer is finished. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 13 CHAPTER IV. THE SEWER. The trench for the sewer being cut to its termination, a round stick of any light wood not less than eight inches in diameter, and say three feet long, is to be fixed loosely therein, and a composition of six parts sand to one part of hydraulic lime, mixed with as little hot water as will blend it stiffly, thrown in, until the round stick or mould is perfectly covered, not less than two inches thick at its thinnest part. When the composition has had a few hours to set, the mould is to be drawn forward, leaving a few inches of it in, so as to connect the next length of composition with the preceding one, and so on with the other lengths, until the sewer is complete. It is then to be covered over with the earth previously cut from the trench, and no water to be run through it foi a week, when it will be perfectly hard. In order to keep the round stick, or mould, from the sides and bottom of the trench, it is only required to have a square board at either end of it, with a hole in the middle in which the mould may rest. The round form of sewer here recommended will be found to be the best that can be used for the purpose; for, there being no angles to collect mud or dirt, the sewer can never be choked. The other forms are the square and the V. When the sewer is built of burnt brick, hydraulic lime should be used, and the bottom pargetted, or made smooth with plaster. 14 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER Y. THE BASEMENT. We now approach a subject of the deepest interest to the community, and one that should be well pondered on by the man about to build: that is, the formation of cellars under habitations. To do justice to a question of so much impor- tance, we will here quote the excellent article in Dr. Buchanan’s Journal of Man , Volume IV., No. 6, entitled, “ Consumption and Architecture : ” I believe that an immense amount of disease has been produced, and is still being produced, in our country, by a very common and flagrant neglect of the laws of health in the construction of our dwellings. I need not attempt to prove that human health depends largely upon the enjoyment of a fresh, uncontaminated atmosphere. It is not sufficient that the atmosphere should be merely free from any offensive substances which the chemist can detect; for the atmospheric causes of cholera, yellow fever, and eruptive diseases, have not yet been satisfactorily detected; and every one knows that an atmosphere may be charged with most offensive and deleterious exhalations, which he can recognize by the sense of smell, when they are altogether inappreciable by chemical analysis. In building our houses, we desire to place them as remote as possible from filthy exhalations and all decaying substances. But too little attention is given to the fact that the unwhole- some exhalations which affect the atmosphere and become a ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 15 source of endemic and epidemic diseases, are more concen- trated near the surface of the earth, and that, if we wish to escape their influence, we should occupy the most elevated apartments possible. Houses of but a single story in height, in which the inhabitants sleep but two, three, or four feet above the surface of the surrounding country, must necessa- rily expose their occupants to the terrestrial exhalations, of whatever character they may be. Sleeping apartments on the ground floor are highly objectionable anywhere, but especially so in cities. Yet, if these are bad, underground apartments are far worse, and should never be tolerated in human habitations. Those who are driven by poverty to occupy such localities, would far better occupy the poorest garret they can find, above the vapors of the street. If our population could be impressed with the importance of appro- priating the highest apartments in their houses to sleeping chambers, it would have a material effect in retarding the spread of epidemics. Dr. Bush informs us that, during the prevalence of the yellow fever in Philadelphia, those who occupied apartments in the third story were far less liable to attacks than those who resided lower. Any one who will pass frequently from a ground floor apartment, on a street or alley, to the third or fourth story, will satisfy himself of the great difference in the purity or impurity of the atmosphere, in the higher and lower localities. But while I would insist upon the importance of a lofty location for residence, and a lofty place of sleeping, there is a matter of much more importance to which I would call the at- tention of those who are building houses. Air, to be pure and 16 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. healthy, requires continual circulation. Whenever confined upon any spot on the surface of the earth, it becomes satu- rated with the exhalations of the substances with which it is in contact; and, as much of these are usually of a vege- table or organic structure, their gradual decomposition, and the decomposition of their exhalations, produces a state of the air which is injurious to health. The surface of the earth is full of organic materials and remnants of vegeta- tion; and, even where we do not at once recognize vegetable growth, minute plants, producing some species of mould, are often present. It is, therefore, certain that confined air, un- less it be confined by dry, vitreous, or mineral surfaces, is impure air. Not only is it noxious in consequence of the exhalations and putrefactions it contains, but also in conse- quence of its being deprived of the beneficent influence of the sun. That it is colder, and somewhat defective in positive electricity, are not the only defects. There are peculiar qualities imparted by the solar light, which are neither calorific nor electric, but which have a powerful influence on vegetation, and upon sensitive human constitutions. Beichenbach’s experiments on the od force> and my own ex- periments in the relations of the human constitution to light, prove that the most refrangible rays are of great importance to animal and vegetable life. Of this influence, confined air is deprived; hence, whenever dwellings are so constructed as to provide places where the air shall be confined in dark, cold, uncleanly situations, the best arrangements are made for the gradual production of disease. Even the effects of shade alone, where ventilation is not excluded, are known to be injurious. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 17 The effects of a small portion of such air upon the human constitution are not so prompt and alarming as those of marsh miasma, and are, therefore, seldom noticed or referred to their proper sources. The noxious air generated in cellars, basements, and under-floor spaces, reaches the inhabitants of upper apartments in so small quantities that, instead of producing any marked and sudden process of disease, it operates, rather, as a steady tax upon the income of health, so uniform in its depressing effects as not to be appreciated. Yet, many an invalid who fancies himself improved by a change of air, in going to another residence, is really relieved by escaping from the mouldy atmosphere which comes from beneath his own ground-floor. Perhaps the majority of American houses are constructed, in this respect, in defiance of the laws of health. Either a cellar is dug, or the house is one, two, or three feet above the surface of the earth. The cellar, even if it be walled and paved, is a damp, dark, mouldy place, which has scarcely any ventilation, and no sunshine. Even the befct cellars, which are walled and paved, and kept free from decaying vegetables, rotten timber, and other mouldy lumber, are often places which no one can enter without perceiving that he is in the midst of a damp, unwholesome, and oppressive atmosphere, the influence of which is at once depressing upon the lungs and upon the general vitality, from which one emerges into the sunlight and open air as if escaping from purgatory. How often, in passing along the streets of a crowded city, do we receive from mouldy cellars a blast of air inexpressibly offensive ; and how can they who live above 9 , 18 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. such cellars, daily inhaling small portions of such an atmos- phere, escape its deleterious effects? That the human race degenerates in damp, subterranean apartments, no one will doubt who observes the population of our large cities; and they who live immediately over cellars must suffer the same deleterious effects, just in pro- portion as they inhale the cellar atmosphere. That such an atmosphere is calculated to produce scrofula and consump- tion was shown by the experiments of a French physician, M. Coster. In several series of parallel experiments, made upon dogs, rabbits, and chickens, fed upon exactly the same diet-— one set exposed to the open air and sunshine, the other confined in dark, damp, and cold places— he found that, while the former set maintained entire health, the latter, with ex- actly the same diet, uniformly became consumptive, tubercles being developed in their lungs. The laws of the human constitution being the same, we are authorized to affirm that the impure atmosphere which belongs to dark, damp, subter- ranean habitations, where ventilation is neglected, is directly productive of consumption. The common sense of mankind has condemned cellars as a place of human residence ; but, in a mitigated form, the evil still exists to an immense extent. Basement stories de- pressed from one to five feet below the surface of the earth, imperfectly lighted and ventilated, and having walls always more or less damp, if not mouldy, are still commonly occupied as apartments and offices, notwithstanding the strong testi- mony of experience against their use. In Louisville, where basements were formerly much in fashion, they are now sel- dom constructed. In Cincinnati, also, basement stories have ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 19 generally given way to cellars. My own experience, as well as that of my friends, is very decided against their use. The late Prof. M., who occnpied an office in a basement story, about two feet below the surface of the earth, with a paved area around it upon the same level, by which the walls were removed from contact with the surrounding earth, constituting the best possible example of a basement story, eagerly removed to another location, and informed me that he would never, on any account, again occupy a basement office. Prof. and his brother, who occupied a basement story of the common character, as an office, found it so unwholesome, (producing bronchial and pulmonary diseases,) as to compel them to build an office above ground. The intelligent principal of our city high school, whose health has been materially undermined by severe pulmonary disease, informs me that he attributed it to his engagements in his occupation as a teacher in a low basement school-room. My own expe- rience upon this subject was so decisive as to compel me, when occupying a residence with large basement apartments, with the usual damp walls, which had previously been occu- pied as an office and for servants, to keep it entirely vacant, although a teacher was desirous to rent it for a school. I regarded the basement as a positive injury to the house, being not only a waste of space, but a source of noxious air, from which it was difficult to protect our children. I am firmly convinced that, as places of human occupation, basements should be entirely abolished, and cellars should share the same fate. My reason for insisting upon their entire abolition is, that although we may partially escape their evils by living above them, we can not entirely cut off 20 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. the communication between our apartments and the cellars and basement beneath. The offensive air will ascend through crevices in the floor, through doors, windows and stairways, and will infect the area about the house. Some houses are so constructed that the occupants of the lower apartments are but little better off than the inhabitants of the cellars and basements; wherever the cellar communicates with the chambers and halls above by an inside doorway, the atmos- phere of the cellar will be continually ascending to the upper part of the house, and the inhabitants of the lower apart- ments of the house will be habitually breathing the noxious cellar atmosphere. Some years ago, when occupying one of the most spacious and delightful residences in this city, I found it in the most deplorable condition from this very cause. The entire space under the house, nearly fifty feet square, was occupied by large cellars, which had but the usual amount of cellar ventilation, the atmosphere being damp and mouldy, and the sunshine excluded. This immense reservoir of cellar atmosphere had free communication with the halls above, by an interior stairway, the door of which, when closed, did not exclude the passage of the air. The ordinary winds and changes of the weather drove the cellar atmosphere into the house, and the cellar door being on the eastern side, the entire eastern half of the building acquired a damp and mouldy atmosphere from the cellar. A long hall, twelve feet wide, prevented the passage of the mouldiness to the western part of the building, except in very damp weather, when the whole house seemed partially affected. The oppressive- and offensive character of this cellar exha- lation, although due attention was given to cleanliness, was ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 21 such that, on entering the western door of the house, I could instantly determine, by the atmosphere of the hall, whether the cellar door had been left open or closed. This house, one of the oldest residences in the city, had always been occupied by persons of wealth and intelligence, whose vigorous constitutions gave no slight guarantee of health ; yet a large portion of its former inhabitants either died of pulmonary diseases, or suffered severely from their attacks. The majority of two generations died of consump- tion, and I believe the third generation, now living, would have shared the same fate had they been confined to the same residence. My own family suffered from pulmonary derangement ; one manifesting a slight tuberculous tendency, and I experienced, myself, the severest pulmonary attack I had ever known, although I adopted the precaution of occu- pying the most remote room from the source of disease. The entire disappearance of our unfavorable symptoms since removing to a healthier residence, gave additional evidence of their source. ~ While I would condemn cellars and basements entirely, the common* plan of building, in their absence, must be condemned also. The house being built above the surface of the earth, a space is left between the lower floor and the ground, which is even closer and darker than a cellar, and which becomes, on a smaller scale, the source of noxious emanations. Under-floor spaces should be abolished, as well as cellars and basements. The plan that I have adopted with the most satisfactory success, to avoid all these evils, is the following: Let the house be built entirely above the ground; let the lower floor be built upon the surface of the 22 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. earth, at least as high as the surrounding soil. If filled up with any clean material, a few inches above the surrounding earth, it would be better. A proper foundation being pre- pared, make your first floor by a pavement of brick, laid in hydraulic cement, upon the surface of the ground. Let the same be extended into your walls, so as to cut off the walls of your house with water-proof cement, from all communica- tion with the moisture of the surrounding earth. Upon this foundation, build according to your fancy. Your lower floor will be perfectly dry — impenetrable to moisture and to ver- min; not a single animal can get a lodging in your lower story. The dry brick floor will answer for the purposes to which lower stories are usually devoted, but a wooden floor may be laid directly upon the brick, if you prefer it; or if you wish a smoother surface, the bricks may be plastered over with hydraulic cement, making a perfectly solid and smooth floor, wdien it has hardened. Painting the brick floor will improve it by preventing any absorption of moisture from the air. By adopting this plan, your house will be dry and cleanly; the atmosphere of your ground floor will be fresh and pure ; you will be entirely relieved from that steady drain upon life wdiich is produced by basements and cellars; and if you appropriate the ground floor to purposes of store-rooms, kitchen, etc., you will find that the dry apartments thus constructed are infinitely superior to the old basements and cellars. And if you place your sitting and sleeping rooms on the second and third floors, you will be as thoroughly exempt from local miasma as architecture can make you. An additional advantage will be derived from the dryness of ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 23 the walls, according to the theory of Sir J. Murray. Much of the miasmatic influence of unhealthy localities he ascribes to the frequent passage of currents of electricity between the earth and the clouds. The dryer the walls of the house are made, the nearer it approaches to that insulated condition which he considers necessary as a preventive against what has been regarded as local miasma. If all the interior of the walls of an apartment were painted or papered, and varnished, so as to be incapable of imbibing moisture, if would be a valuable addition to the healthfulness of the room. Wall's kept moist by leaks or otherwise, and thus subject to constant evaporation, are prolific sources of colds. Every one knows how dangerous it is to sleep in a freshly plastered apartment, or even when the walls are ap- parently dry , if they are not really and thoroughly desiccated. Absolute dryness of wmlls, ceilings, and floors, and a free circulation of air and light, are matters which a builder should consider essential in every apartment for human beings. 24 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER VI. THE FIRST OR PRINCIPAL FLOOR. When tlie foundation walls have been carried up two or three feet above the level of the ground, let the inclosed space be filled up with dry rubbish to the level of the under side of the flooring joists. It would be advisable to ram this rubbish filling until it is sufficiently hard; a coat of broken stone and gravel is then to be spread over it, and the whole to have poured over it sand, lime, and water, in the proportion of twenty of sand to one of lime, diluted with as little water as is necessary to make a thick mixture. When this cement floor or coating is perfectly hard, the joists may be laid upon it, and the space between joists may be then filled up flush with the same composition. By this means, a healthful, durable, and powerful floor will be formed, meeting all the requisites spoken of by Dr. Buchanan, and quoted in the foregoing chapter. And here we would observe, that the extra cost of this filling-in will be more than balanced by the saving of doc- tors’ charges, and a vast amount of comfort acquired in the freedom from vermin which such a plan insures. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 25 CHAPTER VII. THE CELLAR. As a cellar is one of the greatest comforts attached to a house, and we have strongly advised the abolition of the old pernicious system of underground vaults, so called, we will here recommend the building of cellars over ground, in the rear of the house. The foundation of such a cellar may be of stone or con- crete, and the walls be formed of adobe or sun-dried brick, twelve inches thick, not over five feet in height. There should be two small windows, provided with double sash. The door should be two inches thick, set in a stout frame, on a stone sill. The outside of this door might be sheeted with tin for two feet high. The roof should have a pitch equal to one-half of its span, and be carefully boarded and covered with tarred brown paper, and then sodded. The concrete or stone foundation should be carried up two feet above ground, and this, with the precaution of tinning the door above referred to, will be an effectual barrier to the entrance of vermin. The floor should be composition, similar to that in the house ; and this, as well as assisting materially in preventing the in- roads of nuisances just mentioned, will give coolness to the at- mosphere: a most desirable object in the formation of cellars. The walls may be plastered on inside, and rough casted on outside. The roof of this cellar should project two feet beyond the face of the walls, to protect them from wet. 26 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER* CHAPTER VIII. THE MAIN WALLS. Whatever be tlie material of which the walls of a cottage are to be composed, they should in all cases be powerfully strong, as the slightest tremor or shake in them will crack the inside plastering on them, and also crack the ceiling: thus involving expense and discomfort on account of neglect in this one respect. The main walls should be well calculated to keep in heat, and keep out cold; and to secure this most desirable property, it is only necessary to leave a narrow space to let the warm or cold air circulate through, instead of permitting them to penetrate the whole wall without any interruption whatever. In order to avoid the inroads of vermin which such space in the walls might give room to, it is only necessary to make from the floor, ten inches up, solid; as it is at the floor line, in all cases, that rats or mice penetrate the wall. Where the walls are solid, without furring on the inside, the outside is to be coated with cement of some description. In places where joists are to bear, wall-timbers must be introduced. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 27 CHAPTER IX. THE CHIMNEYS. The middle of the house is undoubtedly the best locution for the chimney, as it insures economy of heat : none being lost, as would be the case if the back of the chimney was on the outside wall. The flues should be curved gently in the form of an S, instead of having them perpendicular. By this means the draft will be good, the heat have a longer passage through the wall, and the wind outside can not puff the smoke down further than the bend. In this arrangement, the fireplace or stove-pipe thimble may be placed anywhere in the division wall of the apartment. For the same reason that it is advisa- ble to have the chimney in the middle of the house, it is like- wise necessary that the fireplace be in the middle wall also. By building a metal plate into the back of the fireplace, heat may be given into the room adjoining, when there is a fire in the parlor or front room. The flues (where there is no' fireplace) should have a small chamber at the bottom of them, to receive the soot, and this chamber should have a metal drawer in it, by which the soot could at any time be drawn off. It should be set at the base of the chimney. The additional weight of the chimney-stack is so much more than that of the walls that it is very necessary to have the foundation under it proportionably strong; so that there must be an offset of not less than four inches in the founda- tion beyond the faces of the superstructure. 28 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER X. THE ROOF. Circumstances will govern the material of which roofs are composed, as well as that of which walls are formed; for, if lumber be dear in the locality, boards and shingles must necessarily be expensive. Slate may, in certain places, prove the cheapest, as it is undoubtedly the best, of coverings. Copper, tin, and zinc are each expensive in any place, and therefore can not be thought of by the builder who seeks economy. Avery cheap roofing may be made with brown paper steeped in boiling tar and chalk, and laid carefully on matched boards. Another cheap roofing may be composed of water-lime, gand, common lime, and gravel, in the following proportions: Gravel, 20 parts. Sand, 10 “ Common Lime, 5 “ Water Lime, 2 “ Mix it to a stiff consistence with a little hot water. Put it on boards or laths. If on the former, slips or laths ought to be nailed on at distances of not less than four inches from each other, to give a hold to the composition. Three inches, at least, should be the thickness. Coarse brown paper has been proved to be an excellent thing to lay the roof with, and when coated with lime, sand, tar, and chalk, has stood the weather in temperate and in northern latitudes for forty years, without injury to the roof thus protected. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 29 3? A. R T II. CHAPTER I. MODES OF BUILDING-. We will now review respectively the various modes of building wbicli the circumstances of location will necessarily demand. They are, Wood -work, Stone- work, Brick- work, Barth-work, Gravel-work or Concrete . In each of these modes of building, the main object is to combine durability and comfort with strict economy. The main work of the dwelling is alone spoken of; the interior finish is left altogether to the proprietor, who can best judge how far his purse can go to accomplish the wants that fancy or taste may dictate. He is here presented with the shell of his cottage, at a cost supposed to be suitable to his means. The actual amount of such cost we will endeavor to put him in the way of accurately estimating, by his attending to the tables and instructions at the end of this treatise. 30 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER II. AV O O D W O R K. This mode of building, so common to almost all parts of tlie continent of America, may be divided into the following styles : Rough Log. The backwoodsman has recourse to this as his earliest homestead, when first he clears a space in his bush-land purchase ; and a good purpose it has served, still serves, and will continue to serve, when sawmills and carpenters are far out of reach, and the ax and the hand-saw are the chief tools of the isolated builder. The straightest and soundest trunks are, of course, the most desirable, and their thickness should be as uniform as possible. It is only necessary to nick each stick within a foot or so of its end, with the ax, and to hatch each tier down on the other at the four angles. Seven such tiers, or eight feet, will be a suffi- cient height for the walls. The interstices should be filled in with mud mixed with grass or wild hay. These log walls should be firmly set upon stakes or piles driven into the ground at three or four feet apart, and the floor should be two feet from the ground. In places where sawmills are not yet erected, a very good temporary floor may be formed thus Cut the straightest pine or cedar logs of the length requisite for joists, and place them close up to each other over the whole house; then fill in between with ashes, clay, and sand or gravel, mixed up very well with water into a very tough mortar, in which wild hay, rushes, stalks, or twigs may be incorporated. This plaster may be leveled over, and made ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 31 to look very smooth and well. If a few bnshels of lime could be conveniently procured and worked up in the fore- going composition, it would add considerably to its strength, and give a light and pleasing color to it. In cutting out the opens for the windows and doors, great care must be taken to secure the cut logs with stout hewn frames, spiked or pinned, with oak pins, to each of them. The ceiling joists should be pine sticks laid close together and run out three feet beyond the walls in front and rear. From the extremities of these joists, secured by eaves-poles laid flat on them and well pinned down, the rafters for the roof are to start. The object of running out the ceiling joists, as just described, is two-fold : it gives a larger attic, and also gives a stoop in front and rear. It likewise takes the usual pressure of the roof away from the walls : the eaves being sustained by fir posts, presenting a very picturesque appear- ance, as well as adding much to the permanency of the dwelling. The chimney-breast should be built of such stones as can be picked up, cemented with mud, or, if possible, with lime- mortar. The outer angles of this chimney-breast may be sustained by well-secured posts, taking care to keep them away from the fireplace. From the ceiling-joists up, no stone should be used; but four angle-posts erected and secured to the ceiling joists at bottom, and to the rafters through which they pass at top. These are to be braced together throughout their length, and this whole shaft is to be inter- laced with sticks, and plastered thickly, inside and out, with mud, the interior to have cow-duns: added. 82 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDEK. Although the Rough Log dwelling may be considered by some as beneath the notice of refinement, yet it was from such a homestead that many a luxurious pile arose,.; and it was in cabins such as these that many of the gems of Amer- ican manhood first saw the light. Why, then, not improve upon the simple details of their construction? Hewn Log. This is an improvement on the preceding rough style, by the hewing of the logs square, and dovetailing the quoins or angles instead of suffering them to project. Log on End. The style next under consideration is one very seldom used; yet it is capable of being made both strong and comfortable. It consists of a sill and cap, the posts, cut to the required height of the wall, being let into the sill below, and being bound together by the cap at top spiked down on them. The joints, after being plastered, to be covered by saplings secured to the cap and sill. The bark being left on the pieces used in this style, and the cap being ornamented with acorns, it must present a very interesting appearance, being rustic in the extreme. The windows should have diamond panes of glass, and the chimney shafts should be in perfect keeping with the wall, represent- ing sections of young trees with the bark on. The floor of porch should likewise be laid with sections of branches with bark on, arranged in grotesque forms, as might suit the fancy of the builder. The gables of cottage and porch might be highly orna- mented in like manner; and, in fact, this arboresque style is so susceptible of ornamentation that a cottage in it could be finished in the most exquisite taste, at a comparatively trifling expense. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. S3 Frame. For years our carpenters and joiners knew no otlier mode of erecting wooden houses than this. Four frames were put together, and, when ready, hoisted up into position, and duly strengthened with angle-braces and ties. It has been customary to fill the spaces and quarterings with brick-nogging, but this is not always done. The outside is either covered with clapboarding, or lathed, plastered, and cemented or rough-casted. Sometimes, instead of clapboarding, it is horizontally boarded flush throughout, and the joints being beveled, this presents a pretty appearance. Plank, or Balloon. For cheapness and strength, this style of wooden building surpasses all others. It is so simple in construction, and yet so compact in form and pretty in appearance, that it can not fail of winning patrons. The requirements are, a moderately heavy cap and sill, and sides of plank nailed to both. The joints throughout these plank walls are to be covered with slips, three inches wide, each. It is usual to apply flooring boarding, tongued and grooved, to the purpose of forming these plank walls ; but much the better plan is to use two-inch undressed hemlock, and sheet the outside of it with inch dressed boards, laid on horizontally, the joints to be run with white lead ; and when the whole is painted over, then rule joint, and sand it in imitation of sandstone. The nickname of balloon was given to this class of wooden structures to mark contempt for their apparently light and fragile formation; but there are few constructions possessing more actual strength: as may be proved by comparing them with the heaviest frames, and testing the liability of each to tremble under a given weight or stroke. The frame, if broken at any of its ties, becomes weakened; whereas the 3 34 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. plank-house is all one complete box, not dependent on any joints in particular. Board-Plank on Flat. This mode of building, as its name indicates, is nothing more nor less than the laying of six-inch planks over each other, letting the alternate sides project or lap over so as to do away with the necessity for lathing altogether. Its advantages are, the extreme ease with which it can be built up : any two persons, without the slightest mechanical skill, being able to put it together, simply taking care, at the angles, to keep it square and plumb, and to mark where windows or doors are required, and cut short the planks accordingly. It is also very strong: every three courses of planks being nailed down together; and being a solid six-inch wall of wood, it must be warm. Its disadvantages are that, in the event of the lumber having any sap remaining in it after it is laid in the wall, rot will soon set in, in which case there is no remedy from perfect ruin. It is also expensive, from the amount of lumber it takes; but this might not be considered a disadvantage where that article is cheap, and a sawmill at hand. Weighing the advantages and disadvantages, we see no reason for preferring this style of building to the preceding or “plank” mode. Plank on Edge. The plan of building here noticed is one very seldom put in practice, as it is inferior to the Plank or Balloon form, being very weak at the angles or quoins. It consists in placing two-inch tongued and grooved hemlock or pine boards edge on edge over each other horizontally, spiking each course together at the quoins, as well as dove- tailing them. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 35 CHAPTER III. STONEWORK. A quarry being near enough, and lumber expensive, stone- work may be found reasonable in building a cottage. But due regard must be had to economy in this work, as any attempt at ornament costs far higher in proportion than the same in woodwork. Rubble. A very neat and economical style of stonework for cottages is rubble face with hammered caps, sills, and base. But the inside of the walls must be furred, lathed and plastered; otherwise the house will be always liable to dampness. Cobble. What is called cobble-stone work looks very well in cottages. The walls are built of the roughest and most irregular stones, and the outside thickly coated with strong mortar, into which are hammered wet cobble-stones, forming regular horizontal courses of similar sized stones, the inter- mediate spaces being stuck with small pebbles in as great variety of hues as can be obtained. But the quoins of this style of building should be regularly built up and bonded into the wall. They may be bush-hammered or hammer- dressed. In finishing off such a cottage as this, it would add greatly to its uniqueness to pave a platform around it in the same style. 36 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDEE. CHAPTEB IV. BRICKWORK. Brick is a material so compact, durable, and so easily handled, that when it is at all reasonable in price, there is none more desirable to the builder. In using brick for cheap cottages, much might be saved and great comfort added by building hollow walls . To effect this purpose, the wall must be fourteen inches thick; the outside course being eight inches, and inside four inches, with a space of two inches between: every fifth brick on the horizontal courses and every fifth brick on the perpendicular courses to form a bond. The advantage of this mode of building is, that it admits a current of air through the walls, and prevents the passage of the damp into the house. No furring, or lathing is re- quired, as the plastering goes on the bare wall. In hollow walls such as these, it would be well to use oak binders shaped like bricks, but fourteen inches in lenght. Hollow Bricks. The invention of hollow bricks is of recent date. They are larger than the ordinary brick, and moulded obliquely on end. They give a better joint than the old form of brick, and being hollow in themselves, require no space to form a hollow wall. They are comparatively light and strong. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 37 Composition Brick. A still more recent invention is tliat just made public at Cincinnati. It is a new material for making brick : namely, an amalgamation of lime and sand, in the proportion of 11 of sand to 1 of lime. This brick is hollow, and is very smooth on the ends, which are square. It is likewise very hard, and, being easily made, will probably become very popular. Like all hollow brick, it requires no firring or lathing, and is said even to require no plastering, so smooth is the finish it makes. Papering will go on to it as well as to a plastered wall. In localities where lime and sand are plenty and cheap, this must prove a very desirable invention. 38 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER V. EARTHWORK. There being locations where wood, stone, and lime are so expensive as to be out of the reach of that class for whose particular benefit this little treatise is more particularly intended, the great material which nature has most profusely supplied will now come under consideration as a fitting mate- rial for man’s use in building. The modes of using it for this purpose are various, and have had their origin in the wants of mankind in many parts of the globe. PiSE. This is an introduction of the French ; and building en pise is as absolutely necessary in Lyons as gravel composi- tion on our timberless prairies. The peculiar dearth of every other material in that part of France, compelled the inhab- itants who could not afford to import brick, stone o'r lime, to have recourse to this primitive yet excellent method of raising up walls. The modus operandi is as follows : The ordinary brown earth is dug up and laid aside to dry. It is then finely screened,, and all vegetable or other impuri- ties carefully cast away. A mould of the following form is then procured: two hemlock or oak boards, three feet long each, and two inches in thickness, are to be placed on their edges on the foundation, apart from each other the required thickness of the proposed wall; two pair of standards are now to be placed upright, a pair at either side of the boards, and these are to be held in their respective positions by ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 39 round-iron braces above and below, nutted and screwed so as to be easily taken asunder and removed as required. Two little guide-sticks wdll also be necessary to keep the boards at their proper distance apart at their upper edges. The prepared earth is now thrown in, a layer of about one inch thick, and slightly damped with a watering-pot. It is then tamped or beaten with rammers, until it is quite hard. Another layer is then thrown on, to about an inch in depth, and rammed as before, and so on, to the top of the mould. The iron braces are then unscrewed and drawn out, and the mould moved forward, when the operation of filling and tamping is continued. Thus the work is to be prosecuted until the circuit of the building has been performed, when the mould is to be lifted to the second course, and the same routine to be gone through as in the first course. If the moulding boards have been planed on the inside faces, the wall will present a smooth appearance inside and out. Instead of the single mould here described as generally used in France for jyise building, we would recommend that the walls be completely boarded round, and thus save the frequent joints which the single mould involves. The rafters may be temporarily used as the standards, and be well secured the full height of the intended walls: not to be removed until the walls are complete and the wall-plates secured in their places. Wherever opens for windows and doors occur, stout frames are to be set in their proper places and well secured, as the pressure in the operation of ramming is very great. The rammers , called by the French yisoirs , are peculiar in their formation. But a well-seasoned oak root, six inches 40 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. square and a foot long, into which a handle is fastened, three feet long, will answer a good purpose, provided the edges of the bottom are taken off so as to prevent cutting the earth at each stroke. That the philosophy of this system of wall-building is well founded there can be no doubt when we consider that a newly dug piece of ground may have a track or path made perfectly hard over it by the mere passing to and fro of footsteps for a short time. But it does not require any further support than the testimony of the past ninety years in the actual existence, for that time, of buildings in the city of Lyons. The French are in the habit of frescoing the walls on the outside and giving excellent imitations of marble. As to the inside, it requires no preparations, the walls being perfectly smooth, and wanting only painting or papering as may suit the taste. Adobe. This form of construction, by us most generally called sun-dried brick , is very much in favor in Mexico, and is frequently used in the neighboring province of Canada. As its name imports, it consists of brick burnt or dried in the sun. These brick are composed of earth, wetted and worked up with straw through it by oxen treading it out. When it has acquired a stiff plasticity by being sufficiently trodden and turned, the laborers will shovel it into the moulds, which must be placed in a row along a level plank; and when they are all filled, the moulds may be raised off steadily, and the plank, with the bricks thereon, be removed to an appro- priate place to dry. The moulds must then be dipped in water and laid on afresh plank, where they are again filled and raised, as before, and so on. The bricks are to remain on their ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 41 respective planks, which are to be raised a few inches from the ground, and a broad plank or two for roofing is to be laid over them at night or during rain. They are to be sub- mitted to the heat of the sun for ten or twelve days, when they are to be turned over and permitted to remain a week or so more, until they are thoroughly dry, which may be ascertained by breaking one of the bricks across, and inspect- ing the heart of it. The mould is made as a stout box, without top or bottom, and having cleets for handles at the ends. The dimensions of sun-dried bricks differ according to the climate. In Mexico, where the heat of the sun soon strikes through them, they are very large. In Canada they are smaller. The two most general sizes are : 18 inches long, 12 inches wide, and 6 inches thick; and 12 inches long, 12 inches wide, and 6 inches thick. The latter, although it does not present so good looking a front as the eighteen-inch one, makes a more compact brick, and is decidedly less liable to crack, as well as being handled with more facility. In the constructing walls with adobe or sun-dried brick, a foundation wall of stone or concrete must be laid, as this material must not be near the ground or subject to moisture. Where opens for windows and doors occur, it must be borne in mind that the bricks shrink after they are laid up in the wall; and therefore the frame intended for the open had better not be put in for a week or ten days, if dry weather, a fortnight if damp. In their absence, rough temporary frames must be placed to work up to. 42 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. The same material of which the bricks are composed is frequently used in a semi-liquid state for cement ; but in case lime is not very dear, mortar is preferable for the joints. It must be particularly observed that the roof shall project not less than two feet beyond the walls in building en pise , or with sun-dried brick, as it is imperatively necessary that no drip shall injure the face of the walls. The outside face of this brickwork may be plastered with strong mortar and rougk-easted with gravel. On the inside it can be plastered on to the wall without lathing. This makes a really comfortable house; being, like pise , warm in winter, and cool in summer. It is very durable, and even the straw incorporated in it has been known to last for over sixty years in a perfectly sound condition. The caps and sills of windows and doors ought, if possible, be stone, as woodwork will be liable to decay quicker than the bricks, and thereby render the wall weak. Cob-wall. This is a highly primitive manner of building which prevails much in Europe, especially in Devonshire, England. It is, in fact, the adobe put up en masse in the walling instead of being divided into bricks. It is commonly put up with pitchforks roughly, and afterward combed down with rakes, and left to harden in the sun before the roof is put on, the tops of the walls being covered with loose boards to shelter them from the weather. There can be no comparison between cob and adobe walls, as the latter is composed of thoroughly dried bricks, while the former is damp in the heart for a long time after its erection. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 43 The cob-walls are finished with a batter on the outside of say four inches in ten feet high. Pise walls might likewise have a similar batter, which would add much to their strength. In all erections of earth-work walls, the first object will be to keep them up above the surface of the ground; the second, to roof them well over; and the third, to avoid the possibility of damp coming in connection with them, by means of rain-conductors or otherwise. 44 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER VI. GRAVELW ORK OR CONCRETE. The settlers on our vast western prairies, from a want of lumber as well as of building stone, have been driven by necessity to seek for another mode of building more adapted to the means within their reach. It is well known that those prairie lands have for their foundation a plentiful bed of gravel; and, as lime is likewise plenty and cheap, the inhabitants of Illinois, Iowa, and Wis- consin are in the habit of using these ready materials to construct walls with. These dwellings so erected are termed “Gravel Buildings,” but they are, in reality, “Concrete” structures, and if their walls be properly proportioned in their composition, they are as hard and durable as stone itself. These proportions are either, Gravel, 9 parts or measu 'es. Lime, 1 part. Or, Gravel, 12 parts. Lime, 1 part. Some gentlemen have asserted that even twenty parts of gravel to one part of lime will form a strong composition; but this is scarcely possible. However, it is easy to try a few experiments before commencing the house. The first thing to be done is to erect posts all around the intended building, not more than three feet apart, and ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 45 corresponding posts on the inside, back from the outside ones exactly the thickness the wall is to be. The flooring joists and rafters may be used for this purpose. Stout planks are now to be placed inside of these posts, all around the house, and this will form the mould for the walls. The composition is to be made in a box placed on the inside of the house, so as to be handy to the work. It is to be made in the following manner: the gravel, say eight bushels, is to be spread over the bottom of the box evenly; a bushel of lime is then to be slaked in a separate box, and when it forms a thick, creamy fluid, it is to be poured over the gravel, and the whole is to be worked up instantly and cast into the mould without being suffered to rest long enough to begin setting. Two or three men, with broad shovels, should be ready to mix up the composition as soon as the fluid lime is thrown over it, and great care must be taken to mix it very thoroughly, as on this depends the future solidity of the walls. Where windows and doors occur, frames wide enough to fill the thickness of the wall are inserted and filled up to. No more than one thickness of the composition should be laid in the wall at a time ; and the whole evenly gone over, course after course, until the walls are up to their proper height. Each course or layer having time to set before the succeed- ing layer comes on, the whole will be sufficiently dry when the eaves-plates are on, and will then harden rapidly. To leave flue in the walls, it is only necessary to place a round or square stick (the former is preferable) in the wall. 46 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDEE. It should be seven inches diameter; and the chimney-breast should be not less than twenty-one inches thick. The shaft above the roof is to be moulded with one smoke-chamber to receive all the flues into it. Care must be taken to make its capacity equal to the total amount of openings of the flues, and at the same time to have its sides sufficiently thick to insure it from splitting. This chimney-shaft might be built up of burnt brick with greater ease and certainty than the foregoing method would ad- mit of, if it were possible to procure the bricks for that purpose. The roof of a building of this description should project two or three feet beyond the walls, and be nearly flat, having no more pitch than will answer to carry off the rain-water from the roof. The covering of the roof is to be a composition similar to that in the walls, and may be laid on about two and a half inches thick over boards nailed down on the rafters or joists. Caps and sills of windows and doors ought to be of stone, or hard burnt brick; though it is possible to mould or cast arches for sills in concrete of sufficient strength for the purpose. The composition for this purpose should, however, be most carefully manipulated, and well beaten with spatulas until all moisture is driven out; being then worked into the mould, and submitted to a sufficient pressure, it will harden very rapidly. It would be desirable to add hydraulic lime in such compositions, and the following might be the proportions : Fine Gravel, • 6 parts. ; Fine Sand, 6 “ Common Lime, 1 “ Hydraulic Lime, £ a ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 47 Mix the lime and water np into a cream., and pour on over the sand and gravel, working all np well, and beating it with flat sticks or spatulas, as before directed. In the casting of foundations and main walls, it would add immensely to the strength of the concrete if a fall of ten or a dozen feet could be given to it. This might be easily accomplished by having the posts along the walls firmly braced at top, and laying plank gangways or runs for the laborers to carry up the concrete with their wheelbarrows and pitch it over. Another plan might be adopted, namely: the hanging of a trough by two cords passing through pulleys at top, and a catch at a certain height, acting on the same principle as a pile-driver, and oversetting the box, which, being empty, is let go and descends, to be filled and hoisted as before. A horse might be applied to this work with advantage. In New England the use of concrete has grown much into fashion ; but so carelessly are the walls formed that cracks not unfrequently occur. It must therefore be observed that too much attention can not be paid to the proportions of material as well as to the working them judiciously together. Too great a quantity of lime tends to weaken instead of improving the work. It is too common a practice to use the following proportions, viz : 33 parts of lime, 33 parts of sand, and 66 parts of broken stone. This is very erroneous, being not alone weak, but very expensive as compared with the true proportions. 4:8 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER VII. THE INTERNAL ARRANGEMENT OF DWELLINGS. Having fully treated of the main parts of a building in which economy is the feature never lost sight of, we now come to consider the interior, and to keep the same object in view still. All partitions may be built slight; but by bracing, or otherwise, should be mafde strong enough to avoid jarring, and thereby cracking plastering, or splitting papering. In adobe houses, the partitions may be built of brick laid on eds:e. In concrete dwellings, they may be formed of narrow brick, of similar material, cast for the purpose with a tongue and groove at either end of each brick : thus tying them securely together. Previous to breaking ground, a well-digested plan should be decided on, and never after deviated from until the work is completed. For, it frequently happens that a very trifling deviation will so change the features of the plan as to add considerably to its cost ; whereas, the change might have been made in the plan, and everything foreseen before the undertaking was incurred. In cities, where lots are dear and necessarily small, a narrow frontage is all that can be expected — often so narrow as to interfere materially with the accommodation and shape of apartments ; yet it only requires a little study and ingenuity to obviate this trouble. There is a very silly notion among builders, be their struc- tures ever so small, that there must be a hall door in front ; ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 49 and this idea not only causes the windows to be crowded to make room for it, but the plan inside is crowded also. It is much better to have the entrance on the side, thus leaving room for a good sized apartment in front for a par- lor, and a narrow stairs leading from the hall to the sleeping rooms overhead. The living room, at the rear of the house, might have a bedroom off, and a pantry. One bedroom being sufficient on the first floor. In this way, sixteen feet would be a sufficient width for a house, and four feet being sufficient for a passage to the hall door, and to the rear; a twenty foot lot would give room for a house of moderate capacity. But in a village, or in the country, the house should pre- sent its full front, having the hall door in the center. A center building with two wings, although it looks well, is not to be thought of by the economist, as it is more ex- pensive, and does not present that compact form, which gives so much comfort in a house by the concentration of heat. A very good proportion for a parlor is fifteen by thirteen feet ; for a small bedroom seven by nine, a dining room twelve feet square, or even thirteen by nine; kitchen ten by twelve. Nine feet is a sufficient height for the first story, and seven feet for the second. Or, where a roof of gothic pitch is used, fourteen feet is sufficient height at the eaves. No sleeping room should be without a window. Many persons in building, desire to have a cistern under their kitchen, or woodshed. This is a very bad practice, as the flooring joists and timbers, immediately over such cistern are constantly subject to damp, and consequently soon rot away. 4 50 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER Till. FLOORS. As it is customary in this country to carpet every room in the house, flooring need not be laid with a view to appear- ance. It is cheap to lay down an undressed floor, covering the joints with slips of brown paper, and then spreading old newspapers, instead of straw, under the carpet. But in a kitchen a carpet can not be used, and so it be- comes necessary to have a planed floor, three times coated with oil-paint, or, better still, to have a composition floor, made in the following manner: Take sand and gravel, and lay the foundation for the required floor, spreading it on to within two inches of the intended height or level. Pour over the whole hot grout of lime, very fine sand, and hot water, until it is all covered. Leave it to dry for a week. Then take sand, ashes, and lime — three of the first, two of the second, and one of the third — and mix with water to a stiff paste, and lay it on smoothly over the floor up to the level desired. Let this floor stand for some days until it is perfectly hard. Zinc ought to be placed under the cook-stove, as the heat may in time crack the composition, although it is not probable. This composition makes a handsome and very durable floor, and is considerably cheaper than wood in any locality. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 51 CHAPTEB IX. CISTERNS. There is no greater comfort to a household than that of a good capacious cistern; and certainly none that will more amply repay in comfort all the outlay which it may call for. The best method of forming a cistern is to dig a large round hole, say eight feet diameter and seven feet deep, and plaster the sides and bottom with hydraulic cement and sand, three to one, about three inches thick. In the middle of this cistern, at about a foot from the bottom, place a stone or wooden false bottom, perforated with holes, through the center of which the rain-pipe is to descend a few inches. This bottom chamber is to be filled nearly full with charcoal and sand. It is obvious that such a cistern, acting as a filterer also, must prove of great utility. The back yard, near the rain-water pipes, and out of doors but away from foundations, must be the fittest place for this cistern; from which the water may be taken for use by a pump set for that purpose. Smoke-house. A simple little cellar, built and roofed with brick, (burnt or unburnt,) with a door tinned on the inside, constitutes one* Privy. This modest mansion of retirement is but too often passed lightly over by the builder ; yet nothing is more offen- sive or unhealthy than it when dilapidation comes upon it. 52 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. To build it soundly, then, is as desirable as to erect, in a substantial manner, the dwelling itself. The vault should be sufficiently deep, and be walled in securely. The privy should stand upon these walls, and be built with a view to stability ; be well ventilated through the roof, and sufficiently lighted by windows turning on pivots. The door should have a deep porch to protect it from the weather, and also have a pulley-line and weight to shut it. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 53 CHAPTER X. ESTIMATING. This is a subject to which the man of humble means about to build, must pay especial attention; for nothing requires a nicer calculation than the items that make up the house of such a person. He has a desire, and a very natural one, to have the most for his limited means ; and therefore he should go to work with his mind fully made up to the question, “How much is it to cost?” In estimating the expenses necessary to be incurred in building, it is requisite to know exactly what you want, where it is to be obtained, and what it is to cost when obtained. These are questions which will depend for their solution altogether on the location where the required building is to be. But the measurement of the building, and of the several materials of which it is to be composed, may be made with sufficient accuracy on the plans ; and this is technically termed, “making out the quantities.” To these quantities, when found, the price per yard, rod, or thousand, is to be applied, and the amount in money arrived at. To this may be added ten per cent, for contingencies, and the total is what you have to provide for the erection of your house. On a sheet of paper, rule two pair of columns, thus : Cubic Square | yds. | feet. [ | feet | inches. | Commence at the foundation, and calculate the amount of digging required for the trenches : the cistern, the sewer, and the privy. Calculate the exact length, width and depth, and 54 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. divide tlie amount by twenty-seven, which will give the num- ber of cubic yards of digging required, which amount must be entered down in the columns used for that purpose. The next item to be calculated is the foundation, (also in yards,) which, of course, will be similar to that of the trenches around house, and two feet added for height above ground. It is to be noted whether the foundation is to be of stone or concrete. The sewer will come next under consideration, then the cistern, then the privy, then the cellar. Having entered down each of these items in its separate column, then proceed to find the amount in cubic feet of the walls and chimneys, and this ends the cubic work. Having now headed your columns with “ square feet and inches,” commence to calculate the flooring, roofing, parti- tioning, etc. Count the number of windows, and the number of similar sized lights in each, and make a note accordingly. The doors — class them as to size, thickness, and number of panels in each. Note these things down. It may be remarked here that all sticks of timber, such as caps, sills, beams, joists and rafters, are calculated by board measure : that is, by the foot square, and one inch thick ; for two inches thick it is double the number of square feet; for three inches, treble, and so on. The shortest method of arriving at the contents of such sticks is to find the length in feet ; bring it to inches ; which multiply by the inches in breadth, and this amount again by the number of inches in thickness. You have now found the number of cubic inches in the whole, and divide this amount by 1728, that being the number of cubic inches in one cubic ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 55 foot; which divided again by 144, gives the board measure above alluded to: so that you have the measurement both ways, cubic and square. The next measurement is superficial square feet and inches, such as flooring, roofing, plastering and painting. The con- tents in flooring and roofing are to be divided by 100 to reduce them to squares, and the plastering and painting are to be divided by 9 to bring them to yards— -these being the denominations under which mechanics calculate their respec- tive works. Ironmongery is estimated by simply counting the number of hinges of one class; number of locks, bolts, and fastenings, in like manner. In conclusion, the accessories, such as rain-conductors, cistern-pump, stench-trap, etc., are to be enumerated, and the estimate of “quantities” is complete. It only remains now for the man about to build to find out by inquiry among the several trades, the prices of each work, and he can at once come at the actual value of the whole. It is optional with him to buy his own materials and em- ploy his own labor, or to let out the job, either piece-meal, or “in the lump,” as it is called. The latter is the dearer mode, as the contractor must have a profit on the job ; and it is likewise the most doubtful mode, for the proprietor being, probably, no judge of either material or work, will, when too late, find himself cheated in both. In large works, the contract system is probably the best, because there can be a superintending architect whose pro- fessional interest it will be to guard against fraud. But in o very limited constructions, such as those now under consid- eration, an opposite course is more advisable. 56 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER, CHAPTER XI. HINTS WORTH HAYING. Married mechanics, clerks, or others whose income is small, and who have families to shelter and support, should of all things avoid the ruinous rents of large cities. Nor should they be induced, under the blinding influence of “long credit,” to undertake paying for miserable little unproductive “city lots,” — thus enriching wealthy land owners at a sacri- fice of every little comfort which their days of labor should be entitled to. Let a small club or association of such men put into one common fund sufficient to make the first payment on a piece of land a few miles from the city. Let them keep a convey- ance for their special use, if they do not locate near a railroad or canal, or public conveyance of some description, and they will derive ten fold benefit. Take the following as an example : Twenty-five heads of families subscribe mutually fifty dol- lars toward the purchase of one hundred acres of land, the price of which is thirty dollars per acre, on a credit of four years, one fifth being paid down. Now, each subscriber’s share of the first installment is twenty-four dollars, and the remaining twenty-six dollars in treasury will go to fence* dig wells, etc. Thus, each member will have five acres of land, at a rate at which he could not procure it if buying individually ; and these five acres will amply sustain his family, and by saving ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDEK. 57 rent and provisions, enable him to meet the remaining small payments and clear his land out of his earnings in the city. This is a practicable scheme, and one which ought to draw the attention of that large class whose interest it is to save by every means possible. Let no man of humble means be without a small garden. It is both healthful and economical, and will put on his table many a little luxury which, without it, he would not think of procuring. And, if there were no other enticement, there is the enjoy- ment of flowers — beautiful flowers — to send up their incense to him as he returns from his daily toil, or on the soothing Sabbath culls the heart* s-ease which some loved member of his cherished household reared for him alone. The cellar we spoke of in an earlier page should be in the garden, and it might be made to form a mound, planted with flowers, or sodded with grass. A man of a little taste might make a beauty-spot of it. The fence around the house, a pretty, modest little picket, should be backed by judiciously arranged slips of Osage Orange, which, when the picket had in time fully done its duty, and been removed from its post, will take its place in all the bloom of full-leafed beauty. It is to be hoped that this broad land will one day present a glorious intersection of hedges, which will truly make the country to blossom as the rose. The gate should be a special feature in our little plan. It should be seven feet high, arched over and trellised, so that grapes or vines of some description may festoon and cover it. The front of the house should have its woodbine, jessamine, 58 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDEE. or ivy-green bedecking it, and adding beauty suck as the humming birds may fly to, and the summer bees draw sweets from. Nor should a greenhouse be omitted, however small. It will pay for its cost over and over again, in early vegetables, plants, and flowers. Hot-beds should at least be provided, — the expense of them is inconsiderable. Trees of choice fruit should be planted where their shade will not hurt the growth in the beds adjacent. Lastly. The walks in the garden should be neatly paved with pretty small round stone on a layer of sand; and if such can not be easily procured, gravel should be spread over them. Care must in all cases be taken to form the walks with a rise in the middle, to give facility to the easy egress of the rain-water; the sides of such walks having Y gutters, formed of two boards, with a gentle fall in one direction to receive and carry it off. How to Test Seeds. Be careful in the selection of and preservation of seeds that they unite all the requisite quali- ties for reproduction. Remember that they must be thor- oughly ripe, and well preserved. Avoid any possible chance of their getting heated. And here we will take notice of two excellent methods of testing the quality of seeds: One is, to throw them into water; the seeds which float on the surface are worthless. The other, and perhaps more conclu- sive test is to place the seeds in a saucer, between two pieces of cloth saturated with water. Having lain the time required for seed in the earth to sprout, it will declare itself good or bad. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 59 Note well, that fruit coming from old seed, that has re- tained its germinating power, is better than that grown from new seed. To Test Water Lime, or Hydraulic Cement. Take a small flannel bag, and fill it with the water lime ; then put the bag into water, and when it is saturated take it out, squeeze it well, and on opening the bag, if the lime be good it has set; if not, it will be found cracked. Water lime shrinks, on an average, one-fifth of its bulk, for which calculation must be made in using it for building purposes. For all underground work, water lime is desirable, because its great virtue is in a perfect resistance to the inroads of moisture. But, for all overground work, it is not advisable to use water lime without the assistance of common lime : for this reason, that as the water lime shrinks, so, on the contrary, the common lime swells in the slaking, and thus the two acting* together correct each other, and form a compact working cement. ILLUSTRATED EXAMPLES. uompton, Buffalo, ILLUSTRATED EXAMPLES. CHAPTER I. THE LOG HOUSE. No. 1. Here is the primitive dwelling of the backwoodsman, as it might be made with but a trifling attention to details. The windows and doors are surmounted with bracketed weather-boards, and these brackets would be in better keep- ing with the rustic structure they belong to if they were formed of branches with the bark left on. The window-frames may be made of graceful proportions, such as two feet six inches wide by six feet long, divided by a center mullion, made stationary, and having bark on the outside. The roof might be bracketed in the rustic style; and in fact, many little embellishments might be applied to make this humble home of the husbandman a gem in its way. It does not require actual mechanics to follow out these little hints. Any man with a saw, a hammer, and chisel, with some nails, can effect wonders in this way. The estimated value of such a building as this can not well be arrived at; for “bees” work so much to the purpose in the erection of them, that nothing is left for the carpenter 64 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDEE. and joiner "but the inside finish; and as “bush carpenters’’ can always be had for six shillings or a dollar a day, with board, it may be presumed that for plainly finished work, a living room, pantry, and two bedrooms, with an open attic, will not cost much over thirty-jive dollars for labor. It will be observed that the accompanying illustration pre- sents the quoins as squared even with the walls ; in such case they must be dovetailed, and each of the logs should be pre- pared on the ends, with that view, by the carpenter previous to the “raising.” The logs should also be squared. The design here given would, with the additions just men- tioned, cost (for labor) fifty dollars . Of course, the timber used would be that grown on the farm, and the farm hands should give the carpenter assistance where required. PLAN OF No. 1. The Log House has been but too much neglected in its interior arrangement and plan ; as if, because its construction costs so little, it were unworthy of improvement. Yet how susceptible is this mode of building of an hundred little reforms which would conduce to its comfort. Almost every settler in a forest-home is possessed of one idea, namely : that this, his first dwelling of necessity, is to be replaced, at some future time, by a more expansive (not a more comfort- able) structure, and that therefore he is not called upon to improve it. Do men so arguing ever calculate how many years they will probably occupy this as their only residence — the birthplace of their children and the fond memorial of 1 2 n A J [|^ BE ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 65 early days and gallant struggles? No, never; for if they looked so far ahead, they would be sure to tax their ingenuity and industry to make the log-house less rude, and more desirable as a homestead. The plan before us presents a simple yet very convenient arrangement. Although the entrance-door is in the center of the front wall, yet it will be seen that the little hall is so formed as not to interfere with the living room, which is fifteen by sixteen feet square, while the two bedrooms on the opposite side of the hall are but ten by eight feet square each, yet provided with small closets, and having a mutual communication with a small greenhouse or summer tea-room. Attached to the main building is a scullery, with a stairs leading to the loft or attic. The hall door is so hung that when open it screens the living room from the weather. In the putting up of the walls, it will be advisable to lock the corners or quoins well together, by cutting half through each pair of ends of logs, and dovetailing them. They should be bored with an inch and a half auger, and have an oak pin driven through them when joined together. By observing this instruction at each corner of every layer of logs, great strength will be insured, and the eyesore of 'projecting ends of logs be abolished. If a sawmill is within reach, the walls on the inside might be sheeted with half-inch boards, as also the ceiling, and the partitions may be fitted up of inch and half boards. G6 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTEE II. LOG ON END. No. 2. It will be seen by this illustration that a very neat de- sign can be constructed in this style of log-building, for there is not a difficulty in forming a diversity of figure— -oval, octa- gon, or round — as there is when the logs are laid horizon- tally. The labor will, however, be something more, as the carpenter will have to find and form the several angles in the caps and sills of the walls, as well as of the roof, which will necessarily present hips. The flooring and ceiling also will cause additional expendi- ture of time, as well as a waste of material. This style is, then, of necessity, much more expensive than the horizontal log, noticed in the former chapter.* The design here presented will demand an outlay of some- thing less than a hundred and fifty dollars for labor. This same plan and elevation may be built of brick, stone, or concrete, in or near cities; but for the country, where cedar, spruce, or pine is plenty, the log-on-end most strongly recommends itself, as being very rustic-looking, pretty in its effect, and affording a chance for some unique forms of chambers. Care should be taken to select logs of equal breadth, say, ten inches each, so as to give evenness of wall. No furring for wall-plastering will be necessary, as the pro- jection of the upright logs will answer to nail the lathing to. Compton, 'Buffalo ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 67 PLAN OF No. 2. The construction of houses with logs placed on end, as remarked in a former chapter, admits of some pretty forms of plan: as in the one here given, the corners, or right angles, are cut off. The cap-pieces should be well framed and firmly secured together, as the perpendicularity of the walls depends altogether on the precaution taken in this respect. The walls and ceiling may be sheeted inside, as in the preceding plan. Log on End No. 3. If the logs procured be eighteen or twenty inches thick, they may be sawed down the middle and set ivp flat face and round face alternately, so as to present, on the outside, a relief between the round tree-trunks. There will be an advantage in this mode of upright log building in the broad lap which will necessarily cover the joints. The quoins or angles of the building must be three quarters of a round trunk or log, with a single section or quarter cut out of it. This latter form would be still more expensive than the former, inasmuch as every log would have to be correctly sawed in halves down its length. But neither form would be so expensive as to deter a man of some taste from employ- ing them, and certainly their appearance would be picturesque in a rural location. The caps and sills may be secured to the upright logs by oak pins two inches thick and eight or ten inches long. These pins would be better square than round, to prevent the possibility of the logs turning in the least. The rafters should be notched down upon the caps to give additional firmness to the whole. 68 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. This last design would, for a building 18 by 29, cost within the range of $200 to $850, provided the timber were near, and a sawmill at hand. PLAN OF No. 3. This plan is simple, yet sufficient for a small family. The construction, as in the design just reviewed, depends mainly on the capping and ceiling joists for support. The walls and ceiling may be sheeted with boards, as in the former plans. In case the trunks intended for the walls are over twelve inches diameter, it would be advisable to reduce them by sawing the surplus thickness at the center into boards, and using only the outer sections, or slabs, the edges of which should be made straight. Plate N- 4. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 69 CHAPTER III. FRAME BUILDING. No. 4. In this perspective may be found a pretty design for a cottage orne. The stoop is a continuation of the roof, sustained by rustic pillars trellised ; and when the braces occur, slices of tree trunks having the bark on are nailed on the outside. The quarterings are filled in with neatly laid choice red brick, (pressed brick, if possible.) The work of a building such as this would necessarily be expensive, and consequently it could not be recommended to a man whose means forbid his attempting anything more than a dwelling; — unless a man possessed a little taste and skill, and occupied his leisure hours in tacking on the various little addenda which give to it its peculiarity of character. In this case, the design would not cost much more than an ordinary frame of the same sort; which, for a building of dimensions twenty by thirty feet, would range from $260 to $400, ac- cording to the cost of material in the locality, and allowing a plain, substantial finish within. PLAN OF No. 4. The frame design, of which this is the plan, is upon a small scale ; but can, of course, be built to suit any greater expen- diture of money. This is a very ornate style of building, and yet not expensive. The walls are intended to be eleven feet high at the quoins. At eight feet high, they are to be braced by a stoutly framed capping, on which the joists for the second or attic floor are to be hafted and spiked down. 70 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. Lathing and plastering will be required for the wails and ceilings, taking care to leave a space between the plastering and the brickwork, so as to insure a freedom from dampness. The Wyatt or bay window in the sitting-room may be very simply constructed, formed, in fact, by the sections of the framework of the walls, projected and covered in with a rustic balcony around the top. The chimney-flue is built upon the attic floor. The attic is divided into two sleeping rooms. No. 5. We have here a frame cottage, octagonal in plan, and having a stoop all around it four feet out from the walls. The numerous angles, as well as the number of roof-hips would cause much waste of stuff, in this building. But, where such would not be a barrier to its erection, a most desirable form would be found in it — light and elegant in its effect. The cost of such a frame, under all circumstances, would be from $300 to $500, supposing it to be twenty-five feet in diameter within the walls. The chimney must rise in the center, whatever may be the plan carried out for the interior. The eaves-gutters in this design must be located behind the raised ornamented work terminating the roof, and the rain-water may be drawn off through a pipe in the rear, passing through the pillars, or forming one of them. This cottage may be lathed and plastered on the outside, and receive a finish of rough-cast — -or be plastered in three coats, receiving at last a hard finish, which, when rule-jointed, will give a very neat appearance. 4 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 71 PLAN OF No. 5. This is an octagon, completely surrounded with a stoop or ambulatory formed by the projection of the roof, sustained at the eaves by coupled columns. The arrangement of the plan here given will be found to be desirable, giving a hand- some form of sitting-room, lighted by three windows, two convenient bedrooms, though small, and a kitchen, with pantry. The hall is unique in shape, but may be made to look very pretty. It is to be lighted with glass panels in the hall door. The central situation of the chimney, besides giving two good fireplaces, is well calculated to diffuse heat through the house. This cottage may be constructed either in frame, by plank on flat, or in brickwork. If in frame, it may be filled in with brick, like its predecessor, or not. If not, it can be lathed and plastered inside and outside, or clapboarded on the out- side, according to taste or circumstances. 72 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDEE. CHAPTER XV. PLANK BUILDING, No. 6. This mode of building gives a chance for various quirks in the plan, although any deviation from the rectangu- lar form is, of necessity, accompanied by extra expense, which it would often be advisable to avoid. The design here given is perfectly plain in this respect, and, with the single excep- tion of the ornamented pediment over the entrance, has no feature that adds to its estimate as a simple dwelling. A cottage like this— -say twenty-four by eighteen feet in plan — might be laid up, by a carpenter and two assistants, in a very few days; and in case a sawmill were near, and lumber plenty, its cost might not exceed two hundred dol- lars, and it is possible it might be constructed for one hun- dred and fifty. It will be borne in mind that the planks must be so laid that every alternate course shall project, and thus answer for lathing, within and without. These planks should not exceed one inch and a half in thickness. The alternate breadths of planks might be six inches and five respectively, so that whilst the projection of courses necessary for lathing is given on the inside, the outside may be flush. PLAN OF No. 6. The small cottage, of which this is the plan, affords little chance for division of space ; yet, with the kitchen wing, it will prove a convenient, as well as a neat-looking dwelling. Compton,TM'Mo. ContnloTi.'B'uffalo | ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 73 It has a good living room, a small parlor with a bed sink, and a comfortable kitchen, with a bedroom and pantry attached. No. 7. This design presents two pedimented projections, flanking a porch or stoop, formed by the continuation of the roof of main part being flush with their cornices. It is obvi- ous that this would be a very convenient as well as uniform front. The facia board, which forms the cornice, is nothing more than a plain ground, on which acorns or rosets may be stuck. The panels in each pediment are to be of wood an inch and a half thick, diamond shaped; on which a circle is to be placed, three-quarters of an inch thick, with a plain bead moulding round it. The pillars sustaining the roof might be slender, plain, and graceful. Cedar, or saplings of any sort, might be used with a pretty effect; but the necks and bases should be bound with iron rings to prevent splitting. The base, or ter- race, on which this design stands, may be boxed around, with hemlock plank, braced with cedar buts on the outside, and then filled in with rubbish to the top. The sloped sides to be formed by filling in between the braces with earth. The whole might be neatly sodded. The flight of steps to be of two-inch hemlock, or oak, spiked on stout sleepers or car riages, and finished with coarse paint and size, on which fine sifted sand is to be thrown. 74 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. PLAN OP No. 7. This form is unique; it presents two gabled flanks, be- tween which the porch extends. The hall-door opens into a living room, off of which is a bedroom, and inside of which, and occupying one of the flanks, is a kitchen, with a bedroom and pantry off. The other flank is occupied by a sitting-room and a bedroom. 7 Plafp .f.R ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 75 CHAPTER Y. PLANK ON EDGE. No. 8. The plan of a cottage built in this fashion must be square or oblong, on account of the difficulty to be encoun- tered in the securing of the quoins or angles. The planks to be used may be seasoned hemlock, and must be not less than two inches in thickness. They should be grooved on each edge, and, as each course is set down in its place, a stout slip of hardwood is to be hammered into the groove, enough of projection being left to enter the under edge groove of the next plank to close down upon it. Thus will every course be perfectly secured throughout, as far as that goes. The quoins may be hafted, each plank end into the corresponding one; or, better still, they might be dove- tailed, like the corners of a box. In the design before us, perfect simplicity is all that is aimed at. The roof is made to cover a stoop, and the ceiling joists are let down into the top course of plank, the better to bind the walls together. This cottage, although small, is comfortable; and when strong studs are spiked on the inside, to take the lathing at twelve inches apart, from center to center, the walls will be quite strong. The design here given is 30 by 18; and its cost, under ad- vantageous circumstances — as the neighborhood of lumber and sawmill — might not exceed $180. Under different cir- cumstances, the estimate would range as high as $300. The platform of the porch or stoop should be curbed 76 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. around with stout hemlock plank, three inches thick, and filled in with rubbish, the surface to be formed of coarse grout, six inches thick, finished off with a thin coat of dry gravel. The pillars of the stoop, being also the supporters of the roof-eaves of main building, must be well seasoned oak, three by two inches each, secured to the curb of plat- form by spikes, and being set in the ground underneath it. It is worthy of consideration how perfectly weather-tight this plank-on-edge building can be made by the application of white lead and oil to the grooved joints. It is also a great object in this style, that it is so easily to be executed: any ordinary hands being fully capable of putting it together. Another way of forming the quoins is to erect four stout square posts, secured to the sills and to the roof; and on the two inner faces of each to nail slips, between which the planks forming the walls are to be held tight. If this plan be adopted in erecting such buildings in towns, on leased ground, no nail need be driven in the planks; but the whole of the lumber be taken down in a seasoned state, and without any injury other than will arise from waste in the cutting of stuff* to leave opens for windows and doors. Another method of building plank-on-edge is to stud the walls around at every three and a half feet, and groove these studs, sliding down the planks tightly between them. The gain in this will be that the studs will take the lathing on the inside. The outside face of the studs might be much improved by having the angles beveled off. Slices of bark might be tacked on these studs; in which case, the pillars sustaining the eaves of porch should be made to conform. A pretty rustic effect might thus be obtained. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER, 77 PLAN OF No. 8. The arrangement of space in this little dwelling is divided in the only convenient form attainable. It is very small, it is true, yet very snug ; and would answer a man and his wife without children. Plank on edge would be a capital mode of constructing the walls, if lumber were cheap. 78 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER VI. Ho. 9. Here is a design wliicli might be executed in the plank-on-edge mode, with very good effect ; and located in a newly cleared country, be made at once comfortable, sub- stantial, and economical. It is also suitable for adobe , con- crete, and plank-on-flat. The entrance-door has an arched hood, formed of ribs, covered with narrow staves, over which coarse canvas may be stretched, and be well primed and painted. A hood may also be formed over the windows in end walls in the same manner. These adjuncts, trifling in expense, will prove features in the design worth the time and trouble in forming them. The chimney-shaft above the roof may, if brick or stone be scarce, be formed of basswood, previously soaked in brine* the four sides to be secured together by two hoop-iron frames. Any description of moulding may be nailed on to this shaft, and the whole should be coated with size, and thickly sanded. The walls should likewise be sanded, and the porch may be trellised with laths, or left plain as shown in the design. In th’e former case, the porch might be decorated with scarlet runner, sweet pea, or any of the more tender creeping plants; while in the latter case, woodbine, jessamine, grape, or any of the stronger vines, might be reared around it. This design being 28 by 20 feet, might be erected for from $150 to $250, or even less than these estimates if judiciously done. •fl[Bjjn a 1 iio;dmo 3 ! |~d [u T> •O |X) ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 79 The roof may be planked, or shingled, as may be desired; if the former, the planks must be narrow breadths, say six inches, matched, and the joints covered with slats two and a half inches wide, bedded in white lead, or any oil color. In this, as indeed in all cases, the roof should project over eighteen inches, giving shelter to the walls, and effect to the tout ensemble . PLAN OF No. 9. Here is a most desirable little cottage, if erected in adobe , concrete , or in pise. Its external wall ought to be sixteen or even eighteen inches thick at the base, and twelve inches thick at the top, the inclination or batter being on the outside. The partition walls might be of the same material as the external walls, and be six inches thick. No lathing will be required, and but a thin coat of plas- tering, if any. The chimney may be of kiln-burned brick. 80 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDEK. CHAPTEE VII. No. 10. This design may likewise be executed in plank- on-edge, and present a very neat appearance. The windows are to be triplicated, or cut in three opes each. Each window section to turn on a pivot, be hung on hinges, or be made to slide up or down between laths. The stoop or porch is intended to return on each end: thus sheltering the walls on three sides. The roof of this stoop is to be attached to the ends of the rafters of the dwelling, and be boarded with short plank of thin ash, the joints to be covered full four inches, with slats screwed or nailed down on them. The supporters to be neatly finished posts, and a scallop trimmed eaves-board to be nailed to the ends of the ribs. The walls of the house are to be painted a light terra sienna tint, and the roof of porch is to be painted alternately umber and sienna — 'the window sashes and hall door, white. This neat little dwelling, built according to the plan, 30 by 18, will cost between $175 and $300. • PLAN OF No. 10. This plan may also be constructed in concrete , pise , or adobe , and a very neat and unpretending dwelling it will make, having a stoop on three sides of it. ' V C omptou, "Buffalo , I' Is OJA- ICOXOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 81 CHAPTER YIII. Ho. 11. We now present a class of cottages of more pre- tension than the foregoing, adapted to suburban locations or highly cultivated farms. The one under consideration presents a front composed of two projecting wings, flanking an open facade or porch. These wings are three-faced, each face pierced for a window section. It would be very troublesome, and necessarily ex- pensive, to construct this or the succeeding designs in plank- on-edge or plank-on-flat. Brick or stone are the most suitable materials, although it might well be framed and clapboarded, or framed and lathed and plastered. But the many angles would so increase the expense, that scarcely any saving would result to the builder of such a house. Built of brick rough-jointed, and coated with mastic colored light buff, it will look very neat. Erected in rubble-stone, embellished with bush-hammered caps, sills, jambs, and bases, it would present a striking effect, especially in sandstone. The chimney-caps and bases should be stone hammer- dressed, whether the house be erected in brick or stone. This design, executed in stone as above, with suitable internal finish, would cost from 1,800 to 2,500 dollars. The same built in brick and mastic, finished internally as just proposed, would range in expense from 1,000 to 1,800 dollars. 6 82 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. PLAN OF No. 11. An elegant yet inexpensive design is here presented, the plan being compact, convenient, and in every way comfort- able, with a small attic. The walls may be constructed of any one of the various materials presented in this book, and the work may be car- ried out on almost any scale of expense, from humble plain- ness to elegance and cost. Different arrangements of plan can be made, but this is worthy of notice. 10 3 - BEER. ■ 12 ' 1 1 1 - — I j r 1 !i 1 1 | : i L_^ K ( 1 i u 1 J — - “ — “l i \-\Jr sO-i Cr T^Rt ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 83 CHAPTER IX. Ho. 12. We have here a cottage which, properly executed, would present a very unique effect, with its circular hoods over circular headed windows, forming part of the roof, and breaking up the sameness which straight lines of eaves inva- riably convey to the mind. The windows of this cottage should be of plate glass, in two pieces to each section, the sashes to be hinged to the jambs. The hall door should be recessed in two deep torus mould- ings, forming the case. The upper panel may be a circular plate of glass, the eighth of an inch thick. There is to be a moulded facia board spiked on to the eaves. It is to be embellished with wooden buttons, spiked on at equal distances, distributed along its surface. This design may be erected in brick and mastic, like the former, or in stone. The roof may be of corrugated iron or shingles; if the latter, they should be neatly patterned. The chimney-tops may be of cast-iron, as may also be the ornaments on the hoods. The interior arrangement of this design should be in keep- ing with the external effect — striking, without tawdriness. The estimated expense of such a cottage would be : In frame, lathed and plastered inside and out, coated with cement, and made to represent stone, from $1,500 to $2,000 In brick, coated with mastic, from 1,800 to 2,800 In rubble-stone, with bush-hammored finish, from 2,000 to 2,500 84 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BIJILDEK. This design would look well in the center of an acre of richly cultivated garden ; or in the vicinity of a small lake, with handsome shrubbery, and judiciously laid out parterres. The out-offices should, in this, as, indeed, in every arrange- ment, be studiously kept in the background, or partially con- cealed by trees. PLAN OF No. 12.1 Here is another and still more elaborate plan, in which luxury without extravagance may well be enjoyed. The niches at either side of the hall door are to be filled by statuary, and the inner hall or vestibule may have similar niches at the corners. This plan will be found to work well, and afford ample room for the display of taste in furnishing the rooms. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 85 CHAPTER X. No. 13. Tlie advantage of this design is its adaptation to the cheaper modes of building. It can be erected in frame or board, as well as in brick or stone. Its dimensions are 40 bj 30 feet. It will be observed that the two angles of the gable just above the roof of stoop are recessed, while the front below is unbroken. This will present a pleasing variation from the usual uniformity in that part, and tend to make the whole unique. Its lines and angles are in keeping throughout, giving to the whole a pleasing unity of effect. Such a cottage can be made to cost much or little, in proportion to material or internal finish, and therefore comes within the range of the more or less wealthy. Erected in rubble-stone work, with hammer-dressed finish, and elegant interior execution, it will cost from $1,800 to $2,500. Built of brick and stuccoed, with equal internal finish, $1,300 to $2,000. If constructed of frame, lathed, plastered and stuccoed, with genteel finish inside, $1,000 to $1,800. Frame clapboarded, and similar finish inside to that just mentioned, $800 to $1,600. PLAN OF No. 13. This plan is characterized by convenience without display. The attic is divided into two rooms, with closets. The walls may be built of any attainable material. 86 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER* CHAPTER XI. No. 14. This design is also adapted to the cheaper modes of construction, as in the preceding chapter. Like that cottage, it has a chamber in the roof, and gives about the same accommodation in its plan. The roof of the porch or stoop is sustained, at the extremes only, by coupled pillars braced firmly together at top and bottom. Around these, some creeping vine should be trained to climb. Executed in rubble-stone work, with hammer-dressed finish, and fine interior finish, it will cost from $2,000 to $2,800. In brickwork, stuccoed, and finished respectably inside, it will average from $1,500 to $2,800. Constructed of frame, lathed, plastered and stuccoed, with fair finish inside, $1,100 to $1,900. Erame clapboarded, with fair interior finish, from $900 to $1,700. PLAN OF No. 14. The dimensions of this plan are proposed to be thirty feet square, with a lean-to addition in the rear. The hall runs quite through the house, and is five feet wide. On one side are the kitchen and dining-room, with a bedroom and pantry in the lean-to; on the other side are a parlor and bedroom, with children’s dormitory in the lean-to. Each of the principal rooms may be twelve feet by fourteen feet. • 13 zmri...:— 15 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDEE. 87 Their height to be nine feet. An attic chamber, lighted on three sides, to be formed in the roof. The chimney-flues from each side of the house must meet in an arch in this attic, dividing it into two chambers: the smoke to find common vent through the flue over center, as shown in the preceding elevation. The platform on which this cottage stands is laid out to be forty feet square, and about two feet high. 88 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER XII. No. 15. We have here a cottage orne of one and a half stories, of higher pretensions than its predecessors. It is 50 feet front by 35 feet in depth, and 15 feet post. The proportions are good, and the general aspect well adapted to a thickly planted locality. The Gothic window in front gable should be filled with French plate-glass, of good dimensions : in fact, of the full size of the ope, if possible. The entrance- door might have half panels of thick glass to light the hall. All the front windows should be hinged, and the frames be finished in the Tudor-Gothic style. This design may be executed in plank, frame, brick, or stone, and will cost between $1,200 and $3,000, according to material and interior finish. There is ample room for the display of taste in the carry- ing out of this design; and where the interior is to be finished in groin ceilings and paneled walls, a perfect gem of taste can be produced. PLAN OF No. 15. This plan is laid out at forty feet front, and it will at once be seen what convenience and comfort are combined in it. There is a good attic, amply lighted from the front and rear. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 89 CHAPTER XIII. No. 16. Another design is here presented of a cottage of the better class, which, being but one story in height, is not as expensive as the one just spoken of. Its dimensions to be equal to that. The vestibule or inner hall, in this specimen, is lighted by the lantern or cupola in the roof, and the rooms all open off of that vestibule. The parabolic curve given to the roof is a remarkable fea- ture in this design, and is in good keeping with the elliptic arches of recesses in which the windows are set. In the ceiling of the vestibule, a circular or wheel window is to be set, filled with bright-colored stained glass, the light comma: through it from the lantern above. The walls of this cottage may be built of pise, sun-dried brick, or concrete, as well as of stone, brick, or frame. In appearance, when built, as well as in internal economy, this will be a desirable design, and may be estimated from the most simple to the most complex style of construction, at from $500 to $2,500. PLAN OF No. 16. Here is the last of our plans of single cottages. The ves- tibule is lighted from the cupola in the roof, the well-hole of the circular staircase being cased in and balustraded. This well-hole might have a circular-framed horizontal window set in it, filled with lights of vari-colored stained 80 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. glass, which would have a very nice effect on the vestibule, without interfering; with the lighting of the attic at all. o o o In concluding these observations on single cottages, it would be well to have it perfectly understood that the plans can be built of dimensions to suit the taste or requirements of the party building any of them. / 17 •V ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 91 CHAPTER XIV. DOUBLE COTTAGES. REMARKS. In cities, where everything tending to economy is desirable, the introduction of double cottages is worthy of attention. The party-wall may be no thicker than an ordinary wall; and, if the chimneys be built in it, there is a considerable saving of material, labor, and space. The roof, too, is another economical feature ; and, through- out, a thousand little gains are to be had by the adoption of this system. The well, or pump, should be on the line of the fence dividing the respective gardens, with a handle on each side. Here is another source of saving. The hall doors may be together on the front, or set in a porch or vestibule at the side of each house. The latter plan is, perhaps, the more desirable, as it does not bring distinct families into unnecessary contact. The party-wall should be soundly built, and deadened on both sides: that is, furred out, and lined in between plaster- ing with tanbark. 92 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER XV. No. 17. Here are two cottages of tlie humbler class, suited to mechanics of small means. The block is 26 feet long by 26 feet deep, and stands upon a platform or base two feet and a half high. It is one and a half story ; and the cellars are under the woodshed, being* two feet below the platform and two feet above it : making the height of the cellar six feet and a half inside. The dimensions of each cellar should be 10 by 12. Shelves to be arranged all around in three tiers. The roof of cellars above platform to be arched either with brick, stone, or woodwork, and the cover to be well sodded. This cottage block may be built of whatever material is most convenient and cheapest. If of brickwork, the expense of a foundation may be avoided by setting down a sill on the platform, sustained by stout cedar posts at every five feet apart. This sill should be twelve inches square, and be made perfectly level on top. On it the brick walls may stand securely if well done. In the same manner if adobe , or sun-dried brick, be used, or even if concrete is the material built with. In the two latter cases, it will be absolutely necessary to make the roof project beyond the walls not less than two feet. The block can be erected in adobe for one-third what it would cost in brick; and might not cost in any material over from $300 to $800 per cottage. Plate 17. I ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 98 PLAN OP No. 17. Here is a double cottage in which the hall doors open into a porch, leaving the respective tenants of each house perfectly independent of each other, and, indeed, as much apart as though the twin dwellings were separate and distinct from each other. Ho. 18. This is a design for a double cottage of a still humbler class than the former, and would admirably suit laborers. Plainly finished inside and outside. The dimen- sions to be 48 by 16 for the whole block, and 12 feet high at the quoins. The roof to be quarter pitch. The doors in this plan are to be in the center of the front of each cottage, having windows on each side of them. The chimney will have double breasts, one for each apartment ; and one recess of said chimney-breast will have a narrow stairs inclosed, while the corresponding recess will be fitted up as a cupboard or pantry. The principal floor will be divided into a living room, 16 by 14, and two bedrooms, 10 by 8 each. The upper or attic floor will be one room, 24 by 16. Such a block will cost a very small sum according to the material: in some places not exceeding $300 in all — and from that upward. PLAN OF No. 18. A very substantial and quite unpretending block is here, the plan of which is obviously convenient for two families. 94 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. CHAPTER XVII. No. 19. We have here a very unique arrangement of a double cottage orne , well adapted for the suburbs of a city. Its effect will be highly picturesque, and its lightness of gen- eral outline pleasing ; while its interior plan of a living room, an octagon sitting-room, and three chambers off, will prove economical and tasteful at the same time: the incidental angles being applied to useful purposes, such as closets, etc. This block can be erected in every possible mode of build- ing, and will not much exceed the average estimate of from $300 to $500. But this estimate is for a block of similar dimensions to the last. Of course, any increase would add in proportion to its cost. The windows might be diamond-pane lattice, hung on hinges. PLAN OF No. 19. In this plan the doors are placed respectively upon the angles, thereby giving a unique effect. The windows of the sitting-rooms are also at angles corresponding to those of the doors. 1 4 18 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 95 No. 20. The object of this illustration is to show how double cottages may be placed lengthwise, thus producing a saying in frontage of lot— —a very great desideratum in cities, where building lots are of a high value. This block would cost a very moderate sum in places where pine lumber is worth about $5 per thousand. If erected of boards inch and half thick, tongued, grooved, and slatted on the outside, and flush on the inside, it would cost about $150 per cottage: or $300 for the block complete. No. 21. Here is a reverse arrangement of the foregoing plan. The doors are at the extreme corners of the fronts instead of being: together. The estimate for this cottage block would be the same as the preceding one. These blocks may be in all cases erected with great economy in pise, adobe , or sun-dried brick, as also in concrete or gravel. No. 22. In this design the entrance is on the side of each cottage, thus giving a perfectly distinct side front to each, and preventing the proximity of neighborhood so unpleasing to some. These entrance-doors might have each a pretty trellised porch, which might be continued to the front, and add much to the appearance of the block. The estimate of this block would only differ from that of the former by the cost of the porch just noticed. No. 23. The last of the designs of double cottages now £3 £3 presented is in plan similar to the latter, with the addition of a half-story, the stairway leading to which occupies the place of the bed-sinks in that plan. There are two good chambers in the half-story, in which closets may be formed about the stairway. USEFUL TABLES FOR REFERENCE. COMPUTED EXPRESSLY FOR THIS WORK;. 22 J burnt bricks make 1 cubic foot.' 368§ do. do “1 pole or perch. 12 sun-dried or adobe brick, 18 by 12 by 6 in’s each, “ 1 sqr. yd. 1 ft. thick. 18 do. do. do. 12 in’s sqr. and Gin’s thick, “ 1 sqr. yd. 12 rods or perches are equal to 22 yds. 264 large size sun-dried brick will build 12 perches. 4425 burnt bricks would be required for same. 38 J cubic feet of concrete deposited “27 cub. ft. or 1 cub. yd. *1 bushel measures 2150.42 cubic inches, or . . . 1| cubic feet. 1 bundle of 100 sawn laths will cover for plastering . 5| yds. 18 cubic ft. of gravel or earth undug will, when dug, measure 27 cubic feet. 18 cubic ft. earth, 23 sand, 17 clay ..... weigh 1 ton. CEMENT. 3 parts clay, 2 ashes, and 1 sand, mixed with oil, make a very hard cement. 1 lb. of putty will glaze 12 lights of glass. Yinegar put upon hard putty will dissolve it. * A box UK in. long, 13%' in. wide, and 11 1-6 in. deep, will hold a bushel, very nearly. ‘f cm J ?> H D 3 D m0m hW 21 AJPPEnSTDIX:. A NEW ERA IN BUILDING MARBLEIZED BRICK. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 99 APPENDIX. A NEW ERA IN BUILDING. It has long been a desideratum in the building world to obtain a cheap, beautiful, and durable building material — - one that can be obtained in all sections of our country, and one that can be universally applied to all kinds of architec- tural purposes ; and one, withal, obtained so cheap as to be within the reach of all. This object has at last been appa- rently obtained; and the result is so satisfactory, that if the inventions stand the test of time, they must come eventually into general use. I allude to the three inventions of Messrs. Foster, Wood, and Hedley: the first for making artificial granite; the second for making a kind of artificial stone; and the third for putting a coat of marble on the granite, so as to show an exterior of marble, while the interior part re- mains the same. By a proper combination of these three inventions, the most magnificent edifice can be erected of polished marble, with sculpture, statuary, and elaborate mouldings, at a cost of less than one-tenth the price of solid marble. In order, however, to give the reader a clear and distinct idea of the nature of these three important inventions, I will describe them in detail, together with the chemical principles on which they are founded. 100 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 1. FOSTER’S ARTIFICIAL GRANITE. This is nothing more than common clean sand, or gravel, and lime, mixed together in the proportions of eleven bushels of sand or gravel to one bushel of unslaked lime. The lime is first slaked, and then thoroughly incorporated with the sand. Two methods have been used to effect this: one is, to sift the sand and lime together, and then thoroughly stir the mass together. (English farmers who lime their wheat before sowing will understand the process exactly.) After they are thus mixed, a little water is sprinkled upon the mixture, enough to make it sufficiently damp to pack together. Another method is to slake the lime and run it off in a box with water, the same as in ordinary mortar for plastering, and stir in sand enough to make the requisite proportions, and leave it right for packing. The last process is perhaps the best. After the materials are thus prepared, they are put into a smooth, steel mould and subjected to a pressure of one hundred tons or more. The blocks thus formed are then carefully laid away, and exposed to the action of the atmos- phere, when they gradually harden, and in time become as solid as granite. The blocks made in Mr. Foster’s presses are ten inches long, five inches wide, and four inches thick, with a hollow place in the middle seven inches in length and one and one-fourth in width, for dead air. The cost of man- ufacturing them is about $7^- per thousand: and as each block is just three times the size of common brick, they are ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 101 as cheap a building material as common brick at $2J per thousand. Masons can also lay them up three times as fast as common brick, and they require less than one-third the amount of mortar requisite for brick. They are of a beau- tiful gray color, and when fully carbonized are as smooth as a piece of glass. The chemical combination by which these blocks are formed is as follows: the sand (silica) being mixed with lime, (protoxyd of calcium,) the silica is dissolved or crystallized by the absorption of carbonic acid gas from the atmosphere. The crystals uniting with each other, form carbonate of lime, (marble,) which is the common process in all ordinary mortar. To this chemical affinity, is superadded the heavy pressure, which brings all the particles into close contact, and thus the attraction of cohesion is added to the chemical attraction, it being* a fundamental law of attraction that it increases as the square of the distance between bodies diminishes. Hence, twice the number of particles compressed into a given space, will increase the attraction four fold, and vice versa. By this process a real stone is formed, capable of lasting for ages. A block of this description, ten months old, sent to the Smithsonian Institute at Washington, withstood a pressure of 5,500 pounds to the square inch, the experiment being made with cubes of li inches on each side. 102 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BTJILDEK. 2. WOODS ARTIFICIAL STONE. This is a composition made of sand, gypsum, and blood, in the proportions of 50 per cent, of the first, 25 per cent, of the second, and 25 per cent, of the last. The mode of pre- paring it is as follows : first, the sand and gypsum are mixed together in their anhydrous (dry) state, as intimately as pos- sible. The blood is then added, and the whole mass mixed till it becomes a thick paste, when it is either put into moulds or worked with the hand, until the desired shape is obtained. The composition gradually hardens, and becomes in time, a stone of a beautiful pink color. By coating the mass over when moulded with fine sand or pulverized marble,' any de- sired color may be given, and it may be made to represent gran- ite, or the different kinds of marble. The chemical principles on which these ingredients unite together to form a hard substance, are the well known power of resolidification, possessed by gypsum (sulphate of lime,) when in its anhydrous state,—- the lost water of composition being regained from the serum in the blood. The pyrates of iron in the blood uniting with the silica, also tend to make the mass become harder— -at all events, the composition be- comes sufficiently solid to use as stone, and from the experi- ments already made, will prove nearly as durable. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 103 8. HEDLEY’S MARBLEIZED GRANITE. This is, strictly speaking, an improvement upon Foster’s ar- tificial granite, as it is designed to be used with his. The mode of preparing it is as follows, viz : take good, clean pieces of marble, (the hardest kind being the best,) and pul- verize them till they are about as fine as ordinary sand ; mix them with lime, in the same way and same proportions as the sand and lime are prepared to make Foster’s granite; then put a thin lamina of the composition in the mould, on the side which it is desired to plate, and fill the balance with the sand and lime, as described in making Foster’s granite. The whole is then pressed together, and forms one solid mass, with an exterior of marble and an interior of granite. The blocks, when taken from the press, look like pieces of bride-cake frosted with sugar ; as the granite slowly hardens by the ab- sorption of carbonic acid gas from the atmosphere, the mar- ble carbonizes with it, and becomes, in time, a block of granite plated with marble. The chemical principles on which the marble re-unites to form a solid mass, are as follows, viz : marble is pure carbo- nate of lime, the metallic base of which is calcium. Lime is the same, with the carbonic acid driven off by heat, until nothing but the oxyd remains ; and mortar, we know, acts as a cement, by the slow formation of carbonate of lime, (mar- ble ;) thence, mixing the burnt and unburnt marble together in proper proportions, the burnt marble re-absorbs the 104 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. carbonic acid gas from tlie atmosphere, and recrystallizes with the unburnt into marble. The whole process is as plain and simple as the re-melting and moulding of cast iron, and the marble thus formed will be as strong and durable as that taken direct from the quarry, and will receive as high a polish. The coat of marble thus plated on the blocks of granite, ^will never separate or cleave off, as the same chemical affinity acts on both . ingredients : the particles of silica and carbo- nate of lime becoming one homogeneous mass, by the action of the common solvent, oxyd of calcium . ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 105 RECIPROCATING FURNACE AND REFRIGERATOR. Among the most desirable objects to be obtained in the erection of a dwelling-house is a constant supply of pure and wholesome air. This is, in reality, if possible, of more paramount importance than any other, as the vital fluid is constantly passing into and out of the lungs, not by day only, but also through the hours of night. Those who have suf- fered from the arid companionship of that American demon, (as Dickens calls it,) a red-hot stove, will at once appreciate the importance of my remarks. Science has, however, at last come to the relief of the sufferers, and by a proper ar- rangement, a pure, soft, and bland atmosphere can be main- tained through the whole year, at a less expense than it would take to heat a suite of rooms by the old exploded methods of open fireplaces and close stoves. Besides, no provision is made to cool the rooms in summer during the hot weather — -a thing of quite as much importance as keep- ing them warm in winter. My plan for warming in winter and cooling in summer may be carried on by the same appa- ratus, and the most equable temperature secured. The principle I would apply is the well known philosophical law of temperature, viz : that warm air ascends and cold air de- scends. For this purpose I would construct a furnace in every cellar, surrounded with an air-chamber, with a current of water circulating through it to prevent its becoming too dry. The air thus purified and warmed I would convey to 106 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. every room in tlie house it was desirable to warm, by tubes leading* to a refrigerator in tlie attic. These tubes I would close in the middle, opposite each room, with an opening both above and below it. Supposing it is winter: I would unfasten the lower opening and admit the warm air from the chamber in the cellar till the room was of an agreeable warmth. In summer I would close the lower opening and open the upper one. In the refrigerator in the garret I would place a quan- tity of ice daily, the cool air from which descending down the tubes, would enter the rooms and keep them at any requisite temperature. Thus, in the warmest days in summer, a re- freshing coolness can be maintained at the daily expense of a little ice — the furnace in the cellar and the refrigerator in the attic reciprocating with each other. The cost of the whole apparatus would not exceed half the amount required to furnish the building with the necessary stoves and fire- places ; and the saving of wood annually would be an impor- tant item in the current expenses of every family. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 107 CHIMNEY SHAFTS. This crowning feature of all architectural designs, whether plain or enriched, should be in perfect keeping with the main building, being, in fact, the finish to the whole. It would be well, therefore, to pay more attention to the design and finish of the chimney-shaft. For the purpose of aiding the evi- dently growing taste for purity of design, it would be well, therefore, to have a special manufactory of such in every large city. Foundries might execute cast-iron shafts moulded in every style of finish required by the builder, and the arti- ficial stone of which we have just spoken might be moulded for this purpose with beautiful effect. For instance: they might be cast in blocks of four inches high each, and made the whole size of the required section, having the flue-hole cast in them. Each of these blocks might be different in tint from the other, thus making up a very picturesque effect. It should not be lost sight of that smoothness of the inte- rior of the flue is positively requisite to prevent the accumu- lation of soot. In concluding these few remarks on chimney-shafts, we would here urge the propriety of getting rid of those abomi- nations to the eye, namely, iron or wooden stays. They in- variably convey the idea of insecurity, and are always in the way. If the chimney has, unfortunately, been badly built, or necessarily been carried very high, it would be a desirable relief to have those supporters ornamental, and their real business kept out of sight as much as possible. This arrange- 108 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. ment must, however, be left to the taste and ingenuity of the builder, whose interest is much concerned in the matter. Our decided opinion is that if a chimney be well built, there should be no insecurity, and therefore nothing need be used which can tend to convey the idea thereof. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 109 CUPOLAS, OR LANTERNS. Nothing can be prettier than the effect, internal as well as external, produced by the addition of lanterns to cottages. The vestibule or inner hall might be lighted in this way, and the principal room might, by this aid, be placed in the middle of the house, and be thus made warmer in winter, as having its sides removed from the effect of winds. Great care should be taken, however, to secure the lantern, at its junction with the roof, against the admission of wet; and for this it should be covered at its base with lead flash ings, or, cheaper still, with tarred brown paper, on which chalk and sand are plentifully thrown. The room under this lantern or cupola should have a win- dow-frame (circular, or of whatever form most pleases those concerned,) filled with stained glass, to act as a borrowed light, and be set in the ceiling of said room. A beautiful effect of colored light is thus produced, and the possibility of wet or draught is effectually obviated. 110 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDEK. INTERIOR DECORATION. Although it has, for half a century, been customary to omit what were once called sur-bases in rooms, that is, a moulded band running parallel with the base or wash board, and some two feet above it, we would most strongly recom- mend their being introduced once more, if it were for nothing but their actual utility, at even a sacrifice of appearance. Housewives will surely bear us out in this opinion when they consider how destructive to walls are the effects of chair- backs, or, worse still, of the heads of gentlemen who find a luxury in assuming an inclined posture of the body by tip- ping back their chairs. Boom-papering will always be found to have had more hard usage at the one point just indicated than at any other in the whole height of the room. These sur-bases might be elegantly moulded, and should always be two and a half inches projection from the face of the wall. It is unnecessary to say more on this subject, as the utility of the thing must be evident to all. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. Ill WINDOW SEATS. As convenience, as well as economy of space, is most de- sirable in small cottages, and the smaller the more desirable, we would enforce the necessity of boxing the bottoms of window recesses, so as to form alike a locker and a seat. It is obvious that such a fixture to each window would be of manifest advantage, and we have no doubt that the hint will prove highly acceptable. In thick walls it would come in very well, and be very appropriate in the finish of a room, as, when handsomely cushioned, a settee is presented, having a low back, which, in the case of French windows, might open in the center, to accord with the opening of such win- dow. It is in such matters as these that true economy is to be found; and comfort is in such things more surely found than, probably, in many others. 112 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. PIER GLASSES. There is nothing more elegant than a well placed mirror or pier glass, and there is nothing which could be more ap- propriately provided for, in the construction of a house, than such necessary articles of furniture. They should never be movable, but in all cases fixtures. Let the wall be prepared to receive a glass, and let the plaster moulding, similar to that of the ceiling, be set around it, and handsomely gilt. There can then be no accumulation of cobwebs, or other filth, behind them, and they look to be, what they actually are, a part of the house itself. Great care must be taken, however, in the formation of that portion of the wall to be occupied by the glass, that it be perfectly free from any chance of damp. Choice family pictures might likewise be set in as tablets in the walls, and have a charming effect. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 113 FIREPLACES. No part of a sitting-room attracts more notice than the fireplace; and for this reason it shonld be well designed and well executed. If not of marble, it might be of marbleize “The mantle should be deep, (not less than ten inches,) well secured in the chimney-breast, and consols or brackets should be provided to sustain, or at least give such an appearance to the mantle, as nothing looks more precarious to the eye than a heavy load without any visible support. The fireplace should project into the room at least one loot and a half. , _ , We very much favor the plan of placing the fireplace m the corner of the room, and would urge such an arrangement on our readers, for reasons before given. 114 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. OCTAGONAL ROOMS. Where a square space is available, and the extra expense no very great consideration, an octagonal shape might be given to rooms, turning the cut-off angles to account as niches, cupboards, or the like. Such shapes for rooms in which taste is required are most desirable, and may be had at a comparatively trifling cost. As, for instance, the plas- tering cut off by the angles would about balance in material the extra trouble of their formation, and the space available, as before stated, for cupboards, etc., would amply repay the cost of pretty latticed doors, or any other device called for by the fancy or taste of the owner. The wall-painting or papering should be done in panels — -a panel to each side of the octagon. economic cottage builder. 115 BATH BOOM. No well arranged cottage of the better class should be without a bath-room in the neighborhood of the bed-h ham- bers, for the special benefit of invalids. A tube shoul a connection between it and the kitchen boiler ; another tu should connect it with the cistern for cold water. In this room a shower-bath might also be fixed. The floor of the bath-room should be formed of composi- tion, polisted on the surface, and the bath might be formed of similar material, set upon an oak shell. Zinc is muc used for the lining of bathing-tubs. The floor of the bathing-room should have an inclination to the drain fixed for carrying off waste water, located at one corner of the room. 116 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER, BED-CHAMBERS. In the plan of bedrooms it will be highly necessary to make arrangements for the reception of the bedstead, so that no window or door shall encroach on the five feet by seven necessary for such purpose. The door should open into the corner in which it is placed, for the purpose of taking up no unnecessary room. It should open back against the wall. Warmth and ventilation are most desirable, and, in almost all cases, these can be secured. Every bedroom ought to be supplied with a corner wash- stand, formed as a shelf, either of marble, porcelain, marble- ized iron or slate, with basin, escape-pipe, and supply, the latter conveying clean water from the cistern, and the former letting off dirty water to the sewer. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 117 THE KITCHEN. Of all departments in a house, not one demands more at- tention than the kitchen. In it are prepared all the comforts which are intended for the table, and therefore all things necessary for the production of those comforts should be found there. A hot-hearth, a brick oven, a large boiler, are requisites, and attached to the kitchen should be the buttery, the wash- house, and the woodshed. There should be a ready and constant supply of hard and soft water, which, by means of portable hose, might, at any time desired, be introduced to any part of the kitchen or wash-house. A sink-trap, on the most approved principles, should be provided; and, in fine, every aid to domestic business; for it is in such things that comfort as well as economy exist, the first cost being the saving of the wages of years of help. 118 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. PAINTING. As an actual preservative of wood, paint is a most neces- sary article in house-building, and the more mineral, the better for protection against the action of the weather. Yet there are some substitutes which may be found econom- ical where white lead is dear. These substitutes are more numerous than actually useful; and some of them which we find in receipt-books, and meet with annually in nearly every paper in the country, are not alone useless, but highly inju- rious in their action. A very simple and economical receipt for a paint, to be used externally or internally, is proportioned thus : Fresh, well burned lime, 1 lb. Glue, melted, 3 oz. Salt, 3 oz. Slake the lime in three times its bulk of water. Pour in the melted glue while the water is warm, and shake in salt while stirring the mixture up. Apply this paint, while warm, with large brushes, and stir it up constantly, to prevent settlement. To give various tints to this whitewash or distemper, it is only necessary to add just as much of each color in powder as will make the required strength. The more salt put in, the brighter the surface will be. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER, 119 PREPARATION OF TIMBER. When timber is required for building purposes, it would be well to pay attention to the following advice, which will be certain to repay ten fold for the extra care taken in fol- lowing it out to the very letter: The beginning of autumn, or as it is fitly called, the fall of the year, is the most judicious time for cutting down growing timber, to suit the end aimed at in the instruction now about to be given to the builder, because the sap is in the trunk, and we require to use that sap, as will be seen. When the tree has been cut down, let it be at once sawed into the lengths and forms required for the purposes for which it may be intended; and when this has been done, let there be a vat or cistern one-third filled with lime ; into the vat let the newly cut pieces be put, and covered carefully up, carefully excluding the atmosphere. When the pieces have lain twelve hours, remove the cover of the vat, take them out and cover up the vat again, the lime being still fit to use, for mortar, or plaster. It will be at once understood that the sap in the pieces will slake the lime coming in contact with it, and the pores will consequently become impregnated with the lime, and the timber, as a matter of course, be rendered impervious to the effects of atmosphere, and, in fact, durable as iron or stone. It has been ascertained that seasoned timber can be so 120 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. saturated with a ferruginous solution as to become akin to iron itself. The process is nearly as follows : Cut down your trees for this purpose in the winter, when the trunk is sapless. One third fill a tank with iron chips and filings and water strongly impregnated with salt. Hav- ing left this preparation long enough to give a deep iron color to the water, the pieces into which the timber has been cut are then to be launched into this iron bath and left there until thoroughly soaked, so that every pore has imbibed its full quantity of the solution ; when the pieces may be taken out and applied to their respective purposes. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 121 THE DKY ROT. What is called the dry rot in timber is a disease formed by the generation of small minute insects, which eat away the core of the timber, and leave the shell or outside perfectly sound, so as to deceive any eye into the belief of the entire being sound. When timber is painted before it is dry to the core, the sap, being unable to have the assistance of the atmosphere to dry it up, becomes in itself a generator of the insect just alluded to, and thus revenges itself on its jailor, the paint, by eating itself away, until finally the beam, or whatever it may be, crumbles into dust, while appearing to be in soundest health. This insidious disease may well be called timber consumption; for its effects are surely the same as those which crush the human frame in the midst of its youth. 122 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. THE USE OF TOOLS. No cottage, whether in town or country, should be without a tool-chest, however small. In the country especially, where a carpenter is far from the spot, and the man of the house has some spare time on a rainy day in summer, or in the idle time of winter, what a number of small, yet highly useful jobs could be done, even roughly, about the premises. Boys should be habituated to the use of carpenter tools, and even to the use of the trowel. Here will be a source of independence in a family, the value of which is worthy of all consideration. Let the following list, at least, find a place where true economy is esteemed a virtue : two hand-saws ; three chisels ; (inch, half-inch, and quarter-inch;) three planes; (jack, smoothing, and jointer;) one gimlet; one screw-driver; one bit and brace; one mallet; two hammers; one glue pot. These, together, with a keg of assorted nails, a box of screws, and a supply of glue, as also a keg of white lead, a couple of pounds of lamp-black, ochre, &c., and a half- dozen different sized paint-brushes will give a man the means of making himself useful about the house. To the above we should add a whitewash brush or two. How much better off would the farmer be if he had the tools at hand and could mend a gate or make a new one. How much more pleasing to himself and his neigbors would be the occasional addition to his dwelling and outhouses of ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 123 some little ornaments, such as hood-moldings over doors and windows, cornices, trellised porches, and an hundred other devices to embellish his house. How satisfactory to his thrifty wife to have a compact larder, pantry or clothes-closet. How gladdening to his little ones to have a liand-cart or a sled to frolic with — and all these desirable things all dependent on the possession of a small collection of tools. Who, then, would be without a thing so absolutely necessary to a household’s happiness? 124 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. A SUGGESTION. As in our crowded cities lumber is necessarily dear, and yet wooden cottages most desirable, perhaps it might not be altogether out of place in the closing pages of this little treatise, to suggest the practicability of a scheme which might be highly useful to the community at large, as well as to private cottage-builders in particular. It is to establish saw-mills and planing machines in thickly timbered localities sufficiently near to water or rail-road carriage, where all the parts of a complete building could be worked up and carried piece-meal to market, every joint appropriately numbered and all got ready for setting up in any locality. That such a scheme would pay, is as certain as that it would prove a blessing to numbers who crave a home within the limits of their means. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 125 CONCLUDING REMARKS. Haying now touched upon every subject connected with cottage-building, we will conclude with a little advice to the builder. Let no idea of present saving induce you to use poor ma- terial because it is cheap. In a short time it will prove to be the very dearest material that could have been used. Wet your nails and screws with water, before use, if you desire them to hold permanently, as the rust which will then come upon them will increase their tenacity. On the contrary, if you desire at some future time to re- move them, take the precaution of dipping them, previous to using, in any vegetable oil. See that your bricks have lain in water twelve hours pre- vious to working them into your wall, as then any lime hap- pening to be in them will swell and burst the brick, which, if happening in the wall, would prove highly injurious. Finally — Do EVERYTHING WELL, AND LEAVE NOTHING UNDONE. 126 ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. A CARD TO BUILDERS. Such persons as shall desire to erect one or other of the designs presented in this work, or any of the economic modes herein described, but who do not feel perfectly secure in their own view of the subject, will always find the author ready to communicate with them personally, or by letter, giving every information and guaranteeing complete success in every case. A regular apprenticeship to his profession, as well as a critical study of it in many parts of Europe, can not fail of insuring to him advantages of experience and observation, which give him a right to rely on his acquired and matured judgment. ECONOMIC COTTAGE BUILDER. 127 NOTICE. The present treatise will be followed by one on Church and School Architecture, as adapted by taste, allied with economy, to the wants of villages and small country congregations. It will be got out with all the expedition that a due re- gard to perfection will admit of. f (I . li GETTY CENTER LIBRARY *11