Spons Household Manual by E F N Spon

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Title: Spons' Household Manual
A treasury of domestic receipts and a guide for home management

Author: E. Spon
F. N. Spon

Release Date: August 3, 2018 [EBook #57630]

Language: English

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TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE

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S P O N S ’

HOUSEHOLD MANUAL:

A TREASURY OF

DOMESTIC RECEIPTS

And Guide for

H O M E M A N A G E M E N T .

London:

E. & F. N. SPON, 125 STRAND.

New York:

SPON & CHAMBERLAIN, 12 CORTLANDT STREET.

1894

PREFACE.

Time was when the foremost aim and ambition of the English housewife was to gain a full knowledge of her own duties
and of the duties of her servants. In those days, bread was home-baked, butter home-made, beer home-brewed,
gowns home-sewn, to a far greater extent than now.

With the advance of education, there is much reason to fear that the essentially domestic part of the training of our

daughters is being more and more neglected. Yet what can be more important for the comfort and welfare of the
household than an appreciation of their needs and an ability to furnish them. Accomplishments, all very good in their
way, must, to the true housewife, be secondary to all that concerns the health, the feeding, the clothing, the housing of
those under her care.

And what a range of knowledge this implies,—from sanitary engineering to patching a garment, from bandaging a

wound to keeping the frost out of water pipes. It may safely be said that the mistress of a family is called upon to
exercise an amount of skill and learning in her daily routine such as is demanded of few men, and this too without the
benefit of any special education or preparation; for where is the school or college which includes among its “subjects”
the study of such every-day matters as bad drains, or the gapes in chickens, or the removal of stains from clothes, or
the bandaging of wounds, or the management of a kitchen range? Indeed, it is worthy of consideration whether our
schools of cookery might not with very great advantage be supplemented by schools of general household instruction.

Till this suggestion is carried out, the housewife can only refer to books and papers for information and advice. The

editors of the present volume have been guided by a determination to make it a book of reference such as no
housewife can afford to be without. Much of the matter is, of course, not altogether new, but it has been arranged with

[Pg iii]

[iv]

great care in a systematic manner, and while the use of obscure scientific terms has been avoided, the teachings of
modern science have been made the basis of those sections in which science plays a part.

Much of the information herein contained has appeared before in lectures, pamphlets, and newspapers, foremost

among these last being the Queen, Field, Lancet, Scientific American, Pharmaceutical Journal, Gardener’s
Chronicle, and the Bazaar; but it has lost nothing by repetition, and has this advantage in being embodied in a
substantial volume that it can always be readily found when wanted, while every one knows the fate of leaflets and
journals. The sources whence information has been drawn have, it is believed, in every case been acknowledged, and
the editors take this opportunity of again proclaiming their indebtedness to the very large number of lecturers and writers
whose communications have found a place within these covers.

The Editors.

CONTENTS.

Hints for selecting a good House, pointing out the essential requirements for a good house as to the Site, Soil,

Trees, Aspect, Construction, and General Arrangement; with instructions for Reducing Echoes, Water-proofing
Damp Walls, Curing Damp Cellars

Page 1

Water Supply.—Care of Cisterns; Sources of Supply; Pipes; Pumps; Purification and Filtration of Water
12

Sanitation.—What should constitute a good Sanitary Arrangement; Examples (with illustrations) of Well- and Ill-

drained Houses; How to Test Drains; Ventilating Pipes, &c.

35

Ventilation and Warming.—Methods of Ventilating without causing cold draughts, by various means; Principles of

Warming; Health Questions; Combustion; Open Grates; Open Stoves; Fuel Economisers; Varieties of Grates;
Close-Fire Stoves; Hot-air Furnaces; Gas Heating; Oil Stoves; Steam Heating; Chemical Heaters;
Management of Flues; and Cure of Smoky Chimneys

55

Lighting.—The best methods of Lighting; Candles, Oil Lamps, Gas, Incandescent Gas, Electric Light; How to Test

Gas Pipes; Management of Gas

82

Furniture and Decoration.—Hints on the Selection of Furniture; on the most approved methods of Modern

Decoration; on the best methods of arranging Bells and Calls; How to Construct an Electric Bell

95

Thieves and Fire.—Precautions against Thieves and Fire; Methods of Detection; Domestic Fire Escapes;

Fireproofing Clothes, &c.

108

The Larder.—Keeping Food fresh for a limited time; Storing Food without change, such as Fruits, Vegetables,

Eggs, Honey, &c.

112

Curing Foods for lengthened Preservation, as Smoking, Salting, Canning, Potting, Pickling, Bottling Fruits, &c.;

Jams, Jellies, Marmalade, &c.

123

The Dairy.—The Building and Fitting of Dairies in the most approved modern style; Butter-making; Cheese-making

and Curing

154

The Cellar.—Building and Fitting; Cleaning Casks and Bottles; Corks and Corking; Aërated Drinks; Syrups for

Drinks; Beers; Bitters; Cordials and Liqueurs; Wines; Miscellaneous Drinks

168

The Pantry.—Bread-making; Ovens and Pyrometers; Yeast; German Yeast; Biscuits; Cakes; Fancy Breads;

Buns

207

The Kitchen.—On Fitting Kitchens; a description of the best Cooking Ranges, close and open; the Management

and Care of Hot Plates, Baking Ovens, Dampers, Flues, and Chimneys; Cooking by Gas; Cooking by Oil; the
Arts of Roasting, Grilling, Boiling, Stewing, Braising, Frying

221

Receipts for Dishes.—Soups, Fish, Meat, Game, Poultry, Vegetables, Salads, Puddings, Pastry, Confectionery,

Ices, &c., &c.; Foreign Dishes

244

The Housewife’s Room.—Testing Air, Water, and Foods; Cleaning and Renovating; Destroying Vermin
518

Housekeeping, Marketing
563

The Dining-Room.—Dietetics; Laying and Waiting at Table; Carving; Dinners, Breakfasts, Luncheons, Teas,

Suppers, &c.

583

The Drawing-Room.—Etiquette; Dancing; Amateur Theatricals; Tricks and Illusions; Games (indoor)

648

The Bedroom and Dressing-Room.—Sleep; the Toilet; Dress; Buying Clothes; Outfits; Fancy Dress

699

The Nursery.—The Room; Clothing; Washing; Exercise; Sleep; Feeding; Teething; Illness; Home Training
746

The Sickroom.—The Room; the Nurse; the Bed; Sickroom Accessories; Feeding Patients; Invalid Dishes and

Drinks; Administering Physic; Domestic Remedies; Accidents and Emergencies; Bandaging; Burns; Carrying
Injured Persons; Wounds; Drowning; Fits; Frostbites; Poisons and Antidotes; Sunstroke; Common
Complaints; Disinfection, &c.

755
828

[iv]

[v]

[vi]

The Bathroom.—Bathing in General; Management of Hot-Water System.

828

The Laundry.—Small Domestic Washing Machines, and methods of getting up linen; Fitting up and Working a

Steam Laundry

848

The Schoolroom.—The Room and its Fittings; Teaching, &c.

862

The Playground.—Air and Exercise; Training; Outdoor Games and Sports

870

The Workroom.—Darning, Patching, and Mending Garments

890

The Library.—Care of Books

903

The Farmyard.—Management of the Horse, Cow, Pig, Poultry, Bees, &c.

907

The Garden.—Calendar of Operations for Lawn, Flower Garden, and Kitchen Garden

930

Domestic Motors—A description of the various small Engines useful for domestic purposes, from 1 man to 1 horse

power, worked by various methods, such as Electric Engines, Gas Engines, Petroleum Engines, Steam Engines,
Condensing Engines, Water Power, Wind Power, and the various methods of working and managing
them

936

Household Law.—The Law relating to Landlords and Tenants, Lodgers, Servants, Parochial Authorities, Juries,

Insurance, Nuisance, &c.

955

SPONS’

HOUSEHOLD MANUAL.

THE DWELLING.

It is both convenient and rational to commence this volume with a chapter on the conditions which should guide a man in
the choice of his dwelling. Unfortunately there is scarcely any subject upon which ordinary people display more
ignorance, or to which they pay so little regard. In the majority of instances a dwelling is chosen mainly with regard to its
cost, accommodation, locality, and appearance. As to its being healthy or otherwise, no evidence is volunteered by the
owner, and none is demanded by the intending resident. The consequences of this indifference are a vast amount of
preventible sickness and a corresponding loss of money. The following remarks are intended to educate the house-
seeker in the necessary subjects, being subdivided under distinct headings for facility of reference.

Site.—Of modern scientists who have studied the great health question, none has more ably treated the essentials of

the dwelling than Dr. Simpson in his lecture for the Manchester and Salford Sanitary Association. This Association has
done wonders in improving sanitation in the Midlands, and we cannot do better than follow Dr. Simpson’s teaching.

Soil.—He insists, first of all, on the great importance of the soil being dry—either dry before artificial means are used

to make it so, or dry from drainage. To this end some elevation above the surrounding land conduces. A hollow below
the general level should, as a matter of course, be avoided; for to this hollow the water from all the adjacent higher land
will drain, and if the soil be impervious the water will lodge there. It will thus be damp, and, as is well known, it will be a
colder situation than neighbouring ones which are a little raised above the general level. Those who live where they can
have gardens will find the advantage of the higher situation in its being much less subject to spring and early autumn
frosts than the hollow just below. This is due not only to the former being damper, but to the fact that the heat of the
ground on still nights passes off into space (is “radiated”) more rapidly than from the higher situation, where there is
more movement in the air. The soil should not be retentive of moisture, as clay is when undrained; nor should it be damp
and moist from the ground water (concerning which a few words will be said farther on), as is much alluvial soil, i.e. soil
which has been at some former time carried down and deposited by rivers or floods. On the whole, sand or gravel, if
the site be sufficiently elevated, is probably the best, as it allows all water to get away rapidly. Then come various
rocks, as granite, limestone, sandstone, and chalk.

Towns often present one specially dangerous, and therefore specially objectionable soil—that where hollows have

been filled up with refuse of all kinds. This refuse is made up of all kinds of vegetable, and, more or less, animal matter,
often of the most noxious character, together with cinders, old mortar, and no one knows what besides. This becomes a
foul fermenting mass, which is often built upon and the houses inhabited before the process of decomposition is
completed, and the noxious gases cease to be given off. Many outbreaks of disease have been traced most
unmistakably to this criminal act of putting up jerry buildings on pestilential sites. It is easy for any one to understand
how this may be when he thinks of the way the house acts on the soil it is built upon, or rather on the moisture and gases
contained in the soil. The house is warmed by the fires and by the people living in it, and the heated air has a tendency
to rise. The pressure on the gases in the soil is lessened, and they are drawn up into the house, which acts as a suction
pump. This could not happen if the foundation were air-tight; but this is rarely the case, and too often indeed “cottage
property” is built without any foundation at all. Drs. Parkes and Sanderson recommended that such soil should not be
built upon “for at least two years,” but it would be well to give it another year. Attention must also be paid to the
“ground water”—the great underground sea of which we find evidences almost anywhere that we seek for them.
Sometimes it is found even a foot or two only from the surface, in other places at 15, 20, or 40 ft. This water rises and
falls in some places rapidly, rising after heavy rains, and falling in dry weather. If it is always near the surface, the place
must be damp and unhealthy; and we should try to find out something about the ground water before fixing on the site of
our house. If possible, do not live where it is less than 5 or 6 ft. from the surface.

Trees.—Vegetation assists in rendering the soil healthy. Trees absorb large quantities of moisture from the soil, and

sometimes, as in the case of the blue gum-tree of Australia, they seem even to do something more than this. It is said
that the common sunflower of our gardens has a considerable influence in this way. Trees should not be crowded close
to a house, as they keep off much sun, and so neutralise some of their good effects, but at a reasonable distance they
are beneficial.

Aspect.—The aspect of a dwelling will necessarily be made to vary with the climatic conditions of the locality in

which it is situated. In northern latitudes, such as Great Britain occupies, we are rarely oppressed by sunshine, and need
not seek special protection from it. We should rather be anxious not to be deprived too much of its genial and life-giving
rays. On the other hand, we are often visited by bleak and bitter winds, and though a free circulation of air is desirable
round a dwelling, there should be some shelter to break the violence of a cold prevailing wind. In the country, where in

[Pg 1]

[2]

all probability there is no system of drainage for the district, we should be careful not to place the house so as to receive
our neighbour’s drainage, nor that from our own outbuildings. In a town the situation should be as open as can be
obtained. The wider the street and the greater the open space at the back the better, and the back-to-back houses
should be avoided altogether. (Simpson.)

As Eassie remarks, in one of the Health Exhibition Handbooks, aspect and prospect have very much to do with

comfort in housebuilding, since a dwelling may be designed so as to fully command the scenery while its plan might be
very ill-adapted to the prevalent weather, and the sun’s daily course. A house having a pleasant prospect may be a
decidedly unpleasant dwelling if the rooms have been arranged without regard to the points of the compass. This will
become quite evident from a careful study of the annexed representation of Prof. Kerr’s “aspect compass” (Fig. 1),
which illustrates most clearly the direction and character of the prevailing winds of this country, and the sunny and shady
quarters, the imaginary window of the dwelling occupying the centre of the circle.

Obviously, as Eassie points out, the effects of aspect will not be the same on the inside and outside of the room.

Looking from a window in the north, the prospect or landscape will be lighted from behind; to the spectator looking
from the south, it will never be go lighted; looking from the east, the landscape will be so lighted at sunset; and looking
from the west, it will be well lighted throughout the day. The great thing is to reconcile aspect and prospect in the choice
of a house; but this can seldom be done, and where it cannot, the question of aspect must be first attended to, as being
of importance to the rooms, and the question of prospect made secondary. The north is not suitable for a drawing-
room, because the aspect is cold; it is more suitable for a dining-room, as during the winter the prospect is not seen so
much. When the room used for morning meals looks to the north, a bay window erected to the east will catch the early
sunbeams, and render it pleasant. The northern aspect is too cold as a rule for bedrooms; but it is quite suitable for the
servants’ day apartments, and admirably adapted to the larder and dairy. It is especially suited for staircases, as no
blinds are requisite, and the passages can be maintained in a cool state.

1. Aspect Compass for Great Britain.

The north-east aspect—next to the north—is best for a dining-room; it is better for the servants’ offices than even the

north; and when an end window is wanted for a drawing-room, this forms no unpleasant aspect. Bedrooms which face
north-east enjoy the morning sun, and during the summer range are agreeably cool at night. With regard to the east, this
is also a good aspect for the dining-room, especially when no distinction is made between the dining-room and the
breakfast-room; and with regard to a sitting-room the more eastward tendency it has the better. It is not adapted for a
drawing-room, because in the afternoon there is an entire want of sunshine, and on account of the unhealthy east winds.
This point of the compass is suitable, however, for a library or business-room, because by the time breakfast is over the
sun will fairly have warmed the interior of the room. It is also a good aspect for the porch, and one side of a
conservatory should always face the east.

The south-east aspect is most suitable for the best rooms of a house, because it escapes some of the east wind, and

part of the scorching heat and beating rain of the south. It is admirably adapted, therefore, for a drawing-room or day-
room, is the most pleasant aspect for bedrooms, and is best suited for the nursery or for the rooms of an invalid. The
south-west aspect is the least congenial of all, because it is so open to a sultry sun and blustering winds. This aspect
should never be chosen for a dining-room; in summer it is unpleasantly hot for bedrooms; and it is not suitable for a
porch or entrance, on account of the driving rains which prevail during a portion of the year. The south aspect is not
very desirable for the windows of a dining-room, and is unpleasant for a morning-room, unless a verandah has been
provided. The larder and dairy should never face the south. The west aspect is not quite agreeable for a dining-room,
on account of the excessive heat prevailing in the summer afternoons; neither is it desirable for the drawing-room; and it
should never preferably be chosen for bedrooms, although it is very agreeable for a smoking-room. One side of a
conservatory should always face to the west. The north-west aspect is very good for a billiard-room, also for a dining-
room, if the windows are fitted up with blinds to shade the sun.

Construction. Foundation.—Bearing in mind what Dr. Simpson has said as to the house acting as a suction pump,

drawing up moisture and gases, often most noxious, from the soil on which it is built, it is clear that the foundation ought
to be air-tight and water-tight; for besides the emanations due to the soil, we must remember that escape from the gas-
pipes laid in the street is a very common occurrence, that sewers are apt to leak, and so the soil in the neighbourhood of
houses may become saturated with filth. Fatal instances are known where coal gas and other foul vapours have been
drawn, as it were, long distances and poisoned the air of a house or houses. The only way of guarding against this is to
have the foundations, and some distance outside the foundations, laid in concrete. There should also be a space
between the basement wall and the surrounding earth. No one, in Eassie’s opinion, would think of building a dwelling on
a patch of ground without first removing the vegetable mould to some depth below the level of the floor; and however
good the soil, it is very desirable to cover the site with a layer of concrete to keep out damp and bad exhalations.
Rawlinson even advises a bed of charcoal below the concrete. Simpson insists that if a cottage floor has to be laid on
the bare ground, there ought at least to be a bed of good concrete below the tiles. Cellars add to the dryness and
healthiness of a house if the walls and floors are made impervious to air and water, and are properly ventilated. The
walls of the house ought to have a damp-proof course to prevent the moisture rising in them. To show the importance of
this, Simpson quotes a well-known fact, but one seldom thought of when we look at the brick walls of our houses. An
ordinary well-baked brick, which is 9 in. long, 4½ in. broad, and 2½ in. deep, though apparently solid, is not really so.

[3]

[4]

2. Damp Course and Area Wall.

It contains innumerable minute spaces through which air may pass, and into which water may enter; and when it is
soaked in the latter, and all the air is driven out, it will contain nearly 16 oz. (the old pint) of water. If one brick will
retain in its pores so large a quantity, it is easy to see that a large wall may hold what most people would at first think an
incredible amount. As Dr. de Chaumont says, “A cottage wall only 16 ft. long by 8 ft. high, and only one brick thick,
might hold 46 gallons of water!”

Walls may be made damp not only by water rising in them, but by rain driving against them, and by water running

down from the roof in consequence of the stoppage of a rain-water pipe. The latter cause is simple and easily remedied,
but the former is far too frequent in cheaply-built houses. It may be prevented by having cavity walls, as they are called
—that is, a double wall with a space between. There are several advantages from this. The air space, besides helping to
keep the inner wall dry, is a good non-conductor, and so the house is all the warmer. There are other methods which
may be used in addition to this, as cementing, plastering, or covering with slates or boards. There is some difference of
opinion as to the advantage or disadvantage of the walls of a house being porous, as bricks are when dry; and Prof. de
Chaumont seems to think that in our climate the porosity of the walls is not a point we need trouble ourselves about
maintaining. Still, in Simpson’s opinion, with the ordinary arrangements of houses as regards supply of air and
ventilation, some porosity of the walls is desirable. Without the freest and most perfect ventilation, walls absolutely
impervious to air, and therefore to water in a gaseous form, will almost always be more or less damp on the inside.

Another source of dampness in dwellings, as pointed out by Eassie, is to be

found in the practice of building the house walls close against the earth, without
taking the precaution to erect a blind area-wall between the house wall and the
earth excavation. Fig. 2 exhibits both these important improvements—the damp-course and the area-wall—applied to
the same dwelling: a represents the main wall of the house, and b the area-wall, which is built against the excavated
subsoil, leaving the space c between the two walls; the thick black line underneath the floor-joist represents the damp-
proof course, which interposes between the subsoil d, with the foundations built upon it, and the main wall of the house.
This damp-proof course usually consists of a layer of pitch or asphalte, or slates bedded in cement, or specially glazed
tiles, known as Taylor’s or Doulton’s manufactures. By the use of this impervious course, the upward passage of the
ground water is effectually arrested. The intervening area c it is also well to drain, but this water should never drain into
the soil drain, if avoidable, and certainly not until it has been thoroughly disconnected. There should always, also, be a
current of air introduced from the outer air, by way of ventilators put at the top of the blind area c, and an air brick
placed above or below the damp-proof course—preferably above—in order that the space between the ground and
the joists or stone flooring of the basement may be thoroughly ventilated. This ventilation is shown by the arrows
between e and e. Such air currents should always be provided under floors, whether there be a basement or not, and
also always between the joists of the upper floors, and in the roof, in order to ward off dry-rot and ensure a constant
circulation of air. (Eassie.)

Roof.—The first detail to be decided on is the “pitch” or slope to be given to the roof, and this will depend both on

the nature of the covering material and the character of the climate. In the tropics, where rain falls in torrents, a flat pitch
helps to counteract the rush of water; in colder regions the pitch must be such as to readily admit of snow sliding off as it
accumulates, to prevent injury to the framework by the increased weight. The pitches ordinarily observed, stated in
“height of roof in parts of the span,” are as follows:—Lead, 1/40; galvanized iron or zinc, ⅕; slates, ¼; stone, slate, and
plain tiles, 2/7; pantiles, 2/9; thatch, felt, and wooden shingles, ⅓ to ½.

In country districts the roofs of cottages and outbuildings are frequently covered with thatch. This consists of layers of

straw—wheaten lasts twice as long as oaten—about 15 in. in thickness, tied down to laths with withes of straw or with
string. Thatch is an excellent non-conductor of heat, and consequently buildings thus roofed are both cooler in summer
and warmer in winter than others, and no better roof covering for a dairy can be found. Thatch is, however, highly
combustible, and as it harbours vermin and is soon damaged, it is not really an economical material, though the first cost
is small. A load of straw will do 1½ “squares” of roofing, or 150 superficial feet. First class thatching is an art not
readily acquired. While really good thatching will stand for 20 years, average work will not endure 10.

A convenient roofing material when wood is cheap and abundant consists of a kind of “wooden slates,” split pieces

of wood measuring about 9 in. long, 5 in. wide, and 1 in. thick at one end but tapering to a sharp edge at the other.
Shingles, or wooden slates, are made from hard wood, either of oak, larch, or cedar, or any material that will split
easily. Their dimensions are usually 6 in. wide by 12 or 18 in. long, and about ¼ in. thick.

Roofing felt is a substance composed largely of hair saturated with an asphalte composition, and should be chosen

more for closeness of texture than excessive thickness. It is sold in rolls 2 ft. 8 in. wide and 25 yd. long, thus containing
200 ft. super in a roll. Before the felt is laid on the boards (¾ in. close boarding), a coating composed of 5 lb. ground
whiting and 1 gal. coal tar, boiled to expel the water, is applied, while still slightly warm, on the boards themselves; the
felt is then laid on, taking care to stretch it smooth and tight, and the outside edge is nailed closely with ⅞ in. zinc or
tinned tacks. The most common application to a felt roof is simple coal tar brushed on hot and sprinkled with sharp
sand. It is not well adapted to dwellings.

Dachpappe is a kind of asphalte pasteboard much employed in Denmark; it is laid on close boarding at a very low

pitch, and forms a light, durable covering, having the non-conducting properties of thatch. It is sold in rolls 2 ft. 9 in.
wide and 25 ft. long, having a superficial content of 7½ sq. yd., at the rate of 1d. per sq. ft. When laid, it requires
dressing with an asphalte composition called “Erichsen’s mastic,” sold at 9s. 9d. per cwt., 1 cwt. of the varnish sufficing
to cover a surface of 65 sq. yd.

[5]

[6]

Willesden paper is another extremely light, durable, and waterproof roofing material, which differs essentially from

the 2 preceding substances in needing to be fixed to rafters or scantling, and requiring no boarding on the roof. It is a
kind of cardboard treated with cuprammonium solution, and has become a recognized commercial article. It is made in
rolls of continuous length, 54 in. wide, consequently, when fixing the full width of the card (to avoid cutting to waste),
the rafters should be spaced out 2 ft. 1 in. apart from centre to centre, so that the edge of one sheet of card laid
vertically from eaves to ridge will overlap the edge of the adjoining sheet 4 in. on every alternate rafter.

By far the most important and generally used roofing material in this country is slate. Its splitting or fissile property

makes it eminently useful as a roofing material, as, notwithstanding the fact that it is one of the hardest and densest of
rocks, it can be obtained in such thin sheets that the weight of a superficial foot is very small indeed, and consequently,
when used for covering roofs, a heavy supporting framework is not required. Slate absorbs a scarcely perceptible
quantity of water, and it is very hard and close-grained and smooth on the surface; it can be laid safely at as low a pitch
as 22½°. In consequence of this, the general introduction of slate as a roofing material has had a prejudicial effect upon
the architectural character of buildings. The bold, high-pitched, lichen-covered roofs of the middle ages—which, with
their warm tints, form so picturesque a feature of many an old-fashioned English country town—have given place to the
flat, dull, slated roofs. The best roofing slate is obtained from North Wales, chiefly in the neighbourhood of Llanberis.
Non-absorption of water is, of course, the most valuable characteristic; an easy test of this can be applied by carefully
weighing one or two specimens when dry, and then steeping them in water for a few hours and weighing them again,
when the difference in weight will of course represent the quantity of water absorbed. The light-blue coloured slates are
generally superior to the blue-black varieties. (J. Slater.)

Some architects bed the roofing slates in hydraulic cement, instead of having them nailed on dry in the usual way,

which leaves them subject to be rattled by the wind, and to be broken by any accidental pressure. The cement soon
sets and hardens, so that the roof becomes like a solid wall. The extra cost is 10 or 15 per cent., and it is good
economy, considering only its permanency, and the saving in repairs; but, besides this, it affords great safety against fire,
for slate laid in the usual way will not protect the wood underneath from the heat of a fire at a short distance.

Tiles are much used in some districts, and are often made of a pleasant tint; but a great objection to all tiles is their

porosity, which causes them to absorb much water, rotting the woodwork and adding to their own already considerable
weight.

Metallic roofing embraces sheet copper, sheet zinc, sheet lead, “galvanised” iron, and thin plates of “rustless”

(Bower-Barff) iron. These materials are only used on flat or nearly flat spaces.

Floors.—Tiles or flags are most frequently used for the floors of kitchens, sculleries, and lobbies. They serve this

purpose very well, as they are easily washed and not likely to be injured, but the joints should be made impervious to
moisture. In some parts of the country, concrete is used; this answers very well for the same purpose, but it is not good
for bedrooms, as it is so cold to the feet. Wood makes the most comfortable floor for sitting or bed rooms, and the best
is hard wood capable of bearing a polish. From its convenience and cheapness, common deal is used very generally,
and too often in a damp and unsound state, so that the boards shrink and wide gaps are left between. This allows all the
foul air from any space—as a cellar or a cavity between the floor and the soil—to ascend into the room. The boards
ought to be as close together as possible, and any spaces left between them should be packed tightly with oakum. If this
is done, the floors may be stained and varnished, when they can be swept and rubbed clean, and do not require such
frequent washing as the ordinary unvarnished floors. This is an important gain, for there is no doubt that emanations
rising with the damp from newly-washed floors are often most injurious. If a varnished floor is washed, it dries almost at
once. Spaces must be left under the floors, on the ground level, if they are of wood, or they will soon decay; and they
ought to be well ventilated. Ceilings, leaving a space between them and the boards of the room above, have come into
use, most likely to deaden sound. They often fail of this, while affording fine playgrounds to mice, and even rats. Well-
laid boards, of sufficient thickness, and plugged with oakum, would, as regards health, be preferable. (Dr. Simpson.)

General Arrangement.—The chief points to be insisted on in a dwelling are enumerated by Simpson as follows:—

Every room should obtain light and air from the outside, and there should be free communication from front to back, so
that a current of air may pass through the house. What are called back-to-back houses are very objectionable, and to
be carefully avoided. If there is a closet attached to the house, it should, as a matter of course, be ventilated by a
window opening both above and below, and, if possible, should be built in a projecting wing or tower, and have double
doors, with space between them for a window on each side, so as to have cross ventilation. When there is no closet in
the house, it should be completely detached from it, and all piggeries, middens, &c., should be as far removed as
possible. Speaking even of large houses, Eassie remarks that they are often very faultily planned in respect to the
position in that portion of the interior which is usually appropriated to sinks and water-closets. In the basement, for
instance, closets are often placed almost in the middle of the house, and the same mistake is committed on the floors
above, a worse error by far; because then the closet would be placed on the landing of the stair opposite the best
ground-floor, and chamber-floor rooms—the only ventilation from the closet-rooms being into the staircase, and
consequently into the house.

Precaution against Snakes entering Dwellings.—There is no regular system adopted to prevent snakes entering

dwelling-houses in Ceylon, as it is of rare occurrence to find any but rat snakes in European dwellings, and these are not
venomous; but it is usual to clear away a portion of space about each bungalow and put on sharp gravel, and also to
have coir matting laid down upon the verandahs, as snakes dislike crossing over rough surfaces such as gravel and coir.
Trees should be at such a distance from the house (or bungalow) as to prevent the possibility of snakes dropping from

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the branches on to the roof.

Reducing Echoes and Reverberations.—The report of a committee of a Würtemberg association of architects upon

the deadening of ceilings, walls, &c., to sound, gave rise to considerable debate, after which the following conclusions
were reached. The propagation of sound through the ceiling may be most effectually prevented by insulating the floor
from the beams by means of some porous light substance, as a layer of felt, a filling of sand, or of stone coal dust, the
latter being particularly effective. It is difficult to prevent the propagation of sound through thin partitions, but double
unconnected walls filled in with some porous material have been found to answer the purpose best. Covering the walls
and doors with hangings, as of jute, is also quite serviceable.

To those who carry on any operations requiring much hammering or pounding, a simple means of deadening the

noise of their work is a great relief. Several methods have been suggested, but the best are probably these:

1. Rubber cushions under the legs of the work-bench. Chambers’s Journal describes a factory where the

hammering of fifty coppersmiths was scarcely audible in the room below, their benches having under each leg a rubber
cushion.

2. Kegs of sand or sawdust applied in the same way. A few inches of sand or sawdust is first poured into each keg;

on this is laid a board or block upon which the leg rests, and round the leg and block is poured fine dry sand or
sawdust. Not only all noise, but all vibration and shock, is prevented; and an ordinary anvil, so mounted, may be used in
a dwelling-house without annoying the inhabitants. To amateurs, whose workshops are almost always located in
dwelling-houses, this device affords a cheap and simple relief from a very great annoyance.

Echoes are broken up by stretching wires across the room at about 4-5 ft. above the heads of the audience. Often

there is strong echo from the windows, which is lessened by the use of curtains, but with some sacrifice of light. Very
thin semi-transparent blinds would check echo a good deal, but architects should not have large windows in the same
plane; large unbroken surfaces of any kind are very apt to reflect echoes, yet we constantly see rooms intended for
public meetings so built as to be spoiled by the confusing echoes.

Waterproofing Walls.—In many badly constructed houses with thin walls there is a tendency for damp to make its

way into the interior. Several remedies for this inconvenience have been published at various times. The following
procedure is described by a German paper as a reliable means of drying damp walls. The wall, or that part of it which is
damp, is freed from its plaster until the bricks or stones are laid bare, next further cleaned off with a stiff broom, and
then covered with the mass prepared as below, and dry river-sand thrown on as a covering. Heat 1 cwt. of tar to
boiling-point in a pot, best in the open air; keep boiling gently, and mix gradually 3½ lb. of lard with it. After some more
stirring, 8 lb. of fine brickdust are successively put into the liquid, and moved about until thoroughly disintegrated, which
has been effected when, on dipping in and withdrawing a stick, no lumps adhere to it. The fire under the pot is then
reduced, merely keeping the mass hot, which in that state is applied to the wall. This part of the work, as well as the
throwing on of the river-sand against the tarred surface, must be done with the trowel quickly and with sufficient force.
It must be continued until the whole wall is covered both with the tar mixture and the sand. The tar must not be allowed
to get cold, nor must the smallest possible spot be left uncovered, as otherwise damp would show itself again in such
places, and where no sand has been thrown the following coat of plaster would not stick. When the tar covering has
become cold and hard, the usual or gypsum coating may be applied. It is asserted that, if this covering has been
properly dried, even in underground rooms, not a sign of dampness will be perceived. About 300 sq. ft. may be
covered with the quantities above stated.

An excellent asphalte or mortar for waterproofing damp walls or other surfaces is the following patented

composition:—Coal tar is the basis, to which clay, asphalte, rosin, litharge, and sand are added. It is applied cold, and
is extremely tenacious and weather-resisting. The area to be covered is first dried and cleaned, then primed with hot
roofing varnish—chiefly tar. The mortar is then laid on cold with trowels, leaving a coat ⅜ in. thick. A large area is then
coated with varnish and sprinkled over with rough sand. To frost or rain this mortar is impervious. The cost is 5d. per
sq. ft., and for large quantities 4d. In the case of stone walls the following ingredients, melted and mixed together, and
applied hot to the surface of stone, will prevent all damp from entering, and vegetable substance from growing upon it.
1½ lb. rosin, 1 lb. Russian tallow, 1 qt. linseed-oil. This simple remedy has been proved upon a piece of very porous
stone made into the form of a basin; two coats of this liquid, on being applied, caused it to hold water as well as any
earthenware vessel.

For brickwork, the Builder gives the following remedy:—¾ lb. of mottled soap to 1 gal. of water. This composition

to be laid over the brickwork steadily and carefully with a large flat brush, so as not to form a froth or lather on the
surface. The wash to remain 24 hours to become dry. Mix ½ lb. of alum with 4 gal. of water; leave it to stand for 24
hours, and then apply it in the same manner over the coating of soap. Let this be done in dry weather.

Another authority says, coat with venetian red and coal tar, used hot. This makes a rich brown colour. It can be

thinned with boiled oil.

A Devonshire man recommends “slap-dashing,” as is often done in Devon. The walls are, outside, first coated with

hair-plaster by the mason, and then he takes clean gravel, such as is found at the mouth of many Devonshire rivers, and
throws—or, as it is called locally, “scats” it—with a wooden trowel, with considerable force, so as to bed itself into the
soft plaster. You can limewash or colour to your liking, and your walls will not get damp through.

Perhaps no application is cheaper or more efficacious than the following. Soft paraffin wax is dissolved in benzoline

spirit in the proportion of about one part of the former to four or five parts of the latter by weight. Into a tin or metallic

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keg, place 1 gal. of benzoline spirit, then mix 1½ lb. or 2 lb. wax, and when well hot pour into the spirit. Apply the
solution to the walls whilst warm with a whitewash brush. To prevent the solution from chilling, it is best to place the tin
in a pail of warm water, but on no account should the spirit be brought into the house, or near to a light, or a serious
accident might occur. The waterproofed part will be scarcely distinguishable from the rest of the wall; but if water is
thrown against it, it will run off like it does off a duck’s back. Whilst it is being applied the smell is very disagreeable, but
it all goes off in a few hours. On a north wall it will retain its effect for many years, but when exposed much to the sun, it
may want renewing occasionally. Hard paraffin wax is not so good for the purpose, as the solution requires to be kept
much hotter.

Curing a Damp Cellar.—A correspondent inquired of the editor of the American Architect what remedy he would

suggest for curing a damp cellar. The difficulty to be overcome, presents the questioner, in a new house is the wet cellar.
Conditions present, concrete not strong enough to resist the hydraulic pressure through a clay soil. No footings under
wall (which are of brick.) No cement on outside of wall. The water evidently, however, forces its way through the
concrete bottom.

(a) Will reconcreting (using Portland cement) resist the pressure of water and keep it out?
(b) If not, will a layer of pure bitumen damp-course between the old and new concrete do the work?
(c) Will it do any good to carefully cement the walls on the inside with rich Portland cement, say 3 ft. high, to exclude

damp caused by capillary attraction through the brick wall?

In reply to the above queries the editor gave the following hints, which are equally applicable to builders of new

houses as to those occupying old houses with damp cellars:

It is doubtful whether even Portland cement concrete would keep back water under sufficient pressure to force it

through concrete made of the ordinary cement. The best material would be rock asphalte, either Seyssel, Neufebatel,
Val de Travers, Yorwohle, or Limmer, any of which, melted, either with or without the addition of gravel, according to
the character of the asphalte, and spread hot to a depth of ¾ in. over the floor, will make it perfectly water-tight. The
asphalte coating should be carried without any break 18 or 20 in. up on the walls and piers, to prevent water from
getting over the edge; and if the hydrostatic pressure of the water should be sufficient to force the asphalte up, it must be
weighted with a pavement of brick or concrete. This is not likely to be necessary, however, unless the cellar is actually
below the line of standing water around it.

This, although an excellent method of curing the trouble, the asphalte cutting off ground air from the house, as well as

water, will be expensive, the cost of the asphalte coating being from 20 to 22 cents (10-11d.) a sq. ft.; and perhaps it
may not be necessary to go to so much trouble. It is very unusual to find water making its way through ordinary good
concrete, unless high tides or inundations surround the whole cellar with water. If the source of the water seems to be
simply the soakage of rain into the loose material filled in about the outside of the new wall, we should advise attacking
this point first, and sodding or concreting with coal-tar concrete, a space 3 or 4 ft. wide around the building. This, if the
grade is first made to slope sharply away from the house, will throw the rain which drips from the eaves, or runs down
the walls, out upon the firm ground, and in the course of two or three seasons the filling will generally have compacted
itself to a consistency as hard as or harder than the surrounding soil, so that the tendency of water to accumulate just
outside the walls will disappear; while the concrete, as it hardens with age, will present more and more resistance to
percolation from below.

For keeping the dampness absorbed by the walls from affecting the air of the house, a Portland cement coating may

be perhaps the best means now available. It would have been much better, when the walls were first built, to brush the
outside of them with melted coal tar; but that is probably impracticable now. If the earth stands against the walls,
however, the cement coating should cover the whole inside of the wall. The situation of the building may perhaps admit
of draining away the water which accumulates about it, by means of stone drains or lines of drain tile, laid up to the
cellar walls, at a point below the basement floor, and carried to a convenient outfall. This would be the most desirable
of all methods for drying the cellar, and should be first tried.

Construction for Earthquake Countries.—The conditions will vary somewhat according to the nature of the climate.
R. H. Brunton, who was for many years resident lighthouse engineer in Japan, follows the principles enunciated by

Mallet and Prof. Palmieri, giving the buildings weight and great inertia, coupled with a good bond between their various
parts. Prof. Palmieri states that, although solidity and strength in a building do not afford perfect protection, still, so long
as fracture does not occur, overthrow is impossible. Dyer states that in his opinion, for dwelling-houses in Japan, the
modifications of external design required, as compared with those in Britain, arise not so much on account of the
earthquakes as from the heats of summer, the colds of winter, and the typhoons of autumn. Iron roofs are good from a
merely structural point of view; but in summer it would be impossible to live in the houses provided with them. If a non-
conducting material of the same strength and durability as iron could be found, it might be used. “If the houses are so
designed as to be comfortable as regards temperature, and the construction made in good brick, or equally strong stone
and mortar, so that the walls are of nearly a uniform strength; if no unnecessary top weights are used, and if the various
parts do not vibrate with different periods, they will withstand all ordinary earthquakes, and other precautions will be
unnecessary, as these generally produce results more serious than those due to the earthquakes.”

The city of Arequipa, Peru, is particularly liable to earthquakes, owing to its proximity to the great volcano, the Misti,

19,000 ft. in height above sea-level, the city being 7000 ft. above sea-level. The general construction of the houses is
peculiar. A light coloured volcanic stone is largely used; this, when quarried, is easily shaped, and it hardens gradually.

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The roofs are for the most part strong arches, a very good mortar being used. In the earthquake of 1868, it was not so
much those arches which failed as the walls, and the spandrels between the arches at front and rear. In some parts of
the city, arches extending in one direction stood, while those at right angles to these were thrown down. Since 1868, a
good many corrugated iron roofs have been introduced; but they are not suitable to the climate, and are not durable.

Earnshaw, from an experience of 25 years in Manila, where the earthquakes are sometimes very severe, comes to

the conclusion to build as strongly as possible, and chiefly in wood, tied and bolted together as in a ship, stone and
brickwork only being used in the lower story and in the foundations, and especial attention ought to be paid to the
quality of the lime and mortar used in construction. Many materials have been used as roofing, such as the heavy tiles
made in the country and others imported there. When, in 1880, fully 60 per cent. of the buildings in Manila had been
ruined, an order was issued by the municipal...