FARM ARCHITECTURE. 



135 



Still, for the sake of the argument, we will suppose that 

 the cards are out, the cake baked, and both the old house 

 and the new in eager demand. With due respect to age, we 

 will consider the old house first, beginning, where we usually 

 begin in making acquaintance, with the outside. 



On this point, the external appearance, there will be more 

 to candemn concerning the new than the old ; for the old 

 farmhouse is commonly a picturesque object. 



Architecturally viewed, its general form and composition 

 are satisfactory, for the simple reason that the man who 

 built it knew what he wanted, built what he wanted in the 

 simplest fashion, and then stopped. 



For our use it is lacking, because his wants were fewer 

 than ours, his resources more limited. 



There are several distinct types of these old farmhouses, 

 familiar to all who know any thing of New England ; and 

 most of them, by the outlay of a few hundred dollars 

 (perhaps less than a few, not so much as one), can be made 

 not merely inoffensive in external appearance, but positively 

 charming. 



These sketches suggest roughly what may be done to the 

 outside of the old house, without disturbing the interior, to 

 bring it into more complete harmony with the artistic spirit 

 of the age. By artistic spirit I mean that which prompts us 

 to put whatever we have and use into the most agreeable 

 shape, — that which will give us the most complete satisfac- 

 tion, and to our possessions the most enduring value. This is 

 not opposed to utility : it is the highest form of utility ; it is 

 enriching the labor of our hands with thought and feeling. 



In-doors the problem is more difficult. 



"When there is any doubt whether it will pay to make over 



