farmers' houses. 333 



fallen into any powder from exposure to the atmospliere, with water enough to 

 make it sufficiently thin to be applied with a brush ; this makes a durable out- 

 door whitewash. When white paint is used, two precautions are necessary : 

 first, obtain a good article of white lead from a dealer whom you know to be 

 honest. There is, perhaps, not one pound of pure white lead in a million that 

 is sold for pure white lead, as there is a substance called barytes which can be 

 purchased by the ton for, perhaps, less than a cent a pound, which, when mixed 

 with white lead, cannot be distinguished until some time after it is spread, when 

 it becomes dark. When it is remembered tliat white lead sells for ten times as 

 much per pound, the temptation to adulterate is too strong for the honesty of 

 any white lead manufacturer known to the writer. The proportion of this 

 adulteration is from ten to ninety per cent. Zinc paint is used especially for 

 inside work, and makes a beautiful glossy white finish ; second, the preserva- 

 tive power of white paint depends, in considerable measure, on the time of year. 

 If in hot weather, the water of the oil evaporates so quickly that the paint itself 

 is not carried into the wood, and remains as a powder on the surface, and can 

 be wiped off with the fingers. If in the inclement weather of winter, it is apt 

 to be washed off by the I'ains before it has sufficiently dried. The autumn is 

 best, when the ground is not likely to be dusty, and when the weather is long 

 enough dry to allow the paint to get thorouglily dry itself. Oat-door wood- 

 work should be painted once in every three years, if white, but colored paints 

 last much longer ; nor is Avhite the most desirable color for a farm-house in all 

 situations, and if done as just proposed, it not only preserves the building far 

 beyond the cost of its application, but it gives an air of thrift and life and beauty 

 of which almost every reader has had personal experience. And in case of 

 wishing to sell a farm thus kept painted and whitewashed, as to its fences and 

 buildings, a better price can always be had, and from a better and more elevated 

 class of purchasers. 



ICE-HOUSES 



are beginning to be consMered indispensable appendages to a farmer's housj, 

 and, indeed, to every man who owns his premises. They are not a neces- 

 sity, and where there is a good spring, or never-failing well, they can be dis- 

 pensed with, especially as they do not contribute to the general health of any 

 family, unless the use of ice is wisely controlled. The free use of ice-water 

 tends to the decay of teeth prematurely, is liable to produce dangerous inflam- 

 mations of the stomach, and certainly is the immediate cause of dyspeptic dis- 

 eases in multitudes of cases where it is freely indulged in at the regular meals 

 of the day. At the same time, as many will prefer building ice-houses, it is 

 proper here to give some directions in reference to the subject. 



That ice keeps better ordinarily above ground than below, and that ventila- 

 tion is necessary in order to its well-keeping, are two indisputable facts. The 

 more compact the ice is, the longer will it keep ; hence plans have been devised 

 of letting a stream of Avater run slowly into the ice-house after it has been filled, 

 so that all the crevices may be filler) up; or, where a running stream is avail- 

 able, some persons have arranged to let the water in a foot deep during very 

 cold weather; when this has frozen solid, let in a few inches more until the 

 Louse is entirely filled ; or, it can be done with less trouble and attention if 

 during very severe weather the water is conveyed into the ice-house during the 

 night, by or from a running stream, in a very fine spray, freezing as it falls. 

 There should be a double roof; the under part of the rafters should be boarded 

 closely, and between that and the shingles a space of eight or ten inches, or 

 more, should be filled up with saw-dust, spent tan-bark, or other porous sub- 

 stances. There should be a space between the sti*aw on the surface of the ice 

 and the i-oof for purpose of ventilation, to prevent the air from becoming damp 

 and close, with a wooden chimney of eight or ten inches square piercing the 



