in the Counties of New-Haven and Litchfield. 221 
uregular, deep and dove-tailed cavities between the stones 
as possible 
he mortar should be made of the best lime, and if it is 
slacked with water already saturated with lime, so much 
the better; the sand should be very angular, sharp grained 
and purely siliceous, consisting of little else than fragments 
of quartz, (commonly called white flint,) it should be coarse, 
from the size of a pea to that of the head of a large pin, and 
mixed with the lime in about equal bulks, or as some say, six 
or seven parts of sand to one of lime, with the addition of a 
suitable quantity of hair. This mortar, inclear, and moderate- 
ly warm weather, is put on with the trowel, dashed in with 
force and care into all the eavities, and floated over to the re- 
quired thickness, all at one operation, and one day’s work 
must be put on so soon after another that the two edges may 
perfectly incorporate, which will not be the fact if the for- 
mer day’s work is allowed to dry too much before that of the 
latter is put on. j 
nly one coat should be applied™-a second would not ad- 
here, if applied, and will come off with the frost. The wor 
may be afterwards beautified by a lime wash made with 
milk instead of water, with certain additions* which the work- 
men pretend to keep secret, but which are very well known. 
_ A cement put on in this manner will stand ; and in say- 
ing this I speak from the experience of twelve years ; a ce- 
ment of this kind which under my observation, has been on 
that length of time, being as sound as the stone beneath. 
In the case of the house on New-Preston hill, a thin coat 
Was put on like a first coat of inside plastering ; thus the holes 
which should have held the plaster firm were filled up, at 
the same time that the stones were scarcely covered, and 
when the second coat was applied, there was nothing to hold 
it, and of course, as might have been foreseen, it came off 
and left a ragged and mutilated exterior. —_ 
speak with pleasure of seeing houses built of stone be- 
Cause it is high time that we should build more extensively 
with permanent materials, brick or stone. 
* These additions are probably of no importance—the milk and the lime, 
appear to be all that are essential; the caseous or cheesy part of the milk 
Von. II.....No. 2. 29 
