676 PROCEEDINGS OF SECTION H. 
boiler, is all that is required; for sanitary reasons the 
ground-floor should, however, be raised quite three feet 
above the ground, and this height would be sufficient to give 
access to gas and water pipes, &c., for repair. 
The heating of rooms in our climate is, I think, best 
carried out individually, rather than collectively, as in the 
States; and in the house of the future, where labour saving 
is of the first importance, the open wood or coal fire is out 
of place. It means carrying heavy fuel into the rooms, and 
the production and removal of dust. Gas fires, though not 
so cheerful, must be their substitute; and, of course, every 
fire must have its own flue. 
The mention of dust suggests the point, that, after cook- 
ing, the heaviest household work is cleaning; but with the 
abolition of unnecessary rooms and passages, this in the 
modern house would be much reduced. It may be still 
further minimised by a better method of building, and . 
especially of furnishing. 
In the matter of building it is of the utmost importance, 
for sanitary reasons, that all inaccessible hollow spaces 
should be eliminated. The worst of these is that between 
the floor and ceiling, and hence a good solid floor is a 
desideratum. It may be made with concrete and _ steel 
joists, and on this the floor covering should be solidly laid. 
To my mind, there is nothing better than the hardwood 
parquetry almost universal on the Continent of Europe. 
It is ornamental, close-jointed, and wax-polished, so that 
washing is unnecessary, and a weekly rub over with a 
“frotteur”’ and a little turpentine and. wax keeps it clean 
and sweet. Nailed-down carpets, especially of a fluffy 
nature, should be rigidly excluded, as they are a prolific 
source of dust, and a few loose rugs of close texture sub- 
stituted. | Skirtings should be solid, and preferably of a 
hard cement, with the angle between the walls and floor 
round as in_ hospital wards. The walls should be 
cemented and finished off with one of the finer plasters, as 
Keene’s or Parian, instead of the wretchedly ineffective 
hair-mortar commonly used, and the ceilings should be 
finished with cement laid directly on the concrete. In a 
room thus constructed there would be no harbour for dust, 
and if the furniture be kept plain and simple, and the 
hangings few, and non-absorbent, the labour of cleansing 
would be reduced to a minimum. And here I must have 
a tilt at the ordinary drawing-room, which is crammed 
with knick-knacks, photograph-frames, loose cushions, 
drapery, and the odds and ends of all descriptions which the 
