

CIVIL ARCHITECTURE. 



627 



CLXXXIX. 



Fig. 1-'. 



General re 

 mark-.. 



Modern 

 house- 

 building. 



Footing*. 



pntition 



solidated, the wooden frames are removed, and the sides 

 of the wall appears as at O. This is termed formaceous. 

 A seventh sort of work is seen in the ancient walls of 

 Naples, where two outside walls are built of squared 

 stones laid in regular courses, PP, Fig. 12, bound to- 

 gether by transverse or cross walls at certain distances, 

 as QQ, and having the remaining spaces between these 

 walls filled up with stones and earth. 



The ancients bestowed great pains upon forming the 

 beds and joints of the stones ; they were frequently so 

 fine as to escape the eye. They usually worked only at 

 first the bed and joints, and having set the stones in this 

 state, afterwards polished the faces. 



Palladio directs, that as the wall rises above the ground, 

 its thickness should diminish in the manner of a pyra- 

 mid ; that the inside face of the wall should be in a per- 

 pendicular line ; that the thickness of the podium or foot 

 of the wall, be half that of the foundation ; in the mid- 

 dle of the wall, or front band, the thickness be dimi- 

 nithed half a brick ; at the top, or crown of the build- 

 ing, another half brick to be taken away ; and, that 

 some sculpture, or bas relief, should conceal outwardly 

 the gradual diminution. That great attention should be 

 paid to render the angles as firm as possible by means of 

 long and hard stones ; and that the openings, windows, 

 &c. be removed, at least to the distance of their own 

 breadth from the angles. 



In modern house building, the bedding joints of the 

 squared stones or bricks have always a horizontal posi- 

 tion. In piers, quays, and bridges, the bedding joints 

 are generally laid at a right angle with the latter of the 

 outside faces ; and these latter are sometimes worked in 

 the reticulated manner, that is, the courses are laid at an 

 angle of 45 with the horizon. But this subject will be 

 more fully discussed under the article MASONRY. 



The footings in the foundations of stone walls should 

 be composed of large square stones, all of the same 

 course, being of an equal thickness. If the foundations 

 are made to taper much, the superstructure will depend 

 on the back parts of the lowermost stones, and unless 

 these are very truly worked and laid, it will therefore be 

 liable to give way. Where the direction of a wall is up 

 the face of sleep ground, cut into steps, the footings 

 must be bedded with great care ; and all the upright 

 joints of an upper footing stone, should break joint, or 

 fall upon the middle of the stones below. In laying the 

 foundations of thin walls, where stones of proper size 

 can be had, each course of the footing should consist of 

 stones reaching the entire thickness of the walls, with 

 the proper projections. But in thicker walls, when only 

 a part of the stones can be had of sufficient length, then 

 every alternate stone may be laid quite across the wall ; 

 the interval consisting of two stones in breadth after the 

 manner of Flemish bond in brickwork. If even these 

 bond stones cannot be procured, then every alternate 

 stone may be in length two thirds of the thickness on 

 one side the wall, and on the other side stone of one 

 third of the same breadth may be placed, and the order 

 reversed in the next course, which will form a sufficiently 

 strong bond. In broader foundations, where stones can- 

 not be procured equal to two thirds of the breadth, they 

 may be built with the joints of the upper course of each 

 footing resting nearly on the middle of the (tones in the 

 course below it. 



When the superstructure of a wall consists of unhewn 

 stone laid in mortar, it is called a Rubble Wall, which 

 may be either coursed or uncourted ; of these the latter 

 is very common in ordinary buildings. The greater part 

 of the stones are used as they come from the quarry ; 



some have a slight hammer dressing. This sort of wall Practice, 

 is very inconvenient for receiving bond timbers ; but if ^"~Y~""?' 

 bond timbers be preferred to plugging, the backing must Plugging. 

 be levelled in every height where the bond timbers are 

 required. When the stones are very small, and of irre- 

 gular shape, it will add to their stability to work in 

 slender laths or old hoop iron ; and care must be taken 

 to dispose the longest sort of the stones so as to create 

 the greatest possible bond ; and the work must be car- 

 ried very regularly up round every wall of the building, 

 and with not too much rapidity, in order that it may- 

 have time to indurate or set, to a certain degree of firm- 

 ness before a great weight comes upon it ; and on no ., . . 

 account should thin stones be set on edge, which Mones'tobe 

 thoughtless and unprincipled workmen are but too much se t on edge, 

 inclined to, either from haste, or for the purpose of making 

 a smooth out-side facing. 



Coursed rubble, where proper stones can'be obtained, Coursed 

 is much preferable to the other, and is more favourable rubble, 

 to the disposition of bond timbers. The courses are of 

 various thicknesses, adjusted by means of a guage or 

 sizing-rule ; and the stones are either hammered, dressed, 

 or axed. 



Walls faced with squared stones, and backed with rubble Ashler 

 or brick, are called ashler work, and the stones themselves work, 

 are called ashlers. The average size of each ashler is from 

 24 to 36 inches in length horizontally, 8 to 12 inches in 

 breadth or depth, and 10 to 16' inches in height. The 

 best figure for the stones of an ashler facing, is that of 

 a truncated wedge, that is, thinner at one end than the 

 other in the thickness of the wall, so that those in one 

 course may form in their back parts indentations like the 

 teeth of a saw, the next course having its indentations va- 

 ried from that below it ; the whole is therefore toothed 

 or united with the rubble backing, much more effectual- 

 ly than if the backs of the ashlers were parallel with the 

 face. Bond stones should be introduced in every course BoiiJ 

 of ashler facing : they should be in quantity equal to one- MOUCI " 

 sixth of the face of the wall, and of a length to reach at 

 least one foot into the back, but the more the better, 

 every bond stone should, if possible, be placed in the 

 middle between those in the course below. When the 

 jambs of piers are coursed with ashler, or when the jambs 

 are of one entire height, every alternate stone next the 

 aperture in the former case, and next to the jambs in the 

 latter, should bond through the wall ; and every other 

 stone should be placed lengthwise, in each return of an 

 angle, not less than the average length of an ashler. 

 Bond stones should have no taper in their beds, nor 

 should their ends, or the ends of the return stones, be 

 ever less than 12 inches. Closers should never be ad- Clo.ers. 

 milled, unless they bond at least two-lhirds of the thick- 

 ness of ihe wall. All upright joints should be square or 

 at a right angle with the face for about two inches back, 

 after which they may widen a little towards ihe back. 

 The upper and lower beds of every slonc should be quite 

 level or parallel to each other for their whole breadth. 

 All the joints, for the distance of about one inch from Jointing, 

 the face, should be cemented with fine mortar, or with a 

 mixture of oil-putty and white lead ; the former is prac- 

 liscd at Edinburgh, the latter at Glasgow ; at the latter 

 place the joints of the polished ashler work are uncom- 

 monly fine and accurate. Parker's British cement will 

 probably supersede both the former. The remainder of 

 the ashler, and all the rubble, should be laid in good lime 

 mortar ; thai for the rubble should be made with coarser 

 and. All ihe stones should be laid in their natural beds. Stoneil-ijl 

 Wall plates should always be placed on a number of bond j aurlt 

 stones, to which they may be either joggled or fixed by *' 



