234 ART OF BUILDING. 



owing to the increased skill of our masons, not only in 

 practice, but in the theory of their art. 



Notwithstanding the improved taste and skill, mani- 

 lest in the art of building, there is a want of science 

 among our masons, when compared with those of England 

 and France, where the blind routine of practice is 

 guided by the light of science ; where as much learn- 

 ing is considered necessary to construct a church or 

 bridge, as to plead a cause in a court of justice. Our 

 remarks will apply equally as well to most of our mechanic 

 arts, as to building in all of which, science is the only 

 thing required to render them equal to those of any 

 country. 



The want of science among our mechanics we attri- 

 bute entirely to the want of proper elementary instruction, 

 and it is with a view to remedy this defect in one trade, 

 that the following pages have been prepared not for 

 the master builder only, but for the great mass of our 

 countrymen ; we wish to spread the scientific principles 

 of the arts and trades before the ichole people. We wish 

 that every mechanic in our, country, may not only know 

 the science of his own profession, but also that of every 

 other with which his own is in any way connected, 

 believing that this knowledge would not only add greatly 

 to his pecuniary gains, but vastly increase his means of 

 happiness. 



1 In a short way we propose to describe the principal 

 materials employed by the mason in the construction of 

 edifices, with a brief account of their application ; to 

 which we have added a concise description of the prin- 

 cipal manual operations of the mason's trade. 



MATERIALS. 



Stone. This is the most durable material of which 

 buildings can be constructed. There are various kinds 

 of stone which are used for building in the United 

 States, such as limestone, granite, gneiss, sieniie, and 

 sandstone. Limestone is used extensively in New York, 

 Pennsylvania, and some other stales. Granite is used 

 abundantly in the New England states, where it is found 

 in great abundance. Sienite is used extensively in and 

 near Boston. Gneiss is principally used for cellar and 



