72 



THE PRODUCTION AND USE OF HEAT 



hot ashes. In the wall beside the fireplace was built the 

 brick oven, with its flat bottom and arched top, having an 

 iron door in front (Fig. 64). On baking day, a wood fire was 

 built in the oven, and, when it had burned to coals and thor- 

 oughly heated the oven, the fire was neatly removed and the 

 bread placed on the oven bottom. In those days, there was 



FIG. 64. An old-fashioned fireplace and oven. (From Stories of Useful In- 

 ventions. By permission of The Century Company.) 



usually no attempt to heat other than the living room of the 

 house. The sleeping rooms, in the winter, were damp and 

 bitter cold. The bedstead was surrounded by thick, heavy, 

 bed curtains that hung from the bed frame which reached 

 nearly to the ceiling. Before retiring, the sheets were warmed 

 by means of a warming pan. This consisted of a metal pan 



