THE EMIGRANT'S HAND-BOOK. 83 



against the rain and frost ? I answer, they have stood 

 well in Europe, and the Hon. Mr. Poinsett remarked to 

 me that he had seen them in South America, after hav- 

 ing been erected 300 years. Whoever has noticed the 

 rapid absorption of water by a brick that has been burned, 

 will not wonder why brick walls are damp. The burn- 

 ing makes the brick porous, while the unburnt brick is 

 less absorbent ; but it is not proposed to present the un- 

 burnt brick to the weather. Whoever has erected a 

 building with merchantable brick, will at once perceive 

 the large number of soft and yellow brick, partially 

 burned, that it contains brick that would soon yield to 

 the mouldering influence of frost and storms. Such brick 

 are, however, placed within, beyond the reach of rain, 

 and always kept dry. A good cabin is made by a single 

 room, twenty feet square. A better one is eighteen feet 

 wide and twenty. four feet long, cutting off eight feet on 

 one end, for two small rooms, eight by eight each. 



How easily could a settler erect such a cabin on the 

 western prairie, where clay is usually found about fifteen 

 inches below the surface, and where stone and lime are 

 often both very cheap. The article of brick for chimneys 

 is found to be quite an item of expense in wood houses. 

 In these mud houses no brick are needed, except for the 

 o>p of the chimney, the oven, and casing of the fire-place 

 though this last might be well dispensed with. A ce- 

 ment, to put around the chimneys, or to fill any other 

 crack, is easily made by a mixture of one part of" sand, 

 two of ashes, and three of clay. This soon hardens, and 

 will resist the weather. A little lard or oil may be added 

 to make the composition still harder. 



Such a cottage will be as cheap as a log cabin, less 

 expensive than pine buildings, and durable for centuries. 

 I have tried the experiment in this city, by erecting a 



