Appropriate Furniture 197 



person. If the woodwork and iDictures be wiped 

 with a damp cloth, the windows washed, the 

 floor dusted, and the rug beaten out of doors, 

 now and then, no such terrible upheaval as 

 house-cleaning usually implies, is necessary. 

 Eugs may be had ready-made of ingrain, Jap- 

 anese cotton, and jute, Brussels, and more ex- 

 pensive materials, but should always be heavy 

 enough to lie flat without fastening and large 

 enough to cover the entire portion of the floor 

 which is to be walked upon. The uncovered 

 space should usually not be wider than one and 

 one -half feet. 



All furniture that is not actually built into 

 or fastened to the wall and floors should be 

 easily movable and easily cleaned. This at 

 once precludes the purchase of heav}^ uphol- 

 stered chairs and large sofas. Wicker and 

 rattan furniture, though not so artistic and 

 costly as antique wood, is very light, and with 

 good removable hair cushions, may be made 

 quite as comfortable and far more cleanly than 

 upholstered plush and damask. The cushions 

 may be beaten at the same time as the rugs, and 

 the dust thus taken out of the house. White 

 enameled bedsteads and washstands are rapidly 

 superseding the heavy wooden ones. It is a 

 curious fact that although the persons of a 

 family are of various sizes and ages, chairs are 



