No. 4.] GEEENHOUSES. 385 



Foundation. 



A good foundation must be provided, or a liouse will 

 often settle out of shape, and such light structures are easily 

 ruined by this settling. Stone, concrete, brick, iron and 

 wood may be used for foundations. Stone foundations 

 should be put in below the reach of frost, and be well laid 

 in mortar containing one-fifth Portland cement. Concrete 

 can be made by digging a trench from eight inches to one 

 foot wide, and tamping in a rather dry mixture of Portland 

 cement, one part to five of sand and small stone. The parts 

 above the surftice must be held in place by planks, and be 

 put in moist enough to be poured in from a pail. When 

 nearly set, a skim coat of cement and sand, one to three 

 l)arts, may be used to dress up the surface. If good cement 

 is used and is properly mixed, a permanent and neat foun- 

 dation wall can be made. 



Stone foundations are more generally used with brick to 

 top them out Avith, but to be satisfactory the brick must be 

 laid in cement mortar. Many good houses are built by 

 sinking chestnut or cedar posts three and one-half or four 

 feet below the surface, and standing above the surface high 

 enough to form the walls upon. The north walls of the 

 three-quarters-s})an house may be thus formed by having 

 the posts stand five to six feet out of the ground, while the 

 front walls may be three to five feet high, according to the 

 use for which the house is designed. All the posts should 

 be faced on both sides from the point where they come out 

 of the ground to an even thickness at the top (Fig. 4, b), so 

 that the wall may be the same thickness. Cast-iron posts 

 are used in many modern houses, being sunken below the 

 surface as deeply as wooden posts, and the main framework 

 bolted to them. These are most largely used when the 

 main rafters and perlins are also of iron. 



Superstructure. 

 Sills. — These should be of cypress or chestnut, the first 

 being preferred ; but in case of a home supply of the latter, 

 it will be the much cheaper material and nearly as good. In 



