THE USES OF WOOD 



595 



planning finish ; for here value is placed upon beauty 

 above everything else, particularly for inside finish. 



Both hardwoods and softwoods are employed in in- 

 terior finish, and both are used outside ; but there is wide 

 room for intelligent selection. Generally, hardwoods are 

 liked best for interiors and softwoods outside ; but the 

 exceptions to this arrangement are many. For outside 



work, the pines 

 have always 

 been in favor, 

 especially the 

 soft pines 

 which exude 

 little resin to 

 mar the paint 

 that is put on 

 them. In the 

 n o r t hern re- 

 gion, white 

 pine was al- 

 ways a favorite 

 for weather- 

 boarding, for 

 w i n dow and 

 J o o r frames, 

 posts and col- 

 u m n s for 

 porches, balus- 

 ters and rail- 

 ing, and for 

 cornice. That 

 is no less true 

 now than it 

 was a century 

 or two cen- 

 turies ago when 

 the respectable 

 old New Eng- 

 land and New 

 York houses 

 were being 

 erected. The 

 pine was easy 

 to work, and 

 neither sun nor 

 storm ever 

 warped it, and 

 through all vi- 

 cissit u d e s of 

 fortune it re- 

 mained in line 

 as true as a 

 gun barrel. 

 Some of those 



in the frames and roofs of houses, no attention is paid to old porches and doorways have come down to the pres- 

 the wood's color or figure, or the lack of them ; but the ent day, and are an inspiration to the modern architect, a 

 case is different with interiors. In coarse, undressed compliment to the skill of the old carpenters, and a recom- 

 frames, the strength, stiffness, and durability are the chief mendation of the qualities of the pine that once clothed 

 considerations, but these are not much thought, of in so much of the Northeast and which still abounds in 



doubled by being protected with a coating of linseed oil 

 and white lead, while porch columns and balusters are 

 apt to take on an appearance of seediness and neglect if 

 left exposed to the elements. Outside house painting is 

 for protection and appearance.. 



Some interior finish is painted, some is treated with 

 oils, varnishes, and stains which are not intended to con- 

 ceal the color, 

 grain, and fig- 

 ure of the 

 wood. Paint, 

 being opaque, 

 hides the wood. 

 As to whether 

 oils or paints 

 are preferred, 

 depends large- 

 ly on the tastes 

 of the owner, 

 but also some- 

 what on the 

 kind of wood 

 used. Those 

 without attrac- 

 tive color or 

 figure may look- 

 better if cover- 

 ed with paint ; 

 but if the wood 

 itself is beauti- 

 fu', it is fool- 

 ishness to hide 

 it behind the 

 finest paint 

 p r o c u r a ble. 

 Figu red and 

 colored woods 

 are often est 

 used inside 

 where trans- 

 parent oils will 

 leave the beau- 

 ty exposed to 

 view ; but no 

 purpose is serv- 

 ed by employ- 

 ing such woods 

 outside where 

 weathering will 

 spoil or where 

 paint will con- 

 ceal them. 

 When rough 

 lumber is used 



A CLASSIC WOODEN PORTICO 



Simple beauty has reached very nearly perfection in this style of architecture. This is a view of the 

 portico of the Lincoln House at Manchester-by-the-sca, Massachusetts. It is from the Mary H. Northern! 

 collection and is here shown by the courtesy of the Northern White Pine Bureau, St. Paul, Minnesota. 



