CROWS'- NESTS AND TREE HOUSES 



Four closely-grouped trees were chosen for the 

 site of the novel house. As their natural position 

 was in the form of a square, the house readily could 

 be arranged to have the appearance of resting di- 

 rectly on the tree branches. In reality, the house is 

 supported by stout hemlock posts, about six inches 

 thick and ten feet long, holding the house up at a good 

 stair-climbing distance from the ground, and suf- 

 ficiently high to be well hidden by foliage, as the four 

 big trees spread their branches wide on every side. 

 These supporting posts rest on flat stone founda- 

 tions, set below the frost line, and are kept in posi- 

 tion by the weight of the house. Four heavy sills 

 are firmly braced to the posts, between which the 

 floor beams are laid. These floor beams were suffi- 

 ciently long to extend beyond the room of the house, 

 and provide spaces for the front and side veranda. 

 The flooring for exterior and interior is of Georgia 

 pine. When built upon this firm though elevated 

 foundation, there is little danger of it being injured 

 by heavy wind storms. The four corner posts of the 

 house walls are also about six inches thick; and the 

 precaution was taken, in working up the rough lum- 

 ber, to have the two front corner posts from eighteen 

 to twenty inches higher than those at the back. This 

 provides sufficient pitch of the roof readily to shed 

 the rain, when simply covered with roofing paper, 



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