NOVEL SPRING HOUSES 



a low stone structure which he had admired on the 

 Old York Eoad, on his frequent travels from his 

 country seat to the city office. "And its chief 

 charm," he now gleefully states, "lies in the fact 

 that it cost less than ten dollars complete, as it was 

 built entirely from the rough field stone of the sur- 

 rounding acres, the only cost being the cement and 

 sand for mortar, and a few fencing boards, with 

 hinges and lock for the door." 



This offers a novel suggestion where cost must 

 be taken into consideration. Such a spring house, 

 built entirely by the owner at odd hours, will require 

 little outside of cement if the field stone is at hand ; 

 as no other woodwork except the door and support- 

 ing scantling will be required, even the roof being 

 a mere rounding over of the stone, with a rough cast 

 finish of the cement. 



On the Byers estate, "Burholme," in suburban 

 Philadelphia on the outskirts of beautiful German- 

 town there is a spring house of note which has 

 recently attracted considerable attention because of 

 the gift of the estate to the city of Philadelphia as a 

 public park. This might well be taken as a model for 

 spring-house construction, because of its simplicity 

 and convenience. The low stone walls are not re- 

 markable, being simply rough stone and plaster cast, 

 and the little frame addition built at one end for 



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