THE QUAINT AND DURABLE THATCHED ROOF 



using. It may be laid while still slightly damp, and 

 the straw in laying should be drawn into uniformity 

 by being combed with the fingers, to remove all 

 broken and tangled particles., and make the thatch 

 straight and firm throughout. 



For laying the thatch over boards, or over an old 

 roof that is to be repaired in this picturesque man- 

 ner, the needle method will be useless; but various 

 other means are used to keep the layers of straw 

 firmly in place. In following the Japanese method, 

 layers of split bamboo are laid along each course of 

 the thick bundles of straw. Saplings, or narrow 

 strips of wood, are used in the same way in thatching 

 our garden buildings. After nailing the wooden 

 strips firmly through the straw into the board or 

 rafter supports beneath, the next course of thatch 

 overlaps sufficiently to entirely hide the strips and 

 present a uniform appearance of smooth thatch, 

 without showing how it is kept in place. Whether 

 the straw is nailed or stitched to the roof supports, 

 it is important to have a smooth, even appearance 

 when finished. In order to accomplish this, the 

 separate bundles are flattened out and pulled into 

 smooth layers, so as not to show where they join. 

 When the entire roof is laid, the thatch receives a 

 final combing, by carefully smoothing it down from 

 ridge pole to eaves with a long wooden rake. 



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