Virginia Storage House. 453 



that portion of the state lying east of Piedmont. Several years 

 since, we concluded to construct a simple storage cellar upon a 

 plan which we once heard discussed, but had not seen carried 

 into practice. In fact, our building is the first one constructed 

 on this plan of which we have any knowledge. 



''The essential features involved in the storage building 

 which we designed for this purpose are : First, a cellar exca- 

 vated into a gently sloping hillside, carried into the bank far 

 enough to place the cellar room entirely below the surface of 

 tho earth, and yet give opportunity to enter the cellar easily by 

 an inclined way from the lower side of the slope ; secondly, a 

 flue leading out from near the center of the floor of the cellar 

 room, along the bank of the hillside for a considerable distance, 

 with sufficient fall to make it act both as a drain pipe and a 

 fresh air flue ; thirdly, ventilating flues placed at each end of 

 the cellar room or elsewhere, as desired, and rising to the 

 height necessary to give a sufficient draft to carry off rapidly 

 the air from the cellar room whenever ventilation is desired. 



"The cellar room will better serve the purpose of cold stor- 

 age if the excavation is carried back into the bank so as to 

 make the floor twelve or fifteen feet below the lowest point of 

 the adjacent hillside. In the case of the cellar built here, the 

 excavation is only ten feet deep at the deepest point, but we 

 are now satisfied that a greater depth would give better results. 

 The principle of a subterranean air flue is the essential feature 

 of this cellar. In its use we aim to secure a dry, even temper- 

 ature in the cellar by admitting air as desired through this 

 flue. It should be at least six inches in diameter and, we now 

 think, should be laid, at a depth of eight or nine feet, along 

 the bank of the hillside, for a distance of about five hundred 

 feet. It is not necessary that this flue should lie in a straight 

 line, but any departure from a straight line should be a gradual 

 curve, so as to permit an unobstructed flow of air into the 

 cellar. Situated at this depth, and having a length approxi- 

 mately as stated above, the air flowing into the cellar through 

 this flue will be in summer reduced, and in winter raised, to 

 the temperature of the soil at the depth stated, which will 



