CHAP. III. 



FARM COTTAGES. 699 



broken bricks or small stones. If the site is not drained, and the soil 

 is inclined to be damp, the footings should be laid in concrete, the 

 depth of which should not be less than 12 inches. A layer of slate 

 laid in gas-tar or prepared felt, round the whole wall above the ground 

 level will also prevent damp, or Taylor's foundation hollow bricks may 

 be used. The walls should be of hollow bricks, or, if these are not 

 used, what is called a " cavity " wall should be made. A hollow wall 

 conduces greatly to warmth and dryness, and should be adopted in all 

 cases. 



Where floors are made of earth, tile, or brick, the plan already 

 recommended of digging out the whole area enclosed by the walls to a 

 depth of 2 feet, and of filling it up with cinders, &c., will secure dry- 

 ness of the floors. But the healthiest of all floors is a boarded one, to 

 protect which from dampness it should be raised at least 18 inches 

 from the ground level ; this will raise the entrance two steps above the 

 level. The joists on which the flooring boards are supported should 

 be made to rest upon small brick piers carried up from the ground. 

 This mode of construction will tend to secure freedom from dry rot. 

 Of materials for roof-covering, tiles are the warmer in winter, the 

 cooler in summer, and are more economical than slates. 



Much has been written about the sewerage of cottages, more especially 

 with reference to the carrying away of the liquid and solid refuse of the 

 inhabitants. Doubtless good sewerage has its advantages ; but, upon 

 the whole, it is open to doubt whether it is worth while carrying out 

 in isolated cottages, or even in rows of three or four cottages, any 

 elaborate scheme embracing the laying down of drain tubes, water- 

 closets, or stench-traps, and involving also the risk of stoppages, with 

 their attendant train of nuisances. To make the drain-tube sewerage 

 system perfect, a constant and liberal supply of water is essential, and 

 this also at some pressure. This, in country places, is not usually 

 obtainable, unless by erecting cisterns at a higher level than the closet 

 and sinks, and pumping the water up to these cisterns. For houses 

 concentrated in villages sewerage is sometimes a necessity, particularly 

 when some of the cottages have little or no gardens. The sink-water 

 and other liquid refuse must be got rid of in some way ; but for the rest 

 the earth-closet system is by far the most sanitary. As a rule, where 

 cottages are isolated singly or in sets of two or three, the sink-water can 

 be drained away into a ditch at some distance from the dwellings, while 

 more objectionable liquid refuse may be emptied on to a dunghill or 

 bare ground in a remote part of the garden. If the dwellers cannot be 

 made to use a proper earth-closet, at least they should be induced to use 

 ashes or earth in the privies. A cesspool for sink-water may be 

 necessary in some cases ; but it should be avoided, if possible, and when 

 it is necessary it should be placed at some distance from the dwelling, 

 and emptied frequently. Large and foul cesspools are common causes 

 of illness. 



The agricultural literature of recent years abounds in examples of 

 cottage plans; and so numerous indeed have they become, that a 

 volume of selections could with great ease be made up from them. 



