Fire-places and Kitchen Utensils. 465 



it never was designed that they should be used with 

 wood. 



When kitchens are fitted up on the plan here recom- 

 mended in places where wood is used as fuel, the open 

 chimney fire-place, which is situated between the roaster 

 and the boiler, may be constructed of the form repre- 

 sented in the foregoing figure, but without any fixed 

 grate ; and the wood may "be burned on andirons or on 

 a small movable gridiron grate placed on the hearth. 



These gridiron grates are very simple in their con- 

 struction, cheap and durable ; and they make an 

 excellent fire, either with coals or turf, or with wood, 

 if it be sawed or cut into short billets. Five of these 

 grates may be seen at the house of the Royal Institu- 

 tion : one in the great lecture-room, one in the appara- 

 tus-room, one in the manager's room, one in the clerks' 

 room, and one in the dining-room. They have hitherto 

 been made of two sizes only; namely, of 16 inches and 

 of 1 8 inches in width in front. The width of the back 

 part of the grate is always made just equal to half its 

 width in front, and the two sloping sides or ends of the 

 grate are each just equal in width to the back. The 

 form and dimensions of the grate determine the form 

 and dimensions of the open chimney fire-place in which 

 it is used ; for the back of the fire-place must always 

 be made just equal in width to the back of the grate, 

 and the sloping of the covings must be the same as the 

 sloping of the ends of the grate. 



From what has been said of the proportions of the 

 front, back, and sides of these grates, it is evident that 

 the covings and backs of their fire-places must make 

 an angle with each other just equal to 120 degrees. 

 This angle I have been induced to prefer to one of 



VOL. III. 30 



