No. 216.] 317 



the kitchen and living room in a basement, half under ground, throw- 

 ing the fumes of the scullery, or wash room, into th.^ parlor and 

 other apartments above. Other things equally absorb, migh be point- 

 ed out, would the limited length of this paper permit, with regard 

 to position, ventilation, light, heat, color, incongruity of materials, 

 and internal arrangements, which are totally incompatible with re- 

 publican principles, comfort, true taste, or common sense. 



The main causes of the afore-named inconsistencies, are, that most 

 of the houses in this country have been planned by persons who nev- 

 er have studied the first principle of domestic architecture, such as 

 builders, carpenters, masons, bricklayeft, &c ; or they have been de- 

 signed by professed a'rchitects, in the common acceptation of the term, 

 who may have turned their attention almost exclusively to the con- 

 struction of public buildings, villas, baronial mansions, street houses 

 in town; and have been reared in the rigid school of European pre- 

 cedent, if in any, imbued wuth prejudices at variance with the sim- 

 plicity of our manners, our climate, reason, or sound taste. 



It is unnecessary to dwell further on the moral, physical, and me- 

 chanical defects in our rural architecture, as it must be obvious to 

 every reflecting and well-balanced mind, that serious and growing 

 evils do exist, which loudly Call for reform, and it is ardently hoped 

 that the suggestion will not have been made in vain. And now to 

 the immediate object before us. 



In the construction of a farm cottage the chief objects to be con- 

 sidered, are, 1st, the number and character of the people it is inten- 

 ded to accommodate; 2d, the expense, or present means and pros- 

 pective ability of the proprietor; 3d, the position, in regard to ex- 

 posure to the sun, and in affording convenience to the out-buildings, 

 or other parts of the farm; 4th, consistency, or congruity, so far as 

 it is considered as an object in landscape scenery, or relates to the 

 nature of the materials of which it is constructed, the color and fin- 

 ish of the exterior, and its fitness or adaptation in promoting health, 

 comfort, and cheerfulness to the occupants within. 



Those who possess but moderate means, and are unable to erect a 

 more costly mansion, may build, in many situations, a very comfort- 

 able and convenient dwelling, for from $600 to $900, agreeably to 

 the plans and elevation denoted by the adjoining cuts. 



