TE ROLE iti SOL B CLEDING*SRONES;, Hi iG. 165 
than in a rough dressed stone. On the other hand a smooth 
dressed stone emphasizes blemishes in color which may be 
obscured by rough dressing.’ These color blemishes may be 
more unsightly than the ‘‘tan”’ of smut and dust, in which case 
it would be preferable to rough dress the stone. 
Fashion, dominated by color, influences the exploitation and 
the market value of different stones. Until a few years ago 
brownstone was preferred, both for business blocks and resi- 
dences, but people became weary of gazing at long rows of som- 
ber colored buildings and the fashion changed to light colored 
stone. At the present time immense quantities of light colored 
stone are being used, but the fashion will change again in a few 
years and the pendulum will swing back to brownstone. A 
judicious use of both would serve to relieve the monotony of 
long rows of brownstone buildings and of the dazzling glare of 
white limestone and marble. It is to be hoped that the time will 
come when the use of neither light nor dark stone will be 
supreme. 
In the large cities, other things being equal, the permanence 
of color ought to be a factor worthy of consideration in the erec- 
tion of residences and tenement houses. However, in the con- 
struction of business blocks it scarcely warrants serious attention. 
A white limestone or marble structure erected in the midst of a 
business portion of a large city soon loses its original color, becom- 
ing gray and dingy from the omnipresent smoke and dirt. Ifthe 
limestone is bituminous and contains a small amount of oil, all the 
dust and smoke which chances to fall upon it will be retained. 
The walls of most of the buildings in the business section of our 
large cities eventually become so begrimed with smoke and dust 
that it is barely possible to tell whether the stone was originally 
dark or light colored. One needs to familiarize himself with the 
characteristic brown and gray shades of stone which have been 
steeped for years in a smoke and dust laden atmosphere, in order 
to be able to determine the original colors. 
On the whole the dark colored stone shows much less than 
does the light the effects of smoke and dust. Nevertheless the 
