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 foa 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 
the 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 u 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 
ave 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 w straight 
line, but any departure from a straight line should be a gradual 
eurve, 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 
