42 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



February, 19 13 



more interesting than 

 it is downstairs, for 

 here one finds won- 

 derfully good ex- 

 amples of old Colon- 

 ial fire-places, "night- 

 cap" closets, and old- 

 fashioned andirons. 

 The floors have been 

 left unchanged. In 

 one or two of the 

 rooms an innovation 

 has been made, as in 

 the den, where the 

 furniture is all of wil- 

 low, with bright cov- 

 erings, while in one 

 of the chambers the 

 furnishings are en- 

 tirely in white. This eliminates the old-fashioned idea, 

 and these rooms might be part of a modern house were it 

 not for the small panes of glass in the old windows. Per- 

 haps the most interesting room of all is one of the cham- 

 bers which is furnished in typical Colonial style. The 

 slender legs of the Sheraton four-poster, with its tester 

 covered with white, and the bedspread of a hundred years 

 ago, give it an old-time air which is unquestionable. At 

 one side is a high j boy of the shell pattern, while Windsor 

 and slat-back chairs are in evidence. Here the fire-place 

 is particularly good, as is the little closet which forms a 



From every point of view the old house presents a picturesque appearance 



central feature over- 

 head. The low stud 

 of the house makes 

 it very much more 

 cosy, although one 

 misses the exposed 

 rafters which are 

 found in so many old 

 houses, for with the 

 exception of the liv- 

 ing-room, they are 

 either cased in or 

 covered with plaster. 

 While this fact may 

 make the house more 

 attractive to the 

 house owner who pre- 

 fers a smooth ceiling, 

 still there is a par- 



ticular fascination about these hand-hewn beams, showing 

 the mark of the axe, which appeals to the many lovers of 

 what is truly old. In the upper story another innovation 

 has been made in the building of an out-of-door sleeping- 

 room, which has been introduced on the slope of the lean- 

 to over the enclosed veranda. This room has hammocks 

 on either side, leaving a wide space in the middle for chairs. 

 The house is typical of an old-time farmhouse in which 

 original lines have been carefully preserved. Situated in a 

 sheltered valley, where high winds do not sweep across, it is 

 little wonder that the family comes early and stays late. 



One of the most interesting rooms in the house is the bed-chamber furnished with a Sheraton four-poster and other fine pieces of early time 



furniture 



