July, 1905 



AMERICAN [HOMES AND GARDENS 



39 



In 1780 an advertisement appeared in the New York 

 Gazette in which attention was called to the fact that the 

 sideboard was coming into fashion and would soon take the 

 place of the plain side table. This statement was due to the 

 colonists bringing over to this country their household be- 

 longings, and the sideboard naturally occasioned considerable 

 comment. 



When Washington lived in Mount Vernon, his dining- 

 room was furnished with a mahogany sideboard, two knife 

 cases and a large case, two dining tables and a tea table, an 

 oval looking-glass and ten mahogany chairs. The floor was 

 covered with a carpet, the windows were hung with curtains, 

 and the fireplace was fitted out with brass andirons and 

 firepieces. 



used in this way, the extra tables were placed against the wall 

 for serving. 



The choice, at the present day, in extension tables often 

 leaves the home-maker in doubt as to their being an artistic 

 triumph, for the pedestal that is used in the center as a sup- 

 port is often aggressively ugly, and when severed in half 

 to introduce additional leaves its appearance is still more 

 objectionable. 



The disadvantage of the center pillar is obviated in 

 another style by two legs supporting the center of the table, 

 with a leg at each corner. This arrangement suits the Shera- 

 ton and Heppelwhite sideboards better than the carved cen- 

 ter pillar. 



The corner cabinet for china may be classed among 



Colonial Dining-Room in a Seaside Residence 



The Sideboard and Serving Table are more than a hundred years old. Note the plate rack for Staffordshire blue ware and the corner cupboards filled with old china 

 The Colonial atmosphere is faithfully preserved even to the old-fashioned rag carpets, especially made for the room 



A late Colonial, or early nineteenth century, style of fur- 

 niture traced its beginning from the Empire school that 

 Napoleon founded, and dining tables and sideboards were 

 made in heavy shapes and with massive carvings. A few 

 genuine pieces of the eighteenth century English furniture 

 and others of the early American make have been handed 

 down to our time; but these are so rare that, to meet the 

 eager demand for the old forms, reproductions must be 

 manufactured. 



The dining table of our forefathers was made with drop 

 leaves at the ends. For a very extensive entertainment two 

 such tables were joined together. Another fashion that was 

 a forerunner of our modern extension table was to join to the 

 center table two side tables, one at either end, and when not 



Thomas Sheraton's list of " substantial and useful " articles 

 for the dining-room, and when it is built on suitable lines it 

 contributes to the good effect of the room. 



In homes of moderate cost, the conventional rules for the 

 fitting up of a dining-room may often be relaxed and sim- 

 plicity and interest be the dominant expression. The fur- 

 niture may be procured in the unfinished wood and painted 

 to correspond with the woodwork in some pleasing color. 

 The floor may be covered with a rug that is woven in the 

 old-fashioned rag style, with selected material of harmonious 

 tones. The window light may be subdued by dainty stuffs 

 that are not listed among the regular curtain materials. 

 Shelves for a collection of old china or family silver may be 

 fitted in some jog or angle of the wall. 



