XVI 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



November, 1910 



Concrete from Sand Molds. By A. A. 

 Houghton. New York : The Nor- 

 man W. Henley Publishing Company, 

 1910. 16mo. ; 145 pp.; fully illus- 

 trated. Price, $3. 

 In this little book ]\Ir. Houghton has 

 given a simply worded, thorough descrip- 

 tion of casting ornamental concrete objects 

 from sand molds. In the rapidly widening 

 use of cement and concrete, the lack of 

 skilled workmen really competent to handle 

 this new and plastic material renders the 

 publication of such a book timely. The in- 

 structions given are so clear that any man of 

 reasonable intelligence and skill ought to be 

 able to make sculptural objects if he fol- 

 lows thetri. The .book does not presuppose 

 any preliminary knowledge on the part of 

 the reader. It assumes that the reader is 

 entirely unacquainted with the principles of 

 concrete casting, for which reason it should 

 find favor with those to whom concrete 

 and its many possibilities are new. 



Our Search for a Wilderness. By Mary 

 Blair Beebe and C. William Beebe. 

 New York: Henry Holt & Co., 1910. 

 8vo. ; 408 pp. Price, $-3.75 net. 

 This volume is an account of two trips 

 made by Mr. and Mrs. Beebe into tropical 

 wildernesses. The first was undertaken on 

 a small Venezulean sloop with which they 

 penetrated far into the unknown Mangrove 

 jungles, north of the Orinoco Delta, peo- 

 pled principally by monkeys. Scarlet Ibises, 

 and huge Anacondas. This trip ended at 

 La Brea — the great lake of pitch — at a 

 most critical time, when the American com- 

 pany had just been ousted by Castro, and 

 Venezuleans put in charge. The second 

 search was in the Wilderness of British 

 Guiana, where birds and animals, gold 

 mines and Caril) Indians all contributed 

 continual interest and excitement. This 

 pioneer exploration by an ornithologist and 

 his wife reveals the tropics as far more 

 delightful and bearable than the writings 

 of most travelers would lead us to believe. 



A White Paper Garden. By Sara 

 Andrews Shafer. Chicago : A. C. 

 McClurg & Co., 1910. TBmo. ; 292 pp. 

 Price, $2.50 net. 

 This is indeed a sumptuous book with 

 four beautiful colored plates which show 

 remarkable technical excellence. There 

 are other illustrations scattered through 

 the book, which is beautifully printed and 

 bound. A lover of gardens, shut up in 

 the city, has here fashioned a garden on 

 paper — a garden of the spirit in which 

 every lover of blossom and green may 

 wander any month of the year in any 

 weather and find that spiritual rest, those 

 sentiments and memories, that the garden 

 ever has and ever will stand for and 

 awaken. The book is divided into twelve 

 essays, one on each month of the year, and 

 reflecting in the first place the sentiments of 

 an absent garden lover for her kingdom, 

 it will be read with joy by possessors and 

 exiles alike. 



Indian Birds. Being a Key to Common 

 Birds of the Plains of India. By 

 Douglas Dewar. London and New 

 York: John Lane Company. 16mo. ; 

 228 pp. Price, $2 net. 

 The object of this book is to enable those 



interested in Indian birds to identify them 



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No matter how^ simple its lines or 

 how inexpensive in cost, a 



Wood Mantel 



gives a dignity and individuality to 

 every room. They are sold by dealers 

 everywhere in designs ranging from 

 the plain, yet artistic one, shown 

 above, to the most elaborately carved 

 mantel suitable for the costly man- 

 sion. You can always find what 

 you need for your house ; or we'll 

 make it to order, when special de- 

 signs are wanted. Our illustrated 

 booklet, 



"Why Wood Mantels?" 



is full of ideas for those interested in 

 artistic homes. It is yours for the 

 asking. Address 



Wood Mantel Manufacturers' Assn. 



H. T. BENNETT, Secretary 



Room 1218, State Life Building, Indianapolis, Ind. 





If not too far gone, 

 a neglected orchard 

 can be saved and 

 brought back to bear- 

 -ig by the Davey Tree Ex- 

 perts. A thorough overhaul- 

 ing by their perfect methods 

 ill restore even very old and 

 much-decayed trees. 

 The Davey Tree Experts prune for 

 .he largest yield of fruit; spray to get 

 rid of fungi, scale and insects; skillfully 

 ..11 cavities to stop decay ; brace against 

 splitting or breaking of trunk or limbs. 



Pay Out SOME Money 

 to Make MORE Money 



You can make the work of Davey tree sur- 

 geons pay for itself because it will help you to 

 harvest large crops of perfect fruit. It is a hard, 

 cold business proposition — first cousin to a 

 swelled bank account. 



Write us how many fruit trees you have, 

 what kinds, and where located. Perhaps we 

 can send, without charge, one of our represen- 

 tatives to inspect your orchard, tell you what 

 your trees require and fully explain our methods. 



THE DAVEY TREE EXPERT COMPAIVY 



1211 Ash Street, KENT, OHIO 

 Operating the Davey Institute of Tree Surgery 



NO .-,<//,■■',■, NO n-lwol aff.reslrvt.aclirs fee surfery. The 

 Dnvey Jnslilitle is the only scliiml ul the icarld which does. 11 

 iiHis rounded iiy JjUn Davey, father of Irce surgery. Full 

 laboratory, (oiiection, scientijic and botanical ittstruction, in- 

 cluding practical demonstrations by john Davey. 



at sight. There are several good systematic 

 works on Indian ornithology, but the sys- 

 tems presuppose that the reader has the 

 specimen in his hand and is enabled to ex- 

 amine it leisurely feather by feather. To 

 do this it is necessary to kill the bird in 

 (|uestion, a procedure which gives pain to 

 many and gives pleasure to very few. The 

 method which the author employs is to 

 classify birds according to their habits and 

 outward appearance. Each bird has a color, 

 and most birds possess some anatomical 

 peculiarity, such as a crest, a long tail, long 

 lcj:;s, etc. When the reader thinks he has 

 located a bird, he should turn to the de- 

 scriptive list which composes Part TI of the 

 book. This will serve to confirm or correct 

 him in his identification. 



The International Studio Year Book 

 OF Decorative Art for 1910. London 

 and New York : John Lane Com- 

 pany, 1910. 4to. ; 258 pp. Price, $3, 

 net; postage, 35 cents extra. 

 The International Studio Year Book of 

 Decorative Art is always a very welcome 

 visitor. The volume before us appears in 

 its usual sumptuous attire, the text being 

 printed on an English finish paper, while 

 the illustrations are printed on coated pa- 

 per. The engravings are particularly well 

 executed, some from architects' drawings, 

 and some from photographs. The color 

 plates are particularly interesting. The 

 British country houses which are illustrated 

 are of the most attractive type. Great at- 

 tention is also paid to wall decorations, 

 stained glass, and ceramics, as well as metal 

 work. The German architecture and deco- 

 rations also come in for a liberal share of 

 attention, as do also the decorations in Aus- 

 tria and Hungary. The book will prove 

 invaluable for architects. 



The Care of Trees in Lawn, Street. 

 AND Park. By B. E. Fernow. New 

 York: Henry Holt & Co., 1910. 392 

 pp. Price, $2 net. 

 The author may be well said to be the 

 father of forestry in the United States, 

 and those who have followed him are very 

 deeply indebted for the splendid foundation 

 which he laid. The book belongs to the 

 American Nature Series. Written for 

 amateurs by a forester, this conveniently 

 arranged volume furnishes information 

 such as the owner of trees may need. Trees 

 in place may be rendered almost imperish- 

 able by proper care and attention and the 

 author gives details of the best methods of 

 caring for the health of trees, transplant- 

 ing, combating diseases and insects, etc. 

 There are systematic and exhaustive lists 

 of trees and shrubs fit for ornamental plant- 

 ing, with helpful notes on their adaptations. 



Taverns and Turnpikes of Blandford, 

 1733-1833. By Sumner Gilbert Wood. 

 Blandford, Mass.: Published by the 

 author, 1908. $2. 

 In no small degree the tavern and turn- 

 pike story shapes and describes the social 

 development of a town like Blandford, so 

 rich in fact and incident, so the author 

 concluded to publish this monograph be- 

 fore running the larger risk always attach- 

 ing to the publication of the conventional 

 local history, the circulation of which is 

 necessarily narrow. Should this little vol- 

 ume meet with such response as to warrant 

 the venture, it is the author's intention to 

 follow it with another on the "Homes and 

 Habits of Ancient Blandford." The book 

 is a monument of industry and many of 

 the illustrations which are given show bits 

 of old New England. 



