June, 1909 
buckets hanging in the rear hall, to 
the embroidered military suit worn 
by Jonathan Warner, and now 
carefully folded away with his 
sword and cocked hat. Even the 
bills of lading for much of the fam- 
ily plate and imported furniture 
have been preserved since the year 
1716 and may be seen. With such 
a store of interesting things to be 
examined it is small wonder that 
the old Warner House proves a 
most attractive spot to the tourists 
who is visiting the landmarks of 
Portsmouth. 
There is a world of interest in 
this fine old house, which sums up, 
in quite a remarkable way, some of 
the most striking characteristics of 
all that is best in New England 
Colonial architecture. Of genuine 
Colonial architecture; that is, for 
this sacred word is nowadays ap- 
plied to modern structures as well 
as old ones, and it may be that not 
a few persons may misunderstand 
its true meaning, and confuse the real with the imitation, 
mistake the new for the old. The real student of buildings 
The main entrance leads directly into a spacious hall 
The living-room is paneled in wood, painted white 
AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 237 
needs no guide to help him out on 
this point, for the genuine Colonia] 
house has its well-defined hall- 
marks, and the modern imitation 
can never be mistaken for the gen- 
uine antique. 
In Portsmouth, and in most New 
England towns, there is little need 
to note this difference or to call 
attention to this basic distinction, 
if distinction it be. And for the 
Warner House no guide-book to 
genuine old building is needed, for 
its antiquity cries aloud and speaks 
distinctly in every part. Not, in- 
deed, because of manifest discrepi- 
tude, for the house is now as hale 
and hearty as ever it was; but be- 
cause of the quiet, penetrating 
beauty of its exterior, its distin- 
guished air, its old-time flavor, the 
untranslatable quality of distinction 
that belongs to structures of this 
period, as a matter of right; a 
quality that is their birthright; in 
fact, and which no modern building 
ever has or can hope to acquire save by the patient process of 
long-continued growth and silent duration through a long 
