1920.] 



Cottage Restoration and Adaptation. 



731 



lends itself to additions or tiiteracions on at least as good lines 

 as the original. 



Such problems may be likened to a jig-saw puzzle, and 

 should be entered upon in much the same spirit — that of 

 certainty that, given the necessary patience and time, it can 

 be solved — and that ideas must be as easily put aside as the 

 pieces that do not' fit, until the general lines are established, 

 when the remaindei' will fall into place to make a complete 

 and perfect whole. 



The extremity in which the country finds itself through 

 lack of housing has to be met by every means conceivable. 

 The necessity for preserving every building fit for human 

 habitation, if only temporarily, was obvious as soon as the 

 acuteness of the present situation was realised, with the result 

 that the work of restoration, addition, conversion and alteration 

 is now being carried out on a much larger scale than ever 

 before. 



The importance of preserving existing houses becomes 

 greater as each month passes, and the difficulties of the pre- 

 sent scheme for housing become more apparent. 



It cannot be urged too strongly that such work should be placed 

 in the hands of sound architects. Without wishing in any way 

 to detract from the capabilities of the estate agent, bailiff or 

 builder, it must be clear that architecture is not part of their 

 work, and they should not be expected to undertake duties 

 obviously outside their own province. 



The chief difficulty which has to be overcome in dealing 

 with old cottages, and probably the one most frequently 

 encountered, is dampness, and, in its worst form, rising damp 

 due to the lack of a damp course ! To cut out for and insert: 

 a damp course of slate or other impervious material is a 

 laborious and consequently expensive operation, and also is 

 unsatisfactory to the layman, who has nothing to show for the 

 expense incurred, while the result can only be fully appre- 

 ciated by the occupier. The man who pays perhaps naturally 

 feels happier at the sight of a new roof, even though such an 

 addition may not be necessary. 



jiuch may be done, how^ever, to remove dampness in walls 

 by clearing awa}' banks of earth, so often found round the 

 sides of cottages above the ground-floor level, and by forming 

 open brick or cement channels against the w^alls to carry sur- 

 face water quickly away from the building. A cottage nestling 

 deep in a group of trees, while very possibly picturesque, may 



