504. 
AMERICAN AG ETC ULTURIST, 
[December, 
A Country House, Costing $2,200. 
BY 8. B. KEED. ARCHITECT. 
These plana are prepared for a convenient and 
comfortable dwelling, especially adapted to the re¬ 
quirements of farmers.Exterior (fig. 1).— 
The front has a breadth of 38i feet. The founda¬ 
tions show two feet above the ground. An addi¬ 
tional elevation of the whole building can be given 
by raising the ground a foot or more immediately 
surrounding the buildiug. The outlines and pro¬ 
jections are sufficiently diversified and angular to 
comport with rural surroundings. The details of 
the exterior finish are simple in design, and in all 
cases arranged to serve some practical purpose. 
-Cellar. —For want of space the cellar plans 
are omitted. Provision is made in the estimate, 
however, for a cellar extending under the entire 
building, with stone walls six and a half feet high, 
and having five small windows, an outside entrance, 
and stairs leading to the work-room above. 
B’irst Story (fig. 2).—Hight of ceiling in main 
house, ten feet; in wing, eight feet eight inches. 
A hall, parlor, living-room, bedroom, work-room, 
pantry and three closets, are embraced in the divi¬ 
sions of this story. The front entrance is from a 
pleasant piazza to the main hall, and from it each 
of the principal apartments of the first story are 
entered. This hall also contains the main flight of 
stairs leading to the second story. The space under 
the stairs is left open far enough to allow for a 
passage to the bedroom. The Parlor is of fair size, 
well lighted, and contains a marble mantel. The 
Living-room is the most spacious apartment in the 
house, intended as the common gathering place of 
the family. Its interior arrangement is partially 
shown in figure 4, where views of one side and both 
of its ends are 
given. The side 
not shown has 
doors openingfrom 
the rear piazza and 
pantry, with a win¬ 
dow between giv¬ 
ing views to the 
rear. A large range, 
with elevated oven, 
is set in the fire¬ 
place, with a shelf 
above. The space 
between the chim¬ 
ney and end wall 
at the right, is 
filled out flush with 
the face of the 
chimney breast, 
and furnished with 
a fuel box below, 
and shelving with 
glass doors above. 
The fuel-box has 
capacity for a bar¬ 
rel of coal, and is 
hung to balance 
weights, and oper¬ 
ates as a dumb¬ 
waiter, filled in the 
cellar and runs up 
to where its contents may be easily reached, 
and passed to the range as required. An opening 
is made through the hearth beneath the range, 
through which all the ashes fall into an ash 
pit, formed in the foundation of the chimney. By 
these arrangements it will be seen much of the 
Fig. 4. — INTERIOR OF THE LIVING-ROOM. 
heavy work is saved and the scattering of coal 
dust and ashes prevented. A ventilating register 
is placed in the chimney above the range, near the 
ceiling, to draw off the heated air and steam con¬ 
stantly arising from the range when in use. At the 
right-hand end of the room are two windows giv¬ 
ing views to the side. Between these windows an 
ironing board is placed, and being hung with hinges, 
may he let down so as to occupy but little space 
when not in use. Above the latter a clock and 
lamp shelf is placed on small brackets of scroll 
work. The right-hand door opens tothe parlor or 
sitting-room ; the one next to it leads to the main 
hall, and the third in the center of the left-hand 
end opens to the work-room. The Work-room is 
designed as a sort of kitchen, where the coarsest 
work is done. It has two windows, and doors 
opening from the outside, a stoop, pantry, kitchen, 
and stairs from the cellar and the second story. 
This work-room contains a pump, sink, and three 
stationary wash tubs. The Bedroom is pleasantly 
situated with outlooks tothe front, and is sufficiently 
removed from the routine and noise of the general 
housework to insure its being quiet at all times. 
A person having tnauy official or professional calls, 
requiring an office, might appropriate this room to 
that purpose, by simply changing one of the win¬ 
dows to a door or outside entrance. The Pantry is 
of good dimensions, and conveniently arranged as 
shown in figure 5. It is entered from the dining¬ 
room and work-room, and is lighted by a full- 
sized window. A wide plank extends around three 
Fig. 1.— FRONT ELEVATION OF THE HOUSE. 
of its fides, as a work-shelf, with a wash-tray in¬ 
serted opposite the window. The space under 
this shelf is occupied by closets and drawers on 
two sides, the balance being left open for barrels, 
etc. Above are shelves, placed at convenient dis¬ 
tance from each other,, and inclosed on one side 
with sash doors_Second Story (fig. 3) — 
Hight of ceilings in main part, eight feet, and in 
the wing, 4 to 8 feet. There are five sleeping apart¬ 
ments, five closets, a bath-room, and two small 
halls in this story. The platform near the head of 
the main stairs is on a level with the wing floor. 
The stairs to the attic ore placed over the main 
flight.The following Estimate indicates the 
character of the work, and the cost of materials : 
SO yards Excavation, at 25c. per yard..$ 20 00 
1.350 feet Stone Work (complete) at 8c. per foot. It'S 00 
4,000 Brick in chimneys (complete) at $12 per M. 48 00 
850 yards Plastering (complete)at 25c. per yard. 212 50 
6,500 ft. Timber, at $15 per M. .. 97 50 
Sills 4x8 in. 170 ft. long. 
Girders 4x8 in. 07 ft. long. 
6 Posts 4x7 in. 21 ft. long. 
S Posts 4x6 in. 13 ft. long. 
Ties 4x6 in. 275 ft. long. 
Plates 4x6 in. 100 ft. long. 
V’ndaTimb’rs3x8 in. 200 ft. l’g. 
150 Joists, 3x4x13 at 15c. eacli 
Ridges 3x8 in. 51 ft. long. 
SO Bearns 3x8 in. 22 ft. long. 
26 Beams 3x8 in. 17 It. long. 
16 Beams 3x7 in. 22 ft. long. 
34 Rafters 3x5 in. is fr. long. 
18 Rafters 3x5 in. 201't. long. 
22 50 
300 Wall Strips, 2x4x13 at 12c. each . 36 00 
186 Siding, at 28c. eacli. 52 08 
Cornice materials... 
500 Shingling Lath, at 6c. each . 
78 hunches Shingles, at $1.25 each. 
250 ft. Tin. Va’leys, Gutters and leadt-i-B, at 8c. per ft. 
no- finsidpM in. wirlp;. fit. p.ar.h. 
80 00 
80 00 
97 50 
20 00 
89 32 
12 00 
319 Flooring (inside), 9!4 in. wide, at 28c. eacli.. 
80 Flooring (outside), 414 in. wide, at 15c. each__ 
5 Cellar Windows, at $3 eacli complete. 15 00 
24 plain Windows, at $7 each complete. 168 1)0 
Veranda finish, $60; Stairs. $60; Mantels, $50.. . 170 00 
23 Doors (complete) at $8 each..... 22J 00 
Closet, finish. $50; Plumbing, $150; Painting, $153,350 00 
Carpenters' labor, not Included above. 300 00 
Carting, $30; Incidentals, $67.60 . 97 60 
Total.....$2,200 00 
Shade Trees for School-Houses.— Not one 
in teu of our country school-houses is shaded by a 
single tree. Indeed, a school-house may usually be 
recognized by its bleak appearance, and the entire 
lack of shrubs and flowers about the grounds. 
If bought, the trees would cost only a small 
Fig. 5.—-ARRANGEMENT OF THE FANTBY. 
amount, but in most cases there need be no outlay 
of money, as native trees may be had for the dig¬ 
ging. It would be easy for a teacher to have a 
tree-planting “ bee ” on a Saturday, when the older 
boys would gladly volunteer to perform a task 
which would add greatly to the cheerful appear¬ 
ance of the school-house and its surroundings. 
