8 4 , 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[March, 
A Very Complete Country House. 
As one enjoys planting a tree, watching its develop¬ 
ment, and by training and pruning compelling it to grow 
to suit his fancy, so does another having a mechanical 
taste take great delight in seeing a house of his own 
planning “ grow up ” under his direction and oversight. 
This is especially the case when it is built by “day’s 
work” instead of by “ contract,” so that he can add here, 
change there, and make all desired improvements upon 
the original plans and specifications. Such source of en¬ 
joyment and recreation has been indulged in by one of 
our Publishers. Having some spare land near his own 
residence in Flushing, he has from time to time erected 
one or more dwellings, which have been sold to desir¬ 
able neighbors as fast as completed. The example has 
stimulated others, and there are now fifty-two dwellings 
in the neighborhood, where eight years ago there were 
but five. We present herewith the plans and description 
of one of the last two houses completed, which will prob¬ 
ably furnish useful hints to many who are contemplat¬ 
ing building for themselves or others, as the aim has 
been to introduce into these every improvement and con¬ 
venience to be found in city as well as in country dwellings. 
TTlic Elevation.—A view,from the southwest corner, 
is shown in the engraving. As will be seen from the ground 
plans, the house appears nearly as well when seen from 
the opposite or northeast corner, where there is a glass 
enclosed piazza. The windows, etc., on the rear, are 
finished in the same stylo as the rest v (The too common 
custom is, to expend all the taste on the front, where others 
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Basement 
Fig. 2.— Basement.— Hight 8'A feet In clear. A a. Kitchen, 
with large range not shown; u, Sink; n, Pump, with tin- 
lined pipe to Cistern; to, Dumb-waiter, with speaking-tube 
W to Dining-room; .$, s, Speaking-tubes, one to Dining-room, 
and one to Family Bedroom (JO ; c, pot-closet; Cc, Kitchen 
Pantry—R&.Laundry; l, t, t, Stationary Wash-tubs,with hot 
and cold water; n, large copper Force-pump, to bring cold 
water to tubs, and to force water if needed in a drouth, into 
the upper tank (X) ; Z, 45-gallon Copper Boiler, with pipes 
to water-back of range, in Aa. Od, Vegetable and general 
collar; Ee, Milk or food cellar, plastered; Ff, Coal cellar; 
Ilh, Hal!, S feet wide, with brick walls; Oo, Heater for whole 
house; c, Closet. Gas in every basement room and hall. 
see it, and leave the rear 
very plain, if not un¬ 
sightly, because seen 
only by the occupants. 
This hardly tends to be¬ 
get self-respect and cul¬ 
ture in one’s self or fam¬ 
ily.).. .These houses are 
on brick cellar walls, 5 
feet above the ground, 
frame,filled in with brick 
to the roof. The siding 
is of 10-incli boards, 1 
inch thick, grooved at 
the deep half-lap joints, 
and in the middle of each 
hoard (fig. 6.) This gives 
the appearance of nar¬ 
row siding, with stone- 
cut joints, instead of 
clapboard lap, and there 
are fewer joints, and less 
opportunity for entrance 
of air and water, while 
the expense is little, 
if any, greater. The 
roof is Mansard or 
French, the top of tin, 
and the slant portion of 
blue slate, over double 
layers of asphaltic felt, 
so that the sifting in of 
snow, or leakage, is im¬ 
possible. The common error of making the top por¬ 
tion too flat is avoided. Bay windows are provided in 
three rooms. These are not sufliciently appreciated 
generally. They add much to the size and convenience of 
a room ; they are ornamental to the exterior, in breaking 
up the blank, barn-like look of the side of a house; 
while they are pleasant for an out-loolc, up and down a 
street, or upon the garden or pleasure grounds... The ad¬ 
dition of a Tower does not add greatly to the expense, for, 
as will be seen by the plans, all the room is used, while 
the room at the top makes a good observatory. [From 
the tower of these houses there is a fine out-look over the 
village and bay of Flushing, upon a section of Long 
Island Sound where all shipping passes, and over a por¬ 
tion of 'Westchester County, with a clear view of the 
Palisades on the west hank of the Hudson.] Except 
where high winds prevail, people generally build too low. 
A few square feet of framing timber, siding, and plaster¬ 
ing, $1 or $2 on the $100 of total cost, is all the difference 
between the-expense of a house with rooms 9 to 11)4 feet 
high, and one with rooms 7 or 8 feet high. All the ex¬ 
penses for floors, ceiling, roof, cellar, casings, doors, etca/ji 
etc., are the same, while the higher rooms are far mown 
healthful, and every way desirable. A wide, spacious 
Hall is desirable. The appearance of this to one first en¬ 
tering a house gives an impression of the whole building, 
that is not overcome. If wide, there is a feeling of size 
and substantial comfort, no matter how small the indi¬ 
vidual rooms may bo. One does not get over the idea 
that there is plenty of room somewhere in the house... 
The several floor plans, with the descriptions underneath, 
sufficiently explain the general division of the rooms, 
etc., and we need only to speak of some special items. 
’Tile Basement (fig. 2).—The Furnace ( Oo ), the 
“ Oriental,” is a “base-burner.” A large supply of coal 
is put into a central cylinder, whence it drops as fast as 
burned out below, so that a constant fire is kept up. After 
a long examination, this new style was selected on account 
of its great amount of heating surface. It is so located that 
all ashes and dust are confined to the coal room (Ff) by a 
tight partition. It is placed near the north side of the 
dwelling, because the prevailing cold winds come from 
that direction, and the air from all heating furnaces tends 
to the leeward rooms. For this reason, also, an extra 
pipe is taken to the north side of Room N. The warm 
air pipes for the second story are carried up in the par¬ 
tition walls in elliptical tin pipes, and against these are 
placed iron lath, made by cutting strips of sheet iron about 
214 inches wide, and bending the edges round, to form lips 
for holding the mortar... .Ee is a very convenient “ clean 
cellar ” or milk-room, for food, finished off with plas¬ 
tered walls and ceilings... .In the Kitchen, Aa , the sink, 
u, is supplied with hot water cock from the boiler, z, and 
the pump, p, draws filtered water from a large cistern 
outside, through a tin-lined pipe. The Pantry, Cc, gives 
ample room. In the chimney is a “ Challenge Range,” 
from the National Stove Works, N. Y., with water-back. 
A “ pot-closet,” c, is placed between the range and dumb¬ 
waiter, w. Bb is finished off for a Laundry; the Boiler, 
z, is placed in this room, to heat it. The largo copper 
force-pump, n, draws cold water from the cistern for the 
tubs, and, when needed, it forces water to the reservoir, 
X , in the Attic. A valve prevents any descent of water, 
so that indolent servants can not exhaust the reservoir, 
but must pump from the cistern, which holds an inex¬ 
haustible supply. The stationary wash-tubs, t 11 , are 
supplied with hot and cold water cocks, and discharge 
pipes. These are of inestimable value in any house ; no 
housekeeper having once used them would do without 
them if possible to secure them. 
First Story (fig. 3).—This is mainly described under 
the engraving. The Vestibule, G, is desirable in any 
house, to stop drafts of air. The doors are surmounted by 
half circle plates of glass, and the inner doors arc glass 
in upper panels. The outer doors open round against 
the closets on either side. These closets are very con¬ 
venient, instead of the Hall hat-stands_The wide Hall 
II appears still larger, or the house does, on account of 
the large double doors into the rooms on either side. 
The stairs turn before reaching their full hight, to break 
the long, continuous ascent.The Parlor A is ample 
for all ordinary purposes, but the Library, B, may be a 
part of it when used for a large gathering, or party. 
....The Butler’s Pantry, E, has a large copper basin 
with plated cocks for hot and cold water, for washing 
Silver and China, etc., not to be sent to the kitchen, 
or entrusted to. servants. A register in the floor, r, 
can he used when needed. It may be desirable to 
have the dumb-waiter come up into this room, though 
this would throw it further from the Range and Sink; 
the study has been to save steps in every possible 
way. As the dish closets, c c, are near, it would have 
been as well to place the dumb-waiter in the right 
hand one of these, with the door of it opening into 
E. This would leave a larger closet in C. All these 
items should be arranged to save steps. Fifty times a 
day across a 17-foot room amounts to nearly 600 miles 
in the course of ten years... .Under the rear stairs in the 
back Hall is a closet, c. Every spare nook and corner 
Fig. 3.—First Story.— Hight ll'A feet in clear. A , Main 
Parlor, connected with smaller Parlor, or Library B. by 
ornamental ground glass sliding doors... C, Family Parlor, 
or Reception Room, or Sitting-room_ D, Dining-room' with 
spacious pantries, c, c, c, and Dumb-waiter, to_ E, large 
Butler’s Pantry, having wasli sink, with hot and cold water, 
drawers, shelf-closets, etc_ F, Rear Piazza, enclosed in 
glass— G, Vestibule, with locked closets on eacli side for 
clothes, hats, etc., and glass inner doors into the Main 
Hall, II. Botli vestibule doors have glass circle-heads. 
7, Front Piazza, 9 feet wide; c,c, c,c, c, c, c, c, Closets; r, r, r, 
r,r,r, Warm-air Registers; s, s, s, Speaking-Tubes, two to 
Kitchen, one to 31. Small black markings on the walls of 
A, B , C, D, fig. 3, and II, I, JI, X, 0, fig. 4, indicate bell-pulls. 
in the whole house is occupied with a closet, so that 
there is no waste room anywhere, while there are in 
all twenty-one different closets and pantries. F is a con¬ 
venient cool piazza, which is neatly inclosed in sash. 
Second Story, or Chambers (fig. 4).— The engraving 
mainly describes this. The four wash-basins, b,b,b,b. are 
placed in the division walls in arched niches, but sepa¬ 
rated by lath and plastered walls, and rounded out in 
front with casings. This arrangement is convenient 
for the position of the basins, and one set of pipes an¬ 
swers for each pair. They are each supplied with hot 
and cold water cocks. Special care is taken to liavo all 
plumbing work above ground kept at a distance from the 
outside walls of the house, so that there is no danger from 
frost. The pipes pass up through closets along side of 
the chimneys, and nearly all pipes arc accessible. When 
lead pipes pass through beams or floors, they should go 
tightly, or be cased round with tin, or cement containing 
broken glass, or else have abundant room around them 
for rats to pass: otherwise these pests will gnaw into the 
soft lead in attempting to enlarge a runway. A flooded 
house from this cause taught us a lesson some years ago. 
... The Bath-room, 0, is accessible to all of the cham- 
