1866.] 
AMERICAN AGhRlOULTURlST, 
Fig. 1.— ELEVATION OF COTTAGE. 
Small, Convenient, Cheap Houses. 
BY NARBAOANSETT. 
■ A very desirable quality in a cottage is swag- 
ness. Our idea of a snug cottage is one that is 
neat, compact, convenient, presenting within a 
limited space, a great amount of comfort. A 
snug cottage must 'be arranged, that the apart- 
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Fig. 2.— GROUND FLAIL 
ments in most frequent use, shall be so con¬ 
nected that in passing from one to another, 
there will be no necessity for going through 
long, cold passages. They must be so brought 
together, that if occasion require, the genial 
warmth of one may easily impart itself to 
another, and one fire gladden all the house. In 
our climate we have seven or eight months of 
the year, when it would often be pleasant to 
have the chill removed from a room, though few 
families in ordinary circumstances, would feel 
that they could afford fires in several different 
apartments. With a proper arrangement of 
rooms, one fire may serve to cheer, in moderate 
weather, all the apartments in common use 
upon the same floor. 
With reference to this idea of snugness of ar¬ 
rangement, this cottage plan has been prepared. 
There are upon the first floor (fig. 2) three prin¬ 
cipal rooms, the parlor (P), bed-room (B), and 
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Fig. 3.— CHAMBER PLAN. 
kitchen (A), all communicating. If desirable, a 
door may be placed at (7, between the parlor 
and bed-room. In the hall {B) is a descent to 
the cellar at A, Opening from the kitchen, is 
the pantry (F), which by a slide con¬ 
nects with the sink, in the back entry 
(E). A large china closet (P) also 
opens from the kitchen, and a clothes 
closet is provided for the bed-room. 
The kitchen, which, will serve as the 
ordinary living room of the family, 
with a window upon each side, one 
? looking out upon the porch (O), will 
form a pleasant apartment for many 
a social gathering around the winter 
fire. And on a summer evening, after 
the labor of the day is over, the little 
porch will have its attractions, equal¬ 
ly accessible from the kitchen, or the 
parlor. A prairie rose, or Virginia 
creeper, or a fruitful grape vine should 
be trained against the wall beyond 
the porch, and carried up and entwin¬ 
ed around the chamber window above. 
On the chamber floor (fig. 3), are three bed¬ 
rooms (jB, P, B) with closets (c, c, c), and 
another closet opening into the entry. These 
bed-rooms are all of liberal dimensions, and each 
has dii'ect access to a chjmney flue, in case a fire 
should be required in either of them. At A, 
over the porch, should be inserted a narrow 
window, (three panes of 10 x 12 glass would be 
sufficient); it may be hung upon hinges, and 
thus light and air be introduced to the entry. 
A Good Kind of Hurdle Fence. 
In answer to several inquiries from subscrib¬ 
ers of the Agriculturist, concerning hurdles, 
we herewith illustrate a section of fence which 
can be made cheaply, where timber is not too 
costly, and which will be found durable and 
convenient. The panels are made about twelve 
feet long and three to four feet high, according 
to the character of the animals to be confined, 
or fenced against. Each panel consists of two 
rails of l'| 4 -inch stuff, about 3 inches wide, 
with pickets l^ji inches in dianieter driven into 
HURDLE FENCE. 
holes bored through the rails 6 to 8 inches apart. 
The pickets are usually turned out in what is 
called a “cat-head lathe,” with which fork 
handles, chair rounds and posts are turned out, 
and ought not to cost more than a cent a piece. 
Sometimes, however, the holes are bored with a 
bit that will cut a clean orifice, I'la inches in 
diameter, and square pickets are inserted. 
When constructing a fence of ordinary height, 
the pickets should extend not more than 8 or 9 
inches through the rails. ' A few of the pickets 
are nailed to keep the rails a suitable distance 
apart. The panels are kept erect by passing 
the end pickets through the rails of two panels, 
as shown, and setting the panels zig-zag. Such 
hurdles may be made of basswood, white wood, 
butternut, sugar maple, or of more durable 
timber. After the fence is finished, the whole 
should have a heavy coat of coal tar, which 
should be worked into the joints to exclude the 
rain. When set up to remain any consider¬ 
able length of time, there should be fiat stones 
or bits of board placed under the corner and 
middle pickets to keep the fence above the 
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ground and prevent sagging. Such fences will 
be found convenient for encircling a hay stack. 
The panels may be set in a straight line with 
braces to keep them erect, or in a rather con¬ 
tracted circle without braces. 
-- . ■ ■ ■ WI Mi. ... 
A Good Foddelr Back. 
We herewith give an illustration of a fbddel* 
rack, to stand under a shed, or in the open yard* 
which is superior for that purpose, to any other 
style that we have ever met With. It is porta¬ 
ble, requires but little skill to make it, and its 
construction is such that it is almost impossible 
for animals to waste any fodder. The part 
marked A, represents a box 6 feet square, and 
20 inches high, with pieces of 2 x 3 inch scant¬ 
ling in the corners, which serve also for feet. 
B, B, represent two pieces of scantling for sup¬ 
porting the main part of the rack. C, G, and 
J), J), are also 2x3 scantling. They may be 
larger than this if desirable, or the top ones 
may be made of round poles. The sides of the 
rack should be about 3 feet apart, and the 
rounds set 4 inches from centre to centre. The 
most expeditious way to make the rounds or 
slats is to saw them out of hard-wood boards, 
which are not cross-grained and knotty. Slats 
1 inch square are sufficiently large for ordinary 
racks. P, represents a partition on one side of 
the rack, the ends of the boards being nailed to 
a small piece of scantling. With such a parlitiqn 
on each side, a square rack will accommodate 
4 cattle very well. The long boards should be 
about 12 feet in length and extend through, 
forming the pai'tition on each side of the rack. 
When such a rack is made without any parti¬ 
tion, as shown on the rear side of the engraving, 
two cattle will seldom feed on one side, as the 
master animal will usually stand lengthwise, and 
sometimes haul the fodder out faster than it is 
eaten. But when a partition is erected, as 
shown, most cattle will stand side by side facing 
the rack, and drop the loose fodder in the man¬ 
ger, instead of outside the rack where it will be 
wasted. The pieces C, C, should be about 8 
inches apart, with a board between them, and 
pieces D, D, about 3 feet distant, and held in 
place with narrow boards bolted upon the top. 
The pieces C, G, and the brace boards on the 
top being secured by carriage bolts, when these 
are removed, the rack may be taken olf, and 
knocking oflF the end boarding, and taking 
away the partition, the whole affair may be 
snugly stowed away for the summer under cov¬ 
er, and thus be made to last a great deal longer 
than it otherwise would.' Stationary racks 
around a yard, unless placed under sheds, are 
constantly rotting away, and the especial ad¬ 
vantage of such a yard-rack as we describe is, 
that it may be taken down and sheltered, and 
set up again W’ith ease. All the parts, except 
the long boards of the partition, may be made 
so as to be readily packed inside the box. 
