March 18. 
COUNTRY GENTLEMAN’S COMPANION. 
443 
! 
glass, in fact, are just similar to the pieces of wood, &c., 
in the blind. Suppose that the front of your house is 
three feet in height, and the spaces between the upright 
studs supporting the wall plate are three-and-a-half feet 
wide, then it is evident that four panes of glass, a little 
more than nine inches wide, and three-arid-a-half feet 
long each, will cover that space, und allow a slight lap 
of one pane over the other. Secure the ends of these 
panes on a pivot, and so that you can open them by 
pressing out the low'er side of the pane and pressing in 
the upper side of the pane, and you will have openings 
at the top and bottom of each, from the twentieth part 
of an inch, if you choose, on-and-on, until each pane is 
horizontal, and at right angles with each other; and 
thus, whether a lesser or a greater quantity of air was 
admitted at the front of the house, it would be equally 
diffused over the space, and not at one place. It w'ould 
be of little use describing how the patentee does this. 
The following is the mode to be adopted, according to 
Mr. Veitch, by those who wish to give this very neat 
mode a trial:—Take the height and width of the spaces 
between the usual upright studs; make a frame to fit 
them exactly of wood some one-and-a-half inch broad, 
and half-an inch thick, and send one of these frames 
for each space you wish to fill with the ventilator to the 
patentee. He cuts the glass according to the length, 
encloses each in its metal case, fastens one end to the 
frame of wood so as to be moveable on a stud, and, in 
addition to this, places the other end in connection with 
a small upright rod of iron, in such a way that the 
pulling of this rod down with a string opens the panes 
less or more, as you like ; and all you have to do is to 
screw on the frame between your studs, and the affair 
is finished. I saw this mode of ventilating at mid¬ 
summer, but I was anxious to know how the winter 
would use it, being apprehensive that the moisture in 
I the house might collect and be frozen between the laps 
I of the panes, and thus either force the ventilators open, 
I or break them. None of these effects had been 
experienced, and I found all the squares whole, and no 
mending had been necessary. Of course, the glass 
must be cut clean and straight; and in giving and 
taking away air, the operator will have to recollect that 
glass in not granite. Our readers will easily perceive to 
how many purposes connected with ventilation this 
principle and various modification of it may be 
applied. I know nothing of the patentee; I do not even 
know his address. 
Span-roofed House-Pits, at Messrs. Lee’s, of Ham¬ 
mersmith. —This may be called a pattern little house 
for usefulness, and especially suited for amateurs. Two 
stand side by side, and it is proposed to put more. They 
have been designed by Mr. Charles Lee, I believe, and 
i look extremely neat and simple. I have mislaid their 
j exact size ; but I will go as near the mai’k as I can from 
j memory, trusting to friends for correction, if much out of 
the way. Length, about thirty feet; width, ten feet; 
I height of the side-walls above the ground, twenty inches; 
! boards are placed in the upper part of the wall for 
ventilation; path along the middle, sunk about a foot; 
a low wall bounds the path on each side; platform, or, 
rather, bed, on each side, over a rough chamber, in 
which are the heating pipes; there being openings at 
the side next the glass, and openings in the sides of the 
j wall at the pathway, to promote a circulation of heated 
: air in the house. The roof is fixed; the squares of 
! glass wide, laid on strong sash-hars. The length of the 
sash-bars on each side is about five feet. These, how¬ 
ever, do not meet at the apex ; but at a point respectively, 
so as to leave nearly a foot between them at the apex 
or ridge of llie house. A number of cross pieces tie the 
two sides firmly together at the top. Now, the house 
is all very well without this open space at the ridge in 
j the centre. But this, and the way it is managed, are 
what I conceive to be the distinguishing features. A ' 
ridge coping must be prepared for this opening. We all ; 
know how such a ridge may be formed, by nailing the i 
edges of the boards of the necessary width together, and j 
keeping the other edges sufficiently and regularly apart, I 
by inserting cross pieces inside. Now, two such pieces 
cover the apex of the house. The cross pieces in the 
apex are joined to the cross pieces in the ridge, at in¬ 
tervals, by short, moveable, iron rods lying in a sloping : 
or diagonal manner. The ridge is now secure to the j 
roof; but how for top-air? On an iron bar across | 
the apex, the bar acting as a fulcrum, is fixed an iron 
rod of some two feet or more in length, as a lever; the 
short end beyond the fulcrum being just long enough to 
catcli and elevate sufficiently a cross piece in the ridge- 
board. Wlien not used, this lever lies horizontally between 
the apex and the ridge ; as soon you apply power by the 
hand to the end of it the ridge is elevated, from a small 
space to several inches, as far as the connecting iron 
rods will admit. A flat rod of iron, some two feet or so 
in length, and also fixed at the ridge on a joint, and 
pierced with holes to hold the end of the lever, is now 
taken hold of, and the iron rod placed in a hole according 
to the height you wish to raise the ridge. Another lever 
moves the other half of the ridge in the same way. I am 
not aware of any plan more simple and effective. I pre¬ 
sume that the Messrs. Lee would not object to any one 
interested in the matter seeing these house-pits, and, 
very likely, would make no objections to drawings of 
them being taken and published. Gardeners and ama¬ 
teurs might vary them according to their tastes and 
desires. As they are, they are very useful for plants, 
for Vines, Figs, Peaches, &c., in pots, and for growing 
Cucumbers, and Melons. I may just add that the plants 
in these, and in the other houses, were in excellent 
order; and that, as proving the demand for fruiting 
plants in pots, whole houses of strong Vines, and houses 
and quarters of fruiting trees in pots had nearly dis¬ 
appeared. Comparatively few Vines were left at Messrs. 
Veitch’s, and, I believe, many other nurserymen can 
tell the same tale. A vast numher of new Vineries 
must have been planted every year, to use up the thou¬ 
sands sent out from London Nui’series alone. 
BEDDING PLANTS. 
I also called on two old friends—Mr. Caie, at Argyle 
Lodge (late Bedford Lodge), and Mr. Scobie, at Holland 
House. I saw much that was worth mentioning; but, 
for the present, I will confine myself to two facts. 
First, both these gentlemen strike the greater portion of 
their bedding-stuff in autumn, in cold frames raised 
above the ground and the cuttings near the glass, and 
leave them there all the winter, protecting with mats, 
and other covering. Verbenas, Calceolarias, &c., looked 
in excellent order, though as thick as they would stand. 
Cuttings would be taken off, and the plants left until 
planting time. There is little trouble or labour lost by 
this mode. 
ORANGE TREES IN WINTER. 
The second fact is, the manner in which Mr. Scobie 
forced successfully to keep very large and very healthy 
Orange trees in winter. The conservatory may be 
described as a large double lean-to house; about a third 
of the width in the centre having an opaque roof—that 
roof, in fact, constituting a part of an elevated prome¬ 
nade, from which the parterres are seen to great 
advantage. In the glass-covered portion. Camellias, &c., i 
were blooming finely, especially those planted out. 
Under the opaque roof the splendid Orange-trees are 
kept in excellent health. The secret is two-fold. Mr. 
Scobie gives no incitement to growth when in the house, 
and gets them out as soon as they can be safe, so that ! 
they bloom and make their wood out-of-doors. R. Fish. 
