HOUSE AND GARDEN 
93 
Such an inclosing box hedge as this on the Stratton house at College 
Point, L. I., serves nearly as well as a fence 
A combination of a stone foundation with the wooden fence is per¬ 
missible and adds to the term of service. A front fence at Bedford 
footing sunk below the sur¬ 
face. which, together with its 
width and the comparative 
lowness of the superstructure, 
made it quite firm and secure. 
If one is bothered with out¬ 
side invasion, broken glass 
set in a concrete top will prob¬ 
ably be annoying enough to 
be effective. 
The modern wire fence is 
the cheapest and easiest to 
keep in repair, and by wire 
we do not mean the wire 
strand. There are many 
wire-mesh fencings on the 
market, one-half of which 
perhaps are fit to spend 
money on. A good lock joint, 
ther, a mesh that will stretch 
The wire fence is of course 
A simple example of the inclosed front yard now becoming rare 
weld, or knot is essential and fur- 
evenly and without losing shape, 
at the mercy of the wire cutter, 
tr oleum tar, coal tar and creo¬ 
sote may be used for the latter 
treatment. Perhaps the best 
results are gotten by immers¬ 
ing the heated post in coal tar 
creosote. 
Sometimes it is best to treat 
the whole post. In any event 
the top, which is cut on a slant 
to shed the water, should be so 
treated. Posts are commonly 
set three feet in the ground 
and the treatment should ex¬ 
tend at least one foot above. 
The exposed portion of the 
fence may be painted later ; 
creosote oil and paint in equal 
parts being excellent for either 
dipping or brush work. Posts for wire should be spaced about 
ten feet apart; not more than twelve at the most. Loose stone 
or pebbles at the bottom of the post-hole will help to keep the 
but it is easily repaired. Or¬ 
dinarily a locust or chestnut 
post may be used; but they 
will last longer in the ground 
and pay for the extra trouble, 
it the butts are treated with 
creosote, charred or clipped. 
“Farmer's Bulletin, No. 387“ 
describes these several proc¬ 
esses at length and more fully 
than our limited space will al¬ 
low; yet we would suggest 
briefly that the posts be thor¬ 
oughly seasoned so as to ex¬ 
clude the water, as such repels 
all preservatives. Charring 
can be done over an open fire 
or the post can be saturated 
with oil and burned in this 
way. Care should be taken 
not to burn too deeply. As 
painting is inferior to dip¬ 
ping we will pass over it. Pe- 
Although most of this gate is new it is built along lines consistent with 
the Colonial period 
butt of the post from moisture. 
One of the best methods of 
treating a wire fence is with 
a strand of barbed wire at the 
top, where it is out of the way 
of the stock, to which it is a 
menace. A strand of barbed 
wire on each side of the post 
is a mean thing to straddle 
over. If a piece of wood be 
made fast to the tops of the 
posts and extended toward the 
property of the maintainer. the 
two strands may be made more 
effective by spacing them one 
foot apart. These strands 
should be pulled as taut as 
possible. Should dogs, or 
other animals, annoy by dig¬ 
ging under the wire mesh, a 
strand of barbed wire sunk 
slightly in the ground or a 
small sunken stone wall will 
