HOUSE AND GARDEN 
February, 1912 
65 
From a Photograph Showing the Last Step in Locating the Exact Center of Population of the United States. 
“The Center of Population” 
A Title that Fits Every Bell Telephone 
From the census of 1910 it is found that the center of population is in Bloomington, Indiana, latitude 
39 degrees 10 minutes 12 seconds north, and longitude 86 degrees 32 minutes 20 seconds west. 
Two Model German Houses and 
Their Furnishing 
(Continued from page 14) 
chandelier in the center of the room. The 
newest and the most popular variety which 
is inexpensive and can be made by the 
amateur, is that constructed with a brass 
hoop, suspended by brass chains and cov¬ 
ered with a hemstitched or bead-edged 
frill of some sheer, white goods. 
Save in the best of rooms, where there 
are inlaid floors, the floors are painted 
with many coats of paint or varnish to 
match the wood of the furniture. A small 
rug before each bed for the comfort of 
cold toes in the chilly morning is all that 
is provided for the bedrooms; cocoa-fibre 
and grass rugs in the dining-room and a 
close weave rug in the others are used in 
preference to more woolly ones, with the 
contention that they are more hygienic. 
The furniture is made in accordance 
with the measurements of the average per¬ 
son. Chairs are of a height and depth 
that will allow most users to sit in them 
comfortably, using the back as a support 
and placing the feet on the floor. The 
sofas are broad enough to lie upon without 
the risking of a tumble, mirrors suspended 
low enough to be used without the aid of 
a stool and pictures hung on the level with 
the eye. 
Notice the finish of the windows. The 
stores cover only the lower part, thereby 
discouraging the curiosity of neighbors 
and inviting the light and the warmth of 
the sun. On the broad sill stand the 
flowers and beneath it hides the radiator! 
Though no one would care to defend the 
beauty of the steam radiator, few have 
tried to do anything but wink the other 
eye, thinking, no doubt, that to ignore it 
is to mitigate its ugliness. But the German 
who was willing to let a clumsy “Kach- 
elofen” take up the greater part of the 
available space in a room, has drawn the 
line at the unsightly coils of illuminized 
or gilt iron which we tolerate as heat- 
dispensers, and has invented a countless 
variety of devices for its disguise and 
elimination. In these pictures one can see 
the wooden grating, painted to match the 
rest of the woodwork and the coat-of- 
mail—a sort of curtain made of sheet- 
brass placques linked together with tiny 
brass chains. Judging from the comfort 
of the German houses, the radiators give 
off all the necessary heat when so dis¬ 
guised and suppressed; the suspicion that 
they may have better radiators may be set 
aside by the fact that most of them are 
imported from this country. 
A variety of designs and a profusion of 
color prevent these rooms, furnished as 
they are with only the barest necessities 
and in the simplest form possible, from 
becoming too stiff, cold or austere in their 
effect. If there is a plain colored wall, 
then there is a pattern introduced in the 
upholstery, there is a galaxy of gay flowers 
on the cushion-tops and table-covers and 
vases and bowls made of many-colored 
crockery. When the wall is hung with a 
“If all the people in the United States 
were to be assembled in one place, the 
center of population would be the point 
which they could reach with the mini¬ 
mum aggregate travel, assuming that 
they all traveled in direct lines from their 
residence to the meeting place.” 
— U. S. Census Bulletin. 
This description gives a word picture 
of every telephone in the Bell system. 
Every Bell telephone is the center of 
the system. 
Peerless Asbestos Table Mat 
Write for booklet “To the Woman Who Cares.” 
Chicagi Asbestos Table Mat Co., Dept 213,215 Loomis St., Chicago, III. 
It is the point which can be reached 
with “the minimum aggregate travel,” 
by all the people living within the range 
of telephone transmission and having 
access to Bell telephones. 
Wherever it may be on the map, each 
Bell telephone is a center for purposes 
of intercommunication. 
To make each telephone the center 
of communication for the largest number 
of people, there must be One System, 
One Policy and Universal Service for a 
country of more than ninety million. 
Send for Photo Pictures and Cvqm 
prices of our beautiful roses. ■IBB 
Park Rose Gardens, Altoona, Pa. 
Know Before You Plant That Your Trees 
and Shrubs Will Bloom As You Expect 
Shrewd people buy merchandise from establishedhouses—houses that 
will be in business when they need service. Why should not a planter buy his 
Trees, Shrubs, Vines, Roses. Bulbs and Seeds with the same precaution? 
How disappointing it is when your trees or shrubs have leaved out to find 
something you did not order—something you do not want. Have you 
ever had this experience? Don’t take any risk when ordering. Buy direct 
of the producer and at first cost. We have a reputation at stake. Have 
been in business 58 years and expect to continue indefinitely. You always 
know where to find us. 47 168-page CPPP Write for it today. It’s 
Greenhouses, 1,200 Acres. Catalog T Ixllii:, interesting and valuable. 
THE STORRS 4 HARRISON CO., Painesville, 0. 
American Telephone and Telegraph Company 
And-Associated Companies 
One Volict; _ One System _ Universal Service 
QoirA ‘t/rvfltt* Don’t let spilled liquids and hot dishes spoil 
OciVC IdLllC your handsome dining table. Protect it with a 
In writing to advertisers please mention House and Garden. 
