HOUSE AND GARDEN 
J 
UNE, 1912 
Though white woodwork may soil easily, it gives an impression of cool¬ 
ness on the hottest day 
The dining-room of the Haynes cottage is typical of inexpensive fur¬ 
nishing that succeeds well where comfort is prized above ostentation 
This little house is almost ideal for a vacation home, in that it has nothing 
but what is necessary, yet retains an attractive appearance 
not exactly hear a whisper from one end of such a house to the 
other, one can certainly hear a shout. When, as is the case with 
many summer houses, they are subject to extremes of tempera¬ 
ture, a more substantial construction is desirable, and sheathing, 
insulating paper and either clapboards, shingles or stucco on the 
exterior, with plaster on the interior are a requisite. Wall-paper 
should not be used, but a sand-finished plaster tinted in quiet 
tones, with bright chintz curtains, make a very effective, econom¬ 
ical and durable finish. Terra-cotta blocks, plastered on the in¬ 
side, either stuccoed or damp proofed on the exterior, are an 
excellent substitute for the ordinary construction, securing a cool 
interior in hot weather and a warm one in cool; their cost is, 
however (especially in remote localities), considerably above that 
of the typical frame construction. This is due perhaps not so 
much to the cost of the material itself as to the fact that most 
country builders are unfamiliar with it and are not able to lay 
the blocks quickly enough to offset the original high cost of the 
material. Brick or local stone are both excellent materials for 
some sites, the stone being particularly appropriate to rocky or 
rugged positions and the brick to more or less flat sites with at 
least a few large trees. Of them all stone, in spite of its very 
low first cost, is perhaps the most expensive to construct, because 
some hand work in shaping the material is necessary to build a 
substantial wall, and also because the amount of material which 
goes into a stone wall is greatly in excess of that required for one 
of brick or terra-cotta, which need be only half as thick. Even 
with a low unit cost the total is apt to run pretty high. 
One thing which should not be forgotten in the construction of 
the summer house is the most thorough ventilation of all rooms. 
Windows should be placed opposite each other as far as possible 
and so that there may be a free circulation of air through all the 
rooms; and, in houses not shaded by trees, eaves wide enough to 
cut off the sun during most of the day from the windows, are 
well worth while having. 
Since the house is occupied only for part of the year and as a 
rule not in cold weather, no furnace or other means of heating 
the entire building is necessary, but there should be several fire¬ 
places to take off the chill during cold evenings. Leaving out 
the furnace enables us to do without the big cellar necessary to 
house it and store a supply of coal. The average house needs 
also a lot of storage space for screens, spare furniture and the 
thousand and one items which accumulate in a permanent resi¬ 
dence that are not essential to the comfort of a summer house, 
and the space thus saved may be utilized for living purposes. 
The main difference between the suburban cottage and the sum¬ 
mer camp is that one does not expect the same degree of comfort 
and the same quality of finish in a house which is occasionally 
used as one does in a permanent house. In fact, too high a polish 
(so to speak) is apt to be resented by a family going away for 
its vacation: they expect, and are pleased with, things which they 
would ordinarily regard as inconveniences, and there is a certain 
piquancy about rough surroundings and minor discomforts when 
they are but temporary, which add zest and enjoyment to a vaca¬ 
tion in such surroundings. We go to the country mainly to get 
away from the convention of city or suburban life, and when we 
lay aside our business clothes we discard with them a certain habit 
of mind and adopt another, freer and more responsive to the 
natural surroundings. This is inevitably reflected in our dwell¬ 
ings, and I think that just as no one could enjoy a vacation in a 
derby hat, one cannot enjoy a vacation in surroundings of the 
same finished perfection which we desire in our all-year-round 
homes. Every summer home, too. should have with it some re¬ 
gard for the fact that the work for the servants also should be 
lightened, and the work should be reduced as nearly as possible 
to a minimum. White woodwork, with cleaning of finger marks, 
can be gotten along without, and although a brush coat of stain 
on rough wood is little less agreeable, it is far easier to care for. 
(^Continued on page 65) 
