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House & Garden 
CONVENIENCES FOR THE, HOUSE 
RESTFULNESS IN BOOKS 
O RDER is harmony’s first law. 
The room that is restful is 
a room in which there is harmony 
of color and line. Hence definite 
color schemes. Hence furniture 
that bears a relation to its back¬ 
ground. After these—order. For 
a room may have an excellent 
color scheme and well chosen fur¬ 
niture and yet defeat its own pur¬ 
pose by lacking order in some of 
its arrangement. 
One of the worst offenders 
against this basic principle of rest¬ 
fulness is the average home libra¬ 
ry. Books are shelved without 
regard to subject, size, or type of 
binding. The first causes endless 
bother when one wishes to find a 
Contrast the order and disorder of these hoolc- 
cases, and the secret of restfulness in hooks 
is plain 
book. The other two are purely 
decorative offenses. 
After the volumes have been 
grouped into subjects, arrange 
them on the shelves so that the 
highest books will be at the ends 
of the shelves and the smallest in 
the middle. The result is a sweep¬ 
ing, restful curve. Compare the 
two bookcases illustrated, and the 
point is obvious. In addition, if it 
is possible, keep books of one color 
of binding in a block. These 
things can be done without affront 
to the literary dignity of the books. 
In fact, no arrangement which 
makes the library more pleasant 
to work and read in is ever an of¬ 
fense to the books or the bookish. 
Try the orderly disposition of the 
shelves and see for yourself. 
REFRIGERATING AT HOME 
T he idea of turning on the electric 
light switch and producing perfectly 
good ice cubes is rather fantastic. So is the 
idea of keeping the ice box chilled by such 
a simple device. Yet that has been accom¬ 
plished in a new refrigerating machine now 
perfected for the home. The machinery 
rests on top of the refrigerator and the pipe 
coil fills one half of what is usually the ice 
chamber—requiring a hole to be cut in top 
of the box, 13" x 13". The machinery runs 
silently, and the hotter the day or the 
warmer the room, the more ice and chill it 
can create. A one unit machine sells for 
$275. The capacity of actual ice cubes in 
twenty-four hours is 32, an adequate 
amount for the average family even in the 
hottest weather. Apart from the bother 
with an ice-man, one can be sure of having 
pure ice made from pure water. 
Your oion little refrigerating 
plant is now availahle. It sounds 
the knell for the ice-man 
Did you ever try to hang a wet 
coat on a radiator? The crane 
is the solution 
HANGING OF THE CRANE 
HIS gigantic idea began backward. 
First we tried to hang a wet raincoat 
on a radiator, and a second later found it 
in a heap on the floor, gathering up odd bits 
of dust. Then it occurred to us to hang up 
a crane over the radiator and hang the coat 
on the crane. Longfellow gave us the title; 
we furnished the idea. It is designed for a 
back hall where it will be inconspicuous. 
The crane itself can be plain—hammered 
out by the local blacksmith—or as elaborate 
as one pleases. Its price will range from a 
few dollars to several according to the de¬ 
sign and the amount of work that goes into 
it. The main thing is that it be substantial 
in itself as well as in its attachment to the 
door frame. 
A BOOT CABINET 
M ake the odd corners in your house 
earn their keep. 
This is the main solution of the closet 
proposition. If the house is building, insist 
on having plenty of closet room provided. 
If the house is already built, consider its odd 
corners and see what can be made of them. 
Below, for example, is a deep window of 
the type found in many houses. After the 
sill is broadened into a seat, the space be¬ 
low is usually left full of emptiness. If it 
happens to be in a bedroom, this space can 
be turned to good account by building in 
shelves for a boot cabinet. Doors will con¬ 
ceal its strictly utilitarian purpose. And 
you and your maid servant and your man 
servant and the stranger within your gates 
will all bless us for the idea. For your 
shoes will have a place and you can keep 
them in it—when your feet are not filling 
that capacity. 
Utilize the space beneath the 
deep windoxo shelf in the bed¬ 
room for a boot cabinet 
