Picturesque English Cottages and their Doorway Gardens 
timber porch house; but it is too ambitious 
a study for our present purpose. 7 he older 
portion dates as far back as the fifteenth cen¬ 
tury. 
The substantial stone houses of Worcester¬ 
shire resemble somewhat those in Wilts, and 
those at Broadway are very beautiful with 
the mullioned windows and dripstones, dor¬ 
mer windows and tiled roofs, a kaleidoscope 
of varied colors and venerable walls covered 
seven feet. Indeed, the curate of a neighbor¬ 
ing parish who was unfortunately a tall man 
could never raise himself to his full height 
when he was in his bedroom, and often 
bumped his head against the hard old 
beams. The introduction of gables and dor¬ 
mers greatly improved the jbedrooms, as it 
enabled their height to be raised and more 
light given to the apartments. In spite of 
this, many of our old cottages are very de- 
MODERN HOUSE AT LEIGH 
with lichen. They are true examples of 
simple and beautiful architecture. 
The interior of our cottages is often as 
quaint and interesting as the exterior. In 
many, the open fireplace with the ingle-nook 
remains, though it is fast disappearing. 
Much of the old furniture has gone to swell 
the collections of importunate coveters of 
antiquities. The rooms are low. Great 
beams and joists run along the ceiling and 
support the upper floor. 1 he bedrooms 
are very low, often not more than six or 
flcient in the sleeping-rooms. There are still 
far too many which have only two rooms 
wherein the laborer, his wife and family 
have to sleep and work and cook and fulfill 
the functions of human existence. Old and 
childless people are usually placed in such 
houses by careful landlords; but l know a 
man and his wife who have brought up a 
large family of children, who are respectable 
members of society, in a cottage with only 
two rooms of quite small dimensions. 1 hey 
love their home in spite of its smallness and 
276 
