58 
House & Garden 
s ^_GR7^' 
Countess of Rothes. 
Mary. daughter of 
Gresham Lloyd, Esq.; 
married 1763, when 
she became the second 
wife of John, 9th 
Earl of Rothes, who 
was representative 
peer of Scotland in 
1723 and made 
Knight of the Thistle 
1753. In 1770 she 
married Bennett 
Langton who was one 
of the original mem¬ 
bers of the Literary 
Club and a friend of 
Dr. Johnson and Sir 
Joshua. She sat twice 
to Reynolds, first in 
1 764 and again in 
1 766. She died 1785. 
“Countess of Rothes" 
By Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723-1792) 
Size of Canvas 30 " x 25W 
T HE “Old Masters” sold from our 
collection are always exchangeable 
at full purchase price. 
Dealers in “Old Masters” Exclusively 
707 FIFTH AVENUE at 55th St. NEW YORK 
Stair-Rails, Spindles and Newels' 
( Continued, from page 23) 
appear less than 6".) 
As a rule of thumb, 
remember that the 
width of the tread 
and the height of 
the riser ought to 
be multiples of 75. 
It was the observ¬ 
ance of approxi¬ 
mately these pro¬ 
portions that made 
so many 18th Cen¬ 
tury stairs so com¬ 
fortable and easy to 
ascend. 
Bracket under treads at 
State House, Philadelphia 
decoration beyond 
the profiles of mold¬ 
ings. It is worth 
noting that some of 
the early forms of 
rail that could be 
wholly grasped by 
the hand were more 
logical in shape 
than many of the 
later and broader 
rails. 
Spindles, consti¬ 
tuting the filling be¬ 
tween hand-rail at 
Newels are the natural terminals and top and steps or covering string at bot- 
stays of the balustrade or banisters, tom, into both of which they are ten- 
They are structurally the supports upon oned, admit of almost unlimited deco- 
which the intervening sections composed rative treatment. Indeed, their function, 
of hand-rails and spindles depend. As apart from contributing to a feeling of 
they occur at points of structural stress protection and keeping children and 
to support and stiffen the railing, they household animals from falling through, 
require structural and decorative em- is almost purely ornamental. As alter- 
phasis. Structural emphasis is given by natives to spindles or balusters, the 
their size, contour and height; decora- space between hand-rail and steps or 
tive emphasis by their shape, surface covering string may be closed in with 
ornamentation, or some sort of sur- thin boarding pierced with ornamental 
mounting cap or finial. A continued perforations; filled with fretwork or 
newel, extending like a post or pillar strapwork, either in the flat like a sil- 
from floor to ceiling, or from one land- houette, or with carved surface; with 
ing to the base of the landing im- decorative panels, either pierced or solid; 
mediately above, contributes both ap- or in some cases with scrolls or lattice- 
parent and actual strength to the work. 
staircase structure. It is found chief¬ 
ly in Renaissance work, but in- 
Strings, covering and concealing the 
ends of steps in the earlier staircases, 
stances of it occur, now and again, in and contributing an aspect of solidity 
our own American Georgian work of and strength, might be either merely 
Lhe Colonial period. molded or elaborately carved. 
Hand-rails, which form the line of Brackets, placed under the outside 
connection between newels and into projecting ends of treads in the later 
which are tenoned the tops of the spin- staircases, when fashion dispensed with 
dies, like the associated features, changed enclosing strings and left the contour of 
in form with varying architectural fash- step ends exposed to view, were purely 
ions but were not susceptible of much ornamental in function. 
Interior Decorations That Soldiers Like 
Charles of London 
718 FIFTH AVENUE 
NEW YORK 
OBJECTS OF ART 
ENGLISH PERIOD FURNITURE 
OLD ENGLISH INTERIORS 
TAPESTRIES 
LONDON—27-29 Brook Street W. 
(Continued from page 27) 
that interior decorators have training 
and experience in a thoroughly practical 
side of living. 
Two of our illustrations show rooms 
in the United Service Club, the decora¬ 
tion of which was a donation by Mrs. 
E. T. Stotesbury of Philadelphia. They 
are of special interest for several rea¬ 
sons: they are attractive as to plan and 
color; they serve as an example of fur¬ 
nishing for our fighting men on a basis 
not restricted by a war budget; and 
they mark a kind of war relief activity 
since vetoed by the Government which 
now insists that war work, to have gov¬ 
ernment sanction, must be brought into 
line with Government organizations in 
which no personality figures. The ob¬ 
vious reason for this move on the Gov¬ 
ernment’s part is to free all war work 
from a possible stigma of charity. This 
is surely due our men in the service. 
The third class of buildings devoted 
to the refreshment, rest or social life of 
our fighting men consists of those new 
houses used for war purposes now built 
with an eye to the peace which is to 
follow. 
In the minor war relief work as well 
as the major variety we are reversing 
the German idea. Long before the war 
they built school houses convertible into 
hospitals. We who have had our imag¬ 
inations touched by such forethought 
applaud England who builds now for 
munitions and munition workers with 
an eye to post-war uses. Our govern¬ 
ment has sent men to England and 
France to study this problem in its 
larger meaning, and there is reason to 
hope their reports will be acted upon. 
In the putting up of what must be 
temporary refreshment huts such as one 
sees on the grounds of the New York 
Public Library, the point has been to 
build and furnish quickly and cheaply 
for immediate and transient use. In the 
temporary huts put up by the New 
York Y. M. C. A., where it was not 
necessary to regard future use, the deco¬ 
rator, Mrs. Albert Herter, has indulged 
in dashing inexpensive cheer. The fur¬ 
niture is of simple lines, strongly built, 
and painted a vivid “peasant” blue; 
bright yellow curtains hang at the win¬ 
dows, the lamps have parchment paper 
shades with one broad band of orange 
encircling them for decoration. Dozens 
and dozens of these shades are being 
made by a bachelor who has no occupa¬ 
tion, is much too old to fight, and has 
discovered that he has the knack re¬ 
quired to accomplish this feat as part 
of his war work. Mr. Albert Herter, 
the well-known artist, gratuitously 
painted pictures of an original decora¬ 
tive character on the walls. 
Buildings used as soldiers’ clubs under 
the jurisdiction of the Commission on 
War Camp Activities (such as the Hav¬ 
ersack at . Wrightstown, New Jersey, 
near Camp Dix) are often private 
dwellings bent to the needs at hand 
and not infrequently built especially for 
the use of the soldiers with an eye to 
peace ends. 
The patriotic donors of canteens, 
hostess houses, soldiers’ and sailors’ 
clubs, etc., have found that unused 
houses lent free of rent for war pur¬ 
poses can be made so alluring, that un¬ 
der the magic touch of a wise and con¬ 
scientious decorator, their value actu¬ 
ally goes up. A few dollars in chintz 
and paints, arm chairs with bright cush¬ 
ions, broad tables piled with reading 
matter and well lighted by day and 
night, will lure the men. Human beings 
coming and going give life to any place; 
(Continued on page 60) 
