A Farmhouse Economically Furnished 
By MABEL TUKE PRIESTMAN 
I N Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, many 
quaint little farmhouses may be seen nestling 
amongst clumps of trees, or situated on rising 
ground. These farms have descended from father 
to son for over two centuries. One of these, “Edge- 
wood Farm,” formerly belonged to the Kirk family, 
who owned all the land to the Delaware. 
The charm and simplicity of the old rambling 
structure have been retained, and the stone house, 
with its whitewashed walls, green shingle roof, and 
green painted shutters, stands sentinel on the road¬ 
side, where it is within easy distance of the stock- 
farm of thoroughbred Jersey cattle, which also bears 
the name of “ Edgewood,” and was sold with the old 
farmhouse. The present owner lives at the farm¬ 
house during the summer months, and stays there 
at odd times in the spring and fall, and many a pleas¬ 
ant week end is enjoyed under its hospitable roof. 
Simplicity is the key-note of “Edgewood Farm,” 
and all is in keeping with the surroundings. The 
rooms are of good proportion and are well lighted, 
as there are windows on two sides, the house being 
the width of each room. As you enter, the sitting- 
room is on the right, and is furnished with inexpen¬ 
sive, white painted furniture and comfortable wicker 
chairs, cushioned with gay chintz. A roomy sofa, 
piled high with pillows, invites you to rest a while. 
A look of uniformity is given, by all the floors being 
covered with green and white matting, while white 
skin rugs give here and there an added touch. The 
windows are all recessed, and are curtained alike 
with dainty ruffled swiss curtains, giving a fresh, cool 
appearance to each room. The woodwork is well 
designed and painted white. Open fireplaces with 
wooden mantel¬ 
pieces are in all 
the rooms, as well 
as chair rails which 
also match the rest 
of the woodwork, 
except in the hall, 
where mahogany 
is used, corre¬ 
sponding to the 
hand - rail of the 
balusters. 
Crossing the 
hall, you enter a 
charming little 
dining-room pa¬ 
pered with a delft 
paper, costing'only 
fifteen cents a roll. The motif is an orange tree in a 
tub, and is a particularly happy choice for this quaint 
little room. Kitchen chairs painted white, and a 
serving table, also white with brass knobs, are the only 
furniture necessary, combined with a good-sized ex¬ 
tension table. Closets may be found opening out of 
the chimneypiece and serve in place of glass closets. 
Folding doors lead into what was once the old 
farmhouse kitchen, where master and servants ate 
together. It contains one of the old-time fireplaces, 
with a crane. A delightful old dresser suggests 
willow ware and pewter; as there is another kitchen 
beyond, what is now used as a kitchen will eventually 
be turned into a dining-room, making another sitting- 
room out of the present dining-room. The fireplace 
reaching almost to the ceiling terminates in a corner, 
giving a fine opportunity for an old-time high-back 
settle against the wall. 
Upstairs we find the same white woodwork, furni¬ 
ture, and mantelpieces. Discarded chairs from the 
winter home were pressed into service, and willing 
hands tacked new chintz covers on the seats, con¬ 
verting them into things of beauty. Old kitchen 
tables were made to do duty alike for washstands 
and dressing tables; white dimity with ball trim¬ 
mings was utilized for one of these tables, and trans¬ 
formed it into a useful and beautiful washstand, 
which, with its old-time pitcher and basin, left noth¬ 
ing to be desired. A petticoat of gay chintz dis¬ 
guised another table, while above it hung an old 
mirror in a mahogany frame. 
If I remember rightly, there were six bedrooms, 
not including those in the servants’ quarters in the 
extension to the house at the back, yet each possessed 
some clever, eco¬ 
nomical contri¬ 
vance, that added 
to its charm, and 
cost almost noth¬ 
ing to supply. A 
small outlay on 
furniture, matting, 
curtains and skin 
rugs, many visits 
to the garret at 
home, cans of 
paint, chintz, nails, 
a hammer and a 
few willing hands, 
and the result, a 
quaint old-world 
farmhouse. 
79 
