206 
R OUGHING it in the woods may be the 
vacation dream of many a person tied 
to a desk for most of the year, but to 
throw aside entirely all the conveniences 
of a city home—or apartment—calls for 
more sacrifice of comfort than suits the 
average vacationer who has not become ac¬ 
customed to sleeping on the ground or hav¬ 
ing only a tent for shelter. And many out¬ 
door enthusiasts require more of a perma¬ 
nent camp or shelter, where they can go at 
any time of the year and be comfortably 
housed, even in bad weather. In these 
more permanent camps the log cabin has 
its place. And it has of late years developed 
many forms, from the crude log hut to the 
expensive mountain lodge. 
In a forest where timbers, straight and 
uniform in size, are at the disposal of the 
builder, the making of a permanent camp is 
only a healthy recreation and often may 
constitute part of a vacation. The log 
cabin of which this article is descriptive is 
of the usual type but with the added feat¬ 
ure of a cement coating, to give the effect 
of the half-timbered house now so popular 
in many sections of the country. With 
the application of cement and the proper 
placing of the logs, a very attractive effect 
will result, as illustrated in Figure 2. 
Stone or pebbles for the rubble surfaces 
may be used for attractive portions of the 
outside, while other types may be executed 
in natural materials in cement. Some rubble 
surfaces may be made more attractive by 
the use of pieces of glass from broken green 
bottles. In the use of cement many other 
applications may be made to produce a wall 
pleasing to the eye, such as hard wood 
Fig. 1: The Squared-Log Effect 
set in blocks, diamond shapes, curves or 
circles. In combining cement with log 
work the half-timber effect is outdone, for 
the use of the logs gives added weight to 
door frames, windows and the corners, 
where the ends of the logs protrude, and 
sets off the whole structure in a pleasing 
manner. 
In the illustration is shown an ordinary 
log cabin built up in the usual way, the 
saddle and rider at the ends of the logs be¬ 
ing made with an axe. The ends of the 
logs may be left rough, in whatever form 
the notch produced in cutting down a tree 
leaves them, but with the cement walls a 
better effect will be created if the ends are 
sawed off square and the saddle and rider 
cut at a certain distance from the ends of 
the logs. This will bring the ends on a 
straight vertical line. 
Always be sure to reverse the direction of 
the logs in alternate layers. That is, place 
one layer with the tree butts and tops run¬ 
ning around in one direction and the next 
layer with them in the opposite direction. 
This will prevent one corner from being 
built up faster than another, as the work 
proceeds. The manner of cutting the saddle 
and rider in the logs is clearly shown in 
Figures 3 and 4. 
Perhaps to the uninitiated the gables and 
the roof will present a problem beyond their 
grasp, but this part of the work will not 
be difficult if a close study of the details is 
made. It follows out the general principle 
of building up the sides and ends as a square 
box. Then when the proper height for the 
side walls is reached it is only necessary to 
figure on the pitch of the roof to find the 
length of the ga¬ 
ble logs, using 
c o m p a ratively 
small poles the 
long way as 
stringers to sup¬ 
port the roof. The 
illustration, Figure 
2, clearly shows 
this construction. 
six inch material having an inside size to 
take the window sash. The ends of the logs 
must be cut square to fit against the frame 
parts and then spiked in position. Drive 
the nails from the inside of the frame. 
Where a timbered effect is wanted for an 
outside casing around the doors and win¬ 
dows a log may be split in half and fastened 
to the outside after the walls are built up, 
the inside edge of the halved piece covering 
the edge of the two-by-six inch piece used 
for the window or door frame. The split 
piece stands out and is not covered with 
the cement. To produce a more finished ef¬ 
fect for the window a surfaced frame may 
be set within the rough frame to take the 
sash. In making this added feature it Is 
necessary to make the rough frame large 
enough to admit the second inner frame to 
fit the sash. 
Rafters of finished stock can be laid on 
the roof stringers and an ordinary shingled 
or tile roof placed thereon, if a more elab¬ 
orate finished cabin is the desire of the 
builder. Of course, the roof can be cov¬ 
ered with shakes or a thatching applied, to 
keep the cost low. To have an even roof 
it is quite necessary to select perfectly 
straight poles for the stringers. To con¬ 
tinue the effect obtained by the split logs 
around the windows and doors logs may be 
placed on the edge of the roof, as shown, 
to give the appearance of a frieze. 
I F a fireplace is to be constructed—for 
instance in one end of the cabin—its con¬ 
struction is no more difficult than that of 
a window or door. The aperture is made in 
the same manner. However, the lower part, 
or the real fireplace, can be built in with 
logs as the sides and ends are laid up, 
using short length of logs for the end and 
the proper lengths for the back, observing 
the end-for-end rule to keep the wall level 
as it is built up. When the height desired 
for the opening is reached long logs are 
used until the height of the building is com¬ 
pleted. This leaves a small projecting part 
extending from the building the size of the 
fireplace. The chimney is then built up of 
logs and poles, reducing the size of the logs 
and the size of the structure until a height 
several feet above the uppermost part of 
the roof is reached. 
The reader may wonder what is to keep 
the fire from the fireplace setting the wood 
afire in the chimney. In building up the 
fireplace and chimney the builder must de¬ 
cide what he is going to use and how ex- 
Fig. 2: The Half-Timbered Effect 
T O save logs it 
is best to 
build up around 
the door and win¬ 
dow openings as 
the logs are 
placed, holding the 
ends with planks, 
or with a frame 
made of two-by- 
