March 7, 19 18 
Land Sc Water 
15 
The Rural Housing Question : By H. 
AMONG tlie many difficult questions which are 
likely to present themselves for solution on the 
conclusion of the war, none will demand more 
immediate attention than the need for additional 
and improved housing. Tlie problem is a 
serious one in many of the larger towns and in the more 
crowded industrial centres ; but it is equally serious in 
country districts, although perhaps less prominent and. 
noticeable for the reason that conditions are more varied 
and the pf)pulation is more scattered. It is not proposed, 
however, to deal here with nrban housing, but only with, 
those aspects of the housing question which relate to country 
districts. 
It has been said that because the rural population in Great 
Britain decreased steadily in the latter half of the nineteenth 
century, there could not be any real scarcity of dwellings for 
the occupation of those remaining upon the land. This was 
not the case, however, and the reason is no doubt to be found 
in the fact that old houses were becoming ruinous and unin- 
. habitable at an even greater rate than the country population 
was decreasing. Moreover, many of the published statistics 
dealing with rural depopulation have been confined solely to 
persons employed in agricultural pursuits, and have not 
included railwaymen, pwstmen, roadmen, and others, whose 
numbers may have, if anything, increased rather than 
decreased. 
ft is e.xtremelydoubtful whether, in any county in England 
or Scotland (excluding urban areas), the number of cottages 
built during the last thirty or forty years has e<iualled the 
number of houses going out of occupation and becoming 
uninhabitable. The comparatively low pre-war scale of 
wages in rural occupations rendered it impossible for those 
employed to pay rents commensurate with an economic 
return on the cost of building and maintaining new houses. 
Consequently, it was only where the need for labour was 
specially pressing, or on fairly large and wealthy estates, that 
cottage-building was pursued under a consistent scheme or 
policy. The problem for the future may be considered in 
two aspects : 
(1) The need for improving existing houses. 
(2) .N'ecd fpr the erection of new houses. 
It is difficult to generalise regarding the existing standard of 
rural housing, as great contrasts are often noticeable in the 
same parish or village. Many instances may be found in 
most districts of "model" houses, not only in design, but in 
their surroundings and the way in which they are kept. It 
must be regretfully admitted, however, by" any impartial 
observer that such houses are the exception and not the 
rule, that the general average is not as high as it might be, 
and tliat in some instances houses are still being occupied 
which are only fit to be pulled down. 
The cornmonest defects in houses of the sm.Uler type »re- 
lack of room ; damp walls or floors ; insufficient light and 
ventilation; lack of adequate "office" accommodation in 
the .shape of scullery, pantry, coal-house, etc. ; and inade- 
(luate water sui)|)l\-. Many houses can be improved in these 
respects, and* brought up to a high standard. The cost may 
be considerable, but it is nevertheless justifiable on economic- 
grounds. On the other hand, owing to damp, unsuitable 
sites, decayed walls, or (jtiier similar causes, some houses are 
quite unfit for further expenditure, and incapable of improve- 
ment. For such structures demolition is the best jjolicy, 
utilising any material of value elsewhere. The ruin of an 
ancient <astle or church may have dit;nit\- and historical 
mtcrest, but this cannot be said of smaller and more modern 
habitations. Nothing appears more depressing than a 
ruinous or roofless house in a country district, and there are 
far too many of these sad relics at the present dav. 
The need for the erection of new houses is perhaps not so 
general as for the improvement of existing dwellings. It is 
nevertheless an urgent problem in many country districts, 
and it is certain that by some means or other additional 
housing must be found in the next few years, The-cpiestions 
which naturally present themselves are : 
In wliat way is the necessary land to be acquired ? 
What is the average standard of accommodation which is 
necessary ? 
What should^ be the guiding principles in design ? 
How are the necessary funds to I)e made available }, 
In country districts, the question of finding land for the erec- 
tion of cottages is fortunately not a difficult one. If the 
landowner himself is building houses for labour employed on 
the estate it is only in exceptional cases that any value is 
attached teethe site at all, and very often this item is omitted 
altogether in the statement of cost. If the State or local 
authorities require land for rural housing schemes, there is 
little doubt they can get what they require on easy terms. 
The co.st of the land is not likely to exceed i or 2 per cent, 
of the total outlay for building. There ran be no c|uestion 
that land for building should be acquired freehold by purchase 
wherever it is possible to do so. 
The standard of accommodation to be aimed at as a 
minimum has been a matter of cor)siderable controversy. 
There would seem, however, to be room for every size of 
house from two rooms upwards. A large family can. 
naturally, be overcrowded in either a two-roomed or three- 
roomed house; but, on the other hand, these small houses 
are greatly preferred by single women or by a married couple 
without children. Not only does the .small house involve 
less work, but the more moderate rent is in itself a great 
attraction. Generally speaking, it may be laid down that 
no new house intended for the occupation of a family should 
contain less than four rooms, but that a limited number of 
three-roomed and five-roomed houses may also be the most 
convenient for some farpilies. In any new house, attention 
should be given to the "office" accommodation, as a good 
scullery or back kitchen, a pantry, and coal-house, add 
greatly to the comfort and convenience of the inmates. 
iBicycles are now so common that a shed capable of holding 
them, as well as tools and odds and ends, is usually much 
appreciated. 
Design and construction call for special consideration. 
Standardisation is much talked of in shipbuilding and en- 
gineering, and it is an attractive idea in house-design. It is 
only necessary, however, to look at the dismal rows of houses 
in mining villages or in the suburbs of some towns to realise 
what a stereotyped design would mean in country districts. 
It is a fallacy to assume that a standard plan is necessarily 
the cheapest or that variation in design is extravagant. 
Standard jiatterns of doors, windows, grates, etc., may effect 
an econoniv*' in cost, but can be apj)lied to an inlinite \ariety 
<.)f'designs in construction. 
.Almost every district has its own style and character in 
housing, and good reasons can generally be found for such 
fhstinctions. Soil, climate, convenience of building stone or 
bri'-k, are all elements in determining design. The, brick 
^valls which are typical of the South of England cmd parts of 
the Midlands, would seem out of ])lace in the North, where 
brick, if used in the construction t>f outside walls, is usually 
rough cast or cement plastered. The plain substantial. 
