Page:An Encyclopædia of Cottage, Farm, and Villa Architecture and Furniture.djvu/674

 650 COTTAGE, FARM, AND VILLA ARCHITECTURE. Sect. VI. Of the Eiier'wr and Interior Finishing, and the Fittings-vp and Furniture, of Farm Houses and Farmeries. 1369. The Exterior and Interior Finishing of the dwellings of fanners differ little from those of other houses ; and, as we have already entered at some length into the subject, V'hen treating of cottages, our observations in this section will necessarily be few. The finishing of farmeries differs considerably from that of dwellings, though, being neces- sarily of a very inferior description, it will not require a lengthened discussion. Nearly the same observations will apply to the fittings-up of both classes of buildings. 1370. The Furnishing of Farm Houses includes some articles peculiar to the kitchen Court; and that of the farmeries comprehends a variety of machines, implements, instru- ments, and utensils; but most of these are so much more intimately connected with agriculture than Architecture, that we intend only to notice them in so far as they influence the form, size, or disposition of the building or apartment in which they are to be contained. We consider it essentially necessary to do this, on the principle already repeatedly laid down; viz., that to design a building, or any part of it, in the fittest manner to answer the end in view, it is necessary to know what that end is. At the same time, we shall be careful, in this work, not to repeat any thing that has already appeared in our Encydopcedia of Agriculture. We shall include the finishing, fittings-uj), and furniture of the farm house and kitchen court in the same subsection ; and we shall devote another subsection to the finishing, fittings-up, and furniture of the farmery. SuBSECT. 1. Of the Finishi7ig, Fittings-up, and Furniture of the Farm House, and the Offices of the Kitchen Court. 1371. Generally the Finishing and Furniture of the Living-Booms of Farm Houses ought to be substantial, and rather plain than highly ornamented : because the occupation of the farmer is less delicate and refined than that of the followers of most other trades and professions ; by whom a highly finished and elegantly furnished house would be less likely to be soiled or injured, than by the thick and earth-stained shoes of the working farmer. Be it observed, however, that the mind of the farmer, and also his manners, may be as high in the scale as those of the others ; and, of course, the wealthy farmer may have his drawing-room as highly finished, and richly furnished, as the independent land- owner. 1372. Recesses for Cupboards, Closets, and Pantries ought to be more numerous in farm houses than in dwelling-houses near towns or villages ; because tlie farm must generally be considered as situated at some distance from either, and consequently a greater quantity of groceries, and other stores purchased in shops, will be required to bi. kept in the house. The fittings-up of these recesses, &c., must be regulated by the uses to which they are to be applied. In general, open shelves are much better tlian drawers, as being easier got at, and cleaned ; exposing more readily their contents, so as to save time in looking out for articles ; and ventilating them better. Shelves, for dresses or numerous small articles, may be formed like trays, to draw out ; those for the finer articles of dress should have close fronts like drawers, or drawers in this case may be substituted for trays. The backs of recesses in outside walls should always be lined with boards kept an inch at least from the wall, with an opening the whole breadth of the recess at bottom, and another of the same size at top, to admit of free ventilation. 1373. A very suitable Parlour Fireplace for farm houses has been sent us by a phi- losophic domestic economist of Edinburgh, which he adopted some years ago in his own house, except the large public rooms. 1243 It is nearly allied to our figs. 533 and 535, in § 599 and § 600 ; and has answered so well, that the pattern has been adopted in the Edinburgh foun- deries, and is made there for general use. The general appearance is as at fig. 1243; in which o is a cast-iron plate, either as it comes from the mould, or ground and inlaid, according as it is intended for a principal or secondary chamber; b b b iiiinuiiuiiiiirTTTmm -rrtSEHIZTrh^