Page:An Encyclopædia of Cottage, Farm, and Villa Architecture and Furniture.djvu/687

 EXTERIOR FINISHING OF FARMERIES. G3 1267 s( Ives, yet, when high, and elegantly proportioned, never tire in the general view, how- tv.r often they may be repeated. We strongly recommend this subject to the attention of Architects. The public have surely a right to expect that such conspicuous objects as engine chimney-shafts are, in the country, should be built in what is considered good taste, no less than spires of churches. Every farmery has one or more common chimney- shafts ; and on the form of these, as well as on that of the chimneys of the farm house, of the cottages, and of the boothy, much of the architectural and picturesque beauty of every farmery will depend. It should never be forgotten, that the chimney-tops are the first parts of dwelling-houses which strike the eye at a distance in most cases ; and that our first impression, as to the architectural style of the edifice to which they belong, is generally taken from them. 1S88. The Internal Finishing of Farm Buildings, we have seen by the different spe- cifications, is very simple. The stable, the barn, and the granarj', are almost the only buildings which are generally plastered within, and none but the better description of riding-horse stables have a plaster ceiling. In general, the internal surface of the walls ought to be built as fair and smooth as possible ; by which means, more especially if the materials of the walls be brick or freestone, no plastering of the walls can be wanted in any part of the farmery. In almost every part of the farmery, it is desirable to have the ceiling open, and the timbers of the roof freely exposed to the air. To promote this end, openings ought to be left all along the side walls, immediately under the eaves, except in situations where these openings would admit too much of the exterior air in winter for the health of the animals lodged within. It m_ay be laid down as a general principle, that the durability of the timbers in the roofs of farm buildings depends entirely on their thorough ventilation. After these general remarks, we sliall proceed to the fittings-up and furniture of the component parts of the farmery, and take them in the same order in which we treated of their plans in the preceding section. 1 389. The Stable, if the surface of the interior walls be not very smoothly built, ought to be plastered on that side on which the harness is hung, or else lined with boards. There ought either to be small cupboards, or recesses formed in the wall, for the currycombs,