Page:An Encyclopædia of Cottage, Farm, and Villa Architecture and Furniture.djvu/830

 80(> COTTAGE, FAR-M, AND VILLA ARCHITECTURE. The game might be hung round the wall, and under the game might be a dresser on which to cut and salt meat, and salting-troughs lined with lead, and having covers like the dresser. It should also have a machine to weigh meat as it is brought in. A dry larder is the place in which the cold dressed meat is kept. In the centre is a large table of wood or stone covered with a tablecloth, on which the cold meat is arranged in dishes. If the windows are not fly-proof, which they always should be, a sort of safe made of coarse muslin, or wire, on an arched frame, is sometimes used to cover the whole table. This might hang on a cord and pulley from the ceiling, so as to be pushed up out of the way while the cold moat is taken out. A broad dresser and a row of shelves might be placed round the dry larder, on which to make and place the pastry and other things usually kept here. (A fish larder, § 1461, and also a vegetable larder, such as we have already noticed, § 737, might be added.) 1708. The Salting-room. Except in very large families, a separate salting-room is seldom necessary. When required, it should be a cool place, containing proper salting- troughs of lead with covers for meat in pickle, with taps or holes in the bottom, to let oft" the brine ; and a stone table on which to salt bacon, with a groove round it, to convey the brine by a small pipe to a vessel placed beneath it. 1709. The Smoking-chimney, or Room fur smoking Hams and other Provisions, should be detached from the house. Its forms, &c., will be found described at length, § 739. 1710. The Wash-house, described, § 725 ; the Laundry, § 726 ; the Brewhouses, § 728 ; and the Bakehouse, § 727, are, of course, separate offices, and are nearly the same in all sorts of residences, varying only in size. Unless in very large establishments, a separate room for a bakehouse would seldom be required ; and it would save trouble in cleaning the house, were the oven placed in the scullery, where it would be no inconvenience, as the bread for the family would seldom be baked more than once a week. 1711. The Kitchen- Court and its Appurtenances include the places for coals, wood, and ashes, which should be conveniently situated so as to be approached under cover. The ash-hole should be furnished with a proper screen of wire, and be so contrived that, the cinders being put in at one door, they would pass down the sloping screen to another, where they might be taken out cleared from the ashes. The ashes could be removed from under the screen, and taken away by a door in the outer wall of the kitchen- court. There should be doors of the same kind, with locks, by which the coal and wood houses might be stocked without making a litter in the court. The racks for empty bottles should be in this court, enclosed by railed doors locked ; and there should be also a sort of store-place for potatoes, &c., for the use of the house ; and here might be put away any unsightly articles, when not used. Privies for the servants should be in a retired corner : and a pump in the centre to wash the court, which should be paved throughout, and have proper drains, so as to be always dry and clean. 1712. The Cellars are very important offices; and, in a large mansion, should be exten- sive and convenient. Their construction and arrangement have been already given, § 713 to § 718, and recurred to in § 1462 and § 1463. The descent to the cellars should be near the butler's pantry and housekeeper's room, to be within the observation of the upper servants. There should be separate cellars for small and strong beer, one or more large cellars for the general stock of wine, and a smaller one for the wine under the care of the butler, which is taken out occasionally from the general stock under the master's inspection. There should also be a root-cellar, and a spare one in which to put hampers before they are unpacked, and other things as occasion required. 1713. Cellar- Closets. A closet on each side of the foot of the stairs would also be convenient. In one might be kept, in covered pans, placed each in a pan of water, the cheese in use, and in the other the butler might lock up the wine left in decanters, which is commonly spoilt when kept above ground. Another closet might probably be convenient for the use of the housekeeper or cook, such as to place ice-cream in while freezing, and other things in very hot weather. 1714. An Ice-house is an indispensable appendage to a villa; but its construction has been already described, § 736. The dairy would be at the farm, which I suppose to be at a distance from the house (see § 729). 1715. The Stable Offices. We proceed next to the stables, which should have one ornamental front, to be seen as you approach the mansion. As a villa of the size described would require extensive stabling, it would be convenient to build the stables and coach-houses in the form of a quadrangle, with a paved yard in the centre. The front to the park should have gables at the ends, resembling those of the mansion ; and in the centre should be an arched gateway with a clock turret over it. The doors should all open into the yard, and be so contrived that the whole might be secure when the gates were closed at night. For greater security, a comfortable bed-room might be formed in the clock turret over the gateway, in which some of the grooms might sleep. The side of the quadrangle which formed the principal front might contain, besides the gateway.