tTbe VOL. III. JANUARY-MARCH, 1894. NO. 3. ARCHITECTS' HOUSES. Part II. EFORE beginning even And now, I am inclined to think, the to think of a design more spontaneous and less sophisti- for a house for any cated builders' houses of our own time building it is im- express quite as clearly our relaxation portant that we of austerity in morals and manners as should go to the spot where it is to well as the transitional chaos of our stand, look at the site the surround- intellectual development. However ings imbibe the atmosphere of the that may be, we need not attempt to place. For every reason, practical as put the domestic quiet of the cottage well as aesthetic, we ought to examine into the iron-bound walls of the factory the site first. with its ceaseless grind. Impossible, Practical as well as aesthetic from will that as fac- ; some say, such objects the very outset this double view of tories can ever be thought of from an everything must be taken, nor can we aesthetic standpoint. It may be that conceive ourselves as ever having ful- they are right, but inasmuch as archi- filled either one completely if the other tects are called upon to design such, it remains in any respect unfulfilled. In is certain that the aesthetic aim can reason and in the mind of the architect only be to express in the appearance these things are not separated as in the inward nature of each different the common conception, but one is part object, whether gay or severe, attract of the other, or rather both are but ive or repellant. Not without aesthetic faces of a complete whole. Not that value is the black and grimy group of it is for to ten or fifteen stories possible every building be sugar houses, beautiful, nor even pretty. There high, that dominates the Williamsburg are in nature deserts and harsh crags suburb, standing apparently upon a as well as peaceful pastures and plain solitary; so completely it over- sparkling rivers. That each object powers the compact level mass of should as perfectly as possible express poor, two-story houses, from which it its nature by its appearance is the best springs. that we can do aesthetically. The So, as I was saying, the very first houses of earlier days I am thinking step is to examine the spot where our especially of the days just past, colonial house is to stand. If it be very uneven and revolutionary days these ex- we ought to obtain a more or less pressed the primness and dogmatic minute topographical survey, as the severity of our ancestors, as well as variations in height and in declivity their depth of genuine heartiness and are very misleading to the eye. hospitality as plainly as the coun- The only case where this inspection tenance of man expresses his passing might be unnecessary is upon perfectly moods. level ground; but even then there are Copyright, 1894, by CLINTON W. SWEET. All rights reserved. Vol. III.-3. 1. 230 ARCHITECTS' HOUSES. distant views to be considered, slight like a real deer, and his suburban heart elevations to be preferred for dryness, will swell with pride at his achieve- clumps of trees to be used as much to ments. advantage as possible, unexpected The true principle is to work for gen- pieces of information as to accidents eral effect. Groupings everywhere with of soil that may be of great value. a definite view to a general grouping. In hilly or rocky country it is of Trees in clumps, or groves or avenues, course all-important, this business of rarely in straight lines or equal spac- placing the house in just the right posi- ings. Groups of groups, showing con- tion, terracing out here, where the trasts perhaps of foliage or shape or steepness of the slope makes walking both. Shrubs always in clumps, the inconvenient, or where the view and smaller the grounds the more impera- aspect tempt us to linger in the open tive this is. In general stiff and formal air. In forming our conception of the arrangements need a very large scale immediate surroundings of the house, to make them acceptable. A straight there are two extremes of landscape walk half a mile long with flat walls of architecture. On one hand, there is the clipped foliage on each side may be polished beauty of the artificial land- magnificent, where one fifty feet long scape of the Italian villa; on the other, would be ridiculous. the picturesque beauty of untouched So with architectural incidents, vases, nature. statues, pavilions, they must be good in The possibilities of landscape gar- themselves, and properly grouped with are known in this this cannot be dening hardly surroundings ; usually country, the beautiful and romantic accomplished on a small scale. There- compositions of grove and statue, of fore if we must confine ourselves to a pool and bridge, of flowers and turf, limited space let us abjure such objects which older countries exhibit. For the if are fortunate to entirely ; we enough most part, we are fond rather of the have ample field, let us see that our wildness of nature, possibly because statues are of marble, stone or bronze, we have so much wildness of nature to with of or not background foliage sky ; be fond of. Even in the wildness of cast-iron, with the family wash for a nature there is a choice and in the land- background. scape of art there are differences in the Practical considerations in the site beauty of the results. The same prin- are of as much importance as aesthetic. lie at the whether we Is the soil or or ciples bottom, rocky, clayey sandy ; have to choose a natural treatment or the last much the most easily managed; to construct an artificial one. Usually, the two former needing more or less we must adopt a middle course, partly care and usually giving more or less adopting existing natural features, trouble. The trouble is from water partly enhancing these by our own that in rock or clay drains into any ex- efforts. The fundamental principle in cavation we may make and stays there. planting or grading, or any out-of-door From sand veins or other fissure in a operation is to treat everything as parts clay soil, from minute crevices which of a whole and not merely as separate always occur in rock the water perco- objects. The suburban artist for the lates and settles around our cellar wall, most part takes an opposite course. I gradually rising until the hydrostatic will plant a weeping elm here, he says, pressure is sufficient to force it through because I think a weeping elm is very almost anything that we may put to I will graceful ; here put a maple and keep it out. here a liquidambar so that I may have It is indeed possible to build a cellar red leaves in autumn, and so on. The that will stand such a test and it is result is that his lawn is spotted vaguely often done in cities, with the aid of with unrelated specimens, each sur- asphalt, and flagstones and inverted rounded by a neatly cultivated circle brick-arch cellar bottoms, but in a of earth. Somewhere among these he moderate country house, such as we will a cast-iron place vase or fountain, are likely to build, the cost puts it out or a to is perchance deer, painted look of the question : Our only course ARCHITECTS' HOUSES. 231 to .give the water an ample outlet, so that it may more easily go somewhere else than into our cellar. In a village or town where there are sewers this is easily managed ; the important thing is to secure an ample connection with the sewer with a pipe not less than five inches in internal diameter. If the soil be clay or rock we must fill in around our cellar walls with loose materials, broken stone or coarse gravel, putting a line of cheap clay drain tiles at the bottom and connecting the whole by the five-inch pipe with the sewer, Foundation and which must be lower, than our drain-pipe. cellar bottom, considerably lower if wall it is necessary to lay a bed of possible. similar loose material under the con- As the sewer is fixed we must see crete floor of the cellar, taking care to that our house is set high enough to make holes through the cellar walls to bring the cellar bottom well above the give it an outlet, otherwise the last case top of the sewer. of that house will be worse than the If the house is in an isolated situa- first. tion a similar course must be In soils pursued ; very sandy hardly any meas- here are only we must dig our own sewer ures needed ; the water drains in the form of a drainage trench slop- away so fast through the sand that it ing away from the house to wherever has no tendency to penetrate the walls. we can find an outlet at a lower level. I have seen a perfectly dry cellar in a There is little difficulty in doing sandy soil with only eight-inch brick this in rolling country, but a cellar walls and no protective covering at all. dug in heavy soil or rock in a level Even in sandy soil it is best, however, country is sure to give trouble and is to put a coat of coal-tar roofing better if avoided entirely.