IN the first place, we assume that a small cottage is to be built. The only one to apply to in the village is one of the two or three carpenters, who perhaps knows little of the real conveniences of life that may be introduced into the small cottage, or who does not seem to rise above the one thought that a certain number of rooms after some stereotyped pattern he has been familiar with, is all that is required. We do not mean to say this is always the case, for sometimes the carpenter exercises a good amount of ability in the arrangement of rooms in the small houses that come under his hand.

If you cannot secure the help of a competent carpenter, you should commence by carefully calculating the amount of room you must have, examining the houses of some of your acquaintances, and comparing sizes and arrangement of rooms; and if you can refer to some book of plates and arrangement of space and simple forms of exterior finish, such as this work is intended to furnish, much assistance can be obtained in designing your house.

Outline to a certain scale, if in ever so crude a form, the rooms, with the dimensions marked on the same, also giving outside measure of the whole building.

Locate the doors and windows where they will give the best light and most room for the arrangement of the furniture, when the building is completed. How many times these two important things - doors and windows - have, for the want of a little forethought, been so arranged that the sunlight cannot be admitted as it should be. or in the position to fail to secure the ventilation that might be easily obtained in the summer time by open windows.

A bed room should, if possible, have two windows; and if on a corner, one on each of the two sides, thereby securing a draft of air in the heat of the summer, which could not be obtained by one window, or two on the same side. The doors should be located as far as possible from the corners of rooms, and so as to come opposite the windows, that they too may help to secure a thorough ventilation in the heat of summer.

Now from the specifications given in succeeding chapters can be found something bearing upon almost every point, so that the amateur can get up specifications and contract that shall quite completely cover all necessary particulars on a house of the kind under consideration. The elevation will have to be determined, the height of posts, and distance between ceiling and floor, and height of second story. This is meant to be a perfectly plain story-and-a-half cottage, devoid of much ornamentation.

Now from the carpenters who are to figure on the work, you can discover any gross error you have made in your terms or description of things. This is supposing you do not have an average good carpenter to apply to for assistance in making the plans and specifications; but most carpenters are capable of studying out floor plans, and making out specifications in some form or other; and in case you want to build a house similar to the one we have been discussing, and you apply to a builder, he will, under your directions, prepare a floor arrangement and specifications, with the understanding that he is to compete with whoever else in his line you may deem it proper to call in; and if you do not award him the job, you are to remunerate him for his sketches.

Now with the aid of what you will find in succeeding chapters of this work, you can carefully read over his specifications and compare them with those we have given, and see where omissions have been made by him, or description of particulars left incomplete; also, where the quality of material is not what it should be.

By referring to the chapter containing the estimates of quantities of the different forms of building material, you can ascertain very nearly the different amounts needed in constructing your house. For instance, brick that are the usual size, 2x4x8 inches, require 22 to the cubic foot, or in building a common chimney 16 inches square, it will take 30 brick to the foot in height. Thus you will find in this work all the different methods of estimating buildings, commonly used by builders.

These will all be of assistance, particularly in country places. They will be of special value to the farmer, whether he is erecting a house, or some of the many different kinds of farm buildings, where usually all materials are furnished and the labor contracted by the day to execute the work.

He commences in the fall, after farming work is well out of the way, and determines what he wants for a building, and the size of the same, cutting from his own forest and hauling to the mill the logs to cut out all of the different dimensions and kinds of materials, which should then be piled up to dry.

All material intended for finishing, inside and outside, such as flooring, clapboarding, or weather-boarding, casings and moldings, should be thoroughly dried out and seasoned, so that it can be matched, planed, re-sawed, and got into shape for putting up. In fact, all timber should be thoroughly seasoned, for, if put up before dry, it is always "getting out of shape," as it is termed, warping and twisting badly, doors and window-frames opening joint, the plastering cracking, frame settling, and openings appearing under the base-boards.

All of this may be caused, even where the finish is dry, by putting in the framing when it is wet, and covering it up before it has time to dry, which it will do after fires are in the house, and produce the results above mentioned. Therefore, if the framing lumber cannot have time to be dried in the pile, it should be allowed to stand three or four weeks or more in the building, before plastering.

All floor joists for the second floor should be sized to a uniform width, and all outside and inside studding should be treated in the same manner; then the walls will come even, and there will be no trouble by the variations in widths of studding. Any kind of lumber will dry sufficiently in the open air, piled up openly with free access for the air to pass through, except in case of that used for doors, sash, and blinds, which must be kiln-dried after being dressed; or as is usual with doors, when framed together before gluing, placed in the kiln for a few days. Pine lumber for doors, sash, and blinds should be soft, as that which is hard and glassy, or what is known as Norway pine, will warp when the door comes to be used. For painted work it don't matter so much if some sap is used on inside finish, unless the work is to be painted white, when it would take too many coats to cover the dark colors of the sap; and if any knots are used, either inside or out, they should be thoroughly covered with shellac before painting, as it will help to prevent the pitch coming through. If the wood is finished in the natural color of the pine, it must first be made perfectly smooth with sand-paper, if a good job is wanted, and then given one coat of hard oil finish.

When dry, over this spread two coats of good copal or coach varnish; this, when dry, makes a hard, bright, glossy finish, easily kept clean. The wood for the work must be sandpapered with the grain, as any cross rubbing will, when the work is done, .show scratches on the surface.

When we can have our way, we never paint any thing-white. The old-time custom, in many parts of the country, of painting the house white, and outside blinds green, we know has a strong hold on the popular mind; but we think if a little attention is given to the subject, and pains taken to see some houses that are painted in one or more modern colors, most of the adherents to the glaring white and brilliant green will yield to the more harmonious shades that are in better accord with the surroundings.

These criticisms apply with equal force to the subject of inside finish. We never would paint anything white. Paint each room in one or more colors of delicate shades, neutral tints, with nothing having a gaudy appearance, but presenting a quiet harmony in tone and color with the furnishing of the room. In papering, the color of paint and tint of paper should always be considered, so that they may blend well. (See Department of House Painting.)