But to return to our wood house. On the outside walls we would place one thickness of tarred building paper with the edges lapped, and run it under all finish, as corner boards, cornices, window and door frames, etc. This paper now costs two and three-fourths cents per pound, and comes in rolls of about fifty yards each, on an average, so it will be an easy matter to find out about the amount wanted.

Now these two things - building paper and back plastering - should be used where a good house is building, but on some cheaper houses it may not always do to incur the expense. The usual plan here, and for most parts of the country, is to paper only in the manner directed above; but we are sure, that for a good house, it will pay to back plaster also.

The roof, if of shingles eighteen inches long, should be laid five and one-half inches to the weather, and should be laid on roof boards with open joints one and a half inches. This is much better for the roof than to have the boarding laid with close edges, or matched, as when the shingles are wet they absorb a large amount of moisture, and are liable to swell and injure the roof. Where roof boarding is open, a better circulation of air is obtained and the shingles dry out quickly, while on the other hand, with boards laid close, the shingles have to dry from the outside surface entirely, or nearly so, and require more time, thereby causing a quicker decay of the wood.

Shingles make a good roof, as almost every one knows; and considering their cost, they are not liable to be superseded by anything else for cheap wooden buildings. The slate roof, of course, is much better, both in appearance and durability, but its cost must exclude it from general use on wooden buildings of moderate cost while shingles are so cheap. The best shingles ever made are the old-style hand-shaved, but very few are now made. By using a little care, in laying sawed shingles, to turn down the brash way of the grain, the shingles will last much longer.