The Red Cloud chief., 1884-11-28
THE CELLAR.

Next TO the kitchen no part of the
farmhouse Is nsed so much "a the cel-
Lar. The first thing about the house TO
wear out will be the steps leading from
the kitchen 20 the cellar. Although a
thing of such great use and convenience
1T may be a,great evil. 4 damp cellar
always il. rs few things 4 10 seriously
affect the health Of the family. Tn.
wholesome food or drink j. apt To pro-
duce sudden outbreaks which. while in
the aggregate less h%urtful. reccivesmore
attention and are more readily noticed:
but the c~xhalations from a damp cellar
| gradually poison the system, resulting
in those insidious diseases that lack
striking features but possess deadly en-
ergy. 1t il not that these eahaiations
are moist, though hat would b. serious
enough. pcryading all the rooms IN the
first floor; but this moisture leads 10 the
rapid decay of meats. vegetable and
fruits. the eXhalations from which are
h%urtful; and to the development. pre-
~ervation and propagation Of those mi
crophvtes. which We now understand
are the direct agents in the production
Of some diseases. a damp cellar gives
rise to colds. coughs. catarrhal, bron-
chial and pulmonary affections and f.
vcrs-di-eascs not violent in their syInp-
tens. but serious.
1t j. apparent hat the first essential
of a cellar j. lack Of moisture. All de-
sirable points follow as a matter If
course if this is secured. Thus the Gel
lar Is To preserve fruits AMI vegetables
In the wintcr-to keep them from frccz-
ing and rotting. This is is most i'm
pOrtant Use and tie one most difficult
10 ecurc Fruits and vegetables will
rot much quicker in II damp than in a
dry cellar. for dafnpneSs fl vors rot: and
in such a cellar they will also freeze
more quickly. for dampness favors frost.
So "a dry cellar il not only whole-ome
but efficient. and to have it SD should be
our first cndeavor.
An elevated site is necessary. lie:
the cellar be low ground and il will be
damp. no matter how well il il drained,
because the ground il damp. All that
the drain can do j. to remove the water
which collects on the floor. In we'll
drained cellars. but on low land. | have
frequently seen beads of moisture on
the wall, Though the season WAS dry.
During a rain water will collect upon
the low land and aftc-ward gradually
settle into the earth: and the water
which has entered contiguous higher
ground will p~crcolatc through the soil
TO the lower ground; thus the cellar
will he surrounded nearly all the time
by wet ground. which will make il
damp. A. the beauty, good appearance,
comfort and hcalthfulncsS of the house,
ward and all surroundings demand a
high situation. il is doubtful if AIRY con-
sidcration can justify the selection Of a
low site for the farmhouse.
| know of some cellars whic', are
perfectly dry, though not drained: but
such are rare exceptions. Draining must
be provided for before the wall is laid.
DIG Il trench n foot deep and Is wide ~
the wall is To b.. around the ou.sidr of
the cellar; fill this with hard stone
broken To the size of a hens egg. and
on this the wall. Also make IA very
shallow trench in the floor of the cellar
Just inside the val and the entire length
of il.
The shorter the drain the better. Sc
lcct the route having the greatest de-
cline. A fall Of one inch to each twenty
feet of length will be sufficient. Tile is
the best material; but other NAV be
used with good results. ! have nailed
plank to form Il tube; and two-inch pine
plank. when entirely under ground. will
last for Il quarter of n century. Pump
tubing is sometimes used and does very
well when the volume of water to be
carried off i snail and the ends are
closed against rats. | have made IA
drain that was good for fifteen years of
flat stones. After the bottom of the ex-
cavation was done | made a trench in
the center. rs wide as the blade of the
spade and about eight inches deep.
Then took two flat stones. and placed
one on each side of this trench. leaning
them together at the top. The stone.
must be of such size that when leaned
together their tops will be on a level
with the top of the trench. Upon these
l laid a stout flat stone resting on each
side of the trench. This | covered care.
fully with earth. that the stones might
not be displaced. The extremity which
comes to the surface of the ground
should be of wood tubing. as TO this Il
screen To exclude yermin can be nailed.
This screen is best made by mailing
strips of zinc. half an inch wide and
half IN inch apart. across the opening.
Put the cellar deep into the ground
If o. any but a low, level site, the top
of the wall should not be more than
eighteen or twenty-four inches above
the ground. as this will give the house
sufficient elevation. As the cellar should
b. six feet deep. this would make il from
four feet to four and a half below the
surface. Cellars are often put high
above ground in order to lessen the ex-
cavation: this SpoilS the cellar. to save 3
very little work; placed so much above
ground. it will not preserve fruit and
plants during the coolest period of win
ter. Rightly gone about. the labor OF
%excavating the cellar is not great. The
earth can be looSened with a pillow and
drawn out with 4 road Scrapcr. All the
manual labor required is to shave down
the wall and TO dig out one r
where it will be necessary TO leave an
incline for the exit of the horses.
Have a stairway leading direct from
the kitchen TO the cellar; don't compel
the housewife to pass through another
room. She will have to make this trip
many times a day. and it should be as
short as possible.
Finally, don't think of doing without
a cellar. or of building the house and
making the cellar afterward. If YOU
haven't money enough for both. wait
another year. or LEI part of the house go
unfiniShed.-John n. Siahl, m Country
Gentleman.