Evening star., 1885-06-06
WOODEN MANTELS.
One Of the Features OF Modern Interior
DecOratiOn-An Improvement Upon
the Woodwork Of the Elizabethan
ASe-SOme Of the Houses i'm which
Elegant Mantels Have Been Placed

"Fancy wooden mantels have been taking
the lead in popularity for some years now"
said a dealer in Inantels to THE STAR man the
other day, as he ieaned on the broad shelf of
one Of the handsomest of pieces of his own
handiwork, and glanced admiringly at the
highly polished carving or looked at his
features in the heavy beveled glass. .sMost of
the fine houses built now have very expensive
mantels, made of the finest quality of woods.
They are not the tall painted affairs of q hun
dred years ago, with their black groved sides
and little narrow shelves away out of
reach. Some persons who affect old fash
ne.n 1oned .aa airs g. have mantels of the
houses, but they are generally made of q very
much better quality of wood than it would have
paid people OF that age to have used. But the
most popular mantels are made after new de-
signs, the pattern frequently being drawn ex-
cusively for the one house by the architect de-
signing the building. Some are plain and
heavy, but the most OF them are very elaborate.
They are made of the finest woods, highly poi
ished, and they are essentially part OF the fur
ash are the most used. Cherry is used more
than any other wood because so many different
shades may be had.and it takes a beautiful rich
polish. We can make as many as twelve diff
ferent shades in it. Mahogany and rosewood
are the most expensive, Quartered oak-that
is oak @ cut SO as to show the quarter grain
Every few OF the modern mantels you see,"
he continued after short pause, during which
lie lOch Il iOt ol OUT OF his desk ana
laid them before the scribe "Very few OF those
you see stop at the shelf, as the old fashioned
ones do. Scarcely any are made without the
mirror of heavy plated glass, and a pile OF little
fancy shelves for ornaments. Some of them
reach almost to the ceiling, and the shelves,
too, are very broad. Sometimes, instead of the
pile of shelves or brackets, they have q set of
little cabinets with little beveled glass mirrors
in the doors, fastened with lock and key,
pillars and face are generally carved in some
rich design.
"Are there many houses in Washington with
fine mantelS - asked the scribe.
''Ies. Nearly all the new houses of any pre-
tensions have wooden mantels, but they are not
all particularly handsome. Many however,
have very elegant mantcls, some OF which are
almost as expensive as any article of furniture
in the room. About the bandsomest mantels
have put i'll any house in this city are those in
VIM. NJ. Galt's house on Vermont avenue They
are of solid mahogany, and cost Mr. Calf about
S4O0 piece. Some very fine mantels are going
to be put into the house Judge Richardson is
building for his son-in-law, DIR. Magruder at
18th and II streets One will cost $3.50 and the
other 5000. Mr.. Galt's Connecticut avenue
house, though it was built some years ago, is
finished with some very handsome wooden
mantels. Mrs. c. B. Keyworth's house on
in it that are very handsome. Anthony Pol
locks house, l. .th and streets, is another that
is well furnished in this respect Col. Ander-
sons house on street is Intentionally plain,
though rich in its internal finish, and
the mantels are o'd-iashioned and
plain in design The house Of ex-senator
is now occupied by Secretary Endicctt, is not as
elegantly finished inside as one might expect
from the external Appearances. The wood work
is poplar. and the nlantels are not particularly
elaborate. The next house, that of eXsSecretary
Robson, is handsomer in this respect. The
house of Mr.. Van Wyck brother of the Sena-
tori, at the corner of 18th and U streets, has
beautiful mantelS, as has that of Senator Me-
PhersOn. on Vermont avenue. The mantels in
the house Capt. Wheeler is building on the cor
ner of 10Th and X streets will be very fine and
Senator Pal lmer will not spare expense on those
In n his new brownstone house on X street, oppo-
site Mcpherson square.
'There are lots of other fine houses, with ex-
pensi i've mantels might mention if l could
think OF them, he added, as he placed his
drawings back in the desk, and led THE STAR
man back to look at a fine cherry mantel reach
ing alnsst to the ceiling. "Pretty large prices
are paid even by builders of ten or twelve thou
sand-dolar houses, and even some of the new
office buildings such, for instance, as the 'KeI-
lOgg, are furnished with hardwood mantels
The average price for these is from $50 to
$3.50"