Daily Yellowstone journal., 1888-11-10
ON AN lcELANplc FARM.
The Pecuiiar and Picturesque BuildingA
A Gloomy Interior.

The Peculiar and Picturesque Buildings-
4 A Gloomy interior.
:, The buildings Of a farm usually are
under one roof and stand in a row, with
the gable ends facing the court. They
are peculiarly constructed; economy Of
timber and the exigencies Of the climate
furnish, however, a key TO their archi-
lecture. Ordinarily they are but one
story in height. They are framed Of
wood, and their gables also are wooden;
their sides and backs, which usually slope
! to the. ground, are commonly of lava and
turf; the roof always is matched with
turf, which quickly grows together and
forms a continuous covering, through
which wet and cold scarcely can pene-
trate. Seen from a distance a group of
farm buildings bears the appearance OF
m irregular grass grown hillock, upon
which, To leighten the illusion. sheep are
calmly grazing. The farm house proper
CO.. sists of TWO or three gables; next il is
tiis byre for the winter shelter of the
1crSs, If the farmer is sufficiently well TO
do to possess any, and next the sinithy
with its forge and anvil; the lcelander,
IN his isolation, is thrown upon his own
resources, and is obliged still to exercise,
upon occasion, : calling that has descend.
ed 10 him from the immemorial past.
Entering the house through the low
doorway IN N of the gables you find
yourself in a long straight passage.
through which. ever in broad daylight
you most commonly grope your way.
The floor is sometimes Of boards. some.
times of earth; on each side doors open
into the adjoining buildings, separated
from each other only by wooden parti-
tious. Usually the door On one side
leads into tine common living room Of
the house, which occupies the whole Of
The building in which it is situated. A
quaint and picturesque interior meets
bycur eye. Ii is a long, low room, lighted
at either end by a square window,
Above the beams are visible, and have
been made the place of deposit fer an in.
describable variety Of household articles.
Along one side stands the low stationary
0 bed. which serves also as a ~lOunging
place by day; some square wooden chests
3 are ranged along the opposite side; at the
end, particularly in winter, several
women are carding and spinning wool.
This common room indicates the thrift or
hpoverty of the farmer. Sometimes il is
: scrupulously neat and orderly, and its
furniture j, good and substantial, if not
costly. Frequently, however, every.
thing about the place is of the most
primitive kind, and comfort, convent.
ence and cleanliness are unknown. The
bed looks as if it were never made up,
and dirt, iieas. children and dogs are dis
tributed in equal, though inordinate,
: proportions,
II you enter the door on the opposite
side Of the hallway. you find Il smaller
room, usually furnished with chairs
and n table and sometimes with a bed.
oThia, in the larger houses. is the spare
.drseW Of the house. and after the various
' Saddles and Sunday garments placed here
for safe keeping have been removed, it is
assigned 10 the chance guest. If, instead
IF turning to the right or TO the left, YOU
continue your way along the passage 10
2 the end, You arrive at the kitchen, which
3 usually Is IN a scparae building. Its
s. floor IS Of Garth. In a fireplace tickers
an uncertain fire Of peat, and over it
hangs an iron pot from q crane. Every.
thing is dark and smoke berrimed, for
much of the smoke does not escape
through the open chimney, and the only
Z light Is from the fire. PERHAPS an old
Woman with her black garments and her
tasseled huia lends over the kettle and
stirs its contents. The unsteady light
gives II all a weird appearance, and you
= wonder If the crone is not muttcring an
I ~incantation. 1t is such an interior as
3 Gerard DOW would have loved L. paint.
80, Small rs Is the kitchen Gre. 1t is often
the only one In the house. for fuel IN
some paris of tie island i. exceedingly
J Nscaree and must I've used with the strict
} oest economy for cooking purposes alone.
9 IL h customary TO close the houses when
g the cold winter weather comes on. fer
q, then the atmosphere becomes at least
warmer than the outside air If not qui0
so well adapted for breathing purpose
The houses Of the clergy often are better
. than those described, in that they have
q more rooms or better accommodations
J sometimes, however, they are worse OF
! fthe guest chamber already has been al,
+, lotted, and in that case you retire to the
, speighboring church.-Atlantic Monthly
ria T. Finding an Ancient Dagger.
:, a Mexican sheep herder on Perderales
creek, between Kern and Gillespie coun-
ties, northwest Of here, has made find
q which would prove a treasure TO the
nj currently seeker. Some days ago while
tending his flock he felt a sharp sub
stance pierce the sole Of his heavy shoe
n and stab his foot. Thinking that it was
!. y ,pnusr ally strong thorn he stopped
down 10 remove II and found that the
'sIec0y Of the instrument was buried in the
Oeund. Digging down for some inches
odhey pnearthed a stiletto or dagger. The
!. klade was fourteen inches In length, with
An exceedingly sharp point and edge.
'nJjfSvtkdA buried in a perpendicular position,
IonbdBtupward; the handle was four inches
n f0Ipy making the entire weapon meas