Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1894-01-07
FLOORS OF KITCHENS.
SOME CURIOUS FLooRINcS STILL IN
USE IN OLD ENGLAND.
How a Now York House IL Guarded Against
Rats--Plain Coverings 81 Various
Kinds-Palnt. Stain, and Oil.
Correspondence of the Dispatch.)

In our more modern HOUSES kitchehs
are no longer underground dungeons. such
as those constructed less than a genera
ton ago in all our large cities, copies. no
doubt. OF those In foreign countries.
well remember one such In large house
in Liverpool, where the prison-like effec.
of the barred windows, through which the
smoky light sifted for few hours, en-
hsrced by a stone flooring. and i after
wards learned that such floors were by no
means uncommon In English houses. j
heard once on good authority that
bishop In one OF the northern shires paved
his kitchen floor with old grave-stones
taken from the church-yard OF the pa
rish.
Tine back kitchen, "scullery" as It IL
called In England, is always fitted with
"A tiled flooring, though the kitchen proper
In modern houses has floor in imitation
OF our own. / say 'in imitation" for an ex-
perience with one taught me that there Is
nothing like Georgia pine for flooring.
The English boards warped so badly in a
years time that ] was compelled TO have
the floor relald. n. BAT my own ex-
pCise.
In the country districts in England brick
| 1ccrs are common. From an artistic point
OF view nothing could be better. Brick
| nC ors possess, moreover. the merit OF be-
ing warm and easy for the feet and Of
not being hard TO clean. a drawback is
trat they break with rough useage. Other
wise brick would be the IDEAL kitchen
| flooring. Perhaps, on the whole. there Is
rothing better than Georgia pine.
AS | have said. the comfortableness. or
uncomfortableness of certain floors is not
altogether a servants fad" and what
ever the flooring material a large pad OF
| carpet, several thicknesseS. stoutly tackled
together. ought to be placed in front OF
the sink or table where dishwashing Is
done and this can also be used I'm front
of the ironing table; especially should this
be provided in case the floor-coverlng Is
cold oil-cloth.
RAT-PROOF FLOORS.
] saw a new kitchen floor laid not long
ago in house that had been infested
with rats. No less than thirty of the YER
min had been taken out when the old
floor was removed.
As the matter had been entrusted to an
expert. was interested in the precautions
taken to prevent such o plague in the fu-
ture and for the benefit OF possible suf-
forers from similar visitations will give
the details:
The earth being dug out. cleansed, and
purified, was carefully levelled. Then
binding joists Of some hard wood, hickory.
I believe with the bark on, were wsdged
in tightly, crosswise. Next, carloads OF
clinkers were brought from a large fac
tory and were packed so as to form n
solid barrier 10 the passage Of any ami
NAL. however small. On this cinder foun-
dalton the floor was laid, and the plan has
apparently proved successful.
1t is customary in New York and
Brooklyn for builders TO lay cinder foun-
dalton. not only under the cellar. but an
der the walk outside the house. so as 20
prevent the ingress of rats which are one
of the greatest plaques of all our seaboard
cities.
AS TO OILCLOTH.
The floor being laid, what Is the most
satisfactory covering? Having heard from
various kitchen sources that Oilcloth
draws the feet" / have made careful in
quiry among those who may be considered
unrrejudiced authorities on the subject.
and find that 1t is not a Servants fad"
but reality, though not exactly as they
express 1t.
The manager Of the oilcloth department
of a New York house which has a ma
tional reputation tells me that oilcloths
were long since discarded in Offices, be-
cause, being cold, they were injurious 20
the feet, producing frequent cramp. There
fore. when used for kitchen floor, care
ought 20 be taken to provide mats or
strips of carpet to overcome this very Sc
rous objection.
Oilcloth Is nothing more than painted
canvass. Primitive specimens OF home
made manufacture may often be seen I'm
fishing villages, where old sails have been
Il
duty on household floors. j have used
material which closely resembled en-
amelled cloth. except that the backing was
OF sacking instead Of muslin. / find that
this painted canvas is not sold in America.
1t is a great pity, since II Is very cheap
and wears better than oilcoth.
An oilcloth should be judged by its
thickness. Its whole value depends upon
1.-THE body" Cwhite lead and canvass, and
the paint with which 1t is covered. Thin
oilcloths cannot stand much wear.
AS those who have followed the discus
sions concerning the revision of the tariff
probably know the manufacture OF oil
cloths has become an important industry
in the United States In all but the finest
grades of inIaid linoleum, our goods equal
any that are imported. The best Ameri-
can oilcloth retails for 81 per yard, and
the best imported (Engllsh) for $40
Dealers say that light-colored oilcloths
in small or medium-sized patterns, are
considered most desirable, for as many "A
housewife has been heard to remark
when they are clean, they look
clean"
LINOLEUM.
The first improvement in oilcloth was
a material known as "kamptuicon." 1t
Is practically linoleum. but being more
no
seeded almost entirely by linoeum. The
basis of linoleum Is ground cork. which
gives two advantages, namely. that it
is warm to the feet and is as noiseless as
carpet. 1t is also remarkably dura-
BILE.
There are two kinds Of this ground
cork" covering, the printed and the in
laid. The former has the patterns
stamped on IL, the same as oilcoth. Com
plant has been made that these colOrs
wear off," but an expert in the trade de-
clares that this is no more so than in oil
cloth. but that because the body" OF
linoleum outlasts the body of oicloth, the
disappearance of the color Is more notice
able.
From the testimony Of housekeepers /
am inclined TO believe that a good oil
cloth will wear as well as printed limo
leum.
For those who can afford the initial ex-
peEditure 81 per yard. an inlaid linoleum
IL the very best material that can be
bought for kitchen floors. The colors
are pressed into the body OF the fabric
and could be seen on the wrong side as
I'm certain carpets. were 1t not for the ex-
ira coating of paint on the lower surface
They will therefore last as long as the
material itself-one dealer says twenty
five years; from personal experience I
know that twelve years of hard wear have
left no signs; apparently the cloth is as
good as new
A precaution TO be observed before lay
ing any carpet, oicloth. or linoleum, is
10 have the floor perfectly smooth. Where
there are Tipped" boards. as not infre-
quenly happens in old houses they should
be planed as even as possible. and the
cracks should then have paper pasted over
them. layer after layer. until the danger
of the edges cutting Is reduced II a mini
mum.
IL one will take the trouble to wax an
oilcloth in the same manner as hard
wood floors are polished. Il viii not only
present q beautiful appearance, but will
prolong the wear Of the material inden-
nitely.
In estimating the durability OF any floor
covering. the size of the apartment
should be taken into consideration AS
one dealer pointed out to me in the kitch-
en- OF a small fiat an oilcloth would re-
ceive double or treble the wear That II
would in room 15x2o. such as those In a
large house.
The following directions for cleaning oil
cloths or nf.infa1 -cork fohrfca are fhoaa