Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-04-28

ever. wider significance and value. for any
Improvement In the plan or the arrange
ment of the average city house Is a distinct
advantage to a large class of people who
do not by any means live In the slums. In
fact. they represent the majority Of the
population of the city, and include practi-
cally all classes except the very rich
The latter are able to buy large plots
of expensive land and to provide an album
dance of room for large houses even In
costly residence nefghborhood of a large
city. Other people not SO rich can AFFORD
to get corner lot, and SO they secure light
and air on three sides. For the most part,
however, people who live In cities, and in
especially this city, are obliged to be con-
tent with what Is known as an inside house;
that is, one located In block and having
but two sides exposed to the light and the
air
A Difficult Problem.
The change in the style OF living in COM
paratively recent years has very much
complicated the problem Of sanitary and
proper housing. 1t is necessary that the
average house should have larger number
of rooms than were formerly required, as
well such arrangements as will make
possible the carrying on OF domestic life on
a more elaborate scale, with provision espe-
cfally for social needs.
On this latter account the old style of
having two and three-story houses with
Easements so arranged as to provide plan
for the dining room has been almost en-
tirely abandoned, and still later another i'm
portant change has come about In the need,
or the supposed need, of having the kitchen
on the main or first floor instead of in the
basement.
Place for the Kitchen.
The net result of both Of these changes Is
that the first or parior floor of the modern
house must contain more rooms. This has
been accomplished by extending the main
building as far back as possible and giving
space for two or three rooms, and then In
addition a back building is added where
the dining room and kitchen. OF perhaps the
latter room alone, are located
Every day experience shows what such an
arrangement means, namely. that all the
light and air for the rear of the main por-
ton of The house and for the back building
itself comes mainly from a narrow area
that is formed by the space left between the
house Itself and the adjoining building
The consequences Is that back parlors or
center halls and the dining rooms are not
sufficiently lighted and even during the day
time 1t Is not uncommon to be obliged to
use artificial light in those portions OF dwell-
ings.
A Change In Plan.
A well lighted dining room Is unusual In
the average city home, and now. owing to
iations, which requires the rear areas to
have greater width than ever before, the
condition is still more complicated. In fact,
1t Is now impossible to have a back build
ing and comply with the regulations in the
case of house sixteen or seventeen feet
wide. The custom of building three houses
on a hfty-foot lot is more possible and
this fact. together with other conditions.
has brought about change in the metho
of planning houses.
In the main this change finds expression
In using more ground for the house, or,
perhaps. 1t would be more definite to say,
lots of wider frontage. What Is known as
the semi detached house has come into use.
These houses are set back from one of the
side lines of the lot. five or ten feet, and
the same is done in the case Of the adjoin-
ing house. SO that the united space between
the two houses ranges all the way from
five to fifteen feet. 1t Is then possible to
build the house solidly back, of uniform
width throughout, as light and air can be
secured from the side windows well as
from those In the front and the rear.
Wider Lots Used.
In addition to the semi-detached houses
another form has been adopted and finds
an illustration in block of twenty houses
which Messrs. Mfddaugh & Shannon are
building on Adams street between LIST and
I'd streets northwest. These are two-story
feet The arrangements provide for six
rooms and each one has direct light and
plenty of II. for there is no back building
On tho first floor the space In front Is
given up to the entrance hall and the par
lor, and the rear with windows looking into
the back yard to the dining room and the
kitchen. On the second floor there are two
bed rooms In the front and a bed room and
bath room in the rear. 1t can be readily
understood from the arrangement that
there are no dark or insufficiently lighted
rooms in the houses. All of them have
direct light and plenty of It..
Such an adjustment OF interior space
would be impossible unless the house was
of good width, as the attempt to get two
rooms from a less width would result In
narrow Sits of space, which would not be
practicable. 1t will be seen that this move
ment in modern house arrangement means
more liberal use of ground than has been
the case in the past.
Mr.. Bingham's Residence.
Among the private residences In Cleveland
Park. where the variety of the archi-