The Pulaskian., 1917-07-13
TYPE OF HOUSE USED IN ARKANSAS AND LOUISIANA
Prspared by the United States Depart
 ment of Agriculture)

Prspared by the United States Depart
 ment of Agrfculture)
 Storage in regular storage houses is the only practicable method of keeping sweet potatoes on commercial scale. 4 few crates of potatoes required for home use may be stored in the attic over the house kitchen.
 Storage in banks and outdoor eel lars has been the custom throughout the South for a great many years, but this type of storage Is being rapidly re- placed by house storage. Very few of the potatoes stored in banks or cellars are suitable for market, for those that do not decay make such poor appear ance and are of such poor quality that they are not desirable. The banks are not economical for storage because too much labor and expense are necessary every year to make them, the temporal ture and moisture in them cannot be from the banks when the weather is cold or the earth is wet, and potatoes from banks will decay very quickly up- on removal.
 A sweet potato storage house may be constructed of stone, brick, cement, hollow tile, logs, or lumber, but to se- cure the best results lumber should be used. The walls of cement, stone, etc, are always cold, and it is difficult to prevent them from becoming wet. It Is also hard to prevent the collection of moisture Tn dugouts and cellars.
 The cost of building storage house will depend upon the kind of lumber used and It's price and also upon the labor available. A 20 by 40 foot house will cost anywhere from $50 to $350. Many houses have been constructed of second-grade lumber, farm labor being used to do the work, and the cost has been very low. In many instances it has been possible to remodel an old tenant house, granary, or shed at little expense to make a very servieeable storage house.
 House Construction.
 The supports (pillars) for a house may be made Of brick, cement, or blocks of wood, and should be at least 19 inches high and 12 inches in diam eter There should be three rows of these supports for house over 15 feet wide, one row under each side of the house and one row under the middle. On these supports are placed the sills (8 by inches) and across the sills are placed the sleepers e by 10 inches).
 The walls of the house are construct ed by setting by or 2 by studding on the sills every feet, and at the top of these are spiked the plates (4 by inches). On the outside of the stud ding is nailed layer of rough boards, laid diagonally to help brace the wall, and over these boards layer of build ing paper, then the drop siding. On the inside of the studding are laid rough boards, then a layer of building paper, and over this layer of matched lumber The wall constructed in this manner consists of two air-tight walls inclosing a dead-air space. This type of wall Is more satisfactory than a wall filled with sawdust or shavings, for these materials soon collect mois- ture and the walls decay.
 The roof of the building is construct ed in the same manner as any house roof, with rafters, rough boards over the rafters, then building paper, and last the roofing. This roofing may be sheet iron, roofing paper, or shingles.
 The floor of the house is constructed by laying rough boards across the sleepers, then layer of building paper is laid over the rough boards, and matched flooring is laid on the build ing paper. The matched flooring Is usually laid crosswise of the house.
 The ceiling is sometimes made by running 2 by girders across on top of the cave plates and on the under side of these building paper and matched ceiling lumber are nailed. A much better ceiling may be made by mailing building paper and matched ceiling lumber on the underside of the rafters to about two-thirds of the way to the ridge of the house and then across on by As, as mentioned above.
 The windows for storage house should be located about feet from the floor, and they should open out ward. Some of the windows should be of glass, so as to allow the entrance of light when needed without opening the house. All window openings, even those containing glass sash, should be fitted with well-battened shutters to protect the potatoes from cold and moisture.
 Necessary Ventilation.
 It Is essential that house be thor oughly ventilated when necessary, and for this purpose ventilators are con- structed in the roof and openings made in the floor. The outlets through the roof may be constructed by mailing two S-inch and two 1o-inch boards te-