The Oakley herald. [volume] (Oakley, Idaho) 1908-1961, 1922-12-01
i'm HUMBLE HOMES
People of Europe Long Satisfied
With WretCAed HutS.
Even Small degree Of Comfort Only
Came About the Beginning 81
the Sixteenth Century.

In different countries, Of course, peo-
pie have different kinds OF houses to
live In, and 1t Is curious to note how
the IDEAS of people vary as to what
they consider Is comfort as regards
a dwelling OF course, climate has
good deal to do with ii. In Burma, for
(; Instance. where they certainly know
| how to build, for the Burmese temples
are some of the most magnificent In
the world, it is said that an entire
house can be constructed without .
single nail being used, so lightly are
they put together. The framework Ii
OF wooden posts or bamboo eighty
bound together, the floors 81 bamboo,
the walls of mating and tas roofs
matched with palm leaves. There Is
never any upstairs to these houses, be-
cause the Burmese dislike the idea uf
having anyone's feet above their
heads. How comfortable they would
be In one of our large hotels or
one of our tall houses, and how
wretched we should be In one Of their
filmsy little huts. Then. again, base
iIienrs do so astonlsh eastern people
who come to Europe Oh u visit Indeed.
one party of Orientals who once came
to London, seeing people going down
area steps to basement houses, thought
that they were going to another city,
lying somewhere entirely below LoD-
don. TO dig into the ground and live
in rooms below the surface level was
they never for a moment
heard of anyone doing, and II is said
that that interested them more than
all the sights they were shown in |
London.
But. Just as houses vary In different |
parts OF the world, according TO the
amount of comfort people living In
them require, so have houses OF Euro
peun nations varied from one period
10 another. Very rough and poor In
quality at first, but improving, as In
course OF time civilization advanced
md better things became possible, uIl-
III by slow degrees they arrived al
!, hat they are now.
AT one time, the only strong and
buildings in country were
he castles of the king and Of the
lobles, while the people lived in wood
en- or mud huts, crowdins into The
.astles for protection in time Of uat-
The living part OF these castles was
very small sometimes, consisting OF
only hall, where all took their meals
and where most of them slepr Oh the
.ioor chapel and perhaps one or
more private rooms. 1t Is said that
tie French kings, even as late as
l.antugenet times, had so few rooms
in their palaces that they usually
shared a sleeping room with their
and so had the manor
houses which succeeded the castles
md which were generally strong
.nulgh to stand siege, being sur
'ounded by mQat. But none OF these
,ogses had fixed glass windows until !
ienry Wits time. and, of course, 40 (
himneys. The fireplace was in the .
middle of the hall and the smoke used
D escape by the door, SO living In T
hem must have been different from C
nything we know. 1t was not until u
he time of Tudor soyereigns thar -
ouses began to be planned solely with a
view to comfort. Up to then. the c
hief consideration had always been I,
rat Of safety against attack; but, by f
re Sixteenth century, the country had 5
ecOme so settled and peaceful that q
,mfort could now take first place. y
hristian Science Monitor. @