Page:An Encyclopædia of Cottage, Farm, and Villa Architecture and Furniture.djvu/478

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page needs to be proofread.

454 COTTAGE, FARM, AND VILLA ARCHITECTURE. young liorses, 27, the former twenty feet by fifteen feet, and tlic latter twenty feet by seventeen feet ; and, finally, two ranges of pigsties, 28, each range containing three sties, six feet wide and twelve feet long, with a passage between, six feet wide. There is a J7aved way between the yards and the buildings, 29, which is eighteen feet wide. The rick-yard is placed to the north side of the farmery at 30, and the kitchen-garden to the south-west side at 31 ; the lawn is on the south front of the house, and the orchard, 32, is on the east side. 892. Construction. The walls are of rubblework, and the roofs are slated or tiled. The greatest width of any of the buildings, except the house, is sixteen feet within the walls ; and, the walls being eighteen inches thick, this gives nineteen feet for the tie beams of the rafters, supposing them to be placed on the wall plates ; but, as in buildings of this description, in the northern counties of the island, they are generally placed three feet higher, their length will be about fifteen feet. 893. Remarks. This Design has been sent us by Mr. Donaldson, land steward to the Marquess of Hastings, at Loudon Castle, Ayrshire, a scientific agriculturist, who studied the theory of his profession under the late Dr. Coventry, and its practice in Northumber- land. The following remarks accompanied the plans and elevations : — " This plan may be altered to suit circumstances. If the stack-yard stand on the east or west side, the barn and cart-shed must be shifted to the wings ; but they should, if possible, be central. The granary is over the cart-shed, and has a communication with the barn by an inside stair. The stables have lofts to hold hay and straw ; and, having a communication by means of these lofts with the granary, corn, &c., may be discharged into the corn chests or bins in the stables, without any out-door carriage. The grain in bags for the market is intended to be let down into the carts in the shed through a trapdoor in the floor, by means of a cord and pulley. The feeding-yards may be divided by a cross wall, if thought too large ; and shelter sheds may be erected on the sides, but not in front, as that would exclude the sun from the yard behind. Feeding cribs or racks may be erected in the shelter sheds, if thought necessary, to admit of the cattle eating under cover. In the calf-house each calf has its own apartment, with a slip or sliding board in the door, through which it receives the milk. The pigsties have a back door for discharging the amg made in them into the yards of the hammels ; and the floors of these pigsties are raised considerably above the level of the yards. They are designed on the plan of keeping swine for eating the ofFal made on the farm ; but, if they are kept on a larger scale, the plan must be more extensive ; and perhaps the oval form, with a boiler in the centre, as recommended by the late Mr. Arthur Young, will be found the most convenient. The cattle yards and sheds, and the paved way, have an inclination to a point, where an iron grate receives the water, and conveys it to an arched conduit leading through the centre of the homestead or farmery ; which conduit discharges the water at some convenient place for irrigating grass land. Each of the open yards ought to be supplied with water from a pump, for the placing of which no particular directions can be given, as much depends upon situation and circumstances. This dwelling-house and farmery are con- structed in a plain substantial manner, and nothing is done for show ; but decorations may be added according to the taste and ability of the proprietor." The above plan we consider a most excellent one ; there is nothing that we should wish to add but a few conveniences and appendages to the house, which might be contrived in a small kitchen court between it and the farmery. Design VII. — A Farm House and Farmery for three Ploughs, erected at Ingleston in Dumfriesshire. 894. Accommodation. The general appearance may be seen in the isometrical view, fig. 919, and the ground plan in fig. 920. The house contains a parlour, a; kitchen, h, with a closet under the stairs ; bed-room, c ; another bed-room, d ; scullery or back kitchen, e ; and dairy, /. The farmery contains a pigsty and yard, </, for store pigs ; two sties, h h, for fattening pigs ; a cattle shed and court, i ; a house for stirks, k ; stable for six horses, I ; cart-house, m, for four one-horse carts ; barn, with a threshing- machine driven by water, n ; straw-house, o ; byre or cow-house, p ; calf-house, q ; and dung yard, r. 895. Remarks. This Design, furnished us by our excellent contributor INIr. Newall, was erected imder his superintendence, a few years ago, in Dumfriesshire, for what is considered in that agricultural county a small farm. The farmery is complete of its kind ; but the house wants pantries and closets ; and the pigsties are nearer to it than would be approved of in England. No poultry-house is shown ; but hens are probably kept over the calf-house. It is remarkable that such an establishment should be considered complete with only two small bed-rooms. On the whole, the horses and cattle are much better provided for than the human beings. Extent without comfort is too frequently the characteristic of modern Scotch farmeries. I