o'er. In fact, to be candid, if I had happened to live a few
thousand years ago, I am afraid I should have taken stock in the Babel
enterprise, not really expecting to leave this terrestrial ball in
that way, but just to see how high we could go. The audacious tower of
the Centennial I shall certainly patronize. But on domestic buildings,
unless for better adaptation to the site, or for some special use,
there are other things more to be desired than these lofty appendages.
An open balcony, hanging from the highest point of the main roof, just
below the scuttle, or the flat, if there is one, on the top of the
whole, surrounded by a protecting balustrade, affords a better place
for observation and costs less than those laborious affairs whose use
and beauty often neutralize each other.

[Illustration: OUTLOOK FROM THE ROOF.]

How dare you think anything claiming to be a French roof ugly to look
at? People who are fond of that style admire them from a sense of
duty, because they are French roofs. Perhaps if I was a Frenchman I
should like French roofs, too; being an American, I like American
roofs better. You do, however, give one reason for your
preference,--the complete chambers,--which is merely another way of
saying you like three stories better than two,--a good argument, by
the way, for the basement, which is surely more convenient than an
attic. I enclose a sketch, intimating an outline and style that will
suit your location. The roof, which is not French, either in form or
_costliness_, will contain all the dormitories and store-rooms you can
use, unless you propose keeping a three-story boarding-house.

LETTER XXXIV.

From the Schoolmaster.

FOUR ROOMS ENOUGH.

MR. ARCHITECT: Dear Sir,--Once, in conversation with you, I made some
inquiries as to the feasibility of building houses, especially of
brick, with reference to future enlargement. My present ambition is
bounded by a house of four rooms. One in which all the household work
shall be done, including the eating. It shall contain the
cooking-stove, the dining-table, laundry conveniences, etc., and may
be called kitchen, dining-room, laboratory, or simply work-room. An
apartment to be used solely on account of its facilities for doing
house-work. It should be of good size, and a pleasant outlook is
desirable, but not necessary. A second room for ordinary and
extraordinary use; to sit in, to talk in, to read and write and visit
in; the books are