l than a sleighing party, whose destination is a
remodeled farmhouse not too many miles from the city? Start the cheery
fire in the huge fireplace, pile on the six-foot logs, draw your chairs
nearer while you forget the outside world, and feel a glow of delight
that you, too, have joined the throng who know the thrill of country
life.

The first thing to do when contemplating an all-the-year-round country
home is to look for a house in the right location. In selecting it the
problem of heating must be thought of in a different way than as that
for merely summer use. Then fireplaces will amply suffice for the few
cool days and chilly evenings, and no better method could be desired.
But for the real cold of winter, whether for continued use or the
occasional week-end, more complete heating will need to be provided.

The cheapest and simplest way is undoubtedly by stoves which can be
attached to the fireplace flues. But this necessitates closing up the
fireplace and depriving family and guests of all the joys of the blazing
logs which never seem more cheerful and hospitable than in the bitterest
weather. If the house is to be used mainly for week-end parties, stoves
have another serious drawback. They must be kept oiled when not in use,
to prevent their rusting, and it takes nearly two days after the fire is
lighted to burn the oil off. Then, when closing up the house again, the
stove must be re-oiled, and this necessitates putting the fire out and
waiting in the cold house until the metal is sufficiently cool to apply
the treatment.

The most adequate method is by hot water or steam, and for a large
country house these are really the only practical ways. The expense
involved will depend upon the structure of the house. In a brick or
stone building, it will cost a good deal to have the pipes built into
the wall. Sometimes conditions will allow them to be carried up in a
closet or partition. In a frame house that has been built with deep
window jambs, as was so often done in the olden times, the pipes can be
hidden within this furred framework. The great objection to steam or
hot-water systems in old houses, however, is the presence of the
radiator, which never can be made to harmonize thoroughly with the
spirit of the old building. When it is used, some attempt must be made
to disguise it. If it can be made long and low and placed in front of a
window, it can be treated as a window-seat with a metal grill in front.
For