s long as the house itself,
while the carpets are subject to changing fashions and will soon return
to their original dust. But he may attempt to dictate in regard to
carpets if we give him a chance."

[Illustration: FLOORS AS THEY ARE.]

[Illustration: FLOORS AS THEY MIGHT BE.]

"Undoubtedly--to the extent of pitching them out of the window."

"In laying double floors one simple matter must not be neglected. The
under, or lining boards, which are usually wide and imperfectly
seasoned, should be laid _diagonally_ upon the joists; otherwise in
their shrinking and swelling they will move the narrow finished boards
resting upon them and cause ugly cracks to appear, even though the
upper floor is most carefully laid and thoroughly seasoned. The liberal
use of nails is another obvious but often neglected duty of
floor-makers, who seem, at times to act upon the supposition that as a
floor has nothing to do but lie still and be trodden upon, it only
needs to be laid in place and let alone. This may be true of stone
flagging; it is far from being true of inch boards, that have an
incurable tendency to warp, twist, spring and shake. Lining floors,
especially, whatever their thickness, should be nailed--spiked is a
more forcible term--to every possible bearing and with generous
frequency; to be specific, say every three inches. The finished hoards
must also be secured by nails driven squarely through them. If you
object to the appearance of nail heads the boards may be secured by
nails driven through the edges in such way that they will be out of
sight when the floor is finished; but this should never be done except
by skillful and conscientious workmen. There is no excuse for this
"blind" nailing in floors that are to be covered by carpets, and it is
seldom desirable under any circumstances. All thorough nailing adds
greatly to the strength, and will alone prevent the creaking of the
boards, so annoying in a sick room and so discouraging to burglars.'"

"Whatever else we do we must make it all right for the burglars. Tell
him we will have floors that can be used either way, with rugs or
without, with matting, with carpets, or with nothing at all but their
own unadorned loveliness. Those in the chambers, where there is not
much wear and tear, may be of common clear pine, and we can paint or
stain a border around the edges. The others ought to be of harder wood,
and, as they will last as long as we shall need floors, we can a