42

ON LIGHTING APARTMENTS.

As a country residence, and being an insular object, I will nothesitate to advance that the beauty of a house, externally, shouldbe as well regarded as internally; not that even there 1 wouldgive up internal convenience to external beauty. But whowould much regard external beauty in town houses when it atall clashed with internal effect, or convenience ? I mean especi-ally the smaller class of town houses, strung together side byside the length of long streets.

It is not a matter of inconsiderable moment the instantaneouseffect that is made on the mind on entering an apartment. Thedull rebutant effect of a two-lighted room, from the circumstanceof the pier in the middle, all, in some degree, feel; for my ownpart I ever experience it. It is in vain attempting relief byplacing a mirror in the pier, nothing there can compensate thewant of light. What I would propose is, that in rooms up totwenty, or twenty-one feet in front, within, but one window onlybe employed; which window, if not a bow, may be such as isexpressed in examples No. 3 and 5. (Plate 34) and which mightbe variously ornamented, agreeably to the general elegance ofthe fitting up of the apartment. Example 3 is a sixteen feet front;example 5 is a twenty foot front; the proportions of both win-dows are one and two thirds the breadth of glass of two separatewindows. The small pilasters between, might be fluted or other-wise ornamented; the lower pannels of the splayed shuttersmight be plates of looking-glass. Or the windows might be downto the floor, as at No. 6, and finished in the utmost style of ele-gance.

The window, No. 1, is a supposed case, I do not absolutely pro-pose it to imitation in so large a front as sixteen feet; it is op-posed to No. 4 only, as a preferable mode of lighting a room of