1869.]. Hat- Proof Building. 757 the stories, the wall-plastering should be continued down to the floor and no space whatever left behind the base- board or skirting, pounded glass mixed in with the mortar used in this back Ril- ing would effectually guard against rats and mice. It happens sometimes that although the cellar is made perfectly impervious to the invading enemy, that he will find his way in through an open door or window, and once in possession, it is difficult to dislodge him, unless the pre- cautions we have spoken of are followed out, for he will of course try to secure himself beneath the floor or behind the base-board, and failing in these, he will make his way to the attic and seek out a refuge in the numerous loose and open places there to be found. Now, it would be as necessarjr to close all spaces about the timbers of the roof in connec- tion with the walls as it is to secure the flooring joists, and in fact to finish every part of the whole construction with an unwavering determination to debar the rat and mouse of their presumptive rights of domain. The extra cost of thus doing work as it ought always to be done, would be slight indeed, compai-ed with the dam- age incurred by its neglect. As it is, our dwellings are infested with vermin because we afford them passage-ways and living places between the ceilings and the flooring to which the entrance from between the joists, is too often quite open. But there is still another, and, if pos- sible, a still more convenient asylum for the forbidden quadrupeds to be always found in our sj'stem of open partitions of studs, lath and plaster. On the inside of these constructions the lathing acts as a most perfect ladder for the inter-communication of floors all the way to the roof, and in vain might we back the base-board with plaster as long as those partitions are open. This is a point of such very great importance in construction, that it calls for all the inventive ingenuity of our practical men to improve upon it. These partition walls should be solid and at the same time not too heavy. There being solid will most probably reduce their thick- ness, and consequently there will be a saving of space in the apartments di- vided by them. We have now brought this subject, with all its importance, fairly before our readers, and we trust that it will draw forth their opinions and suggestions to the end that we may at last fully realize the erection of positively Rat-proof Buildings. COLORED MARBLE. WE are in possession of several varied specimens of colored mar- ble from a new quarry which will be soon sending its treasures into the building world ; and here we may just hint that the material of which we speak is unquestionably without a rival either here or in Europe. It is not alone re- markable for its vari-colored beauty, but it possesses a uniformity of grain, and equality of hardness, that render it at once a superior article to anything in its peculiar class we have ever met with. It is fully equal in tint and de- marcation to the " antique," and in texture much more reliable. We pro- pose to treat on this subject of marbles early in our next volume, giving a com- mentary on most of the known classes — Grecian, Italian, Sicilian, and Irish, and our own native marbles, of which the specimens before us will justify a rea- sonable degree of pride. DEODORIZER. THE smell of newpaint maybe readily subdued by spreading around old clay, which must be kept constantly wet, or at least damp ; for the oily vapor does not seem to be readily absorbed unless the air is kept moist by evaporation.
