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 kept in it, and the sewing-machine, the piano and the flower-stand, the birdcage and the pictures; a large, pleasant room, where the sunlight loves to shine in upon us and we love to look out upon the sunshine.  It is parlor, library, drawing-room, living room; in fact, it is the house itself, to which everything else is accessory.  A family sleeping-room, sunny, simple, and airy, and a guest-room of similar character, complete the establishment.  More than these four principal rooms would be a burden, less would hardly suffice for comfortable living.  The problem is to arrange a plan that shall be convenient and complete before it begins to grow, and to which future additions may be made without serious loss.  I also want counsel concerning ventilation, both on general principles and with reference to the unfortunate box in which I am daily compelled to breathe my own breath over and over, variously flavored with the commingled exhalations of sixty pupils, with whom I grow cross, restless, or stupid, according to the state of the school-room atmosphere.  I believe it is just as wicked to allow children to breathe impure air in their school-rooms or their bedrooms as it would be to put poison in their dinner-pails and require them to swallow it.

My friend, Mrs. John, takes a kindly interest in my quadruple plan, and assures me it will be quite sufficient for a sensible housekeeper.  Do you suppose such a one can be found?

If convenient, I will call upon you in a few days.

Truly yours,

SCHOOLMASTER.

LETTER XXXV.

From Mrs. John.

CONVENIENCES AND CONJECTURES.

Dear Mr. Architect:  The building-fever seems to be contagious in our neighborhood.  The teacher who boards with us is the latest subject.  He pretends it’s all for fun, but has been studying plans for weeks, and now, after getting the advice of the entire household, is going to throw it all away and apply to you, as he should have done in the first place.  I overheard him explaining to Jane