To prevent water splashing on to the sides of the stand and working down between tray and wood, tack pieces of American cloth on the sides with their edges overlapping the tray edges by an inch or so.

A small two-handled bath is the most convenient receptacle for the waste water.  It should hold at least a quarter as much again as the water tank, so as to avoid any danger of overfilling.  A piece of old cycle tyre tubing, tied to the waste pipe and long enough to reach below the edge of the bath, will prevent splashing—­which, when chemicals are being poured away, might prove disastrous to light-coloured clothes.

The supply pipe has a siphon-piece of “compo” tubing at the top, to draw off the water when the tube has been filled by suction, and a small tap at the bottom.  This tap, when not in use, should be held back out of the way by a wire hook attached to the lowest of the upper shelves.  A piece of linoleum should be cut to fit the bath-shelf and protect the drawer below.

VI.  A POULTRY HOUSE AND RUN.

This chapter should be of interest to the keeper of poultry on a small scale, for even if the instructions given are not followed out quite as they stand, they may suggest modifications to suit the taste and means of the reader.

The principle of the combined run and house—­which will accommodate a dozen fowls without overcrowding, especially if it be moved from time to time on to fresh ground—­will be understood from Figs. 13 and 14.  The first of these shows the framework to which the boards for the house and the wire for the run are nailed.  Its over-all length of 10 feet is subdivided into five “bays” or panels, 2 feet long (nearly) between centres of rafters.  Two bays are devoted to the house, three to the run.

[Illustration:  Fig. 13.—­Frame for poultry house and run (above).  Completed house and run (below).]

One square (10 by 10 feet) of weather boarding 6 inches wide, for covering in the house. 44 feet of 4 by 1, for base and ridge. 56 feet of 3 by 1, for eight rafters. 28 feet of 3 by 1-1/2, for four rafters. 50 feet of 2 by 1-1/2, for door frames and doors. 6 feet of 2 by 2, for tie t. 45 feet of 2-foot wire netting.  Two pairs of hinges; two locks; staples, etc.

The materials used comprise:—­ The total cost as estimated from prices current at the time of writing is 25s.  This cost could be considerably reduced by using lighter stuff all through for the framework and doors and by covering in the house with old boards, which may be picked up cheaply if one is lucky.  Whether it is advisable to sacrifice durability and rigidity to cost must be left to the maker to decide.  Anyhow, if the specifications given are followed, an outfit warranted to last for several years will be produced.

A Few Points.—­The vertical height of the run is just under 6 feet, the tips being cut away from the rafters at the apex.  The width at the ground is exactly 6 feet.  The base angles made by aa with B (Fig. 14) are 63 degrees; that which they make with one another, 54 degrees.  The rafters r1 and r3 at each end of the house are half an inch thicker than the rest, as they have to stand a lot of nailing.