The roof can be covered according to the methods already shown, but shingling will be much better. If a building is worth shingling at all, it is usually best to use a good quality of shingles. The cheapest ones are apt to be unsatisfactory for a permanent building, but, on the other hand, for such structures as these it is not necessary to get an extra quality, for some knots or defects at the thin ends where they will be covered by two or three layers may do no harm. Cedar shingles are better than spruce.
It is a good plan to lay roofing-paper over the roof before shingling. Begin the shingling at the eaves and work upward. Lay a row the length of the roof, letting the butts slightly overhang the edge. Directly on top of this row lay another, breaking joints with those underneath; that is, lay the first row double, taking pains that the spaces between the shingles of the lower layer are covered by the shingles of the upper layer. Leave a slight space (perhaps 1/8" to 3/8") between the shingles in laying them. This gives room for swelling, and allows the water to run off freely. If the edges are close together at the lower end, the tendency is to dam up these water-courses and retain the moisture, which is injurious. Some people pare off the edges to make the butt-ends narrower, in order to obviate this; but simply laying the shingles slightly apart answers the purpose. Fasten each shingle with two shingle nails (one near each edge, within perhaps 1"), far enough up from the butt to be covered by the next row of shingles. Common shingles can be laid about 4½" to the weather, that is, with that portion of the length exposed at the butt. If shingles of extra length are used this distance can be varied accordingly. Lay the butts of each row by a chalk-line or against the edge of a narrow board, which can be adjusted and temporarily held in place by two strips nailed to the board and to the ridge of the roof. The upper ends of the top row of shingles can be trimmed off and saddle-boards can be put on at the top, letting the edge of one overlap the other.
It is doubtful economy to paint shingles after they are laid. The paint tends to clog the spaces between them. It is better to dip them in paint before laying. A much better way is to dip them in some one of the prepared "creosote stains," which can be had in a great variety of colours. These are excellent, although, except to obtain some desired colour effect, it is hardly worth while to use any preparation on the roofs of such buildings as these. Cut nails are considered better than wire nails for shingling, on the ground of durability. Take pains to keep the lines of the rows straight and at equal distances apart.
For the painting, see Painting, in [Part V].
If this building is for a workshop, various suggestions about the interior arrangement will be found in Part I.
"The cottage is one of the embellishments of natural scenery which deserves attentive consideration. It is beautiful always, and everywhere; whether looking out of the woody dingle with its eye-like window, and sending up the motion of azure smoke between the silver trunks of aged trees; or grouped among the bright cornfields of the fruitful plain; or forming grey clusters along the slope of the mountain side, the cottage always gives the idea of a thing to be beloved: a quiet life-giving voice, that is as peaceful as silence itself."—Ruskin, The Poetry of Architecture.
CHAPTER XIII
SIMPLE SUMMER COTTAGES
"Cottage Row."—The little houses shown in the accompanying illustrations[36] afford excellent examples of what can be done by the beginner. These were built by boys, and form, with others, a most interesting little village or street, known as "Cottage Row." They are small, but have many of the details of larger houses. They are shingled and clapboarded, have regular doors and windows, and are very attractively fitted up inside with curtains, cupboards, shelves, tables, chairs, lounges, bookcases, and other articles of furniture. The walls are hung or covered with prettily figured cretonne or calico.