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mahogany, oak and walnut pieces that had been left to the family by unkind aunts and grandmothers, but these rooms were nevertheless better than the first with its splendor of decorated black walnut or French gilt. For most people's purposes, it would have been more desirable to have one substantial room with a fireplace and big table and comfortable chairs and sofas. This is what we are building in houses today, and many of the owners of old houses are breaking through existing walls in order to employ this scheme. But people a generation ago did not realize that it is better to have one agreeable room than two or three ridiculous ones. Not that everything our forefathers did was wrong, not by any means, but they seemed to have reached a certain period just a little while ago, when all their work, constructive and decorative, was far worse than it had ever been before or than, God willing, we or our descendants will ever allow it to become.
Of course, it is an advantage to be able to use electricity for lighting purposes. It is not an essential, however, and rather than make a display of uncovered glaring filament, I should retain the old-fashioned system which assigned each resident in a house his own separate lamp and provided candles in candlesticks to help out in the living rooms. If I used oil lamps, however, I should have modern well-colored shades for them, and candles furnish perhaps the finest light there is.
The fresh treatment of floors, walls and ceilings in the old house will be the chief and primary interior problem that confronts any occupant. Against these,
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everything new that he is going to buy must stand, and his furniture and other acquisitions will be helped or hurt by these three elements.
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