THE exterior of a house built of wood can, at a small cost over what the difference would be for a plain one, be made attractive and even beautiful in outline and effect; it should, however, be borne in mind that the requirements to produce a fine artistic effect, are not, by any means, in the amount of ornamentation put on, but in the kind and in the adaptability of the ornaments of the building. In other words, what is put on for the purpose of ornamenting should be in the right place, and look as if it belonged and had a purpose there. Many times this is overdone, and the building when completed looks more like a thing constructed upon which to nail tawdry or illy-designed ornaments, than a harmonious whole, with each part blending with the other, and making an object that will attract attention, and challenge admiration, and upon which the eye lingers spell-bound, while the effect on the memory is of something-beautiful.

All this is very simple of explanation. Sometimes we look upon a house that has this attraction for us, and when we come to think over the amount of ornamenting done and the cost of the same, we are almost astonished that so little could attract attention; but it is simply the arrangement of the design of the building that produces this effect.'

The front entrance, the portico, and the entrance doors should, we think, be the place to show the most taste in ornamentation. This is the point that must command the most marked attention. Let the outline be easy and graceful, the steps broad, and, where there is plenty of room and the expense can be borne, curve out in an easy manner. Nothing helps to make an inviting entrance like broad, easy steps.

The front doors, we think, should be a model of outline and the ornamentation in good taste. This can be done without much, if any, carvings. We think that most of the costly doors often seen, covered with carved ornaments, are anything but beautiful, and they often look burdened with unmeaning intricacies of the gouge and chisel, where something else, in rich design of form and outline, would have been far more attractive.

The portico, again, an important feature so commonly used now on city and town houses, possesses the same characteristics, that is, the same amount of work looks either good or bad according to the taste and skill displayed in the forms of finish, the dimensions of outlines, caps, etc. A column too large in proportion, may spoil the good effect of an otherwise fine portico; and the same thoughtfulness must govern the entire work.

The windows, the frames, caps, and sills must, when completed, form an outline that is easy and symmetrical, whatever the design may be. For instance, a window with a neat cap, and the sill cut short off, with nothing to relieve it on the side, or any corbel under the sill, looks ungraceful. It matters not how fine a cap it may have, there will be something lacking.

Cornices and gables, again, are open to the same criticism. A cornice may be too broad for the building, or the roof too steep for the width of cornice, either of which produces a strange effect upon the building. The gable can be ornamented in a multitude of ways that are most pleasing to the eye, or the vagaries of the jig and band saw may cumber it down with trash that is most repulsive to look upon.

We have briefly touched upon these points, endeavoring to show where beauty in the exterior of our houses may be had, and that, too, in many cases without increasing the cost, if we only use good taste, skill, and fair judgment in the designs.