In its simple forms, and on a small scale, is very suitable work for the beginner in woodworking.

One of the most important things to bear in mind is not to be too ambitious in your early attempts. Content yourself with the simplest forms until you have attained sufficient skill to undertake more difficult buildings.

All the work of such structures as are here shown can, in case of necessity, be done by one person alone; but- unless, perhaps, in the case of the smallest and simplest houses- it is much better for two or more persons to join forces, as much time will thereby be saved, for the lumber can be handled much more easily and quickly by two than by one. This will be the best way if the building is to be done by boys, in which case by all means have some system for carrying on the work.

You know men usually work under the direction of a head man, or foreman, and, when there is no head man, they defer as a matter of course to the one of their number who is the best fitted to take charge of the work. Choose one boy master-builder, foreman, or boss, letting him assign to each his part of the work and leaving to him the decision of questions that arise in regard to the details. If one of you is clearly more of a mechanic than the others, choose him foreman; otherwise it will be a good plan to have the office filled by each in turn for perhaps one day apiece. Let the foreman divide the work as fairly as possible. That is, instead of having one boy saw off all the boards while another drives all the nails, arrange regular " shifts " at short intervals, letting the two change places and work perhaps every hour. This plan will prevent much confusion and perhaps disagreement, which might even cause the work to be given up - an unfortunate result which sometimes happens to boys' undertakings.

It is not simply starting in with an understanding that you are to take turns when one may think he is tired of what he happens to be doing, but it is the regular rotation of work and responsibility at fixed intervals that will ensure harmony and a successful completion of the work.

The situation is a very important matter which will be spoken of in treating of the larger structures farther on, but there is one thing which should be borne in mind for even the smallest play-house in the back yard of a town lot, and that is not to build it in a hollow where the water will collect to make it damp or uninhabitable. A flat roof should also be avoided, as it is much harder to keep tight than one which has sufficient pitch to shed the water freely.

You can determine the kind of a house to build and its general dimensions according to the requirements of the case, but you will, of course, wish it to be attractive in appearance, however small it may be; and therefore, in making the drawings, it is essential to have in view the block-form, or general shape and proportions. If these are not pleasing and agreeable to the eye, your house will be unattractive, for nothing you can do in the way of ornamentation or elaborate details will make up for poor shape and proportions.

To design a building (however small) with a pleasing and attractive exterior is, however, no easy task. If you can make a perspective sketch of your proposed house with reasonable accuracy, it will be a great help, as the regular working drawings (the plan, elevations, etc.), however well made, often fail to give one a clear mental picture of how the structure as a whole will look.

A little model will be of the greatest service in determining whether the shape and proportions of your house are good. A model is easily made of pasteboard with sufficient accuracy for this purpose. It is quite remarkable how different many objects appear when actually made, from the way one thinks they will appear, in spite of the most careful drawings; therefore do not despise this simple precaution of making a model in cases where attractive appearance is an element, for it may save you from putting up a structure which will be a continual eyesore.

The amateur (like many professional builders) is much more liable to make his work too elaborate and with too many attempts at ornamentation than to make it too plain. So give your first attention to the block-form, and then to the details. Do not cover your house with an embroidery of jig-sawing, fanciful turning, superfluous brackets, and the like, in the effort to make it pretty or to imitate the vulgar details of inferior summer cottages. The amateur is also liable in the case of very small buildings to make them too tall in proportion to their ground dimensions. A tall, narrow house is seldom homelike or attractive, whether it be six feet square or sixty.

Finally, be simple and modest in your designing, avoid meaningless" gingerbread" work, do not set your house up on stilts, as it were, but hospitably near to the ground; have generous doors and windows, avoid flashy and gaudy colours in painting, cultivate plants and vines to run over the outside, and keep the surroundings neat and tidy.

The variety of small structures from which to select for your early attempts is almost endless. You can find many ideas for your designing and the construction in every town and in various publications. Only simple types will be treated here, involving merely such principles of construction as you can readily apply to such other designs as you may wish to carry out. As it is impracticable to repeat all the suggestions and details under each structure treated here, the prospective builder who should begin with any of the later examples had best read these chapters through from the beginning before starting on the actual work.

One of the simplest and most easily built small structures that you can make is that with a single-pitched or shed or "lean-to" roof; that is, with the roof slanting only one way. This style of construction, though commonly applied to a rather humble class of buildings, is by no means to be despised, the ease with which it can be built by boys or amateurs being one of its marked advantages. You will find this simple form of building capitally suited to many purposes, and a good type with which to begin.