the whole heat product of the fuel. From the careful tests of Gen. Morin, the deduction is made "that of the heat generated by the fuel in an ordinary fire-place, about one eighth only is utilized in the room."

The Jackson Heat-Saving and Ventilating Fire-Place largely remedies both these defects. As will be seen by a reference to the accompanying engraving, fresh air from immediately outdoors is taken into a shaft directly under the grate, and enters a chamber beneath the fire, where it is partially heated, and thence passes into chambers surrounding the back and sides of the fireplace, and it conserves in these the heat that is usually lost in the brickwork of the fire-place. Passing thence in the direction of the arrows, this now heated current circulates about the tubular flues, five in number (one of which is distinctly shown in the cut), which convey the smoke to the chimney above. Finally, this heated air, which, it will be observed, is pure air from outside the building, enters the room through the open frieze of the grate-frame, and from its levity ascends in a current to the ceiling. A double office is thus fulfilled. A very large part of the heat usually lost in the fire-place is conserved and added to that directly radiated from the fire, making the grate equal in heating power to over three ordinary grates of the same size; and an amount of pure warm air, equal to that taken from the room by the exhaust of the chimney, enters from the heat-saving chambers, and thus all drafts from the windows and doors are prevented. A continually augmented volume of pure warm air, occupying the higher levels of the room. and a continual draft being made by the fire-place from the colder, impure air from the lower levels, keep up a constant atmospheric circulation, and thus automatically the room is thoroughly ventilated.

Figure 11 represents the cold air as being conducted under the grate by means of a flue constructed of wood, such as is generally used with a hot-air furnace; and in placing them in chimneys. already up and in use, it will be found a convenient way of adapting the grate to the purpose required.

In the construction of a new house, the pure air from outside may be brought in more directly, as shown by Fig. 12; and a front and back view of the grate is introduced to show more clearly the

practical working of it as a device for warming and ventilating an apartment in which it may be placed.

The essential requisites of a good fire-place are also given in the language of the designers, Edwin A. Jackson & Brother, 77 Beekman street, New York city.

Rightly constructed fire-places should and can be made to fill three essential conditions, that, named in the order of their importance, are as follows:

First. They should keep the rooms in which they are placed always filled with pure, circulating air. In winter this air should enter as a warm current, with a volume sufficient to change the whole air contents of the rooms at least every half hour. This volume should be adequate to fully supply the exhaust of the chimney, and thus to prevent any tendency to draughts of chilling air from the windows, or of impure air from other parts of the house, drawn under the doors.

Second. They should be essentially heating apparatuses, fully competent to thoroughly warm the rooms in which they are situated without the aid of furnace heat. To effect this result they must possess about three times the heating power of ordinary grates, seven eighths of whose heat is wasted in the chimney.

Third. They should be large, generous fire-places, with their cheering, healthful, radiant, blazing fires, as near as may be similar to the famous fire-places of olden time.

The fire-places most in vogue now, fill the last condition only, and in many cases fail even in this, being often liable to smoke and deficient in power to produce a brilliant fire.

They obtain their whole supply for the chimney draught from air drawn in, piercing cold, from around the doors and windows, and thus produce currents that are detrimental to health. Where this is prevented by close-fitting doors and windows, the fire-place must inevitably smoke.

They utterly fail to heat large rooms, since only about one eighth of the whole heat product of the fuel is utilized for warming the room, the rest being lost in the brickwork of the chimney, or dissipated up and through the chimney flue.

The above described fire-place fills all the three conditions named.

SUBURBAN SCHOOL-HOUSES.

BY WARREN R. BRIGGS, ARCHITECT, BRIDGEPORT, CONN.

Under the stimulating influences of what is known as Sanitary Reform, the outgrowth mainly of the systematic organization of state and local boards of health, there is in some localities a laudable desire among the school and building committees to improve the general condition of existing school-houses, and in those about to be erected to embody, in a greater or less degree, the lessons taught by sanitary science and practical experience.

While the spirit of this movement is to be highly commended, it is to be deplored that however conscientiously the advocates of better structures for school purposes may labor, they almost invariably fall far short of the desired results. This is directly attributable to several causes.

First, the stereotyped school-house is always before them, and is usually taken as a model for the new building. Committees and teachers are alike slow to depart from the established custom, fearing, if unsuccessful in their efforts to improve, the severe censure they are sure to receive from the community. Many valuable suggestions are not adopted from this cause, it being considered better to leave well enough alone, no matter how bad "well enough" may be.

Second, local prejudice against hygienic reform. The ancient inhabitant classes it with all other modern crazes and new-fangled notions. "In my school days," he argues, "we had no such nonsense, and children were healthy and hearty enough, I am sure. Why should they not be so to-day, with better buildings, and all the so-called 'modern improvements"?" It is true that we have "modern improvements" of all kinds, not only in our buildings, but in our studies as well. The time has been,

when a few months' schooling each year in the rudimentary branches was considered an almost unwarranted luxury. The greater portion of the lives of the youth of both sexes was spent in manual labor, thereby strengthening them physically, without taxing the mental powers. They lived, as a rule, in a country thinly populated, and had at all times an abundance of fresh air and exercise. Malarial and contagious diseases were comparatively unknown. Modern civilization and improvements had not contaminated either the soil or the air, as is the case in our day. I venture to say, that, if we could take the healthy, robust children of fifty years ago, and crowd them into our modern badly ventilated, poorly heated, and imperfectly lighted school-rooms, confining them in the unwholesome atmosphere five or six hours daily, subject them to our forcing system of education, and continue this strain for the greater portion of each year without the least thought of their physical culture, the healthy child of "ye olden time" would quickly be reduced to as unhealthy and puny a stripling as the majority of our modern school children.

The very salvation of the child in those days was the small amount of mental labor, and the vast amount of physical exercise required of him. The state of the community at that time required that it should be so, while in our day it is exactly the reverse. It is as absurd to compare the school system and buildings of those days with what is now required as it would be to put the ancient stage line in competition with the railroad.

Third, penurious and short-sighted economy in the appropriation of small sums for the construction of buildings.

The average parents will cheerfully provide their children with suitable, and often expensive, clothing; will indulge them with costly toys; obtain for them special teachers in music, drawing, etc., all without a murmur. But should there be a special tax levied to help pay for a new school building, or should he be asked individually to contribute a certain sum for that purpose, you will usually find him as stingy and close-fisted as a miser.

I put it to any thinking man or woman,-which would be most beneficial to our children, money spent in useless toys that please for the moment only, or the same sums invested in the construction of healthful school-rooms in which they may pursue their studies?