COMMODITIE, FIRMENES, AND DELIGHT.* THESE, according to Sir Henry Wotton,
are the "conditions of well-building," and the definition is one which it would be hard to better. The quality of " delight " is not perhaps essential to building as distinct from architecture unless the word be used to express the comeliness inherent in sound and reasonable construction. Such beauty is not of a high order,
• (1)Buitcling Construction. Vol. I. (" The Architect's Library "Series.) By Beresford Pite, F.R.I.B.A.., Frank T. Baggallay, F.R.I.B.A., H. D. Searles. Wood, F.R.LB.A., and E. Sprague, Assoc.H.Inst.C.E. London: Longmans mad Co. [18s. net.] (2) The Construction of a House. By Ch. Gourley. London: B. T. Botsford. but it is frequently the best of which conditions will allow. In humble structures any attempt at abstract architecture is likely to appear unduly pretentious ; in the works of the engineer it is generally felt to be incongruous. The appear- ance of " Commoditie " and " Firmenes " often brings with it "Delight" sufficient to the occasion, and this power of pleasing by evident fitness may reasonably be demanded of all good building.
Construction, pure and simple, is therefore not undeserving the attention of the architect. It may prove suggestive when his aesthetic resources are powerless from lack of scope. It will often reinforce the appeal of his art to the eye by the appeal to the mind of means well adapted to an end. In much of the finest architecture these two appeals are indis- solubly associated. The aesthetician might profitably essay an analysis of this association, though his task would be a hard one.
No such attempt is to be found—nor indeed to be expected— in Messrs. Bell's new volume on " Building Construction." The book, however, is notable, inasmuch as the leer writers responsible for it are practising architects. This fact accounts for the excellence of the illustrations, which are apter, clearer, and better drawn than any of the kind which have ap- peared since the copper-plates of Peter Nicholson. It also accounts for the absence of building mythology, such as the elaborate and impossible carpentry joints insisted on by the mystagogues of the examination room. In fact, the means and methods described in the book are those of common practice, a concession to usefulness which is little short of revolution. Professor Pite and Mr. Baggallay describe the processes of brick and stone building in a practical way that is very welcome, and Mr. Searles-Wood's article on carpentry reaches as high a standard. He is, however, a little ahead of the times when he ignores wood-framed partitions entirely on the ground that they have been superseded by partitions formed of patent slabs. This is not true at present, and it is uncertain that it ever will be. Mr. Sprague's article on iron construction is the best in the book, perhaps the best of its length that has yet been written. It is simple, complete, and very merciful in the amount of mathematical knowledge pre- supposed in the reader. The volume which these four sections compose will be of the greatest use to the student, and might well be adopted as a textbook for examinations.
Another publication that is excellent of its kind is Mr. Charles Gourlay's " The Construction of a House." Under this title the author produces a complete set of working drawings for a house of moderate size intended as a model of what such things should be. The intention is fully realized and the plans, sections, elevations, and detail drawings are remarkably thorough and workmanlike. Less complex than the miracles of fruitless labour which are the peculiar vanity of American architects, Mr. Gourlay's firm lines and neat execution are considerably in advance of the customary English technique. In point of fact the book is Scottish in origin, and the design of the house to be constructed betrays this in every detail. This peculiarity, however, in no way unfits the work to serve as a guide to English students, since in all essentials the methods in both countries are the same. The publishers might well consider whether they would not be repaid for issuing a second edition in colour ; the conventional hatching employed to represent tints detracts from the simplicity of the drawings, which is their most excellent quality. Mr. Phene Spiess' well-known book on draughtsman-. ship shows the advantage of such colour plates. In every other respect there is really little room for improvement, and it is to be hoped that the collection will enjoy the success that most certainly it deserves.
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