Mrs. Lance Rawson

“ I once saw a slab hut in the bush lined throughout with cretonne; it was fastened down with brass headed tacks, rows of them placed close together round the doors and windows. The effect was better than paper. The large bush fireplaces look the better in summer for being draped with cretonne on each side. Some ladies close them in altogether with a screen on which are pasted Christmas cards or pictures of some kind. In warm weather one is glad of all the ventilation one can get, so we do not close up our fireplaces. ”

“ The groove must be always one inch deep and one inch wide. Showing slabs fixed in groove on wall plate, and between battens on sleeper, the easiest way to fix the slabs is to nail on one batten first, and when all the slabs are in their places nail on the second.
Having learned to face the posts, wall plates and sleepers, it will come easy to dress the slabs, though in this sort of hut they need not be very particular. Many experienced bushmen are expert hands with the axe and adze, and can dress their slabs as smoothly as sawn timber. ”

“ When all are dry and the screen covered, the whole can be varnished; a shilling's worth of varnish will more than do it. Photographic views look very well on a screen, better, I think, than the cards. A screen is very useful to hide an unsightly door, or to stand in a draught. ”

“ A square of shingles is 6 ft. x 6 ft., and takes 600 shingles to cover. In this plan I have allowed joists for flooring, slabs to be used for the purpose. The one house is as easy to build as the other, the only difference being in size, and that is very slight. If you can afford to build your house of sawn timber, so much the better for you, as a house so built is far preferable to one of the slabs, though I have seen the roughest hut (externally) made beautiful with the aid of canvas or cretonne inside. ”

“ Shingles are the most trouble, as they have to be split first, and 12,000 shingles to be split, bored and put on is no simple matter. Regarding the gable ends of the hut, if possible it is best to board them up with weatherboards, but if impracticable then of course slabs must be used, and nailed on to the gable ends.
For the chimney, a good plan is to make a sort of wall of stones a few feet in height all round the inside of the slabs, then above the slabs weatherboard it right the whole way up. All doors must be made of sawn wood. ”

“ These are what I purpose giving, as there is really no reason why one should not build a house from written directions any more than one should not make a table, cupboard, or any other article of furniture. ”

“ Iron bark the best of them. Choose trees not less than four feet in circumference, smaller than this they are not worth felling, and the larger they are the better provided the grain of the wood is all right. In iron bark take a tree with a good rough straight running bark. Sometimes the bark twists as it were round the tree, somewhat like a screw, on no account choose a tree of this sort or your slabs will be crooked and useless. In gum notice the bark also, cut a good sized notch or wedge out with the axe, and you will then see if the grain runs fairly straight ”

“ A few of them may need the stronger hand of a man to arrange— such as shelves and tables put up, carpentering done, and such like. There really is no reason why a lady should not be able to use a hammer as well as a man. If you can only get possession of the tools and a supply of nails you can be independent. A room that one furnishes and decorates entirely by one's own exertions is thought more of, I think. ”

“ Bloodwood has the same characteristics as gum. Stringy bark always runs free, and is by far the easiest of all to work. There are many other varieties of wood, but all spring from the four I have now mentioned, for instance, there is blue gum, spotted gum, red gum, all equally suitable for building. ”

“ You have here before you the whole plans, working and manner of putting together a four roomed hut, which is the usual bush house a selector builds when he first takes up his land, that is if he is a family man and requires accommodation for more than himself. ”

“ Book Shelves and Writing Table. —Most bush houses are built with two rooms in the front, two at the back, and skillions behind again. We will take the sitting-room first, or rather drawing-room I suppose I should say. You have two French lights in that room; usually the space between can very well and advantageously be filled with book shelves. Get a man to make them if possible; if not set about it yourself. Get two pieces of board the height and width you want your shelves, shape each end so that it is thin enough to drive a nail through to fasten it to the wall ”

“ I have shown how the slabs are put in, they must be adzed at each end to fit into the grooves top and bottom, and made to go as close as possible, a little manipulation being necessary to make them fit close. If shingles are to be used the battens on which to nail them must be laid across the rafters at intervals of a few inches. In the far bush, bark is used as a roof very often, and in that event it is a very simple matter to put it on. ”

“ A westerly aspect is the most unpleasant, on account of getting the full force of the afternoon sun, so you require to study the question a little, noticing which way the sun shines, and from which quarter the wind and rain comes most severely and then decide upon the position of your house. ”

“ If a man makes your shelves he will cut grooves for the shelves, and doubtless it looks better to see them nicely fitted, but a woman is seldom a clever enough carpenter to manage this. If your shelves are placed high you can make a small writing table underneath them so: Get a board about 2ft. wide and nail two sloping pieces of wood under tohold it up. ”

“ For the windows two studs are placed from sleeper to wall plate, and shorter pieces placed to form top and bottom, which pieces must be mortised into the studs, the same to form the door ways, have a short piece of studding across the top securely mortised or fitted into the upright studs on each side. ”

“ Always build your house on the highest part of your land, unless it should happen to be among hills in that event you might possibly choose a low part of the allotment. But of all things be sure you are within reach of good water, as it is very inconvenient to have to carry water a long distance, or indeed any distance at all. ”

“ The most difficult part are the feet, or supports for it to stand on; they must be made like a clothes-horse—indeed, an old clothes-horse makes a very good screen altogether, it only needs being made higher. Black linen is a very good foundation to stretch across your frame. ”

“ A very good arm- chair can be made with a case and some boards or battens. Knock out one side so that your feet can go under it; now nail three upright battens, one at each corner, and one, or perhaps two, at the back; round this tack a broad piece of calico or canvas and upholster it the same as the ottoman. A kerosene case makes a very good bedroom chair turned upside down and the lid nailed on at an angle, then the whole dressed in cretonne or chintz. A pretty double ottoman can be made of two old chairs fastened back to back. ”

“ But unless he meditates settling at once, or within a short time of arrival, it would be foolish to bring them as he may need the money he would spend in their purchase, and they will not improve by lying by, and if he sells them here it will most likely be at a considerable loss. With the list I give the probable price of each tool, so that a man purposing to build can have some slight idea of the outlay he must go to. ”

“ I teased out the old stuffing and laid it in first, but for springs I was greatly puzzled, as the old ones were very little good. However, I had a quantity of steel by me the ordinary steel that used to be worn in the old petticoats; it was the widest, and very strong. This I cut into lengths some inches longer across than my sofa, and fixed seven or eight of these across in my stuffing; it did not give the same effect as the springs, but it kept the stuffing in its place and from sinking flat. Over all that I tacked strong canvas, and on top of it put another layer of stuffing ”

“ I may mention here, that an emigrant who purposes settling and making a home for himself directly he comes to the country (of course provided he can spare the money to buy them) , cannot do better than bring tools with him, for one thing he will get them very much cheaper in England and possibly better, and if he brings them he will not have freight to pay. ”

“ Mix your gold and silver paint according to the directions, and with a small brush gild the leaves you wish to treat. Anyone with taste can arrange a group, and either with or without the dyes and paints they make a handsome centre ornament for a drawing-room table. ”

“ They look well and are just as useful as a palm fan. The handle can be made firm by passing it through one of the boards as one would stick a needle into a needlebook. If the screens are made of dull-coloured wings they can be brightened by being dipped in some Judson's dye; this makes them all one colour, and really very well they look.
Skeleton Leaves.—Most people have seen groups of skeleton leaves, but few know how beautiful they can be made by the help of the diamond paints. ”

“ Fire Screens are very easily made with the wings of birds spread out and securely fastened in that position, and the tail feathers arranged so as to hide the join, the head of the bird being fixed in the centre. ”

“ Face your sleepers and cut tenons and shoulders like the diagram, there are ten of them of various lengths according to their place in the building. See ground plan. Make the sleepers fit securely which they will easily do if the mortises and tenons and shoulders are properly cut. Next fit in the studs where your doors and windows are to be. ”

“ One or two blows with the maul will generally start them, but even with a free running tree you require to watch the grain of the wood and see how it runs, as sometimes they run off or out, stice off as it were, then you must put your wedges into the opposite end and what is called "meet the fault." ”

“ These are things which can be made in quite a hundred different ways, shapes, and materials; indeed it is almost impossible to suggest any new ideas, yet some people may not have seen old horseshoes utilised in this way. You get an old horseshoe, and cover it smoothly and firmly with any piece of silk, velvet, &c., you have by you. Some people may save themselves trouble by twisting the stuff round the iron ”

“ Get a sound half egg shell, sink it in the ground carefully, pass a piece of wire, bent at the top, through the shell and into the ground to form a handle for your line, then pour in the melted lead till level with the surface, let it cool and you will have as good a plum bob as you could buy. ”