I looked in this week at the Small House Exhibition at the headquarters of the Royal Institute of British Architects, which gives one a shocking picture of the way in which England is being defaced. In the past 10 years 2,000,000 small houses have been built, mostly of bad design end incredibly bad lay-out. Photographs taken from aeroplanes con-|% trast the sensible and artistic arrangement of old-world villages, grouped about a central feature such as a village green and church, with the sprawling, untidy, wasteful way in which the suburbs of our big towns are eating up the countr; Materials and constructions are mostly poor and shoddy, and sham architectural details are plastered about to hide bad construction. The only criticism of a very useful exhibition that one would make is that in trying to educate us to better taste, the architects have gone too far the other way. Most of the modern designs held up for admiration are of the ugly order; and one design of three houses in one was exactly like the tiers of trays pivoted on a single pillar, which you sec in some offices.
Miss Ellen Wilkinson, MP, in opening the exhibition, said that she would like to pass a law making it a penal offence for a speculative builder to build a house without engaging an architect. But what about the materials used? A most interes ing lawsuit has been going on for several days, in which the Bradford Third Equitable Building Society is suing a Mrs. Borders, of West Wici bam in Kent, for arrears in payment of £693 advanced to her on a mortgage on the £730 house she had bought. Evidence was given by two architects that the house was about as shoddily built as could be, bad foundations, green woodwork, sinking doors, windows that would not shut, weak floors, paper peeling from damp walls, groggy roof. A firm of builders estimated that it would cost nearly £600 to put the house in proper condition. As the case is not finished, one must not comment on ft. But I have reason to know that the. charges made by these architect Witnesses would be true of a big the Ladies' Pocket Magazine" of 1833
The Queen who figures in the "Chit-Chat" was Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, wife of King William IV of England, the bluff and genial "Sailor King" who was succeeded in 1837 by his 18-year-old niece Victoria. Miss Rothschild, whose Court dress is described, would be a daughter of Baron Nathan Rothschild who made a fabulous financial coup by transmitting first news of the victory of Waterloo—at which he is said to have been present—to the Rothschilds' London branch.
Queen's Drawinc-Room.—On March the 21st, her Majesty held a drawing-
Hanover, at which the the Countess room, which very numerously Howe, the Baroness Ompteda, the attended. The most beautiful and Marchioness of Westmeath, and the attractive dresses were:—Her Magrsr—An elegant blonde lace dress, over white gain, the boy and sleeves ornamented with mands and blonde; train of blue terry velvet, lined with white satin end trimmed with ermine. Headdzcss, feathers and nick.
Her Royal HicHNrss tue DUCHESS cv Kent.—A white crape dress broidered in gold, over white Viscountess Beresford, attended as sellers; and at other stalls other distinguished persons presided. The result cannot fail to be serviceable fe the funds of the institution, and so far so well; but we are old-fashioned enough not to be very sincere admirers of these new-fashioned charities. In where 1 rank, harm, no great In Paris now—
Often you'll sec a woman la what appears to be a simple all-black suit, buttoned primly to the neck, without a sign of colour anywhere.
Then off will come the jacket to reveal a velvet blouse in candy pink, violet, jade or some other dazzling shad Antique Brass To clean old brass without s its character by giving it too bright a finish, treat it in the following Place a little finely powdered whitening in a saucer and moisten a cloth h linseed oil Dip the cloth in the whitening and apply it to the until a film of over the whole perhaps, could result; but, on com-toon occasion uth and beauty are held to be th requisite qualifications; ing of an innocent flock ed to be mam: is hamoured into a thing, nder pretence of charity, which i itself is exceedingly objectionable itane unmask her beauties to the chariest maid is prodigal enough
oon, twas held heretofore; but
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.