Where the house was located on sloping ground, which was a frequent and deliberate choice of site as protection from the force of hurricanes the living floor was approximately at the higher level of the slope, necessitating a high basement wall on the lower side. This basement space, partially cut out from the natural rock, damp and almost totally dark, and with no direct connection to the floor above, was originally used for slave quarters with its own cooking fireplace, or for storage purposes. In the present day this lower part is little used. In some cases it makes shift for a stable, and more rarely, where conditions have permitted, is made into habitable rooms and connected by a stairway with the main floor. [Illustration: PLATE 3. Diagrams of Typical Houses.] This form of building on a slope gives rise to another feature of many of the older houses, namely, the long flight of exterior steps, connecting the living floor with the lower ground level. These have brick risers and treads and substantial stone parapets with the landing at the top sometimes expanded to form a small terrace, or more rarely a covered veranda. These steps are as a rule much wider at the bottom than the top, with consequent diverging railing or parapet wall. On the landing itself, the walls have frequently an outward slant, giving a peculiar, tub-like effect. This stairway, or "stoop," as it would be called in some parts of America, with the outstretching sidewalls is known in Bermuda as "Welcoming Arms," significant of Bermudian hospitality. Another frequent feature was the projecting vestibule or waiting room in many of the houses of early date. This was a small room, square or half octagon in plan, that stood open to the visitor at all times, for shelter from sun and rain. The door from this to the rest of the house was the occupant's protection from intrusion. This room is said to have been furnished with chairs and table, and a hand bell, with which the caller announced his presence.