Late example, with ball turning in stretcher.] [Illustration: CROMWELLIAN CHAIRS. DATE 1660. With indication of transition to Charles II. period. (_By the courtesy of Messrs. Phillips, Hitchin._)] =The Typical Jacobean Oak Chair.=--The seventeenth century offers a wide field of selection, and many examples exist which undoubtedly were in use in farmhouses at that period. The arm-chair illustrated p. 191, with the initials "W.I A.", is evidently made for the farmhouse. It is noticeable for its complete absence of ornamental carving except a thinly scratched lozenge. In date this is from 1650 to 1700, and if made for a wealthier person at that date it would be richly carved. The adjacent chair shows the next advance in type. It is a superior farmhouse chair of the period. It has a carved top with scroll cresting. The holes in the seat, it should be observed, originally held ropes, upon which a cushion was supported. The wooden seat is an addition made in the eighteenth century. The two other chairs illustrated on the same page are later examples, in date about 1690. One of these is fashioned of chestnut. The form of these backs is related to the contemporary high-back cane chairs of the time of Charles II. and James II. But these fashions influenced the proportions only of farmhouse chairs. In arriving at the date of such specimens as these the bevelled panel is an important factor in determining the late period. Cushions had no place in the effects of the farmhouse in early days, although ropes were sometimes used to support cushions, as we have shown. But as a general rule the wooden seats show tangible signs of rough usage of centuries, and the stretcher has its worn surface marked by generations of owners who found it protective against the cold flagged or rush-strewn floor and the draughts in days prior to carpets and rugs. =The Evolution of the Stretcher.=--In making a study of the evolution of the chair the stretcher is an important factor. For obvious reasons, as explained above, no early chairs were made without the stretcher across the front, a good sound serviceable piece of British oak to stand rough wear and tear. Gradually, keeping time with the march of comfort, the front stretcher begins to leave its old position near the floor, and in later examples it is half-way up the front legs. It still had a use, and a very important one: it added considerable strength and solidity to the chair, and is nearly always found in chairs intended for use. In the series illustrated herein there are only few examples without the front stretcher. Later it took another form, as the illustrated specimens in this chapter show: it united the two side stretchers, and crossed the chair underneath in the centre at right angles to the side stretchers. Its purpose in adding stability to this class of furniture was evidently never lost sight of.