It is impossible to have a sweet home where there is continual dampness. By its presence chemical action and decay are set up in many substances which would remain in a quiescent state so long as they continued dry. Wood will rot; so will wall papers, the paste used in hanging them, and the size in distemper, however good they have been in the first instance; then it is that injurious exhalations are thrown off, and the evil is doubtless very greatly increased if the materials are bad in themselves. Quickly grown and sappy timber, sour paste, stale size, and wall papers containing injurious pigments are more easily attacked, and far more likely to fill the house with bad smells and a subtile poison. Plaster to ceilings and walls is quickly damaged by wet, and if improper materials, such as road drift, be used in its composition, it may become most unsavory and injurious to health. The materials for plaster cannot be too carefully selected, for if organic matter be present, the result is the formation of nitrates and the like, which combine with lime and produce deliquescent salts, viz, those which attract moisture. Then, however impervious to wet the walls, etc., may be, signs of dampness will be noticed wherever there is a humid atmosphere, and similar evils will result as if wet had penetrated from the exterior. Organic matter coming into contact with plaster, and even the exhalations from human beings and animals, will in time produce similar effects. Hence stables, water closets, and rooms which are frequently crowded with people, unless always properly ventilated, will show signs of dampness and deterioration of the plaster work; wall paper will become detached from the walls, paint will blister and peel off, and distemper will lose its virtue. To avoid similar mishaps, sea sand, or sand containing salt, should never be used either for plaster or mortar. In fact, it is necessary that the materials for mortar should be as free from salts and organic matter as those used for plaster, because the injurious effects of their presence will be quickly communicated to the latter. Unfortunately, it is not alone by taking precaution against the possibility of having a damp house that we necessarily insure a "sweet home." The watchful care of the architect is required from the cutting of the first sod until the finishing touches are put on the house. He must assure himself that all is done, and nothing left undone which is likely to cause a nuisance, or worse still, jeopardize the health of the occupiers. Yet, with all his care and the employment of the best materials and apparatus at his command, complete success seems scarcely possible of attainment. We have all much to learn, many things must be accomplished and difficulties overcome, ere we can "rest and be thankful."