Transcriber's Note: Italic text is denoted by _underscores_ and bold text by =equal signs=. THE LABOUR-SAVING HOUSE _BY THE SAME AUTHOR_ WAR RATION COOKERY (The Eat-less-meat Book) LEARNING TO COOK 10/- A HEAD FOR HOUSE BOOKS NOVELS THE HAT SHOP MRS. BARNET-ROBES A MRS. JONES [Illustration: _PLATE I_ A FINE OLD RAEBURN MANTEL-PIECE AND FIRE-PLACE FITTED WITH A MODERN "DOG" GRATE AND GAS FIRE AND ALSO WITH GAS "CANDLE" STANDARDS] THE LABOUR-SAVING HOUSE BY MRS. C. S. PEEL [Illustration] LONDON: JOHN LANE THE BODLEY HEAD NEW YORK: JOHN LANE COMPANY MCMXVIII The greatest Labour-Saving apparatus which we possess is the Brain: it has not been worn out by too much use. _SECOND EDITION_ PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN BY THE ANCHOR PRESS LTD. TIPTREE ESSEX AUTHOR'S NOTE Some portion of this book appeared in the form of articles in _The Queen_ and _The Evening Standard_. My thanks are due to the Editors of those papers for permission to republish them. DOROTHY C. PEEL. CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE i. Why do we need Labour-Saving Houses? 3 ii. Labour-Saving Houses and the Servant Problem 7 iii. The Labour-Saving House as it Might Be 29 iv. The Labour-Saving House as it Can Be 53 v. The Work of a Labour-Making House, and the Work of a Labour-Saving House 73 vi. Other People's Experiences of Labour-Saving Homes 87 vii. Other People's Experiences of Labour-Saving Homes (_continued_) 119 viii. Coal, Coke, and Gas: How to Use Them to the Best Advantage 141 ix. The Electric House. Cooking, Heating, Cleaning and Lighting by Electricity 171 A Final Word 187 Index 189 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS