Many cabins, belonging to the Americans, have no ceiling nor windows, and some of them have no floor, nothing but the bare earth; and some are not mudded, but open on all sides. Locks to doors are nearly unknown, but wooden bolts are common with the English: many of the American houses have only a latch, and some have not even that.
A double cabin, with a 20-feet porch between, with floor and ceiling, finished as above described, may be built for the sum of 150 dollars, 33_l._ 15_s._, or something less. But with ceiling, floor, and doors, made of sawed boards, will come, I suppose, to near 50_l._ Sawing comes very high, being 9_s._ per hundred feet; but the sawyers cut { 173} down the trees and go with the horses that draw them to the pit.
The cabin I inhabit first consisted of a double one, with a porch 20 feet wide between them: this I have since converted into two rooms; the end rooms are of logs, the centre ones of frame and board, with a brick chimney. At the back of the cabin I have added a cellar, &c. Smoke-houses are very common, and built much as dwelling-houses, only slighter, and not often mudded. Some cross-pieces are put on the joists to hang the bacon on. I have built one; it cost 23 dollars; it is about eighteen feet square and nine feet high. We are obliged to cut our flitches asunder, as we have not sufficient height above the fire. Old wood, nearly rotten, is best for drying bacon, as it makes much smoke and but little strong fire. The fires are kept burning a considerable length of time, as bacon, in this warm climate, requires to be well dried, to keep. The Americans, do not, in general, I think, allow sufficient { 174} salt. The average price of salt near three pence per pound; bacon from eight to twelve and a half cents per pound; in summer it is sometimes rather higher; now (August) from ten to twelve and a half cents.
Farm-buildings are not yet numerous. Corn-cribs are built the same as cabins, except that they are placed on logs, so as to stand hollow for some distance from the earth; the bottom is made of cleft pieces, laid pretty close. They are built of different lengths and widths, but about six feet on the inside is deemed wide enough, as corn will dry in them better than if wider. The roof is only drawn in on one side, which two lengths of boards will cover. As they lay the top pretty flat, they most times take off the greater part, or the whole of the boards, when filling them with Indian corn ears, as they only gather the ears. When full, or the whole growth of the year is put in, the boards are put on, and the weight poles again laid on. Should a heavy { 175} shower, or even a set rain, come on whilst the corn-crib is filling, as the bottom and sides are not close, not being mudded, it will soon dry out again without damaging the corn. I had one built, for 15 dollars, that will hold upwards of 600 bushels of corn in the ear. I suppose, it would hold near 1000 bushels of cleared corn. The Americans never shell theirs till it is wanted for use or market; but most of what is sold, is in the cob or ear. They measure it by barrels; that is, they fill an old flour-barrel, then shell and measure it, and from the produce of it they calculate on the whole number of barrels sold.