ABSTRACT
The common remark that a bare floor is so cheerless, comes wholly from the impression given by the ordinary pine floor, with its unsightly cracks, the appearance being quite the opposite to the effect of a well laid parquetry floor in keeping with the character of the room in which it is laid. The general objection to European parquetry in this country is, that in laying it on the floor of any room in a finished house, it will raise the floor about an inch above the others, making it necessary to cut off the bottoms of the doors. American parquetry is of uniform thickness of one quarter of an inch, and is composed of alternate strips of walnut and oak, or of one kind of wood only, which may be either oak, cherry, maple or walnut. Rugs are extensively used on such floors on account of their convenience in keeping the room clean and free from dust.
