The cheapest knobs are of composition and are commonly called "mineral", " jet", or "porcelain" knobs. Wood finished in natural color is used to some extent, and glass as well. All of these are sold with bronze shanks and escutcheons. A better Blass of knob, and perhaps the most satisfactory of any, is the brass or bronze metal, either wrought or cast and finished in a variety of shapes and with a wide choice of finish.
Bolts. Of greater protection than locks on a door are bolts, which, being operated from one side only, are secure against picking.
The simplest and least noticeable of these are the mortise bolts which set into a hole bored in the edge of the door and are operated by a knob or key on the face. Chain bolts are a protection in calities infested by tramps or desirable intruders. These sist of a strong chain which is secured to the frame, and hooks into a slotted plate on the door, allowing the door to open only to the length of the chain, which not be dislodged except by again. closing the' door. (Fig. 90.) Miscellaneous. The many small fittings such as coat hooks, drawer handles, cupboard latches and the like, should be selected for strength and utility rather than for effect, and are the most satisfactory in plain bronze metal or brass, and can be obtained of good manufacture and materials at moderate prices.
Inspection. The inspection of hardware is an important mat ter, whether it is furnished by the owner or the builder, as any changes made after fixtures are once applied arc sure to produce defects of some kind.
What purports to be bronze may be some baser metal skillfully bronzed or lac quered on the face. This may be detected by scraping the back with a knife or file.
The faces of locks or bolts may be plated instead of being solid. T\nobs may be poorly secured to the shank, and may lack proper washers to prevent rattling, and hinges may be fur nished with no washers and will soon wear and creak. In the application of hardware also it is necessary to keep a sharp watch. Even in so simple a matter as putting on door hinges there is a right and a wrong way, for if the butts are not directly over each ether, the door when opened will either swing back or forward.
Mortises must be accurately cut so that the locks will neither be loose nor be so tight that they cannot be removed if required. Roses
or escutcheon plates Must be put exactly opposite each other or else the spindle will bind in the lock. Knobs must he carefully adjusted by means of washers so that they will not slip back and forth. Striking plates for latches (Fig. 91) must be carefully cen tered and adjusted. While all hardware is usually packed with screws finished to match, the screws are often too small and their efficiency destroyed by being driven in with a hammer by careless workmen.
This should never be allowed, but every screw should be set with a screwdriver.
Good sized screws are especially impor tant in door hinges, and the hinges them selves must be of ample size to allow the door to swing entirely back. The greatest vigilance is necessary to insure from defects of selec tion or application, and nothing will reflect more credit upon the superintendent than a good job of hardware.
Floors. When the inside finish has been put up, the rough under floors should be gone over and all holes and broken boards repaired and the floors cleaned off, ready to receive the finished floors. The laying of these, if they are of hardwood, is sometimes let out to a regular floor-layer, but in general this is done by the carpenter. For the carpeted rooms a good quality of spruce flooring not over four inches wide will be used laid with square-edged boards. If possible, the boards should be laid in one length, and if this cannot be clone, the joints should be broken as often as possible. With boards of the same width they can be broken every course, but when the boards arc of unequal width there will be a straight joint through three or four boards. The nails of a square-edged floor are driven through the face of the board and sunk with a nail-set, to be puttied or not, according to whether the floor is finished or left bare, and a line should be drawn where nails are to be driven, over the center of the joist below.
Floor Paper. Between the upper and under floors it is well to lay a deafening of paper. This may be an asbestos felt, which is valuable on account of its fire resisting qualities, or a common floor paper may be used, and should be put down in two thicknesses.