"The ridge-dormers are placed in pairs, at the very apex of the roof. They are opened and closed only once a year—in the spring and fall respectively; and are so arranged that no rain can enter. ...if the air in the room is warmer than the outer air, it must rise and escape through the ridge-dormers. ...If, during a heated spell, the lower windows and and doors are carefully kept shut, the air inside may be maintained several degrees cooler than the outer air. ...the coolest air of the twenty-four hours will find its way through them, taking the place of the warmer air which escapes. ...cooler air can be trapped in the house and held there during the day. ...hot air, being lighter, does not descend into cool air."

“The best art, and the only art which will ever lead to great results, must have for its basis the interpretation of beauty in nature.”

“Instead of the dormers, skylights... are easier to make and operate, need no double sash, cost less, and some may prefer their appearance.”

“One of the most ancient and inexpensive ways of obtaining shelter, was to utilize the space under sloping roof rafters. Indian wigwams have no other kind. Where civilization is slightly more advanced, low stone walls are built upon which the feet of the rafters rest.”

“In the human form, as nature tries to make it, every feature is useful and every feature is beautiful. Each member is perfectly adapted to the function it has to perform; nothing is superfluous, yet the whole and every part is supremely decorative.”

“It is hard to change long-established building habits; such habits sometimes endure for ages in certain localities with little or no change. It is, however, easy for new communities to acquire bad building habits.”

“Refinement. While the possession of this quality is due, in the first instance, to education, it is also largely a matter of temperament.”