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The Commoner.
Vol. a, No. a!.
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THE HOME DEPARTMENT.
Put Out the Lights.
Put out tho light. Tho curtains draw
asldo.
Tho vigil's done; opori tlio -windows
wldo. i ,
Tho ghostly gleam of ovoning's fading
light, TV
,Tho deathlike stillness of the middle
night, . , ',
Tho monstrous fancies of tho fovored
brain,
,Tho trembling grasp of lifo, tho puls
ing pain
fAro over. Sot dlsordordd things to
rights.
Tho Jiawn is hero at last; put out tho
lights.
Let in the morning's freshness. As a
dream
It, flows upon us In a fragrant stream
Of strengthening. Par on its joyful
way
rA soul Is travelling to Immortal day,
Safeguarded in tho path that saints
have trod
By lovel lances of the light of God,
Feasting new-opened eyes on holy
, ?ishts, ,, , ;
Jts, night forever done. Put out jtlio
- lights.
The birds break out in song. Away
with grief!
Joy Is the blossom of sincere .belief.
Sorrow at best is but a mist-born
wraith.
Take up again life's duties in .the
";, - faith ..... j,.. ,
'Untouched by Xear, , untainted , by a
doubt
For ti3 God's dawn will break when
lights are out.
For us an endless morn and glorious
, sights
When come to us tho words: "Put
out the lights."
.Ross Deforrls, in Youth's Companion,
Honoring: Mother.
Boys, do you read tho biographies
pi the men who have made their mark
.In the world? Risen to distinction
among men? Do you not always'read
what good mothers they had? Very
little said about the fathers; mothers
get the praise. Their mothers might
have been the noblest of women, and
yet never have been heard of had not
those' sons risen to "call them
blessed.",
' "Whether they had, or not, exception
ally wise or good mothers, these men
by drawing the eyes of the world to
their own achievements, have also
shown the mothers behind them, col
ored by their sons' character. And
the worlds goes down onto its knees
and does homage to vtheso dear old
white-haired ladies whoso sons have
wrung honor and famo from its re
luctant grasp.
, But some of the tender est and truest
mothers in the world go down to thoir
graves, their virtues unsung because
of their sons' dishonor. Tho world
never knows of them; if it meets them,
It turns aside. "Who is she?" "Oh, she
cannot be much such an one is her
son; and hoi anything but an honor
to tho community;" Dishonored, be
cause of hor son's dishonor!
And after thoso sweet and tondor
hearts break because of tho ignominy
heaped uponnot themselves! They
have asked no praise, sought no rec
ognition; but unon tho head thoir poor
lips havo kissed when ho was a little
boythe little white-souled boy, now
a man, spotted with shame!
So you see, tho verdict is always the
same llko his mother. Be ho good or
bad, mother stands just behind him
mother "reaps as she sowed." This is
the verdict of tho world, whether just
or unjust
0
And mother mother Who believes In
him, when all other faith has failed,
who sees the littlo, white-souled child
always, though all tho murky
shroudings of guilt and shame;
motHor, who kneels and kisses his
foot, no matter what mire clings to
thom; and who, no matter how low in
vice and crime the hardened man may
have sunken, sees only "her boy"
oh, the loving, hoping mdther who
prayed for him; who always prays
for him as she prays for no other,
and who never will give up that there
is no good in him that he will yet'
show that she know him best! Poor,
yearning, clinging-hearted mother,
how pitifully hard' it is for her when
tho world scorns hor because of hor
scorned son!
Boys, did you ever hink of this?
You have no friend' in all the human
world like this one north star lovo to
which you may always turn, sure of
finding it when it is sought. If your
mother can say of you before the
world, "I can trust my boy," no heart
In all the world will be so light, so Joy
ous as hers. Though she may be poor,
and toiling, and careworn, no wealth
would tempt her to exchange with the
mother, who, having all other good,
is yet so poor if she .havo cause to be
ashamed of her son; the son who
might havo crowned her old age with
.the lillies of distinction, vet -who
burled her spotless name beneath the
deadly night-shade of his own shame
and dishonor.
Flower Talk.
The success of the window-garden
depends largely upon tho work done
in tho early summer season. By Sep
tember first, your plants should bo
well-nigh ready for the house, well
rooted, thrifty and-stocky, and should
be gradually acclimated tp house con
ditions before being permanently shut
up indoors for tho winter.
"Those who wait until a sign of frost,
then rush out and dig or oftener pull
up some big, sprawling plant, full of
bud and bloom, hurriedly pot it with
water and set it at once in tho full
sunshine of the window, need expect
nothing but failure Tho plant may
live, and may perfect tho bud and
bloom already provided for, but after
that you will have but an unshapely,
"leggy" specimen, with at best but a
tuft of leaves upon the tip ends of its
branches. These are the kind of peo
ple who havo no 'luck" with house
plants.
To havo plants do well and bloom In
doors, one should take young seed
lings, or rooted slips early in tho sum
merpreferably In June pot them in
as small pots as will hold the roots
comfortably, shifting into larger as
thoir growth demands, pinching out all
buds and straggling branches, Induc
ing a shrubby,' stocky growth, keep
ing down all insect pests, syringing,
watering and encouraging as thrifty
growth as possible, by keeping the
pots in a cool, moist place.
To root soft-wooded plants, such as
geraniums, Coleus, fuschlas, petunias,
heliotropes, etc., one should select a
thrifty branch, not too soft, or it will
rot instead of root; it should neither
break nor bond, but snap off smooth
ly; trim off the larger leaves and cut
it smoothly across just below a joint:
let the slip be threo to five Inches long,
though a shorter ono will grow pro
vided tho wood is hard enough, but it
must snap off smoothly. Take a box
four -inches deep, nearly fill it with
leaf mold or, good rich sandy soil,
water thoroughly, "and into this stick
your slip, firming the soil about it,
set tho box in a warm place, and keep
the soil always moist, not wet.
Many hard-wooded plants may be
propagated in the same way, thougn
these must be cut off with a sharp
knife. A good way to root oleander,'
lemon verbena, artemisia, and many
other shrubby plants, is to Jill a wide
mouthed bottle with water put the
ends of thecuttings in.tho water, and,
as roots appear, fill, in with sand; or
soil, allowing tho water to evaporate
until the soil will hold together, break
the bottle and pot your plants. They
must not be potted until well rooted.
Drainage is not so necessary in
small pots during the hot months, as
your greatest trouble will be to keep
the soil moist, and prevent drying
out. The pots may be sunken in moist
soil, in a warm, shady place. Keep
the plants clean and growing, and al
low no bloom, while out of doors.
Do not overpot; a plant that will
dio in a four-inch pot will grow
thriftily In a "thumb, pot" which is
the smallest size.
There are many things which only
experience will teach you, but if you
love your work, you will soon learn
its needs, and how to meet them. Plant
culture will teach you a world of pa
tience, and a "beginning" may cost
you several dollars, until you learn
to take proper care of your plants.
You will probably, at first, literally
kill them with kindness, but do not
allow yourself to get discouraged. It
is best to begin with plants that will
bear a great deal of abuse, both from
over-nursing and neglect; but try to
havo a few "green things" growing in
your windows the coming winter, and
now is the time to begin your plan
ningand potting.
word. And, by the way, it would bo
good idea if tho boys should, try to
find out'for themselves, both by in
quiry and observation, what tho "irae
sense" of the word gentleman is, oe
is not.
In tho first place, then, it does not
mean tho boy who spends his leisure
hours loafing on the street corners,
perhaps spending his pocket 'money,
for cheap cigars and learning to-swear
and use coarse language. It does not
mean cultivating a low swagger, or
slang language, with the mistaken no
tion that it "makes a man" of them.
Men are not made that way, though
human animals usually are. It does
not mean tho boy who calls his father
"governor," or the "old man;" or
who calls his mother "the old woman,"
or the "old gal." It does not mean
the boy who is impudent, or loud
mouthed, 'or brazen, or selfish, or cruel
to smaller boys, and ugly and brutal
to little girls. It does not mean any.
of these things. ,
It does mean the boy who forgets to x
wipe his feet on the door mat, or hang
up his hat and coat in tho hall, or who
commands his littlo sister to do his
bidding In the many little acts of ser
vice he may feel privileged to call
upon her Xo perform. ' "
It does not mean the boy who-frets
and stews when mother asks him to -go
on an errand for her when he is
just ready to run out into the street
to join some young companions. Gen
tlemen do not scowl, or snap, or snarl
at ladies and your mother and sis
ters are ladies, yqui know. You "would
, knpek any r boy , ) dprn) -"that" ' dared., to -
Insinuate otherwise; you know you
would! And serve him right,- too.
You'd be a "poor stick" if you would
not
Now these are some of the things
that no gentleman would be guilty of
doing, and if you do any of them, then
it behooves you to think tne matter
over and go to your mother, kiss her
cheek and ask her to tell.you what, in
those cases, a gentleman would do.
She knows. Bless you, yes! Mother
knows. A boy's mother knows nearly '
everything, and she does so love to
tell her little boy the best 'of it all,
when he puts his arm around-her and
kisses her, and shows a desire to bo
himself, a gentleman.
("
Our Boys.
In every well regulated homo there
is, or should be, a boy, or boys. It
would "be a poor place without them,
and I know every one of tho dear lit
tle fellows wants and intends to bo a
gontloman, in the true sense of the
Ready-Hade Housekeeping.
Furnished rooms and light house
keeping now largely takes the place"7
of the old-time boarding house and .tho
home kitchen, doing away with tho
range or stovo and the almost endless
array of utensils once so necessary to
the preparation of viands from tho
raw material.
While such an arrangement greatly;
simplifies the duties of the house
keeper, it does not entirely satisfy the
idea of a home for one brought up in
"mother's" kitchen, and on mother's
cooking. Yet to the man of small
means or the woman forced to spend
all or part of her time in wage-earning
it seems the solution of a very
difficult problem that of how to feed
and shelter a family at the least pos
sible cost and with tho least possible
labor on the part of the one who
must carry his or her strength to the
labor market, in order to provide oven
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