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The Commoner.
VOLUME 11, NUMBER 25
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National Anthems
Thoy'ro gotting up a princely
purso, and thoy will givo It to the
bard who writes sonio patriotic verso
who hits his lyre, and hits it hard.
The anthems that wo now possess
aro clanging things of brass and
zinc; they cause the singers great
distross, and drive the- listeners to
drink. And honco thoy'ro digging
up a roll to stir up some Byronic
sharp, to causo somo nobly gifted
soul to knock the stufllng from his
harp. And now the poets in their
dons will gird their loins In proper
stylo, and charge their trusty foun
tain pons, and turn out anthems by
tho mile. And when the judges sit
in state upon these hand-made songs
to pass, they'll doubtless find that
none aro groat, and all resemble
sounding brass. A man may write
such dope as mine for monoy,
marbles, chalk or fun; but when he'd
rise to strains divine, he will not
do it for tho mon. Somo day, some
tiller of tho sod, unlettered, toil
worn and obscure, alone with Silence,
Night and God, may write a song
that will endure.
Walt Mason, in "The Eastern
Trade."
cally their only one. But that will
depend on the caro given them. Our
readers should think over these
things, and decide to accept tho
"better part", even if tho money for
their purchase must be borrowed.
Givo it your thoughts, sisters.
Solving tho Problem
A writer in tho Farm and Fireside
tells us how sho simplified her house
work by availing horsolf of mechani
cal helps when the "human" ele
ment failed her. It is probable that
tho story is written from actual ex
perience, but many would say it was
simply "theory," written as a "pot
boiler," and grasped by the editor
as at least a helpful suggestion. In
the majority of cases, I am sure the
rule would work, but in a few, it
would be a waste of money. It de
pends on the woman. The writer
says sho figured up the cost of a
woman helper, wages and board, and
round it amounted to ?5 per week,
and the help was neither easy to get,
nor entirely satisfactory when gotten.
Then she counted tho cost of me
chanical labor-savers, and compared
tho two. For a year's wages, sho
sot aside $260, and this sum, count
ing everything, we all know, was
a very reasonable amount. She
charged nothing for her own worry
and disappointment over the ineffi
ciency of the human help. By much
corresponding and gathering up of
catalogues and price lists, she found
that she could, for less than that
amount, got a furnace to take the
place of the several heating stoves
in heating the house and water, sav
ing a great deal of personal labor
as regards the transportation of fuel
and ashes; following this, came a
gasoline engine by which to run the
washing machine, sewing machine,
churn and mangle, all of which could
be bought, with motor attachments,
for a reasonablo sum. A flreless
cooker was an indispensible, and,
perhaps, if she had been less limited
in pocketbook, she would have in
cluded several other things. But
sho tells us that she bought ono hot
air furnace Installed, one one-horsepower
gasoline engine, ono washing
machine, wringer and mangle, and
ono flreless cooker, for $2 less than
tho cost of the "help." Such ma
chinery should be in every home, and
it seemB to be the only solution to
the problem of the housemother do
ing her houBO-work and still keeping
well. With a littlo carq-taking,- every
ono of these inventions will last for
years, and their first cost Is practi-
Ilousehold Chats
It .is hard to realize that less than
two months ago, we were having
real "woolen-wear" weather, with so
much rain that many of us began to
grumble. Then camo upon us, al
most without warning, the hot,
scorching days that really belong to
July, and the rains practically
ceased. Tho effect of the belated
spring and the sudden dry heat can
bo seen on every hand, and felt in
every household In tho scarcity of
fruits and vegetables, while the
brchards and field crops have also
been much damaged. It is possible,
of course, that tho "latter rains" may
givo us an aftermath, but wo must
avail ourselves of every advantage
that can bo found for starting a late
crop. We must do the best we can
with the littlo or much that falls to
us, and if wo are careful and pains
taking, we shall find that much will
bo given us.
A reader asks that wo say a good
word for the old sunbonnet, or even
tho straw hat, as a head-covering
greatly to be desired if we wish to
two inches wide. Leave this strip,
not cutting clear across the breadth,
and lay your next gore, large end
down, cutting as before. In this
way, all the small pieces will be in
a string, joined together, and you
can use the portions for making
bias strappings, or pipings, having
the loft-over silk in ono long strip.
It would be well to practice this
economy with other goods.
For summer wear, nothing is bet
ter than linen or crash, ginghams
and chambrays, dimities and lawns;
organdies, cotton voiles, batiste, em
broidered mulls and swiss muslins
aro much used, and very little starch
or stiffness is noticeable in the pretty
frocks for the summer time. Linens,
tailor-made, aro much liked, with a
perfect cut and fine stitching. Linens
call for bands of self-colored materials.
shade. By this means, tho frame
will not rust, and the shade will be
like new. White and light colored
silk parasols can be cleaned out of
doors in the shade away from all
flame or fire with gasoline and a
brush, the same as with suds, and
should be left to air until the odor is
gone.
Floral Notes
preserve our hair and our com-!
plexion. The old-fashioned Bun
bonnet was a' hot, uncomfortable
affair, and kept the hair in a chronic
state of "muss." But there never
was or can be lovelior complexions
than the old bonnets turned out. It
is essential that the hair and face
should bo protected against the heat
and glaro of the summer sun, and
there are so many ways of making
pretty, protecting headgear, If only
wo could pursuade the girls to wear
them. About the house and lawn,
tho comfortable, broad straw hat is
excellent, but many really lovely
head-covers can be. made of linen,
lawn, pique and even heavy muslin.
Some of these are hat-shape, of one,
or of two pieces, and the patterns
can be furnished for ten cents each.
The edges may be simply bound,
faced, or finished with needle-work,
braid or embroidery, or frills of mus
lin. They aro neither hard to make
or to launder, and may bo. bought
ready to wear, if preferred. Some
kind of covering for tho head should
bo worn by any who wish beautiful
hair or complexion.
A Friend's Secret
When a scret is entrusted to a
friend in confidence, it should, to be
properly kept, locked up even from
his own thoughts; the recipient
should not bo content with merely
refraining from betraying it to
others; he should also refrain from
betraying It to himself. If a man
consigns a casket, containing a
treasure, to the care of another, he
will Justly feel that his confidence
has been in a measure violated if he,
comes to know that the latter has
been in the habit .of unlocking the
casket and pouring over Its contents
as if they wero his own. So, with
a secret. Tho secret still belongs
to the friend who has confided it,
and who had his own reason for so
trusting the other, and to have the
confident continually holding it be
fore tho mind is not only making an
other's property his own, but is ex
posing it to the danger of escaping
in some unguarded moment, al
though it may bo in but a form to
give grounds for surmises border
ing dangerously near tho truth, and
this may lead to much trouble.
For tho plants in tho garden,
especially the rose bed, mulching is
necessary, during the hot, dry
months. Cover the surface about
the plants with the lawn cuttings,
and keep all the moisture possible.
They are not unsightly, and water
may be poured over 'them at any
time without injury to the plants.
When showing signs of decay, dig
the clippings into the soil, and pile
fresh ones about the plants, covering
the whole surface of the ground, if
you have clippings enough.
Tho surface of the soil where any
thing is grown should be kept
stirred, as the well-stirred soil acts
as a sponge, absorbing whatever
moisture there is in the atmosphere,
while a crusted, hardened soil repels
moisture. Keep the Boil light and
mellow.
Don't neglect to water the plants
in pots or tubs; keep the surface
stirred, and water freely every even
ing, covering the soil with a mulch
of moss, grass cuttings, or other
protection against the hot sunshine.
Remember to givo the tall plants,
especially the dahlias, a good stake,
to prevent a sudden strong wind
ruining them. Dahlias have a very
brittle stalk, and they should be
tied with a soft strip of cloth, rather
than wire or twine.
Don't neglect watering the plants
intended for the window next winter.
Keep them growing thriftily. Re
member to gather the sweet pea blos
soms every day, if you want plenty
of bloom. Do not allow going to
seed, as bloom will stop when seed
begin to form. Nature's plan Is to
propagate the plants, and the blos
soming will continue in order that
seeds may be set.
For tho Homo Seamstress
Generally, the housewife will now
have her spring sewing well on to
ward finished; but there Is always
a demand for garments, and the sew
ing machine is 'never put away. In
tho avearge family, it is never out
of commission. It always pays to
do the sewing for the family, if one
has the time, strength and skill to
do it. Especially Is this true of
dresses for ordinary wear. In cut
ting out silks, it is well to remember
to lay your pattern on the silk al
ways with tho large end of tho pat
tern toward the lower edge of tho
silk; cut upwards, never downwards,
and do not cut through the whole
breadth of the silk. In cutting a
gored skirt, lay your pattern with the
wide end of the gore at the end of
tho material, and cut upward into
tho piece. At tho bottom, the nar
row end of the strip cut from tho
side of the gore will probably bo
Hot Weather Comfort
The question .of comfort in hot
weather depends upon one's reali
zation that tho body should be pro
tected from tho hot outer air, not
exposed to it. Physical scienco
teaches that when the outside air Is
hotter than tho inside of the body,
light wool is cooler than cotton, be
cause wool is a poor conductor of
heat, and protects the body from the
outer air. Nun's veiling or challie
aro cooler than dimity, lace, or thin
cotton wear, and the wise ono will
refrain from exposing the body to
the heat covered only with the thin
goods. The very light-weight woolens
are cooler than the cottons. A thin
soled shoe in summer exposes tho
foot to the hot pavements, causing
callouses and discomfort; a thin lace
or white straw hat invites the heat
and favors freckles, while lace gloves
do a llko service for the hands.
To Clean a Parasol
A writer in an exchange gives tho
following method of cleaning a para
sol: Do not rip off the cover; open
the parasol and leave it on the
frame. Wash thoroughly, using a
brush and a suds made of luke-warm
water and a good white soap, and
when clean, rinse In clear water,
using tho brush, then in water
slightly blued. If white, set In the
sun to dry. If colored, keep n the
Good Things to Know
For renovating old oak furniture,
try this: Half a pint each of malt
vinegar and raw linseed oil, mixed
with a couple of drams of butter of
antimony. Shake well to mix, and
before using, shako well again; rub
on the old furniture without fear, as
it will not spoil the color, and with
plenty of elbow grease, it will givo
it a bright and glistening result.
Nothing is better than the elbow
grease.
To clean zinc, use whiting made
into a paste with turpentine. Whit
ing mixed with water or cloudy am
monia is excellent for cleaning tin
ware, especially tin dish covers.
Paper plates, as well as wooden
ones are excellent for the picnic bas
ket. They are cheap, and when done
wun tnem, they can be thrown into
the campflre. If care is taken, they
may be used several times before
destroying.
Aluminum is being more and more
used in our kitchens, and should bo
simply washed, Inside and out, with
a good suds as soon as possible after
use. If treated thus it will hold its
whiteness for years, and only need
rubbing up occasionally with whit
ing mixed to a paste with water.
Soda and ordinary metal polish will
ruin its polish.
For tho Housewife
To clean bottles that resist all
ordinary efforts, pour into them a
little strong sulphuric acid, put in
the cork and shako the bottle for a
few minutes, then -rinse in clear
water. The bottle will be beauti
fully clean.
Brass articles can bo cleaned by
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