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8
The Commoner.
.VOLUME 3, NUMBER 9.
Dual Lives.
iWo lead two lives tho outward seem
ing fair,
And full of smiles that on tho sur
faco He;
Tho other spent In many a silent
prayer,
With thoughts and feelings hidden
from tho eye.
Tho weary, weary hours of mental
pain,
Unspoken yearnings for tho dear
ones gono,
Tho wishes, half-defined, yot crushed
again,
Mako up tho silent life wo lead
alone.
So, happy visions that we never
voice,
Gild all this silent life with sweet
romanco,
That they will fado like sunset's
clouds, wo know,
Yet lifo scorns brighter for each
stolon glance.
This hidden life wo littio know Its
power
To strengthen us for elthor good
or 111;
Whether wo train our thoughts, like
birds, to soar,
Or lot them wander wheresoo'er thoy
will.
Not those wo lovo this silent lifo
may share,
Though day by day wo strivo to
draw them closo;
Our secret chamber nono may enter
there, ,
SavO 0110 Who HOVGr Rnnlrn rnnnnn
And if, beneath His eyo wo do not
quail,
Though all tho world may turn from
us asido,
Wo own a secret power that shall pre
vail Whon every motive of our lifo is
tried. Selected.
Tho kingdom of home is a beautiful
realm,
Its subjects tho truest that ever
were seen,
,Whon tho fathor rules with a strong,
wise hand,
And a loving mother, its faithful
queon.
But a desert land is tho kingdom
cold,
Whoro Solf Is lord, and Might is
king;
Whoro lovo lies dead, in its poisoned
bod,
And dread and doubting to all
things cling.
Heart Talks.
Friends, there should bo no place
for "waste" in tho homo whether it
bo within "four walls," or on tho
printed pago; hence there is no waste
basket hero. Every letter which
roaches mo is road, closely, carefully,
thoughtfully; some of thorn aro re
read many times. Whon I lay thorn
aside, I ond a mental "thank you,"
to eackof tho writers. There Is a
receptacle, howovor, to which thoy
are conslgned-I think I shall label
it tho "Help-Box," and I shall go of
ten to this box for tho inspiration I
shall find there. Nono of your let
ters aro barren of thought, or fail to
awaken thought In mo. Tho fact that
S?nSod A0 holp ,me-that you have
taken tho time and pains to point out
to mo tho way in which you think I
may use my position as your editor
fw, hVUrt!10r!ng of the interests an J
deepening the influence of our depart
ment is an inspiration in itself.
uui ieur mat your kindly inter-
est, as expressed by your written let
ters, will not bo understood or appre
ciated. Every letter is looked upon as
a kindly hand-clasp, an assurance
that that tho high consideration in
which womanly worth and intelli
gence is held by Tho Commoner is not
without substantial grounds. These
"women talks" which appear upon
tho Home pages of the various news
papers and periodicals are of wide
significance for good or for evil; they
are like tho seeds sown on good
ground thoy must grow, and bring
forth wheat or tares; or worthless
grasses may rob us of the hoped-for
fruitage. Wo do not want the tares;
we 'lo not want tho worthless grasses.
Lot -us have tho seeds that shadow
forth tho fitting harvest We cannot
shirk our responsibility we are, in
deed, our "brother's keeper."
Timely Topics.
The new designs in wall paper are
decidedly effective, and many of them
are offered at very low prices. From
a sanitary point of view, the tinted
walls aro preferable, and are gaining
in popularity. The wall decorations,
carpets, furnituro and furnishings
should harmonize.
A carpet should bo always chosen as
a background upon which the other
articles of furniture are to be placed,
and should, from its neutral features
have a tendency rather to improve, by
comparison, objects placed upon it,
than command for itself tho notico of
tho spectator. It should vie with noth
ing, but rather give value to all ob
jects coming in contact with it
ik a.
More and more, rugs are growing in
favor, as they are so much easier tak
en care of than heavy carpets. In
purchasing a rug, care should be tak
en to select a medium weight, heavy
enough to Ho on the floor without
turning up at tho corners, yet light
enough to be lifted easily and
cleansed. A rattan beater should be
used for cleaning them. Very dura
ble rugs may be made of old ingrain
and brussels enrnnts nf nr.
- - v , mu iii UA1JCUQC
for warp and weaving of about 75c
not cnnntiA .! Tn
vw. BHuuio jui-u. ror dining and sit
ting rooms, rattan and reed rugs are"
nice for summer use. They can be
washed in salty water, wiped off with
a damp cloth, or shaken out of doors.
Mber matting is durable, inexpensive
and attractive.
Couches in the working rooms aro
a great comfort to tho tired housewife
Qultj inexpensive ones can be con-
oluuuu1 y any nouse-carpenter: a
wire cot, or ono of wicker, may bo
prettily draped with linen, art denims
or cretonne, and these covers aro dur
SSIi lnPensiv. and easily laun
dered. The cot, alone, with a heavy
comfort folded and laid on it is verT
grateful to a tired back. y
twC0Di,CUrtains should not b0 oned;
they show numerous bulging nlacps
where the lace has been stSedTe
sldes receiving injury to the design,
SSS rpiDg a leaf or flower to one
1 rtJhT aI? movabl frame con
structed for tho purpose of dryinc
them. Tho price varies from ono dol
lar upward. Very good work can be
done without them, If one hi carefSl
Small Economic!
wif? $. Ca?efu1' By8tematic house
wife, the phrase, "house-cleaning"
means more than tho mere lifting of
carnots. rlnsHnn- f A. " ."b ?L
Htno-i """iuro, scrub
bing of floors, scouring of woodwork,
papering and painting. Much that
may be classed in this category is of
such a nature as to admit of its being
done at odd intervals, better before
than after the heavy, actual upheaval
has begun. In "making ready" for
the work proper, all closets, shelvlngs,
trunks, drawers, and other "storage"
places should have a thorough over
hauling, the contents sorted and con
signed to their proper places in the
household economies.
A ETfn.t mnnv nrlrls nnH nnrlcj fTofhor
in spite of one and much of it is real
ly of no earthly use to any one, and
should be consigned to the rag-bag or
the flames, if no other immediate use
can be found for it What is found
to be of present or prospective value
should be assorted, and placed in
proper boxes, bundles or other fitting
places, and thus room be made for
the really useful by destroying the
useless.
All draperies should be taken down
from windows, doors and wall open
ings, well dusted, and carefully looked
over for rents, needed darns, or spots
that require cleaning. Such as have
to be laundered should be properly
cared for, and put in readiness for re
hanging when called for,., .
All bed-linfn ntlrl onvarlnnf oli-.i1l
receive, attention before being laid
nalrlo CVinnU 4-V...1. 1 - if.
v. ouccw mat snow a tninness
in the middle will last much longer
by being torn in two lengthwise, the
selvage edges joined by overcasting, or
sewn in a flat seam on the machine:
the thin, torn edges should be neatly
hemmed, and all actual holes either
darned or patched. Sheets that are
too worn for this should be laun
dered and put away for old muslin.
In patching sheets, use the corners of
old sheets not new muslin.
Pillow-slips seldom repay patching
or darning, and might as well be put
with the old muslin.
Blankets may, like sheets, be torn
apart in tho middle, and turned, but
it is often sufficient to darn the thin
places with fine yarn. If the blanket
is of sufficient worth to repay the
out-lay a large patch, or lining may
bO baSLGfl nvnr fho 4-v.J,, l" . ,
M4. i 1 T 7. "w mm ueuter ana
Jf engthwise on the machine,
cat-stitching the edges on all sides
22? fl,?llor very flne yarn- "Button
holing the raw edges all around with
yarn and a crochet hook is often pre
ferable to hemming them. If in need
of laundering, this should be attend
ed to, and the blankets put away for
the summer. Often a thorough
'switching" m a hot sunshine is 1 11
that is necessary.
Old comforts-especially if home
mademay have the covering ripped
off, and the cotton laid out in a amart
shower, on a grass or other cTean
Plot and allowed to dry in the hot
sunshine, after which they may be
re-covered and are "as good as new"
?iXi St0rf articl' however, is gen
erally made of very poor cotton-batting,
and may be only lumps and
wads, of very little, if any, So
nJB may bo darned o -even
Jat?edW0r' if very thin may bo fold
ed together and stitched, making ov
eel lent wash rags, dust cioths o? pol
ishing rags. ' p01
Table lfnen may bo patched, darned
or made over. Worn places mav
greatly strengthened by Sin LuZ
fine cotton thread, by imiKe
weave of the material; b7?uttinE
match the figures, patches bo&p it
on scarcely noticeable, by darning S
edges down carefully on wi, g,lle
For patching, cut off a s?ripf Jo"1 '
end of the cloth. If the clothi the
beyond hope, napkins ty1
tho best parts and hemmed nicely
serving no end of uses about the din
ing room and pantry; or, by folding
and stitching lengthwise, they may bo
use for bread, or cake cloths, or tow
els for polishing silver and glass
ware. It is never wise economy to put such
things away unmended. The fall days
will find you justas busy as you are
now, with the added tax of deferred
mending clamoring for attention
Have a "Half-Hour" basket, and put
all such jobs as you cannot now finish
into this, and use the spare pieces of
hours for this purpose.
Query Dox.
Beginner. The chocolate of com
merce is a dietary substance, prepared
from the seeds of several small tres
found in the tropical parts of the
American continent. The tree ap
pears to have been originally a na
tive of Mexico, but is now cultivated
throughout the American tropics and
the West Indies. The chocolate, pre
pared as a beverage, is considered a
most nourishing drink. v .
Mrs. M. A. B., Freeland, 0. I am
afraid there is no way to keep your
pie-crust, filled with juicy "material,
from becoming "soggy," after stand
ing a uay or two. Tho cause of it is,
that the moisturo soaks into tho
crust Try brushing the lower crust
with beaten egg before putting in the
filling. Bake fruit pies in a moderate
oven, having a better heat at the bot
tom than at top of tho oven, or tho
lower crust will be raw and clammy;
when done, remove at once from the
tins, or the crust will become "soggy."
Cassie, Watson, 111. Vermicilli,
spaghetti and macaroni are all made
of flour and water, the only difference
being the size of the holes in the per
forated iron plates through which tho
stiff dough is forced in the making.
Hard wheat, rich in gluten like that of
Italy, is now raised largely in the cen
tral west; so that Italian marcaroni
comes from New York, 'just as Swls3
cheese comes from Elgin. Among the
Italians, it is considered the "staff of
life," and is usually served with to
matoes and cheese.
L. E. L. Tapioca is one of the
products of the manioc, or cassava
plant, and is largely used in the pre
paration of desserts, and as a food for
children and invalids. It is light,
wholesome, inexpensive and nutritious,
and a great variety of delicious dish
es are prepared from it Sago is a
form of tapioca, and Is often called
pearl tapioca; it is a useful starch
rood; a trifle more expensive than the
ordinary form, but it cooks soft more
quickly and does not require soaking.
J. W. R., Wingo, Ky. Cement for
china: With a small camel's-hair
orush, rub the broken edges with a
little carriage oil varnish; when thor-
ofUS X $F lt Is saId that it will
stand both fire and water. Nothing is
Detter, it is claimed, than Russian
sing ass dissolved in pure soft wa
ter; it takes twelve hours to soften it
by soaking in pure soft water, then
SX8eaVle heat t0 dissolve it, after
2J U is aPPlicablo to china, glass,
alabaster etc. The pieces must bo
a mmly tosher until thoroughly
m r3 Bonuine Russian isinglass
will probably cost you 35c to 40c an
ounce.
tf" Et, A, LIncoln, Neb. Hero is
wmreel?e for whIch yu ask, for
52?inig fJesh beef; lt and the one for
dried beef are well recommended. Cut
E?Jle?f ,thin Blices' and Put In
layers in a jar-a layer of beef salt
5SS?ePD?u.on top' ar,d so on until
? d0 this the day before you bo-
WvA nc NXt day' Ut a PCO Of
v 1?Pg? ,aS an 0SS in a PQt' then
LVfSi,ke In by- layers aeain until
pnn,J ' .cover usW; it will draw
nnSS Wiator t0 cook lt tonaer; stir
occasionally, then lot cook dry. Put
nut . Q, jar in layera asain, and
mifiTiKht on until "Ml then pour
mened lard over; always keep covered
iTTiillWH