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10
The Commoner.
VOIAJME G', NUMBER 52
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Our Yesterday
Ah, why turn back life's blotted page
To dwell thereon in vain regret?
Better to turn the new page o'er
And strive to pay the old one's debt
By largesse of the living thought
That moves on glowing word and
deed,
Through pain and wrong and pathless
night,
Straight to the heart of other's
need;
.Making of self Love's servant true,
' ,Who waits not for the clarion Call,
But holds in an o'erflowing cup
Some drops of tenderness for all.
If lovingly, through each new day,
Swerveless we walk life's nobler
-. ways,
Then, one by one, our God shall wipe
, The stains from all our Yesterdays!
Selected.
Taking the Offered Opportunity
A well-known writer says: "To
hear the wail that goes up from pris
oners of poverty, one would say that
Vomen desired nothing so much as a
chance to earn money. Yet never, in
a lifetime," can I recall going to a
woman for help, whether in typewrit
ing, sewing, or housekeeping, that she
was ready to undertake the work at
eliminate the garden talks, as garden
ing matters do not, according to the
writer, belong to the Home Depart
ment. Gardening for profit, in a. finan
cial sense, may not, .but gardening for
food supplies to the home table cer
tainly does bear strongly on the health
and comfort of the family. And right
now is a good time to call attention to
this fact, Little can be done in the
out-door garden this month, but the
work for the spring and summer
should be well mapped out before the
demands for it overtake us in the
busy season. Between most of us
and the first furrow lie many days of
storm and cold, ice, sleet, snow, cold
rains and frozen fields. But far to the
southward the gardens are already be
gun. Much reading and planning may
be done between now and the opening
of the springtime in many sections.
In a v6ry short time the hot-beds
should be started. If you have never
had a hot-bed, you have lost much
good eating in the way of radishes,
lettuce and other "green things" that
can be had at a very little cost, as
well as an early stock of plants for
transplanting to the open as soon as
the weather will permit. Bulletins
giving instructions for hot-bed making
and managing can be had from the de
partment of agriculture, Washington,
D. C. These early "gardens" nnn he.
had by the village and city family, as
Once. No rnn.ftp.r what. rhr omorironnv
or now liberal the pay, or how great well as on the farm, and the vege-
i. utcu, sue was never reuuy at me uimea uius raised win save many a
call to put on her apron and" set to
wqrk. She wanted to see Tier cousin
across the river, or to wash out a few
collars, or finish a dress, or make a
call,, or do something which put off
the order a day or a week, or even
longer, until the need no longer , ex
isted, and when she at last came, and
I tol.d her some one else had taken
the job, she was highly incensed be
cause I had not kept it for her."
, I am reminded of this, because 1
have recently gone out of my way sev
eral times to get work' for women
who, to all appearances, absolutely
needed the little the work would have
brought them. In some cases, the
opportunity offered was but an enter
ing wedge that would have admitted
them to larger .opportunities and reg
ular salaries, but they were never
ready to accept the call, and so I had
my work for nothing. If a woman
really wants work, she must keep
herself ready to answer the call, no
matter what it is or at what hour
it comes. She must be ready to drop
personal interests, or keep them so
in hand that when an opportunity
comes, and she is asked how soon she
can do the work, her answer shall be
"at once." The business woman must
learn to "turn on a pivot and stop at
a touch" in short, to follow the Di
vine command, "Be yo also ready, for
iu quuu uu nour as ye know not"
your call will come. Especially is
this necessary in doing journalistic
work, or furnishing "topical" articles
Tor periodicals. A woman who is to
be depended upon, and who has the
ability, will hardlv fnii to rmf v x
she is willing to prove what she can
do before demanding "regular rates"
that only experienced ones can be
sure of getting.
"Gardening for Profit"
One of our readers thinks Wo might
AW OLD AND WKLLTmnrn RWMKDY
, 5H!?'WlN8I.OW'B SOOTHING STOUT for ohlldwi
rind ?nii Ht0is8.,th0,gums' "" a Pain, cures
nickle that must otherwise be spent
for the bruised, withered things that
are shipped in from southern locali
ties. If the home-made hot-bed were
one of those contrivances calling for
furnaces, steam-pipes and close-fitting
layout that would cost much money,
we should hardly advise it for the
small family; but the work is simple,
calling for a few boards,-one or more
window sash and glass or even a few
yaras or oiled muslin, a little labor in
digging, a load of fresh stable manure,
good garden soil and a determination
to succeed, with the application of a
little brains and common sense meth
ods, and with these, any one should
not fail to succeed, -supplying the table
with the very parliest and nicest fresh
lettuce, radishes, etc., at a very small
cpst. "Why not try it this season?
Changing a Pattern
It Is a difficult matter for the ama
teur seamstress. to enlarge or reduce
the size of a skirt pattern, still it can
be done. It hardly pays, however
when patterns can be bought so cheap
ly; but sometimes one is where a pat
tern can not be obtained, when to
wait to send for one is out of the
question, and one is forced to do the
best with those at hand. Sunnose n
pattern cut for a twenty-two inch waist
measure is to be enlarged to fit a
twenty-eight-inch size. There will be
s x inches to add, and in a six-gored
Skirt this WOUld hfi r1nnQ i," VZ Jf
half an inch to each side of every
Piece of the pattern. For a four
gored skirt, three-fourths of an inch
must be added to each side in?
ducing the size of a pattern, the best
Sth $La PlaIt Vn thG enre
Sf,,;1 eadi core, being sure to
Lo, Plalt in the cent of tire
gore. Where an old skirt is tn ho
niade over, a nine-gored pat ernwm
of ffvnd mre 8ei'viable than one
SoSSi as sma11 piecos may he
the family, refashion out-of-date
dresses, and make- over all garments
which must serve for further use with
out having to bo strictly in style. In
selecting a pattern, get the exact size.
For the sldrt, allow two inches for a
lap, and order the pattern of this
size. When you are ready to begin
cutting out, have some one measure
from- the waist to the floor, subtract
one inch, and this will be the proper
length for the front. Always measure
in the center of the front. Then
measure the center of the front of
your pattern; if it is longer than your
own measure, cut the difference from
the bottom of each section of the pat
tern; if not long enough, add paper
to make it the required length. This
is much easier for the amateur than
to lengthen by cutting the pattern and
inserting the additional length. If
you are a beginner, always choose a
skirt pattern with seven gores rather
than ono with three or five, for the
wide pieces require extra care in bast
ing. If your skirt is a little larger
around the bottom than you wish it
to be, or than the goods you are mak
ing over will allow, do not cut from
the sides of the gores, but lay a plait
at the bottom edge and press it up
ward; this will not affect the top of
the skirt but will reduce the width
gradually.
In making up plaid goods, be care
ful to match the plaids nicely, or the
skirt will appear crooked. After hav
ing cut the material, pin each seam
closely before basting together, and
thus avoid puckering. Let each seam
be at least half an inch deep, as a
wide seam presses better than a nar
row one; dampen the seams a little
when opening them, and press open
carefully when finished. Do not have
the seams wet, or the iron too hot. If
the raw edges are not to be bound,
trim, and overcast neatly. Leave the
upper part of the back seam open a
sufficient distance to allow of the skirt
being passed over the head comfort
ably, when finished. Sew a facing of
the goods three inches wide on the
left side, press the seam, and hem the
other edge down on the under side,
forming a lap a little more than an
inch wide. Face the other side of the
placket and press it. Lap thavfaced
side over the other, and tack it into
place at the bottom. The placket
may be closed with invisible hooks
and eyes. Baste your skirt accord
ing to directions on the pattern, into
a band, and stitch it on; then baste
down the band and hem it. Nearly
always, one hip is somewhat lower
than the j)ther, and this requires a
little trimming at the bottom of the
skirt. Put the skirt on, and get some
one to see that It hangs evenly, and
pin it so the bottom is even all around,
after which baste close to the edge all
the way round, finish with hem or
facing as it suits you, and put on the
braid, Loops should be set on either
side of the belt by which to hang the
skirt tip when not in usu Housekeeper.
For the Seamstress
This is the season when the house
wife may make up the underwear for
Picture Books for the Children
There are so many beautiful pictures
floating about on the printed page,
not only in the advertising pages of
tho high-class periodicals, but in every
kind of paper, that one is at a loss
how to preserve those especially liked
One of tho ways is to let the children
spend some of their spare time, on
stormy days and during long evenings
h making scrap.-books of them. .Many
books which, have outlived their use-
fulness, or which never had any ,ar.
ticuar value to the family, maV
E?ied,' iCUlting 0Ut every 8amd 1
of the ?pnf Sd, PaSth!g n b0th J"
?! ofi eaf, tbat remaIns. If the work
s neatly done,-such a scrap-book win
he a thing of joy not only to ho
young pipture lovers, but to the on
ones. A durable book, which will l , t
a long time, can be made by taki--cotton
goodsold calico, or linings cvn
he used cutting the desired size i..r
pages, and being careful to cut air,,,
the thread or weave, so the pages w i
hang straight," and pasting the pi--tures
on these. The leaves may be
cut into pieces a little more than
twice the size of the page wanted; fold
evenly together through- the center
making two leaves, and sew together
on the fold as many pieces as you
wish, giving two leaves to the piece
Paste all kinds of pretty pictures on
tho pages, as you would in a book.
Run a bit of bright-colored tape or
ribbon through the back, tie in a neat
bow, and see how nice it, will be. Let
the children do the work themselves.
Experience will teach there how to
do the work neatly. In the work, a
love of the beautiful will be devel
oped, and many -beautiful thoughts
awakened.
For the disagreeable breath so often
afflicting children and adults, get char
coal, either in tablet, or in pulverized
form, and take it internally. The tab
let form is the most inexpensive, and
directions for taking will be found
on the package. The pulverized form
can be had of the druggist, and rubbed
into a paste with a little honey or
syrup, and swallowed readily. It is
perfectly harmless, absorbs the odor
of the contents of the stomach, and
sweetens the breath. A teaspobnful
several times a day is sufficient. A
few doses will do the work.
A Neat Box'r ' '
A pretty box, or trunk, for holding
the new dollie's wardrobe may be
made from a small cracker, tea, or
other light wood box. It should have
the top nailed on securely, and tho
closed box should be then sawed in
two, giving the shallow part a depth
of two or three Inches for the lid.
On the outside of both pieces, stretch
tightly and smoothly some suitable
colored denims, cretonne, table oil
cloth, or the like, and tack securely
in place with brass-headed tacks,
either to simulate trunk markings, or
in some neat design. The inside may
be slightly padded, if desired, and
lined with some bright color, or some
pretty paper may l)e used. Join the
lid to the body with brass hinges, fin
ishing the corners with brass corner
pieces, and fasten the lid down with
a brass hasp, or hook and eye. On the
ends of the box, screw brass handles.
The box may have a shallow till or
.tray set in the top, if desired. The
whole need not cost more than fifty
cents for the brass trimmings, and
the size may be any ttiat is desired.
Such a box is both ornamental and
useful.
Now that "detaohed hair" is coming
into use for the toilet in the many
forms known to the hair dresser, it
will be well to take care of the comb
ings. A -neat receptacle for these can
be made of a square of window-screen
wire, eiglit to ten Inches, by lapping
two sides to form a point at the bot
tom, and fastening them together with
wool yarn or silk floss in some fancy
stitch, and working over the edges
and around the top opening. The wool
or silk should be of'some bright color.
On the point at the top of the opening,
a neat ribbon bow should be sewed,
and under it a ring or loop for hang
ing the receptacle. Many pretty and
useful articles may be made with
bright woolen threads and screen
wire, A wall pocket for holding
gloves, or bits of ribbon; comb and
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