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The Commoner.
8
VOLUME 10, NUMBER 3
'Helen Watts Mty
Homesick
It stands afar, 'mid sun-lit fields
A llttlo farm houso, brown and
old,
With ancient, gray and tlmo-stalned
walls,
And sloping roof of gold.
And I, a wandoror from tho dusty
town,
Grown woary of Its heavy ways,
Wistful, from off tho hot, white road,
look down,
And long for olden days.
For thoro, tho nights wore blest with
qulot sloop,
Tho days woro filled with happy
cares;
And thoro tho skies seemed .ever
moro to keop
A tlmo for peaco and prayers.
Thoro, youth and laughter, joy and
hopo and lovo
Sang In my heart a happy song;
Ah, mo! tho song Is hushed forever
moro
And lost tho streets among.
And now I stand and gazo with heavy
heart',
Across dear Holds In longing sore;
To whoro another woman, happier
far,
Looks from tho low, gray door.
O, llttlo farm houso, old and brown
and sweot,
I wako, when all tho world's at
rost,
And dream of you, and long for tho
old poaco
And tho untroubled breast!
Pall Mall Gazette.
'I
Alono in tho World"
Ono novor realizes tho discomforts
of loneliness quite so strongly as dur
ing the winter season. Yet there are
many lonely people in tho world. Tho
man who has no family ties, no sym
pathizing companions, no gonial rela
tions with his follow men, is indeed
alono in tho world. Wo are told that
lonollnoss Is but tho result of voli
tion; but whatever it may have been
in tho olden dayB, it is not quite truo
of today, when everybody looks with
suspicion on ovory other body who
happons to bo unknown to thorn. It
is not easy to make friends and ac
quaintances, especially in tho city.
Many womon livo for years in a
neighborhood, yet ardly got on
Bpoaking torms with their next-door
neighbor, and even though tho
speaking" torms are established, it
may bo 'long boforo thero is tho
slightest effort or offer toward socia
bility. Many peoplo really mope in
Bolitudo whon they might bo finding
friends. They gradually got tho
habit of staying at homo, and are
thus growing moro and more separate
from thoir kind, until they aro
dropped out and forgotten. They be
come soured and embittered because
of tho fanclod neglect, and tho world
can do without them. One of tho
ways to become acquainted is
through attending church meetings
If you aro unknown, mako yourself
known to tho minister, and express
your desire to know his congregation
Bhowlng yourself friendly, and you
, will at least find two or three X
f liko yourself, are alono in tho crowd
, and a friendship will grow out of It
, Thoro is nothing so depress ng as
(SSSOl,tUd0' .Mankind fccoS-
rtitutionally gregarious and social
and can not livo a solitary life with-
iUi0 ?UnB th0 editions upon
which tho mental health depends
Begin tho New Year with a resolve
to cultlvato your friends and thus
broaden your own outlook.
"Fresh Eggs"
When a nurse or physician is mak
ing up a diet for thd invalid, thero
Is almost sure to be a reference to the
"fresh egg." In many cases, it is
tho "strictly fresh egg" that is or
dered; yet how very few of us ever
soo or handle a really fresh egg
ono of tho old-time "just laid" kind!
It Is said that thoro are over 11,
000,000 dozen eggs in cold storage
at tills date, and that tho'doalers aro
buying up the fresh eggs as fast as
possible and holding them until they
can throw tho millions of dozens of
stalo eggs upon the market, forcing
tho public to buy, or to do without
oggs. When they are plentiful in
tho spring, they aro bought and put
In storage, and throughout the year
this buying and storing goes on, and
tho stalo eggs are unloaded upon the
peoplo tho year round, in many in
stances being labeled as "strictly"
fresh. Even the family that "keeps
a few hens" In the back yard know
little of tho taste of fresh eggs, be
cause tho egg laid in the poultry
prison has very llttlo in common with
tho one made up of tho food of the
range. If one would study tho busi
ness, and mako a business of it,
poultry raising surely "has money in
it;" but it must be treated as a
strictly business proposition.
'For the Woman's Sake"
A certain spirit of reserve prevents
tho well-bred man making a scene
of any kind, no matter what the
provocation, when ho is in company
with a lady. Ho knows well that her
name will bo in a measure mixed up
with any account of tho affair, and
ho also knows that a band of
"roughs" may prove too much for his
fistic powers. So it is a good thing
for the man who is favored with the
privilege of escorting his sisters and
their girl friends, or perhaps the
friends without tho sisters, to decide
upon tho proper course to pursue in
tho event of such happening, so ho
will have his wits about him. And
It Is the right thing for tho girl to
do to try to understand what sho
should do under such circumstances
that may prevent Involving her es
cort, if it can be prevented'. Per
haps tho best way is to ignore any
remarks heard, pass through any dis
orderly crowd as quietly as possible,
not with an arrogant, conscious atti
tude, but naturally. As a rule, the
roughest men show respect to a mod
est woman, and this will often carry
both through an ordeal that other
wise might result in much unpleas
antness. Ex.
Frames for tho Hot-Bed
In many instances, oiled, ' water
proof cloth will answer eveipur-
?M? lZ h? h0t r Cold framVs, wa
it is much less expensive than glass
Common white muslin may bo used
and tho simplest way i8 to saturate
on" hS!" WU,h PUro w iKed
oil, this may bo put on tho ointZ
after it Is stretched on the ?ramG?
Another way is to take three ntots
of pale linseed oil, one ounce of
sugar of lead, four ounce of whi?
rosin Grind and mix tho suglr of
lead in a little oil, then add the ?Sw
materials and heat ian iron VeUl
applying hot with a brush TW?
stout manilla paper may be streffi
over a frame and pasted firmly down
with fresh flour paste, then painted
on both sides with boiled linseed oil;
but this is not so lasting as the mus
lin, nor to bo recommended where
the muslin may be had.
For .corned beef, the best pieces
are the rump and brisket; cut in
suitable sizes, rub with salt and let
lie for twenty-four hours, then rub
with molasses or brown sugar and
leave for three days more; then
wipe well; pack down with salt to
which has been added a small quan
tity of saltpeter, to give the "red"
color. But a small quantity should
bo used, as saltpeter hardens the
meat. Rub these in well, and turn
every day for two weeks; then drain
off tho brine, boil, skim and pour
back boiling hot over the meat, doing
this every day for a month. Two
pounds of brown sugar, six pounds
of salt and four ounces of saltpeter to
100 pounds of meat, is the right pro
portion. The brine, or pickle, must
cover the meat entirely at all times.
Mending Sliirtwaists
A waist of thin material wears out
on the shoulders and just below the
collar in the back. Tho think- htips
wear out under the arms and on the
under parts of tho sleeves. When
a break is discovered in a yoke of
min goods, embroidery or lace, baste
under it a piece of the sheerest ma
terial obtainable; batiste, organdy or
Swiss muslin will do; extend the
mending material considerably be
yond the worn place. With No. 200
cotton, draw the break gently to
gether on the outside of the waist;
turn it over and tack the organdy to
the figures in the embroidery, and
trim off the raw edge. Where thero
is a break between tucks, place or
gandy under as before, and sew the
edges firmly under the tucks. Darn
with lengthwise ravelling of the or
gandy. To mend a -waist under tho arm,
rip the sleeve from shoulder seam
to under arm seam, and a little past
It; then, underneath the last tuck,
cut off the front from shoulder seam
to bottom of waist, straighten the
edge on a lengthwise thread of the
goods; replace with new material
that has been well shrunken and
seams allowed, shaping by the piece
removed. If the goods is figured, the
new piece will be set In the neatest
07 overhanding. All thin waists that
will do for wear next season should
be put In thorough repair now, as
spring is not so far away. '
Fish as Food
Poisoning by ptomaines (chemical
compounds formed by the action of
micro-organisms) is popularly Bup
posed to be one of the dangers at-
!S5 S.up?n eatIng fish; although
not without some 'foundation, this
SSSiM agree WUh aCtUal faS, as
ScS 5G? are, nVGr foun(l in fresh
fish. Poisoned fish Is no commoner
than poisoned meats, probably, and
fish ST""7 dangerou. &o2
fish (and the same may be said of
frozen meats) after having been
thawed and kept for some time tin
' f llke to contain i sha
of ptomaines; canned fish ought to be
eaten at once after, it has been
opened, never left in the can!
A Catch-Ail Bag
Cut two pieces of bed-tickinir
l10?,?8 Bquare bind tteXu?
sides together with fancy tape, or
bright bias cloth put on with fancy
stitching. In the center of one of
the pieces cut an opening about five
Inches in diameter; bind the edges
of this opening with tape or the
bright colored bias strip, and run in
a whalebone; fasten a piece of tape
twelve or fifteen inches long at four
equal distances around the "opening,
and tie the loose ends in a bow-knot
at the top. Across each corner feath
erstitch tape, the same as around the
sides; decorate each corner with a1
bowknot of the tape, and attach a
bow-knot of tape at the center of the
back piece, which, when the bag is
hung up by the tape strings, will
sag down, making the bag. This bag
can bo laundered, and will serve for
no end of purposes, and is just the
thing for collars, laces and handker
chiefs for the laundry.
For the Constipated Bnbo
If a breast-fed baby has this
trouble, it lies with the mother to
be careful of her own diet, partak
ing of foods that will promote regu
larity, which will help the baby. For
the bottle-fed, or weaned baby,
prunes prepared in this way are ex
cellent: Wash clean, then soak over
night; stew slowly all day, or at
least several hours, in water enough
to cover them. When they have be
come softened, break the skins so
the inside can cook out into the wa
ter; sweeten slightly with brown
sugar, and strain through a cheese
cloth, if for a bottle-fed baby; a1 lit
tle of the water put into the nursing
bottle is the easiest way to give the
juice. If old enough to eat, the pulp
may be mashed through a sieve and
fed to him.
Using Canned Goods
In nearly all households, we have
come to the "canned goods" stage,
this month. Most of the fresh fruits
are either gone, or are so high-priced
as to be beyond the daily expenses,
and it is a fortunate housewife who
has well filled shelves from wrhich to
draw variety. While much of tho
"home" canning is above reproach,
a great deal of It has doubtless been
Indifferently done, or poor materials
have been used. Much of the "store"
canned supplies are poor, if we buy
the cheaper grades, and often the
high-priced grades are not to our
liking. But the factory-canned
things are usually very good, If we
get a good brand. As soon as the
cans are opened, the contents must
be at once emptied Into a dish, or
vessel, as left standing In the tins,
they are apt to create a poison; or,
if in a' glass, the admixture of fresh
air is quite an aid to their flavor.
Many canned vegetables need a good
rinsing in cold water, before use.
Pour the contents In a colander and
dash clear water freely over them,
letting it drain away at once. Near
ly all vegetables can be thus rinsed
peas, beans, asparagus, and the like.
There are bo many nice ways of
warming up and serving canned
goods that it is well to study the
cookery books and experiment. vIti
is not what we have in the larder, bo
much as how we make use of it.
There are wonderful possibilities in
a can of corn, or tomatoes, or sal
mon, peas, beans, or other vegetables
and fruits.
Now is a good time to use the dried
fruits, and if well prepared, many of
them ate even better than the canned
goods. I am going to ask our friends
to let us have their favorite recipes
for such cookery, and hope they will
send them in as Boon as possible.
Do not be afraid thero will be too
many of them we can make room
for anything that is helpful.
For Superfluous Hair
One of our readers asks if there
is any "safe and sure" way for the
removal of superfluous hair from the
face. Conservative toilet specialists
If mi
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