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The Commoner.
VOLUME 12, NUMBER
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Tho Voyage of Life
Life is a voyage. The winds of life
t come strong
From every point; yet each will
speed thy course along,
If thou with steady hand when tem
pests blow,
Canst keep thy course aright and
never onco let go.
Lifo is a voyage. Ask not the port
unknown
"Whither thy Captain guides his
storm-tossed vessel on;
Nor tremblo thou lest mast should
snap and reel;
But note his orders well, and mind,
unmoved, thy wheel.
Life's voyage is on tho vast, un
fathomed sea
Whereof the tides are times, the
shores, eternity;
Seek not with plummot, when tho
great waves roll,
But by the stars In heaven mark
which way sails thy soul.
Theodore C. Williams, In "Poems
of Belief."
Death-Dealers
It is a well-established fact that
flies, mosquitoes, and other house
hold insects are the disease-spreaders
and death-dealers of the times.
Many hitherto unaccounted-for dis
eases and ailments are now known
to bo carried Into the family by these
Insect pests, and it is also becoming
generally known that these insects
are only invited guests they never
stay unless specially invited and pre
pared for. Flies are an index to the
cleanliness of your premises; where
there is no dirt there are few if
any flies. It Is the same with cock
roaches and their cousins, the bed
bugs; it is also true of mice where
there is no food supply scattered
about, these vilo things will not stay.
One very neat housewife, when
asked how she kept her premises
clear of mice when other houses
were overrun with them, replied
that she used a good brush and
plenty of soap and water. The simple
killing of tho flies Is not the begin
ning of wisdom; their breeding
places must be abolished, and this
can only bo done by keeping the
premises clean not only indoors,
but outside. As long evenings close
down upon us, it will be a good thing
to get and read all tho available
literature to be had on the subjept,
preparatory to a war of extermina
tion to be carried on as soon as the
season opens and that means be
fore tho insects begin to breed. The
department of agriculture, Washing
ton, D. C, will send you such litera
ture, if you ask for it, without cost;
tho state experiment stations fre
quently give out advice and if you
are blessed with a school library,
Just see that books treating of these
subjects are among the number on
its shelves, rather than so many
trashy stories. Iuterost the children
in these subjects by interesting your
self, and discussing ways and means
around the evening table. If the
fathers of families would take an
active part in such education, the
children will, soon follow. The even
ing hours are too precious to drowse
away by tho Are, or to spend at tho
corner store. Got the books, pamph
lets, etc., and plan.
October closes down, and its com
memoration can be made one of joy
and festivity by tho young people;
but too often the mischief-makors
make of it a time to bo dreaded by
their practical jokes and destructive
pranks. At the gatherings at even
tide, old-fashioned games may be
sandwiched in between the new,
wiches' magic and tricks of fairy and
gnome, with the help of colored
lights and wierd disguises, will be
pleaBing varieties, and tho many
superstitions belonging to the date
will furnish fun enough for all, old
or young. Jack-o'lanterns, are easily
made, groups of corn-stalks with
gleaming ears, branches of colored
foliage from the brilliant autumnal
woods, wood ferns of tho coarser
kind, long ropes of gayly colored
vines are all used for indoor decora
tions, while apples, nuts and . other
autumn fruits should also bo used
in the festivities. Fortune-telling is
one of tho chief attractions, and may
be made very enjoyable if the fortune-teller
has ready wit. Every
school library should contain litera
ture on this subject, and many old
books belonging to the family tell
us of the many amusing and enter
taining ways of making tho evening
enjoyable.
A "Mothers Club"
One of our readers asks what a
"Mothers' club" is for. It depends.
In the first place, I think it Is a very
good thing that brings mothers to
gether, and many mothers welcome
the broak in the monotony that with
out the club would never be. At
these club meetings generally, the
talks are on health precautions and
educational ideals, suitable reading
for tho children, sanitary measures
affecting the young, dress, clothing
generally, and also tho object and
welfare of the schools, conditions of
the school rooms, and the needs of
the children, themselves. The aim
should be, as one writer says, "To
make the meetings just the pleasant
est, jolliest, most inspiring place In
the village for every ono of the
mothers."
Hallowo'cn
The old, old story of hallowe'on is
told again, aB the beautiful month of
A Helpful Club
One of our readers tells us of a
club to which she belongs, and thinks
such a club might be in operationin
every neighborhood to the benefit of
all concerned. This club consists of
as many neighbors as wish to loin it.
usually about a dozen women; they
meet at the home of one of the mem
bers every afternoon, each hostess
acting in turn as president, and
every member supplying themselves
with needle, thimble, scissors, and
any other sewing necessity for the
afternoon's work. If the hostess has
any mending, or plain sewing she Is
anxious to get off her hands, the first
hour is spent in sewing or doing the
mending, at tho same time Indulging
in a neighborly chat with each other.
If the hostess has nothing, herself,
ana may nave sometmng for some
other burdened woman, the hour is
spent on the work offered. If it Is
necessary to spend more time, it is
attended to, but "nimble fingers
make quick work," and the one hour
usually suffices. After this, there are
readings of current events, or of
matters in which the neighborhood
women are interested, then the subject-matter
is discussed and com
mented Upon; ideas are exchanged,
and now things talked about, new
methods outlined, and ways and
means of bettering tho condition of
the home life in the neighborhood
offered and discussed. At five o'clock,
or perhaps a little later, the next
meeting place is decided upon, the
work for the afternoon planned, and
the guests go home, feeling that they
have "wrought well." No unkind
gossip is offered, or allowed, and
the motto of the meeting is seeing
only the bright side. By means of
these meetings, the women of the
neighborhood become better ac
quainted, a helpful work is done, arid
tho views of each are broadened and
brightened. What do you think of
it, Sisters?
Family Portraits
' A writer says, "When's one rela
tives pass away, It is to be regretted
that their portraits do not follow
them into oblivion." Who among us
does not know what it is to possess
some out-of-date portrait of some
anoestor, and not know what on
earth to do with it! The portrait
may have been a master-piece in its
time, valued as it may have been
valuable, both as a work of art, aud
as a picture of one dear to us, but at
the later period, the closely-connected
ones themselves pass away,
and the new possessor has no tender
memories, or sentiment in regard to
the relic which is merely a picture of
one never known, and out of place
among the new order of things. It is
much better to have the smaller pic
ture, which, when it becomes "rub
bish," as it certainly will, in time, it
can bo slipped into an album, or cas
ing made to hold it, and quietly, like
tho original, laid away to forgotten
repose, when the interest in the origi
nal has departed.
Providing for the Birds
Did you ever notice, how few
people make any provisions for the
comfort of the birds? It pays to
have the birds about the garden,
tho poultry yard, and the lawn. A
family of martins will do a great
deal to protect the chickens from
hawks and other feathered thieves,
while other birds protect the crops
and trees by feasting on their insect
enemy. Little boxes, nailed high
enough to protect from cats, with an
inverted funnel-shaped tin fastened
around the support (tree or pole); to
prevent pussy from reaching the
nest, will prove a great attraction.
Some birds can and do protect them
selves against other birds, like the
English sparrow, but the sparrow
will, usually drive other birds away
if allowed to. Have a vessel for con
taining frqsh water, renewed every
day, in some shaded place for the
comfort of the birds. Attend to this,,
during the winter, so the birds will
find quarters waiting for them, next
spring.
Salt-Rising Bread
Most writers, in discussing the
bread known as "salt-rising," main
tain that the gas formation which
aerates the bread owes its origin to
a "wild" yeast that incidentally gets
Into tho dough either from some of
the ingredients or from the air, mak
ing It a matter of chance whether
tho bread will rise or not, and In
deed failures are of frequent occur
rence. Other writers talk of a
spontaneous fermentation and fer
ments, but they do not specify what
tho germs are. With a view of put
ting tho preparation of salt-risini?
bread upon a scientific basis a
thorough investigation was carried
on during the past three years in tho
department of industrial research in
the University of Kansas. in this
investigation some surprising and in
teresting results were obtained
Microscopic examinations revealed
tho fact that it Is not yeast at all
as has been maintained, but certain
bacteria which raises the bread
From the many kinds of bacteria in
the fermenting dough it was pos
sible with extreme difficulty to isolate
a bacillus which by itself can be
used in making salt-rising bread.
There was prepared in tho labora
tory a dry product containing this
bacillus, which could be used at will
in making this bread. Not only was
it tried in the laboratory, but in the
home bakery, as well. Numerous
housewives used it repeatedly with
good success, and in a modern up-to-date
bakery where formerly failures
had been frequent, this product was
used for a month with perfect uni
formity of bread from day to day,
without a single failure. In view of
this discovery it is not likely that the
results obtained in tho manufacture
of yeast and yeast bread may bo
paralleled with this bacillus and
salt-rising bread ?H. A. Kohman,
in Farm and Fireside.
Mattresses
Nearly all hair mattresses weigh
forty pounds, but when the hair is
short, they sometimes weigh a few
pounds more. The best hair is tho
long, curly hair, full of vitality,
drawn from the tails and manes of
South American horses. The cost of
hair mattresses varies according to
quality and amount used. The pre
pared cotton felt mattresses of good
quality usually cost about fifteen to
twenty dollars, and aro both com
fortable and sanitary. Those mado
of ordinary cotton felt are not so
good, and can be had as low as seven
to five dollars, .but these are better
than poor ha,ir. African fiber with
a cotton top will cost about $4.50 and
cotton and wool mixture will cost
about five dollars. Excelsior, with
or without cotton top and bottom, is
one of the poorest; the excelsior or
fiber soon breaks into lumps and they
are not comfortable. The old-time
straw or husk mattress, with a thick
pad of cotton laid over it on the out
side, is both sanitary and comfort
able, if the contents of the tick aro
stirred often and kept well "evened."
Wool mattresses, owing to the ani
mal oil in the fibres, is objected to
by some, but if the wool has been
well ripened, and the mattress taken
care of, it is not so bad.
Use of Screens
Where one is pressed for room, as
la often tho on so where one occupies
a small fiat, a screen may do good
service in shutting off a corner or
part of a room. Folding screens aro
to bo had at, various prices at tho
house furnishing departments of the
big stores, but they can be home
made. A folding clothes horse which.
can be had cheaply may bo covered
with some cheap goods, and wall
paper pasted over it, keeping e..cli
wing or section separate. Table oil
cloth is a good covering, and pockets
can be sewed on the Inside for hold
ing various things. For shutting off
a "corner kitchenette," or a lito
sewing nook, or a cot-bed, etc., the
screen is invaluable.
Old-Timo Remedies
One of the favorite and frequently
effective remedies used In the olden
time by our forbears was the mus
tard plaster. Its use is Just as effec
tive now as then, but it is not go
often resorted to. Caro must pe
taken In using the plaster, that tno
mustard is not too strong or the time
of application too long, else a pain
ful blister may result, The skin of a
child, or delicato Invalid can not bear
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