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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (March 21, 1913)
s The Commoner. VOLUME 13, NUMBER n iisyw iJjCfMn Watts Me3 eXC eparimeni 0 yf. Tho Cry of tho Toiler O, God, for a moment of rapturous quiet A day, to steal far from the bustle and riot The want, and the woo, and the striv ings of men, And dream me tho dreams of my childhood again; To sit and to gaze at the crimson ing west, And live In the light of the rapturous rest. O, God, for a moment in days that are long And sunken In sorrow and weighted with wrong, To turn from the rattle and roar of tho strife, To dream of the days of the fullness of life; One moment, to spare from the striv ing for gain Tho rack of unrest, and the longing of pain! To stand as of old in the sunlight of love A promise before, and a heaven above; Ono moment to turn to the things undeflled To feel, onco again, with the heart of a child. Ono moment to look on the blue of tho sky That deepens and darkens and fades from the eye; To turn 'neath tho tollings and bur dens of care That shift to the shoulders of reel ing Despair From secret and sorrow of spirit opprest O, God, but to dream for a moment of rest! It. L. Masker. will buy but little at most; but when it must be partitioned out to cover room rent, car fare, laundry, board, and the thousand "little things" that are forever demanding attention, even with the closest economy, they will be astonished. "Economy" to the city wage-worker is a very different thing to that of the farm or village family. Even where several girls or women occupy the same room, and work together, the wages will scarcely cover the ex pense of necessity. Before me lies a letter received from a woman who wishes to leave the farm for the city, to whom I had written something of the absolutely necessary expense of hving In such a place. She at once wrote back to me that she could beat any woman she ever saw stretching a dollar over expenses, and she knew both she and her husband could live well on $100 a year! That any woman with a particle of common sense would know better than to be lieve it would cost a man and woman $500 a year to live in town! This woman owns a small farm; has her own cow, pigs, chickens, garden, orchard and fields; the husband is an invalid, and the fields and meadow land is "let out," while their fruit is sold on the trees. She wants the easy life of the town! relaid, thus a good ventilating chan nel is obtained, and the moisture pre vented from coming in contact with the floor. Wages of Girls and Women Hero is an item that should bo read by every girl or woman who is thinking of trying life in tho turmoil of tho groat cities: 'Reports of women investigators of tho working conditions of women in Chicago show that approximately 50.000 Chicaco womon wage-earners receive $5 per "woek or less for their services. This condition of affairs was brought out in investigations made by the senate 'whito slave committee,' of which Lioutonant Governor O'Hara is chair man. On this bare stipend, these tnousands of women and girls, who aro receiving as salary $5 or less per week, aro struggling for existence with practically no relief in sight. These womon, living for the most part in furnlshod rooms, aro absolu tely underfed, and the greater part of them, it is claimed, do not know what a full moal means. Half of them aro living on two meals a day, of tho 10 and 15 cent variety. Many of thorn have to depend for clothing on what cast-off garments others are able to glvo them." This is practically truo of women workers in every large city. If tho girl or boy who is turning longing yes toward tho city as a placo of fun and good wages, would only think of theso things, and compare such an existence with 'ho comforts of their Jarin or village homes, how mucn bettor it would bo for all! Tho young people living at homo, or In village or farming communities where real want is unknown, may think that $5 a woek is a safe salary; but It would glvo them a good object lesson If they would count tho cost, .Just for one day, at market prices, of the food they consumed -Five dollars Damp Walla During the rainy season now to be expected, many buildings will have damp walls, and thi3 will be very apt to damage any Interior decoration that is not waterproof. A very common source of dampness is "drip"; oven the small quantity of rainwater falling on a window which after draining down finally drips from tho window-sill, has a great tendency to render tho wall immedi ately below that sill damp, as, when ever the wind blows toward the wall every drop will likely be blown against its wall surface. The drip from a roof not furnished with a gutter, or from a veranda that is too snauow, or. from a detenu v i water pipe, is more damaging, owing to the greater quantity, and this source of dampness often remains undetected for a long time, as the placo where the water falls against the wall will usually be some dis tance from that where it escapes Much of tho difficulty is the fault of uie Duuaer, ior with proper pro visions for a free circulation of air about any part of the building, such as hollow walls, openings communi cating with cavities or vacant spaces, ventilation under lower floors, and general attention to tho proper pro tection of tho walls, much of the trouble can be prevented. In many places where trees are allowed to grow tnicKiy about a building, cut- uuk cm ine air and sunshine, the dampness and mildew can be re moved by a vigorous trimming out of tho superabundant shade. The effect of damp walls on Interior decora tions and house furnishings 1b by no means the most to be dreaded. It Is a serious menace to the health of any one living in tho house. If tho danger of dampness Is not attended to by the builder, It may uo leusenea Dy rorming a dry aTea around the walls, where the lower part of the house Is damp, and drain ing the site of any superfluous mois ture. Where feasible, tho lower floor may ho taken up, a foot or two of tb.0 80,11 removed, and the, fjesh sur faco covered with concrete,-, tho floor For the Toilet Nothing. Is so good for the com plexion as good health. There should be no clogging of the bodily sewers; every organ of elimination should be kept active. Keeping these sewers active is better done through dieting than with drugs. Kidneys, bowels, lungs and skin should all do their part in throwing off the effete matter that would otherwise result in poisoning the system. Look well to the dieting; find what is best or you, and then stick to it. One of the best beautifiers for the skin is oatmeal cream. Put a hand ful of .fine oatmeal in a half pint of hot water; let stand a few hours, then apply to the face with the hand, or a soft cloth, and allow to dry on the face. This will make the roughest skin smooth, as well, as help to whiten. It is just as good for the hands. This oatmeal cream Is just as effective for rough, chapped hands, as the creams you buy at the druggists, and will cost a very few cents. For a few months give up tea, coffee, pastry, sweets, salads, and confine yourself to boiled vegetables, green salads, rare meats and if your stomach will stand it, plenty of milk to drink. Eat plenty of spinach and dress ,tho green things with olive oil; take .plenty of exercise, breathe deeply, and bathe frequently,' and you will find, tho yellow all washing out of your face and your, fretful nerves steadying down until you can really enjoy a good laugh. Drink plenty of pure water of the tempera ture best suited to your likes. You will findhat our best physicians are giving less medicine and more ad vice than formerly. Some of them are willing to acknowledge that drug doctoring Is nine-tenths guesswork. Many women have an idea that Diackneads are a sort of "flesh worm," but these skin troubles are merely the daily accumulation of dust and. grime collected in the pores of the skin, and held there by failure to wash the skin properly. Perspi ration is nature's cleanser, and the one whose face is wet with perspira tion during hot weather rarely has blackheads, if she usps nlt-ir water to remove the refuse cast out by the sweat-glands. them up for an hour or two; then lav them on tho ironing board, or slip a board used for the 'purpose inside smooth with the palm of the hand until they lie flat; cover with a cloth and press with a hot iron until dry Do not "iron" the garment, but press it; there is a difference. If the collars and elbows are shiny, sponge with a damp cloth and press until dry. If boys were taught to care for their clothes while at home, in stead of leaving it for mother or sister, theywould find the expense of looking well dressed much lessened when they are thrown on their own resources away from home. Hemstitching on the Macliino Several readers have asked for this method, and two dear good readers have just sent these direc tions in; so we pass them along at once. Measure off the hem wanted, tear off, double the strip, turn in the raw edges; then turn a very narrow hem on the goods. Take paper, fold sixteen thicknesses, put the two edge3 together, and slip the thick nesses of paper between, under the hem. Loosen the top tension of the machine, and proceed to sew as close to the edge as you can stitch, then tear out the paper, pull the goods apart, and you will have the hem stitching. Mrs. B. C. Another: Measure the hem as desired, draw four or five threads or as many as desired; turn the raw edge of the hem, and part your hem (measure to fit the goods to keep straight) just as if you were working by hand: Now fold them and godds together, set machine so it will make a short stitch,. loosening, the tension a very little, then sew very close to the edge, having the drawn threads on top, and part , your hem. Some times you will Have to pull the hem to get It in place. Test on some old goods until you knpw.how This will look like 'hand workElia '& - i tfr. For Men's Wear To keep the coats and other wear from wrinkling, bo sure to have plenty of hangers, which may be had very cheaply, two for five cents, at many stores; but it pays to get good ones. Hooks or nails are often damaging to clothing, besides get ting them out of shape. Teach the boys to care for their own clothinc To remove the dust, keep a smali SX 2! rattJ? beater' and whip them thoroughly; then lay the gar ment out smoothly on a table and with a hard bristle brush for mud spots, and a soft brush for ordinary use, go over the garment thorough- lv until nil miA j j- . . Ufiu --- laa iiiiiii nun a moved. If the garment could be hung in the hot sun for a few hours before doing this, it would make the cleaning easier. Begin at the top of the garment and brush down If tho elbows and knees of th pants are "baggy," and out of shape lay a damp cloth on them and told Keeping Things Clean Don't forget that .the kettles coffee, tea, and water, must all be cleaned as often as the other cooking kettles. Fill the coffee or tea pots nearly full of warm,, or boiling water, and add to each kettle two heaping tablespoonfuls of saleratus; let boil for twenty minutes, then pour tho water out, wash well .with clear warm water, and find out the difference. The tea kettle must bo washed, and use the saleratus in this also. Many people do not regard these kettles as cooking vessels, and rarely take the trouble to wash them out For milk or butter things, the use of soda is excellent. It will soften the dish water, and cleanse and sweeten the dishes. For the wrinsrer roller?, tiro coal Oil; It Will keen them nlAnn. For nickel-plated copper or other ware, ciean witn a rag moistened with coal oil, then polish with soft cloth or tis sue paper. Will remove smoke stains from cooking vessels. Query Box Mrs. H. S. Wishes directions for making a floor paint with glue. Will somebody who knows, glvo direc tions? Mrs. F. W., Washington We can not use clippings in our Home pages, unless telling of something very help ful to our readers. 'Emma S. Get the catalogues of reliable florists, and you will find about whatever you want; if not, write to the florist C. F. M., Iowa It will probably be best for us to let the world take care of its people. Matters adjust themselves in time, to better ad vantage than if we tried to help straighten them. Mrs. M. B., Kansas Both the Chinese bellflower (Abutilon) and Trumpet creeper OBignbna radicans), - ImWI.v "AjAfe. .. ji )