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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (April 25, 1913)
'WWWWWTfQH? y w I &' I R s The Commqner. VOLUME 13, NUMBER i8 1 zmmFb J MWw Ra JSTk tefyWL2 Conducted f6y I I epartrae nt f Tho Cry of tlic Dreamer I am tired of planning and tolling In tho crowdod haunts of men; Heart-weary of building and spoil ing, And Bpoiling and building again. And I long for tho dear old river Whoro I dreamed my life away; For a dreamer lives forevor, And a toiler dies in a day. I am siclc of tho showy seeming Of n Ufn ihni a linIP n ! Of tho faces lined with schoming In tho throng that hurries by. From tho sleepless thoughts' en doavor, I would go whoro tho children play; For a dreamer lives forover, And a thinker dies in a day. I can find no pride, but pity, For tho burdens tho rich endure; Thoro is nothing sweet In tho city But tho patient lives of tho poor. 0, tho little hands too skillful, And tho child-mind choked with weeds! Tho daughter's heart grown willful, And tho fathor's heart that bleeds. No, no! from tho street's rude bustle From trophies of mart and stage, I would fly to tho woods' low rustle, And the meadow's kindly page. Let mo dream, as of old, by the river, And bo loved for tho dream always; For a droamor lives forevor, And tho toiler dies in n. dav. John Boylo O'Reilly. The Window Box If you can not liavo tho old-time flower garden, out in tho spacious yards," you can still have tho flow ers growing, and beautifying the liomo. Thoro are few things more docoratlvo than a woll-cared-for window box, and it is not necessarily an oxponsivo affair; tho simplest con Btruction of tho home mechanic is as effective as tho finest "store" offer ing. A box may bo got at tho store that will just fit into tho window, or it may havo to bo cut down, or one may bo built of good, one-inch lumber; the length of tho window, and about ten inches wido, with a depth of eight to ton inches, Is a good slzo; this will hold enough soil for the plantB. There must bo drain ago provided, and tho drainage should not depend on tho open joints of tho uua, uu mo seams should bo packed with moss, or othorwlso filled and tightened, making tho boxes as near water-tight as may bo. As a pre caution against flooding in rainy spells, a drainage Bhould be pro vided by making a small hole at tho bottom of tho box, and when not needed, keep It plugged. An Inter lining of zinc may bo used, but Is not necessary. As the soil must bo adapted to a variety of plants, and must bo very rich, pains should be taken to havo it right. One part of old, decayed sod or rich garden loam, one part loaf mold, and ono part rich, old, well-rotted manure, and a little sharp sand, will make a good compost. For the front of tho box, trailing plants should be UBed, and trailing tuschla, ivy geranium, tradescantla, ground Ivy, trailing abutilon, are good. German ivy is -a iturdy grpwer, and very beautiful. For filling, the plants must be chosen to Bult the exposure, while thoso de manding heat and sunshine must havo tho south and west exposure. Nasturtiums aro flno for trailing, as also aro verbenas, trailing alyssum and tho various lobelias. When you havo your box and soil ready, ask tho florist to give you a list of suitable plants for the situation you can givo them. Hero and Thcro When you aro making garden, don't overlook tho fact that tho old folks aro partial to the garden cress, or peppergrass grown in tho lettuce bod, and a salad in which it is used wnii ii'i.iiii'o with n anr n r a nr chivo tops, seasoned with salt, vine gar and popper, is very satisfactory to their palate. The peppergrass may b'o sown with the lettuce, or by itself, and the chives make a very 1'iuiiy uoruor lor tne garden bed, besides serving as a flavoring vege table. A rOW Of nnrfiloV nlsiTlfnr? nrmuwl tho garden bed, or along the border of tho walks, Is ornamental, as well as furnishing garnishing for dishes soi'ved on the table. Many things can bo raised nn n fnw fo p ground If ono only takes thought to plant them. For the houso plants, havo a set of shelves made liko a step-ladder; boxes of rich earth may be sot on the shelves, and the boxes should be painted- green or red is a- good color, or yellow Is pleasing to the oyo. Fasten the ladder to tho win dow or fence, or have a supporting frn.m nf thn lii, n. S , ;, 7 """. "" ui uio sueives. I iJJant flowers in tho hnvoa Tif i,i.v. freely, and you can move your flower garden to whatever location you wish. This will give you plenty of color, and make the premises very attractive. Any one can make' the ladder-shelves, as they are concealed by the fo iage. Have trailing plants at the sides to droop over the sides of tho boxes. Nothing rests n woman more, or quicker, when tired of housework or sewing, than to get out into the garden; most of women prefer tho flower garden, becauso every woman is In some degree a- beauty-lover-but the vegetable garden is attract tive, too, and whilo it should not be turned over to the housewife as a responsibility, and as her particular care, it is more often than not a peasuro to her to get among the plants with hoo and trowel. Every i,, " , "B Blowing" is a bit of life, and awakens tho maternal In the women as she watches tho baby plants develop. There is no nervine moro effectual. Timely Suggestions For the caTo of your roso bushes cut this out and pasto it whero you will know whoro to find it. Whether any insects appear, or not, tho application is beneficial, and In no sense harmful. After a shower, or in the taornfeg while tho dew la still on tho foliage, have plenty of wood ashes sifted to remove ctadera and dead coals, and sprlnldo the fine ashes all over the foliage, undorsloo as well as upper. Much of the ashea will Btlok to tho leaves and items but some of it will fall to the sWd and act as a fertilizer. Meantime have the soil well fed by voffi SLf. c'8 ESS? Where this can not bo done, a good JP &$ of cow's manure in the fall will act beneficially, if n ashoa are annHo hafnVA ' " in. make 1Mb wpiSST ono Vtwp' applications will bo enough, but if tho insects havo already become numerous, several applications at in tervals may be necessary. Examine the rosebushes as soon as the leaves aro out and apply the ashes. The stronger the ashes, tho better insec ticido they are. Another remedy is, make a strong tea of quassia chips, which can be had of the druggist for a few cents, and add to this half as much lye mado of wood ashes; apply this mix turo with a garden syringe, or by sprinkling with any convenience of tho kind, having it as hot as the hand can bear. A few applications, with an interval of several days be tween, will prove an effectual remedy, not only for rose troubles, but for insects on other plants. Be gin the warfare early, and control tho situation. Another remedy, which is good for all kinds of soft-skinned insects, is a tea made of auassia chins. ndrHnr? soft soap to make a suds, then coal oil, to form an emulsion, applying the mixture at hand-heat, with a fine-rose sprinkler. It Is effectual. Information Asked For Caviar is a relish made from the roe or spawn of the sturgeon, and is especially liked in Russia. In answer to a querist, we quote the following: The finest caviar is the bieluga, prepared from the roe of the white sturgeon; less fine is the sovriuga prepared from the sterlet sturgeon. Both are put up at Astrakhan, Rus- Dia. Auwmmg to reports, the roe Is rubbed through a sieve with care not to break the grain; it falls into brine where it remains for three or four hours, after which It is packed in sacks and allowed to drain. This Is the only preparation given to the best caviar; the cheaper varieties are more strongly salted. It is dried after salting. Caviar is used as a relish or condlmAnf oni the finest forms of nourishment for the sick, as it digests easily. Ways books"5 ar SiVGn 'n mSt 0f cook Chicory is used largely as an adulterant of coffee, but it is claimed by many that it is an Improvement to tho beverage, and acts as a tonic The roots of the plant are roasted and ground and added to the coffee S; e edive 1b of the same family Many pe0pio iIke a Bm n quantity of chicory with the coflteo as it gives the beverage a much richer color and finer flavor ThO USUal o.niiaa 1 i -, coarse-grained is lack of sufficient beating when in the dough state Much beating gives the doulh a fine close texture, and when insufflcieSt pUu's "' tto tGXtUre is oane d Parafllno is one of the products of coal tar; and is obtained hi 'dela tion. It is useful In many Ways and la not expensive. Paraffin oil is also ? Pau.ft of coal, la very fluid and & than water, and is used for Illuminating purposes; It has mir.v uses also in the household. Pa?afflJ wax la a hardened substance. Odds and Ends While tho spring sowing, hou cleaning, and vnrioua other Indus rlofl are demanding attention it this" time, there 1 nnii ; " tulB than the call of the garden. If S aro not sown, planta set out, 80U SSt into good condition in thn hK peason, Uzerg ia no way oFitehfiJ up with the work. For the ' month at least, there is work ?! can not bo delayed. Every hi1 garden, even tho small onestt have a collection of herbs, for ?J home-grown and cured, if caro fa taken, aro always better than th store goods. Savory, sage, borage fennel, anise, dill, and several otlS are usually the most common, but many people like coriander ami caraway seeds. Somo of these aro annuals, others perennials, whilo quite a' few of them obligingly "SG0,i themselves," and should bo given it Place of their own. b GU a Many things should be sown now for greens," and as soon as their growth renders them unfit for such use, dig up the ground and plant to something else. In the summer or early fall, the same things may be sown again for late greens, whilo some of them should be planted quite late in order for a very quick growth in the early spring. Look over your catalogue, and study up for the gar den. Be sure you have a bed of mint, for a handful of nice mint leaves helps out many a dish that lacks only its flavoring. You are missing one of the most excellent of spring medicines if you have no rhubarb in the garden. Tho early growth is tho best, and it brings a good prico in the market. When it gets cheap, we don't care so much for it. A few roots set in very rich ground will givo enough for a large family. Remember that the soil will grow something, if only weeds and grass, and it might as well grow eatables, and thus eko out a slim pocketboqk. The gudo mon needs the hour's exercise after his day's work is done, and the boy might put in a few sparo minutes if he can be kept off the street that long. Some Things Worth Knowing A splendid scouring soap is made by melting two "bars of any good laundry soap together with one pint of very fine, sifted sand, one-fourth pound of good slaked lime and a pound package of baking soda. This makea a good soap for scouring floors, kitchen tables, and other un paired articles. It does not injure the hands, and can be used as soft soap, or cooked long enough to har den into bars. In washing delicate articles, it is best to use suds instead of soaps. To make the -suds, cut the soap into small pieces and dissolve it In a small amount of boiling water; bo sure to use enough water to thor oughly dissolve the soap; then when it is cool, add the soap jelly to tepid water sufficient to wash the garment, and stir until a good lather results, in . which the garment should bo washed quickly, rubbing tho soiled places with the hands, not using tho board except for the edges or hema if very much soiled. Rinse well through two or three waters. For manv rncrn. thtk nnlv wnv to clean them is to wash them, but their weight makes this hard to do. If tho rug is large, peg it down securely to the ground whero there Js a good, grassy sod, and with a large scrubbing bruah and plenty of good soap suds, scrub It thoroughly, going over It several times with caro and thoroughness; then, when it la clean, turn the garden hose on it and rinse until the goap suds la all rinaed out of it. If the rug is small, it can be laid on a table and scrubbed In th same way, ad for the rinsing, can be pinned td tho clotEes lino along the aide, using plenty of pins, and rinsed with the hose. To clean yellow piano keys, use powdered whiting moistened with lemon juice, let tho paste remain on the keys for an hour, then dust off with a piece of chamois skin, being careful to keep tho mixture from get ting between the keys. If the planoj :iafl