r
The. Commoner
NOVEMBER, 1914
17
wasteful way of casting aside. Many
a'ddllar can bo savod by looking after;
tho dime. f.
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Comiuctedbv
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eparimeni
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Tlio Harvest
Onco more -the ' liberal year laughs
out
O'er richer store than gems or
gold;
Once more in harvest song and shout
Is naturo's boldest triumph told.
Our common moth'ci rests and singB,
Like Ruth, among her garnered
sheaves;
Her lap is full of goodly things,
Her brow is bright With autumn
' leaves.
O, favors old, yet ever new;
0, blessings with the sunshine
sent!
The bounty overruns our due;
The fullness shumes our discon
tent. We shut our eyes; the bowers bloom
on;
We murmur; but the corn-ears fill;
Wo choose the shadow, but the sun
That' casts its shine behind us still
Gives to us, with our rugged soil,
The power to make it Eden fair,
And richer fruits to crown our toil
Than summer-wedded islands bear.
Who murmurs at his lot today?
Who scorns his native fruit and
. t bloom?
Or sighs for dainties far away,
Beside the bounteous board at
home?
fortunes that have perhaps befallen
us, as the chiseling of God's love, to
fit ub for the higher service which
may be required of us, hero, or here
after. Instead of gloomy forebod
ings, let us look on the bright side,
and seek for the hidden blessing in
every shadow that may fall upon our
pathway.
instead, that
free-
Thank heaven,
, 11 UUU1 D 111 Ul
, Can change a rocky soil to gold!
That brave and generous lives can
warm
A clime with nortnern ices cold.
And by these altars wreathed with
flowers,
And fields with fruit awake again,
.Thanksgiving for the golden hours
' The early and the later rain!
John G. Whittier.
The Home Festival Month
The crisp, cool days are with us
again, and the harvests are gathered.
We know what tho year has brought
us, and the time of doubt and fears is
past. We can "balance our dookb,
and know which side of the account
is heaviest. We have so much to be
thankful for, after the hot, prostrat
ing, anxious days ot summer, and not
only thankful as individuals, but as
a nation. To bs suie, everything is
not just as wo should like it to be in
all cases; but when we "count our
mercies," and look across the big
water to where desolation and death
, hang like heavy storm clouds over
the broken and ruined homes, we
turn our eyes to "our own" with
heartiest thanks that jour own coun
try is at peace with all the world.
Many homes will not be blest with
the abundance of past .years, but all
of thankfulness is no I in simply hav
ing enough and to spare of the ma
terial wants of earth. Sorrows may
come to us; may already have come;
but it has overtaken us as indivld
io nf na n tinHnn. So we should
"rejoice and be glad" and give thanks
for the many blessings that we, as a
family, as a nation, enjoy, and try
to give to others, le. i fortunate than
ourselves, the tenderest sympathy
and brotherly love. Instead of the
"loaded" tables, and the burdened
stomachs, let us be ttankful with the
spirit of gratitude, and resolve to bet
ter deserve the blessings of the years
to come. Let us be thankful, even
lor discipline, and look upon the mis-
Cold Weather and tho Children
Do you live in a city, or a largo
town, where every mother tries to
(dress her children as others do, no
matter how poorly suited either to
the child or the season, the style of
clothine is? For tho nast few morn
ings wo have had more or less bad
weather rain, and chill, such as the
early autumn brings. Where the
streets and walks are "made," there
was, of course, no mud; but there
was water, and cold pavements in
plenty, as the chill rains trickled
along the ways the little feet must
tread. Where the sidewalks were
poor, or where there were none, it
was very bad walking for the child
renespecially the "kindergatton"
class. Most of the school children
had raincoats, and other more or less
protecting wraps, about their bodies;
but the feet! In far too many in
stances, they were clad in thin stock
ines and slinners. or low shoes, leav
ing the little limbs bare to tho damp
winds from the slipper tops to tne
.little knees, and even higher than
that,With some of them.
If you had seen them take off their
outer wraps, you would see lawns,
muslins, calicoes, ginghams, with
low necks and short sleeves, and a
very large majority of the little ones
had very little in the way of petti
coats, or underwear. Some of them
'had rubbers over the little slippers,
but the thin leather wouiu ue soaKea
with the rains by the time they reach
ed the 'school house.
Many of these little ones had
coughs, or catarrhs, and most of them
were thin and delicate-looking, with
very little color in their faces or
"spring" in their walk. The teachers
Rfiv that manv of them are poorly
"breakfasted," and the little lunch
they bring is not always suitable for
them. And one can but wonder why
mothers will subject these little ba
bies to such disease-breeding condi
tions, even if the older children are
sent out to care for themselves. The
babies do not know what to do; they
do not know, really, what is the mat
ter when they are cold and hungry.
now demanded, and contents himself
with doing without, and evading
debts. For a brief outing, the trolley
is tabooed; it must be an automobile
or a taxlcab, or a carriage, for any
evening entertainment, with costly
cut flowers, and other extravagances;
and flor sts' prices have climbed with
other things.
The Modern "business girl" spends
her salary for smart clothes, and ex
pects the man to entertain up to tho
clothes. Foregoing his loneliness and
inclination for social pleasure and
mutual entertainment, ho absents
himself from gatherings whore ho
would bo most welcome But our
brother insists that courtship Is not
so much a matter of money as it is the
kind of girl. Many girls would gladly
refuse tho expensive attentions for
the sake of the man, himself, if it
wore not for "what others will say,"
and many other girls would welcome
tho chance of enjoying an evening
which she knows has not restricted
the self-respect of the bdy because of
the lack of money extravagances
would call for. In. olden times, one
could have a whole evening's frolic
and fun, and bo tho better for it, at
a dime sociable or singing school;
the walk to and fro would cost noth
ing, and be a memory to dwell on
oven down to old age.
Affected by tho "High Costs"
One of our brother readers tells
us that the cost of courtship is also
affected by the high prices. He dem
onstrates that the loneliness of the
self-supporting hall-room girls and
boys is not merely because they can
find no common grounds of meeting,
but that tho cost of meeting and the
machinery of getting acquainted has
advanced so much that tho men
working for an average salary can
no longer meet the requirements
without going into debt for custom
ary expenses, or resorting to robbery
of the till of their employers for the
necessary funds. It is the dollar
mark that stands between. The price
of any pleasure separates the middle
class men and women, and the "pleas
ure" question has become a problem.
A man struggling to get a foothold in
his business or profession can not
pay the price of social pleasure as
Tho Song of "Hard Times"
It goes without saying that nearly
everything wo use will cost more
than usual during the coming winter.
But the oxperiencb will bo "worth
while" if it teaches our home folks to
be more careful about saving. In
every home there Js too much wasted,
and it is not thj housewife who does
all the wasting. Every one of tho
family does his or her share, and one
of the blessings that may follow
would be to teach us to heed the
command to "gather up the frag
ments, that nothing bo lost." Jn
every department of the home there
is waste and wanton carelessness,
and the children should be taught to
look after their own heedless ways.
Economy means not parsimony, nor
undue stinting; but it does mean to
make everything count to get the
full value of every dime or nickel,
and to make the best use of every
thing we have. We have hundreds of
recipes for "making over left-over"
scraps of food. But tho best way to
do is to have just as few left-overs as
possible. Children should not be al
lowed to "mess" over their food until
it is only fit for the garbage pail; but
they should be given only what one
Is reasonably sure they will eat; more
than that is simple waste. If they
find they have more on their plate
than their appetite calls for, teach
them to leave it In a condition where
it may be put on a smaller dish and
set away for use at another meal,
even though in a different form. A
child who is allowed to take a slice
of bread and, after leaving the table
with it, eat a few mouthfuls and then
throw the slice away, should be made
to understand that such things can
not be. Grown folks are nearly as
bad, in some things. It should he
impressed on their mind that such is
a bad example to set to the younger
ones, and is very reprehensible in
them for their own sakes. In the
matter of clothing, bed clothing,
cooking utensils, and with odds and
ends ot furniture, It is the same
Information Wanted
Sovoral readers have asked for di
rections for keeping tho outer walls
of a brick houso from becoming dis
colored inside by dampness. The
trouble with brick, as with other
houses, is that they aro put up to sell,
with little regard to durability or
comfort. Tho rains wash tho poor
mortar from between tho bricks,
nnd tho water soaks in If tho wall Is
thin, and makes tho inside wall wet,
or at best, damp. In former years,
bettor materials were used, and the
mortar did not wash out so badly;
little was known of this discomfort.
It is claimed that if the outside of the
walls aro well painted, the matter .
will bo helped. Will somo of our
brothers who aro builders toll us
whnt to do?
Hyacinths that bloomed in pots
Jast winter should not bo used again
as houso bloomers; thoy should bo.
bedded out in October or Novembor, ,
and loft to rocuporato and in several
yours thoy will give. very good bloom,
again. The Chinese sacred lily should
be planted In tho fall, and left in tho
ground. Theso will grow and In a
couple of years will give a few blooms,
in the garden. Where tho hyacinths
bloom almost before the flower spike
has pushed out of the soil, It is be-
cause tho top began growing before
It was well rooted. To lengthen the
spike, if it Is discovered that it will'
be short, put a paper cono over the.
top, and keep the plant cool. A well'
rooted bulb will send up a stalk of.
normal length. Single hyacinths give
. if ..il .11 lt.M Mtn 1.IY1m
moro sauHiacuuu uiuu mu uuuuiu
flowered.
The best wild grope for ornamental
vines and for satisfactory fruit, Is the
(
DOCTOR KNEW
Had Tried It HlmweJf
The doctor who has tried Postum
knows that it is an easy, certain, and
pleasant way out of the coffee habit
and all of the ails following and ho
proscribes it for'h.., patients as did a
physician of Prospertown, N. J.
One of his patients says:
"During the summer just past I
suffered terribly with a heavy feeling
at tho pit of my stomach and dizzy
feelings In my head and then a blind
ness would come over my eyes so I
would have to s'l down. I would get
so nervous I could hardly control ray
feelings.
"Finally I spoko to our family
physician about it and he asked if I
drank much coffee and mother told
him that I did. He told me to im
mediately ctop drinking coffee and
drink Postum I Its place as he and
his family ,had used Postum and
found it a powerful rebuilder and
delicious food-drink.
"I hesitated for a time, disliking
the idea of having to give up my
coffee but finally I got a package and
found it to be all the doctor had said.
"Since drinking Postum in place
of coffee my dizziness, blindness and
nervousness are all gone, my bowels
aro regular and I am again well and
strong. That is a short statement of
what Postum has done for me."
Name given by Postum Co., Battle
Creek, Mich. Read "The Road to
Wellville," in :kgs.
Postum comes in two forms:
Regular Postum must be well
boiled. 15c and 25 c packages.
Instant Postum Is a soluble pow
der. A teaBpoonful dissolves quickly
In a cup of hot water and, with
cream and sugar, makes a delicious
beverage instantly. 30c and 50c tins.
The cost per cup" of both kinds is
about tho same.
"There's a Reason" for Postum.
sold by Grocers.
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