304 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



Handsome fiirniture will not, unaided, make rooms cheerful. 

 The charm of a cozy home rests principally with its mistress. If 

 she is fortunate enough to have sunny rooms, her task is half done. 

 In apartments into which the sun never shines recourse must be had 

 to various devices to make up so far as may be, for this grave lack. 

 A sunny room should have bright and joyous color in its furnishings. 

 Ferneries and shade loving plants may contribute their cheer to the 

 room. An attractive room need not be too orderly. A book Left 

 lying on the table, a bit of needlework on the window-sill, an open 

 organ or piano, may indicate the tastes and occupations of the in- 

 mates, without suggesting that there is not a place for everything 

 in the room. A bird singing in the window, an aquarium on the 

 table, domestic pets moving about as if at home, these give life and 

 brightness to a home. Pictures on the walls, if selected with taste, 

 are ever fresh sources of enjoyment. Newly painted and neatly 

 papered rooms add much to the beautifying of the home, and this 

 can be done with very little expense. Simplify your methods; don't 

 try to have your rooms loaded with useless furniture to dust, clean 

 and move about. Don't feel you must try to keep up with the con- 

 stantly changing fashions. The woman with too much house is 

 next to the woman with nerves, and she usually acquires "nerves" 

 before she dies. 



Before closing, I wish to speak of beautifying the yards, where 

 the husband and father has his part of the work to do. Now let us 

 take a look at the back part of the house, where the wife and mother 

 spends most of her time, and perhaps can see nothing but old 

 boards, rotten fences, or tumble down buildings; and if so, clear 

 these away and plant some berry bushes, such as raspberries, black- 

 berries, currants, or anything that will be of some use. At the same 

 time, do not forget the summer flowers which are pleasing to the 

 eye and a joy forever, such as pansies, china asters, scarlet sage, 

 marigolds, and many of the old fashioned flowers that are easily 

 raised and cared for. 



Another very important thing to consider is where the slops of 

 the house are emptied. Does the good wife empty it right out near 

 the door, causing an unsightly, ill smelling, and disease breeding, 

 fly collecting place, or does she have to carry it away forty or fifty 

 steps to prevent this. If she has to do either, do not allow this to 

 take place any longer, but dig a trench, put in some kind of tile or 

 board drain to carry it away, and thus lighten the wife's labor and 

 help to beautify your home. 



Now, as to the front yard: the more attractive you can make it, 

 the better. Have you shrubs growing there, if not, and you have 

 room for them, get some, for they will add much to the beauty of 

 the yard. I would advise having the flower beds at one side, or at 

 least, in some place where they will not interfere with the making 

 of a smooth velvety lawn. In this shrubs may be planted, but do 

 not cut it for beds if you can have them anywhere else. Often two 

 or three shrubs will produce an effect, where half a dozen would 

 make everything look crowded and give a bad general effect. There 

 is so much can be done to beautify a home that life in the village, 

 or on the farm is full of joy to every normal man or woman who 

 takes advantage of what it offers. 



