DOMESTIC ECONOMY, HYGIENE, DIETETICS. 



419 



there is an effort to place the paper at a con- 

 venient distance from the eye, or to turn it so 

 as to get a particular reflection of the light ; 

 next the finger begins to be placed under, the 

 line read, and there is a winking of the eye as 

 if to clear it, or a looking away at some dis- 

 tant object to rest it ; or the fingers are pressed 

 over the closed lids in the direction of the 

 nose, to remove the tears caused by straining. 



" Favor the failing sight as much as pos- 

 sible. Looking into a bright fire, especially a 

 coal fire, is very injurious to the eyes. Look- 

 ing at molten iron will soon destroy the sight ; 

 reading in the twilight is injurious to the eyes, 

 as they are obliged to make great exertion. 

 Reading or sewing with a side light injures 

 the eyes, as both eyes should be exposed to an 

 equal degree of light. The reason is, the 

 .sympathy between the eyes is so great that if 

 tfie pupil of one is dilated by being kept par- 

 dally in the shade, the one that is most exposed 

 ijannot contract itself sufficiently for protec- 

 don, and will ultimately be injured. Those 

 vlao wish to preserve their sight should ob- 

 serve the following rules, and preserve their 

 general health by correct habits : 



" 1. By sitting in such a position as will 

 \llow the light to fall obliquely over the shoul- 

 der upon the page or sewing.. 



"2. By not using the eyes for such pur- 

 poses by any artificial light. 



< 3. By avoiding the special use of the 

 "tyes in the morning before breakfast. 



"4. By resting them for a half minute or 

 no while reading or sewing, or looking at small 

 i: bjects ; and by looking at things at a distance 

 cr up to the sky ; relief is immediately felt by 

 so doing. 



"5. Never pick any collected matter from 

 the eyelashes or corners of the eyes with the 

 finger nails ; rather moisten it with the saliva 

 and rub it away with the ball of the finger. 



" 6. Frequently pass the ball of the finger 

 over the closed eyelids toward the nose ; this 

 carries off an excess.of water into the nose it- 

 self by means of the little canal which leads 

 into the nostril from each inner corner of the 

 eye, this canal having a tendency to close up 

 in consequence of the slight inflammation 

 which attends weakness of eyes. 



"7. Keep the feet always dry and warm, 

 so as to draw any excess of blood from the 

 other end of the body. 



"8. Use eyeglasses at first, carried in the 

 vest pocket attached to a guard, for they are 

 instantly adjusted to the eye with very little 

 trouble, whereas, if common spectacles are 

 used, such a process is required to get them 

 ready that to save trouble the eyes are often 

 strained to answer a purpose. 



" 9. Wash the eyes abundantly every 

 morning. If cold water is used, let it be 

 flapped against the closed eyes with the fingers, 

 not striking hard against the balls of the eyes. 



"10. The moment the eyes feel tired, the 

 very moment you are conscious of an effort to 

 read or sew, lay aside the book or needle and 

 take a walk for an hour, or employ yourself in 

 some active exercise not requiring the close use 

 of the eyes." 



CARPETS. 



Before describing the various kinds of car- 

 pets there are one or two points to be con- 

 sidered. And first the material, colors, and 

 pattern of the carpet must be adapted to 

 the room into which it is 'to be put, and the 

 other furniture of the room. Large patterns 

 will not look well in small rooms, nor will very 

 small patterns look well in large ones ; an ex- 

 pensive carpet renders it necessary to have 

 expensive furniture ; and every bit of color in 

 the room, from the carpet to the ceiling, must 

 have some harmony with every other. At the 

 same time it must be borne in mind that there is; 

 harmony in contrasted colors as well as in those: 

 which are similar, and if the furniture is either 

 very dark or very gay, the carpet should be 

 either gay or neutral, in order to relieve the 

 general effect. The large patterns which used 

 to prevail have been discarded of late years ; 

 and patterns as small as the room will bear are 

 considered most desirable. Medallion carpets, 

 or those with figures of animals, bouquets of 

 flowers, baskets of roses, or stripes, should 

 never be chosen : the most pleasing figures 

 are simple geometrical designs, a tracery of 

 vines, arabesques, or an almost solid neutral 

 groundwork of broken lines. A carpet with 

 much white in it is objectionable anywhere 

 unless the furniture is very dark, but it should 

 never be laid in a room that is much used ; on : 

 the other hand, a very dark carpet is almost as 

 hard to keep clean. Carpets with blue or 

 green, or any "delicate " color, fade on ex- 

 posure to sunlight. A bordered carpet makes 

 a room look smaller than it is ; and a small 

 room will look larger if the floor is covered 

 with a carpet of neutral tint and small figures. 



Axminster Carpetis expensive, but wears 

 almost well enough to make up for it. There are 

 French, English, and American Axminsters in 

 the market ; they do not differ much from each 

 other in cost, the price being from $2 to $5 a 

 yard. 



Brussels Carpet, on account of its dura- 

 bility, is probably the cheapest for general use. 

 The basis is a warp and woof of linen thread ; 

 worsted threads are also interwoven, which are 

 formed into loops by means of wires and form 



