58 
March, 1892. 
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/ O R C H PwR D / und * CRRDEN \ 
Conducted by Martha Clark Raxkis, 
Gloversville, N. Y. 
Looking’ Forward. 
LT HOUGH ih° weathi r 
in March is usually to 
cold, >• i n d y, a n d 
changeable for any 
thorough house-clean- 
ing, yet this month is 
an excellent time in 
which to look forward 
and dicide just how much must be done. 
The first thing to be considered is what 
new furnishings will be necessary. If car- 
pets are needed, it is wise to buy them now 
and have them made, so that when the 
bright, warm days come 
there w ill be no vexations 
waiting. A little later, in 
the height of the house- 
cleaning season, it is diffi- 
cult to get any kind of 
work done at a day’s no- 
tice. because all the work- 
ers are crowded with 
orders. Hence any paint- 
ing or papering, that can 
be done early, should be. 
If furniiure is to be 
bought, have the « ood. if 
possible, without dye, 
stain, or artificial finish of 
any kind. It looks better, 
wears hetler, and has the 
great advantage of being 
just what it appears. Imi- 
tations of ail kinds should 
be avoided, as they soon 
grow shabby and show the 
deception. Hypocrites are 
despicable, whether they 
be furniture or people. 
Any deficiencies in bedding, or table | 
linen, should be attended to now; likewise j 
curtains can be selected and made more 
conveniently this month than next; while 
it is just the time to look after the under- 
cloihing and cotton gowns. 
All the helps to house-cleaning should be 
provided and stored together till wanted. 
Ii is well to remember that newspapers are 
excellent under carpets, if you cannot af- 
ford carpet-lining, and that they are also 
useful for cleaning glass. 
Have the Boys Help. 
During the epidemic of the grip this win- 
ter, the cook and waitress in one family 
wei e suddenly prostrated at the same time. 
Although the lady of the house had a hus- 
band, and three boys over twelve years of 
age. she herself got up early and made a 
fire in ihe kitchen range. Being unaccus- 
tomed to the exposure, she took cold and 
was sick for several days. 
“Why didn’t you have one of the boys 
do it?” remonstrated a friend. 
“Oh, they've never done such a thing in 
their lives,” was the answer:' and what a 
confession it was! 
Every boy ought to be taught how to 
build a fire, to wait on a table, to make a 
bed. to keep bureau drawers and clothes 
press in order, to sweep a room, and to sew 
on a button. We do not mean that these 
things should be daily required of him, but 
he should do them often enough so that he 
can do them easily whenever, in the exi- 
gencies of housekeeping, it may become 
necessarv. 'There are several other things 
that might advantageously, be added to 
rhe list; and he can easily learn to save the 
trouble and expense of a carpenter when 
little things about the housefget [out of 
order and need repairing In house-clean- 
ing times, there are many things which a 
boy can do, such as taking out tacks, 
An attractive Corner. Ftp. 545. 
spreading papers, and moving light fur- 
niture. 
“But won’t it make a boy effeminate?” 
asks some anxious mother. 
Not a bit of it. Their doing it, and the 
manner in which they regard it, is entirely 
a matter of training. Some of the most 
manly of boys have enjoyed relieving their 
mothers in this way, when the need arose, 
besides having found the knowledge of im- 
mense convenience in emergencies or when 
camping or traveling. Moreover a boy 
brought up on these principles \\ ill never, 
as a husband, lie in bed while his wife gets 
up and makes the fire. 
An Attractive Corner. 
That a room may be made extremely 
pretty, without the expenditure of much 
money, is shown in the accompanying 
illustration which gives one corner of such 
an apartment. 
The pictures are choice, but not expen- 
sive, and are simply framed. The book- 
case is similar to the home-made one which 
was described and illustrated in Orchard 
and Garden some months ago. A curtain 
of artistic pattern protects the books from 
dust. The desk is a combination article 
with a little closet underneath, the usual 
drawers and partitions for writing ma- 
terials, a shelf for books and one for bric-a- 
brac. A part of the time, the hinged front 
is kept down and used as a table, while the 
evidences of writing are hidden by a dainty 
curtain. 
The chairs are ordinary ones, the carpet 
is likewise, yet the whole effect of t lie room 
is charming, with revelations of good taste, 
refinement, and literary and artistic enjoy- 
ment on the part of the owner. 
When we realize that even a room is a 
partial revelation of character, does it not 
behove us to be somewhat careful in its 
arrangement? 

University Extension. 
Doubtless all of our 
readers have read about 
the University Extension 
movement, and know that 
it is an attempt to place 
the advantages of a uni- 
versity education within 
the reach of every one. 
Although only a little 
more than a year old in 
this country, it is already 
in successful operation in 
many states, numbering 
its students by the thou- 
sands, and is significant of 
the growing desire for 
knowledge and culture 
among all classes. The 
time is long past when 
women were not expected 
nor desired to know any 
thing outside their own 
domain: and now, at last, 
busy professors are ac- 
knowledging a duty to 
those outside their college walls and are 
giving to busy men and women liberal op- 
portunities for acquiring knowledge. It 
must be remembered, however, that a full 
university education cannot be obtained by 
anyone without hard and continuous work. 
Busy mothers ought to consider this at the 
outset, and not expect too much, lest they 
begin the course only to be discouraged by 
its requirements. Yet, even though they 
may not be able to attempt the whole 
course, they cannot fail to be broadened 
and enlightened by listening to the lectures 
and being associated with so many earnest 
and thoughtful workers. 
Understand It. 
Ho v many women understand the 
mechanism of the stove, sewing-machine, 
or type-writer, which the}' use daily? 
It is reported of one woman that she sold 
an expensive range at a great sacrifice, be- 
cause it smoked, when the whole difficulty 
was that she had entirely neglected an im- 
portant damper. 
