^BUSINESS METHODS OF FRENCH WOMEN. 
IIE French are famous for their economies. French 
cooks are noted for their ability to get up a sat¬ 
isfactory dinner from a minimum of materials. There 
is said to be more wealth among the French common 
people than among those of any other country. The 
reason for this may, at least, be partially accounted 
for by the business training given to most French 
women, and the application of this training in the run¬ 
ning of the household machinery. The Brooklyn Eagle 
makes a comparison in this respect between French 
and American women, not very creditable to the latter. 
“I keep a monthly account of what I spend, but 
somehow it never balances straight,” laughingly de¬ 
clares a housewife whose bookkeeping proves a serious 
annoyance. Then the paper referred to goes on to 
state that this is too often the case with American and 
even English women. It is the French woman who is 
careful to account for every penny received or spent, 
and she is enabled to do this because household book¬ 
keeping is taught in the co nmon schools, for it is a 
recognized fact in France that a girl needs as good a 
business education as a man, for, as a wife, she is ex¬ 
pected to help her husband in his business. In the 
small store, she saves him the service of a clerk, and 
in the big ones she is often his equal partner capable 
of entire control if he died, as was Mme. Boucicault, 
whose system of great kindness and consideration 
toward her employees gained her the title of the good 
lady of the Bon Marche. 
Very few American women, no matter how capable 
they have shown themselves in the management of 
business affairs, have the slightest ideas of how to 
invest money. “ l have lost all my hard won savings,” 
said one the other day, with tears in her eyes. She 
has held for over 10 years a good position on a trade 
journal published in New York, and thought she was 
going to get rich in a big interest scheme. Another 
housewife, who is able to save half her husband’s 
generous allowance, is now bewailing because a few 
months ago, when the idea occurred to her it would be 
a good plan to invest in sugar, she was unable to do 
so, because ignorant of the first necessary step, and 
what she did she wanted to do secretly, on her own 
responsibility. But in Paris, wives are in the habit of 
investing. They attend to the collecting and pay¬ 
ing of debts and are prominent in business trans¬ 
actions. Shop girls are encouraged by a commission 
on sales, ranging from one-half to one per cent, accord¬ 
ing to success. Many in the big retail emporiums 
receive as high as $30 per month, besides much more in 
commissiors. There is seldom a wealthy business 
man here but allows his wife or daughters a yearly 
income from certain properties, teaching them during 
his lifetime how to take care of the same and how to 
invest. Though generous, he generally prefers to 
keep all such matters in his own hands. 
DO YOU KNOW? 
O you know that a warm knife will cut bar soap 
without crumbling it ? 
That fine copper wire is much better and more se¬ 
cure than any cord to bang pictures with? 
That strong vinegar can be used in place of cream 
of tartar with equally good results ? 
That a couple of plump apples placed in the box 
with cake will keep it moist a long time ? 
That if a thread be pulled out of each side of a lamp- 
wick, the latter will never stick in the burner ? 
That lamb skins, tanned, make excellent sleigh 
robes ? Of course, they should be colored. 
That plaster of paris, wet a little at a time in cold 
water, is the best thing to mend holes in walls ? 
That manilla paper pasted over the backs of pictures 
will exclude dust perfectly ? 
That plaster casts can be made to look like ivory by 
soaking in melted wax ? 
That deep, old red and cream make a beautiful com¬ 
bination in w T all paper ? 
That silver mica on old green is another elegant 
combination ? 
That one of the simplest and best remedies for piles 
is one cupful of honey, two tablespoonfuls of sulphur 
and two of black pepper, mixed, and taken a table¬ 
spoonful at a dose, three times daily in bad cases ? 
That a simple and effectual cough remedy is made 
of one ounce of glycerine, one teaspoonful of soda 
and one cupful of water ? 
That beans will shell, and the skins slip off apples 
very easily if they are first dipp°d for two or three 
minutes into boiling water ? 
That if there are bugs or wrigglers in cisterns or 
springs, a few little minnows will clean them out ? 
That nectarines are as easily grown as oleanders, 
are very ornamental, and bear young ? 
That a low staging on wheels to fit a bay window is 
a great convenience, as it can be pulled away (asily 
on cold nights ? 
That roses are best grown in the house in double 
pots filled between with sand, which is to be kept 
moist ? The hot sun shining on the single pot causes 
the leaves to fall off. 
That you can make your own varnish cheaper than 
you can buy it, by taking of resin, one pound and 
boiled oil, one pound ? Melt, add two pounds of tur¬ 
pentine ; mix well. 
That any vegetable or fruit that can be canned, 
may be evaporated equally well, and saved for years 
without danger of spoiling ? 
That a mirror, narrow and as long as the mantel, 
placed back of it is a great improvement ? 
That plain molding covered with sand-paper and 
gilded, makes pretty picture frames ? 
That cigar boxes of equal s z 1 ., fitted into a frame 
and finished with half a silk spool to pull them out by, 
are very handy to hold spices ? 
That yeast that has begun to sour may be sweetened 
by adding two teaspoonfuls cf sugar to each cupful ? 
In the morning it will be as good as new. 
That wheat middlings make just as good bread as 
rye flour at double the price ? 
That sheets, pillow-cases, towels, etc., can be ironed 
nicely by folding smoothly and putting through the 
wringer ? 
That a new cotton dress, accidentally torn, can be 
mended so that it will not show, by starching a piece 
like it, placing it carefully under the rent and ironing 
on both sides? 
That cookies, ginger-snaps, etc., bake much better 
if the tins are turned bottom side up ? 
That the letters can be removed from flour sacks by 
soaking these in butter milk ? 
That chopping bread dough instead of kneading so 
much, saves lots of work ? 
That sweet, skimmed milk is much better than 
starch for calicoes and ginghams. Florence: h. 
NEEDLEWORK BAGS. 
MBROIDERY companions, besides fulfilling the 
mission implied by the name, are made to grace 
the room in the shape of sachet-bags. The triangular 
fancy is intended only for lighter needle work. It is 
made of chamois, nine inches square, embroidered with 
single blossoms and sprigs of forget-me-nots in pale 
blue ribbon work. Line with crinoline above a layer 
of scented sheet-wadding, and face with gathered blue 
satin. The gathered lining is extended and turned 
down an inch beyond the chamois, forming a frill. 
The square is then folded diagonally, and the two 
sides are joined to make a triangular bag. In the 
corners, are fastened tassels made of the remaining 
bits of leather, cut into narrow strips, and tied 
together with blue rope silk. A blue ribbon for hang¬ 
ing, completes this creation in popular blue and yellow. 
A design for larger pieces of fancy work is made of 
French satine. A practical size is one yard long, 
and half the width of the goods. Before sewing 
up, slip over a large bone ring. Fold in the middle, 
sew the bottom and each side, leaving an opening at 
either top side. The satine should have a floral figure 
in bold design. With fine gold thread, outline each 
figure, fish-scaling or darning some of the petals and 
leaves entirely. Fine gilt rope, doubled and twisted, 
is made into tassels as a finish. anna hinrichs. 
KINDERGARTEN KINKS. 
E faire maide of the coming generation, who is 
now a dear little kindergarten tot, will not 
whisper a soft “yes” to the tender pleadings of 
Alphonse ; neither will she know how tc give that 
sweetest answer of all, a yielding, affirmative “no.” 
How do I know ? Because a kindergarten teacher 
hath told me so. 
“ We do not allow the children to say ‘yes and no,’ ” 
the teacher remarked with that confident air of having 
a better way; “but we teach them to make their 
replies in other ways. For instance, I ask a little one : 
‘ Do you like apples ?' It replies, ‘I do’ or ‘I do not’ or 
to the question, ‘Are you fond of candy ?’ the child is 
taught to reply, ‘I am’ or ‘I am not fond of candy,’ 
never ‘yes’ or ‘no.’” 
“ But the Bible says : ‘ Let your conversation be 
yea, yea, and nay, nay, for whatsoever is more than 
these cometh of evil.’ ” 
The teacher smiled slightly ; I did not pursue the 
argument, and she went on to say that neither do they 
teach the little ones that anything is naughty or bad. 
“ Indeed, we never use either word ; we tell them to 
be ‘kind’ to their playmates and never to be ‘unkind.’ ” 
So I suppose in the line, “There’s nothing good or 
bad but thinking makes it so,” the teacher would say, 
“there’s nothing good or unkind out thinking makes 
it so.” Sounds funny, doesn’t it ? Can we eliminate 
the word bad from our vocabulary ? And, if we could, 
would that help to make children better ? Of course 
I do not believe a child ought to be told that it’s “the 
very worst young one that ever breathed the breath 
of life but I do believe in calling a spade a spade, 
and, if a child is bad, say so. What earthly good is 
there in beating around the bush and saying, “Now, 
you have been very unkind, and what do you think 
mamma ought to do to punish you ? ” 
What do children care for talk ? It all goes into 
one ear and out the other. “Actions speak louder 
than words,” and are longer remembered. “ He who 
hateth his son spareth the rod, but he he who loveth 
his son chasteneth him betimes.” It seems to me that 
the teaching and talking bminess is somewhat over¬ 
done nowadays. And give me the child who can an¬ 
swer with a plain, old-fashioned “yes, sir!” when 
spoken to. If it cannot get beyond that, let it be 
silent and—be ye thankful. There are too many peo¬ 
ple in the world now who talk by the yard and say 
nothing. Though it be a good thing to know what 
to say, to know what not to say is better. 
DOCIA DYKENS. 
One cent will buy a postal card on which to send us 
your friend’s name for a sample copy of The R. N.-Y., 
if you wish to preserve your copy. 
A cream of tartar baking powder. 
Highest of all in leavening strength. 
—Latest United States Government 
Report. 
Royal Baking Powder Co., 
106 Wall Street, New York. 
