AU8. 31 
BRIC-A-BRAC. 
CHRISTIAN BULKS T OB SUNDAY. 
Dress hard all inornlnsr, such is fate. 
Then enter church some minutes late. 
All eyes will then be turned on you. 
And will observe your bonnet new. 
Let humble modesty wreathe your face, 
And take your seat with faultless tfrace. 
Let all your thoughts be fixed on high. 
And rearrange your cardinal tie. 
Think how religion’s jirone to bless, 
And criticise your neighbor’s dress. 
Let all your heart be filled with praise, 
And notice Mrs. Miggle’s lace. 
Put from your mind all thoughts of sin. 
And readjust your diamond pin. 
Think of how good religion proves. 
And then smooth out your buttoned gloves. 
Catch well the precepts as they fall. 
And smooth the •wrinkles in your shawl, 
Think of the sinner’s fearful fate. 
And notice if your bonnet's straight. 
Pray for the influence of divine- 
That lady’s basque, mark the design. 
Let tender peace possess your mind, 
And criticise that hat behind. 
Reflect on Christian graces dear. 
And fix those curls beside your ear. 
Let your heart warm with silent prayer, 
And view that horrid green silk there. 
Reflect upon the wickeds’ ways, 
See if your gold chain’s out of place. 
Think of the peace the good shall find, 
And wonder who are sitting behind. 
Think of the burdens Christians bear, 
And notioe these strange ladies thore. 
The last words hear with contrite heart. 
And fix your pull-back when you start. 
t8prhngfleld Republican. 
HE SWALLOWED A TORPEDO! 
It happened to the sub3orlber. I am a man- 
nurse at Bellevue Hospital. It is my duty to 
sinotiier patients that don't seem likely to got 
better when their beds are wanted. I perform 
this nefarious act In the silence of midnight, my 
sole weapon, a hospital pillow, It's tho regular 
thing up there, you know. 
Well, one night when we were full there was a 
call for a bi d, and I was about to create the ac¬ 
commodation, when I felt a hand from behind 
placed upon my shoulder. It was the nurse, 
Mary Ann. “ Don't,” she said, “it’s dangerous. 
Follow me; I nave something to say.” I follow¬ 
ed to a distant oorner of the hall. There, her 
left hand toying Idly with a medicine phial—she 
spoke in this strain: “ lie was in love with me 
once, and I don’t want him silenced; besides, he 
has a mission to accomplish, and he’ll get bet¬ 
ter.” •* What la it?” I asked. She drew me closer 
into the shadow of the wall, and whispered, "lie 
has a torpedo lu Ills inside!” “Impossiblel" 
I gasped, preparing to dive under a cot. “ res, 
but dou’t be alarmed; It Is ouo of his own inven¬ 
tion. It is no larger than a pill, and he swallow¬ 
ed it by mistake, it has made him very sick, but 
so long as he lives It will remain Intact, unless, 
peradventure, he Is subjected to violence, when it 
will explode!!” 
” Aha! Then he musn’t die here.” •'<Of course 
not. That is whyl crutloued you. To-morrow 
he win be taken carefully home to his mother-lo- 
law s. Thera he proposes to manufacture these 
torpedo-pills by the gross. They will regenerate 
society. Husbands will be able to live at peace, 
and go to the lodge as oiten as convenient with¬ 
out fear of consequences. No man will dare to 
beat his wife, for fear of exploding her torpedo 
Policemen will use the club with great cautlou, 
and not without previous Inquiry. Ward prima¬ 
ries will fade Into the dim past. War will be Im¬ 
possible; the killing ot the enemy’s soldiers, will 
be the destruction or your own troops. Nostage- 
cmvur win dare to run down helpless pedestrians, 
because the torpedo-pill will bo harmless during 
an unmolested life and a quiet death, but Infer¬ 
nally deadly the Instant violence Is attempted. 
It Is to be sold to editors at half—oh! what 
was that ?” 
Terrified, I listened. There was a hissing 
sound issuing from his bed, and then—then a 
loud report. The building quivered, the walls 
tottered, and the roof went soaring Into space. 
Tub man with the torpedo uad gone off ! 
* • * » * • f 
I don’t know how I escaped. When 1 awoke to 
consciousness I was lying against a lamp-post at 
the corner of Third avenue aud 125th street. I 
have thought It over since, and concluded he 
must have hit blmseir, accidentally, la the chest. 
His loss can never be compensated for; no one 
possesses the secret of those pills. 7 x 9 . 
‘‘oh, what shall the harvest be!”* 
WITH VARIATIONS. 
The farmer looks over hia broad field of hay, 
Rejoicing its progress to see, 
And gleefully chants the appropriate lay, 
1 Oh, what shall the harvest bo 7" 
The horso doctor ooruos on his horse to attend. 
And fiuds a big-lump on bis kuee ; 
He remarks, as he strives the excrescence to end, 3 
" A wart shall tho harvest be." 
Iho thief plies his art in some orowded resort, 
With the contents of pockets makes free. 
Says in clutching a time-piece of elegant sort, 
A watch shall the harvest bo." 
Tho ascetic iu search of a gurmont hirsute 
(lo atone for his sius soekoth he), 
Declaims as he starts on the pious pursuit, 
On, what shall the ha’r-vest be ?” 
[FAUUp* Thompson, in 8t. John Torch. 
THE BUBAL NEW-YORKER. 
CONDTOTED BY MISS FAITH RIPLEY. 
AUGUST DAYS. 
“ Now, what hath entered my loved woods 
And touched their green with sudden change 7 
What is this last of nature’s moods 
That makes the roadside look bo strange7 
Who blanched my thistle’s blushing face, 
And gave the winds her sliver hair 7 
Set gulden rod within her place, 
And scattered asters everywhere 7" 
So through my brain and In my heart these 
thoughts will come—of regret for Summer golDg, 
and I murmur as I sing— 
" Return darling lilies and white roses, 
And bring back the summer days again.” 
All too fleeting seemed the bright June flays— 
too swiftly passed the rlch-frulted July. August 
will soon wane, and everywhere there Is a still¬ 
ness, as of work done. Nothing speaks of Au¬ 
tumn—tho harvest's fullness Is with us, but we 
catch a glimpse of chaoge In the tint of the 
leaves, the cry of the grasshopper, ai d the fields 
bereft of the yellow grain. Ah! me, only too 
soon the chill breath of Autumn win touch the 
leaves of our tenderest blossoms—we shall awake 
some morning to find a suspicious breath, as of a 
heavy mist, upon the window paBe, and feel sure 
of frost—perhaps slight at first, but warning us of 
the season’s change. Let us not anticipate, but 
while we may, we can enjoy tho full rrultlon, the 
perfection and richness of the latter summer 
days- Annie L. Jack. 
- *-*-*• - 
LETTERS FROM A COUNTRY GIRL.-No. 6. 
MARGARET B. HARVEY. 
I have said, I think, that I hoped to be able to 
point out several ways lu which our country¬ 
women (and all women) may Improve their minds. 
I still cherish the hope. For this season of the 
year, I think one of the most effective, most de¬ 
lightful. most satisfactory and least difficult 
means, would he to commence the study of Bot¬ 
any, or continue It, If It has been taken up. 
The books recommended In a former letter were 
Mrs. Lincoln’s (latest edition) and Gray’s. The 
first contains a very thorough exposition of the 
principles of Vegetable Anatomy and Physiology, 
aud descriptions of very many or our indigenous 
and exotlo plants It 13 reliable In all particulars 
except Ferns, whose nomenclature has changed 
very much within the last few years. Gray’s bo¬ 
tanical books are from the pen of Prof. Asa Gray, 
of Harvard. Prof. Gray Is the authority for Nortli 
American plants. Of his several text-books of 
vegetable science, "How Plante Grow,”in eon- 
Jiinctlon with, and followed by, “ Gray’s Manual," 
or, ‘‘Field, Forest and Gaiden Botany,” will be 
best. 
I rancy I hear some one say, ** Why need a 
woman In a farm-house study botany, and when 
could she?” I shall try to answer these ques¬ 
tions before going on to advise farther in its pur¬ 
suit. 
The first might be disposed of under the general 
assertion-that knowledge brings its own reward. 
But I shall add that, surrounded as such a 
woman Is by tali trees, brlgut Bowers, luxuriant 
vines, fine vegetables, luscious fruits, waving 
grasses and velvet mosses, benefited constantly 
by their oonvenleuco aud their beauty, it seems 
most natural, most appropriate lor her to study 
as extensively, as Intelligently as possible, ob¬ 
jects so near and so useful lo her. It. is always 
best for us to know most of what pei tains to our 
own domain. 
The second Is not very hard to answer. A little 
occasional reading, a paragraph now and a page 
then, In the little scraps of time, ir accompanied 
by an earnest desire and supplemented by a pair 
of quick eyes, will accomplish wonders. 
For Instance, a woman sits shelling beans. She 
has that morning In the Interval betweou ring¬ 
ing the break fast bell and waiting for the appear¬ 
ance of tho family, peeped Into her Botany long 
enough to see that a legume Is u pod with two su¬ 
tures, having tho seeds fastened to one, and open¬ 
ing by the other,—practice has long ago told ht-r 
which. Now, as she sits there, a sudden charm 
Is lent to the otherwise monotonous work, as she 
remembers that it is a legume she Is breaklug 
with her fingers. What other plums have le¬ 
gumes? Peas, sweet-peas, string-beans,—all va¬ 
rieties of beans, In Tact. Hero Is an Idea. If they 
are alike In the character ot their fruit, is there 
any other likeness? Yen; all have flowers simi¬ 
larly shaped. (She knows the appearance, though 
as yet she la unable ; o describe It. She will after¬ 
wards learn that it is a papilionaceous corolla, or 
one having a keel, a banner, icings, and diadel- 
Phous stamens.) What other plants have like 
flowers? The wistaria, the acacia, Lbo locust, 
the lupine, the Judas-tree and the amphlcarpa. 
So her mind runs on, as she recalls the form of 
one, the color of another, the size, perfume, fruit, 
etc., of still another and another, until shu be¬ 
comes conscious that there Is in the vegetable 
kingdom a series of links and likenesses which 
she hud not before taken Into consideration. And 
In tbe quiet afternoon, when the work Is all done 
up, she again turns to her book, and to her great 
Joy, her sudden elevation and her eternal benefit, 
she finds that she has, almost unconsciously, 
learned the leading characteristics or the f amil y 
L egiminosoe. 
With what rapid wings will she travel for a 
time after this, and so naturally too. Among her 
rare currant aud gooseberry busbea, win she not 
discover that there Isa family, Kibes, even before 
she knows tho name? In her flower-beds and 
orchards, will not her roses and apples and rasp¬ 
berries and pears, point her to the Rosa tree? 
Can she not see in the gay hollyhock on the 
lawns, the althsea down the lane, the okra in the 
truck-patch, and the “cheesewally”ln the ne¬ 
glected walk, the Malvraceaa ? Believe me, yes. 
And I venture to say she will not rest satisfied 
here. She will want to analyze separate speci¬ 
mens, and determine their family, genus and 
species. And if ever she Is going to be discour¬ 
aged, it Is now. But with patience, perseverance, 
and a good pocket-lens (SI.25) she can accomplish 
much, with far less trouble and vexation than 
her mother and grandmother experienced in 
working the rectangular Adam and the paper 
circular Eve, or the cadaverous Moses and the 
spectacular Aaron, on the faded samplers in tbe 
garret, along with the relics of departed days 
and glories. And If at the end of summer and 
autumn she has carefully studied twenty speci¬ 
mens, dried them flatly, neatly gummed them 
into a olank book, and by them written their cor¬ 
rect genera, species, families and common names, 
together with the date and locality of gathering, 
so as to have made a commencement for a herb¬ 
arium, sbe will have done very well. And it is 
safe to say that from no other portion of her 
summer's work and enjoyment, will she have de¬ 
rived very much more real profit and pure sale. 
- - - ♦ ♦ »- 
ENGLISH COUNTRY HOMES. 
E. f. m. 
The first thing which impresses an American 
In traveling in England, and visiting her country 
houses and cottages, is their substantial strength 
and age. Many of the manor-houses were built 
under the Tudors, and tho walls or gray stone, or 
red brick, arc massive and thick. At once you 
feel how thoroughly English is the beautiful word 
“home;” how truly it fits 3uch a house where 
generation after generation were born and wed¬ 
ded, and from which they have been slowly 
borne to their last resting-place. These dwel¬ 
lings are full of stories and tradlUons, and seem 
thoroughly infused with human life and in¬ 
terests. 
Another striking characteristic, which springs 
from t he certainty that these houses are built for 
centuries and are strong to withstand tho de¬ 
structive influences or time and climate, is tho 
rich and ornate style of architecture. The work¬ 
man loved his work and expected It to endure. 
So you will see oriel aud dormer windows, or 
gable ends and cornice, and frieze, and stairways, 
rich with heavily carved work In wood. There 
are stone-shafted casements, delicate traceries, 
lattice-worked windows with Bmall diamond- 
shaped panes, portals ot stone carved with ar¬ 
morial bearings. Even tho massive oaken doors 
are carved In quaint devices of fruits, flowers and 
birds, with grotesque faces mixed with these. 
The halls have immense open fire-places, In 
which whole logs used to blaze In cheerful flames 
at merry Christmas tide. In tho long picture- 
gallerLtsyou may see with interest the types of 
countenance characteristic or different periods, 
and the qualat changes, not only In costume, but 
attitude, manner and expression, the stateliness 
of old days merging Into the simplicity and di¬ 
rectness or to-day. 
The English are by nature so conservative, so 
fond of ancient things, that you may mark la 
their homes ail tbe phases of change, from a dis¬ 
tant period, lu both building and gardening_al¬ 
though landscape gardening was Introduced In 
the reign of William and Mary. In our country 
every vestige of the old style would long ago have 
been effaced, but in some old country houses you 
may took from a jutting bow-window, completely 
overrun witu ivy, upon grounds laid lu the old 
formal manner—clipped shrubberies, evergTecns 
cut In queer shapes of peaoocks, swans or anG 
mills; raised terraces, and heavy stone balus¬ 
trades ornamented with urns or leaden statutes. 
But nothing can be lovelier after leaving these 
ti Iro, precise gardens of old-fashioned tastes, 
than to wander la an English park, where na¬ 
ture’s own requisite forms and combinations are 
carefully preserved. The cool green sward of 
wide lawns la shaded here and there by groups 
of stalely trees. There are woodland glades, 
across which troop the silent herds ot deer, and 
in the glens you hear the whir of the startled 
pheasant, or see the hare scurrying away to her 
hiding-place. The brook winds athwart the val¬ 
ley, nowstretchlug luto a small lake, now gliding 
Into a quiet pool, which reflects the shining tree- 
boughs, and holds the shy trout safe In its 
shadowed recesses. 
Our own Washington Irving speaks with en¬ 
thusiasm of such gardening on a smaller scale, 
lie says tho most sterile and unpromising spot 
may be changed luco beauty. “The cherishing 
and traiulug of some trees; the cautious pruning 
of others; the nice distribution of flowers and 
plants of tender aud graceful foliage; the intro¬ 
duction of a green slope of velvet turr; the par¬ 
tial opening to a peep of blue distance, or stiver 
gleam Of water; all these are managed with a 
delicate tact, a pervading yet quiet assiduity, like 
the magic touchings with which a painter finishes 
up a favorite picture." One slight difference In the 
management oi chimneys adds to thepteturesque- 
ncss of an English house. Rising over the rich 
masses of foliage. Instead of one stiff and awk¬ 
ward chlrouoy you will site a cluster of chimneys, 
ornamented with moldings of brick work, an 
ornament rich and full of character, addlnggreet- 
ly to the general outline of the building, as well 
as to the comfort of the interior life. 
Another thing that one soon learns to love In 
English farms Is tho green hedge-row that dl- 
vldes one Hold from another. These hedges are 
fragrant with Mowers in summer and full or ber¬ 
ries In autumn, and furnish homes for thousands 
of twittering, happy birds, which weave their 
uests In these green nooks aud find protection 
here from predatory birds. A well-trodden path 
leads you through the quiet fields to the village 
church, where the dwellers in such houses, and 
the til lei's of the lands, have worshipped under 
the same roor from youth to age. Many of these 
old churches are completely covered with Ivy 
S3© 
from the turret and tower to the base, and the 
JutUog buttress or fantastically carved orna¬ 
ments peer out through the rich green tapestry 
of close leaves. You walk between the graves to 
the very church doors, and the tablets on tbe 
walls bear the memorial Btorles of the departed. 
Nor are you out of reach of such Influences 
and associations when you leave the church 
walls. Even at a distance you may see the old 
tower, 
“ Which lifts the sonl up silently 
To Heaven, with all its dreums," 
and hear floating through the evening air the 
sweet, clear notes of the birds. It ts no wonder, 
that, a country so beautiful, and so itch In human 
memories, so strong In its ties or household af¬ 
fection and faith, should be dearly loved by her 
children, for even a stranger soon regards it with 
warmth, which no other foreign land can awaken. 
TAKE A SEAT. 
J. E. M'C. 
It Is a motto of the Cary Indian that “ it Is 
ter to walk than to ruu, It Is better to stand than 
to walk, it la better to sit than to stand, it is bet¬ 
ter to lie than to sit.” Without taking It quite so 
far, I would urge every housekeeper never to 
stand about her work when she cun sir. There Is 
do danger but what she will get sufficient exer¬ 
cise, In any case, and the relief and rest she will 
find in often sitting down when she has a pan of 
potatoes to pare, or a dish of berries to hull, or a 
hundred other small matters to attend to, can. 
not be computed until the days’ workls done, and 
she sees the comparative comfort with which she 
has been able to perform her work. 
Some very delicate ladles are able to carry on 
the affairs of a household with a very small out¬ 
lay of strength by using great system and care 
In this respect, and the strongest-armed woman 
has need to husband her strength as she goes 
along, for she will need It all berore her life- 
work la done. To make work easy when sitting 
down, a variety of seats are needful, placed la 
convenient corners, for If one must go out into 
another room to look for the right kind of aehatr, 
the chances are that the work will be done stand¬ 
ing. 
A low seat made of a box, well-cushioned and 
simply covered Is handy for a great many things. 
A low rocker, by a pleasant window, is a real 
bower of ease where a tired mother may catch 
many a llttlo breathing space, and have for a few 
minutes an out-look that shall make her spirits 
brighter as she goes back to her work. 
But a high stool, like an office chair, should 
form a part of every kitchen outfit, seated on it, 
one may wash dishes, told and Iron clothes, and 
do many things that most women suppose roust 
be performed standlug. A hundred women would 
be glad to make this change In their way of work¬ 
ing If it was not lor that great bug-bear •• whit 
will psople say?” They have strength to drag 
about their work after a fashion, hut they have 
not moral strength to stand up to that. A little 
tonic for the moral is what a great many women 
need. You must harden yourself to that carplDg, 
cynical Mrs. Grundy’s Dilk, and go serenely on 
your way, wheu you are convinced it 13 the right 
way. A cheery, independent manner, disarms 
criticism and often brings the critic around to 
your way of thinking. Always yielding and al¬ 
ways, In a manner, trembling for tear other folks 
won’t like It, makes you a weary slave. You can¬ 
not wisely despise public opinion, or run against 
It determinately; but you may bend and mold It 
to your own service, and with lasting benefit to 
others as well as yourself. 
woman as a Pianoforte Tunes.—C an any rea- 
sonable objection be advanced to the employ¬ 
ment of women as pianoforte tuners ? The pres¬ 
ent writer is totally Ignorant ot music, and 
therefore may have erroneous notions respecting 
the scientific acquirements necessary for the 
exercise of the tuner’s art; but whatever these 
may be, Is It proved that women cannot attain to 
them? If the tuner need3 only a uue ear lor 
harmony, mechanical facility in handling tho 
Implements of his craft, and a knowledge of the 
construction and capacities ot the various Instru¬ 
ments on which he may be required to exercise 
It, t here can be no doubt that women are as well 
qualified by nature as men to be pianoforte 
tuners. The true ear for harmony Is the test re¬ 
quirement, and as many women as men possess 
that. The occupation Is not fatiguing, aud it is 
one that, like the cleaning, repairing and regu¬ 
lating ot clocks and watches, might he secured to 
numbers ot properly taught aud quallfled women, 
if the ladles who are Interested lu extending the 
area of employment Tor their own sex would com¬ 
mence the movement la favor of It. it cannot be 
too emphatically repeated that Ir. all these sug¬ 
gestions there la no thought or anything but self- 
supporting industry, that 1~, is distinctly to recom¬ 
mend certain kinds of work which, being fairly 
well done by women, shall recommend them- 
selves to that only true and lastingly valuable 
patron, the public, the.ro suggestions are offered, 
and that It Is only the first •* push ” that Is needed 
or asked. 
--- 
The party of teachers and students ot Lasell 
Seminary, Auburndale, Mass., which Is spending 
the vacation in Europe Is having a profitable trip. 
Mr. Bragdon Is getting some rare art treasures, 
with the generous provision of the Trustees, In- 
ciudlng some rare original etchings of masters 
for the use of the students In Drawing. 
Mrs. Mary f. McCloud, DarllDgton, Beaver Co. 
Pa., wants to Know name of the lady who wrote 
over non-de plume •' Alabama” from Carrollton 
Ala., In Rural, 11 May. 
First meeting of the Woman’s Club comes off 
in Rural of September 7 . Be sure and send you 
contributions in time for publication. 
