TUI RURAL WEW-YORKIR. 
SS© 
order’s methods of doing business could be 
investigated. Has that investigation takeu 
place? Has it proved satisfactory? Has the 
injunction been dissolved? 
Among the frauds which thickly pester the 
country at this season are the lightning-rod 
swindlers who want to rod dwelling-houses 
and outbuildings for a mere trifle; but after 
the “advance agent” has secured the order 
and the “gang” arrive, they are likely to in¬ 
sist on “roddiog” the premises to the tune of 
several hundred dollars. The only safe 
thing to do with regard to lightning rods 
is, under no circumstances, to give an order to 
traveling agents, even if the terms are put 
down with the greatest apparent precision, 
“in black and white.” Wiih such people, in 
nine cases out of ten, the customer will cer¬ 
tainly have trouble tf he is not actually swin¬ 
dled. The work will be done much better, 
and the risk of aunoyance and overcharge 
will be much less if the work is intrusted 
to some local jiersou eugaged iu the business. 
Another pestiferous lot. of frauds are the 
itinerant charlatans and quacks, “Indiandoc¬ 
tors” and pseudo-medical humbugs generally, 
that travel in gangs through the country at 
this season. Most of them “camp out” aud 
have “music” aud mountebanks to attract the 
gaping rustics. The cure-alls and nostrums 
for special diseases which they puff with 
shameless cheeks are usually worthless where 
they are uot hurtful. The men composing the 
several gangs are, in 99 cases out of 1(H), iguo- 
rant rowdies or worse when uot. “on the road 
aud when on it, they are all-round swiudlers 
ready for any sort of clandestine depravity. 
The women frequently forming part of such 
shows are—well, they are in every way lit 
companions for the men. No decent person 
should have auy association whatever with 
such people; no sensible person should dream 
of having any dealings with tie m. 
To Several Inquirers. —We have had 
quite a number of complaints of the Damon 
Chemical Works, New Bedford, Mass.We 
have refused to msert in our columns the ad¬ 
vertisement, of the “Champion” cow-milker, as 
we were not satisfied with its working at the 
dairy show here, and the concern that adver¬ 
tises it—The New York Dairy Company— 
is not known at the address it gives. 
Woman s Work. 
CONDUCTED BY EMILY LOUISE TAPLIN. 
CHAT BY THE WAY. 
We came across a new definition of the 
word heroine lately, which meets our views to 
a dot. What is a heroine? An educated 
American womau who does her own house¬ 
work. Women have led armies, and women 
have defied nations, but Maria Theresa her¬ 
self might have quailed before the kitchen 
range, some roasting day in preserving time. 
And there is a self-sacrificing quality about 
this heroism, too. Any girl with the longing 
for great things we are ail apt to suffer from 
would rather be Joan of Are than busy Phyl¬ 
lis; it sounds better to be Maid of Orleans 
than maid of all work iu a busy family. But 
you may equal poor Joan’s heroism without 
leaving the trivial rounds of daily tasks. 
Only we want some one to throw in a little 
much-needed romance. 
# * * 
Every paper we pick up nowadays has 
something to say about woinau’s mission, or 
woman’s sphere, or something of that sort. 
Really, sisters, we are becoming what the 
politicians term a live issue. Sometimes we 
are inclined to quote poor Mr. Jellyby’s ad¬ 
vice, and say solemnly, “Never have amis¬ 
sion,” vrbeu we see some energetic woman 
throwing all her influence in a totally unnec¬ 
essary direction. But we are disposed to 
amend the advice, and say, never worry 
about amission; it will come without seeking, 
if it is only a mission to sew' on some forlorn 
man’s buttons. There seems a tendency on 
the part of our sex to go iu for great inoral 
and social reforms, which, if persisted in, will 
leave the lords of creation button less, except 
for their own feeble efforts. 
* * * 
Now, if we went in for a social reform, it 
would be a movement for the higher estima¬ 
tion of housework. If housework is not a 
social science we would like to know what it 
is. And since the ideal household is the guar¬ 
dian of all virtues, the art and science that 
insures its comfort must be the foundation of 
virtue itself. 
But it does seem so bard for an ambitious 
girl who lias a longing for a carter, with a 
capital C, to stay home and do housework—to 
work her vague longings into Cookery, when 
she feels that she has a soul above pie. Ah, 
me, how full of briars is this work-a-day 
world ! 
* * * 
Are all American women either physically 
feeble or overworked? As a rule, we may 
consider that the latter state of things im¬ 
plies the former. The trouble is that we are 
apt to have too much exercise of the wrong 
sort. We get all our exercise within four 
walls, closed in from the free winds of heaven. 
No wonder if we grow pallid and bloodless, 
nervous and cross. Some oue writing in the 
Philadelphia Press, comments on the fragile 
health of our women and lays much of it to 
our mode of living. American girls mature 
early ; they go in for social excitements dur¬ 
ing the years of growth, and they marry too 
young; they are apt to become broken-down 
invalids when they should be iu their prime. 
They seem wantiug in the stamina possessed 
by most English women; nor do they go iu 
for the physical culture of their trans-Atlau- 
tic sisters. 
* * * 
But we know a great mauy country girls 
who certainly have never had the opportunity 
of social excitements, who are certainly as 
pallid and delicate as their sisters of the town. 
They live orderly, regular lives, amid the 
most wholesome surroundings—yet too many 
of them are subject to nervous affections 
and hypochoudriaeal complaints. Perhaps 
sunshine and fresh air would he the best pre¬ 
scription; very tew of us live up to our possi¬ 
bilities in these respects. 
We know a wise physician who is especially 
skilled in treating all the nervous, half-mental 
ailments with which growing girls and fanci¬ 
ful women are afflicted. He gives bis patients 
some simple tonic to amuse them while they 
get well, but the most emphatic part of his 
prescription is always fresh air, out-door exer¬ 
cise, aud cheerful society. And we tkiuk it 
would be hard to fiud better medicine for a 
good mauy of the ills that feminine flesh seems 
heir to. _ _ _ 
REFORM DRESS. 
The accompanying cuts from Mrs. Jenness 
Miller’.' paper. Dress, give an idea of the modi¬ 
fied reform dress. There is really no noticea¬ 
ble difference from the ordinary stvle, except¬ 
ing the absence of the bustle. The wearer is 
Eig. 314. 
supposed to be corsetless, wearing reform 
under-garments. The foundation of the cos¬ 
tume is the “gown form, ’ which, as previous¬ 
ly illustrated, is rather like a gubriclle wrap¬ 
per. 
The bodice is cut out and filled in with 
dotted net, finished at the neck witli lace. 
The sleeves are slightly flowing, and have 
under-sleeves of the net. 
The skirt is the plain gown form, but has a 
full pointed front drapery. The back drapery 
is full and straight on the sides, and forms a 
watteau plait in the center. 
There is very little difference, us far as ap¬ 
pearance is concerned, between this and 
everyday, uureformed costume, so it is uot 
open to the objection of the terrific Bloomer 
costume, which was the. ideal of dress reform 
years ago. We cannot speak of the merits of 
these reform costumes from personal ex¬ 
perience, but the “Arlington,” as the costume 
illustrated is named, certainly has the advan¬ 
tage of neatness and harmoniously flowing 
lines. _ _ _ 
THE FAMILY MEDICINE CHEST. 
In a scattered couutry neighborhood, where 
it is impossible to summon the doctor 
very quickly, the medicine chest is an 
absolute necessity. It should be well ar¬ 
ranged, so that everything may be found 
without loss of time. And it must, most em¬ 
phatically, be out of the reach of children. 
Every housemother should learn enough of 
physiology and disease to prescribe simple 
remedies for ailments aud accidents, though 
this should never prevent her from sending for 
a regular physician when she has reason to 
suspect serious illness. 
Another point to be avoided is indiscrimi¬ 
nate dosing. One is very apt, to fall into this 
error if one is the possessor of a cute little 
homeopathic medicine chest. It is easy to 
order little sugar-coated pellets for all the ills 
that flesh is heir to, until it becomes a regular 
habit. The less medicine one takes the better, 
sugar-coated or otherwise. 
Iu the closet where medicines are kept, one 
should always have sponges, lint, bandages 
and plaster. As soon as any material gives 
out it should lie promptly replaced, or it may 
result in serious inconvenience. There are 
few poisons which need to be kept iu the fam¬ 
ily materia, inedica, for many time-honored 
remedies of a poisonous nature may bo re¬ 
placed with some drug equally useful and 
less dangerous. Whenever poison is kept, it 
should have the most efficacious antidote 
written or printed on the label. Some drug¬ 
gists do this—they all ought to—but if the 
seller neglects this, the purchaser should mark 
the bottle thus: IODINE—POISON ; antidote, 
white of egg. Iu the country, a mother is 
most often called upon to dress cuts, insect 
bites, etc., aud iu addition to this, she should 
familiarize herself with the proper treatment 
for sunstroke and apparent drowniugs. It is 
a pity every womau cannot join the emer¬ 
gency classes giving instruction iu first aid 
to the. injured, but the family physician will 
generally be ready with information about 
simple ailments, and will be the tiest person to 
consult when stocking one’s medicine chest. 
YOUTHFUL TRAINING. 
MARY D. THOMAS. 
Many times one may see in villages and 
cities, especially where there are public 
Fig. 315. 
schools, youug men who are aspiring for a 
high position iu life, who can see in the future 
a prize worth wduning, At first they set out 
with all their energy hut it soon tiles away, 
as their mind turns in another direction far 
from that prize they so eagerly sought. Why 
is it that so few reach the goul they once so 
highly prized? It is simply the lack of perse¬ 
verance. 
A young child can easily l»e taught lessons 
in perseverance which will, iu after years, 
grow deeper ami stronger, never to be forgot¬ 
ten. Wo are all allowed this life of young 
years, not merely to sec life passing away, but 
to grasp with a firm aud steady hand at those 
things that arc w itliiu our reach that will be 
of benefit to us. Ami to paraphrase a little— 
•‘Leurn to make the must of life, 
Make glad each passing dayt 
For time will never lulus thee back 
The chances swept away.” 
Many times the young uru allowed greater 
privileges than they take advantage of; wheu 
if they would step out m this world aud pre¬ 
pare themselves for a life work they might 
make the earth quake with their influence. 
Then again it is just the reverse. Others would 
go forth and enlist in this harvest field if they 
had t he moans; but under such circumstances, 
there is a chance for us many workers as the 
contrary, for they take as their motto aud 
guide, industry, patience, and perseverance. 
These will build and set sail a boat fit for auy 
voyage in life—then being fully equipped for 
battle the contest is a sure one. 
THE EXPRESSION OF THOUGHT. 
J. H. G. 
TnE opening sentences in one of our leading 
grammars read ns follows: “We think or have 
thoughts.” “Wo express our thoughts by 
moans of w'ords.” It i« true that wci think or 
have thoughts, but unfortunately it is seldom 
possible or udvisnble to express them by 
means of words. We learn our owu language 
as we learn the languages of other countries, 
by expressing our simplest thoughts in the 
simplest words As our education proceeds, 
thought and lauguuge do not always keep to¬ 
gether. We often see people with an exten¬ 
sive vocabulary, who have little original 
thought, and on the other hand people who 
think profoundly, but without the language or 
power nf expression. The thought—the in¬ 
spirations of men—have iu every age risen 
above the level of their arts, and recorded ex¬ 
pressions. Tiie various legends of the creation 
of the world and its inhabitants—the hiero¬ 
glyphics and mural paintings of the early ages 
—are perhaps the earliest evidence of this pe¬ 
culiar trait of man. In the Story of Joseph, 
the book of Job and the Psalms of David, we 
see painful evidence of the struggle of the 
human mind with its limitations, of infinite 
thought with finite power of expression. 
Even in the life of Jesus w e see evidence of 
the same struggle—the impossible effort to ex¬ 
hibit Divinity—omnipotence iu human form, 
with human limitations and environments. 
The thoughts of Shakespeare, the ideals of 
Titian, of Raphael, Rembrandt or Durer have 
never been, nor eau they ever he reproduced; 
yet they may have been equaled, or even sur¬ 
passed. by the imaginings of thousands of mtn 
totally unknown to fame—valueless because of 
.the waut of technical skill to produce them. 
In fact, the success of authors and artists is 
duo to the reproduction in a higher form of 
the thoughts aud ideals of other, rather then 
to the invention of thoughts or ideals which 
are unique. That almost all the liner aud 
nobler thoughts of the human brain are not 
and cannot be expressed by our cold Anglo- 
Saxon language is evident, and this constant 
struggle of the infinite with the finite is the 
one great evidence of a superior part to man, 
evidence of au immortal life—a soul life—of 
w hich we can have but the faintest glimpses 
here. 
We are misjudged, and we often err in om’ 
judgment of others, because we fail to make 
ourselves understood, or fail to comprehend 
the thoughts of others as we hear them ex¬ 
pressed. Wheu that great day shall come 
when we shall know as we are known, we 
shall wonder, not at the sins and weaknesses 
of our brethren, but at our owu dullness of 
comprehension. 
We should seek to have the noblest thoughts, 
with the power of expressing them to others 
aud realizing the difficulty of clearly express¬ 
ing our own thoughts in words or acts we 
should be careful how we judge our fellow' 
men by their acts or expressions. 
GOLDEN GRAINS. 
BRUISED. 
Aromntlc plants bestow 
No spicy fragrance while they grow; 
But, erushetl or trodden to the ground, 
Diffuse their balmy sweets around. -Goldsmith 
He who loveth me and koepeth my word 
shall be loved of tny Father; and we will come 
unto Him and make our abode with Him. 
Meet difficulties with unflinching persever¬ 
ance, and they will disappear at last; though 
you should fall in the struggle, you will be 
honored; but shrink from the task, you will bo 
despised... 
Clothes and maimers do not make the man, 
but wheu ho is made, they greatly improve 
his appearapco... 
A COW is the saint of the barnyard. She 
could be fat if she would only be selfish. But 
she economizes beauty that she may be pro¬ 
fuse in milk. 
A man who cauuot get. angry is like a stream 
that cannot overflow, that is always turbid. 
Sometimes indignation is as good as a thunder 
storm in summer, clearing and cooling the 
air... 
Prof. Seely k, of Amherst College, says: 
#iiuc*UMUOttib 
When Baby was sick, we gave her Castorla 
When she was a Child, she cried for Castorla, 
When she became Miss, she clung to Castorla, 
W ben she had Children, sh > gave them Costorls. 
