AU6. 
THE 
RURal WEW-YORKER 
a 
An Artlstlo Room. 
As in many country houses, the room had sim¬ 
ply a whitewashed wall. This I brushed over 
very carefully, Ailing In the cracks with the thick 
paste from the bottom of the lime-bucket and 
smoothing them over with an old knife. Then out 
of the barn I got a great quantity of the beautiful 
thlok heads of the Hungarian gras? , and with them 
I ma le a long wreath, tying them together with 
ravellngs which I had saved from my coffee-bags, 
of which last more anon. (Save everything you 
can). Tuts extensive garland I fastened along the 
top of the wall with lath-nails, thus forming o 
beautiful frieze, For a center-piece, I arranged In 
the middle of the celIItig a bunch of Hungarian 
gross, from the midst or which, suspended down¬ 
wards and the handle mostly cut off, was a large, 
gay Japanese umbrella. 
The paint on the wood work, of a soft grayish 
white Lint, was in tolerably good condition, so 
there was nothing lor mo to do here. The next 
step In order was a dado to correspond with the 
frieze, and this 1 made by tacking all around the 
wails, immediately above the washboard, white 
straw matting a yard wide. Thus I had a beautl- 
ful wall, the pure white contrasting exquisitely 
with the aoru straw above and below. And as the 
carpet must correspond with frieze and dado in 
general tone, and contrast strongly with t' e upper 
wall and celling, I covered the floor also with 
straw matting. 
There should also be a general correspon¬ 
dence throughout hangings and furniture though 
anything like "matches." or 14 sots ’ are 
strongly tabooed. So don c be surprised to be told 
that I used a great deal of coflee-bag, which, 
aside from its being a truly artistic material, 
(we will not mention Its cheapness) was of the 
same order os my straw wall-decoration and 
floor covering. I next put la each 01 tue tour 
corners of the room a bracket made merely of 
pine wood and covered completely with a coffee- 
bag lambrequin fringed out aud bordered in dou¬ 
ble coral sllicli worked with pale-blue zephyr. 
The lambrequins for the curtains consisted of 
deep flounces laid In shallow plaits, fringed out 
also, and edged with the pale-blue. The curtains 
themselves were plain lengths of uubleaehcd 
muslin, looped back on each side with bancis ox 
the bagging worked lu the blue, (In'. L>. Unbleached 
muslin curtains may be bordered in crewels, 
edged with torchon lace, or bound "with strips of 
bright-colored cretonne). To complete the effect 
around the sides or the room and to correspond 
with the center plcco of the celling, in each of the 
three vacant spaces on the walls—at the back of the 
room, and at the two sides-I tacked up two Japan¬ 
ese fans, with their handles crossed and tied with 
blue ribbon. 
I next looked about me to see what l had avail¬ 
able lu the way ot furniture,—aud you, iny friends, 
if you look, will probably find more than you 
thought. Well, l round a beautiful old aide-board, 
or pier-table,—neither, in tact, but half-and-half, 
with a marble slab on top, a number of mahog¬ 
any curves, la laid with wreaths and harps of 
satin wood, and a shelf underneath. It would 
J uses land between the two windows. And then 
I found a plain, dark wood table, which a few 
strokes of my brush weighted with Vandyke 
brown, applied about the legs rendered quite re¬ 
spectable. Besides 1 lighted on a very pretty 
camp-chair, with bine carpet back and seat, an¬ 
other camp-chair, quite different, being old and 
worn, aud furnished with a bottom or dingy, 
faded brown ; and u cane rocker. 
The first tiling taken In hand was the plain 
table, for which I maJc a cover or a large piece of 
collee-bag. iringed also, like the lambrequins and 
bordered with blue. In the center of It 1 laid a 
heavy moss-iuut tor llie lamp, and this Is how I 
made it. I cut a rouad foundation of cardboard 
a nd covered ff, on tho top with bag-stuff, on the 
bottom with muslin. Then Igof, throe ounces of 
blue zephyr, each ounce a different shade. 
The Moss Stitch. 
II It Is a stitch—Is exceedingly simple, though 
the effect is magnificent, (first thread your needle 
with the zephy r, knot, and pass It through the 
edge of the card-board. Have ready in your left 
hand a long bunch of zephyr, consisting of three 
or (our strands. Pass the needle through about 
half an inch from the cud nearest you, knot around 
it, aud then cat the running bunch half an inch 
from the thread, so that you will have taken upon 
your needle and secured in place a bunch of strands 
about, nu tnoh long. Upon the same thread, 
still held in your right hand, take up another 
bunch 1 u the same manner, about an inch higher 
than the last, and so continue until you have 
sewn upon one string'five bunches, then cut the 
thread itself. Put the needle through the card¬ 
board for tho second time, very near the first 
thread, and proceed as before. Keep on until you 
have gone all the way around, when perhaps you 
will be surprised to flnd that only one row has 
used up an entire ouncu. The second row should 
be placed a good inch within the drat, and the 
third within tho second, forming throe concentric 
circles. The richness of the completed work must 
be seen to be appreciated. 
i made another mat for the under part of the 
ot her table. This was a daisy mat, more beauti¬ 
ful, perhaps, than the other. The border was 
blue fringe, and Immediately overlapping It. was a 
row uf white daisies, alternating with blue ro¬ 
settes. These latter were made simply by wind¬ 
ing the zephyr over this lingers, tying It tightly In 
the center, cutting the ends and pulling them out. 
Tho daisies vero made in the some way, but of 
white, a small yellow rosette being fastened In tho 
middle. This mat, however, pretty as it was, was 
only a foundation for something belter, for upon 
it I placed a pot. which l had decorated In the Jap- 
aucae style, it was a graceful, curved vessel, 
somewhat like a butler-crock. The bottom was 
pure white, shading gradually downward us the 
pot swelled upward, Into a soft gray, darkening 
into a greenish black, reachlugan absolute black 
around the rim, relieved however here by a t urn 
band of bright, vermilion. Around the greenish 
part ran a row of tiny, brilliant Japanese fans. 
And within thlB receptacle I placed a large bou¬ 
quet of dried grasses. 
Upon the marble top of the stand were laid a few 
books, beside which appeared a dainty, rustic 
vase containing fresh-cut flowei-s. Also, a fair 
silver easel, suspended upon which by loops of 
llgbtblue and garnet ribbon, was a horseshoe,— 
decorated by sprays of buttercups painted upon a 
blade ground. 
The blue camp chair did very well as It was. So 
did an old lounge frame, it being an easy task 
to give it new youth and beauty by a covering of 
blue chtutz,—a lovely labile of a delicate shade 
overrun by roses and doves aDd daisies and Cupids 
and Apollos and arches and arabesques, In soft 
grays aud clear whites. To lay on the floor In 
front of It, I worked a long sofa strip ot the bag- 
stuff, with shaded blue lu largo cross-stitch, lining 
It with the same material,-coffee-bag mats should 
always be lined, otherwise they will not He nicely. 
—The faded camp-chair, I transformed by a bag- 
seat. bordered on each side by a broad band of per¬ 
pendicular and horizontal diamonds, in shaded 
blue. I tacked to the back of the cane rocker u. 
daisy tidy, made by threading together five rows 
of rosettes, each containing five, - a daisy, a blue, 
a daLsy, etc., alternately. This, of course, was 
sewed fast diagonally. 
Now, I wanted three more chairs. So I bought, 
a camp-chair of still a different pattern, and two 
light wood rockers, without backs and seats I 
covered the first with a most elaborate piece of 
the bagging material, transformed "so fashion 
down the middle I basted first a broad band of 
garnet poplin, anti then upon it, along each side, 
1 worked a row of conventional asters in pale- 
blue split zephyr. These I enclosed with converg¬ 
ing and diverging Bitches in yellow silk. Out upon 
the bag I worked two stripes ot blue and yellow, 
in cross-stitch, finishing the front by deep knotted 
fringe in the same blue and yellow wool. 
Of the two rockers, I finished one with the plain 
bag, bordered in cross-stitch with pale blue. For 
the other, T used up all the scraps left from the 
bags I had used, cutting them Into strips, hemming 
thorn and resewing them toget her, over and under. 
Then upon every other of tho squares so formed, 1 
worked a large star In shaded blue. 
Lastly, I believe I shall tell what I had upon the 
four-corner brackets. First of all. though. I shall 
say how I covered up the old stove pipe hole. I 
stretched over It a square of white muslin, and 
then In the middle so aa to hide the round part. T 
tacked a blue tile, painted with a spray of daisies. 
To return to the brackets. In one corner 1 had a 
little wooden placque adorned with a yellow dan¬ 
delion ; diagonally opposite was another placque 
with a bunch or apple blossoms. L r pon each of 
the others was a pearl shell, upon which I had 
painted little landscapes—one, a gnarled apple 
tree laden with sunny blooms, with a background 
or woodland and sky and cloud; the other, a bit 
of the wood3 In spring time, showing the emerald 
gieeu of Che budding beeches, the deep malachite 
of the cedar, fiud the red and silver ot the oak, 
with here and there a flash of the pure white 
dogwood. 
And oh I the room was sweet! Sweet, sweet, 
sweet, beyonu description. I wish you could have 
seen it but alas! tr, exists no longer. However, I 
shall never forget it, and I hope to create It all 
again some clay. Cue Item 1 must not omit to 
state—the whole coat only sixteen dollaes; Don’t 
you believe now that you can have lovely things 
if you try ? To be sure, I did everything myself 
from tue painting down to the whltewashicg and 
tacking and scrubbing. But don’t be discouraged 
if you can’t paint—there are ferns, and corals, and 
shells, and Japanese fans, and Florida moss, and 
butterflies, and birds’ nests, and ever so many 
things. I know you can put your knowledge of 
art to an every-day use If you will. 
-- 
ADVICE TO GIRLS. 
Now, girls, do not be disgusted and say, '• We’ve 
had too much advice already." Please give this a 
careful perusal and some earnest thought. The 
whole matter "in a nut-shell ’’ is simply this: men 
are what you make tuem, therefore be careful how 
and what you make. For instance, a young man, 
a near neighbor of mine, was ranch given to bad 
habits, especially that of intemperance. He be¬ 
longed to a family of means aud respectability, 
and when not actually intoxicated, was admitted 
Into the best, society la ilia- neighborhood. Being 
naturally kind-hearted aud agreeable, lie was 
quite a favorite. He visited some friends in a dis¬ 
tant town, and when he returned, ho talked much 
of the pleasant society he met— said there was not 
an intemperate young man in the place, and gave 
a3 a reason for this much-to-bc-wlshed-for sa te of 
affairs, " Tho girls there would not look at a fellow 
who would drink." 
Ho had not strength to resist the temptation to 
drink In a place, where the girls would look at 
him, and, lu fact, pay as much attention to him as 
If he were all that a young man should be; and ho 
coutLnued lo degenerate. Now l firmly believe if 
tho gh ls with whom he associated had not toler¬ 
ated such behavior, he would have been won to 
virtue and truth, and would now be an honored 
and useful member ot society. 
I know a young lady of good character and re¬ 
spectable family, who Is fond of society, recrea¬ 
tion. and a good time generally, (which, of course, 
Is all light; 1 want all, and especially the yornig, 
to thoroughly enjoy life); but here Is tho trouble. 
She Is receiving ihe attentions ot a young man 
who 1* fast in the broadest sense of the word, lie 
has plenty of money, fine horses and buggies, and 
she docs love to iklo, In short, delights In having n 
beau. 
Girls, lot me entreat you not to sacrifice princi¬ 
ple. for a little pleasure. You have an almost un¬ 
bounded Influence over your gentlemen friends, 
and you can do them an untold amount of good, 
both for time and eternity, it you will but make an 
effort in the right direction. 
Cultivate a winning ftgtcahlouess of manner by 
all means. Be firm in your principles of l ight, and 
let them be known. Let the boys know you abhor 
profane and Impure language, intemperance, any 
kind ot dishonesty or bad behavior, and, may I 
add, the use of tobacco ? Do this earnestly, pray¬ 
erfully, and be assured it will result In good to 
your friends. 
Remember, this life Is but short, and we each 
have a work to do. Let us do it so well that It may 
be said of us, when the end cometh, “ She hath 
done what she oould.’’ Faith. 
A FLORIDA LETTER. 
Dear Alisa Rtplky:—I have been for weeks 
trjing to And time to pen a few lines tor your de¬ 
partment of the Rural. I read tho contributions 
of others with muen pleasure, and would be glad 
to add my mite to the general entertainment, but 
what can I write about sway off here tn the pine 
words of Florida living in a very primitive style, 
and entirely untrammelled by the fashions and 
follies of modern civilized lire? Coming from a 
busy bustling northern town only three hours 
ride from Chicago, we feel almost out of the world, 
and unless something about life here would prove 
Interesting, I fear you will not oare for my let¬ 
ters. I used to think myself quite a housekeeper, 
and fully able to give many a useful hint to others 
with less experience, hut here all my old meth¬ 
ods are completely upset, and I ha ve to learn new 
ways, and resort to many straDge devices, aud al¬ 
though we have only been here eighteen months 
we have been so fully occupied In making a new 
home aii(J so fascinated with the study of nature 
in such entirely new forms and phases, that the 
old life seems like a dream long past and half for¬ 
gotten and I do not feel competent to take part 
in any discussions or present any ideas whatever 
referring to social life. There is no society here 
only as northern people make It axuong themselves, 
and as we are scattered rnllos apart, of course we 
can only meet at long intervals. When we do 
meet all our time is taken up in discussing aud 
trying to solve the many problems that are con¬ 
stantly arising to perplex us In our new life here. 
I think It would amuse northern ladies somewhat 
to he present at a gathering of women here, and 
listen to the topics we discuss. One thing is cer¬ 
tain our time Is too precious to spend any of it 
In gossip, or in discussing the fashions. We have 
to put up with many tneonviences and learn to do 
without many things which wo thought absolutely 
necessary tc our happiness while w e were at tho 
North, but there are ala. many pleasures and 
comforts here which wo con i not have there and 
on the whole I would not t hange the new life 
for che old. Of course one good reason (or It, is 
that T, as well as my husband cuam here sick; he 
suffering so much from catarrh, that northern 
winters were killing him. Tho climate has nearly 
cured him, and I enjoy almost perfect health here, 
l and that almost anything seems possible to me 
when well, and I have set myself diligently to 
work t.rfbeautify our home as that Is my especial 
department of the labor. What I am doing and 
howl am dolug It, I will try to tell the ladles of 
the Rcral from time to time, (that Is, If Miss Rip¬ 
ley does not deposit this in tho waste basket as I 
am somewhat inclined to fear she will.) l. b. s. 
Starke, Bradford Co., Fla. 
-M-*- 
TALKS ABORT MY JEWELS.-No. 5 . 
BY MARGUERITE. 
Let the aay be ever so full of vexations and 
little naughtinesses, one forgets them all when the 
small white-robed forms kneel at one's 3ide for 
their evening prayers. Something, perhaps the 
protecting angel hovering near, bestows peace on 
the mother, while her great heart's love unites 
with the little ones In asking for blessings on her 
soul’s Jewels. 
They are quieted, too, and add the petition, 
"God bless Papa and Mamma and everybody. 
Make Mamma well right away and fill all our 
hearts full of love to Jesus." 
Papa carried them off to their room last night In 
Ihe midst of Urate romp, while eyes were so bright 
and bodies so active, that, sleep seemed to be hours 
distant. 
But " Mamma couldn't stand It.’’ and besides It 
was their bed-time. Anything but a quiet report 
was expected, for they seemed on mischief bent, 
and the foot-board of the bed Is Fred’s favorite 
Jumping block. Papa returned saying, •• The pre¬ 
cious dears! I kissed th< m * good night,’ came out, 
closed the door, anti listened. Gertie said, 4 Weil, 
Fred, let us kiss each other ‘good night ’ and go 
to sleep,’ so the report was a staaok, aud our four- 
year old Gertie was soon asleep, while Fred, who 
Is past two, lay still, but wide awake, calling’ 
‘Papa’ gleefully every time be' heard his father 
in that parr, of the house. 
Gertie said one morning at breakfast, “ I asked 
Jesus to make my Mamma well, but I guess lie did 
not hear me.” God forbid that doubt should ever 
enter her heart, hut may she early learn " Thy 
will, not mine lie done," and also to wait patiently 
on the Lord, 
She attends churcn but generally comes home 
without a crumb that r can find, although I trust 
seed Is sown that may bear fruit in the future. 
One day she returned with her dark eyes radiant. 
The minister hart dropped a precious crumb, and 
she was riot slow in claiming it. She told me that 
“ ho suid lo lie good to the ehulders; to be. good 
to the little boys and girls, and I said," she con¬ 
tinued, ■■ that if they would be good tome, that l 
would be good t o them.” 
How quick a child Is to return kindness for klud- 
noH3, love for love, and Is not infancy the surest 
time to teach them to lovo the Lord? Are we 
mothers always as good to the little ones as we 
ought to bo? Is our love wisely given? Do not 
some of us st itch, stitch, over pretty dresses because 
we love to sc*e them look well, while tlielr utrie 
hearts ache for Mamma to amuse them? May 
God teach us how to lot the sunlight into the win¬ 
dows of their souls, and at the same time take 
proper care of their bodies, for these are the souls’ 
houses. 
-» » ♦- 
A CHAT ABOUT VARIOUS MATTERS. 
1 am at the present time Uvlng in a secluded 
place, in a sort of gap In the coast range ot moun¬ 
tains near the Pacific. We only get our maU once 
a week, so you see my chances for writing are few. 
I am afraid It will be out of my power to write any¬ 
thing instructive to your readers. T might Interest 
them by telling something of life in Oregon—an as 
yet unwritten page; or a description of black- 
berrying In the Cascade mountains might not be 
without interest; but whether they will be suita= 
ble. subjects for an agricultural paper, or more 
particularly for your department of it, is a question 
I cannot answer. 
Coming to Oregon at an early day, l nave ex¬ 
perienced many of the trials and privations Inci¬ 
dent to pioneer lffe. In the Aral, place, I am not a 
model housekeeper, and not having the modern 
conveniences for housekeeping—probably consid¬ 
ered necessities in tbe Eastern States—I should 
expose myself to ridicule In saying anything on 
the subject. If, however, I could mice you a 
series of friendly letters, you might find something 
worth gleaning. 
* -9 • • « « « 
I would say a word to girls about plain sewing. 
In these clays of sewing machines there is a tend¬ 
ency to slight the finishing up of garments. How 
untidy to have the ends of thread hanging just as 
left by the machine, or to have a garment disfig¬ 
ured by a zig-zag hem. Do your work neatly, 
finish it up nicety, and the habit once formed will 
never be regretted. Anything that Is worth doing 
at all is worth doing well. Never be ashamed to 
have the wrong side ot your work examined. I 
once heard a lady, who was looking at a dress a 
careless girl had made, say, ‘ If that is the way 
she makes her dresses, l don’t want her to make 
my hoys’ shirts, they wouldn't stay together until 
they were half worn out." 
if agreeable, I will write, some time, a plea for 
old ladles; also tell how I have managed to deco¬ 
rate my house, and give you an account of my 
famous rosebush. For the present, 1 will sub¬ 
scribe myselt, yours truly. Aunt Esther. 
Lane Co, Oregon. 
(Aimt Esther Is heartily welcome to our circle. 
We shall he very gLad to learn ot Oregon life and 
of Cascade mountain blackberrylcg; also to hear 
what this new aunt has to say of old ladies—this 
rather piques our curiosity, for it Is usually the 
young ladles who are mitten about—of the 
“famous rosebush" and the particulars of that 
house decorating.—Eos.] 
USEFUL NOTES. 
My Dear Miss Ripley.—Do your lady-readers 
know how easy it is to keep fruit and butter fresh 
by evaporation ? It is a thing well worth know¬ 
ing, in times when ice Is hard to come by, and 
when one has no cellar. 1 have kept blitter hard 
and firm In the hottest weather, simply by putting 
the vessel containing It,, into another holding wa¬ 
ter, and, pressing a linen cloth •Josely over the 
butter, letting the ends Jiang Into the water. It 
la very Important that the cloth touch the butter 
at, all points, leaving no room for the entrance of 
air. The more loosely woven the linen, the better, 
and It Is a decided advantage to place the things 
to be kept cool In a current of air, as evaporation 
is thus made more rapid. Berries can be kept 
nicely In the same way. 
A very nice sauce for boiled beet can be made with 
horse-radish. I never knew how good holled fresh 
beef was, till l ate It in Germany. There It Is the 
standard dish, aud alter live hours of slow sim¬ 
mering over the fire. It is really delicious when 
eaten with cither one of the following sauces r 
Have ready a large cupful of grated horse-radish. 
Melt two large spoonsful of butter in a skillet, 
6 tlrring Into it enough flour to thicken It well. 
Add the horse-radish, and dilute to the proper con¬ 
sistency with tbe pot liquor. 
The second sauce Is made lu precisely the same 
manner, except that two spoonstul of dry mustard 
are used lu place of the horse-radish. This makes 
beautiful, golden-hued gravy, much more deUclous 
than one would think before tasting it. Both these 
two sauces should be slightly thicker than drawn 
butter. l. s. h. 
Ithaca, N. Y. 
-- 
WHAT SHALL BE DONE WITH THE 
PAPERS! 
Dear Miss Ripley:— Can you or any of your 
readers tell me what to do with my papers? We 
take several papers In our ramify that contain too 
much good reading matter to destroy, From some 
of them I cut tho choice selections, poetry, etc., 
aud paste them i n .* scrap-book, but such papers 
as the Rural, tor instance contain too much that 
Is valuable to cut, though 1 have cut the Domestic 
Kcouotuy department out ol some of the Kurals 
to have the recipes more convenient, for reference. 
For scrap-books l use old account hooks; cutout 
a portion ot the leaves and paste scraps on the 
others, paste a strip or cambric on the back and 
cut the letters forming the words •- scrap Book” 
out of gilt paper and paste on it. Another ques¬ 
tion l wished to ask but don't know whether It 
belongs Lo Mils department or not. What kind 
of strainers do you uso ror milk? some object 
that tin strainers allow hairs to pass through. 
Woodlands, S. C. Myrtila. 
--— 
A Convenient Apron for washing days. Is a 
large apron made of ticking' or strong gingham, 
with a roomy pocket on the hip to mi with clothes 
plus, when the washing is ready for the line. 
Aunt Em. 
The Century for August 2nd. contains an article. 
How to be Beautiful, by Agnes .1. Burke, In which 
some interesting and useful toilet hints are given, 
