63o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
September 15 
[ Woman and Home 
From Day to Day. 
TAKIN’ COMFORT. 
I wouldn’t be an emp'ror after supper’s 
cleared away; 
I wouldn’t be a king, suh, if I could. 
So long as I’ve got health and strength, a 
home where I can stay, 
And a woodshed full of dry and fitted 
wood. 
For Jimmy brings the bootjack, and 
Mother trims the light, 
And pulls the roller curtains, shettin’ out 
the stormy night. 
And me and Jim and Mother and the cat 
set down- 
Oh, who in tunket hankers for a crown? 
Who wants to spend their ev’nin’s slttin’ 
starched and prim and straight, 
A-warmin’ royal velvet on a throne? 
It’s mighty tedious bus’ness settin’ up so 
thund’rin late. 
With not a minit’s time to call your own. 
I’d rather take my comfort after workln’ 
through the days 
With my old blue woolen stockin’s nigh 
the fire’s social blaze, 
For me and Jim and Mother and the old 
gray cat 
Come mighty near to knowin’ where 
we’re at. 
—From “Up in Maine,” by Holman F. Day. 
• 
The newspapers now have a good deal 
to say about the shirt-waist man. There 
is one point on which we would like to 
be informed. How is a man going to 
pin his shirt waist down in the back, so 
that it will refrain from hiking up and 
effecting a separation from the remain¬ 
der of his wardrobe? 
• 
Among early Fall hats the Ladysmith 
has appeared in a rough felt, known as 
Sanglier felt. The trimmings are quills 
and stiff feathers, with knots of bright 
Gladiolus red or very deep nasturtium 
yellow velvet. These outing hats in 
gray felt have been worn all Summer to 
some extent, but the Autumn trimmings 
substitute velvet for the foulards and 
other thin silks which have been used. 
• 
Strangers are sometimes puzzled in 
settling the distinction between a city 
and a village, among small communi¬ 
ties, especially in the newer parts of 
the country. The Youth’s Companion 
tells of a case where a farmer conveyed 
the exact difference very neatly: 
Farmer Oatcake was a witness in a case 
in circuit court. He had given his testi¬ 
mony and was about to step down, when 
the lawyer who was cross-examining him 
asked, as a matter of form: 
“This took place, did it, in the village of 
Bunkertown?” 
“Yes, sir,” replied Farmer Oatcake, “in 
the city of Bunkertown.” 
“You call it a city, do you?” said the 
lawyer. “What is your idea of the differ¬ 
ence between a village and a city?” 
“Well,” rejoined the farmer, on reflect¬ 
ing a moment, “a village is a place where 
you can take a drove of cattle through the 
main street, and a city is a place where 
you can’t.” 
Among the Fall dress goods crepons 
are still prominent, with some slight 
differences in the weave. Silk and wool 
mikados are fabrics having slightly 
raised figures in black or on black 
grounds of extremely high luster. It is 
quite a showy material. Novelty Eng¬ 
lish brocade is another handsome ma¬ 
terial, showing bright colors with black 
applique designs, including raised fig¬ 
ures. Black figured materials are to be 
much in vogue for separate skirts. The 
Venetian worn last Winter is again 
popular, and homespuns, cheviots and 
mixed suitings will continue in vogue. 
Strappings and machine stitchings are 
seen in profusion on Fall gowns. We 
are told that gray, deep intense blue, 
and various shades of purple are to be 
extremely popular, but black is always 
in fashion, and a combination of black 
and white forms some of the smartest 
costumes. 
Among the trimmings promised for 
Autumn and Winter, gold braid and em¬ 
broidery is to be enormously popular. 
Very handsome all-over embroideries 
for yokes and trimmings are of velvet 
applique on a foundation of mousselaine 
de soie, the whole embroidered in gold, 
and the gold is also mingled with jet. 
Among wash laces, fine Torchon is now 
taking the place of the long-popular 
Valenciennes. The Torchon is very 
durable, and the finer grades, called 
hand-made, are suited for trimming fine 
washing dresses. The coarse Valen¬ 
ciennes has been used so copiously upon 
cheap readymade garments that there is 
a reaction against it. 
* 
A new idea in millinery is the fleur de 
lys knot, which has three up-standing 
loops, the center one higher than the 
others. They are formed from one 
3601—-3585 
broad width of ribbon, which is divided 
into thirds, and caught down on either 
side, the center portion being pulled up 
smartly, like the conventional fleur de 
lys. Below the loops is a tight knot, 
and from this descend long ends. This 
knot is often used as a finish to new 
stocks and fichus. Many of the new 
stocks have a deep square or rounded 
collar, often of sailor effect, a bow with 
long ends being placed near the edge, at 
one side. Sometimes the ends of the 
bow fall nearly to the knee. The use 
of this long-ended bow, as finish to a 
yoke or bertha, is one of the most strik¬ 
ing features of the newer styles. 
A Handsome Fall Gown. 
The costume figured on this page con¬ 
sists of a fancy blouse waist and a three- 
piece skirt, which may be made with or 
without a flounce. The waist is a hand¬ 
some pattern to make up separately, if 
desired, and can be made very ornate 
with a lace collar and contrasting trim¬ 
ming. In the illustration the material is 
broadcloth in Dahlia color, this being a 
rich reddish purple; the collar, cuffs and 
bands are of stitched taffeta in the same 
color, and the vest is cream lace over 
white satin, with a white chiffon stock. 
The skirt has a front gore, circular 
sides and a circular flounce, headed by a 
stitched band of silk. To make this cos¬ 
tume for a woman of medium size 6% 
yards of material 44 inches wide, or 6 
yards 50 inches wide, will be required, 
with 2*4 yards of taffeta and % yard of 
lace to trim as illustrated. For the 
waist alone, 1% yard 44 inches wide, or 
IV 2 yard 50 inches wide, will be re¬ 
quired; for the skirt alone, 4% yards in 
either width. The waist pattern No. 
3601 is cut in sizes for a 32, 34, 36, 38 
and 40-inch bust measure. The SK»rt 
pattern No. 3585 is cut in sizes for a 22, 
24, 26, 28, 30, 32 and 34-inch waist meas¬ 
ure. Price of each pattern 10 cents. 
The Child’s Literary Taste 
Character, and taste as a radical ele¬ 
ment of character, are formed rather by 
early influences than by the schools, 
says a writer in Lippincott’s Magazine. 
If a child is allowed to reach 15 or 16 
with a literary taste uncultivated or 
positively perverted, the most inspiring 
and skilful teacher may be unable to un¬ 
do the results of past years of neglect. 
With other studies it is different. If a 
pupil is backward in his knowledge of a 
particular subject, and if his general 
mental training has been good, the de¬ 
ficiency can probably be remedied by 
the expenditure of some additional time 
and effort. But if a pupil enters upon 
the study of literature with a taste 
spoiled by neglect, or by the indiscrim¬ 
inate reading of inferior books, with 
emotions so overstimulated by sensa¬ 
tionalism that he finds the truth and 
moderation of the great masters tame 
and dull, with his faculties of attention 
so weakened that he sits nerveless and 
helpless before a work which demands 
concentration and thought,—then the 
teacher of literature has a burden laid 
upon him which, in a vast number of 
cases, is put tbere by the ignorance or 
neglect of others. He is required not 
merely to teach literature, but to reform 
taste; he has not merely to foster appre¬ 
ciation and enlarge the borders of 
knowledge, he is compelled to undo in 
order to make over. Nor can this diffi¬ 
culty be altogether overcome by begin¬ 
ning the study of literature at an early 
stage of the school course; this is in¬ 
deed desirable, but it is not enough. 
The formation of taste, like the forma¬ 
tion of character, should reach back into 
the very earliest years, and all delib¬ 
erate, formal instruction in literature 
should be based upon a predisposition 
for what is right and excellent carefully 
cultivated and directed from the very 
beginning._ 
Tile man who goes about with pre¬ 
conceived lueals as to how other people 
should treat him is foredoomed to mis¬ 
ery. The man who holds ideals as to 
how he shall treat other people, or bet¬ 
ter yet, who, in the spontaneous glow 
and ardor of his love and enthusiasm, 
shall not consciously think at all of his 
generous impulses, will be happy with a 
happiness uiat nothing can affect to 
much extent.—Lilian Whiting. 
Babbitt’s best Soap — the 
top-cream of superlatiy e $ 0 ap 
quality — sells on merit to 
— folks who want their money’s 
worth of soap — no premiums, 
no jewelry, no catch-penny 
schemes. 
Made by B. T. Babbitt, New York 
BUY lamp-chimnevs 
v * by the dozen ; they go 
on snapping and popping and 
flying in pieces ; and we go 
on buying the very same 
chimneys year after year. 
Our dealer is willing to sell 
us a chimney a week for every 
lamp we burn. 
Macbeth’s “pearl top ’’and 
“pearl glass” do not break 
from heat; they are made of 
tough glass. Try them. 
Our “Index” describes all lamps and their 
Proper chimneys. With it you can always order 
the right size and shape of chimney for any lamp. 
We mail it FREE to any one who writes for it. 
Address Macbeth, Pittsburgh, Pa. 
B. «< B. 
New goods—magnificent in 
coming of choice, new Au¬ 
tumn styles—showing deter¬ 
mination to win your approval 
with largest lines of wanted 
kinds. Opened a special new 
line of Plain Cloth Suitings, 
-75c. YARD- 
—for general purpose wear, top- 
notch value that any number of 
households will find of extraor¬ 
dinary interest. 
They’re all-wool, plain cloths, 
50 inches wide—handsome finish, 
and right weight for suitings— 
fourteen different shades and 
black. 
Exceptional range of new Suit¬ 
ings, Homespuns and Black goods, 
50c. yard. 
.Beautiful things $1, $1.25 yard. 
Send name and address, and 
say you want the new Autumn 
catalogue. 
BOGGS & BUHL, 
Department C, 
ALLEGHENY, PA. 
A Carving Set. 
Every family needs a carving set three 
times a day. This set consists of a Shef¬ 
field caiver with eight-inch handmade 
steel blade, buckliom handle, fork and 
steel. Price, $1.90; or we will send it for 
a club of two new subscriptions at $1 
each and $1.25 extra money, or free for a 
club of six at $1 each. 
A Darning Machine. 
This is the only successful darning 
machine we ever saw. We have tried 
others that were absolutely of no value. 
This one is little short of perfect. It 
enables you to mend underwear, stock¬ 
ings, curtains, table linens, clothing, and 
does an endless variety of art and fancy 
weaving better, easier and quicker than 
by any other way. Full directions ac¬ 
company each machine. When a lady 
has once used this little machine, she 
would not do without it for any con¬ 
sideration. We will send it postpaid for 
$1, or for two new yearly subscriptions 
at $1 each. All money returned if not 
satisfied. 
