726 
THE RURAL'NEW-YORKER 
October H 
I Woman and Home j 
From Day to Day. 
In the Spring Ihe eater’s fancy 
Lightly turns to rhubarb pie. 
But a very modest portion 
Of the stuff will satisfy. 
Then he feels an inward longing 
For some pastry that will please, 
And impatiently he’s glancing 
At the green fruit on the trees. 
By and by the cherries ripen 
And are made ingredients 
Of a pie whose fine appearance 
Is attracting compliments. 
But although he likes it better 
Than the one of rhubarb made, 
Still that long-felt want he’s noting 
And it cannot be allayed. 
Soon the berries are arriving 
And to them he promptly turns 
With a hope that they will furnish 
Pie for which his palate yearns. 
But they make the crust so soggy 
That with them lie’s soon displeased. 
And the appetite for pastry 
Is remaining unappeased. 
Then the Summer brings the peaches. 
And some ripened apples, too, 
And the fragrant huckleberries 
In their shining coats of blue. 
Though he’s finding them much richer 
Than their predecessors, still 
He Is mournfully declaring 
That they fail to fill the bill. 
But at last, when days are cooler, 
He is fully satisfied— 
By the good, old-fashioned pumpkin 
Ts that long-felt want supplied. 
For an extra slice he’s calling. 
Then another he will try. 
And in perfect bliss lie’s feasting 
On the homemade pumpkin pie. 
—Pittsburg Chronicle-Telegraph. 
* 
A friend in Illinois sends us a recipe 
for corn mustard pickle, which is new to 
us. It is made as follows: One quart of 
corn (steamed twenty minutes, then cut 
from the cob), one small head of cab¬ 
bage chopped, one green sweet pepper 
chopped, two teaspoonfuls salt, two 
tablespoonfuls best ground mustard, one 
teaspoonful curry powder and vinegar 
to moisten; add the other ingredients 
and seal in pint fruit jars. This is said 
to be a delicious pickle, and seems well 
worth trying. 
* 
Is it not a fact that profound unsel¬ 
fishness may become a positive injury to 
the moral nature of others? We have 
all seen households where, by the exer¬ 
cise of a violent temper or overbear¬ 
ing disposition, one member of the 
family is permitted to trample on the 
rights of every one else. The gentler 
ones give in, saying, “So-and-so always 
has his way, and doesn’t like to be 
crossed,” thus increasing the original 
fault to greater proportions. Or the 
sweet-tempered mother says, “The chil¬ 
dren are so rough and discourteous, and 
yet I am always gentle with them.” The 
real fact may be that she does not insist 
upon her own rights at all, until the 
children regard her as a weakling, 
whose opinions are not worth consider¬ 
ing. We do not agree with Mrs. Wesley, 
who explained her success in bringing 
up her 17 children on the ground that, 
whenever a child earnestly desired any 
special thing, she saw that he didn’t get 
it, but we do think mat many mothers 
increase a tendency to selfishness by 
their readiness for self-sacrifice. We 
have seen children who are rude, selfish, 
and overbearing at home, meek enough 
among strangers, because they know 
that they will not be permitted to show 
this lack of consideration to outsiders. 
It should be remembered that when self- 
sacrifice is carried so far that it encour¬ 
ages the selfishness of others, it is im¬ 
moral, for it is leading our brothers to 
offend. This weak self-sacrifice is pe¬ 
culiarly a feminine failing, and many a 
■thoughtlessly selfish or ill-tempered hus¬ 
band is the direct result of a foolishly- 
yielding and too-devoted mother, who 
received little consideration because she 
never taught others that it was her due. 
* 
One divine is quoted as saying that 
the most agreeable person he met at a 
religious convention was one who, on 
being asked his business, replied, “I am 
a cheer-up-odist.” If we determine to 
take a cheering view of our own affairs, 
we are likely to extend the same good 
cheer to others! In regard to thinking 
of one’s mercies, the following letter, 
which, the Kansas City Star says, was 
picked up, without envelope or signa¬ 
ture, in an Atlanta, Ga., street car, cer¬ 
tainly shows a good deal of philosophy: 
Dear John: This is wrote you to let you 
know how all the family is. John, we’re 
doin’ purty well now, if I do say it my¬ 
self. Your Uncle Jim had the good for¬ 
tune to lose his left leg on a railroad and 
got damages, and is now livin' with us 
and payin’ board, which is a great help to 
us. Your brother Bill fell in a cellar in 
Atlanta an’ broke his collar bone, for 
which he got $50, and invested in a gray 
mule, which was cheap at the price. Your 
gran’mother has been cured of the rheu¬ 
matism, an’ is now able to do the family 
washin’ and, altogether, John, we are well 
off and mighty thankful to Providence, 
which always provides. 
* 
An Idaho woman, Mrs. Flora Jenni- 
son, recently saved her life by combin¬ 
ing costume with presence of mind. She 
was camping out, and while in a 
huckleberry patch she ran across a bear 
with a couple of cubs. The mother bear 
made for her, with a vicious snarl, evi¬ 
dently regarding her as an intruder. In 
an instant Mrs. Jennison tore off her 
skirt and flung it over the bear’s head. 
While Mrs. Bruin was endeavoring to 
remove the garment, and tearing it to 
shreds in the operation, Mrs. Jennison 
ran to camp, to be met by some of the 
men, who shot the bear and captured 
the cubs, which are now being brought 
up on the bottle. It is evident that Mrs. 
Jennison, being a sensible woman, as 
well as a quick-witted one, did not wear 
one of the sheath skirts of eelskin fit 
now fashionable, since no woman could 
possibly shed such a garment quickly 
enough to try the effects of dress re¬ 
form on a bear. On the other hand, had 
she been a disciple of the more advanced 
reformers, to whose class belong Dr. 
Mary Walker and Lady Harberton, she 
would have been equally at a loss, bifur¬ 
cated “rationals” being quite useless in 
such an emergency. 
* 
A newspaper note now going the 
rounds recommends saffron as a valu¬ 
able condiment in cakes, puddings and 
gruels, owing to its medicinal virtues. 
Saffron used to be held in high esteem, 
both as a condiment and a medicine, but 
we think that modern doctors attach 
little importance to it, though it is still 
sometimes used as a household remedy 
for promoting perspiration. Its chief 
economic value is as a dye or pigment. 
In medieval times, saffron cakes were 
regarded as a great dainty, and such 
pastry is still made in some parts of 
rural England and the Continent. The 
saffron is also used in semolina pud¬ 
dings and various gruels, having a 
warm aromatic flavor. True saffron is 
the dried stigma of a Crocus, but is is 
often adulterated with safflower, or 
Dyer’s saffron. Naturally, it requires an 
enormous number of Crocus blooms to 
produce an ounce of the dried saffron, 
since such an infinitesimal weight is 
contributed by each flower. 
* 
City people who spend their Summers 
in a woodland region are always fas¬ 
cinated by the silvery birch bark, and 
many are the pretty trifles made from 
this material. Very pretty photograph 
frames are made of the bark, just 
as one would be made of card¬ 
board. The edges, both inside and 
outside, may be finished with nar¬ 
row straw braid, such as milliners 
use. An inside mat of yellow silk, to 
come next to the photograph, is an im¬ 
provement. Little boxes of the bark, 
either with or without lids, are con¬ 
venient for holding hairpins and other 
odds and ends on the dressing table. A 
little portfolio of the bark, having 
pasted on each page a blue print or pho¬ 
tograph of local scenes, makes a pretty 
souvenir which is likely to sell well at 
a fair. Covers for flower pots are suit¬ 
ably made of the same material. An¬ 
other suggestion in rustic decorative 
materials is the use of horse chestnuts 
for portieres. The nuts are strung on 
stout twine to form a fringe the height 
of the door, like the Japanese bead and 
bamboo curtains. A darning needle, fas¬ 
tened in a wooden handle, forms a con¬ 
venient tool for piercing the nuts. They 
are strung without any regard for regu¬ 
larity, and give a very picturesque ef¬ 
fect. In seaside localities, visitors often 
collect the so-called sea beans for this 
purpose, stringing them with a mixture 
of large glass beads. 
During the past season French bow- 
knots, in ribbon, braid, lace and inser¬ 
tion formed a favorite trimming, being 
applied fiat on the material. Now we 
are promised a revival of butterfly de¬ 
signs, to take the place of bow-knots. 
Butterflies in Renaissance or Honiton 
braid, filled in with lace stitches, are 
very handsome for trimming the ends of 
ties, or the yokes or sleeves of fancy 
waists. They are expensive to buy, but 
are not difficult to make, if one knows 
anything of lace work. It is quite possi¬ 
ble to make such lace from printed in¬ 
structions, without any regular lessons, 
but there are some errors that self- 
taught lace-makers are very likely to 
fall into. One thing to bear in mind is 
the fact that all this lace is made on 
the wrong side; the maker never sees 
the right side until she takes out her 
basting threads and removes it from the 
pattern. All the fastenings and joins in 
the braid should be very secure; care¬ 
lessness in this particular will cause it 
to come apart when washed, or even 
when handled. The worker must use 
fine thread if she wishes a good effect. 
We recently saw a patient worker mak¬ 
ing a fine Renaissance pattern with No. 
40 thread. Of course the effect was 
ruined; she should have used No. 120 or 
No. 150. For Honiton braid, No. 800 or 
No. 1,000 will be found necessary. In 
any fine Renaissance pattern it is a 
great mistake to use too many of the 
readymade rings. They are always con¬ 
spicuous in the coarse, showy lace sold 
in the stores, which, it will usually be 
noticed, contain few elaborate stitches. 
The coarser patterns are used in trim¬ 
ming handsome bed-linen and towels, 
but they seem out of place for dress or 
table use. 
Money for 
Retired 
Ministers 
School teachers, or others 
seeking outdoor work. We 
offer good pay to the best 
agents, those of experience, 
and who can be relied upon 
for faithful work. We 
want good people, those with 
tact and energy, good address. 
A large commission for 
every subscriber — new or 
old—you get for 
The Ladies’ Home Journal 
AND 
The Saturday Evening Post 
—and $ 18,ooo,to be distrib¬ 
uted among best 764 agents 
at the end of the season. 
The Curtis Publishing Company, Philadelphia 
B.&3. 
65c. yard 
for new all-wool Homespuns 
52 inches wide. 
Brown, blue, gray, tan. 
A proposition as to width 
and excellence at a price never 
touched. 
Goods made in America— 
weave and finish to be proud 
of. If made abroad and im¬ 
port* d, they’d be twice as much. 
We’re ftjr America—and 
small profits. 
-O- 
Probably twice as many 
choice new evening silks here 
as you’d expect in any one 
large store. 
Personally selected. 
And priced right for right 
styles. 
BOGGS & BUHL, 
Department C, 
ALLEGHENY, PA. 
Dyes for Rag Carpets. 
DIAMOND DYES MAKE COLORS THE 
SUN CANNOT FADE. 
They Do the Most Dyeing for 
the Least Money. 
When you dye rags or yarns for carpets and 
rugs, you want colors that will hold till the goods 
are worn out. Diamond Dyes are the only pack¬ 
age dyes that will make such colors. 
For cotton or mixed goods, be sure to get the 
special fast dyes for cotton or mixed goods, and 
for wool, the fast wool dyes, and you will have 
the brightest, fastest colors there are. 
If you use dyes that claim to color botli cotton 
and wool with the same dye, you run the risk of 
spoiling your goods, or of getting colors that will 
fade right out. They may dye cotton, but they 
will only stain wool. Diamond Dyes will always 
give satisfaction. 
I if~ Sample card of colors and direction book for 
home dyeing mailed free on request.—WKl.r.8. Rirn- 
AHDSON &Co., Burlington. Vt. 
Tf. Little Light 
on the watch subject is found in our new booklet, 
which all are invited to send for—free of cost. 
Elgin Ruby Jeweled 
Watches 
come in various sizes, grades and prices, to suit every 
pocket. Recognized universally as 
The World’s Standard. 
Sold by jewelers everywhere. An Elgin watch always has 
tlie word “Elgin” engraved on the works —fully guar¬ 
anteed. 
Elgin National Watcli Co., Elgin, Ill. 
