The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
1335 
The Bedtime Hour 
The> •clock, is*' striking seven, and the 
cTiiTdrcn are tucked in their beds for the 
night. The wind sighs and moans around 
the house, foretelling the coming of Win¬ 
ter. It i.S' just chilly enough to make the 
crackling lire feel comfortable. Just this 
Fall we had a farm lighting plant in¬ 
stalled. and the evenings are surely more 
cheerful since. It is luxurious indeed to 
go from room to room and snap on the 
lights, after II years of oil lamps. And 
it is great to settle down for the evening 
with a book or magazine by the living- 
room table, or here at the desk, and have 
a good light. 
We have our supper at five, before the 
men do the evening milking, and I think 
the hours from live to seven are the hours 
of the day that I enjoy most and that I 
will remember most clearly in years to 
come. Daughter gets home from school 
at a quarter of five, and the time from 
then to bedtime for the children (seven 
o’clock) belongs to them. The children 
help with the dishes (brother is_ almost 
three and daughter is eight, so it takes 
us but a few moments to get the kitchen 
work finished up. 
There is a large room at the top of the 
stairs in this old, old farmhouse which we 
enjoy as much as any room in the house. 
A radiator 1‘iom the living-room stove 
below goes through this room, and if we 
mind him to put his things away before 
lie can go out-of-doors, but rarely does 
he need to be reminded, so I feel that my 
hardest effort in that direction is over. 
Another principle I have tried to. in¬ 
still into the children (L verily believe 
that orderliness is the “principle” of life) 
is respect for each other's rights. They 
each have their own places for their 
playthings, and T have tried to. teach 
them to ask the other before touching the 
playthings belonging to tin* other. I be¬ 
lieve children learn basic principles of 
life very young indeed. 
I try to let the child decide what play¬ 
things he wants, lie makes a deliberate 
choice, save of course when he comes to 
me and says: “What can I do now, 
mamma?” Of course mother always has 
suggestions. But a child learns very 
young to be self-reliant and make de¬ 
cisions for himself. The mother does the 
child a wrong who deliberately trains the 
child to be dependent on her when he 
should rely on himself. 
When G:30 came I read a bit of Mother 
(loose and Eugene Field poems. Mother 
Goose for brother and Field for both. It 
would be easier to select their reading 
were they nearer the same age, but .1 try 
to read to brother while sister is at 
school, thus leaving more time for her in 
the short evening. 
On the little stand by her bed is sis¬ 
ter’s Bible. This evening she read the 
Twenty-third Psalm to me. I am going to 
have the children read and read and read 
aloud. It is an essential part of their 
education, aside from the joy we have 
Can You Name This Quilt? 
leave the stair door open this room is the 
warmest in the house the coldest Winter 
days. Here I have my sewing machine, 
and here the children have their play 
fable. This evening, as soon as the 
dishes were finished, we went up there, as 
we do many, many evenings, and brother 
colored some leaves that sister drew for 
him, while sister read aloud from an old 
school reader. I tackled the stocking 
basket. 
I had a drop-light placed over my 
sewing machine and another over the 
children’s table, so we all have good 
lights. Brother finished coloring his 
leaves with crayola, and got his blunt- 
pointed kindergarten scissors to cut with, 
lie is pretty awkward with the scissors 
as yet, but he can cut enough to make an 
“awful mess,” as he terms it. I shall 
never forget these evenings with both of 
my children bent over their table, each 
intent on his own work. 
My mother raised seven children, and 
many, many times in my school-teaching 
days she said to me: “A busy child is a 
happy child.” That proved true in my 
school-teaching days, and it holds true 
now. I have always tried to provide 
suitable employment for my wee folks, 
though 1 have never spent much money 
on such things. The price of a few dozen 
eggs would furnish enough money to buy 
enough materials for the Winter. V\ ell- 
sharpened pencils, paper, erayolas, a 
blackboard, blunt kindergarten scissors, 
sewing cards (homemade), a box of weav¬ 
ing materials, wooden beads for string¬ 
ing. a bottle of homemade paste, bean 
bags, furnish the basis for plenty of 
“work” for the Winter for busy fingers. 
An old magazine, from which pictures 
may bo cut and pasted in a scrap-book, 
will keep a child happy an afternoon. 
The old mail-order catalogs are put to 
good use here, as the children enjoy cut¬ 
ting them. A picture may be cut in sev¬ 
eral pieces, thus making a puzzle for the 
children to put together. 
The children have their own play cup¬ 
board. and I insisted as soon as they 
were old enough to play with playthings 
that they put away their playthings as 
soon as through with them. Anything 
but a topsy-turvy house, strewn with 
playthings! I believe it even reacts on 
a child’s nerve as well as on mother’s. 
It has taken persistent effort, but I am 
reaping my reward, for even baby under¬ 
stands that he must put his things away 
ir he cannot have them tomorrow morn¬ 
ing. He growls sometimes when I re¬ 
reading together. Tonight as the little 
white-clad figures knelt at my knee I won¬ 
dered if I were worthy to mother them? 
Mine is a grave responsibility, and I 
asked divine guidance in my task of love. 
When they had been tucked in their 
beds and brother had said: “Night, 
dearest; I hope you have' a pleasant 
sleep,” I dropped down on the bed by 
sister. We talked over the day, the little 
personal details that had not been dis¬ 
cussed before. Somehow confidences 
come easier at this time of day than any 
other. 
I have tried so hard not to “nag” at 
the children or reprove in the presence 
of others. My mother used to say: 
“Scolding does not help the child; you 
must first make the child want to over¬ 
come the fault.” So I try (oh, yes, I 
ofttimes fail) to get away from scolding 
and talk over the faults at this time with 
sister. I feel that if I can but convince 
her ‘ of her error the battle is won. 
Usually just a look, a mention of our 
secret is all that is necessary if she 
forgets. 
Brother, too. is old enough to under¬ 
stand that he must try to be a good boy. 
I am finding already that he must be ap¬ 
pealed to differently from sister. No two 
children’s hearts can be reached by the 
same appeal. And if we wish to have 
them overcome naughtiness the effort 
must come from within them—not us. 
We can but counsel and guide and direct. 
Somehow, if I can but keep my chil¬ 
dren’s confidence year by year perhaps 
they will not grow away from me, and 
perhaps I can be more help to them dur¬ 
ing the trying adolescent years, when 
they will need me perhaps more than at 
any other time. 
Ah, what a responsibility rests with 
the parents. I hope the memory of the 
bedtime hour will be as precious in years 
to come to the children as I am sure it 
will be to me. may iiooykr mumaw. 
Higdom 
Half bushel green tomatoes, one head 
cabbage, one dozen onions, one dozen red 
peppers, chopped fine. Sprinkle over salt 
and let stand all night. In the morning 
drain well and add 2 lbs. sugar, one cup 
ground mustard, two tablespoons of cin¬ 
namon. one tablespoon of pepper, one- 
half tablespoon of cloves and allspice, one 
pint horseradish. Mix with pickles and 
cover with vinegar. Cook down accord¬ 
ing to taste. MRS. w. s. w. 
IcASY PAYMENTS WIT SUITS TOI3 
JUST WRITE AND SAY YOU WANT TO TRY THE 
Automatic Drop-Head, 
Steel Ball Bearing Sewing Machine 
When it arrives use it free for one month. If then you 
are fully satisfied with it, send us $3.60—and pay $3-60 
each month for 7 months — $28.80 in all. It it does not suit 
you, ship it back at our expense. 
Genuine Oak Woodwork, beautifully finished: Iron Stand, enam¬ 
elled glossy black; Head folds inside, leaving flat table top; Auto¬ 
matic Bobbin Winder; Self Threading Cylinder Shuttle; Adjustable Stitch; 
All up to date improvements. All tools and accessories free. 
® 25 Year NATIONAL FARM EQUIPMENT CO., Inc. Over 100,000 
Guarantee DEPT.10O 98 CHAMBERS ST„ New York In Use 
■BfeHBm mm 
Why pay high prices when big savings are wait¬ 
ing for you in Kalamazoo? Thousands are get¬ 
ting “ Kalamazoo-Direct- To -You" prices and 
saving money this year. 
Write today and find out how much you can 
save on a Kalamazoo Stove, Range or Furnace. 
Also get our money-saving prices on Sewing Machines, 
Kitchen Kabinets, Indoor Closets, Paints, 
Shoes, Gas Ranges, Rugs and many other 
articles. 
Mail a Postal Today 
This is your year to save money and our prices 
you more than most people expect. 
Cash or Easy Payments. 24-Hour Shipment. Send today for Catalog No. 114 
Kalamazoo Stove Co., Mfra, 
Kalamazoo, Mich. 
and Ranges 
“A Ked&nvazog 
Registered. Direct to You” 
