The Editor will gladly answer queries pertaining to individual problems ofinterior decoration and furnishing. When an immediate reply is desired, 
please enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope. 
Lightening the Housewife’s Burden 
HERE are countless little ways in 
which the cares of the housekeeper 
may be made lighter and her work more 
easily performed. Much depends upon 
the manner in which the house is arranged 
and a little extra expense in providing con¬ 
veniences for doing the housework is well 
worth while. 
Take, for instance, a little cupboard in 
the kitchen wall to conceal the electric 
meter, which must he read every few 
weeks by a representative of the electric 
company. Such a cupboard occupies but 
little space and with it the man who reads 
the meter does not walk through the house 
to the cellar or the garret, tracking mud or 
sand over the floors and rugs. 
Let there be a transom over the kitchen 
door. It is a convenience which too 
few women understand; If properly ad¬ 
justed, it will allow the entrance of just 
1 he desk has the advantage of folding up and 
occupying a very little space 
enough air to keep the kitchen comfortable 
without creating a draft and will permit 
the escape of odors much better than a 
window, because it is near the top of the 
room. It is better that it should open from 
the top than from the bottom. 
Castors 
OO few housekeepers appreciate the 
value of high-grade castors. It 
often pays to have new castors put on 
heavy pieces of furniture which are fre¬ 
quently moved about — such as beds and 
chairs — choosing those kinds which run 
easily and which will not mar the floors 
or injure the rugs. When castors of the 
right sort are used, a heavy chair can be 
moved with the pressure of one finger. 
A Folding Desk 
A MAHOGANY folding desk that 
makes an attractive piece of fur¬ 
niture open or closed, is a novelty that will 
be found useful on account of the inge¬ 
nuity of its fittings and the small amount 
of space that it may be made to occupy. 
Hardly more than a writing portfolio 
in size when closed it is so aranged that 
when open it forms a writing desk large 
enough for all practical purposes. The 
fittings are unusually complete and there is 
the additional advantage of a special place 
for each of the articles, so that they are 
not so apt to be mislaid as in a desk. 
There is a blotting pad of generous size, 
a large pocket for private papers and let¬ 
ters, and places for note paper and en¬ 
velopes. On one side is a calendar, on 
the other a memorandum pad with address 
book and note book. The ink well is in 
a little square leather box that is station¬ 
ary, and the top is of the safety variety, 
such as is seen in writing cases for travel¬ 
ing use, while in small pockets are the 
stamp box, sealing wax, scissors, paper 
knife, eraser, lead pencil and all of the 
little things necessary for a complete desk. 
For the guest room where a writing 
desk is a necessity, even though it may not 
be used to any great extent, the folding 
desk is particularly serviceable, as it is 
dustproof when closed and always ready 
to use at a moment's notice, with all of 
the needed articles at hand. Not the least 
of its advantages is that it occupies so 
little space when closed, and it is there¬ 
fore most desirable for the small room in 
which the amount of furniture must be 
limited. 
Considerations for the New House 
N one well-arranged house which I 
visited, there were a number of closets 
in the basement, which were designed, I 
learned, to accommodate the window 
screens. There they were stored out of 
the way, properly numbered, and placed 
in order, so that they could be quickly put 
in place in the spring. 
It is also an excellent plan, when a new 
house is built, to have a small cellar, with 
cement floor and walls, built just outside 
the main cellar and near the furnace or 
heater. This little auxiliary cellar is for 
partment is labeled and of convenient size 
(242) 
