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Show j . M Interest to Readers-- v ' "IT'S ONXY MIL" ' (Eugene Field.) I thoucrht myself indeed secure, ' So fast the door, so firm the lock; ; But, k! h, toddling:, comes to lure I My parent ear with timorous knock. ; Sly heart were stone could it withstand - i The PweX'tness of my baby's plea-Ik. plea-Ik. That timorous, baby knocking, and ! "Please let me in it's only me." , I threw aside the unfinished book, I Refc-ardless of its tempting- charms, J And, opening wide the door 1 took j I My laughing- darling in my arms. j 5 Who knows but in eternity 1, like oi truant child, shall wait r' Th glories of a life to be j ' Beyond the Heavenly Father's gate? ; And will the Heavenly Father heed i The truant's supplicating cry, ; As at the outer door 1 plead, . j '"Tis 1, O Father, only I." ) ! TTTT. CTTTTV A fi.TC (TC TTTOH.r A "VT I (P. R. Oliver in New. York SunO . At lirst the infant's cap, soft, warm, and whiio, I "With strinps well mouthed and mauled, in .sorry plight. The giddy school girl's hat, a waif and stray, . Any old thing- that hinders not her play. The budding maiden's hat, pert, smart or trim, j According to "sweet suxteen's" mood or whim. Bravest of all, the bridal wreath and veil, "Which marks life's great event and turns j the scale. I 1 The new fledged matron's "dream" by j Worth designed. Which hubby pays for, signs and looks resign!. , The; well planned bonnet of the chaperon, ! Which hides time's ravages from her aloiu I Last scene of all, the widow's ruche and J - weds I Sana feathers, flowers, ribbons, lace or i beads. THE MOTHER OF A SOLDEEB (Folg-ar McKinsey in Balitmore News.) The mother ot a soldier hats off to her, I say! The ni'oiht-r of a soldier who has gone to ip face the fray; Ehe gave him to "her country with a bltess-li:g bltess-li:g on his head She found h-im name this morning in the lone list of the dead: "Killed Sergeant Thomas "Watkins, white leading on the rest, A Bible in his pocket and a portrait on his breast;" " The mother of a soldier she gave him to lur land; She saw him on the transport as he waved his sun-browned hand; Rhs liiuiO htm t'hniiii.h lhi yTr,r,a otill j told him to be brave: ; Her prayer went night and morning with her boy upon the wave. The mother of a soldier her comfort and her joy, Bhe pave her dearest treasuse when she i gave her only boy; ; Ehe saw the banners waving, she heard the people cheer; . Bhe clasped her hands and bravely looked away to hide a tear. The mother of a soldier Ah, cheer the hero deed. And cheer the brave who battle 'neath the T banner of their creed; I ' But don't forget the mothers, through I all the lonely years, That tight the bravest battles on the sun- i less field of tears. t Nay, don't forget the mothers the moth- ? ers of our men, Who see t hem. go and never know that they'll coma back again, That give them to their country, to battle and to die, . . Because the bugles call them, and the !J starry bannfers fly, E : The mother of a soldier hats off to her, S . 1 say! Whose head is bowed in sorrow with its tender locks of gray, Bhe gave without regretting, though, her old heart sorely bled, j When she found his name this morning: in the long list of the dead: : "Killed Sergeant Thomas Watkins, while leading on the r&st, I , . His dear old mother's portrait clasped I upon his hero breast!" i j ItOSES AND RUE. I pit in the shadow alone, sweetheart. Your roses are scenting the air. And I dream of our love troth long ago Down in the garden there. Marigolds, hollyhocks- prince's feather, Bowed low in the dim, soft light. rjt As un&ar the willow tree by the gate j I kissed you and said, "Good night." f Ah, sweetheart mine, with the pale, mute Wo have had our measure of rue; . . The clouds were dark and the skies were i fair. f But vou forever were true, I And now as I sit in the dark alone I 1 would give the world to know pr The wav through the years to that faroff " field J Where simplea for heartache grow. f love fades, they say, when the pulse is i old, I And I am threescore and ten, j Hxxt what I have learned with its bitter j . loss I Lies far beyond their ken; f For tomorrow they hade you away, sweet- ! h-aart, j . In the graveyard out of my sight, I Bo I heap the roses God's roses round youn And kiss you and say, "Good night." 5 A FEW DIHECTTOlSrS ON BOAST- ! . I One of the commonest modes of cook- i lng we find to be roasting. Though I by no means an easy task if properly done, we find it too often sent to the j . table in a condition nearly raw or cooked so as to give all the I gravy or nutriment in the joint. We l will consider a joint properly prepared I to send to the table when it contains i most if not all of the red juice, secret ed in it when it was put into tne oven, ' and at the same time to have all of the juices in the meat heated at a temperature temper-ature giving the meat at its own par-, par-, ' tlcular flavor, rendering its more di- ! gestible and palatable. To accomplish ! this result, decide upon the meat that i Is to be served at the meal. If a rib roast is to be purchased, select one or . more of the first five ribs. The meat ' should be a bright red in color and the fat rather a cream color, and the flesh 1 to be well marbled with fat. When it is brought to the home it should be Immediately removed from the brown Taper, placed upon a plate or platter and put in a cool place until ready to be roasted. In purchasing your meat, if the bones are removed and the fat cut off. have the butcher send all with the meat, to be used later on in the mock pot and to replenish the dripping Jar or pail. When it is time to cook the meat in a coal range -see that the fire burns clear all the way through. If 1 the roasting is to be done in a gas range .. light the burners in the oven ten min- tites before putting in the meat. Wipe the joint of meat with a. wet cloth (never wash meat for roasting), sprin- . kle it over with salt and a little flour; place it in the drlpoing pan; put it j in the hottest part of the oven (the ; top), with the fat. At the end of ten i or fifteen minutes the meat will look I brown and with the aid of the flour i and the intense heat a crust will have , formed over the meat and the juices k are all shut in. Reduce the hejit of the meat by placing the pan in the bot-: bot-: ' torn of the oven, and if the oven seems 1 intensely hot lift off the center cover of the r,ange for five minutes. Begin to baste the meat and continue it every ten minutes. Basting meats makes them more tender and more juicy. When the roast is to be turned in the pan stick the fork into the fat of the tne at end never into the lean. If tne I flesh is pierced the juices start to flow and will flow until the meat is removed from the oven, and the gravy is in the pan instead of being in the meat. Allow Al-low eighteen minutes to the pound for roasting. If a very heavy piece, ten ! pounds or more, allow twenty minutes more. Never put water in the pan for roasting meats. When the meat has j become roasted sufficiently lift it to a hot platter, keeping the fork from the j flesh. Then pour off the fat into the j dripping jar and proceed to make the i gravy. An oily appearance on gravies ! is very objectionable and is overcome by adding flour enough to the amount of fat used for the foundation of the gravy. If the directions for roasting are followed the meat will be perfectly perfect-ly cooked, and when the top slice is removed the second slice will be pink and juicy. When the meat is purple or dark red in the center the joint has not been heated through. TWO WAYS. Many housekeepers they can hardly be called homekeepers wear themselves them-selves out fretting over what they have to do. They talk and talk of their duties du-ties and everyone who comes in contact con-tact with them hears of the cleaning and the baking, and the sewing, until they are weary of it. The work of daily living is the theme of conversation conversa-tion when these housekeepers go to the neighbors, or meet acquaintances so- cially anywhere. Some people really ! enjoy making martyrs of themselves. They find mountains to climb where i others only step over mole hills. They complain and chafe and fret about their work, wasting strength and energy en-ergy and getting much more worn by their work than others who know that certain duties must be done, and simply sim-ply go quietly and cheerfully and do them. These others accomplish much mere, perhaps, than those who publish abroad all that they have done and are going to do. The quiet of the true homekeeper's house is not invaded by the friction "of the machinery. The homekeeper goes about with a pleasant pleas-ant face and no flourishing of trumpets, even if things do not go just as she would have them. There are hitches and hindrances at times in the best of homes, but the homekeeper is master of the situation, instead of letting the situation master her. A guest wondered when her hostess did her work. She never heard a word about it and yet the house was always tidy and things moved on in well oiled grooves. This young woman had a way of getting things done and keeping them done, so that her own comfort and that of her family were not disturbed. It Is a great art, this way of homekeeping, and well worth cultivating. " FASHION NOTES. The ruling idea for street costumes this season is to have the appearance of not being dressed for really wintry weather, with all the necessary warmth supplied and so cleverly disguised that it is not suspected. There are interlin-ings interlin-ings of chamois skin and flannel in the jaunty little bolero coats, and pretty little quiltey satin jackets to wear underneath. un-derneath. Soft and supple materials are in demand de-mand for ball and evening dresses. Formerly, when a skirt was covered with a transparent and light material, it was to render it more fluffy. At present, when a light material is worn over a silk ground, it is to render the dress more supple - and make it fall better than it would do if the skirt were of satin, faille or taffetas. There are no more tulles in five or six thicknesses, one over the other, to obtain the fluffy appearance which they were intended to give. These tulles are not heavy enough, in the proper sense of the word, for the effects that the dressmakers dress-makers are seeking to obtain. Their lightness renders them puffy, and they do not set in graceful plaits like China crepe, for instance. This is the ideal material for skirts as at present conducted. con-ducted. Naturally, they are selected as j thin and transparent as possible when- i ever an evening dress is in question. A chic coat is of sable fur with large reveres of the same. A jabot of lace extends from the neck to the waist and is ornamented with black tails. This same garment could be carried out successfully in black velvet. WOMEN SPIES. The reported capture of a young Dutch, girl named Miss Bestert who U9 leaving iauybiiiiiu oil iiorseudAjn. for the supposed purpose of giving information in-formation to the Boers, reminds one that women have played a notable part aa spies in war time, especially during the American civil war. For example, one of the most devoted of the rebels during the American war was a Miss Ford, who lived at Fairfax court house, which we used as the headquarters headquar-ters for -the staff officers of the Union army. Among these men, Mies Ford was quite a belle and very popular, as she was to all intents and purposes an adherent of the north. Believing her to be such, the officers often dropped items of information about their army, but all thlts information Mi&a Ford received in an apparently very careless care-less and no-interest-to-me-I-aesure-you manner which quite deceived the men. All the same, the little rebel managed to obtain all the news she desired from the non-suspecting officers and this she conveyed to the confederates. THE VIRTUES OF WALKING. To the American girl who wishes to keep the beauty she has, or to acquire the beauty she has not, Dr. George F. Shrady gives a prescription in one wnrlr vn!lfT Sickness is destructive of gopd looks. To be a chronic dyspeptic, always on the edge of nervous collapse, and be a charming personality at the same time is a task beyond the power of man or woman. Of all the forjfiis. of exercise, walking is, no doubt, tne.Jeast popular. One reason for this is that the trolley-car now goes everywhere, net only through the city streets, but through the country coun-try fields, terr.iHing V.s at every step of our walk, if we . ort on one. to get aboard and' toake'v tjiilek time. Then, again, v.'c:Kh;.$ is so easy .and. so cheap. It doe: not ave 'to be. learned learn-ed and it costs: naihing. Bicycling, golfing, horsx-back riding, and boating all call for a couree of. instruction, special clothing and equipmentts, and. are more or leta expensive. And it is the thing that is most difficult diffi-cult and costs mcs-t money that men and women are prone to prefer. Hence tne proverb: "Things that icost nothing are worth nothing." AMERICAN HOUSEKEEPERS. "If you want to know why we have no first-class professional housekeepers housekeep-ers in this country," volunteered the importer of an English specimen,' "it is because the American woman is too proud and far too independent to allow al-low .an employee to manage her home. That is also the reason why we, with the best ordered, most luxurious homes in the world, sufer from criminally wasteful domestic management . and the worst service of any highly civilized civil-ized people. In France or England, where half as much money is spent where there is twice the work for the servants to do and a third of the conveniences con-veniences here put at their , disposal, the fashionable country, or city house is conducted with a noiseless regularity that fills the American visitor with nothing short of amazement. In houses where the incomes are by no means large a corps of finished servants will be found that only millionaires over here can afford. "Just so long as the American woman wo-man is head of a modest household she is the most all around capable housekeeper house-keeper in the world"; she can face stif-fer stif-fer odds and rout them more utterly than any French or English woman living. We are the only women in the world who, when deserted at a critical moment, can cook a meal and yet sit at the head of the table, while that same meal is being served, in a fetching fetch-ing frock carrying on a conversation as though nothing had happened. It is a charming faculty, but when she ;is put at the head of a 'corps of twenty servants and a great country house her system fails. "A big, fashionable household is just like a big ship it's got to have a captain cap-tain to direct its course and an engineer en-gineer to run the machinery, and ' in the foreign countries they realize and provide for this.. In France it is usually usu-ally a maitre d'hotel who shoulders the domestic burden. He has worked up in the service and his word is law' to the servants, lie hires and dismisses them, plans their work, sees that itvis done and he guarantees to keep the men and maids well fed on a stated allowance. The mistress gives him' a fixed sum every month and on thisr.,he caters for the servants' table that!,is by no means supplied from the larder that feeds the family. Every servant is entitled to the scraps he or she . leaves, and has his or her own plate, knife, fork, spoon, etc., and when a meal is over these are w ashed and ,set away by their owners in their special cupboards. Scraps are an Important item to the thrifty French domestic. "In England thre is a woman who does this, and every handsome Eng- lish house is built with special housekeepers' house-keepers' quarters, a sitting room and : bedroom. Some American houses are now being provided with these special two rooms. ' , "My housekeeper is of the typical : sort. She is about 40, plump, pleasing-and pleasing-and a settled widow who entered serv-; ice at 16 as a scullery maid and has worked up. ; She is addressed by the household as Mrs. Brown, and every afternooA her tea is served -in her sitting sit-ting room at 4 o'clock by a maid. She drinks tea and eats her dinner alone, later, wearing a plain black silk gown, a muslin wreath cap and a small lawn apron. Every servant in the house, with the exception of the butler, is under her direct control, and. for the good or evil that every servant does she is resDonsible. "She accepts my directions with a humility no decayed gentlewoman would show and with a respectfulness no confidential lady's maid ever feels. She gets $50 a month and an allowance for paying the servants' wages and catering, ca-tering, to their table, and she. it is who Eees that no waste goes on in my house." HOW TO REST. The art of resting is more difficult than most people suppose it to be, for there are so many ways of spoiling the result. . ' Upon the principle that life is made up .of little things, adopt the belief that little tiredness should not be allowed al-lowed to multiply. There are symptoms that indicate the need of rest. There is the "overcrowd-J "overcrowd-J ed" feeling in the head, when our I thoughts -refuse to flow; there is the j heaviness of hands, the aching .of I wrists, the peculiar stiffness in the j back of the neck; the cinnecessary hopelessness, the burden of depression, the distaste for society. Who has not suffered from one or another of these forms of tiredness? The spirit with which rest is taken influences its value. "I've got to . lie down, but I hate resting," is a speech too often made.- A willingness to rest is sure to ease ; tiredness, whether of body or of mind; ' I a determined putting aside-of melan- choly and of effort. '" '- Unless we admire enervation of character, char-acter, with its fretfulness, suspiciousness, suspicious-ness, jealousy, ennui and lack of sym-. pathy, we must. admit that .to take sufficient rest is one of the creature's obligations and that it is no mean knowledge to- understand the art of resting.1 THE OTHER SIDE. Why men should support their wives . is a question that ia getting a considerable consider-able share of attention in the public prints, and the discussion of it brings many curious facts to the surfa.ee. Among these was the story of the melancholy discovery made by the heirs- of an old Massachusetts farmer some years ago. His young heirs being be-ing greedy, they endeavored to prevent the widow- from enjoying the life use of a third of me estate. To their .de-lig'ht .de-lig'ht they discovered that the farmer had imposed an illegal ceremony upon the unsuspecting woman, .and that, therefore, she waa not his widow. The. case appeared to be a surely winning one for them, and accordingly they" brought suit. The judge appreciated the sad position of the duped old woman wom-an who had done the old .jnah's housework for yars, and who was now-threatened now-threatened with loss of home. He ad-r vised the defendant to bring suit for. services which the old man was not entitled en-titled to, as she was not his w ife. Acting Act-ing upon his advice, the old ' woman, made out a bill at current wage rate by: the week, for all the years she.had per-' formed the housework. The court allowed al-lowed the claim, which It took the entire en-tire estate to pay, and there was consequently con-sequently nothing whatever left for the heirs. ! A CHILD'S EDUCATION. Jj John Ruskin,' in antawer to theques-tion, theques-tion, "When does the education of a child begin?" replied: "At 6 mont'jis old it can answer smile with smile, &n& impatience with impatience. It can observe, ob-serve, enjoy and suffer acutely, and,; in a measure, intelligently. Do. 'you' stip-PGt'3 stip-PGt'3 it makes no difference to it that the order of the house is perfect and quiet, the faces of its father and mother moth-er full of pea$e, their soft voices familiar fa-miliar td its ear, and even those of strangers loving;. or that ia is tossed from arm torm among hard or reck-lea! reck-lea! or vairi-minded persons, in the gloom of a. vicious house or the confusion con-fusion of a gay one?" ' NOT A CATHOLIC SISTER. . .Several days ago the daily papers) published dispatches - from Kenosha, I I Wis., telling the sad story of the suicide by drowning of "Sister Augusta, of the Order of St. Mary, formerly Miss Augusta Au-gusta Henderson." In nearly every instance the newspapers newspa-pers failed to state one important fact, namely, that the "Order of St. Mary" is a Protestant Episcopal Sisterhood. The Episcopal Sisterhoods are so small in numbers and their establishments so few that the title "Sister" is almost synonymous with Catholic, and it may be safely said that in failing to note the distinction in this case' the daily papers misled 90 per cent of their readers, read-ers, Protestants and Catholics alike. WHAT THE TAtv,T3 WERF A lady, some of whose friends had arrived unexpectedly, got up an impromptu im-promptu dinner party and was compelled com-pelled to send to the nearest bakery for some large tarts. All went on well until un-til the lady, unluckily, wished to show off by pretending not to know what was on the table, pointing to the dish, with an. air of great dignity and inquired: in-quired: . ' "John, what are these tarts?" . Whereat, Jahn, in the innocence of ! his 'heaFt, -looking at the tarts in a commercial, rather than culinary point of view, briskly replied: "Ten cents a piece, ma'am." |