The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1858-11-04
Mr. Smith Lounges on the sofa-Mrs'
Smith Lectures him for it.
"The earth holds no other like to the,
Or if it doth, in vain for mo"

Mr. Smlth Lounges Oh Ile oOld MIS-
Smith Lectures him for it.
There is Il touch Of practical good
sensc about the following that will be
appreciated by many. We find it in
the M~arysviIle Tribune:
Il declare, MIR. Smith, this is too
bad. Here you are stretched out on
the sofa, missing it up, and my nice
carpet is all spoiled by the tramp Of
your coarse boots. shall be ashamed
to bring any one into the parlor again
and have taken so much pains to
keep everything nice. dothink, Mr..
Smith, you are the most thoughllcss,
careless man, ever did sec-you don't
appear to care how much trouble you
give me, If | had no more care than
YOU had, we would soon have a nice
looking housc-it will not be long till
our new house and furniture will be
Just as bad as the DID," said John
Smiths wife to him, as She saw him
in the parlor taking u nap on the
sofa.
Nh. Smith rose up slowly and an
severed, ~ was tired and sleepy, Mary,
and the weather was 50 lot, and this
room 50 quiet and cool and the sofa
looked 50 inviting, that | could not re-
sist the temptation to sno0ze a little.
! thought when we were building a
ncw house, and furnishing it thus. we
were doing it because the Old house
and furniture were not so comfortable
and desirable, and that and my own
dear Mary would indulge ourselves in
a%littIe quiet leisure in these nice rooms
and if we chose. in longing on the
sofas, and rocking in these cushioned
armed chairs, away rom the noise Of
the family and the smell Of the cook
ing stove.
Il did not dream of displeasing you,
Mary, and thought it would give you
pleasure to see me enjoying a nap on
the sofa this afternoon. l%notice when
Mr.. Merchant Swell, or Col. Bigman,
and their families are here, you appear
delighted to have sofas and cushioned
arm chairs for them to sit in or lounge
upon. | thought the house and the
sofas were for us-that we were seek
ing our own pleasure when we paid n
large sum Of money for them; but |
suppose | was mistaken, and that the
house and furniture are for strangers,
and that we are to sit in the old kitch-
en-, and i'll want to take Il nap, or rest
alittIe when latigued, am to lie down
on a slab in the wood-house; and if
you want to rest, you a 60 to the
chi dren's bedroom, where the flies
can have ii chance at you.
The irony of Mr.. Smiths reply only
provoked lis wife, and seeing himself
threatened with a repetition OF Mrs.
Smiths speech, with unpleasant ad-
ditions and variations, and Knowing
that he would get tired Of gaining vic
tories over her in argument, before
she would think Of getting tired Of
defeat, he took himself out. and left
Mrs. Smith to fix up and dust out. and
lock him out OF his own house, and
took a seat in the old chair in the
kitchen which Mrs. Smith said was
good enough to use every day in the
kitchen, where no one sees it.
Poor mistake, Mrs. Smith, thought
And vet most women are like her
They want fine house, and whcnthey
get it they want IN Clubhouse built to
live in. and they conine their families
to "A few small rooms, poorly furnished.
while the main rooms, well-iurnished,
are never seen by the family only
when visitors come! Both houses and
furniture are too grand for use. The
CARPET is too fine for their husbands to
walk on-thc mirrors too line Tor him
TO look into-the furniture all too fine
for him to see or use. Just so it goes;
we dress--we women, ! mean-and
am sorry that many men are as foolish
as we are, to please others, or rather
to excite their remarks; we build hou-
ses and furnish them for those outside
the family, and live as poorly when
we are rich as we did when we were
poor; as poorly in the new house as in
the old.
1t is fatal day for enjoyment when
a family gets a house and furniture
too fine for use; and yet most women
have an ambition to have it so.
Better would it be if they were con
tented with such n house and such
furniture as is suited to every day use
the house large enough to accom-
modate ones friends, and the furniture
such as all use when at home.