Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1869-06-29
Farm, Garden, Kitchen and Shop,

VI
ETY. of our dinner dishes. We can be just
as extravagant, if we so choose, on five or
twelve hundred year of income as ever as
Lorenzy de Medici, who, as the story runs,
in his last days, supped upon pearls dis
solved in his broth.
Do we ever spend money to make peo-
pie stare? Do we try to make our fifteen
hundred of income carry as much clang
and clatter with it, as it rattles from our
purse, as if it were so many thousands?
We Americans have a little of this weak
ness; and among the ways in which it APP
pears none is more striking than our ex-
pendituTe upon our houses. And in evi-
dence of this, we venture the observation
and believe it will stand proof, that the
people of no country in the world pay so
much, for the shell in which they live, as
the Americans.
That a man should put one-ffth or even
one fourth Of his available property in his
homestead may be well enough; but that
We should put one half or three quarters
is most unwise, and is as prepOsterous as
the ostentation of Senecio, in the Roman
story who, 70 show his available means
walked the streets in shoes large enough
for two.
What do we want Of our houses? We
want shelter we want comfort we want to
illustrate our artistic lOngings, if we have
any we want-or ought to want, each man
in his yay-room for hospitality we want
IN short a home which shall be expressive
of our needs and of our tastes. We do not
want to 60 to the limit Of possible expen-
diture. And yet in our cities there is an
immense deal of building for this outside
building for the eye ofthe
street-passer, and not for the hearts and
happiness Of those who are infinitely near
er-an outside expression of consequence
and importance. And there comes of it,
very naturally, a most tlimsy architecture
Oithin slabs of stones set edge on edge, and
wooden cOrnices painted for deception,
with men inside, rs untrue rs the cOrnices,
struggling madly for that level outside dis
play, with never the courage or honesty to
say "This is too tough for me; my chill
dren are feeling or will feel the cost"
So, too we shall find the quietude Of
many charming bit of country outraged
by this hashy outsidedness, and some pre-
tender putting out his ribs Of brick or stone
upon some country hilltop, with a kind
of violent eXplosiveness and, as if this
were not enough, setting some cupola at
the top of all-cOmmanding good view,
perhaps, if any body but the Irish washer
woman ever climbed there to enjoy it, but
really serving rs a kind Of broad exclama-
ton point to the assertion that cOnironts
you everywhere: See what a grand, rich
man is living here!
Now, mans house like mans face,
should have some sort of individuality
about 10 and II on the face there be only
expression OF importance and consequence,
you wall naturally look for Il great deal of
emptiness inside
80 of the house, gauut, darkened par
Tors, having no cheer of occupancy, an ell
cgaut reserve of rosewood and damask too
tine for one self, too fine for ones child
rem, carefully protected from the dust-a
Kind of masked battery, in short to be fired
OIL ON great occasions into the astOnished
faces of some village sewing society, or
still worse-kept in reserve for ceremoni-
Gus yisitOrs-this is wanton, but most cOun-
try extravaganza. 1t l. better every way
that q man should be too large for his
house than that the house should be too
large for the man.
The luxury of fine house is, to be sure,
a legitimate expression of wealth but il
should be true and honest expression. 4
home should be, in a certain sense, Il reflex
portrmture of "a mans habits and aspira-
tlons. 1t should carry about it "a flavor Of
the occupant, and not Of the decorator &c
away from any house with the memory of
the upholstery at the top Of your thought
and you might rs well have paid your visit
10 an unhOlster's shop.
The Paris standard of house decoration
has force with great many and though
1t Is most prepOsterous for a man to have
any standard but his own individuality
yet, seeing that the standard exists, we ASK
our readers to look with Us for a moment
40 a sober, substantial house. where it has
sometime been our good fortune to visit
in the very centre Of Paris. The walls are
solid, but not any way snowy. A neatly
dressed servant ushers you in; there are ne
alabastcr urnS, perhaps there Is single
bit OF marble, and this is not ruined by the
brilliant hanging- about it; indeed the up
hol,tcry is OF the simplest and gravest-.
good deal of green baizc, but very it'll
damask, an unmistakable home look, whicl
all feel when they confront it, but which
no one can describe books which look a
if they had been read, pictures few anC
simple, and not lost in the brilliancy of tn,
framing.
And in this house, on weekly nights, tn
wits and the peers Of France were used t,
.hrong and the man who presides over i
with this severe taste and with a fruga
bounty is no less a man than Guizot, il
whose hands for so many years the desti
MES Of France reposed. Not poor man
but one who does not think it necessary t.
supplement his competence by dash or up
hOlstery.
Nor are such means needed by anybody
five are honestly rich, people will find u
out: bad people will find US out, and as
to subscribe to preferred stock; good pee
pie will find us out, and pass the hat to u
ON Sundays And if not rich, people vii
find us out-under any pile of upholstery
Well let them! What we want is not 5
much moderation of desire rs an Opef
ightiOrward assertion OfOur moderation
We are growing to be in need of that qua
ity OF courage which is not afraid of an oil
house ora small hOuse.-Hearth and H0m
PREPARATION OF WHIgEwAsH-Wh
wash is one Of the most valuable articl,
i'm the world when properly applied. 1t ne
only prevents the decay of wood, but col
duces greatly to the healthfulness of a
buildings, whether Of wood or stone. Gu
buildings and fences when not painteC
Nl'blA bN NAppllth OilNt vi INlCt Il Ntt
with a good coat Of whitewash, whic
should be prepared in the following way
Take a clean water tight barrel or 9th,
suitable cask. and put into it half bush
of lime. Stake it by pouring water over
boiling hot, and in sufficient quantity
cover 1t five inches deep, and stir it brisk
till thoroughly slaked. When the slakin
has been thoroughly affected, dissolve it
water, and add two pounds Of sulphate 0
zinc and one of common salt; these wi
cause the wash to harden, and prevents i
cracking, which gives an unseemly appea
ance to the work.
II desirable, a beautiful cream color mi
be communicated to the above wash, |
adding three pounds of yellow ochre; or
good pearl of lead color by the addition
lamp, vine or ivory black. For fawn coll
add four pounds of lumber, Turkish
American-the latter is the cheapest-o1
pound Of Indian red, one pound of con
mon lamp black. For common stone &C
or, add four pounds of raw lumber and tv
pounds of lamp black. This wash may
applied with common whitewash brus
and will be found much superior both
appearance and durability to the commC
whitewash.-J0maai Of Chemistry.
A grindstone should not be exposed
the weather, rs it not only Injuries the wot
work, but the suns rays harden the stol
50 much, as in time to render it almost us