American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1873-06-07
Miscellany.
Spring Breezes.

Cool, refreshing and gentle are the
brceZes that come flower-kissed and sun
tempered on the wings of spring. Within
doors the breeze of spring housekeeping
has stiffened into a gale, while the mascu
line portion of the household bend in
humble submission to its unpleasant wait
ings. During this storm the husband
comes home to find in place of his coy
rooms only bare floors, open windows, and
furniture that seems to have been fighting
What an incongruous display! Bureaus
and washstands clasp kobs with each other
spittoons and card-baskets lie down to
gether in the base of an inverted hatrack
tables sprawl their legs in the air, and OF
tomans seem possessed with ubiquity.
The desk is in the background, with a
fertilization of sofa, sideboard, chair, and
clock built up around it. Now, of course,
this desk is the very thing the lord of the
household wishes to get at. He sets the
opposing furniture flying in all directions
The noise brings his wife to the scene of
action. She, poor soul, has her hair orna-
mented with white curls of wall paper
which she has cut from the side of the
bolt still in her hands. One cheek is en-
ameled with flour paste, the other rOuged
(.) with stove-blacking. A lively cOllOquy
ensues, and the husband retreats minus
the particular paper which he had no
business to want during housekeeping.
him in his frantic endeavors to keep his
chubby little feet out of the way Of those
cruelty -barbed tacks, that seem to be every
place but in their rightful positions, heads
up, points down, in decorous rows along
the enge of the carpet.
Jane has been late to school every day
on account of never being able to find any
thing after her room has been SO vigorous
ly put to rights"
thing of the past; the coffee tastes of SOAP
suds, the tea of tack-hammers, the bread
of dustpans.
Now do the furniture stores, both new
and second hand, reap ample harvests. So
many deluded souls fancy an old, cheap
article is better than new, regular-priced
one.
Mrs. Salhunter exhibits to Mr. S. in
: triumph the result of her mornings shop
ping. Now, dear, do look at this chair
Isn't it handsome, and so cheap" He
is little doubtful, and examines it criti-
cally.
'Well, the upholstering is good, but do
you think the frame is strOng?"
Strong! of course it is" scornfully re-
piled Mrs. s.; but sit down and see for
YOURSELF" and he does see. The chair
gives groan, the sitter utters an impreca-
ton, and both are picked up a mass of
bruises and bad bargain.
Mrs. AuctiOnhunter brings home an in
laid table that is a perfect model of beauty,
but, ike many beauties, lacks strength of
understanding. Propped up carefully, its
defects are not perceived, and the books
are kept balanced on the well side. In
comes Mr.. A. with an ink-bOttle in one
hand and best hat in the other. Slap they
go on the table, just over the game leg.
Mr.. A. buys new hat down town that
day, while Mrs. A. asks all her friends
what will remove ink-stains from Brussels
carpet; but the crippled table is invisible.
Mrs. Economy has long wanted a pair
piano, but they are so expensive she can
not afford them. At length she finds the
very thing at secondhand store. To be
sure, one vase has wide crack on the
bottom. but that doesn't show, and when
filled with dried grasses they certainly
look we'll.
One morning while Mrs. E. is out airing
her new bonnet, Mr.. E. proves his gallan
try by sending to his wife an exquisite
bouquet. Bridget receives it at the door,
and hastens to put it in water, and thinks
how 'swate it will look, shure, in that
BOhamian vase" So the dried grass is
carefully taken out of the cracked one, and
in goes the "wather'' and fresh flowers
After a while the brisk little matron comes
back, to find her beautiful piano-cover
ruined.
So the vases were not so cheap, after all.
"Verbum sat sdpienti." - Cincinnati
Chronicle