Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1876-08-11
a Fathers Experience.

am father, with six grown up daugh-
ters. During the early period Of their
lives, was in comparatively good circum-
stances. But for the last fifteen years, dur
ing which my bevy of girls have been
blooming, one after another, into beauti-
full womanhood, my means have been be-
coming, in spite of all my efforts, more
and more contracted; while the wants of
my household have naturally been increas-
ing with the advancing years.
Under these circumstances my girls be-
gan early to turn their attention to some
means of earning their own living. And
l have thought that u few of their expert
ences in this respect might he interesting
to the readers of the Now Century.
Bessie, my oldest daughter, having some
artistic faculty, concluded she would enter
the school OF design. This called for an
expenditure TO begin with but we judged
she would soon be enabled TO earn at least
sufficient 10 delray the cost OF tuition. She
accordingly entered the school and com-
menced the requisite studies TO enable her
to design patterns for carpets, wallpaper
and other manufactures.
After she had been al the school of de-
sign about year, at an expense which
though not very large TO those who have
plenty OF money, was serious draught
upon my already over-taxed means, 1 be-
gan TO think 1t was time she was earning
something. So 1 said 10 her one day,
"IIow are you getting along, Bessie. Do
you begin TO see any silver lining 10 the
cloud YETI"
Bessie shook her head sadly. "Ab, pa
pa" she replied, ''they say now that good
training cannot be acquired in less than
five or six years"
"Why, Of course not, Bessie; but still
You might be earning something. Do not
the manufacturers want often simple de-
signs, not requiring the highest degree of
skill in the artist2"
~ don't know, papa. The other day Mr..
Johannes, who you know is a very wealthy
manufacturer, and "A great patron of the
school, set our class TO designing certain
pattern that he required-but nothing came
of It,"
"Wby, how was that2 Could you not
succeed in pleasing him?"
81 don't know, exactly. He came to the
school looked over the patterns, threw most
of them aside as useless, bat picked out
one of mine as having considerable merit"
"Ah 1 am glad TO hear that. 1t is be-
ginning, anyhow, Bessie"
Bessie's face assumed complicated ex-
pression-her eyes looked like crying,
while her sweet lips looked like laughing.
"What do you think he did, papa? Tho
pattern was in two figures. He said, Il
will take one of these figures, aud pay you
for it, Then 1 thought that five dollars at
least was coming. But he took his PEN
knife and divided the pattern, taking the
half he wanted; and then put his hand in
his pocket and handed me the magnificent
sum of twenty-five cents"
80, Bessie! Mr.. Johannes, the wealthy
manufacturer and patron of art did not do
that ?"
"Here is the twenty-five cents, papa"
laughed Bessiein reply-"I keep it for luck.
think that twenty-five cents cost me at
least ten dollars"
Amer this conversation, thought we'll to
drop in upon an intelligent manufacturer
of my acquaintance, and ask him what he
Vi DbSSlb cIlHuCCS OF MAKING
money as designer of patterns.
"Smithson, my dear friend" said he,
"your daughter may go on studying in that
branch for the next ten years, and be no
nearer making living at designing pat
terms than she is now. You see there is a
certain kind of practical skill required,
which can only be obtained by being in
constant communication with the manufac-
turers and the market. The men who are
employed in designing, understand exactly
how the design should be prepared to suit
the material employed. They also have a
pretty good idea of what the public taste
requires-which is generally something
very different from that which is really
most refined and beautiful. Now do you
see that pattern, for instanceH and he
pointed to a certain piece of goods. ''That,"
said /, "lt is horrible, vulgar, tawdry."
My friend smiled. "That shows how
much you know of art, Smithson," he re-
piled ironically; "that pattern is one of the
most popular and taking now in the mar
ket."
told him about Johannes. He laughed
heartily. "Oh, Johannes" he said, "al-
though a millionaire, thinks twenty-five
cents a very large sum indeed. Probably
he is one of those disinterested philanthro-
pists who advocate female labor because he
thinks its effect will be TO reduce by COM
petition the present rates of male labor.
There are number of such philanthropisls
about"