National Republican., 1877-10-27
A substitute for Carpets.

A substitute for Carpets.
SOMETHING WORTH KNOWING.
Many people whose means are limited find
it no small tax upon the purse TO carpet
house from top to bottom, and yet bare floors
are an abomination to the thrifty house For
upper halls, bathrooms and closets very
good and durable substitute for oil cloths may
be made with little expense, as follows Save
all your old newspapers, and when you get
enough for the purpose make paste, just as
you would for wall paper dc the newspapers
neatly, paste them down, one by one, until
| the floor is covered. Let them dry, then lay
another coating In the same way, and the next
day add third layer When again thoroughly
dried, get q good quality of wall paper, Of
suitable color and pattern, and paste smoothly
! I'll over it. When this Is dry give it
, GOOD COAT OF vARNIsH,
and your foor-covering will wear as long as q
carpet and look as well as an oil cloth. When
| It requires to be cleaned, wipe IL with O wet
cloth. This need not be such job as you may
perhaps imagine. Try It on small room first.
Make paste enough al once for the whole
thing, as it will keep" for several days Just
| get into some old dress that you do not care for
early in the morning, and in a few minutes
| layer No will be done. Then shut the door
and leave II alone till next day; then repeat
! the process, and do so until 1t is done.
few years ago, while visiting among the
| Quskers in Salem, Ohio one Of the neatest
communities In the world, we were particu-
larly struck by the..requisite neatness Of their
kitchens, the floors Of which were invariably
covered bya
| PLAIN, USFIGuRED OIL CLOTH,
matching in color the painted wood work Of
the loom. Speaking Of 1t ono day, our hostess
| astonished us by the information that she
made it herself! And this is the modus ope.
randi: Save the old coneesacks, bed-tieks and
bits of carpcting, patch them neatly together
| TO ft the room and tack them down smooth
and tight. Then, with an old whitewash
| brush or broom, plaster 1t over thoroughly
with paste till all the seams and crcases are
filled. When perfectly dry paint 1t any color
you choose, adding two or three coats aud
vanishing, If you desire. Our Quaker friends
mixed their paint and applied 1t themselves.
carpeting Of large room cost but a mere
trihe and would wear for years.
| Fashion Gossip.
| Carrick capes and carrick caps are among
| the coming novelties. These are round cloth
caps, precisely like the pocket hats worn by
gentlemen, made of many cores and with ma
chine-stitched rims, matching the carrick
ulsters for travelling attire. 4 band of cloth
is tho only trimming, but q bright-colorcd
birds wing may be added to subdue their de-
cidedly masculine appearance. The travelling
| ed Scotch cloth, not belted in in the baggy
| ulster fashion Of old, but cut into graceful,
| slender princesse garments, fitting the figure
closely, and having three small capes, one
| above another, These carrick capes are bound
TO be popular, and are even being put upon
| dolmans by French modistes. Among the noy-
| elites In
| BoNNETs
are the cleft halo brims, exceed iugly becoming
1 IN thA tup. nnE Lac. L.,
again in vogue for bonnet trimmings, and
curled cocks feathers, tipped with jet, arc
among the fashionable plumes. AprOpos Of
our sombre autumn styles comes q refreshing
story from Georgia that the girls Of that
| Acadia are still wearing bcwitchng evening
hats made Of natural leaves and flowers.
THE NEW CLoAKs
have rather wide, loose sleeves. and are
trimmed with very large buttons, and pro-
fusion of aigrafes, braids and passcmentcries,
velvet, beads and fringcs The aigrafies and
passementerie ornaments are of immense size,
aud glttering with cut jet beads in all the
fashionable colOrs.
BLACK SWEDISH GLOVES
of undresscd kid-g1nLs de Suede--are popular
for demi.toilette, and are also shown in all tho
| fashionable shades. Many of the costlicr
varieties of gloves still retain the comparatively
unobtrusive finish Of delicate selfstitching but
the newest styles are conspicuously stitched
on the back and cuffs or heavily embroidered.
For full-dress occasions the side cut Harris
Provost" glove will bo found preferable to any
| other.
Thank fortune 1t Is no longer considered
good style" for lady to turn street-swccpcr
with her train and carry home from her per-
ambuations the efiluvia of cigar r-stumps and
garbage and the discoloration Of dust and dirt.
II she has not distinct walking" costume
which clears the ground, she must sew a ribbon
loop near the bottom Of the skirt and elevate
1t by slipping her hand through.
| A Life Well spent.
Miss Ann Mcdonald, matron for nearly half
q century Of the Philadelphia Msgdalen Asy-
lum, died the other day in that city at the
age of eghty-seven. During that fifty years
many thousands Of erring women came under
her care and direction. She tenderly nursed
them in sickness, watched over them for good
in health, strengthened every feeble step to-
ward the right way, and gave to the repeutau
almost mothers counsel and love. During
her dying hours the said that she rejOiced TO
remember that during that half century she
had never turned a single wanderer from her
doors whose penitence she believed to he sim
cere. Among those erring thousands doubt
less some have reached Heaven who but for
her might have missed the way II there Is
truth in the sweet German legend that those
whom we have comforted here will be tlrst to
greet us in the hereafter, that b essed spnster
will not enter the shining gates unwe!comed.
About Women.
The Royal AgricultuHlist Society Of Eng
land has awarded prize Of $3.50 to Ellea
Birch for the best farm.
| On dit that Mrs Rosa Vertnor Jeffrey, the
Kentucky poetess will spend the winter III