The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1880-11-24
The Pocket Handkerchief.

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We may forget our purse, our pen
knife, and many other things, says
the London Halter, without expert
enciug any great Inconvenience, and
even without its being known at
times, but to lose or mislay the hand
kerchiet may be followed by very
grave consequences. as we all know.
Moreover we make use of this arti-
Gle in many other different ways. All
who make use of spectacles do not
remove them from their nose in or
der to put them very carefully into
tie case without using the handker-
chief, and they use it again before
putting them on, wiping the glasses
with great care. The majority of
people pay by far too little attention
to an object so indispensable. Many
put it into the same pocket with
their keys, their purse, their snuff
box, without troubling themselves
concerning the many strange sub
stances with which its tissue will not
fail to come in contact in so miscel-
laneous company, and which might
Sully the purity which the handker-
chief ought to possess. Does one go
to pay a visit? Before presenting
themselves to the person they wished
to thank or solicit, some have been
known to dust their boots with the
handkerchief. Does the careful wife
see some grains of dust left on her
ornament She makes them disap-
pear with her handkerchief. Boys
in the school room clean their states
with them; in the play ground the
handkerchief is the necessary attend
ant OF multitude of games. With
this they wipe off the dirt; they
strike off the dust. 1t is used to
stop the blood that flows from
wounds-always very numerous i'll
the age of leap-trog and prisoners
base the age also OF communism in
handkerchiefs. With wounds comes
tears and the handkerchief, full OF
DUST spotted with dirt, with the
blood of bodies known or unknown,
serves again for wiping the eyes, the
nose, or the cheeks furrowed with
tears. We do not wish, and we can
not tell here all the strange uses that
people make of the pocket handker-
chief And then what SIGNALS have
been conveyed by it How many
sad tarewells, how many cheerful
congratulations The very method
OF waving it has language, as the
motions of the fan also have. But
no one has hitherto discoursed on
the language OF the pocket handker-
Chief And how useful it often is as
help to the pocket or the handbag
How many mushrooms, myrtle Der.
ries, strawberries, and raspberries
have been gathered into the hand
kerchief. in young days, and more
valuable things in later life Then
there may be evil results traced to it
"a number of ailments of which
one cannot guess the origin; diseases
of the nose and eyes. Fortunate it
is for him that incurs nothing worse;
diptheria, for example, which the
handkerchief may heedlessly trans
nit. Let us not use the handker-
chief except for its proper propose
let us devote to it special place;
let us change it as often as possible,
and inspire our children with great
disgust for another's handkerchief on
account OF the disagreeable, nay dan
gerous consequences that may ensue.
Much more might be said OF the
pocket handkerchief, but enough has
been limited at to set my readers a
thinking upon its Importance, its
uses, and its abuses.