River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1883-09-27
The Necessity of Looking Well
aft Home

Often when l have been riding in the
country, on a summer afternoon have
seen the farmers wife sitting in or near
the door engaged with her sewing,-her
sleeves tucked to her elbows, her hair
perhaps uncombed, or at best brushed
back inEthe plainest manner, her feet
in slipshod shoes, aud her dress the
same in which she had worked all the
morning, with perhaps the same apron,
and usually not over-clean. Her house,
If one should enter, would probably be
found in excellent order-clean swept
floors, and chairs set back against the
wall, as if arranged for funeral, and
not thing out of place In the cup
board or store-room would be found the
whitest of bread, plenty of toothsome
pie aud cake, the freshest and sweetest
of butter, and many little delicacles the
materials for which nature so abundant
ly provdes. and which the modern
housewife has learned so we'll to prepare.
Nothing has she been remiss.n her duty
to her house but on herself; perhaps the
most important, certainly the most
necessary, thing in it she ha sno tspent
thought. She is too wearied with her
labor, and there is pile of sewing and
mending waiting to be done. 30 with
perfect self-abnegation she sits down to
her task till the evenings daily work,
and the preparation for supper, with Its
consequent duties closes the day on her
weary bod and mind. And so the days
pass-one 4 ser another-much alike in
their samenSss, until her mind IS mar
rowed down to this smaR routine OF
daily cares, and the thought of dress
ing up" to go from home, or to receive
company be zones almost irksome. Her
habits have become so fixed that she
has never considered, that few min
utes spent in bathing face, hands, and
neck, combing the hair in a tasteful and
becoming manner, and putting on clean
dress with The addition of a fresh lace or
muslin neck-tie, will not only add won
derfully to her sell respect, but actually
bring rest 10 her weary body and mind.
No master if the dress be nothing but
print, if it be clean and fresh. For sum-
mer wear, this is usually the best mate
rial, as the evening chores must neces-
sarily be done, and with the addition OF
y big apron, one is ready for the work,
Prints are SO pretty and cheap, that
| there can be no excuse for not always
having one on hand. And then the
present mode of dressing the neck is so
pretty and yet so simple, and cheap that
there is no need of being seen even i'll
the morning without clean, fresh tie
or kerchief. No frills-no still collars,
but simply a piece of India muslin, or a
less costly one cut sou ire and hemmed,
put on corner wise, and tucked into the
dress in front, or if one prefers; a strip
few inches wide and OF Suitable length
simply hemmed and a few tucks across
the ends put on for a tie. Four or five such
articles are all that is necessary. They
are thrown into the weekly wash, and
ironed without starch. Costly materials
made with elaborate care, are not at all
necessary to personal neatness. The
wife and mother cannot afford to 60
about her house, with torn or dirty
dress, neither for the example which 1t
brings, nor her own personal self re-
spect. There are few husbands so diff
ferent to the appearance and dress of
wife, as not to feel n glow of satisfaction,
when on coming to the house from his
labor he finds her neatly arrayed, and
with q smiling face-nstead of the slat-
ternly being which is sometimes seen.
Indeed, / think the male man." as
Samantha Allen would say, is naturally
fastidious in this respect. Every man
in his younger days not only
wished to be dressed himself wit b Ie.
gree of care and taste, but his admira-
ton of the girl he loves is largely modi-
fed by the care which she bestows upon
her personal appearance, and if in after
lif : she becomes coarse and seemingly
oblivious to the refining influences,
which taste and culture bring, who shall
say in how large manner she is re-
sponsible? The wise mother of daugh-
tiers will insist that each afternoon shall
see them not only neat and tidy, but
tastefully dressed, so that in case of UNI
expected callers, there need be no
furry, nor loss of self-respect. This, if
begun in early life will grow into a nabit
which in time will become So fixed, that
when she becomes a wife and mother,
she will no more think of discarding,
than the necessary ones of eating and
sleeping.