The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1884-01-17
BILL ARP.
His Good Breakfast-Helpingh his Wife to
Clean Up.
Southern Ctl.irator and Dixie Farmer


SDuthe1n Ctl,irdtor and Dixie Farn,cr
Mrs. Arp ad an uncommon good
breakfast this morning. There was =
dish of baked eggs at my plate, which
she knows am fond of. While the
house was being cleaned up noticed thai
the beds were not touched, and so told
her | would help but she said no she
wanted them taken out on tho piazzo to
sun, and so took 'em out, and then she
asked me to take out the bedsteads and
the bureau and the chairs and the sewing
machine and all, as she wanted TO clean
up a little. Cleaning up little is the
old, old story at my house. When got
through sat down on the front piazzo
with my pipe 10 ruminate little and
rest from my arduous labors. Pretty
soon she brought me broom and a rake
and a twine string, and asked me to tie
the broom handle onto the rake for she
wanted 10 sweep down the cob. webs from
the walls. | understood all that, and 80
tied it on and swept 'em all down my.
sell and retired to the piazzo as usual.
About the time had my feet stuck on
the banisters, she brought out a hammer
and paper of carpet tacks aud laid 'em
down on the table beside me and smiled.
These movements reminded me of the
carpet that she had heen threatening to
put down in the big family room for q
month, and il there is any household
work that do despise to do it is putting
down q carpet. i can't double up and
twist around like used to. l gave an
involuntary groan and grunt or two
and went to Work. A lit'' iarkey had
already brought up pass, :! hay from
the barn, and SO we picked it all over
and got out all the little weeds and
coarser pieces and spread it nicely upon
The f'0or, and then unr9led the carpet
from the middle each way and went to
work on one side mailing it. It had to
be stretched and fitted all around and
the edge on the hearth was the hardest
of all, for Mrs. Arp watched every tack
and if it was fraction of an inch out of
line she saw it and had to keep pulling
and turning under the edges, and when
was on it couldn't pull it and couldn't
get off it for the wall, and 80 it was get
up and get down, and work sideways and
crossways, and all sorts of ways, and l
mashed my fingers and cramped my
knees and twisted off my suspender but
tons, but finally the work was done to
her satisfaction sorter, and | managed to
get up and stand up and be thankful to
the Lord for his mcrcies. By the time
we got all the furniture set back again
and the beds made up the day was half
gone and the children came home from
school and forgot to wipe their feet at
the door and the dogs followed them into
around with their muddy feet, but they
didn't track long. They are in the
cautious state right now and SO am II
think | will get some old bagging and
put it down over the carpet so as to save
consequences. wish that we men were
as neat and careful as the women-no I
don't either, for then we wouldn't be
much account out of doors and would
| degenerate into dudes as they call 'em,
but l wish we had mora regard for neat
| ness than we have. Mrs Arp says she
| don't believe that would wash the win
dow glass until couldn't see out for the
dust and fly specks, and the dogs would
sleep under the beds and The spiders and
Lizards would live in tte closet. But
she don't mean that know, and is just
| talking after the manner .. nice respec-
table women. But don't see any use
In cleaning up so much-why it takes an
hour every morning to clean up the fam.
lily EocEn ioE she viii take everything OF
| OF the nlantel-piece and the books off of
| the shelves, and wipe off all the little
clean dust that has settled around, and
the ashes must be taken up every morn
| ing and the hearth has to have fresh
coat of Spanish brown about twice a
| week and the water buckets must be
secured, and every few days have to
take down the pictures so that she can
| wipe off the frames, and the leaves have
| to be swept out of the yards as fast as
they fall. She had her little flower gar
| den all raked and swept mighty nice
yesterday, and | come running in to her
| room excited and told her another leaf
| had blown down, and just did have
| time to dodge the scissors she throwd'd at
me. l told her one day that the Scrip.
| lures said man was made out of dirt, and
she said that she reckoned ne was but
that woman wasn't. l wish was rich
wish was rich for her sake. I would
build her marble palace and fence out
every bug and epider and fly, aud have
the walks laid with marble and the
ground al! covered withgrass and flowers
and evergreens. She would get tired of
it know in a month, and then would
sell out and come back to the good old
dirty home. Folks were not made to en-
joy fine things al! the time-our best
| pleasures come from contrast. We
| noatuh S1Joy NC" hhtu6s ~ GucJ diuu y
get old and faded.
There is power Of comfort in having
some new thing occasionally-new cur.
tains, new carpet, new lamp, new
clothes, new chairs, 4 new sewing MA
chine, or a new stove TO cook Ont
won't do for things to last too long. We
get led Of seeing the furniture in the
same places in room and it is relief
to move the bureau to the other side.
Even the land we cultivate wants q
change of crops and the stock wants a
change of diet. The birds and the beasts
change their haunts, churches. change
their preachers and people change their
rulers, and some folks would change their
wives if they could. I don't believe in
living in house too fine for. comfort, or
having furniture SO fine the children are
afraid to touch it. The Scriptures say
that evea the Sabbath vas made for ma
and not man for the Sabbath, and 80 a
house ought to be made for man, too, and
not man for the house. But woman
deserves nicer house and nicer things
than man, for she has more refined
tastes and she has to live and stay in the
house more, and can't get away from II
it is her abiding place and ought not
to be her prison-it ought to be made as
pleasant and inviting to her as possible
Beautiful pictures ought to adorn the
walls and handsome curtains the vim.
dows, and the clock ought to strike with