Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1885-10-30
A NEW CRAZE.
The "Fir Pillow, Takes the Place of
the CraZy-qHiIt In the Minds OF
Maine Ladies.
Boston Globe.

DSSeS4 NsOoV'
The reign OF the crazy silk quilt was
over. The log cabin had died nat
ural death long since. The Afghan,
like the Dutch repnbIic, had its rise
and fall. Scrim aprons had passed
the meridian OF a holiday life. Ken
sington of all sorts had been buried
with the change of fashion. All en-
thuslasm for the minor articles of
fancy work had been laid away in Ice
for winter use. There had come lull
IN the life of woman. The non -ac.
complished felt void in her life that
no duties to lover, husband or child
rem could fill.
A foreigner from the region Of New
York or New Haven came to the
shores of Maine. A few magic words
are whispered, and all are on the
alert. The idea assumes a substan-
tial form and is a grand success.
Linen, canvas, pongee, satin. and
pIushes are IN great demand. EN-
broldery fosses of every conceivable
shade are brought out. Our woods
are devastated. Our frs, and even pines
and spruces, by mistake, are shorn of
their beauty. The twigs of the fir are
greecIiy torn from their mother tree
by tender fingers unused to scratches
and pitch. Men and women who for
merly knew not pine from birch
search for the tender. green spill
Langu1d youth glory in the title of
Knights of the FIR, Wen by their ar
Guous labors IN the cause of the fair
Never day passes that one sees not
some lady or middle>aged gentleman
climbing up the nil, like Sinbad the
sailor with the Old Man OF the Sea,
bent under the weight OF load of FIR.
No regard Tor appearances prevents
women, young and old, from walk
lLG through the streets with whole FIR
forests
STRAPPED TO THEIR BACKS
Dried IN the sunlight the branches
OF the fir fill the air with the sweetest
of perfumes. The spills falling from
their stems form a brown, fragrant
carpet. Now the embroidered case
appears. An inner case of unbleached
cotton is filled with the fir, the pillow
case Is slipped on, sewed, neat rib
bon bow tackled on one corner and
VOLTA! we have the pillow. Various
are the devices on the pilloW-case.
Perhaps there is branch, a symbol
of the fir tree or forest on small
scale. More often it S quotation,
as: Give me of your balm, O fir
tree THE murmurlng pines and
the hemlocks, Dreams Of the for
est" and The breath of the forest
we have always with u.s." Besides
their intrinsic worth, which is from
So to IS, they are valuable for gifts
and are far superior to the ordinary
, sofa pillow.
If the sweet, sopor fic influence lulls
US right within the shade of the pines
TO pleasant sleep, it must, indeed, be a
BONANZA TO those within the city's
gates. OFT has the INITIATED, a scoffer
of the virtues Of the fir pillow, thrown
himself upon sofa aud buried his
head in an Notwithstanding pill
low. Slowly but surely the sweet
influence steals over his senses;
He YIELDS TO THE MAGIC
of its charm, and sees the Maine coast
perhaps old Castine which first gave
SAA III ~ GAAS p1lAoN VA liz 1ACIC AC
sees colony of young and old, each
pulling" tir, the mother to send TO
her boy in the city the young girl t.
place beneath the aching head of her
troubled father, the old man for a
sweet restorer for the tired nerves of
his invalid wife.
The dreams OF hasheesh smoker
must BIZ vague aud underlined cons
pared to those eRticed from dream
land by the soothing balm of the fir.
In contrast with the heat, the dust,
the cares of business, and the crowd
are the ripple and sparkle of the
waves, the fragrance laden zephyrs,
the quiet aisles of the woods, the
lightness of a brain free from care
Beautiful memories brought from
hons of the fir.
From Maine to Californi. are these
redolent pillows seAt. A welcome
GIFT are they among the luxuries Of a
Paris home. They dispel the fog from
the London air. They are borne TO
the land of ice by the Artic explorer.
They are a pillow for the heads of
Names sailor sons upon the swelling
ocean, and III the heat of the tropics
they watt homeward thoughts of her
exiled children.