St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-08-06
ORNAMENTS THAT PAY
Are Not the Costly Artificial, But
the inexpensive Beauties of Ma.

Are Not the Costly Artificial, But
the inexpensive Beauties of Ma
ture.
Special to the Globe.
FOUNTAIN, Mimi, July. 29.-There
are those who will tell us of the many
pretty ornaments that we can make for
our homes, and these will often be so
much silk, so many yards of ribbon and
embroidery silk perhaps, so many skeins
of silk thread for outlining or for etch-
ing, and this will not be all that is re-
CURED, although the rest may not cost
much. All this may cost dollars that
we have not got; the mass of farmers
wives are not noted for their plethoric
pOcketbOOks. Even if they do happen
in some way to be the possessor of such
an article, it's usually an empty one.
And if they do have purse contain
ing the amount of money this one arti
Gle of ornamental work would cost, in
forty-nine cases out Of fifty the woman
would sit and
COUNT THE COST
of many articles that she really needs
and decides in favor of the long array
Of real wants that necessity cOmpels
her to purchase. Then we have this
query: Where would we put such an
expensive ornament when we had COM
pleted it? ParlOrS are rather scarce in
farmers homes, unless we turn the
family out into the little kitchen and
Tor. Can we do this? Can we rear our
children in the kitchen and teach them
drawing room etiquette? Not very
easily, for we want them to know what
is due to good manners out of the
kitchen; in room set apart as some
thing more than place to do all kinds
of work in. We want our children to
be more like gentlemen and ladies'; also
to know how to appear In any place or
any company, and for this we must
work often at great disadvantage, but
we feel as if we could not surrender
one jot or little of all the means in our
power to accomplish the work of MAX
ing the children as near to gents and
ladies as we can with the slender means
at our command to accomplish our aims.
Such OrnamentatiOn is very pretty,
BUT WILL 1T PAY?
How would | look In an old shabby
dress-children perhaps in worse con-
ditiOn, in their rOmping over the farm,
to make our appearance when company
surprised us all, and the walls of the
sitting rooms decorated with so many
articles that cost money enough to put
SOOu cameo dresses Oh US all, ana gOOQ,
cheap clothes on the boys. so that all
would not look so poverty-stricken and
forlOrn in decorated rOom?' That
room would be doubly decorated by liv-
ing plants in the windows, and a bou-
quet OF two, or more of the wild flowers
from the woods and fields on table or
shelf, or great masses in large jar, a
''butter jar" for instance. set in the
corners of the room. The children can
do this. and few words of instructions
as to arrangement of cOlOrS will make
lasting impression on the mind of any
child, and in this way we may lead
child to study nature and
SUCH OBJECT LESSONS
are more valuable than teaching chill
dren ornamental work at great expense.
We want them gentlemen and ladies,
but let us try to make them real men
and women. This should be the one
sole aim. If we can do this we shall
have the real gentlemen and ladies
we want them to be. with cultured
heart and hands, we have the reward of
our labors for these objects of our love
and constant and anxious care, so we
decline with thank thes expensive orna-
menting of the sitting room with-many
thanks-for the suggestion, but will use
all the plants and flowers we can get,
and teach the children how to read
them Alright, and to learn them how to
be men and women in the true meaning
of those two WOrdS-men and women!
Mrs. MARTHA CRANDALL.