Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-05-18

fare during the spring months. Dande-
lions, spinach, cowslips mustard and even
nettles were called into requisition for this
choice portion of the dinner. Modern
housekeepers follow this same principle in
the selection of food, realizing the phys
ical benefit of such articles of food as will
work incidentally on the digestive organs,
which have been weakened, perhaps, by
the heavy food of the winter months.
Salads, which are tempting to most people
when properly made, can be compounded
from these "greens" into healthful dishes,
and made little more attractive, if not
more healthful, by the possibilities for dec
Grafton which they afford. 1t is claimed
that we, as people, do not realize the
benefits of salads as an article of food. The
same people who think they need ''spring
bitters" would scorn to eat the green herbs
of which those bitters were made. 1t is
human nature to prize the more highly
that which costs the more, and because the
"bitters" have to be paid for, we are apt to
think them more efficacious. In truth, we
should gain in physical health if we made
the fresh salads or greens part of our
daily diet.
A COTTAGE IN THE COUNTRY
Sounds delightfully."- rural, but it may mean
anything from a one-story, three-room
affair to most gorgeous mansion, where
twenty guests may be entertained, and
where everything is on most extravagant
scale. But real cottage-a small house
with, say, only sitting room, kitchen and
three or four bed-rooms-can be made
most charming, and perhaps a few sug-
gestions which may be new to some of us
may therefore be OF some little value.
The kitchen, although one of the most
important rooms In the house, is usually
best judge of its requirements, which
should, of course, depend entirely upon
the kind of life she expects to live. There
are always just SO many pots and kettles
to be used, and each new autocrat who
takes possession of her domains will be sure
to want exactly the very things you have not
purchased. 1t is in the next room, the
dining-room, that woman's taste can be-
gin to display itself. Dull reds or browns
are either of them good colors for the
room, as they usually harmonize very well
with the furniture of the room. For in
stance, paint your floor medium shade of
brown and woodwork good deal lighter,
with the darker colors used in lines on the
doors, and SO forth.
The paper can have cream ground,
with the brown and a good deal of pink
introduced into it. With this. antique
oak furniture is the best, and it can be
purchased very reasonably. A buffet is
not necessity, but of course it is always
an improvement in room. However,
if you decide to dispense with
it, one or two low, wide shelves
against the side of the room will make
very good substitute. These can have
covers of heavy white linen, trimmed with
lace, and the effect is very pretty. A
cabinet with glass doors, or, if this is
too costly, some mere shelves made by
a carpenter, and painted to match the
woodwork will look very we'll. On these
can be kept glass or odd pieces of china,
and at the back can be hung cups and
saucers. The curtain should be of white
muslin, tied back with white ribbon.
In table appointments one can have ev-
erything as dainty as possible, for china
and glass can be purchased for very little.
Table linen must always be immaculate,
and then, if not of the finest quality, it
cannot be criticised. In the sitting-room
one can have as much or as little color as
one chooses, and the only thing to be re-
membered is to preserve general
tone of coloring. A cool-looking room
has the floor painted regular tur-
quoise blue, or else in light olive and
rug of the blue, the woodwork in white,
relieved with blue, and the papering very
delicate blue and white, with the ceiling
in plain blue. NELLIE B. WARD.