Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1892-11-09
GOLDEN MOMENTS.
BIZ MRS. TALBOT COKE.

1t has become quite a habit with
some of my best and most loyal cor
respondents To quote my fayorite mild
reproof Cwhen asked to send patterns,
answer privately or do something else
which Is mot in the bond") ''My
moments are golden" and golden they
certainly are in every sense OF the
word. Golden, because so valuable to
one whose printed work is perhaps bat
one-third OF her scribbling.
Golden because so pleasant; full of
ever-new interest and delight
Golien because such a rich harvest
of gratitude, of kindly, almost sffec-
tIonate words from unknown friends
from many parts of the world is gar
neTed.
Now 1 do not expect to convert my
readers to my uncanny habit of begin
ming to write, alert and eager, at six a.
III. winter and summer, or that they
will believe that my idea of rest is to
lie on my deck-chaIr and write rough
notes for an article, but | do want
them TO think how much precious time
they waste.
queer old relative of mine, clever
and active-minded, used to keep a GER
tain funny old-fashioned inlaid work
table-with a "Reckitt's blue" satin
bag below, drawn into pleats
and ending IN a blue-and- yellow tassel
always full of bits of "poor work, !"
balf-knitted socks, half hemmed hand
kerchiefs, half-sewn st ans, or a baby's
petticost partly herring boned-
| can see her now, routing IN it to
see " hat she would do while waiting
for the carriage. for in those days,
reader mine, women did not keep
horses waiting twenty minutes or so
champing their bits, "raIn or shine, !"
and this dear old body-who never
seemed 10 sew at other times-and her
companion, always stitched solemnly
for the five or ten minutes they we're
waiting for the carriage.
Old body, do l call herl To me,
then in all tie insolence of eighteen
summers or so, she seemed q Mrs
Methuseleh; but on laying down my
pen and solemnly calculating, she was
perhaps then barely sixty, and so, had
she lived IN this year of grace, would
doubtless be wear ng 'gsy and
gIddy" hat over a touzled dyed fringe,
instead of the drawn black silk bonnet
with its Quaker-like lace frill over the
smoothly parted silvery hair.
Many vet day do 1 remember in
that old house, when party of young
folks, weary of nothing to do, would
wander into the long, low drawIneroom,
knowing full we'll that the work table
would be opened. thimbles handed
round, and a piece of work with needle
temptIngly stuck in it. would be
banded to each.
No chosa a pica ayan craop,y Imam
and invested in enough to make large
quilt, also a large quantity of soft, blue
embroidery cotton This was for fear
"a common disaster to embroideresses
the cotton, if bought at different
times, might, even if the same make,
not all wash alike. We then cut out q
centre, about thirty inches by twenty,
of which more anon.
The rest of the material we cut up
into squares the size of a large tile, each
being drawn" half an inch from the
edge and coarsety hem stitched.
We then chose a very conventional
tile-like pattern from q book of trans
fers, bought as many OF them as We
needed, and an hour one wet day
served to prepare all the desired tiles
for working. l say Desired" because
when sewn together they were to
appear alternately worked and
plHin.
The centre 1 traced for her with a
conventional '-outIine" orange tree,
with background of course blue darn
ing.
at will never, never be done" was
the thought, looking at the pile OF
squares, but by carrying one always
in her pocket, in a little case with
scissors and thimble, no day passed
without PROCESS being made, while
hearing her children's lessons, while
listening to the cream of the morning
paper from her husband, while chat
ting after five O'Clock tea; in short
until We thus begin to use idle mo.
ments we have no notion how rich we
are in theml
The result was that, without ever
seeming to slave at it, or to rob other
duties, this moment monument grew
until in an incredibly short time IT was
made mp with a deep frin of coarse
lace to beautify its owners bed, and
she set boldly to work to make another
tile quilt with nursery rhymes from q
"Walter Crane" book-ontlired In
NciAo SOe'o iOi PAOspSSti'e Siahucu&A-
dreD.
L think, to a really active -minded
individual, the great charm of needle
work and scribbling is that you can do
both almost anywhere, though the
latter wants silence, while the former
always goes on quickest midst pleas
ant chat
l often have written in the train, but
l once travelled with a girl who cor
rected literally yards of proofs, in
pen and ink, too, on fhs side of her
travelling bag, before whom lux
uriously studying bright little Woman
felt mere despicsble idler.
1t is truism to say that busy peo-
pie always have the most time. but
certain it is that the women who
''hsven't a moment" vet would be
puzzled at the end of the day to say
,ohGt had been done, beyond ordering
dinner" and writing r couple of letters,
lead far more worried land worrying)
existence than If they made a system
attic arrangement of their time.
Erin's merry bard said, ''Ihe best
of all ways to lengthen the days, is to
steal few hours from the night, my
dear" but to me the early morning,
before the hurly- -burly Of life begins.
is the best and freshest time for. at
any rate, woman's work.
Men have not TO "drive a domestic
coach" They can shut themselves up
IN sacred study at any hour, but
.'mother." however busy, should neUer
be unapproachable; and after the
varied dnties of the day, surely she is
better placed Elm the bosom of her
family than scribbing in solitude.
Wasting time is, llke everything