The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1894-09-29

brought home a new suit of clothes
from the city one day and gave them
to his wife for inspection, to hear her
exclaim in disappointed tone as she
turned up one leg of the pantaloons
to scrutinize the inside:
so James, how could you be so
thoughtlessP
"Mr. Clifton's face looked really
distressed as he said anxiously:
"'Won't they turn well, Jennie2
I'm SO sorry-really you must forgive
me this time. was in such a hurry
forgot to look
"'Yes, of course, | know it was an
oversight and 1 ought not to have
spoken so, but you see by the time
you wear these out Harry will be in
trousers, too, and I shall have hard
work to get along without buying for
one of the boys
"That let me into the secret No. l..
She carefully planned ahead to have
nothing bought for the older ones
that would not make over we'll for
the little folk. And as only good ma
terial makes over we'll, the result was
that shoddy, flimsy material seldom
or never found its way into that
household, and SO the first principle
of genteel dressing was made quite
compatible with rigid economy.
When she bought her husbands
wooden shirts one winter when their
first child was an infant in long
clothes, instead of getting the coarse
blue twill flannel he had been wont
to wear, she paid higher price for a
soft grey pin check cashmere, and
when her husband was inclined to
demur little at the extravaganza
she silenced him by saying:
"'Why, you see, dear, when you
have worn these out in the sleeves,
the body of them will make beautiful
winter petticoats and kits for Willie,
who will be in short clothes then.
Cloth like this never fades and looks
new as long as there is thread of it
left
$50, you see, Mr.. Clifton had the
pleasure of wearing fine shirts for two
winters, and the difference in the cost
nowhere near equaled that of buying
new material for Willie the succeed
ing winter | remarked once to
neighbor of hers ON the beauty and
becomingness of Mrs. Clifton's new
winter dress, when she replied, 'Oh
yes! It's pretty of course, and it
ought to be. She paid a dollar and
quarter yard for it! Now call
that extravaganza for poor folks.
Mine only cost forty cents, and it's
good enough for country place like
this
II watched the fate of the two
dresses, and when the forty cent one
was faded and streaked and fit only
for the rag-bag, Mrs. Clifton's was
good as new. She wore it four win
tiers with some slight alterations, and
then made Bessie two good school
dresses out of it which lasted the en-
tire winter and were made into petit
coats for Susie the next year"
"But is not this constant making
over open to the objection that one
gets tired of seeing the same piece of
goods worn in the family so long, and
pines for little freshness of mater
ial?"
POSSIBLY, although that depends
largely on the kind of goods selected.
No one tires of neutral grays and
browns and the always 'genteel' navy
blue any more than of black; and for
children they may be SO frightened
by bit of fresh ribbon or bright
velvet, or a combination with some
plaid, that no one thinks of it as the
family dress Indeed, my little
Mary is looking forward with much
pleasure to the time when she can
have this blue serge of mine as
foundation for the rows of white mo-
hair braid which she so much ad-
mires.
"But to return to Mrs. Clifton. She
managed her millinery in the same
way. She never bought bit of vel
vet, ribbon or lace that was not ex-
cellent in quality, and would bear
using over and over again as trim
ming. Yet so skillful were her COM
binations that one never thought of
age in material. She was most care
full in details, in the little things of
the children's toilet. Stockings and
shoes were good and fitted well. Her
mending-well, / could spend an
afternoon on that subject alone, so
ingenious were her devices for con-
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