Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-05-16

U"~fpU& cepted the comfort
able middle class habit of breakfasting at
or 10 in the morning. 1t was not JOY
full experience, therefore, to be .-oused at
am, nor was 1t pleasant to dress in a
| room the cold stone floor and damp walls
Of which suggested some ancient dungeon.
However, had earnestly sought this very
privilege. so 1 wrapped myself in discreet
silence and a thick steamer rug, and strove
to appear cheerful.
In the kitchen 1 found madame prepar-
ing coffee over a tiny alcohol stove. Mon
sieur a cooper by trade, was arrayed in his
working blouse and just going out to the
bakery. Extreme simplicity characterized
alike the table service and the breakfast.
Three earthen ware bowls and a loaf of
coarse bread were set on the bare table, 1
can still taste that boGl of black coffee l
had readily adopted the custom Of drinking
a tiny glass of cafe noir" after dinner
put 1t tastes very differently in the morn
ihs. L thought 1t worse than the cheapest
brand used in the United States, and there
was neither milk nor sugar available TO
modify the flavor. However, | managed to
take my bowl with due politeness. and FUR
tlVeiy looked around for some butter TO
make the bread more palataDla. But there
wasn't any. The loaf was broken in three
portions, and we breakfasted by dipping
the bread in the coffee.
work lev
SIMPLY rlnslng the bowls and coffee lot in
cold water She said we would make" tie
chambers at the noon ;ntermisSion. As We
were clearing the table l said to madame:
sugar." ~
on, yes. yes; it is very good" she said.
QUICKLY, pnt we cannot afford it, Sugar
cCsts Twelve cents pound aud milk four
cents pint Coffee alone is very dear
We pay sixty cents pound"
! SIMPLY gasped when she mentioned the
price; out L afterward paid 81 a pound
lnysei1, IN vain attempt to duplicate the
quallty sold in the United States for thirtv
hve and forty cents.
Sensible Working Dress,
Madame had no coquetry about her per
sonal appearance on working DAYS. Tho
severely plain dress of common, dark COT
ton was made with loose Jacket and
skirt The small. tight sleeves were ex
planned thus by madame: 81 have balloon
sleeves in the latest mode Cor INV hast
dreSs: but they take too much cloth for a
working costume
one made SO much noise Gathering over
'ne stone moor that / was curious about her
SHOES. Truth ccmpels me to say that they
were not entirely of wood Leather tons
ana wood soles made a durable though
mo-. an elegant foot covering. Shoes Of
THIS sort cost 81. 40 a pair. My friend vast
eu no money on headgear for everyday
wear. "A sort of wooden hood was put ON
the mead, and the ends fastened about the
waist. Yet, madame, being Young nretty
ana tolerably neat. looked rather al tractiya
In this coarse attire.
Everybody takes two hours at midday
for "dejeuner" and the family rot,rs ~
II am. a.
My friends fiat consisted Of three tinv
rooms on the fourth floor. There was
neither city water nor sewerage. The mar
row streets and tall houses efrectually shut
out the sunshine. but madame did not
seem to care about that
me house seemed rather lonesome, and
L remarked to madame:
You have no children?r
oh, yes; a little boy, two years old"
hadn't seen or heard him anywhere
so l said tentatively: He is not here7''
No, no; he is at a village in the Mari
time Alps
"On a visit to some relatives, perhaps7.,
with an impatient shrug at my stupid
lty, madame explained: It's the custom
10 send our children away to be reared d.
rectly after birth. Almost the only ex-
cept1on is when one has to support an
aged mother at home. In that case she
may care for the child.'
1T took me some time to fully assimilate
TINS remarkable piece of Information.
You see the BABY oftcn?' L ventured.
NO" said the mother. briskly. Once,
maybe twice, a year. 1t is expensive to go
Are you not lonely for him?"
American Home Life.
Nidudhie assured me plaCldly that she
was not lonely, and found her factory
companions more interesting than a tiny
child. 1t cost 81 month for the child's
care: and while this was a heavy expense
in proportion to the wages earned by the
couple, they evidently never questioned the
wisdom of the plan. Madame grew hilari-
Gus when l tried to describe American
home life.
so droll! So very extraordinary" she
exclaimed, "for a married woman to stay
at home with her children, instead of
earning wages to help her husband. Any
how, 1t would be impossible here, for man
does not earn enough to keep a wife and
children"
The latter remark really explained the
custom. 1t is an absolute necessity for
the wife to work every day and supple
ment the husbands earnings The famf-
lies are usually very small one or two
children is the usual number. OF course
there are exceptions. One woman in the
tobacco factory had six children, the
eldest only seven years old; yet she had
never been absent from the factory more
than seven weeks at any one time. The
women regarded that matron and her
family with stern disapproval
why do you marry when you have
neither home life nor the companonship
of your children?'. asked.
1T Is the custom to marry" replied
madame. An unmarried woman over
twenty years of age is not well regarded"
She either could or would not give any
tom.
1 was now getting too hungry to con-
tinue inquiries about domestic life, and
madame invited me to go shopping with
her.
We bought quart of win ordinaire"
for eight cents, a loaf of bread at the
Boulangerie for four cents, quart of
bouillon at the Boucherie for ten cents,
and plate of hot spinach at the Char
cuterie for six cents. The boullon, heated
| over the alcohol stove formed with bread
the first course. The tiny bowlful of
soup merely. whetted my appetite. The
plate Of spinach made about two bites
| apiece. A glass of wine finished the meal
Madame and her husband had evidently
| made a very satisfactory meal, and were
quite unconscious that had not done like
| wise. AS sacrifice to politeness I said
| that I had an excellent meal and that
everything tasted very good. So it did.
| My mental reservation was that I had
| only had a taste.
The Absinthe Habit.
TIE working day closes at o'clock.
Before going home we stepped into a cafe,
where monsieur and madame had their
| evening glass of absinthe. spoonful is
diluted with q glass of water and the mix