The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-05-02
For The Guests Room.

NOV ~ HNtAiib6 DSt"
In the arrangement of summer bedrooms
it is most important to think of the possible
wants of a guest who may have forgotten
pens, ink, and paper. needles, thread and
thimble, a b~utton-hook or a paper of pins.
Of course, in s~o-called great houses sta
tionery and all sorts of -oonveniences are
lavishly supplied, but in general the mis-
tress looks carefully at the necessary mat
ters of comfortable beds and abundant
linen, and on all the prettiness of color and
furniture, and often forgets minor details.
1 have found exquisite pincushions, immac-
ulate and perfectly free from wound OF
pins, as hard as the nethermost milestone
and as beautiful as a Water-cOlor painting.
Give a perhaps forgetful. guest an oppor-
tunity of finding, an Indispensable pm OF
either white or black, great or small, as
she may need.
And let there be a work basket in evil
dence, with white and black silks and
threads, glove and shoe buttons, various
sized needles, and a thinble and scissors.
Let there be a portfolio. an inkstand, pa
per and envelopes readily at hand. So
often these essentials are omitted from a
hastily packed bag when going for a short
visit and almost invariably the last home
request is to demand a. notice of your safe
arrival by the first mail.
Another great comfort in any bedroom
either in city or country is q trunk-reSt. To
have your trunk raised to a level which
prevents an aching back is a great bless
ing, both in the packing and unpaokinng;
0oRRNloAS tAAo - NNAA
to reach which kneeling on. the floor is a
necessity. In the absence of a maid, per-
tanning to either the hostess or the guest,
this entails to the old or to delicate per
sons an unpleasant effort easily avoided.
These trunk-rests are now made in all the
natural woods and often made ornamental
by brass Sometimes they have
a drawer for cOncealing wraps, bags and
other %unsightly things that one cannot
avoid carrying into dainty bed chambers,
but the more usual form is a pair of curved,
nearly semicireular, legs supporting a broad
substantial top.
If economy is important a box of the
right height covered with any stuff in har-
mony with the room, with a band of gimp
or a heavy cord, with corner tassels tackled
about four inches from the top. can be
made to serve the purpose without being
ugly. A very little added cost can allow
the top TO act as a cover, and so be use
full when the trunk is not in place.
what Ten Dollars n Week VIII Do.
In the May Ladies' Home Journal Mrs. s.,
r.. Rorer shows that a family of two with
one servant can live we'll on an expenditure
of IS a week for food in Philadelphia and
the East, Sc in the South and $40 in New
England. These figures. she says, cover
milk, flour, meat and marketing, as well
as groceries, and are based on the presump-
ton that the woman of the family is a
practical housekeeper. Last summer"
Mrs. Rorer writes, II was experimenting
very closely and carefully my own house,
hold, which numbered at the time eight per-
sons, and without the slightest difficulty |
arranged an exceedingly attractive table
with an eXpediture of only $40 per week, and
this covered everything used on the table,
three meals a day. To do this l purchased
beef by the loin, taking out the fillet, using
it as a roast one day for dinner, made stock
from the bones and rough pieces, quite
enough to last for half the week, The back
was taken off and cut into steaks and the
tough, lean end divided, one portion being
used for Hamburg steaks and the other for
a brown stew with vegetables. From this
one loin, which cost $1.75, / had sufficient
stock for three days, and meat for four din
ners, freshly cooked for each meal, making
an average cost of A cents a meal
Mrs. Rorer also states that a family of
six, with two servants, can live quite well
with an expenditure fer the table of $14 a
week. Where people haVe sufficient means
to live as the world calls well. but which,
from a hygienic standpoint. is really bad,
$500 a year is a very liberal allowance. On
this, in winter. you may have an occasional
dish of terrapin, providing you use the
fresh water poultry at least twice a week,
an entree now and then, oysters and the
more dainty varieties of fish. The dinner
may be served in three or four courses.
Breakfast may consist of a fruit, a cereal,
eggs or chops, mullins and coffee; luncheon,
a little entree, some well-cooked vegetables
and perhaps a water muffin toasted or d lit
tie fruit with a light cake; the dinner, a
soup, a meat with two vegetables, a salad
with waters and cheese, a light dessert and
coffee. Now and then you may put in a
little entree following the SOUP