The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1900-06-22
THE OLD WEDDING RING.


AS look ut the ring, so fragile, so frail,
That shines on my hand while whisper my
tale,
l stoop, the delicate thread to kiss,
For it brcathcs anew of its lived-out bliss.
And could I go back to the years that have
With tho tender look that she wore to the
last,
My grandmother's face. uprising fair.
Would smile. us If lst'ning to loves sweet
Ely the ocean she lived, and loved, and wed,
And beside it her first glad vows were said,
While mid chorus of pillows that singing
broke,
1t was there the voice of her fortune spoke.
All! well!-she vanished long time ago:
She had joys and regrets that VIC all must
know.
But she rests with her lover, in changeless
And perchance remembers it all. Who
knows?
FUN FOR THE SUMNER.
During the summer months the piazza
is very likely to become the family sit
ting room, and it should be made as COM
Portable and attractive as possible. Even
chance guests are entertained there, in
place of being taken into the house, and
there is a freedom and an absence of
conventienality that makes summer call
an unusually-pleasant affair. And with
the advent CT summer weather those who
have rocmy. shady piazzas are sure to
take advantage of them for the many
little entertainments that are given
through the hot season, and the informal
ity which naturally attends all out-of-
door festivities contributes in no small
degree to their success.
OF course, there must be plenty Of
hammocks and hammock chairs for the
piazza. and for tie lawn, under the big
shade trees. One of the prettiest ham
mockS for the piazza is of closely woven
canvas i'll gay colors, with valance
hanging down each side.
Besides hammocks, it is desirable to
have as many comfortable piazza rocking
chairs as possible especially if the family
is large and each one given over to lux
ury. Allow Il chair for each member of
tn" family. and about two extra ones for
guests. as Il fair allowance, if the piazza
is large enough to accommodate them
without crowding.
DO not be led into the mistake of paint
ing these chairs red. They are cooler
and prtttier-looking in their own soft yell
low color and then there is no danger
of soiling the pretty summer gowns, as
there is when the hot summer sun soft
ems the red paint, and permits it to stain
dainty lawn and muslin gowns.
Have plenty Of cushions for the ham,
mocks, the scttec. and the piazza floor.
when anyone wishes to sit on the steps.
Cover them with dark denim or Madras,
and sec that they are frequently laun-
,lcren There is no need that these cush-
ions for the floor shall be of down; they
1>,<t n.,.l H.,
ing or muSS-any Of the inexpensive fill
inss. They are just as good for the pur-
pose. and one doesn't feel extravagant as
one is sure to do. when an expensive
down pillow is serving the purpose of a
floor cushion.
Did you ever try lit playing shadow
pantomllv at piazza party? II not
lect some large central windaw as the
point where the pantomimc is to be
show. and choose half Il dozen or moro
clever persons for the actors. Chairs for
the accommodation of the guests arc
grouped about the w indow which has a
light colortd shade, closely drawn as the
screen upon which the pictures are to he
provided with Il pencil and paper, and.
as the pictures are thrown upon the
screen they must write the name or
names of the po>erS. Sometimes this is
L poser" for the onlookers. as the dress
and make up will effectually disguise
ones most intimate friend. Until one
tries it. he has no idea how deceptive
profile lines eff face and figure are. Fa
mi!iar pictures, in which there are not
too many figures may he chosen for rep
rcsentation, and posters also make most
affective shadnws: Tho subjects may hn
grave or gay. serious or mirthful. The
cuts i'll the leading Illustrated papers,
0SJo H.
Remington, Christy. Gibson and Peter
Newell are most excellent for an enter
tanment Of this kind. Ii requires very
little work to carry out this plan of fun
making. and the amusement is all out of
proportion to the labor expended. After
each picture is shown a little time must
be allowed for the guests to decide upon
names against the corresponding number
on his card
When all the pictures have been shown
the cards are signed. and then collected
ny some one appointed for the purpose
then redistributel. no person reccivin.
his own card. The correct list is then
read aloud, each guest checking them OIL
whose card is the most nearly correct re-
ceives a prize. 1t will he surprising to
see how many wrong guesses are made
After the bestowal Of the prize and the
return Of the actors to the company. re-
freshmcnts are served. These will be
quite simple and suited to the season.
Iced fruits, sandwiches, delicate cake
as Internal as possible. Usually the
hostess has plenty of little tables which
are brought out on the piazza, and the
guests gather in groups about these and
take their impromptu feast The fun of
it all is the absence of formality such as
is attendant on indoor entertainments
In the piazza entertainment one feels the
freedom of ''all out of doors,' and all the
gypsy blood in one veins comes rioting
to the surface and the merry making is
gay and informal, suited to the time and
the hour.-Boston Herald
TIRED OF HOUSEKEEPING"
II am sick and tired of housekeeping!
Tired of the drudgery of arranging and
ordering meals, of keeping the house
clean from top to bottom, and especially
Of the trouble and vexations of servants.
l suppose mine are no worse than other
known, they may be rather better than
the general run Ct American help But
am fairly tagged out by the whole bust
ness, and ! want a change as the Bid
dies say. | am 43 years Of age, i'll good
health. and we are in comfortable circum-
stances. Besides my husband and my
self there are three children. The eldest
is a boy of IS. the second girl of II.
The youngest is boy of II. My desire
is to break up housekeeping and take
rooms at city hotel for eight months
Of the year, travelling or staying at a wa
tering place for the other tour. l have
never boarded for more than a couple of
months at time, but l know I should
dearly enjoy the relief from care and the
freedom to come and go as l please.
Here comes the rub! MY husband,
who is usually very indulgent, will not
hear of being. as he says. made homeless
for the rest Of his life He declares that
people get SO Disguised with hotel fare
even the best-that they would rather,
pork and beans, bread and butter in their