The Indianapolis journal., 1904-04-24

E1fk1 clothing and furniture, insist
upon turning the caves topsy
turvy when spring came round, piling the
few chairs and tables top of
other hanging the infreduent rugs out on
the clotheslines and driving our prehistoric
fathers to the treetops for refuge? If she
did Motif she permitted the rugs to stay
just where they were and bothered not at
all about the possible accumulation of dust
and prehistoric microbes; if she permitted
our prehistoric fathers to live as nearly
in peace in the lovely springtime they
did the rest of the year-then it is a moot
ed question as to whether the vaunted
progress of woman has gone very far after
all. At least it is from masculine view
point
It's different with woman. House
cleaning is in her blood and she can't help
it. If the prehistoric mother didn't house
clean probably. after all. she was persuad-
ed not to with club. after the gentle Gus
tom of the prehistoric father; so perhaps
she wasn't so praiseworthy a being after
all. Nobody who has his eyes and ears
open in the last week doubt that the
long-looked for and almost despaired-of
springtime has actually arrived. general
desha bile in the appearance of every other
house in town, an almost immodeSt scar
city of drapery at windows, a generous dis
play of furniture and rugs in yards and on
verandas, the monotonous thwack of the
carpet-beaters and the swish of the mop,
have assailed the senses of sight and hear
ing on every hand. Decidedly spring has
come.
Housecleaning is an old. old story. but
fatcleaninS is comparatively new one.
The woman who housecleans her fiat doesn
have half so good time of ii the woman
who houseclcans her house. OF course she
can tie up her head and tuck up her skirts
just the same as the housecleaner, and she
can pile her chairs and tables and cabinets
into just as obnoxious heaps. in a fiat she
can in a house; but she can't do the things
on the expansive scale that she can manage
when she has an upstairs and a downstairs
an attic and a cellar TO make uncomfort-
able. There isn't the same amount of rev.
elry in IL. Neither has she the joy of hav
ing her rugs and carpets hung on the
clothesline in the back yard and beholding
the clouds OF dust that go up from them
at the merry whackS OF the carpet beaterS
For il is joy. Only a woman knows what
satisfying bliss ii is; il gives her the same
thrill of JOY that she feels when she rubs
her handkerchief over her face on her re-
turn from a trip down town and finds Ii
covered with dirt. Outwardfy she laments,
but In her heart of hearts she knows she'd
feel cheated If IL were not there. No: the
poor fiat dweller shakes her little. rugs out
the window or over the back porch and her
big ones she has to see loaded into
wagon and driven off to the cleaner sand
she never does have the satisfaction of
knowing just how full of dust they were.
A number of Indianapolis fats hav-
ing a general housecleaning this year and
that Is a serious matter. In some cases
the cleaning amounts TO the painting or
cleaning OF the outside of the building and
a general renovation of the halls. In at
least one case. however, the entire build
ing has been done over; all the halls and
the walls of the apartments have been
painted, and the place was absolutely un-
inhabitahle for several davS Some of the
tenants went to hotels others went out of
the city 70 make enforced visits with rela-
tiyes. and most OF them wished for tie