Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-05-27


roundings In one terse sentence: Grace
thy house, and let not that grace thee. :"
IL Is poor compliment to ones friends
as well as to oneself to imagine that they
care more for inanimate surroundings than
for the living spirit that moves among
them.
No matter what the artistic or financial
value OF house Is, 1t can acquire an
added iuster from the cultivated refined
spirit of its hostess. In such case she
truly graces the house whether it be a cot
t&ge or mansion, and the house itself is
enhanced IN value.
Whoever Can
divest the word economy of all the petty
qualities that supposed to cluster
around 1t when applied to household affairs
will have bestowed lasting benefit upon
mankind.
A great deal of dignity Is attached to the
word when it is used with reference to af-
fairs of the outside world. No one would
expect a business man to succeed if he did
not understand the principles OF business
economy. Expenses must be kept down TO
the minimum there will be no results
Political economy carries with it even
more dignity. 1t deals with the wealth of
the state and the nation, and the states
men who can wrestIe with such questions
most successfully are considered men of
superior mental attachments.
But soon as this word is applied to
household matters it takes on a different
aspect. 1t is supposed to suggest such
qualities as parsimony, ayar1ce and penur-
lousHess. And yet economy includes the
same principle in all three cases 1t simply
Is management without loss or waste
So many aphorisms concerning the sin of
wastefuness have been given to the world
thai il would seem that the subject had
been exhausted. But it is a truism that
those who are the most prodigal are the
ones VINO do not recognize the fault in
themselves.
And again many of these people think
that they avoiding such sins as avarice
and penuriousness and for this reason their
prodigality appears to them as a positive
virtue. Had wastefulness been forbidden
IN the decalogue, or economy mentioned
among the virtues. it would be easier for
them TO understand that ii had any bear
ing on the ethics of everyday life.
So il is hard for them to see that there
is any positive virtue connected with keep
ing the household expenses down TO the
minimum amount necessary; and the per-
sistent watching of the leftovers that they
may be turned to account becomes a hui
initiation as savorng of stinginess.
Little does such a thoughtless one realize
the anxiety connected with meeting unlim
tied expenses with a limited income; or
the peace of mind that can accrue from
knowing that the expenses never will be
allowed to exceed certain amount.
A practical lesson in household economy
was given to the world nineteen hundred
years ago on the shores Of Galilee. After
the miraculous feeding of the multitude
the Master said to His disciples: Gather
UP the fragments that nothing be lost" II
He who possessed such wonderful power
could condescend. why should we de-
spise the day of small things?
It Was Wise Woman
who said that we should remember that
while We are teaching our children our
children are also teaching us. And ii can
even be said to be mooted question wheth-
er the child or the parent is the principal
in this mutual educational combination
Unmistakable proof of this wise woman's
assertion is furnished in studying the char
acteristics OF two classes of people: those
who go down TO old age surrounded by
youth and in harmony with It, and those
who are in touch only with those of mature
years
We almost instinctively understand that
the first class can be said to have renewed
their youth like the eagles. Being In
touch with buoyaIt, hopeful spirits has
rejuTenating effect that nothing else has.
We are also acquainted with those peo-
pie who have grown old before their time.
It could be said of them that the world
has moved off and left them behind They
really are living in the past, out of reach
of all the new, inspiring questions Of the
day.
1t would be a mistake to think that only
those who blest with the society Of
children In their own homes have felt the
rejuvenating effects of youth or that all
parents have been teachabie enough to
learn the lessons that the little child alone
Is able TO impart.
Too often it is given to those whose
homes are without children to bear to the
parents the message Of their wonderful OPP.
portuuity
The mother who shuts herself out fro-l
active participation and interest In all that
concerns her child Is living as much apart
from its life as II they did not occupy the
same house. And II is In. such cases that
friction is apt TO exist between them.
The simple. confiding nature that finds
consolation in telling its every thought to
one older and more experienced than itself
should never be repulsed. An English now
eIist has told us and exemplified the fact
in the story that tender parents begin life
anew with their children. Where this Is
the case there is no danger of estrange-
ment, and the parent stfll maintains the at
titude of learner while she is guiding
and directing the young life intrusted to
her care.
The mutual educational benefits that may
be derived from daily intercourse with chill
teacher who was meditatlng on this sub
ject at the close OF a day work After
reviewing all the lovabie qualities that be-
long TO child life he says:
4 nave taught mem me goodness OF knowledge,
They have taught me the goodness OF God.
There Is No Picture
more ornamental to the fireside than an Ole
lady with curis. The home Is biest that
contains a grandmother. old aunt, or some
other relative who has seen the world,
lived her life and now gently awaits the
news which came to Christian in PHI
grims Progress, meantime taking a pleas
ant interest In the little tragedy and COM
edy of everyday life and being, the par
ticular providence of the younger children
Such an old lady is as agreeable as she Is
ornamental. So important is The respecta-
bility of vfrtuous ancestor to the nouveau
richie that Dickens says of the yeneerinss
that II they had wanted a grandfather
they would have ordered him fresh from
ForSnums and Masons. He would have
come round with the pickles
The lovely old lady is great treasure in
a household, has often agreeable accom-
plishments In the way of needlewerk and
knitting. has a perfect store of excellent
recipes for cakes and eustards and knows
the most delightful old fashioned games
OF cards She is the one who Is never tired
of the society of growing girls, and who
has at twilight the prettiest stories of the
time when she was a young lady and
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