The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1908-04-25
BIG-HOUsE MARTYRS.

houses several sizes too large for them.
Many Of them have come into posses
sion ofridiculously big houses because
they have hired farms or rented them,
and had to put up with a woman-kil-
ler IN the shape of a house for the
sake Of the land.
But there are those, even in this en-
lightened age, who build immense
dwellings, thinking, perhaps, that
they will gain little prestige by liv-
ing in big house, but the glory is
soon lost sight of when the mistress
finds herself alone, with no help to
clean and scrub and dust and air and
keep lot of needless rooms in con-
ditDn conductive to health.
Tne-Stnng and short of it is, she
can uON, Dut there are IUrS OI w0rnCTI
injuring themselves in the attempt,
and when they find they have under
taken too great task, they are apt to
close up thefront, with all its mad
dening brio ;-brac and furniture, and
retire into the kitchen, where they
can find a moiety of rest. Not all of
them do this, however, the large
number of the big-house martyrs toll
and drudge on until the light goes out
of their countenances, the elasticity
from their steps and a second wife
seems to loom up in the dim distance.
You may know them when you meet
them away from home, for they have
nothing to say-they play wall-hower,
and it is about the liveliest sport that
they ever engage in. Nobody seeks
them out for little feast of reason
and Gow of soul, for they can't talk,
they have had no time to practice
talking. You cannot get out of per-
son what is not in them, and if they
haven't done any reading nor ming
ling with intelligent people Of ideas,
having nothing to talk about, conver-
sation with them becomes like that Of
the bashful swaine. With great tre
pidation he remarked, Quite moon
to night" and she replied, Yes,
very quite" and the talk ceased and
they drove on in silence. But don
think that men generally care much
about this sort of women. They seem
to admire most those who chatter all
the time, even if they say nothing
when they talk.
1t would take as many servants as
Hindu bungalow requires to make
life pleasant for the mistresses of some
of the big farmhouses that are dotted
over the country, to say nothing of
large suburban and city residences
where sufficient help can not be OBJ
tanned, or if it can, possibly there is
not enough money in the bank to
meet servants exorbitant charges and
waste. Trying to ape gentility is as
.nnprq6lable 2 business as, one can
hrn.st Ia - l.;t...ie>.,-hs.la a,-.s. l;s,isacr
and little lucre.
In founding home man has need
to remember that,
"a little house we'll filed,
A little field well titled,
A little wife well willed,
Are great riches.
Think of the comfort and content
that may be found in snug home
where nobody is worked to death try
ing to keep up appearances. But be
We rich, or be ye poor, big house
with its usual environments is wear
mess to the flesh Of the poor woman
who presides there. A bouse is not
built for a day. nor for one family,
but for succession of them and the
builder should ponder little on these
things.
The old adage, "Fools build houses
for wise men to live in" has more of
truth than poetry in it. Many man
has used up so much of his resources
in costly house that he has not the
wherewithal to run it; debt and en-
barrassment follow and he is obliged
to sell out. Some thrifty fellow will
come along who doesn't care much
for fine house, but if he can get one
for half of what it costs to build, he
will buy and perhaps live happily and
attractively in it,. for he was wise
enough to see to it, ere he bought,
that his exchequer was ample for re-
quirements.
Many illustrations could be given
of the folly of building unpro6tably
large domicles. l know of conse-
quential country home that was erected
few years ago by wealthy widow
for herself and children to live in. In
few years she died and the children
married and now the house goes a.
begging for tenants. At present, an
old pair live there who have an income
of $50 a month. 1t costs them SIoc
a year to warm the house and they
| don't need most of it after it is warmed
neighborhood debts are increasing
about them and they will soon have
to seek humber quarters. On theil
income they could live very comfort
ably and pleasantly in house of only
few rooms, and have no debts tc
worry them.
Long years ago I knew an old farm
er and his wife, the owners of fine
farm. They were industrious, fruga
people, whom all the neighbors re-
spected. They had lived long tern
of years in a house so small the wife
called it calabash. They saveC
money and grew rich, but had ne
children nor grandchildren to shar'
their home with them. The gooC
wife became tired of living in Gala
bash, and they determined to build
rice big house. So they put up
fine large double barreled stone man
sion, with two parlors, big hall arr
open stairway with sitting room, ant
dining-room, and string of kitchen
-one to save the other-that reach
ed nearly to the barn. We shoul'
call it now the shell of house, TO
there wasn't any heater, bath, tolle
room, pantry, dumb waiter, nor othe
modern conveniences but there wer
big windows galore to wash, and cell
ings so high that broom could NO