The sun., 1918-08-18
TRULY there is nothing new I'M

DER the sun, ana tnat winch is
quaint this year is ultramod-
ern the next. The point of view that
makes one old fashioned in one gen.
Grafton is taken, up as something adj
So with our thrift.
We used to look upon our grand
mothers over their soap boiling and
dub them quaint and old fashioned.
They taught their cooks to save the
drippings, which they clarified and
used again for cooking. This was re-
garded as a waste OF time. as indeed
We regard saving paper bags and
wrapping paper and strings for future
use.
Much more sensible it seemed to us
to buy such supplies and have them
on hand when we needed them. And
perhaps it was more sensible for us a
few years ago, but the pendulum has
swung and now the quaintness of our
grandmothers has become the fad OF
the moment We are going back to
our grandmothers for ideas, nay. we
are going back to Colonial danes for
many an idea in thrift and economy.
They made use Of honey and maple
syrup to save the limited supply Of
white sugar. and so do we. They used
barley and buckwheat and cornmeal in
place Of wheat -four. and so do we.
They made the wool go the longest
way. and so do we.
II you want to get right into the
spirit Of thrift you can do nothing bet
ter than browse through the old house
hold handbooks Of those days gone by
You may discover new and useful
kinds OF thrift that will add to your
repertoire in ways Of being thrifty.
Our ancestors. schooled in the hard
ships of Colonial and pioneer days,
would have little difficulty in adapting
themselves to the situation that we
have to face in the matter Of heat and
light. Indeed. had they had as many
comforts in that respect as we shall
have with the situation at its worst
they would have thought themselves
lucky.
How They Kept Warm.
As matter OF fact it is only within
the last generation or so that we have
not had to undergo suffering in our
Northern climes every winter. Presi-
dent John Adams expressed the wish
that he was a dormouse so that he
might sleep through the cold winters,
and John Adams knew more comforts
Of artificial heating than did his colo
nizing ancestors.
Good Puritan divines more than once
wrote in their diaries that the ink
froze on their pens as they wrote sit
ting within the chimney side. Such
were the rigors Of life before the era of
steam heat or hot air furnaces.
Yet these people managed to sur
ViVe the winters. and to survive them
with unimpaired efficiency. How did
they do It?
well. for one thing the women of
those days didn't wear georEette and
chinon blouses in midwinter, and tbev
ola not deem it necessary to wear low
cut gowns at dinner when the Their
Ihoiheter outside stood below freezing
we nave gone back TO Colonial fash
IONS In one respect, for last winter
heavy frocks came into fashion for
indoor wear, and from paris "a
'o'luon comes the news that bare
arms and necks will not be part OF the
picture for evening wear during m.
winter that is to come.
We sometimes gasp at the Thought
or the old time four poster beds, some
OF them hung with ,woollen curtains
YET had it not been for those YER,
oeds and for the warming pans with
which the scold sheets were made
warm and cosey before their owner,
retired our ancestors might not bav.