Evening star., 1951-04-11

his income tax, than he is overwh
cleaning.
In his grandfather's time he
he does today-whether he be-
lieves it or not. Granted that
Grandpappy had not been weak
ened by the shock of tribute to
Uncle Sam, he still faced q home
upheaval that shook him to the
marrow. If he was wealthy
enough to belong to an exclusive
mems club, the chances are the
wise man retired to its sacred
precincts for the duration-ven-
turing forth only to business and
to dine with cronies who were
sitting out the storm In the same
way.
And grandpa had reason to flee.
In those days the whole house was
turned literally upside down; no
meals were cooked because the
kitchen was inhabited by a brace
of cleaning women washing all
the put-away pots, pans, dishes
and glass, plus men on steplad-
ders attacking the walls with soap
and brush. Beds were heaped high
with the contents Of linen closets
and drawers, which were under
going a thorough "turning-o
pals and mops in odd places
tripped the unwary, and furniture
was, as q matter of course, con-
centrated In the middle Of every
room. There was no place to sit
down and read an evening pa
per, because no table with lamp
on it was by any chair; slippers
for weary feet couldn't be located.
and screams Of anguish greeted
any attempt to make use of newly
washed ash trays. The attic was
an impossible welter Of things to
be saved and things to be given
away-the cellar was almost as
bad-So what was a poor man to
do but seek sanctuary in a peace
full and well ordered atmosphere,
with other luckless souls?
Today the picture is different.
Modern methods, modern equip
ment, and, most important, eff
cient planning have taken the
sting out of spring cleaning. The
lady Of the house figures out her
campaign well in advance, and the
annual upheaval is out. Cleaners
and rug storage people are con-
tacted well ahead of time, and a
day set for them to ''pick UP and
deliver" One room at time is
taken care Of. while the rest of
the house or apartment remains
undisturbed. And. best of all, at
the end of each day. the little
woman is able to appear reason
ably calm. cool, and collected
and pretty besides, thanks to all
the new cosmetic gadgets and
creams that keep her skin, hair
and hands in good condition de-
spite the ravages of CRIME, soap
and water.
And with the wonderful new
stoves and appliances plus careful
menu selection, dinner, too, stays
up to standard. Oven meals are
an especial boon. Stoves and re-
frigerators are cleaned early in
the day. so that they are in fine
working shape by the time they
are needed. The wise woman will
have tackled the china and glass
problem shelf by shelf for a couple
of weeks ahead Of the main bout,
so that there is little or no con-
fusion in the pantry and kitchen.
Most important Of all, the house.
keeper of today realizes that extra
cleaning spread out over the year
minimizes the spring and fall on
slaught. Day by day and week by
week, certain chores are done, thus
Tightening the final load appre-
ciably. Actually modern spring
cleaning might better be termed a
Spring Change"-with the sub
stitution of summery curtains and
rugs for the heavier ones of win
ter, the reconditioning of newly
barred floors and the storage of
winter things. Here in Washing
ton, where the summers are so
oppressive, the custom Of chang
ing to slipcovers and looking
accessories has become an integral
part of housekeeping.
The purpose Of this special Sec
ton of The Star, is, therefore. not
just to tell you how 10 clean mouse,
but to give you some ideas for the
easiest ways Of freshening up your
home for the summer months
We offer you short cuts to accom-
plish the hardest of the chores,
and Dorothy Bihlman's "Shop-
Talk" lists for you the latest
things obtainable in the stores to
help you in your work. Therell
be suggestions for making the