Year: 1874

There are many who dwell in humble


houses. burdened with cares aud ham


pered by proverty, who envy their more


wealthy neig ghbors, and think if they only


had riches they would ornament their


grounds and decorate their dwellings and


make everything around them beautiful


and while they are thus signing for what


is beyond their reach, they forget to make


the most of the blessings that lie close at


hand. The yard in front of your dewel


ling may be small, but if the fence is in


order and nicely white washed, if the


walk from the gate to the door is neatly


laid out, and if the grass on either side


is kept free from weeds, it cannot fail to
attract the admiration of the passer by


Flowers in the yard are very beautiful if
you have time to attend to them, but


there Is nothing more forlorn than ne
elected fower-beds, and green grass is al,


ways pretty. 1t may be some work to
get rid of all the weeds at first, but if you
once get them dug up by the roots, a day
or two every spring will keep them in sub
lection after that, and will amply repay
you for your trouble.


Within your dwelling there are many
beautiful things that you have at a trifing
expense and with very little outlay of
time. Put fewer ruff1es on your dresses
and on your children's dresses, and spend
the time thus saved in making picture
frames, brackets, and other little orna
ments, and all the household will be the
gamers thereby. In these days when
chromos and sngravings are sent as pre-
miums with nearly all our periodicals, and
when there are such quantities of excel
lent wood cuts, you need be at 20 loss for
pretty pictures the largest of these should
be framed with wood walnut is the best,
but pine vanished is sometimes quite
pretty, and your husband or boys can
make these for you on rainy days Small,
er pictures can be framed with straw, and
these cost nothing but the past-board
which supports them. Very pretty frames
can also be made of the lichens from old
fence rails, merely by gluing them on
some support, either wood or paste board,
or on the margin of the glass. But if
you are of an inventive turn of mind you
can think of dozen little devices that
will answer quite as well as these and if
you cannot afford gilt paper on your walls
there is this consolation, that now here do
pictures show to better advantage than
on white back ground.


But pictures are not the only orna-
ments within your means an inexpensive
vase filled with dried grasses is a beauti
full centre piece for your mantel. Iu
gathering these select only the most grace
ful and feathery specimens, and instead
of hanging them up heads downward to
dry, in the usual way, put them immedi-
ate ly in your vase, and they will then droop
gracefully instead Of standing out like so
many miniature pokers. But after all
there is nothing prettier or less trouble
than autumn leaves. Whenever you are
out of doors ia the fall, and come across
any bright leaves, gather them and put
them to press in an old book after few
weeks you can take them out and arrange
them in wreathes or punches, and they
will retain their color for long time
Prettiest of all are ferns, but they must
bo put in press as soon as gathered, or
they will lose their shape.


In arranging all these decorations there
is opportunity for you to display your
good taste don't put them all in bunch
on one side of the room don't have them
crooked and measure your distance care
fully, for there are very few who can get
a picture half way between the window
and the door if they trust entirely to the
eye. But no matter how many pretty
things you have keep your house neat and
clean always; a room with pictures and
brackets OBJ the walls and dirt in the cor
ners or under the stove, smeary windows
and finger marked paint, looks incon
gruous, tosay the least of it.


RUTH CRAYDoCK