Year: 1876

Now THAT the summer is over and gone,
and the harvest work is nearly done, and
the great and ever memorable Centen-
nial Exposition is formally closed, and the
fierce, angry political surges have meas
urably ceased to roll, and the long, glo-
rious winter evenings are coming on, the
occupants of the farm house, rs we'll as
the dwellers in city, village and town,
must begin to think of winter-evening
occupations and amusements. These long
winter evenings can be made very profit
able and useful, or else very destructive
and debilitating, according as they are
used. If you have no special and definite
purpose in your mind, if you place moth
ing ahead as an object to be gained, or at
least worked for, if your Highest idea is
merely to kill time," the winter evenings
will be likely to drag on your hands, or
else be turned into occasions of loung-
ing at stores, shops and saloons, or in
idle and frivolous dissipatiens at home.
Of course, in every pleasantly spent
winter evening there must be some sport.
All work, or all study, will soon make an
| evening tireSOme and wearisOme. The
| love of fun in some shape is one of the
original and ineradicabe instincts of our
nature, and without doubt placed there by
the Creator for wise and benefcent pur-
pure. Every body enjoys joke, good
story, or play of wit. Everybody likes
| good and cheerful conversation. And all
young people especially, have a fondness
| for games and plays of some sort, in addi-
ton to the above. Now in our programme
OF how winter evening should be passed
pleasantly and proftably, we propose to
leave room for moderate amount of this
kind of diversion.


But, on the other hand, all amusement
would be nearly as bad as all work or
study. Happiness or pleasure, is shy
little sprite; she cannot be caught by a
chase. Let any persons set themselves de-
| liberately down and say, " | aoiU be
happy to day, or this week, or this year, ~
and the chances are ten to one that they
will never be more miserable in their life
than during this same period. 1t will
never do to made happiness or enjoyment
the direct object of our search; if we do,
We shall be sure to miss it every time ii
it comes to US at all, it will come while
we are busy carrying out some noble pur-
pose, or striving TO perfect and then
realize some long-cherished plan, or else
it will come, without seeking, by judi
cious variety of occupations.


And so, with proper amount of winter
amusement, we beg to suggest the impor-
tance of proper amount of good reading.
| Just think how much ground can be gone
| over in the course of a long winter by de-
voting an hour or two each evening to a
steady and continuous course of reading.
Not that you should read one book or kind
of books, exclusively, but by course"
of reading we mean, rather, such selec-
| tion of books as will be most useful in
storing the mind with knowledge and
forming and molding the character. And
to secure this end we need, along with a
irst-class family newspaper, a choice selec-
ton of good fiction, good poetry, modern
and ancient history, eminent and inspiring
biography.


Let every family, then, begin now to
make some provision for employment of
! this sort during the long winter evenings
| just ahead. For by SO doing you will
make your home more attractive, and
each member of the household better
and happier in every respect.-Prairse
| Farmer.