Evening Star Newspaper, March 25, 1893, Page 7

THE EVENING STAR: WASHINGTON, D. C. SATURDAY. MAROH 25, 1898—SIXTREN PAGES: CHILDREN AND SPRI Garbs in Which Little Ones May Vie With the Flowe: SUGGESTIONS FOR MAMMAS. Some Ways of Utilizing Old Materials— Dresses for Little Girls—Garments for Play- time and for Ceremony—Costumes for Little Boys. Correspondence of The Evening Star. New Yous, March 24, 1893. HE WOMAN WHO Tealizes the possibilities the dyeing and cleaning processes afford her will indaige in the richest | and most delicate fab- Ties and know that she is not only the better dressed therefore, but that she is actually eco- nomical. When she does buy a new gown it will be of a light color, and usually of some novelty goods of the best quality. She will always have « resourceful wardrobe, and will have plen:y sf solid color in light and dark dresess, She -vill never be ata joss for a gown, and will always have yards and ards of softerepe stuf. fo- vaping. The things hat she hason hand always match or harmonize with other things. Esch neat little bu tells just the possibilities of the stuff inst ud that it “goes with” «uc! h_anoth: af. She never has a ti d the color which is not avail something ready on by x bits 4 yards go and when re is enoa 8 both s6 happens to want away it is all sent to the ivers and comes out black. with feathers and and glov make one of her jov Lignt undress leazh their summer or eveni bag and in coarse of this woman «miles whe for having such come out black. she is called ex- shoes and so ‘act, she aimost throws an old ns to cheap astementeries Now and then | <he appears with < really beautiful em- broidery or genuine metal bead work. Well, | vou see, that sortof thing will clean, cheap | and is isn t so very expensive when ou consider pecans that it costs a few cents a | ard and is I + for her “new | dress,” il the rest came ett fall of bundies nd full of possibilities. thance to have « variety trons. The trousers are buttons, DRESSILY GARBED FOR PLAY. There is a dress for alittle girl from four to eight years old in the fourth pictare, and blue woolen stuff would be a good material for it, with the yoke and sleeves of red and blue plaid. It is more dressy than my other example of the mixture of tartan and plain material, being » little more elaborate, but not much more difi- cult to make. It would be equally as pretty if velvet took the place of the plaid in the yoke and sleeves, but the velvet should be black or several shades darker than the woolen goods. The length of her skirt is ever to be the dear little maid's woe. The tot of today is as partien- lar that her Greenaway shall sweep the ground as the child a little older is that her skirts shall be weil above her ankles. A little later she will want them longer again, then she will begin to plan misery for herself ‘and want long dresses, and when ‘she gets them and hes to stay in them she will beseech the powers of fashion to relieve her from her thraldom. But what does the tot know about that? For the little maid who rebels against a Grenaway a dear little cloak is made for just this season. The broad- waisted bodice fits smoothly and is alittle short- waisted. A CHILD'S SPRING coat. below the knees. The sleeves are fall and loose and end at the wrist in a round cuff. Any soft cashmere in bright red or clear green is the proper goods. The bodice is embroidered stiff with close black braiding. The skirt and sleeves are accordion pleated, and the cuffs are braided to mate the ‘The latter is lined with a bright contrasting silk if green has been chosen for the coat, or with black if red is the color. With the cloak the dearest little be worn; one that fits close about the face and | the bottom in the back, to say nothing of the | one under the chin. The bonnet should match | the color of the cloak. The little feet should have solid and low-heeled shoes, and the stock- ings must. of course, be biack and warm that comron7asLe AXD PRETTY. | the wnklos may not be cold ‘This same woman keeps a book. She has so| ate many different things of various lengths, colors|__‘ The Winter in the City of Mexico. and materials that she might forget her own | From the Boston Heraid. resources. The book is full of plans for cos- tumes. For instance, she writes: Empi gown, yellow foundation skirt. pale yellow and | and pear trees begun bi, d the great fous pink ccriped crepe over, bolero jacket of | oat PF cncnasteean ac > ih trees, the handsomest of all the trees in this strawberry veivet, lined ream silk, bertba * 5 . Gteream crepe ani sleeves of tome easght up | Talley, renewed their leaves, Tho. winter, if Mexico four weeks ago, when all the peach | was all that had to which is different from the other seasons only be gotten for that dress and the combination | in being slightly cooler, has been warm and | Snother old trick, while the bulging was a new one, the di rent materials coming pleasant. from as many pr vious uses. fe wouid be unpieasant. I recall that | ‘The skirt of the cloak falls from it to just; during his initial days in managing a circus, | when he was showing in a country towa, that. }in the same place and conceived the idea of | fooling Barnum. | all they need do was to follow him, which they j glectully did. Arriving at the ten - | Rum was busy taking tickets, the drummer | st Canton, from which it sppears that the bonnet, just like the old-fashioned pictures, can | said: that bas a couple of quaint bows at the top and | ing with the one in the straw hat." | tleman who had ‘The spring arrived bere on the tablelands of | cal resignation. narrow ribbon to | such a name can justly be given to @ season with cayen ‘oma stl (PRIL FOOL'S DAY. The Practice of Playing Jokes is Al- most Universal. PEOPLE IN EVERY COUNTRY ‘Try and Foo! Others on the First of April— The Origin of the Custom Unknown— Some Tricks That Have Acquired Wide Notoriety. gee ‘Written for The Evening Star. PRIL 118 THE DAY when a big part of the world makes a monkey of the other part, when trousers are sewed up before breakfast, when doughnuts are stuffed with cotton and when coffee is salted; the day when the knowing boy dispatches 8 younger brother to see public statue descend from its pedestal at an ap- pointed hour, and when the funny acquaintance inquires of a young lady “‘why her bangs won't stay bung,” only to chuckle “April fool” at her when her hand flies up to her head. From time immemorial April 1 has been consecrated to foolishness, Accounts differ as to the origin of the anniversary. All sorts of theories have been advanced, but no two agree. Each racy has its own explanation for the queer customs practiced on this date, In this country the day has been made memora- ble by some extensive hoaxes. One of the most celebrated was that perpetrated on the people of New York years ago. A report was spread that the lions, tigers and other wild animals had escaped from their cages in Central Pai and were wading in human gore through thi treets of the ‘The population nearly dropped dead with fright, and for hours the snectacie of pale-faced ‘orkers peering suxiously around street corners in fear of be- holding prowling beasts was quite common un- til the discovery was made that it was all an April hoax, in Boston a report was once circulated on April 1 that vile hoodiums had defaced the Coggswell fountain on the Common with sev- etal yards of green paint. Curious Bostonians flocked by the thonsand to the spot, expecting to behold a scene of desecration. All they saw | was a fountain, without amgn of green paint. ‘The only green in sieht was themselves. ¥.'T. Barnum, wiose name is indelibly asso- ciated with shows, once took advantage of the anniversary of April 1 in his own peculiar we: He announced on his circus posters in flaming letters, red as a Hoboken sunset, that “the greatest show on earth would exhibit in tho afternoon of that day a special and extraordin- ary feature, a wonderful freak of nature—a miraculous horse with his head where his tail ought to be.” The public swallowed it: people fell over ench other to get into the tents to see most marvelous animal on the face of the earth; and they saw it—simpiy a common, everyday horse backed into his stall, with bis head where his tkil ought to be. A JORE ON BARNUM. While the late showman succeeded in hum- bugging the public in this way ho way also trapped himself by an April fool joker. It was unknown to him, u commercial traveler stopped commemorating the day, which was April 1, by Collecting @ crow of twenty people, the drummer told tem that he was go- ing to pass them into the show free, and that here Bar- | rushed up to him with handful of cards and | | “Just count these men as they pass in, end- | as to what bis duty required of him in In the “Vicar of Wakefield” Dr. Goldsmith says that “The rustics showed their wit on the first of April.” 4 NOTED PRACTICE IX FRANCE. April fooling is a noted practice in France, and there are traces of its prevalence there at an earlier period than in England. For in- stance, it is related that Francis, Duke of Lor- | raine, and his wife, being in captivity in Nantes, eifected their escape on April 1. ing themselves as peasants, he with a hodon his | shoulder and she with basket, they stole in the early morn- be eg ae case. April fooling. Later the mistake was discovered, but it was then too late, as the fugitives were well on their wa: Toreen, a Swede of the eighteenth century, shows that April 1 was known as All Fools’ day | in bis land by writing that ‘‘We set sail April 1, but the wind made April fools of us and we were obliged to return.” , The people of Lisbon, Portugal, have s car- nival of nonsense similar to the American cele- bration of All Foois’ day, but they hoid it for two days—the Sunday and Monday before Lént, Some who have given the matter study as cribe to April fooling a biblical origin. They assert that the custom of sending one on a boot- less errand on the first day of Avril is » travesty of the sending hither and thither of the Savior from Annas to Caiaphas and from Pilate to Herod, because during the middle ages this scene in Christ's life is made the subject of a play at Easter, which occurs near the Ist of April. TThere is a tradition among the Hebrews that the custom of making fools on the Ist of April arose from the fact that Noah sent out the dove on the first day of the month corresponding to our April before the water had abated. To perpetuste the memory of the great#eliverance of Noah and his family it wae customary on this anniversary to punish persons who had | forgotten the remarkable circumstance con- nected with the date by sending them on some bootless errand similar to that on which the patriarch sent the luckless bird from the win- dows of the ark. Away back in the thirteenth century, it is claimed, the wise fools of Gotham manifested themselves on the Ist of April, and proof is i as ‘cuckoo bush,” situated on an eminence about a mile south of Gotham, in Nottingba | shire, Engiavd. ‘The legend is that when King | John was about to pass through Gotham meadow the villagers heard of it, and feared that the royal cavalcade would trample down | their gardens and make a public road of | their meadow. So they songht to prevent the passage. When a messenger from the kin; was sent on ahead he discovered the whole vil lage trying to drown eels, rolling cheese down hill, fencing in a bush on which a cuckoo perched, dragging carts to the cop of a hill to. protect ‘the valley woods from the sun's rays, and, in short, doing other idiotic thin convineed the kings officer that they were s village of fools and consequently unworthy of is _majesty's notjee—hence “the wise fools of | Gotham.” A skeptical post, however, writes of the cir- cumstance: \9 no more of Gotham fools, 8 in litle pours, ; ‘we're told, were drowning; their carts drawn up on high King Jon's inen were standing by ‘To keep a wood from orowning. Nor of their cheese shoved down the hill, Negied the enekoo sittin still Nore While While it they hi roUn Such ties of ther been told pratinz boobi rans oid, By 10. and ia drunken circles crowned. ‘The fools are those who thither Tose the cuckco bush, I trow, ‘The woods, the barn and pools; For such areseen both here and there, And passed by wit ou: a sneer, By all but srraut fo —>—__ MAKING WILLS IN CHINA, Property Must Be Left in Accordance With the Dictates of Natural Affection. From the Chicago . The Perak government gazette publishes a memorandum by Mr. Watters, British consul Chinese statute book does not take any notice of wills. There is no law as to the formalities of making a will or to the extent to which a man ~All right,” and Baraum began: “Three, six, | nine,” and so on, wittle they passed by kim and | less, the owners of property were quickly lost in the crowd. Soon the straw | hat was reached. “Twenty,” bawled Barnum, and turned round for the tickets, but the gen- | requested. him to count. was | not there. Barnum saw that it was too late to search for the twenty who had faded inside the | either oral or written. For the former aman | philosophi- | has cnly to siate inthe presence of » witness | tent and accepted the situation with | Every one is familiar with the modern April | fool confectionery—Inscions lemon drope filled with whisky, which travels down the throat of the horrified prohibitionist victim; chocolate creams that are only cotton and caramels dosed e pep The choice perfecto, | which explodes before it is half smoked, is ocket With nota single day when out-of- | book, lying at your feet with « string to it, and | the innocent hat that is full of bricks when | Another time-worn expedient for utilizing |New Year day was excessively warm, and that Some one kicks it are ali well known. ‘The | old materials which are worn or soiled in parts riding at noon on that day was hot work. ] is to make them over for children’s garments. Some of my readers may infer from these ilius-| mountains making up the frame of this incom- trations that I am leading up to that method, | parable valley of Mexico, and this is unusual, Dut the garments are described so that for a week or two in January the can be made at home. and the maker can suit is will get a capping of snow, which her own taste and purse with most of them in makes them a handsome sigh: under the over- the source of her materials, The pretty | head tropical san. Nor did we have the neual crocheted jacket which the of the initial amount of the “aguas nieves.” or snow wears ‘s made of white zephyr wool and , waters, afew days of cold showers, which are trimmed with » pink border. The j due to arnive in January, but stayed’ away. In| begun at the bottom of the back, above the fact, while you in the far north have had what colored border, by foundation loops of the re- | may fairly be called a tremendous winter we ired"length, and then chocheted back and have been enjoying one long Indian summer. | forth, one single crochet and o1 The = —s0- single chocbets are 1 very second founda- | ‘The Roustabout’s Cries. tion loop. then in ever At the top each | prom the St. Louis Globe-Democrat. Part 1s crocheted al » Lace pol seem artery When the A pleasant feature of the sugar business of are finished abou: e crocheted to the boats in the south is the songs of the men | the neck, which fo: foundation for the as they work A long skidway or slide is ar- | must be put two ranged from the top of the bank to the boat, lor collar. In evere loo le crochete, and this must be continued to a soales cdige of the caine, which ie crockateg S84 the barrels or hogsheads are thas slid on Snene wlth the iecheet. board. The man at the top will sing, us each , ’ barrel is siarted on its way, a sort of notifica. fs k out bel: nd the men on the | il answer in a way that means “Let her | i ‘The most striking words I caught goes ‘ell “Bar'l, bar'l, he goes bar’l, all full sugar,” | man, teil de troof down dar, | if she'll go to town Sunda} \dey ain't nuffin’ like sugar, kick yer, hit 'im in de eye,” ““Never steal sugar. | 0 an’ ax de boss,” and perhaps twenty other bar'l,” “Here eaten. | days. If the man be married the leave taki | sometimes pachetic, yet Indicrous, and if he | returns all zight he is as machan oracle to some | of the plantation darkies as is aman who has boat was ready to back out from a plantation }ianding and seven colored girls and women board. One of the roustabouts started at the end of that row and kissed every one of those women. The mate called out tohim to hurry When he got aboard the mate said. “Why didn't you hurry?” He replied: “I | Up as fas’ as I could. 1 couldn't kiss ‘em all ter A MIMIC SAILOR. From there the fronts and back are continued fn addition to the collar. The border is com- posed of five rows of pink and six of white zephyr. Careful attention must be given to| the corners where the stitches are gained. | When the back and fronts are done they are | joined, commencing four inches from the bot-| tom. but sufficient space shonid be left for the sleeve. ‘The latter is crocheted around and around into this opening. and the border is the same as that on the jacket. The last row of the | nd the same edge is | put all around the jacket. I: is tied with a| String and tassels of pink zephy is made of chain stitches and 1 half inches in length. ‘ ‘A dress for a little gir] of four or five, having blouse, at once easy to make and comfortable for the wearer, is to be seen in tbe next sketch. It is of tartan cloth, in re¢ and blue, with straw- ticularly suitable for school wear. ' Galle’ salts ere so often selected for small Doys that there is little of novelty in them, but they always have « dressy took, while appear- "as they are, entirely serviceable. E; "must be ‘this fact that leads so many | mothers who would almost faint at the thought | of baving their sons upon the water to make | imitation Jack Tare of the dear little fellows. | The blouse of the one shown hus seams only | suder sae arms, and is put on over the head | and at the wrist with an elastic. As ‘seen from the illustration the blouse has slit below the collar. which is buttoned in- prevents its being torn in putting is loose and can be buttoned to plasiron is loose aiso and with tiny buttons under- ‘This arrangement affords @ ‘Rugvustisw yields to Salvation OL | Sxpromptn phrases. mane of which Tccala eet] We have bad hardiy any snow on the smaller | ‘hen « mule | farther. Sometimes the date is mado the oc- When some of the plantation hands can be | sixpence, thus having to superficial observs- spared they will ship for a trip of three or four | tion an official appearance: ng | | been around the world. On a recent trip the | stood in a row waving their adieus to those on | | hurry | mat ay ola timer. Different from these April Fool joke, is the | tory which comes from the west of the joker | who gathers crowds in the street to gaze othing at all in the blue empyrean is an | in the mi With the annual recurrence of | Fools’ this joker was sure to play some | trick on hi dsin the diggings.” As fate | it, the joker expired on the first of | His last words were: 000 in gold there. widow in Ohio.”’ ‘The miners, at first, were inclined to doubt the ante-mortem statement, suspicious that | the ruling passion was strong even in death, | and that the joker had desired to fool them | once more. But upon digging for the hidden treasure they were astonished to find the $2,000 in gold, just as the deceased had told them. ‘The next thing was to find the widow. ‘The; made inquiries everywhere in Ohio, and last discovered the truth that the deceased hac no widow, and that, while he had resisted the temptation to foot his friends long enough to | inform them of his buried gold. he had re- Pented in the end and fooled them again. FOOLING PRACTICED IN ENGLAND. ‘The April fooling practiced for years in Eng- Jand and on the continent consists in sending | victims after pigeons’ milk and strap oil, and | on crazy errands to people who send them still | Send it to my casion of a more extensive hoax. In 1860 | vast number of people in London received through the post a card bearing the followin; inscription, with a seal marked by an inverted “Tower of London—Admit the bearer and friend to view the annual ceremony of washing the white lions on Sunday, April 1. Admitted only at the white g Its particularly re- quested that no x1 ities be given to the wardens or their assistants.” ‘The trick is said tu have been bighly success- ful. Cabs were rattling about ‘lower Hill all that Sunday morning, vainly endeavoring to discover the white gate. Considering how the Ist of April is associated in the minds of the people with trickery and deception it is strange that Jobnuy Bull allowed himself to be gulled by such a trick. As a mat- ter of fact the tradition of Atl Fools’ day has gained such headway that if one were about to be married or toe in some speculation on that day he would find many who would doubt hissincerity and accuse him of April fooling. On the other hand, persons have sought to conceal their real motives in pertorming certain acts on April 1 by taking refuge behind the pretext that it was All Fools’ day. A French lady, ‘an April fool joker by dryly sentencing her to imprisonment wll the next April 1, adding: “When you will be like a+ @Aavril.’* ‘but no definite information as to the source of the peculiar anniversary or the length of time ithas been in existence. Dr. zr al il A Hi Hf streettitne! mey deal with his property by it’ Neverthe- ft. The courts also take notice of all testa- mentary dispositions in cares of disputed mo- cession or division of property, A will may be how his property is to be dealt with after his deatb. A written will may have witnesees, but their presence is not necestarr, As a matter of fact the testator generally writes out his will rivately and then intrusts it to his wife or ides it away in some sufe place. Asarule the contents of the will are not known to more than one or two until after the testator's death. In theory a man ia China may dispose of his property as he pleases, but this is based on the assumption that he wiil not do anything contrary to the dictatos of resson snd natural affection. Thus a man may will away his proverty from his sons, but the court mav set the will aside, unless sufficient reason isshown, The most common reason given is unfitial conduct. But as to this the unsup- ported statement of the father or even of both parents is not proo!. if, however, a brother of the mother testifies to the unfilial conduct of a 80n or sons the testator’s action in disinher- iting them is sanctioned, | A man may also uame in his will the maie relative who is to represent him atthe ancestral | worship and other great family affairs. ‘This i @ very important power, the representative generully gets a double share of the inheritance and has very great influence in family matters. | Ifaman has no sons he must appoint as his representative a son of a brother, and, if there are no nephews, then some more remote de- scendant of the ancestor. If there is no one of the family he may elect a stranger, one with a different surname, If this person's properly adopted into the family he shares the property with the others, and he must dispose of it ac- cording to the father’s or testator’s expressed commands. Chinese wills do not know anything of execu- tors or administrators. If there are several sons, each with certain funds, or shares, or lands assigned to him, a copy of, the will 1s made for each if desired. But the original, which is retained by the legal representat is often sufficient. He, with the nasistance of senior relatives and the elders of the district, carries out the provisions of the will. In the interpretation of » willand in the cai o rrying ont the arrangements, when there is any doubt or difficulty, it is the universal custom to con- sult with the elders of the place. The final ap- peal, however, is to the local authority. The mandarin, ass rule. gives force to the desires of the testator and orders the will to be obeyed, unless there is something in ite provisions con- trary to law or good mo.als. ~-—+e+ . exhibited today in the form of a bush, known | HANDS AS A HOBBY. How a Woman Can Make and Keep |: Them Beautifal. A BOARDING HOUSE TALK. Different Kinds of Hobbies—The Way One ‘Woman Kept Her Hands Soft and Lovely— ‘How to Cleanse Them Properly and to Give the Natls Good Form and Color. een HEY WERE DISCUSS- ling “hobbies,” and Mrs. Hautton said she had none unless pride in her pedigree might be considered one. In- it that were to be de- nominated » hobby it was quite ® laudable one, 80 she made bold to say that “‘one mast be very common in- deed not to be prond of one’s blood.” “Letting,” murmured the spiteful boarder to the second floor front. “Her father wasin pork, her grandfather a butcher and ber great grand- fother assistant to the beadsman of aking. A pedigree. printed in blood,” but Mrs, Haut- ton’s ears did not catch the whisper. “Every woman has some hobby. It wae Lady Gray who spoke, Cropping the lace she was knitting and removing her glasses | to rest her fine dark eyes. At sixty they were | as brilliant as those of most women at half ber years, She was called Lady Gray because the mame seemed to suit her. She bad mery doves and grays or ivory whites, with a bit of rare lace at the throat ands fall of it vout her plump white hands. She and the dren at the aristocratic caravansary on the izele"” were great chums, and in lied of her rather complicated namo of four syllables the children called her “The Lady in Gray;” the pruning process was natural. ‘MANY ZINDS OF HOBBIES, jow Ihave an old friend whose taste rans tocats, Her house isa menagerio of maltese, angora and tortoise shells, while the common variety swarms from ent to attic, Being childless it is nice that she can devote herself | to pets, but it seems almgst a waste of human affection,” said Lady Gray in gentle musing. Whatever she did wax gently done. “If Ann should ever take it into her head to write her memoirs her chapter on ‘Cats I_ Have Owned’ would be read with interest. I'd call it ber ‘eatograph album.’ for ench cat has a. There is one biack one that a prisoi whom she had — befriended well’s Island gave to her. her husband was a revenue collector hebrought her a tortoise shell cat, whose tail was shot off in ® moonshiner’s raid in the mountains of Tennessee. A snow-white tabby an army officer brought her from Pine Ridge agency, anda big gray mouser she has is reputed to bea. great grandson of one of the cats owned by Rosa Bonheur. Ann takes great comfort with her cats, but I don't care much for them; they are so treacherous. “I have another friend who has a lovely hobby, only that the pursuit of it often makes her unhappy because she cannot find new worlds to conquer. Her craze is orchids. She spends fabulous sums on new varieties and is quite miserable when she fails to obtain a new one, or when there is not a new one to ob- tain. On the whole, pernaps cate are more comfortable, because ize supply is always equal to the demand,” aud Gray took up her knitting again. “Sister Janet's. mania is for sleeves,” ob- served the first floor front, “She drives her er distracted with her peculiar notions about styles in sleevee. Some women have two | Or three bodices with which to freshen up a skirt, but Janet contenta herself with different | sets of sleeves. She bas mutton leg and Marie | Stuart, slashed and sling sleeves, sleeves that | stop at the elbow and sleeves that creep around ‘the knuckles. It takes more material to con- | cost the various styles of sleeves for one of her | gowns than for all the remainder of the gar- } mont, It is really trying at times, for after we are @remed: for--soine social function she, changes her mind as to the suitability of her sleoves and we bave to wait tll her maid rips out one set and tries another. “Dear me, what a waste of time,” sighed Lady Gray. ‘And your sister isso capable too. | Now if her misapplied energy were only cen- | tered on some charitable work what = grand mission she would make it.” SHE CONFESSED HER ROBEY. “Then you have no hobby, Lady Gray?” said the sprightly matron—second floor, bay-win- dow, open grate, a. m. i., reasonable—“because if you had you wouldn't beso hard on other people's foibles. It is always the people who | are never tempted to err who tread the hardest | on the toes of those who suffer temptation and yield. Now I hi women with hobbies, because I have one self, Gloves! Tadore a pretty glove. All tm: | pin money is spent for gloves. I want the bes | makes and the newest shades. A soiled glove | makes me miserable and a rip causes me down- right unhappiness.” Lady Gray laughed softly as the sprightly matron paused to match shades in her embroid- ery sik. “Why, my dear,” she said almost gleefuily as she dropped the knitting again. have a hobby and it is near akin to yours. and she crossed those members primly, while her eyes twinkled merrily; every woman, in the parlor—“parlor and piano for use of the guests of the house”—fastened her gaze on Lady Gray’s pretty white hands with their pink burnished nails and almost babyish dimples. ‘They had been the secret admiration of every- body in the house—only people of genteel ap- pearance and with references taken”—yet not one of them had ever guessed that the owner of those hands was proud of them. “Lovely, like yourself,” said the young lady boarder, who adored Lady Gray. “If I had } hands like yours I’a havea hobby, too. See my | ciawa!” and with a disdainful shrug she held up ‘her own hands, a decided contrast to those | folded over the back in Lady Gray's Ie. ly Gray eT : & “Child, you make mo vain,” said witha pleased little laugh. ‘Then, with sudden dignity, she remarked: “i know that my hands are pretty and worth looking st, an why should Ideny myself the pleasure of as- suring myself of that fact whenever I wish? I aman old woman, past sixty, yet you would | give your new diamond earrings to have hands | like “mine and to know that they would jalways remain so. I know it is not false pride that makes me admire my own hands, be- cause Iam always wishing tuat other women knew my secret. And whenever I seo a girl hand that looks to have had only achance ac- quaintance With soap and water I always want to say to those persons, ‘If you will let me I will tell you how to make your hands as soft and white as achild’s.’ Now, if it was base born or selfish pride I would want to keep my secret to myself, wouldn't I?” and Lady Gray looked around a little wistfully, as though she feared that some of them misunderstood motive. ugh your ladyship would have any “As thor but heaven-born thoughts," said the impulmve young lady boarder. *‘And will you really tell me —' “That you bite your nails?” interrupted Lady OrNvhen T forget ” “had are not very careful 10 wee your nail brush every morning?” ditiad toa bave epemmactie spells of trying to + you have spasm: manicure your own naile?” “Yes, but, you see——" “That you don't know anything about it, «0 make them worse,” continued Lady Gray mere! | deed she thought that | ietic | soft silvery hair aud was always robed in shim- | we oceans of sympathy for | id | ‘Tight gloves will make the hands red. ‘They biting her nails ora dainty glove pulled off a| ¥ z { 2 i do. “You see my are plump and inclined to I nebrly ruined them when a girl by biting my nails, My mother never told me, and I never realized what «disagreeable habit it was nor how really unsightly nail-bitten hands were until Iwas about sixteen. M; Iwasa fair performer onthe harp, and was Permitted to play one selection. Afterward, While half-hidden in the vines on the veranda, Theard two gentlemen discusting the merits of my performance. J pronounced it very creditable, but one, who seems to have been quite close to me, said that to him the beauty was marred by my unsightly fingers. ‘No woman,’ he said, should play piano, harp or guitar who has not at least a well-groomed hand, which, by the way, is the first character- ofalady. I would’ break an engagement with » girl who bites her finger nails.” “I was young and impressionable, and the re- marks of those gentlemen sank’ deep in my ‘There were no manicurists then, and didn’t know how to go at it to remedy evil, but remedied it must be. I would not suffer such mortification again for anything, I thought. I confided my woes toa maiden lady who had been my mother confessor for yeare, learn and she taught me what I should bavi when a child, how to care for my m over a year before they got a healthy my biting them so severely. I almost despaired of ever getting them to look like anything, but I persevered and—that is the result.” So’ say- ing she held up ber hands. ‘Has the end justi- fied the labors?” she asked, quizzically. “But the modus operandi, Lady Gray,” cried the first-floor front, “We have been waiting | able condition two-thirds of the time. | dying to know how to improve them without employing « maid.” “Well, in the first place, you must wash them perfectiy cican. “Lady Gray! Six exclamation marks with the acute rising inflection on one “Lady Gray" exactly measured the surprise of the half dozen women who were “stopping” at the caravansary on ‘the circle. “There!” she said, with alittle shrug of her for that, I confess’ my hands are in a deplor- | Tm | shoulders. “I knew rou would get incensed, but you would be informed. Now, I really know what Iam talking about. The sole reason | Why some women always bave chapped or rough hands is because they don't know How to wash them. Hot water will ruin tae prettiest hand your hands'to resemble nutmeg graters just dabble them a dozen timos a day in cold hard water, using cheap toile: soup. Cheap soap is also responsible for many ruined bands. HOW To WASH HANDS PROPZELY. “The way to wash hands properly is this: asa ckin scraper, but it should be plied vigor- ousiy. Before drying dash a littie clear water over them and wipe perfectly dry. If my ad- vice in this respect is followed, as well as that I am going to give about care of the nails, any one of you can ina month's time have hands | as white, or if not es white—vou know there is a difference in skin—as smooth and just as nice finger nails as I have. “Take tepid warm water, well soaped, and toak the tips of the fingers of ons hand for two or three moments. Then take your nail file, and, while the water stiji clings to the nails, gently press back the ekin around the roots. ‘The fingers must alwars be wet to do this 70} n forms ugly “bang nail,” and it breaks itself in the course of nature, if it is not it. water two or three times before the one | quick, rounding the corners, slightly. When e nail gets healthy do not file #0 close. I uss vaseline for the next process. Some people use | a salvecalled ‘cherry lip,’ but I think it un necessary. When you get your nails into = healthy condition they will be pink without any artificial aid. Moiston the nails and cod plenty. of gol mall powder Sat polish each nail separately. Rab vig- orously down close to the of the nail, powder will smooth off the dry dead | skin at the edges. After treating each band in is manner get some clear tepid water, soar anda nail brash and scrub t nails and your hands as though they had not been washed a be amazed at the result. You who bite your nails will be surprised to find that when you get the rough edges filed down and the skin loose from the nail you will er think of biting them. Those whose nails bave never been | treated should go througi this process twice a week for a month, after that once o week will be euflicient by’ giving a little rab with the polisher each morn- ing. My advice to those who can afford it is to go to a manicure two or three times and watch the process closely. One thing a mani- | nails become healthy is to cut the cuticle, ‘It is absolutely useless for an amateur to try to do jthat. The polishing powder will wear tie jcuticle off sufficiently. I know, for (never owned a pair of ‘cuticle’ scissors, and my hands have not been touched by a professional in five years, yet you say my naiis look like *pink seashells." When there is uo roagh «kin around your nails aud you can define tae half moon at the root you will know thaé you are su z ‘TO MAKE THE SKIN SMOOTH. “Now for rough hands. Some skins will stand much stronger remedies than others, but simple lotions are the safest and the best. Un- diluted giyceriue is poison to most skins. Yet properly used it is the best toilet lotion there is, For my hands I use givcerine and bus in equal parte, or if any difference mori run. A few drops of camphor is a healing dition for some. The hands should be washed and rinsed just before re-| tiring and dried slightly. While yet damp rub well with the lotion and the roughest hand will come out softened in th morning. Inever wear gloves at night, be- cause ther mske me fee! uncomfortable, and I don’t believe they make the hands any softer. If gloves are worn they should be light in color and two or three sizes larger than the hand. should be cleaned often, too. “I never use patent lotions of any kind and always advise against it, unless I know the in- grediente One should always use pure soap. hite-castile is about the safest soap made. Cheap high-colored soaps are absolutely dan- gerous. “Ikuow that these directions sound very simple, but Ikaow, too, that ther are sure. You have seen my hands and they speak for themselves. Yet I have done a great deal of hard work as any woman must who rears five children without servants. Of course in later years I have been eating my ‘white bread,’ but my hands were just as soft and white when I did my own washing, baking and brewing. To sum it up in a few words, ‘I have taken care of my hands.’ Ihave never forgotten that ‘a well groomed hand is one of the principal characteristics of a lady,'and yet I know dozens of women who have ‘maids to ‘groom their heads’ and attend to other accessories of the mem! “How often do you use the lotion?” asked the htly matron. “Every night of my life,” was Lady Gray's }, a8 she turned to her knitting again. t going right down to the avenue for tees lees use of them very night,” the young lady boarder. sounds sensible, and I shall try ii properly, for the skin is very tender, and when | pressed back, because the nail grows and cracks | The fingers must be dipped in the soapy | hand is finished, for unless the skin is| kept damp the work cannot be well done. | ‘Then file the edge of the neil almost to the | tall, rinse and dry thoroughly, aud you will | cure does that is not at all necessary after your | \for no one ever heard of it if he did. Perhaps it seems a sacrilegious thing to but perhaps that was | all-enduring, She is the Best and Dearest Thing on Earth, —_——__. VARIED ACCOMPLISHMENTS. She Aids the Boys in Thetr Lessons, Sympa- thises With Them in Thetr Sorrows, Mingles in Thetr Sports and Makes Doll Dresses for the Girls, —_+—_—_- VERYBODY WRITES up the modern girl Why does no one ever consider the modern mother? The faults of the modern child are @welt upon unceas- ingly, the shorteom- ings of the girl of the period are freely dis- cussed, the man of to- day is held up to all sorts of ridicule, and it is only to the mother of ed | DOWadays that nobody pays any attention. Of course that in itself speaks well for her, be- | cause it is a aad fact that no good is said of any | person orset of persons who attract public notice. A sorrowful comment in Reelf on the human nature of this fin de siecle. However, the mothersof today being the best mothers that ever were should not be relegated to obscurity. Ihave been observing them're- cently and have come to the conclusion thet if they don’t wear halos it is only becanse that article is unobtainable. Fora long-suffering, r-cheerfal mortal commend me to the average mother. There never has been anything like her; she is « product of the age. THE MOTHER OF THE GRA Of course we all know about haughty Roman matron who ssid “These are my jewels,” but just imagine giving her a good hug, my? ‘One would as soon think of wasting caresses on a statue of Juno. No doubt sho was » very admirable person. certainly have been told to respect her—but it rather seems to me that she must have bored her neighbors, par- ticularly the ones who bad youngsters of ‘their in the world, and cold water! Well, if you want | O¥. gying around and remarking, apropos of nothing in particular, “These are my jewels.” I suppose she never said anything else, ly clever thing that she ever uttered, I think in history one hears a good Tepid water, soft if possible; if not, add alittle | deai more of tie bad people than of the good borax; pure unscented soap and large soft | ones: it is generally so, nail brush. The nail brash nesd not be used T*80n that mothers piay no very important Rertiz the world’s story. There was George ‘ashington’s mother, though, but oh, dear me! what a prig she must have been, Can any one hegring or reading of her imagine himeelf goi: up'to her and telling her any ohildish secrets: No. indeed, ve been stately and good, and that sort of thing, but she was much like a block of vanilla icecream, very sweet, very cold. Think of crying to her over a broken dolly! s said tbat & doll was nothing but chinaand could not feel. The idea! as though we didn't know that doll babies have feelings. SOME UNJUST TREATMENT. I said that no oneever mentions the mamma of today, but I am mistaken. They do some- times, but always to point out her feults. The comic pa say all sorts of cutting things about her preference for pug dogs and her horror of babies. and how she bas to be intro- duced to ber little ones about twice s year. All very clever, but painfuliy untrue. “There exist isolated cases of the kind. but they are only the exceptions thst prove the rule. Tae modera mamina, as I have found her, is @ very saperior person, but you would never suspect it unless you want her help in an algebraic “stickler,” in cutting and fitting @ gown, in making light desserts, rocsting a turkey sweeping a room. She is good at & enough end always succeeds, world, and more eepecial?: knows what “mother's pies” were, werything is better fun if mamma ts the moving spirit and no frolic is quite oom- lete without her. She may be at times grave individual who can talk perceutages, stocks and mortgages with papa, or discuss the last political situation understandingly, but she is quite as good at telling fairy stories or at making over dolly's wardrobe, She knows just when ‘playing for keep: her tongue’s end, too, WHAT ONE MOTHER Dos. It seems to me that she bas time for every- thing. Iknowa very busy little woman, as chirpy and plump as a brown sparrow. Ob, she belongs to half a dozen societies, runs ber honse smoothly. keeps her large family of boys and girls beautifally clothed. She does not dress them herself, of course, but she sees to their being always well and neatly attired. Her children think that she is simply perfection, and, needless to say, she has the «ame opinion of them. “Tiere’ is nothing mother don't know,” confided her boy of twelve to me, “and she's the jolliest good fellow, too. She ‘reads my Latin with me every’ night and if I'm | behind in anything in school she finds out what it is and concnes me upon it. I have just taken up Greek now and she is taking it up with me so as to help me along and make it in- teresting. Oh, tell you shes fine. And you should see the marble she can make: there isn't anybody like her.” Which last sent ment was rather prejudiced, I think, for there ureno end of mothers of just the same .d some, yes, many, of even a better one, for this one ‘has'plenty of money to keep’ the wheels of life well oiled, and aow many thereare who have not, who darn stockings and make little “trouserloons” until their kind fingers ache and are callous from many needle pricks. But re those same Singers ever the less soft when it comes to rubbing seme aching bead or dress- ivg a cut finger? Thereare no hands like mother’s hands for wiping away tears, there ia nobod, shoulder like mother’s shoulder to ery away one’s littie troubles on, there is no lay Like mother’s lap to rest in, no arms so to shield one from harm and worry. And who's eyes smile so gently whenever one is gay, whose eyes are so comforting when anything goes wrong? It is when we do not have them that we miss them, when we look back to them that we see their soft luster through the mist and gloom of time. MOTHERS OF LONG aco. Now, it must be understood that I refer only to the modern mothera. I don't know much about the ones of long ago except it seems to me that they were particularly fond of an- nouncing that to “‘spare the rod is to spoil the child,” and of giving long lectures on the duties Post. In August a Liverpool resident proceeding Bombay took out with hima eat, which s tg F Taper? FEE it nd possibly that is the | She Graphically Tells of Her Troubles, Hes Struggles and Her Triumphs ‘One of the most wonderful letters ever written {that which follows. Any one who reads it te certain to be absorbingly interested. Mrs. J. Henderson of ‘that causes me to write it. “about two years ago tt beng the ‘change Mfe’ with me, I wes treated by thren of the bess dronchit's, growing worse all the time, coughing constantly, until my voice was only ® whisper. My,deed pained me, T had tittle, af any, I felt tired most of the time and yet was and restiess...lwas weak, nervous, MRS. 4. TENDERSON. Jost all interest Im life. felt Gespondent and could not understand the reason. I did not acate pain, but felt «constant misery. Finally my | Bods Began to bloat terribly, accompanied by pain, 2i.intetime a further examination on the Bart of the doctors reveaied the terrible tact that Twas et kidneys. tn ctor Was UTREd He visited me several times daily and finally said to my husband: “I ai plainly that your wife will ‘At that time my condition My Tight side was paralyzed, mi face distorted and my tongue stiffened #o that could not speak. It was wnile in this deplorable | condition that my husband, wi | stant attendant and | muca, but concerning which we knew but little, I felt the effect of it at once. The tone of my stomach Was festored #0 that T could retain the nourishment given me. 1 continued to im ‘the paralysis ieft me, the bloating my Sirenera retarned and Tam © wail women Sotat, all Unrouga the use of Warners Sate Cure, took me from acondition of hopeless misery and Testored me to health aud happiness. Je MY Tecovery over Which 1 Teel an Tejoiced,, ¢ had opportunities to nee much of the effects even when on the threshld of Wife has a iegion of dangers threatening to come her at uy time. The mother peril, as a horde of troubles materaity continually menace ber. Passing through all these dangera, « Fives ai the time when change of life occu again beset by the severest of all as ? jer life a Woraan needs @ jerd, a Thelieve that friend, she best. five woman, is Warner's Safe Cure. concerning it except what it has done for me and what ' haveseen it has done for others, but I do Know that it saved my life, that it bas made me happy and that wherever it hax been used I have seen the same grand, beneficial resulta. “I make the above statement frankly and freely, and from a desire that others may be benented as Ihave been. If suffering and the danger which surrounds every woman's life can be avoided, or even softened, the happiness of Ife can cTeased and the world made vastly better.” FREE OF GHARGE, 4 SAMPLE CUR OF VAN HOUTEN’S COCOA, BEST AND GOES FARTHEST. Manufactured at the Royal Cocos Factory of Bolland. ‘Will be served free to our patrons and the publie from now until Saturday, March 25. THE HIGHEST GRADE OF ©0COA MAND- FACTURED IN THE WORLD. THE ONLi ABSOLUTELY PUBE AND SOLUBLE cocoa. DOUBLE THE STRENGTH OF ORDINART coooas. MADE INSTANTLY WITHOUT BOILING. The grest strength of this Cocos makes it the most economical, its perfect solubility the most conven- tent to use, and its entire freedom from vanilla and all fo-rigm flavoring extracts commend it to personb of refined and fastidious tastes. Iso. R. Exaoon, 1408 14TH ST. N.W., WASHINGTON, D. @ mb23-3t A Yunow WITH RUSSIA CALF SHOES THIS WEEK, 1,000 pairs Mens Russie Calf Bouchers, and other styies, go ar $2.95. ‘We have again made a large hen! tn MEWS HANDSEWED FRENCH PATENT CALF BALS., the regular 86 quallty, which we will esl a _ $3.75. (We have lotsof genuine bergains ia sample shove and job lots, and we ean eave you from $1 to 82 on every alr purchased here = Wosazx Suoz Hovsa, 1115 F Sz N.W.