Evening Star Newspaper, March 14, 1896, Page 16

THREE PRETTY GOWNS. THE POKE BONNET Like That of the Salvation Army and Called the Booth. ABCUT THE STRAW BRAIDS 70 BE USED Pretty Ball and Dinner Dress for the Easter Tide. SKIRTED os Tz: WEEDS IN COAT Fashion’s garden bourgeon amd bloom without tending, and the falrest “flowers need most constant care, quite as in ruder fields. There was last fail a peculiar box coat of English invention, so curiously ugly that it could not fail to live, as it has done, and thrive. It of the shape of a soap box, perfectly vn the sides and across the bo was then cut well down by the The soap box coat has begun to itself, to shine like a pary u in her It has grown shorter, until t barely clears the waist. It was at first designed In strong cloths for driving and coaching merel; but now it flaunts HOUSEHOLD HINTS ver permit soiled clothes to hang in your ts. All the perfumes in the world can’t disguise the odor on a gown that hangs cd clothes, cr in the. kitehen » Where it gathers all the scents from cooking. Pretty soon you must put away your furs. beat and beat them till you are sure that rot a single egg remains in the fur; then put the garment in a paper bag and paste up every tiny crack. If the paper bag is kept intact the furs will come out in good shape. “A hot pancake for an aching back!’ Did you ever try one? Just mix up some flour and water in a thick batter and fry on a griddle as though you were preparing it to eat, only use just the least little grease. When cooked through put between two thin pieces of white cloth and apply to the aching place. You will be surprised to learn how soon you will be relieved of your pain. Sometimes it will cure obstinate cases of headache by applying at the bas2 of the train. It is vastly better than wet cloths. Of course you will laugh at the idea of making your own vinegar when “cider” vinegar is so cheap (?), but you just try this plan once and you will’never again buy the stuff that {s called vinegar, but is almost rank poison. When you are going to pare apples for pies or sauce, wash them well first, and the sam> advice wiil apply to all fruit! "Take the parings and cores and put them over the fire in an earthen pan, and cover with hot water. When cooked tender squeeze the juice through a jelly bag into a wide-mouthed jar, with a pound of sugar and a gill of yeast to a galloy of juice. Stir and place in a warm place, tying a cloth ever the mouth of the jar, so that the air can get to the liquid and bugs and thirgs can’t. In a month you will have a galion of spien- did yinegar,which pour off into another Jar, straining through two cloths, leaving a lit- tle in the old jar to start with. Add to this Jar each day your stewed fruit juices, and pour off as the vinegar ripons. In that way you can keep a perpetual supply on hand. Don’t spoil your pretty dishes by letting them sizzle and soak in the heat of the stove with meat and eggs and things like that, for it is entirely unnecessary. Have a set of plain dishes upon which to place the things that must be kept warm, and use them for no other purpose. Aiways have hot things hot, and cold things very cold, when brought to the table. To heat china, pile the plates and dishes in the dishpan and pour boiling water over them, then dry quickly and send to the table. You will find that by doing this you get the dishes as hot as though they had been sizzling for an hour in a Dutch oven. In no one way more than another does a ‘woman make her birth and breeding felt as in the matter of perfumes. ‘Loud perfumes in @ public place are detestable. You who are howling over the color of the Potomac water as it comes from the hydrants try this: Dissolve a grain of glum in a gallon of water. It will precipi- tate all the earthy matter, kill all the erms, and not in any way be harmful, nor ill you be able to detect the alum. An economical mother, who has to count the pennies, picks up all the bits of soap about the house and melts them in a cup over a slow fire with a little borax and just enough water to keep the stuff from burn- ing. When melted she puts a tablespoon- ful or more of fine clean sand to it. Taen i pours the melted soap into small molds cool, after which she gives it to her three restless boys to wash their hands with. Nothing better could be found. ~Some children will not eat hash as it is commonly made, but will become very fond of the same if served in fancy fashion. ‘Try them with this—in fact, you will find that the whole family will like it. To every cupful of minced meat put three table- spoonfuls of fine breadcrumbs, gnough salt @nd pepper to suit the taste. and a «e sleeves of moire, and epaulets with broid- ered edges, and a machicolated collar and wide pleats dewn the front, alternating with perpendicular strips of moire or nov- elty velvet, or figured lace over satin, or such gay stuffs; and next it will take to itself, no doubt. the colors from which it has thus far refrained, and we may see it in yellow cloth with black stripes, or pink with salmon, or red with black, or green with red. And the driving coat of late "9% is thus become the new spring jacket of early ‘96, with mayhap a career before it, blessed be folly! This is worth noting by way of consola- tion, that it is, indeed, an ugly gown or wrap which a pretty woman may not wear, to the confounding of seasons. The Easter tide will have need of pretty ball and dinner dresses again, and they are now being fashioned. The shoulder strap is the badge of all their tribe. Three ous of four of the new evening gowns have it, senerally in dark decision and emphasis of color; and at least a third have the new sleeves, whose scant outlines are for the moment masked by fluffy epaulets. One evening bodice of unusually theatrical fierceness has a wide coliarette over a double chiffon flounce, restrained in the very act of sliding off the shoulders by ad- equate looking strips of black velvet. Ard more of the velvet is crossed upon the front of the bodice, ending in a huge bow at either side of the waist. A charming frock of white satin with round sleeves in the older mode has a shcrt bodice, whose loose front is covered with sequined net, and whose square decol- letage is outlined vith embroidery. There is a satin band at the waist, and others at the shoulders negative the suggestion that the gown might else slide off the polished | arms of the w Half the gow fect. = pping-off ef- Hence the shoulder straps, meant to sure the eye—or cheat it, according to beholder. Let me describe another gown with no such device: It is mad2 of mauve glace silk with a bodice of chiffon in the same shade, and the yoke and the braces and the long la- pels are strongly brought out in black, with big figured cream lace applique upen it. Enough, perhaps, of the gowning of an | two of onion if you like. Stir all together, then stir into this one well-beaten egg and a pint of warm water or soup stock, and a tablespoonful of good butter, melted. But- ter little custard cups, fill two-thirds full of the mixture, set the cups in a pan of hot water in a hot oven and let them cook half an hour, becoming brown over the top. When the washwoman gets through with her tubs, have her rinse them out with clean water and turn them bottom side up on the floor, and they will not be leaking the next time she wants to use them. To make a paste for use about your desk that will not sour for a long time use flour, a tablespoonful, mixed dry with half a teaspoonful of powdered alum. Mix smoothly with a tablespoonful of cold wa- ter, tien set on the back of the stove and pour in another tablespoonful or two of boiling water, stirring briskly, and let it cook for a long time. It should be very thick when removed, and don’t let it burn, for that will blacken it. Put in a wide- mouthed bottle while yet warm, and have a tiny paddle to lift it out with. You can perfume it if you like. It will keep indefi- uitely. How many housekeepers know that it takes sweet potatoes just twice as long to ceok as it does Irish potatoes? If your family likes bananas, try this dish on them, these spring mornings when they want a change and can’t suggest what it shall be. Take two or three bananas, peel and slice on a cold dish. Squeeze over them the juice of a good lemon, then pour over them a gill of ice water and sprinkle with half a cup of granulated sugar. Set where it wili keep ice cold till breakfast, when serve. It's delicious. ———___ The Lesser Evil. From the Oakland (Cal.) Times. Chunk—“Doesn't ‘new you feel fairly mae but she’s not so bad as woman’ make ——_-+e+__. John Was Always Prompt. From the Beston Transcript. |. Mrs. Grimes—“‘And so your husband died quite suddenly?” Mrs. Blaker—‘‘Yes, there never was any ¢illy-dallying about John. He was so punc- tual, you know; he never was any man to put off; when he had anything to do, he did it at once. I never expect to get an- other husband like John.” “Heaven knows I’; bere '’m not the thing I should Easter week that is not yet. There is the bonnet to consider, Modified forms of the poke bonnet are quite in line with the spring's promises—not the long poke, through which, as down a tunnel, one peered in grandmother's days at the face beyond, but a shallower and airier poke with an upward and outward spreading tront varying from that of a Salvation Army kepi to the crimpled outer edge of a seashell. Whatever trimming of plume and ribbon there be is piled far back upon the tiny crown, the underside of the brim is smoth- ered in lace, white or black, and the whole ecntrivance is pushed well back; no, there is rothing dim or tunnel-like about the poke of 1896. And the Salvation shape is pretty enough, give it but the bright colors. Enter- prising modistes are already referring to certain of these new shapes as the “Booth” or the “Ballington,” names somewhat in favor even in fashionable New York. But there are others. The spring bonnet is not confined to the shell shapes. There is to be a goed countenancing demand for the picture hat, in moderate sizes, and for the bewitching toque “no bigger than an agate stone upon the forefinger of an alderman.” Spring will bring the straw braids, of ccurse, many of them the rough fancy straws with which we have in former seasons be2n familiar, but in new loops, fringes, points, patterns and caracoles. There are plain Straws, iridescent colors and Persian ara- besques in weaving. Some-*braidmakers have even gone so far as to weave Scotch clan tartans in straw of strong prime colors. These self-asserting patterns in the braid require emphatic cclors in the trimming, such as are furnished by scores and. bands of duchess purple, or navy blue, which 1s now known as matelot blue, as if the French word made it any finer. ‘There is compensation Im all the universe, hence it 1s no surprise to find that the little hats have b'gger crowns than the big hats; the walking shapes in felt have narrow brims curling high in the sides and low at the ends in a shape somewhat suggestive of the turban, though the rolled sides do not hug the crown quite as close as in that model. Quilled net will figure prominently in the list of trimmings, along with chiffon sim- arly treated, Malines tulle in white, blacic and colors. Flowers will be profuse, and there is a great influx of fancy ribbons from Paris—where they will wear plain ones them- selves, be it added. There are ribbons with somber effects, and ribbons with Dresden roses and china designs, crepon prints, print- ed velvets, mirror velvets, Japanese plisse and silk muslins, plain and bordered. “High novelties” are the ribbons in Persian ground- ings and Damascus embroidery, vermicelli figures, velvet floriations, ombre stripes or metal threads; ombre grounding with a wild variety of stripes; taffeta in narrow glace stripes; glace with printed borders or metal patterns, or taffeta edges; broche figures, Bayadere ribbons with stripes in the warp, damask ribbons, plaided ribbons. Plainer ribbons in delicate tints will no doubt prove in better taste, especially for hats or bon- rets with long ribbon ties. The short basque skirts still survive, ac- cording to the unfversal law hinted at in the beginning of this rambling account; and there will be with the first warm weather a sudden revival of the rather long-skirted coat, forming part of a tailor-made costume, opening low and wide to display a lawn or pique shirt front. The tailor mode will not dow! Its blessed convenience goes far to forgi its cold and somewhat unfeminine cutlines. Later will come the blouse, be- loved for the same convenience. Walking gowns will be this spring some- what elaborate, and pale glace skirts with three or four tiny flounces by way of border to the skirt will not, after a little, look too fussy for the street. But the plainer garb will always be in better taste. ‘There is considerable favor shown to the not too novel idea of skirt decoration by in- serted panels of darker stuffs or by bands of ribbon or cloth running lengthwise of the Seams all or part of the way down. ELLEN OSBOR? All the Gentleman Wanted for Saving the Girl's Tressex. From the Cincinnati Enquirer. The French people never tire of relating anecdotes of the eccentricity and enormous wealth of Americans. An American went into a hairdresser’s shop in Paris recenily and found a charming but poorly dressed girl engaged in negotiations with the pro- Prietor. She was offering to sell him her magnificent head of hair for three napo- leons—the man would give her no more than one. At last the poor girl gave way with tears, and the barber was about to employ the fatal scissors when the Ameri- can intervened and demanded thi the sad affair. pice ee nee e found that the girl's parents. who formerly had been well off, were in the last extremity of poverty, and that she had de- termined to make so great a sacrifice in order to obtain them a little bread. ‘The stranger drew out two hank notes and of- fered them to the girl, saymg: "4 OF quill you tet mo buy your hair?” out even looking at the note: Birl at once said, “Yes.” Sees e American delicately took a singl hair, put it in his pocket book—and fled. pot tll he had kone did she look at “her ank notes, and found them to be value of $100. aa Po oo _____ A Faithful Dog Postma: From, the Lewiston Evening Journal. He is a faithful, cautious Official, the hero of the East Sullivan, Me., dog story. Den, the dog postman, has been taught to carry the mail daily across the field to the home of G. E. Simpson, a dJistanc2 of about one-fourth of a mile, where he Takes known the arrival of the mail by bark- ing at the docr, and, although not @ Bov- ernment employe, exects his pay in the form of something to eat, and will bark un- til his demand is granted. One day last week He catried the mail, as usual, but on arriving at the house on arti could not gain ad- away, and, as it was about noon, he w: anxious to deliver the bundle of papers ta get his commission. As the only person about the placg}was a young man hauling wood (a strangér to the dog), he would not give up the mbil, but with a crestfallen countenance breught it back to his master The Bar Harbor Record thinks there arc emptier heads than Don's, On the Ferry. From the San Francisco Wave. Jones (to Italian sitting beside a large valise)—“My friend, that valise i: is takin; Up considerable room. Will you kindly Move it and allow me to slt down?” Italian—“No mova noth.” Jones—“‘But I want to sit down.” Italian—“No cara.” Jones—“But I do. valise off the seat?” Italian—“No taka noth. I tole yo’ afora.” Sao oe in the collar) —"it you don’t take valise off the seat = you understand me?” = rae tallan—“I unstana what yo’ = taka eat offa.” ieee Se fones (throwing valise off ‘the seat “There, now! If ycu want your bageace, yeu can go and get it.” zs Italian—“Est no belonga to mea.” pet re talian—“Eat no belonga to mea. Yo’ tots Lapeer ne ss sin jones (as replaces the valise)—“Wh; didn’t you say so before? I don’t mind standing up; it’s only a short distance across.”” Italian (to himself)}—‘‘Eat no belonga to mea, ages pelonesip ons ees rman. Eat fo mya ’ cit; I eat to hera.” ee Will you take that {A TRAINING SCHOOL Where Teachels of Kindergarten Receive Instruction, ALL SORTS OF GAMES AND EXERCISES Experience of a Girl Who Had to Earn Her Living. COST OF AN OUTFIT HURRUG, CHU R- rug, churrug!” The visitor stands in amazement. “Churrug, churrug!” Theo game of leap frog still goes on. Some ha If-dozen girls are in the cen- ter, jumping about in frog-like fashion, giving their mourn- ful cry; others form a circle about them, and to a simple air tell a tale of the frog and his life. It is a class in a training school for young ladies who wish to become kindergarten teachers. To be a member of that class means earnest work and plenty of enthu- siasm for the cause. The onlooker may be amused, but to the pupils there is nothing ridiculous in this game of leap frog. One of the girls, on being asked if she did not feel embarrassed, replied: “Why, bo, it’s lots of fun. The tall girls may feel so, but I don’t. To me there ts nothing awkward or embarvassing about Then she repea‘cd. “But it She confessed, however, to stiff limbs when the day was done. She laughingly said that one could not jump a hundred and twenty pounds about a room without feeling it. The frog game is not the only one that is played. Another exercise tells the story of the. caterpillar. The caterpillars crawl about the floor; they retire to cocoons— represented by the corners of the room; they flutter forth as gorgeous butterflies— THE EVENING STAR, SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 1896-TWENTY-FOUR PAGES, — ered the carpets in the parlors and hall, and made an awning 50 feet long by 18 feet wide. This last was my own idea and Proved.a great success. We put it out in the back yard, attaching it to the fence by means of rings sewed nine inches apart on the edge of the awning, and slipped over hooks driven into the fence. We used it for outdoor exercises in the mild weather of the early fall; also for sewing, reading and writing classes, The Expense Account. “Here is a list of our expenses: Kindergarten table. 12 kindergarten chairs. 6. Blackboard (with slight imperfection) 2.00 Blackboard easel. 1 Kindergarten books.. Complete set of maps, in case (slight- ly imperfect)....... 8. Glass sign for wind Ink, pencils and station “These, properly placed, with the large back parlor for the kindergarten, id chairs and tables which we already had in the house for the other rooms, transformed our preity parlors into bright, sunny, at- tractive school rooms. “We were anxious to have a carriage to carry the chiidren to and fro from the school; but as we could not afford this, we secured the services of a bright young girl, who called for the smaller children and took them home, and attended to their wants during school hours. This we still continue to do, much to the satisfaction of our patrons. “We were compelled to borrow the money to defray our initial expenses; but as we charged part pay in advance we were able to pay our debts at the close of the first day of school. “By scrupulously fulfilling every promise we had made in the beginning, and giving good, conscientious instruction, besides making the pupils exceptionally and phe- nomenally happy, we have been very suc- cessful, and are gaining the confidence of the public more and more each year. The outlay during the first year, including ser- vant hire and inctdentai expenses, amount- ed to $250; while our income was, in round numbers, $1,400. id “At the close of the school year, cele- brated with appropriate exercises and the awarding of medals and prizes to the best pupils, we arranged a special summer course. During those three summer months, which should have been a vaca- tion, we took our pupils on an outing with a fine tally-ho to some country place near by; so that it was not a case of ‘all work and no play’ by any means. “Our curriculum includes, besides the Kindergarten and regular primary and grammar grades as tavght in our best pub- lic schools, French, German, music, sewing in all-its ‘branches (as dressmaking; mii- UNDER THE AWNING. the girls stepping lightly out the room and waving their arnis gracefully to por- tray the actions of that insect. Again. life of the farmer is told by them. show how he plows the fields, sows the seeds, and reaps the harvest; and when the day's work is done, the tired farmer, la himself down to rest (here the young ladies and their teacher drop graceiully to the floor and rest at full length.) All the games are not so boisterous, how- ever. At long tables, entirely filling the room, sit the girls, some cutting, some fold- ing pieces of colored paper. All sorts of objects are cut from the paper by these deft fingers. They start with squares, cir- cles, triangles and oblongs, pasting them in a book arranged for thai purpose. Then the designs become more difficult, and mo- saic work, in colors to suit the paster's taste, is shown on the next pages; still one step rurther, and objects of life appear. Not All Play. Other girls fold papers into various shapes, making of a square of paper as many shapes as. poasible. The result of this work is also pasted in a book. The cutting is intended to teach form and color, the folding to keep the fingers flexible. Blocks and straws and seeds furnish other amusements. With blocks they rep- resent a locomotive, at the same time learn- ing all they can of its mechanism; they build a stone wall, and inquire into the materials used; they call attention to the fact that a block has six sides, eight corn- ers, twelve edges—things which we should all be able to tell without a moment's thought, but regarding which we are apt to be so deplorably ignorant. Thus the play goes on, day after day, each pupil breathing into her soul that sympathy with child-life so essential to successful kinder- gartners. , Learning to be a kindergartner, how- ever, is not all play. There is much hard study necessary. Of perhaps two hundred applicants each year, in one school, forty are selected. To be a successful applicant one must have either a high school or a college diploma; the candidate must have studied geometry, algebra, botany, music, universal history—in short, must have had a thorough scientific training. After entering, a pupil devotes one year to study of the system. She attends the school in the morning, learning the kinder- garten occupations. She takes precisely the same course as a child, but completes in one year what a child does in three. Lectures are given in the afternoon of two days each week. The lectures are on botany, zoology, psychology and other branches of science. The girls take notes, from which each is expected to write a paper. As the girls grow in wisdom they take turns at assisting in the kindergarten connected with the-training school; and to- ward the close of the term the more cour- ageous go a step further, serving as sub- stitutes in schools fOr poor children. Starting ‘a Kindergarten. This is what the ¢nterprising head of a new flourishing Kindergarten school in New York did when her father became involved in financial difficulties, and she was thrown upon her own rogouftes. The story is told in her own words, ahd will be of especial interest and valye tq young women plan- ning similar enterprises. “My father was.seventy years old, and out of a position; I had one younger sister and ho brothers) and I suddenly waked up to the realization that I was the bread winner of the family, I had an education, and a friend offered 40 join me in starting @ private school, 1 = “My friend proposed to share expenses, and we went to work collecting pupils and fixing up our quarters. “We peddied our school from house to house, so to speak; and we never had the door shut in our faces. We also wrote let- ters to our personal friends, and these brought us some pupils. On one of our errands we were so much attracted by a very pretty Httle boy that we spoke to him. To our dismay, we looked up and saw that his mother had been watching the inter- view from a window above us. We ex- plained that we had a mania for children and were fascinated by this one of hers, at which she was so well pleased that ‘she wound up by promising to send him to our school. . “In this way.we obtained many of our pupils; and having enlisted a sufficient number to start our school, we set about fitting up our rooms: Through the kindness of the chairman of the board of education we were able to get a discount on all school supplies. “We first bought two large pieces of awning cloth for $7.50; with this-we cov- S linery and embroidery), drawing, painting and physical culture.” SS SE BANQUET. A CHIN of Fish, Flesh and Vegetables ed in Thirty-Seven Courses. Is a first-class Chinese dinner in thirty-seven courses, as described by a writer in a Londen newspaper: Course 1. Pyramid of ham and carrots in obiorg slabs 2, 3, 4 and 5. The seme of mutton, boiled pig hide, grilled fish rolied in sugar and boiled fowl dipped ir. soy sauce. 6. Shark fin shreds in pickle, served a la haycock. 7. Eggs stowed away in lime till they had become black. 8. Peeled “water chestnuts,” the root of a sort of lotos. 9. Cakes of cranberry jelly, very stiff, and piled in pyramids. 10. Sliced boiled carrots and turnips simi- larly arranged. ll, Pinnacled pyramids of green olives kept in plece by bamboo pins. 12. Ditto of greengages soaked in wine. 13. Ditto of tamarinds; and 14, ditto of Pieces of dried red melon. 15. Small pieces of pastry rolled in browa sugar. 16. Secticns of oranges, toasted melon pips and monkey nuts. 17. Small boiled dumplings with sugar in- side, pink tops. 18. Patiles similarly filled, for all the world like mince pies. 19. Baskets of pastry filled with brown su- gar of the sandy sort. 20. Packets of pastry filled with mince- meat, folded as for post. Now for the real “pieces of resistance”— eight big bowls containing: 21. Sea slug rissoles, the enjoyment of which was spoiled by information as to what they were, though certainly no worse than oysters. 22. Mutton stewed to shreds cut two inch- es long. nee Fish tripe in white soup, not at all ad. 24. Stewed duck; 25, stewed shrimps; and 26, stewed lotos seeds. 27. Sliced chicken stew; and 28, red stur- geon stew. ‘Then came eight smaller bowls: 29. Clear soup, styled on the Chincse meru, “Mouth nourisher.” 30. Raw pig's kidneys, cut into the shape of an open flower. 31, Stewed shrimp’s eggs; and 32, balis made of sliced ham. 33. Ducks’ tongues stewed with many dozens of them. 34. Sliced pigeon stew, the bird being cut up like a joint. : Thirty-five and thirty-six’ I failed to ana- lyze, though I ascertairiéd that the one was called in Chinese “‘the three silken strings,” being composed of p'gis tripe,, ham and chicken, and the othér “precious shield hooks,”* the compositioh of wh{eh I could not learn, 4 ‘ 37. Last, but not least, with the exception of huge bowls of rice brought in to fill up the corners, the dish that in these lands takes the place of bread—a sort of sweet pilau, called “‘the eight precious things.” ———_+e Dyspeptic Oranges. From the Kansas City Journal. A mysterious disease which has attacked many orange trees in Florida has been discovered to be indigestion. The Depart- ment of Agriculture in its “Year Book” pays special attention to dyspeptic oranges, and describes the disease and its cure. Its cause is the same as that which so often brings on disease in human beings—over- feeding. Excessive cultivation and too much nitrogenous manure affect the orange tree just as too much heavy table d’hote dinners affect a man. Instead of looking pale and taking pepsin tablets, however, the orange tree turns a very dark green, and a reddish brown sap exudes from the twigs. The tips turn up and shape them- selves into S-like-curves. The fruit turns a lemon yellow color before it is half ripe, ‘and has a very thick rind. As it ripens, the fruit splits open and becomes worth- less. The reddish brown resin gets on the fruit before it is ripe and renders it un- salable. ham, FOR DYSPEPSIA Use Horsford’s Acid Phosphate. Dr. C. B. LANNEAU, Charleston, 8. used it with benefit for a member of who was suffering from ds: I good preparation.” Highest of all in Leavening Power—Latcst U.S. Gov’t Report ~~~ HANDSOME PETTICOATS. Some Suggestions Which Will Inter- est the Ladies. ‘There is not a woman living who is not susceptible to the charms of a gown w:th a pretty inner finish, or the fascinations of LEgsome lingerie. These are two things which even the fabled naw woman will stop to admire. And now that we are talking of lingerie, we might as weil remark that, ex- travagant,though it may be, those silks with large patterns are used for petticoats, which are so pretty that ladies who own them often wear them for dress skirts, with dainty tea jackets, for lounging purposes. To be sure, they haven't so many gores as a dress skirt, but they have flounces enough to compensate. First there is the pinked flounce of soft taffeta; then a pleated one of the material ef the skirt; then a fluff of ac- cordeon-pleated chiffon, veiled with exquis- ite lace. The top may be finished here and there with a tiny bow of ribbon. A pretty design shown me by a modiste was finished at the top of the upper flounce with a band of ribbon run through a puff of chiffon. To examine a few of the skirts on sale in the large stores, one would infer that the cost of a petticoat is merely a matter of flounces, averaging about $5 to the flounce. Silk skirts with one flounce can be bought for from $4 to $8, according to the quality of the silk and the elegance of the finishings. The nicest skirts have three or four rows of cording in the flounce, which add greatly to their usefulness in keeping the edge of the dress skirt In place. And right here, thouga it seems dreadfully out of keeping with ail this talk of elegant silks and laces which trost of us can only dream about, let us come down to the possibilities of the average purse in the matter of petticoats. A very nice dark skirt is made of black sateen. -Everybody knows that, and every- body knows so that sateen alone is very Imp and useless as a support to the present skirt. A flounce or two of moreen will rem- difficulty, making a useful and re- ly ornamental petticoat which can be bought ready-made for 9 cents, and, if home-made, should not be more than 50 je skirts of moreen are very useful, but are rather stiff and harsh. Some sateen skirts have a flounce of moreen and another wide one of silk corded around the edge to make it flare. These sell for %. As summer approaches, we shall see fancy petticoats of grass linen to match the linen bati dresses of which everybody will have at least one. Some of the things we can have are the fascinating things mode out of grass linen, or French linon batiste, as the shop folks say. They have thought of everything There are handkerchiefs, hats and purasols of it. Shoes are not made of the linen itseif, but com? in canvas to match. Shirt waists galore are mate of it. Many of the new shirt waists have these SI hion for which we shall rateful on hot summer days, end which we will bewail when it comes to ning the snowy evening dress with its Ty setting to our sunbrowned arms. But in this discussion of petticoats we have digressed from the vision of magnifi- cent gowns worn by people of magnificent ruree. The majority of the gowns had im- mense figures, The brocade was not general- ly utilized in the waist, but formed only the skirt, being combined with plain silk or vays correct. Evening is time whcn ermine is seen, nowa- days; it is too expensive for ordinary people, as are mosi of the things I have been talk- ing about, but one likes to get a flecting glimpse of loveliness now and then, even if it isn’t poesible to possess it. Those large figured silks and satins that jcok like flaming bannerg hung up in the windows are a puzzle to the utilitarian, w: cannot imagine an ordinary woman appez ing in such garb. They look as if they m' make very pretty hangings or draperies for a window or the walls of a handsome boudoir where there is room for a figure to spend itself before it reaches an edge or a seam. But after one has seen the effect of one of those immense seven-yard skirts made out of silk or satin, with a corresponding colossal figure of leaves, or fanciful scrolls, or bunch- €s of flowers, then one believes that they are magnificent, and not at all out of keepin especially when worn by a large woman. SLIPS OF THE TONGUE. Some Amusing Instances of Words 2 That Become Twisted. From the Youth's Companion, A youth who had in a performance of “Richard III” to recite the words, “My lerd, the Duke of Buckingham is taken,” came in shaking with stage fricht brought down the house by shouting out: “My lord, the Buck of Dukingham is taken!” An English clergyman who was given oc- casionally to such transpositions used one day in a sermon as an illustration the scene at Lucknow, when Jessie Brown calls out: “Dinna ye hear the pibroch and the slo- gan?” But he pronounced it: “Dinna ye hear the slobroch and the pigan?” He did not know that he had made the biunder until a friend told him of it after the service, and then he was so much hu- miliated that at the close of the evening service he took occasion to say to the con- “I am told that this morning I I meant to have the blessi Another minister could never say, “Sweet for bitter and bitter for sweet,” and as the service called for the utterance of these words on occasion, his congregation had to steel themselves to hear without a burst of laughter the phrase, “Switter for beet, and beet for switter.” Macready has told of an actor who, in rendering the words, “the poisoned cup,” constantly said “the coisoned pup,” to the great delight of his audiences. At last he managed, by much practice, to control his utterances so that in a public performance he pronounced the phrase co:rectly. Instantly there was an uproar; the au- dience missed its customary fun, and would not let the man proceed until he had given the “‘coisoned pup” instead. Then he was consoled with shouts of applause. —_—_+oo—__ Passing Styles in Jewelry. Interview in Philadelphia Thnes. “Here is a drawer full of coral jewelry. I cannot sell it at any price! Here is a coral set I paid 2,200 érancs for. You can have it for $10. Why? Out of fashion, and no one can tell whether It will again become the mode for half a century. Here is a cat’s- eye—they are ell a species of garnet—that cost me 800 francs. It has no price at ail upoa it now. A few years ago ‘melee’ dia- monds formed in setiings were the rage. ‘What do I mean by ‘melee?’ They are the small brilliants, ranging from one-quarier down to the one-sixty-fourth of a carat. | Here is a ‘melee’ brooch for which three years ago I asked $720; I can duplicate it now for But three years ago ‘melee’ diamonds sold for $60 and $700 a carat; now they have very little vaiue.” THE WIZARD WITH THE WHIP. An Every-Day Matter With Teamsters in the West. From Tid Bite, A decided sensaton has been created in Vienna by a man who probably stands alone in the world in his particular line of per- fermance. This genileman’s name is Pisk- sicg, and he is an Austro-Hungarian by h. He fs an crpert, or, rather, a phe- romenal artist, in the use of the whip. The first thing he does is to take a long- lashed, stout-handled whip in each hand, and, with orchestral accompaniment, pro- ceed to crack or snap them at a terrific rate. The sound made by his whips in this manner is graduated from a noise like a rifle report to the soft click of a billiard ball. It makes a curious sort of music, and serves to show how he can regu- late the force of each stroke. More interest, however, is evinced when he scizes a vicious-locking whip with. an abnormally long lesh. It is provided with a very heavy handle of medium length. This is his favorite toy, and what he can do with it is really wonderful. He first gives an idea of what fearful force there Les in a whip jash in the hands of an ex- pert. Z A large frame, over which Is stretched @ calf or sheep skin, is brought on the stage. 7 is marked with dots of red paint. ‘The man with the whip steps up and, swinging the lash round his head, lets fiy at the calfskin. With cvery blow he actually pulls a piece right out from the leather, leaving a long-cut hole. These pieces are distribute? among the audience to show that there is no trick- ery about the performance. After this he takes a frame with three shelves. On these there are a dozen or more of medium-sized apples lying very close together and pro- vided with iarge numbers. Any one in the audience may designate which apple he wishes strvck, and the unerring lash snatches it out like a flash. As more difficult feat is the snapping of coins from a narrow-necked bottle. A piece of silver abcut the size of half a crown ia put over the cork of the bottle, which stands on the edge of a table. The whip artist, without appearing to take any sort of aimy sends the long lash whizz’ng through the eir and picks cff the coin with- out jarring the bottle, much less breaking it. Some see Smypathetic, From Truth. Mrs. O'Toole—“Ownly think, Mrs. Mulll- gan, thot baby ov Mrs. Finnigin’s fell the whole of foive stories, an’ wusn’t hurt a bit” Mrs. Mulligan—“Poor woman—an’ she wid sivin ov thim ter support!”