LADIES' GOSSIP.

Otago Witness, Issue 3003, 4 October 1911, Page 73

LADIES' GOSSIP.

music she shall not be taught it," Queen Wilhelmina is reported to have said the other day. Her Majesty -'hath no music in her soul," and is not in the least ashamed to say so. When she was 6ix she was taken to the piano. Even in those days she had the capacity-of putting her foot down. She smacked the piano and said she hated' it. A few years late? Queen Emma, her mother again said that she was growing up ana must learn to play; but her daughter differed. There is nothing some people won't do in order to bo able to eay they have made a "record"—that they have Idone something no one else has ever done Defore. This lady —Miss Marie Stoll, of Philadelphia—'set her heart on making the ascent of the Winkelhorn—a high and difficult mountain in the Southern Tyrol—■ by night instead of by day. And she ha* done it— : and paid! her guide a special fee of for'his services. Most of us would not consider the gam© worth the candle. ?' Most of us could find other uses for'£looo if we had it-to-spare! ?• r— The Begum of Bhopai, after being present at the Coronation, spent a fortnight in Geneva before returning to Bombay. She arrived with 82 boxes and departed with, 243, which filled two large trucks. Each box was heavily laden with Swiss goods of all kinds, from silks and chocolates to wood carvings and musica/ boxes. .The- Begum out som< jewellers' ~shops. She bought "a largr quantity of jewels, including" 4022 golq and silver watches. Such a customer hai not visited Geneva since the time of Byron and'the English milords -.of long ago. ,'- ■;:':' Miss Constance Mather, daughter and heiress of Samuel Mather, a multd-million-aire capitalist of Cleveland, Ohio, has started for Labrador as a missionary.. Miss Mather lias abandoned the social Efe of a millionaire's daughter to teach Arctio children, to which work she will devote most of her missionary labours. Her father is one of America's foremost .philanthropists. She became interested in work in Labrador last winter during a visit to heir father's home of Sir Wilfred ■and Lady Grenfell, who have accomplished such splendid missionary results in the Labrador regions. —'Miss Alice Longfellow, daughter of the poet, was one of the most picturesque fibres atl the parmartben Eisteddfod. Though Miss Longfellow describes th« singing of the choirs as magnificent, sh« was, the Christian World says, most of all impressed Avith the singing of tb.4 little children, whose, sweet voices contrasted favourably, to her, with the harsh and shrill voices in,, America. A further pleasure "' the poet's daughter was he* meeting <vith Mr Coleridge-Taylor, a musical adjudicator at the Eisteddfod and composer of the popular musical setting of Longfellow's "Hiawatha." Miss Longfellow, by the way, points out that the pronunciation used by her father was! "He-awa/fcha," the accent on the first

syllable being slighter than on the "wa," the "a" sounded like "a" in "mar," not "war." Miss Longfellow has silvery white hair, and bears a remarkable likeness to the portraits of her illustrious iather. Hints and Siiffft'estions If you heat the knife slightly you can cut hot bread as smoothly as cold. It is said that if ptarsloy is eaten with onions or a salad, the odour of the onion will not afiect the breath. If you want your silk skirt to retain its freshness, sew loops under the flounces, and hang it upside down when not in iwje. Hanging it in this way freshens it up, and gives it quite a new lease of life. To season an omelet pan a,nd prevent sticking, cover the bottom of the pan with a .tittle salt, and stand the pan over the gas until the salt turns colour. Empty it away, and proceed to make the omelet. The same rule applies to pancakes. A polish that does not remove the lacquer from brass is made of half a pint of turpentine, half a pint of methylated spirits, and one gall of sweet oil. Mix together, and shake well before using. To clean marble, mix of soda (powdered) with 2oz of finely-powered pumicestone and 2oz of chalk. Pass through a sieve, then make into paste with water, and rub on the marble. Wash off ..with soap and water. When the knees of the trousers begin to look baggy, turn, the legs inside out, spread flat on a table, lay a cloth wrung out of cold water over the baggy part, and iron well. That will make the trousering quite damp. Then take away the oloth you laid on top and iron • over the damp patch until it is thoroughly dry. This treatment shrinks the material and does away with the bagginess. Affcerwairds fold carefully and press either in a trousers press or under a heavy weight. Lemon juice sweetened with loaf or crushed Sugar will cure a cough. Lemon juice used as a gargle will relieve a sore throat. A cloth soaked in lemon juice will stop the bleeding of cuts if bound about them tightly. Lemon and glycerine make an excellent lotion for the hands if applied before going to bed. It will remove roughness and vegetable stains from the hands. After having the hands in hot soapsuds rub with a piece of lemon. This will prevent chapping,, and makes the hands soft and white. Art muslin curtains should never be washed in warm water. Make a lather with hot water, and when it is nearly cold wash the curtains. If these are green, add a little vinegar; if lilac or pink, a little ammonia. Salt will set the colour of black and white-muslin. Now that cretonnes and chintzes are used so universally about the house, this cleaning suggestion should be invaluable, as it can be adapted in the home so easily. Take lib of rice and boil in a gallon of water until quite soft, strain off about one quart of the milky water in a separate vessel, and add to it a piece of gum ardtric about the size of a small egg. This is to be set aside and used for starch a little later on. To the remainder of water and rice add enough warm water to wash the curtains in. Instead of soap;, nib the curtains with a handful of boiled, rice, and souse the cretonne up and down many times. Rinse in clear water, and finally starch with water as prepared above. The cretonne or chintz material should be ironed when partly ilry, and not allowed to dry and then sprinkled, and a medium hot iron should be used. If this method is followed the hangings will be like new. / Cleaning Carpets. —Take a pail of cold rain water and add to it three pints of gall. Rub it well into the dirty carpet after it has been well beaten. After a good lather has been raised on the carpet, wash off with clean cold rain water if you have -it; then stretch over a line to dry; a windy day without much sunshine is best; and you will see the improvement in your carpet. ..,"".