LADIES’ GOSSIP.

Otago Witness, Issue 3214, 20 October 1915, Page 67

LADIES’ GOSSIP.

One of the richest actresses in England is Miss Lillah M'Carthy, the wife of Mr Granville Barker. Under her father’s will she came into a fortune some time ago of £50,000. Lady Gertrude Crawford, who is making munitions at Erith, has for many years been highly skilled in the use of the lathe, and in her workshop at her homo in the New Forest has turned out work which has astounded her friends. Lady Frances Balfour, who is interesting herself keenly in the problem of women’s place in the nation after the war is over, has for long been a staunch advocate of women’s suffrage, although she admits that some women have a queer idea of politics, such as the old Scottish lady who said : “Why should poor women not have something to sell.’’ Little John Jacob Astor, born in August, ' 1912, after the death of his father in the Titanic, cannot live on

1 £4OOO a year, the amount allowed by j the court for his maintenance. The total i income from the estate is £28.000 a year, [ and Mrs Madeline Force Astor, Ids ' mother, has pointed out that she has been compelled to pay for the infant £BBOO out of. her own pocket. Lady Constance Richardson, famous for her barefoot dances, is the daughter of the late Earl of Cromarty and the grand-daughter of a former Duke and Duchess of Sutherland. The Duchess of Sutherland was an especial friend of Queen Victoria, and this fact had made Lady Constance’s plunge into barefoot dancingall the more striking. She married Sir Edward Austin Stewart Richardson, member of a very old Scottish family. In her girlhood she performed remarkable feats of riding, shooting, skating, and swimming. The Order of the Royal Rod Cross, which was founded on St. George’s Day, 1883, is a decoration reserved for women only. It is given for merit and valour displayed in nursing, particularly army and navy nursing, and consists of a red and blue ribbon —colours significant of the fighting servicer—with a scarlet crocs inscribed with the words “Faith, Hope, and Charity.” The Order of St. John of Jerusalem —a little Maltese cross, bearing the words “For Service in the Cause of Humanity,” attached to a black ribbon, can also be won by women. 1 lie First Pair of If, in these days of knitting activity, it is possible that there is yet a novice in the art, it may encourage some to know

that the knitting of one’s first pair of socks need not be dreaded if the beginner will supply herself with two sets of needles and start both socks at the same time, working a few rows of each alternately. In this way the difficulty of heel-turning disappears to a great extent, for, if the socks keep pace, and as soon as one heel is turned the other is done, the memory gets a grip of the art which is not readily forgotten. For children especially this plan is to be recommended, for keeping one sock up to the other stimulates the interest, which is apt to flag when the novelty of knitting one’s first sock has worn off and there is yet another to be started, with the possibility of the rules of heel-turning having become somewhat hazy in one’s mind. It is surprising how quickly a pair of socks can be finished when done in this way. Tare of Our Boots and Shoes, Boots and shoes will be much dearer in future than they are now, and the only way to cope with the increase will be to exercise extraordinary care in the use of our footwear. They should be kept on trees when not in use; the same pair should not be used two days- running, and when they look heavy and “not new” —a condition brought about by the too strenuous efforts of the housemaid—they can be made fresh again by sponging them well with warm water to remove the excess of polish and then repolishing ; the grain of the leather will come up at once like new. It is better not to wait until shoes or boots require re-soling, but to have them “clubbed” or demisoled on top of the first sole. This will prevent water getting in, even on the worst, day; one of the great objections usually to re-soled boots is that they let in the wet even when the sole looks quite strong. War Medals for Women. The men engaged in munition makingin England will be eligible after the war is over for a special “industrial war medal,” but the women who are engaged

ill various kinds of war work have nothing, in spite of the work they are doing to replace men at the front, and the Duchess of Marlborough, who is always the champion of women, is asking that those who, in the words of the Board of Trade, “by working, help to release a man, or equip a man for fighting,” shall be eligible for the industrial war medal, though they have not been given the war service button. The Duchess points out that in Russia all honours and decorations are conferred on women doing men’s work, and King Albert of Belgium has recently bestowed the Order of Leopold on the women members of one of our field ambulances. In these circumstances she thinks it would amount to an invidious distinction if women were rendered ineligible for the industrial war medal. Have You a Piece Drawer? If not, now 7 that economies are the order of the day, bv all means start one. First of all, keep a box for millinery odds and ends. When a hat is shabby and out of date, don’t burn it or give it away to the charlady. Instead unpick it, sponge the ribbons or velvet, and neatly put away in rolls. Flowers and feathers should go into a smaller box by themselves. Even the old shapes ought to be put away in a hat box, for it is wonderful what changes can be rung on shapes by a little alteration in the width of a brim or the height of a crown. As for tire bits of silk that come off one’s hats, if these are sponged they can often be

used for the pipings and buttons that trim a dress. We have all grown too extravagant in these days. ‘‘l never mend/’ said a working-class mother the other day. “When things are done I use them for dusters and floorcloths, and buy new.” To such as these, the old adage of ‘‘Keep a thing seven years and it will come in, and if it does not. then keep it another seven years,” has little meaning, and yet what useful, warm garments for children may be made out of half-worn things that are no longer fit for their elders to wear. Keep a piece drawer, and see -what it is worth to you in pounds, shillings, and pence before you have had it very long. r i lie Mourn ins- of To-day. What was once called “heavy mourning” is practically a thing of the past. No one spends a small fortune and endures tortures in crape-trimmed bonnets and cumbersome draperies. Indeed, the tendency is every day to lighten the very depressing effect of a great deal of unrelieved black. Even in the deepest mourning it is now quite correct to wear a tiny frill, or collar of white lisse, and hats, coats, and skirts all follow the prevailing style, and are suited to the season. Yet there arc certain minor points that still distinguish mourning from ordinary black. Satin is never admissible. Indeed, it may be accepted that any gleaming fabric, bright straw-hat, or dress accessory is wrong. It may he black, but it is not mourning. For this reason suede gloves should bo worn, and suede or dull calf shoes, not patent leather. Again, veils must he of plain net. or lisse —never figured or spotted : and for first mourning they should always have an inch wide hem of lisse. The Care of Clo Hies. Now that it is so necessary for everybody to economise, we should all bo particular about the care of our clothes, par-

ticularly of cm* tailor-made coats and skirts and costumes. Both the coat and skirt should always be well and thoroughly brushed before being put away; and when hanging the garments up in a wardrobe, the skirt should bo suspended from the waist by two loops, and the coat slung on a shoulder hanger. You can get the latter for a few pence. Any slight tear should be mended immediately, and buttons and braid that have a tendency to become loose firmly secured. As everybody knows, a tailor-made will lad fresh for a considerable time if treated after this fashion. And in war time, when material is precious, it is our duty to do everything ws can think of to make it last longer, Hints and If a gloss is desired on linen add a teaspoonful of salt to the starch when making. When you are putting new wicks into your lamps, soak them thoroughly in vinegar first, and dry them well; they wiiJ last longer and burn more brightly, too, A normal skin—that is, a skin that is neither too dry nor too greasy-—is kept in very goad condition by the application of a little sweet almond’ oil every night after washing the face. Before beginning to fry onions or boil a cabbage see that the kitchen window is open at the top. and also draw back the grating above the stove, even if this is only open a little way the smell from whatever is being cooked will have a means of escape, instead of filling the kitchen and penetrating the other narts of t. e house. If this is forgotten, it is a go al plan to have some cedar wood dust, at hand (o u e, a little scattered over the hot stove gives off a pleasant odour, ( which will prevent the smells from being { noticeable. j Newspapers cut as finely as possible j make a good filling for cushions. StockI ings, if ravelled, can be used to make j mats and rugs; they can aho be used i for the inside of ironholders. To remove scratcb.es from furniture rub with a mixture of turpentine and linseed oil, in equal parts, and polish with a go d furniture cream. If you have small cm tains put up on a thin white rod you will find that the rod bends and sags a little in the centre. To prevent this unsightliness, knock a sms!) nail into the framework of the window. This will give support to the curtain rod. If you can keep a little perforated enamel sink basket in your sink for collecting tea leaves and scraps, you will never be bothered with a stopped pipe. When your washing-up is done, always let the cold tap run for a -few minutes, so that the trap or “U” bend under tha sink is filled with clear, fresh water instead of dirty washing-up water. Sponge wooden bedsteads with a solution of hot alum and water; iron ones with a cloth damped with paraffin. Cover the. slats with fresh brown paper to prevent marking the mattrass. To clean wicker and cane chairs soueeze the juice of two lemons into a pail of hot water, wash with this and dry in the sun. The white of an egg can be used for repairing torn books, for glueing on small pieces of wood chipped off furniture, to clean and renovate a black straw hat, to clean and renovate leather chairs and sofas. These should be polished afterwards with a soft duster. For mixing a mustard piaster if the white of an egg is used instead of water the plaster will not blister tire skin. To Prevent Steel from Rusting.—After cleaning and when not in use take a cloth with a very little sweet oil on it, and wipe the articles over so as to slightly hut evenly oil the surface. Steel knives which are not in general use may be kept from rusting if they are dipped in a strong solution of soda ; one part water to four of soda, then wipe dry, roll m flannel, and keep in a dry place. If suet is kept in a flour-bin, and well covered with the flour, it will remain fresh for many days.—When making pastry for savouries, add a squeeze of lemon juice tn the water used for mixing the flour. It gives an excellent flavour.—-To set a jelly quickly stand the mould in a basin, fill the basin with water to reach nearly to the top of the mould, then put a handful of kitchen salt into the water. The jelly will set in half the usual time. If a woman of 35 hasn't a double chin, nine times out of ten she has hollows under it. This is a cure for it. Take a bit of down or a small feather, throw back the head, and blow the feather high in the air five minutes daily. Fly-proof covers for milk jugs and other vessels containing food are necessary in the hot weather. They can be easilymade in the following wav:-—Cut out “rounds” of different sizes from a piece of strong white Brussels net. The not should be double, so that each size is duplicated, and an inch larger than the vessel it is to cover. Take these “rounds” of net. keeping them double, and buttonhole the edges with white flax, threading a glass bead on with each stitch. The beads weight the cover, and make it impossible for a draught to blow it off the vessel. These covers are easy to make, are very useful, and also are in good demand at bazaars. They are also easily washed and so kept clean. The secret of making good biscuits is in getting the dough of exactly the right consistency. It should bo just moist enough to be rolled out on a. floured board, but it must not be too dry, or the biscuit will bake hard, and bo unpalatable. You will need a little practice before you can get just the happy medium. Always have a very cool oven for biscuit-making. If you got it too hot, the bi-cuits may- burn, and they will certainly be very tough. Also you will not get them thoroughly cooked through. Always take great pains to mix your butter well in with the sugar or flour. It should be rubbed together with the tips of the fingers or the butter and sugar should be creamed together and the flour added later.

Creaking doors can often be silenced by rubbing the hinge •well with the lead of a pencil. If this fails, apply a little dripping. Save coffee grounds, dry them, add a pinch of carbonate of soda, and use on the knife-board instead of knife-powder. The mixture answers admirably.

To clean holland or linen blinds, spread them flat on the table and rub with dry bran, crumb of loaf, or flour. When cleaiiing t Ire paint round the skirting board it is sometimes difficult not to touch *he paper above. Hold a piece of tin a shield above the skirting as you clean the paint.