LADIES' COLUMN.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13520, 15 February 1908, Page 3 (Supplement)

LADIES' COLUMN.

HATPINS AND EYES. War against the hatpin point is nmv being waged in Moscow. It was provoked by im> accidents which recently occured in consequence of the abuse of this formidable article of toilet, and now the habit i.f carrying such dangerous weapons unsheathed i* loudly resented by the general public. A few days ago. alter a concert directed by Niki3cb, the audience was, as usual, "making a hurried exit. The lobing-room was thronged, the enthusiastic votaries, of music, male and female, elbowed each other fortissimo. One of the ladies putting on her hat inadvertently ran a superfluous length of pin into her neighbour's eye. A scream, a congestion of the crowd", a short, sharp war of tongues, and the incident was over . A few days previously a similar mishap had occurred in a tramear. A lady having dropped her reticule, a student quickly and courteously j-tooped clown to secure it for her. As always happens in such cases. the lady -also stopped down. The youth, unaware of this, raised his head swiftly. and, her hatpin stretching'out an inch or two bevond the brim struck out his eyeFor a time the other eye was also in danger.

Now the editor of a Moscow newsapper makes a strong apjieal to the good sense of the fair sex to discontinue- such a dangerous and unnecessary practice. In St. Petersburg University circles, also, much irritation and dhcnssion hawbeen aroused by undue extravagance in ladies' toilet. It is only quite recently that women have been admitted within the precincts of the temple of wisdom, and onlv as "outside auditors." not as students. Most of the privileged ladies, it appear?, devote themselves by preference to a study of the aesthetics of dress, and appear in the lecture rooms in picture-hats of marvellous shapes, in dainty gowns that rivet attention as they sweep the dusty corridors, and in blouses that are poems in silk or crepe de chine. And as for ribbons, the brooches, the latest thing in Wits, and the artistic designs of buckles, the unfortunate male student, especially of the bachelor persuasion, is literally spellbound. He Ss not in a fit frame of mind ti> pore iiTi-r must-.- old vol onus: In-resem-bles Hercules in the power of Omphale. A WOMAN AND HEM HAIRPIN. Tin? following amusing correspondence respecting an article recently reprinted from The Dominion, beaded "Man and his pockets." luts ap|wared in the columns of onr Wellington comieniporary:—Dear Dominica.—Much as I was impressed by your admirable article on "A Man and his Pockets," it did not quite convince me that, one hairpin could be a tolerable, substitute for my twelve pockets and their contents. But you shall read how I was converted. I asked a lady, who had read vour; article, to lend me » hairpin, as 1 wanted to sharpen my pencil. I thought that simple request would show ncr once for all the pitiable ineffectiveness of wo-, man's vaunted tool, implement and weapon. But the lady quietly said. "Give me the pencil." Then, drawing a hairpin from the soft resting-place which did it so much honour, she used one iioint of it to break away a little of the wood around Un-worn-down point of the pencil—and I could use it again. It was sharpened quite enough for my purposes. I was answered, convinced, confounded. I will not believe anvthing you may state on the merits of hairpins. My next nse of the pencil which had been "honoured by this remarkable demonstration shall be to subscribe myself THE MEREST MAN. P.S.—I take all that back. 1 beard the ladV ask for th'e loan of a knife to sharpen' her (yes. her) pencil. And her coiffure was simply bristling with hairpins.' Inconsistency, thy name is not T.M.M. "There are thirty-one uses of a hairpin, and seventy-three emergencita in which it is of assistance." .The sharpening of lead pencils surely conies under the emergency heading. A woman would be unwise if she dug away at the woodwork of a pencil when a man was near her with a knife he was willing to lend. DOMINICA. From a correspondent signing lierself "Feminina" comes a circumstantial account of the help a hairpin gave her in an emergency when her husband, with all his pockets, was quite at a loss. It seems that during the Christmas week "Femina" returned late one night with her husband from a picnic, and fonnd on arriving at home that he had left- the latch-key inside the pocket of the coat hanging up in the wardrobe. They found a window into a smalt entrv was open, but when they climbed through that, it was only to find the inner door wa? locked. "Femnina" t-ll* how. by mentis "f a hairpin, "he succeeded in opening that door within five minutts. It »> an interesting story, but "Dominica" feels that, for the safeguarding of private property, it 5s best, not to publish the account of how it was done. Another hairpin experience may I>e related here, which was told us by a man. who spoke with ail humbleness and contrition of spirit. Moving once into a house in an Australian village he said, where the residences were merely lined with canvas and paper {the custom of the place) it became a matter of difficulty to hang the pictures in their desired places. Paterfamilias undertook to get sonic rods and place them across the wall, and promised to "make enquiries." Upon returning horned however, the pictures were all in their proper places. The good wife had hung them with hairpins, which she had hent into the form of a pot-hanger, and hooked into the wall. No mere man would have thought of such a contrivance. WHAT CUPID COSTS. "There's nothing half so sweet in life as love's voung dream," sings the poet. Perhaps, not. and these are few things asi costly, when the Romeo of the affair is a man of wealth. Take, for instance, the case of a young man whose purse is practicaly unlimited, and whose efforts to please the lady of lib choice are therefore unfettered by the matter of cost .

Dinner-parties form one of the chief items. He is- prob;»l>ly the owner of a town and a country house, and at. one of these the festivities takes place. If it were possible for him to entertain the lady alone, it would be a small matter, but this convention* forbid. She may only be „ n€ —the one. of course—of a large gathering. Kite others are annoying but necessary adjuncts to the occasion. The host will most probably tind. it necessary to increase his staff of servants for the "event. Then unheard-of delicacies must be provided, at whatever cost. Perhaps hi? will spend £25 on a single orchid bloom for her to wear. There may also lie tloral favours for the other guests, and decoration.* for the table. One hundred pounds, and ofteu much more, will be tequired for this feature alone. The actual dinner may cost, sav, £2OO. A party of mu-tieiatw and entertainer,- t" perform afterwards will run to at ft.ist -another £IOO-

AH told. £6OO will barely cover the ex ptnses of one evening's amusement, and rhi- will occur three nr four time- a. vear - meanini £I.BCO to £2.500 in all. And this is onlv part of the year's expenditure. The ardent lover early in the day learns his [nlv's favourite tlower. I ;« supply of these is >ent regnlarlv to her in the hope rhat she will 'think" of thgivtr while admiring thr gift So thf languagee of flowers is ro.»ttv. It seldom works out at less than £IOO a year, and v.>metime« v ery in»;?» more

Again, lie .'• ml >l|. e-.nilti.t go ah 11.-. A v:iliirti;iltt i.[ fi-ii iiilv is m ces.,ary. and in making tin- selection it grows until ;m oittI;iy i>! £ICO :.. me, .any. Quite po«-ihly iui of tii— occur in mi,- vcar. so here is another £IOOO.

In the meantime the wooer wishes t" create a grind impirssioii so h.- sludi s Irs wardrobe. He does not like to let her see him wearing the same suit or the same scarf twice.

He also buys new rings, studs, watchfobs, walking-sticks, and lie-pins. 100. to dazzle her. Mi.-t of llic-e he would not requite in the ordinary coiner of events, so they may be counted in his '•courting expenses."

Then, on even- availablec occasion—at Christmas. Easter, and on her birthday, if slie condescends to inform him when this occurs—he may offer her valuable presents, usually of jewellery, running into hundreds of pounds. These, of course, will ultimately return to him, even in the event of a broken engagement. Then there are yachting parlies, motor runs. theatre tickets, and Tin-nliei-l-vs other attentions which young ladies expect, and which tire all expens-'ve. • ••' rite must stop somewhere. Even this brief survey makes it clear that- an ardent lover can easily spend thousands of pounds a year at the behest of Dan Cupid.

And this would be in the course of -.t very ordinary courtship. Of course, in many instances the young man will find an extraordinary way of showing his love, and. incidentally, spending his money. For instance, at a baiup'"t given by a waltby sw-ain recently to his "fayre ladye"' the wines alone cost- £I.OOO. This can only however, he described as a '* freak." HINTS AND RECIPES. Strong hot vinegar will remove paint from window glass. A greasy- sink is best cleaned -with a flannel on which litis been tmurcd ;i little paraffin oil. Cakes in which the yolks of eggs are used require less heat, than cakes made with the whites, since the yolks are a> rich they bum quickly. After cleaning silver plate it should be polished with a clean cotton llannel. The polishing cloth should bo kept quite free from dust ; and plate experts, cut-ting the flannel into 15in square, store it in dustproof boxes, and tee a frtsh piece each time

Discolouration.* are caused on furniture chiefly from dust and dirt. If warm water in which has been dissolved a little cast He soap is applied with a soft cotton or linen cloth any discolourations may be removed. Afterwards rub furniture briskly with anotlier cloth. If windows are hard to move melt a tablespoonful of lard and pour a little between window frame and casing, and also a little on the roller and rope. Jt works like magic. This is a good thing to know wlien the frames arc swollen from being closed during rainv weather. To Clean White Fur Necklets: Put the fur on a clean deal table, and rub it with bran moistened with hot water. Rub with a llannel till the fur is quite dry. then with a piece of book muslin apply dry bran in the same way. Then put some powdered magnesia, into a- muslin bag and thoroughly rub ilie fur.

Sachet Powders : A quarter of a pound of powdered orris-root, and three -quarters of an ounce of powdered clove-: and cinnamon make » delicious sachet powder. Pound and mix very thoroughly, fill little bags with the mixture, and place them among your belongings. The powder needs to be renewed every few months. •To Clean Paint: When cleaning paint use two pails of water and two sponges. In one pail dissolve s-ome dry soap, and with this wash the paint thoroughly. Then rinse with the clean water in the other pail, and dry the paint by wringing the sponge out. This method does not' injure the varnish. Good for the Throat: Every morning, before dressing, sponge the neck, throat, and chest with cold water, and rub drv with a. large bath towel;not only will this make you less liable to take cold, but it will broaden the chest and fill out the unsightly little hollows. The throat also will soon become round and firm.

Keeps the Hair in Curl: Mix two ounces of borax, one drachm of gum arable, and one quart of boiling water. Stir it. and as soon as tlie ingredients are dissolved add three tablespoonfuls of strong spirits of camphor. Those who put their hair in curlers at night should first damp it with this liquid, and then curl it as usual.

Trim :ind cut lamb chops half an inch thick, flatten them slightly, roll in flour, and fry in butter for five minutes. iPake up and arrange on a round dish, pour brown sauce on the outside, and fill the centre with green peas. The remains of a cold leg, loin, or neck of mutton, pepper and salt to taste, two blades of ponnded mace, one dessertspoonfnl of chopped parsley, one tablespoonful of mixed savoury herbs, when, liked, a little minced onion, or shallot, 'three or four potatoes, one teacupful of gravy, crust. Cold mutton may be made into very good pies if well seasoned and mixed with p few herbs: if the leg is nsed, cut it into very thin slices, if the loin or neck, into thin cutlets. Place some at the bottom of the dish, season well with pepper, salt, mace, parsley, and herbs, then put ;i layer of potatoes sliced, then more mutton, and so on till the dish is full, add the giavy. cover with- crust and bake one hour.

Thoroughly cleanse, and cut away the outer leaves of a firm, fresh cauliflower. Boil it in plenty of well-salted water Tintil nearly tender, then drain carefully and divide into tiny sprigs. Season these lightly with salt and pepper, and dip them separately into some rich, well-made frying batter. Xo\r drop the batter-covered .sprigs carefully into a saucepan containing some generous supply of boiling fat, and let them remain until a golden brown. When done, drain well, in order to render the sprigs crisp and dry. Then pile up tastefully in a hot., neatly-folded napkin. Insert sprigs of parsley here and there, and serve immediatley." This is an excellent company dish, as it is both dainty looking and delicious. l*nt two dessertspoonfuls of crushed sugar into a tin pan. I<ct it stand on the i stow till it begins (o brown: then stir I constantly till it is a thick black syrup. Pour it into a quart of scalding milk, add six ounces*of white sugar and the yoiks of six eggs. Heat and pour into cups set in it pan of" hot water in the oven, and bake twenty minutes.

Oite quart- of milk, one-third of a box of gelatine, four tablespoons of sugar, three egss. vanilla flavour. Tut the gelatine in inilk and let it stand for half an hour. ISeat the yolk well with sugar and stir into the milk." Set the kettlo in a pan of hot water, and stir until the mixture begins to thicken like soft custard. Have ready the whites of eggs beaten to a stiff froth, and the momenVthe kettle is taken from the. tire stir them in quickly and turn into the moulds. Set away in a cool place to harden. This makes a cool, refreshing dessert. It is a good substitute for ice eteain. It can be eaten bv most sick persons, and is attended with none of the evils of ice-cream.