Women's INTERESTS

Hokitika Guardian, 18 May 1933, Page 3

Women's INTERESTS

THE STORY OF WOMAN IN SILK

THE HISTORY OF THE ACES

The history of silk throughout.,the ages is also the stpry of the evolution of woman from .the savage .state through .the period of drawing' selland love of beautiful things in medieval tinier, down to the cultured product of to-day. Four thousand years ,ago (says an Overseas writer), in the days of I he sages, Yao and Shun,, the elected. Emperors of the Golden Age in - Chitu, there was a great flood, and. after it subsided, it was found that the muchprized mulberry trees were covered witli millions of yellowish-grey caterpillars.

It was a woman, however, who saved them from extinction, because she noticed that the soft glossy cocoon .s from which these caterpillars merged yielded a lustrous fibre, that .was callable of being woven into a -material. She asked for time, to experiment , with the result that she was instrumental in bestowing a priceless gift upon her sex. Chinese merchants observed hoc. the new material enhanced the beauty of their women and took specimens of it with them on their journeys to the Mediterranean. • : .

Its success was immediate, the introduction, of the new fabric seemed to set the seal on the greatness o' each successive Empire. The King oi Syria clothed his queen in it; tlm women of Greeceutilised it for'then draperies; in Rome Imperial Caesar sent ambassadors to the East with precious stones to/barter for supplies oi silk for the Vestal Virgins of the Temple. Silk, however, was still a luxurv t< be worn. only by royalty or the ver y wealthy. In Eugli’ud, in the -.ay of the ancient Britons, -only Queen Boadicea could boast a robe made of silk and presented to her by a haughty proconsul in .exchange f°r certain Roman prisoners. .

lb was not until the time of Queen Elizabeth that silk came to be much more generally worn.‘By that time the industry had developed considerably; manufacture spreading to Sicily, then to Italy, Spa ip u . and the. -South of France where Lyons became the acknowledged. silk, centre, of .the world.. Later, when, women demanded ornanientation, brocade came into fashion, and in England it .was the . French Huguenot refugees who revived an art established in ’China centuries before'. V

USES OF CHARCOAL

ITS PURIFYING PROPERTSES

Charcoal has an extraordinary power of absorbing gases "and clarifying liquids.

A teaspoonful of powdered charcoal in a glass of water will’ relieve a sick headache or heartburn.

Charcoal has other good uses in the home, applied to a burn, it relieves the pain immediately,' and for wounds; and sores it forms an unrivalled poultice. To make it take Jld. of linseed meal and loz. of powdered charcoal.' Mix of charcoal with the meal and make like an ordinary poultice. Spread the mixture on linen, shake over 'the. remainder of the charcoal. and apply. /„ Washing out the mouth with powdered, .charcoal and water .will render the breath perfectly sweet.

A little charcoal mixed with clean water and poured down, a sjnk.will disinfect it and remove unpleasant, smells. A piece added to the. water in which cut flowers have been, arranged will greatly prolong their, life.

Class vessels and flower vases may be purified by placing charcoal in them for a.little time and then rinsing. Charcoal arrests the decay of animal substances. Poultry will keep fresh, if a piece of string is,tied round the neck to exclude the air, and a piece of charcoal put into the vent. Place a pan of charcoal in the larder and it will keep everything sweet and wholesome. There is pothing better than, a. layer of charcoal in a. filter for the purpose of purifying , water. Specially prepared charcoal for any of of the above purposes may be purchased very cheaply from a chemist.

COURTSHIP ,TN LANDS

SOME QUAINT CUSTOMS

It is said that marriage in Russia as an institution is now looked upon officially, 'if not actually, with dis-‘ conragement. Some quaint a-id prettyold customs will thereby -go out, of existence, especially among the peasantry. ?

In soipe parts of. rural Russia.-a man who wanted to .pay court to a girl would be asked to her father’s house, where he would find half a-dozen maidens or ..more sitting w.’th- shuvls oyer their heads, so that their faces were not seen. He would then. be. told th°t he would have to marrv the -g ;i 'l whose shawl he removed. Stonge. to say. always turned out to he ,the ••mp’den he loved J

, The Japanese proposal is Ijtft-.l'y “said with flowers.” The suitor (makes his choice known by casting, a of plum blossom into the. gir ! as. she is carried bv. Tf she it out again he is rejected,, and had better look out for another girl. If she fastens the flowers, in her obi, or sash, the angwer js .“Ves.”

Hints from Home and Hiroad.

Or the Japanese lover will tie a branch of some pretty flowering plant to the girl’s door. She rejects his proposal by letting the blosSom s wither and,die. T’he contrary answer, is made by ; taking in the flowers and tending them. Then it pflly .remains for the terms of the marriage contract to be duly.discussed. -

This pretty ipode of wooing is /not typio lly Extern, for most Oriental peop]. e are the least sentimental of mortals over their courtships—if they can bo called by that name. The bride of -.•Morocco, for instance*: is never courted at all, and cloeg not see her husband until after the ceremony. In China there is also no court ship. Mi tclies are arranged by a professional go-between. The father of a young man , tells , the matchmaker that h € desires a bride to be .found for hd son, and the .go-betweens does (he rest. No sentiment there! (

The same system obtains among'the Malaya and the Cfing le-se. In .fact, it i s only in Europe that young men ~regularly woo the girls of their heart; and both enjoy, the thril's and tremors of courtship ; often the sweetest period of life. The English-speaking ..faces have the most, pre-marriage . freedom ..of, choice," anj very seldom do p-rents . i®" terfei’e . with their) children’s courtships.

In Brittany ..a . very .quaint .•, custom prevails. The Breton is more Celtic thaji French, iand does not emul te the typically .French “arranged” marriage. If a young Breton fancies a girl, he sends a.deputy to propose to her. Nofc until he is assured that ne is acceptable does he take up his wooing in person; The deputy is often a village tradesman, who makes . a speciality of the work, and he carries a staff of office—a long white wand decorated with, flowers.

■The old Spanish custom of p’aying a guitar " and: •,singing under the de sired'-maiden’s lattice is' too web known to b© more than alluded to. If: the gifli likes her wooer, she shyly drops a rose or btfler fragrant blossom at hij; feet. ■ : • r; ; -

HOUSEHOLD HINTS ;

Cold weather pastry-making—When making dikes j and pastry in' cold weather andthe butter, arid, lard are hard and firm and difficult to rub into flour,. a quick method is to grate the fat into the flour on a suet grater. * * ‘.-X- * . ; ■<: A] t ' cial silk t Iran lms , been stained with lemonade should be treated ' v sponging carer 'fully With a cloth wrung out of i old water. Ftartiai: the :o' tsliti-- -o£- the stam .and :work towards tire -centre'; I eave til' dry, then-press: on the wro»g side with a coo!' .iron. - J -'- ;;

•Jf Tf 4f ' . . .. S A Warm icing—To,three quarters ofba : pound of icing sugar rubbed through a sieve, ", Giiqi' ;'weighed/’" add ’ three tablespoonsful of hot water mnd , lepron juice, previously mixed—making three tahlespoonful in all. Mix well and heat for three minutes or so. Use whilst warm noon a warm cake. Decorate when cold.

.**'**, Dusters should be washed when new b fore using. Rough dry thoroughly, but do not put hrpugli the ringer. To make them absorb dust from floors, stairs- and polished surfaces, sprinkle with liquid furniture polish, and wring in the hands to spread it. The flannelette type is best for this purpose..

Indian rugs can ,Jb© brightened. by sponging with warm water and vinegar, in the. direction ,of the pile, doinnr a small piece only at a time and rubbing well with a thick cloth to dry as speedily as possible. When you have sponged the whole surface of the rug, shake vigorously, and comb with a coarse steel comb.

•x- * -x- -xNew lino from old—When the pattern of a lino square in my bedroom had worn off and the square commenced to look very shabby, I converted it into a now one by this method. First J scrubbed it well, and when dry, gave it two coats of grey paint. Then with ruler I measured off three • n\s of -ix-lnch squares, all icmn j four sides and painted, alt.mate squares •! .e H pin* I then gave the centre auoth r coat, of grev m lit. and before this was quit dry, dabbed blue and pink paint over it with a sponge, thus producing a fashionabde mottled effect. For the countrywpinan facing hard times tins is an easy way of renovating faded lino.

Replenishing the linen cupboard— Wise women take advantage" of the opportunities offered by white sales for replenishing their stocks of linen. As a rule, genuine bargains are to be obtained, and really good linen that, is merely shop-soiled is offered at' grealy reduced prices. Odd pairs of sheets are good bargains. The quality should be carefully examined. “Linen finish” is not the same f as yeal linen. This is a term.applied to cotton sheeting specially dressed. Sheeting stiff and heavy with manufacturer’s (jessing is not the best to buy. Turkish towels, of different sizes and hand towels are always useful, There can hardly be too plentiful a supply, especially where there, are children. Teacloths, glasscioths and kitchen pooler towels are also articles, of which, one $ 45004 .suply.