Various

“ It is safer to be in hiding than to journey on. There is a cottage in a wood, which belongs to a friend of mine, and he has made ready for our coming. A little way ahead still. The danger increases each minute. For if any man should see us now, and the gendarmes coming here should learn that we have lately passed—voyez-vous? Can M’sieu increase his speed?”
Roy made a vehement effort, and Jean grasped his arm, urging him along. Presently they neared the wood, and turned in thither, Jean’s look of anxiety lessening as the trees closed round them. ”

“ Sometimes great trees in the forest have to be set on fire as the only way of stopping their ravages. Then there are concealed foes who hollow out galleries in trees before their presence is suspected. One little insect has been dubbed by a naturalist with the formidable name of “the great pine-gnawer.” It ravages forests of fir-trees in such wise that not a single tree escapes its attacks.
Stag-beetles haunt our oak-trees, bruise the bark, and then lick up the sap, and in its larval stage this beetle feeds in the solid wood of the finest trees, keeping near the bark. ”

“ The painting and other preparation of Easter eggs form quite an event in a country household, and here and there, especially in Hungary, the preparation is accompanied by national songs.
It is most amusing to note the care bestowed by the maidens on the eggs intended for the betrothed, the usual ornamentation being caressing doves and intertwined hands. If a Ruthenian youth receives from a girl an egg adorned with threads of wool he is thereby assured of her love and fidelity. ”

“ Roy drew one quick breath. Then he picked up more pieces of wood, tossing them into the hotte. He cast another glance at the man, his whole being on the alert. In an instant he saw again the small French town, the crowd in front of the hôtel de ville, the released conscript, the old mother clinging to Denham’s hands, and Denham’s compassionate face. All was clear.
“Jean Paulet,” he breathed. ”

“ The bar would have to remain in position till the last moment. He cleared away every speck of iron filing, and then he had to go into the yard. What if the gendarmes should examine the cell during his absence and find out what he had done? What if, any hour before night, they should take it into their heads to test the bar? What if, before Jean came, Roy himself should be removed elsewhere? ”

“ There are few places where a nice piece of embroidery can be more effectively displayed than in a pianoforte back, and the design here given may be of use to some who want to take up a piece of work, but are undecided what it shall be, by suggesting a task and giving some little assistance in the matter of design; for there is no necessity or merit in keeping close to the ones I give in these pages. It would be much better if all workers made their own designs, but some are not so gifted as others, and a little help in this particular is not therefore unwelcome. ”

“ The fact that there are some hundreds of patent preparations sold to cure everything is sufficient to prove that the “elixir of life” still remains undiscovered. That any drug will ever be discovered that will cure every disease, even of one organ, is hardly conceivable. We cannot understand how any agent could cure two diametrically opposite conditions. Do you think that millions would die of diseases of the stomach, liver and kidneys, if a cure for them could be obtained for 1s. ”

“ The number of these artists is rapidly decreasing, for in modern times people, specially in towns, prefer to present their friends with eggs of chocolate and sugar. In Moravia, among the German population in Iglau, the Easter egg still holds a very important place. Young and old present them one to the other, and young girls are allowed to give them to their sweethearts. A very interesting feature is that eggs are sent by those at home to their relatives in foreign lands. Great care is taken to have these beautifully painted or adorned with mottoes. ”

“ Colour and flavour each differently—cochineal, coffee, vegetable sap green are all suitable, and one portion may be left its natural colour. Work the colours in most thoroughly, as a streaky appearance would spoil the whole effect. To make diamonds—take a piece of each of the colours and roll out about a quarter of an inch, damp each slightly with a little white of egg and place on top of each other. Rice paper can be bought quite reasonably at any good confectioner’s. ”

“ In Bohemia light-red eggs prevail, while in Salzburg Easter eggs resemble marble. It is only on close inspection that one discovers that the hens’ eggs have received the veining by the most skilful and tender colouring. ”

“ The most important things on Easter eggs are the mottoes which are usually specially given by the person who orders the eggs. These mottoes are often full of sentiment, of expressions of love, friendship and good wishes; sometimes they are jests.
Not only are hens’ eggs used for this purpose, but those of geese also, which look more stately, and being larger admit of longer mottoes.
Men, women and girls also are occupied in ornamenting Easter eggs.
Our illustration shows a Moravian woman at the work of scratching or engraving. Many of the Easter eggs are quite works of art in Moravia. ”

“ She much preferred to work with the ranch man, at any outdoor labour, however heavy, rather than do so-called woman’s work. Especially she loved managing the horses, and we could hear her big guffaw out on the ranch, where she would try with the rest to trick or compel Dan, who was giving more and more trouble, into doing his work. All the workmen had some never-failing plan to coerce him, but each in turn was beaten by Dan’s obstinacy, and his readiness to spend all day fighting out the question as to his way or theirs. ”

“ The savoury herbs should be added to the eggs at the beginning. Lose not a moment of time in bringing an omelette to table once it is cooked.
To boil rice successfully is not the easiest thing in the world. The water, of which there should be a large pan three parts full, must be boiling to begin with; then, while this is getting ready, the rice, after washing, should be soaking in cold water. Put plenty of salt in the pan. Boil the rice until it is tender enough to crush the grains between the thumb and finger, then pour off into a colander ”

“ Duncan had felt the death of his little daughter keenly at the time, but though his wife had hoped for some permanent spiritual awakening and an expression of it, nothing was said which could lead her to suppose it had taken place. Belief does not come to all with equal facility, and knowing this, Mrs. Duncan never even in thought blamed her husband, but was content to wait. ”

“ There are skilful people in the surrounding district, who devote themselves to decorating and adorning with mottoes Easter eggs.
A PAINTED AND ENGRAVED GOOSE EGG.
Franz Paul Piger, who has lately written a very interesting paper on Easter eggs for the Austrian folk, says that “the art of decorating Easter eggs is not so simple as one might think.” The artist first colours the egg yellow with the bark of apple trees which he has cooked in water; the part which is to remain yellow he covers with fine layers of wax, and then proceeds to cook it in water, with onion skins, which turns it red. ”

“ A table that is well-set with regard to its minor points, namely, salt-cellars, mustard pots, bright knives and forks, clear sparkling glass, and a clean tablecloth, can hardly ever fail to look attractive, even if it has to go without other decoration; just as the most elaborate decoration will never make up for deficiencies in these respects.
At this time of the year we may make plentiful use of such things as rice, macaroni, polenta, and other farinaceous foods; remembering, too, that eggs are at their best as well and fairly reasonable in price. ”

“ The artistic Easter egg, such as we have shown here, is gradually being set aside for eggs of chocolate and sweets, and the time will certainly come when, if we want to see artistic eggs, we must look for them in museums. ”

“ Exercise in moderation every day is essential. An active occupation is preferable to a sedentary one. Last, and least important, is the question of drugs. Never take drugs unless absolutely necessary. When you have to take them, take a pill of aloes and nux vomica, or a small dose of calomel and bicarbonate of soda. The latter, which is from physiological considerations the most reasonable drug to take, is also the most effective, the least unpleasant, and the least dangerous, but it must only be taken occasionally. ”

“ In “A railway collision” the metre proved to be very troublesome. It is certainly very modern, the lines being respectively, nine, ten, eleven and twelve syllables long. We do not know the rule which governs such a metre, and are inclined to ascribe it that licence which every true poet sometimes takes.
Considering the difficulty, we were surprised to find from thirty to forty solutions giving the verse correctly. Three out of the four lines were not difficult to solve, but the progressive nature of the metre not being established, the first was not so easy. ”

“ The embroidery might be light on a dark material, say an indigo blue or deep green, or it might be in tones of yellow or some rich red material, but I must refer the reader to some recent articles on the embroidery of curtains where I have gone into the matter in some detail.
I would caution the worker against introducing a number of colours into the design. It is much more pleasing to see the whole design carried out in one tone of colour (though there may be a number of different shades) than an attempt to be naturalesque, as though you were painting a picture. ”

“ The present design, though based on nature, is ornamentally rather than naturally treated. The tree might be worked in olive green or warm yellow browns. The birds should be kept very simple indeed. Think of them as shapes and not as “feathered friends.” These might be worked say in turquoise blue, as they are small objects. This will bring them off the surrounding work. The turquoise blue could be used again in the flowers at the bottom, and if we adopt the olive green harmony, the musical instruments could be worked in light golden browns and yellows. ”

“ Savoury Omelette. Stewed Pears and Rice.
Julienne Soup.—The foundation of this must be strong clear stock, and preferably that which is made from a knuckle of veal, using a little Liebeg’s Essence to make it a deeper colour at the last. This should be strained and left to keep hot in a lined saucepan, while the vegetables are stewing in a separate pan. There is an art in shredding the vegetables for julienne soup, and they are best done with one of the little tools sold for the purpose, as the beauty of the soup depends on their being cut exactly alike. ”

“ Savoury Omelette.—When the art of making a plain omelette has been acquired, it is easy to ring the changes of variety. The additions that transform it into a savoury are, minced chives (or shallots) , chervil, tarragon and parsley; in France this is called an omelette aux fines herbes. Four eggs would be needed to make one of a sufficient size for a dinner. Beat these on a plate with a knife and add the salt and pepper to them, also a very little milk. Pour into the omelette pan when the butter is beginning to turn colour, as the right point of heat has much to do with the ultimate success. ”

“ She finds a trail through the most hopeless-looking bush, without a moment’s hesitation, is as surefooted as a goat on the steep rocky hill-sides, and has no vice about her. So that Tip, who was far from strong when first we came here, has become a very good rider, without accidents or trouble of any kind. ”

“ The mind no longer controls the hands. The exercise ceases to be a voluntary act. It has become a series of involuntary reflexes which require little effort to continue, but a considerable amount of volition to stop. The hand becomes tired and its muscles and nerves exhausted. Now, no longer will they respond rhythmically to the stimulus of striking the finger, they undergo spasms and twitchings. It is very difficult to say which causes the spasms—the brain or the nerves of the arm. ”

“ Even to-day all sorts of curious superstitions attach themselves to eggs laid on Maundy Thursday. They are supposed to protect those who eat them from all sorts of diseases, and it is firmly believed that if a shepherd buries the shells of one or more of these Maundy eggs in his pasture land, he will not lose a single sheep during the year following.
It is no doubt owing to the strong belief in their power of conferring benefits that we send eggs to our friends at Easter. ”

“ Whole fields of turnips are often cleared, that is, the leaves of the plants are stripped off, by myriads of the turnip fly or beetle that come flying unexpectedly, one knows not whence. It was estimated that the loss through this to one county in a single season was once £100,000, and Miss Ormerod states that in 1881, when there was an invasion of the turnip fly, spreading nearly all over our country, the loss amounted to considerably more than half a million. ”

“ Whole tracts of land are devastated by these winged armies. In the south of England some of you have seen, during the last dry summer that we had, what legions of caterpillars covered vast tracts of land, eating every vestige of green and leaving bare stalks where fine cabbages and other crops had been looked for. ”

“ If you were interested in work among poor children, and did not require much salary, we would suggest that some of the London Boards of Guardians are inclined to appoint young ladies of about your own age as matrons of small cottage homes for pauper children. Much useful work might be done by ladies acting in this capacity. But we do not think this is quite the career for you. Travelling companionships are so scarce that we do not advise you to seek one. ”