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J OW. boys," said the Sunday
I school teacher after a pains-
I taking lesson on the origin
A w and history of Easier, "can
you tell roe anything about Good Fri
day?”
"Ves, ma'am." replied the smallest
v boy In the class. "He was the servant
at Robinson Cru'oe.”
About as pertinent as the small boy's
answer would be any attempted ac
count of the real origin of Easter and
the beginning of its celebration. It Is
a festal day certainly as old as the his
tory of man. Every nation that has or
had a written language contains refer
enco to the celebration of a splendid
spring festival in honor of whatever
deity of abundance and beneficence the
particular nation believed In. Japan
has had from time immemorial a beau
tiful cel. hration to commemorate the
giving way of winter cold to warmth
and light and growing green things,
though the Japanese knew nothing of
the Christian Easter.
Of Mythological Origin.
The very name "Easter" Itself comes
from the name of Ostara, a goddess of
•Id Norse mythology. In the times of
the world’s early peoples the new year
began on what Is now March 20 be
cause then the sun entered the sign of
Aries the Ram. The new year thus
marked the beginning of spring and the
resurrection of vegetable life of all
kinds; hence the Lamb became asso
elated with the spring festival. Nature
and human history correspond. Th
death and spring reappearance of plant
life correspond to the death and resur
rection of the Christ. When the church
fathers established the Christian Easter
the only change necessary was one of
names. The joy of Easter day, the rev
erence for a loving, beneficent divinity,
were there already.
Even the Easter egg, typical of the
tomb inclosing an immortal spirit which
bursts Its confining walls and rises to
a new and glorious life, is as old—well,
as old us the story of man himself
again. In the gray twilight of the race
Hindoo cosmology made the universe a
great egg, with the power of life and
creation within It. The most ancient
Chinese and Japanese believed the vis
ible world and all it contains sprang
from an egg which held within it the
germ of created things.
Persons of finely strung nerves some
times see surrounding a human being
a faint egg shaped cloud or aura in
which varied colors occasionally play.
Hindoo philosophers call this atmos
phere the auric egg and declare It sur
rounds every object, animate and inan
imate. From ancient Chaldea, through
Zoroaster and the fire worshipers. Egyp
tians, Chinese and Japanese, down to
Christian times, when it symbolizes ths
Christ resurrection, the egg as a mys
tical emblem has prevailed and sur
vived.
So It is quite proper that we should
eat eggs and give our friends presents
of ornamental eggs at Easter time.
A Suggestion to Collectors.
A collection of Easter eggs through
several generations or even of those re
ceived during one lifetime would be as
interesting as a lot of historic fans. In
fact, the empress and dowager empress
of Russia are both making such collec
tions. In Russia, where Easter gifts
are made so much of, an Easter eg,
amounts to something in the imperial
family. It Is not a real egg at all, but
an egg shaped receptacle Inclosing some
costly and beautiful jewel or other gift.
For generations it has been the cus
tom of the czar on Easter morning to
present his wife with a splendid gift of
this kind. The dowager empress has
kept those given to her by her husband,
Alexander III., and they make a daz
zling array.
Antedates Christianity.
It may be interesting to recall that
the very custom of celebrating a sol
emn mass with lighted candles on Eas
ter Sunday comes from the ancient
practice of lighting fires and candles
during the spring festival to symbolize
the triumph of fire, warmth over
cold, spring over winter. Flowers, too,
gorgeous blossoms, decked the ancient
temples of the pagan deities at the
spring festival as they do churches to
day. All was joy and worship.
The undoubted origin of Easter Is
pagan, but not very much more pagan
than are the thoughts of twentieth cen
tury ladies when they go to church on
Easter morning and study the details
of one another’s new hats; not much
more pagan either than the thoughts
of the florist who decorated the church
for Easter, or than the thoughts of
the maiden who wonders how much
the Easter gift will be worth which her
sweetheart sends her. Oh, dear! This
is rather a pagan age, after all!
Somebody with a head for figures has
counted up that 10,000,000 eggs are eaten
in New York city on Easter Sunday.
That is probably counting in the un
fresh ones that go into cakes.
Tho Teutonic Way.
The prettiest ideas in connection with
the children’s Easter come from Ger
many, where the kindergarten originat
ed. There the eggs are not given to
the little ones outright, but are hidden
in nests, and the children must have a
merry hunt till they find the nests. A
hare, or rabbit; as it would be in Amer
ica, is supposed by the children to
come and lay the eggs in a nest the
PAINTING EASTER EGGS IS A POPULAR FAD.
night before Easter. The custom of
hiding gayly colored eggs for children
to find on Easter morning comes down
from old Germany. It is said that one _________ __
Easter morning a long time ago a little : odd connection of rabbit and Easter
girl, hunting the customary nest of egg began, so ’tis said. When the
bushes where the nest had been hidden. ] outdoors they are concealed In nooks
"I know now where the Easter eggs and crannies inside. The children al*
come from!" cried the little girl. "The ways have the fun of hunting for them,
hare lays them." And that is how the Some Modern Deve | opments .
There is infinite variety of Easter
eggs, saw a hare spring out of the | weather is too stormy to hide the eggs i eggs. There are no prettier ones than
those painted at home In water colors
by the woman or girl who uas some
knowledge of art. It is delightful en
tertainment painting these Easter eggs.
Another.good way to prepare them is to
take the end of a burnt match, dip it in
grease and write with it the child's
name upon the egg. Or some comic
figure, as a donkey or a Teddy bear
may be drawn upon the egg with the
greasy match point. After that dye the
egg in the usual manner. The part
where the grease was rubbed in will re
main white. The same effect may be
produced by pasting wax- upon the
part of the egg you do not want to be
colored and then steeping in some cold
coloring fluid. A fine green shade is
made by boiiing spinach leaves a quar
ter of an hour,, after which put the
leaves into a sieve and squeeze out all
the juice. Eggs boiled in this liquid
will be of a pretty color.
Artificial eggs of all kinds contain
ing toys or candies are among the
nicest gifts for the children. Some
times neat little silver watches are hid
den in, the eggs for specially favored or
fortunate school pupils. Homemade
I candy eggs are among the most deli
cious of EaSter confections, especially
those with chocolate shells. Tin molds
of the shape of half an egg can be got
it confectioners’ supply .stores and else
where. Each half of the egg shell is
molded separately then cooled and filled
with very small candies. The two
halves are stuck together with soft can
dy paste. Some of the costly Easter
gift eggs one may buy are two, feet
high, and the price of them is even
higher than tho eggs.
Flowers Play Their Part
Along with Easter eggs with all their
variations flowers are among the things
appropriate for Easter gifts 'o women
and girls. The true woman is never
better pleased than when she receives
a basket or pot of lilies and roses or a
bunch of violets. It is now quite the
fashionable thing for women to sew in
Lent and make Easter gifts for tlieir
friends.
As to the children, there is hardly
any end to the variety of gifts for them
every year. This year the Teddy bear
has to a considerable extent taken the
place of the Easter rabbit in the child
ish heart. A new hat for a little girl, a
new suit of spring clothes for a boy
will fill their hearts with joy. It is to
be hoped the pretty German custom of
hiding the colored eggs and letting the
children hunt for them will become
general in our country. Grotesque
faces painted upon eggs amuse young
ones immensely.
By all means we should give joy to
the children at Easter. The Japanese
devote one whole day of Easter festivi
ties to the children. People of western
nations do not give halt enough time to
making their offspring happy, always,
that is. excepting mothers, bless them!
As to the Easter Hat,
Lastly, even the new hat for Easter
is not a modern idea. Ages and ages
ago. when the race was young, so much
love and reverence were felt for the
deities who presided over earth's fruit
fulness and the spring festival that it
was deemed only fitting to enter their
temples at this time of Joy with freshly
bathed bodies and new, clean garments.
So you see—
As it was In the beginning, so it shall
be world without end.
LILLIAN GRAY.
NURSES OF THE ROYAL BRITISH
HOUSEHOLD.
Queen Victoria it was who set the
exnhiple of having a trained nurse per
manently attached to the royal house
hold, and King Edward has also adopt
ed this wise precaution of having on
the premises a well trained person
whose presence is so desirable in time
of accident, such as that, for instance,
when the king sprained his ankle. The
nurse is one of the two chosen by Sir
Frederick Treves during the king’s ill
ness of some years ago. Needless to
say the lines of this particular nurse
have fallen in very pleasant places, for
she usually travels with the queen and
Princess Victoria, the latter riot being
very strong. The second nurse is now
matron at the Officers’ Convalescent
home. Osborne. All the members of the
royal family are extremely thoughtful
and kind to those connected with the
household and take a sympathetic per
sonal Interest in their welfare.
HIS TENTH BIRTHDAY.
He has said good by to ids rocking hors#
And the games he used to play.
While the house of blocks lies a tumbled
heap—
He is ten years old today.
The soldier of tin In its suit of blua
With trimmings of finest gold
Is behind the door unnoticed now—
It's owner Is ten years old.
The top and drum have lost the charm
Which was theirs for many a day.
And the woolly sheep give a lonely
"Baa!”
For tho boy who has gone away.
His mother sighs as she looks at him
And knows that all earth's gold
Cannot restore the curls and kilt
Of her boy who is ten years old.
The little lad who sat on her lap
And rocked but yesterday—
His feet now touch the floor, of course,
For he's ten years old today.
WHAT WOMEN ARE WEARING, DOING AND SAYING
I HAVEN’T been saying much
about fashions lately, and I fancy
It’s about time for mo to do so.
They’re loud, if you want to
know tho truth.
Far be It from me to bewail the good
old days. There is no surer sign, of
advancing age or of the fact that you
date back far-
you
Doing around rilher
striped or spotted.
ther than
will admit.
Not me! I’am
young (in case
you doubt it) and
largely optimis
tic, but not about
the season’s dis
play in the shops.
Time was when
the woman of
moderate means
could corral a
certain sum of
money, go down
into • the shop
ping district and
fit herself out
from head to
foot stunningly
one-half the
cost of having the same things made to
order. And the colors and materials
would be in excellent taste
Not aa of Yoro.
Now you can’t do It to save your life.
Let us take up the question of tailor
made suits, for Instance. The prices
are higher than ever, and the patterns
—mercy upon us, checks, plaids and
stripes of tho loudest description. I
have not seen a solid color in a simple
style such as you would get in tho
workshop of any first class tailor.
It looks to me as If every one were
going around either striped or spotted
this season—that Is. all but the really
well dressed women who will think
twice before they caricature themselves
In the new "novelty’ materials.
cost twice that sum. Then I have seen
pretty blouses from $5 to $7 that looked
positively handmade. Some of them
had quite a bit of embroidery too.
Hats That Are Worth While.
When I come to the subject of hats
I become positively enthusiastic. They
are as pretty as the tailor mades are
ugly. Decided tones may not be pretty
in costumes, but they are charming in
hats. The shapes are nearly all short
In front, designed to show the waves
of the hair. Brilliant blues and russet
browns, mingled with orange, are used
to trim ecru straw shapes very ar
tistically. I notice few ostrich plumes,
but a great many fancy feathers on
the paradise order. The brims of many
imported models show a tub effect,
quite as If the brim of a small sailor
had been bent down all the way around.
As to the Hair.
To be strictly up to date one must
fix one’s hair In three puffs (bought at
the hairdressers) and wear the tiniest
of little bangs below the pompadour.
Although many of the chapeaux are
small, yet large hats are always worn
later on, and so I selected my new
straw hat with this in mind. It is an
imported model. I might as well tell
you I shall economize in other things,
but not on what comes nearest my face.
The brim is fairly large, and it has one
fetching dent in front. There is
regular crown,
the top of the
hat being wrin
kled up like folds
of cloth and held
down with vel
vet straps. At
one side there is
a cream bird of
paradise effect
drooping over
the hair. The
straw is a rich
gold tone, very
coarse, and the
velvet reddish
brown.
By the way.
speaking of hats.
And Now Prices Soar.
As for gowns, there is little or noth
ing to be had under $65 or $75. and I
wish I could show you a dress I brought
home from Paris at the former price. It
Is of finest chiffon voile, trimmed with I She trill Hare a purse of a friend, accom-
fino vamneiennes. piai'.ings of red taf- the same shade. panied by her
feta and cherries embroidered by hand. ! mother-in-law.
For the same sum here in New York I ! was trying on small effects. The moth-
am shown a "jumper dress’’ of none I er-in-law remarked quite innocently (?):
too good material either and strictly i "My dear, I don't quite like those little
machine sewed. i things. There are 3ome faces which
We have something to learn about ; ought always to be under broad brim-
ready made costumes from Paris it
would seem.
There Are Bargains Still,
Linens and lingerie frocks are delight
ful exceptions to what I have said. I
want to tell you that we are catching
on to the French embroidery effects
wonderfully, and we are also learnini
med hats!"
Can't they say things, though?
A Popular Brown Shads.
There Is one color above all others
which Is stunning this spring, and that
is the leather shade of brown which
goes perfectly with tan belts, purses
and shoes. To be strictly smart with
to get up pretty effects cheaply as they ] this sort of costume everything should
do over there. | match.
I have just purchased a pony suit of A friend Is having a leather brown
blue linen for $14.75. and It is most I voile princess dress made to be worn
prettily ornamented on both jacket and ! with different guimpes. With this goes
skirt. I am sure It looks as if it had ' a little pony coat of renaissance lace
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White are the Caster lilies, white and pure and fair,
White as the soul of a maiden, pure as her inmost prayer.
Clad a the Caster spirit, glad and sweet and bright,
Glad and good as the morning after the somber night.
dyed th# same shade of brown and
trimmed with velvet ribbon and tiny
gold buttons. Then, of course, she will
wear a burnt straw hat trimmed with
brown and tan stockings and low shoes,
also elbow length gloves of tan ar.d a
purse of the same shade.
can indulge In one of the dotted fou
lards in a shade of blue. I have seen
one at the dressmaker's trimmed with
red to be worn with a hat trimmed
with cherries. It had the long arm scye
simulating a cape effect, which is the
very latest for emaciated—otherwise
get your commission. Only I shall. around a bit I could get one for $2.50.“
pick the color out myself and then | Ultimately she had to go back to the
bring you the sample. How much shall
I tell them to reserve?”
“Ten yards,” she said without a
blush. Now as the material was forty-
five inches wide and $2 a yard, I hesi
tated.
But, yes, she needed ten yards—not
an inch less.
So I picked out the goods and told
the clerk to reserve ten yards.
Later in the day I was going through
the same store when the clerk spoke to
me.
“What shall I do with the remain
ing two yards. Mi?s Clyde?”, he said.
“Two yards?” I gasped.
“Yes, the dressmaker has just sent
for eight yards, and you reserved ten!”
“Oh—ah—m’m—and I pay for ten,” I
remarked as the truth broke in upon
me slowly.
The clerk felt sorry for me. “They
do it all the time, ma’am,” he said, with
a sad expression.
store and buy the $3.50 parasol. In the
meanwhile I am sure she had worn out
the difference in shoes and silk stock
ings. x
One day she rang me up on the tele
phone and asked me to go to lunch
with her. We went to an expensive
place and the bill came up to a good
“Ten yards,’’ she said.
But She Is Outwitted.
An hour later I stood at the dress
maker’s door.
"Madame, there has been a mistake,”
I remarked crisply. “Your errand girl
ordered only eight yards for my gown.
Now, to be sure I told you I wished to
be economical, but not as economical j
as all that. So since you told me you j wear the hat all spring,
ten yards kindly send for the'
figure. Afterward she took me to a
very shabby little millinery shop where
she fussed and worried for an hour
over a cheap little turban that was be
ing made for her. I didn’t like the hat
at all and said so.
“Well, my dear,” she confided to me
"I am not crazy about it myself, but T
can’t afford to go to a good place.” J
thought of the lunch and said nothing
The lunch was gone, but she woulc
If you are a tall woman then you 1 fashionable—figures.
Don’t the dressmakers enjoy them
selves in the merry springtime!
"Twenty-five for the making if I fur
nish the material,” said one modiste to
me. "but if the customer furnishes the
material, why it's thirty-five." j
"Oh. get the material by all means!”
I innocently remarked. “I want you to I
need
other two, and I want a very full
skirt! ”
At the beginning of my speech she
had turned a delicate pea green, now
she was blushing like a peony.
"The idea of her having made such
a mistake.” she cried and dashed into
the sewing room.
There in loud tones she berated the
fcoor little scapegoat, and then as the
latter feebly remonstrated I heard a
whisper which sounded suspiciously
like, “Shut up, you little idiot!”
Why didn’t I take my goods away?
I think she is a good dressmaker.
Any woman who reads this well un
derstands.
Our Little Peculiarities.
Isn’t it odd how some people have
queer streaks?
“We are all of us shoddy in some one J
thing,” remarks a friend, and I he- j
lieve she's right.
You, of course, have read how John j
D. Rockefeller’s daughter believed she I
had a good chance of dying of starva- i
tion, and she used to beseech the serv- I
ant to be more careful of saving the ;
crusts. !
Well, without possessing her money ;
a certain acquaintance of mine pretty j
well off will shop a whole day to save
a few cents. She wanted a particular
shade of pink parasol hard to find all
ready made, and we saw one in a win- |
dow marked $3.50, which I thought was
so reasonable I wanted to rush right
into the store and get it before any
one else did.
But, no! She hesitated and finally
said, “Do you know I think If I looked
learned on good au-
keeps a roll of bills
her top bureau
Subsequently I
thority that she
amounting to $500
drawer. Won’t even put it into the
bank—just hoards it.
Can you beat that?
A Further Instance.
Another woman I know—well off,
too—hates to spend money for cut
flowers when she entertains. Still ono
must put something in the center of the
table to be sure, so she has bought
some artificial pinks, which I must say
are perfect imitations. They are even
perfumed, and she puts them with real
maidenhair fern in a cut glass bowl
containing a tiny bit of water.
The other day she gave a luncheon
and everybody admired the flowers.
One guest especially who is very fond
of blossoms kept worrying because
there was so little water in the bowl.
She was afraid they would wilt.
"My dear, do send the maid out for
more water,” she entreated. "I posi
tively can see those lovely blossoms
wilting. You don't know how to take
care of flowers.” Then she readied
forth her hand, touching one of th#
pinks tenderly.
And a strange, peculiar expression
came over her face.
So much for the economies of the
rich!
tieSL
New York.
OF INTEREST TO THE FEMININE SEX.
Mistress vwho had given her maid a | been sent to prison and fined, merely
the object of opposing teams being to
project them through the air over ele
vated tape lines representing goals,
ticket for the theater)—How did you j for protesting against disfranchisement, ' The exercise of looking upward and
like the play? Maid—Oh. it was fine, j decent men would come to their sup- . raising the arms above the head is
ma’am! You should have heard how a ! port and help them. Miss Smedley is
servant sauced her mistress! j the founder of the Lyceum club.
"Women are going to get their rights | A prize offered in New York for the 1 S. Ames ar
in England,” says Miss Constance : best schoolroom game for girls has of Boston.
Smedley, an English suffragist and a ; been awarded to Max Liebgold for a Miss C. J. Alexander, a practicing
brilliant writer. She said that after j game which he call? bailoon ball. In- phyiician. and her friend. Miss Mary;
the brutal way in which women had stead of balls, small balloons are used,' Doley, took a daily plunge in the ocean '
raising the arms above
beneficial.
Mrs. Jack Gardner and Miss Mary
the rival orchid growers
t
P
off the Massachusetts coast near Win- :
tiirop all winter and declare they en- |
joyed it. They have excellent health.
Miss Mary K. Benedict. A. B. t Pb. D.. .
has bc-cn appointed president of a col- '
lege at Lynchburg, W. Ya.
Mrs. Ogden McClurg, a daughter-in-J
Jaw of the- lijte Colons! -V. C. McCiurg ;
of Chicago, recently secured paper? to I
act as pimt on a boat on i.rke Michi
gan. There are s.iid To be forty women ,
civil engineers in the country and thir
ty
mechanical and electrical
women
engineers.
In answer to an advertisement offer
ing for sale certain public lands in
the southwest Mrs. Alice French of
South McAIester, I. T„ put in a bid
for 1.S20 tract.; in various places. The
bid its* if covered eighty feet of paper.
The women of Iceland have full mu
ni' e.i suffrage and vote, in ail church
ft<! parish matter-'.
Women are employed as gatekeepers.
j clerks and telegraphers on the twenty-
five state railways of Russia. The
clerks are the best paid, receiving $230
a year.
The English Royal society for the
first time in Its history has awarded
a medal to a woman for scientific dis
covery. The woman is Mrs. Hertba
Ayrton, and she got the medal for in-:
vestigations of sand ripples and the
electric arc.
"Have you noticed that I always
dance on my toes?” asked a conceited
young fellow at a ball. "Not always."
his fair companion replied bitterly.
“You have been dancing on mine th*
greater part of the time!”
Dr. Irene B. Bullard of Radford, Va.,
recently appointed by the general hos
pital board as third assistant phy
sician at the Eastern State Hospital
For the Insane, Williamsburg, Ya.. is
the only woman physician in the state
holding sl government position.