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VEGETABLES

X. THE USE OF NAPKINS.

I. Dining-Room Furniture and Decoration.

N all we have said of the ornamentation of farms, of the home, of household art and taste, and in all we shall say, we wish again to have borne in mind that it is intended for those whose yearly increasing means allow them to gratify their tastes. Those struggling to pay debts, or those still employed in bringing their farms into condition, should spend little in display; all is needed for mere comfort. While we have endeavored to show how comfort may be secured at light cost, we wish at the same time to educate taste, and show how, as wealth increases, the money may be spent to the best advantage.

The dining-room furniture has already been spoken of. The paper on the walls should not be of gaudy pattern, but may be rich and warm in tone. Massive moldings and cornices should be used in the better class of houses. The arrangements for heating should be perfect, for no one can enjoy a meal in a room that is insufficiently heated or over-heated. The dining-room table may be as massive and handsome as possible, even to solid mahogany if the purse will allow. The chairs ought to be strong and at the same time as light as is consistent with strength. Either mahogany or oak will be handsome enough, and our preference would be for the latter wood without reference to its lesser cost; there is no limit to the ornamentation that may be put upon wood, in carving, etc. Whatever it be, all must harmonize. Let it be all oak, all cherry, all mahogany, to correspond with the graining or the solid woodwork of the room. If the chairs are upholstered, leather is the best. A sideboard of some kind for glassware, china, etc., and which is to be placed near the head of the table, may be considered indispensable in a large dining-room. In all farmhouses of the better sort these will be found economical in the end.