hose who may go to a mining-camp in the
Rockies or to Mexico, or even into a ten-by-twelve New York apartment.
Let there be a committee--we are so fond of committees--to receive
contributions in a money-bank or in sealed envelopes, and then when all is
collected, let this committee scour the shops for articles of value, and
when found consult the bridal pair as to their preferences. The choice may
be made of one or more, as the money permits. The particular gift will
still be a surprise and yet of permanent value. Lace and embroideries are
always good, but let the waste of money on the "latest" in orange-knives,
oyster-plates, go up higher, that is, to the class with money for
conspicuous waste, if it must still exist, but let sensible people be
sensible, and not require the young folks to live up to their hopes for
future advancement. Wedding gifts are meant to be kindly help to a young
housewife, not a burden which drags her down to the level of a drudge. But
if the house is surely their own, and in the country, there will be
shelves to fill and walls to cover; _then_ is the opportunity for
individual gifts of china, glass, and pictures.

To make the best of the increasing tendency to a semi-country living,
there is need for students of domestic architecture, women with a trained
taste added to an experience in doing things, not merely seeing them
already done. Let these evolve beautiful exteriors, with interiors so
finely proportioned that they will be a delight to all beholders, so
adapted to their purposes that no one will wish to change them. There is a
right dimension, in relation to other dimensions, which is always
satisfying and independent of furniture or decoration.

The ugly houses, ill adapted to any useful purpose, which line the
roadside bear witness to the ignorance of the women of to-day. The effort
for mere decoration, for pretentious show, is so evident that one wishes
for an earthquake to swallow them all.

Another cause for rise in rent demanded for a given space is the heavy tax
borne by real estate for public improvement, for good lighting, clean
streets, plentiful water, sufficient sewerage, free baths, parks, and
schools. Again, this falls heaviest on our three- to five-thousand dollar
class, who pay more than their share, especially when the millionaire
shirks his duty by paying his taxes elsewhere. What can the man with
limited income do but avoid the responsibility of a family? Has he a mor