Democratic Sentinel, Volume 8, Number 28, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 August 1884 — Moths. [ARTICLE]

Moths.

Always in the spring, after beating, cleaning, and a grand airing, take the woolen clothes in while the sun is on them, and put away, with as little folding as possible, in large chests, lined with thick paper, and plenty of gum camphor in rather large pieces among the layers. I hope to see the large wooden chests for storage form part of our outfits as they were of our grandmothers'. Boxes are much better to keep clothes in than leather trunks are, and a set made of cedar, or lined with the veneers of that wood, built very large to receive clothes without much folding, would be better than cedar closets, especially if there is a dry attic to store them in. One chest for blankets, one for men’s clothing, and one for women’s, Bhould be part of the .family plenishing, and descend as heirlooms after the sensible custom of our ancestors. Furs keep best in the new barrels made from paper pulp, which can be sealed up to wholly exclude moths. If you must store them without any such convenience, beat them thoroughly on the inside, brush the fur well, put into a clean large paper bag which you get from the grocers, with lumps of camphor in the pockets and folds, and paste the top of the bag closely. Keep each article so sealed, in a separate bag, in a box or trunk. This work should always be done as soon as you are through wearing furs and woolens. Moths seldom attack things in constant use, but seize their chance if articles are left in closet or trunk for a fortnight unguarded. Don’t leave your winter dresses and the boys’ clothes, hanging in unused closets or the attic, half the summer. Beside moths, the ants, wasps, and flies will gnaw holes in them, dust gathers, and light fades them. The waste of clothes comes nearly as much from neglect as from use. —Wide Awake.

They are sowing in some places in the West a “drought-proof” w'grass,”; Borghum halapense, which sendk its roots down into the ground after moisture from three to twelve feet. It is proof against freezing, flooding, and continued drought. If cut when the plant is in bloom it makes very good hay, and the roots are greedily devoured by hogs. In rich soil it grows sometimes to the height of ten feet. I know not which I love the most, Hor which the cornel est bows. The timid, bssWui violet, Or the toyrtl-heJrtod rose. The pansy ia tier purple dress, The pink v. ith cheek of red. Or the taint, fair heliotrope, who hangs, Like a bashtnl maid, her head. For I love and prise yon one and all. From the le st low bloom of si ring To the 1 ly fair, whose clothes ontsoine The raiment of a king. —P. Cary.