February 1927

"Making Our Pretenses So Futile!"

Article

How to Grow Quality Lettuce

LETTUCE bears the distinction of being the most popular and widely grown member of the salad crops. This position assumes quite a bit of honor when we recall that the salad crops are those which at the present time are most widely advocated by specialists in nutrition for their dietary value and their value as bulk or roughage as well as their high content of the much-talked-of and necessary vitamins.

How I made my Little Garden

WE have all been reminded at some time, that the "old Adam" --the original gardener-- is in us all, but none can feel it more, in its full significance, than the gardener who delights to stir the soil, plant the seed and reap the harvest of blossoms that the little garden can bring forth.

The Dahlia of Tomorrow

TODAY the dahlia claims a big part in the kingdom of flowers. Already it is one of the foremost flowers of the day, winning many enthusiasts with each display of blooms. The very fact that dahlia shows come as frequently as rose shows is evidence, that the dahlia has been accepted from coast to coast as a flower worthy of a prominent place in floral culture. And why is everyone taking so much interest in dahlias?

Homes of Famous Americans

FEW men can afford to be sensitive to criticism of their work. The man who wants nothing and is reasonably sure of wanting nothing in the future; the man of independent wealth who is content with what he has, and the genius who because of some odd mental quirk is contemptuous of the judgment of others-- can afford to lash out against his critics unrestrained.

Go Help You In Selecting Silver

SILVERWARE (flat silver, silver dishes, silver tea and coffee services, silver platters, silver mats and other silver accessories for the service of foods and beverages) is the "jewelry of the table." And like the jewelry worn for personal adornment, various pieces are suitable and useful on all occasions while others are appropriate and also truly becoming only for specific hours and for particular events.

Important Pointers about Perennials

THERE are so many outstanding good points about the perennial plants to make them exceedingly worthwhile, that it is not needful to lay claim for them to qualities they do not possess. Perennial growth, of course, has the meaning of growth year after year, but when applied to plants it was never meant in the sense of "eternal" or "everlasting."

Equipping the Home Grounds

A TRELLIS along a porch or as a screen to shut off unsightly objects is not only a thing of service but a good example of ornamentation. The beauty of such a structure is in the design of the trellis as well as in the climbers which it supports. A trellis along a porch makes it possible to grow climbers to shut off the bright sunshine of summer, add to the beauty of the house and exclude unsightly or undesirable views.

The Evolution of the Gladiolus

NO one whose soul is atune with the beautiful can but envy the successful grower of gladiolus and yet anyone having a small backyard or garden spot can grow them. Of all the flowers that grow, the gladiolus is the most subtle, the most alluring, the most charming creatures that we know. Speaking of them, Wordsworth said:

Better Chimneys and How to Build Them

THE McArthurs had a very charming home even tho it was an old one. Grandfather McArthur remembered when he helped to fell the trees standing on the site and recalled how part of them were used for timbers when the house was first built. When the house started to tell its age more than the owner wished, the family remodeled the entire house and changed its exterior appearance completely. It had required careful economy but the finished product was a pride to the community.

The Home Decorator's Working Plan

NEARLY every newspaper and magazine I pick up these days contains at least one jeremiad on the degeneracy of the times, comparing this age of jazz, moving pictures, delicatessen meals, bootleggers, short-skirted flappers and ginthetic recreations to the corruption, luxuriousness and moral decadence which brought about the downfall of ancient Rome.

Under the Library Lamp

LET me remind you, first of all, not to forget the prize contest which closes the fifteenth of February. If you have met any especially good "sociable" book lately, fiction or non-fiction, new or old, that your entire family has enjoyed, write a letter to the editor of Under the Library Lamp describing that particular adventure in home reading. Keep your letter down to 200 words.

Pointers about Fire Insurance

DO you know that if you inadvertently leave the bathroom door ajar within the focus of your electric bowl heater, so that the shining white enamel surface is charred, you cannot collect for the damage by your fire insurance policy?

Fruit-Bearing Habits of Peaches, Plums & Cherries

THE growth habits of the peach are very different from those of the apple and the pear. (Note: the fruit-bearing habits of apples and pears were discussed in a previous issue of this magazine.) The peach tree makes a much more rapid growth than the apple, laying down large quantities of new wood each season.

Thrift in the Home

IN modern business much attention is given to depreciation of equipment, of materials, of markets, and of almost every element bearing on the business. Financial statements of large organizations show items of "Surplus," "Undivided Profits." "Reserve." or "Sinking Fund."

Ideals and Sanity

LET us teach our children to value the altruistic things, friendship, kindliness, rather than pass on to them the craze for wealth that is marring the national spirit. The home, especially the home of intelligent, well-educated parents, should be a center of high ideals.

Winter--Cold--Everyone's Hungry!

LONG wintry evenings incite us to "bunch up" and be sociable. Friends drop in and we gather about the radio, and if there are young people in the home they are sure to burst in, starved to death, after basket ball game or theater party. Goodness! how the cold does whet one's appetite!

When Friends or Family are Late

WHEN you receive word that your most fastidious friend will arrive in town at five forty-five in the evening and that she will be out for dinner, you may be somewhat perplexed.

Quilts We Rarely See

DON'T these old quilts just seem to open the door to romance? From the fragrant gardens our great-grandmothers grew it is not much wonder they designed the rare and beautiful old patterns that are real works of art. A short time ago one little woman told me how she loved her garden and how much a part of her daily life her flowers were.

A Valuable Cabin

TO select the most valuable palace in the world might be a hard, perhaps an impossible task. But there is no trouble in locating the most valuable log cabin in the world, a tiny building valuable not alone for the sentiment every log in it stands for but a building with a high value in dollars and cents.

Folks Not Afraid of an Idea

WAY down in the big state of Texas in the little town of Lockhart, there is a woman who is known as the fifteen-cent florist. But instead of this amount having anything to do with the volume of her sales, it actually represents the capital with which she started business. "Starting a business with fifteen cents, impossible!" perhaps you will say.

Antiques in the Kitchen

I FIRST started collecting antiques in the dim past when nothing was an antique unless it was a piece of mahogany furniture or a Staffordshire dish.

Building the Small Hotbed

FOR the gardener who wants to have a real garden a small hotbed will be a means of profit.

Moments with Famous Music Masters

IT may not be an absolute necessity for us to know much of the lives of the great music masters in order to understand and enjoy their music. But this is true that the more we do know about them, the greater will be our enjoyment of their works for then the more fully will we appreciate the loves, the joys and the sorrows which may have prompted or influenced the writing of some of the musical masterpieces of the world.

Dad's Practical Pointers

MANY new lawns will be seeded this spring. Often a comparatively steep slope or terrace lies between the house and the street and to insure a prompt and adequate growth of grass here is usually something of a problem. Spring rains tend to wash out the seed before it has taken root.

Everbearers That Are Everbearers

EVER since the everbearing strawberry was introduced in 1902, there have been varying results from this class of berries due to variety characteristics, soil and weather conditions. The first varieties of this class of strawberries to attract much attention were the Superb and Progressive, introduced in 1911 and 1912.

Article

The Fundamentals of Block Printing

THE beautiful cottons from the East, printed by means of block prints, have a charm and interest which people of taste are quick to appreciate.

Delphinium seed often fail to sprout if they are not entirely fresh, so I use this method

Our City-Lot Poultry House

MY husband provided me a place to keep a few hens without putting up a separate building on our lot, details of which I thought could be used by other readers of Better Homes and Gardens.

Garden Reminders

FEBRUARY may be a little early to be thinking of next season's garden-- at least in some parts of the country-- but the following tips from many garden notebooks will be well worth remembering. And don't forget to pass on your best suggestions to other readers of this department, for we want to make it a real exchange of helpful ideas.

Needlework Directions

REMINISCENT of colonial days are the quaint embroidered pictures that have once more returned to favor. These very charming flower panels are among the most popular of the "revivals," and have come to play an important part in the modern decorator's scheme of things.

The Winter Fernery

Along the Garden Path

I HAVE been priding myself for some time-- secretly, I confess-- on the thought that I was not going to spend so much time on my backyard garden next season. For several years now, it has taken almost every spare minute I have had when I was home. You know how a new garden can do that.

To Save the Apple Tree

Tyrants of the Lily Pool

Those who have gone to the expense of stocking goldfish ponds are often at a loss to explain the diminishing numbers of these bits of living gold. If they could peer down into the muck that is usually present at the bottom of the pool, especially if there are growing plants present, they would probably perceive an uninvited guest, a repulsive-looking insect whose face resembles nothing so much as that of a bull dog.

ACROSS THE EDITOR'S DESK

MY, what a surprise we have in store for you this month! A bigger, better magazine in every way; a magazine chock full of the most worthwhile homemaking advice it was humanly possible to put together in as attractive a manner as we could. And that wonderfully cheerful and colorful cover up front! Isn't it a beauty? Turn the pages again, note the wealth of material showing you how to make your home "more comfortable and attractive," showing you how to get "more home" out of your present income.