When I was a beau I courted my sweetheart in her home. My treat was red apples and a walk down the lane. Most every beau nowadays courts his girl with a taxi to the theatre, and red lobsters after the dinner; ten dollars they pay where I paid ten cents, and I had ten times more happiness.
Be modest, girls; it is your greatest a.s.set.
Don"t gossip or belittle other girls; find the good you can say of others; that quality makes you more attractive.
Keep your voice low, be gentle, sweet, kind, human and simple; that is what my sweetheart is; that is why our married life has been a honeymoon all these years.
Watch out for word candy and flattery; these things mark the hypocrite and a hypocrite is an abomination. Flattery is a practiced deceit--a dishonorable bait to catch affections.
Do not allow any young man to relate a story in your presence that has the slightest risque turn to it. Show by your words and your actions that such presumption is an insult.
Fine feathers never make fine birds; don"t borrow finery; don"t be attractive for your fine dresses; the men attracted by fluff, frills, feathers and furbelows are not worth shucks.
Be square with yourself and square to the man who is after your heart; put yourself mentally in the place of a wife, when a man gets serious.
Don"t hurry, girls; don"t judge the man by his money prospects but by his character and ambition.
Have nothing to do with any young suitor who isn"t always kind, considerate and attentive to his mother.
Marry a man of character who courts you in the sweet, simple old way.
If a young man spends money extravagantly before marriage, hard times will always be around during his married life.
The most precious possessions in the world are happiness and love, and these; come from simple things, genuineness, and usefulness.
Learn to cook and to sew. You can"t be happy and idle at the same time.
Learn to be independent of dressmaker and milliner and cooks. You may have them, I hope you will, but master these useful vocations yourself, then you will have dresses and hats and dinners worth while.
The world is full of new-fashioned slangy, dancy, fancy, foolish girls who marry for style, stunts and society, and their married life is failure, worry and sorrow.
Be the golden, pure, old-fashioned, sweet, simple, quiet, modest girl who knows things, rather than one who is a show-off girl.
And here"s a tip to you, young man, who reads these lines, get a golden girl like I have described; a girl of pure gold and not glittering tinsel; a sweet, natural, sensible girl, that will do team work and be a helpmate to you and not a drawback and money spender.
Daddy knows these things; he"s been around the world. He is endowed with an ability to observe, a.n.a.lyze and benefit.
He"s had experience, he"s seen the world from cottage to castle, and these things he tells you because of his love for you and because he wants you to have such a home life as he has.
And these truths, these hopes, are from the very bottom of his heart to his daughters Mary Elizabeth and Nancy Lou and all the other girls who have read these lines.
POISE
A Necessity to the Person Who Accomplishes
There are men who cannot be kept down by circ.u.mstances or obstacles.
These men progress with confidence in their hearts and smiles on their faces. They do not lie in wait for the band wagon or favorable winds; they make things happen.
They are, of course, alert and alive to favorable opportunity and helpful influences when they come their way.
These men are men of good health. They are out of doors much, they carry their heads high and breathe in good air deeply. They greet friends with a smile and put meaning and feeling into every hand clasp.
Let"s you and I follow their trail, for it leads out on to the big road.
Do not fear being misunderstood, right will finally come in to its own.
We will keep our minds off our enemies, and keep our thoughts on our purpose; we will make up our minds what we want to do. We will mark a straight line on the log and hew to that line.
Fear is the dope drug that kills initiative, hate the poison that shatters clear thinking.
Hate and fear are iron ore in our life"s vessel, it deflects the compa.s.s and prevents our holding to the course.
There are splendid worth-while things for us to do and with continuity of action and singleness of purpose the days will pa.s.s by, as we are seizing opportunity and making use of the things required for the fulfillment of our desires.
We are like the coral insect that takes from the running tide the material to build a solid fortress. Our running tide is the gliding golden days.
Let"s waste no time in trying to make friends or in seeking to attach ourselves to others. True friends are not caught by pursuit; they come to us, they happen through circ.u.mstances we do not create.
Self-reliance is ours and we must first use it for our own betterment.
We will then have a surplus of energy to allow us to help others.
Solitude beats society, relaxation beats conventional function, and foolish so-called pleasures.
Our energy hours must be devoted to our purpose and ideals. Atween times we must rest, relax and recuperate the waste that strenuosity makes.
Breathe good air, bask in the sunshine, see nature and say to yourself, "All these treasures are for me, all these things I am part of."
Do not prepare for death, prepare for life. Preparing for death brings the end before your allotted time.
Like Job of old that which we fear will come to us. We must not think of death, or waste time preparing for it. It makes us miserable today. It makes us weak and fills us with fear and it draws the day of our departure nearer.
Today is ours. Live, freely, fully today. Be unafraid, unhurried, and undisturbed.
We are building character, and the way we build it is by mental att.i.tude, by our acts, and the way we employ the precious time today.
Lay hold of the great forces of nature, realize the wonderful power of the will and you will be strong, a veritable king among men.
PIONEER MOTHERS
Knitting From Necessity Today, Knitting for Pleasure Tomorrow