Harper's Round Table, June 25, 1895 Part 9

This Department is conducted in the interest of Girls and Young Women, and the Editor will be pleased to answer any question on the subject so far as possible. Correspondents should address Editor.

Among the accomplishments which girls may cultivate to advantage none surpa.s.ses that of reading aloud to the satisfaction of others. It is singular that more of us do not acquire this delightful art. I do not mean that we should become elocutionists, or study to be proficient in dramatic effects; I simply advise girls who wish to give pleasure to their families and friends to practise the art of reading intelligently, in a clear and distinct voice, p.r.o.nouncing their words plainly, giving each sentence its full meaning, and being careful not to drop the voice too suddenly at the end of a paragraph. It is so natural to let the voice fall too much and too far at the close of a paragraph, that those who wish to be heard make a point of learning how to use the rising inflection--not to the degree which implies interrogation, but, so to speak, leaving off with tones on the level, so that the voice carries well across the room.

During vacation you will have opportunities to exercise this gift if you possess it. Half a dozen girls may enjoy the same story if one reads aloud while the rest work. The dear auntie whose sight is failing, and who is bidden by the doctor to rest her eyes, will be very much obliged to you if you will read to her an hour or more a day at intervals, as she and you may find convenient.

I have found in my own experience that when I am reading with a view to remembering a poem or essay or chapter of history, it is fixed upon my mind more readily than otherwise if I read the pa.s.sage aloud to myself.

Hearing as well as seeing the words, two senses aid in carrying the message to the brain. I like to read poetry aloud when I am alone, thus doubly enjoying its music and its feeling.

As every bright young woman should be informed about current events, my girl friends hardly need the reminder to read the daily papers. In doing this, read according to system. You will be able to secure better results if you have a plan than if you scan the journal taken in your home in a slip-shod, heedless way.

Every newspaper has its summary of contents, in which the news of that day and paper are condensed and presented in a compact form. Read this first. Select from this what you most wish to read--the foreign letters, the society gossip, the political leaders, the description of a prominent personage. Whatever you read, read with your whole attention, and learn how to skip a great many things which, while coming under the head of news, are not important to you. Reports of crime, for example, must be published, but you and I can very well omit reading them.

Somebody in the house, and it may as well be you, dear daughter Jane or Charlotte, should take upon herself to see that the daily papers are not spirited off to line closet-shelves or kindle the kitchen fire before they are a week old. Father often wishes to refer to last Thursday's _Sun_ or _Tribune_, Brother Tom wants another look at yesterday's _Herald_ or the _Weekly Record_ or _Register_, whatever the favorite paper may be. Nothing is more annoying than to search the house over--mother's room, the library, the back parlor, the halls--and discover no trace of the longed-for sheet, which probably has been dissolved into ashes, fluff, and smoke, to save Bridget a little trouble. You might charge yourself with seeing that no paper is ever destroyed until it is a whole week old. Also when a paper contains an item or a story which will probably interest grandmother or Uncle Roger in another town, it is very sweet in you to slip a wrapper around the paper, first marking the column in question, and mail it to the person to whom it will give pleasure. Do not forget the marking. n.o.body likes to spend a morning hunting for the reason why a paper has been sent to him.

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DON'T WORRY YOURSELF

and don't worry the baby: avoid both unpleasant conditions by giving the child pure, digestible food. Don't use solid preparations. _Infant Health_ is a valuable pamphlet for mothers. Send your address to the New York Condensed Milk Company, N. Y.--[_Adv._]

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Postage Stamps, &c.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

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[Ill.u.s.tration: If afflicted with SORE EYES USE Dr. ISAAC THOMPSON'S EYE WATER]

[Ill.u.s.tration]

a Living Picture

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[Ill.u.s.tration]

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