Aunt Jane's Nieces at Work
The old butler was a general in his way, and in view of the fact that
the staff of servants at Elmhurst was insufficient to cope with such a
throng, he allowed Louise to impress several farmers' daughters into
service, and was able to feed everyone without delay and in an abundant
and satisfactory manner.
After luncheon began the speech-making, interspersed with music by the
band.
Louise made the preliminary address, and, although her voice was not
very strong, the silent attention of her hearers permitted her to be
generally understood.
She called attention to the fact that this campaign was important
because it promised more beautiful and attractive houses for the farmers
and townsmen alike.
"We had all grown so accustomed to advertising signs," she said, "that
we failed to notice how thick they were becoming or how bold and
overpowering. From a few scattered announcements on fence boards, they
had crowded themselves into more prominent places until the barns and
sheds and the very rocks were daubed with glaring letters asking us to
buy the medicines, soaps, tobaccos, and other wares the manufacturers
were anxious to sell. Every country road became an advertising avenue.
Scarcely a country house was free from signs of some sort. Yet the
people tamely submitted to this imposition because they knew no way to
avoid it. When Mr. Forbes began his campaign to restore the homesteads
to their former beauty and dignity, a cry was raised against him. But
this was because the farmers did not understand how much this reform
meant to them. So we gave them an object lesson. We painted out all the
signs in this section at our own expense, that you might see how much
more beautiful your homes are without them. We believe that none of you
will ever care to allow advertising signs on your property again, and
that the quiet refinement of this part of the country will induce many
other places to follow our example, until advertisers are forced to
confine themselves to newspapers, magazines and circulars, their only
legitimate channels.
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There was once an honest journeyman tailor, by name Labakan, who learned his trade with an excellent master in Alexandria. It could not be said that Labakan was unhandy with the needle; on the contrary, he could make excellent work: moreover, one would have done him injustice to have called him lazy. Nevertheless, his companions knew not what to make of him, for he would often sew for hours together so rapidly that the needle would glow in his hand, and the thread smoke, and that none could equal him.
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