[Illustration: Fig. 1.]
Girls and boys who are looking for a useful and tasteful holiday gift
for mother, aunt, or elder sister, may unite in the making of the
folding camp-stool, which we illustrate below. It is made of black
walnut rods, joined, with hinges and with a broad cross-bar. On the top
of the cross-bar is fastened a leather handle, by which to carry the
stool when folded (Fig. 2). The upright wooden rods in the back are
hinged to and support the cane seat, as shown by Fig. 1. The other upper
rods are pushed into the notches on the under side of the seat in
unfolding the chair. A leather satchel may be added, as in the
engraving, but this is not necessary. The seat is covered with a
four-cornered piece of brown woollen Java canvas, embroidered in cross
stitch with fawn-colored filling silk in three shades. Ravel out the
threads of the canvas from the last cross stitch row to a depth of an
inch and a quarter, fold down the canvas on the wrong side so as to form
loops a quarter of an inch deep on the edge, and catch every ten such
loops together with a strand of fawn-colored silk in three shades, for a
tassel, which is tied with similar silk. Cut the tassels even, and
underlay the cover with a thin cushion.
[Illustration: Fig. 2.]
[Illustration: OUR POST-OFFICE BOX.]
Have dolls gone out of fashion? Very few of our little girls mention
them in their letters. We hope that there are dolls and play houses and
lovely little tea sets, just as there used to be, and we shall be glad
to have the younger ones write about them. How many of you are learning
to decorate china, and which little girls have painted the prettiest
cups and saucers for mamma's birthday? What are the boys doing in these
bright days of autumn? Marbles, tops, balls, hoops, and such toys are
always the style, we know, among the boys. Which boy has drawn the best
map? Who has made the finest work-box or bracket with his scroll-saw?
Write about these things.
Now that the long evenings are coming, you may tell us, if you please,
about your home amusements. Hands up! Every uplifted hand is the sign
that its owner knows a pleasant evening game, and Our Post-office Box
will be delighted to hear how it is played, so that all the young people
may play it if they wish to do so.
And now one word more to exchangers. Listen, please. Try to confine your
exchanges to useful, unique, valuable, or beautiful things of which you
are making collections. As we have said before, in every case exchangers
should write to each other, and arrange the exchange, settle the
postage, and determine the details before they trust their articles to
the mail or express. Every day brings us complaints, and some of them
very bitter ones, from boys and girls who accuse others of having
treated them unfairly. This would be made impossible if there were
always an exchange of views before the exchange of goods. Hereafter we
shall publish no notices of withdrawal from our exchange list. When your
supplies are exhausted it would be well for you to notify your
correspondents, for the reason that several weeks must elapse before we
can publish your notice of withdrawal, and all that time you, though
innocent, are exposed to the suspicion of being either dishonest or
careless.
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