Care of Sheet Music.—Have a music cabinet, homemade if necessary, with shelves large enough for a piece of sheet music, and close enough together to admit of keeping the pieces classi fied. Bind two or more pieces of mu sic of the same general kind together as desired by means of brass brads sold by stationers. The use of these is very simple. Lay the sheets one upon the other in the order desired, cut a slot top, bottom, and middle a half inch from the back edge with a penknife, insert the brad and turn down the edges.
Or, to bind music together, take a piece of strong manila or other tough paper two inches or more in width, and as long as the music is high. Fold this lengthwise in the middle and paste one side to one piece of music, the other to another. Run over this with a hot flatiron to insure its dry ing quickly and evenly without wrin kles. If the sheets tear apart, insert a similar strip between the torn sheets, and when all have been reenforced in this way take a similar strip of tough paper or muslin wide enough to go round the back of the whole collection and lap over an inch or more on either side. Slush the back well with paste or glue, lay on this strip, rub down tightly, and let dry under a weight. A manila folder or cover the same size as the music itself may be " drawn on " in a similar way to correspond to the cover of a bound book.
Pictures—Good and Bad Taste.—A good illustration of what to avoid is found in the family photographs en larged by the carbon or imitation pas tel process, and surrounded by massive frames at the recommendation of en terprising manufacturers, whose prof its are in proportion to the size of the frame and the elaborateness of the molding. Only the eloquence of the venders could give such pictures even a temporary popularity, but they are seen everywhere. Family photographs should be, as a rule, confined to sleep ing apartments rather than displayed in living rooms, and much better re productions can be had in smaller sizes than upon a large scale. Carbon and other reproductions have little deco rative value, and even when enlarged should be framed as simply and un obtrusively as possible. This work can usually be done at a lower rate and of a better quality by a local photog rapher. The difference in expense will usually furnish the living room with a good photographic reproduction of one of the masterpieces of the world, that will be equally interesting to strangers and instructive to the in mates of the home. Happily, public taste is rapidly improving in these matters. Heavy and elaborate mold ings with intricate designs made of putty and covered with gilt paint, or oak molding stamped in imitation of hand carving, and the like monstrosi ties are much less seen than formerly.
The object of picture molding is, of course, twofold—to protect and to de fine the picture; hence the frame itself should be unobtrusive and should in no way attract the eye to itself. If the wall coverings are in solid colors or quiet two-toned effects, and the picture frames are simple and appro priate, the picture itself stands out in all of its natural beauty. Thus the object is attained for which the pic ture was hung. A few pictures of reasonable size and real merit, simply but appropriately framed, give a much more artistic effect than does a wall crowded with a large number of sub jects among which those that are in ferior must necessarily suffer by con trast.
Pictures to Choose.—Select for liv ing rooms landscapes, reproductions of still life, ideal heads and faces, and reproductions of masterpieces por traying scenes or subjects that might properly be the subject of conversa tion in the social circle.
For the music room, photographs of eminent composers and other musi cians, or reproductions of paintings suggested by the use of the room, are appropriate.
For the library, photographs of lit erary and other public men, and re productions of public buildings of all ages and in all parts of the world, are in order.
Reserve for the privacy of sleeping apartments photographs of friends or relatives of the family, children, and all other pictures that, however inter esting they may be to the owner, can be of no general concern to those who are not members of the family.
To Hang Pictures.—Do not make the common mistake of hanging pic tures above the line of sight, so as to make it necessary to strain the eyes in looking up at them. Pictures should not, as a rule, hang more than five and one half feet from the floor— about on a level with the eyes of a person of average height when stand ing. But, of course, the different pic tures, for the sake of variety, are hung slightly above or below this line, according to their size and other cir cumstances, and not at a uniform level. Remember that in looking at a picture the eye falls, not at the ex act center, but at a point about in termediate between the center and the top of the picture, or at about one third of its depth from the top. Hence, if a picture is hung so that the line of sight of a person of aver age height when standing falls on this point, it is displayed to the best advantage.