House and Home Papers

1865. House and Home Papers, first published under the name Christopher Crowfield, is considered to be Stowe's most successful wartime series. In the first number, Ravages of a Carpet she tells of the seemingly innocent introduction of a new carpet into the modest home of the narrator Christopher Crowfield. The creation of vast amounts of consumer goods led to their immediate consumption by a growing Northern middle class. Mrs. Stowe made this subtle point by noting the new carpet and other newly purchased goods filling the parlor sat shut up like a mausoleum while the family and friends gathered in the old, worn-and clearly more comfortable-library of Mr. Crowfield. Contents: The Ravages of a Carpet; Home-Keeping vs. House-Keeping; What is a Home?; The Economy of the Beautiful; Raking Up the Fire; The Lady Who Does Her Own Work; What Can be Got in America; Economy; Servants; Cookery; Our House; and Home Religion. See other titles by this author available from Kessinger Publishing.