This item is not a world-class needlepoint sampler.....but it is, never-the-less, delightful. It was bought by

this writer thirty five years ago in Lockport, N.Y.  What caught his eye was the Dutch theme, and some of his

ancestors were Holland Dutch. (In the lower half of the sampler note the outfits of the girls, a typical Dutch

dwelling, the windmill, and the windmill's reflection beneath, in what is presumably a canal.) The quotation,

that is folksy and quaint, shows characteristics of Dutch grammar.

"Ain't it funny that some folks you can't miss. An' some folks you jus' miss a pile ?

An' the folks that you can't miss you see lots. An' the other folks,---once in a while."

I don't believe this item is Pennsylvania Dutch, which really means not "Dutch", but rather Pennsylvania Deutsch.

Deutsch is German for German. People misunderstood that word, and thought it meant Dutch.

The sampler is nicely done and well preserved, being in a frame style popular 70 years ago and still with

its paper backing intact. There is no date that I can find, but believe it is from the 1920s or 1930s.

There are some interesting clues to the origin of this work of sewing art. There are the initials "C.J.B.",

"M.M.W.", and the double "OO", and an enigmatic symbol in the lower left area just inside the border.

All these details are pictured separately. Also, four of these pictures can be printed individually, and,

with a little modification, reassembled to produce an image four times the size.

In reality, the item itself measures 10" x 12 3/4".

Thanks so much for your interest, and any bids generated.