The Laundry. 697 



The object of soaking soiled clothes before washing them is to soften 

 and separate the fibres of the cloth and to soften and loosen the dirt. 

 Water alone accomplishes this to a great extent, but the use of a soap 

 solution or a soap solution to which has been added borax or ammonia, 

 and turpentine, kerosene or benzine, makes the washing process both 

 easier and quicker. 



All the clothing should not be put to soak in the same tub. If three 

 tubs are available, soak table linen and clean towels in one, bed and body 

 linen in a second and soiled towels and cloths in a third. If only two 

 tubs are available, wash table linen and clean towels without the pre- 

 liminary soaking. Soiled towels and cloths should always be soaked 

 before washing. 



If colds have prevailed in a family, the handkerchiefs shottld be put 

 to soak in a basin by themselves in a solution of boric acid and should 

 be separately washed and boiled for twenty minutes. 



Wet the garment to be soaked, rub the more soiled part with soap 

 solution and fold this part in. Fold and roll each garment separately 

 and pack it into the tub with the others. This folding and rolling pre- 

 vents the dirt in the soiled parts from spreading. Cover the clothes with 

 warm soapy water to which may have been added one of the alkalis, 

 borax or ammonia, and one of the lubricants, turpentine, kerosene or 

 benzine. Directions for making soap solutions are given under the 

 heading, " Soap." 



Cover the tub if possible and let stand several hours or over night. 



If colored clothes are to be soaked, cover with warm water or water 

 very slightly soapy. No alkali should be used with the colored clothing. 



No arbitrary order can be given for washing clothes, save to say that 

 flannels, white goods and colored goods should be washed separately as 

 the washing process differs somewhat in each case. 



A few simple explanations may aid the housekeeper in solving some 

 of her problems. Heat tends to expand the threads of the cloth and the 

 dirt caught between its fibres is then more easily removed. If the cloth 

 is cooled during the washing process the thread contracts and the dirt 

 is again entangled. Consequently, after the cloth has once been warmed 

 one of the objects of the launderer should be to maintain an even or a 

 rising temperature. In the commercial laundry this is accomplished by 

 turning steam into the washing machine. In the home laundry, boiling 

 water added from, time to time will give good results. 



A good suds is necessary in the washing process, for it emulsifies and 

 mechanically removes dirt. As the suds falls, that is, as it is used 

 up, it should be supplemented b^ the addition of more suds. If insuf- 



