HOUSEHOLD HINTS. 



therefore attempt no such project. Oil-painting 

 a wall is a sure means of excluding and destroy- 

 ing them. The following extirpating mixture 

 is given on high authority : Spirit of wine, half 

 a pint ; spirit of turpentine, half a pint ; crude 

 sal-ammoniac, half an ounce ; corrosive sub- 

 limate, one ounce ; camphor, one ounce. This 

 mixture should be inserted into the joints of 

 bedsteads, &c. with an old knife. Many bug- 

 poisons are to be had at the chemists' ; but it 

 is not only unpleasant, but dangerous, to have 

 such mixtures about a house ; and, after all, 

 they are really less effective than unremitting 

 cleanliness. As means are taken to destroy, so 

 means ought to be taken to prevent the introduc- 

 tion of these pests, which are often brought from 

 one house to another in clothes, in old furniture, 

 travelling-bags, books from libraries, servants' 

 chests, and even in the old cut-wood sold for 

 kindling fires. 



Fleas. There is no way of ridding a bed or 

 house of these vermin but scrupulous cleanliness. 

 Keep the floors well swept and washed, and if you 

 have a dog, comb and wash it frequently. Fleas 

 are bred on the ground, or among dust ; and it 

 has been said that to destroy one in March or 

 early spring, is to destroy hundreds. 



Beetles, Cockroaches, and Crickets. These may 

 be caught in traps, without the disagreeable and 

 dangerous expedients of poisoning or fumigation. 

 A simple trap for them is a glazed basin or pie- 

 dish half filled with treacle, sweetened beer, or 

 milk, to the edge of which a piece of wood is laid 

 from the floor as a gangway. 



Flies. It is difficult to rid a house of flies by 

 any other plan than poisoning, and that is too 

 dangerous to be recommended. Papier-moure, a 

 French invention, is a very effective destroying 

 agent ; it consists of a sheet of paper saturated 

 with a solution of arseniate of potass, which is 

 placed on a common plate and kept moistened 

 with water : the flies, after lighting on it, drop 

 down and die, and poison any animals that eat 

 them. 'Great care requires to be taken in apply- 

 ing this dangerous remedy. An infusion of quassia 

 sweetened with sugar is also very effectual. Gilt 

 frames and chandeliers should be shrouded in 

 thin yellow gauze or paper, in situations where 

 the flies are likely to spoil them. 



Moths. The best way to preserve furs or 

 worsteds from moths is to sew them closely up in 

 a bag of new unwashed linen ; if this be not done, 

 the next best is to take the articles frequently out 

 and brush and air them. The odour of camphor, 

 shavings of Russia leather, lavender, &c., are 

 much less efficacious than they are supposed 

 to be. Kill every flying moth you can see. 



ESCAPES FROM BURNING, &C. 



Precautions as to Fire. Houses are said to 

 take fire by accidents ; but these accidents are in 

 general only acts of carelessness, and could, with 

 a reasonable degree of prudence, be avoided. As 

 prevention is better than cure, we offer the follow- 

 ing advices : 



Never leave a candle burning at your bedside, 

 or on a table when you go to bed, except it be a 

 rush, wax, or floating light, burning in a basin at 

 a considerable distance irom the bed or window- 

 curtains. 



Never put hot cinders or ashes into a bucket to 

 set aside in a closet 



If you light candles with pieces of paper, take 

 care that the burning paper is completely extin- 

 guished after being used. It is always safest to 

 light candles and lamps with a small wax-taper, 

 or asbestos and spirit of wine taper, which can 

 be at once blown out In large manufactories, 

 where there are many lamps or gas-burners to 

 light, let the lighting apparatus be a small hand- 

 lamp, which shall be in charge of a particular 

 person in the premises. And never on any account 

 use any matches but those that ignite only by 

 rubbing on the box. 



Never blow gas-lights out; always turn them 

 off; and turn off the gas at the main stop-cock. 

 Should the gas from any cause have escaped, and 

 the smell be suddenly and offensively felt, at 

 once turn off the supply at the meter or stop-cock, 

 and open the windows, to allow the entrance of 

 fresh air. Be careful not to take a lighted candle 

 into the apartment where the escape has taken 

 place. 



Cause the chimneys to be swept once in three 

 months, or oftener, if necessary, so as to. prevent 

 the accumulated soot from catching fire. Some- 

 times houses are set on fire from beams which 

 encroach upon the chimneys. House-builders 

 ought to be particularly cautious in preventing 

 any part of the wood- work from coming in contact 

 with the flues. 



The following are advices how to act when the 

 catastrophe of fire actually takes place : 



Chimney on Fire. To extinguish speedily the 

 fire in a chimney, it is only necessary to hang 

 over the fireplace a piece of wet carpet or 

 blanket : some handfuls of salt thrown into the 

 fire at the same time will greatly aid the extinc- 

 tion. It is also recommended to scatter a hand- 

 ful of flowers of sulphur over the dullest part of 

 the burning coals, the vapour arising from which 

 will not support combustion, and will conse- 

 quently extinguish the flames. Throwing water 

 down from the top is a clumsy expedient, by which 

 much damage is frequently done to furniture ; so 

 also is stopping at the top, by which the smoke 

 and suffocating smell of the burning soot are 

 driven into the apartment If every fireplace 

 were provided with a damper, or shutter of sheet- 

 iron, sufficiently large to choke it thoroughly, fire 

 in chimneys would become of little consequence, 

 as it would only be necessary to apply this 

 damper to extinguish them. All good modern 

 grates are furnished with such dampers. To set 

 chimneys on fire with a view to clean them is 

 highly objectionable, even where there is no 

 danger of fire to be apprehended, as the intense 

 heat produced rends and weakens the walls. 



Clothes catching Fire. The moment you see 

 that your clothes are on fire, remain still and 

 collected ; do not, on any account, run away in a 

 fright If there be a loose rug, carpet, or table- 

 cover at hand, snatch it up, and roll it tightly 

 about you. If you can get this done smartly, the 

 flames will immediately be extinguished. Should 

 no cloth of any kind be at hand, and no one be 

 present to give assistance, lay yourself down oo 

 the floor, and try to extinguish the names by 

 rolling yourself about, always taking care to 

 keep the garments as close together as possible. 

 If a man be present, let him take off his coat, and 



