California Agriculturist and Live Stock Journal. 



®hc %Mmt 



Work, IVork, IVork. 



Work, work, work. 



Is ever the farmer's song. 

 There's never a time to stop antl think. 



Be the evenings ever so long. 



Yes, work, work, work. 



Till your hands are hard and rough; 

 Work, ami wring, and scrape. 



Till your finger nails wear ofT. 



And then sit down and write 

 Of the joye of a farmer's life; 



'Tis Oh, to be a slave. 

 Or a modern farmer's wife. 



Oh no. tUo men are not to blame, 



I'or they do all thoy can; 

 But then there are ii hundred things 



That are beyond ajuan. 



They do their work, then go to sleep, 

 No "yeast" is on their minds; 



If all the babies wake and weep. 

 It ne'er disturbs a man. 



It's work, work, work. 



Yes, cook, and weed, and hoe. 

 Till our lady-like and dimpled hands 



Are NOT "as white as snow." 



I would that I were dead. 



And buried in a "row;" 

 llnder a fragrant cabbage head. 



And at my feet a "hoe." 



A "mushroom" planted at my head. 



So that its VERDANT shade 

 Might wof) the birds to come and sing 



About my lonely grave. 



But I cnn't die, I have no time, 



'Twould take a day or two, 

 And stop the plow, so I must wait 



'Till the busy time is through. 



— [Prairie Farmer. 



them completely dry; but, if the slice be 

 not too thin, wo find the interior layers 

 delicionsly soft and palatablf. It in the 

 water in tlie bread which provents the 

 loaf becoming all crust. In an oven with 

 a teraperaturi) of -"JOO degrees, the loaf 

 gets baked or browned outside, and the 

 crust is formed; but the iusido never has 

 a temperature aViOve one hundred de- 

 ttees. 



If the inside is thus slow to heat, it is 

 also alow to cool. Everyone Isnowc how 

 lonf^ th(^ crumb of a roll continues warm, 

 and the loaf taken from the oven at one, 

 even on a cold winter morning, comes 

 warm to the breakfast table at seven. 



Does it not seem that the difference 

 between fresh liread and stale bread is 

 only the diS'ereuce botweou hot, bread and 

 cold bread; especially when we reflect 

 that wo have only to warm tlio stale 

 bread to nialie it fresh again. Hut there 

 is this fact that stands in the way of such 

 an explanation; the broad which has been 

 rcbaked, although hardly distinguishable 

 from bread which has been recently 

 baked, is only so for a very short time — 

 it rapidly becomes stale again. Were 

 this not the ease wo need never have to 

 complain of stale bread. 



The conclusion drawn from experi- 

 ments is, that staloneas depends on a pe- 

 culiar condition of the broad, and this 

 condition is itself dependent on a fall of 

 temperature. —Dr. Lockridqe. 



Bread— Stale and Fresh. 



DON'T like stale bread — do you? 

 Ilf My reason for disliking it is very 

 much the reason why I don't like 

 Dr. Pell ; your reason is really thf 

 same, but you proViably cheat j'our- 

 self into the belief that it is something 

 else — namely: because the bread is "so 

 dry." Allow me to undeceive you. No 

 bread is dry ; bread just baked is nearly 

 half water; and the stalest of stale loaves 

 has not more than a hundredth part of 

 this water. 



The fact that bread contains nearly 

 half its weight of water, is surprising, 

 but not so surprising as that your own 

 body contains a considerably larger pro- 

 portion — nearly three-fourths. The flour 

 from which bread is made is dry enough, 

 containing not more than sixteen per 

 cent of water; but it has a great ten- 

 dency to absorb water, and in the process 

 of baking it absorbs it rapidly. The 

 gum which is produced from the starch 

 of the flour in baking, holds this water 

 firmly, and the gluten which forms a 

 coating round every little hollow in the 

 bread, resists evaporation, and thus bread 

 becomes moist, and keeps moist, let it be 

 ever so stale. 



But if stale bread be not dry bread, 

 what is it ':' What makes that familiar 

 difference between the soft, spongy 

 crumb of yesterday's baking, and the 

 harsh, crumbling morsel of six days old? 

 There is no difference of moisture; every 

 cook or baker will tell us there is no use 

 of placing bread in a moist cellar to keei) 

 it fresh or prevent evaporation of its 

 water, since it will assuredly become 

 stale as the hours roll on. 



On the other hand, every baker and 

 every cook will also tell us, that if a stale 

 loaf be placed in the oven again for a few 

 minutes, it will come out having, for a 

 time at least, all the characters of fresh 

 bread. 



Who does not know the effect of toast- 

 ing a slice of stale bread? The lire 

 scorches the outside layers and renders 



Usefuful Hints. 



In copper utensils, if the tin has worn 

 off, have it immediately replaced. 



Be clean in your person, paying pai-- 

 ticular attention to the hands, which 

 should always be clean. 



Empty soups or gravies into a basin as 

 they are done ; never allow them to re- 

 main all night in the stock pot. 



Cleanliness is the most essential in- 

 gredient in the art of cooking; a dirty 

 kitchen being a disgrace to both mistress 

 and maid. 



Be very particular in cleaning all veg- 

 etables free from grit. Nothing is so 

 unpleasant, and nothing so easily avoid- 

 ed, if but common care be exercised. 



Do not go about slipshod. Provide 



yourself with good, well-fitting boots. 

 You will find them less fatiguing in a 

 warm kitchen, than loose, untidy slip- 

 pers. 



If you have a spare kitchen cupboard, 

 keep your baked pastry in it; it preserves 

 it crisp, and prevents it from getting wet 

 and heavy, which it is liable to do in the 

 larker. 



If you have a lai'ge dinner to prepare, 

 much may be got ready the day before, 

 and many dishes are a great deal better 

 for being thus made early. To soups 

 and gravies this remark is particularly 

 applicable. 



Provide yourself with a dozen good- 

 sized serviceable cooking aprons, made 

 with bibs. These will save your gowns, 

 and keep you neat and clean. Have 

 them made large enough around so as to 

 nearly meet behind. 



Clean your tins with soap and whiten- 

 ing rubbed on with a flannel; wipe them 

 with a clean, dry, soft cloth, and polisn 

 with a dry leather and powder whitening. 

 Mind that neither the cloth nor the 

 leather is greasy. 



Never let your stock of spices, salt, 

 seasonings, etc., dwindle down so low 

 that some day, in the midst of preparing 

 a lai'go dinner, you will find yourself 

 minus a very important ingredient, 

 thereby causing much confusion and an- 

 noyance. 



Do not scrub the inside of your frying 

 pan, as after this operation any prepara- 

 tion fried is liable to catch or burn in 

 the pan. If the pan has become black 

 inside, rub it with a hard crust of bread, 

 and wash in hot water mixed with a lit- 

 tle soda. 



Pudding cloths and jelly bags should 

 have your immediate attention after be- 

 ing used ; the former should be well 

 washed, scalded, and hung up to dry. 

 Let them be perfectly aired before folded 

 up and put in the drawer, or they will 

 have a disagreeable smell when next 

 wanted. 



Do not be afraid of hot water in wash- 

 ing tip dishes or dirty cooking utensils. 

 As they are essentially greasy, lukei»-arm 

 water cannot possibly have the effect of 

 cleaning them effectually. Do not be 

 chary also of changing and renewing the 

 water occasionally. You will thus sare 

 yourself much time and labor in the long 

 run. 



When you have done peeling onions, 

 wash the knife at once, and put it away 

 to bo cU aned, and do not use it for any- 

 thing else until it has been cleaned. 

 Nothing is nastier or more indicative of 

 a slovenly or untidy cook than to use an 

 oniony knife in the preparation of any 

 dish where the flavor of the onion is a 

 disagreeable surprise. 



After you have washed your saucepans, 

 fish kettles, etc., stand them before the 

 fire for a few minutes, to get thoroughly 

 dry inside, before putting them away. 

 They should then bo kept in a dry place, 

 in order that the}' may escape the dete- 

 I'iorating influence of rust, and thereby 

 be quickly destroyed. 



Iiaui5fh0ld 



"Domestic Economy." — Miss Sedg- 

 wick has asserted th;tt "the more intelli- 

 gent a woman becomes, other things be- 

 ing equal, the more judiciously she will 

 manage her domestic concerns." And 

 we add that the more knowledge a wo- 

 man possesses of the great principles of 

 morals, philosophy, and human happi- 

 ness, the more importance she will at- 

 tach to her stntion and to the name of a 

 good housekeeper. It is only those who 

 have been superficially educated, or in- 

 structed only in showy accomplishments, 

 who despise the ordinary duties of life 

 as beneath their notice. Such persons 

 have not sufficient clearness of reason to 

 see that "Domestic Economy" includes 

 everything which is calculated to make 

 people love home and be happy there. 



ORIGINAL, BECIPES BY COELIA. 



Apple Blancmamjc. — Pare and core 

 enough sour and juicy apples to fill an 

 ordinary pudding dish three-quarters 

 full; sugar and cinnamon to suit the 

 taste; add one pinch of salt; take four 

 heaping spoonfuls of corn starch, wet it 

 with coKl water, and then mix it rapidly 

 with one quart of boiling water; add 

 three quarters of a cup of sugar, and 

 boil five minutes. Pour this over the 

 apples, beating the mixttire well, then 

 bake in a slow oven six hours. It is best 

 eaten cold. 



Excellent Veal Loaf. — Three pounds 

 veal cutlets and a small piece of salt 

 pork (uncooked) chopped together very 

 tine; one teacup of cracker crumbs 

 moistened with a little water; one egg; 

 season with salt and pepper; add sage or 

 savory if you like. IJake one and a half 

 hours and slice when cold. 



The Use and Care of Lamps. 



LL explosions of petroleum lamps 

 ^ are caused by the vapor or gas that 

 collects in the space above the oil. 

 When full of oil, of course the 

 lamp contains no gas, but immedi- 

 ately on lighting the lamp consumption 

 of the oil begins, soon leaving a space 

 for gas, which commences to form as the 

 lamp warms up, and after burniug a 

 short time, sufficient gas will accumulate 

 to form an explosion. The gas in a 

 lamp will explode only when ignited. 

 In this respect it is like gunpowder. 

 Cheap or inferior oil is always most dan- 

 gerous. 



The flame is communicated to the gas 

 in the following manner: The wick tube 

 in all lamp burners is made larger than 

 the wick which is to pass through it. It 

 would not do to have the wick work 

 tightly in the burner; on the contrary, it 

 is essential that it move up and down 

 with perfect case. In this way it is un- 

 avoidable that space in the tube is left 

 along the sides of the wick snfficient for 

 the flame from the burner to pass down 

 into the lamp and explode the gas. 



Many things occur to cause the flame 

 to go down the wick and explode the 

 lamp: First, a lamp may be standing on 

 a table or mantel, and a slight pufl' of 

 air from an open window or door may 

 cause an explosion; second, a lamp may 

 be taken up quickly from a table or man- 

 tel and instantly exploded; third, a lamp 

 is taken into an entry where there is a 

 drught, or out of doors and an explosion 

 ensues; fourth, a lighted lamp is taken 

 up a flight of stairs, or is raised quickly 

 to place it on the mant«l, resulting in an 

 explosion. In these cases the mischief 

 is done by the air movement— either by 

 suddenly checking the draught, or forc- 

 ing air down the chimney against the 

 flame; fifth, blowing down the chimney 

 to extinguish the light is a frequent cause 

 of explosion; sixth, lamp explosions have 

 been caused by using a chimney broken 

 off at the top, or one that has a piece 

 broken out. whereby the draught is va- 

 riable and the flame unsteady; seventh, 

 sometimes a thoughtless person puts a 

 small size wick in a large burner, thus 

 leaving considerable space along the 

 edges of the wick. An old burner, with 

 its air draughts clogged up, which right- 

 fully should be thrown away, is some- 

 times continued in use, and the final re- 

 sult is an explosion. 



The following directions for using ker- 

 osene lamps are issued by a famous lamp 

 manufacttircr, and seem worth ptiblish- 

 ing for general information: 



1. Dry the wick before the fire. 



2. Use none but the best oil. 



3. Fill the container with oil each time 

 before lighting. Cut the wick the same 

 curve as top of cone. 



4. W'hen the wick is well saturated 

 with oil, light with wax taper, turn it 

 below the cone until the flame appears 

 only about half an inch above the cone, 

 pvit on the chimney, and then turn the 

 pinion slowly until the flame is the re- 

 quired height. 



5. The wick must be always below 

 the cone when burning. 



6. The flame mnst never be allowed 

 to remain less than three-quarters of an 

 inch above the cone, or the lamp will 

 smell. 



7. Cleanliness is imperative to the well 

 burning of the lamp. Keep all perfora- 

 tions perfectly free from wick cuttings, 

 paper ash, etc.; all burners take to pieces 

 to gain access to interior. 



8. To extinguish the light turn it down 



