174 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



[November, 



ALL THE WORLD. 



All the world is full nf babies, 



Sobbing, .si^hius: everywhere; 

 Looking' out. with eyes of terror, 



Besitins at the eniiity air. 

 Do they see the strife before them. 



That they sol) and tremble so ? 

 Oh, the helpless, frightened babies. 



Still tliey eome, and still they po. 



All the world is full of children, 



Laushiiiir over little joys, 

 SifrhiUi,' over little troubles. 



Fingers bruised, and broken toys; 

 Wishing to be older, larger, 



Weeiiiug at some fancied woe; 

 Oh, the happy, hapless children, 



Still they come, and still they go. 



All the world is full of lovers. 



Walking slowly, whispering sweet; 

 Dreaming dreams and building castles. 



That must crumble at their feet; 

 Breaking vows, and burning letters. 



Smiling lest the \world shall know; 

 Oh, tlie-fbolish, trusting lovers, 



Still they come, and still they go. 



All the world is full of people. 



Hurrying, rushing, pushing by, 

 Bearing burdens, carrying crosses. 



Passing onward with a sigh; 

 Some there are, with smiling faces. 



But with heavy hearts below. 

 Oh, the sad-eyed, burdened people. 



How they come, and how they go. 



All the earth is full of corpses. 



Dust and bones laid there to rest; 

 This, the end that babes and children. 



Lovers, people, find at best. 

 All their tears and all their crosses. 



All their sorrows, wearing so. 

 Oh, the silent, happy corpses. 



Sleeping soundly, lying low. Aiinn. 



Yet this world is full of blessing, 



Hope is blooming on the earth; 

 Fi'om the seed we sow in sorrow, 



Joy shall spring in the new birth — 

 In thai morn of general gladness 



When the Son of Life shall come 

 To dispel the clouds of sadness 



Ling'riug round the lonely tomb. 



Why should not the world be joyous. 



With its babies, children, lovers. 

 People, sorrows, crosses, corpses. 



When Love's soft-eyed augel hovers 

 Over every human creature, 



Luring him from earth to heaven ? 

 .\h, the answer. Truth has written — 



" .Man's proud heart to sin is given." 



.f. M. W. G. 



DOMESTIC ECONOMY. 



How to Cure Bacon, Ham, and Pork. 



As the wintry months approach, the hog gains 

 greatly in the estimation of his friends, and many 

 persons who would not ta.ste of his tlesh in the sum- 

 mer months are pleased to. see the various dishes com- 

 posed of it upon their tables. But bacon holds its own 

 at all seasons of the year, and ham is always appre- 

 ciated when prop(>rly cured and cooked. 



Opinions diller as to the derivation of the term 

 "bacon." Some wise heads think it to be a corrup- 

 tion of the Scotch hdlccn (dried); while others beiieve 

 it to come from berclmn, as the Hncst flitches are fur- 

 nished by animals led upon beeeli-nuts. 



There "ar(^ also various ways of curing bacon. The 

 Yorkshire (Kngland) method is to burn oil' the bris- 

 tles, rather than to scald them, then brush the car- 

 cass and wash it in cold water, and let it hang where 

 it will not freeze I'lir twenty-four hours. One-quarter 

 of i\ pftinid ol" saltpetre and twenty-five pounds of 

 common salt are then rubl)ed thoroughly into the 

 pieces of the animal, which should be placed in a 

 large tub and covered up closely, in a cool place for 

 a Ibrtnight. Then-turn over each piece and rub in a 

 little more salt. Let il remain in the pickle another 

 fortnight, and the bacon is ready to be smoked. The 

 best way to smoke it is with corn on the cobs burned 

 upon charcoal; keeping up a slow, dense smoke, and 

 . not a fire. Then ]>ut it in a cloth and wash it over 

 with whitewash, to preserve it from mold or tly-blows, 

 and iilace wheie there is no moisture, and it will 

 keep for years. 



The Westphalian hams and bacon are cured by the 

 following receipt : 



To si.v pounds of rock salt add three ounces of salt- 

 petre, and two jjounds of coffee C sugar. ' Put it into 

 three gallons of water, and boil until dissolved, skim- 

 ming it well while it boils; and whencoldpour it over 

 the meat, keeping evt-ry part of it under the brine. 



Bacon can be ])ieklcd ready to smoke in about ten 

 days; but hams should remain in for four or five 

 weeks. This pickle can be usad again and agaip, if 



it is boiled up, skimmed, and a small portion of its 

 ingredients added each time. . 



Before putting the meat into the brine, it should be 

 carefully washed and wiped clean from blood, as that 

 spoils the pickle. Pickling tubs should be larger at 

 the bottom than at the top, so that the pork can re- 

 main undisturbed in its layers until needed lor use; 

 and the bottom of the tub should be covered with 

 coarse salt, and then a layer of meat placed upon it, 

 and so on until the tub is filled. 



A GOOD WAV TO PICKLE ONE HAM. 



Take a deep stone-ware dish, just lai-ge enough to 

 hold a ham, and mix together one pound of coarse 

 brown sugar, one and a half pounds of fine salt, and 

 one ounce each of saltpetre and salt-prunellc. Then 

 rub every portion of the ham, and pile the remainder 

 of it over the top, having placed the ham skin side 

 downward in the dish. Let it stiind for two or three 

 days; then turn it over and rub in the mixture, and 

 ladle over it with a spoon any brine that may be 

 found at the bottom of the pan. Do this for a fort- 

 night, and if the ham is needed for use, it can be 

 smoked for two or three days, and then boiled. And 

 it will prove a delicious dish, especially if roasted and 

 served with a claret-wine sauce, made by basting it 

 the last hour with a tumblerful of the wine. And, 

 after pouring off the fat, thicken the gravy. If it is 

 to be kept, let it remain in the pickle, rubbing it oc- 

 casionally, for a month or more. A pint of molasses 

 can be substituted for the sugar, and a pint of beer is 

 also an improvement to its. flavor. 



THE FRENCH W.iY OF SALTING PORK, 



Bacon is almost the only meat ever tasted by hun- 

 dreds of thousands of Frenchmen, and they have, 

 become connoisseurs in the method of preparing it. 

 As soon as the pig is killed it is alwaj's singed, not 

 scalded, the carcass being placed upon a bundle of 

 straw and the fire set to it to windward. As one side 

 is singed the pig is turned over, and if any bristles 

 remain they are burnt off with wisps of blazing straw. 

 Next it is brushed, and scraped with a knife, and 

 washed clean with cold water. 



After cutting it open, the "fry" is placed into 

 water, to be cleansed from blood, and afterward it is 

 speedily cooked. Some persons will leave the opened 

 carcass to cool all night; while others kill by early 

 dawn, and cut up in the evening, by candlelight, to 

 save time. The pig is cut up inlo convenient pieces 

 of from three to five pounds each, reserving the bams, 

 feet, heads and tails for special treats; also a few 

 roasting pieces and some sausage-meat. The feet are 

 then boiled tender and broiled as tid-bits. 



For a pig weighing two hundred pounds take thirty 

 pounds of common salt, a quarter of a pound of salt- 

 petre, two ounces of ground pepper, and four ounces 

 of ground allspice and cloves mixed together. Stir 

 these ingredients up well, and rub each piece of pork, 

 whether it is to be salted or smoked ; then sprinkle 

 the mixture over the bottom of the tub, and put in a 

 layer of meat, sprinkling it with the salt and spices ; 

 and do so imtil it is all packed, covering the upper 

 layer thickly with the salt. Cover up closely, and it 

 will keep perfectly and be more toothsome than pork 

 pickled in the common way. — S. O. J., Indcpemknt. 



Window Adornments. 



At this season of the year the beautiful color of field 

 and forest leads to a desire for home-adornment, and 

 the finely tinted leaves are gathered and preserved, 

 and do excellent service in making home attractive 

 till the leaves and flowers eome again. But while 

 these relics of the past are doing good service in their 

 humble way, making the dark corners glow with a 

 faint glimmer of life, we may make the light by the 

 windows do us equal if not better service, by feeding 

 living plants and aiding them to bear for us sweet 

 and lovely flowers. Vines may be trained up the 

 window frames, pots may be made to stand in brack- 

 ets, and banging baskets let the flowing shoots hang 

 down. 



All this does not take much to do, but people often 

 think otherwise, and this is why so few have nothing 

 at all. Indeed the choice flowers of the conserva- 

 tories are often among the worst for window culture; 

 and the wild weed would be a much greater success 

 and be more pleasing than the most valued exotics 

 from a foreign land. Indeed a weed is not a weed 

 only in relation to time and place. It is a flower and 

 a valued flower when it comes where it does not grow 

 natin-ally, and where it is desired to come. There is 

 no growth in winter out-of-doors, and so the ^ild 

 flower growing in the windows in winter is no more 

 a weed than anything that grows. There are many 

 green things in woods and meadows, ferns, mosses, 

 vines, and so on, that would remain quite green only 

 for severe frosts and cold winds. In windows this is 

 accomplished. It must however be borne in mind 

 that these naturally hardy plants do not like much 

 heat, and hence they are adapted to cool rooms only 

 and not to warm ones. With heat they are worthless. 

 For such heated rooms the more tropical plants must 

 be used. 



It is not our purpose here to name varieties to grow, 

 rather to suggest that anything that comes tt> hand 

 will do, but to offer a practical word or two as to 

 treatment that may be of service. Air, fresh from 



the outside, whenever it is not frosty, is of course an 

 advantage, as the foul air from heaters, gas-burners, 

 and other contrivances are more or less of an injury. 

 The sunlight is, of course all know, a benefit at all 

 times. Will this or that do well in the shade, is often 

 a question. Some things, as ferns and mosses, will 

 do, but even these like sun, if not too warm a sun. 



As to watering, this is the great question with all 

 window plant growers, 'tt'e see it stated that a well- 

 known horticulturist of this place, in a recent ad- 

 dress to the Horticultural Society, gave it as his 

 opinion that there was much more danger from too 

 much than too little water to room-plants. This is 

 our experience. If one is not quite sure from the 

 appearance of the earth and of the plants, it is better 

 rather to wait a little while, say for a d.ay, than to 

 risk it. Il will he pretty sure to need the water then 

 and be benefited by receiving it. In regard to plants 

 in baskets, however, we should think the ideas of 

 our horticultural friend might be reversed. These 

 we think are generally inspired by too little than too 

 much w'ater. The danger is, therefore, from the 

 other side. They often get but a drop or two from a 

 cup, and a basin held under the basket to catch 

 the drip ; but besides this a hanging-basket should 

 be dipped in a bucket of water about once a week. — 

 Geriiiaittoifii Telegraph. 



Hints About Meat. 



Meat should be wiped with a dry, clean cloth, as 

 soon as it comes from the butcher's; fly-blows, if 

 found in it, cut out; and in loins the long pipe that 

 runs by the bone should be taken out, as it soontsiiuts; 

 the kernels should also be removed from beef. 

 Never receive bruised joints. 



Meat will keep for a long time in cold weather, 

 and, if frozen through, may be kept for months. 

 Frozen meat must be thawed before it is cooked, by 

 plunging it into cold water, or placing it before the 

 fire before setting it down to roast. It will never be 

 dressed through if this precaution is not taken, not 

 even when twice cooked. 



Pepper is a preventive of decay, in a degree; it is 

 well, therefore, to pepper hung joints. 



Powdered charcoal is still more remarkable in its 

 effect. It will not only keep the meat over which it 

 is sprinkled good, but will remove the taint from 

 already decayed flesh. 



A piece of charcoal boiled in the water with "high" 

 meat or fowls, will render it or them quite sweet. A 

 piece of charcoal or powdered charcoal should be kept 

 in every larder. Hams, after being smoked, may be 

 kept for any length of time packed in powdered 

 charcoal. 



The leg of mutton is the most profitable joint, con- 

 taining most solid meat. The neck is an extravagant 

 joint, half the weight consisting of bone and, fat. The 

 shoulder has also much waste in bone. The breast 

 does well for kitchen dinner nicely stuffed, and is 

 much cheaper than the other joints. 



Sirloins and ribs of beef are very extravagant 

 joints from the weight of bone. The roasting side of 

 the round part of tiie buttock, and the part called the 

 "top-side," are the most proHtable for family eating. 

 The mouse buttock is used for slewing; shin is used 

 for soup or stewing. 



The usual quantity of butchers' meat consumed in 

 a family is, on an average, three-quarters of a pound 

 per day for each person; but when the family con- 

 sists of ladies and children, half a pound per day is 

 about the quantity consumed, one with another, in- 

 dependent of hams, bacon, poultry, fish and ganu". 



Election Cake. 



I some time time ago came across the following 

 receipt for making" Election Cake," and having tried 

 it, I can recommend it to all my sister house-keepers: 

 Four pounds of flour, two pounds of butter, and two 

 of sugar. Stir the butter and sugar together tho- 

 roughly; then mix half of it with the flour, together 

 witii a tumblerful of good home-made yeast, and one 

 quart of warm milk. Beat and pat it with both hands, 

 until the ingredients are thoroughly mixed, then let 

 it stand in a warm place until it is light, say five or 

 six hours. Then add the remainder of the butterand 

 sugar, two pounds of raisins, and a small quantity of 

 pulverized mace. This may stand over night, and put 

 in pans for baking early ui the moruing. It should 

 rise in the pans, and then bake an hour in a slow- 

 oven. This cake requires no eggs, and is used by 

 economical house-keepers in winter, when eggs are 

 dear. The loaves, nicely frosted, will be preserved 

 moi.st for a long time. — Kittv, of Long Island. 



We have no doubt the above would make an ex- 

 cellent cake, and large one also; but whether house- 

 wives in ordinary circumstances, would consider 

 eleven pounds of material, to say nothing about the 

 " home-made yeast " and the mace, savored much of 

 economy, especially if butter happened to be dear, is a 

 question about which there might be different opin- 

 ions. It is singular that nearly all the receipts of this 

 kind that get Into cook-books, or the newspapers and 

 magazines, seem to ignore a large class of people of 

 limited means, putting it entirely out of their power 

 to make use of these pretty compounds, on account 

 of the extravagant quantities given. It is true, half 



