MISCELLANEOUS. 535 



Softening Hard Water for Washing Clothes, Dishes, or 

 Souse Cleaning. — A writer saj^s: " Take 3 lbs. of washing soda (sal soda), 

 and 1 lb. of common stone lime, and boil in 5 gals, of water for 2 or 3 hours; 

 then stand away to settle, and' dip off the clear water from the top and put into 

 a jug (pouring off carefully is better). Can be used for washing dishes or clean- 

 ing, and 1 teacup in a boiler of clothes, put in after the water is hot, will whiten 

 the clothes, and soften the water, without injury to the hands, or clothes. I use 

 an old iron pot to make it in." 



Remarks. — Some of these newspaper writers get some most excellent 

 chings, but again, some of them make poor describers as to the best plan of 

 using: for instance, this woman (for it is undoubtedly a woman), says: "Boil 

 in 5 gals, of water," then further on, "put into a jug. Now, would it not 

 take a big jug, or two or threp, small ones? and again, it cannot be to be used 

 even in 5 gals, of water, without further dilution, for she says: "1 tea-cupful 

 in a boiler of clothes, put in after the water is hot," etc., then why not boil it ia 

 say 2 gals, of water? then a 2 gal. jug will hold it, and use a little less to a 

 boiler of clothes, stirred well into the water when hot, before putting in the 

 clothes; and half as much more for each additional boiler at the same washing 

 will be plenty; in fact it does make a sjDlendid washing fluid as I have above 

 suggested, and a table-spoon of it in a dish-pan of water for washing dishes will 

 help much in cleaning the dishes; and a little of it in a pan of water for house- 

 cleaning is, or will be, " just splendid," as the girls say. A spoonful of it in a pt. 

 or a qt. of water for cleaning finger-marks off of doors or other wood-work, is 

 good, and if kept ready-made, is always handy, although the spirits of ammo- 

 nia (which see) in like quantities, is good for general house-cleaning, window- 

 washing, etc. I do not know who this writer was, as it was a slip sent to me hav. 

 ing no name attached, but I know enough to know it is a grand good thing. A 

 little of this, say 2 table-spoonfuls of it in 2 qts. of hot water, is just the thing 

 to soak feet in, to soften corns and to soften the dead skin about the heels, 

 and to make a thorough work of cleaning the feet, generally. 



Softening Water— Clark's Method.— By adding burnt quick-lime 

 (quick-lime is freshly burned or unslacked lime), to hard water, which contains 

 lime (all hard water contains lime, 'tis the lime that makes it hard), it will 

 become soft. The added lime seizes the carbonic acid gas which held the car- 

 bonate of lime in solution, and so both the original carbonate of lime and that 

 formed in the process, fall together as a white sediment This method is truly 

 homoeopathic. 



Eemarks. — This writer is right as to the way it softens, but is tame in not 

 giving the proper amount for a bbl. or some other measure. About 2 or 3 

 table-spoonfuls of this stone-lime, just slacked with a little hot water, will be 

 enough for a barrel, just drawn from the well. Rummage it in thoroughly, 

 that is stir it with a stick that will reach the bottom till well mixed, and let it 

 settle over night, or 2 or 3 hours. 



Ammonia, its Various Uses in House Cleaning, Washing, etc. 

 —"A Farmer's Wife," in the Country Gentleman, says of it: There is no telling 

 vWhat a thing will do till you try it. I knew ammonia, diluted in water, could 



