286 



CURING AND STORING. 



ing to the size of the hog, no matter how 

 warm or changeable the weather is. Then 

 take them out of the trough, and string 

 tli em on white-oak splits ; wash all the 

 salt off with the brine, if sufficient ; if not, 

 with water; then rub them well and 

 thoroughly with wood ashes. Let them 

 hang up and remain twenty-four hours or 

 two or three days before you make the 

 ( smoke under them, which must be made 

 of green chips, and not chunks. Make 

 the smoke under them every day, and 

 smoke them five or six weeks. After the 

 smoke stops, let the hams remain hang- 

 ing all the time. Shoulders cure in the 

 same manner. Always kill your hogs in 

 the morning, and let them remain from 

 twenty-four to thirty-six hours before cut- 

 ting them up. 



HAMS (Smoked), to Keep. — Make sacks 

 of coarse cotton cloth, large enough to 

 hold one ham, and fill in with chopped 

 hay all around about two inches thick. 

 The hay prevents the grease from coming 

 in contact with the cloth, and keeps all 

 insects from the meat. Hang in the 

 smokehouse, or other dry, cool place, and 

 they will keep a long time. 



HERBS, to Dry. —They should be 

 gathered in a dry season, cleansed from 

 discolored and rotten leaves, screened 

 from earth or dust, placed on handles 

 covered with blotting paper, and exposed 

 to the sun or the heat of a stove, in a dry, 

 airy place. The quicker they are dried 

 the better, as they have less time to fer- 

 ment or grow mouldy ; hence they should 

 be spread thin, and frequently turned; 

 when dried they should be shaken in a 

 large meshed sieve to get rid of the eggs 

 of any insects. Aromatic herbs ought to 

 be dried quickly with a moderate heat 

 that their odor may not be lost. Crucif- 

 erous plants should not be dried, as in 

 that case they lose much of their antiscor- 

 butic qualities. Some persons have pro- 

 posed to dry herbs in a water bath, but 

 this occasions them, as it were, to be half 

 boiled in their own water. 



HONEY, to Keep. — After the honey is 

 passed from the comb, strain it through a 

 sieve, so as to get out all the wax; gently 

 boil it, and skim off the whitish foam 

 which rises to the surface, and then the 

 honey will become perfectly clear. The 

 vessel for boiling should be earthen, brass, 



or tin. The honey should be put in jars 

 when cool, and tightly covered. 



To keep honey in the comb, select 

 combs free from pollen, pack them edge- 

 wise in jars or cans, and pour in a suf- 

 ficient quantity of the boiled and strained 

 honey (as above) to cover the combs. 

 The jars or cans should be tightly tied 

 over with thick cloth or leather. These 

 processes have been in use for twenty 

 years with unvarying success. 



HONEY, Artificial, to Make.— To ten 

 pounds of good brown sugar add four 

 pounds of water, gradually bring it to a 

 boil, skimming it well. When it has be- 

 come cooled, add two pounds of bees' 

 honey and eight drops of peppermint. A 

 better article can be made with white 

 sugar instead of common, with one pound 

 less of water and one pound more of 

 honey. To twenty pounds of coffee- 

 sugar add six pounds of water, four ounces 

 cream of tartar, four tablespoonfuls of 

 vinegar (strong), the white of two eggs, 

 well beaten, and one pound of bees' 

 honey, Lubin's extract of honeysuckle, 

 twenty drops. Place the water and sugar 

 in a kettle, and put it over a fire ; when 

 lukewarm add the cream of tartar, stir- 

 ring it at the time ; then add the egg, and 

 when the sugar is melted, put in the 

 honey and stir it well until it comes to a 

 boil; then take it off, let it stand five 

 minutes, then strain, adding the extract 

 last. Let it stand over night, and it is 

 ready for use. 



HORSE-RADISH, to Keep. — Grate a 

 sufficient quantity during the season, 

 while it is green, put it in bottles, fill up 

 with strong vinegar, cork them tight, and 

 set them in a cool place. 



LARD, to Keep from Molding. — It is 

 not likely to mold if properly tried and 

 kept in a cool, dry place ; earthen crocks 

 or pans well tinned are good to put lard 

 in for keeping. Lard made from intesti- 

 nal fat will not keep so long as leaf fat. 

 It should be soaked two or three days in 

 salted water, changed each day. 



LARD, to Keep Sweet. — Even during 

 the warmest weather lard can be kept 

 sweet by the following plan : When ren- 

 dering (melting) it, throw into each kettle 

 a handful of fresh slippery elm bark. No 

 salt must be added to it at any time. 

 The jars in which the lard is to be kept 

 must be thoroughly cleansed. 



