NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



149 



another to know how to arrange it. To do this 

 to the best advantage, requires the exercise of a 

 little thought and judgment. Some people live 

 with their furniture in the most inconvenient posi- 

 tions, because it never occurred to them to shift it 

 from place to place, until they had really found 

 which was the most suitable. Those who are will- 

 ing to make the attempt, will often find that a 

 room is improved in appearance and convenience 

 by a little change in the place of the furniture. 



It is too much the practice to cover the mantel- 

 piece with a number and variety of knick-knacks 

 and monstrosities by way of ornament ; but this 

 is in very bad taste. Three, or at most four arti- 

 cles, are all that should be seen in that conspicu- 

 ous situation. Vases of white porcelain, called 

 "Parian," or of old china, or a small statue, or a 

 shell or two, are the most suitable. The forms 

 of some of the white vases now sold at a low price, 

 are so elegant, that it is a real pleasure to look at 

 them. 



BREAD WITHOUT CRUST. 



The following will be interesting to housekeep- 

 ers, and we would advise its trial — for if hard 

 crusts and burned bread can be avoided, it will 

 be a saving worth accomplishing. The Wyoming 

 Co. Mirror says : 



Mr. Throop, of this village, lately presented us 

 a loaf of bread, which was done, and well done, 

 without a crust. The process of baking, or rather 

 steaming, he gave as follows : Prepare the dough 

 the same as for baking, in a tin basin ; when in a 

 proper condition, instead of putting into the oven, 

 put it into a kettle. There should be something 

 in the bottom of the kettle, a hoop of tin two or 

 three inches broad would bo best, to keep the 

 basin from the bottom, and there should be suffi- 

 cient water to cover about one-third of the basin. 

 Keep the water constantly boiling from the time 

 the loaf is put in, till it is done, which will be 

 about three-quarters of an hour, with an ordinary 

 sized loaf. To know when it is done, press upon 

 the centre of the top of the loaf with the thumb, 

 and if done it will puff back on removing the thumb, 

 if not, the indention will remain. 



The loaf presented us is nearly as white outside 

 as inside, and the outside is scarcely any harder 

 than the rest. The flavor is not perceptibly dif- 

 ferent from bread well baked. We have tried the 

 experiment in our family, with perfect success. 

 It looks white and beautiful, and we think fully 

 equals ordinary bread in its flavor. 



How to Make Nice Candles. — Candlewick, if 

 steeped in lime and saltpetre, and dried in the sun, 

 will give a clearer light, and be less apt to run. 



Good candles may be made thus : — Melt togeth- 

 er ten ounces of mutton tallow, a quarter of an 

 ounce of camphor, four ounces of beeswax, and 

 two ounces of alum ; then run it into moulds, or 

 dip the candles. These candles furnish a beauti- 

 ful light. 



To remove Black Spots from Plate. — Boil the 

 articles in three pints of water, with an ounce of 

 calcined hartshorn ; drain, dry by fire, and polish 

 with soft linen rags which have been boiled in the 

 same liquid and afterwards dried, using purified 

 whitening as the plate powder. 



Ii;m's Department. 



DANIEL WEBSTER IN BOYHOOD. 



In his fifteenth year Daniel Webster was privi- 

 leged to spend some months with one of the more 

 prominent clergymen of the day, the Rev. Samuel 

 Woods, who lived at Boscawen, and prepared 

 boys for college at one dollar a week, for tuition 

 and board. During his stay with Dr. Woods he 

 was apparently very neglectful of his academic du- 

 ties, but never failed to perform all his intellectual 

 tasks with great credit. On one occasion the rev- 

 erend tutor thought proper to give lus scholar Dan- 

 iel a scolding for spending too much of his time up 

 hills and along the streams, hunting and fishing, 

 but still complimented him for his smartness. The 

 task assigned to him for his next recitation was 

 one hundred lines of Virgil ; and, as he knew that 

 his master had an engagement on the following 

 morning, an idea occurred to him, and he spent 

 the entire night poring over his books. The reci- 

 tation hour finally arrived, and the scholar acquit- 

 ted himself of his hundred lines, and received the 

 tutor's approbation. "But I have a few more lines 

 that I can recite," said the boy Daniel. "Well, 

 let's have them," replied the doctor ; and forth- 

 with the boy reeled off another hundred lines. 

 "Very remarkable," said the doctor ; "you are in- 

 deed a smart boy." "But I have another," said 

 the scholar, "and five hundred of them if you 

 please." The doctor was of course astonished, 

 but, as he bethought him of his engagement, he 

 begged to be excused, and added, "You may have 

 the whole day, Dan, for pigeon shooting." 



FIRST STEP TO RUIN. 



"My first step to ruin," exclaimed a wretched 

 youth as he lay tossing from side to side on the 

 straw bed in one corner of his prison-house, "My 

 first step to ruin was going fishing on the Sabbath. 

 I knew it was wrong, my mother taught me bet- 

 ter ; my minister taught me better ; my master 

 taught me better ; my Bible taught me better. I 

 did not believe them, but I did not think it would 

 come to this. I am undone ! I am lost !" 



Perhaps he said — it is too pleasant to be cooped 

 up in church. What harm is there in taking a 

 stroll in the woods ? What harm in carrying my 

 fishing tackle and sitting on the banks to fish'? 



What harm 1 Why the harm is that God is dis- 

 obeyed, who says, "Remember the Sabbath day 

 to keep it holy." The moment a youth determines 

 to have his own way, choosing his own pleasures 

 before God's will, that moment he lets go his rud- 

 der, his compass, his chart; nothing but God's 

 word can guide you safely over the ocean of life. 

 Give that up, you are bewildered, you are drift- 

 ing, you will be lost. — Child's Paper. 



Rules and Reasons. — Home Tooke, when at 

 Eton, was one day asked by the master the reason 

 why a certain verb governed a particular case. He 

 answered, "I don't know." "That is impossi- 

 ble," said the master ; "I know you are not igno- 

 rant, but obstinate." Home, however, persisted, 

 and the master flogged. After the punishment, 

 the master quoted the rule of grammar which bore 

 on the subject, and Home instantly replied, "I 

 know that very well, but you did not ask me for 

 the rule — you demanded the reason." 



