48 



POPULAR GARDENING. 



January, 



"^e Household 



Pancakes. 



A writer in the Cuiik comlemus pancakes in 

 the most vigorous terms, particularly buck- 

 wheat pancakes, which he considers chief of 

 all dietetic abominations, because buckwheat is 

 heating. We imagine that the principal injury 

 ai-ising froni the use of buckwheat pancakes is 

 when the use of these is overdone. 



That the gi-ain of buckwheat is nutritious is 

 indisputable, containing as it does, about 10 

 per cent, of gluten and 52 per cent, of starch, 

 besides about (i per cent, of g-um and sugar, but 

 that it has an injurious action on the blood, 

 causing skin eruptions, and perhaps also a bad 

 effect on the brain, seems also to be established. 

 As a supplementary ai'ticle of food it is entitled 

 to use in a reasonalile degree, and then no harm 

 would need to be expected. To bring the cakes 

 hot from the greasy pan in American style on 

 the table once a day, and then make of them 

 almost the sole article of food is too overdo in 

 their use ; such a rule iu vogue should be broken. 



That we may di-ive further terror into the 

 heart of the luxurious buckwheat cake eater, 

 we print the closing flourish of the article, by 

 the writer referred to : 



•'Their one merit, that of increasing the tem- 

 perature of the consumer, is in nearly all ca.ses 

 an evil. Were a man residing at the North 

 Pole, he might warm himself by eating buck- 

 wheat cakes; but in any decent latitude, buck- 

 wheat injuriously c i verheats the blood. All the 

 benefits of buckwheat cakes could be obtained 

 by swallowing cotton while sitting on a mod- 

 erately hot stove. At the same time, one of 

 the evils of buckwheat— the blood-poisoning 

 and cutaneous eruptions which mark the victim 

 of buckwheat— could be avoided. People with 

 their circulatiou stimulated and their stomachs 

 and livers inflamed by buckwheat, are unfit 

 for pursuing the ordinary affairs of life, let 

 alone anv others."' 



Shall the Girls be Taught to Work? 



The popular verdict seems to lie that they 

 should be taught everything except useful 

 work. Of a practical knowledge of housekeep- 

 ing, a young woman is not unfrequently al- 

 lowed to remain in entire ig-n(3iance all through 

 girlhood. Every right thinking person must 

 see in this a great error, aud will agree with 

 the following sensible words, relating to this 

 question, by Ida Hinman, in the Chrixfian 

 Wmnan: 



What father would think of setting his son 

 up in business without giving him some prac- 

 tical knowledge of it i But the daughter, in 

 many cases, is allowed to enter upon her life 

 work without the least prepai-ation. 



It is wonderful that she succeeds as well as 

 she does ; for housekeeping is one of the most 

 difficult of trades; it is a combination of many 

 trades in one. Circimistances may not compel 

 her to work, but then ignorance places her at 

 a disailvantage with her domestics. 



That manual labor is not honorable is a mis- 

 taken idea, yet this is lai-gely the feeling in re- 

 gard to girls. For this polite society is chiefly 

 to blame. There is no reason why a girl who 

 can cook a good dinner, or make a di'ess well, 

 does not deserve as nuich credit as one who can 

 play the piano or paint a picture; she is cer- 

 tainly more useful. A good housekeeper is en- 

 titled to dignity and respect; there is no more 

 honorable calling. 



We would not have a young girl made a 

 drudge and kept in the kitchen, or spend any 

 gi'eat part of her time there, unless circum- 

 stances demand it ; and we are not saying a 

 word against her liberal education. Let her 

 study all the languages, dead or modern, for, 

 which she may have inclination. Let her take 

 a regidar college coiu'se with her brothers, and 



add music and painting if she has talent for 

 them. Let her study what she will and all she 

 will; but let her also have some practical 

 knowledge of household duties; for it she has 

 not this, she has not a liberal education. 



Brieflets. 



Cold air is cot always pure. 



Have at least three dish towels. 



Health is easier retained than regained. 



Sixty-eight to seventy degrees is the best room 

 temperatiu-e. 



Lay aside the cai-es of housekeeping too. when 

 the work is done. 



Paper nibbed over tin will produce a better sbine 

 than (lannel will. 



Chloroform will take out paiut from any material 

 if well rubbed in. 



Fresh fish soaked for half an hour in salt water 

 before cooking will be the nicer for it. 



When your tooth lirush is badly woi-n, get a new 

 one for the teetli. usingthe old one for cleaning lamp 

 burners, window sash and the like. 



The battle is not always to the strong: else the 

 onion would always be ahead. The most it does is 

 to wring tears from those whom it opposes, but 

 never as a real victor. 



Earache. This distressing ailment so connnon 

 to childhood, may be relieved almost immediately 

 by the use of the following simple remedy which is 

 to be found in every family: Take a bit of raw 

 onion and beat it to a pidp. Si)rend this on a piece 

 of thin mushn. and roll into a form that may be 

 placed into the opening of the ear. This is all, and 

 a care may l)e exi>ected when other remedies fail. 



Washing stockings is a disagreeable part of the 

 wash day work. It can l>e made easier and less re- 

 pulsive by putting the stockings to soak in luke- 

 warm water to wdiich a little pearliue has been 

 added, at the beginning of washing. Then leave 

 them nntil the last thing, when it will be fotnid that 

 the dirt and perspiration held will be loosened so as 

 to come out easily without hand-rubbing. Stockings, 

 like any other w-ooien garment, should be washed 

 without rubbing. This process is very wearing and 

 shrinks the material. When clean, wring them from 

 the water in which they were soaked: rinse in blue 

 water: stretch int" shape and dry at once. 



Make your own Dessicated Cocoanut. Now that 

 tile cocoanut season opens anew, let us give some 

 simple directions for preparing this delicious article 

 of the cook room, to be both better and much 

 cheaper than that which is sold at the stores. Buy 

 the nuts, remove the shells and reduce through a 

 coarse grater. Before the grated substance has a 

 chance to dry, stir in as much pulverized or granu- 

 lated sugar as the moisture will cause to adhere to 

 the particles. Dry quickly but without iiigh heat, 

 to prevent its turning sour: stir repeatedly. After 

 it is thoroughly dried, put into paper bags, which 

 should then be kept in a dry pantry or chest. Use 

 the same as the article wliicli may be bought. 



A Word to the Men Folks. Although your oc- 

 cupation takes you out of doors and away from 

 home, do not at this season which is so trying to the 

 housekeeper, neglect to give whatever aid yon can 

 in her department. The fact that you are much 

 away, and to this extent relieved from the extra 

 cares of winter housekeeping, makes it all the more 

 desirable that you sometimes lend your help. 



The writer who comes over to these colmuns to 

 say so, happens to know verj- well how a man's 

 judgment, or his strong arms occasionally offered, 

 can lighten the additional labors that come with the 

 winter here, and this too, whether there is hired help 

 or not. See to it that the heating is well furnished 

 in fuel and kindling right along— let the wife be re- 

 lieved of any cares about this matter. Provide 

 utensils, and if needed, sometimes muscles, for keep- 

 ing draughts clear of clinkers and pipes and chim- 

 neys in order. Fi'ee burning fires are wonderfully 

 cheering to home life in winter, and promotive of 

 happiness all around. 



Then the snow shovel is out of place in a woman's 

 hands if there be a man about, who has time to 

 handle it. By this we mean reasonable time, and 

 few men are so situated but that they can keep the 

 walks and steps clean of snow every day in the 

 winter. This suggestion might seem uncalled for, 

 were it not that the writer knows of cases where 

 women clean the walks and the men are idle. One 

 man in particular we have heard about, keeps 

 his lazy body to bed mornings now-a-days, while 

 his wife rousts about tending the fires and shoveling 

 off walks. Such men are an unmitigated ilisgrace 

 to civilizatittn. 



Notes on Dress and Home Art. 



Kid gloves are low in price. 



Yellow is growing more popular. 



A plain tailor suit, is a safe investment. 



Sonnet strings three inches wide are worn. 



Press seams with a warm, but not hot iron. 



Women are in high feather; look at the hats. 



Velvet is in full fashion for elegant winter wraps. 



The old-fashioned pumpkin hood is to be re- 

 vived. 



For Childrens' costumes very small buttons are 

 in vogue. 



Puffed draperies are considered in poor taste for 

 children. 



Furniture polish of good quality may be made 

 by combining sweet oil aud paraftine. 



Braid should alwa3-s be shrunk in warm water 

 and irtaied before putting on the bottom of skirts. 



For economy in dress goods, black is the color; it 

 does not bear its date so soon as do figured or col- 

 ored dresses. 



The shelf-like bustle seems to have been 

 '■ shelved ■■ at last. We have noticed that it has 

 long been going Iceland. 



A room crowded to discomfort with furniture and 

 ornaments, no matter how costly, has more of the 

 aspect of a museum than of a restful home. 



For dressy evening bonnets this winter, those of 

 white or pale-tinted satin are forsaken for black 

 velvet, trimmed with soft shades of pigeon gray 

 and various shades of pink. 



Flacques of brass or bronze are an elegant ad- 

 dition to prints and paintings for the adornment of 

 walls. The prices this season are so moderate that 

 all can afford at least a touch of their solid beauty. 



A dark and gloomy room may be relieved by 

 placing ebonized shelves over the doors and win- 

 dows, grouping bright scarlet, yellow or gilded fans 

 upon the walls, and placing pretty bric-a-brac and 

 vases where they will have a cheerful background. 



Feather trimming may be a becoming, and not 

 an expensive garniture, but it is not satisfactory 

 in the best sense. Both cold and dampness soon 

 affects the natural oil of the feathers, and they fall 

 and look duU and soiled. Holding before a brisk 

 fire may for a time renew the soft, fluffy appear- 

 ance which is their first attraction, but the improve- 

 ment is not lasting. As they last w-ell for one sea- 

 son and wide bands can now be purchased at a 

 small cost, they are used by many to renovate last 

 year's wraps, for which they are admirable. 



The Bamboo funiishes a natural basket-making 

 mateiial, and by means of it the ingenious Orien- 

 tals produce work of unrivalled beauty and finish. 

 The bamboo wicker-work with which the Japanese 

 inclose their delicate egg-shell porcelain is a mar- 

 vellous example of manipulation, and they and the 

 Chinese excel in the application of bamboo wicker- 

 work to furniture. Some extraordinarily delicate 

 baskets made by Siamese artisans are to be seen iu 

 the collections, those intended for ladies' use being 

 as fine as lace-work in their decoration. 



Cherry-Stained Easel. A subscriber of the.tr( 

 Iiiteirliiimji- gives these suggestions for staining 

 and adorning a plain pine easel. Rub iodine, such 

 as is sold at the di-uggisfs, on the wood until it is 

 covered, with a bni.sh. The addition aftenvard of 

 a strong solution of logwood would give the cherry 

 effect. Some mouldings or rosettes of Lincrusta- 

 Walton fastened on the easel and stained with this 

 will make it look like a carved easel. After stain- 

 ing, when drj-. go over the easel with Saddler's pol- 

 ish, using clean cloths to apply, and afterwards rub 

 dry. ■garnish may be removed by flist rubbing 

 with fine sand-paper until the hard upper gloss is 

 removed, then by washing in a strong, hot solution 

 of wa.shing soda. Finish by rulibing off with a wet 

 rag sjiriukied with fine pmnice powder. 



TJmbrellas, says the Boston Cult imtor, very sen- 

 sibly, will last far longer if when wet they are 

 placed handle downward to dry. The moisture 

 falls from the edges of the frame and the 'fabric 

 dries uniformly. It stood handle upward, which is 

 commonly the case, the top of tlie umbrella holds 

 the moisture, owing to the lining underneath the 

 ring, and therefore takes a long time to dry, thus 

 injuring the silk or other fabric with which it is 

 covered. This is the prime cause of the top of the 

 umbrella wearing out sooner than the other part. 

 Umbrella cases, too, are responsible tor the rapiil 

 wear of the silk. The constant friction causes the 

 tiny holes that appear so provokingly early. When 

 not in use leave the umbrella loose; when wet, never 

 leave it open to dry. as the tense condition thus 

 produced makes the silk stiff and it soon cracks. 



