1869. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



343 



part of the hay was left on the ground, conse- 

 quently I have always mowed as close as I could- 

 At that time, about JBve tons were taken from ten 

 acres ; now twenty tons are cut on the same land. 

 A part of this land has been ploujihed and ma- 

 nured. The rest has neither been ploughed nor 

 manured, except by foddering out some stacks cf 

 hay upon it, and by putting some plaster upon it. 

 On a tarni within hight of mine, one of my neigh- 

 bors formerly raised large crops of grass. His 

 men mowed quite high, leaving a very long stubble. 

 The grass soon began to tail on that farm, and 

 though they now try to cut closer, there is not 

 much more than two-thirds as much hay secured 

 as formerly. I should like to know what farmers 

 have to say to these facts. 



Snow fell here on the second of May to the 

 depth of four inches, and on the third and fourth 

 about as much more fell. Fabmer. 



Wallingford, Vt., May 16, 1869. 



labits' Stpartment. 



DOMESTIC ECONOMY; 



OB, 



HOW TO MAKE HOME PLEASANT. 



BY ANNE G. HALE. 



[Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 

 1866, by R. P. Eaton & Co., in the Clerk's Office of the 

 District Court for the District of Massachusetts.! 



CHAPTER XVI. 



House Cleaning. 



Into the most beautiful homes, and under the 

 most vigilant eyes, dust and decay will intrude 

 their unwelcome presence. So stealthy and insid- 

 ious are their encroachments, that besides our ef- 

 forts to keep them at bay by daily attention to or- 

 der and cleanliness, every one knows there must be 

 especial occasions for inspection and renovation of 

 our dwellings, and everything belonging thereto. 



In many minds fearful ideas of toil and disorder 

 and discomfort are marshalled under the head of 

 this dtxty of house cleaning; and, indeed, these 

 occasions are too often carnivals of riot andconfu 

 sion ; yet they need not be laborious nor unpleas- 

 ant. Energetic and systematic management at the 

 head of the family, combined with good-natured 

 perseverance and general neatness and thrifty cal- 

 culation, will make them seasons of jollity and 

 merriment, abounding in healthful excitement and 

 improvement. 



Such a passion have some persons for the ex- 

 citement of house cleaning that they take the fever 

 twice a year, passing through it regularly fall and 

 spring ; but where there is good attention and care 

 in every-day matters of tidiness an an'.mal attack 

 is sufficient, and the spring, when everything in 

 Nature renews its freshness and beauty, seems the 

 most proper time for its occurrence. But do not 

 begin the renovation too early ; not until the cold 

 storms of May are over, and June gives hints of 

 summer arrangements; the garden having been 



made (because by the loosening of the earth much 

 dust and soil find their way into the house) and 

 the plants for indoor culture the next winter started 

 on their new lives. 



During some of the rainy days in May, it is well 

 to bring from the cellar all the cabbages and the 

 beheaded stumps that are standing in the trenches 

 where they have been wintered, the turnips also, 

 and the beets. Set them along the sunniest side of 

 the garden, in mellow soil, and their young sprouts 

 will furnish you with salads and greens for several 

 weeks. Then bring up and set out the onions, for 

 rareripes. Sprout the potatoes that are kept for 

 the table and move them to the coldest and dark- 

 est place you have. Pick over your apples ; if they 

 are damp put them in clean, dry boxes or barrels. 

 Wash with strong soapsuds every barrel or bin 

 that has held vegetables or fruit. If wood or coal 

 is kept in the cellar remove all chip-dirt and refuse 

 of the coal, as well as all decayed vegetable matter, 

 to the compost heap in the garden. Then take 

 down the cobwebs and scrub off all mould from 

 the walls and ceiling. Scour the shelves and clos- 

 ets with hot strong suds, — if there are traces of 

 mildew, or stains of any kind, use plenty of sand 

 with soft soap. "Whether the walls of a cellar be 

 of wood or stone, or its floor of cement, bricks, 

 planks, stones, or the bare earth, every vestige of 

 decay, and all litter, should be removed therefrom 

 before warm weather, or the health of the inmates 

 of the house will suffer from the noxious vapors 

 rising thence. 



A good cement for cellar floors can be made of a 

 mixture of lime, coal ashes and water. Then there 

 is the hydraulic cement, commonly used for this 

 purpose when mixed with sand or gravel. It can 

 be bought at a reasonable price of dealers in lime. 

 The plastic slate, too, is said to make excellent 

 flooring. A cemented floor is muih easier to keep 

 clean than any other sort, and a woman can apply 

 the cement. 



Cellars that are infested with insects should be 

 provided with tables, on which to keep articles of 

 food. These tables ought to be scoured frequently. 

 Upon them green leaves of sage, or tansy, and 

 sprigs of southernwood should be laid — replaced 

 with fresh ones when dry. The legs of these tables 

 should be set in pans of water, to be kept filled 

 through the summer; this water and the leaves 

 will be the destruction of red emmets, black ants, 

 and, sometimes, larger vermin. Keeping wood in 

 the cellar often brings insects there. 



Your closets and tables being cleaned and set in 

 order, every part of the cellar except the floor 

 should be whitewabhed. For this get a few pounds 

 of unslaked lime, — large lumps of the newest you 

 can buy. 



Put the lime into a wooden pail or tub ; pour on 

 it warm water and stir it till it is a thick paste. 

 Then throw in a small handful of salt and pour on 

 slowly, stirring the while, cold water — ram water is 

 best — till it is of the consistence of milk. (Some 



