158 



and perhaps less will do. You will be surprised how 

 litMe will answer if you attend to it yourself; but if 

 you leave it to your house help she would be likely 

 to think a heaping teaspoouful quite a moderate 

 quantity, and your cakes would then be unfit to 

 enter any respectable stomach. We would like to 

 know if a sreat deal of dyspepsia is not produced by 

 the almost constant use of baking powder and soda. 

 And may they not also produce blood poisoning, and 

 do not the teeth decay sooner ? We want light on 

 the subject and would be glad to hear from others. 

 — Oermantown Telegrnph. 



Food for Dyspeptics. 

 A member of my family was 'ncapable for mouths 

 of retaining any food except beef, slightly boiled, 

 and only a small portion of this could be eaten, but 

 at short intervals. After a while the crust of stale 

 bread could be digested. One person told us that he 

 could eat nothing but parched corn pounded ; an- 

 other, only whol"! wheat boiled the entire day. 

 Neither agreed with our patient, but when early 

 apples ripened they were freely eaten and digested. 

 All other fruits followed gradually, pears last, and 

 now the dyspeptic apparently has as sound a stomach 

 as ever. The patient should remain out doors as 

 much as possible. — Country Gentleman. 



To Make a Fish Napkin. 

 Boiled lish, like corn, is best brought to table in a 

 cloth to keep it warm. For fish, a piece of linen 

 about forty Inches long by twenty-three wide, is re- 

 quired. It may be of tea toweling, fine crash or 

 butcher's linen. Out of each corner cut a piece ten 

 inches long by seven wide, which will leave the 

 proper sized flaps to turn over at the four sides. On 

 either flap embroider a bunch of coral, a fish-net, a 

 spray of sea-weed, or some such design in washing 

 silk, which is sold at the Art Needlework School 

 here. Spread the napkin on the dish, garnish it with 

 parsley, lemon or egg, turn over the corners, and 

 you will have a prettier dish than painted china. 

 French table napkins are always long and narrow, 

 like a towel, so that they cover the sides of the dress 

 as well as the lap. This is a sensible improvement 

 on the square napkin, which has as much too much 

 one way and too little another as Dick's hat-band.— 

 miadelphm Ledger. 



How to Keep Cider Sweet. 



Pure, sweet cider that is arrested in the process of 

 fermentation before it becomes ascetic acid or even 

 alcohol and with the carbonic acid gas worked out, 

 it is one of the most delightful beverages. When the 

 saccharine matters by fermentation are being con- 

 verted into alcohol, if a bent tube be inserted air- 

 tight into the bung with the other end into a pail of 

 water, to allow the carbonic acid gas evolved to pass 

 off without admitting any air into the barrel, a beve- 

 rage will be obtained that is a fit nectar for the gods. 



A handy way is to fill your cask nearly up to the 

 wooden faucet when the cask is rolled so the bung 

 is down. Get a common rubber tube and slide it 

 over the end of the plug in the faucet, with the other 

 end in the pail. Then turn the plug so the cider can 

 have communication with the pail. After the water 

 ceases to bubble, bottle and store away. — Fann, 

 Field and Fireaide. 



Wash Out The Buttermilk. 

 From some elaborate experiments made in Ger- 

 many, it appears that where extra fine butter is 

 made from cream separated by the centrifugal pro- 

 cess the choice quality is preserved better than the 

 same quality is preserved when the butter is made 

 from cream which " rises " either in a deep or shal- 

 low vessel. From this it would seem that the prac- 

 tice of separating cream as quickly as possible is 

 good. And it seems, too, that danger to the butter 

 comes rather from the milk left in the cream than 

 from the cream itself. All this emphasizes the ne- 

 cessity of thoroughly washing out the buttermilk as 

 soou as ciiMTaei.— Philadelphia Press. 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



[October 



Teaching Girls How to Cook. 



There comes a time in every little girl's life when 

 she is seized with a longing to cook ; by all means 

 indulge her. Do not wait until she is a young lady 

 and then send her to a cooking school to learn how 

 to make a pudding or cake — what she might have 

 learned in the kitchen at home ; and been happy in 

 learning. A neighbor of mine who jput this theory 

 in practice presented me with a plate of cookies 

 made by her daughter of five ; they would have been 

 creditable to a much older cook. The child faith- 

 fully and diligently followed her mother's instruc- 

 tions. If some older member of the family superin- 

 tends, but does not lend a helping hand, a good deal 

 of valuable knowledge will be acquired in this way. 

 Let them begin with something very simple ; try, 

 for instance, this rule for crackers : To three pints 

 of flour put one teaspoonful of soda, dissolve in sour 

 milk ; melt a tablespoonful of butter, or of butter 

 and lard mixed ; make the dough very stiff ; roll it 

 very thin ; bake slowly. — New York Post. 



Repairing Children's Stockings. 



It is too early to think of putting cotton stockings 

 on the children, and yet it is possible that in many 

 cases this must be done, or new woolen ones must be 

 bought; this you may not care to do, so I will tell 

 you of a way by which the old ones may be repaired. 

 The knees are worn out, of course, so cut the worn 

 part off, and piece the stocking up with parts of other 

 worn stockings, or with a strip of stockinette. If 

 you make a fine seam, and sew it carefully so that it 

 is smooth, it will not " rub " or hurt the tender flesh 

 of the smallest child.— iV«i« York Post. 



Rag Carpets. 



Bright, durable rag carpet is used on many 

 kitchens. Where people do not employ several ser- 

 vants it is a great saving of labor. If it is thorough- 

 ly swept every day it will keep fresh and clean a 

 long time. The majority of housekeepers do not pay 

 as much attention to their kitchens as they should. 

 This should be kept scrupulously clean, and should 

 not contain but the necessary articles of furniture. 

 Some people carry the craze for decoration into their 

 kitchens, and ornament the walls with all kinds of 

 gim cracks. This may be well enough on a flat, 

 where the housekeeper does most of her own work, 

 and when she is a dainty individual ; but it does not 

 do in an ordinary kitchen. Painted walls, a painted 

 or rag-carpeted floor, and well-starched white Swiss 

 curtains are what are needed in kitchens.— American 

 Queeti. 



Open Grates. 



An open grate adds nothing to the attractiveness 

 of the sitting-room in summer, and it is a positive 

 annoyance if it is closed by the unsightly black cover; 

 It may have instead of this a pretty Japanese para- 

 sol for a cover, on a small screen made of a large 

 round fan, with the handle cut off, with the excep- 

 tion of an- inch or two, which should be glued into an 

 opening In a small block of wood. This block may 

 be bronzed or painted. If you care to make a very 

 handsome screen the fan maybe used for a founda 

 tiou simply, and it may have a silk and velvet cover 

 upon which a great deal of effective ornamentation 

 may be lavished. If j'ou choose, some other shape 

 rather than round may be used. 



Household recipes. 



Cider Jelly.— Select good cider apples, run 

 them through a cider-press, and put the cider on im- 

 mediately, and boil rapidly until it forms a firm, 

 traHsparent jelly. It should not stop boiling a mo- 

 ment. Test by dropping on ice or into very cold 

 water. 



Sweet Apple Pickles.— Sweet apples make de- 

 licious pickles. Peel and quarter them, boil them 

 until tender in vinegar and water; to one quart of 

 vinegar add two pounds of sugar : heat the vinegar 

 and dissolve the sugar in it ; add cloves and cinna- 

 mon and pour over the apples while hot. 



Marmalade.— Select very ripe fruits — grapes, 

 crab-apples or quinces. Cut the fruit having a core, 

 iu halves, and stew until tender in water enough to 

 cover the bottom of the kettle ; strain through a 

 fine colander or sieve, to remove the skin and seeds. 

 For each pint of pulp allow a pound of sugar, and 

 boil half an hour, stirring constantly. Spice may be 

 added if desired. The marmalade should be hard 

 and firm when cold. 



Apple Tapioca.— Pare six or eight apples ; re- 

 moves the cores, leaving the apples either in wholes 

 or in halves. Add a little hot water, cover closely, 

 and cook until they will ciit with a spoon. Put them 

 In a dish, and pour over them a cup of tapioca 

 cooked just as for lemon pudding, but with the juice 

 of only two lemons and not any of the yellow rind. 

 Set in the oven for ten or fifteen minutes ; serve cold 

 or warm with rich cream and sugar. 



White Cake.— One cup butter, two of sugar, one 

 of sweet milk, three of flour, whites of five eggs, two 

 teaspoons of baking powder. 



King Cake. — Three-quarters of a pound of butter, 

 one and a quarter pounds of sugar, one nutmeg, six 

 eggs and cup of milk ; flour to make an ordinary 

 batter. 



PovBHTV Cake. — One pint of milk, one teaspoon- 

 ful salaratus, two eggs. Make them just stiff enough 

 with Indian meal to work into balls, and boil them 

 in hot fat. To be split open and eaten with hot but- 

 ter. 



Cnp Fkuit Cake.— One cup of butter, two cups 

 raisins seeded and chopped fine, four cups flour, two 

 cups brown sugar, one cup sour cream, three eggs 

 well beaten, one teaspoonful soda, one of cloves, 

 four of cinnamon. Bake slowly and serve hot or 

 cold with sauce. 



Chicken Salad.— Boll a chicken ; while warm 

 mince it, taking out the bones. Put in a stew pan 

 with boiling water. Then stir together until smooth, 

 one quarter of a pound of butter, one teaspoonful of 

 flour and yolk of one raw egg — all of which add to 

 the chicken one-half at a time, stirring all well to- 

 gether. Season with salt and pepper. Let it sim- 

 mer ten minutes ; then add half a gill of Madeira 

 wine, and send it to the table while hot. 



Cocoanut Cake.— Five eggs beaten separately, 

 three cups sugar, four and a half cups flonr, one cup 

 butter, one cup of sweet cream, one teaspoon even 

 full of soda, two teaspoons even full of cream tartar, 

 one half of a grated cocoanut. Ice the top and 

 sprinkle the remainder of the cocoanut over it. This 

 will make more than one cake. 



Charlotte KnssE.— Take half a pint of milk 

 and yolk of four eggs for a custard ; boll one ounce 

 Isinglass in a pint of water until it Is reduced one- 

 half; strain this into the custard, flavor and sweeten; 

 for this, whip one quart of cream, letting It drain on 

 a sieve and re-whipping what drains through ; mix 

 the custard well with the whipped cream and pour 

 into howls or glass dishes. You can, If you chose, 

 line the dishes with lady's-fingers or spliced sponge 

 cake, before pouring In the russe, and then it will 

 turn out beautifully when hard ; use an egg beater 

 for whipping the cream. 



Fricasseed Oysters. — 1 quart oysters, 1 egg, 2 

 tablespoonfuls of butter, i tablespoonfuls flour. 

 Brown 1 tablespoonful of butter in same pan, turn 

 in the oysters, well drained, and when they com- 

 mence cooking add salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoonful 

 of butter rubbed with flour, then the egg, well beaten 

 in cream or rich milk. Have buttered toast ready, 

 and turn the oysters over it, serving immediately. 



Lunch Biscuit.— Make a nice baking powder bis- 

 cuit and roll out about about '/^ inch thick, then 

 sprinkle over it 1 teacupful of finely crushed coffee 

 sugar and the least dust of cinnamon. Koll up 

 tightly, and cut the biscuit from the end about 1 inch 

 thick, and place carefully on buttered tins and bake 

 quickly. 



Stewed Beef.— Cut cold beef In small pieces; 

 take cold gravy without the fat, put Into a spider to 

 heat, when it bolls up season with salt and pepper 



