1877.] 
AMERICAlSr AaRlCULTURIST. 
145 
York City. Recently similar analyses have been 
made and published in London. Of 21 "Hair Dyes" 
and " Hair Restorers " all but four, notwithstanding 
they were labeled "perfectly harmless," "tree from 
all injurious substances," contained lead and sul- 
phur in some form. One of the four was a prepara- 
tion of nitrate of silver, and the remaining three, 
being to convert dark hair into blonde, were a 
highly active bleaching compound. The use of the 
dyes containing lead, especially If long continued, 
may produce the most deplorable results, such as 
paralysis, without the cause being suspected, and 
the bleaching mixtures, without being absolutely 
poisonous, are very injurious to the hair. The only 
safety is in avoiding the use of all hair dyes. 
Household Coaveniences and Hints. 
A correspondent who is engaged in the house- 
furnishing business in Brunswick, Me., and who 
has in former years made occasional contributions 
to these columns, now sends several suggestions, 
which we give under the above general head. 
A CORSER CuPBOABD. — A comer of the kitchen 
between two doors, was utilized as shown in the 
diagram on the preceding page ; the arrangement 
is found, in practice, to be comprehensive, compact, 
capacious, and convenient, and suits us. It com- 
prises a covered closet for the flour barrel, places 
for mixing pan, molding-board and rolling-pin, and 
an abundance of that of which a housekeeper rare- 
ly has too much — drawer and closet room. The 
flour-barrel is behind A, which is all in one piece, 
and is kept in place by hooks or hasps on the in- 
side, and dowels in the bottom, which set into holes 
in the floor. The flour is reached by lifting the 
cover, S. Cis the top of a case of drawers, of con- 
venient bight, and of a width to suit the space, 
which in the present case is 34 inches ; ii'is a small 
drawer for the rolling-pin. Beneath C is a space 
(-£") for the bread pan, and for the molding-board, 
which slides in on cleats ; these are reached by the 
door, Z>, which lifts, and is provided with a spring- 
catch to hold it in place. Below are drawers, O, (?, 
and above a closet closed by the doors, IT, IT, and 
arranged with shelves as may be needed. 
Steaming Browh-Bread. — Those who steam 
tbeir Rye and Indian bro\vn-bread, are sometimes 
troubled by having the loaf stick to the bottom of 
the kettle in which it was steamed. This may be 
avoided by having a disk of tin made of just the 
size of the bottom of the kettle, and with its edge 
turned up a very little. Place this in the bottom of 
the kettle before putting in the dough, and you will 
be delighted to see how easily the loaf will tiirn out. 
Taking Care of the Broom. — It is a little mat- 
ter, but the proper care of the broom is one of the 
small economies that pay not only in the saving of 
money, but more largely in comfort. A Ijroom that 
stands, when not in use, upon the brush part, very 
soon squats into a one-.^iided shape, and is very apt 
to fall down and get under foot. A string or screw- 
eye in the handle, to hang the broom by, is often in 
the way of the hand when sweeping. So unsatis- 
factory are the usual ways of disposing of a broom, 
that the inventive Yankee has taken up the matter, 
and patented broom-holders are offered for sale to 
housekeepers. But one need not wait for the ven- 
der of the " Patent Broom-holder " to come along; 
just put two wooden pins into the wall about two 
Inches apart, to admit the handle between, and al- 
low the broom part to rest upon them, and you will 
not need to buy, as you have as good a broom- 
holder as can be invented. 
Amusing the Youngsters. — It is a real house- 
hold "convenience" to have something at hand 
that will amuse the little folks. I have never scon 
a common " black-board " proposed in your papor 
or elsewhere, for the amusement of children. We 
made the discovery by accident, and nothing has 
proved so engaginc in our family, as a hlick-board 
and a piece of chalk or white crayon. Such boys, 
horses, dogs, cats, and other figures as have ap- 
peared ! A board of any size will answer, but 2x1 i 
feet is a good size ; cleat the ends, sn that it will 
not warp, and paint it on both sides. Try it. 
About Moths and Millers. 
Mrs. "E. A. K.," Taunton, Mass., asks the 
following: (1) "Do all kinds of millers make 
moths? (2) WTiat time in the year are moths 
formed? (3) Do they work in woolen goods all 
the year, or only in warm weather?" — A7is. (1) 
The writer, a lady, evidently wishes to know about 
the clothes moth, and her first question may be an- 
swered—No. But as the terms "Moth" and "Miller" 
are used in a confusing manner, we must explain. 
The scaly-winged insects (Lepidoptera) are divided 
into butterflies and moths. Thelarvs or caterpillar 
hatched from the egg, is a great feeder ; when it is 
full grown it forms a pupa, or chrysalis, keeps 
quiet for a time, and then comes out a perfect 
winged insect. If the winged insect has slender 
feelers with a (woolly) knob on the end, and rests 
with all its wings erect, it is a butterfly, and if it 
rests with two or all of its wings spread out, it is a 
moth, and these usually fly at night. They vary in 
size, from very minute to large insects with 6 to even 
9 inches spread of wing. Some moths are called 
millers, and some people give the name miUer to 
all moths that are not showy. It wUl be seen that 
the name moth has a wide application. It speaking 
of the clothes moth, it has become to be called 
simply moth. It is its caterpillar which, feeding 
upon clothing, does the mischief. It eats the wool 
of the cloth, and at the same time uses some of it to 
build the case, which it starts soon after it is 
hatched from the egg, and enlarges it, as in grow- 
ing it needs more room. 
This case, which is open 
at both ends, the cater- 
pillar lines with a veiy 
soft web, and it is car- 
ried about with it wher- 
ever it goes in search o£ 
food. It is this cater- 
pillar then, which is 
generally called the 
moth. The caterpillar 
is is about half an inch 
long, and about the size 
of a darning needle, 
white, with a horn- 
colored head, and has 
sixteen feet. When 
full grown, it changes 
to a chrysalis, and at 
length comes out as the 
perfect insect, or moth 
proper, and which is 
often called the moth- 
miller. Tliis is a very 
dehcate little insect, 
with a spread of wings 
of only about half an 
inch, of a buff color, 
shining like silk, and 
flits about veiy quietly in search of a place to lay 
eggs, that will breed moths and mischief. So far as 
our clothes are concerned, the large " millers" do no 
harm. The moths make their appearance in spring, 
usually in May, and as several broods are produced 
dm'ing tiio season, there is danger from them until 
cold v.-cafher comes. Those that are then in their 
little cases in the clothing, remain dormant all win- 
ter, and come out as moths the next spring : this 
answers our correspondent's 2nd and 3d questions. 
As to preserving articles from moths ; if the wool- 
ens are free from the insects in the egg or caterpil- 
lar form when put, away, and are kept all summer 
in a case or paekaz" which is so thoroughly tislit 
that the parent moth can not get in to lay her eggs, 
or if eggs should he laid on the outside, there is no 
crack or pin-hole larere enough for the tiny cater- 
pillar to L:et throush, then the clothing will he per- 
fectly safe. Bags of paper, quite free from holes, 
will kee)) the articles, or they maybe rolled viji in 
successive papers, each one bcini; carefully pasted 
down. A ticrht box, with every joint and crack 
made doubly sure by pastinsr strips of paper over 
them, is used by some. Others use an empty liq- 
no.' barrel ■ the articles beinsr packed in this, it Is 
headed up tightly. It the rceeptablo. whatever it 
may be, is properly tight, no camphor or other ai^ 
omaties are needed ; these articles are disagreeable 
to the parent moth, and keep her away, and some 
of them will kill the young caterpillar. Camphor, 
benzine, carbolic acid, and other strong-smelling 
things, and various secret preparations are used. 
IB©YS 4 (SHIEILS' (E®IL¥MHS. 
Xlie Doctor's Cot-re^ipondence. 
No doubt that some of my young friends are wondering 
when their turn will come for an answer. I can not al- 
ways take the lettc-re in order. Sometimes I must wait 
until au engraving can be made, and sometimes a young- 
ster will ask about something that requires more investi- 
gation than I can give it at the time, and it must wait. 
Those boys and girls who send me arithmetical and other 
puzzles, must not expect an answer. I some time ago 
stated that everything relating to puzzles should goto 
Aunt Sue, and though I try to send to lier such as come 
to me, it is better for you to send to her at once E. 
Martin, New Jersey.— There is '' a little bird with a sweet 
song, called the Peabody-bird." this being the name fre- 
quently given to the not very uncommon 
M'^HITE-THROATED SPARROW. 
Here is an engraving of it, which will allow you to see 
whether it is the bird you know or not. It is from 6?^ to 
"\U inohes long ; the general colors dusky — black, brown- 
ish, and asli-color, being variously combined ; the mo.st 
striking mark is a pure white throat, while the breast is 
ash-colored ; the head is black, with a white line through 
tlie middle at the top, and another over each eye. It ap- 
pears in spring, in the Northern States in April, but in 
Fig. 1.— THE wniTE-THROATED SPARROW. 
Maryhuul and Virginia many of thorn remain all winter, 
though the most go farther south. It breeds in the 
northernmost parts of the country, and probably in 
Canada. Tlieir nest is built upon the ground, among the 
moss and leaves beneath trees and bushes. They stay 
about the Middle States until May, when they go to their 
breeding places, and return in L'^reat numbers in October, 
on their way south. They have a clear, sweet song, 
which has been likened to jxf-a-body. abody, a-body, a- 
body, repeated with various trillsand variations, hence it 
is often called the " Peabody-bird." jiisl asan)»ther of onr 
birds is called " Pliebe," from its pi-culiar note ...Sev- 
eral grown persons have asked, and now a lilllo Miss in 
Cook Co., 111., wishes to know about the 
SO-CALT.ED KKSIUKKCTION PLANTS. 
These plants turn up every once in a while, sometimes 
a street vender otVers them, then they arc advertised by 
some dealer, and of course (he Centennial was sure to 
brinir them around ng:nn. indeed, besides the more 
common plant from CaHr!)rnia. some oflhose Frenchmen 
.and Germans who wore Oriental costumes, sold at the 
Cenlenni.il the very ohlest plant of this kind, all the way 
fnun Pah'stine. or some part of the E:ist. A great many 
of both kinds were sold to those who wished to take horn* 
for themselves or their friends, some little memento of the 
groat exhibition, and these, unlike many of the " rclfcs" 
and other things sold, were genuine, as it is impossible 
to imitate them. One lady. wh(. had received n plant of 
each kind, which a friend had brought her from the Cen- 
