1881.] 
AMERICAA AGRICULTURIST. 
531 
late $60 to $80 machines, can be had for 
$25 to $40. There are probably four fam¬ 
ilies who can manage to buy a $25 ma¬ 
chine, to one who can, or think they can, 
afford one costing $50 to $60. The $25 ma¬ 
chines possess all the parts essential to effec¬ 
tive work. The higher prices of some of 
these are due to the accompanying conven¬ 
iences, as extension tables, drawers, enclos¬ 
ing cases, etc. There are preferable machines, 
costing much higher rates, and worth the ad¬ 
ditional cost to those who can afford them. 
We speak of machines for the great masses 
who cannot—or think they cannot—afford 
the higher price of the more expensive and 
complete machines. 
Keep a Bottle of Lime Water. 
If good milk disagrees with a child or grown 
person, lime water at the rate of 3 or 4 table¬ 
spoonfuls to the pint, mixed with the milk 
or taken after it, will usually help digestion 
and prevent flatulence. Lime water is a 
simple antacid, and is a little tonic. It often 
counteracts pain from acid fruits, from 
“ wind in the stomach,” and from acids pro¬ 
duced by eating candies and other sweets ; 
also “ stomach-ache ” (indigestion) from over¬ 
eating of any kind. A tablespoonful for a 
child of two years old, to a gill or more for 
an adult, is an ordinary dose, while consider¬ 
able more will produce no serious injury. 
A pint of cold water dissolves less than 10 
grains of lime, and warm water still less. 
Pure lime water, even though pretty closely 
corked, soon deteriorates by carbonic acid in 
the air, which unites with the lime and settles 
as an insoluble carbonate. To have it always 
ready and good, and at no cost, put into a tall 
pint or quart glass bottle, of any kind, a gill 
or so of good lime just slaked with water. 
Then fill the bottle nearly full of rain or other 
pure water, and let it stand quietly, corking- 
well. The lime will settle, leaving clear lime 
water at the top. Pour off gently as wanted, 
adding more water as needed. Some carbonic 
acid will enter, but the carbonate will settle, 
often upon the sides of the bottle, and fresh¬ 
ly saturated water remain. The lime should 
be removed and a new supply put in once a 
year or so, unless kept very tightly corked. 
Don’t Spoil the Meats. 
Any flesh heated sufficiently, will, just 
like wood, be reduced to charcoal (carbon) 
and water, and a little gaseous matter. The 
water and gas escape into the atmosphere; 
the charcoal will remain, unless heated suffi¬ 
ciently in the open air to form carbonic acid 
gas, when that will also go off, leaving only a 
little ashes. Well, in roasting, baking, grill¬ 
ing or broiling, and frying meats of all 
kinds, every minute’s continuation of heat 
beyond just enough to coagulate the albu¬ 
men, does something towards changing the 
meat into charcoal, and charcoal is innutri- 
tious and indigestible. Further, rare cooked, 
fresh, lean beef, will digest and go into 
nourishment in 2 to 3 hours, while “well 
done” beef, and well corned beef need 4 to 
4'/ 2 or 5 hours to digest in strong stomachs, 
and longer in feeble ones. Nine-tenths or 
more of families -cook meats too much, for 
health, for good digestion, and for getting 
the best nourishment from them. It is a 
matter of habit. Rare cooked meats, “blood 
rare”—that is, only barely well heated 
through—are far more digestible and nutri¬ 
tious, and when one “breaks himself into” 
the habit of eating them rare, they will be 
more toothsome than if “well done.” These 
are facts; act in accordance with them. 
About Christinas Decorations. 
In November, 1878, we gave an article upon 
the decoration of churches, Sunday School¬ 
rooms, and the like, with engravings of sev¬ 
eral more or less elaborate though easily 
made designs. In the month following, some 
hints were given on decorating the home. 
Those who have these numbers will find 
them useful if they propose to “make the 
house glad,” as we hope they may, the com¬ 
ing Christmas. The time is so near at hand, 
that plans must be formed and executed 
quickly, and all that we can do just now is 
to give a few seasonable hints. It takes but 
a little green to give the house a holiday air 
(as the children say, “make it look Christ- 
masy ”), if that be well arranged. Fortunate 
are those who have long plants of Ivy grown 
in pots, as they have a capital material at 
hand, and one vastly better than any made- 
up wreaths. A few evergreen trees of small 
size and neat habit, in the hall, or on the 
stair-landings, go a great way towards deco¬ 
rating the house. Hemlocks, Junipers, 
Spruces, etc., etc., are often cut and put in 
place for this purpose. But in the warm dry 
air of the house, these soon begin to drop, 
and cause that dread of all neat house-keepers, 
Fig. 1. —A LAMBREQUIN OR CORNICE. 
“a litter”; hence it is vastly better to use 
trees with their roots instead. If the ground 
is still open, trees may yet be taken up for 
the purpose. Select from the edge of the 
woods, or from open pastures, small ever¬ 
greens that are well developed, that is, not 
one-sided, with branches reaching to the 
ground. These may be planted out in boxes, 
or small kegs of earth, taking care not to se¬ 
lect too large a “flower-pot,” or the weight 
of earth will be too great for handling. The 
box or keg may be covered with cloth, or even 
paper of an inconspicuous color. A few such 
trees will produce a pleasing effect. The ad¬ 
vantages of thus treating them are: they will 
hold their leaves very much longer than cut 
trees, and having a support at base, they may 
be put just where they are wanted, while, as 
every one knows who has tried it, a cut tree 
is an awkward thing to fix in place. There 
are two or more kinds of club-moss ( Lyco¬ 
podium) to be found in the woods, especially 
northward. These are known also as Ground- 
Pine, and Bouquet Green, and in similar 
localities the Princess-Pines, or Pipsissewas, 
are also to be met with. All these are ex¬ 
cellent for making small wreaths—the deal¬ 
ers call them “ ropings ”—as they do not drop, 
and they hold their color well. The running 
club-mosses have long, slender, prostrate 
stems, that will allow them to be joined di¬ 
rectly into wreaths, but others require to be 
bound to a cord, and it is better to use a cord 
for all, as the material may be more evenly 
distributed, and the whole stronger. There 
are several evergreen ferns; indeed, there 
are few localities where one or more may not 
be found, and these are most useful for dec¬ 
oration. Unless living, in pots, they must 
first be pressed, before they can be made up, 
otherwise they will curl in drying, and be¬ 
come unsightly. The fern leaves (fronds) may 
be pressed in a few days by placing between 
old newspapers, under weights, and changing 
the papers to dry ones daily at first, and then 
every two or three days. When dry they 
may be made up in a variety of decorative 
Fig. 2.— BANNERS WITH MOTTOES. 
forms. Figure 1 suggests the manner of ar¬ 
ranging ferns with dried or artificial flowers, 
or pressed autumn leaves, to form a lambre¬ 
quin or cornice. If intended for the window, 
it is better to have the foundation of thin 
board, which may be covered with dark paper 
or muslin, and the leaves, etc., attached by 
pins and small tacks. If the cornice is to 
go above a picture frame or mirror, use a 
piece of colored muslin, or cambric, made 
very stiff with starch, and ironed smooth. 
Lay the strip flat on the table, or, better, on 
the bed, and attach the ferns, etc., by means 
of pins, taking care that the pins are con¬ 
cealed as much as possible. Of course, those 
who are so fortunate as to have fresh flowers, 
can use them in decorating, but bright ber¬ 
ries and fruits seem more appropriate to the 
season, and some may still be found,unless the 
birds have been too busy among them. Ban¬ 
ners, with or without mottoes, fig. 2, are great 
helps in decorating, especially for large or 
public rooms. They may be straight across 
the bottom, or varied as suggested by the en¬ 
graving, which gives two forms. The smaller 
the room the nicer should be the work upon 
the banners. Large ones may be of common 
material, and have the edgings and lettering 
• Fig. 3. —LATH LETTER FRAMES. 
made with leaves or green of some other 
kind stitched on. Those intended for the 
dwelling are most effective if of red or other 
warm color, and if quite small, the edgings 
are better if made of green ribbon or other 
green material. The lettering may be cut 
from paper, or, if one is handy at such work, 
it may be put on with water colors. Large 
letters are made with laths, and covered ; oc¬ 
tagon letters, as in figure 3, are easily made. 
