1879 .] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
271 
upper stories, and not otherwise protected, must 
have separate shades or screens. The usual inside 
muslin screen mounted on rollers, affords shade, 
hut it excludes air. Out-side screens, or awnings, 
are better than these, as they shade the room and 
allow the lower 
part of the win¬ 
dow to be open. 
These awnings, 
attached to the 
window - frame 
above, and below 
to an iron rod 
bent twice at 
right angles, and 
projecting out¬ 
ward, are vastly 
more pleasant 
than any inside 
arrangement can 
be. Besides this, 
they give the 
house an airy, 
summery appear¬ 
ance, a point not 
to be despised, as 
it is well to have 
Tig. 2.— awning, side-view. the house look 
comfortable as 
well as be so. Still awnings of this kind have the 
disadvantage that they prevent all proper circula¬ 
tion of air through the upper part of the window. 
A subscriber and physician in Philadelphia sends 
us a plan of 
an arrangement 
which he has 
adopted to over¬ 
come this defect ; 
he has so ar¬ 
ranged, that the 
awning can be let 
down from the 
top, as shown in 
figure 2. He has 
the upper edge 
of the canvas fas¬ 
tened to a light 
wooden bar, 
which is drawn 
up by a small 
cord that passes 
over a small pul¬ 
ley at the top of 
the window cas¬ 
ing. It is let 
down by loosen¬ 
ing the fastening 
of the cord, when the top of the awning falls of 
its own weight. Figure 1 shows a front view of 
this same arrangement. An easy way of securing 
the hinge motion at the lower fastening of the awn¬ 
ing to the wall, is shown at the top of figure 1, 
where the eye of the end of the iron frame and that 
of the screw are held side by side by a small 
bolt. He thinks a better plan is the one given in 
figure 3, where there is an iron frame for the top 
of the awning similar to the one at the bottom. 
The Buffalo Moth.—“Mrs. T.M.J.” It is our 
intention to give engravings of this pest, so destruc¬ 
tive to carpets, so soon as we can get the insect in 
all its stages. The perfect insect is not, like the 
clothes-moth, one of the Butterfly Family, with 
soft, downy, or scaly wings, but a regular bee¬ 
tle, a hard-shelled fellow. One housekeeper sent 
specimens from Poughkeepsie, N. ¥., of a little 
beetle supposed to be the perfect state of the Buf¬ 
falo-moth. The insect was one of the Lady-birds, 
a most useful little beetle, and not concerned 
with the carpet eater. The beetle of the Buffalo- 
moth is dark gray in color, and very modest in ap¬ 
pearance. When the moths, the larva or grub 
state, in which the mischief is done, are known to 
be under the carpet—they usually keep along the 
edges—wet a sheet or other large cloth, and have a 
number of hot flat-irons. Lay the wet cloth down 
along the edges of the carpet, and use the irons 
freely, making an abundance of hot steam to pene¬ 
trate the carpet. Fortunately we have not had oc¬ 
casion to test this, but we know those who have 
done so, and found complete success. You and 
others who have not succeeded, must have failed 
through not having the flat-irons hot enough, and 
in sufficient numbers. Rightly done it myst kill. 
Stoves and Stove-Pipes, 
In the Northern States, at least, whoever takes 
down the stoves used for warming the rooms be¬ 
fore June 10th, is sure to regret it. Indeed, our 
climate is so uncertain, that it is hardly safe to>be 
without the ability to warm at least one room in 
the house in any month of the year. The taking 
down of the stoves at the first of May cleaning is 
a mistake that wise persons do not make more 
than once. The putting up of stoves in autumn 
is usually a vexatious business, but-much depends 
upon how the stoves are taken down. A corre¬ 
spondent in Attleborough, Mass., writes: “It is 
quite a serious matter for those obliged to attend 
to it personally, to get, in the fall, the stoves and 
pipe into a respectable condition for winter use. 
The way I have followed of late will be found a 
very easy way of doing a thing that was formerly 
the occasion of much vexation and trouble.” 
Then follows “the way,” which is : 
“When sheet-iron stoves and pipe are taken 
down in the spring, first clean all soot and ashes 
from every part as completely as possible, and 
have them perfectly dry. Dip a soft cotton or 
woollen cloth in kerosene oil, and rub over the 
whole outside surface; then, with another dry 
cloth, wipe over the articles again lightly and 
evenly ; then wrap up each piece in newspapers, to 
keep from dust and air, and put away in a dry place 
for the season. In the fall, all that they will need 
to have them look nice, is to rub them over with a 
dry cloth. All cast-iron stoves are to be treated in 
the same manner, only add a little dry black-lead or 
stove-polish to the kerosene oil, and use a small 
paint-brush with v'hich to apply it. Paint all over 
outside with the mixture, giving a light even coat, 
then cover up with newspapers, and set away in a 
dry place. In the fall, all that the stoves will need 
is a light polishing with a stiff stove-brush, and, 
with a little brushing occasionally, they will look 
nice all winter. Stoves and pipe treated in the 
above manner, will not rust during the summer. 
Household Hints and Helps. 
Buffalo Gnats. —The insects of which a corre¬ 
spondent in Missouri complains as pestering him 
and his neighbors, are evidently what is known as 
the “ Buffalo Gnat.” The insect is a near relative of 
the mosquito, and, like it, breeds in the water. 
So far as known the preventives used for the mos¬ 
quito, are the only ones available for this; the use of 
fine wire-gauze screens at the windows and doors. If 
there are stagnant pools in the vicinity, these should, 
if possible, be filled up or otherwise obliterated. 
Aniline Dyes. —“Mrs. 8. N.,” Fairfield Co., 
Conn. Others besides yourself have asked similar 
questions, and it has long been on our memorandum 
of things to be done. The matter is one rather dif¬ 
ficult to present to those who have not a fair knowl¬ 
edge of chemistry. Still we will try what may be 
done, at least so much as will meet the points sug¬ 
gested by your pleasant letter. 
Preserving Asparagus.— “Mrs. E. A. K.,” St 
Louis, Mo. We have never seen Asparagus pre¬ 
served in any other manner than in sealed tin cans, 
and suppose that like peas, corn, and some others, 
that it can only be successfully treated by long 
boiling in closely sealed cans. We do not think 
that any process that requires the soldering of cans 
practicable in the household. Hence we do not 
give recipes that need the use of the soldering iron. 
Covering an Umbrella.—A correspondent at 
Monroe, Mich., wishes help in covering an umbrella. 
She puts the problem thus: Knowing the number 
and length of the ribs and braces, what is the method 
of cutting the covering ? Who will help her ? If 
the difficulty of covering an umbrella, is at all pro¬ 
portioned to that of rccovcmig the same, we fear 
there will be but few responses. 
Creole Mary’s Pudding Sauce. —“ Mrs. M. W. 
M.,” sends from Loudon Co., Tenn., the following 
method of making a sauce, which she says is a great 
improvement upon the ordinary “hard sauce” of 
butterand sugar only. A teacup of sugar, and half 
that quantity of butter, are beaten and creamed to¬ 
gether. The white and yolk of one egg are well 
beaten separately, and stirred into the butter and 
sugar; season with nutmeg. 
Silver Ware. —“Mrs. S. M. W.” It makes no 
difference how carefully put away, silver and plated 
ware that is seldom used, will become tarnished in 
time, the more rapidly when coal is used ns a fuel, 
as that supplies the atmosphere with sufficient sul¬ 
phur, to act upon the surface of the wares. We 
have somewhere seen it stated, that a dealer in sil¬ 
ver was troubled with the rapid tarnishing of the 
articles in his show window, and after trying sev¬ 
eral coatings without success, hit upon covering 
the wares with collodion. The articles were first 
warmed, and then by means of a very soft brush, he 
gave them a coating of collodion made thin with 
alcohol. This dries at once, and makes a very thin 
transparent, and invisible film, that completely pro¬ 
tects the silver. Drug stores in the large places 
have collodion in bulk, this comes much cheaper 
than that put up in bottles as “ Liquid Court Plas¬ 
ter,” “Liquid Cuticle,” etc. 
Oat Meal Crackers.— “ Miss A. R.,” wishes 
some one would contribute a recipe for making 
such oat-meal crackers as are sold at the stores. 
Clothes Moths.— “ Mrs. C. S. R.” As we have 
often stated, woollen clothes and furs, put up free 
from moths and their eggs, in some tight box—so 
tight that there is no crack or crevice or hole large 
enough for a knitting needle to pass through, will 
come out all right next fall. Those two things are 
to be observed : see that there are no moths in the 
articles, and put them up so that none can gel in. 
We have lately noticed in some of the city stores 
“ Moth Barrels for Sale.” These are exceedingly 
neat and handsome little kegs or small barrels, 
made of fancy wood, but “as tight as a drum.” 
The articles being stored in these, and the head 
put in place, are not only moth-tight, but probably 
air-tight. This is a modification of the old method 
of packing woollens and furs in a whiskey barrel. 
There is no virtue in the whiskey, but a great deal 
in the tightness of the barrel—the only “ tightness” 
due to whiskey that is to be commended. 
Recipes from OHro.— “Mrs. E. T. K.,” of Xenia, 
0., in sending the following recipes, accompanies 
them by a letter, in which she says : “ We have 
dear ones in the ‘far West’ who would the more 
heartily welcome your paper to their fireside for 
our contributions.”—This is a pleasant thought, 
and should encourage our house-keeping friends to 
send their contribntions, that, through the medium 
of the American Agriculturist, they may meet the 
eye of friends at a distance. 
1. Orandma's Quick Cake. —Two eggs, one cup 
sugar, one tablespoonful butter, one-third cup milk 
or cream, one cup flour, one heaping spoonful bak¬ 
ing powder; mix the baking powder in the flour, 
stir all together briskly a few minutes, bake in two 
sheets in a hot oven. This cake can be prepared 
and ready for the table in twenty minutes. 
2. Graham Pudding. —To three pints of boiling 
water add one teaspoonful salt, and stir in graham 
flour until you have a thin mush ; have ready one 
well beaten egg, stirred into one-third cup cream, 
add this, boil a few minutes, mould in small 
saucers. Serve with sugar and cream. 
3. Breakfast Cakes. —Prepare, the day before it is 
wanted, some soft corn-meal mush; if too hard, 
thin with warm water to the thickness of pancakes, 
add graham flour, enough to make it drop from 
a spoon; bake on buttered pans. A good sub¬ 
stitute for fried potatoes. 
4. Custard, with Frosting. —Yolks of two eggs, 
well beaten, two tablespoonfuls sugar, two-thirds 
pint rich milk or cream, mix, and while baking 
whip the whites, add a teaspoonful sugar; when 
well done add the frosting and brown lightly. 
