336 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[August, 
TME M©USlEiai©lLIffi 0 
ff-iU" For other Household Items see “ Basket ” pages. 
A Side Closet for the Kitchen. 
“Mrs. F.,” sends us a sketch of a handy closet 
that she has used in her kitchen for two years, and 
writes: The closet is attached to the north side 
of my house, where the sun shines but little 
on the longest day of the year. It is two feet 
from the ground, 3 feet high, 4 feet wide, and 15 
A WALL OR SIDE CLOSET. 
inches deep. The top is made slanting to carry off 
the rain, and a strip of tin keeps the water from en¬ 
tering between the closet and the side of the house. 
The ends are bored full of 6mall holes, to provide 
for ventilation. Fine wire netting is placed on the 
holes to keep out all insects. The closet is reached 
through a door 2 feet wide and 3 feet high, cut in 
the side of the kitchen. The door is made of the 
boards removed in cutting it, and shuts flush with 
the other boards, so that it is not easily noticed. 
This closet is found to be very handy for keeping 
many articles of food, etc., at all seasons of the 
year, and saves many steps to and from the cellar. 
Something to Wear. 
In a late fashion article a story is told of a poor 
woman who suddenly became rich, and felt obliged 
to dress as she had never done before. She had no 
idea what was “ necessary,” but a friend who was 
supposed to know all about it, and to speak as one 
having authority in such matters, advised her to 
abandon entirely all her old clothes and begin over 
completely. Then we are told what constitutes a 
complete “but not extravagant” wardrobe for 
those who can afford it. Made in the spring, and 
without any provision for winter clothing, it 
includes ten new dresses, most of them made 
chiefly of silk or satin ; four parasols ; five bonnets 
and hats ; with a variety of fans, gloves, hosiery, and 
underwear, mantelets, visites, fichus, collars, etc. 
The best part of this little story is that the 
woman herself did not really enjoy the change. It 
was her husband who urged it on. She parted re¬ 
gretfully with the dearly-bought garments selected 
by herself with care, and made according to her 
“ uncultivated ” taste, and she was afterwards dis¬ 
covered in a cheap store buying herself some cot¬ 
ton house-dresses, because her new clothes were 
so nice that she felt she had nothing to wear ! Good 
for her ! Let us all learn a lesson of contentment. 
There is a pleasure in overcoming difficulties and 
“making things do,” which is probably quite as 
great as the satisfaction of feeling that your cos¬ 
tume is all right according to the latest fashion. 
If it is all right to-day, it may be all wrong to¬ 
morrow, for fashion’s rules suddenly change. It 
is best to dress according to one’s circumstances 
and work. The dress of a woman of fashion 
seems to say that she has no work to do in the 
world that is of more importance than the exhibi¬ 
tion of dry goods, made up in curious forms. One 
cannot consistently claim to dress according to her 
work, whatever that work may be, so long as the 
free action of the limbs is hindered by drapery. 
But, leaving work aside, the necessities of popular 
recreations are creating a call for a dress that gives 
freedom to woman’s limbs; and one costume for 
lawn tennis, mentioned in fashion articles, consists 
of a belted blouse, reaching just below the knee, 
and Turkish trowsers—the same dress for woman 
which the great man of fashion, Worth, is said to 
have recommended as the most beautiful, as well 
as most healthful, dress in the world. Dressing 
according to our circumstances, or position, is 
something each woman should decide for herself, 
though, in fact, little choice is left to many of us. 
Men’s Summer Underwear. 
It is a very common practice for men and boys 
to dispense with drawers during hot summer 
weather. To one who has been brought up in their 
use, this practice seems unclean and unwholesome, 
unless the trowsers are made of washable material 
and frequently cleansed. Very thin cotton-woven 
garments are to be had, but it is an easy matter to 
make them from thin unbleached muslin. A cloth 
of very loose texture (almost like cheese-cloth) 
should be selected, as firm cloth is very hard to 
wash when soiled so badly as thin garments are 
apt to be. You can cut them by a pair of trowsers 
if you have no pattern, laying the garment on the 
folded cloth, so as to necessitate only one seam in 
the leg. This seam should be sloped toward the 
ankle, and left open about six inches at the bot¬ 
tom. The stockings stay in place much better 
with drawers than without. If there is trouble 
about their slipping down, or if low shoes make 
neatly-fitting hose especially desirable, a suitable 
elastic stocking suspender is easily provided. Sew 
a strong narrow strap of the same material as the 
drawers on the outside of each drawers leg, stitch¬ 
ing it on lengthwise of the strap two or three 
inches, and leaving as many inches of the strap 
loose, with a button on the end. This may reach a 
little below the knee. Elastic straps (common 
rubber tape), with button holes or loops on each 
end, should attach to the ends of these straps, and 
reach to the top of the stockings, to connect there 
with a button on the stocking. Now, if the draw¬ 
ers are secured at the waist, this will keep the 
under-suit in good fit. A few buttons sewed inside 
the waistband of the trowsers, and buttoned 
through the top of the drawers, will make the 
suspenders do duty for both garments. 
Another Home-Made Desk. 
Since the appearance of the desk that was illus¬ 
trated in the March American Agriculturist, several 
have written me, desiring some form or combination 
in which they are not necessitated to write on the 
leaf or lid, and in accordance therewith I present 
the following form. This desk is large and roomy, 
and the writing materials are placed under cover, 
and are always in their place, ready for instant use. 
It being so plainly shown, only a few descriptive^ 
words will be necessary. A small cover, e, folds 
over and closes the front of the desk; pigeon 
holes and a small drawer can be arranged, as 
shown in the engraving; they may be placed in 
any other desirable position ; the part at t could be 
arranged with shelves, or used as a book-case, or 
for holding papers and magazines. L. D. S. 
Tomato Catsup—Tomato Sauce. 
The basis of Tomato Catsup, or Ketchup, is the 
pulp of ripe Tomatoes. Many defer making Cat¬ 
sup until late in the season, when the cool nights 
cause the fruit to ripen slowly, and it may be it is 
gathered hurriedly for fear of a frost. The late 
fruit does not yield so rich a pulp as that gathered 
in its prime. The fruit should have all green por¬ 
tions cut out, and be stewed gently until thoroughly 
cooked. The pulp is then to be separated from 
the skins, by rubbing through a wire sieve, so fine 
as to retain the seeds. The liquor thus obtained, 
is to be evaporated to a thick pulp, over a slow 
fire, and should be stirred to prevent scorching. 
The degree of evaporation will depend upon how 
thick it is desired to have the catsup. We prefer 
to make it so that it will just pour freely from the 
bottle. We observe no regular rule in flavoring. 
Use sufficient salt. Season with Cloves, Allspice, 
and Mace, bruised and tied in a cloth, and boiled 
in the pulp ; add a small quantity of powdered Cay¬ 
enne. Some add the spices ground fine, directly to- 
the pulp. A clove of garlic, bruised and tied in a 
cloth, to be boiled with the spices, imparts a delic¬ 
ious flavor. Some evaporate the pulp to a greater 
thickness than is needed, and then thin with vine¬ 
gar or with wine. An excellent and useful tomato 
sauce may be made by preparing the pulp, but add¬ 
ing no spices, and putting it in small bottles while 
hot, corking securely and sealing. If desired, the 
sauce may be salted before bottling, but this is not 
essential. To add to soups, stews, sauces and 
made dishes, a sauce thus prepared is an excellent, 
substitute for the fresh fruit. It should be put in 
small bottles, containing as much as will be want¬ 
ed at once, as it will not keep long after opening. 
Pickles and Pickling. 
The number of questions which come to us every 
summer on the subject of pickles, is very great. 
The purport of a majority of these is : “ How can 
we put up pickles to look like those sold in jars at 
the stores ?”—The fine appearance of these pickles- 
in bottles, is due to two things : They are made 
green by the use of copper, and the vinegar is col¬ 
orless. It is called “White-wine vinegar,” but is 
really made from whiskey. So far as health goes, 
this vinegar is as wholesome as any other, but it is 
entirely lacking in the pleasant odor and taste of 
Cider vinegar. Handsome pickles can not be made 
with Cider vinegar, but they are a great deal bet¬ 
ter. The pickles are greened by soaking them to 
free them from salt, in a copper vessel, or most 
generally by the use of Verdigris, which is the ace¬ 
tate of copper. As we do not advise the making 
of pickles green by this process,we do not give the 
details. Such pickles should not be bought, and 
ought not to be sold. Serious results may follow 
the continued use of even the minute quantity 
of copper these handsome pickles contain. 
At the pickle-factories, the owmers contract with 
the growers for cucumbers of a size that may be 
agreed upon, at a fixed price per thousand. If the 
size is small, the vines must be looked over every 
day or two. Whatever the size, they must always 
be cut from the vines, with the stems left on them. 
At the factories they are placed in large wooden 
vats, using half a bushel of salt, to five bushels of 
cucumbers, with water enough to cover them. In 
6alting them for home use, an ordinary whiskey or 
alcohol barrel may be used, removing one head, 
and making a follower of boards, to keep the cu¬ 
cumbers under the brine. The cucumbers are 
placed in the barrel as they are picked, and salt 
sprinkled among them. When the barrel is half 
