AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
149 
To Secure Large Specimens of Fruit. 
Improved varieties and methods of culture, 
have so greatly enlarged many kinds of fruit that 
the stems by which they are attached to the tree 
or vine, are hardly sufficient to sustain their weight 
properly, especially if exposed to be tossed and 
shaken about by the wind. If the stem be 
loosened or injured in any way, the fruit must 
suffer to some extent, as the sap necessary for 
growth is transmitted through this stem. It will, 
therefore, be well, when very fine specimens are 
desired for any purpose, to support the weight of 
the fruit by strings. A small bit of book muslin 
or gauze, with strings tied at the four corners and 
attached to the tree, would answer well for peach¬ 
es, plums and other such fruits. 
Sweeping. 
BV ANNA HOPE. 
The art of sweeping is one which many who 
use a broom never learn. It is sometimes said 
that we may judge of the character of a person 
from the manner of washing dishes. It may, 
surely, lie equally well learned from the manner 
of sweeping a room. It is not necessary to raise 
a cloud of dust, as if we were attempting to imi¬ 
tate the simoom, nor is it necessary to throw a 
whole house in disorder when doing the week’s 
sweeping. Let the stroke of the broom be short 
and steady, without any supplementary flourishes, 
and the dust will, most of it, rise but little above 
the floor. Draw the broom, not push it forward. 
Tea leaves, slightly damp, scattered over a 
carpet before sweeping, gather the dust about 
them. So does wet paper, or wet grass, or snow. 
Snow cannot be used in a warm room. Tea 
leaves that have soaked in water till they are 
soft and half decayed, soil carpets. Some persons 
dampen the broom before using it. If this be 
done, care must be taken not to strike it against 
the base board, as the wet dirt will leave its mark. 
A large and small broom, a long-handed brush, 
a feather duster, a silk or old paper-muslin duster, 
and a dust-pan, are desirable conveniences for all 
who attend to sweeping. For oil-cloth and all 
uncarpeted floors, a brush is preferable to a 
broom, because it removes the dust more tho¬ 
roughly. A small hand-brush is very useful for 
stairs, unless they are wholly covered with a car¬ 
pet, and then a thick broom should be used. The 
dust from each stair should be swept upon a dust 
pan, and not from one step to another all the way 
down. It is almost impossible to sweep stairs 
clean with a large broom. They need something 
that can remove the dust from the corners. 
Before sweeping a room, cover the articles of 
furniture which cannot easily be removed, and re¬ 
move into another room those that are not too 
large and heavy, after having thoroughly dusted 
them. Furniture can in this way be preserved 
longer, and it will look better than if filled with 
dust like a puff-ball. Be sure and cover books. 
Spread a sheet over the bed. See that all draw¬ 
ers are shut. Indeed, do not be in the habit of 
only partially closing them. It betokens a want of 
thoroughness. Closet doors, too, must be shut— 
not merely “ pushed to.” I do not like a heavy 
broom. Sweeping is hard enough, without any 
unnecessary burdens. A stiff broom should not 
be used upon carpets. It wears them too much. 
For the same reason, give a light touch, and not 
sweep as if trying to reach the floor beneath the 
carpet. Pay particular attention to corners and 
all hiding-places for dust and lint. When the 
large broom cannot reach, use a small one. 
There is no surer indication of untidiness than 
neglected corners, or dusty nooks beneath bed 
or bureau, or fire-places full of lint, and hair, and 
burnt matches. Wipe the furniture with the 
duster, occasionally shaking the silk or muslin 
where the dust will not return into the room. If 
the furniture has been covered, dusting will not 
prove so disagreeable work as it frequently is. I 
remember, when I was a child, my mother had a 
new girl, whose duty it was, among other things, 
to wait upon the table, and take care of the din¬ 
ing room. My mother gave her particular direc¬ 
tions about sweeping and dusting, and left her to 
the performance of her duties. When Lina- had 
exerted herself to the utmost, and, as she sup¬ 
posed, put the room in the nicest order, she re¬ 
ported progress, and my mother went to the room 
to examine it, and give her approval. The chairs 
were covered with dust. 
‘•You have forgotten to dust the chairs,” my 
mother kindly said to her. 
“ O, no, ma’am ; I dusted them, was the reply. 
“ But they are very dusty now, you see.” 
11 Yes, ma’am, for I swept the room.” 
“ You cannot have dusted since you swept.” 
“O, no ma’am; I didn’t suppose you would 
want the dust on the carpet. I dusted them all 
before I swept,” said the self-approving girl. 
I have often thought of Lina when I have seen 
the dust lying on unprotected furniture. It 
seems a pity to brush so much back upon a neatly 
swept carpet. The head should always be cov¬ 
ered when sweeping, and with something that 
will also protect the neck from the falling dust. 
The Monotony of Housework Relieved. 
To the Editor of the American Agriculturist : 
Availing myself of the invitation to your female 
readers, contained in the January Agriculturist, I 
would submit a trifle of my own two years’ ex¬ 
perience in housekeeping... .Leaving a kind 
mother, who had relieved me of all care and re¬ 
sponsibility in my childhood’s home, with but 
eighteen years over my giddy head. I entered 
upon the arduous duties of housekeeping with a 
light heart and willing hands. For the first few 
weeks, everything was novel and delightful, and 
1 found real enjoyment in attending to our home 
affairs ; but as week after week rolled by, bring¬ 
ing its endless routine of daily duties, the mono¬ 
tony grew irksome, the fetters of care began to 
corrode my spirits, and I sought for change. The 
change came in a way which may provoke a 
smile from your readers. “A horse, a pig, a cow," 
with a numerous flock of poultry claimed my at¬ 
tention. I became interested in their growth 
and welfare, and I now spend an hour or two each 
day in caring for and petting them. My health 
has improved wonderfully, but my spirits more. 
To how many youthful housekeepers, and in¬ 
deed to those of many years’ experience do the 
toils and perplexities attending the “ indoor 
work,” prove a source of weariness and discom¬ 
fort, undermining health of body, and mind, till 
they are often heard to wish, there had never 
been such a thing as work invented, or that they 
were not obliged to perform any portion of it! My 
friends, work is a true blessing. We were not 
placed in this busy world to fold our hands in idle¬ 
ness. Our Great Exemplar, when on earth, was 
never idle, but went about doing good; and mo¬ 
tion and activity are essential to every object, 
which Infinite wisdom has created. Nothing flour¬ 
ishes in idleness. We should work, and work 
diligently; but not delve and toil incessantly 
with no rest for body or mind. 
It is often, unhappily, the case—perhaps with 
farmers more generally than any other class— 
that both sexes spend their lives in a continual 
round of wearisome labor, from early dawn till 
late evening, grasping and saving, depriving them¬ 
selves of the luxuries, or even comforts of life, 
thinking after they have obtained yet a little more 
they will build anew, or enlarge their habitations, 
purchase new and modern conveniences, and 
spend the remainder of their days in rest. Ah, 
how frequently their rest is found in the grave ! 
Just ready to live, they die, leaving their hard 
earned savings for the contention of greedy rela¬ 
tives, and it may be said with lamentable verity 
above their uncared for graves, “ they have lived 
in vain.” We sincerely hope there will be none 
who read these pages, of whom this sad truth 
may ever be written; and those of you, whose 
daily tasks are becoming laborious and tiresome, 
leave them at once, dismiss them from mind as 
well as body—pay a visit to the barn or poultry- 
yard, talk to the busy flocks you find there ; teach 
them to know and love the hand which feeds and 
caresses them, and rest assured, you will return 
to your labors with a light step as well as a light 
heart, and be amply repaid for all the exertions it 
cost you... .[Very good suggestions, we think.] 
How many housekeepers, both young and old, 
will try it for the next month, and report the re¬ 
sult to the Ed. Agriculturist, or to 
Litchfield. Corners, Me. Minnie May. 
About the Feet. 
WATER-PROOF BLACKING NOT USEFUL. 
A manufacturer sends us some boxes of “ Wa¬ 
ter Proof Blacking ”—“warranted to render boots, 
shoes and all kinds of leather perfectly impervi¬ 
ous to moisture,” with the request that it should 
be “ favorably noticed in the American Agricul¬ 
turist —and a long advertisement will be inserted.” 
We can not oblige the sender, for two important 
reasons. First : We never sell ‘ notices,’ and ad¬ 
vertisements are never solicited—at least on any 
such terms. Second : We don’t believe in these 
‘water proof blackings,’ and of course advise peo¬ 
ple not to use them. As a general thing, blacking 
of any kind rots leather; and especially is this 
the case with anything that stops the pores. The 
leather is injured, and the feet kept cold by the 
moisture from the feet, which is kept from escap¬ 
ing by stopping the pores with various compounds, 
tallow, etc. Not unfrequently a gill or more 
of watery vapor escapes from the feet during a day. 
The amount varies in different persons, and with 
the age, physical condition or health, etc. If In¬ 
dia rubber boots or those of leather saturated with 
oil, grease, or other impervious substances be 
worn, this moisture is in a measure retained— 
though some of it escapes upward along the legs. 
Every one accustomed to oil or grease their boots 
all over, must have noticed that, for a day or two 
after the application, the socks get nearly wet 
enough to wring out. 
India-rubber over-shoes injure or “rot” leath¬ 
er, as is well known ; but it is not the mere con¬ 
tact of the rubber, for that of itself would pre¬ 
serve leather. On the contrary, it is the moisture 
retained by the rubber which keeps the boots or 
shoes damp, and eventually destroys them. 
Latterly, since we have examined this subject, 
our practice has been, never to grease boots or 
shoes, even with tallow, except once or twice on the 
bottoms and around the sides near the soles ; and 
we are sure they wear much longer than former¬ 
ly. The parts over the top of the feet are left as 
open as possible, so that perspiration can freely 
escape. This leaves the feet dry and comforta¬ 
ble, and the leather rarely rots, but lasts until ac- 
