isOs.j 
AM^RICaM AGRICULTURIST. 
The practical lesson now aimed at, is, that when 
we luwt the air of a room by a stove or furnace, 
we make it a drying sponge, and it sucks up the 
air from the surface of our bodies and from the 
lungs, and uot only produces unpleasant sensations, 
but injures the health, to say nothing of its drying 
out and cracking or warping furniture. To remedy 
Ibis,there should always be an artificial supply of 
moisture to the air when heated by a stove or fur¬ 
nace. (The open chimney or grate carries off so 
much air, causing the introduction of fresh cool 
air, that the dryness is not so greatly felt.) A wide 
open vessel of water on a stove, partially supplies 
moisture. But even this is not enough for the 
greatest comfort and health. A cloth frequently 
dampened and hung on a chair or frame near the 
stove, is preferable. Every one must have noted 
the balmy effect of a few clothes hung on a frame to 
dry in a hot room. We heat our whole house by a 
hot-air furnace in the cellar, as being the most 
economical as well as the most convenient and 
comfortable method. But the warm air comes up 
saturated with moisture derived from a wide vessel 
placed within the furnace cover, just over the fire, 
and always kept supplied with water. The lack of 
sufficient water apparatus has caused many, other¬ 
wise good, furnaces to be thrown aside as disagree¬ 
able and unhealthy. The so-called “ burned air ” 
is simply deprived of sensible moisture. A stove- 
heated room may be made far more pleasant by 
supplying plenty of moisture. 
Let Teachers, and Sextons of churches, act upon 
the above suggestions, and keep a spacious wide¬ 
mouthed evaporating vessel upon the stove. If 
this does not suffice, and at any time the pupils 
appear specially restless, try the hanging of a few 
damp handkerchiefs or garments on chairs near 
the stove. The effect will often be almost magical. 
How to Pickle Cucumbers. 
In response to several inquiries from Agricultur¬ 
ist subscribers, we publish the following directions 
given by Mrs. Haskell, in her Housekeepers’ Ency¬ 
clopedia : Cut the cucumbers from the vines with¬ 
out bruising the stems ; lay them carefully in a 
basket; take them to the cellar ; sort and pack 
them in barrels, putting different sizes in separate 
barrels, spread a layer of salt between each layer of 
cucumbers; there should be sufficient salt to en¬ 
tirely cover the pickles between the layers. Con¬ 
tinue to pack the cucumbers daily as they are pick¬ 
ed, never using any but fine cucumbers, discarding 
all that are crooked or of slow growth. Keep 
boards over the pickles, and weight to press them 
under the brine, which will be formed without the 
addition of water, with the juice extracted from the 
fruit by the salt. Pickles packed in this manner 
may be preserved for years, if there are no impuri¬ 
ties in the salt; but if the salt is mixed with lime, 
they will soon soften and spoil. In two months 
after the barrel is filled, take them from the brine, 
freshen and green. To green cucumbers, prepare 
alum-water; put the pickles in a vat or boiler, 
lined with tinned copper; heat the alum-water, and 
pour it over the pickles. This is the process 
which is usually employed by pickle-makers, except 
that they throw steam into the vats to heat the 
alum-water, and if managed properly the pickles 
may be grecued with less action of copper than 
when scalded in the usual method in bright brass 
kettles. Take the pickles from the vat when a lit¬ 
tle green, and pour over them water boiling hot. 
If not greened sufficiently, repeat the hot water 
until they are the desired color, and when cold, put 
them in good vinegar, let them remain until quite 
soured; then change to pretty strong vinegar, 
which will keep the pickles hard aud sour; add to 
a barrel six large peppers, without bruising, aud 
keep the pickles under the vinegar with weights. 
To l>ye witli Sumach. —Miss Lizzie M. 
Coggcshall, Piatt Co., Ill., sends the following di¬ 
rections in answer to the inquiry in the October 
Agriculturist : Cover the berries with water and 
boil them an Lour. Strain off the juice aud add a 
tablespoon ful of copperas to each three gallons of 
the liquid, stirring it in thoroughly while boiling 
hot. Wet the yarn in warm water, put it into 
the hot dye, and occasionally stir it up, while the 
yarn is taking the color. The color will be purple, 
and it can be made darker, by boiling the berries 
in an iron pot.—Another correspondent writes ; 
“For one pail of rain water, take 6 qts. of the ber¬ 
ries, soak them in iron 34 hours; then take them 
out aud put in the yarn. Stir it often aud keep the 
dye hot, but not boiling, while soaking. If you 
wish to color black, set it with copperas; it needs 
no setting unless to color black.” 
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Meals for a Week. 
Some months since a correspondent requested 
through the Agriculturist “ Basket,” that some 
one would furnish a list of meals for a week which 
should combine economy and good fare. Several 
communications have beeu received, of which we 
have space but for the following. “II.,” of Rah¬ 
way, N. J., writes : “My living expenses being re¬ 
duced since the war from $3000 per annum, to less 
than the fourth part of that sum,- economy is the 
strict rule: and I send you an account of one week’s 
meals of our family of five (three adults and two 
children, one an infant). The cost is estimated a 
little too high, as the mouth just past averaged 15 
cents per week less. 
Breakfast .—Each morning buckwheat cakes, cold 
meat, tea and coffee; excepting that on Monday 
and Thursday, eggs are served instead of cakes. 
Dinner. —Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, roast- 
beef, potatoes, turnips, and bread pudding—omit¬ 
ting the pudding on Monday. Wednesday, roast- 
pork, potatoes, turnips and onion sauce. Thursday 
the same with pancakes. Friday, corned beef, po¬ 
tatoes, turnips and batter pudding. Saturday, the 
same except bread pudding. Tea at each dinner. 
Tea. —Toast, preserves, tea and coffee, and twice, 
fried kidneys extra. 
The cost of the above meals was, say 
14 loaves of bread, 5c. each.70'10lbs. of beef, 8c..84 
5 ibs. granulated sugar, 15c..75 1 5 lbs. of pork, 10c..50 
2 Ibs. brown sugar, 10cts....20| 2 beef kidneys, 5c.. 10 
1 lb. of coffee,. 38 Onions,. 10 
M lb. of tea. 88c.22| Syrup, 1 quart.14 
4 Ibs. of buckwheat,.161 3 doz. eggs, 20 cts.,60 
2% lbs. of butter. 28 cts.77 1 lb. flour,.3 
14 pints of milk, 6c. perqt.42| Nutmeg, yeast, salt. 25 
Total expense for the week..$6, lu. 
Tea we drink weak ; coffee very strong. Potatoes 
and turnips are my own growing, and preserves 
made from fruit of our own raising. Beef at 8 cts. 
is the rump which hung for a week, roasted slowly 
say 2)4 hours, and well basted, is equal if not supe¬ 
rior to porterhouse roast.” 
Another correspondent, “ C.,” at Andover, Mass., 
gives the following: '■‘■Breakfast. —Monday, toast¬ 
ed bread, either Graham or brown, also white 
bread; sauce aud cheese, or broiled salt fish.— 
Tuesday, milk toast and doughnuts, cru6t coffee or 
cocoa shells, aud boiled eggs.—Wednesday, warm 
biscuit and molasses gingerbread, with some slices 
of cold meat left from yesterday’s dinner.—Thurs¬ 
day, hot Indian breakfast cake, cold bread, baked 
apples, cheese, beefsteak and baked potatoes.— 
Friday, griddle cakes and roasted apples, chocolate 
or tea, cold bread aud hash.—Saturday, toast dip¬ 
ped in hot salted water and buttered, mashed or 
roasted potatoes, cold meat or boiled eggs, aud 
doughnuts.—Sunday, fish balls, a hot breakfast 
cake of Graham flour or fried hasty pudding; pick¬ 
les and horse-radish. 
“ Dinners. —Monday, beefsteak, potatoes, squash, 
bread and butter, baked apples or sauce, and apple 
or squash pie.—Tuesday, roast beef, or fresh pork, 
boiled squash, turnips, cranberry sauce or pickles, 
and pie or puddings.—Wednesday, remains of yes¬ 
terday’s meat warmed up in the gravy, squash, tur¬ 
nips, potatoes, pickles or sauce, and pie or pudding. 
Thursday, soup made of the bone and remnants of 
beef or fresh pork, and bread pudding.—Friday, 
either veal cutlets, tripe, sausages or steak, with 
boiled rice or rye mush.—Saturday, salt fish, boiled 
carrots aud beets, potatoes, drawn butter and pork. 
BIS 
with scraps, pickles, and boiled apple pudding.— 
Sunday, baked beans aud Indian pudding. 
“ For another week’s course, as dinner is the prin¬ 
cipal meal, say:—Monday, boiled corned beef, pota¬ 
toes, squash, cabbage, turnips, carrots, beets, and 
baked rice pudding.—Tuesday, cold corned beef, 
with yesterday’s vegetables warmed over, apple 
pie. Bread, butter and potatoes are of course 
requisite at every dinner.—Wednesday, a chowder, 
or fresh fish in some form, mince, apple or squash 
pie.—Thursday, boil a leg of mutton, or cut it into 
steaks and broil ; serve with drawn butter or caper 
sa"uce; potatoes, squash and turnips, and pudding. 
Friday, make a soup of the remnants of mutton, 
having saved the water in which it was boiled; or 
chop the remnants fine and warm up in some of the 
broth, adding pepper, salt and butter: toast slices 
of bread and spread this hash upon it, break eggs 
into hot water, and when cooked skim them out, 
aud lay upon the hash ; this is very nice. Pie for 
dessert.—Saturday, ham and fried eggs, broiled 
steak or fried pork, fried apples aud potatoes. Pie 
or pudding.—Sunday, steak, stewed or scolloped 
oysters, cranberry pie, with custard or squash pie. 
“ Supper. —Monday, fresh cold bread, 6auce or 
roasted apples, or preserved canned fruit with su¬ 
gar sufficient to make it palatable; ginger snaps. 
Tuesday, hot toasted bread, simple sauce of some 
kind ; plain cake.—Wednesday, toast, sauce, cup- 
custard, and plain cake.—Thursday, cold fresh bis¬ 
cuit, sauce, cranberry or apple puffs.—Friday, new 
raised bread, cold tongue or ham, sauce and cake.— 
Saturday, milk toast, gingerbread, picked salt fish. 
All remnants from every meal should be carefully 
looked after, that nothing be lost. When it is not 
desirable to have meat at breakfast, this bill of fare 
will extend over three weeks instead of two, by 
serving up for a second dinner what would other¬ 
wise appear on the breakfast table. By these rules 
a family may live well and yet inexpensively. 
I give several rules for preparing soup, etc., re¬ 
ferred to in the above bill of hire : 
“ Dumplings for a soup. —To 1 qt. of flour, add 2 
teaspoonfuls of cream of tartar, 1 of soda, salt, 
milk, just sufficient to wet the flour; drop this by 
spoonfuls into the pot of boiling soup, after having 
put in the potatoes, and boil three quarters of an 
hour, or even an hour. The soup is made by simp¬ 
ly boiling any kind of fresh meat either cooked or 
uncooked, in water for 4 hours, adding three or 
four onions, and a carrot or two with pared pota¬ 
toes ; season with salt and peppers. 
“ Apple Dumpling. —Butter a tin pail, and line with 
a paste made as for cream of tartar biscuit, with the 
addition of a piece of shortening as large as an 
egg. Mould it a little, but have the dough soft, fill 
the pail about two thirds full of apples, quartered. 
Cover with dough over the top, then put on the 
pail cover, and place the pail in a kettle of water, 
aud boil three hours. Do not let the water rise so 
high as to boil over into the pail, and and have an 
inverted plate or saucer in the bottom of the kettle 
in order that the pudding may not burn. 
“ Crumb Griddle Cakes. —Soak bread crumbs in 
milk (which should be decidedly sour,) overnight. 
In the morning mash the bread, aud add a lil.Ue sal- 
eratus, salt, and flour, and bake like buckwheats.” 
Double Heeling Stockings. 
Miss S. R. Bowman, Philadelphia Co., Pa, writes 
to the American Agriculturist as follows : “ Sol¬ 
diers very soon walk through the heels ■.,( their 
stockings. Now if the good ladies who knit so 
much, will only make fine double heels, in the fol¬ 
lowing manner, “ the boys ” will probably loot up a 
victory in “double quick.” Take two balls of yarn, 
and on the right side knit one stitch with one 
thread, and the next with the other, and so on 
accross the needle. This alternating makes a loop 
on the inside, which renders the heel very thick 
and durable, without making it any wider. On the 
wrong side, take both threads together, and knit 
as one, in the usuai way.” 
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tSTFor other Household Hints see Basket. 
