Notes  on  the  Competition,  Etc. 
IF  there  were  any  doubt  as  to  the  value  of  the  work 
done  in  past  years  in  our  country  schools,  the 
scores  of  well-written  manuscripts  which  have  come 
into  this  office  from  our  farm  homes  during  the  last 
competition  would  silence  such  a  doubt.  The  excel¬ 
lence  of  the  work  done  was  the  surprising  thing  in  a 
previous  competition.  Yet  what  will  our  readers  think 
when  we  say  that  the  present  set  of  papers  average 
still  higher  ?  Higher,  indeed,  than  the  average  of  the 
articles  that  come  to  us  from  regular  contributors. 
Of  course,  the  fact  that  in  a  prize  series,  every  effort  is 
put  forth  by  each  one  to  give  the  very  best,  counts  for 
something.  *  *  * 
Yet,  in  some  ways,  the  competition  has  been  disap¬ 
pointing.  It  was  to  be  expected  that  the  cookery 
articles  would  outnumber  the  others,  since  the  number 
of  those  who  could  write  under  the  other  conditions 
was  necessarily  limited.  But  the  cookery  articles  are 
twice  as  many  in  number  as  those  of  both  the  other 
classes ;  and  the  articles  on  self-support,  which  it 
was  hoped  would  prove  of  great  value,  are  so  few  in 
mimber  as  to  hardly  deserve  the  name  of  a  competition. 
It  is  a  belief,  with  Mrs.  Rorer,  that  no  woman  likes 
the  kitchen.  We  believe  that  the  interest  which  these 
articles  show  in  a  matter  which  lies  almost  wholly 
within  kitchen  limits  (although  it  reaches  out  from 
there  to  touch  the  whole  life  of  the  house)  fully  refutes 
this  belief,  which  is  so  strong  with  the  lady  as  to  be 
put  in  the  form  of  an  active  assertion  that  it  is  fact. 
*  *  * 
A  number  of  articles  are  clamoring  for  instant 
admission  if  they  would  be  seasonable ;  it  seems  desir¬ 
able  to  devote  the  issue  of  April  9  largely  to  Easter 
matter  as  far  as  this  department  is  concerned  ;  it  was 
utterly  impossible  to  give  thorough  fair  consideration 
to  the  prize  articles  and  get  them  into  the  present 
issue  ;  hence,  although  we  regret  very  much  to  keep 
contributors  to  the  prize  series  in  suspense  so  long,  we 
shall  be  compelled  to  wait  until  the  issue  of  April  1G 
before  announcing  the  decisions.  The  just  award  of 
the  cookery  prize  will  be  a  matter  of  especial  difficulty, 
and  it  may  be  that  rather  than  to  take  the  responsibil¬ 
ity,  the  leader  of  this  department  may  call  upon  its 
readers  to  vote  upon  the  best  three  or  four  articles. 
This,  however,  is  not  yet  decided. 
*  *  * 
Always  on  the  alert  to  secure  anything  that  may 
prove  helpful  to  our  readers,  we  have  been  investigat¬ 
ing,  during  the  past  week,  the  “Food  and  Health 
Exposition,”  now  being  held  in  New  York  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Retail  Grocers’  Union.  A  partial  re¬ 
port  of  the  results  may  be  found  in  another  column, 
and  we  hope  to  be  able  to  give  other  matter  in  con¬ 
nection  with  the  exhibit  later. 
A  Cooking  Lesson  from  Mrs.  Rorer. 
THE  fact  that  Mrs.  Rorer  and  Miss  Corson  have 
been  engaged  to  give  a  series  of  cooking  lessons 
on  alternate  days,  draws  daily  crowds  to  the  Food  and 
Health  Exposition.  The  room  where  the  lessons  are 
given  is  crowded  to  overflowing,  and  even  the  stairs 
leading  thereto  and  the  thronged  hallways  bear  wit¬ 
ness  to  the  interest  of  the  women  in  free  cooking 
lessons. 
Perhaps  The  R.  N.-Y.  readers  may  be  interested  in 
the  methods  of  one  teacher  in  a  cooking  school.  A 
table,  behind  which  the  teacher  stood  and  carried  on 
operations,  a  gas  stove  at  the  side,  and  three  colored 
waiters  to  “  fetch  and  carry  ”  and  hand  things  as  de¬ 
sired,  besides  a  few  cooking  utensils,  were  the  apparent 
“  materials  for  the  work.”  The  fair-haired,  pleasant¬ 
faced  lady  who  presided  gave  first  the  recipe  ;  then 
explained  the  method  of  putting  it  together,  and  car¬ 
ried  on  the  operation  as  she  talked,  throwing  in  many 
a  principle,  or  rule,  or  statement  that  was  of  far  more 
value  than  the  recipe  on  which  she  was  at  work.  White 
imislin  cap,  deep  cuffs  and  fichu  gave  her  much  the 
appearance  of  la  belle  chocolatiere. 
Quick-breads  was  the  general  topic  for  the  after¬ 
noon’s  work.  It  may  be  that  our  readers  already  have 
these  or  similar  recipes,  but  those  who  do  not  have 
them,  or  any  substitute  for  them,  will  be  glad  indeed 
to  receive  them  from  an  authority  like  Mrs.  Rorer. 
To  see  her  handle  the  materials,  and  to  note  her  com¬ 
mand  of  herself  and  her  faith  that  the  product  would 
be  perfect,  was  of  itself  a  lesson.  She  is  a  Southern 
woman  by  birth,  which  may  account  for  the  bent  of 
her  mind,  in  part.  The  first  recipe  given  was  for 
Date  Gems. — Two  eggs,  1  cupful  of  milk,  (one-half 
pint);  1%  cupful  Graham  flour,  one  tablespoonful  but¬ 
ter,  melted  (one  ounce);  one-half  teaspoonful  salt,  one 
cupful  chopped  dates,  one  teaspoonful  baking  powder. 
Separate  the  eggs;  add  to  the  yolks  the  milk,  the 
flour,  the  butter,  melted,  and  the  salt,  and  beat  vigor¬ 
ously.  Then  add  the  dates  and  the  well-beaten  whites 
of  the  eggs.  Beat  rapidly  to  separate  the  dates  after 
atlding ;  add  powder  dry,  and  bake  in  gem  pans  in  a 
moderate  oven  30  minutes.  Stir  carefully  at  the  last, 
and  fix  the  cells  instantly  with  heat. 
In  her  running  comment,  and  partly  in  reply  to 
questions,  Mrs.  Rorer  asked  the  ladies  to  note  that  one 
tablespoonful  of  butter,  melted,  was  two  or  three  times 
as  much  as  one  tablespoonful  of  melted  butter.  An 
ordinary  spoonful,  as  the  term  is  used,  meant  as  much 
rounded  above  the  bowl  as  below.  Entire  wheat  was 
better  than  Graham  flour  as  now  made.  Bran,  a  flint, 
was  most  unwholesome  ;  one-half  cupful  of  rice  made 
all  kinds  of  muffins  lighter  and  more  wholesome;  all 
kinds  of  dark  flour  required  longer,  slower  baking  than 
the  lighter  flours ;  it  was  best  to  buy  light  dates,  as 
wetting  spoils  them  on  the  instant,  therefore  it  is  im¬ 
possible  to  cleanse  them  for  cooking  uses ;  in  spite  of 
the  opposition  of  her  audience,  and  that  of  the  cook 
books  generally,  she  got  better  results  with  less  pow¬ 
der,  by  putting  powder  dry  into  such  batters,  which 
must  go  into  the  oven  the  instant  the  powder  was 
added. 
While  the  gems  were  in  progress,  one-fourth  cupful 
of  rice  was  boiled  for 
Rice  Crumpets. — Two  eggs,  one  cupful  milk,  \)4  cup¬ 
ful  flour,  one  tablespoonful  butter,  one-half  teaspoon¬ 
ful  salt,  one-half  cupful  boiled  rice,  one  teaspoonful 
baking  powder. 
Drain  the  rice,  and  make  perfectly  dry  in  the  oven 
or  by  rolling  in  a  towel.  Separate  the  eggs  ;  add  to 
the  yolks  the  milk,  the  flour,  the  butter  and  the  salt. 
Now  begin  to  beat  thoroughly  until  smooth,  before 
adding  the  rice  (as,  after  the  rice  is  added,  it  is  impos¬ 
sible  to  tell  lumps  from  rice).  Now  add  the  rice,  the 
well-beaten  whites  and  the  baking  powder.  Cook  10 
minutes  in  greased  rings  on  a  pan,  or  on  a  griddle. 
Make  thin,  that  they  need  not  be  split. 
After  these  two  batters  came  a  dough  for 
Egg  Rolls. — One  pint  flour,  one-half  teaspoonful 
salt,  two  ounces  butter,  one  egg,  one-half  cupful  milk, 
one  teaspoonful  baking  powder. 
But  the  flour,  salt  and  butter  into  a  bowl  and  rub  in 
the  hands  with  a  downward  motion  until  every  grain 
of  flour  is  greased  with  butter.  Then  add  the  baking 
powder.  Beat  one  egg  without  separating  (except  to 
save  a  tablespoonful  of  the  white  for  a  glaze)  add  to 
the  egg  the  milk,  then  add  these  to  the  dry  materials. 
Knead  a  moment  with  as  little  flour  as  possible  ;  roll 
into  a  sheet  half  an  inch  thick,  keeping  the  square 
shape  as  far  as  possible.  Cut  into  oblongs  two  by 
three  inches,  mark  deeply  with  a  knife  lengthwise, 
glaze  and  bake  in  a  very  hot  oven  15  minutes. 
This  is  one  of  the  most  tender  of  doughs  to  handle. 
The  worker  must  not  let  it  stick  to  her  hands.  If 
called  away  at  the  close  of  the  first  operation,  the 
flour,  butter,  etc.,  might  stand  for  hours  and  take  no 
harm ;  but  the  moment  the  moisture  is  added,  it 
must  go  at  once  to  the  oven.  The  reserved  egg  is 
beaten  a  moment,  with  one  tablespoonful  of  sugar, 
and  the  tops  of  the  rolls  thoroughly  brushed  with 
it.  These  are  nice,  and  quickly  made  for  lunch, 
as  made  by  Mrs.  Rover,  baked  a  golden  brown  above 
and  below,  they  looked  toothsome  indeed.  Pieces  of 
dough  from  the  rolls  were  made  into 
Flake  Cakes. — Roll  in  long  strips  the  egg-roll 
dough.  Double  the  strips,  twist  like  old-fashioned 
crullers,  and  brush  with  glaze. 
Pan  Short-Cake. — One  pint  of  flour,  one-half  tea¬ 
spoonful  salt,  four  ounces  butter,  one  gill  milk,  one 
teaspoonful  baking  powder. 
Put  flour  and  salt  into  a  bowl,  and  cut  the  butter 
into  it ;  add  the  powder,  mix,  then  add  the  milk. 
Knead  lightly,  roll  into  a  very  thin  sheet,  fold  and 
press  with  the  rolling-pin  until  not  more  than  half  an 
inch  thick.  Cut  with  a  large  cutter,  bake  on  a  griddle 
15  minutes  ;  split,  butter  and  served  piled  in  layers  of 
three. 
Pop-Overs. — Two  small  eggs,  one-half  pint  milk, 
one  cupful  flour,  one-quarter  teaspoonful  salt.  First 
brush  iron  gem  pans  with  grease,  and  place  in  oven  to 
get  piping  hot.  Beat  the  eggs  without  separating,  and 
add  to  them  the  milk.  Put  the  salt  in  the  flour,  and 
pour  upon  them  gradually  the  egg  and  milk.  Beat 
carefully,  and  pass  through  a  fine  sieve.  Put  at  once 
into  the  hot  pans,  filling  them  about  half  full.  These 
are  nice  for  lunch,  for  breakfast  with  coffee,  or  for 
dessert,  with  pudding  sauce. 
Lack  of  space  prevents  our  giving-  much  of  the  com¬ 
ment.  We  shall  have  to  reserve  it  for  another  time. 
The  Food  and  Health  Exposition. 
BY  no  means  fanatical  in  its  efforts  toward  health 
reform  is  the  New  York  Grocers’  Union,  hence, 
its  efforts  healthward  are  fairly  embraced  by  the  motto 
over  the  door  of  the  exhibition  hall  declaring  for  pure 
foods  and  full  weight. 
Inside,  the  scene  is  a  pretty  one.  Articles  of  food 
are  to  be  brought  to  the  notice  of  the  public  individu¬ 
ally,  which  may  have  been  what  is  known  as  “  before 
the  public,”  en  masse,  for  years.  Consequently,  they 
must  be  presented  attractively,  and  if  possible  in  a 
way  to  induce  interest  and  questioning.  Articles 
which  cannot  easily  be  prepared  for  use  are  put  up  in 
smaller  packages  to  be  sampled  at  home — given  away 
to  all  who  care  for  them.  Others  are  prepared  for 
eating,  before  the  public  eye,  and  all  who  will  may 
sample  the  resulting  product.  It  need  not  be  said  that 
the  waitresses  are  neat  and  attractive-looking,  and  in¬ 
telligent,  or  that  the  food  is  prepared  in  the  best  styles:  . 
the  smoothest  of  griddles  for  cakes  ;  the  brightest  of 
pans  for  gems;  the  most  brilliant  of  urns  for  tea, 
chocolate  and  hot  water;  the  daintiest  of  cups  for  the 
bouillons.  It  seems  like  an  expensive  way  of  adver¬ 
tising,  for  the  admission  fee  is  but  25  cents,  and  one 
might  carry  away  more  than  its  value  in  samples  ;  to 
say  nothing  of  rentals,  cost  of  hiring  attendants  for  the 
booths,  etc.  But  the  fact  that  this  is  by  no  means  the 
first  of  these  exhibitions  goes  to  show  that  they  are 
believed  to  pay  as  well  as  other  advertising. 
The  booths  are  trimmed  in  gay  draperies  of  pink  and 
blue  and  yellow  cheese  cloth,  and  that  even  the  most 
commonplace  of  goods  may  be  attractively  displayed 
is  proved  by  many  an  exhibit.  Colgate's  laundry  soap 
was  a  good  example  of  this  sort  of  art,  among  other 
things,  solid  oblong  blocks  of  it,  set  on  end,  formed 
beautiful,  marbled  shafts  or  columns  of  soft  yellow, 
and  smaller  blocks,  diminishing  to  the  regular  house- . 
hold  size,  built  up  these  “  monuments”  to  the  genius 
and  enterprise  of  the  firm  making  the  exhibit. 
Not  far  from  the  soap  booth  might  be  seen  a  melange 
consisting  of  salad  dressings,  tapioca  and  spices  of  all 
sorts,  and  in  every  condition,  from  the  plant  to  the 
product  as  marketed.  The  nutmeg  plant,  for  instance, 
preserved  in  liquid  in  a  tall  glass  jar,  showed  the 
lemon-like  fruits  not  yet  burst,  and  others  just  burst, 
and  surrounded  by  the  flakes  of  mace,  making  it  look 
like  a  blossom  with  veined  petals  and  heart.  Other 
jars  showed  the  mace,  by  itself,  the  nutmeg  as  picked, 
and  again  as  rubbed  with  lime  to  protect  from  insects, 
giving  the  white  appearance.  Jamaica  ginger  pre¬ 
served  in  many  forms,  tapioca  in  various  styles,  cinna¬ 
mon  in  pale  bundles  a  yard  long  and  nearly  a  foot 
through,  vanilla  beans  in  bundles  preserved  in  glass 
jars;  all  these,  and  many  other  things  gave  interest  to 
the  booth  fitted  up  by  E.  R.  Durkee  &  Co.,  New  York. 
Here  was  advertised  a  “  mourning  starch”  for  stiffen¬ 
ing  mourning  goods,  colored  prints,  etc.  It  is  claimed 
to  be  perfectly  soluble  in  water,  either  hot  or  cold,  so 
that  no  paste  can  dry  on  the  goods.  Three  heaping 
teaspoonfuls  to  a  quart  of  water  will  make  prints  as 
stiff  as  when  new,  and  they  may  be  made  as  stiff  as 
buckram,  if  desired.  The  dry  starch  looks  much  like 
ginger. 
A  prominent  booth  was  devoted  to  “  cottolene.” 
This  has  been  on  sale  for  some  years,  yet  few  people 
have  heard  of  it,  it  seems.  Many  were  the  questions 
asked  of  the  intelligent  young  woman  who  gave  out 
samples  in  tiny  tin  pails.  The  materials,  in  the  clear¬ 
est  of  glass  jars,  were  beautiful  in  appearance;  the  suet 
cakes  of  a  clean  dainty  white;  the  cotton-seed  oil  re¬ 
fined  till  of  the  finest  amber.  The  young  woman  ex¬ 
plained  to  questioners  that  the  oil  was  refined  till  it 
contained  but  one  per  cent  of  solid  matter  (less  than 
We  used  to  hear  that  consumption  was 
•curable  if  one  took  it  in  hand  in  time  ; 
but  people  in  general  had  to  regard  it  as 
fatal. 
Since  we  know  more  about  it,  we  know 
how  to  fight  it.  Now  we  do  begin  in 
time.  We  begin  before  you  suspect  any 
danger. 
Our  means  are  careful  living  and 
Scott’s  Emulsion  of  cod-liver  oil.  Shall 
we  send  you  a  book  on  both  ? 
Free. 
Scott  &  Bowne,  Chemists,  132  9outh  5th  Avenue,  New  York. 
Your  druggist  keeps  Scott’s  Emulsion  of  cod-liver  oil— all  druggists 
everywhere  do  SI 
