Women Make the 
woman And The Home. 
Homes Make the 
Nation. 
I T is of set purpose that we place together in this issue 
the two items of news regarding salaried positions. No 
stronger commentary on the difference between mediocrity 
and thoroughness could bs given than is furnished by 
these facts. We suspect, too, that the thoroughness would 
be far more difficult to duplicate than the mediocrity, even 
among those who think themselves qualified for business 
positions; and a knowledge of current events will help 
any one, anywhere. * * * 
Many of the helpful friends of this department have 
been so engrossed with the almost endless work incident to 
summer farm life, that we have had hardly a hint as to 
their existence. We hope that as the winter respite comes, 
they will rally once more for discussion and suggestion. 
The editorial portfolio is positively growing thin, as re¬ 
gards this live matter, direct from the kitchen and the 
living room. The department needs more tested recipes, 
and would like to give favorite ones from subscribers, 
especially if the users of them have added some improv¬ 
ing touch. Recipes taken verbatim from well known 
books, we do not, of course, care to have sent in. 
THE MERITS OF KEROSENE AND WASHING FLUID. 
I F the Chief Cook will allow the wife of a Michigan sub¬ 
scriber to testify, I will tell how the washing problem 
has been solved to the satisfaction of our household, with 
a saving of time, labor and money. 
The first move toward this important end is made early 
Monday morniDg, when the boiler is filled with clean rain¬ 
water and placed in position on the kitchen range. I then 
add to this water one pint of good, home-made soft soap 
and three tablespoonfuls of kerosene oil, and see that this 
has boiled thoroughly before putting in any clothes, lest 
the desired end be defeated by setting the dirt instead of 
removing it. 
The clothes, which have been sorted according to quality, 
use, etc., are then given just a preliminary rub, that is, 
they are rubbed but very little, merely to Introduce them 
to the water, and placed in the boiler for the soap and oil 
to finish the work, which they will do in a manner to delight 
the most skeptical. Some housekeepers claim that rubbiiDg 
is altogether unnecessary; but from force of habit, per¬ 
haps, I prefer to rub my clothes slightly. 
After boiling briskly for 10 minutes, remove the clothes 
to tubs and rinse and blue in the usual way. 
My clothing shows a marked Improvement after several 
such washings, being beautifully white and absolutely 
clean, with less than half the expenditure of strength and 
little more than half the time required by the old methods. 
This method is especially adapted to the laundering of 
fine articles, such as lace curtains, etc., which are often 
ruined in washing. 
I am not the originator of this new departure in the 
washee-washee business, but am quite as proud of the re¬ 
sults as the inventor could possibly be. MRS. E. s D. 
The hardest work incident to housekeeping is the wash¬ 
ing, and fortunate is the housekeeper who has found the 
easiest and best way of doing this. According to precise 
housekeepers Monday is the proper day, and the washing 
is begun long before “sun up.” We prefer Tuesday, be¬ 
cause Monday is occupied in straightening up the house; 
and we never begin washing until eight o’clock, for it takes 
until that time to get the cows milked, the milk put away, 
cans washed and scalded and other necessary work done. 
And we always get done washing by 12, notwithstanding 
the fact that our family consists of 12 persons. 
We find that this work is lessened one-half by the use of 
a washing machi e, wringer and washing fluid. Nicer, 
whiter clothes than ours will be hard to find. The follow¬ 
ing is our plan of washing: 
A boiler is filled with water and placed on the stove be¬ 
fore we go to milk. When ready to wash, warm suds are 
made In a tub. Sheets, pillow cases, etc., are dipped In 
the suds and wrucg out. The washer is near at hand. A 
sufficient quantity of them are placed in it, then the washer 
is nearly filled with boiling water from the boiler on 
the stove, (two pints washing fluid and one pint soft 
soap having been previously added to this water.) We now 
call up a boy if we can get one, and he begins working 
the lever of the washer, while one of us continues at the 
tub rubbing the soiled parts of the clothing, and just dip¬ 
ping and wringing those that are not soiled badly. After 
working the washer a sufficient length of time, usually five 
minutes to each washerful, the clothes are iemoved from 
it with a paddle and plunged in a tub half full of clear 
water; more pieces are placed in the washer and more 
boiling water is poured on them. A third person is now 
kept busy rinsing the clothes out of the clear water and 
putting them in blue water, and from this water they are 
run through the wringer and are ready for hanging out. 
As the water in the boiler gets low it should be replenished 
from the clear-water rinsing tub, which In a little time 
will become very sudsy. More washing fluid and soap 
must of course be added to the new water in the boiler. 
Calicos are treated alter the same manner as the white 
clothes, using the same suds reheated. If the washing is 
very large, the water is drawn entirely from the washer 
and reheated. The secret of success is in having the 
clothes stirred in the washer in boiling-hot, soapy water, 
and too many clothes must not be crowded into it at any 
one time. 
When the washing is done, our hands do not look like 
sponges, and we are not reeking with perspiration. Three 
tubs and the washer, one wash board, a boiler and a 
wringer are necessary to keep three busy. Our washing 
fluid, which we have used for nearly seven years, and 
which never injures clothing, is as follows: Two ounces 
carbonate of ammonia, two ounces salts of tartar, one 
box Babbitt’s potash. The first two are dissolved in one 
gallon of water and the potash by itself in another gallon. 
When thoroughly dissolved pour them together. The in¬ 
gredients for this fluid never cost more than 30 cents, and 
it lasts quite a long time. 
Our washings are so large that one pint is necessary ; 
that is, two boilerfuls of fresh water are heated and one- 
half pint of fluid added to each. FARMER’S GIRL. 
A MARVELOUSLY SUCCESSFUL PERIODICAL. 
HAT nothing succeeds like success has passed into a 
proverb, and the admiration which always greets 
success is intensified if that success has been attained in 
the face of difficulty, or the victory wrested from eager 
competitors in the same lire. 
* * * 
A fine illustration of this truth is afforded by the well- 
known, and universally admired, Ladies’ Home Journal. 
Its beginnings, eight years ago, were as modest as those of 
any of the scores of papers aiming to be of the same class, 
which have never got beyond their beginnings. It was to be 
had for 25 cents a year, and no one could have told, at that 
time, that it would be better or worse than these scores of 
competitors in the lire of women’s periodicals, yet at the 
end of the first year it was jubilant over 25,000 listed yearly 
subscribers. From this to the point where it received 
18,000 subscribers in a single day is a long leap, and it Is 
worth the while of all who may be Interested in the success 
of any periodical to inquire into the causes that led to such 
marvelous results that it now prints and sells 750,000 
copies each month. * * * 
Two things are to be especially noted: First, it called 
all the power of advertising, both as a science and as an 
art, to its aid; second, it always had something to adver¬ 
tise. It claims, with the utmost boldness, that each suc¬ 
ceeding number is better than the last, and although 
theoretically, we might be tempted to say that such uniform 
advance in quality for a long period of time is hardly 
possible, yet when we examine the “ last” number we dare 
not rise up to dispute the claim, for we do not see how 
any other could have been better, so filled is it with the 
best of good things. From the first, it has given its sub¬ 
scribers “ more than their money’s worth,” and the woman 
who once falls under its spell, remains not only a willing, 
but an eager captive. * * * 
Mrs. Louisa Knapp (wife of the president of the com¬ 
pany, Cyrus H. K. Curtis) its editor throughout the years 
during which it was establishing itself upon a firm basis, has 
retired largely from public work ; but at the time she was 
doing her best work for the Journal, she was often referred 
to as a woman who owed her rise to the fact that she had 
done her work well in a lower position; her first efforts 
having been devoted to a woman’s column, merely. Mr. 
Edward Bok, the present editor, is a conspicuous example 
of success for so young a man, he being not yet 30 years 
old—It is said, however, that no magician’s stone has been 
his, but that his success is due to his genius for hard work, 
of which he has done an immense amount. 
* * * 
The fact that it provides a feast for every member of 
the family, no matter what his penchant may be for, may 
account, in large measure, for the Journal’s popularity. 
The woman who loves fancy work above all things, has 
her liking catered to, the woman who loves flowers, the 
one who dotes on fiction, the born housekeeper, the home 
dressmaker, the boys, the girls, the King’s Daughters, 
the elderly, the troubled, all have their wants met; so that 
if one member of a family should for a moment tire of the 
paper, all the others would rise up in revolt at the merest 
mention of “stopping” it. Its subscribers, having once be¬ 
come such, are absolutely in its toils, for it makes itself a 
necessity to them. 
The popular series of papers on the “ Unknown Wives of 
Well known Men” has been referred to as the brightest, 
newest literary idea of the year. That it was considered 
worthy of imitation is shown by the fact that another 
periodical has since advertised a series on the unknown 
husbands of well-known women. A newer idea of the 
Journal, something in the same line is a series on the 
“ Clever Daughters of Clever Men,” of which the first ar¬ 
ticle appears in the November number. 
A CHAPTER ON GRIDDLE CAKES. 
HE almanac fails to tell us just when the season for 
griddle cakes arrives, but we “ feel it in our bones” 
that when the daylight is all gone at six o’clock in the 
afternoon, and the world is still in darkness at six the 
next morning, it is time to hunt up the long neglected 
pan-cake griddle and restore it to the place of honor. 
Opinions differ in regard to perfect griddle cakes, but 
the average appetite is oftenest met and satisfied (though 
it may require some time to accomplish the latter feat) by 
thin cakes, cooked to a delicate brown on both sides, and 
eaten while crisp from the griddle. Where a large family 
is to be served, it requires rapid work to get them to the 
table in good shape, but the knack is soon acquired if the 
range is perfect and the fuel good; and the difference be 
tween a light, thin crisp cake and one which is thick, or 
sodden with steam is so great that the “game pays for the 
ammunition.” 
Buckwheat Cakes.— Probably no cakes are more pop¬ 
ular than those made from buckwheat. An old-fashioned 
rule runs in this wise. Take one quart of buckwheat 
flour, or a mixture of buckwheat with Graham or Indian 
meal, mix to a smooth batter with lukewarm milk or 
water. Add one teaspoonful of salt and half a cupful of 
soft yeast, beating it thoroughly. Let it rise overnight in 
a warm place. In the morning stir the batter down and 
if at all sour add half a teaspoonful of soda dissolved in a 
little warm water. Thin the batter with warm milk or 
water if necessary. 
Quick Buckwheat Cakes.— Stir up a rather thick 
batter, using sour milk or buttermilk for the wetting. 
Jnst before baking aissolve a teaspoonful of soda for each 
quart of flour in half a teacupful of boiling water and beat 
it into the batter. Try a cake on the griddle and if too 
tender add a little sweet milk. It is difficult to give ex¬ 
plicit directions for the use of sour milk as a slight differ¬ 
ence in the acidity of the milk makes such a difference in 
the cakes. It is well to remember that if the milk is too 
sour or too much boiling water is used it will make the 
cakes too tender to turn easily. If the cakes seem tough 
the milk is too sweet and boiling water will improve them. 
Very delicious cakes may be made from whole wheat flour 
or a mixture of three parts of Graham or white flour and 
one part of Indian meal, using either of the foregoing 
recipes. Or a batter may be made with sweet milk, or 
even water, using flour through which the usual amount 
of baking powder has been sifted. If water is used a little 
butter should be added to the batter and all cakes with¬ 
out yeast are Improved by the addition of one or two well 
beaten eggs. 
Rice Griddle Cakes.— Mix a pint of soft boiled rice 
with a quart of milk; add three well beaten eggs, a tea¬ 
spoonful of salt, and rice or wheat flour enough to make a 
thin batter. 
Economy Cakes.— Of course the careful housewife dries 
all pieces of bread which are not suitable for the table, 
and keeps them in reserve. Soak some of these overnight 
in cold water. In the morning, drain off the water, mash 
the bread fine and to each three pints add one teaspoonful 
of salt, three well beaten eggs, one teaspoonful of soda dis¬ 
solved in a little boiling water, and a pint of wheat or rye 
flour. Thin the batter to the proper consistency with 
milk. If the flour and milk are mixed overnight with a 
tablespoonful of soft yeast the eggs may be omitted. 
Indian Griddle Cakes.— Indian cakes require a longer 
time for cooking than those made from flour, hence it is 
well to have the batter as thin as possible. Mix a quart 
of Indian meal with a cupful of wheat flour, a teaspoonful 
of salt, and sour milk enough to make a nice batter. Just 
before baking add an even teaspoonful of soda dissolved in 
a little boiling water. Indian cakes are improved by the 
addition of three or four well beaten eggs, though they are 
very good without them. 
It is needless to suggest the improvement which maple 
syrup, honey or even sugar syrup, is to cakes, for the 
greater part of Uncle Sam’s nieces and nephews need no 
such reminder. 8 . A. little. 
JUDGMENT IN COOKING. 
PEAKING of cook books in general, and the impossi¬ 
bility of success to the cook who blindly follows re¬ 
cipes, no matter how good, a writer in Good Housekeeping 
notes a fact not generally known. At the high altitudes 
of tbe Rocky Mountains, all recipes fail. Water boils at a 
much lower temperature than at the sea level, and the 
woman who hopes to make tea by letting it stand at boil¬ 
ing point, or to extract the virtues of meat and vegetables 
for soup by gently simmering, will fail to realize her ex¬ 
pectations. A less amount of shortening and sugar is re¬ 
quired in proportion to other ingredients, and even eggs 
must be cautiously used, owing, presumably, to the light¬ 
ness of the air. A little bride, fresh from the Atlantic 
coast, gave a most amusing account of her failures in 
making cake. 
“All she lacks of beauty is a little 
plumpness.” 
This is a frequent thought, and a 
wholesome one. 
All of a baby’s beauty is due to fat, 
and nearly all of a woman’s—we know it 
as curves and dimples. 
What plumpness has to do with health 
is tcld in a little book on careful living; 
sent free. 
Would you rather be healthy or beau¬ 
tiful ? “ Both” is the proper answer. 
Scott & Bowne, Chemists, 132 South 5th Avenue, New York. 
Your druggist keeps Scott’s Emulsion of cod-liver oil—all druggists 
everywhere do. $1. 
