LOOKING BACK AT THE COMPETITION. 
“T F it is really young folks's work/’ said one voter, 
-i- doubtfully, in reference to the competitive arti¬ 
cles ; “ but I am somewhat skeptical .’ 1 
“ Evidently written by a fond mother of an only 
daughter, whose position as pet of the family gives 
her a right to be gracious, helpful and despotic as the 
whim seizes her,” commented another concerning 
one of the leading essays. Of another of the five, the 
same sharp critic says: “I doubt not the writer is a 
grandmother, at least.” 
“Evidently” is a very easy worl to use, and ap¬ 
pears to settle many points by its own weight. But 
the same article which to this critic was “ evidently ” 
written by a fond mother, appears to another to be 
“evidently” by a selfish young thing whose sole 
motive was a desire for approbation. It seems “ evi¬ 
dent” from it all, that the character and sometimes 
the prejudices of us who read, color our judgment far 
more than we are aware. 
Untrained writers are often not aware of the fact 
that manuscript usually gives fairly good evidence as 
to age aDd mental capacity ; so that the editor usually 
gains a fair idea of the writer’s status. This is not 
an absolute standard, for there are sometimes, as be¬ 
fore hinted, “ old heads on young shoulders.” It is 
sufficiently plain that some of the writers in the Eldest 
Daughter series had some time passed the tender 
stage, at least. But we think our critical friend is a 
little too shrewd, and also a little too severe. Un¬ 
married people of whatever uncertain age, still insist 
on being classed with the “ young people,” and one 
can seldom say them nay. This is one of the reasons 
which have hitherto led the Chief Cook to avoid com¬ 
petitions ostensibly for young people. Readers may 
find something “ evidently ” suggestive in the fact 
that the writer referred to as “a grandmother at 
least,” was the only one who asked that no names be 
made public. 
But, whatever might be the age of the writers on 
the first topic, the fact remains that no age limit being 
set, none could be insisted upon ; and in the case of 
writers on The Farm, at least we believe that all 
were fairly classed as young people, and we think it 
may be regarded as a rare sign of honorable feeling, 
that except in a single instance (so far as we were 
able to judge) no one voted for a competitor in her 
immediate family. 
In spite of some inequality existing in the very 
nature of thing 3 , the Chief Cook believ is this 
series to have been one of the most interesting and 
valuable ever given in competition in a periodical of 
this class. It surely cannot be for naught that the 
minds of our young people have been directed into 
these important channels and held there for weeks in 
succession. One friend, the daughter in a farm home, 
finds the articles so suggestive and valuable that she 
will transfer them intact to her scrap-book, “ be¬ 
cause,” as she says, “ of the insight into matters from 
the girls’ standpoint.” 
MUTTON FOR THE FARM TABLE. 
I T is surprising that farmers use so little mutton upon 
their own tables, though they take great pains to 
feed and fatten it for the city markets. Many express 
aversion to it, and in several instances I have proved 
that this distaste was owing to insufficient cooking ; it 
is quite common to cook it as lightly as beef, an'i no 
wonder it is not relished. It requires very much more 
cooking, and, I think, would be more used if that were 
considered ; and one other point, namely, to eliminate 
the fat, cook thoroughly and preserve the juices of the 
meat. Living in town this winter, we have found it 
convenient to buy a foreshoulder of lamb once a week. 
This makes two meals for our small family, (four per¬ 
sons) furnishes a pleasant variety, and costs only 
about 25 cents. I put the meat over the fire in a kettle 
containing water sufficient to cover it and cook slowly 
from two to three hours ; then set aside to cool, in 
order to remove the fat. This I do the day before¬ 
hand. Serve the meat with a sauce of drawn butter, 
to which add two tablespoonfuls of caper sauce. Capers 
we buy at about 15 cents per jar. From the juices of 
the meat I prepare a very delicate soup, seasoning 
with celery leaves. Save all the celery leaves as you 
trim the bunches for the glass, dry them in the oven, 
and keep on hand for soups. Add flour to thicken the 
soup, or rice, if preferred, and a small piece of butter. 
Use the left-over fragments of the boiled mutton of 
the previous day, stewing with butter, pepper and 
salt, and adding a crust or dumpling to serve around 
it. Do not let the dumpling stand after it is done. In 
order to time it just right (as it requires about 20 min¬ 
utes’ steady boiling) I put the dumplings into the stew 
just as we are serving the soup; they are then just 
ready to follow as a second course, and will be light 
and tender. The leg of mutton can be treated in much 
the same manner in the first preparation, only it re¬ 
quires longer cooking, being heavier. I take it from 
the kettle or steamer (it is sometimes more convenient 
to steam it on the back of the range and equally as 
good as boiling) when about two-thirds cooked ; re¬ 
move it to the dripping pan, dredge with flour, pepper 
and salt, put water in the pan to prevent burning, and 
let U roast about three quarters of an hour. Cool the 
juices of the meat so as to remove the fat, and after¬ 
wards pour them over the roast to baste it. Make a 
gravy when done and serve as roast beef. Apple pie is 
the preferred dessert with us. I sometimes add a dress¬ 
ing to the meat as I put it in to roast; make an in¬ 
cision in the side of the leg and put in the same as for 
a turkey or other fowl. Take stitches to secure it. 
This gives another change in the serving of mutton, 
which we consider very palatable and wholesome 
meat. __ c. .7. s. 
THE DUKE DE VERAGUA AT A GARDEN PARTY. 
LIEN Mr. and Mrs. George W. Childs, of Phila¬ 
delphia, sent out a large card bearing in colors 
the flags of Spain and of the United States, inviting 
their friends to meet the Duke and Duchess of Veragua 
from 4 until 7 o’clock June 23, at their Bryn Mawr 
country s'at, “ Wootton,” with “lawn party” and 
“dancing” in the lower left hand corner, the one 
thought that impressed every recipient of the invita¬ 
tion was the great privilege it afforded of meeting 
various mem.be. s of the family of Christopher Colum¬ 
bus. Naturally enough, the event aroused laudable 
curiosity as to th 3 line of descent and to the title of 
Duke of Veragu .—all of which are made clear in 
Irving s Life of Cjlumbus, particularly in the appen¬ 
dix, which also includes his will. Columbus’s son, 
Diego, had bestowc d on him, in the course of affairs, 
the title of Duke of Veragua, a province in Panama 
discovered by Columbus, and with his marriage into 
a Spanish family of high rank was founded the family 
of which the eldest son, or lineal heir, has bcu ne the 
rank until this day of Duke de Veragua. Columbus 
was very exact in his will that his possessions and 
dignities should descend through the male iine< but 
wisely provided, in case of the lack of male issue, that 
it might pass through the distaff side of the house. 
And so it came about that after only four generations, 
the direct line of descent had to come through Colum¬ 
bus’s granddaughter, Isabella, into her grandson, 
Migno Gelvesof Portuga’, and he became Duke of Vera¬ 
gua. There was an enormous amount of litigation 
over the matter, but it seems to have been justly set¬ 
tled in the end. 
For the present Duke de Veragua to come to this 
country which his ancestor discovered, as the guest of 
the American people, must certainly have been to 
him and his family the event ZZZZ^ZUZII^IZZ^IZZI 
on a piazza immediately connecting with the hall of the 
house through which all guests passed, Mr. Childs pre¬ 
senting to the Duke and Mrs. Childs to the Duchess and 
other members of the party. The Duke de Veragua is 
a man of medium height and build, with blue eyes, 
dark hair and side whiskers trimmed close, of rather 
prominent and sharp features, and resembling in no 
way, I thought, any of the portraits of Columbus. He 
speaks English “tolerably,” looks Southern, but not 
Spanish, and is as plain and matter-of-fact in face, 
figure, manner and dress as is the average American. 
He and the other male members of his family—his 
son, his brother and one or two others, wore our 
National colors in their button-holes—a white and a 
red carnation and a blue bachelor's button (corn 
flower). 
The Duchess is a tall and rather stately woman, 
somewhat distinguished in appearance, with a de¬ 
cidedly Spanish face. She speaks French, but not 
English, and is gracious in manner. Her young 
daughter is a strikingly pretty brunette of 16 or 18 
years. She wore a fawn-colored gown of some light 
material, accordion pleated, banded at the extremities 
with crimson velvet. A simple brown hat perched far 
back on her head, completed a very simple costume. 
The Duchess w:re a brown dress of silk, with bonnet 
in same tint, and, like the others, was entirely simple 
and unaffected in appearance. People of true rank 
are never pretentious, and newly-rich Americans 
would do well to study the simplicity that almost in¬ 
variably characterizes persons of inherited rank and 
fortune. 
Of course the 500 guests on the “ Wootton ” lawn 
that superb June afternoon, had come in their smartest 
dresses for such an occasion, and the Columbus family 
must have thought that the State of Pennsylvania 
held gold mines as well as Veragua 400 years ago. 
Mrs. Childs herself, a brilliant little brunette and a 
most charming hostess, was like an exquisite picture, 
in a white gown daintily brocaded with posies. Mr. 
Childs, with his fresh, rosy English face and stout 
figure, and wearing a plain grayish suit, had a warm 
hand clasp and a hearty welcome for every one, for¬ 
getting neither faces nor names. The band played 
Spanish airs, and there were white grapes from 
Malaga on the refreshment tables—enough assuredly, 
to give the special guests a homelike feeling. But 
withal it must be very wearisome to be on exhibition 
for weeks at a time, even when in the hands of an 
admiring people. 
To conclude, it may not be amiss to add that the 
Duke de Veragua is a farmer, the president of a 
mining company, and that he has held the office in 
his own country which is equivalent to our Secretary 
of the Interior. mart wager-fisher. 
A Sample copy of Tiie Rural New-Yorker will 
be sent to your friend on request. 
of their lives. It certainly 
was an occasion of the keenest 
interest to every inhabitant of 
this new world to meet him. 
Our public-spirited neigh¬ 
bor, Mr. Childs, as every one 
knows, is not only a very 
rich man in money, every 
penny of which he honestly 
earns, but he is also generous, 
and so wise in his generosity 
that probably no other man in 
private life has more friends 
and acquaintances; if so many. 
He is the Philadelphia Prince 
of Entertainers, and when OEe 
is bidden to “ Wootton,” he is 
sure not only of a “perfectly 
beautiful time,” but one to be 
remembered as a Red Letter 
Day. There are 60 acres in 
the lawn, every inch of which 
is kept in perfect trim, and 
the variety of shrubs and trees 
make it a veritable botanical 
garden. On this occasion, the 
Lodge entrance was gay with 
the flags of the two nations, 
and the Spanish and Amer¬ 
ican colors floated from the 
canvas annexes to the house, 
that had been built the pre¬ 
vious day for refreshment, 
music and dancing halls for 
the fete. The ducal party with 
their host and hostess received 
i A Matter of Health 
I T costs more to make Royal Baking Powder 
than any other, because its ingredients 
are more highly refined and expensive. But 
the Royal is correspondingly purer and 
higher in leavening strength, and of greater 
money value to the consumer. The difference 
in cost of Royal over the best of the others 
does not equal the difference in leavening 
strength, nor make good the inferior work 
of the cheaper powders, nor remove the 
impurities which such powders leave in 
the food. 
Where the finest food is required, the 
Royal Baking Powder only can be used. 
Where the question of health is considered, 
no baking powder but Ro}^al can be used 
with safety. All others are shown by official 
analyses to contain lime, ammonia or alum. 
