JSfce  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
801 
For  the  Farm  Porch 
Awning  and  hammocks  would  more 
often  add  to  the  comfort  of  the  farm 
porch  if  it  were  realized  how  easily  and 
inexpensively  these  may  be  made  at 
home.  Here  is  what  one  woman  did  with 
charming  results:  The  porch  running 
along  the  west  side  of  her  home  was  of 
little  use,  receiving,  as  it  did,  the  full 
glare  of  the  afternoon  sun.  Screen  wire 
had  been  tacked  over  the  spaces  between 
the  pillars,  to  exclude  flies,  but,  beyond 
this,  nothing  had  -been  done  to  furnish 
or  make  it  attractive.  Its  owner  began 
operations  by  securing  from  the  local 
plumber  quarter-inch  gas  pipe  and  elbow 
connections  cut  and  fitted  for  each  open¬ 
ing.  (Fig.  1.)  The  free  ends  of  the  pipe 
were  attached  to  the  pillars  by  hinged 
fastenings,  also  furnished  by  the  plumber, 
so  that  the  awning  frames  could  bo  raised 
or  lowered  as  desired. 
Failing  to  find  desirable  awning  cloth 
in  her  home  town,  a  heavy  duck  of  green 
green  of  the  stripe,  were  added  the  couch 
hammock  was  complete  and,  because  it 
matched  the  awnings,  had  an  air  of  “be¬ 
longing”  which  no  ready-made  hammock 
would  have  had. 
A  pair  of  iron  brackets  fastened  to-  the 
end  wall  of  the  porch  supported  a  green 
shelf.  A  hole  was  drilled  through  the 
bottom  of  a  brown  milk  crock,  filled  with 
rich  soil,  planted  with  slips  of  “Wander¬ 
ing  Jew”  and  placed  on  this  shelf,  from 
which  the  rank  shoots  soon  reached  half 
way  to  the  floor. 
Three  shabby  old  chairs  were  repaired, 
braced  with  diagonal  vires  drawn  taut 
under  the  seats,  aud  given  two  coats  of 
green  paint.  Immediately  the  floor  pro¬ 
claimed  its  need  of  green  paint  also.  It 
was  given  two  coats  and  at  once  quieted 
down.  Later  a  green  rag  rug  was  made 
and  added  to  the  porch  furnishing  and, 
later  still,  when  this  redeemed  porch,  be¬ 
cause  of  its  charm  and  attractiveness, 
and  white  broken  stripes  was  selected 
from  samples  furnished  by  a  mail  order 
house.  This  was  made  into  awnings  'ac¬ 
cording  to  careful  measurements,  the 
widths  of  cloth  being  overlapped  one- 
fourth  of  an  inch  and  stitched  twice  with 
heavy  linen  thread.  The  upper  edges  had 
hems  21/-}  inches  wide,  through  which  eye¬ 
lets  were  inserted  six  inches  apart. 
These  eyelets  were  bought  at  a  harness 
shop,  at  10  cents  a  dozen.  A  casing  was 
stitched  on  the  under  side  of  each  awn¬ 
ing.  through  which  the  pipe  was  run. 
leaving  a  fall  of  12  inches  below  it.  This 
falling  portion  was  simply  hemmed  across 
its  lower  edge,  instead  of  being  scalloped 
and  bound  in  flic  usual  fashion,  time  and 
work  being  a  consideration. 
After  running  the  pipe  through  its 
casing  and  attaching  its  ends  to  the  pil¬ 
lars,  it  was  leveled  aud  held  in  place 
while  top  awning  was  stretched  up  to 
cornice  above  opening,  and  there  fastened 
in  place  by  strong  screw  eyes  through  the 
eyelets.  The  change  was  delightful,  giv¬ 
ing  an  effect  of  cool  green  shadow  in  the 
formerly  heated  porch. 
For  the  hammock  an  oblong  wood 
frame  was  used,  made  of  dressed  boards 
three  and  one-half  inches  wide.  This 
frame,  when  completed,  measured  (out¬ 
side)  29iu.x6ft.  4  in.  Quarter-inch  holes 
were  bored  four  inches  apart,  all  the  way 
round.  Through  these  holes  strong  cords 
were  laced.  See  picture,  Fig.  2.  Two 
duplicate  pieces  were  cut  from  the  awn¬ 
ing  cloth,  seaming  where  necessary,  and 
made  up  double  for  strength,  as  shown. 
Dotted  lines  show  where  the  goods  was 
turned  up  in  order  that  the  corners  might 
be  laced  together,  through  eyelets,  mak¬ 
ing  thus  a  case  or  holder  for  the  frame¬ 
work.  The  bottom  of  this  case  measured 
6  ft.  5  in.  in  length  by  80  inches  in 
width,  the  turned  up  sides  being  5^4  inch¬ 
es  high  and  the  ends  20  inches  in  height. 
These  end  pieces  were  further  strength¬ 
ened  by  strips  stitched  along  their  side 
edges,  and  a  four-iuch  hem  across  top, 
through  which  a  three-inch  wood  slat  was 
run.  Six  eyelets  were  inserted  below 
this  slat,  as  shown  in  diagram.  Through 
these  eyelets  cords  were  knotted,  after 
having  been  slip-noosed  through  a  heavy 
harness  ring.  (Fig.  4.)  The  wood 
frame  was  then  placed  in  the  bottom  of 
this  case,  ropes  were  attached  to  each 
large  end  ring  and  the  hammock  suspend¬ 
ed  by  these  from  hooks  in  the  ceiling. 
It  remained  to  make  a  husk  mattress 
to  fit,  and  to  cover  it  with  more  of  the 
striped  awning  cloth,  the  stripes  running 
crosswise.  When  porch  pillows,  covered 
with  plain  green  denim  to  match  the 
had  become  the  gathering  place  of  the 
family,  a  table  was  supplied  by  nailing 
dressed  boards  to  the  top  of  a  discarded 
waslistaud,  improvised  top  extending  be¬ 
yond  the  stand  a  foot  at  each  end  and 
six  inches  at  each  side.  The  whole  was 
then  painted  green  to  match  the  other 
green  furnishings  aud  took  its  place  as 
reading  and  so  vying  table,  the  drawers  be¬ 
neath  being  used  to  hold  sewing  and 
fancy  work.  The  heaviest  item  of  ex¬ 
pense  was  the  iron  frames  for  the  awn¬ 
ings.  These,  however,  once  bought,  last 
for  a  lifetime,  if  cared  for. 
Stimulated  by  the  example  by  this 
porch,  a  neighbor,  who  already  possessed 
an  old  faded  couch  hammock,  mixed  dark 
gr  ii  paint  very  thru,  like  a  stain,  and 
brushed  it  well  into  all  the  cloth  parts 
except  the  mattress,  and  into  the  cords. 
.She  made  a  new  mattress  cover  of  green 
and  white  striped  duck,  covered  her 
porch  pillows  with  the  same  and  the  ef¬ 
fect  was  even  better  than  that  produced 
by  using  striped  cloth  for  the  entire  ham¬ 
mock.  With  the  average  farm  porch  a 
little  paint  and  a  few  yards  of  awning 
cloth  will  work  wonders. 
ELGIN  II.  KAY. 
Another  Janitor  Talks 
L.  M.  S.’s  supposition  on  page  028  that 
some  of  the  readers  of  The  It.  N.-Y.  may 
he  janitors  is  quite  true,  as  I  have  sub¬ 
scribed  for  it  four  years  and  have  been 
janitor  in  a  public  school  several  years 
before  that.  In  that  time  I  have  been 
trying  to  minimize  the  labor  of  sweep¬ 
ing  and  cleaning  to  its  lowest  point.  As 
several  janitors  from  other  schools  have 
come  to  me  to  find  out  my  methods,  aud 
have  told  me  that  they  could  do  their 
work  easier  after  trying  them,  perhaps 
Mrs.  S.  may  he  interested  in  them. 
First,  I  have  a  basket  large  enough  to 
hold  all  the  dirt  and  waste  paper  for  one 
day’s  sweeping;  have  it  lined  with  firm 
cloth.  I  used  cement  bags.  Then  I  tied 
a  short  piece  of  rope  with  a  loop  in  it  to 
drag  it  up  and  down  stairs  and  from 
room.  Mrs.  8.  may  not  need  that,  as  she 
has  stoves  in  each  room.  I  take  all  of  my 
litter  to  the  basement  and  burn  it  there, 
as  all  of  my  fires  are  there.  I  use  and 
prefer  the  King  sweeper;  18-in.  is  the 
most  convenient  for  swooping  under 
desks.  I  begin  at  back  of  room  sweeping 
one  aisle  and  one  row  of  seats  at  a 
time,  drawing  the  dirt  towards  me.  I  can 
do  it  faster  if  I  stoop  to  my  work.  One 
man  told  me  that  by  sweeping  this  way 
he  could  save  one-lialf  the  time  needed 
by  any  other  method. 
I  sweep  each  room  and  the  corridors 
and  stairs  once  each  day.  I  dust  in  the 
morning,  using  a  handled  d listless  duster. 
On  Saturday  1  sweep  the  whole  building, 
and  then  spray  it,  putting  on  a  quantity 
of  spray  oil  with  a  spray  can,  so  it  will 
stand  on  the  floor  one  hour  after  being 
put  on.  It  took  me  a.  long  time  to  learn 
to  use  enough.  The  best  spray  oil  which 
I  have  used  is  the  “Orient,”  made  in  Bos¬ 
ton.  There  are  other  cheaper  kinds 
which  work  well.  I  should  think  Mrs. 
S.’s  pay  was  fair  in  proportion  to  her 
expenses  if  she  gets  that  every  mouth  in 
the  year.  I  never  heard  of  a  janitor  hav¬ 
ing  to  lose  pay  for  holidays. 
Maine.  benj.  ii.  stackpole. 
The  Anti  Water-Freezer 
(Continued  from  page  795.) 
let  the  flame  go  down.  Either  tinner’s 
rivets  or  small  stove  bolts  are  used  to 
fasten  the  box  together. 
The  writer  uses  as  his  water  container 
a  stone  crock  as  shown  in  the  photo¬ 
graph.  But  a  pail,  pan,  or  many  patterns 
of  drinking  fountains  can  he  used  as  well. 
There  is  no  throwing  away  of  available 
equipment.  Simply  set  the  water  con¬ 
tainer  over  the  hole  in  the  top,  have  a 
slatted  bottom  in  position  so  that  the 
liens  can  reach  the  wafer  and  the  device 
is  ideal.  I  have  had  four  of  them  in  con¬ 
stant  use  this  past  Winter  in  a  curtain- 
front  house  and  the  thermometer  outside 
as  low  as  20  degrees  below  zero,  and  have 
never  found  the  slightest  coating  of  ice 
over  the  water.  A  couple  of  boards  nailed 
together  similar  to  a  peaked  roof  will 
keep  the  hens  out  of  the  water,  when 
placed  over  the  crock  or  pail. 
IIENRY  MUS0H,  JR. 
He  Keeps  the  Old  Paper 
Five  years  ago  last  November  I  wrote 
you  and  sent  five  dollars  for  subscription 
to  your  paper  and  told  you  about  the  help 
it  had  been  to  me.  In  the  Fall  of  1900 
I  was  handed  a  copy  of  your  paper  at  the 
Ohio  State  Fair,  for  it  had  an  article  in 
it  on  dairying  by  Stephen  Francisco  of 
Montclair,  N.  J.,  which  started  me  in  the 
dairy  business.  Tn  1899  my  father  died, 
and  in  settling  up  I  found  my  indebted¬ 
ness  was  85.200.  which  was  more  than 
the  farm  was  worth.  About  this  tirne  my 
dairy  business  began  to  grow,  and  in 
less  than  ten  years  I  built,  one  of  the  best 
barns  in  this  section  and  paid  off  the  en¬ 
tire  debt.  Since  then  I  have  built  a  12- 
room  house  with  all  modern  improve¬ 
ments,  bought  a  piano  and  sent  my  daugh¬ 
ter  five  years  to  high  school,  so  you  see 
that  I  have  not  deprived  my  family  of 
some  of  the  comforts  of  life.  A11  this  has 
been  done  since  my  fiftieth  birthday. 
Had  I  not  gone  into  the  dairy  business 
I  could  never  have  paid  out,  so  I  must 
credit  your  paper  and  Mr.  Stephen  Fran¬ 
cisco  for  my  success  in  life.  I  had  the 
pleasure  of  meeting  Mr.  Francisco  a  few 
years  ago,  and  hope  to  have  the  pleasure 
of  meeting  the  Hope  Farm  man  before  the 
close  of  this  year.  Enclosed  please  find 
money, order  for  $5  and  continue  my  sub¬ 
scription  for  same.  The  old  paper  that 
started  me  on  the  road  to  success  I  treas¬ 
ure  as  one  of  my  choicest  relies,  and  read 
Mr.  Francisco’s  article  a  few  days  ago. 
I  am  nearing  70  years  of  age,  and  should 
I  be  spared  until  this  five  years’  subscrip¬ 
tion  closes  will  seud  you  another  five. 
Ohio.  SILAS  W.  COURTRIGHT. 
When  you  write  advertisers  mention 
The  Rural  New-Yorker  and  you'll  get 
a  quick  reply  and  a  “square  deal."  See 
guarantee  editorial  page. 
UNITED  C! 
STATE  O 
CREAM  SEPARATOR 
HOLDS  THE 
WORLD’S 
RECORD 
Won  in  the  most  severe  com¬ 
petitive  skimming  contest 
ever  held 
The  ONLY  sanitary  cream  sep¬ 
arator. 
The  ONLY  cream  separator  with 
Nickel  Silver,  non-rusting  skim¬ 
ming  device. 
The  ONLY  cream  separator  with  a 
successful  Mechanical  Washer. 
The  ONLY  cream  separator  with  a 
rustless  Bowl  Chamber  Liner. 
Send  for  Catalogue  27 
VERMONT  FARM  MACHINE  CO. 
BELLOWS  FALL,  VT. 
Chicago  Portland,  Ore. 
Salt  Lake  City  Oakland,  Cal. 
All  Ready  For  Business!  Immediate  Possession! 
Eighty  Acres  Good  Land 
witn  twelve  aerva  woods  and  about  two  acres  alfalfa. 
Raises  splendid  wheat  end  general  crops  and  usually 
curries  twenty-five  liead  of  stock.  Good  fourteen  room 
Iiouse.  several  good  barns,  other  building*  and  silo. 
Abundant  fruit  and  good  water.  For  sain  with  fourteen 
cattle,  team,  wavpma.  machinery  and  a  lot  of  household 
goods.  Se.,00  I  ultra  everything.  Want  $3,000  cash;  hal- 
ance  easy.  Fine  location  less  than  i,o  iidles  from  stor- 
nsnlle.  Madison  County,  N.  Y.  and  the  State  Collette  of 
Agriculture.  Address 
Central  Office  The  Farm  Brokers’  Association,  (nc..  Oneida.  N.  Y. 
The  Big  Money  Power 
Behind  Your  Herd 
INCREASED  PROFITS  through  an  increased 
.herd  is  one  of  the  first  results  of  installing  the  Empire 
Milker.  Once  you  get  rid  of  the  hard  job  of  milking— and 
see  how  easily  yon  can  milk  more  cows  in  less  time  and  at 
less  expense— yon  will  increaseyour  dairy  business  just  as 
the  grain  farmer  increased  his  acreage  when  he  threw  away 
the  cradle  for  the  reaper. 
FMPIRF  Mechanical  Milker 
LaI I  11  llVli  for  Large  or  Small  Dairies 
works  by  natural  air  pressure-— not  compressed  air.  Operate  by  any 
power.  C  ollapsing  and  expanding  of  soft  lining  in  teat  cups  coaxes  the 
cow  to  let  down  milk  easily.  Cows  stand  quietly  and  yield  mote  milk. 
The  Empire  Milker  is  now  used  in  thousands  of  successful  dairies  all 
over  the  country.  Let  us  reicr  you  to  owners  and  tell  you  how  easily 
you  can  Install  it  and  make  it  pay.  Address 
EMPIRE  CREAM  SEPARATOR  CO, 
Capital  St, 000,000 
Manufacturers  Empire  Mechamra!  Milkers,  Empire  Cream  Separators* 
Empire  L.asoline Engine:;,  Empire  Star  l*eed  Mills.  Write  tor  Catalog  ?3  M 
Factory  and  Main  Officn.  BLOOMFIELD.  N.  J. 
Brunches;  Chicago,  III  ;  Denver,  Colo.;  Portland.  Ore.; 
San  bruncisco,  Cel.;  Montreal,  Toronto,  Winnipeg,  Canada 
