The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
1475 
Letters of an Indiana Farmer 
I have just discovered that “the bread 
is all,” as some of our friends in another 
State might say; problem—shall I go to 
town, make biscuits, or eat something 
else? The question is not so serious for 
a one-woman household like mine. One 
answer is certain; I don’t want to go to 
town. A trip tomorrow is necessary. 
Today 1 shall write letters and work on 
Johnnie's coat. 
Johnnie, aged two and one-third years, 
is the son of the young people who live 
in purt of this hig farmhouse, which is 
too hig for one woman, even a wildly 
enthusiastic back-to-the-lander. Earl, 
who is of old American stock, works for 
the man who rents my laud. Lula is the 
American name of his Russian bride. 
They were married when Earl was a sol¬ 
dier in Siberia. Johnnie completed the 
variety of birthplaces in one family by 
being born in the Philippines. 
Lula is delightful; slender, quick, vol¬ 
atile; in oppearauce, ns i tell her. “all 
American but the eyes.” She is desper¬ 
ately homesick at times. She is so warm¬ 
hearted, generous, and social, and yet 
has been, until recently, rather shut off 
from much association with the people 
of the neighborhood, largely because of 
her speech—a decided accent difficult for 
many people to understand, Since we 
came here, however, she, as a newcomer, 
and I, ns a returned native, were voted 
into the Community Club. She demur¬ 
red, because of bet* English: several of 
us urged her to accept—Heaven knows, 
she does better with our language than 
we ever could with hers! It is proving 
to be a great pleasure to her. for the 
women nil like her, as * hey know her bet¬ 
ter, and all try to make her happy. She 
has an idea that she will tench me Rus¬ 
sian, but I am stupid about languages. 
Once in a while I look up the name of 
some common object, in the book she lent 
me. and spring it on them, which pleases 
Lula and draws whoops of amusement 
from Earl. 
If I do not go far with her language, I 
hope to learn some of her Russian dishes. 
She, in turn, is carefully copying my beat 
recipes, and desires to learn to sew. She 
can make beautiful faneywork, but not 
garments. For a beginning she wants to 
make—of all things—a coat for Johnnie! 
Earl laughed at her, was so sure she 
Couldn't, so we are engineering a sur¬ 
prise tor him. The coat is cut from an 
old one of mine. It took squeezing to get 
it out of the good pieces, and a little 
piecing, so it seemed best to let her have 
her first lesson cutting on new goods. 
But she is to do ail the actual sewing 
herself, under careful supervision—and 
how we will crow over that “mere man’ ! 
Johnnie is n lamb about standing up to 
In* nK*iisunHl. He fiuell a bij? fellow 
that I used a four-year size, and out even 
that a little larger. This is supposed to 
be a run-out-doors-to-play coat. but Lula 
remarked today that she thought it was 
going to be nicer than his Sunday one! 
Telephone talks just now with two or 
three neighbors who have drained thou* 
auto radiators, sent me scurrying out to 
the garage to do likewise. 1 can hardly 
believe that tonight will be colder than 
some other nights, but “monkey secs (in 
this ease “monkey hears”) ‘‘and monkey 
does.” Our lowest temperature was Jb, 
and roses are still blooming in a shel- 
• •! i. . ... A-- l v.cut through tne 
old wnodhouse, which gave up part of its 
bulk to the nousing of "lleury, l held 
up the lantern to look into a discarded 
tub tilled with shavings, which is the 
Cats’ Rest. Everybody was at home, and 
much sprprisod at a call from the land- 
lady at that hour. There are five, all of 
this year’s vintage, but. ranging in size 
front stately Suzuumi. who must weight 
0 or 8 lbs., to tiny blue Jerry, the latest 
comer. Johnnie loves the oats, and they 
submit to indignities from his hands that 
would not be endured from the grown¬ 
ups. lie has not an atom of that cruelty 
that some children display, but with the 
best intentions in life, be picks them up 
so awkwardly that they must be uncom¬ 
fortable. 
There are rabbits at the barn, gray 
ones and big fluffy while ones that look 
as if they could not be real. My August- 
planted garden furnishes them an occa¬ 
sional treat—Chinese cabbage that re¬ 
fuses to bead; corn salad, that the hu¬ 
mans don’t like; the outside leaves of 
endive; the humans are charmed with 
the blanched part. 
There is an auction tomorrow, and an¬ 
other .Saturday, and another next week. 
They are exciting events to those who 
are beginning housekeeping, or adding to 
a small stock of furniture kept from 
other years. There is usually a good deal 
of sadness, under the surface, too. as I 
should snow, having lived through two 
such upheavals; old homes are broken 
up. by death, ill health, or removal to a 
distance. Hut the old belongings go to 
furnish new homes, and start on another 
long career of usefulness, and perhaps 
of greater honor. Some of us will prob¬ 
ably take iu all these sales. I want a 
kitchen cupboard, and, as accompaniment 
thereto, a solid chair to climb on being 
of statute like Zaeebeus; Lula wants one 
more chair; Earl wants a tire shovel and 
a cow! 
The fire is burning low behind the old 
brass andirons—too low to throw any 
color on the much-panelled woodwork. 
My living room is in the “old” part of the 
house—the “young” part being only 63 — 
and on it grandfather must have lavished 
his Nantucket traditions. And it is curi¬ 
ous, but Lula finds my candles, my old 
blue and brown ware and handleless tea¬ 
cups, “more like home“ than anything 
else she has seen in this country! 
E. M. 0. 
The Cooky Jar 
Chocolate Cookies.—One-half cup of 
butter, one cup sugar, one egg, one-fourth 
teaspoon salt, 2 ounces unsweetened choc¬ 
olate. liVis cups flour (scant), two tea 
spoons baking powder, one-fourth clip 
milk. Cream the butter, add the sugar 
and egg well beaten, salt and melted 
chocolate. Heat well and add the flour, 
mixed and sifted, with the baking pow¬ 
der, alternately with the milk. Chill, 
roll very thin, cut with small cutter, 
first, dipped iu flour, and bake in a mod¬ 
erate oven. 
Chocolate Fruit Cookies. —One-f<>urth 
eup of butter, one-hal cup of sugar, two 
tablespoons grated cnoeolate.. one table¬ 
spoon sugar, one table ,poon boiling water, 
one egg. 'one-half nip nut meats, chopped 
finely, one-half cup seeded raisins, chopped 
finely, oive Clip of flour and one teaspoon 
baking powder, (’ream the butter and 
sugar. Melt chocolate, add remaining 
sugar and water, and cook one minute. 
Combine mixtures, and add remaining in¬ 
gredients. Chill, shape, aud bake same 
as chocolate cookies. 
Caraway Cookies.—One cup butter or 
other shortening, two cups sugar, one 
cup sweet milk, one-half teaspoon soda, 
caraway or nutmeg for spice, and flour. 
Cream butter and sugar, a milk and 
spire, and mix with flour, sifted with the 
soda, until quite stiff. Roll thin, cut in 
fancy shapes and bake quickly. 
Currant Cookies.— One cup of sugar, 
three-fourths cup of shortening, two eggs, 
one-half cup of milk, one-half mitmcv, 
grated, one teaspoon bakin? powder, one 
cup of currants, flour to make a dough 
(about 4Va cups). Cream shortening and 
sugar and add eggs, well beaten; then 
the milk, nutmeg and flour; then the cur¬ 
rants and baking powder. Mix well and 
roll out one-fourth inch; cut out and bake 
together the ingredients, add the nuts 
last; drop on a buttered baking sheet and 
bake. 
(Jingersnaps.—I’ut one pint of molasses, 
one cup of brown sugar, and one cup of 
butter and lard mixed in a pan on the 
stove, and boil five minutes. Mix one 
teaspoon giugpr, one tablespoon cinna¬ 
mon and a scant one-half tablespoon 
cloves in four heaping cups of flour. Dis¬ 
solve one tablespoon soda in a little hot 
water and pour into the molusses, holding 
over the flour so it will foam over. Mix 
well and roll out very thin. Hake quickly. 
Orange Wafers. —Cream one-fourth cup 
of fat with thro--fourths cup of sugar, 
add one well-beaten egg, grated rind of 
one orange, one-half teaspoon salt, and 
one-fourth cup of orange juice, alternating 
with one Clip of flour, in which sift two 
teaspoons baking powder. Add another 
cup and a half or more of flour. Roll 
out. thin, cut with a biscuit cutter, and 
bake in a moderate oven. When cold, ice. 
Sour Cream Cookies. — Cream on«- 
fotirth cup shortening with one cup sugar, 
add two eggs, well beaten, and one cup 
sour Cream, beaten until stiff. Mix and 
sift three cups of flour with one teaspoon 
soda, two teaspoons baking powder, one- 
half teaspoon salt, and one-half teaspoon 
cinnamon ; add to the first mixture with 
one cup walnut meats, finely chopped. 
Chill thoroughly, roll out, sprinkle with 
Sugar and finely chopped walnut meats: 
shape with a small, round cutter, and 
bake on a greased sheet iu a moderate 
oven. MRS. F. \VM. STILLMAN. 
Baked Eels in Pickle 
I have very successfully pickled fresh 
water herring, caught from the Hudson 
River, and I think the same recipe could 
be used for eels. Prepare as for frying. 
Hut in a stone jar or crock a layer of 
fish, salt as for the table, sprinkling over 
them a few grains of whole allspice. Con¬ 
tinue this until the jar is full. Cover 
with vinegar, not too strong. Bake in a 
moderate oven from four to six hours. 
in a moderate oen until light brown. 
Oatmeal Cookies.—One and one-half 
Clips of sugar, one-half cup of shortening, 
two eggs, two cups of oatmeal, two cups 
of flour, one teaspoon cinnamon, one small 
nutmeg, six tablespoons milk, one cup 
of raisins and one teaspoon linking pow¬ 
der. Mix the ingredients well, drop by 
teaspoonful onto greased tins cud bake 
in a moderate oven. 
Orange Cocoanut .Tumbles.—Cream one- 
half cup of shortening, add one clip of 
sugar and the grated rind of one orange; 
add one egg. well beaten, one cup of or¬ 
ange juice, and 2% cups of flour, sifted 
with four teaspoons bt> ing powder (more 
flour may ne required). Roll out into a 
thin sheet, and cut with a doughnut cut¬ 
ter ; set a little distance apart in the pan ; 
brush the top of each cake with slightly 
beaten egg white or cold water, cover with 
prepared cocoanut, aud dredge with gran¬ 
ulated sugar, Bakp to a delicate color 
in a quick oven. 
Peanut Cookies.—Two tablespoons of 
butter, one-fourth cup of sugar, one egg, 
one teaspoon baking powder,- one-eighth 
teaspoon of salt, one-half cup of flour, 
two tablespoons of milk, one-half cup 
finely chopped peanuts, one-half teaspoon 
lemon juice, (’ream butter, add sugar 
and egg, well beaten. Mix and sift dry 
ingredients; add to the first mixture, then 
add the milk, peanuts and lemon juice. 
Drop from a teaspoon on an ungreased 
sheet, 1 in. apart, and place one-half 
peanut on top of each. Bake in a slow 
oven. 
Vanilla Wafers.—Two and a half cups 
sugar, one cup of butter, one teaspoon of 
soda, vanilla, four eggs, flour enough to 
make a stilY dough. Mix together the in¬ 
gredients, add soda dissolved in a little 
hot water before kneading out on the 
board. Cut and bake. 
Walnut Wafers. — One-half pound 
brown sugar, three tablespoons flour, one- 
third teaspoon salt, one-fourth teaspoon 
baking powder, two eggs, one-half pound 
walnuts, put through food chopper. Mix 
Colgate’s on 
toilet articles 
corresponds 
to sterling on 
silver 
n Mat are sure to please 
Florient Extract 
and 
Toilet Water 
Lovely as a Japanese landscape 
with the cherry blossoms in full 
bloom. THAT gives you an 
idea of Florient (Flowers of the 
Orient). Perfume for the hand¬ 
kerchief.Toilet waterif you pre¬ 
fer. In good taste—both of them. 
Price, $1 — $2 
Florient (Flowers 
of the Orient)' 
Talc and Face Powder 
Fairy textured powder for the 
face. Talc of moon-beams / 
and silver rays for the body. A ^ 
gift for the woman who loves i ' 
daintiness. A gift for her who V 
loves Florient. Subtly scented ■ 
with this delightful perfume ^ 
Price, Talc 25c-Face Powder 50c 
• Rapid-Shave Cream 
for a Man 
Here’s just the thing for the 
I out-of-doors man—a real help 
for the bothersome shave. 
Either the “Handy-Grip” 
i Shaving Stick or Colgate’s 
Rapid-Shave Cream makes 
a welcome gift for Dad or 
£ Brother. 
Large Size, 35c 
In Every 
Xmas Stocking 
Colgate’s Ribbon Dental 
Cream scarcely needs an in¬ 
troduction. Grown-ups know J 
it—use it—like it. Children y > 
4 
enjoy its pleasant taste. An / V 
excellent all-round-the-family 
Cashmere Bouquet Soap 
An old-fashioned garden in 
full bloom—lavender and old 
lace—roses and silver. Gen¬ 
erations of lovely women 
have found this exquisite soap 
entirely to their liking—gen¬ 
erations to come will hold it 
in equal favor. 
Price, [ box of three cakes) 70c 
- - — 1 
r a 
W/M 
