\omt%tit fenncim 
CONDUCTED BY MARY A E. WAGER. 
STAGE COACH HOUSEKEEPING. 
Riding from Congress Hall to the Geyser 
Spring, this afternoon, a very social and 
jolly party entered the omnibus. A father 
and daughter were conspicuous, as the father 
seemed never to tire of telling of “ Daugh¬ 
ter’s accomplishments.” He was vain as a 
goose of her, but some of his ideas were very 
good. Among other things, he said she 
should be skilled in all domestic duties, learn 
the theory and practice of cookery, for he 
thought it an imposition on a young man for 
a girl to marry him without knowing how 
to cook. Among the different dishes dis¬ 
cussed the father spoke in the most enthu¬ 
siastic terms of a pie made of 
Chicken and Green Corn, 
the com serving for the crust. The flavor 
of the chicken pervading the corn made it 
delicious. If anybody can tell the particu¬ 
lars of this dish, please do so; but we think, 
from this suggestion simply, a very palatable 
dish can be made. A lady said, in cook¬ 
ing corn, she always cooked a quantity, so 
as to have enough left from dinner for 
breakfast. She cut it off the cobs, and 
warmed it up in milk or cream. From corn 
the talk rambled to potatoes, and the super¬ 
excellence and world-wide fame of the fried 
Potatoes nt SnrRtoin Cake 
was duly commented upon. One lady said 
she ate “such an enormous quantity she 
was made sick by them; but they were so 
delicious she could not resist the temptation 
of making a gormandizer of herself.” A 
man in the stage, evidently a native Sara- 
togian, volunteered information as to the 
process of frying them. They are sliced 
up raw, very thin, (they have a machine or 
plane for doing it,) and then they are thrown 
into ice water and left until morning. Soak¬ 
ing in the water takes out the greenish taste. 
From the water they are put into a pan or 
skillet, with plenty of hot fat (hog’s lard) and 
skimmed out rather soon. There should be 
plenty of fat, so they can swim iu it. 
It is to be hoped they are more delicious 
than the mode suggests. 
A Fly Brush. 
Somewhere in our wanderings of late, 
where flies were plenty, as they seem to be 
everywhere this year, a new kind (to us) of 
a brush, was whisked about our head at 
table. It was made of long and narrow 
strips of thick wrapping paper, such as 
flour bags are made of, and fastened about 
the end of a round stick, which served for 
the handle. Of course there were a great 
many strips in the brush. 
Elnlr Pin Cnatiton. 
Ladies who use many hair pins will find 
a cushion for them as convenient as a pin¬ 
cushion at the toilet. Crochet, loosely, a 
round piece from worsted yarn, and fasten 
it over the top of a small coverless collar 
box. You can ornament the side of the 
round box to suit your fancy. 
Saratoga, N. Y. 
"COLD DINNERS.” 
If every woman who reads the Rural 
New-Yorker is aroused on the subject of 
“cold dinners” as I am, you never will have 
time to read half the letters you will receive, 
to say nothing about printing. I do not 
know what it is to be thunder-struck, but 1 
think I came very near to it when I read 
“ Cold Diuners” in a recent Rural, recom¬ 
mended for laboring men—men in the har¬ 
vest field ! Once think of your dear father, 
husband, brother or son coming in tired from 
the scorching rays of the July sun, and sit¬ 
ting down to a cold dinner, just because it 
is a little more convenient or comfortable 
for you! 
These days woman is claiming the right 
to labor for the ballot-box; it would look 
much more sensible to see them take the hoe 
or rake and go into the field and see bow 
they like earning their bread by the sweat of 
the brow; and when the horn sounds the 
welcome news, “ dinner is ready,” to think 
of a cold dluner!—cold potatoes, cold peas, 
cold corn, cold beets and cold squash! Try 
it once, my friend Dore, and I think you 
would be one that would have to accompany 
some others to the Widow’s “ Arsenal.” 
I know something about a warm kitchen; 
but when I go into the garden after my veg¬ 
etables for dinner, and see everything look 
so inviting, I take pride in preparing them 
in die nicest way to please my dear husband, 
and feel thankful that I have one to please— 
one who is willing to work for me and the 
three little ones that God has given us, I am 
determined to do all I can to make home the 
most attractive place in the world; but it 
would not be, even for me, if I had to eat 
cold dinners. 
Keep your house well ventilated; do not 
be afraid to use the parlor; but by all means 
keep the dining-room cool. 
I do not think it necessary for a woman to 
spend her whole time in the kitchen, though 
I find that would be the case, some days, on 
a large farm, if one did alone; but when 
there is work sufficient to require it, perhaps 
we might be able to have help. 
Now, Dork, if you have a husband, I pity 
him, unless he is a woman’s rights man. 
Leroy, N. Y.. Aug., 1870. ROTA. 
-♦♦♦-- 
CANNING FRUIT. 
As fruit of all kind is so plenty this sum¬ 
mer, I suppose each family of Rural readers 
will can some fruit; if they try canning 
once they will uever want to preserve fruit 
in the old fashion way of pound for pound. 
I have a large family, and l can a great 
many quarts to use through the winter. I 
have now currants, Black-Caps, and some 
early peaches, “ put up.” I will give you 
my method. 
In the first place I must disagree with 
your correspondent with regard to using 
tin cans, and cooldng the fruit in tin pans. 
Has she never noticed that the acid of the 
fVuit acts on her tins, and really “ eats the 
tin from the pans” and makes the fruit 
poisonous? I use nothing but glass jars; if 
they have glass caps so much the' better. 
Wash the fruit, look it over carefully, re¬ 
moving all in the least decayed; put the 
fYuit in the jars, with one-quarter pound 
white sugar to one pound of fruit; put the 
jars nearly full of water; have your boiler 
read}', with cold water enough in to reach 
the neck of the jars when the water boils ; 
put a little straw in the bottom to stand 
the jars on to keep them from breaking; 
now stand your boiler over the fire, put your 
jars in with the caps on loosely, and let the 
water boil around the Jars until you are sure 
the fruit is all heated through. Of course 
peaches, pears, and quinces take a longer 
time than the small fruits. When your 
good judgment tells you they are done, 
screw the caps on tight, lift, them from the 
water, have a towel folded thickly to stand 
them on, and I think you will not break a 
jar, and you will find your fruit as nice in 
winter as when first picked. Annie. 
-- 
CONTRIBUTED RECIPES. 
Cleaning White Paint. 
Wet the paint with warm water; then 
with a damp cloth, dipped in whiting in¬ 
stead of soap, rub the paint. It will look as 
well as new, and is much easier cleaned and 
saves the paint.—o. 8. 
To Alnke Good Coffee. 
Take two parts Java coffee and one of 
sound yellow corn ; roast and grind together. 
This will make a better tasting, cheaper, 
and more healthy drink than pure coffee.— 
K. D. K. 
Keeping Green Corn Warm at Table. 
Always break long ears in two parts be¬ 
fore cooking. Lay the ears, after taking from 
the fire, on a platter or dish, over which a 
clean napkin has been spread. Draw the 
corners and sides of the napkin up over the 
corn ; if not large enough, place another 
over the top.— m. 
To Keep flutter Three Years. 
John Peters says:—“ Use two quarts of 
best salt; one ounce of sugar and one ounce 
of saltpeter. One ounce of this composition 
for one pound of butter, should be worked 
well into the latter aud then close it up. It 
must be remembered that butter thus cured 
should stand three or four weeks before it is 
opened. It will keep butter three years.” 
The Beni Drink iu Surnmar. 
John Peters sends us the following: 
“ Ten drops of the oil of sassafras, ten drops 
of oil of spruce, ten drops of oil of win* 
tergreen, two quarts of boiling water, 
poured on two tablespoonfuls of cream of 
tartar. Add eight quarts of cold water to 
the oils, three gills of distiller’s yeast, (six 
of home-brewed,) and sweeten to the taste. 
In twenty-four hours bottle it, and it is a 
delicious beverage.” 
To Pickle Cucnmbera. 
Mrs. L., tried the following experiment 
with the stated result:— She covered the 
bottom of a tight barrel with fresh, uupressed 
apple pomace, then put iu a layer of cucum¬ 
bers, then a layer of pomace, and went on 
thus alternating with the cucumbers aud 
pomace till the barrel was nearly filled. A 
long time had elapsed, when on examina¬ 
tion she found that the worms had cut holes 
through which much of the vinegar (that 
had formed) had escaped. In that part of 
the barrel, towards the top, from which the 
vinegar had subsided in leaking, the cucum¬ 
bers had decayed and were useless; hut in 
the lower part of the barrel, where there 
was still vinegar mixed with the apples, the 
cucumbers were firm and excellently pickled. 
Another lady states that she made fine 
pickles by putting the cucumbers in a barrel 
of prepared pomace.— a. c. 
Domestic Inquiries,— 11 Park ” asks for the best 
method of caning and preserving tomatoes for 
winter use. —J. S. P., Skinner’s Edily, Pa., asks 
“ the best method for pickling cucumbers. We 
have always put them down in salt, but think 
there is some better way.”— A “ Rural Render " 
asks some one to give “ directions for knitting a 
gentleman's jacket, to be both warm and durable 
and woru outside the coat.” 
friftttific anfc feeful. 
GAS FOR BALLOONS. 
Mohrs anil Manners. 
SARATOGA FASHIONS. 
BY MINTWOOD. 
Saratoga Springs, August, 1870. 
The first tiling to do here, to begin the 
day fashionably, is to walk to the Congress, 
or some other spring, and drink spring water 
before breakfast. From seven o’clock until 
nine there is one uninterrupted procession of 
drinkers. The springs are usually covered 
with a roof supported by pillars, and their 
own sacred precincts protected by a curb. 
The dipping is done by boys, who exercise 
considerable skill and rapidity in supplying 
the visitors. They are compensated by 
voluntary contributions from the drinkers. 
There is a slight difference in the mineral 
properties of each and all the springs. The 
waters are pungent, deliciously fresh and 
clean tasting. There can be no doubt about 
their efficacy for various diseases. 
Breakfast at the large hotels is not a very 
smail affair, with their dining or banquet 
halls, that will seat over a thousand guests, 
nearly filled, and half a regiment of colored 
men iu uniform, doing duty as waiters. 
From breakfast to dinner the great saloons 
are filled with groups of over-dressed women 
and men with immense watch-guards aud 
diamond pins. At dinner, fashion displays 
herself in her magnificence. After dinner, 
she rides or walks, the long, long piazzas 
giving a mile of promenade. 
In the evoning the bauds play, the deco¬ 
rated ball rooms open, and dancing begins 
at nine or ten o’clock. Little girls with 
flowing hair, very short white dresses with 
broad bright sashes, bronze boots aud flesh- 
colored stockings fitting snugly, and looking 
as if they had none on, form sets for square 
dancing, or whirl in couples about the room 
when a waltz is played. To be sure, the 
large people do precisely the same thing; 
but one enjoys seeing the children beat, if 
enjoying such scenes at all. 
Fashion here is displayed in rather more 
unique forms than in most resorts. But a 
certain prevailing style takes the lead. Swiss 
dresses over black and colored silks arc 
everywhere seen. White Swiss hats are 
equally as much worn. Ready made, they 
cost $2. The material costs about fifty 
cents, and one can make them nt borne nice¬ 
ly. Two-thirds of a yard of Swiss, a yard of 
bonnet wire, and three reetla furnish the ma¬ 
terial. Some brighten them with color in a 
niching around the crown, or under the 
brim. Linen, pique, cambric and berage 
hats are similarly made. They are very light 
aud pretty. 
Cherry ribbons are worn, here to an almost 
unlimited extent, for sash, throat and hair. 
Ilair ribbons consist of a bow with two very 
long cuds. The bow is placed on the top of 
the head, nearly filling the space between 
the chignon and forehead. Small striped 
silk shawls, worn straight, are the prettiest 
evening wraps. 
The freedom everybody enjoys here, is 
“ perfectly captivating.” You can dress as 
you please, go about bareheaded, and enjoy 
yourself in a suit that cost $10, with “jewel¬ 
ry thrown in,” quite as well as in a mauve 
silk that cost as many dollars a yard, and 
$50,000 worth of diamonds, that somehow 
usually glitter and gleam on the ugliest crea¬ 
tures in the world. 
I think half the enjoyment of pleasure 
trips by people in moderate circumstances, is 
destroyed by overwork and anxiety in their 
preparations for them. With three dresses, 
a linen or traveling suit, a black silk and a 
white lawn, a woman can travel for months, 
and always be neat and respectable. To 
burden oneself with a hundred things is all 
nonsense. You can always buy what you 
need, if you don’t happen to have it, even to 
a ready-made dress. Nobody expects expe¬ 
rienced or sensible travelers to appear in full 
dress, anywhere. Let comfort and abso¬ 
lute needs be looked after, and never mind 
the rest. 
Lake George, Two Dan Later. 
We came here‘from Saratoga by rail and 
a stage ride of nine miles. Vivian, who 
started out with a broad brim hat, expect¬ 
ing more comfort from it than the rest of us 
were to enjoy, has come to the conclusion 
that it is a nuisance and will leave it at 
home next time. But what of hats or aught 
else, with this enchanted lake lying at our 
feet, framed in the royal magnificence of 
towering purple hills. 
This is another fashionable summer re¬ 
sort, aud a great many people come here to 
spend a few days; and a few to spend the 
season. It is very quiet, and the scenery 
beautiful beyound the telling. The girls 
here have rowing matches, each wearing 
different colored jackets, giving the boat 
race a lively appearance. What gay times 
the girls among the lakes of Central New 
York might have boating. Rowing is quite 
as much of an accomplishment as piano 
playing, and a thousand times more health¬ 
ful. 
Watchee aud nrtdal Outfits. 
“ A Country Girl," South Williamston, 
Mass.—A handsome enameled gold watch 
of the fashionable size (from one and a half 
to one and a quarter inches iu diamater) 
costs $55. A ohain and pin to match, costa 
$40. “ Charms ” attached to a chain, pos¬ 
sess charms only as they are gifts or memen¬ 
toes. I should not advise you to purchase 
them with the chain. 
“ A dark-eyed miss of twenty-oue years, 
in middling circumstances, desires advice in 
regard to a bridal outfit for early Septem¬ 
ber.” It is difficult to tell what will be worn 
this fall. One or two suits of small checked 
Japanese poplin, at seventy-five cents per 
yard, one suit of gray or brown Irish pop¬ 
lin, and a black silk suit would cer¬ 
tainly not be out or keeping. Brides do not 
attire themselves any differently from other 
well-dressed people. Be sure and have 
neatly-fitting kid gloves to match each suit, 
us well as ribbons and the like. The little 
things tell quite a3 much as the great ones. 
For wedding dresses—If married in full 
dress—white grenadine tulle is used at the 
best houses. The long skirt is trimmed with 
graduated puffs nearly to the waist. A 
straight, tunic open down the front, is of two 
or three thicknesses of tulle, simply finished 
with a broad hem, waist and sleeves are 
puffed ; the sash of tulle and flowers; tunic 
looped with flowers ; flowers at the corsage 
and in the hair; these white flowers come 
in sets for bridal dresses; underskirt of Swiss 
or white lawn. 
Au Infant's Wardrobe. 
A lady asks for explicit information about 
an infant’s wardrobe, what material to get, 
how to make it, size, width, length, etc., 
etc. Beginning at the bandages, tear off 
four strips of soft white flannel, seven inches 
wide and twenty-one inches long; do not 
hem them. Chemises should be made of 
flannel; the knitted or crocheted ones of 
Shetland yarns are the best; sixty-eight 
stitches will be enough for the body, which 
should be about- eight inches long; make 
gores under the sleeves, which should be 
about two inches long and five inches 
around. The knitted or crocheted garments 
are clastic; if made of flannel, then twenty 
inches around the body and nine inches long. 
For infants’ napkins, get three dozen of 
linen. Those for first use are better made 
of old linen or Canton flannel, about onc- 
bulf of a yard square, and of one thickness; 
the largest size should be twenty inches 
square and double; small clasp pins, called 
“ infant’s pins,” are used. 
For petticoats, get flannel that is part cot¬ 
ton. It does not shrink so much, and is just 
as good. Make three for day wear, and as 
many for night. Some make the night pet¬ 
ticoats open in front, so as to wrap up the 
feet better. Make the petticoat waists twen¬ 
ty inches around and six inches deep. The 
length of the petticoat, from twenty-six to 
twenty-seven inches; width entire, fifty-two 
inches. For day dresses, twelve will be 
needed, and all of white. Bullies wear no 
colors now-a-days, unless it be a ribbon. For 
material, nainsook is the best. It conies in 
stripes and cheeks, but the plain is the pret¬ 
tiest. The others do for a change. They 
are all made with high necks and long 
sleeves, which is the lutest French fashion, 
and a most sensible one. The skirts are set. 
in a yoke, and the length of the skirt from 
the yoke is one yard. Ornamentation of 
yokes and skirts is greatly of tucks, for which 
it is better to buy the ready tucked goods. 
Dimensions of the yoke:—Length of yoke 
on the shoulder, (all done,) three inches; 
length of sleeve, seven and three-quarter 
inches; around the wrist,six inches; length 
of yoke from armhole to armhole, eleven 
inches; depth of yoke at the neck middle, 
three Inches; neck of dress, or yoke, with 
string run in, eleven inches; across top of 
the dress skirt, half of It, twenty-five inches; 
sash of ribbon, or the same, two iuciies wide 
and one and a-half yards long. Six night 
dresses of nainsook, made plain. For extra 
warmth about the waist, small sacques or 
blankets are worn. Have four or five cro¬ 
cheted sacques, or those made of silk gauze 
flannel. It does not shrink. It costs from 
$1 .50 to $1 .75 per yard; three-quarters of a 
yard will make two sacques. Crochet or 
embroider the edges with bright worsted, 
(red or blue,) in small points or scallops. 
Make strings with small balls at the ends, to 
tie at the throat You will not need short 
dresses before next summer, aud then there 
will be no danger of taking cold from long 
to short clothes. Make bibs of quilted mus¬ 
lin or heavy pique, single or double. 
Removing Freckles. 
“ A Constant Reader” writes“ Every¬ 
body advertises the 1 Kallistou ’ for removing 
freckles. I want t.o know if there is any real 
worth in it In short, if you were a woman 
with a freckled face, would you use it, or 
say, ‘ we ure just as God made ns; let them 
be?’ ” No, I should not say that; 1 believe 
in improving our nature, when it is possible. 
Lemon juice is recommended for freckles. 
Two recipes were published in last year’s 
Rural IS ew-Yorker, under “Modes and 
Manners,” which were given by a reliable 
physician. I know nothing of tlie“Kullis- 
ton." Many of the advertised preparations 
contain lean, which is always to be avoided, 
The juice of lettuce leaves is said to be fine 
for the complexion. For myself, I know of 
nothing quite equal to cool, soft water. Per¬ 
haps some reader can give a reliable recipe 
which is deatli to freckles. 
I cannot tell yon about your alpaca dress, 
because “ I haven’t seen it,” and you did not 
tell me about it. 
Ordinary gas balloons are generally filled 
with common coal gas. The small balloons 
used by lecturers ou chemistry for experi¬ 
mental illustrations are always tilled with 
hydrogen. The coal gas is much heavier 
than the hydrogen, and a balloon filled with 
it requires to be made proportially larger; 
but ou the other hand the hydrogen is more 
expensive, aud it escapes so readily, owing 
to its powerful diffusive properties, that the 
advantages are on the side of coal gas. It 
is worthy of note however, that the poorer 
the quality of coal gas, provided it be pure, 
the better it is for filling balloons. 
If the correspondent of the Rural New- 
Yorker wishes to prepare a small quan¬ 
tity of gas for filling a balloon he can do so 
most readily by placing a quantity of clip¬ 
pings of zinc (the ordinary sheet article used 
in stove shops) in a suitable vessel, which 
may range in size from a small phial to the 
largest size demijohn. On the moderately 
large scale an old carboy (which may be hud 
at most druggists) answers well, and on the 
very large scale one or more tight casks 
may be used. Having selected a a ves¬ 
sel and placed the zinc in it, pour over 
the zinc a quantity of sulphuric acid mixed 
with eight to ten times its weight of water. 
The liquid should not fill the vessel more 
than One-fourth full, as It will probably 
froth a little, and unless room be left for ex¬ 
pansion the dilute acid may be driven over 
Into the balloon, which it will certainly 
destroy. 
If the balloon is a delicate one the gas 
ought to be washed with water so as to re¬ 
move all traces of acid, which otherwise is 
apt. to be carried over mechanically. The 
arrangements for this purpose are simple. 
The tube leading from the gas generator is 
made to pass through the cork of another 
bottle and dip down below the surface of 
some water, which should half fill the 
latter. 
Great care must be taken to avoid the 
approach of any light, as the gas is at first 
mixed with the air in the vessel, and forms 
a highly explosive mixture. We have not 
described the method of arranging the tube, 
&c., as this would require illustrations, and 
we give our correspondent credit for suffi¬ 
cient ingenuity to accomplish this. 
■ - - 
THE MAD STONE. 
When I read in the Rural New-Yorker 
of July 9th, January Searle’8 “scientific 
and useful ’’ article on the “ Mad Stone,” I 
smiled and passed on. But Mark Twain’s 
“editorial experience” in the last issue re¬ 
called it to mind, and I cannot refrain from 
dropping you a line, advising you to send 
that article, marked, to Mr. Searle. It is 
eminently applicable to his case. “ Mean¬ 
ing to dart that forked, fiery tongue into his 
flesh!’’ It seems incredible that any man 
claiming to instruct should be so ignorant as 
to believe that a snake inflicts a wound with 
its tongue 1 As for the cure, the whisky 
was sufficient, without calling for the miracu¬ 
lous “ Mad Stone.” 
These “ mad stones,” which are much be¬ 
lieved in by ignorant people in the West, 
have been repeatedly examined by scientific 
men. Usually they have proved to be fosils 
of a loose calcareous structure, having an 
adhesiveness which every one who has ever 
applied a piece of chalk or a new pipe-stem 
to the tougue will understand. That they 
are of any value in removing poison from a 
wound has never been proved. 
It is well known that but a small propor¬ 
tion of those bitten by mad dogs are ever 
attacked by hydrophobia, and in all such 
instances, if the mad stoue is applied, it gets 
the credit of prevention. In snake bite, 
alcohol has proved a sufficient antidote in 
most cases, if timely taken, but with the 
credulous, If the mad stone is simultaneously 
applied, it gets the credit. The singular 
sensations described as affecting the person 
holding the stoue must be attributed to an 
excited imagination, as none but a “ believer” 
ever experiences them. 
Newport, Vt. T. H. Hoskins, M. D. 
■4 » »- 
Gamgee’n Procea* of Curing Meat. 
A late number of the Edinburgh Farm¬ 
er contains the following:—“ Professor Gam- 
gee’s process of preserving meat has stood 
the test of a voyage across one of the long¬ 
est ocean tracks that our general trading 
ships sail and steam, viz., from England to 
Australia. Mr. Atwood, master of the 
screw steamship Somersetshire, writes to 
Professor Gatngee that the meat the Profes¬ 
sor had sent to him on the 26th of January 
last had been cooked on the Thursday of 
each week ou the way out. The passen- ’ 
gera were not aware they were served with 
preserved meat, and throughout the whole 
voyage it was perfectly sweet. In the warm 
weather it was much better than fresh meat , 
killed on board, as it was nice and tender.” 
