of ammonia, aiul subsequently rinsed, is 
much improved in appearance. The bleach¬ 
ing is more quickly accomplished by soaking 
the articles for an hour in a dilute solution of 
acid sulphite of soda, then stirring in dilute 
hydrochloric acid (fifty parts of -water to one 
of acid,) covering the vessel and allowing it 
to remain a quarter of nn hour, and after¬ 
ward thoroughly rinsing the articles. 
BEE CULTURE 
DOMESTIC BREVITIES 
LATE FASHION NOTES 
In morning wear linen and batiste cos¬ 
tumes are made in eveiy variety. Dark blue 
is still the favorite, either plain or in solid or 
broken stripes ; the polka dot has been worn 
too long to be fashionable. Embroidery in 
white cotton is preferred for ordinary linen 
or lawn costumes, but for more elaborate 
costumes Valenciennes or Italian lace is used. 
These lawn costumes arc worn with sleeve¬ 
less jackets, which, if square, are invariably 
short, but if round are generally longer. 
Twilled foulards are much worn. Two pat¬ 
terns are used in one costume—a plain solid 
color for skirt baxique and sash, the over¬ 
skirt and sleeves being made of checked foil 
lard, black and white polonaises arc Worn 
over black silk skirts. Bodies are alltiuished 
at the top with collars of the same material 
laid flat in front, but standing upright ami 
wide at, the back, either in plain or full box 
plaits. 
Transparent fabrics are coming into use. 
Those of ecru gauze studded over with flow 
ers or butterflies to match the uiulerdretss, 
ore very stylish. Others vary the design 
with stripes, and large spots in blue, green 
and red are seen. 
Light and dressy basques for summer par¬ 
ties are made of light colored silks and Val¬ 
enciennes inserting in stripes. They are 
slightly shaped to the form. Cream-colored 
cashmeres with yalc inserting are very 
pretty; also block watered silk or velvet with 
These can be easily januni- 
gulpure inserting, 
l ectured at home and add a great deal to the 
made in the 
toilette. Long polonaise ar 
same way ; one of light blue and Valeneien- 
nes was exceedingly beautiful. 
Black lace sacks are worn, shaped to the 
figure by side pieces. The Chantilly are de¬ 
signed, artistically, to meet this demand. 
These, however, are very expensive. Sacks 
of Llama and Yak luce are substituted ; also 
■sacks of guipure net. They are the most 
choice of all summer wraps, but in the pres¬ 
ent style of wearing costumes other wraps 
may be dispensed with. 
Blurring is the most popular of all trim¬ 
ming, and a fashionable costume must 
now be made almost entirely by hand. 
Flounces are surmounted by another flounce 
shurred live or six times, leaving but a small 
ruffle on each side. The effect is very pretty. 
Crape de Ckone neckties are the lightest 
and prettiest for summer, they ure finished 
by inserting and lace either of Valenciennes 
or Mechlin, or are buttonholed in scallops, 
and finished with a fail of lace. 
Double chatelaine braids in the back are 
more fashionable, than the large single braid. 
The front hair is worn in large waves, fell¬ 
ing ou the forehead rather than thrown back 
as formerly. There are ladies who part their 
hair on the side and allow the waves to fall 
low on the forehead. It is not a safe fashion, 
however, to follow. 
FASHION PLATE, 
The dress (See Page 349) is of light, colored 
ih> blga, made with a tattin in bias folds, 
pointed in the front; the edges are lined with 
brown silk and turned up to form shells. The 
plate is designed to illustrate one made of 
thin tattin fronts. They may be puffed, 
shirred or draped across by gathering the 
sides. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
Dan's Press of Five— Mrs. K. Dodge. Why 
not dress your littie boy in a sailor costume. 
Make it ot’ blue serge or flannel, and trim it 
with black or blue. A black or tarpaulin hat 
should be worn with it. For the country 
the most suitable dress is short, loose trousers 
and a brown kolland blouse, worn with a 
leather bedt and sailor's hat of straw. 
Clean Worsted Work —Gleen.—U npick 
the worsted work from the lining or cusliiott 
or stool and nail it flat on a board, then rub 
it well with warm soap aud water and a 
little ox gall to prevent the colors running 
and leave it to dry. A brush will he used to 
advantage if there is no silk in the work. 
Graduating Dress — May. —White will, of 
course, be the most suitable dress, the mate¬ 
rial depending on the amount of money you 
wish to spend. Soft white material, as India 
Twill, is the prettiest ; make it with aSpau- 
ITEMS FROM THE GRANGES, 
The, mils of the “ Lillie Ducks .”—At a 
Grange meeting it is related that a resolution 
in favor of purchasing only home-made fab¬ 
rics for clothing was i utroduced, whereupon 
a gentleman replied in opposition to the reso¬ 
lution that he favored economy, and for that 
reason wanted the whole world as his mar¬ 
ket. He would advise t he mover to do as a 
friend of his once did, who brought home a 
duck audputit with Ills other poultry. When 
feeding time came he foiiud that the duck, 
on account of its large bill, gobbled up about 
three times as much corn as the rest of his 
fowls. He at once remedied the difficulty 
by taking out his knife and whittling the 
dunk’s hill down to a sharp point. “Now, 
sir,” said the speaker, “ you have some little 
ducks (daughters) at your home, and if you 
want to secure economy, you must whittle 
down their bills ! And you, worthy Master, 
have a little duck at your house, which 
makes it necessary that I should also recom¬ 
mend this process of whittling down bills to 
your notice, as the hast means of securing 
economy in family expenditures," It is need¬ 
less to say that this pointed and practical 
speech decided the question, and opened the 
eyes of many parents whose little ducks with 
their large millinery and dress-making bills, 
have gobbled up more money than all the 
rest of the family have used during the past 
year. 
Horse Thieves and Patrons in Iowa .—It 
is stated that the Patrons of Husbandry, in 
Iowa, have perfected an organization for the 
capture of horse thieves. Each Grange is to 
have “ five riders," who are, on a robbery of 
stock being reported, to mount and follow 
the culprits. To this end the Grange is to 
them ; but we should be quite as particular 
to exclude one os the Other, 
Yet we must give the different experiences 
although they be widely so. We knew a 
man to winter his bees in a warm cellar 
where potatoes sprouted in mid-winter, and 
hud a crack in one place in the kitchen floor 
which admitted both light and air to some 
extent, and lie. attributed his good success, 
in a measure, to that fact. Each apiarian 
must judge of the prudence of all theories 
wit h the wisdom he gains from experience 
of his own. Some of the colonies of this vi¬ 
cinity were “ doubled up " on their own 
hook, which somewhat annoyed interested 
parties, but was Anally supposed to be the 
wisest course, as those who “broke up 
keeping house " were found too weak to do 
so alone. Neither do they always do this 
when weak, but sometimes (if they have no 
queen) dwindle away rather than seek a 
home with aristocratic neighbors (strong 
colonies.) 
I believe bee neighbors will not always re¬ 
ceive another stock kindly. We know they 
ligllt briskly sometimes, those who come to 
rob, but how they can tell a “poor person ” 
needy of help is beyond my ken ; but they 
i do know such eases aud act upon that knowl¬ 
edge. Flora. 
SELECTED RECIPES 
How lo Manage Cucumbers for Pickles .— 
First get a good kind of cucumber, then pro¬ 
ceed as follows : Be careful in picking not 
to bruise the in; wash them clean; pack them 
in stone jars, us they are far l,Lie best, with 
one quart of salt to every peck of pickles, 
aud l ti gallons of water to every live gal¬ 
lons of pickles; also, a lump of almu as large 
as a hen’s egg to every live gallons of pickles. 
AV'ben your jar c. full put a clean flannel 
cloth over them, with a weight heavy enough 
to keep them under the brine, and keep the 
cloth clean and free from mold. Now, in 
soaking them for use : The the quicker it is 
done the belter your pickles trill be. When 
freshening keep plenty of fresh water on 
them. Now scald in a brass or copper kettle, 
using weak vinegar l'or the purpose, and 
about enough to cover your pickh s, adding 
a lump of alum as large as a quail’s egg to 
every gallon of pickles. Scald slowly until 
they get scalding hot, but do not let them 
boil; take them cat and lay them in a stone 
jar, using cinnamon or cloves to suit the 
taste. Spread one large coffee cup of sugar, 
to one gallon of pickles, over them; then 
pour vinegar (not too strong) also over them. 
This vinegar will do for use again. If made 
in this way they will keep months and tie as 
BEES vs. GRAPES 
There is much complaint made in the pa¬ 
pers of bees eating grapes in different lo¬ 
calities, which I doubt not is true; but I 
wish some seienUQc man would give a close 
examination, even with a magnifying glass, 
and sec whether some insect has not been 
gnawing the skin in the night; for we. know 
that the com worm comes out at night, eats 
off the blade, aud the snail eats holes in the 
young tobacco leaf aud is not seen in the 
day time; and there may be insects flying in 
the night, like the lightning bug, that gnaw 
the grapes. Now, in this section almost 
every house has a grape vine, and there ore 
bees kept in many places all over town and 
this village; and 1 have kept bees and grapes 
over thirty years, but have never heard the 
first complaint. I wish there could be some 
close examination made. A. Wit son. 
plump and sweet as the day they were put | 
up. Your vinegar should not be too strong, 
as that would make them sour and destroy 
the taste of the sugar. 
A Pretty Table Ornament .—A correspond¬ 
ent of The Garden says: “ 1 was much 
struck lately with the wonderfully beautiful 
effect produced by simply placing a handful 
of heads of wheat in a vase of water. Each 
grain sent out bright grecu leaflets, and con¬ 
tinued to replenish the fading ones for weeks 
together. Home have doubtless seen this 
pretty table oruoment, but to me it was new 
and perhaps would be so to many others.” 
Treating flannel when Yellow.— It is 
found by l’rof. Artus that flannel, which had 
become yellow by lying for some time, when 
treated with a solution of one-tudf pound of 
Marseilles Boap in fifty pounds of soft water, 
with the addition of one-third of an ounce 
is tyrannical aml oppressive, auu uieieruie 
ought to be repudiated." 
Money for Suffering Patrons of Louisi¬ 
ana .—The Executive Committee of the Na¬ 
tional Grange has sent from the Benevolent 
Fund of the Order, $1,000 to the suffering 
members of the Order in Louisiana. 
BEE NOTES AND QUERIES, 
Bees and Grapes. — Chas. Dodant, who 
has cultivated bees near the hills of Bur- 
flilt 
runs of 
HJitsfot 
lutnr. 
Ip 
