SOS 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
SEPT. 29 
Domrstir (Bronoinj). 
CONDUCTED BY EMILY MAPLE 
PITHS. 
Re systematic. 
Avoid quarrels. 
Don't make excuses. 
Let ns lie just to each other. 
Bad cooking spoils good food. 
What did you learn at the Fair ? 
Eat licorice to sweeten the breath. 
Night-caps are a relic of barbarism. 
Apply common baking Rod a to burns. 
There ia no dignity in work half done. 
Bottom heat ia not good to raise broad. 
Cold corned beef ia boat for mailing hash. 
Eat what, your appetite craves if you can get it. 
Women are slow to learn by the experience of 
others. 
Do not entertain visitors with your own do¬ 
mestic troubles. 
Husbands must not expect their wives to make 
good, white bread from poor (lour, 
A place for every thing, and every thing in its 
place, istbo secret of good housekeeping. 
One-half cupof corn-starch improves any com¬ 
mon cuke ; loss flour, however, must bo used. 
Tim higbt of inconsideration on the part of a 
visitor, is not tax bo ready for meals when the 
bell rings. 
It is always best to take wheat to a good miller, 
no matter Jr it is a mile or two farther, for poor 
grinding will ruin the best of grain. 
' ■ ■ 4 ♦ »- 
DISH-W ASHING, KEI) ANTS AND TEA- 
BISCUIT. 
1 was pleased to see an article in your paper a 
few weeks ago, on washing dishes, I have often 
been amused anil surprised to see in the house¬ 
hold columns of various papers, detailed descrip¬ 
tions and specified plans and methods of per¬ 
forming nnmoroUH things about the house, that 
seemed too unimportant to waste time, ink and 
postage upon, w hile often subjects of the most 
vital importance, (because they absorb so much 
time and are constantly returning,) are rarely 
mentioned. Now washing dishes is one of the 
most harrowing duties of house-work to me, 
perhaps because I was compelled to do so much 
of it when a child. I determined however, to 
make the host of a neoessary annoyance and by 
studying, have found that this branch of wo¬ 
man’s work may ho simplified and lightened 
much. Still there is no pleasure in standing an 
hour at a lime, soaking one's hands in hot soap 
suds, and that three times a day. ] have often 
wondered, with all the ingenuity the Yankees 
possess, that scum body didn’t eradicate tins ill. 
Last Bpring w hen 1 was on a visit to a fiiend, 
what waH my surprise when dinner was over, to 
sco her place a large wire basket on the table 
and begin putting the dishes into it. I thought 
it a queer way or carrrying dishes from the din¬ 
ing room to the kitchen and hinted as much, 
when she laughed and said: " Why this is a ma¬ 
chine ! you know how I always hated to wash 
dishes!' Well, Gkoruk heard of Ibis machine 
and surprised mo with it on my birthday, I 
value it the most of any convenience I Jiavo. 
My only wonder is, that, no one ever thought of 
such a simple thing before.” 
We had always sympathized on this household 
grievance, and 1 watched her with lively curios¬ 
ity. In fifteen minutes the dishes were on the 
shelves and every vestige of the work connected 
with them had disappeared. T need not say I was 
delighted and lost no time in procuring one for 
myself. The moro I use it, the better i am 
pleased. It works the same us a dash churn, 
and the hands need never touch (lie water. No 
fear of breakage. I understand a woman in¬ 
vented it, but I cure little who did it as long as it 
is done, only that 1 am always glad to know one 
of my own sex has solved or unraveled what the 
genus homo has failed to do. 
Borne one has asked w hat would drive red ants 
away. A little cayenne popper done up in a 
thin paper or cloth and laid in two or throe 
places about the pantry or store room, or if 1 
numerous and persistent, sprinkled about their 
favorite rendezvous is quite effectual in sending I 
them off. Beaches will also flee from it. Pow- 1 
dared borax has the same effect. Either of I 
those will nut fail if accompanied with clean)!- » 
bottom, and the reserved handful roust be suffi¬ 
cient to mold with. Mold as little as possible to 
get the dough together. Roll throe-feurtlm of 
an inch thick. Work rapidly, especially after 
the wetting is added, and put quickly in a hot 
oven. The oven is the essential point, as, were 
every other part perfect, a moderate oven would 
spoil all. 
Mine arc at least two inches thick when they 
come to the table, and like a feather in weight. 
Will some one give mo a good recipe for cook¬ 
ing Egg-plant ? Grace Manning. 
---— 
DOMESTIC RECIPES. 
Egg-Plant.-- Many liken slices of fried egg¬ 
plant to fried oysters, and think ibey are as pal¬ 
atable. Wo, however, liken them to slices of 
fried fat; indeed, our taste needs to he culti¬ 
vated before we can like them at alt. Perhaps 
the best way to serve, is to peel, slice and steam 
until tender, then mash, season and add a beaten 
egg and a spoonful of fiotir j mold into little 
cakes and fry in butter or lard. When fried raw, 
they must he first sliced thin, plentifully sprinkled 
with salt and pepper, and left to drain nearly an 
hour ; dip in egg, roll in cmltcr-cnunbs and fry. 
(trope Catsup Ten pounds of grapes; five 
pounds of white augur ; one quart of cider vine¬ 
gar; three tahlespoonfuls of cinnamon, and two 
each of allspice and cloves. Crush (ho fruit but 
not the seeds, scald and put. through a solve ; 
then add the sugar and spice, and boil gently 
fifteen minutes ; add I he vinegar, boil ten min¬ 
utes and bottle while hot. 
ChHi Smier. This excellent sauce is preferred 
by many to catsup. It should be boiled until 
thick so thick that it cannot he poured from a 
small-mouthed bottle. Hkin seventy-two good- 
sized, ripe tomatoes, and chop fine with sixteen 
green peppers and four onions ; add four tea¬ 
cups of sugar ; ten teacups of vinegar; eight 
tahlespoonfuls of salt ; four teaspooufuls each 
of ground cinnamon, pepper, allspice and elovos. 
Bottle and seal as for catsup. 
We thank Mrs. A. K. Skwall, Fine-apple 
Btroot, Brooklyn, for the following good recipes: 
(Jiiler PmULing. One pint of older; one-hall 
pint of molasses; one tcaspoonful each of ground 
cloves and cinnamon ; one teaspoonful of soda; 
one cup of chopped raisins ; one-half cup of suet 
or butter ; a pinch of salt, and (lour enough to 
make a stiff hatter. Boil two hours, and servo 
with hot or cold sauce, or both, according to 
taste. Milk substituted for cider will make an 
excellent pudding. 
Colti Hire Pmiding .—Three tahlespoonfuls of 
rice; five tahlespoonfuls of sugar; a piece of 
hotter as large as ii hickory nut. aud a Ji It Jo salt. 
Let the rice boll up three or four times in a gill 
or more of water, then stir in the sugar, butter 
and salt, and add one quai l of milk ; boil one 
hour. Let It get cold— the ice-box is the best 
place grate nutmeg over it and servo. 
Will G. M. H. please accept thunks for a re¬ 
sponse to our request? 
In answer to a subscriber, who wished a recipe 
for making Rhubarb wine, I send mine, w hich 1 
t hink cannot lie excelled. Take equal parts of 
rhubarb juice aud clean, soft water, and add 
three pounds of good brown sugar to every gal¬ 
lon. Fill a cask and leave the hung loose, so 
that the wine may ferment and run over. Lot 
it stand in this way three months; then rack it 
off’, rinse out the cask and refill it. To each gal¬ 
lon add a piece of irtinglass two inches square, 
it will then he fit to bottle and drink in three 
months’ time. 
(gknihtfjfrc. 
RURAL SPECIAL REPORTS. 
Mkkkkk Co., Minn., Sept. 7. 
With the exception of ravages from young 
grasshoppers, crops were never better here, and 
from all portions of the State come the same 
glad tidings. The crops fcn our own County and 
all adjoining and a few others, were moro or Ichh 
injured by the “ hoppers,' 1 which at one time 
seemed determined to destroy every green thing; 
hut as they left during the first week in July, 
very fair crops of oats and other cereals are real¬ 
ized in t he most besieged portions by some farm¬ 
ers, especially I hose who waged war against the 
depredators. Wheat, was damaged more than 
other crops, and In one township only 500 bush¬ 
els were harvested where about 50,000 are gen¬ 
erally raised. In some portions of the County 
30, 86 and 40 bushels per acre were harvested. 
Rome farmers who entertained myriads of the 
voracious insects duriug spring time, are now 
enjoying an abundance of vegetables, planted 
since their exit. None of the winged “ hoppers” 
have alighted in any portion of t he State to re¬ 
main any length of time, and the question is yet 
unanswered, *• Where have they gone ?” Scarce¬ 
ly a potato bug to be seen. They have never 
been here in unconquerable quantities. As usual, 
it is very healthy here. Have never heard of 
any disease among chickens or hogs in the State, 
and I have been here ten years. Now potatoes 
are selling for 30c. per bushel; No. 1 wheat, 77e.; 
oats, 30c. Farmers are plowing—except some 
who have uot fiuishod haying—and expect a good 
crop next year. No fears of “ hoppershut if 
they ever come again, wo have learned how to 
conquer them—catch them at night. Two men 
caught 150 bushels in one night in this way. 
m. x. ». 
-- -+-*-• -- 
llitOWN Co., Texas, 
Some time since I Raw an article in your val¬ 
uable paper, an extract from a correspondent of 
some foreign paper, which misrepresents the 
fanners of this State and docs us great injustice. 
It represents that all the stock raised in Texas 
are of the long-horned, Spanish variety. Now, 
tlm probability is that said correspondent landed 
at Galveston, traveled out as far as San Antonio, 
and thought he had seen all Texas ; but there is 
a little corner up this way as largo as the State 
of New York, whore wo do business in a way dif¬ 
ferent to that represented in your article, and 
whore we keep a very different land of cat tle. 
Our stock has sold principally on the range Huh 
season, for $20<&25 per head. The cattle in the 
northwest corner of the State ih owned by men 
that keep from fifty to several lh.nii<and head, 
and they wifi compare favorably with th< stock 
raised ton years ago in Contra! Now York. More¬ 
over, every man that expects to follow the busi¬ 
ness, either has procured or is procuring Short- 
Horned stock from the East, and they are being 
scattered all through this part of the State. 
Some men have brought in from thirty to firty 
thorough breds, and the whole country is begin¬ 
ning to fool the inlluonco of the movement. 
People find that after ouo gets started right, it. 
costs no more to raise a steer that is worth from 
$86 to $40, than one that will bring only half 
that sum by continuing to keep the old sharp- 
back, long horned sort; and if the sumo rate of 
progress that has marked the last three years 
shall continue for a lew years more, long-horned 
stock hereabouts will lie a thing of the past. 
ate aud soil do well, and bring remunerative 
prices. Good roads to market, i nd no tolls to 
pay. Peaceable, quiet community. No Indians 
nor desperadoes. Improved farms can be bought 
cheap or rented on reasonable terms. We are 
natives or Now York; bought tickets from Now 
York City to Austin, Texas—all rad—for $32.80 
each. I think fall is the preferable time for a 
radical change. iT> M> 
— * »+- 
Okkgon, Mo., Sept. 9. 
Thanks for the Plumbago eapensis you sent 
me last spring. It has givon me much plcasuro 
during the entire season. Is it hardy ? (Not 
quite—Ei>.) My Roses are again in full bloom ; 
some are grand ones. 1 cannot tell which is best. 
The Noisette Rose Gen. Washington, has done 
well, has had blooms all summer, ami to-day I 
found one cluster having 120 budH and blossoms. 
The Hydrangea paniculata is magnificent. Ver¬ 
benas are at their best. Well, it is of no use 
trying to praise any one class of plants—all are 
best, when we have a true love for them at heart. 
Our fruit season is ut hand. Apples are plenty 
and prices are very low—2Q@40o, per bushel; 
poaches, 75o.(Zc$l .50. Other fruits are also cheap 
and plenty. Our grain will be about, an average 
crop. All around fall wheat was a failure. Our 
<kmut.y Association has failed to hold any Fair 
for tins year. Gambling, horse-racing, and un¬ 
just awards of premiums dirtgusted the farmers 
who will not patronize such schemes wLen prac¬ 
ticed «o opeuly. j. w. m. 
Dobbs Fbiuiy, N. Y. 
Chops were never finer in this part of the 
country. Corn and oats are a flue crop this 
year. Potatoes are a better crop than wo had 
reason to expect from the great quantity of 
bugs which appeared during the fore part of the 
season. Thoy run extra largo size. Eggs aro 
worth 30 cents per dozon. With the crop wo 
have had, prosperity and happiness ought to 
reign again. N . L . 
Mower Co„ Minn. 
The boss crop, so far as heard from conies to 
Mr. Gibnoy, up near Manauuab. From a trifle 
less than half an acre thoy threshed 20)^ bushels 
of No. 1 wheat, machine measure. Can thoy 
boat that in any other hoppordozed portion of 
Minnesota ? 
Dakota Co., Minn., Sept. 19. 
On our farm in Dakota Co , Minn., forty-six 
acres of No. 1 wheat averaged thirty-live bushels 
per aere, honest measure. m. n. b. 
®I)f (Querist, 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
Mbs. McCloud will accept thanks for the fol¬ 
lowing : 
Mushimlon Butter .—Select lino, ripe melons, 
pare, and remove the soft, seedy portion ; cut 
into small pieces ; boil and stir until smooth ; 
add three pounds of sugar to six pounds of the 
fruit, and boil until the juice will not run from 
it when a spoonful of the butter iH dropped on a 
plate. Great care must bo taken not to lot it 
burn. 
My husband gives mo the credit of rather ex¬ 
celling in the art of making tea biscuit. For one 
pint of unsifted flour 1 tako three rounding tea- j 
spoonfuls of best Baking Powder, one even 
spoon!ul salt, and sift through the sieve to¬ 
gether. Thoroughly rub into this, butter or 
nice lard the size of a small hen’s egg. Lay a 
litt le hand-full on the molding board and put the 
rest in a deep basin and st ir in water (or skliu 
milk which is bettor,) just enough to dampen 
(not wet,) the flour, and turn out on the board. 
The little dry flour that sticks to the edges and 
W atermelon Preserves. Pare, remove the 
seeds and cut into small pieces resembling dice ; 
place in a preserving kettle with sufficient water 
to cover; boil uutil a straw will run through 
them, then add their weight of white sugar and 
boil uutil the fruit becomes clear and the sirup 
thick. Remove from the lire, add one teaspoon- 
ful of lemon extract to each quart of preserves, 
and pour into jars and seal. 
Pickled Watermelon ,—Divide the melon into 
quarters ; pare, remove the seeds, and cut into 
small pieces resembling the quarters of au apple, 
or into small circles aud out notches around 
them; lav them into salt wafer for three days to 
toughen them ; then place in cold water and soalt 
until nearly fresh. To ouch quart of strong older 
vinegar add \% pound of sugar; boil the fruit 
in the vinegar and sugar until tender; skim the 
fruit out into jars and boil the liquid until there 
remains only enough to cover the pieces ot melon; 
add a few drops of oil of elovos and tio olosoly. 
T° be eatou with roast veal or beef. 
Hex ah Co., Texas, Sept, 8, 
Ui*on reading an article in your issue of Aug. 
11 by “ lota," entitled, “Does farming pay?” I 
am prompted to toll “ Iota” my experience. I 
came to Texas in the winter of 1H73 74, with au 
invalid wife and two children. I know nothing 
about farming, but nevertheless, went at it and 
still follow it, I see no reason why a. man cannot, 
make a good and an independent living on a farm 
hero. I am living twenty miles south of San 
Antonio, on the old l’osotus battle ground. The 
State of Texas gives mu 100 acres of land gratu¬ 
itously, provided I live on it. three years, ami it. 
stiil lias land adjoining mine which it will give 
“ Iota" or any ono olse on the same terms. To 
begin this now life with a fair prospect of suo- 
oohk, the requirements aro First of all, a good 
stock of energy and perseverance, and then one 
yoke of oxen costing from $30 to r 15; one or 
two hones (ponies) costing $10(425 each; ax, 
flour, chains, Ac. There is plenty of timber on 
the land for building and fencing purposes. 
Building requirements are miiaU, the roof being 
the principal thing. The climate is so mild that 
wo live in very open houses and are the healthii r 
for it. No barns are used. Stock require no 
stables nor even fodder, living on the green grass 
all winter. Incidental family expenses are insig¬ 
nificant. No sickneHS—no doctor’s bills. Two 
crops of many things can bo raised the same 
year. Such things as aro iudigeuous to our clim. 
J. W. Maple , Oregon, Mo .—Have you the 
White Grape Hyacinth? I have the blue, and 
will exchange with any one of my friends. 
O. <f 8. Man. Co., Pa.- We set out thirteen 
trees last, autumn, just before the snow and frost 
came on—that is, on the 24th of Nov., ’70. Six 
of the trees were maple and seven elm. They 
wore well sot out, and the maples w ere out off at 
ten feet, leaving only naked poles, and about 
half the top was cut off the elms, leaving them 
eleven or twelve feet, high. We understand the 
elms came from lowland and the maples from 
upland. This spring all showed signs of life, 
and bid fair for a month or moro, when the elms 
sickened, and every one soon died and aro all now 
ihy stubs. The maples are every one thrifty. 
Now I want to replace the elms with six moro 
elmH. (1). What is my best plan and time for 
doing so ? I want to set them out this autuinu, 
if possible. (2). What caused tlio death of my 
elms ? The place of sett ing out is on ouo of our 
main streets, still unpaved. 
Ans. —(1). As soon as the leaves change color, 
or after the first frost say about Oct. 1. Make 
the boles large, at least three feet in diameter 
and two deep. Cut off all broken or decayed 
roots. Be careful not to expose the roots (or, in 
fact, the stem) to buu or wind. Set the same 
depth as before ; fill in with good soil, anil do 
not pack the earth so as to presu the roots out of 
their natural position, Water well before the 
last few shovelfuls of earth aro thrown in so as 
to insure contact between soil and libers. Let 
the water settle aud then till the hole. It would 
be well to stake the trees and also to cover the 
earth about the Bteins with bay, long manure or 
litter of some kind to the depth of a few inches. 
(2). It Is hard to say why the elms died. In 
some respect or other they were not treated alike 
—perhaps at the nursery. Knowing nothing of 
this, we could not make a trustworthy answer. 
•/■ (}. IV., Genoa, Cayuga Co., N. 15—Hav¬ 
ing read an article in the Rural describing the 
merits of Jerry and Topper, and having a desiro 
to purchase a thoroughbred Pointer or Setter, I 
thought perhaps you would take an interest iu 
