800 
DEC. M 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
foracstu (gnraomj, 
CO JTDUOTED 3Y EMILY MAPiE 
MOP-HANDLE PAPERS.-No. 9. 
MAY MAPLE. 
House-work Contrasted In Two Nice Frontior 
Cottages. 
“How I dread the Saturday's work!” said 
Mrs. Nice, ae the family gathered abont the 
break List-table one morning in the early, golden 
October. The breakfast-room was also kitchen 
and parlor; for this little home of which I write, 
was only alog cottage in the " Far West," where 
wore many others just as good but no better, 
and some that were Jess comfortable. 
When Mrs. Nice first entered the little log 
cabin tea yearB previously, it was as a bride. 
And although the surroundings outside the little 
cabin home, were wild in the extreme, her new 
furniture and extreme neatness made the inside 
of the house look delightfully home-like and 
inviting But ten years had brought some 
changes. Outside might now be seen a large 
“ clearing," cultivated fields, a large barn, a 
thrifty orchard, a well tilled garden, where grew 
the finest vegetables and most brilliant bued 
flowers, sod, last but by no means least, a 
good shed for farming tools, of which there was 
no lack. Prosperity and good management were 
everywhere to be Been. 
Indoors, neatness was as much the order of 
the day as ever Although there were four 
children to moke work, the delicato-Iooking 
mother managed to do it all with her own hands. 
And Saturday of every week, year in and yoar 
out, was her 41 cleaning” day The room had 
been ceiled with well planed boards when the 
house was built. So all the wall was thoroughly 
washed with a cloth, instead of a good scrub¬ 
bing-brush, which would have made the work 
much easier. The ohairs whioh lost their paint 
before they had been used two years, from an 
excess of washing, must now be sooured with 
soap, sand and plenty of hot water. Beuohes, 
boxes, cupboards and bedsteads must all go 
through the same toilsome process. All day 
long did the fragile-looking woman labor to 
make her bird’s-nest of a cottage look invitingly 
olean and sweet. When the weather was fine, 
every article of furniture that she could handle 
alone—for she never called her husband from 
his work to assist her—was owned out-of-doors 
to be cleansed, and then, while the pieces were 
drying, she sorubbed the floor with an old 
broom, and then poured on water to rinse it, 
till not a pirtlolo or dirt dared make its appear¬ 
ance to discolor the clear spring water. And 
every board was rubbed and wiped with a long- 
handled, woolen tnop, till it was as dry as cloth 
c mM make it. Supper was often spread out- 
of-do >ra beneath the shady apple tree that 
stoo 1 a few steps from the house. Before the 
little woman retired, everything was again in 
the most porfeot order. Flowers adorned the 
tabit >3 and window seats and added their fra- 
gr/.uce to the fresh, sweet, pine odors. It was 
amu >ing to see how exceedingly oareful father 
and children were to keep mamma’s 41 Sunday 
parlor” clean. 
It was a bright morning after one of these 
toilsome Saturdays, when Mr. Nice said to his 
wife: “Jessie, I think we can go over to cousin 
Johu’s to-day- May will want to see how they 
are prospering before she returns home, and the 
ride and the sight of fresh fields will do you 
good after your hard work of yesterday.” 
In new countries churches are scarce, and 
mini suns capable of interesting an intelligent 
aud; ace, are few and far between; meetings 
arc therefore held only semi-occasionally. And 
thuH the inhabitants take the day for oaliing on 
their far-off friends. Just after dinner, Mr. 
Nice drove np to the gate with a handsome span 
of h ;rsea and a light spring-wagon, and we all 
found comfortable seats and were soon speeding 
ovor the ground through a delightful part of 
the country. An hour later and wo found our- 
gelv .,.1 pleasantly seated in Cousin John’s enug 
little cabin. We noticed, before entering the 
hou: 3 , that thrift and prosperity were every¬ 
where visible here as well as at the home of 
Mr. . Nice, and within the four square walls 
comforts, and even luxuries, comparatively 
speaking, were not absent. The two families 
wero alike in size, had the same amount of 
capital to begin life with, and had managed to 
increase it about equally as far as improvements 
were concerned. Even the house-furnishings 
had originally been of the same kind and quan¬ 
tity. So, if the two cabins had been erected m 
the same neighborhood, they might have been 
called “The Twiu Cottages.” But now there 
was a marked contrast indoors. 
“Yon see," said Mrs. Nice, “that Laura 
takes her oomforts as she goes along through 
life, and sometimes I think she may be the 
wiser. But I never could endure the thought 
of living in a log house year after year. And 
so I scrimp and save in every way possible, that 
we may have our new house by the time we 
have seen the twelfth anniversary of our 
weduing-diy." 
“ Well, May, yon know when we all went to 
school together, that my motto was to ‘ make 
the most of life while I have youth and health ; 
and to keep my health I must economize my 
strength. Now, I’tl leave it to you to decide 
which is most likely to enjoy the oomforts of a 
new house when she gets it. I have all the 
maohinerv I can get to help abont my work. 
Iaatead of wearing myself ont as Jessie does, 
scouring wood-work and furniture, I give the 
whole a fresh coat of paint and varnish about 
once a year; thus keeping my fnrnitore aew- 
looking all the time, at the trifling expense of 
two dollars. My walls are papered as often as 
necessary to keep them tidy. My floors above 
and below are carpeted; so that my work is 
no harder on Saturday than on any other day. 
And I very seldom feel over-worked, thongh 
I often assist John when help is scarce upon 
the farm, in doing light work, Buch as hnsking 
corn, picking apples, etc. We have plenty of 
books and papers wherewith to feast and culti¬ 
vate the mind, some nice engravings, as you 
will sec, to please the eye; and an organ which 
is a real comfort to us all. Johnny snd Elsie, 
our two oldest, aged respectively nine and peven, 
can play a number of Sabbath-school tunes very 
well. We all have perfect health and are as 
happy ar laiks from week’s end to week's ODd 
Now, May, what doe- it matter whether we have 
a new house in two years or in five ?” 
And sure enough, what did it matter ? Health 
and happiness!—would a palace bring greater 
blessings ? 
-♦ » » . — . 
HOLIDAY RECIPES. 
Wafers. 
Melt a quarter of a pound of butter and mix 
it with half a pint of milk, a teaspoonful of Balt, 
a wine-glass of wine, three beaten eggs and suf¬ 
ficient sifted flour to enable you to roll them out 
easily. They should be rolled very thia, cut in¬ 
to small cironlar cakes, and baked iu an oven of 
moderate heat. Frost the whole and sprinkle 
sugar sand or comfits over it as soon as frosted. 
Cocoanut Drops. 
Tske equal weights of cocoanut grated and 
white sugar, care must be taken not to giate 
any of the brown part of the nut. Beat the 
whiles of eggs to a stiff froth—there should be 
just enough to moiBten the Hugar and ooooa- 
nut, so that they will be quite stiff. Drop the 
mixture ou to buttered plates. Make the drops 
the size of a cent, and several inches apart, and 
bake them in a moderate oven. 
Flummery. 
Lay sponge cake in a deep dish, pour on white 
wine to moisten it; chop some raisins fine and 
spriDklo over the cake; then spread over it a 
layer of jelly and turn over it a custard made 
with the yolks of eggB. Beat the reserved 
whites to a froth and spread over the top. Put 
a daph of red sugar sand here and there over it 
or tiny drops of jelly. Shoes of orangeB, out 
very thin, make a good garnish for it. 
Loretta E. K. Turner. 
-*-*-•- 
DOMESTIC RECIPES. 
Carrots for Dinner. 
WaBh, scrape, let lie in cold water for an 
hour or more; then boil until tender; drain, 
mash, season with a good-sized piece of butter, 
pepper and salt and serve very hot. e. w. 
Ginger Cookies, 
One cup of molasses, one oup of sugar, one 
oup of butter or lard, three eggs, two teaspoon- 
fulB of saleratus, dissolved in a little hot water, 
five cups of flour, one tablespoonful of giuger, 
mixed with the molasses. 
Brown Bread. 
Two cups of Graham flour, three oups of In¬ 
dian meal, one half oup of molasses, three cups 
of milk, one teaspoonful of soda and one of 
salt. Steam three hours. 
White Cake. 
Whites of three eggs beaten to a froth, on6- 
h&lf cup of butter, one oup of sugar, two-thirdB 
cup of miik, two cups of flour, two teaspoon- 
fuls of baking powder. Mrs. M. Aldrich. 
Vegetable Oysters or Salsify Fritters. 
Make a thick batter of two or three eggs, a 
oup of sweet milk, flour, peppor and salt. Wash, 
Bcrape and grate the roots into this batter, grat¬ 
ing enough to make the mixture of the same 
thickuesfl as any other raw fritters, and drop 
by the spoonful into boiling fat. Mary B. 
Apples and Bacon. 
Cut some nice sweet bacon into thin shoes and 
fry almost to a crispness. Haye prepared some 
greenings, pared, neared and sliced, and fry in 
the fat left in the pan from the baoon. The ba¬ 
con should be kept hot until the apples are ready, 
when they should be taken and placed upon the 
slices of meat. Mrs. W. 
Texas. _ 
Salt-Rheum. 
To those who Buffer from this worrying com¬ 
plaint, I would recommend rubbing the parts 
often with raw mutton fat, just warmed enough 
to spread smoothly on, as you would any other 
ointment. 
Useful Pomade. 
Four ouLoes of lard; one dram of palm oil; 
one drain essence of bergamot; one ounce of 
castor oil. Put the ingredients into a jar, and 
immerse in hot water until diBBolved. 
Sweet Crackers. 
One 'pound of flour: one-half pound butter 
well rubbed in; one-half pound powdered sugar; 
mix with the yelk of one egg, well beaten and a 
glass of sweet wine ; roll out the paste very thin, 
and out out in any small shape yon please. 
Mrs. M. Randall. 
Indigo. 
Here is a good recipe for indigo : two oz. ox¬ 
alic acid ; one oz. Prussian blue pulverized, and 
add one'qnari of soft water. Mix well and bot¬ 
tle for use. h. o. s. 
■ -♦» »- 
QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 
Celery Soup. 
Please give directions for a celery soup ? 
Livingston Co., N. Y. e. z. 
Ans —Scrape and out into small pieces two 
bunches of celery, using the best parts only; 
add two quarts of good soup-stock with an 
onion cut into slices and stew gently until the 
celery is tender; put through a colander, sea¬ 
son with pepper and sal and return to the fire; 
boil up, add a coffee-cupful of boiliug milk 
thickened with a little corn-starch or flour, and 
turn at once into the tureen, A trifle of sugar 
is thought by many an improvement, while a 
few bits of fried bread put into the tureen 
before pouring in the soup are a nice addition. 
Queen’s Toast. 
I have heard of queen’s toast, but do not know 
how it is prepared. Will you give me the de¬ 
sired information ? housekeeper. 
Dayton, Ohio. 
Ans. —Cut thick slices of baker’s bread into 
rounds or squares and fry to a nice brown in 
butter or lard. Dip eaoh piece quickly into 
boiling water, sprinkle with powdered sugar and 
cinnamon and pile one upon the other. Serve 
with a sauce made of powdered sugar dissolved 
in the juice of a lemon and thinned with a 
glass of wine. 
gUtos of tjjf SEftlt, 
Monday, Dec. 9 th, 1878. 
THAT DAIRY FAIR. 
The Dairy Fair closed on Saturday last at 10 
f. m. aud the general verdict seems to be that It 
was a success. Of the thousands who visited It 
during the week many must have objected to 
Its being held at a place a trifle remote Irom the 
quarter of the city which experience has shown 
to be the most popular and profitable for theat¬ 
rical and similar displays, and doubtless not a 
few who would otherwise have attended It, re¬ 
mained away on this account; but once Inside, 
the visttor must have felt the admirable nature 
of at least one point connected with It—the fit¬ 
ness for such displays of the building In which It 
was held. In size and construction It resem¬ 
bled not a little station at some railroad center. 
Running round the sides was a broad elevated 
platform, devoted mainly to petty side-shows 
and commanding a good view of the long rows of 
pine tables, laden with butter tubs on one side 
of the central walk and with cheeses of all shapes 
and sizes on the other. Tho center of the area 
was occupied by a fountain, to the north of which 
towered aloft pyramids of cheese and salt, while 
on the soulh rose a ralled-ln permanent platform 
graced with an organ at one end and fronted on 
the other with semi-circular towb of chairs oc¬ 
cupied most of the time with visitors listening 
to the strains of a brass band from the platform, 
or t he peals of the organ, or in the evenings look¬ 
ing at some speaker trying in vain to make his 
voice heard amid the trampling of feet aud tne 
buz of couversation from all other parts of the 
vast building. 
Among these Inaudible speakers during the 
week, the Management contrived to secure a lew 
“stars,” most notable of whom was Ben Butler. 
The bulk or them, however, belonged to the reli¬ 
able old stock company, most or whom play the 
same parts on the stage of nearly every prominent 
meeting of dairymen throughout the country, 
buch meetings, Indeed, would probably bo consid¬ 
erably fewer were it not for tb e labors and Influ¬ 
ence of these gentlemen, most of whom wish to 
advertise their wares or themselves under tho 
guise of helping alcng the dairyman's cause. 
Ex-Gov. beytnour, of course, was there, bland, 
and wise and voluble, as usual. Instead, how¬ 
ever, of instructing tho dairymen of tho Union on 
matters connected with their business, he en¬ 
lightened the Gothamites with regard to the vast 
extent, the rapid Increase aud the admirable 
workings of the dairy system. He spoke warmly 
of the Intelligence, the attainments, the close ob¬ 
servation, the constant study, the knowledge of 
business routine and tno necessary honesty of 
those engaged in the business. Ho explained the 
system followed at factories, or which tnere are 
more than 8,000 In the country, delated upon the 
methods of making sales of cheese, the rivalry In 
the excellence of their products between the dif¬ 
ferent factories, and the vast opportunities lor 
still greater spread of the business here, and of 
its products both at home and abroad. So highly 
did he value the dairy Interest of the country 
that he declared that If all the bankB in New 
York failed, their failure would not inflict so great 
a loss on the nation as the failure of dairying for 
a slugle year, and so exalted was his estimate of 
the intelligence of dairymen, that when he be¬ 
came well acquainted with them, he actually 
burnt aB worthless what must have beeD, In his 
opinion, the embodiment of farming wisdom—bis 
own agricultural speeches. He Insisted on the 
necessity of making the value of cheese as a food 
better known among our own people and conse¬ 
quently more popular, thus supplying the public 
with a cheap, nutritive and healthy article of 
diet and the dairy interest with an enlarged 
home-market. He pointed out'that while tho 
wholesale price of good cheese Is now about nine 
cents a pound, It. retails for double that sum, as 
so little of It Is sold here that dealers must charge 
a heavy percentage. Tf the sales were larger, 
the price would be much lower. He dwelt on the 
proud fact that the returning prosperity of the 
country Is due mainly. If not entirely, to the re¬ 
sults of agricultural labor, and that the earth, 
its tillers and Its products must ever be the 
foundation of abundance and prosperity. 
Gen. Butler made a strong plea for small farms 
and better cultivation; Insisted that our In¬ 
herited greed for land, and more land, should be 
cbeoked, that It would be an evil day for this 
country should the huge estates and tho poverty- 
stricken peasantry of some Enropean lands ever 
become common here, and that small farms well- 
cared for, were bettor both for the Individual and 
the nation at large, as large estates In this coun¬ 
try are seldom permanently profitable. Large 
farms mean usually insufficient tillage, small 
productiveness, and unprofitable farming. In 
support of bis views he dwelt at, length upon tbe 
agriculture of France where the cultivated land 
Is so subdivided that out of s.MO.OOO distinct 
properties, only & 0.000 averaged 600 acres, 600,000 
averaged 60 acres, while five million properties 
are under six acres, yet la 1876 France exported 
to England of butter alone $t8,672,ooo worth; 
while wn exported only ?2,9C5,non worth of butter, 
and $12,824,000 of cheese, or an aggregate of $15,- 
T6»,ooo. Moreover, although the area of France 
Is considerably less than that of Texas, and Its 
population 10 , 000,000 less than that of t he United 
Slates, still she produced In 1868,250 million bush¬ 
els of wheat against 240 millions produced here 
and other cereal crops In proportion. The General 
went at length Into statistics of the marvelous 
results of careful tillage of small farms In that 
country, but while his reasoning was excellent 
as to the good results or thorough cultivation, lew 
will see me necessity or desirability on that ac¬ 
count or limiting their farms to a cabbage patch 
of half-a-dozen acres. 
Professor Arnold gave a very Instructive ad¬ 
dress In his customary style, Mr. Thurber, of this 
city, gave an Interesting account of the kinds of 
cheese made and wanted In Europe; so did Mr. 
John P. Warrington, of Liverpool. Mr. Erastus 
Brooks gave a lot of statistics cribbed from gov¬ 
ernment reports, Mr. X. A. Willard, spoke pithily 
and learnedly us he usually does on such occa¬ 
sions. Francis D. Moulton closed the list of 
orators on Saturday night. He effusively 
thanked every body connected with the fair 
for their efforts in contributing to Its success. 
He was sure that good cheese is necesssaiy 
to the health, happiness aud longevity of man¬ 
kind; and therefore should appear far ottener 
on American tables. Foreigners, too, must but¬ 
ter their bread much thicker and of toner so as to 
afford our dairymen a profitable market for 
many times the amount of butter exported at 
present. He went largely Into statisles for which 
he bad, himself, to refer to paper and which 
therefore bo could hardly have expected the few 
who could hear him, to remember. Ho urged 
that dairymen and farmers generally should see 
to It, that men wore elected to Congress and 
State legislatures, who would be more attentive 
to agricultural Interests than our present Solons. 
Herman. 
--- 
PUBLISHER’S NOTICES. 
Our readers are requested to read the following 
before making up their orders for seeds: 
Any ten of the following require a one-cent 
postage stamp: —that Is one cent for the ten, not 
for each. 
The Voorhis Water-mel¬ 
on. 
SolUen Rural Tomato. 
Acme Tomato. 
New Bronze Rlclnus. 
Hibiscus moscheutos. 
Calllcai pa Americana. 
Ouster's Lemon Holly 
bock. 
L- Weinola. 
Deufzla oronata fl, pi. 
Hibiscus tnllltarls. 
Bryngium Louvenworthil. 
Geranium sangulaeum. 
Yucca fllamentoaa. 
Vius beteropbylla. 
•- Rural hybrid Aquilegla. 
Grlnilella squarrosa. 
a two-cent extra stamp. 
When both Pearl Millet and Defiance Wheat 
are Included, a two-cent extra Btarnp. 
We request that our subscribers will write their 
addresses in full and plainly, and not- stick the 
stamps to their letters. By so doing they will save 
us a deal of trouble and expense. For particu¬ 
lars, send stamp for Rural of Nov. 9. 
For Rrnuclilul, Asthmatic and Pulmonary 
j complaints, 44 Brown's Bronchial Troches" mani¬ 
fest remarkable curatlvo properties. Like all 
other meritorious articles, they are frequently 
imitated, and those purchasing should be sure to 
obtain the genuine “Bronchial Troches.” 
.-• 
The Huron Live 8tock Association, at itB an¬ 
nual sale, to be held Feb. 12, 1879, iu the town 
of Exeter, Prov. Ontario, Canada, will offer a 
fine opportunity to breeders to dispose of their 
Burplua thoroughbred and imported stock. En¬ 
tries may be made as late as Jan. 1, '79. Details 
relating to terms of payment, etc., may be had 
by a reference to the advertisement. 
THE MARKETS. 
PRODUCE AND PRO VISION B. 
New York, Saturday, Deo. 7,1S78. 
Beans and Peas.—L ocal and other buyers seem 
to be pretty well stocked with ibe standard sorts of 
beans, and with tbe slack inquiry value* ore lower 
This reforstu medium# and marrows. White kidneys 
quiet wiib cheaper marrows. Red kidneys Ann with 
then- timely activity. Pea beans only saleable when 
strictly prime. Muny lots have the fault Or last 
season, mixture of dead and discolored beans. Black 
bean# fairly active. Green pea# In fair supply for 
