1887 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
ing, and piled her bundles on the table, but 
did not take off her lint and gloves until she 
had freed her mind of a weight something in 
her morning’s experience had put upon it. 
“ I met Old Mrs. Kay this morning” mother 
began, in the energetic tone we know with 
her meant action, “and she told me she has 
not been in the country for five years. Be¬ 
fore that she lived in the country, and she said 
she longed so for a sight of the fields, and the 
smells that come from the growing crops and 
the orchards. I could not bring her out with 
me Ibis morning because the buggy was full, 
but I’m going to give her a sight of the coun¬ 
try and I’m ashamed of myself that I never 
thought of it before,” And mother looked 
from one to the other of us, with such an air of 
determination that Nell said “Mother is 
ready to do battle w ith every one of us if we 
dare make any excuse for her not having 
opened an old ladies’ resort here, aud kept it 
full all summer.” Mother laughed at this, 
and took off her hat and gloves and left us 
without speaking any further of the subject. 
But at dinner time she repeated to father her 
talk wifch Mrs. Kay, and added that she bad 
been thinking of other old people who did not 
often get away from home, and asked why we 
could not give an old folks’ party. After 
some joking and nonsense from us girls, moth¬ 
er’s plan was adopted enthusiastically by all. 
A list of the friends to be invited was made 
out, anti the day set for them to come. 
The invitations were given only three days 
in advance, ami accepted by all conditionally; 
for weather and ill-health often control the 
plans of men and women who have passed the 
prime of their strength. For this reason we 
hoped eagerly for a pleasant day, and made 
every preparation for the comfort of onr 
visitors, that we could think of. Both Aunt 
Helen and Aunt Esther loaned us easy-chairs, 
and we planned to have a tiro in the sitting- 
room if the day should be cool, as summer 
days sometimes are, oven in our usually hot 
July and August. 
The dinner would be altogether country 
fare—fried chicken, all the vegetables in 
season, apple-sauce and custard and apple 
pie*. Jennie and the little boys, at mother’s 
suggestion, practiced on a little programme 
of recitations. Robbie's was, “The Owl 
Critic,” and ho would say the oft repeated 
line, “And the barber kept on shaving,” with 
such a tone of mysterious wisdom wet-bought 
it irresistibly funny. Freddie practiced Long¬ 
fellow's poem called, “The Children’s Hour," 
until be recited very nicely. Jennie had 
learned Will Carleton’s companion poems 
“Betsey and I areOut,"and “How Betsey and 
I Made Up.” We had to coax her for a 
while before she would consent to recite 
them, but after her promise was given, she 
prepared to do her best, ami at all hours of 
the day, she and the boys would disappear in 
the direction of the barn or the woods and a 
listner would have heard them going over and 
over their selections. Our preparations went 
on successfully until Wednesday evening, the 
coinpauy was to come to dinner on Thursday. 
About four o’clock on Wednesday, father 
came into the house with a troubled look, and 
asked if wo wore going to be very busy the 
next morning. “Of course we are.” Gertie 
answered in an almost injured tone. But 
mother came to the point at once, asking: 
“What do you want done l We will do it, if 
wo can.” “I find the tomatoes in the held 
patch are decaying badly, and 1 can spare a 
man to gather them to-day if you could can 
them, but if you can't wo will manage to 
gather thorn on Friday, uud you can take care 
of the good ones then.” 
We knew mother had plauned other work 
for Friday, so Gertie’s suggestion that wo 
should do the work right away was seconded 
heartily. Nell and the little boys offered to 
help gather the tomatoes, aud the cans were 
washed, water put on for the scalding, and 
jars sot in readiness for the seeds by the rest 
of us. 
The tomatoes were of a now and line varie¬ 
ty, aud the seeds were all to bo saved, and 
the rest of the tomato to be canned. This 
made the work more tedious, and the work of 
gathering more troublesome, because tho 
seeds in the decayed tomatoes were as good as 
those in the fresh ones, so they must be gath¬ 
ered too. A rule that we scarcely ever trans¬ 
gressed forbade kitchen work or housework 
in tho afternoon or evening, "if you work 
while you work you can have the afternoons 
for sewing and work of that kind,” Mother 
would say, and we gladly followed the rule. 
But on this day we laid it- aside aud were 
busy us beavers until nine o’clock, our bed¬ 
time, but we saved the tomatoes and the seeds 
for Father. 
Tho next morning Nell cleaned the rooms 
and Jennie and the boys decorated the house 
with (lowers while the rest of us finished pre¬ 
parations for dinner. Father came in, just 
before he started to town for our guests, to 
see how our work progressed. After a gener¬ 
al survey he said: “Wo couldn’t afford to do 
this if wo had to buy everything. The oppor¬ 
tunities for hospitality country life gives is 
one of its blessings. Don’t you think so, 
mother?” “I’ve always said so,” she answered 
from her post by tho steaming pots,on tho 
stove, “and tho chaneo 1 have to send baskets 
of fruits and (lowers to friends who are sick 
or don’t have them does me more good than 
all the rest that we keep for ourselves.” 
“Don’t drive too fast,” she called after him 
as he went toward tho carriage. “Mrs. Kay, 
for one, ha-s not been behind a team for a 
good while and she may be nervous.” 
A SOCIAL CHAT. 
I found out the other day that the grease 
one skims from chickens when cooking makes 
excellent shortening. I was going to have 
chicken pot-pie, and when I skimmed off the 
grease it smelt so rich and sweet that, 1 cooled 
it aud used it for shortening in the crust, and 
all pronounced it equal to butter. I also 
fried some fresh fish in some, and it bi’owned 
it much better than lard, and tasted better, 
too. 
I have so litt!e sickness in my family that 
T seldom think of dishes for the sick, but the 
other day one of tny daughters had neuralgia 
very bad and lost her appetite. I fixed her 
some cracker pap, which she relished very 
much. 1 put a half pint of milk over to boil: 
while it was heating I spread three or four 
soda crackers with butter, added a small 
pinch of salt to the milk, broke the crackers 
into it, stirring them around with a fork till 
they were soft, then served them. 
Dropped egg is another relish. Have your 
water boiling, add to it a little vinegar and 
salt. Break your egg aud drop it iu care¬ 
fully, after a minute or so loosen it from the 
bottom of the pan with a thin, broad-bladed 
knife, let it cook till the white is well set, then 
take it up with a Hat skimmer and serve on a 
small piece of water toast, buttered. 
If “ Maggie” will use a raw potato to clean 
knives with she will be pleased with the re- 
su t. Cut the end off the potato, then dip it 
iu Bath brick dust, emery or fine irou filings, 
rub tho knives hard with it, theu polish off 
with a dry cork. This gives a beautiful pol¬ 
ish uud it stays bright longer than when lem¬ 
on is used. 
This has been a trying season for flowers, 
as a general thing. The early spring was 
so very dry that everything was parched up. 
I lost many of my liuest pansies then, though 
I watered them daily. Then came such a long 
wet spell that what was not burnt up rotted. 
The pansies which outlived the drought suc¬ 
cumbed to the prolonged moisture, so if 1 am 
to enjoy auy of those beautiful flowers it will 
be from a few plants I have set out for late 
fall blooming. I had a very thrifty clump of 
carnation poppies, but they all died during 
the wet weather. Verbenas have very heavy 
foliage, but few flowers; but I have some 
bright spots, where dwarf nasturtiums are 
radiant with their many-lmed blossoms, und 
the air around is laden with the spicy per¬ 
fume. 
I have hud a Night-blooming Cereus bloom 
too, and its strangely beautiful flowers fully 
repaid me for the cure I bestowed upon the 
plant, which I lmd raised from a small leaf 
given me four years ago. My begonias, of 
which I have 12 varieties, have thriven well 
the whole season, and are well worth seeing. 
Guo largo B. Rubra has been in constant 
bloom for 19 months, and is now loaded with 
its large, brilliant clusters of flowers. 
AUNT EM. 
CUCUMBER PICKLES. 
Ben. Perley Poore’s Recipe: “To each hun¬ 
dred of cucumbuis put a piut. of salt, and 
pour on boiling water sufficient to cover the 
whole. Cover them tightly to prevent the 
steam from escaping, uud in this condition let 
them stand 24 hours. They are then to be 
taken out, and after being wiped perfectly 
dry, eare being taken that the skin is not 
broken, placed in the jar in which they are to 
be kept. Boiliug \ inegar (if spice is to be used 
it should be boiled with the \ iuegur), is theu 
to be put to them, the jar closed tight, aud in 
a fortnight delicious, hard pickles are pro¬ 
duced, as green as tho day they were upon 
the vines." 
The above is the best and easiest way of 
making cucumber pickles, that I have ever 
tried. Mine, however, were somewhat dis¬ 
colored, probably by the spices , I used cloves, 
onion, mustard seed and red peppers; two 
or three peppers, and perhaps a handful each 
of tho other, to a hundred pickles), but the 
flavor was excellent A broken saucer, 
weighted down by a small stooe, was put on 
to keep them under the vinegar. For a jar 
with a large top, a plate is better. If the vine¬ 
gar is of tho proper strength no scum ever 
gathers on top and the pickhs will lx? as nice 
tho following spring as when.first made. 
If the hundred is not secured for pickling at 
any one time, less may be made by observing 
the proper proportion of salt, and using an¬ 
other jar for scalding with the vinegar, then 
after they are cold removing them, each time, 
to tho keeping jar. This is the way I 
manage. 
PICKLED BLACKBERRIES. 
I think this recipe was originally taken 
from the “Household.” It is especially to be re¬ 
commended because so simple—no after pour¬ 
ing off and scalding over, as in most cf the 
recipes. Five quarts blackberries, two 
pounds sugar, one-half pint of vinegar and 
one tablespoonful each of ungronnd cinnamon 
and cloves. Put all together, eooktill the ber¬ 
ries are done,drain well to separate them from 
the juice, putting the berries in the jar iu 
which they are to be kept; then boil the juice 
three-quarters of an hour, and pour it. over 
the berries, stirriug gently to mix. When 
cool put on a light weight to keep the berries 
under, ns a plate or saucer, cover the jar close 
and keep in a cool, dry place, 
MRS. R.’S PICKLED CRAB APPLES. 
Twelve pounds of crab apples, four pounds 
of sugar, one-half pint of vinegar, one cup of 
water, and one tablespoonful each of cinna¬ 
mon and cloves. Make a sirup of vinegar, 
sugar aud water, add spices, and when it boils 
cook the apples iu it, a few at a time, till 
tender, first pricking them with a fork to par¬ 
tially prevent bursting. When all are cooked 
and in the jar, pour the sirup over them. 
Keep closely covered in a cool, dry place. 
I think them better if a pound or two more 
sugar with a little more vinegar and water, 
be used, as there should be enough sirup to 
well cover the fruit, and rich enough to 
“keep.” GLADDYS WAYNE. 
A FARMER’S WIFE WHO DOESN’T BE¬ 
LIEVE IN A PORK, POTATO AND 
WATER DIET. 
I don't see why anybody shouldn’t have 
just as good a diuucr as Bessie Brown writes 
about. Trout streams do not abound on every 
farm, but lots of other good things do, or 
should. 1 don’t see what folks live on a farm 
for if not to have every good thing that grows 
out of the soil. We have 18 kinds of vege¬ 
tables in our garden, not counting potatoes 
and turnips (some of them are from the 
Rural’s seeds, too). Salt pork and potatoes, 
indeed! Where are the chickens aud eggs? I 
wonder what kind of a man Eunice Webster 
has fora husband! “Three extra men folks” 
and the mother must go out aud “milk night 
and morning,” aud yet she cannot have all 
the cream and milk she wants. As for the 
children, no wonder they are “sickly” if they 
have to live on suit pork and potatoes, Now 
we are far from well off, but if I couldn’t 
have all the milk, cream and best of butter 
and cheese, of my own making,that I wanted, 
there would be a lime. Eunice Webster, you 
better believe. Any one living on a farm 
should have plenty of good things to eat if 
nothing more (they don't, though, I And). 
a worker on the farm. 
BATTER BREAD. 
Now that the season for Johnny-cake is 
here, perhaps the Rural houskeepers would 
like to try this recipe for batter bread. I 
like this kind of cake better than our butter¬ 
milk Johny-cake which 1 always thought was 
nice. When this is properly made it will be 
light and delicate. Let Aunt Betty try it. 
One quart of boiling milk, one scant table- 
spoonful of lard and a little salt; pour grad¬ 
ually upon one pint of white corn-meal, stir¬ 
ring well to keep it from becoming lumpy. 
Cool sufficiently to prevent cooking the eggv, 
then add the beaten yelks of six. Beat whites 
stiff and add last. Bake 20 minutes in a quick 
oven. m. 
Pic.rcUanrou.o' ^(Ucvtisinii 
You May Remove 
Those unsightly Blotches, Pimples, and 
Sores by a faithful and persistent use of 
Ayer’s Sarsaparilla, the best and most 
reliable Alterative and Blood-purifier 
ever discovered. ** I was troubled, 
for a long time, with a humor, which 
appeared on my face in 
UGLY PIMPLES 
and blotches. Ayer's Sarsaparilla cured 
me. — Charles II. Smith, North Crafts- 
bury, Vt. 
“Until recently,’’ writes Alice E. 
Charles, of Bath, Me., “my face has 
been covered with pimples ever since I 
was fifteen years old. 1 took four 
bottles of Ayer's Sarsaparilla, and my 
skin became ;is fair as could be desired.” 
Ayer’s Sarsaparilla, 
Prepared by Pr. .T. 0 . Ayer & Co., I.owell, Mass. 
Price $ l; six bottleB, $ 6 . Worth a bottle. 
BROWN'S FRENCH DRESSING. 
The Origin).I. Beware »t Imitations. 
AWARDED HIGHEST PRIZE AND ONLY 
MEDAL, PARiS EXPOSITION, 1878 
Highest Award New Orleans Exposition. 
FLrFeCtep OXy&ch 
Entirely Different. Greatest Improvement. 
Its success is unprecedented. Gained greater 
popularity at home in three months, without ad¬ 
vertising, than all other Oxygen Treatments 
combined aftor twenty years of advertising. For 
Cnnsumption, Catarrh, Hay Fever, Asthma, 
Throat Troubles, Dyspepsia, Rheumatism, Ner¬ 
vous Prostration and General Debility. Purifies 
and Enriches the Blood. Home Treatment 
shipped all over the world. Interesting letter* 
from prominent patients showing its great su¬ 
periority, and Treatise Free by Mail. 
Walter c. browning, m. d., 
1235 Arch Street, . PHILADELPHIA. PA 
BOLT MEDAL, PARIS, 1878. 
BAKER'S 
Warranted absolutely pure 
Cocoa, from which the excess of 
Oil has been removed. It has 
times the strength of Cocoa mixed 
with Starch, Arrowroot orSugai, 
and la therefore far more economl 
ca costing teas than one cent a 
ckjl It la delicious, nourishing, 
strengthening, easily digested, and 
admirably adapted for Invalids *• 
well as for persons in health. 
Sold by Grocers eve rywhere. 
BAKER & CO., Dorchester, Hass. 
BLACKSMITHING on the FARM 
time atrl Ulotiuy using Holt’* celebrated 
F0R6E and KIT of TOOLS VoT S2Q 
Larger Size. *25. Single Forge, *10. 
IUackK.nlLhV Tools, Ilunil Drills, Ac. 
HOLT MFC. CQ., ,V2“ulral Clewlnsil, 0 , 
THE LIGHTNING HITCH 
Isun invent ion by which a horse 
can ho bitched and unhitch' it 
t" and fi'-m a canruige almost 
INSTANTLY. Laeilyand 
t hen ply .\<ljiinreite>u»vi'' 
of It i r«wi, doing„ ay with long 
traces, brer.-h straps, fastening and unfastening of 
buckles; pullsfn.tn whitlletTer St,, ■ runple./j/aay« 
fit*. Comfortable to the horeo, Thoumc't, m Suit* on 
tight. Agents wanted overywher.- Send for circular. 
Address The LUtHTM.AU II ITU it til)., York, la. 
AGENTS %£££ 
and farmer* with no experience make #‘2.50 an 
hotirduririgsparetime. J V. Kenyon.(Hens Falls, 
N. Y., made s|H one day, Stli.JO one week. 
So can you. Proofs und cat a log ue free. 
J. E. Shkcaku A Co., Cincinnati, O. 
PURE MILK. 
WARREN 
MILK BOTTLES 
Patou tod March 23d, 1880. 
Adapted for the Delivery 
f .Ylllkln utilities 
and Town*. 
A LONG-NEEDED WANT 
AT LAST SUPPLIED. 
A. V. WHIT KMT AY, 
73 Hurray St., SEW SOUK. 
<I»|“ to #,S a day. Samples worth *1.50. KKEE. 
•DuJ Lines not under the horse's feet. Write 
Brewster Safety Hein Holder Co.. Uollv.Mioh 
fifin Scr *l > Pictures, Gamas, Sc., and book of Sample 
o'Uveards only i ets, star Card Co., Station 15, Ohio. 
ESTABLISHED JAN. 1st, I860. 
PATENT WATER PROOFED 
FAY S MANILLA 
ROOMING. 
WATER PROOF, . 
Ill IAP 
fcTKOXG f¥H I LI1 r nuur ! method 
with Lj tho l:d>or of anj other l nliJs*? any ofhor roof. 
No runt or rattle* An Keanonsicul tind IM KAIU.K 
KVU.hTITI TK Tor l‘L.VNTKK Oil walla. Ornament ul 
C'Alil'KTS ami Kl OH of miuio material, ohoiiper and 
bi-tirr than Oil Cloth*. Qr/ p Csuxloicu*> ami *niaipioN Free. 
W. H. F AY&CO.camden, n.j. 
ST. LOt 1 IS. MINNEAPOLIS. OMAHA. 
'A Beautiful Plush Casket 
Vino dewdrjr frrr tn *v*ry 
^ Injf our c.»rvt«. 8*tu( Vt\ i nr lively Stxf Sam¬ 
ples and Outfit. £i. K. t’A ICO t 0. t W nUlujf ford, Coituu 
Patented DIPUUnNn 
Nov. 24, 1885 . nlOnMUriU 
CHAMPION 
UJJ**'*-** 
FENCE 
MACHINE 
Surpasses all other wire and picket fence machines, 
ror making strong and dnmnle fences In the Held, 
that no stock will break down. <in rough, hilly 
ground. It keeps picket,, perpendicular, which no 
other machine will do without constant adjustment. 
It Ls easy to hmuttiv, uses any kind of pickets, and 
any size of wtn> write for circular and price. 
WAYNfc AGRICULTURAL CO., Richmond, Ini 
W’ANTKI) reliable, energetic man to take orders 
for Trees, shrubs and Vines. 1 >. H. P ATTY. 
Nurseryman, Geneva, N. Y. 
