FROM DAY TO DAY. 
A convenient scrapbook for recipes, 
noted recently, was neatly made of 
light-colored smooth manilla paper, the 
pages being quite narrow. A cover of 
unbleached crash was embroidered in 
red silk with a conventional design and 
the words, “ Household Recipes.” The 
linen cover slipped over an interlining 
of pasteboard, and was tied like a 
portfolio with ribbon strings. 
* 
A round whisk broom, made of fine 
brcom corn, is a very convenient dish¬ 
washer, preferable in many ways to a 
dish-cloth. It is very readily washed 
and dried, and may be kept much sweeter 
and cleaner than a cloth. There is no 
surer test of a housekeeper’s cleanliness 
than the state of her dish-cloth and 
towels, and there is many a housekeeper, 
otherwise above reproach, whose be¬ 
longings in this line would not stand 
a critical examination. 
* 
In making skirts of washing materials, 
it is always wise to leave two inches 
extra to be turned under at the top. 
There is always the risk of shrinking in 
the washing, and it is far easier to let 
this down than to lengthen the skirt at 
the hem. All duck or linen should be 
shrunk before making up. Many of the 
readymade skirts are a sad disappoint¬ 
ment after washing, because they have 
gone through no shrinking process be¬ 
forehand. If a worsted braid is put on 
the bottom of such skirts, this should 
be shrunk in boiling water before put¬ 
ting on. In making the waists of wash¬ 
ing gowns, there should always be 
allowance for some shrinkage. For this 
reason, tight-fitting waists often lose 
their shape, drawing at the seams, and 
a yoke pattern, fitting snugly over the 
shoulders, but looser below, gives bet¬ 
ter satisfaction. 
* 
Many growing girls, especially those 
tall for their age, are inclined to stoop, 
and well-meaning persons often advo¬ 
cate the use of braces or shoulder straps 
as a means of correcting this. The 
braces may force an upright carriage, 
but they do not give the wearer any 
means of maintaining it, since they pre¬ 
vent the exercise of those muscles which 
should be trained to produce an erect 
figure. Any exercise which strengthens 
the muscles of back and shoulders, will 
aid in correcting this defect. Tennis, 
hand-ball, shuttlecock and battledore, 
or even a vigorous game with bean-bags, 
are all excellent for this purpose. Old- 
fashioned mothers used to drill their 
stooping daughters in walking with a 
plate carried on the head, and this is 
really a good practice. High pillows 
and very soft mattresses are blamed as 
an aid in producing this defect, and 
without doubt, a flat, rather hard bed 
with low pillow is preferable for grow¬ 
ing children. A stooping, awkward 
walk detracts so much from the appear¬ 
ance, that there is every reason to avoid 
it, apart from the bad effect it exercises 
on the physical condition. 
A KITCHEN CHAIR. 
T HE need of a comfortable chair in 
the kitchen is too apparent to 
require argument; but the housewife 
very rarely feels that she can sit down 
to her work of preparing apples, vege¬ 
tables, etc., because there is no chance 
to dispose of two or more pans, except 
in her lap. Fig. 222 shows one of the 
big basket-bottomed and basket-backed 
chairs that are found so commonly upon 
verandas. The narrow, flat arms are 
removed, and in their place are two 
broad boards, as shown, cast-iron or 
bronze brackets being used if necessary. 
This will give two broad arms or shelves, 
one on either side, on which pans and 
dishes may be placed for convenience in 
working, while the housekeeper is sit¬ 
ting down. A drawer may be arranged 
below the seat, as shown, which will 
hold many kitchen articles that should 
be conveniently at band, to save work. 
WEBB DONNELL. 
A SUNDAY DINNER. 
Baked Chicken 
Mashed Potatoes Baked Corn 
Cucumber Pickles 
Chocolate Pudding Cream Sauce 
Coffee. 
Baked Chicken. —After the feathers 
are removed—which should always be 
done as soon as the bird is killed, pull¬ 
ing the feathers toward the tail and not 
scalding to aid in their removal—if there 
are long hairs on the bird, hold care¬ 
fully over plain lighted paper. Never 
use newspapers for this work. When 
singed, brush with a damp cloth ; then 
draw the bird. Wash the inside with a 
cloth wet in cold water, and dry. For a 
bird weighing four pounds, prepare: 
Three cupfuls of bread crumbs, three 
tablespoonfuls of butter, one-half table¬ 
spoonful of salt, one-fourth teaspoonful 
of pepper, one stalk of celery, one small 
slice of onion. Mix well, chopping 
celery and onion very fine, lay lightly 
in the body and breast; do not pack it, 
as a soggy mass is the result. Sew up 
the openings, skewer into place, and if 
prepared the day before, set away in a 
cool place. When ready to bake, brush 
over with melted chicken fat, and dust 
with salt, pepper and flour, the fat keep¬ 
ing the seasoning in place. Lay thin 
slices of fat pork over the legs and 
breast, fastening with wooden tooth¬ 
picks. Do not put any water in the 
pan, but instead, some of the chicken 
fat or pork fat. Water cannot be 
brought to a higher temperature than 
the boiling point, 212 degrees F., and 
water in the pan with any roast, spoils 
the flavor, and makes it little better 
than a boil. Baste often. Cover liver, 
heart and gizzard with water at 180 
degrees F., and keep at that tempera¬ 
ture until tender. Make a gravy from 
part of the fat from the roasting pan, 
using one tablespoonful of fat to one of 
flour—which should be browned—and 
one pint of the water the giblets were 
cooked in ; add salt and pepper to taste, 
and the giblets cut up fine. Remove the 
skewers from the bird, and serve at 
once, serving the gravy in a dish by 
itself. 
Baked Corn. —Two cupfuls of corn, 
one-half cupful of milk, one-half tea¬ 
spoonful of salt, one-half tablespoonful 
of butter. Mix the ingredients in a bak¬ 
ing dish, cutting the butter into small 
pieces. If the corn is very dry, add more 
milk. Cook for 35 minutes. 
Chocolate Pudding. —One quart of 
milk, one-half cupful of sugar, one ounce 
of gelatine, two teaspoonfuls of vanilla, 
one-half cupful of grated chocolate. 
Heat the milk ; add one-half cupful of 
the hot milk to the chocolate, and cook 
until it is smooth, adding more milk if 
the chocolate thickens. Stir into the re¬ 
mainder of the milk, cover, and cook 20 
minutes. Dissolve the gelatine in one- 
half cupful of cold water. When the 
pudding has cooked as above directed, 
add the gelatine and sugar, and cook 
five minutes longer. Flavor, and strain 
into a fancy mold. Serve with a soft 
custard or sweetened cream. 
[PROF.] EDITH F. MCDERMOTT. 
Michigan Agricultural College. 
EVERY DAY WISDOM. 
T is well to wear a clean apron when 
ironing or making beds. The reason 
is plain to an observing person. 
If the oven become too hot while 
baking bread, and one wishes to put a 
paper over to protect it, this should be 
sprinkled with cold water so that it 
will not take fire and, also, be more 
effective. 
When using fly poison, have a little 
shelf put up outside, too high for little 
folks to reach, and take the nuisances 
before they get into the house. It 
sticky paper is used, nail a piece out¬ 
side close to the door. 
A 600 D way to clean windows is to 
use a tablespoonful of kerosene to a 
quart of tepid water. With a soft cloth 
squeezed as dry as possible, used to rub 
the glass and woodwork too, the effect 
is magical; a fine polish is obtained with 
less labor than in other ways. 
I think that some people distress 
themselves needlessly by trying to have 
an influence for good on others. If they 
are genuine and truly good, they cannot 
escape having an influence. It is the 
same with conscientious parents ; if the 
children see them doing right by others 
and are reproved when they commit 
little acts of lawlessness, they will take 
it into their own lives, and become all 
that could be desired, simply by being 
with their parents and unconsciously 
copying their virtues. A good life is 
worth far more than a moral training 
with the tongue. 
The fine taste of a friend was hurt one 
day by seeing some dwarfed, misshapen 
plants standing in a window. True, 
they did not appear to have been in¬ 
telligently cared for; dead leaves hung 
here and there, and some crooked 
branches should have been cut away ; 
still the fact that the hard-worked mis¬ 
tress of the house cared for flowers, was 
a very encouraging thought. Flowers 
cultivate the finer feelings, and I am 
sure that those unsightly plants will be 
in time, replaced by better specimens in 
more attractive pots. Far better to 
keep some common plants than to have 
none, and in a neglected door yard, it is 
pleasanter to see a few hollyhocks and 
marigolds growing than to see the entire 
space given up to thistles and mayweed. 
The least struggle after the beautiful is 
worth making, and adds something to 
the most barren life. aunt bachel 
RENOVATING STRAW HATS. 
A READER in Iowa asks whether a 
last year’s white straw hat can be 
renovated and cleaned for use again. A 
good deal depends on the condition of 
the hat. If it is only slightly soiled, it 
may be thoroughly brushed with a nail 
brush and dry corn meal, which will re¬ 
move a great deal of the dust. All the 
trimming should be taken off before 
the brushing and, when replaced, the 
hat will be quite fresh in appearance. 
If, however, the hat has had a good 
deal of wear, and is both soiled and sun¬ 
burned, it is likely to need washing and 
bleaching. The hat should be first well 
brushed, and the wire removed from the 
brim. Then scrub it well with a nail 
brush, in a suds made of lukewarm 
water and white soap. After this, it 
should be rinsed by dipping up and down 
in clear water. If there are any ob¬ 
stinate stains, which are not removed 
by the washing, they should be rubbed 
with lemon juice or diluted oxalic acid. 
This acid is very poisonous, so must be 
used with care. The hat is then dried 
in the open air. After this, it should be 
brushed over with the white of an egg, 
well beaten up, which will stiffen up 
the straw. A wide-brimmed hat should 
be dried under weights, to keep it in 
shape. 
If the straw is in need of bleaching, 
it must be put through a sulphur bath 
after the scrubbing. To do this, sus¬ 
pend in a tight barrel or box with a pan 
of burning sulphur in the bottom, cover 
tightly, and allow it to remain for one 
to two hours. It will be wise to put the 
bleaching box out of doors, so as to 
avoid the acrid fumes. Another process 
is to cover the straw with a paste made 
of sulphur and sweet milk ; dry in the 
sun and then rub off with a stiff brush. 
We have, also, heard of a paste com¬ 
posed of vinegar and corn meal being 
used in a satisfactory manner. In a 
very smoky city, a white sailor hat may 
need cleaning two or three times in the 
course of a season, and by using the 
processes given above, the result is en¬ 
tirely satisfactory. 
The Blue and the Gray. 
Both men and women are apt to feel a little 
blue, when the gray hairs begin to show. It’s 
a very natural feeling. In the normal condition 
of things gray hairs belong to advanced age. 
They have no business whitening the head of 
man or woman, who has not begun to go 
down the slope of life. As a matter of fact, 
the hair turns gray regardless of age, or of 
life’s seasons ; sometimes it is whitened by 
sickness, but more often from lack of care. 
When the hair fades or turns gray there’s no 
need to resort to hair dyes. The normal color 
of the hair is restored and retained by the use of 
Ayer’s Hair Vigor. 
Ayer-s Curebook, “a story of cures told by the cured." 
ioo pages, free. J. C. Ayer Co., Lowell, Mass. 
