i89o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
39 1 
DIFFERENT METHODS OF PRESERV¬ 
ING SMALL FRUITS. 
T HE careful housewife who now has a 
generous supply of currants ripening 
—because she was alert and dusted the 
bushes with white hellebore, and so effect¬ 
ually routed the destructive worms—may 
well congratulate herself; no other small 
fruit combines in like measure tbe three 
essential requisites for fine jelly—namely, 
flavor, color and consistency. If a few 
general rules be carefully adhered to there 
is no operation of the kind more easy than 
the making of jellies, or one in which we 
may be more confident of success. Either a 
porcelain-lined or an agate kettle should 
always be used for cooking fruit, with 
wooden or agate spoons for stirring. Only 
granulated sugar should be used, and that 
always by exact weight, never by measure. 
The fruit should be under rather than over¬ 
ripe, and carefully looked over, care being 
taken to remove all crushed or overripe 
specimens. It should then be quickly 
washed and placed on a cloth to dry. 
First cook it on a moderate fire; add a 
small amount of water to prevent burning, 
and cover the kettle closely. Stir it often 
from the bottom, and when soft pour it 
into a coarse linen bag, which should have 
been previously soaked in hot water and 
wrung out dry. Contrive some means 
by which you can suspend the bag over an 
earthen dish, where it will be free to drip, 
and will not cool quickly from being in a 
draft. Occasionally, turn the contents in 
the bag; but do not attempt to squeeze. 
When no more juice will drip by this pro¬ 
cess, measure it, and for every pint allow 
from three-fourths to a pound of sugar, ac¬ 
cording to the kind of fruit, and the pur- 
pose for which you are making the jelly. 
Put the juice in a kettle uncovered, and 
boil It 20 minutes; then add the sugar (pre¬ 
viously heated) to the juice, and let the 
whole boil up together two minutes. Let 
the molds be dipped in hot water, and in It 
also thoroughly wet a cheese-cloth bag. 
Place the latter over some vessel from 
which it will be convenient to fill the molds, 
and strain the jelly through it. After fill¬ 
ing the molds set them in the sun until the 
next day, or until the jelly is firm enough, 
as it positively cannot be re-heated without 
injuring its delicate flavor. Keep in a cool, 
dry place, and out of strong light. Ry 
strictly adhering to this general rule one 
will never fail to make nice jelly. 
Jams. —There is no method of preserving 
fruit which requires such careful attention 
during the entire process as does the success¬ 
ful making of jams. The fruit must be 
constantly stirred, for if it adheres to the 
bottom of the kettle ever so little, the 
flavor will be injured. Should this occur, 
empty the kettle at once and thoroughly 
clean it. .Jams should never be put into 
large earthen crocks; in them the jam is 
almost certain to mold after they have 
been once opened, causing waste by the ne¬ 
cessity for removing the tainted part, and 
also detracting from the delicate flavor of 
the rest. Then, too, as spring approaches, 
the jam is very apt to ferment,and this neces¬ 
sitates reheating, and then It becomes dark 
colored, with more of the flavor of excessive 
sweetness than of the fruit composing it. 
All this is obviated by using the small glass 
fruit jars. Those of pint size are preferable 
to larger ones. The fruit for making jam 
should be fully ripe. No kind requires more 
than three fourths of a pound of sugar to 
one pound of fruit. Place the fruit over a 
moderate fire alone, and as it heats mash it 
with a spoon, or a wooden potato-masher. 
Add a tea-cupful of water to every three 
pounds of fruit and boil 25minutes, stirring 
constantly ; add the sugar heated in the 
oven, as for jelly, and boll 20 minutes 
longer. Dip the jars in hot water, and dur 
ing the process of filling them set them on 
a towel which has been wrung out of hot 
water and folded several thicknesses to¬ 
gether. Fill each jar to the very top ; wipe 
the neck, and adjust the rubber and cover. 
During the process of cooling occasionally 
tighten the cover, and again when cold. 
Wrap each jar in paper, draw down over it 
oue of the convenient little paper hags. 
Label each with ink, and set in a cool, dry 
place. Jams proper are always made of 
berries; and any kind can be successfully 
made by following the above directions. A 
combination of red raspberries and cur¬ 
rants, in the proportiou of two parts of the 
former to one of the latter, makes a delicious 
jam. 
PRK8KRV ES.—'The method of canning fruit 
has very largely superseded the old process 
of preserving by the “ pound per pound ” 
rule; yet the latter will probably never be 
entirely done away with. There are some 
varieties of fruit which are delicious when 
properly made in this way. 
After carefully weighing both fruit and 
sugar, put the latter over a moderate fire 
and with only enough water to prevent its 
burning; when it bolls briskly, add the 
fruit, boil slowly until it becomes tender, 
then skim our, very carefully. Boll the 
syrup until thick and pour it on the fruit. 
It is not necessary that, preserves be kept in 
air-tight vessels; any jars that cannot be 
safely used-for canning can be utilized for 
preserves. If the covers are worn out treat 
them as you do jelly molds by covering with 
paper. Keep in a cool, dry place. 
Canning.— Success in canning fruit de¬ 
pends, not on the amount of sugar used, 
but on the entire exclusion of air; hence it 
will readily he seen that all jars must be in 
perfect condition. Every jar should be 
thoroughly cleaned and dried after being 
emptied; but through hasteor carelessness, 
this is often neglected, and the jars become 
sour or musty. When this is found to be 
the case, put them in the wash boiler, cover 
with a solution of washing soda and scald 
them thoroughly; then wash in hot soap¬ 
suds, and rinse well. Never attempt to 
use rubbers that are icom or hard; to do 
so will cause senseless waste. New ones 
can always be had of any first-class dealer. 
Fruit that is cooked in the jars retains not 
only Its shape, thus looking far more invitr 
ing, but also its delicate flavor. The opera¬ 
tion is no more difficult, and success is as¬ 
sured if the work is thoroughly done. 
The fruit should be firm and not over¬ 
ripe. Carefully look it over and remove 
every crushed and overripe oue. Place it 
in the jars as soon as prepared. Put the 
sugar required on the stove, add boiling 
water to dissolve it, and when it boils up, 
pour it over the fruit in the jars,dividing it 
evenly. If it does not fill the jars up to 
within an inch of the necks, add hot water 
enough to do so. Put on the covers, but 
not the rubbers. If but a few jars are being 
prepared, they can be cooked in a porcelain 
or iron kettle, each jar being set on a few 
nails to prevent its coming in direct con¬ 
tact with the vessel; but where much fruit 
is canned, the most convenient arrange¬ 
ment is to have a board bored quite full of 
inch holes, fitted to the bottom of the wash 
boiler. But whatever receptacle is used, 
fill it with tepid water to within an inch 
of the necks of the jars. Cover closely and 
boil. Doing this for 10 or at most 12 min¬ 
utes Is long enough for berries, currants, 
or other small fruits. Have a little hot 
syrup ready for filling up any jars that 
may need it. Remove the jar from the 
water, place it on a folded wet towel, fill to 
overflowing, wipe off the neck, adjust the 
rubber, and screw on the top. Invert each 
one as a test; if not air-tight the syrup will 
ooze out. In that case if it is still hot, re¬ 
move the cover, refill with syrup, and try 
another rubber and cover. But if it has 
become cold you will have to turn the 
sauce out and reheat it. 
The following table gives the amount of 
sugar necessary for each quart jar, though f 
of course, the amount can be modified to 
suit individual preferences: 
Green gooHeberrloaand currants (red).12 ounces. 
Strawberries anil cherries .10 ■* 
Jte<1 raspberries and elderberries .ti “ 
Black raspberries and whortleberries.8 “ 
Spiced Currants.—P lace one pint of 
vinegar over the fire, adding four pounds 
of brown sugar, two table-spoonfuls of 
cinuamon, one of cloves, aud one of nut¬ 
meg. When it boils add five pounds of red 
currants, and boil for two hours, stirring 
carefully. 
Spiced Elderberries.— These are made 
iu the same way as directed above, except 
that they require but half a pound of sugar 
for each pound of fruit, and allspice should 
be substituted for the nutmeg. 
KATHERINE B. J. 
THREE DELICIOUS FILLINGS FOR 
CAKE. 
IN these days of layer cakes, the house¬ 
wife may almost make all her cakes after 
one recipe, if she but vary the fillings and 
flavorings sufficiently. Nut-meat fillings 
are perhaps the most popular of any, at the 
present time. An extra-fine one consists 
simply of one cupful each of crushed nut- 
meats, sour cream and sugar, cooked until 
thick. This is easily prepared, rich aud 
delicious. 
Another favorite is made as follows: 
chop one pound of figs tine, and cook them 
until soft aud smooth, with oue cupful of 
water aud one-half cupful of sugar. 
Spread on all the layers, and when cool, 
frost over the top. Both this, and the pre¬ 
ceding may be pleasantly varied by the ad¬ 
dition of one-half cupful of chopped raisins. 
A new and easy way to make an orange 
filling is simply to thicken the juice with 
confectionets* sugar. The grated peel is 
added to the cake. This cake will be much 
better after standing a day or two to flavor 
through. 
RANK HERESY. 
O you know, dear Rural, that I can¬ 
not help thinking that gome of those 
‘‘Good Homely Notions ” (pages 191,207), are 
good nonsense? Not all of them; some of 
them areexcellent, and it may be that I am 
quite like someof my fellow-men, and think 
everything nonsense that does not agree 
with my ideas or practice; I hope this is 
not the case, but I certainly cannot see the 
sense iu the admonition to wash our dishes 
on the floor rather than on the dining- 
table. The author of this idea says that 
the latter practice will not elevate one in 
one’s own esteem; I wonder if the former 
would? I certaiuly cannot see it so; and 
it would need to have a very elevating in¬ 
fluence indeed to overcome the lack of 
bodily “elevation” necessitated by wash¬ 
ing dishes on the floor! Perhaps I don’t 
get the idea: but the idea I do seem to 
have is that this is all “bosh.” I think 
our good housekeepers sit still and take all 
sorts of berating with no protest but an in¬ 
ward oue, all too much. 
There are two other “ Notions ” I warn to 
try for It.” Men who make such remarks 
are not so scarce as they ought to be. 
In summer, the “farmer woman " can, 
with the care of garden, poultry, etc., get a 
fair amount of regular out-door exercise 
without being accused of idling, but in 
winter it is more difficult. She does not 
care to call on her neighbors every day, nor 
can a woman daily tramp to “the store” 
at the cross roads, or drive to the neighbor¬ 
ing town, as the average man does. To be 
sure, he goes on “business,” but he often 
finds it difficult to tell what that business 
is when cornered. 
There seems to be a monopoly of out¬ 
door privileges by the stronger sex among 
farmers hereabouts, though they pass reso¬ 
lutions freely and frequently against “mo¬ 
nopolies and I’ve a belief that ours is not 
an exceptional neighborhood. Now, broth¬ 
ers and sisters—for many of the latter 
seem to need awakening, too—what ought 
to be done about it ? How can we “ edu¬ 
cate the public conscience and create right 
sentiment” on this very important sub¬ 
ject ? JUDV .JONES. 
Pi.occUimcou.s Advertising. 
Advertisers treat all correspondents 
well if they mention the Rural New 
Yorker. 
speak about: One is that we must never, 
under any circumstauces, eat a meal with 
the table against the wall. Nothing new 
about it! Oh no ! it has been in the papers 
ever since I learned to read; and yet—do 
you know?—we eat with our table agaiust 
the wall from year’s end to year’s end ? I 
don’t say it is a nice way to do; it isn’t: 
but when the room is very small, as is 
often the case in middle-class houses; when 
the family is small, as is the case with us; 
or where the house-wife is, like myself, a 
semi-invalid without kitchen help, who 
finds it quite a serious matter to move a 
heavy table three times a day. even if it be 
on casters, it can be done without the loss 
of self-respect that some would have us be¬ 
lieve follows ever in the wake of this evil 
custom. 
The other notion is in regard to ragged 
dish-cloths. Far he it from me to say that 
ragged dish cloths are to be desired ; but I 
do say this: Dish-cloths wear out so fast 
that it is well nigh impossible to keep 
whole ones all the time ; the expense Is an 
item to be considered in the many families 
where every penny must be counted; and 
the brown towels which do duty for wip¬ 
ing the dishes wear out so fast that they 
will furnish all the dish-cloths needed 
without extra expense, and if they are 
clean and sweet, I do not think one will 
need to be shrived for using them, even if 
they are not whole. a HERETIC. 
FRESH AIR FOR WOMEN. 
Down with Monopoly! 
I F I were asked to give the reasons for 
the deterioration in the health of the 
farmers’ wives and daughters of to day. I 
would put first on the list a lack of out¬ 
door exercise and proper ventilation of 
their houses. 
In our grandmother’s time the women 
helped in the field work: as they lived 
much more simply then than now, they 
had time aud strength for it, after doing 
all necessary housework. Any one can 
work much harder without fatigue in the 
open air than in confined space. Then, too, 
part of the household duties was done out- 
of-doors ; the brick oven was built away 
from the cabin ; ofteu the loom was set up 
outside, with only a rough covering over it, 
leaving the free air of heaven to circulate 
’round it. Inside the home, the wide fire¬ 
place was a perfect ventilator, less needed 
then than now, with our close, plastered, 
brick-laid walls, guiltless of ventilators. 
How many farmers’ wives average even 
half-an-hour out of doors daily through the 
year ? Hands up! Well, 1 can’t count 
you ; you are too far off ; but I know there 
are not enough for the good of posterity. 
Now, how many of you air your sleeping- 
rooms thoroughly every day iu cold 
weather, and your living rooms ofteuer ? 
Not half so many as ought, I fear! Nor 
are the women alone to blame for omittiug 
to do the things they ought to do. I have 
heard men grumble at the waste of fuel if 
a window were opened in cold weather; 
and, in one instance, when a neighboring 
farmer’s wite, having learned her need of 
out door exercise, took a walk daily, one of 
these same men thought that if he were 
neighbor Jones, he’d “try to give that wo¬ 
man work enough for exercise in the house, 
so she needn’t go gaddin’ about the coun- 
Boils and Pimples 
Arc nature’s efforts to eliminate poison from 
the blood. This result may be accomplished 
much more effectually, as well as agreeably, 
through the proper excretory channels, by 
the use of Ayer’s Sarsaparilla. 
“ For several years I was troubled with 
boils and carbuncles. I u casting about for a 
remedy, it occurred to me that Ayer’s Sarsa¬ 
parilla had been used in my father's family, 
with excellent success, and I thought that 
what was good for the father would also bo 
good for the son. Three or four bottles of 
this medicine entirely cured me, and 1 have 
not since —in more than two years —had a 
boil, pimple, or any other eruptive trouble. 
I can conscientiously speak in the highest 
terms of Ayer’s Sarsaparilla, and many 
years’ experience in the drug business en¬ 
ables me to speak intelligently.”—C. M. 
Hatfield, Farmland, Ind. 
Ayer’s Sarsaparilla 
PEEPARED BY 
DR. J. C. AYER & CO., Lowell, Mass. 
Price $1; six bottles, $5. Worth $5 a bottle. 
GOLD MEDAL, PARIS. 1878 
w. laker & co.’s 
Breaiiast Cocoa 
Is absolutely pure and 
is Is soluble. 
No Chemicals 
nrc used lu iU preparation. It ha, more 
chan three timet the ttrenpth of Cocoa 
mixed with Starch, Arrowroot or Sugar, 
and W therefore far more economical, 
cotthij/ loti than one cent a cup. It la 
delicious, nourishing, strengthening. Ea¬ 
sily Diokstkd, aud admirably adapted 
for invalids as well as persons in health. 
Sold by Grocers everywhere. 
W RATTF/R &■ f!D Dnrnhfisl.ftr. Mass. 
Dairyman’s 
Account Book 
FREE. 
The Dairyman’s Account Book Is the most 
practical thing of the kind ever semi. It 
gives ruled pages for dully record of milk 
yield, butter made, and sales, for 12 months; 
convenient size, nicely printed and bound. 
Wells, Richardson «fe Co., Burlington, VL, 
manufacturers of the celebrated Improved 
Butter Color, the purest, strongest, and 
brightest color made, will send a copy free 
to any butter maker who writes enclosing 
stamp. Also sample of their Butler t.'olor 
to those who have never used it, and a 
pretty birthday card for the baby, if you ask. 
EMPIRE 
AGRICULTURAL 
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