3905. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
857 
The Winter Reading. 
The home reading should never be 
planned merely on the basis of what pub¬ 
lishers call the “best sellers.’’ Many pop¬ 
ular books are entirely ephemeral; many 
contribute nothing to our knowledge, and 
have no direct bearing upon personal cul¬ 
ture. This does not mean that our read¬ 
ing should always be of a serious or 
“heavy” type, but that we should exclude 
books that are merely worthless—and 
worthlessness does not always imply that 
they are vicious. Such books are the 
tramps and idlers of literature, whose so¬ 
ciety weakens the mental fiber even when 
it does not debase it. Unfortunately it 
is hard to escape this class of reading, 
for it is ever with us—the newspapers are 
flagrant offenders, and the popular maga¬ 
zines are little better. But in buying 
books at least we can keep out of such 
society. 
In planning for a Winter’s reading, we 
should try to include history (remember¬ 
ing that it is often a record of personal 
prejudice as well as past events) ; biogra¬ 
phy. science and nature study. We should 
not exclude fiction, for it has its place in 
any course of reading, but it should come 
in as an accessory rather than a principal. 
In historical reading we often find good 
fiction valuable in sustaining interest and 
widening ideas,, but we must remember 
that there is a vast difference between 
historical fiction by great writers, and the 
over drawn, hysterical work too often 
quoted as among “the six best sellers.” 
For example, if reading Carlyle’s “French 
Revolution,” it would be well to supple¬ 
ment it with Dickens* “Tale of Two 
Cities,” while still another view is given 
by Felix Gras, in “The Reds of the Midi” 
and its sequel "The Terror.” 
In nature study, most publishers offer 
special lists, including birds, butterflies 
and other insects,, familiar animals, plants, 
etc. Where young people seem to care 
little for such books, it is often possible 
to arouse interest by giving them books 
of foreign travel first; Du Chaillu’s ex¬ 
plorations in Africa, such as “The Land 
of the Dwarfs” and “My Apingi King¬ 
dom,” always prove attractive. Among 
new books nothing can be much more 
thrilling than Dr. C. G. Schillings’ ac¬ 
count of photographing wild beasts in 
their own homes, “With Flash-Light and 
Rifle.” Some of the writers who have 
won distinction by photographing bears 
and bobcats will look with envy upon the 
man who got short-range pictures of lions, 
tigers, hippopotamuses, etc. 
Books about animals are now so many 
that a modern list is easily extended to 
unwieldy limits. Among dog books we 
still regard Dr. John Brown’s classic “Rab 
and Flis Friends” as the very best we 
know; “Bob, Son of Battle.” by Alfred 
Ollivant, and “Diomed,” by John Sergeant 
Wise, are worthy companions for it. A 
good many modern animal stories err, to 
our mind, in crediting the animals with 
such human sentiment that the sorrow 
and tragedy of woodland life overshadow 
everything else, and their influence does 
■not seem to us entirely wholesome. “The 
Heart of the Ancient Wood.” by Charles 
G. D. Roberts, is one of the finest wood¬ 
land stories we know; “The Blazed Trail,” 
by Stewart Edward White, will also be 
found absorbing. “The Enchanted For¬ 
est,” by the same author, is a capital book 
for children from eight to 12 or 14; 
“Sportsman Joe” and “Trapper Jim,” by 
Edwyn Sa-ndys, also belong to this cate¬ 
gory. “Orchard-land” and “Outdoor- 
land,” by Robert W. Chambers, are stories 
of insects, birds and animals that will be 
especially interesting to children aged 
from six to 12. 
We often think that American history 
is taught in an uninteresting way in many 
of our schools; young people are im¬ 
pressed with the picturesque romance of 
foreign lands, while all unheeding of the 
same features at home. Few are familiar 
with the explorations of Radisson, the 
young Frenchman who visited the Mis¬ 
sissippi 20 years before La Salle, and 
roved from the Missouri to Hudson’s 
Bay a century before Lewis and Clark. 
Flis story is told in “The Pathfinders of 
the West,” by A. C. Laut. which contains 
much new material, including some re¬ 
ceived by Parkman too late to include 
in his great work on England and France 
in North America; no story of adventure 
could be more fascinating. “ The Jour¬ 
neys of La Salle and His Companions,” 
edited by Prof. Cox, and “Voyages and 
Explorations of Samuel de Champlain, 
will give further impressions of New 
World exploration, and a long list could 
be compiled in this line. 
Older readers, who are interested in the 
United States as a colonizing power 
would do well to read “Colonial Admin¬ 
istration in the Far East.” by Alleyne Ire¬ 
land, F. R. G. S., which tells how other 
nations meet similar problems to those 
confronting us in the Philippines, “Mod¬ 
ern India,” by W. E. Curtis, and “Egypt, 
Burma and British Malaysia,” by the 
same author, give the impressions of a 
newspaper man who makes no pretense 
to fine writing, but they are vivid, force¬ 
ful and instructive. The general reader 
will find in these volumes much that he 
ought to know, and much matter un¬ 
familiar to the average American. 
Every reader should include biography 
and autobiography, especially when tak¬ 
ing the form of life and letters of some 
famous person. If he reads several be¬ 
longing to the same period, the reader 
acquires many side lights upon history 
and human progress. One of these books, 
which gave us great pleasure recently, 
was “Life and Letters of T. H. Huxley,” 
edited by his son, which outlines the 
progress of science during the Victorian 
period, while presenting the human and 
lovable side of the great naturalist. The 
recent autobiography of Huxley’s friend, 
Dr. Alfred Russel Wallace, “My Life, a 
Record of Events and Opinions, would 
supplement the former book, and would 
also arouse the desire to read something 
of Dr. Wallace’s travels and explorations 
in South America and Malaysia. “The 
Malay Archipelago,” published more than 
20 years ago, still remains one of the most 
fascinating books of travel in the Eng¬ 
lish language. 
If the feminine portion of the family 
desires biography more in line with their 
interests, we may suggest three of special 
value; "Life and Letters of Mrs. Delany,” 
“Life of Maria Edgeworth.” and “Auto¬ 
biography of Mrs. M. O. W. Oliphant.” 
These three books cover nearly two cen¬ 
turies of English social life, for Mrs. De¬ 
lany was born in 1700, and Mrs. Oliphant 
died in 1S97. Mrs. Delany was a great 
lady whose early associations were en¬ 
tirely those of rank and fashion, but 
whose truest happiness was attained in 
her second marriage as the wife of a quiet 
clergyman; Miss Edgeworth becomes 
known less as the famous writer than as 
the affectionate and devoted daughter, 
while Mrs. Oliphant toiled to the last 
days of her busy life for the comfort of 
those dependent upon her. Their lives 
are not only instructive, but entertaining 
in a high degree. 
Soft Crullers. —Heat a pint of water 
in a saucepan, and when quite warm mix 
with it, a little at a time, three-quarters 
of a pound of sifted flour. Set half a 
pound of fresh butter over the fire until 
it becomes soft, then stir in into the flour 
and water and add half a pound of pow¬ 
dered sugar and half a nutmeg grated. 
Remove the saucepan from the fire and 
with a wooden soatula beat the contents 
until thoroughly mixed. Whip six eggs 
until very light and fold them into the 
mixture. Flour a dough-board well, then 
form the batter into rings upon it. This 
may be easiest accomplished by passing 
it through a screw funnel. When trans¬ 
ferring the crullers from the board to the 
hot fat use a very broad-bladed knife. 
How To Always Make Good 
Bread At Home 
M RS. HOUSEKEEPER, do you know the one 
thing about making bread which, if improperly 
done, spoils your batches of bread, breaks 
housewives' hearts, and makes bread making 
seem a mysterious occult science? 
It Isn't the recipe, for there are very few recipes 
which won't lay the foundation of good bread. 
And it isn't the materials—for most materials are 
usually pure. 
And housewives have been known to get poor bread 
even when they’ve used the very best materials—isn't 
that so ? 
Now, the most important thing about bread making 
is in mixing the flour and liquids and in kneading the 
dough. 
And what makes that so important is those wonder¬ 
ful little plants we call Yeast. 
For yeast, you know, when properly combined with 
the flour, plus ordinary air, produces an element 
which makes the dough "raise.” 
So that the yeast and the air must be uniformly 
mixed with the flour or the dough won’t "raise” uni¬ 
formly. That’s easy to understand, isn't it? 
Consequently, in kneading dough, you have to see 
that the yeast is thoroughly mixed with the flour and 
that there is plenty of air all through the dough. 
Now, to do this by hand is next to impogsible, for 
you must pound and knead the dough thirty minutes 
—the hardest work a woman can do. 
Then, if the mixture isn't right, all your hard work 
is for naught, and no human hand can always insure 
the right mixture—no matter how experienced that hand 
may be. 
That’s why only one woman in a thousand can make 
delicious home made bread—and why so few women care 
to try to make their own bread. 
Yet, it's so easy to make delicious home made bread if you 
use the Universal Bread Maker. With the Universal you do 
not require any previous knowledge of breadmaking—all you 
have to do is to prepare your liquid, containing the yeast, sift 
your flour, then pour in all the liquid then all the flour—then turn 
the handle for only three minutes. 
Think of that—only 3 minutes. At the end of that time the rod of the 
“Universal’Bread Maker 
the most important part of the Bread Maker, an exclusive feature we have protected by patents 
in every country on the globe—will have thoroughly and scientifically mixed the yeast with the 
flour so that the minute yeast plants are in close touch with all the tiny particles of the flour. 
Then the dough will be folded over itself so that plenty of air will be put into it. You see when the 
Universal Bread Maker has folded the air into the dough this air surrounds each yeast and flour 
particle, causing the bread to thoroughly "raise.” Because the air, yeast and flour form the gas 
that makes dough "raise.” 
You couldn’t do these things by hand, or with any other Bread Maker than the Universal, 
for there’s no way of kneading dough scientifically and thoroughly, other than by the LTniversal 
Bread Maker. And there’s no disagreeable work—no pounding—or slapping—no back straining. 
The Universal Bread Maker invariably makes most delicious home-made bread at the mere 
cost of 2i4c a pound loaf. You pay the baker at least 5c a pound loaf—for just bakers’ bread. 
If you use only two loaves of bread a day or 730 a year the Universal Bread Maker will save 
you at least 518.25 a year, or 9 times 
its cost—the retail price is only 52.00. 
You can buy the Universal Bread 
Maker at your local dealer’s. 
We have a book on the Universal 
Bread Maker, telling what it does and 
why it saves at least 518.25 a year, 
which we’ll gladly send you free. 
Just drop us a postal. Address 
Landers, Frary & Clark, 
68 Commercial St., New Britain, Conn. 
Save Half Your Fuei 
BY USING TMB 
ROCHESTER. 
RADIATOR. 
Fits any Stove or Furnace. 
Write for booklet on beating homes. 
Rochester Radiator Co. 
\5J Furnace SU, Rochester,!*'. Y* 
Prlcefrom 
$2.00 to 
$ 12 . 00 . 
For hard or 
soft coal, 
■wood or gas. 
Monarch 
Hydraulic 
Cider Press 
Great strength and ca¬ 
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gasoline engines, 
steam engines, 
saw mills, tliresh- 
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Monarch Machinery Co., Room 161, 39CortlandtSLNewYork. 
i 
See this new Washer? 
I’ll Loan it to You 
I KNOW you’ve never seen a Washer like this one. 
Because, it has just been invented—and I tell you it is a 
world-beater. 
I call it our “Gravity” Washer. 
"Gravity,” you know, is what makes a stone roll down hill. 
And our new Washer is called the “Gravity” because it works 
itself by almost the same principle as the rolling stone. 
You throw the clothes into a tub of soapy water, start off the 
machine, and the “Gravity” does nearly all the rest. 
I don’t mean that it washes all the dirty clothes without a little 
help from you—mind that! 
You must throw the clothes into the tub, by han d, and start off the 
machine working, by hand , and stay beside it while it drives the 
soapy water to and fro throug h the clothes. 
Then you must,—in about Six minutes after the “Gravity” has 
been washing—stop the tub, and run the washed clothes through the 
Wringer, b y hand . 
So, you see, it isn’t £ll play. There’s some work left for the 
Woman. 
But she can wash a tub full of very dirty clothes with this new 
Gravity Washer in less than Six minutes by the clock. 
And she can wash them with her Head—her brains—instead of 
with her hands, because she makes the Ma chine do the work. She 
hasrflt got to bend over a steaming tub of suds, or work one of those 
back-breaking threshing-machines they call "Washers’’ in the hard¬ 
ware stores. 
The “Gravity Washer” won't tear the finest piece of lace—it won’t 
break a button—nor it won't wear the thinnest white clothes. 
Because, all the washing is done by driving soapy water through 
the threads of the dirty clothes. 
And this is done chiefly by “Gravity”—by the same thing that 
makes a stone roil down hill. 
Now, I want to loan one of these "Gravity Washers,” to any respon¬ 
sible person, for a month, just so you can prove what 1 say tc be true. 
I don’t want a penny from you for the month’s use of it, unless 
you decide to keep it after that. 
If you find it saves its own cost you may pay, after each Wash¬ 
ing, 50c a week for it, or 52.00 a month. 
But you need not decide on k eeping it till after you’ve tested it 
in four Washings, viz., a Month,—free of charge. 
I will pay the freight to your railroad station at my own expense, 
and my own risk—and I don’t ask a penny of security from you. 
If you feel that you can do without the "Gravity Washer” after 
yo u’ve used it a m onth I will take it back from you, without a 
penny from you, or a growl from me. 
Yes,—and I’ll pay the freight back too—at my own expense. 
Now, how could I make anything out of that deal if our 
ncw“Gravity Washer” wouldn’t really do so much better, quicker, 
easier, cheaper work for you that you couldn't do without it? 
I want to loan you ibis Washer for a month’s trial free. 
And, I hope you will show it to your neighbors when you get it. 
Write me today if you want it Address plainlv—■ 
R. F . Bieber, Treasurer, 1900 Washer Co., 5127 Henry St., 
Binghamton, N. Y., or 355 Yonge St.. Toronto, Ont. 
