768 
Woman and the Home 
From Day to Day. 
LIFE’S MIRROR. 
There are loyal hearts, there are spirits 
brave, 
There are souls that are pure and true; 
Then give to the world the best you have, 
And the best will come back to you. 
Give love, and love to your life will flow, 
A strength in your utmost need: 
Have faith, and a score of hearts will 
show 
Their faith in your word and deed. 
Give truth, and your gift will be paid in 
kind, 
And honor will honor meet; 
And a smile that is sweet will surely And 
A smile that is just as sweet. 
For life is the mirror of king and slave; 
’Tig just what we are and do; 
Then give to the world the best you have, 
And the best will come back to you. 
, —Madeline S'. Bridges. 
* 
It will be noticed in many ready¬ 
made garments trimmed with lace, such 
as shirt waists with a Dutch neck, that 
at square corners the insertion is not 
mitered, but turned over at right an¬ 
gles, unless the trimming is not the 
same on both sides. This is a trifle, but 
it saves time, and makes a firm corner. 
Mitering insertion is very careful work, 
and unless great care is taken the 
stitches are likely to give way in laun¬ 
dering, and make an unsightly hole. 
* 
Eggs a la Svenska are very good, and 
are especially recommended for a per¬ 
son of delicate digestion, or one on in¬ 
valid diet. Toast thin slices of bread, 
and butter them. Separate an egg, the 
white from the yolk, add a few grains 
of salt to the white, and whip stiff. 
Pour this over a slice of toast; make a 
hollow in the center and put in the 
yolk. Prepare as many eggs as are 
needed, each on its separate slice of 
toast; put in oven long enough for 
yolk to heat through and white to 
brown slightly. Serve on a hot platter, 
with cress or other green garnish. 
* 
Large crocheted buttons are a fa¬ 
vored trimming, and are often used on 
dresses, as well as coats, but they are 
quite expensive. A girl who is handy 
with the crochet hook can make this 
covering for large buttons quite easily. 
Make a little round mat of single 
crochet stitch the size required, work¬ 
ing in heavy knitting silk, apd leave 
a thread long enough to sew it over the 
mold. It is often possible to buy 
knitting silk to match an odd shade 
when made buttons cannot be pur¬ 
chased in the right color. On a coat 
the crocheted buttons are better for 
trimming than for actual fastening, for 
the covering wears through quickly with 
the rubbing of the buttonhole. 
* 
When a busy woman finds herself 
with a short stretch of leisure, which 
fatigue of mind or body prevents her 
from enjoying in an ordinary form of 
relaxation, there are two diversions that 
may be recommended, one for the body, 
the other for the mind. If she has been 
bending over the sewing machine, keep¬ 
ing slippery 'seams in place, or patting 
down refractory ruffles, let her go to 
an open window where she can com¬ 
mand a pleasant prospect (and there is 
always something cheerful to look at, 
if nothing more than a row of buxom 
cabbages), and there try some deep¬ 
breathing exercises for a few minutes. 
It is wonderful how much one may be 
rested by flooding the cramped lungs 
with oxygen, and straightening up the 
tired back. There are women who 
never give their contracted lungs a 
thorough housecleaning from one year’s 
end to another, content with cramped 
breathing and all its sluggish accom¬ 
paniments, like shutting up the best 
rooms to live in a dingy kitchen. Then, 
for mental relaxation, unless you are 
THE RURAE 
counted among the fortunate people 
who always have some new and inter¬ 
esting reading matter at hand, try the 
encyclopaedia. That’s only for refer¬ 
ence, you say? But where else can 
you find all the elements of a liberal 
education packed away in small com¬ 
pass? Dr. Eliot’s five-foot library may 
give you a liberal education in a liter¬ 
ary sense, but after reading the wise 
man’s selection, just think of all the 
things you wouldn’t know. The en¬ 
cyclopaedia may give but a few inches 
to the Thirty Years’ War, or to Leif 
Ericson, or to the Sudan Expedition, or 
to photography in colors, or sub-marine 
navigation, but those few lines have 
really taught you something, lifted your 
thoughts from the commonplace round 
of everyday life, and unless you are 
entirely uninterested, have prepared 
your mind for further knowledge. 
Without possessing Mr. Gradgrind’s in¬ 
satiable thirst for facts only, there is 
no doubt that the possession of ac¬ 
curate knowledge on a variety of topics, 
even where it does not go beyond the 
bounds of the encyclopaedia, is a help 
and a pleasure, and it paves the way 
for wider culture when opportunity 
offers. 
NEW*YORKER 
Then salt as for the table. Do not add 
anything else. Pack in the bucket and 
cover with the water they were cooked 
in. Put the lids on tightly, after first 
driving a nail through the center from 
the under side, and seal. When the 
beans are nearly cool and all steam has 
escaped at the nail hole, put a drop of 
The Kansas State Board of Health 
has ordered the removal of the common 
drinking cup from passenger trains in 
that State. This followed cases of in¬ 
fectious diseases, which were traced to 
the railroad cup. The Board of Rail¬ 
road Commissioners, however, declared 
that the removal of the cup would be 
an impairment of the service, so the 
question went to the State Attorney 
General. He very sensibly decides that 
it is the duty of the Board of Health 
to prevent the spread of disease, and 
that if the cup is a carrier of infec¬ 
tion, it must be abolished, which is en¬ 
tirely right. It is easy to provide an 
individual cup, best of all the paper 
cups that are destroyed after one using. 
We have often been revolted by the 
sight of some palpably diseased per¬ 
son drinking from the public cup, to be 
followed, perhaps, by a delicate child. 
We still meet with misguided persons 
who seem to think that insistence upon 
an individual drinking vessel or towel 
is a 'sign of finicky super-sensitiveness, 
but science shows us that such refine¬ 
ments are good hygiene, as well as 
good breeding. 
Canning String Beans. 
6396 Naval Blouse, 32 to 40 bust. 
sealing wax over this also, and set away 
in a cool, dark place where any kind 
of fruit is kept. On opening all that is 
needed is the addition of some nice 
meat fryings and a little heating. If 
kept until beans were again in season, 
one who didn’t know they were canned 
would never guess they had not been 
picked from the bushes just before.” 
String beans are also dried as fol¬ 
lows : Remove the strings and break 
into inch pieces; put in a kettle of cold 
water and bring to scalding heat. Skim 
out, spread on plates, and dry in the 
oven or out of doors until all moisture 
is removed. Put away in bags. When 
needed soak over night in cold water, 
then drain and boil. 
The Rural Patterns. 
The naval blouse, which is a favor¬ 
ite model; is made with front and back. 
There is a short opening at the front, 
Will you inform me the best way to pre¬ 
serve string beans for Winter use? 
MRS. E. j. a. 
Cut the string beans in lengths as 
for cooking, boil for 10 minutes in a 
kettle, then while hot fill into cans, 
stand in a large kettle of water, as for 
other canning, and boil for two hours. 
Add a teaspoonful of salt, fill the jar 
to overflowing with .boiling water, screw 
up, and put in a cool, dark place. 
Another recipe, sent us by one of our 
readers, is as follows: Wash and break 
each pod into two or three pieces, put 
on the stove in a saucepan of cold salt 
water, and when it just commences to 
bubble (don’t let it boil) drain the 
beans out and put in cans that lu5ve 
been washed and scalded. Have ready 
another can of boiling salt water and 
fill the cans with it nearly to the brim, 
leaving just room enough to add one 
tablespoon fu] of hot vinegar; screw 
on the caps and set away. When 
wanted for use pour off the brine and 
put in a saucepan of fresh water, with 
a pinch of soda added; let come to a 
boil, and immediately pour off the 
watei , then cook as you would fresh 
beans. 
The following recipe for canning 
green beans was given us last year as 
entirely satisfactory; 
‘Can in half gallon or gallon buckets 
such as syrup comes in. I save mine 
for this purpose. Prepare your beans 
as for a meal and boil until done. 
6395 House Gown, 34 to 44 bust, 
which is closed by means of lacings 
beneath the tie and the big sailor collar 
finishes the neck. The patch pocket is 
arranged over the left of the front and 
there are short sleeves that are with¬ 
out fullness at their upper edges but' 
which are gathered at the lower and 
August 21, 
finished with straight cuffs. They can 
be made either with or without open¬ 
ings. The quantity of material re¬ 
quired for the medium size is 3)4 i'ards 
27, 2)4 yards 32 or 44 inches wide, with 
V 2 yard 27 inches wide for collar and 
cuffs. The pattern 6396 is cut in sizes 
for a 32, 34, 36. 38 and 40 inch bust 
measure; price 10 cenfs. 
The dainty housegown shown is one 
of the models offered ready-made as a 
“porch” or “piazza” gown. It will be 
found pretty and comfortable for hot 
weather. The gown consists of the 
blouse portion and the skirt. The fronts 
of the blouse are laid in two tucks at 
each shoulder, which provide becoming 
fullness and the skirt is cut in four 
gores. They are gathered and joined 
one to the other by means of a belt 
and the closing is made at the front. 
The skirt can be cut either in round or 
in walking length. The sleeves are of 
moderate fullness, gathered into straight 
cuffs. The quantity of material required 
for the medium size is 8% yards 24, 7 / 
yards 32 or 4)4 yards 44 inches wide, 
with 2)4 yards of banding. The pattern 
6395 is cut in sizes for a 34, 36, 38, 40, 
42 and 44 inch bust measure; price lo 
cents. * 
Fruit Butters. 
Fruit butters are the mainstay of the 
busy housewife, as they require less 
care than some of the other “spreads” 
and are well liked, especially by chil¬ 
dren. Some object to putting them 
through a sieve or colander, but really 
this is a short process compared with 
the tedious paring, stoning and watch¬ 
ing of other sweet preparations made 
of fruit. It is easy to wash and cut up 
the fruit, boil till tender, put through 
the colander and then slowly cook- 
down to the right consistency, and then 
the housekeeper has a preserve smooth, 
rich and free from seeds. Then, too, 
the small, inferior fruit, not decayed 
or underripe, but ill shaped and un¬ 
sightly, may all be utilized, that could 
not be canned to advantage. 
Grape Butter.—Wash the grapes well, 
drain and cook without water until 
soft. This may be done in a jar on 
the back of the stove. Rub through 
colander to remove seeds, return to 
fire and slowly boil or simmer down. 
\\ hen partly cooked add an equal quan¬ 
tity of sugar and cook until thick 
enough. Put up in small jars and 
cover with paraffin. 
Peach Butter.—Cut the peaches in 
halves after washing or rubbing with a 
dry cloth, simmer in as little water as 
will keep them from scorching until 
soft. Run through colander and add 
two-thirds as much white sugar (gran¬ 
ulated) and cook till thick enough. 
Pear Butter.—Proceed as above, but 
when the pulp is put back on stove add 
one lemon to each quart to relieve the 
insipid flavor. Grate the yellow off the 
lemon into the pear and squeeze out 
the juice. Use about half as much 
sugar as pulp, though constant tasting 
to suit individual tastes should regulate 
the quantity of sugar in all fruit but¬ 
ters. 
Plum Butter.—Proceed as for grape 
butter and use an equal amount of sugar 
to the amount of plum. Cook very 
slowly on the back of the stove until 
thick and rich. Many object to plum 
butter on account of its being rather 
strong, but to remedy that one-third 
apple sauce which has been put through 
the sieve may be added to two-thirds 
plum, thus making the plums go farther 
and also getting rid of that sharp 
taste. 
Pumpkin Butter.—Prepare the pump¬ 
kin as for pies and simmer till tender. 
Put through the sieve and cook with 
one-half as much sugar until thick 
and golden. Add cloves, allspice, nut¬ 
meg and cinnamon to taste half an 
hour before removing from fire. By 
cooking on the back of the stove or in 
the oven very slowly, the fine yellow 
color will be kept. Hilda Richmond. 
