1911. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
Keeping Meat. 
I see on page 928 M. E. C. wants to 
know how to keep fresh meat. My wife 
always submerges fresh beef or mutton 
in buttermilk or sour milk, in a crock 
or tin vessel, and has no trouble keep¬ 
ing it for two weeks in that way by 
setting in a cool place. It not only 
keeps the meat but makes it very ten¬ 
der. I could not say how long it would 
keep if unused. This is especially nice 
for roasts. _ c. e. s. 
Cold Room For Keeping Food. 
In response to question about substi¬ 
tute for a refrigerator, in a location 
where there is a slight slope to the 
land, an excellent arrangement is an 
excavation below the place where well 
is located, say seven feet into the 
ground, cemented on all four sides, 
with a flight of cement steps leading 
down and a shingle roof covering all. 
The cement floor of this cellar is built 
with a wide gutter and a raised center; 
the cold well water being pumped fresh 
each morning into the gutter which has 
a piped outlet to drain off the old water. 
These dairies I have found in hot 
weather even in southern Virginia to 
be wonderfully cold, and in them are 
kept all foods, with hooks for suspend¬ 
ing meats. The sweetness and clean¬ 
ness, roominess and desirability of 
these arrangements for all food is most 
aoparent and vastly superior to refrig¬ 
erator which require time and toil to 
keep sweet, to say nothing of limited 
space and expense of ice. I hope this 
will be found to fill the bill. I intend 
to have one built another year. 
_ J. p. w. 
That Oil-Heater Question. 
On page 969 there is a request for 
oil-stove experience, in comparison 
with coal stoves. During the past 25 
years I have started a coal fire about 
t.ie first of October, and kept it burn- 
’ ’g during the following seven months. 
During the Fall and Spring the one 
stove heats sitting-room (15x15), din¬ 
ing-room of same size with a bay-win¬ 
dow nine feet across opening and three 
feet deep at center added, a bedroom 
and clothes-closet, kitchen, large pan¬ 
try and small china-closet—nine-foot 
ceilings in all rooms. During all of the 
seven months the large dining-room, 
bedroom, clothes-closet and china-closet 
are kept warm all the time—day and 
night—with plenty of ventilation. Much 
of the time, too, in early and late sea¬ 
son, the doors leading to hall are left 
open and the l pper and lower halls, 
two large sleeping rooms and two 
clothes-closets (8x8) and seven-foot 
ceilings upstairs are perfectly com¬ 
fortable. To secure the amount of 
warmth named I have used one heater 
in the dining-room, which has doors 
opening into hall, sitting-room, bed¬ 
room, china-closet and kitchen, and 
have burned an average of $ l / 2 tons of 
hard coal each year. Three, or pos¬ 
sibly four years, it has reached four 
tons, but many years it has been less 
than Zy 2 . At the last figure the cost 
would be (at $6.75 per ton) $23.53 for 
seven months. 
On the other hand: I have as fine 
and as powerful an oil-heater as was 
ever made, and have made more or less 
use of it during several years—mainly 
in an exposed plant-room when zero 
weather and high winds necessitated 
extra heat. I have, also, loaned the 
stove to friends to use in emergencies, 
and with just average burning it 
called for at least a gallon of oil per 
day. If it sometimes went under that 
amount it as often burned more. At 
11 cents per gallon that would amount 
to $3.30 for a 30-day month; for seven 
months $23.10. 
I know some one will say, at this 
point: “Yes, but you don’t have to 
keep the oil-fire burning except when 
needed.” That is true during a part 
of the time, but it is equally true that 
1036 
the coal fire is shut down so that it is 
merely alive and hardly visible, yet the 
stove is radiating enough heat to keep 
the house dry, even witli doors open, 
and when closed during the cool hours 
at evening and morning the warmth is 
quickly felt. In colder weather if the 
oil fire is extinguished when leaving 
home, or during the night, the flame 
must be turned so much higher in the 
effort to get the room warm again that 
it consumes as much oil in one hour 
as it would in two with a lower flame. 
The fact is mentioned that the oil- 
heater consumes the oxygen and makes 
unhealth ful conditions. Let me add that 
it consumes the oxygen to an extent 
that affects the burning of the flame, 
and no overhead ventilation can over¬ 
come that. The only thing is to open a 
door or window and let in a new sup¬ 
ply of oxygen, for when the air in 
the room becomes dead no amount of 
heat will make it 'comfortable—it is 
simply impossible to heat dead air. 
Anothei defect of the oil-heater for 
use in a living room is that the heat 
rises and makes the air around one’s 
head, and above it, warmer than is 
needed, while the .floo remains cold. 
Such a room a- “A. D. F.” describes 
could, of course, be heated for less 
than could my sitting-room, taken alone, 
but the fact of its small size and low 
ceiling is an argument against the use 
of an oil heater. 
If I wanted to use an oil-heater in a 
living room I would get a one-burner 
cooker and an oven to fit it. Then I 
would set the stove on a piece of zinc, 
on the floor, put the oven on and leave 
its door open. This would throw the 
heat forward, over the floor, and as it 
would rise it would warm the air in 
the lower part of room. I know it 
would not be ornamental, but a small 
three-leaf (or even a single-leaf) screen 
that w mid not obstruct the heat could 
be used to screen it from sight when 
that seemed desirable. If fuel saving 
is an object the little cook-stove and 
oven would permit getting breakfast 
and supper with no extra fire. 
I have no wish to appear dogmatic, 
but after using the best of oil heaters, 
I can say that mine, to-day, stands idle, 
and mv hard-coal fire is burning. Why? 
Because I have found the coal as cheap, 
if not cheaper, than oil; the quality of 
heat secured much pleasanter; much 
steadier; vastly more healthful, and in 
every way more desirable. 
To anyone thinking of using an oil- 
heater for steady use my only advice is 
an emphatic DON’T. 
I did not take up the question of 
“odor,” but might have said that a 
really good stove is odorless if well 
cared for and kept free from dust in 
the flues. When burned every day, or 
with only short periods of disuse, the 
oil that gathers in inaccessible parts of 
the stove, by evaporation from the 
wick or tank, is burned off, but when 
the stove is allowed to stand it gath¬ 
ers dust, and will give off a powerful 
odor for a time, when first lighted. 
The wick, too, gets foul when not used, 
and then only a new wick can stop the 
odor. The same law that governs an 
oil-burning lamp applies to an oil-burn¬ 
ing stove. One needs intelligent care 
and handling as much as the other. If 
the stove is neglected and the flame 
allowed to “run up” until it smokes it 
needs all the fresh aid of all out-doors 
to get the odor out of a room. 
eva ryman-gaillard. 
Plenty of people will try to give the 
masses, as they call them, an intellectual 
food prepared and adapted in the way 
they think proper for the actual condi¬ 
tion of the masses. The ordinary popu¬ 
lar literature is an example of this way 
of working on the masses. Plenty of 
people will try to indoctrinate the 
masses with the set of ideas and judg¬ 
ments of their own profession or party. 
I condemn neither \ftv; but culture 
works differently.—Matthew Arnold. 
Domesticated Chickadees. 
Living as we do in northern New 
England, we find much enjoyment, 
through the long Winters, in making 
companions of the chickadees. At first 
we tied marrow bones and suet, in the 
trees near the house, with no thought 
but to attract the birds and to help 
them. Later we put uo a tin box filled 
with sunflower seeds, on a piazza pillar. 
They soon found these, and showed 
little fear of anyone at the window. The 
next step was a box attached to the 
window sash, to which they readily 
came. This was a great pleasure to us, 
and we learned much about their ways 
and their varied conversations. 
The next October, while food was 
still plenty, a chickadee visited the tin 
box, givii g us a hint that he had a good 
memory, and that we might expect his 
company in the Winter. It proved to 
be a severe Winter, and the birds were 
so cold and hungry that they became al¬ 
most fearless. One day, as one of them 
was crouching on the piazza vine warm¬ 
ing his feet, I reached out my hand to¬ 
wards him, with seeds, and he took one. 
Again I tried it. He could not reach 
the seeds, but picked my hand gently a 
few times. Then he pinched it hard 
enough to hurt. Finding the hand 
harmless he hopped upon it, and select¬ 
ing a seed, flew away to eat it. That 
was five years ago, and each succeeding 
Winter we have had chickadees that fed 
freely from our hands or lips. Butter¬ 
nut meat is their favorite dainty. 
They visit us occasionally until nest¬ 
ing time. Some of them have been 
very affectionate, seeming to delight in 
s anding on our heads or shoulders, 
sometimes gently pecking our cheeks or 
lips. One lovable little fellow always 
looked up into our faces with the ut¬ 
most contidence before taking food 
from the hand upon which he stood. 
Often he uttered a few soft notes as he 
looked up, which seemed touchingly 
like grace before meat. Some of the 
birds are always shy, and snatch the 
food, while others will calmly tuck a 
seed under their feet as they stand on 
my thumb and proceed to crack and eat 
it, with full assurance of safety. One 
learns much of the individuality of 
birds in such an intimacy. In the 
Spring, when the migrating birds re¬ 
turn, the chickadees often show a funny 
jealousy, trying all their pretty tricks 
to attract attention to themselves while 
we are watching the new-comers. 
E. F. M. 
A REAL 
VACUUM 
CLEANER 
Booklet 
Free 
TTERE is aVacuum 
Cleaner that 
looks like a carpet 
sweeper and runs 
like a carpet 
sweeper, yet is a 
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room it sucks 
up a strong 
blast of air 
through the 
carpet, bringing 
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dust out of the 
texture without 
taking up the 
carpet. What is 
more, it has such 
a strong suction 
that it actually 
• 3 pulls the dust 
:i off the floor up 
through the 
carpet. Think 
of it. 
No More 
Up of Carpets. 
Just run the easy running 
Domestic Vacuum Cleaner 
over them every day or so and your carpets are as 
fresh and clean as new every day in the year and the 
colors are always bright and fresh. 
Tlio pile of dirt) 
shown here was 
removed from a 
rug by a DOMESTIC 
VACUUM CLEANER, 
which had been 
thoroug lily 
swept with a 
broom. 
This dirt was 
down in the tex¬ 
ture of the rug 
beyond the reach 
of the broom. 
Try one on 
your carpets 
y\ at our risk. 
If it does not 
do all we 
claim, return 
it at our ex¬ 
pense and get 
your money 
back. Sent 
anywhere in 
\ the United 
, States, 
cha roes 
L prepaid. 
- upon re¬ 
ceipt of 
J $ 16.00 
AGENTS WANTED 
We want one hustling agent in each locality. 
We pay good commissions and these machines 
sell at sight. 
Write today for full information, 
free illustrated booklets, etc. 
DOMESTIC VACUUM SWEEPER COMPANY 
218 Masonic Temple, Peoria, Ill. 
CARUC Circular free. Dept. 151, I.eland’s 
I “ 11 111O Farm Agency, 3t Milk St., lioston 
SPEAR Will Trust You 
j'..''- . ' • • 
Wherever You Live—Write 
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Pay When Convenient 
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Take A Month To Decide 
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Big Rocker Bargain 
Order No. C. W. 531 Price $4.95 
Terms 75c Cash 50c Monthly 
Solid golden oak with high, wide hack, fully tufted 
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A Personal 
Word 
The rich and 
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Spear 
^ Pitta burn 
/ 
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EDfUVER FREE 
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«Aa<l L.« mJ« 'L {mint daw 
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X<DTA MERE FASHION PLATE 
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