RURAL NEW-YORKER 
591 
The Improved Farm Kitchen 
Implements for Woman’s Work 
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A Nkw —For a good many 
years the various experiment stations 
liave been issuing bulletins telling how 
to build a barn, how to make the live 
stock comfortable, and how to save steps 
for the farmer. Some excellent work has 
been done along this line, but we have 
and has tried to help her in .a i)ractical 
way. 1.nfortunately we cannot give jill 
the good things in this bulletin. There 
arc .'ll |)ictures, for exarnple, which show 
actual kitchens in which Missouri wom¬ 
en turn out meals which would even 
make McCann, the food export, forget 
Ice Saver for Ice-box 
no doubt that ni.ny a farmer's wife and 
daughter, in looking over these <!xj)ensive 
bullelins, has thought or even said to 
husband or father, “lV7/crc do / coma 
inf’ It is a good thing to fix up the 
barn and make the cows comfortable, btit 
what about the kitchen where the women 
folks travel mile after mile with the most 
inconvenient fixtures in an ellort to take 
care of the most important job on the 
* n c 
Blocks for Raising a Low Table 
all he has written, and admit that farm 
food can be both sanitary and satisfac¬ 
tory. There are pictures of kitchen cab¬ 
inets, arrangements for the water sup¬ 
ply, racks for holding the kitchen tools; 
in fact the whole subject is treated as 
sensibly as an expert and practical car- 
j)enter would describe and i)icture a 
first-class work shoj). M’e cannot give 
all the i)ictures, but there are a few con¬ 
veniences which are possible for all. 
A.v IcK Savkk.—F or instance, the cut 
above shows what they call an ice saver 
for a home-made ice box. In many 
eases, as we know, ice fades rapidly 
away in a box of this sort. The warmer 
air works tip through the drain pi|)e, and 
this, of course, melts the ice. Many of 
the modern refrigerators have traps in 
farm? Knowing these things, as wo do, 
by observation and experience, and hav¬ 
ing had the housekeeiier make caustic 
comparisons between the comfort of the 
cows an<l the kitchen worker, we are glad 
to welcome a bulletin from the Missouri 
Fxiieriment Station at C<dumbia. This 
is entitled “'J'he Farm Kitclum,'’ by Car¬ 
rie Iv. 1‘ancoast . It is an exc-ellent pub¬ 
lication, and we would like to see it in 
Homemade Knife Racks 
this |»ii)e to exclude the warm air. In 
this case, a small jar or can sits in the 
drip pan and is kept full of water. Thus 
the <irip runs down into this coid 
water so that the warmer air cannot 
work up. 
WT.n-dow Cor.i) Cr.o.SKT.— Then there is 
a picture of what is known as a window 
cold closet. This is used in the Fall 
and Spring, when the nights and morn¬ 
ings are cool, and no ice is required. In 
The Awkward Low Table and the Comfort of Convenient Height 
tlu^ hands of every woman who co<»k.s a 
nu*al in a farmhouse kitchen. 
Kitciik.x Frrnxus.—It is true that 
many of the essays on farm work and 
household fixtures seem to be written by 
Wonien who would hardly know how to 
work a pump, or get uj) a dinner for a 
hungry farm household. This Missouri 
bulletin, however, is sensible and i>rac- 
tical, and we should judge that the au¬ 
thor has Worked in a farm kitchen and 
hnows the problem of the farmer’s wife, 
this case the lower sash of a window 
is taken out and the box built on the 
outside, slightly larger than the open¬ 
ing. This is usually put on the north 
exposure of the house. Holes are made 
for ventilatifui, and these are protected 
by it screen cloth, with a shutter which 
closes them during the day if need be. 
During the night the food is thoroughly 
cooled, then the box is shut for the day 
time and the cool air retained. 
Thk f.O'o Tahi.k.—A nother picture 
woman is <d)liged to stand day after day 
at a table which is too low for her. In 
this case the worker is a woman five 
feet eight imdies tall. On the left hand 
side the table is only .11 inches high, and 
we see what hapi)ens to the woman. On 
the right hand side the s.ame table has 
been raised by means of blocks to 3.5 
inches, and the woman may stand up 
straight at her work. Nobody knows 
how many farm women go through life 
tired, worn out and with aches and pains, 
to say nothing of their appearance, be¬ 
cause their work has compelled them to 
lean over at Jow tables. 
ItvMSixfr Tiik Taulk.—S till another 
picture shows dilTcrent plans of bring¬ 
ing the table up to the proper height. 
Here are three kinds of blocks made for 
the table leg. At A two little metal 
strips are fastened to the block. At R 
a i)in fits into' the table leg like ,a cas- 
tf)r. while at Cl there is a notch in the 
block to give the desired effect. Here is 
a good place to begin in the farm kitchen, 
by bringing up the table to the proper 
height. 
A IIoMEMAnB 'WifEET. Tkay.—T hen 
come.s what they call a homemade wheel 
Ira.v. This needs no descrii)tion after 
a study of the picture. .V wheel tray 
will save during the year hundreds of 
trips between the dining tabh- and the 
stove. The food or the plates or the 
dishes may be put on this tray, and then 
the whole thing pushed or wheeled along 
to where it is neech'd. It is like having 
three or 'four children constantly on 
Inind to do the running, and Avith no 
danger of droi)ping the dishes or eat¬ 
ing a share of tin- food on their w.iv. 
Kxike Rack.s. —Again we show two 
forms of knife racks easily made from 
the pictures. The knives may be put 
into these racks, and kept constantly 
ready for service. This is far better 
than having them in a drawer or on a 
shelf where it is necessai-y to fumble 
them all over in order to find the right 
one. 
TirotruuT Rtimulatiox.—T hese pic¬ 
tures are only a few out of many con¬ 
tained in this excellent bulletin. We 
Would I'eally like to have every woman 
who reads The R. N.-Y. have this bul¬ 
letin and keep it hung up in the kitchen 
like the almanac or calendar. The ef¬ 
fect would be good in many ways. The 
men folk.s, for example, would finally 
get tired (,f .seeing this de.scriidion of a 
model kitchen hanging in a room which 
is anything but a model. It would fie 
what they call a thought stimulation. 
Some years ago we published a little 
book called “The Rusiness Hen.” One of 
our women readers told u.s that .she kefd. 
thi.s book hanging in a corner of her hen¬ 
house, as she .si)ent some little time out 
there, and wanted it for handy refer¬ 
ence. .'<he said that a week after .she 
bung it ut) the egg yield began to in- 
crea.se, atnl that while the book hung 
there her record went ahead of all i)re- 
vious years. We had no way of dis¬ 
proving the fact that there was any con¬ 
nection fietweeu “The Riisine.ss Hen” on 
pai»ei‘ and the business hen on the roost, 
but We think that .some of our men folk.s 
would |)rove to be .something like tho.se 
hems, and this excellent pamphlet hang¬ 
ing in the kitchen would stimulate many 
of our brotlnu-s to a few little nobler 
deeds in making over the kitchen. 
Hu page .lOO we learn how the small 
home business of f’ornelius f’anlield in 
canning fresh meat has grown to a large 
community enterpri.se. A few years ago 
fai mer.s \\ ive.s in that neighborlu)t)d wei'e 
salting and smoking meat for the Win¬ 
ter’s supply and buying fresh meat for 
Hummer. Then they began to realize 
that fresh meat may be canned so as to 
keep better and prove more palatable 
than the salted and smoked product, 
riien ill", and Airs. Canlitdd di.splay(‘d 
extra .skill at the work, and did it so 
Well that others found it wise and eco¬ 
nomical to let the Canfields obtain a 
larger api>aratus and do the work for 
the neighbors. There y<m have, in a 
small wa.v, the history of many a busi¬ 
ness in handling food. As a rule such 
development runs away from the coun¬ 
try, as water runs down hill, and locates 
in .some city. This one stay.s on the 
farm—as it .should. 
lAN.SOM 
His 
Policy 
from the _ 
Postal Life 
Five things we 
all sh ould do: 
1. Safeguard the family fif 
we have one). 
2. Keep the youngsters in 
school (if we have 
youngsters). 
3. Provide for the mortgage 
on the farm (if there is 
one). 
4. Build up a fund to help 
the wife run the farm (if 
she has to do it). 
5. Insure old-age independ¬ 
ence (old age will come). 
The one best way 
Take out life-insurance in a regular legal- 
reserve institution; there are many such 
but there is one that gives you sound in¬ 
surance-protection at low net cost. 
That institution is the 
Postal Life 
Insurance 
Company 
The POSTAL saves money for its policy- 
holders because it docs not employ agents; 
insurance is arranged direct, by mail, or 
in person at the Home Office. The re¬ 
sult is that your Policy isn’t saddled with the 
heavy expenses of agents and branch-offices 
throughout the country, as in other companies. 
Dividends 
guaranteed 
in your Policy 
and the usual 
Contingent 
Dividends 
paid besides 
It will pay you 
to find out just what the POSTAL LIFE 
can and will do for you. The Company 
supplies full personal information to all 
applicants men, women and young people 
— and distance from New York docs not 
hinder. Just write and say : 
Mail me life-insurance particulars 
as mentioned in THE RURAL NEW- 
Yorker for April 21st. 
In your letter be sure to give 
1. Your Full Name 
2. Your Occupation 
3. The Exact Date of your birth 
The request for information places you under 
no obligation and no agent will be sent to 
visit you. The Postal Life does not employ 
agents. The resulting commission-savings go 
to you because you deal direct. 
Postal Life Insurance Co. 
WM. R. MALONE, PruideDl 
511 Fifth Avenue, ITreft*! New York 
