160 
RURAL. NEW-YORKER 
February 2, 1918 
I WOMAN AND HOME | 
From Day to Day 
The Service Flags 
I see the sky at midnight 
And hail the flags afar, 
From each of heaven’s windows 
There flies a service star. 
What mean the shining symbols? 
The watchers in the sky 
Have i)roiidly linng the banners 
While'hope and fear run high. 
I think the many mansions 
That fly tin* stars of light 
Have some one with the colors, 
Have some one in the tight! 
—McT.andburgh Wilson. 
* 
IIoNKY in place of sugar is used in a 
brine for curing ham highly recom¬ 
mended ; it is said to be a favorite in 
France. The brine calls for four pounds 
of coarse salt, one ounce saltpetre, two 
I)ounds honey and two gallons water. Let 
the brine stand for 24 hours, then immerse 
the meat in it, and let it stay in pickle 
six weeks. 
* 
Tiik riiildren's Hure.-iu of the Depart¬ 
ment of C'ommerce and Ltibor has been in¬ 
vest igiiting infant mortality in remote 
rural districts. A survey completed in 
Southern Kansas showed that four per 
cent of all babies die before reaching the 
age of 12 months. Similar studies are in 
progress in Wisconsin and Xorth Caro¬ 
lina. The population in the Kansas 
county is widely scattered, but no home is 
more than 20 miles from a physician, and 
telei>hones and good roads minimize the 
di.sadvantages of great distances. In spite 
of these f.ivorable circumstances the re- 
jiort records that two-thirds of the 
mothers had no medical care before their 
children were horn, and more than one- 
third had no c.all from a physician after 
the day of the birth. Four-fifths of the 
wives of farmers had to work for lai-ge 
farm crews at the time when they 
specially needed to conserve all their 
strength. 
While the existing death rate is com- 
]iaratively low for this county, the report 
says: “The existing r.ate should not be 
regarded with complacency, for, as Sir 
Arthur Newholme says: ‘If babies were 
well horn and well cared for. their mor¬ 
tality would be negligible.’ In other 
words, there is no inherent reason why 
babies should die in a community which 
has all the advantages possessed by this 
county—country life, healthful climate, 
high standards of living, a high level of 
intelligence about matters of health and 
means wherewith to provide for its 
mothers and babies.” 
In other f^tates where surveys are in 
lu'ogress it has been found that poverty 
and I’cmoteness. with the attendant evils 
<tf which maternal and infant deaths are 
!i striking index, press with a severity un¬ 
known in this Kansas county. 
Seen in New York Shops 
Womanalls. or women’s overalls, are 
offered in all the department stores now. 
in ])rices ranging from about $2 up. The 
materials include gingham, chambray, 
drill and cotton and wool cheviot. They 
are improved in cut, and some of them 
Inne a ix'plum. which makes them look 
less like overalls. 
Heavy woolen stockings, lumberman’s 
weight and knee length, were seen ic- 
cently for .$2; just the thing for a soldier. 
A n<>w i)rocess linoleum has a felt base, 
instead of cork, making it much cheaper 
than the cork. We saw this recently for 
.“.fl cents per square yard, the cork-base 
linoleum being 74 and 79 cents. Inlaid 
linoleum, whi(di has extra wearing quali¬ 
ties. the colors extending through to the 
back, so th.at the j)attern does not wear 
off, was seen for .$1.14 and ,$1.4.S per 
square yard, while an extra heavy im¬ 
ported quality costs .$1.94 i)er square yard. 
Among the figured linoleums are some 
imitation matting patterns for bedrooms. 
Nurse’s uniforms of blue chambray, 
high or low neck, are ,$1.49 ; uniforms of 
white Indian Head cotton. ,$2.24; of white 
linene, .$2.49 and .$2.79; of white poplin, 
.$.‘1.49, and of heavy white Oxford cloth 
with yoke and pleats. ,$4.49. Nurses’ 
waists of white cambric cost 94 cents and 
$1..‘!9. Women who are not nurses some¬ 
times like these plain, well-made white 
uniforms for house dresses, as they are 
well cut and give good service. 
Bloomer petticoats are a new model; 
they look like petticoats, yet are bloomers. 
In taffeta, crepe de chine and silk jersey 
they are ,$8..’>0 up. 
Sweater coats of colored corduroy cost 
,$2.89 up. They are loose coats of sweater 
style, with belt, and will take the place 
of a knitted sweater for slipping over r. 
Summer dress or providing extra warmth 
in the house. 
Corning and Drying Beef 
Will you tell me how to corn beef? I 
have a small cow I would like to butcher 
for home use. p. f. s. 
The plate, brisket, rump andd cross ribs 
are suitable pieces for corning, after cut¬ 
ting into suitable pieces. Take eight lbs. 
of salt for each 300 lbs. of beef. Put a 
layer of salt in the bottom of the barrel, 
then sprinkle salt on each piece of meat, 
and put a layer of .salt between each two 
layers of meat. Put a thick layer of 
.salt on the top of the whole pack. After 
standing for 12 hour.s, add for each 100 
lbs. of meat a solution of four lbs. sugar, 
two oz. saleratus, and four oz. saltpeter, 
in a gallon of water. Add more water as 
needed to cover all the meat, and weight 
it down under the pickle. Corning re¬ 
quires 30 to 40 days, but the meat may be 
The Rural Patterns 
In ordering always give number of pattern 
and size desired, sending price with order 
No. 9546 Dress 
for misses and small 
women, 10 and 18 
years. Price 15 
cents. 
No. 9491 Gown 
witli draped skirt, 
34 to 42 bust. Price 
15 cents. 
No. 9468 'nicked 
dress, sizes 1(! and 
18 years. Price 15 
cents. 
No, 9485 Surplice 
iilouse, 34 to 42 
Imst. I'riice 15 
cents. 
No. 9484 Six-Gore 
skirt, 24 to 32 
waist. Price 15 
cents. 
kept all Winter, and into the next Sum¬ 
mer, by watching tlie brine and changing 
it from time to time. If beef is corned 
in Summer, the briue .should be boiled and 
cooled before using. 
For dried beef a dry corning process is 
recommended, though it is often corned in 
brine as above. The inside of the round, 
cut lengthwise of the fiber, is advised. 
For each 100 Ib.s. of meat mix five lbs. 
salt, three lbs. sugar and two oz. salpeter. 
Bub the meat well on all sides with one- 
third of the mixture, and pack tightly in 
a jar or cask. After three days repeat 
the process with another third of the corn¬ 
ing mixture, let stand three days, rub 
again with the remainder of the mixture, 
and let stay in the pickle three days more. 
Then remove, smoke, and hang in a dry 
place. When the dried beef is pickled in 
brine it is kept in pickle four weeks, then 
hung in a warm, dry jdace. Some prefer 
it without smoking. Dried beef may be 
hung away in bags, or coated ivith melted 
parafiin, which is shelled off before using. 
Odds and Ends 
Portieres suspended from rings on a 
pole have a habit of slipping away from 
the door casing, leaving a space which is 
not at all attractive. This difficulty may 
be obviated by screwing a small brass 
Pastry? 
Of Course! 
V 
'X 
(\u 
V rf*' “ 
Why Use A Special Flour 
For Pastry? 
You don’t need a “special” flour for pastry, 
Pillsbury’s Best makes good pastry as well as good 
bread. Try this Pillsbury recipe for pie crust: 
I cup Pillsbury’s Best Flour. 
(use J Pillsbury’s Barley or Pillsbury’s Pure 
Rye Flour if desired) 
3 level tablespoons shortening 
i teaspoon baking powder 
i teaspoon salt. 
Enough ICE-COLD water to make a soft paste. 
Mix with a knife in the usual manner. 
This recipe makes the finest, crispest pie crust 
imaginable. Not the leathery kind that bends under 
your fork like a sheet of rubber, but the light, flakey 
kind that crumbles into tender fragments at the 
slightest touch. 
To make pie crust like this with Pillsbury’s Best 
requires no special skill. Just remember to use lots 
of cold water, (ice-cold if possible) and to mix the 
paste as soft as can be easily handled. With these 
precautions you can use your own recipe with 
equeJly good results. 
If you are already making good pastry, you can 
make better pastry with Pillsbury’s Best. If folks 
knew what delicious pie crust they could make with 
this all-purpose flour, they would say good-bye to 
“special pastry” flours forever. 
The Flour Question Settled 
Pillsbury Flour Mills Company, Minneapolis, Minn. 
