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LITTLE THINGS WORTH KNOWING. 
Some things I have learned during "my twelve years 
experience of housekeeping, that 1 think may be of 
some service to my sisters of the Cabinet, and, with 
our Editor’s permission, J shall try to help others over 
some of the hard places over which I have been 
helped. Mrs. Croesus and Mrs. Dives can know noth¬ 
ing of the trial it is to find the beauty, if not the use¬ 
fulness of some long coveted article, obtained by many 
little self-denials, and after long and patient waiting, 
apparently ruined by some untoward accident, while 
it is still fresh and new to us ; nor with what joy w'e, 
who are obliged to count not only our dimes but our 
pennies, hail a remedy for our mishaps. 
For a long time I had wished for a new carpet for 
our sitting-room to replace one robbed, by years of 
faithful service, of its beauty. At last my desire was 
gratified, and a new one whose scarlet ground, covered 
with brown and mossy-green figures, delighted my 
eyes, replaced the old. Alas, in its first freshness, 
an awkward hand upset an inkstand, and streams of 
Stygian blackness rolled over its bright colors. Then 
how to remedy it. 
Instantly I recalled reading of a similar accident, 
and the remedy, which I had never had occasion to 
use before. I at once applied it. Hastily getting a 
saucer and silver spoon, I at once took up from the 
carpet all ink possible in that way. Then mixing, in 
equal quan tities, salt and black pepper, I covered all 
the inked portion with it with a liberal hand. Wait¬ 
ing for a few moments for it to absorb all it would, I 
then brushed the mixture lightly off, and again ap¬ 
plied more, this time rubbing it faithfully in ; again 
waited and brushed it off thoroughly, when to my joy 
not a vestige of the ink appeared. 
Since then, I have had need to use it, till now fresh 
ink, ink I mean before it bas had time to dry, on 
woolen articles of any description, has no terrors for me 
if I can only get at my remedy. After it has dried it 
would not answer. And the remedy is one at every 
body’s ready command. 
Brightly polished furniture and picture frames add 
such an inviting look to the house that the little addi¬ 
tional labor required to secure them is well expended. 
Give all black walnut furniture, whether varnished or 
oiled, an annual rubbing with linseed oil and a flannel 
rag, polishing off with another and clean flannel, and 
if you have not tried it, the new look it will assume 
will both surprise and delight you. Put but little oil 
at a time on the rag, and rub till the wood seems 
moistened with it, then rub well with the clean flannel 
and there will be no oiliuess perceptible. For picture 
frames, and indeed all except French polished furni¬ 
ture, if marred by fly-specks, I wash them well first 
with cold tea, dry them, and then treat as above with 
the oil. Care must be taken to avoid touching the 
gilt bands near the picture, as they would be spoiled. 
And after you finish rubbing the furniture, be sure to 
burn the oiled flannels. Chemists say many a fire 
supposed to have been the work of an incendiary, 
owed its origin to the leaving about of oiled woolen 
cloths; as they will often burn spontaneously. Yery 
inferior walnut frames thus treated, darken and be¬ 
come quite presentable. 
I spoke of using cold tea for removing specks from 
the frames of pictures. I also wish to speak of its 
good qualities in cleansing all kinds of varnished and 
grained woodwork, not only from fly-specks, but all 
kinds of soil. It seems to possess the cleansing power 
of soap without its injurious effects. I learned its use 
from an English publication, and I would not be 
without a knowledge of its good properties for more 
than the cost of the whole book. I have used it on 
all but my piano (that is French polished, and all the 
rest I have is either oiled or varnished wood) as need 
required, with good effects, nothing receiving injury 
from it. Soap is ruinous to varnish, and the tea seems 
to have for it all the good effects without any bad ones. 
In cleaning it is always much better, it seems to me, 
to rub the way of the grain of the wood; to wet a 
small portion at a time and dry with another cloth at 
once. 
In washing mirrors, be sure to use only a damp 
cloth, at least one that will not by pressure let drops 
of water run down, getting under the frame and caus¬ 
ing dampness, as that will affect the quicksilver all 
mirrors are coated wuth on the backs, and discolored 
spots and smeary, cloudy glass will be the result. I 
have often seen coarse cloths used to clean them. 
Nothing but fine soft ones are fit. I like to clean 
them first with a damp cloth, followed by another 
moistened with alcohol, finishing off with chamois. It 
gives them a nice polish. With them, as w r ith wood, 
I like to rub in straight lines. The direct rays of the 
sun, and the heat from lamps striking on them is said 
to be injurious to them, as it is for oil paintings and 
chromos. 
Possessed of very little strength, and liking my 
table to be well appointed, it was a trial to me to know 
how to attain the desired end. To clean the silver 
was out of my power; not to make the table pretty 
with it was a constant eyesore. Tarnished silver was 
worse than none, and to trust it to be cleaned to the 
ordinary Irish girl seemed to be the ready way to unfit 
it for use, sure. Gradually pieces w r ere withdrawn to 
be used occasionally only, when I could get them 
properly cared for. Then I read of a way to cleanse 
it easily and rapidly by the use of a solution of cy¬ 
anide of potassium. Believe me, I wmuld not even 
mention it here, did I not fear others might see it as 1 
did without a word of caution as to its dangerous na¬ 
ture. So I want to say it is one of the deadliest poi¬ 
sons, and to be kept with as much care as dualin. 
And for the safety of the public, to prevent accidents 
of a heartrending nature, I do wish that all publish¬ 
ers would always make an explicit statement of the 
dangerous nature of the various chemicals one often 
sees recommended for various domestic purposes, when 
they are so, as many might use them ignorantly or 
unthinkingly. 
To return from this digression. I did send for some, 
intending to use it only myself, and with all possible 
precautions. The very gentlemanly druggist of whom 
I ordered it, sent it to me, at the same time sending 
me a box of a preparation used by himself in keeping 
articles bright, w T ith the wish that I would try it. I 
did so, and have used it with satisfaction from that 
day to this—more than a year — and do not know as 
there is anything objectionable about it. It cleanses 
easily and quickly the silver, giving it a good polish. 
Its name is Oriental Polish, and a very good thing I 
have found it. I run no risks wuth the other, and I 
can now gratify my love of bright silver, not being 
obliged to call in aid other than my own. 
From silver to table cutlery, is but a step. Those 
who use silver-plated cutlery will not need to know 
that finely sifted wood ashes sprinkled over carefully 
polished and thoroughly dried steel knives will keep 
them from rust, wdiich is so apt to mar cutlery not in 
daily use ; others will value the knowledge. My way 
is to give them all a thorough w'iping, expose them 1 
to the sun’s rays or gentle heat, to be sure every bit 
of moisture is absent, then avoiding breathing on the 
blades, or touching aught but the handles, to wrap 
them separately in thick brown paper, as when they 
came from the store, sprinkling ashes over each. Then 
put in a knife box in a dry closet, I have kept them 
months free from rust and tarnish, as I could not pre¬ 
viously. A wnpe on a tow r el when wanted and they 
are fit for the table. 
Straw mattings are commonly used in many cham¬ 
bers, and I prefer it in summer for my dining room, 
it is so easily kept clean. The white seems most de¬ 
sirable to me, as the colored soon fades. Sweep clean; 
have ready a pail of warm water with a handful of 
fine salt dissolved in it, and a plate of Indian meal, no 
soap, as that turns the straw' yellow. With a mode¬ 
rately wet cloth covered with the meal, scour well the 
matting, rinsing it up with the salt water, and even a 
very dirty matting will look quite fresh. Do but a 
small piece at a time; use a small quantity of water 
at a time so as not to soak through, and wipe dry, and 
your carpet will look almost like new. The little 
meal left on will sw'eep off when dry. That takes the 
place of soap, and the salt restores the green coloi' 
seen in new mattings. 
I wish to say that I have kept for more than a year 
in fine condition, without once scalding, preserves and 
jellies put up in this way : I put them in small bot¬ 
tles, like horseradish and pickle bottles, have ready 
cut from soft, white paper two covers for each bottle ; 
also the whites of eggs, observing to use only the thin, 
w'atery part of the white. Fill the bottles hot from 
the kettle as you would for canning fruit; as soon as 
one is filled, moisten one of the covers, which should be 
cut to fit, on the under side with the w'hite of the egg. 
Cover the top of the bottle with it smoothly and tightly, 
holdiug it in position for a moment, w'hen the heat 
will dry it; then do the other and larger cover in the 
same W'ay; apply on top of the other, and at once, for 
greater security, with fine soft cord; tie tightly to the 
bottle’s neck. It is hard on the fingers, the bottles are 
so very hot, but the end justifies the slight pain. The 
preserves are air-tight and will keep good any reason¬ 
able length of time. All preserves should be kept in 
a dry, cool place, and if dark, so much the better. 
The above is not written for Mrs. Notable and her 
model daughters, but hoping the hints may be of some 
service to those like myself, who have bad to pick up 
their knowledge of housekeeping under many diffi¬ 
culties and discouragements, I am, theirs and the 
Cabinet’s warm friend. Cousin Madeleine. 
Foot Mats. —Cut all your woolen scraps of cloth 
and flannel into pieces half an inch wide and three 
inches long. Black, white, and colored—a great many. 
Get a ball of jute twine for ten cents, and set up on 
strong steel knitting needles, five stitches, and knit 
one row. Knit the first stitch on the second row, and 
between the needles, at right angles with the stitch, 
put a piece of your cloth, and knit another stitch. 
Then turn the end of the cloth that points toward you 
out between the needles, leaving both ends of the 
cloth sticking from you, and so all the way across, two 
stitches for every tuft of cloth. Having knit one row 
of tufts, knit one plain row of the twine to get back 
again to the side of the mat where you began. The 
ends of the cloth must be from you as you pint them in. 
My mat is one yard square. The centre is of black 
and the border of bright colors, knit in strips, nineteen 
inches and nine tufts, one hundred rows of tufts in 
length. It is inexpensive, all it costs being the twine. 
Be sure you ask for jute string. Anna. 
I? 
