Ingenious Devices 
LABOR-SAVING SCHEMES AND SHORT CUTS IN THE HOUSE AND IN THE GARDEN 
An Oven Convenience 
N accident was the mother of inven¬ 
tion of this instance. The oven 
door of the kitchen range, was originally 
fitted with one of the big circular ther¬ 
mometers, now found in the majority of 
modern ranges. The glass enclosing this 
thermometer was accidentally broken, and 
on examining it for the purpose of replac¬ 
ing the glass, it was found that the entire 
thermometer plate could be readily un¬ 
screwed from the inside of the oven door. 
On removing the big circle, with the idea 
of taking it to a repair man, to be fitted 
with glass, it was noticed that the open 
circle in the center of the door gave a 
very good view of the entire oven. 
Immediately the thought occurred that 
it would be an excellent plan to have the 
opening simply enclosed with glass in¬ 
stead of replacing the thermometer. It 
would then be possible to watch the prog¬ 
ress of food baking in the oven, without 
allowing the cold air to enter. This con¬ 
venience would also avoid the necessity 
of jarring, in closing the oven door, after 
examination of the baking — the jarring 
which so often proves fatal to delicate 
cakes, souffles and other dishes. 
The home-made invention has proven a 
great convenience, and has made baking 
day a delight. A tinsmith made the little 
case for the glass, so that it would fit 
snugly into the opening originally occu¬ 
pied by the thermometer; it was then 
screwed into the door, and the thermome¬ 
ter was still found useful, as it was ar¬ 
ranged on the side - of the oven interior, 
near the door, where it is possible to note 
the temperature of the oven while watch¬ 
ing the process of the baking. 
Since arranging this handy contri¬ 
vance, it has been learned that it is not a 
strictly new idea, as some of the modern 
ranges of today have been fitted with 
glass-paneled oven doors. But the home¬ 
made contrivance can be made to meet 
the requirements of the great majority of 
housewives. Not all can afford to install 
the new range for the sake of the glass 
doors, but any one can set in a glass 
panel, or a glass circle, who possesses the 
very common convenience of the ther¬ 
mometer-fitted oven door. 
P. W. H. 
A Roofing Suggestion 
T is well known how much heat a metal 
roof radiates in the summertime, and 
this heat often proves very annoying to the 
occupants of the dwelling, especially those 
who have bedrooms whose windows open 
on the roof. It is of course necessary to 
have roofs of metal in many instances, and 
the following simple and effective method 
was devised to overcome in a large measure 
the heat radiated. A layer of sheathing 
paper was placed upon the roof and cov¬ 
ered with a layer of tar paper. Then the 
metal roof was laid. The results exceeded 
all expectations; and the cost was very 
little for the great benefit derived. C. F. 
“Knock-Down” Picture Frames 
HE use of a new patented moulding, 
cut in a variety of practicable lengths 
and correctly mitered so that any two 
pieces of the same width will fit together, 
will enable anyone to frame pictures at 
home without the aid of tools other than 
a small hammer. The photograph repro¬ 
duced here represents a picture framed un¬ 
der a glass 6 l / 2 x 8p2 in. Below are 
shown the reverse sides of the sections of 
moulding, and the manner in which they 
are fastened together by staples. For this 
frame were used two lengths of H in. 
moulding, size 6 l / 2 in., and two lengths, 
size 8p2. The entire cost of the frame, in¬ 
cluding the glass, was forty-five cents. 
The lengths varv from to 30 inches. 
E. F. A. 
The materials and the finished picture frame. 
Four staples like that shown, hold the 
moulding strips firmly together 
To Hold China in Place 
T is sometimes a problem to know how 
to make plates stand upon a slip¬ 
pery surface. Plate rails and some buf¬ 
fets are provided with a little groove for 
holding the china in place — be it plates, or 
bowls and cups, with the decorations in¬ 
side, which you wish to show. 
A clever idea is to make a small semi¬ 
circle with sealing-wax wherever you 
wish a piece of china to stand. This will 
prevent the plate or bowl from rolling 
from side to side, as well as making it 
stand in place. 
If the piece of furniture on which you 
wish to arrange some china be dark or 
light wood you can match its color with 
the sealing-wax so that the little support 
will not be perceptible; white for white 
finished woodwork, dark brown or green 
for weathered oak, brown for golden or 
fumed oak, and so on. 
When you wish to change the position 
of the china it will be easy to scratch the 
wax off with a pen-knife. The wax will 
be so brittle that it can be removed with¬ 
out the least damage to the wood. 
H. R. M. 
A Home-made Polisher 
MONG the recent novelties in house¬ 
hold inventions and time-savers, 
there is a oolishing cloth softer and thin¬ 
ner than chamois, guaranteed to be very 
durable and especially recommended for 
polishing silverware. It is claimed that 
the fine silver plated ware and the solid 
silver can be kept bright and shining by 
its daily use, without scratching, and with¬ 
out the pe"iodical polishing which gradu¬ 
ally injures the plated knives, forks and 
spoons when used in the form of powder- 
polishers. 
These polishing cloths are supposed to 
be a new invention; but in reality old-time 
housekeepers, in the long ago, thoroughly 
understood their usefulness. They pre¬ 
pared their own polishing cloths, as testi- 
fiec by some of the good old Colonial re¬ 
cipes for caring for the numerous silver 
articles, in Southern homes famed for 
their hospitality. 
The old recipe for making these time- 
savers in the form of silver polishing 
cloths was to boil strong soft rags in a 
mixture of new milk and hartshorn pow¬ 
der, in the proportion of one ounce of 
powder to a pint of milk. They were 
boiled for five minutes, and as soon as 
they were taken out of the hot mixture 
they were passed quickly through cold 
water, so that they could be wrung out 
immediately. The were squeezed only 
partially dry and then dried before the fire. 
It will be possible for any housewife to 
prepare her own polishing cloths by fol¬ 
lowing this good old rule ; and the writer 
knows from experience that they are a 
great convenience for many uses in the 
kitchen and dining room. After washing 
and drying the silverware, it is briskly 
rubbed with one of these polishers; and 
there is never a spot or blemish that de¬ 
mands a special day set aside for polish¬ 
ing with powder. The bright polish is 
beautiful and lasting, and it is specially 
desirable for the large silver pieces. The 
tea pots, the silver water-pitchers, the old- 
fashioned urns and fruit dishes, with their 
elaborate ornamentation, and many treas¬ 
ured heirlooms, mav be kept bright and 
shining with little labor; and the cloths 
are easily renewed. P. W. FI. 
(46) 
