Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1871-12-21
HOME, FARM AND GARDEN.

I
NJ. A. Riehl, writing to Colman's
Fnr@ World, combats the idea that if po-
! tatoes are allowed to wilt after being cut
| up they would come up quicker, mature
| earlier, and give better crop. Expert
| ments made by Mr.. r. proves the result
Just the opposite of this theory.
Little Cakes-To make with the
small cup OF butter, one cup of milk, the
whites of six eggs, three and one-half
cups of flour, with two teaspoonfuls of
cream of tartar sifted into it; one teaspoon
full of soda added the last thing. Flavor
with little nutmeg or cinnamon.
"A correspondent of the ST Louis
Journ0l Of Horticulture has discovered that
handful of sawdust, placed around the
root of plant, will effectually protect it
from cut worms. His experimenting was
on pretty large scale, and in not a single
instance was there failure. He does not
state what kind of wood the sawdust was
from.
Plain Cream Tartar Cake. One pint
of flour, one cup Of sweet milk, one cup of
sugar, two and one-half tablespoonfuls of
melted butter, one even teaspoonful of
soda, two teaspoonsful of cream of tartar,
one teaSpoonful essence of lemon or a la
blespoonful OF rose water or little nut
meg. If lard or suet is used in place of
butter, add small teaspoonful of salt
When paint has an old, dingy look,
take flannel cloth, dampen it, and apply
as much first quality Spanish whiting as
will adhere to it, and rub the paint. But
little rubbing will be required to remove
all dirt and grease. Rinse thoroughly
with pure water, and then rub dry with a
soft cloth. Paint thus cleaned looks like
new, and does not receive such injury as
from soap-suds. This process of cleaning
is good one to perform before laying
varnish over old paint.
Says an exchange "Few people are
aware that they do wagons and carriages
more injury by greasing too plentifully
than by any other way. A well-made
wheel will endure common wear from ten
to twenty-five years, if care is taken to
use the right kind and proper amount of
grease but if this matter is not attended
to, they will be used up in five or six
years. Lard should never be used on a
wagon, for it will penetrate the hub, and
work its way around the lemons of the
spoke, and spoil the wheel Tallow is the
best lubricator for wood aXle-trees, and
castor-oil for iron just grease enough
should be applied to the spindle of a
| wagon to give it light coating this is
better than more, for the surplus put on
will work out at the ends, and be forced
by the shoulder-bands and nut-washers
into the hub around the outside of the
boxes To oil an aXle-tree first wipe the
spindle clean with spirits of turpcntine,
and then apply few drops of castor-oil
near the shoulder and end. One tea
spoonful is sufficient for the whole"
Very much has been written on the
subject of open windows at night, and
written unwisely. The facts are, that who
ever sleeps intentionally cool will get
sick. To hoist window sky high when
the mercury is at zero, is an absudity.
The colder sleeping apartment is the
more unhealthy does it become, because
cold condenscs the carbonic acid formed
by the breathing of the sleeper. 1t settles
near the floor and is rebreathed, and if in
a very condensed form, he will die before
morning. Hence we must be governed by
circumstances. The first thing is, you
must be comfortably warm during sleep,
otherwise you are not refreshed and in
fammation of the lungs may be engen-
dered and life destroyed within few
days. An open door and an open fire.
place are sufficient for ordinary purposes
in cold weather When outer windows
are open il is well to have them down at
the top two inches, and up at the bottom
for the same space.
-Skunks and crows are not the unmitl-
gated nuisances they are generally consld-
cred to be, and should not be ruthlessly
slaughtered on sight. Like the vast ma
jority of creatures, they have useful
office to perform The skunk, If he is
watched quietly on moonlight evening,
and not disturbed, may be seen busy in
garden and corn-field hunting grubs, bee.
ties, and mice, and will pass within yard
of ones feet without giving any notice OF
his presence. If he suck eggs, it is our
fault and his good luck that they are per
mittcd to lie within his reach and II he
take up his quarters beneath the barn
floor, it shows his wisdom, as well as the
foly of man who permits his barn to be
open underneath for his entrance. The
Groupings of the skunk will prove album
dainty of what his food consists, and 1t Is
libel on him to say that he will pick up
chickens if they are in their proper places:
Moreover. he will not climb fence; and
if the Yards arc properly protected tas
they should bel with boards or plckets,
there will be no danger OF suddenly DIS
turding him after dark too close to the
house. The crow, also, will be found to
have many good points in his character,
and not to be so black as he looks If he is