The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-03-16
HOME AND FARM.
DOMESTIC MATTERS.

Butter is composed of fat and little albu-
men. when the temperature il raised the
albumeu acts as ferment, and decomposes
the fat converting it into an acid-butyric.
This is soluble in wsJsr. No matter how
rancid your butter, it may bs madeperiectly
sweet by washing.
A genuine erasive soap that will remove
grease and stains from clothing is made as
follows Two pounds of good CASTLE soap;
half pound OF carbonate of potash, dis
solved in halfa pint OF hot water. Cut the soap
in thin slices, boil the soap with the potash
until it isthick enough to mold in cakes;
add alcohol, half an ounce; camphor, hall
an ounce; hartshorn, half an ounce color
with half an ounce of pulverizsd charcoal.
As a rule, warm water and soft cloth are
all that is required to keep glass in good
condition; but water bottles and wine de-
canters, in order to keep them bright, must
be rinsed out with a little muriatic acid,
which is the best substance for removing the
s.fur' which collects in them. TIE acid is
far batter than ashes. sand or shot; for the
ashes and sand scratch the glass, and if any
shots left in by accident, the lead Is poison
Gus. Richly cut glass must be cleaEsed and
polished with a soft brush. upon which a
very little fine chalk or whiting is put; by
this means the luster and brillIancy are pre-
served.
HOUSEHOLD HINTs.-A motherly woman
writing in the Christian Monitor, declares
that she fully agrees with any thoughtful
woman who spares her boys the humilia-
ton of wearing great round or triangular
patches, when her own skill and generous
supply OF pieces make the reseated pants
look almost all well as new ones. May they
hold her In grateful remembrance long after
they shall have outlived the era Of torn
trousers. She suggests that when. pants
need repairing over the knee, it is a good
way to rip the seams each side OF the worn
part, cut it out, and insert a new pice, press
ing it nicely before closing the side seams
again. Neither boy nor man need be
ashamed 10 wear garments neatly patched,
it it be necessary, and every girl should be
taught that mending well is an essential
part of domestic economy.
THE VALUE SUN-FLowERs.-Sunhow
are rich in honey and are consequently good
reighbors for bees. Oil, hardly to be dis
tingushed from olive oil by any enc but an
expert, may be extracted from the seeds in
proportion of one gallon TO one bushel
One acre will produce something like
fifty bushels of seed. The seeds, too,
make food not unpalatable for human
beings, and very good for animals and
poultry. The Portuguese and the American
Indians make a kind of bread from them,
and roasted they NAV be ground and used as
a substitute for coffee. The stalks may be
used as bean poles while growing. Dry. they
make passable roofs for sheds and the like,
and burn readily on the hearth. The ashes
are very rich IN potash. Altogether it is
very useful plant, and, to crown all, it has
a reputation which the chemists have never
disproved, for absorbing malaria, and acting
as an effectual screen against that scourge of
low-lying dlstricts-tever and ague.
ALKAII FOR APPLE TREEs.-The Scien-
tifc American gives the following observa-
tions on this subject: In considering the
growth OF organisms, the action of the aka
lies is to be looked upon as scarcely less i'm
portant than that of air and water. Lime
is the great animal alkali, and potash the
vegetable one; its Old name of vegetable
kali expressed that tact, and all the pot
ash of commerce is known to be derived
from wood sshes. The importance OF
potash as manure has been frequently
overlooked by farmers, who rarely know
the large amount of material found in grass
grain crops, leaves, barnyard manure, roots
and fruits. The point tO which we now call
attention is, that our farmers and fruit grow
ers have ignored, or rather have been igno-
rant of, the importance of wood ashes as q
vegetable stimulant, and as the leading con-
stituent OF plants. Even coal ashes, now
thrown away as useless, have been
shown both by experiment and anal
alkaline value. We will relate only oneex-
pertinent: Some twenty-five years ago we
treated an old hollow Pippin apple tree as
follows: The hollow, to the heigh of eight
feet, was filed and rammed with compost
of wood ashes, garden mold and little
waste lime (carbonsts). Thefflling was }
curely fastened in by boards. The next
year the crop of sound fruit was 10 bushels,
from az old shell of tree that had borne
nothing of any account for some time, and
for IL years alter filling, the old Pippin tree
continued to flourish and bear we'll.
SHEEP ON FARM.-Sheep are underval-
ued by the mass of landho,ders as a ms Of
keeping up the fertility of the soil and put
ting money into the pockets of farmers.
The moment one begins to talk of sheep
husbandry, the listener or reader begins to
look for wool quotations, as if wool was all
that yields profit from sheep. One might as
we'll look for wheat quotations alone when
there is talk about the profit of farming.
Sheep on a farm yield both wool and mutton.
They multiply with great rapidity. They
are the best of farm scavengers, 'clesn
ing field as no other class of animals will,
They give back to the farm more in propor-
ton to what they take from it than any other
animal, and distribute it better with view
to the future fertility of the soil. Prove
this? There is no need of proof to those who
have kept sheep and know their habits and
the profits they yield. To prove it TO those
who have not the experience, it ia necessary
they should try the experiment or accept
the testimony of an experienced shepherd
But the live stock OF farm should not
necessarily be sheep exclusively. Cattle
horses, swine. have their respective place:
in the farm economy. How many of each
to keep is question that locality, character
of markets, adaptation of soil, predisposi
ton, taste and skill of the husbandmar
must decide. But one thing ought not to be
forgotten, that the more stock a man keep.
on his farm the more grass and grain Il
ought to, and, if properly managed, it will
grow. The rates ofincrease will correspond
with the business tact. technical and practi
cal knowledge and skill OF the husbandman
New York World.