The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1875-12-03
Country Kitchens.

water, stationary wash-tubs, and an ele-
waited range. "You cant expect city
conveniences in a country place." is the
formula. All these cOnyeniences, with
the exception of gas. can be put into
country kitchens, if the builder chooses
to have them. 4 man building his own
house would willingly sacrifice Il fanci-
full ~c0rnicc somewhere. or have the par
lors less ornamcnted, in order to have
the kitchen made convenient and com
Portable, if the idea were suggested to
him. But usually he and the architect
laying their heads together, with no
w0man's wisdom to guide them, arrive
1T the wise conclusion that there must
be a kitchen somewhere; and, having
determined in what place it will be least
conspicuous, consider that part of the
house disposed of.
If they studied the matter Il little,
they would, if possible, have two kitch-
enS-thc front, or winter kitchen, con-
tanning the range. With Il cooking
stove in the back kitchen for summer
use, the house could be kept much cool
cr during the hot season. The station
airy tub should be in the back room.
If there are NJ stationary tubs, the
washing could be done in the room that
was u of season, thus avoiding the
necessity of the weekly Stop and steam,
and SOiled clothes in the cOOking-room.
If this is tooc costly Il plan, Il small wash
oom could be substituted for the back
kitchen ut no great expense.
But, >uppoSing there is but one room
for cooking, washing, and ironing, and
that there has been no attempt to intro
duce into this the "mOdern convent
cnceS' (Which is the actual state of
things in most country houses). there
is no need for Il sublime resignation to
every imaginable kitchen discomfort
and Inconvenience.
\ pump ought to he regarded as 4
necessity in Il country kitchen. If the
room has but one window, and neither
outside door nor open Fireplace, it is
badly ventilated, and therefore uncom-
Portable. 1t is also unwholcsOme. Pa
pered walls and Il row of shelves, unen-
closed, called, par conplni~uuce, II
dresser, are neither of them ~clcanlv.
Both uncomfortable, and uncleanly, is
the pot closet: too shallow to admit of
Il proper disposition of the cooking
utensils, SO that the bio pot, Indignant
at the pile of articles thrust upon him,
bursts open the door at the most uneX-
pectcd times, and aStoniShcS the Occu-
pants of the kitchen with Il vision of the
frying-pan gyrating over the floor, or
the gridiron leaping up like a jack-in-a
box. There is no need whatever for
submitting to such diScomforts Us these.
The first consideration in Il cooking
room is cleanliness. Tried by this test,
papered walls are an abomination in
such a place. You cannot darken this
room through part of the day in sum-
mer, as you do others, and, consequent
ly, fly specks will be numerous. These
walls absorb the kitchen odOrS and
steam, and smoke rests lovingly upon
them. If creeping things get into a
house, they are sure to insinuate them
selves into the paper on the walls. Hard
finished walls are really more clearly,
for they can be washed; but, unless the
finishing is better done than in the kitch-
ems we have seen, they Oon look dirty,
and this is the next worst thing to being
so; for such finishing soon becomes
'splotchy." There is nothing that will
compare with the old-faShiomed white
wash: not color wash, but whitcwash,
pure and simple. The color wash may
give the walls 4 prettier tint,
but it must be put on by L
practiced hand, whereas whitewash can
be applied by any one, whenever Il dirty
spot makes its appearance. 1t is true
that Impractical hands do not apply the
brush as evenly as could be wished, but
Il few streaks more or less don't matter,
when we can all see that the streaks are
white and clean.
Don't have the woodwork painted;
don't have any thing painted. Things
in Il kitchen will get soiled. 1t follows
that they must be cleaned. Soap is 4
foe, before which paint invariably quits
the field. Very Don the color will be
off in spots, and nothing less than re-
painting the whole room will ever make
1t look clean again. 1t is still more OBJ
ioot;nnnhlo To lnnrn tho mnnd in it, ~