The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1875-11-11
Nuppets of Knowledge.
TO TELL GOOD FROM BAD EGGS.

NukHCt VI ASNON
TO TELL GOOD FROM A EGGS.
The following is a simple but a sure
way to tell good from bad eggs: Put
them in water enough to cover them.
All that lay flat, as they would on a
smooth surface out of water, are good.
Those of which the big end rises are bad.
The vessel used should have a smooth,
level bottom.
TO rs h ~soUNDNEss OF A PIECE OF
TMBER.
To test the soundness of a piece OF
timber, apply the ear to the middle OF
one of the ends, while another person
strikes upon the opposite extremity. II
the wood is sound and of good quality,
the blow is very distinctly heard, how
aver long the beam may be. If the wood
is d~iaggregated by decay or otherwise,
the sound will be for the most part de-
stroyed.
VALUE OF BoRAx.
Borax is the best exterminator yet dis
covered. The troublesome insect has a
great aversion to it, and will never re-
turn where it has once been scattered.
AS the salt is perfectly harmless to hu-
man beings, it is much to be preferred
for this purpose to the poisonous sub
stances commonly used. Borax is also
valuable for laundry use, instead Of soda.
Add a handful of it, powdered, to about
ten gallons of boiling water, and you
need use only half the ordinary allow
ance of soap. For laces, cambrics, etc.,
use an extra quantity of the powder. It
Ill .o4 s,,ra &ha 1avf,ra &c kba aIoth
in the least.
FASTENING KNIFE HANDLES.
Most h~ousekeepers have felt the need
of a recipe for mending knives, or rath-
er for fastening knives and forks to their
handles. The following mixture is rec
commended for this purpose in the Scien-
tifc american: Mix together one pound
of rosin and eight ounces of sulphur, and
keep it either in bars or reduced to pow
der; mix one part of this powder with
half a pint of iron filings, fine sand or
brick dust, and the cavity of the handle
is to be filled with this mixture. Heat
the stem of the knife or fork and insert
it hot, and when cold it Will be found to
be tight.
A HOMEMADE BAROMETER.
To make a simple barometer, take q
common wide-mouthed bottle, such as is
used for pickles, fill it to within a few
inches of the top with water. Then take
a common long-necked flask, such as is
used for oil, and plunge the neck of it
into the pickle bottle as far as it will go,
and the barometer is made. In fine
weather the water will rise into the neck
of the flask even higher than the pickle
bottle; in wet and windy weather it will
fall to within an inch of the mouth of the
flask. Before a heavy gale of wind the
water has been seen to leave the flask al
together at least eight hours before the
gale came to its height.
TO MAKE WOOD NoN-ooMBUsT1BLE.
1t is stated that n or two coats OF
liquid ~silicate of soda (water- glass or
liquid glass; will render wood incombus-
tible. Its effect on the wood is that it
n~eutralizes the fbrous parts which are
the combustible parts of it, and petrifies
them. In case of the breaking out of a
fire, neighboring buildings being rem
dered incombustible by the above named
process, the confagration cannot spread
so quickly. Forming as it does a hard
surface to the wood, it would economic
paint to the extent of so per cent, but,
as a matter of course, like all prepare
lions preventing the absorption of the
paint, at the cost of its durability.
TO STOP THE RAvAGEs OF MOTHS.
Camphor will not stop the ravages of
moths in carpets after the insects have
commenced eating. Nor will they then
pay any regard to the presence of cedar
or tobacco. A good way in which to kill
them is to take q coarse crash towel and
wiring it out of clean water, spread ii
smoothly on the carpet, and then iron il
dry with a good hot iron, repeating the
operation on all suspected places, and
those least used. The process does not
injure the pile or color of the carpet in
the least; and it is not necessary to press
hard, heat and steam being the agents,
and they do the work effectually on
worms and eggs.
A NEAT AND DURABLE soRAP-BooK.
Take any strongly-bound and neat
looking book that you have no particular
use for. Cut out a half dozen of the
leaves, leaving a short stub, so as not to
affect the strength of the binding; then
skip four leaves, and cut out another hall
dozen, and SO on through the book; this
will leave space to paste your scraps in
without ~over-flling the corners. In past
ing scraps, only paste the corners and
edges. This will prevent the paper from
wrinkling and getting out of shape; and
If at any time you wish to remove the
clippings, you a do so by slipping
lead pencil under them and loosenine
the corners Use -four paste in FASTING
in your clippings, as it is neat and clean,
and will not discolor the paper.
THE sHRINKAGE OF WOODEN CLOTHING.
Prof. Artus, who has devoted himself
to the discovery of the reason why wool
en- clothing, when washed with soap an6
water, will insist upon shrinking and be
coming thick, and acquiring that peculiar
odor and feeling which so annoys house
keepers, says these evil effects are due
to the decomposition of soap by the acid
present in the perspiration and othel
waste of the skin which the clothing alb
serbs. The fat of the soap is then pre-
cipitated upon the wool. These effects
may be prevented by sleeping the articles
in a warm solution Of washing soda fol
several hours, then adding some warn
water and a few drops of ammonia. Thu
woolens are then to be washed out ani
rinsed i'll lukewarm water.
Redemption of National Bank Notes.
It is understood that among promi
nent features of the Forthcoming repor