Knoxville journal. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1874-1986, 1875-09-09
English Hints on How to Wash and
Iron.


The linen for Mondays wash should be
collected on Saturday, sorted and put TO
soak in cold water, according to the
various kinds. The body linen should be
put into one tub, the bed and table linen
into another and the fine things separate
ly. Plain collars, cuffs, wristbands,
should be strung through the button holes
on a piece of bObbin long enough TO en-
able the articles TO be easily divided for
rubbing, starching, etc. Colored muslins,
prints and flannels must be laid aside to
be washed in different manner from
white calico or linen. Properly-boiled
suds are far better than soap for washing,
particularly if a washing machine be EN-
ployed The suds should be prepared IN
the following manner: Shred into an
earthenware jar the best yellow soap cut
into very fine shavings and pour boiling
water to the quantity required. One
pound of soap is plenty for one gallon OF
water. Add to this quantity half pound
of the best Scotch soda and set the jar
(covered) on a stove or at the base OF the
kitchen range till the soap Is quite dis
solved If this be done on Saturday even
ing the soap will be a smooth jelly ut to
use on Monday morning. The body
linen is the first that should go
into the machine, after being well
washed and rinsed in clean suds;
il it requires boiling it should be
put into the copper. Unless linen
is very much soiled it will not require
boiling more than every second time 1t is
washed In Il moderate-siZed copper put
about two pints Of the soap jelly already
mentioned; fill il with cold water and put
it in the clothes stir frequently to prevent
them from burning, and only leave them
in the copper ten minutes after the water
begins to boil. Take them out, rinse them
very we'll and blue them. To blue them
well use the blue-stone blue tied in bag
of thick flannel do one article at time
and avoid letting II fall TO the bottom OF
the tub, as the blue falls to the bottom, and
the linen is apt TO be streaked and spotted
with blue, which is very hard to get out.
Bed and table linen should be treated in
similar way The Dutch and Belgian
washerwomen, who get up linen beauti-
fully. do not use soda, but borax, In the
proportion of handful of refined borax
10 about ten gallons boiling water They
save nearly half the quantity Of soap and
the borax does not injure in the least even
fine lace or cambria.
Chloride OF lime is the English laun-
dress favorite chemical. She sees no rea-
son why il should not clean all things
equally we'll And so it does-removing
the color as well as the dirt. Common
colored things must not be soaked like
white clothes, but washed and dried as
quickly as possible.
The French method of washing colored
muslin, piques, etc: Prepare some rath-
er warm mot bot lather, made with soft
water and the best white soap; wash the
dresses one at a time, but do not soak
them. As soon as the first lather looks
soiled squeeze the dress from st, and at
once wash 1t again in fresh lather. When
thoroughly clean, rinse in pure cold water,
lastly in water slightly blued; squeeze
mot wring) the water completely from the
dress. and hang il in shaded place to
dry: If wet weather dry it by the fire. The
best prints will fade If hung in the sun
shine
In getting up muslin piques The failure
is not generally in the washing but in The
starching. A good sized painful Of starch
should be used, in which three or four
inches OF composite or other candle has
been melted while hot. The articles should
be thoroughly squeezed by the rollers OF
mangle or through a wringing-machine
All Jumps Of starch are thus removed.
Piques should be ironed as lightly as
possible and the iron ought never 10 come
into contact with the outside surface oil
the pique. An old cambria handkerchief
Is the best thing to use under the iron
when absolutely necessary 20 iron on the
right side.-st. Louis Republican.