The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1880-12-30
Saving the Cider.

Saving the Cider.
"onA thing is certsin,'' said Mr..
ilashev y, smphssically. "forty gal
Ions Of tider won't keep while we're
drinking<t. There must be something
to put In y to keep itfrom spelling, and
I r '} heard !. thAt mustard seed is the ar
II agree, with ySu,'' observed Mr..
Leffing1ell: If We don't take care of
it, the cider ". II SOUR; but / incline to
the idea that .,orseradish is the best.
Put in horseradish and your cider will
keep all winter
''1et me remark, gentlemen" said
Mr.. Anderson, laying down chicken
wing and wiping his mustache, ''that
raisins are what you want. Dump in
plenty of raisins and you've got your
cider where you want it. Think so, Mr..
Sherwood?'
II can't say do" rejoined Mr.. Sher-
wood. There is no doubt that the
cider will spoil unless you put in some
thing, but what you want is borax. A
pound of borax will keep that barrel of
cider until spring."
Each gentleman sustained his view
with potent arguments, but the dinner
was finished before any conclusion
was arrived at, and the party sepa-
rated:
'.They can talk about their borax,
and raisins, and horseradish till they're
gray" said MIR. Hathaway, as he Topped
out of bed at daylight the next morn
ing, ''but I'll have my mustard-seed
in before they roll over" and cautious
ly stepping down stairs, he extracted
the bung and poured liberal dose of
the seeds into the barrel. THAT will
keep" he murmured, ''for six years, !"
and, driving the bung home. he went
back to bed.
''It's clear to my mind that Hatha-
way is trying to save that cider by
faith,' muttsred Mr.. Leffingwell an
hour later, as he CROPPED around for his
clothes. Mustard seed! Why. he might
just as we'll put in squash rind. I'm
going to fill that barrel with horserad-
ISL before he's DIP, and show him how
to keep cider. Mustard seed! I'll
head q subscription with five dollars to
test his sanity" And Mr.. Leffingwell
shivered down to the cellar and cracked
away with q hammer until the bung
flew out like a bullet. "Therer' he
calculated as he poked the horseradish
in with his thumb, ''that'l II do the bust
ness" and with chattering teeth he
prowled back to his room.''
Zone would think to hear these peo-
pie talk that they'd been brought up in
an ORCHARD" said Mr.. Anderson to
himself, as he jabbed the right foot in
to the wrong slipper. "Borax! Horse
radish! Mustard! What that cider wants
is raisins, and that's what it's going to
get" Upon which Mr.. Anderson crept
down into the cellar, and inoculated the
barrel with q couple of pounds of raisins.
'.It's beginning to spoil already" he
soliloquized, eying the floating seeds and
radish suspicious1y, but without identi-
flying them. ''lfI hadn't been lightning
quick we ID have been drinking vinegar
by dinner time" And satisfied that he
had saved the beverage, he went back
to the sheets.
"What I'm afraid Of" remarked Mr..
Sherwood, as he opened his door careful
~ and slipped downstairs, "what I'm
afraid Of is that those fellows will begin
to tinker with that barrel before can
get there. Ifthey manage to stick their
foolishness in first I'm gone. but if
can empty this borax before they're
around, there's so much cider saved
Mr.. Sherwood belted away at the bar
rel until the bung toppled out, and in
went his borax. ''That's the business. "
he observed with great satisfaction. as
he replaced the bung. ''It will teach
those boys not to be SO dogmatic with
their remedies hereafter"
IL don't believe that cider was very
good in the first place." said Mr.
Anderson, as he pushed his glass from
him that night at dinner. 1--WE 60,
Il think so," said Mr.. Sherwood. Il,
had bad taste when we tapped it. Il
isn't fit to drink now.''
'rd head a subscription with five
dollars to send that cider man to the
Penitentary, observed Mr.. Leffingwell
severely. 1T is not good cider. W.
couldn't have put anything in to keer
it. What do you think, Hathaway?''
II had my suspicious of it from the
first!' replied Mr.. Hathaway. 'lt's
old stock, and think we'd better give
it away"
And then there was silence, and
each gentleman wondered if it hadn't
been better to have let the other gentle.
men try their various recipes before
zealously administering his own.-
Brooklyn Eagle.