New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-06-05
HOUSEKEEPING IN ITALY.
ALIpE OF MARVELLOUS ECONOMY.


TROUBLED BY TIE sTRyANT-GiR Qt'S'i'N'
-, - 80 4, CORRESPONDENT OF I'M 1KlBrNII
y1.nrGGIo italy, April 12.-My Lust Ietter from
Carrora ,ras intended to give the readers "i HE
TpIst,SF an idea Of what an Italian country hoel
like. Fortunately the family OF which am the
head is no longer dependent Oh the hotel at Carrafa
for it's daily food having located itself III i'r-
pished house at ViarGglO--a seaport town twenty
miles north Of LeglOrn, The most popular ""'eiHs
place Of Northern Italy We are keeping mouse, ""''
for the first time for months are able 70 eat o'l
food with our eyes open and without Shndderh-'
Inst at present the season still three n"htisr -
,oovod we have the town almost 10 OUT
selves fine ONLY other intruders Deihg
dozon or two English people and lew Ger
mans most of them terribly conSnhl'lFe
and paralvtic that they rarely get outside lclr nr
rooms 1t is because we are 50 much ah'ad "l 'i'h"
,,,., we get our house almost for nothing. II IL
house of seven rooms. with diniAe-iooih' H',"s
room and kitchen on the ground Aoorand with three
bedrooms and parlor upstairs. Everything hcceS-
sarv for housekeeping is provided including hhrh
for the he'd and linen for the table The table linen
might be Objected to by fastidious person on the
ground OF its having more OF lnterslceS tnah VI
linen. and a person with an inordinate hanKerhg
for sterling silver might make himself very mlS'Ia-
HE because of tie brassy look and flavor OF the
forks and spoons; but we look NJ these ianlts ~
frifl
ness ~ thr rent is taken into cOnSidcratlon.i ID
francs for 100 days ending June -, just ~ w.
is certainly cheap rent for 1"us an,sarsnne and
built of stone, OF g3od 9nls ; "Ppo
witllal very comfortable TO 1--we H.
KITCHEN ECONOMY.
Two servsnts do the work of the house, one AZ
tendinp TO the marketing and cooking, the olheI
serving as waiter and chambermad 10 the COOK
we nav fifteen francs month. - 81; IN the waiter
,ve dole ont ten francs 81 80. | fancy the cook
flor
mean her stealings. than she gets III ieg'nna,e
nav. Int we console ourselves hy thinking that'
ealing wapes and steangs together, she Will hardly
make herself rich or us poor in the course OF single
SIMMER Italian servants always PlIier III hou-
crate wav from their mlstresses Perhaps our Amer
;oar sorvants would do worse if they given the
same opportunities They would very hkely get
beyond moderation in their steallngs. falrly non
.st Italian servant is quite content if she " draws
ont half a franc-about ten cents-a Day IL she
does worse than that she is apt to he Wakeiul
nights. -,
Fverv morning our cook receives money, and with
n abe nays the bills of the day. rendering an account
Of her commssaryship at night just before she goes
home Following the Italian custom. we live IN
"hand-to-mouth fashion. AS a rule we could put
what of edibles is left in the house at night into
tescup / think the only article OF which the COOK
laws in two days supply is the potato vi potatoes
ehA
time and gets about thirty potatoes for the money
II she and the chambermaid were of Celtic origin as
matter of course thirty potatoes woud scarcely he
n mouthful but Italian mouths running to macarom
rather than to potatoes, the thirty are amply
enough for forty-eight hours, making large
allowance for thick peel and abnormally de
yeloped eyes. Italian potatoes are very small
but they have as MANY and as large eyes as the
mammoth American potatoes have when spring
comes upon one of them in cellar or other damp
place and sets its sprouts growing, the resultant
thing is very like what the porcupnc Will be
when the naturaiStS discover him.
Coffee we buy by the dose. An ounce and half
makes dose for the family Of two and the two ser
wants The cook brings 1t every morning, done mp
in bit On brown paper, tightly punched between
her thumb and forchngrT. just as she would carry
flea TO the wash BASIN 1t seems poNcrty-Stnckeh
thing TO buy cents worth of coffee at time, but
ii is the custom of the place and il has this to rec
ommcnd it. that whoever follows it can have
fresh coffee every morning Our milk we
buy of a milkwoman who makes the rounds
of the neighborhood every morning. She
carries her stock in two two-quart TASKS: her
measure is glass tumblcr with very thick bottom
She gives the full of the tumbler for five centmes'
cent. 1t takes about three tumbrrfuls to make
decent accompaniment TO our ounce and han Oh
coffee II milk is needed later in the day. the COOK
pays a visit to the corner grocery and buys announcer
tumblerful.
The bread we eat comes from the bakers 1t
couldn't be made in the house. because there is no
oven TO bake il in There is no such thing as home
made bread in Italy. The bakers have the bread
making all to themselves, and they furnish very
good article sweet and wholesome. far better than
the product of the American bakeries IL certainly
conId not be worse for American bakers are III
contestbly the worst breadmakers ia tho world
PERHAPS if | were not writing 10 an Amer =
MIGHT ~
saw that good bread Is the exception IN
America Marion HaTand. in her Common Sense
in the Household" says that it is stubborn fact that
upon thousands Of American tables IN otherwise
comfortable homes good bread is an unknown phe-
nomenon. Here in Italy bread is the great necessary
of life More than seventy five per cent OF the peO-
pie of the country are almost entirely dependent
upon IL for nOurIshncnt.
MARKETING FOE PROFIT.
After the cook has served the coffee in the norm
ing she ties n banlana handkerchief over her head
takes large napkin by the corners exchanges her
leather slippers for her wooden shoes, and goes
dumping her way to the market 10 buy the where
withal for lunch and dinner. Having made lnqu-
ries to that end know just what she is to buy to-
day. and in my minds eye follow her az she
goes about town. A few steps from the house she
will probably meet q cOuntrywoman with a basket
of rs on her head She will order halt and IT, after
ten minutes wranglinG. she and the egg merchant
can come to terms she will buy five eggs for our
omelette. Putting the eggs in the napkin she will
move Oh to the butchers. There she will invest IN
three-ouarters of pound of sweetbread and dash
of liver one and half pounds of soup meat, and
8 one pound of lamb for a stew. The butcher having
none of that manila paper which American butchers
us nor in fact any paper at ALL will put each order
on large dried leaf and the cook kneading all
into tolerably compact will deposit II In the
napkin along with the eggs aud will then head for