Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1885-11-04

| Slut up, anu leJ Intln ll6 tnTe6 Gays.
Then make a strong brine sufficient to
cover them, strong enough to float a
newly laid egg or potato. To this,
before pouring on the hams, add one
gallon of fine cane molasses or eight
pounds of cane sugar, one-half pound
of saltpeter; dissolved thoroughly be-
fore mixing. Pour over the hams un.
til covered, carefully weighted down.
Let them remain in this in a cool
place, but not cold enough to freeze,
for six weeks. At the end of this time
take out the pickle and let them drain,
but while they are damp rub on the
flesh side, and upper end, black or red
pepper copiously. The pepper should
be as fine as dust. Then hang up and
smoke And for this prepare pure
smoke; it is just as important as TO
have everything else pure. The best
is made of green hickory or sugar tree
wood. And there should be nothing
impure or foul in smell about the
smoke house. The meat, especially
the fat part Of it, as rapidly imbibes
the impurity and ill-lavor as it does
the smoke. Milk houses and smoke
houses must be absolutely pure. No
foul soap grease, or decaying vegeta-
bles or rotten wood should be about
it. 1t is a good plan to thoroughly
Whtewash the smoke house before
hanging up the meat. When we'll
smoked cover with thick muslin, which
any handy man or oman can do, and
then whitewash with a thick lime
wash and hang away in cool (not
damp airy room. If it be dark so
much the better,
The State Agricultural Society of
Maryland offered a magnificent reward
of four premiums for the best cured
hams. The first premium was award,
ed to T. L. Hamilton, who cured ac-
cording to the following recipe
"To every 100 pounds of meat, eight
pounds of best pork salt, two ounces
of saltpeter, two pounds brown sugar,
one and a quarter ounces Of potash,
and four gallons of water; mix them
and pour over the hams after they
have lain in the tub two days, which
had been rubbed with fine salt when
put in. Let them remain in this pickle
for six weeks, then let them dry sew.
eral days before smoking.
Six gallons of soft or rain water,
nine pounds of rock salt, three ounces
of saltpeter, one quart of molasses,
three pounds of brown sugar, one and
half ounces Of pearlash, The salt
peter and pearlash to be dissolved be-
fore putting into the pickle, Boil and
skim. Rub the hams thoroughly with
fine salt before putting them into the
tub to get all the blood out of them.
1t would be well to rccollect that
nearly all commercial saltpeter is bad
ly adultcrated, and is not more than
half saltpetcr. But the adulteration
is generally SO badly done any one can
tell it. If not pure more must be
used.
There is also recipe which is said to
be the English mode of curing hams.
Tncy, as ovun us ulo moot 10 out ar,
rub it thoroughly with fine salt. Re-
peat this the fourth day, adding to the
salt saltpeter at the rate of one pound
to seventy pounds of meat. Then mix
one pound of brown sugar and one of
molasses, and rub them every day for
two weeks. This is a process of dry
curing. Then smoke with hickory
chips.
Some persons instead of canvasing,
to keep hams from mold, bugs, or flies,
hang them in cool, dry place, and
rub them every two or three weeks
thoroughly with cider brandy, high
wines or alcohol. 1t is however, sug-
gested that if the operators in such
cases are not prohibitlonists, they
should be muzzled before going to tho
smokehouse. -Iowa State Register.