St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-08-10

curd, white as DlSQue, soft as chamOlS,
that most men and women cOvet to add
it to their personal graces-for even a
mans hand may be strong and quick
and clever, while yet Shapely, smooth
and presentable. A woman needs fair
hands 20 charm with, and not more for
this than to pursue her feminine arts in
needle work, painting. and above all of
caring for children and the sick. The
sweetest memory of a mother is her
gentle look, the next her kind voice, the
hands in WEAKNESS or illness.
A neglected hand, which is solely a
convenience to it's owner, may be sur
prisiHgly improved by continuous care.
The first point is to make and keep it
clean. You may think your hands we'll
washed, yet after submitting them to
manicure they come out so much whittier
that one feels they never were clean be-
fore. To put careless hand in good
condition may require half an hours
work three times week for a fortnight,
in which time the new skin should grow
whittier and finer than before.
Soak ill-kept hands in hot bathing
soapsuds with half a teaspoonful Of
boraX in the water, which acts wonder
fully in removing CRIME. The hotter
the water the sooner it will remove
CRIME and old particles. l think the use
of stiff brush on the back Of the hands,
as well as the use of vaSeline at night,
fosters the growth of hair. Those who
have used the rubber hand brushes will
never want anything else. Rubber
clings to the surface with a sort of
suction and carries away every
trace of CRIME with it. The common
washing powders of different names
quickly bleach the hands, but leave
them harsh and dry unless rubbed with
lemon juice or vinegar and water. A
strong solution of oxaIic acid should be
kept TO remove deep stains which result
from cutting fruit or vegetables, though
there are few which resist washing
soda. There are some which defy cy-
anide of potassium, which will take out
stains of iodine, aniline or nitrate of sill
yer itself. Being most powerful poi
son, its use should be confined to such
stains as nothing else will remove.
Having whitened the hands and dried
them well. let us proceed to soften
them. Half the harshness of the skin
comes of half drying hands after wash
ing them, and the best use of almond
meal comes in. 1t is nice to rub on the
hands while rlnsing them. rubbing the
backs with 1t as if it were soap. But
while the hands still feel moist from
the towel, rub the dry almond
meal over them, giving the backs
a little friction, and they are left
in delightful state from the
soupcon of oily powder worked into the
pores. The callOuS growth around the
nails is to be rubbed down with pumice
stone, or, still better, fine sand stone.
Or start the emery wheel of the sewing
machine and rub the fingers down with
by foot power will be one of the mani
cures indispensable aids. The small
grindstones for general kitchen use
serve good purpose in rubbing down
rough or horny hands to SmoothneSS.
Not only do they wear away roughneSs,
but the friction stimulates the skin and
supplies the hands. The Romans knew
most that was worth knowing about the
toilet, and they used pumice and sand
stone all over their bodies to secure the
marble SmoothneSS of flesh we hear of
but seldom see.
conclude with an English recipe for
keeping hands smooth. which is two
tablespoonful of lemon juice, one of
glycerine and the same of almond oil
colOrleSS Oil, by the way, for experience
lends reason to the idea that most oils
and vaseline discolor and darken the
hands. En- PEASANT, hot foot baths
nightly and purgatives, with coarse
bread, are the best regime to secure
white hands.
Honey balSam is nice preparation
English ladies' maids compound to
whiten and soften hands. 1t is made of
eight tablespoonfuls of pale strained
honey heated gently and two table
spoonfuls of vegetable glycerine melted
into it. When cold two tablespoonful
of rectifed spirits and three drachms
| of pure citric acid are added, with few
drops of any rich essence to perfume.
Dissolve the acid crystals in the spirits
before pouring into the other mixture
| and bottle at once.