The Portland daily press., 1894-12-15
THE HOME
Points on Laundry Work.

There are women IN THIS WoElu VIM
seem to think that they are never really
accomplishing anything unless they
make hard work of it. They scorn all
easy ways, characterizing them as slack
twisted and shirky,' and take to them
selves great credit for getting through
an enormous amount of hard work"
This remark was recently called forth
by wordy encounter between an expe-
rienced shousekeeper and woman to
whom she had given a great deal of
work. From the first there had been an
effort to make the labor as light as pos
sible. but it was at last given up as a
hopeless undertaking.
In all of my experience" said this
lady, in narrating the circumstances, Il
never met with woman SO set and OBJ
stinate as the one have just been en-
ploying. She as resolutely refused to
have the clothes put to soak, preferring
what she calls elbow grease to all man
ner of labor-saving appliances.
"Then she grumbled about the work
in one breath and boasted of her ability
to do 1t in another, until 1t became so
wearisome that gave her up in disgust
During my residence abroad I got some
points in laundry work that were worthy
of adoption, and others I have worked
out for myself
1t is the greatest saving of time and
strength to use small table or fat
board and soft scru bbing. brush. can
take an ordinary garment with collar
and sleeves badly soiled and cleanse it
by this process in one-tkird of the time
and with infinitely less hard work than
the old average laundress. l make a
mixture of soap and kerosene oil and let
it stand over night, or prepare it and
keep it in stoppered jug or bottle.
With soft brush rub the collar and
cuffs and all of the soiled places, then
roll the garment up for a few minutes,
while the others are being done. Wber
all are prepared, begin with the first and
rinse and brush the surface with hot
soapsuds. In nine cases out of ten the
garment will need no further rubbing
I do not approve of clothes being merely
scalded. They need not be boiled for
any length of time, but should have
about one to three minutes in actually
boiling suds. This dissolves any gummy
substances that may not rub out OF the
fibres, and makes the clothes more clean
and certainly more healthful. Clothes
soaked over night in warm suds made
with the soap and kerosene mixture will
wash easier and look better. to say
nothing of wearing much longer, than
those laundried IN the ordinary way
N. Y. Ledger.
The Breakfast Oatmeal.
Mrs Rorer gives succinct and simple
formula that is infallible If carefully
followed: Add four heaping tablespoon
fuls of oatmeal to one quart of boiling
water, add teaspoonful of salt; mix,
and put the whole in double boiler.
Fill the lower boiler with boiling water,
stand the inside boiler in this, and boil
rapidly twenty minutes, then push the
boiler to one side of the range, and cook
slowly over night. The oatmeal must
not be stirred after the first mixiDg-it
cannot burn in double boiler, unless
the under boiler becomes dry-as the
stirring makes the mush starchy or
waxy, and also spoils its flavor. Oat-
meal made after this receipt will be
light, each grain separate, but swollen
to three Tins it's Original size, and will
have a delicious favor. Turn it out care
fully into the dish, without stirring or
breaking the grains.
Gift Making.
The following directions are for useful
articles that will not take long time
to make or require much outlay of
m oney:
Artistic Picture Frames. Some frames
seen at a woman's exchange are described
in the Delineator and might be easily
made. Take any cheap pine frame or an
old frame and give it a coat of shellac.
Lay heavy white lace like Torchon,
over it cutting the lace, to form mitres
at the corners. Make it lie smoothly.
Glue the lace securely to the wood. paint
the entire frame white. let it dry, gid
the edges and pick out tie flowers and
leaves in the lace with gold paiut.
A Fortune Book. Take thirty one
pages of note paper, number them at the
Top IrOm Ouc upWdfus WIlec vi cdCu wv
quotations one for man and one for
a woman) which bear upon either fate
or character, as desired. Enclose these
slips in gaily lettered covers, punch hole
at the top of each cover and tie all to-
gether with silk cord and tassel. Any
person consulting this oracle must select |
the page bearing the number correspond
ing to the day of the month on which |
he or she was born.
A Knitted Wash Cloth. -Use No. IL |
white knitting cotton, and two of the
largest steel needles that can be found.
Cast on fifty-four stitches, knit ten or
twelve rows plain; then begin the next
row, knit ten stitches plan, thread over,
slip the next stitch as if purling, knit |
two together and SO Oh through the row
knitting the last ten stitches plain. Re- |
peat the last row until the cloth is suffi-
GENTLY long. then knit ten or twelve rows |
n1ain like the first part