The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1897-05-16

Domestic education for women Is a
subject in which Mrs. A. w. Rankin
of Minneapolis is interested She in
formed a gathering of women there
the other day that she believed in time
every bride would be expected to pass
an examination upon her domestic ac-
complishments before her marriage.
These are a few of the subjects upon
which Mrs Rankin thinks the coming
housekeeper will be examined: off
hand cookery, without receipt book;
fancy cookery, sweeping and busting,
darning and mending, plain sewing,
cutting and fitting, buttOnholeS, en-
broidery and fine needlework, plain
ironing starching and polishing, wash
ing care of beds and bedding, SANTA
tion and hygiene, disinfection, nursing
and cooking for sick, care of infants.
Girls must be educated to be orderly,
industrious, economical and to under
stand hygienic living and how to AVOID
illness. If the mother can't or won't
teach their daughters the domestic vir-
tues, Mrs. Rankin believes the schools
should. 1t is probably to be under
stood that with the examination OF the
bride there will be an examination for
expected to advocate this by way of re-
ciprocity.
Here's a new dish to soOthe the ener-
waited palate in hot weather-baked ba-
nanas. Baked bananas are an old dish
in the land where bananas and hot
weather have their home together, and
it's said to be stomach satisfying on
days when you impatiently declare you
can't touch a mouthful Of food, While
at the same time your drenched system
IS YEARLY wailing for something more
substantial Bananas or plantainS are
cheap in season, and many households,
influenced by that point, can ornament
the regulation meat and potato meal
with a light, wholesome dish that VIII
make the mOnotonouS meat and pota-
toes taste infinitely better. Separate
the bananas and bake them about fif-
teen minutes, according to the heat of
the oven. Eat them with salt, pepper,
milk or cream, according to taste. Try
them
Small hand towels can be bought
at many Of the dry goods shops for
very reasonable prices in very good
quality and are a convenience to the
housekeeper, who has many guests.
The size is 16 by "A inches, and is more
convenient for the guest who uses a
towel only once. The small size makes
great saving in laundry work.
One of the niceties of cooking which
mark the difference between the expert
and the novice or the careful and the
careless cook, is found in the operation
of skimming. Many cooks cannot skim
successfully They do not get all the
grease off the soup and they fail to
touch just the right moment for attack
ing the scum which rises on the first
boiling up of potatoes and other vege-
tables. Soup should be skinned pa
tiently and thoroughly, and at the last
moment any globules of grease that re-
main before pouring it into the tureen
should be taken I'D with a piece of
clean plotting paper, held edgewise.
Grease from the invalid's cup of beef
tea or from a bowl of gravy can be re-
moved in the same manner. For the
scum from vegetables or broths. it is
the first boiling up which brings it to
the surface. where it should be quickly
SKINNED before ii is drawn back to
separate and disseminate beyond all
power of removal
The unframed prints which many
people are fond Of sticking upon their
walls are much improved by a mat of
charcoal paper in some soft tint. Blue.
gray, mastic. fawn, a soft sage and a
dull old rose are all good for the pur-
pose, and terra Gotta cartridge paper
may be used in the same way. The
mat should be cut from pasteboard,
the paper folded over both the outside
And inside edges of the mat.
At some of the furniture houses are
to be found brass bedsteads with draw
ers beneath, which, in these days Of
apartment life and voluminous wearing
apparel, is distinct advantage. There
is a drawer at each end of the bed
stead. extending across the width. They
are entirely inclosed, and thus the con-
tents are protected from all dust
While not wide enough for dress skirts
they are ample to hold a much-trim-
med bodice, and 1t Is for these that
they are especially designed.
In making tea, one thing upon which
the expert insists is the absolute clean
illness of the pot. Many housel1eepers
their china would be surprised if they
could examine the inside of the nose of
the teapot. Flushing with water will
not clean ii sufficiently. The end of a
cloth pressed a little way into it will
frequently reveal a black deposit-the
accumulation. possibly. of years.
though a few days without care will
leave an appreciable amount. One of
the best things to clean the teapot with
is a bristled wire such as is used for
cleaning bottles. They are soft enough
TO bend into shape, and with soft
cloth are serviceable. The Chinese tea
bowl appeals to the fastidious tea
drinker. but it is awkward even to the
experienced manipulation.
People should never go in the early
morning to get boots and shoes fitted.
In the latter part of the day the feet
are at their maximum size. Activity
and standing tend to enlarge the feet.
If people would remember this rule,
there would not be so many complaints
of shoes being tight when worn, which,
when fitted, seemed so comfortable.
There is a decided effort just now
toward introducing curls into the Golf
fure. When it is one long ringlet hang
ing down the neck upon the shoulders,
q revival of what was popular in this