Evening star., 1897-04-10
H o U S e Id HIN T S

1t is odd that such simple thing
cooking fruit seems to be an unknown art.
Breakfast is not properly begun unless
there is fruit to eat at the very start, and
yet on most tables it is conspicuous only
for its absence. and on the other hand the
fruit that does come on the table is so
badly cooked that 1t is better to not eat II
at all. 1t is generally supposed that dried
apples, dried peaches and dried prunes
cannot be cooked SO as to be palatable for
a dainty taste. and yet all three are really
excellent if properly handled. The frait
should be carefully picked over to start
with, then put in big colander, and that
set inside a dishpan and half filed with
warm water. Wash the fruit well, throw
out the water and repeat the process at
least three times till the water does not
discolor in the least All the sand-and
there seems to be pecks of it in some fruit
will sink TO the bottom through the col
ander, instead of remaining on the fruit to
set the teeth on edge. Put the fruit in an
earthen crock or jar, with just enough
water to cover it, and let ii stand over
night. In the morning put it over a slow
fire in that water, with a little added, II
necessary, to cook for an hour. Don't let
ii burn to the bottom. and above all things,
do not stir with spoon or fork. Shake
the kettle gently now and then, but no
more. "Sweetnin' comes next, and If you
deal it with niggardly hand all your la
Dor is lost You may improve the apples
by adding the juice of lemon. or by using
a whole orange skin. but lift it out before
you remove the fruit from the fire. A small
teacup of sugar to a quart of the fruit is
about right for all but tart fruits. They
should have nearly as much again. Let
the sugar cook we'll into the fruit. but
don't stir-just shake. These directions
carefully followed will give a good dish of
fruit.
Teach your servant that she must never
put her tea towels to dry after using till
she has washed them with soap and rinsed
them. If anything is disgusting Ii Is to
detect on cups and saucers and the plates
the odor of soiled tea towels. and the bits
of lint. which show that the dish washer
is altogether too careless. Disease is car
ried by just such methods, too.
1t has been said that Americans are a
nation of rockers and il is too trEe
that the American woman cannot keep still
when she sits in rocking chair, but must
keep it rocking, rocking, all the time, to
the detriment of her dignity and the We're
de We're air that she loves so dearly TO ape.
And now comes along a physician who de-
clares that rocking chairs are the safety
valve of the nation, words to that effect
He speaks of the criminal habit that
men have of lunching on pie, villainous
pie, and poison city milk" and says that
those who Immediately seat themselves in
rocking chairs In their offices, stimulate
''gastro-intestinali peristalism." and lack of
that is what makes dyspeptics when peo-
pie do not get enough of exercise. He says
that the man is practically singing a lul-
laby to his outraged stomach, which is
only kept from crying aloud by this meth
cd. Just the same, the woman who wants
to be thought the possessor of pres
ence," or wants to be set apart from the
toiling. moiling masses, wants to forget
that the rocking chair has rockers, when
she sits down in 1t, and that rule is sim
ply imperative. Better dyspepsia than
bad manners!
Headaches, side aches, back aches, are
the ailments Of the modern girl and there
must be a reason for il. Possibly food has
its influence. What do your daughters eat
while going to school? Do they have a
light, healthy breakfast. a tempting ap-
petiZing lunch, and a wholesome but not
rich, dinner? If so look elsewhere for the
trouble. But in instances this is not the
case, because the girl won't eat respectable
food. For breakfast, she wants fried
oysters, cheese omelets, hot biscuit pre-
serves, cake and strong coffee and she
usually gets it. At noon she wants moth
ing but a pickle, half dozen chocolates.
two or three macaroons and a glass of
soda water! And she has these too. For
dinner she eats the dessert and drinks "a
cup of coffee, black as your hat, and saws
she isn't hungry, anyhow. Before she goes