The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1897-05-14
HOUSE CLEANING.

staff. 1t usually pays to engage the sery-
ices Of some trusted eharwoman, who
will be found of great assistance in the
heavier work. Servants are expected to
put forth extra efforts, and they in turn
expect like concession from their mis-
tresses.
The materials required are soap, soda
and plenty of soft cotton and wooden
cloths. That pet abominati0n of 30 many
housekeepers, the feather buster, is best
tabooed during this period, ladder and
cloth being used instead. A busters
propensity to merely transfer the dust
to some other place does not accord with
that inmost principle of house cleaning,
ity complete removal. 49,.
Work il first begun in the storeroom;
that room, situated on the top floor, which
throughout the year mothers all the out
casts and offers shelter to everything
that in the economy of household affairs
is homeless. Here gather all the accu-
nants, odds and ends, and general left
overs. These require close inspection, for
they are the fayorite hiding places of the
destructive moth and its kin. They are
then cleaned and classified. If worth saw.
ing they are boxed or wrapped in paper,
and labelled with numbers that tally
with those of an inventory that is jotted
they are sent to the nearest relief bureau,
to the rooms for unskilled work-women,
or, if wholly worthless, simply thrown
away Or burned.
Walls and shelves are washed with
soap and water, or they are freshly cal
Gimined. The sink is flushed with scald-
ing water, i'll which soda has been dis
solved;. the things to be retained are
stored in as limited space as possible,
and the room il finished
All outside shutters are next removed
and carried to the yard to be thoroughly
rinsed, the garden hose answering admir-
ably for the purpose. Awnings are now
hung; light shades give way to dark
green ones, and sash and lace curtains
are taken down from all the rooms. A
tag designating the room to which they
belong is attached to each as they are
removed, thus preventing confusion in
the fall, when winter adornment is again
in order. All are well shaken, busted
and thoroughly aired. Shades are close
~ rolled, and lace curtains neatly folded,
unless IN need of laundering. In this
case they are sent to the professional
cleaner, or. if to be done at home, are
washed out and dried. and laid away for
some less busy time to be starched and
ironed; or stretched more leisurely.
The other rooms in the house are now
taken one after another. The pictures
and wall decorations are taken down,
thoroughly busted, and removed from the
room. The carpets are swept with
moistened wads of newspaper, dampened
salt, or tea leaves, or. if in need of beat
ing and shaking, they are taken up and
sent away. Carpet Innings are then car
ried to the yard to be swept, and are
neatly piled in some convenient closet un-
til again required.
The floors are scrubbed. and wherever
{'lrCumSta UcpS hermit fr,voro1 with Tan
anese mating. On the approach of cold
weather the carpet lining and carpets are
laid down over the mating. The plan ne
cessitates more outlay. but in the end
proves as economical as it is labor-s wing
and clearly, The mere fact that the
carpets are thus unusued during the four
or i've months of each year speaks
strongly in it's favor. A rug or two left
at the bdeside provides sufficient warmth
in damp or cool weather In the more
modern houses the hardwood floors quite
obyiate the need of Mating
Furniture is brushed and its cushions
carefully examined for traces of moths.
in slip covers and the others set aside
for visit to the upholsterer Heavy
draperies. are taken down. inspected
thoroughly brushed in the open air.
carefully folded and packed away To
prevent possible creasing where the
space permits, they are hung from rods
suspended from the ceiling of some high
reserved for this special purpose.
Papered walls are wiped down with
soft cheese Goth; all scratches on the
woodwork carefully oiled and polished
with three-tO-One-part mixture of tur-
pentine and linseed oil. Painted walls
are washed with large sponge-always
with downward movement-dipped in
to warm water in which soda has been
dissolved, and which is frequently
waste or cheese cloth. The owner of a
box of oil-coler tubes will find it COM
iparativelY easy to touch ND little cracks
and breaks in the wall.
(; All dust must be removed with Il slight
~ moistened cloth from the tops of doors
and cornices. The application of bit
of soap on the point of lead pencil to a
its creaking. Door knobs are inspected.
missing screws supplied, and loose ones
frightened. Gas globes are washed with
! water in which a spoonful or two of
household ammonia has been poured, and
the burners cleaned by drawing through
p: their openings strip of writing paper.
Rugs are shaken and swept in the yard;
sprinkled with camphor, are wrapped first
in newspaper, then in old sheets of heavy
paper and stored away.
Pillows and mattresses are summed for
hours. Meanwhile beds are taken apart.
carefully wiped with cloth. and closely
examined for signs of vermin. AS pre-
caution many housekeepers sprinkle the
inner corners. the springs, etc, with Il
solution of sublimate. or. where there is
no objection to the odor, spray them with
turpentine. Unwe)come colonization is
specially to be guarded against in folding
beds
The closets. one at time, are emptied
of their contents. The walls, shelves and
drawers are wiped with a damp cloth,
drying. the articles taken from them are
examined for lurking moths. and shaken,
busted. or brushed. according to their ma
tt1re. When replacing them, those not
required for immediate use are disposed
of as circumstances Indicate.
Bric-a-brac and fine ornaments not
protected by cabinets are in many houses
carefully put away until the autumn. In
order to shield them from flies and the
they are frequently swathed in cheese
cloth. In handling these and chandeliers
it is we'll to remember that serious. often
irreparable damage may result unless the
busting is deftly done.
Lastly, if carpets. after a thorough
sweeping. are Wlpeu OH WIN clOtn
wrung out of warm water into which
little household ammonia has been poured,
and changed as often as it becomes dis
colored, the colors will come out better
and the general effect be vastly added to.
The kitchen. refrigerator and cellar
ought always be in such condition that
housekeeping is simply reiteration of
the weekly routine. Therefore, to the
usual cleaning of closets and shelves.
the securing of drawers. chairs and ia
bles, the frightening of tins and cop
pers, one need but add specially thor
ough scalding, with strong solution of
soda, of all pipes and sinks. a generous
discarding of useless accumulations of
utensils past repair. and washing down
of walls and woodwork
In the cellar old boxes and packing
cases are transformed into tirewood; old
bottles are sold the furnace is thorough
" overhauled and made ready for
another winter; all accumulated coal
dust is removed; there is sharp scru-
tiny of corners and of dark hooks: the
cemented floor is inspected for breaks,
and when in good condition literally
flushed with water; pans of chloride of
lime are set about to dry up the damp