Middletown transcript., 1908-10-10
USEFUL THINGS TO KNOW

| 'Nh PotatO shidu Suc0 as many
women serve often for Sunday night sup
per, fry few pieces If bacon crisp. drain
on the lat and cut them into tiny pieces.
Slice cold boiled potatoes, cut them into
quarters, mix them with the bacon and q
small onion minced fine and arrange the
mixture on lettuce leaves. Make dress
ing by using three tablespoonfuls of the
bocon fat in place of the oil, beating it
with a tablespoonful of vinegar. Turn
the dressing over the salad.
To destroy feas in a house wine the
furniture, where it is possible, with spirits
oil naptha, but do not let children go near
1t till quite dry. Another recipe for de-
stroying these troublesome pests in an
old house is to make a strong decoction of
laurel leaves and boil it for several hours.
With this, while hot, deluge the floors.
The liquor win slightly discoIor thesceil-
lngs, but they are easily whitened again.
Sprinkle camomile flowers in tt&beds
! and on stuffed furniture. Use carboIic
soap freely for cleansing purposes through
out the house. 1t will take several weeks
probably, to rid the house of the pest.
Dishcloths must be washed after they
have been used if they are to be kept
sweet and nice. First wash them in hot
soapsuds, then rinse in clean hot water
and hang out to dry. One OF the incest
OF dishcloths is made of knitted soft cot
ton, which will wash again and again and
look as good as new. Another good dish
cloth is made of a square OF coarse crash,
hemmed; this is also very easily kept
clean.
To find out whether butter is pure,
place small piece in a large iron spoon
and heat gently over flame. II the
butter foams freely on heating, it is
butter, while if it sputters and crackles
like hot grease without foaming, it is oleo-
margarine or renovated butter. Another
way to examine sample is to put it in
small bottle, and then place the bottle
in boiling water for five or six minutes.
If the sample is butter the curd will have
settled, leaving the fat perfectly clear,
while if it is substitute the fat is cloudy
or milky.
Many good housewives do not care to
risk the laundering of their fine wooden
blankets to their servants, and a word
might help at this season from a good
housewife, who always takes this task
upon herself. She first shaves half bar
of yellow soap and pours this into a pint
OF boiling water; she stirs this until it
becomes like thick jelly and pours it
into three buckets of lukewarm water
Into this she puts the blankets and
washes thoroughly. She does not rub
soap on the blankets. She puts them
through wringer and in another tub of
clear, lukewarm water, then keeps on
rinsing in clear water until every particle
of soap is removed and hangs on line in
hot sun, taking care to hang them per-
fectly straight. She leaves them in the
sun for several hours until perfectly dry,
then puts them out the next day if neces.
sary.
Stains on willow or wicker furniture
may be readily washed off with hot water
and soap, and when thoroughly dried in
the sun the cleansed parts, if shellacked
with white, will look just like the rest OF
the chair, table or settee. This treat
ment is only for the pieces that have a
natural fnish.
An ice box built into the house, if it is
we'll built, is great comfort, but any
refrigerator requires constant attention.
1t should be washed out frequently with
strong soda water and the utmost care
should be taken that its drain does not
become clogged or its waste pipe OBJ
structed. If it is an ice chest or box
which stands on wooden floor it should
be moved ENTHUSIASTICALLY to prevent
mildew, as the waste pan is bound to
overflow at times and the boards become
water soaked.
The spots that find themselves on wall
paper more frequently in summer than at
any other time, can be quickly and easily
removed. by making a stiff dough of
graham -four and boiling water. Knead
the dough thoroughly and break into
small pieces. As each piece is used it
should be doubled in on itself so there 10
clean surface at each rub. When one
piece is soiled throw it away and lake
fresh one. Always rub the paper in one
direction and do not go over the same
surface twice.
Chicken salad is delicious if mixed with
small pieces of green pepper aud mayon-
naise. Press the meat into pepper cases.
Burning oil is spread by water. To
extinguish it throw down -four, sand or
earth. The idea is to prevent the oil
spreading.
To take berry stains out, let boiling
water run through stains until entirely
taken out.
When the fire is slow OF starting be-
cause of lack of shavings or otherwise cut
into some of the kindliDgs, making little
slivers without separating the latter from
the sticks. If the kindlings happen to
be damp on the outside, the cuts will
expose little dry places to the flame.
Warm your discolored earthenware or
granite baking dishes well, then rub
them with damp corn meal. 1t cleans
without scratching.
Salt thrown on coal fire when broil
ing steak will prevent blazing from the