New-York tribune., 1911-11-23
The Beauty offbe Hands
Prescribed by Paper bag
The Strong Alkalis Used for Securing Pots and Pans
Destroy the Human CUtcle Just as
They Cut Grease.
BY Martha MccuIIoch Williams.


diligence none are better worth while than
those that wait upon diligent paper bag
cooking. Ease is one Of them, deftness
another, neatness In the kitchen stiI
third. It is quite impossible 70 make mere
words convey all that this method Of cook
cry means-still more impossible 10 set
down all that its use will teach you.
For example, it will teach you how little
one can improve on nature IN the matter
of havors Paper bag cooking keeps in the
flavor, intensihes H. and makes II the
sauce Of appetite. Good digestion COM
monty waits on appetite.
But there are other things TO take INTO
account. Not the least OF them is the saw
ing TO ones hands and ones temper IN 'he
matter Of washing up after meal
Whether this falls to the cook, 10 her
mistress. or, haply to the gallant man OF
the house. who thrusts himself helptully
into the toughest part Of the work, the
fact remains indisputabie that pan scrub
hing is hard work. distasteful in the eN-
treme and bound 10 leave unpleasant re-
minders Pots and pans mean the use ol
strong alkalies. Without them the po'S
cannot be kept sanitary. No sort Oh grove
vet devised will permit the free use possl-
Bile TO the bare hand. The syhoglsm runs
about thus wise: To cook in the old way
YOU must have pots, the pot must be kept
clean or else be a constant menace ana u
keen Il clean requires detergents so power
ful they will destroy human cuticle the
same as they "cut grease Result, rough
reddened, painful hands, I'm spite or emol-
Iients. gIove-wearing and so on The most
careful manicuring will not undo the ehect
Of steady not washing. A large part OF the
aversion 10 housework Is possibly rooted IN
this fundamental fact Washing up glass
china and silver can be made almost poetic
but the kitchen things make drudgery' take
their cleaning as YOU will
PAPER bags thrown away after one US
ing. minimize pot-cleaning Indeed in many
cases they reduce it 90 the vanishing point.
Though they will not cook everything
under the sun. they will cook so large part
of # as to diminish most sensibly the heav-
lest part of kitchen work / myself hard
" realized that until night Of last week
A dinner company had come and gone. Be
cause 1 wash tableware for my own pleas
ure il has commonly happened that 1
wa shed Idtchenwarc of necessity. When
I
Guns and spoons and saw the silver I'm
glittering array upon its own special tray
| l looked about me with half start. Com
monty. after that had come the real wres-
tIe-soa<ing pans. scrapng pots securing
! a greasy sink. or taking up stuff that
clogged IT, Now. there was none Of this 10
do-only a coffee pot, and small white
enamelled berlin that I had used in making
/ sauce for my apple dumplings' to wash out.
The two between them did not require
above three minutes-there was no grease
IN sneak of. and not a trace Of smell upon
my hands when / had finished Careful
1 scraping out Of plates before washing them
had left my sink uncluttered. l had sensed
at the back Of my head as IT were-that
IL was worth while TO be thus careful be-
cause there was no inevitable grease. II
/ had not been dilgent, if I had not let the
paper bag teach me its uses and blessed
ness. 7 should have had TO spend at least
half an hour longer at work, and after II
/ had a pair Of hands that would not dare
| touch anything auffy or fieecy for at least
/ twenty-four hours.
A normal woman must, IL seems TO me,
/ love fine sewing. also fancy work. How
many Of them are barred from thus be-
| slowing leisure time by the fact that more
than half the year their hands are In no
/ condition to do Il? This is not theory, but
/ experience. Often I have regrefully put
AWAY some adored bit of work until a
more convenient a smooth handed, sea-
son Henceforth I shall, IL It pleases me,
/ make tatting even though / may have had
/ fish for dinner Cleaning pan or broiler
after fish is the very hardest work that
cool,irg has ever imposed upon me. I'm
my 10y over escape from it, want 10 pass
/ along a good word, so that other women
with a fine feeling for needlework, net
ting. knitting. all the womanly fine arts
may know that a like emancipation awaits
them.
OF course. pots and pans can be left
standing. awaiting the cooks convenience,
or the coming in of the outsider who does
the rough work. But danger turks in such
waiting. Greasy surfaces are favorite and
happy hunting grounds for microbes. Nj
crobes are everywhere and always with us.
To invite them thus Hospitality IS little
short Of criminal
Baked Bluehsh.-Cut off head and TAIL
/ wash clean. wine with a soft damp cloth.
stuff with soft bread crumb stufing else
lay sliced potatoes inside. with a seasoning
Of butter. pepper salt and onion, and Tie
up securely. Rub all over outside with soft
butter or dripping, sprinkle with salt. pu,
in a creased bag with q small lump Of fat
and q very little cold water Seal the bag
and cook in a hot oven twenty 10 forty