The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1912-04-06
HINTS FOR HOUSE CLEANING.

Select the days when the men folks
won't be in. Men raise dust and
trouble but afford scant aid or inspir-
alton during the trying days of house
cleaning.
No sensible housewife begins house
cleaning during the rainy period.
Everything that is not nailed down
ought to be brought outdoors for an
airing. Nothing under the sun pre-
vents sickness in the home like that
which is so abundant and so cheap
good, fresh air.
Where will you begin? Begin at
the attic, of course. Only shiftless
and thoughtless woman begins on the
lower floors. Dust ascends like heat,
both apparently defying the law of
gravitation only to descend in plen-
teous quantities on the floors that
have been cleaned. Poorly-cared-for
attics are the breeding places for all
sorts of disease. Shut out fresh air
and sunlight, and depend upon it the
wretched attic will make the doctor
a frequent visitor to your household.
By the way, have you ever remarked
the number of fires that have their
origin in the attic? Spontaneous COM
bustion accounts for these confagra-
tons, and the law works inexorably
in attics as in other places. Get rid
of the rubbish that has accumulated
there. Only the peddler wants it.
If you are fortunate enough to have
hnIV IN q
person who is assisting you. Save
time and expense by having closets
and little hooks and corners attended
to before her arrival. This will allow
your help to devote more time and
attention to the rougher and harder
work. Don't stultify yourself by
imagining that because you have help
come in that you therefore are free
to sit by and from an imperial throne
direct 1.-The help" to do all the work.
Housewives of this description are
known and their names are banded
to and fro. The directive housewife
is a misnomer She is too often a
woman of fancied refinement who, I'M
der cover of a high-sounding title, is
potency and her reluctance to do
honest work.
Thorough house cleaning means the
removal of everything and its thor
ough airing. 1t means the thorough
wiping of the walls and ceiling, the
going over of the woodwork, the wash
ing of the floors. 1t means the thor
ough going over of the furniture with
reliable furniture polish. Don't use
ammonia on woodwork that has been
vanished. Wipe off with soft cloth
and warm water. Apply hard wood
polish. A good lotion is half turpen-
tine and half inseed oil.
Don't neglect the cellar. Get rid
of the ashes and cinders, the old bot
ties, the tin cans, the refuse, the paper,
etc, which make doctors busy and fill
the hospitals and graveyards. And
again, let the air and sunlight in.
Have your old preserve jars and jelly
glasses thoroughly cleaned.
Treat your help with consideration.
They are human. Be humane in your
treatment of them.
Do your work quietly. The noisy
housewife proclaims only incapacity
and bad temper. Be good natured.
That lightens labor. 1t is, moreover,
important that you have good, nour-
ishing food during the ordeal of house
cleaning. Take plenty of sleep, ma
lures great restorative.
Once housekeeping is over, make
it a rule to keep things in order. Half
the troubles of house cleaning come
from neglect and from allowing odds
and ends to gather with their accumu-
lation of dust and dirt.