Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1917-09-02
FARMERS' WIVES
 WORK TOO HARD
Arkansas Farmers Should Give Their Wives Modern Household Machinery
 and Make Her Work a Pleasure.
By Sallie Chamberlain, Home Demon stration Agent, Extension Dlvls-
 ion, University of Arkansas.


 ing a little attention to the arrange ment of the kitchen and by furnish ing laborsaving devices which can De. made without a great deal of trouble or expense. Too many men fall to q recognize that it is economy to de-; crease the burdens of the housewife by giving her modern equipment and labor-saving devices. They do not seem to know how easily her work could be made a pleasure and not a drudgery, and they do not do their share to enable her to have some leisure time to enjoy the things which make more abundant life-books, mu- sic, etc. l would not place less em- phasis on the practical things of life, but somebody surely needs to stress the importance of doing housework with the least amount of time md energy.
 The lack of convenience in the home is the cause of a great deal or the woman's work. Are the kitchens, pantries, dining rooms and porches as conveniently arranged as they might be? Are the floors all on the same level? One hardly realizes how tir-
 ing it is to step up and down from the kitchen to the porch or from the kitchen to the dining room. Are there as many shelves, cupboards, hooks, nails, and tables as housekeeper needs? Frequently the lack of these conveniences is due merely to the fact that no one has ever stopped to think of the need of them. They do not necessarily requiIe money to get
 them, but it does take little time and thought, combined with energy.
 A dry goods box containing shelves
 and placed just above the working ta- ble will save the housewife many steps. It is hard to estimate the num- Der of tables necessary in a kitchen. However, one should be covered with galvanized iron or zinc to stand near the stove on which the pots and ket7 ties can be placed when removing them from the stove. Asbestos mats at three cents each are good to set the kettles on, but pieces of board l may be used to an advantage. Above the working table hooks should be ar | ranged on which to hang the smaller 1 equipment, such as egg beaters, spoons, potato mashers, etc.
 All tables and sinks must be tall enough to permit the woman to work comfortably at them without bending over The ordinary sink should be
 raised from eight to ten inches. 1 A toy rub board" costing ten cents ] is useful to slip into the sink or pan | to rub out the cloths and towels after
 using them.
 A roller-tray table is a very great l time-saver and convenience. One
 home maker has said that it takes | fifteen trips from the kitchen to the
 dining room to serve meal, while 1 with roller-tray it may be done by making two trips. There are several | inexpensive varieties of these tables
 on the market, but good one can
 easily be made at Home. To do so
 take a small kitchen table. put a shelf under the table, tack strips around the edges to prevent the dishes
 from sliding off, and put rollers on it. A handy towel rack should be found
 in every kitchen. The burdens of each hOusekeeper
 will be less if she will "have place
 for everything and everything in its
 place." and a time for doing every.
 thing, and do it in it's time." T Too often the kitchen is not we'll
 equipped with the smaller and mex
 pensive conveniences. The woman
 who continues to beat eggs with a fork instead of spending five cents for an egg-b -beater is wasting much time and energy. < II A potato ricer saves time when mashing vegetables and fruits or pressing curd for cottage cheese : These may be purchased for twenty. . five cents. -'i'& ,,{ : Wooden spoons, rolling pins,.e pota- . to mashers, paddles for butter, anaNa long handled paddle for stirring jams; marmalades, etc., can be made at .. home from cedar.
 ]. Small round wire sieves with han dies are useful for straining liquids . sitting small quantities of flour and removing rice, peas, etc, from the ket- ties.
 Each kitchen should have two meas . uring cups, either tin or glass, mark ed in thirds and fourths.
 :i Sharp knives of various sizes and s kinds are necessary to the comfort oi ! the housewife. The small pairing knives which cost from 10 to 25 cents may be used with more ease and skill E in pairing potatoes, apples, etc., than the ordinary kitchen knife.
 q A clock, pair of scissors, a high t stool, box or drawer containing a hammer, nails, screws, tacks, and lcord should be kept in some conven \ tent place in the kitchen.
 t "Lifters" made of outing or any oth. t CT soft material will keep the hrt