HOUSEHOLD HINTS

bundles, and suspend them in a dry, airy place, with the blos- soms downwards. When perfectly dry, wrap the medicinal onea in paper and keep them from the air. Pick off the leaves of those which are to be used in cooking, pound and sift them fine, and keep the powder in bottles, corked up tight.

To PRESEBYE VAEIOU8 KINDS OF FRUIT THROUGH THE WlNTER.

— Apples can be kept till June, by taking only those that are hard and sound, wiping them dry, then packing them in tight barrels, with a layer of bran to each layer of apples. Envelope the barrel in a linen cloth, to protect it from frost, and keep it in a cool place, but not so cold as to freeze the apples. It is said that mortar, laid over the top of a barrel of apples, is a good thing to preserve them, as it draws the air from them, which is the principal cause of their decaying. Care should be taken not to have it come in contact with the apples. To preserve oranges and lemons several months, take those that are perfectly fresh, and wrap each one in soft paper ; put them in glass jars, or a very light box, with white sand, that has been previously dried in an oven a few hours, after it has been baked in. The sand should be strewed thick over each one of the oranges, as they are laid in the jar, and the whole covered with a thick layer of it. Close the jar up tight, and keep it in a cool dry place, but not so cool as to freeze the fruit. To preserve grapes, gather them on a dry day, when they are not quite dead ripe, and pick those that are not far off from the stems. Lay the bunches of grapes in a glass jar, and sprinkle around each of them a thick layer of bran, so that they will not touch each other. Have a thick layer of bran on the top, and cork and seal the jar very tight, so that the air may be en- tirely excluded. Whenever they are to be eaten, restore them to their freshness by cutting off a small piece from the end of the stalks, and immerse the stalks of each bunch in sweet wine for a few minutes. The stalks will imbibe the wine, and make the gr

HOUSEHOLD HINTS. 13?

fants, dried on the stalks, then picked off, and put in bag?, will keep nice for pies during the winter. They also make a tine tea for persons that have a fever, particularly the hectic fever — it is also an excellent thing to counteract the effects of opium.

A FIRE PROOF AND WATER PROOF CEMENT. — To half a pint of milk put an equal quantity of vinegar, in order to curdle it; then separate the curd from the whey, and mix the whey with the whites of four or five eggs, beating the whole well toge- .ther. When it is well mixed, add a little quick lime, through a sieve, until it has acquired the consistence of a thick paste. With this cement broken vessels and cracks of all kinds may be mended. It dries quickly, and resists the action of fire and water.

To TAKE WAX OUT OF CLOTH. — Hold a red hot iron (a poker will do) steadily within an inch or so of the cloth, and in a few minutes the wax will wholly evaporate; then rub the cloth with some whitish brown paper to remove any mark that may remain.

To RENDER SHOES WATER-PROOF. — Mix a pint of drying oil, two ounces of yellow wax, two ounces of turpentine, and half an ounce of Burgundy pitch, over a slow fire. Lay the mixture, whilst hot, on the boots or shoes with a sponge or soft brush ; and, when they are dry, lay it on again and again, until the father becomes quite saturated, that is to say, will hold no more. Let them then be put away, and not be worn until they are perfectly dry and elastic : they will afterward be found not only impenetrable to wet, but soft and pliable, and of much longer duration.

STOVE POLISH. — For polishing stoves the best thing is the British lustre, as it does not soil the hands on touching. It is sold at the apothecaries, and directions for using are printed on the outside of each package.

To CLEAN PAPERED WALLS. — The very best method is to rub them with stale bread. Cut the crust off very thick, and wipe straight down from the top, then go to the top again, and so on. The staler the bread the better.

TEETH. — Honey mixed with pure pulverized charcoal is said to be excellent to cleanse the teeth, and make them white. Limestone water with a little Peruvian bark is very good to be occasionally used by those who have defective teeth, or aD offen- sive breath.

138 HOUSEHOLD HINTS.

CHLORIDE or LIME. A room may be purified from offensive smells of any kind by a few spoonfuls of chloride of lime dis- eolved in water. A good sized saucer, or some similar vessel is large enough for all common purposes. The article is cheap, and is invaluable in the apartment of an invalid.

VARNISHING GILDED FRAMES. — It is said that looking-glns* frames may be cleansed with a damp cloth, without injury, pro- vided they are varnished with the pure white alcoholic varnish, used for transferred engravings and other delicate articles of fancy work. This would save the trouble of covering and uncovering picture-frames with the change of the seasons. I never heard how many coats of varnish were necessary, but I should think it would be safe to put on more than one.

EGGS IN WINTER.. — The reason hens do not usually lay eggs in the winter is that the gravel is covered up with snow, and therefore they are not furnished with lime to form the shells. If the bones left of meat, poultry, &c., are pounded and mixed with their food, or given to them alone, they will eat them very eagerly, and will lay eggs the same as in summer. Hens fed on oats are much more likely to lay well than those fed on corn.

PEARLS. — In order to preserve the beauty of pearl ornaments, they should be carefully kept from dampness. A piece of paper torn off and rolled up, so as to present a soft, ragged edge, is the best thing to cleanse them with.

To PRESERVE GREEN CURRANTS. — Currants may be kept fresh for a year or more, if they are gathered when green, separated from the stems, put into dry, clean junk bottles, and corked very carefully, so as to exclude the air. They should be kept in a cool place in the cellar.

CANDLES. — Very hard and durable candles are made in the fol- lowing manner: Melt together ten ounces of mutton tallow, a quarter of an ounce of camphor, four ounces of beeswax, and two ounces of alum. Candles made of these materials burn with a very clear light.

CREAM. — The quantity of cream on milk may be greatly in- creased by the following process: Have two pans ready in boil- ing hot water, and when the new milk is brought in, put it into one of these hot pans and cover it with the other. The quality as well as the thickness of the cream is improved.