HOUSEHOLD HINTS

TAINTED BUTTER. — Some good cooks say that bad butiei may l»3 purified in the following manner : Melt and skim it, then put into it a piece of well-toasted bread; in a few minutes the but- ter will lose its offensive taste and smell ; the bread will absorb it all. Slices of potato fried in rancid lard will in a great mea- sure absorb the unpleasant taste.

To PREVENT MOTHS. — In the month of April beat your fur gar- •nent well with a small cane or elastic stick, then lap them up m linen without pressing the fur too hard, and put between the folds some camphor in small lumps; then put your furs in this state in boxes well closed.

When the furs are wanted for use, beat them well as before, and expose them for twenty-four hours to the air, which will take away the smell of the camphor.

If the fur has long hair, as bear or fox, add to the camphor an equal quantity of black pepper in powder.

PASTE. — To make common paste, mix one tablespoonful of flour with one of cold water, stir it well together, and add two more tablespoonfuls of water; set it over the fire and give it a boil, stirring it all the time, or it will burn at the bottom of the saucepan.

COLOGNE WATER. — One pint of alcohol, sixty drops of laven- der, sixty drops of bergamot, sixty drops of essence of lemon, sixty drops of orange-water. To be corked up, and well shaken. It is better for considerable age.

To MAKE LEMON SYRUP. — The lemon syrup, usually sold at fifty ?ents a bottle, may be made much cheaper. Those who use a great quantity of it will find it worth their while to make it. Take about a pound of Havana sugar; boil it in water down to a •quart; drop in the white of an egg, to clarify it, strain it; add one quarter of an ounce of tartaric acid, or citric acid; if you do not find it sour enough, after it has stood two or three days and shaken freely, add more of the acid. A few drops of the oil of lemon improves it.

To CLEAN PAINT. — Rub it over with a bit of flannel dipped in sweet oil — then rub it hard with finely powdered rotten stone — then rub it with a soft linen cloth, and polish with a bit of wash leather.

To EFFACE GREASE SPOTS FROM SILKS. — Turpentine will ex tract the grease, but will form an edge wherever it is applied. French chalk absorbs the offending matter, but leaves a muddy or dull appearance, that is almost as unsightly as the grease.

140 HOUSEHOLD HiNfg.

The only safe and reliable infallible method of extracting spots from silks (of even the most delicate hues), is the follow- ing, which should be applied as soon after the discovery of the injury as possible. Hold the part firmly, to prevent the silk fivm being creased ; then, with a clean soft white cloth (an old cambric pocket-handkerchief is the best material), rub the spot very briskly, but not with sufficient violence to fray the silk ; change the portions of the handkerchief frequently ; the silk may be held to the fire to asssist the operation, but this is not needful. In the course of a minute or two the spot will luive entirely dis- appeared.

FOR BURNS. — Apply cotton wool dipped in oil as soon as pos- sible, and keep it on till the fire is entirely out, which will usually take from two days to a week.

FOR A CUT. — Wash off the blood in cold water, am,l bind it tip with a clean cotton bandage; if it inclines to bleed, put on scraped lint, after bringing the edges of the wound together as closely as possible, and bind it rather tight. Or use sticking- plaster.

WHEN A NAIL OR PIN HAS BEEN RUN INTO THE FOOT, instantly bind on a rind of salt pork ; if the foot swell bathe it in a strong decoction of wormwood, then bind on another rind of pork, and keep quiet till the wound is well. The lockjaw is often caused by such wounds, if neglected.

FOR A BRUISE OR SPRAIN. — Bathe the part in cold water, till you can get ready a decoction of wormwood. This is one of the best remedies for sprains and bruises. When the wormwood is fresh gathered, pound the leaves and wet. them either with water or vinegar, and bind them on the bruise; when the herb is dry, put into cold water, and let it boil a short time, then bathe the bruise and bind on the herb.

Always keep cotton wool, scraped lint, and wormwood en hand.

THE EAR-ACHE is usually caused by a sudden cold. Steam the head over hot herbs, bathe the feet, and put into the ear cotton wool wet with sweet oil and paregoric.

FOR THE TOOTHACHE, if caused by cold, a ginger poultice is the best remedy. Wet a thick flannel cloth in scalding vinegar, sprinkle it thickly over with ground ginger, and bind on the face when going to bed.

HOUSEHOLD HINTS. 141

THE BEST PREVENTIVE OF COLDS is to wash your children every day thoroughly in cold water, if they are strong enough to bear it ; if not, add a little warm water, and rub the skin dry. This keeps the pores open. If they do take cold, give them a warm bath as soon as possible; if that is not convenient, bathe the feet and hands, and wash the body all over in warm water, then give a cup of warm tea, and cover the patient in bed.

To CLEAN MARBLE. — Pound very finely a quarter of a pound of whitening and a small quantity of stone blue ; dissolve in a little water an ounce of soda, and mix the above ingredients carefully together with a quarter of a pound of soft soap. Put the whole into an earthen pipkin, and boil it for a quarter of an hour over a slow fire, carefully stirring it. Then, when quite hot, lay it with a brush upon the marble, and let it remain on half an hour. Wash it oft' with warm water, flannel, and scrub- bing brush, and wipe it dry.

To MAKE BLACKING. — Three ounces of ivory black; two ounces of treacle ; half an ounce of vitriol ; half an ounce of sweet oil ; quarter of a pint of vinegar, and three-quarters of a pint of water. Mix the oil, treacle and ivory black, gradually to a paste ; then add the vitriol, and by degrees, the vinegar and water. It will produce a beautiful polish.

To PREVENT THE SMOKING OF A LAMP. — Soak the wick in strong vinegar, and dry it well before you use it ; it will then burn both sweet and pleasant, and give much satisfaction for the trifling trouble in preparing it.

EECIPE EFFECTUALLY TO DESTROY BEDBUGS. — Take two ounces of quicksilver, and the whites of two eggs, and so on in this ra- tio for a larger or smaller quantity. Beat the quicksilver and rhe whites together until they unite and become a froth. With a feather then apply the compound thus formed to the crevices and holes in your bedsteads. This done once or twice in a year will prove effectual.

KISSES. — It is difficult to make kisses well, and in most cases it is advisable to procure them from the confectionaries. To the white of four eggs beaten to a stiff froth, add the juice of a lemon or a few drops of rose water. Roll and sift half a po md of the whitest loaf sugar and beat it Up with the white of

142 HOUSEHOLD HINTS.

eggs. Spread out several sheets of letter paper, and drop a large table-spoonful of the mixture on the paper. Be cautious that your oven is not too warm nor yet too cold ; lay the paper on a tin pan and let the sugar and egg bake until it rises and the top grows hard — then remove it from the paper, and having some gum arable prepared, dip one side of the oval in the gum and join it to the other.

ALMOND BREAD. — Blanch and pound in a mortar, half a pound of shelled sweet almonds till they are a smooth paste, adding rose-water as you pound them. They should be done the day before they are wanted. Prepare a pound of loaf-sugar finely powdered, a tea-spoonful of mixed spice, mace, nutmeg and cin- namon, and three-quarters of a pound of sifted flour. Take fourteen eggs, and separate the whites from the yolks. Leave out seven of the whites, and beat the other seven to a stiff froth. Beat the yolks till very thick and smooth, and then beat the su- e;ar gradually into them, adding the spice. Next stir in the white of egg, then the flour, and lastly the almonds. You may add twelve drops of essence of lemon.

Put the mixture into a square tin pan, well buttered, or into a copper or tin turban mould, and set it immediately in a brisk oven. Ice it when cool. It is best when eaten fresh.

You may add a few bitter almonds to the sweet ones.

BISCUITS. —A pound and a half of flour made wet with equa, quantities of milk and water, moderately warm, made stiff, ana rolled out very thin ; cut them to any size you please, prick them, and bake them in a moderate oven on a tin. No flour to be put on the tins or biscuits.

RASPBERRY CAKES. — Take any quantity of fruit you please, weigh and boil it, and when mashed, and the liquor is washed, add as much sugar as was equal in weight to the raw fruit. Mix it very well off the fire till the whole is dissolved, then lay it on plates, and dry it in the sun. When the top part dries cut it off into small cakes, and turn them on a fresh plate. When dry, put the whole in boxes with layers of paper.

CIDER CAKE. — Cider cake is very good, to be baked in small loaves. One pound and a half of flour, half a pound of sugar, quarter of a pound of butter, half a pint of cider, one tea-spoon- ful of pearlash ; spice to your taste. Bake till it turns easily in the pans. I should think about half an hour.