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The Commoner.
VOLUME 5, NUMBER 25
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MOTHERHOOD
Oh, the spider, mother spider,
Has her cradle in the grass,
Made of silken web and silver
Sunbeams plaited as they pass;
And the summer breeze is rocking
Baby spider in the net,
'Tween a drowsy poppy-blossom
And a purple violet.
Oh, the oriolo is singing
By her cradle in the tree,
"Woven dandelion and satin
And a leafy filigree;
And the gentle wind is rocking
Baby orioles that dream
In the nursery of summer
To the music or a stream.
Spin your cradle, mother spider,
Rock your baby, mother bird,
In another downy cradle
Little feet and hands have stirred.
And I, who wish the singing mothers
Of the trees and grasses joy,
Must away to my own darling.
Hungry little baby boy.
Selected.
Home Chat
One of the most sensible fashions
of the hour, and one whose reign we
hope may be long, is that of exacting
of our girls and women that they bo
expert in the use of the sewing, knit
ting and other needles. It may not
only bo used as a pastime, but is a
most useful and sensible accomplish
ment, and by the use of the needle,
many a dollar, now worse than wasted,
might be'saved. In the makingof the
various sorts of fancy-work one is
apt to make the mistake of ruining
the eyes for the sake of outdoing
some other girl or woman in the turn
ing out of intricate stitches on deli
cate fabrics; but no piece of sewing
or knitting is worth the injury of one's
eyes, and unless one Is really artistic,
as well as expert in the use of the
needle, one can buy a far more satis
factory article for a much less price
than it can be made for.
Aside from the question of self
adornment and ornamentation of the
home, one can do much of a useful
character, and make a small income
go much farther, if their deft fingers
take to fashioning the plainer gar
ments for the family and the needed
linens in everyday use about the
houso. I know it seems a waste of
time, with many, to make garments
when the factory-made are so cheap
and easily to bo hr"; but no factory
made garment can at all compare,
enner in nt or useiumess, with those
deftly fashioned at home. To those
who are already overburdened, either
with work or ill-health, it is as well,
counting all costs, to got tho ready
made; but to one who can sow, and
has time and strength to do it, it is
far more satisfactory to fashion their
own. A "ready-made" is recognized
at a glance, and so is tho home-made;
and the difference is generally in
favor of the domestic product, so far
as material and workmanship is to
be considered.
A girl who can make her own un
derwear, shirt waists, or other like
belongings, can get much finer and
better material, and tho finished gar
, ment may have an individuality
whjch no "ready-made" can possibly
claim. The "store" garments are
made in lots, and the only difference
in thorn is the difference in the
wearers. One might as well wear a
uniform.
In Pickling Time
In making pickles, use none but the
best cider vinegar. Have your fruits
or vegetables in prime condition, re
membering that you will have nothing
better than you put up, whether it is
good or bad. In preparing pickles,
use no copper vessels; agate or por
celain lined is tho best. Nothing in
the shape of iron, copper, pewter or
lead should come in contact with vine
gar at any time. Even an ordinary
plated spoon should not be allowed to
stand an instant in it. Wooden
spoons and paddles can be either
bought or made, and these should be
used.
Glazed earthenware is not suitable
for keeping pickles in, as it is apt to
have lead in the glaze, it is claimed,
and the vinegar will act on the glaze.
Hard stoneware of glass should be
used. Pickles should never be put
into tin vessels, or left in them for a
moment.
Pickles should be frequently ex
amined and any soft ones removed.
The occasional addition of a little
sugar keeps pickles good and im
proves them. Spices in pickles
should be used whole, or slightly
broken if perferred, but never ground.
Or if ground spices must be used,
they should be tied up in thin muslin
bags.
The Milk Supply
A distinguished Danish scientist,
in a recent exhaustive discussion of
a pure milk supply, Insists i;hat the
milk supply of a modern city is al
most, if not quite, as important a fac
tor as the water supply, and argues
that the ratio of deaths amonc in
fants has been in direct proportion
to the ease or difficulty with which
a supply of fresh milk is obtainable.
He presents many mterqsting facts
in connection with the abuse of milk.
Adulteration of milk is prevented as
lar as possible, but the fact that so
much milk is required, and that it is
transported over considerable dis
tances, makes regulation difficult. He
also furnishes the interesting informa
tion that, -from contagious diseases
mainly spread by milk, the well-to-do
suffer most, since they are the great
est consumers of milk. Consumers
who get their milk day by day from
rightly conducted dairies are practi
cally proof against contagion. Flies
are the real carriers of contagion,
and from contact with , these, milk
should always be carefully proteoted.
.boston uiobe.
Query Box
A. C. G. Accent on third syllable.
Reador. Directions for canning peas
given in requested recipes.
Mrs. H. Scatter grated Irish potato
over your carpet as you would tea
loaves, then sweep well, to freshen
colors.
Busy Bee. For the fly-specked
frame, rub with stale beer. If the
frame is gilt, give coat of white var
nish when clean.
Emma S.It is preferable that the
belt should match the waist, in order
to avoid the shortwalsted effect given
by the belt matching the skirts Either
is worn, nowever.
k. ft- To remove finger marks
from wood work, rub with a piece of
flannel dipped in paraffino oil. Rub
until oil is absorbed.
H. and J. For a fine nnffnn r
I candy, put half a cupful of clnnr
-r
strong coffee over the fire, with two
cupfuls of granulated sugar and a
little (quarter spoonful) cream tar
tar; add vanilla, and boil as fondant
(which it is. and stir to a cream.
Laundress. Use a small teacupful
of javelle water to the boiler of water.
For removal of fruit, coffee or tea
stains in white goods, soak in one
part javello vater to four parts of
clear soft water. Likely to fade
colors, if left to soak in the fluid.
Hassah. To keep the colors from
"running" in your cotton goods, allow
the goods to lie in a solution of half
pint of salt to a quart of boiling
water (allowed to cool) soaking for
some hours before the first washing.
This will usually set colors in cotton.
If vAery particular, try a bit of the
goods first.
A. C. G. For -the cotton portierres,
shake well and brush; wash in gaso
line as you would in water no soap;
rinse in clean gasoline, and hang to
dry. Do not use gastJline indoors, or
near even the tiniest speck of fire or
flame. It is highly inflammable, and
should be used out-doors.
New Housekeeper. New oil-cloth
should have applied to it one or two
coats of raw linseed oil, laid on thinly
with a brush, and allowed to dry; then
give one or two coats of oil-cloth var
nish. This will render it more pliable
as well as greatly increase its dura
bility. A coat of varnish once a
year will keep it nice.
Sufferer. No "sure cure," that I
ever heard of, for a pronounced bun
ion, except wearing a broad shoe with
the line of the inner sole straight
Relief is sometimes obtained by paint
ing with iodine, or using ordinary
bunion plaster; or wearing a pad of
cotton between the great toe and the
middle one, so as to push the great
toe outward. An antiphlogistine plas
ter (to be had of your druggist) will
greatly relieve, and generally cure a
"solt" corn. A big foot is preferable
to a crippled one.
Ignoramus. Benzine Is an inflam
mable liquid obtained from coal tar,
something like gasoline. Benzine (or
benzin)- is an explosive obtained from
petroleum. Benzoin is a medicinal
resin, used a great deal in toilet prepa
rations. One should never be ashamed
to ask for information. A desire for
knowledge is the beginning of wisdom,
you know. "Ask and receive."
Housewife. It takes about a dozen
ordinary ears of corn, cut from the
cob, to fill a quart can. Fill your jar
full of hot water, screw on the ton
as tight as possible, turn bpttom up
ward; if it does not leak after, stand
ing a few minutes, it is air-tight; If
it does leak, notice where the leak is
and gently pound the edge of the top
down in that place. If it still leaks,
a new top, or perhaps a new rubber
must be used, testing in the same way
until satisfactory. Much loss in can
ning is attributed to ill-fltting tops or
defective rubber rings.
Salads
Salads are a favorite dish during
tho warm days, as they may be pre
pared before hand, serving them cold,
and necessitating no extra heat for
their preparation. Cucumbers and
white onions make an excellent salad
slicing each very thin, salt and chill
at least an hour before tho French
dressing is poured over them. Cold
boiled okra makes a delicious salad;
it is simply boiled until donp.in salted
water and served with a French dress-
In?. A mlnf esnlnrl a r.,i
a. , .u. io muuu oi a snoon.
ful of gelatin ...dissolved first in cold
water, then cooked in a cupful of we'ik
brooth (mutton) and- seasoned with
mint.
For cabbage salad, mix together
half a cup of sugar, teaspoonful of
mustard, teaspoonful of salt, half lea
spoonful of black pepper, then add
three well-beaten eggs, half cup of
good vinegar, six tablespoonfuls of
cream, three tablespoonfuls of butter'
cook in a double boiler, and let cool',
and add the finely-chopped cabbage'.
Cabbage with Dressing. Half a
head of firm, white cabbage chopped
fine and seasoned with salt. For tho
dressing, take three-fourths cupful of
boiling vinegar, one-third cupful o
water, four tablespoonfuls of sugar,
pne tablespoonful of butter; let boll
for twenty minutes; beat one egg in
a large-sized saucer, and when well
beaten add enough milk to fill tho
saucer, adding this to the vinegar and
stirring briskly for five minutes; pour
this over the cabbage and cover
tightly until wanted for use, hot or
cold.
Beet Salad. One quart of raw cab
bage chopped fine, one pint of boiled
beets chopped fine, cup and a half of
granulated sugar, tablespoonful of
salt, teaspoonful of black pepper, tea
cupful of horse radish grated. Cover
with cold vinegar and keep from tho
air.
Cucumber Salad. Two dozen small
cucumbers, sliced thin leaving on rind,
and salt well; let stand three hours,
then add as many onions as cucumbers
and let. stand another three hours,
then drain off the liquor and mix
well with the following dressing:
Half cupful of oliye oil, half cupful of
white mustard seeds, one-fourth cup
ful of black mustard seeds, table
spoonful of celery seeds and one quart
of cider vinegar.
Koumiss
Koumiss is a preparation or milk
which is very nourishing for those
temporarily exhausted, for chronic
invalids, and in case of lung trouble.
In cases of irritable stomach, it will
sometimes be tolerated when nothing
else will be retained. The method of
preparing It is as follows: To one
pint of pure, fresh milk, add two ta
blespoonfuls of sugar. After adding
the sugar, shalte thoroughly, and then
add one-sixth of a cake of compressed
yeast, and then corking tightly, stand
the bottle in a warm place, or in a
bath of water 100 degrees heat for
eight or ten hours; then place where
it will cool, or better, keep on ice,
and use as needed. If an ordinary
cork Is used, it must be tied down
tight to the bottle before applying
heat, and the bottle must be opened
slowly, or the liquid will fly out over
everything. If the compressed yeast
Is not obtainable, a like proportion oi
any other good yeast may be used.
For the exhausted farm wife, this is
an excellent and cheap, nourishing
drink for the hot months easily roaao
at home.
Some Contributed Recipes
Canned Snap Beans. String ana
snap your beans; put on to c001 '
enough cold water to well cover, uou
until they change color, then aou
enough vinegar to give an acm
flavor; after boiling until ist tenuei
can as hot as possible, sealing au
tight. When to be used, parboil ue
fore seasoning. .
Dried "Okra for Winter Soups.
Gather the okra pods when just auou
grown neither too tender nor i
tough. Cut into cubes half mchj
BETTER THAN SPANKING
SpanlilnK doos not enro children "f '"' "on'"! do
If It did thoro would bo fow children t " 18.m.
it. There 1b a constitutional cause tor tins )0f
Summers, ox 118, Notro Damo, Jnd.. ' " n0r.
homo treatment to any mother. Slio arts m , ,,
Writohortodnylfyour ohdrontronWoyo" w
way. Don't blamo tho child. Tho chances
can'frholp It.