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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 6, 1911)
iwii-lfMf ( ' 5 The Commoner. VOLUME 11, NUMBER 3s 4irrnf S M ' ifi Kfe 7 HKP jkTKskSmIii . 1 1 V BU'W T. XsmJli09WK)1IIM,1.' R ifciUPPCfy .-'VWL- V vBLj3&5"v 4fef!f"" m.- mt r w h h h t i Conducfedby NeenWatsMj 0)epa riraen In "Foddcr-GcttJn' Time" When dc corn begins to rustic, Den de darkeys hatter hustle, For do fodder-gittin' time is close at ban'; An' do days is hot an' hazy, An' de darkeys mighty lazy, But dey pulls do fodder down an' ties de ban.' But de darkey's mighty willin' Furter plug de watermillin An' hit ripens at de time hit's needed wuss; Whar we plant hit in de hoein' An' de darkey eats de mos' wha' gits daT fuss. Oh, de rustle cf de fodder, when de win' is in de corn Dat's de music whut am dear to Unker Sime; Oh, do cookin' of de dinner, de blowin' of de horn Dat's de chorus of do fodder gittin' time. Mrs. Ellen Frizell Wyckoff in Mun sey's All-Story Magazine. The Housewife's Lesson paratus, as well as for the perhaps J which do not satisf y, because of On every table we find one or more "household" magazines, and nearly every publication has its household department, conducted well or poorly, according to the one who does the work. In addition to this, every one is becoming more and more interested in domestic matters, and of inventions for household uses there seems to bo no end. Old things havo indeed passed away, and the housewifery of today is little like that of a generation ago. The withdrawal from the home of the vast number of daughters who have, simply fol lowed the work to the shops and factories, for a time threatened disaster to the home-life; but in the main, it has resulted favorably, and reliable machinery is now taking the place of the former army of incom petents, whose ignorance and lack of ability to take up successfully the complicated work of the home made such sad work of whatever was en trusted to their helpless hands. There are many lessons for the housewife to learn; so many that at times she is bewildered; but she Is gradually taking up the helps that Ho at her hand, and we are gotting very hopeful. Every housewife should study the advertising pages of whatever publication she pins her raith to; but she must use dis crimination in the choice of publi cations sho accepts. All the best publications use care in the class of advertising placed before their readers, and in many ways, pr'otect the housewife. This is the season of subscriptions and renewals, and while urging you to supply yourself with reading matter suitable to your wants and needs, we must also urge that you supply yourself with the best and most reliable; publications which hold themselves responsible for the honesty of their advertisers. Send for the advertisers' catalogues, price lists, booklets, and study them carefully, learning to "make allow ance" for many things. There are good things and bad things; but every advertiser will persistently and insistently thrust into prominence the very best side of his waTes. Study the advertising pages carefully. lone-disused kitchen ranee. A cor respondent sends us the following, which, if caro is taken, will often make for the comfort of the whole family in giving a clean chimney. Where the chimney Is filled with creosote, the heaviest stove pipe will rust out in no time, and one will have no end of trouble with the draft. When it rains, and the roof is so wet that danger of fire from sparks is lessened, take down all the pipes, close all chimney-holes but one; scrape out all soot and dirt from the chimney, and wet large bunches of common excelsior, used for packing, in coal oil; fill up the chimney with this, using about a pint of oil, putting the packing in the stove-pipe hole. Set fire to it, and in no time the accumulations will be burning, roaring and making a big smoke outside. Keep the hole open to afford draft; add more ex celsior or paper; the thick coat of cresote inside will all burn out, and it should be let to burn out clean, but be very careful not to allow any thing to get afire. Then, put up the clean pipes, and you have no more trouble. Care must be taken, in using this method of cleaning, that the flues are not defective, and that the wood work that might catch fire is thoroughly protected with water. Peggy Clover. which, one is obliged to take more than he needs in order to fill the stomach; disease of various kinds, according to country and class, is brought about by this overeating, as unnecessary waste of energy takes place in disposing of the surplus that can not be utilized, thus taxing the bodily powers and weakening its re sistance to disease. To eat at any time one is hungry is better than not to eat, and if the food is properly chosen, the appetite is a good guide. Dr. Abernathy, the famous London physician, said "One quarter of what we eat keeps us; the rest we keep at the risk of our lives." We are under fed through overeating. The com plete cure for nearly every ailment of the human body lies in suiting the kind of food to the body's needs. Meats, vegetables and fruits for the brainworker; cereals and starches for tho hard muscular labor. We are beginning to learn that the selec tion and preparation of food, accord ing to its suitability for the in dividual needs, is one of the most important things in this life, and are at last seeking to place this branch of home industry where it be longs above everything else, so far as human health and comfort goes. Through all grades, inanition is the rule; repletion the exception. and put In a slow oven; when finished, the meat will be nice and tender; the gravy, when seasoned is rich and well flavored. Any meatB may bo cooked in the casserole. Many things can be mended with the court plaster, or mending tissue sold at the department stores. But it should never be applied when wet; let it reach the "sticky" stage, and there is no danger of moisture soak ing into the goods and making a stain. Turn the right side toward you, lay on it a cloth and iron per fectly smooth; if any frayed pieces are noticeable, clip closely with a pair of sharp scissors. The tissue can be basted into place on the wrong side, as the threads are easily drawn. To take out a hem put in with gum tissue, run a warm iron over the hem, and tho goods can easily be pulled apart. To clean black silk, make an in fusion of equal parts of clear coffee and household ammonia; have the material well brushed and dusted, and apply the liquid with a cloth. If the silk is in pieces, wind it evenly about a smooth board, such a one as the goods is wrapped about at the store; if the goods is in small pieces, after sponging, smooth when nearly dry with a' cool flat-iron, on the wrong side. Going to the City It is well for the girl who wishes to go to the city to hunt work to know that very few girls can live in any great city on a salary of five or six dollars a week unless relatives or friends help her out until she can get better wages. Country girls would do well to begin at home, or in their home town, and learn some thing of the work she expects to do, and thus be able to secure a better position in the city. If the girl goes to the city and finds herself a failure, so far as securing work is concerned, she should go at once to the refuge of a W. C. T. U., or Y. W. C. A., where she will find the protecting care of home for a little while and probably some assistance in getting into a suitable position. But it must be firmly impressed on her mind that she must, under no circumstances, if it can possibly be avoided, make an appeal for help to strangers, men or women, for some thing wrong might result from it. A lone, helpless, friendless girl is al ways in great peril in any great city. Take all the protection these as sociations can give you, while try ing to bo self-sustaining, for at best, it is a risky business, and hatm, more often than good, will follow trusting to strangers. Caring for Nuts The store of nuts gathered by the little folks should be well dried be fore putting away. Chestnuts, beech nuts, hickorynuts, walnuts, pecans, hazlonuts, and many others, accord ing to locality, are well worth har vesting, and these golden autumn days are delightful for nutting parties. The walnuts should be hulled before they dry as the green hulls are more easily removed while still black and moist; they should then be put on a low roof, or some place where they can be covered if rain threatens, and well spread out. Walnuts, hickorynuts, and butter nuts must be dried slowly, and when perfectly dry, will have lost much of their weight; they should then be put in thin bags and hung up where the air can circulate through them. Beechnuts should be put in baskets or thin bags and hung in a' dry place; a garret is right. If the nuts are thrown down where the shells will mildew, the inside will certainly be spoiled. We pity the children who have not a supply of popcorn and nuts for the winter days. Where one has a supply of these, there should be no end to the home-made "goodies," which, while inexpensive, are better in every way than the costly cream and nut candies that the store offers us. Be Good to tho Babies Don't neglect the little ones who are too young to realize the cause of their discomfort, these chilly morn ings and evenings. Put the thicker garments on the little limbs during the morning and evening hours, even though they must be removed during the middle of the day. This is the season for laying in a supply of coughs and colds that may pave the way for serious diseases later on. Put on the little shoes and stockings, and keep the warmer garments where you can lay hands on them at the first change of temperature. Have the extra blanket or quilt con venient for the night hours, not only for the little ones, but for the grown ups, as well. Watch for health. For the Chimney Trouble As tho cool weather comes on, wo must look out for the heating ap- Eating Too Much or Too Little? We are told that the rule of the world is undorfeeding rather than overeating; only a small fraction of 'the world's millions of people sys tematically get enough to eat. Carlyle said to Emerson that the best thing he over heard of America was that every one could have meat for his dinner. We are told that in Europe, millions rise every morning knowing not where they shall get their breakfast, and who never tasted, and never will taste iu their lives, a generous, varied dinner. Overeating is said to be caused by poverty of purse, the majority For tho Housewife One of the cooking vessels that deserve more consideration than it gets is the casserole; this vessel comes in soveral sizes, is not expen sive, is a pretty brown earthernwaTe vessel, enameled white inside, with tight-fitting covers that keep in all the juices and make meats tender when cooked in them. It would be well for the housewife, when at tho housefurnishing stores, to look at them. A chicken long past the "fry" stage, and which indeed may be termed "old," may be cut up as for fricasse, placed in the casserole, well seasoned, ana the lid fastened on, Filling for Layer Cake Boil one cup of water and three of sugar until it will thread when dropned from a spoon, and pour gradually on tho stiffly-beaten whites of three eggs, beating steadily until quite smooth, then stir into it a cupful each of chopped raisins and pecan meats, with half a dozen dried figs cut into thin strips; spread be tween the layers of cake, and on the top. Pretty decorations for a cake may bo made by gathering the field violets, dipping them into a syrup of boiled sugar and water until can died, just as you would candy fruits or nuts. They make lovely decorations. eating of tho cheapest foods using barely water enough to cover,' Keeping tho Range Clean If the stove refuses to take on a polish, the best way is, when ready to black it, to allow the fire to die down and then thoroughly scrub the outside and oven with strong soap and water; for cleaning the spatters of grease, a little coal oil will be effective. A good wetting all oyer with coal oil is a good thing for the rusty stove, as the coal oil will clean away the rust, and will readily evaporate. Boning a Turkey Select a young fowl and pick by hand without scalding; be sure to "dry-pick" the bird; clean and take out the entrails and lay the fowl on its breast; then with a small, snarp pointed knife, slit the back from neck to rump; working carefully, run the knife between the flesh ana the bones; disjoint the wings, tut kssse iCf &fe& A ,