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DETROIT; AUGUST 30. 1990.

 

 

THE HOUSEHOLD-"Supplement.

 

 

THE 0’0 VNTR Y— WOMAN.
Before the blacksmith‘s shop she waits,
In her high country-wagon sitting,
While the good smith with friendly haste
Her horse’s clumsy shoe is ﬁtting.

He pares and measures, stirs his ﬁre;
His hammer blows ring out with shrillness
into the August afternoon, .
Steeped in its dreary twilight stillness.

With anxious eye she watches him.

Her busy thoughts are homeward st ayin g;
ShadOWS grow long o’er ﬁeld and re» d.

And weary farmers leave their haying.

High in the elm-tree o‘er the way.
On sunlit boughs the birds are singing
Their cradle songs above their nests.
Within the whispering sweetness ringing.

She knows at home the patient cows
Stand lowing at the bars to greet her,

An anxious goodman scans the road
And sends the children out to meet her.

She knows the supper ﬁre is lit.

The hearth swept clean, the kettle singing,
"The kitchen table cleared to hold

The things from town that she is bringing,

And smiles in honest, rustic pride,

At shrewd, hard bargains she‘s been making
Of snowy eggs and creamy cheese,

For clorh, and shoes, and “things for baking.”

The setting sun lights up her face,
Turning its harshness into beauty—
Picture of rustic peace and pride,
Of homely happiness and duty.
—-L. B. Kirk.

 

IMPRESSIONS OF EASTERN FARMS
AND FARMING.

I found that farmers in New York, or
at least those in the eastern part of the
State, complain of agricultural depression
in much the same terms as do their con-
temporaries in Michigan, and for much the
same reasons, viz., poor crops, low prices,
high taxes; and take it out in “cussing”
the government, on the ground that it,
like the weather, is bound to be in the
wrong anyhow. And yet, so far as Sara-
toga County is concerned, there’s New
York City, the metropolis of the country,
with its two million of months to feed,
within twelve hours—we measure distance
by minutes, not miles, nowdays—and
a dozen cities and thriving manufac‘
turing towns within a radius of twenty-
ﬁve miles, including Saratoga with its
hordes of summer idlers who:expect to be
fed on the fat of the land. And every time
I looked over the fair face of the country,
I asked myself why is it that ” farming
doesn’t pay.” And I confess it is a conun-
drum. Can it be possible, I questioned,
that farmers have got into ruts, and can-

are ten farmers in a township who know
what it costs to raiseacrop or whetl er
their system of farming is paying or not;
and for fear Michigan farmers may show
symptoms of “ congenital hydrocephalus"
ness I will say I believe the same thing is
true in a good many townships in th.’s
State. There is not a man doing busi-
ness in any line of commerce who could
run his affairs as lots of otherwise intelli-
gent men run their farms without being
sold out by the sheriff in less than two
years. Bay was once a very proﬁtable
crop in Eastern New York; Iwas told there
was no longer “any money in it,” yet
everywhere I looked I saw hayﬁelds. So
with rye. Rye straw was at one time worth
$20 per ion for the paper manufacturers;
it is still fairly remunerative at $10, as the
grain is excellent feed. But if it were
worth $5 per ton, men would go on grow-
ing it just the same, being in the rye rut.
I listened one afternoon to two farmers
who were discussing the relative merits of
c~arse vs. ground grain for feed. Both
agreed that the ground grain was more
economical, and that stock thrive better
upon it, yet both confessed to feeding it
unground. That is, both knew a better
way but, knowing, did not pursue it.

The fertility of the soil has undoubtedly
been greatly diminished by continued
cropping, without return of the elements
of fertility. The 'old adage “You can’t
eat your cake and yet have it” holds true
in farming. The “immediate dollar ” has
been sought, regardless of consequences.
Michigan farmers also are “burning the
candle at both ends,” and will presently
“ know how it is themselves.”

Rye, potatoes and hay are the principal
crops; corn and oats this season are poor,
especially the latter; apple orchards are
bare of fruit. Dairying is considerably
followed, most farmers keeping from ﬁve
to ten cows, and packing the butter. In.
quiries as to the quality of the stock kept
disclosed it to be “ just cows; ” there are
not half a dozen herds of thoroughbred
cattle in Saratoga County. Poultry raising
pays better than dairying, judging by the
relative prices of eggs and chickens and
butter, but the business is given over to
the women, who struggle along as best
they may with inadequate facilities. There
ought to be, and undoubtedly is, a big de-
mand for chickens, eggs and spring lamb
at Saratoga. Small fruits would not pay

in the immediate vicinity of Charlton,
because of the distance they must be car-

f com Schenectady to Glenville and be-
yond, brought from Scotia, a suburb of
the ﬁrst named place, nearly $100 worth
of strawberries to the farm-houses along
the route.

Farm help seems more readily obtain—
able there than here, at wages a trifle
lower; but house help is scarce, girls pre-
ferin g to work in the factories or at Glovers-
ville, the great centre of the glove-making
industry. The ten hour system obtains
among men hired by the day, and doesn't
quite suit farmers who have to board the
men. If city hours are to prevail, they
say, let the other city custom also come
in by which the laborer provides his own
meals. The hired hands quit with alacrity
and despatch at six o'clock. and the owner
of the farm hustles round and does the
chores.

The poor farmer is everywhere known
by his weeds. I noticed from the cat‘-
windows many ﬁelds that were literally
covered with the purply-pink of the
Canada thistle, which had entirely ever-
run the crop. The wild carrot or garlic,
too, its great umbels of seed making it an
ugly customer, is gaining a strong foot-
hold; and daisies and charlock or wild
mustard are other persistent enemies. The
farmer who can keep his ﬁelds free of this
quartette is a vigilant and also a diligent
man.

Stone walls are the principal fence em-
ployed; they are prettily picturesque
when clothed with Virginia creeper or
banked by elderbushes, but farmers say
they are expensive and not durable. They
cost a dollar a rod to lay, and the winds
and the stock conspire to level them.
Looking over the small ﬁelds, fenced into
enclosures of ﬁve, six or eight acres, one
wonders why, if fences are indeed so
costly an item of farm expenditure, some
of the division fences are not done away,
and the expense of building and maintain-
ing crossed off the farm account. But then
the thought comes—very likely they don’t
know what else to do with the stones!

To one accustomed to the rocminess a: d
broad avenues of our western cities the
funny old town of Schenectady, with its
narrow streets barely wide enough for two
teams abreast, and every street paved with
cobble stones seems—well, “ horrid.”
Evidently those who laid out some of these
eastern cities did not realize what a big
country they had come to and what alot
of land there was in reserve or they would
not have been so economical of space.

 

 

not get out of them? I don’t believe there

  

ried; nevertheless, the stage which runs

Schenectady had no Napoleon to widen its


  
   

g

 

THE HOUSEHOLD.

 

ways perforce, and seems to jog on very
cantentedly. Narrow streets have an ad-
vantage when it comes to keeping cne’s
eye on the neighbors over the way.
Schenectady should be venerated for its
antiquity; It was settled in 1621. In Sootia,
a suburb across the lovely Mohawk, still
stands a stone house with walls a foot or
more thick, embowered in trees, which
was built before the Revolution, and left
standing when the French and Indians
sacked Schenectady in 1690, two centuries
ago. Descendents of its original owners
still live in it.

Near Charlton is “Kirby Homestead,"
the residence of Col. F. D. Curtis, whose
writings on agricultural topics, especially
those relating to the dairy, in the Country
Gentleman and Rural New Yorker have
been widely read. Col. Curtis is also a
prominent and popular lecturer at the
dairy conferences and farmers’ institutes
of New York. Of course, therefore,
“Kirby Homestead” was one of my ob-
jective points. Unfortunately Col. Curtis
was not at home the day of our visit, but
Mrs. Curtis kindly acted as cicerone. A
herd of ﬁfteen Jerseys is kept here, with
Kirby Baritone at its head. We did not
see the cows, which were at pasture at
some distance away, but old “ Kirby ”
was in the stable, contentedly munching his
rations. He is a ﬁne fellow, individually,
with a massive head and neck and the yel-
1ow skin so admired by connoisseurs Of this
breed. Nine nice calves tracing to the
Stoke-Pogis and A’phea families were
stabled near by; the custom being to keep
them up until a year old. They were
large, well-grown fellows, brought up on
the sweet milk from the creamer with oil
meal added; and Mrs. Curtis said they soon
learned to eathay, and throve better under
shelter than at pasture. “Give the pig a
chance and he’ll be as clean as any ot' er
animal,” says Col. Curtis. But regard for
truth compels me to say the Colonel’s
Duroc-Jerseys had no better chance to be
clean than swine that do not part their
names in the middle. But they looked
thrifty, and some young pigs were nice
samples of this breed, well formed, with
coats of reddish chestnut which fairly
shone on their sleek sides. I was parti-
cularly anxious to see the process of but-
ter-makin g in the dairy here, but the churn-
ing was just ﬁnished, and “Julia,” the
domestic assistant, was just drawing off
the buttermilk. It was a warm day, and
the butter, instead of making its appear-
ance in that granular form—“ the kernels
of wheat” fashion which the colonel in-
sists on at dairy conferences, and which is
the acme of modern perfection in dairying
——had “come” in a soft compact mass, very
much as it used to in the old fashioned
churn in the days when the application of
ice was unpracticed in the dairy. The
dairy at Kirby Homestead seems quite con-
venient; it comprises three rooms, in one
of which is a Stoddard creamer, in another
the Stoidard churn and the butter-worker,
the ice house being accessible from it, and
back of this a smaller room containing a
stove and the “ power.” Master Crandall‘s
pony does the churning by a tread-power.

g

A large pear orchard promises well,
though suffering from blight, that des-
tructive agent against which all remedits
seem powerless.

Charlton itself is an unpretentious country
village; it is just one long street with a store
and the postoﬂrlce at one end and a store
and a hotel at the other. There are three
churches, which cater to the spiritual needs
of those who want to go to heaven the
Methodist, the Presbyterian or the Episco~
pal way; and there isan “ academy ”—Once
quite locally noted and an adjunct of the
Presbyterian scciety, now managed as a
private school. T..e street is a “shady
way;” ﬁreﬂies glimmer in the grass at twi
light, and in the kindly fashion of country
folk everybr dy is interested in everybody’s
welfare. The country round about is
beautiful. Just breaking into the foot-
hills of the Adirondacks, the land rises in
long undulating slopes, one above another,
covered with farms and orchards, homes
of neither poverty or riches, but of
modest competence and content. Along
the horizon are the dim lines of low-lying
mountains, fading into the sky line.
From many points beautiful views are Ob-
tainable, pictures one can not gaze upon
too long, and which are carried away in
memory and lovingly recalled.

Returning, I stopped half a day at
Niagara to take a nearer view of the Falls.
I think I “fell .among thieves” in the
matter of hackmen, but I shall never re-
gret my visit. Goat Island, Luna Island,
the Three Sisters, the Whirlpool Rapids
where foolhardy Capt. Webb went to his
death, have been so often pictured and
described, and seen by so many, that it
would be a thankless task to attempt to
draw a new pen picture of them. I think
I admired the wildness and picturesqueness
of the rapids above the Falls quite as
much as the mad plunge over the abyss
itself. There was something very fascin-
ating to me in that waste of waters plung-
ing, tossing, ﬂinging wreaths of spray
high in air, so terribly restless, fretting
around those islands so solidly anchored
in its pathway as if it longed to tear
them along with it. I had always supposed
the deep green hue of the water as it
plunges over the precipice in the paintings
I have seen was enhanced by the artist’s
brush, but no mere pigment can do justice
to the dazzling emerald of the Horseshoe
Falls, and the less deep but quite asteauti-
ful color of the American side. This
peculiarity is due, I believe, to the fact that
the river ﬂows over limestone rocks, and so
holds a small quantity of carbonate of lime
in solution, which always imparts a green
tint to water. BEATRIX.

 

IT is a mistake, says a lady of consider-
able culinary experience, to think that be-
cause “ a little is good, a good deal is bet-
ter.” Many a loaf of cake has been a ﬂat
failure because of the extra bit of butter
put in to make it a little richer, or the
heaped up cup of sugar. The lady in
question says she tried this once on cookies,

using th’cker cream and granulated sugar
instead of coffee A, and her cakesmere

 

lard and brittle, quite unlike “hat, they
had been before.

 

WOMAN‘S SPHERE.

 

I have been a constant and interested
reader of the HOUSEHOLD for many years,
as my husband has been a subscriber of
the MICHIGAN FARMER. L. ng before the
HOUSEHOLD was printed separately I used
to think it was the best part of the paper;
but it was nowhere compared to what it is
now.

Last night, though very tired, I was
awakened by some animal molesting my
turkey coop, and with one bound was out
ready to investigate. I think the old h’en
was dreaming, for I could see nothing, and
the little turkeys were all there to break~~
fast. But I was too wide awake to go to
sleep very readily and so I fell to thinking
of a piece I read before I went to bed en--
titled “Up in a Burning Balloon," and
describing the perilous ascent of a young
lady, Miss LaMont, at Vandecook’s lake on
Sunday. When McE wen asked if all was
ready, she shouted back, “ All ready.”
The men who held the ropts were com-
manded to let go. “ It’s aﬁre,” came from
half a dozen voices, but “ Let go ” was the
command from the trapeze. The men
obeyed; the balloon started on its journey
Skyward, bearing its burden of ﬂesh and
blood beneath a spreading mass of ﬁre.
The balloon arose just above the tree tops.
The woman sat unmoved upon the trapeze,
the ﬁre eating upward and permitting the
hot air to escape, and when the burning
mass gently settled back to the ground, the
aeronaut landed unscathed and unsinged.
Every one expected her to land a mutilated
mass; some of the ladies fainted, but she
never lost control of her nerves for a mo-
ment. Another balloon and parachute were;
ordered from Jackson, and at 6:30 p. m.
Miss LaMont made another daring ascent;
this time she went likeaﬂash, and succeed-
ed in making the descent in the parachute
gradually and easily, landing in the mill
pond, in about ten feet of water, whence she-
was rescued by a gentleman. Now right.
here is the point I wish you all to see.
Why is it that ladies, or rather women,
will persist in such business? Webster de--
ﬁnes “lady ” as a woman of reﬁned man-
ners, and woman as the adult female of the;
human race. I think the last more ap-
propriate, for what is there reﬁned or re-
ﬁning for a woman to perch herself upon a
trapeze bar, and go sailing through mid-
air? Did God when He made woman as a.
helpmate to man design them for such
purpose? No! He made them to be.
pure and noble, to help to build up and
elevate mankind, instead of trying to out-
strip him in gymastics and other immodest
exercises. I feel sorry for the poor men
who are left so in the background; it must
make them feel bad to think that after
they have invented such a grand machine
they cannot have the privilege of riding

on it. _ _ '
I think if instead of trying to imitate

“Darius Green and his ﬂying machine,”~
they would take the kettle that he used,
or a similar one, and learn to cook a good

substantial meal, the men would appre-
ciate it far more, and itj‘vvould be less
dangerous for the Qmen. ‘ ' J '

 

The last part of the article reads like

 

 

  


  

pi

i .

 

THE” HOUSEHOLD.

  

a

 

this :

the reward that is due her.”
would ask. what reward. or honor is due
to a woman who will risk her life in that
way for notoriety? I should think that
Prof. Hogan’s exit from earth was enough
to put an end to balloon ascensions for a
time, but it seems to have put new courage
into the women. I think they sadly miss
their calling. FANNY.
JACKSON.

INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL.

 

Beatrix runs away from Detroit to
Saratoga, while I run from Howell to De;
troit; thus we both secure change if not
rest. Still change is rest, and we come
back ready to take up our respective duties
with renewed vigor of mind and body.

To me Detroit is a never-failing source
of delight. I think it the most beautiful
of cities. The people seem to take so
much pride in it, even the cottage of the
mechanic has its small but well kept lawn
and ﬂower bed.

Belle Isle park has its labyrinth of canals
upon which even children may row their
little boats in safety; or one may take a
lunch basket and sit under the trees and
enjoy the beautiful ﬂower beds and borders
away from all dust and noise, with some
of the grandest forest trees that I have seen
for years as canopy. Or one may take a
carriage as I did, and drive up Jefferson
Avenue to the Bridge and make the entire
circuit of the Island, breathing cool in-
vigorating air at every breath even in the

hottest weather. Truly it is an earthly
paradise, and I was glad to see that the
poor of the city seem to appreciate and en-
joy it.
Detroit river is a blessing to the city, as
one may for a very moderate sum ride
many miles and be away from the cityall
day long. My friends and I took the City
of Cleveland one morning for “Put-in-
Bay” a ride of seventy miles and: return
for ﬁfty cents. Arriving at the Bay we
went to a hotel for dinner and then the
hackmen began to shout “Carriages for
the Gavel” “ Where, what cave? ” I
asked. “Why, Perry’s Cave, don’t you
know! Why, it tells about it in all the
histories of the war of 1812.” Ashamed to
confess my ignorance I said “Oh yes,
certainly!” and we were driven to the cave.
Paying an entrance fee of 15 cents we
were led down rude winding stairs and
found ourselves in a large underground
cavern lighted with kerosene lamps, the
ﬂoor very wet as was also the roof; it seems
to havebeen made by the action of water
or perhaps partly by volcanic action. Both
ﬂoor and ceiling are a sort of limestone,
but there are no pillars; nothing of the
nature of a stalagmite or stalactite, just
one dreary waste of slimy cave with
caverns here and there where thty say the
water is forty-ﬁve feet deep. I cannot esti-
mate the size of the cave, but Perry might
have hidden several thousand men there.
Since coming home I have consulted all

“Miss LaMont has demonstrated
both her nerve and courage after adis-
couraging failure, and will doubtless reap
Again I

ﬂowers are on every hand, but they are
strange. At Jamestown, in the valley of
James river, trees have been planted, and
a fringe of them shows along the banks.

that cave.

by giving the desired information.
HOWELL. MRS. W. J. G.
——.0.-—-—-
NOTES OF TRAVEL.

HOUSEHOLD would be interested readers
of the happening of the trip, from my
daily notes I will transcribe a general des~
cription and history of the journey. Our
journey across Michigan was pleasant but
uneventful. Lake Michigan was on its
good behavior, and we reached Milwaukee
on the morning of the 10th, to ﬁnd that
city all “ broke up” over the conclave of
the Knights of Pythias. Military uni-
forms were everywhere; in the suburbs
were acres of white tents spread, martial
music was heard on all sides. One feature
of headgear worn by some of the ofﬁcers
seemed strange. The hat was cuffed up
over each ear to the width of a purple
plume that crossed from front to back,
falling down the neck with a mournful
wiggle; but the wearers were a ﬁne,
soldierly looking body of men.
‘ We left Milwaukee late in the afternoon,
and the next morning rose to ﬁnd we were
going through a new, wild looking
country, the crops poor and backward.
Later, the country improved. We reached
St. Paul in the morning and took breakfast
in the ﬁne depot, but oh! the ﬁles! We
took a ride up the beautiful river to Fort
Snelling. It is ﬁnely located on a high
bluff. A Soldiers’ Home is located here.
The scenery is beautiful, rocky hills and

still in ignorance as to what transpired in
Perhaps Beatrix or some one
else will enlighten me and interest others

July 9th, 1890, we left Birmingham for
a voyage to the “land of the midnight
sun,” and thinking the ladies of the

little town was ambitious to become their
capital of North Dakota, but Bismarck got"
the plum. Here we saw the ﬁrst “ prairies
schooner.” The State buildings at Bier
marck are good. We crossed the “Big"
Muddy” to Mandan, ﬁfteen minutes later.
The railroad shops here are very extensive.
Here we stopped ten min utes, andle‘lt ﬁfty
minutes earlier; the arbitrary change of?
an hour from central to mountain time--
taking effect here. The museum of,"
Indian curiosities at Mandan is full of ins;
terest. Sage brush is found, and mud or
sod houses, low and small, a door, often no
window, with a stovepipe through the-
roof. How can pecple live in them?
Acres of ﬂowers, herds of cattle and horses
with the cowboy attendants, are on the-
plains. The hills, which have been for a
long time in sight, here approached and:
their red formation gave them a very
strange appearance. At Sully Spring-
we strike the “Bad Lands,” so called; to»
me a great surprise. I had read of them.
but had seen no description. Indeed they
are indescribable. The features are roeks~
ofa strange look, form and combination..
They consist of upright corrugated pillars,
surface perforated; crossed at various.
points by horizontal layers. The rocks
all tend to a mound-like, pyramidal or
conical form, whether in detached pieces,
or piled in heaps, or massed until hills
and mountain chains are completed. Out:
of a confused mass a turret or spire will}
spring, or a rounded mass will support a.-
level plain. A group will suggest sleep-Q
ing giants, monstrous forms of animals, or
visions of Childhood’s illusions; one’s ideas ~
of gnomes, genii, and other uncanny goblinsv'
seem realized. As a mountain chain in the

 

cliffs, with fertile valleys, and islands dot
the stream.
We left at 4:15 p. m. for Tacoma. On
taking possession of our reserved section of
a. sleeper, ano her party claimed it, but
were convinced of their error, and were
moved twice ere they got settled. Our
ﬁrst stop was at Minneapolis: It is strange,
the rivalry existing between these two
beautiful, prosperous cities. The stranger
stopping one day only will see it in many
ways. The water power from St. An-
thony’s Falls, as utilized by ﬂouring
mills, is the great factor in the prosperity
of Minneapolis. The country was ﬁne,
and crops looked well thrOugh the day’s
travel. Many prosperous villages were
seen. A word about our quarters: The
Bonita, a new Pullman sleeper, was our
home; the train of ten cars was vestibuled;
the road level and even; and in this pala~
tial car travelling was a luxury. July 12th.
we were in Dakota; the home of the
blizzard and the wheat ﬁeld, no trees, no
fences, no barns, and such small, po_r
houses. Fine farming implements stand
exposed. Mile after mile the same mono-
tonous scenery. How lonely it looks!
Trees are so much company. Brilliant

 

the authorities at my command and am

How good they locked to us! This nice

distance, it presents the appearance of a.
city built on terraced hills; citadel, dome,
minaret and spire are there. Long ranks .
of houses, row above row, are visible; .
while the varied colors, which are a feature. ~
of the formation, add tothe illusion- Even, ..
the clay banks present a similar moulding. .
Bare, verdureless and forlorn, it is ems?
desolate looking and forbidding country. .
With a feeling of relief we leave it behintﬁgb
us, after a companionship of hundreds’oﬁ"
miles. This peculiar formation is followed?
by, or runs into what are called“ “humr-
mocks,” which are rocky knolls. Even...»
the hills and mountains are exaggeratedi
“hummccks.” This formation ‘Oeours'at
intervals from Sully Springs, in' M98,
until ‘near Miles City, Montana.’ We-
reached Glendive and the Yellowstone~
river at eight p. m. a. 1.. L.

(T u be Continued.)

m

WE take the following remarkable euli- »
nary recipe from the Royalton correspond-
ence of the Btnton Harbor Pallaslz’rm‘: ‘
“ To preserve pie plant: To Water enough ,
to cover a three gal. jar that has been out:
in small pieces, add one tablespoonfnl of
salt. Pour over, and set away for pies next '
winter.” A “ three gal. jar” cut in small.
pieces would undoubtedly make substitute-
tial pie timber, but whatpuzzlts us is tau

know where the “preserved pie plant." '

 

 

ﬁnds its sphere of usefulness.

  


 

SOUTHERN COOKERY.

 

The experierce of a gentleman who has
recently traveled through the South, as
related in the HOUSEHOLD of Aug. 2nd.
has brought vividly to my mind what I
experienced there soon after the war.

The ﬁrst meal I ate in Virginia was at a
farm house half a mile from the railroad
station, Going to the house early one
morning I inquired cf the woman of the
house if I could get a meal of victuals.
She assured me I could, “ Just as soon as
Sam could kill and dress a chicken.”
Going into the house I asked for some
warm water to bathe my feet. This was
brought to me in an iron bake kettle or
Dutch oven, which was used to scald the
chicken in, and cook it. Soon breakfast
was announced, and I sat down to a dish
of boiled chicken, a ﬂitch of cold bacon
with bristles half an inch long sticking up

all over it, a cup of coffee as black as dye,
no milk, cream or sugar, but instead New
Orleans molasses; warm corn dodgers, but
no butter. For some reason my appetite
left me, but I was charged seventy-ﬁve
cents for the meal all the sarre. At an-
other place near Caroline Court House
where I stayed a few days, we had warm
corn dodgers, sweet potatoes, salt mackeral
fried in bacon gravy, cold bacon, black

coffee, but no butter, sugar or milk. I

asked the woman how she made her

dodgers. She replied: “After feeding
the chickens I take what dough is left and
make it into cakes, and bale in the hot
embers on the heart.”

I didn’t gorge myself with food at that
plantation. GRANDPA.

Musnrcox.
____....————

A FLORAL LETTER.

The reason rhododendrons are not, or
,rather have not been seen in our gardens,
is because of the idea that they are too
tender for our climate, but their power of
endurance of cold and heat has been tested
and they are found very well adapted to
general use by giving the protection re«
quired by the most of our ﬂowering
shrubs. A dressing of autumn leaves
with brush to hold them in place will do.
It is imperative that they should be set in

ﬁght, well drained soil, enriched with de-
cayed sods and leaves; and as the intense
'heat of summer is detrimental to their
bloom they should be placed in partial
dude; not under trees however, but near
a building or like shade, as we set our
delicate kinds of lilies.
Rhododendron is a Greek name meaning
Rose-tree-a beautiful evergreen shrub or

pansies and more

tree according as it is pruned when small
and promises to become a general favorite
The reason “ ever-blooming ”

kept clear of

nourishment.
than decayed sods mixed with cow manure
for roses, and a compost of this is easily
prepared and kept
village or country. No shrub that is under
cultivation for ornamental purposes can

m

roses so
seldom bloom more than once in a season
is generally due to neglect to clip off all
fading ﬂowers, as soon as their freshness
is over, and cut out all unhealthy branches,
which will not be so plentiful if no blos-
som die on the stem, or seed buds de-
yeiop. The soil should be stirred and
grass and weeds, and given
e rose is not a dainty

THE HOUSEHOLD.

There is nothing better
on hand by any one in

give such satisfaction in every way as the
rose; and its bloom and beauty can be
easily redoubled if only its modest require.
cuts are satisﬁed.

If annuals are now allowed to go to swd
by not being gathered there will soon be
very few to gather, and those by fair-
time not ﬁt for exhibition or to beautify
the house or garden. They cost a little in
stamps and more in labor and care; but if
we give our friends’ pleasure by sharing
with them they serve a double purpose,
and that is their mission— to breathe conso
la' ion to the weary and worried ones around
us. I cannot refrain from speaking their
praise whenever I have the opportunity.
In reply to Mrs. L.. who asked questions
that are answered here, I reply, all ques-
tions of the kind likely to interest other
readers are freely noticed in this manner,
and a stamp is all that is required for a re-
ply by mail. MR5. M. A. FULLER.

Fanrou.
W

APPLES.

 

I chanced upon a freshly opened barrel
of Red Astrachans down on the Central
Market: wife}; 1395a to discovei'trh‘d’piice
of cucumbers .fgrl pickling; How much i”
I ’quErie-dffeain gfdf i'm'y-pOCket-bookrfOr
my favorite bet is “ a big red apple” and
I owe—oh I don’t know how many, a
whole barrel-full, I guess. But I shall not
clear the slateZthisZseason, for the answer
Edd-Tn? gasp for breathﬁﬂTwo cents
ﬁime'dncents a quartffsiirty cents a peck l”
and the marketwoman hadn’t the grace to
blush the least little bit in the world. A
rapid calculation showed me that a barrel of
apples sold at retail at these ﬁgures would
bring in about $8. Evidently;I the man
who has apples this year is going into the
list with the coal barons,1_the :plumbers
and the icemen, and I shall have to risk
something cheaper than apples, whether
red or yellow. But these were beautiful

specimens of this fruit, well colored, even

in size,

from August indications. BEATRIX.

W

The Working Woman, edited and publish
ed by one Charlotte Smith, at Washington

quite enough of

ways like to say a good word for woman’

truly lab

and so packed they had not
bruised in transportation. I would advise
those fortunate enough to have fruit to re-
member tha “ apples is apples ” this year
and not sell their surplus for a tong. Good
winter apples will be scarce and high next
December or I’m no judge of winter prices

WE have received a specimen copy of

D. C. The paper is small, but there is
it, such asit is. We al-

work, and to encourage those who are
oring for the advancement of the

sex. But we see nothing in this paper
which calls for the good word. Instead,”
we are disgusted with its slang, its coarse-

ness, its pe

rsonalities, not to speak of its

 
 

know she is “ entitled to wealth and social
position,”
tary Rusk
rooster;” and in direct address to a cor-
respondent who differs with her and whom
she styles “ a fellow,
paper such language as this:

coward.y contemp ible cur you.

yet who editorially calls Secre-
“ an unsophisticated rural

” prints in her own
“ You
We

would like to make you hoist the white
ﬂag of distress with your suspenders aim-
lessly sailing in the air, while you were
making a ﬂying trip down three ﬂights of
stairs from our ofﬁce.” The working
women are not fortunate in their self-
elected champion, for of all organs those
which advocate woman’s cause, in any
sphere, should command respect by their
dignity and reﬁnement of thought and

diction. _
W

HOUSEHOLD HINTS.

compelled to use dead ripe
grapes for jelly, slip them from the skins,
using only the pulp. Thus handled, the
common black Concord makes a bright
red jelly free from the sharp glassy crystals
of grape sugar found in jellies where ripe
grapes have been used and the skins left

on.

IF you are

 

BUTTER which has been changed by
keeping can be made available for culinary
purposes—“ shortening”-—-by melting and
frying raw potatoes in it. Fry the pota-
toes a light brown, and pour the clear,
clariﬁed butter from the sediment. This
process destroys the butter ﬂavor, but the
resultant can be used for all purposes for
which 11rd is employed.

W

Useful Recipes.

 

PEACH Burma—Pare ripe peaches and put
them in a preserving kettle, with suﬂiczent
water to boil thim soft; then mash them
through a colander, removing the stones.
To each quart of the peaches put one and a
half pounds of sugar, and boil very slowly for
one hour; stir often and keep it from burn-
ing; put in stone or glass Jars: seal tightly
and keep in a cool place. Grape butter is
also excelfent. Grapes can be used that do
not ripen—Germantown Telca aph. ‘

 

on Pansnnvrs --It is a slew process to
make ilne quince preserves, but none are
handsomer or more delicious. If the quinces
are cook.d too long at the ﬁrst boiling they
w'll break in the syrup, and if boled only in
the syrup they w‘ll be tough and hard. R. ject
a'i krozty and stunted ones. First rub off
the down, then out cut the ﬂower end, pare,
quarter and core. Place them in the pre-
serving kettle thh Just water enough to
cover them. and boil s'owly, covered closely,
until tender. Skim out caret u 1y on a platter.
Add the parings and cores to the water in
which the quinces were cooked. stew it three-
fourtbs of an hour, and strain through a jelly
bag. To each pint or this liquor allow a
pound of sugar. When it is dissolved. put in
the fruit and boil very slowly until it is ten-
dei but not broken. Skim out the fruit and
boil the syrup down. Fill the jars two—thirt’s
full of the fruit, and cover it with syrup.
Quince and apple preserves are made in a
similar manner, using an equal amount of
quinces and ﬁrm, ripe, sweet apples. and

QUIN

S

 

typographical

 

fertilizers, as th

feeder, and can assimilate ,rather abundant

who publishe

  

errors. Think of a woman
s a personal letter to let us

boiling, both in the same water. but separate-
ly.—Rural New Yorker.

 

