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DETROIT, DECEMBER 19, 1887.

 

 

THE HOUSEHOLD-“Supplement.

 

 

CHRISTMAS DA Y.

 

What‘s the hurry, what’s the ﬂurry
All throughout the house today?

Everywhere a merry scurry,
Everywhere a sound of play.

Something, too, [ knows the ma ter
Out of doors as well as in,

For the bell, it just goes clatte‘,
Every minute—such a din.

Everybody‘s winking. blinking,
In a queer, mysterious way;
What on earth can they be thinking,
What on earth can be to pay.
Bobby peeping o’er the stairway
Bursts into a little shout;
Kitty, too, is in a fair way
Where she hides to giggle out.

As the bell goes cling-a-ling-i'ng
Every minute more and more;

And swift feet go springing, springing,
Thro’ the hall-way to the door,

What a glimpse of box and packet,
And a little rustle, rustle

Makes such a sight and sound and racket
Such a jolly bustle, bustle.

That the youngsters in their places
Hiding slyly out of sight,

All at once show shining faces.
All at once scream with delight.

Go and ask them what‘s the matter,
What the fun outside and in,
What the meaning of the clatter
What the bustle and the din,
Hear them, hear them laugh and shout, then
All together hear them say,
“ Why, what have you been about then
Not to know it’s Christmas Day.“

+

HOLIDAY GREETINGS.

 

The holiday season is again at hand,
bringing its train of gifts and good wishes,
its family reunions. its feasting and mirth.
In some homes there is nothing to mar the
accustomed pleasures, and happiness will be
full and unrestrained; in others, somebody
will turn with tear-ﬁlled eyes from a vacant
chair with sad memories of “last Christ-
mas.” Grateful hearts will make merry
over few blessings, while discontented ones
will forget to count up their many mercies.
Some new resolves for a New Year will be
forgotten in a fortnight, while here and
there some resolution for future guidance,
born of bitter experience, will inﬂuence a
human life unto all eternity. It is a sea—
son for thought as well as gayety; for a re-
view of the past as well as anticipations
for the future. And the little HOUSEHOLD
goes ﬂying east and west, far and near,
bearing with it the “Compliments of the
Season,” and its Editor’s best wishes for
the health and prosperity of its many
readers.

 

SEEN ON THE STREET.

 

Of all places to beguile money from the
unwary, to tempt the extravagant to excess
and the economical to lavishness, commend
me to the bazars at Christmas. an’s only
safety lies in solemnly locking up her
pocket-book before leaving home, and even
then she will probably need all her resolu-
tion to keep from saying to the quite too
obliging salesman, “ You may laythis aside
for me.” The woman who starts out to
buy Christmas things without a well-de-
ﬁned idea in her head of what she means to
buy, and alist in her pocket to keep th
mind on the subject. is pretty sure, human-
ly speaking, to return laden with everything
she did not mean to buy and nothing that
she did; result, viewed reﬂectively, dissatis~
faction and a wish she had adhered to her
ﬁrst plans.

Our principal bazrr, always bright and
pretty, is fairly radiant at Christmas.
Ablaze day and night with electricity, the
light is reﬂected from scores of colored
globes and prism—decked lamps; the walls
are. covered with gay fans of all the hues ( f
the rainbow; Japanese umbrellas and
Chinese lanterns are suspended every-
where, while trails of ivy and autumn
foliage are festooned from all available
points. To the stranger unaccustomed to
such sights, it must seem like a fairy palace,
a realization of one of the gorgeous descrip-
tions of the Arabian nights. The plate
glass show cases are loaded with every-
thing conceivable in the way of bric-a-brac
and fancy goods, in value from a few cents
to many dollars. Here are fans almost like
frostwork, so dainty and delicate are they;
you could see to read through the crepe
tissue on which is faintly traced pale-hued
blossoms and foliage. Here is one of white
ostrich feathers with mother-of—pearl sticks
mounted in gold: here one for a dowager
with full black feathers. This tray is for
cards, the bunch of carnations upon it is of
china, but you would never think it, so
faithfully are the tints reproduced, so
fragile the texture of the petals: this one
looks as if that glowing Jacqueminot rose
had been carelessly drOpped upon it. H»re
are vases, shading froma soft pearly white
into the deep bloom of the peach blossom;
“fairy lamps,” with rose-tinted shades,
designed for night use, giving a glow-worm
light not sufﬁcient to disturb the lightest
sleeper. Brass candlesticks furnished with
wax candles in all colors look antiquated
enough; then there are fancy ' easels to hold
photographs, three cat-tails on bronze stalks;
three calla lilies in silver gilt, or three

 

crossed spear-heads, at from 50 cents to:
dollar each.

There is an endless variety of plus
goods. Toilet sets in plush covered satir
lined boxes begin as low as one dollar and
stop at twenty-ﬁve. The dollar sets are
too cheap, the bristles in the brush betray a.
horrehair origin, the comb teeth are so far
apart they look lonesome, but for $3 or 554
you can buy a pretty set not too good for
use. Plush covered handkerchief boxes.
satin lined, are 31 to $1 50; work boxes are
ﬂ led with scissors and other appurtenances
of toil at the same price. Pincnshions are
almost big enough for pillows, and the
scent bottles to match are large and low
and have large silver or cut glass stopples.
But life is too short to tell half the beauti—
ful things spread out to tempt us to unclasp
our purses.

In the bookstores, I ﬁnd fewer of the
ornate gift books of other days, made to
adorn the center table, but never opened.
and more books meant to be read. The
pretty ivorine bindings seen last year are
found again, embellished with clusters of
wild ﬂowers ora bit of landscape. Many
favorite poems and hymns are shown in
such holiday guise. These sell at a dollar
each, except a few Specialties for which
81 50 are asked. One little volume, in
ivorine dress, quaintly lettered in gold
“Beacon Lights for God’s Mariners,” was
a collection 'of extracts from religious
writers. Philip Gilbert Hamerton’s “ The
Saone,” and Howell’s “Tuscan Cities”
are handsome gift books. The illustrations
in the ﬁrst are a picture gallery in them-
selves, while Howells is charming as a des
criptive writer however prosy as a novelist
Irene Jerome's books are the newest gift
books of this season; they are three in num
her, and profusely illustrated, which with
the fancy type and heavy paper makes
them marvels of the book-makers’ art. The
sketches illustrate poems by such writers as
Louise Chandler Moulton, Susan Coolidge,
N. P. Willis, who have chosen the shy
ﬁrstlings of the year for the theme of their
verse. The following extract is from “A
Bunch of Violets:”

“I have found violets; April has come on,

And the cool winds feel softer, and the rain

Falls in the beaded drops of summer-time.
You may hear birds at morning and at eve;

The tame dove lingers till the twilight falls,
Cooing upon the eaves, and drawing in

Its beautiful bright neck; and from the hills
A murmurlike the hoarseness of the sea

Tells the release of waters, and the earth
Sends up a pleasant smell, and the dry leaves

Are lifted by the grass; and so I know
That Nature with her delicate ear hath heard

The droppings of the velvet foot of Spring.”

Plush-covered albums, holding two cabi-
net pictures on a page, sold "like hot

    


    
 
   
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
  
 
   
 
  
 
  
  
  
 
 
  
  
  
  
   
 
 
   
 
  
 
 
  
  
 
 
   
    
   
 
  
   
   
 
  
   
  
    
  
   
   
  
  
  
 
   
 
  
  
 
  
 
   
  
 
 
 
    
  
  
   
   
 
  
 
  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
   
  
  
 
   
    
 

k

..,,_;.. nemesis

is»

'I‘HE HOUSEHOLD.

 

sakes” at $3 75 each; the photograph
screen, which opens in panels and holds
almost as many pictures as an album, is
the newest thing out; the plainest was $10,
and a silver-mounted Russia leather one
marked $15.

Great bales of ground pine from the
forests of northern Michigan. yards unon
yards of evergreen wreaths, and big boxes of
ruby-berried holly from Virginia, are ready
for use in decorating churches and parlors,
while Christmas trees of assorted sizes and
varying degrees of symmetry crowd the mar-

:t. And the streets are thronged with

ger buyers, jostling. pushing. restless,

t all bright and beaming with the spirit

Christmas. Bna'rnrx.

-—-——oeo———
)RROWS, REAL AND IMAGINARY.

 

In reading Evangeline’s Home Talks
lo. 3, my eyes met this sentence, “Half
onrtroubles are imaginary ones.” I have
thought of this, wondered if it were so,
and at last come to the conclusion that it
was. Every one has his own burdens to
bear, and of these may be made two classi-
ﬁcations—real and imaginary. Some real
sorrows may be secret and Ioften think
that than are the hardest to bear. We
may censureaman for not appearing gay
and joyful, as we can not see any cause
why he should be otherwise, but “Be-
lieve me, every man has his own secret
sorrows. and we often call a man cold
when he is only sad.”

The highest, noblest manhood
Is never reached ‘till we

Have drank the cup of sorrow
And borne it patiently.

We‘re taking footsteps backward
When sinking neatli the sway

Of sorrow, never thinking
’l‘here‘ll be a brighter day.

E’en this one might be darker,
To-morrow must be fair,

And when we reach our resting
There’ll be no sorrow there.

We cannot have true sympathy for others
until we know by experience what they
ave to bear. 1 do not mean experience
i the Same kind of sorrow. I believe the
ippiest people are those who shut up in
ieir breast the tale of their own woe, and
pend their own lives in helping others to
aar burdens. And there are always those
who endure their sorrows the very hardest
way. not allowing the Spirit of God to walk
abroad on the “ free pinions of their trials.”

Butas to our imaginary troubles. The
most of these are worrying about the
future. It is so easy to say, and how often
we hear it, “ I am so afraid it will happen.”
Why don’t we let “it” alone, I wonder,
until it does happen, and not make our-
selves and every one else miserable wor-
rying about it? Sorrow comes soon
enough at the latest, and to be ready to
bear these God-given trials we will need
all the strength of our hearts. We should
gather the roses that bloom in our path to-
day, and not think about the thorns that
may be hidden farther on. It is a part of
God’s plan that we bear present sorrow and
know not future troubles, and in His plans
there are no errors.

“ If we could push ajar the gates of life,
And stand within and all God‘s workings

see
We could interpret all this care and strife
And for each mystery could ﬁnd a key,

God‘s plans like lilies, pure and white
un o ,

We must not tear the close shut leaves apart.

Time will reveal the calyxes of gold."

This is not such a very hard life after all.

if we will make the best of everything,

ourselves included. Man in his natural

state is selﬁsh and discontented, but “unless

above himself man can erect himself, how

poor a thing is man,” and to make the
best of ourselves, we must seek to grow in
kindness and sympathy, and “To grow
means often to suffer.” After we have at-
tained our growth in this respect. if we
ever do, it will be only the sorrows of
others that will pain us. Let us not strive
to know our future and cease to worry
about it. Let us not wait for a crowd of
ills, that as yet have no existence, but
make to—day our all, with to-morrow but a
dream.

Then when trouble does come, let us re-
member that the darkest day is a prelude to
an evening of peace and deepest joy, which
only tho~e can know who have drank
deepest of the cup of sorrow.

“ What tho‘ our sun for a short time may set,

It will rise on a morning more glorious yet,

What. tho‘ darkly gather the clouds of despair.

They will break and the sunshine will be the
more fair.

’Tis God’s plan, the darkness preceding the

1g t,
The day by the contrast appearing more
bright;
A brief time of sorrow we all needs must see,
To know the full glory of God‘s victory."

MARSHALL. CLARA BELLE .
W

INCIDENTS OF AN OCEAN VOYAGE.

 

On April 4th. 1854, I went on board an
American sailing ship at the docks of
Liverpool, bound for New Orleans, having
engaged my passage previously, not know;
ing until one day out that the vessel had
been chartered by the Mormons, and little
caring for the next three days whether I
was going to Salt Lake or the bottom of the
ocean; indeed that sickness ma to me feel
afraid that I would not die. For ten long
weeks [was housed up with two hundred
Mormons for company. I had never in-
terested myself about the Mormons before,
but had once heard a prophet speak in the
county of Sussex. A lad then of twenty

the back door, and no general occupation,

years of age, with no chance to get out

I made it a point to learn some of their
longings. Strangely enough, when one is

Saints and the Salt Lake country generally.
They offer to poor boys and girls who can-
not half pay their passage to pay their fare
and have them work it out when they land
at St. Louis, in drawing their hand carts,
etc, across the Rocky Mountains, and they
are just full of the splendor of the trip—I
am speaking now of course of things as
they were along in the 50’s. There was
one, an old Chelsea pensioner, who wore
his Chelsea clothes and his medals, who
hada sword-cut on the calf of his leg, 2:.
slice cut entirely off, and who claimed that
it was wholly the faith and healing art of
the saints that saved his leg from amputa-
tion. He claimed it was sound and all right,
yet when we got to a tropical climate he
would limp so bad it was painful to see him,
yet would not complain: he would describe
Salt Lake as though he lived there many
years, and deﬁed the United States army or
any other from ever driving them from their
stronghold. 0f the married women we
would sometimes ask “ Are you not afraid
your husband will take another Wife when
you get there?” “Oh no! not in the least,”
with a conﬁdence I feared might be mis-
placed, considering “ how false and ﬁckle is
the heart of man,” especially when he has
the book of Mormon to back him up.

There were two or three peculiar in—
cidents on our sea voyage. Early one calm
bright morning we came in sight of the
Peak of Teneriife, which seemed to stand
in the middle of the sea: as the sun shone
on it its top was silver and its sides were
gold. The sea was so calm that we lay in
view nearly two days. It was a beautiful
sight. Again, as we were nearing the
Carribean sea, with sails all set, royals and
jibs all out, not a breath of air, the pitch
and tar bubbling in the seams of the deck,
the surface of the sea as smooth as glass,
suddenly all hands were ordered aloft to
take in sail, and before nearly half was
done, quick as lightnin; we lurched over
three times almost on our beam’s end, and
then for three days the sea ran mountains
high. We learned afterward it was called
“a white squall.” I have heard and read
of many of such squalls, and that it is only
the experienced and practiced, watchful eye
that can tell of their coming. Then, while
drifting on the coral reefs near the Dry
Tortugas—that place where J eﬁ Davis spent
his holiday—what a time we had with the

traveling he will often meet those who have , , _ ' _
lived in his own neighborhood. Among the different actions or the passengers. “Chile
Mormons was a man and wife and two bumping on “1.8 reefI wrotealetter to the
nearly grown daughters who had lived not girl I 1.6 ft behind me, “1mm“? that Salt
. Lake city was a great way off. Just then.
far from me in London, who appeared good We righted up got some biscuits and water
looking, well learned and well brought up, . ' '
and yet their paradise was Salt Lake city. and in a few dgiys one of $036631”, bulldtfg
TLey interested themselves very much in 3:33;; agieaslie‘dps? 14:1:3 £3312” 1:
my brother and myself, and fain would have forever parted with those who ha d been my
had us go there too; they lent us their book Mormon friends and made my way to the»
of Mormon, about the size of our own Bible . . . .'
and divided in chapters much the same, Wlld.md‘? prairies .Of. Iowa, a. contrast you
and t read what I wanted to without being can imagine after livmg seven years in the
converted, “ because my own lassie was left 11613313; igndon. ANTI’OVEB'
behind me and desired to be faithful.” ' —---—“‘-—-—
There was a leading prophet and comman- THE cellar is not a good place for milk ex-
der, and I learned their mode of getting cept in warm weather. To ventilate it prop-
ship—loads of Mormons. They will send erly the temperature is rendered so low that
one or more “Elders” out from Salt Lake the cream rises no better than elsewhere,
city to England and other countries, who while if warm enough the air gets stale and
hold outdoor gatherings in the country or a fungoid growth is germinated on all moist

 

 

it not to—day, then be content, poor heart;

in byplaces, and preach the glories of the surfaces.

 

 

 

 

 

4v—

   


 

 

 

 

 

i.

   

THE

        

 

HOUSEHOLD. 3

 

HOME TALKS.

 

F0. XI.

Well, our quilting was a success, Hetty;
we had a lovely visit, our work was all ac-
complished, and your dinner and supper
were well cooked and served. Your
table was set in good order, and the dif-
ferent dishes served without confusion;
there is nothing that will disturb one’s
equanimity so suddenly as to have a bowl
of soup or gravy or water spilled over the
cloth, or in one’s lap. I remember being at
a bazar that the church was holding in our
town, directly opposite me was a young
man dressed in the height of fashion, and
he was spending his money royally, I tell
you; he had invited three young ladies to
eat supper and as everything served was
paid for by the dish, his bill was amounting
to quite a sum. A very pretty young lady
brought him a dish of hot Oyster soup, and
instead of handing it to him at his left hand
she reached it over his head, and the result
was it came down in a shower all over the
back and shoulders of. his coat, and instead
of saying she was sorry and assisting him a
little she ran out of the room, the picture
of embarrassment; his coat was ruined
forever and his temper soured for that
evening certainly.

In setting a table, ﬁrst and foremost, the
tablecloth and napkins,whether red or white,
should be ironed smoothly, so that when
they are opened the folds are distinctly
marked, and seem stiff without a starchy
stiffness; good heavy linen needs no starch;
dampen it evenly and press it instead of
rubbing it over with a ﬂttiron so hot it
scorches it: have the silver shining and the
dishes clean, and h.ve a place for every-
thing aud everything in its place. N 0 two
set their table exactly alike; to have it in
shape is the main thing.

There is a nice lot of cucumber pickles on
the vines, and as I have nearly half a bar—
rel in salt we will m-ke them as we pick
them. Be particular in washing them, and
pack them in a four gallon jar, then make a
brine of half a teacupful of salt to a quart
of. water, bring it to a boil, and skim, then
turn hot over the cucumbers heat the brine
each time you add pickles, and when you

have a suﬁicient quantity take them out of
the brine and turn boiling water on them,
addinga lump of alum; let stand twelve
hours, then drain and pack them in the
jars you wish to keep them in. Heat the
vinegar, add cinnamon, cloves and cassia
buds, turn hot over the cucumbers. When
cold lay grape or horseradish leaves on t0p,
cover close; these will always be brittle and
nice. Never put back pickles into the jar
that have been left from a meal, it will al-
ways make the whole mass work and spoil.
A great many green their pickles in a brass
kettle, or use sulphate of copper, which
amounts to the same thing;others boil them
or scald them in the vinegar to make them
soft. I like them crisp and brittle. The best
good cider vinegar that is strong and
thoroughly made will always keep pickles
without becoming white or ropy if care is
exercised in taking out the pickles, the
vinegar should come just to the boiling point,
for boiling it hard deadens it. Pickles,
while not considered the healthiest eating

in the world, spice up a meal. String beans
are excellent pickled, select those of an
even size, the wax bean is the best; do no
break off the ends, cook them in salted
water until they pierce easily with a fork:
drain in a colander, then lay in a jar, add
a little cayenne pepper, then turn on a
hot vinegar slightly sweetened. They look
nice mixed with cucumbers when served.

To-morrow we want pork and beans for
dinner, so pick the beans over to-day, and
at night put them in water to soak. Add
plenty of water for they absorb a good deal;
by this method parboiling is avoided. One
quart of beans will be sufﬁcient, and ﬁnd a
lean thin piece of pork to cook with them.
When you put them over to boil, have the
water warm, not hot, and have just enough
water to cook them; you can add more as
you wish. they ought to be juicy when done.
Taste and if not salt enough, add some
salt; add a heaping tablespoon of sugar;
this helps them to brown nicely. Gash the
pork and lay in the center of the dish with
just the rind above the beans. With these
have mashed potatoes, creamed cabbage,
string beans, huckleberry pie and a loaf of
Topaz bread. The string beans will be cut
in pieces an inch or so long; boil them three
hours or more, then season with cream, but-
ter, salt and a triﬂe of thickening, the cab-
bage is out ﬁne and boiled in salted water
one hour, then drain and into two-thirds of
a cup of thick sweet cream stir one table-
spoonful of vinegar, turn over the cabbage.
Make the pie like the raspberry pie, adding
a few bits of butter.

You can put three mackerel a~soak in
skim milk, clean them nicely and lay them
skin side up in the milk, in this way the
salt can be soaked out better than if laid
with the skin side down, these must soak
two days and are delicious cooked in a
variety of ways—tied in a cloth and boiled,
served with drawn butter, or broiled. or
fried, or baked in cream. Tonight prepare
some ﬁsh balls for breakfast, pick up a
coffee cup of codﬁsh and set over the tire
to freshen; boil some potatoes, you will
want two coffee cups heaping full after
they are mashed; season them as you would
for the table. Change the water once on
the ﬁsh, then let it come to a boil, drain
and when cool pick fine with your ﬁngers.
Yes, you will be obliged to put your hands
right in; now mix potatoes and fish thor-
oughly, adding one well beaten egg; make
them in ﬂat balls like biscuit and fry on
the griddle in the morning. You can roll
them in egg which gives them a more
golden brown when done done; if you like
serve fried potatoes, muffins, poached
eggs, coffee. As the mufﬁns are raised
with yeast they will be stirred up the night
before: one pint new milk, two well beaten
eggs, two tablespoonfuls sugar; two of but-
ter; half ateacupful of yeast and flour to
make a batter that will pour easily. In the
morning when your oven is hot set the
dripping pan on the stove to get hot. But-
ter the pan and muﬂin rings, set them in
the pan and pour in the batter; do not stir
it at all; bake about twenty minutes. They
can be made of graham ﬂour, using
molasses instead of sugar, and are very nice.
Corn muﬁins are excellent. One quart

 

milk, tableSpoonful butter, salt, half a cup

    

of yeast, two tablespoons molasses, thicken
with corn meal. These are all easily made
and add so much to the morning meal.

The melons will soon be ready to eat, and
I see they are considered healthy for break-
fast. they are delicious in whatever place
they are introduced. 1 never mention
melons but I think how Joe and I used to
plug melons, and if they were green throw
them into the asparagus bed; that was be-
fore we knew how to tell when they were
ripe. To poach the eggs have the frying-
pan nearly full of hot water, salt it and
break in the eggs, one at a time; lay the
iron cover on the stove and when but set
over the eggs.- do not allow them to boil,
when they just blush pink through the
white, take them up on a platter, and lay
over bits of butter and a dust of pepper on
the top of each one. Topaz bread is made
of one pint of sweet milk: one half teacup
molasses; one level tablespoon soda; one
half teaspoon salt; two teacups corn meal;
one teacup ﬂour; this makes one loaf.
Steam three hours, set in the ovena few
minutes to dry off; to be eaten warm.

We will prepare the fruit for your fruit
cake this week and try and make it, too, for
it should be made at least six weeks before
it is cut. The raisins are to be seeded. and
the currants washed and picked over. What
dirty things they arel They are called
English currents, but I have read that many
come from Spain, and that they are dried
on the hillsides right on the sand, and are
shoveled over when being dried, that ac~
counts for the grit and sand in them. Seems
to me they might be preserved with as much
cleanliness as raisins. This recipe is the
best 1 ever saw. 1 know a lady who kept
one loaf from her wedding and usid it
after her ﬁrst chili was a year old, making
the cake two years and ﬁve Uliliit'lb old.
One and one-half pounds butter; sngtr, two
and one-fourth pounds, one half granulated,
0ne~half Orleans sugar: twenty eggs; i'our
pounds raisins seeded. one half out tine;
iivepounds English currents; tWo pounds
citron out line; sifted flour two pounds; two
nutmegs and as much mace in bulk;
deodorized alcolr )1 one-half pint; one table-
spoon cloves; one of cinnamon, one of
allspice. This requires mixing with the
hands; you can do that and I wiil attend to
the weighing. 1 should hardly know how
to get along if I had not these scales, they
are so handy in weighing butter; these
were four dollars, and they have more than
paid for themselves. When the butter is
softened work that and the sugar to a
cream in the large bread pan, then work
in the yolks of the eggs and spice, I will
whip the whites; those are added next. I
will take half of the ﬂour to dredge the
fruit which will be added next. then the
alcohol and the remainder of the ﬂour. Now
mix it for half an hour or more and I will
grease the tins, four large square ones. I
like that size better than round ones for
fruit cake. I shall ﬂour the tins instead of
papering them. The oven must be a
medium heat and remain so. This cake

will need three hours’ baking and should
be browned top, bottom and sides alike.
lf cake burns remember it is through care—
lessness; it is a sheer waste of time and
material to allow it to burn. I like a good
rich brown, but dislike a black crust.

 

In baking griddle cakes, one can regulate


THE HOUSEHOLD.

 

 

the ﬁre so every cake is done alike, instead
of having a black patch on either side of
some.

Stir up the graham bread to-night; one
-- quart of warm water, a teacup of brown
sugar and molasses equally divided, lump
of lard size of an egg, use two-thirds gra-
ham and one-third roller ﬂour and one tea-
cup yeast; mix as usual in the morning,
using graham ﬂour, and mould into the tins,
asonce rising is sufﬁcient; mix it soft as
you can handle. I sometimes stir it stiff
as I can and put it right in the tins, letting
it rise only once. But your father likes it
best made the other way. It makes deli-
cious toast when it becomes stale.

BATTLE CREEK. EVANGELINE.

———...————-
THE LAST INSTALLMENT.

This issue of the HOUSEHOLD will reach
its readers just as the last gifts of the sea-
son are being ﬁnished. These then are
afterthoughts, and mostly directions for
gifts which are easily prep ired.

First, however, a few directions for
dressing the Christmas tree. There are
very pretty fancy ornaments expressly for
this purpose to be bought at the stores, but
if money is scarce, one feels as if it ought
to be spent more wisely than in the pur-
chase of purely ornamental things. A good
deal can be done at home. Cornucopias
of fancy paper and lace bags to be ﬁlled with
candies are easily and cheaply made.
Strings of popcorn and cranberries can be
used for festoons; red apples and golden
oranges make bright spots of color. Stars,
circles and crescents cut in thin pasteooard,
covered with gilt or silvered paper, and ar-
rar-ged behind the tapers so as to reﬂect the
light, ad‘i much to the beauty of the tree.
Clusters of autumn leaves, gilded, and
others dusted with diamond powder, are
very pretty; while gilded ﬁr cones and
acorns are both new and “too sweet for
anything.”

A mirror in a plush frame like those in
the fancy shops may be made at home
easily, and at very small expense. Pro-
cure a smooth board eighteen inches
square, and cut an opening in the centre;
get a carpenter to bevel both edges of the
opening and of the board, then cover
neatly with plush or velvet, which may be
decorated or left plain. Behind the open-
ing fasten a piece of mirror, pasting strong
paper over the edges to hold it in place.
Hang diamond-shape.

A pretty plaque is made by taking a
common tin pieplate and painting in any
way desired. Gild the edge of the plate.
A light blue ground with spray of apple
blossoms or daisies is very pretty. If you
cannot paint you can make quite as pretty
a one by painting the plate the color
wished, and in the centre glue an embossed
picture, a group of pansies or roses. A
cream ground with pansies is pretty, and a
cluster of fruit or blossoms cut from one
of our seedsmen’s catalogues might be used.

For a shaving—pad, get a sheet of blue
or pink blotting paper. Cut out of it
pieces about ﬁve inches square. Take two
of these pieces and ornament each on one
sid with a pretty ﬂower or ricture pasted
on. Pink the edges, or they may be left
plain, and between the squares put a num-

 

ber of smaller squares of different shades
of tissue paper. Do not be afraid of put-
ting too many leaves of tissue, for it presses
very close together and you can hardly have
too many of them. Make a hole in one
corner of the pad and run through a strong
cord for a loop by which to hang it up. Have
the loops quite short, and on the corner of
the pad where the cord runs through, place
a bow of satin ribbon sufﬁciently broad to
conceal the cord. The pad must hang
diamond-wise.

A very dressy apron may be made of
seven-eighths of a yard of black silk. Choose
silk having agold colored selvedge, which
should be left on. Fold over one end an
inch deep and brlar stitch with gold-c )lored
silk, and on the same ‘end at one corner,
outline a cluster of buttercupi, the blos-
soms in old gold, the leaves and buds in
green. Turn this end up ten inches and
overseam the edges together, this makes a
pocket deep enough to hold the fancy work
or sewing. Fold the top over an inch and
a half and Shir ﬁve times across, drawing up
the right size for an apron, add a belt and
loops of ribbon. If your silk has a different
colored selvedge, make the ﬂoral design to
correspond; daisies with a white selvedge,
carnations witha red one, pansies with pur-
ple. A bow of ribbon can be added at the
other corner of the turned-up portion, if
preferred. This same method may be em-
ployed with other In iterials; the blue or red
checked linen sold for glass toweling makes
very serviceable aprons, the white checks
being worked with polka dots in red work-
ing cotton, and the red with white, for a
a border across the top of the pocket.

The prettiest sachet of the season is a bag
of white satin on which is painted a sprig
of red-harried, prickly-leaved holly; the bag
is tied with a bit of ribbon matching the
berries.

__...__

OUR correspondents are kind enough to
t‘llushov much they priza the HOUSE°
HOLD, how welcome its weekly visits, how
m’ich of practical help and mental inspira-
tion they get from it. It is always cheer—
ing to know that the work we are doing is
enjoyed and appreciated by others, and the
HOUSEHOLD Editor acknowledges, grate-
fully, the many kindly words from our
re iders vouchsafed her the past year, and
acknowledges also with sincere gratitude
the obligation the HOUSEHOLD is under to
those who have helped make its pages so
bright and helpful by their letters. We
hope to make the little paper better than ever
this new year. We ask our readers to help
us, not only by their letters, but by saying
a good word for the FABMEB and its little
annex, the HOUSEHOLD, and inducing a
neighbor or a friend to subscribe. That is
a practical way of helping that assists us in
making the paper better. We have no
chromos or jack-knives to distribute, we
will not insure anybody’s life, we do not
insult the intelligence of our readers by
oifering to bribe them to read the FARMEB,
but it will visit you ﬁfty—two times in 1838
for one hundred and ﬁfty cents, less than

three cents per visit, and we can safely
promise three cents’ worth of good reading
and information in every issue. We invite
a renewal of subscriptions, then, with can-
ﬁdence that every reader will get full
“ value received” every week of the year.

 

A CORRESPONDENT of the Rural New
Yorker says: “ I had a tin slop-pail, the
bottom of which was so worn out that I
could not use it. I cut two round pieces
from strong manilla paper, just the size of
the bottom on the inside. I then gave the
bottom a good mat of paint, and while wet
pressed in one of the rounds of paper,
smoothing it well. After it had dried a
little, I painted the paper and sides of the
pail, then put in the second round, smooth--
ing it in as I did the ﬁrst. When it was
dry I gave it another coat of paint all over
the inside, and dried it in the sun for sever-
al days. Now I can use it as well as ever.
I mended an ash pail in about the same
manner, using instead of the paper, one
round of thin tin.”

__..._.___.

A HOUSEKEEPER thus describes her
home-made wood box, which she says is a
great convenience and at the same time a
decided improvement on the old fashion of
papering or tacking oilcloth on a box. She
procured a shoe box at the village store,
turning it so that the broadest sides were
perpendicular, the narrower forming top
and bottom. She had a cover made, rather
larger than the top, and secured by hinges,
then painted it black, with a yellow stripe
half an inch wide all round, about an inch
from the edge. The wood is put in endwise
and the box holds a good supply.

___._...__

Useful Recipes.

 

CREAM CHEESE.—Three quarts of sweet
cream and three quarts of warm milk just
from the cow. Heat to 62 degs. Add to each
quart of the mixture ten drops of liquid ren-
net and one teaspoonful of whey. St'r for
ten minutes, let stand twenty-four hours.
salt to taste, turn into a cheese cloth and let
drain twenty-four hours, then change the
cloth and press lightly. It will keep six days,
in a dry, cool place.

 

GINGER COOKIES—Two coireecups of New
Orleans molasses, stand it on top of the tea-
kettle with the lid removed, or some good
place that it may warm through. When the
ingredients are all ready stir into it a tea-
spoonful of soda, same of ginger and salt.
four tablespoonfuls boiling water, and the
same of melted lard. Stir together until it is
all aioam, and then put in ﬂour enough to
makes. good ﬁrm dough, roll out and bake in
a hot oven, hot enough that they will begin
to bake pretty soon. Do not have them
crowded in the pan.

 

USE FOR Dav BREAD—Cut your bread into
dice, and if you have a quantity of gravy
from which fat can be taken, left from any
kind of roast (though a piece of butter will
do as well), thoroughly grease the bottom of
the Spider; put in the bread, with some little
chunks of butter and plenty of seasoning,
then pour enough boiling water on it to mois-
ten it. cover tightly, and in a moment it will
steam through and you can stir it, and either
brown a little or have it moist like dressing.
It should be eaten with gravy over it, and is
agood substitute for potatoes.

 

MRS. CLEVELAND'S BROWN BREAD.-—One
bowl Indian meal; one bowl rye ﬂour; one
bowl sour milk: one large cup molasses; one
teaSpoonful soda; one small tablespoonful
salt. Steam two and one-half hours and bake
from twenty minutes to half an hour, accord-
ing to heat of oven.

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     

 

 

