THE HOME.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11644, 4 May 1901, Page 6 (Supplement)

THE HOME.

SHIFTS AND EXPEDIENTS IN HOME NURSING. Bathixo the Patient : When it is desirable to bach a sick person, he should be placed, not in the bath itself, but in the hollow of a sheet that has been fastened over the receptacle. The sheet should be doubled. It is well to lightly pin it in position at first, then tape loops should be strongly sewn to it, and so placed that when the sheet is laid over the bath a cord or strap can be run through them, and be fastened beneath the bath rim. Some adroitness and judgment are required in managing such a bath, the end in view being to save the patient all contact with the hard bath surface, while allowing him as free an immersion as can be obtained. The sheet when supporting the body must be just free of the bath bottom. Of course some allowance must be made for the yielding of the fabric. To give the bath, pour water into the sheet-hollow to a depth of several inches. Then lei the patient kneel in the sheet, supporting himself by holding the head of the bath, or being supported if necessary. It is not always practicable to adopt" this position, and the chief endeavour should be to avoid taxing the patient's strength. If the patient is to return to bed refreshed the soap should be completely removed from his body by repeated rinsings. When the skin is washed in soap-and-water and then dried, a film of soap solution is left upon the skin surface. This results in a feeling of discomfort that does not pass away until the film has been removed. Those who have never washed or bathed in any other manner may not be acutely sensitive, but those who have once experienced a perfectly clean and soapfree skin will endorse this. To cleanse the skin thoroughly in the briefest possible time, use soap worked into a plastic mass with hot water. Rub this into the skin, using enough water to make it run easily. The skin should be in effect thinly plastered. The hands being repeatedly dipped in the water gradually work oil'" the soap. The body surface is rinsed again and again, and is to be considered clean only when the water ceases to give any turbidity. To lightly wipe the patient's face with water, to which ammonia has been added in the proportion of a few drops to a pint, is a very effectual means of affording relief in states of illness when the sensation of faintness is marked, and recourse cannot be had to more direct medicinal treatment of that which, although distressing, is merely a symptom. Quenching Thirst: It is possible to swallow pints of fluid and continue thirsty, and it is possible for a man to quench his thirst completely by using in a certain manner less than" half the quantity that, greedily swallowed, would have loft him still athirst. Single small mouihfuls of the liquid should be taken and be Hushed about the mouth with the tongue. If this process is repented, and more especially if the throat is slightly gargled, the parts will quickly lose their parched condition.

WHAT IS HOME? " HOME," says Robertson in his sermons, " is the one place in all this world where hearts are sure of each other. It is the place of confidence. It is the place where we tear oft' that mask of guard and suspicious coldness which the world forces us to wear in self-defence, and where we pour out the unreserved communication of full and confiding hearts. It is the spot where expressions of tenderness gush out without any sensation of awkwardness, and without any dread of ridicule. Let a man travel where he will, home is the place to which 'his heart untrammelled fondly turns.' He is to double all pleasure there. He is to divide all pain. A happy home is the single spot of rest which a mam has upon this earth for the cultivation of his noblest sensibilities." HINTS TO HOUSEKEEPERS. To Wash Black Stockings : Make a lather with one gallon of water of about lOOdeg., one tablespoonful of soap jelly, and two teaspoonfuls of Clark's liquid ammonia. Wash the stockings in this, and rinse in two lots of clear water of the same temperature. Washed in this way they will keep a good colour to the end. Oyster Omelette: Stew half a dozen oysters in their own liquor until they are plump. Then drain and cut them in two. Mix with two tablespoonfuls of the liquor one level tea-spoonful of 'flour. Put a lump of butter, about as big as a walnut, into an enamelled saucepan. Pour in the liquor and flour, and cook till it thickens, stirring all the time: then add the oysters. Make an omelette, using three eggs, and when it is cooked pour the oyster mixture over it; fold and serve at once.

For Brown-leather Shoes: Lemon juice and milk, well rubbed in, make an excellent polish for these. Rub with a soft duster afterwards, and they will shine beautifully. Methylated spirit will remove stains, but they will need polishing afterwards. To Cook Broccoli: A little lemon juice added to the water in which broccoli, cabbage, or any similar vegetable is boiled not only improves the flavour, but helps to keep it a good colour. Boil a crust of bread with any of these if you want to prevent the smell of cooking from spreading over the house.

To Make Your Own Scent: To obtain the perfume from any favourite flower is possible with little trouble if one has an abundance of flowers. The blossoms should be picked without stems, and dropped into a jar half full of olive or almond oil. After standing in that until the next day, they should he put into a coarse cloth and squeezed dry' over the oil. Then fresh flowers should bo added, and the operation repeated until the required strength is obtained. The oil is then to be mixed with an equal quantity of pure rectified spirits. This should be shaken very day for three weeks, when it may be strained off and bottled for use.

THE BOYS' ROOM. The wise parents will always seek to furnish their boys with a room more attractive to them than the street corner, because they realise that "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Yes, is worth many pounds of cure. But in order that it may be as attractive the boys must feci at liberty to invite to their room their boy friends, and b. entertain them there, as the girls' friends are entertained in their sisters' room. Then let the boys have a "good time" of their own choosing. They don't want a prescribed way to play or entertain themselves; they want chiefly to be let alone, allowed to play as they choose, and not to be nagged at because they'are not quieter. Just so long as their noise is a harmless, healthful, "good time" noise, leave them undisturbed. Boys will not endure nagging; it will drive them from borne into the streets more quickly and surely than anything else under the sun. Encourage the hoys to feel that their room is their castle, and that, they are masters in their own domain.Flora Zoll Briggs.

HINTS FROM A MOTHER'S LIFE. The second article of the serias by Mrs. Gladstone appears in the February number of the Lady's Magazine, and will, no doubt, be welcomed even more warmly than the first. Writing on the necessity of fresh air for infants, she says:—"Let. me here strongly protest against the foolish fashion of half-smothering a sleeping baby, covering its Head and mouth at the risk of stilling it outright. Cots and beds in the nursery should be uncurtained, or nearly so. We might almost as well lay the child to sleep on the shelf of a press,'or at the bottom of a packing box, as in a cot closely curtained round. An authentic story is' (old of a well-constituted child passing within a. few minutes from a condition of spasmodic irritation, bordering on convulsions, into perfect, health, owing simply to the admission of fresh ail into a close, ill-ventilated nursery. A thermometer should be kept in the rooms, and should not rise above 60deg. F. Nervous irritability is a prominent characteristic of infancy, and pure ail will be found to act as one of the most powerful nervous sedatives upon the tender system of a child. Whatever, therefore, affects the purity of the atmospn.ere should be quickly removed, proper places provided for dirty linen, etc. The air of bedrooms should be perfectly fresh; especially should we beware of ' tired air' creeping in from the day nursery, just before the children's bedtime; chimneys should be kept open, bedclothes turned back and exposed to the air as soon as the child is up,."