THE WOMAN'S WORLD.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 11953, 30 April 1902, Page 3

THE WOMAN'S WORLD.

PIANOFORTES AND THEIR CARE. . Nearly'every one:nowadays; has a piano, ; but. how; few people know how to take pro*' per care of it; ! • .:..v-A* ■■':...-' ■:.■'? .:.■'

The mechanism of a pianoforte *is of- a very delicate character, therefore the instrument wtght to be ' treated with care;', and protected as much as possible from excessive neat' or cold. •■>•■;■ : ';-^."-^^-\;-'" / ' .;.? ■■■<■>.' , ~ . : ':

Damp is very injurious to all pianofortes -—if you 2nd the notes sticking, or not gonad-! ing at. all, you may be -sure the damp: has' got into your piano. To prevent,this,*hap-i pening place it in a, dry room, preferablyf v against an inside wall, but at all erect* away from a conservatory or window. : :

A pianoforte should never,be placed be* \ tween a door and ft window where :. there is t a- direct draught, or where the heat from a'r lire strikes straight upon . it. If you can* ■ not manage otherwise, arrange a screen, so that it will act fts a, protection (a pretty. screen always looks well in a room), and you will find the piano will remain nireklonger in tune. " As far as possible keep an even temperature in "the room in which your » piano i stands. Nothing put* a piano so quickly out of tune us the alternative of excessive cold and heat. '> ■ "*" ■■ ■"•:

•It has been said that, a piano .should not bo played upon for some little time after, it lias been tuned. This is quite absurd, and: is not the case. Of course,' the tone-is always bettor in a room where' there is little furniture and not many :avy curtains. .: <■ By tha'way, not many people know a good' way to deaden the sound ..of a, piano— for ( instance, there is a case of, sickness in a/, house, and practising has to be gone through' —is to place a strip of heavy. baize or flannel s across the strings../;',.m',,'<^■"■'"■'l'V-; ! .;,-"-' If you are leaving tt piano in. an empty'; house for any length of. time, it is best to, put the piano in. the middle of the room,, standing away from the wills. '■■'' :. A good way to clean the keys is to rub; them with a damp cloth Moistened with one. part of spirits of wine to three parts k of; water; but be sure to dry the ivories well afterwards, to prevent any discolouration.' Some people use milk; but this is not a good I, plan, as the grease in the milk is apt to! turn the ivory yellow. ,-;.'; Never take any sharp instrument, 'such' as a knife, to scrape off wax from the keys;, j use a bone or ivory paper-knife or soine-i thing that is not' sharp, then rub well with! a cloth. 1 » . ... :.'.•;■■■ '■ *.

The French polish on a. pianoforte needs, 1 merely rubbing with ,v, soft dry cloth; do not use furniture polishes. ' \ Last,but''-not least, allow no'one but & man whose profession it is,'to try to tune yojr piano. Have it tuned about every two months. >*■

HAVE YOU A "FACE-BOOK?" ' Quite the latest idea is to have a, "face- -.* V book." , People have'got tired of the auto-, graph book, the motto book, and all other, books in which their friends left written records of their indiscretions. Instead of these' '•■','■, old-fashioned albums in which one's friends J' were worried to "do something," a well- } l ! bound sketch-book is chosen. j In it you get your friends each to draw, [ "a head." It does not matter if they, can- , j not draw at all. They must do tlit is. best,' I and sign, their names 'to their pictures.. '•■>] 'Z$ i SLANG IS BAD FORM. - , , Wk listened 'recently, to two girls talking. [ They wens well-dressed and pretty; hub their speech betrayed Unit their daintiness stepped with their physical well-being. They,' -]' seemed to use as many slang ' terms as they, possibly could. Their voices, too, were poorly modulated, the tones of one flat and expressionless, while the other had a harsh, strident speech. ','<■•■ •' We wonder what.those girls would have thought if we had told them that what stamps a girl as a Judy most is a pleasing voice and intelligent speech 'I NO SPINISTERS IN RUSSIA. The idea is still allowed to prevail in Russia that single life is a disgrace to women, 2*or there are no old maids except in,the religious orders. If the parents cannot arrange a marriage for the; daughter she makes a Journey." tt«*on reports are circulated; of her marriage tq a foreigner. long absence brings - '• forgetful ness, so that when the story is told of the death of the foreign husband there are '' few who care to inquire further.

. . \ THE TABLE. Ictno fob Cakes: Whip the while of an egg, add to it a tablesjKjonful of water and . half a tear-poonful of lemon juice. : Stir in ■.''■'■ a breakfast-cup; of icing sugar, v Beat until' it is firm'. and very smooth, and then spread! *; on" the cake.' Put it back in the oven for a ." few minutes. ■ •>'■'.'

Lemon Snow Pudding: Soak , a box of gelatine in a cup of cold water for an. hour ; ; add two cups of sugar, and pour over all a quart ,of boiling* water.' : Stir for [a' minute and flavour with the juice of . two large )-nitons. Strain, and pour. the mixture into a bowl set in a' pan of cracked ice. When cold and beginning to thicken, beat stiff, whip in the stiffened whites of five eggs, a»J beat for 15 minutes. Pour. into a mould --J wet with cold water, and set in ice to form.; ,'- Make a custard of the yolks of the eggs, ; •:; let it get very cold, and when the pudding ?,; is turned out, pour this c'Stard about the '.; base.

Hunter's Pudding: Ten ounces of flour, Hoz of breadcrumbs, 4oz of suet, 4oz of raisins, -2oz of Demerara sugar, one teaspoonful of baking powder, and a pinch of salt, • water, or fresh or sour milk, .enough to make all into a rather moist paste. ',; Put a saucepan of water on to boil. Mix the-v' flour, crumbs, salt, baking powder, Valid sugar.' Shred, chop, and add the suet. Stone, halve, and add the;raisins.' Mix well. Add enough water, fresh or sour...' milk, to mix all into a rather moist paste. ; Well grease a. pudding basin, press the mixture well into it. Tie a scalded and floured cloth over the top. Plunge the pudding into i a pan of boiling water, and boil for three i hours. Turn out, and serve plain, or with;! sweet .sauce. ' ; V.',:' : ">S

GENERAL NOTES. ( y Tea-table, Cloths: Cheap and dainty cloth* , for the sideboard, tea-table, or trays can be made of remnants of piece table linen. The border can be used by itself for sideboard cloths, and may be joined together to the right width with insertion lace, and the sides and ends trimmed with lace to match. - For ', fancy napery of this kind the inexpensive, flaxen lace is most suitable!

Hair Brooms: Hair brooms .should be washed once a week in hot soapsuds. : This , ■, -M will not. only add to their 'cleanliness',; buj. • : MS. also their durability, .is it,prevents tho hair ' ,~", breaking off from dryness. Never let a : broom stand on its bristles, But hang if, \ bristles upwards, on the wall. Two long .■•'./;;*; nails, driven in about two inches apart at,, V a convenient height on the wall, will form a " ■■-' good broom bolder. •* Tan Boots :To improve their colour, mis ■""*""« one pennyworth of liquid ammonia together , with one gill of milk. Shake well in a bottle, apply evenly with a sponge or small ; piece of flannel, and allow it to-dry undis- ■ -, ' turbed. The result will be a delightful tan shade. The mixture must be kept tightlycorked when not in use. It will then last for months. ; .

1 For Bilious People : Bilious people should \ eat oranges and drink lemonade, or lime ' : juice, while not neglecting to eat as many) tomatoes as possible. All these fruits—th*e tomato is also a. fruit— strongly and .'•;-'* keenly on the liver, the source of bile. * They; > " cause a' sluggish liver to make its bile freely and healthily; the acids in the fruits also v u aid in the digestion of fats. Best Way to Wash Flannels : To wash flannels slued 41b of soap into two gallons of hot water, and boil into a soap jelly. Fil' your pan with lukewarm water (one jug of boiling to two of cold) ; add to the water.-v-,, : a tablespoonful of ammonia ; put your flannels in, and leave them for an hour (covered' up). V Just rub lightly, rinse. in lukewarm: water, shake well, and dry quidklyj. &fld your flannels will riot shrink. A Charming Afternoon Tea-easy:' *AJ charming afternoon lea-cosy made of crasy. > ':■■■ l\ patchwork, prepared of four conical-shaped , pieces, eight inches long by five wide. Line the cosy with a thin wadding or chamois' leather, and edge with a dark crimson ojc ■-■■ green cord. Of course, the more brilliant''' the colours the better the effect, and one great point about this work is that it should always be well pressed with a hot iron before,-) being made up. v