HINTS TO HOUSEWIVES.

Tuapeka Times, Volume XXV, Issue 4253, 29 June 1895, Page 4

HINTS TO HOUSEWIVES.

Use cornmeal, oatmeal or bran as a detergent instead of soap in making one's toilet. Idleness, if spent in resting, is oftentimes best employed. Jokes, and pleasant lively table talk aid digestion. Tough meat may be made tender by laying in a little vinegar an hour before cookinp. . To. remove the smell of onions from the hands rub with a piece of celery. Keep a careful account of your household expenses. Yon will find it invaluable for reference. The line, as soon as its duty is ended, should be reeled up and placed in a bag until next time. Pillow slips should be ironed lengthwise instead of crosswise, if one wishes to iron wrinkles out instead of in. Dish towels and common towels can be ironed just as well in half the time if folded together once as if ironed singly. Clothes when brought in should be folded and separated at once. If allowed to lie together many wrinkles accumulate. A pair of white gloves or mittens are I a comfort to hands taken from hot suds to hang clothes in , zero weather ; also a close-fitting jacket and hood to keep one from catching cold. Sheets folded across, bringing the wide and narrow hems together, then folded again, then ironed across both sides are finished quickly, and look as well as if more time was spent on them. When the fat's in the fire, it is never wise to throw water on it. If fat in a kettle boils over, and there are ashes convenient to throw on the blaze, it is the surest, and safest way to put it out. The chimney of a lamp should never be touched with water. A few drops of alcohol or even paraffin oil, will remove the dimmed, smoky effect, and make the chimney as bright as possible when it is polished with a soft rag. Waste in little things makes away with many ahard-to-be'inade-accounted for dollar in a year. Do not throw away the starch which is used in making cold starch each week : let it stand after using, and settle in the bottom of a clean bowl ; when the water is clear above it, drain it off, let the starch dry, cover the bowl to keep the dust away, and this starch is ready for next washing day. Of course, you may need to add a little to it.