Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management/Chapter LXIX
Recipes for the Use of Butler, Footman, Coachman, Groom, Valet, Lady's-Maid, Parlour-Maid, House-Maid and Laundry- Maid.
Recipes for the Butler
TO FINE WINES
There are various methods of fining wine; eggs, isinglass, gelatine and gum Arabic are all used for the purpose. Whichever of these articles is used, the process is always the same. Supposing eggs (the cheapest) to be used: Draw a gallon of wine and mix 1 quart of it with the white of 4 eggs, and stir with a whisk; afterwards, when thoroughly mixed, pour it back into, the cask through the bunghole, and stir up the whole cask in a rotary direction with a clean split stick inserted through the bunghole. Having stirred it sufficiently, pour in the remainder of the wine drawn off, until the cask is full; then stir again, skimming off the bubbles that rise to the surface. When thoroughly mixed by stirring, close the bunghole, and leave it to stand for 3 or 4 days. A cask of clarified wine will fine thirteen dozen bottles of port or sherry. The other clearing ingredients are applied in the same manner, the material being cut into small pieces, and dissolved in a quart of wine, and the cask stirred in the same manner.
TO BOTTLE WINES
Having thoroughly washed and dried the bottles, supposing they have been before used for the same kind of wine, provide corks which will be improved by being slightly boiled, or at least steeped in hot water, a wooden hammer or mallet, a bottling boot, and a squeezer for the corks. Bore a hole in the lower part of the cask with a gimlet, receiving the liquid stream which follows in the bottle and filterer, which is placed in a tub or basin. This operation is best performed by 2 persons, 1 to draw the wine, the other to cork the bottles. The drawer is to see that the bottles are up to the mark, but not too full, the bottle being placed in a clean tub to prevent waste. The corking-boot is buckled by a strap to the knee, the bottle placed in it, and the cork, after being squeezed in the press, driven in by a flat wooden mallet. As the wine draws near to the bottom of the cask, a thick piece of muslin is placed in the strainer, to prevent the viscous grounds from passing into the bottle. Use good corks, which may be known by their elasticity and the absence of large pores. They can be used again if removed without a corkscrew.
TO CLEAN BOTTLES
Make a lye by boiling equal quantities of soda and quicklime. When cold, put this in the bottles with some small pebbles and shake well. Set the bottles to drain thoroughly, then warm them, and blow inside with a pair of bellows to dry all moisture.
TO LAY DOWN WINE
Having carefully counted the bottles, they are stored away in their respective bins, a layer of sand or sawdust being placed under the first tier, and another over it; a second tier is laid over this, protected by a lath, the head of the second being laid to the bottom of the first; over this another bed of sawdust is laid, not too thick, then another lath; and so on till the bin is filled. Wine so laid in will be ready for use according to its quality and age. Port wine, old in the wood, will be ready to drink in 5 or 6 months; a fruity wine will improve every year. Sherry, if of good quality, will be fit to drink as soon as the "sickness" (as its first condition after bottling is called) ceases, and will also, improve; but the cellar must be kept at a perfectly steady temperature, neither too hot nor too cold, say about 55 or 60, and absolutely free from draughts of cold air.
TO PRESERVE CORKS FROM INSECTS
Dip the heads of the bottles when corked into quicklime slaked into a paste and let it harden on. Petroleum rubbed over the corks and necks will also serve to keep the insects away, but it is not quite so efficacious as the lime.
DAMP CUPBOARDS
Leave a quantity of quicklime in the cupboard for a few days, and the moisture will be entirely absorbed.
TO CLEAN CASKS
It is important that casks for wine or ale should be perfectly clean and free from any acid smell or mustiness before they are used. Lactic and acetic acid get absorbed in the wood very often, and do great damage to fermenting liquid. The ordinary way of washing a cask is with boiling water, and when cool examining it with a light inside. If there be any sour or musty smell, however, lime must be used to remove it. Break the lime into lumps and put it in the cask dry (it will take from 3 to 4 lb. for each cask), then pour in as many gallons of boiling water as there are pounds of lime, and bung. Roll the cask about now and then, and after a few hours wash it out, steam it, and let it cool.
Recipes for Man-servant or Parlour-Maid
TO CLEAN PLATE
Wash the plate in a strong lather of common yellow soap and boiling water to remove all grease and wipe it quite dry; then mix as much hartshorn powder as will be required into a thick paste, with cold water or spirits of wine; smear this lightly over the plate with a piece of soft rag, and leave it to dry. When perfectly dry, brush it off quite clean with a soft plate-brush and polish the plate with a dry leather. If the plate be very dirty or much tarnished, spirits of wine will be found to answer better than the water for mixing the paste.
TO CLEAN PLATE (Another Method)
Mix to a paste ¼ lb. of prepared chalk with 2 dr. of spirits of camphor, 1 dr. of ammonia, 1 oz. of turpentine and a dessertspoonful of spirits. When the silver is washed and dry, dab on the paste with a sponge and leave it to dry before brushing off.
PLATE RAGS FOR DAILY USE
Boil soft rags for 5 minutes (nothing is better for the purpose than the tops of old cotton stockings) in a mixture of new milk and hartshorn powder, in the proportion of 1 oz. of powder to a pint of milk; as soon as they are taken out wring them for a moment in cold water, and dry before the fire. With these rags rub the plate briskly as soon as it has been well washed and dried after daily use. A most beautiful deep polish will be produced, and the plate will require nothing more than merely to be dusted with a leather or a dry, soft cloth before it is again put on the table.
TO TRIM LAMPS
CHINA AND EARTHENWARE.
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CHINA AND EARTHENWARE.
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TO LOOSEN GLASS STOPPERS
Pour a little salad oil round the stopper, and place the bottle near the fire, then tap the stopper with a wooden instrument. The heat will cause the oil to work round the stopper, and it should be easily removed.
TO LOOSEN SCREWS WHEN RUSTED IN WOOD
Pour a small quantity of paraffin round the top of the screw. When sufficient time has been allowed for the oil to sink in, the screw can be easily removed.
TO WASH GLASS
Great care is required in washing glasses. Two perfectly clean bowls are necessary: one for moderately hot and another for cold water. Wash the glasses well in the first, rinse them in the second, and turn them down on a linen cloth folded 2 or 3 times, to drain for a few minutes. When sufficiently drained, wipe with a cloth and polish with a finer one, doing so tenderly and carefully.
Decanters and water-jugs require very tender treatment in cleaning. Fill about two-thirds with hot but not boiling water, and put in a few pieces of well-soaped brown paper: leave them thus for 2 or 3 hours; then shake the water up and down in the decanters; empty this out, rinse them well with clean cold water, and put them in a rack to drain. When dry, polish them outside and inside, as far as possible, with a fine cloth. To remove the crust of port or other wines, add a little muriatic acid to the water and let it remain for some time. Fine pieces of coal placed in a decanter with warm water, and shaken for some time, will also remove stains.
RATTLING WINDOWS
Make some wooden wedges, and insert between sashes whenever the weather is rough.
TO WASH KNIVES
The handles of knives should never be immersed in water, as, after a time, if treated in this way the blades will loosen and the handles discolour. The blades should be put in a jug or vessel kept for the purpose, filled with hot soda water. This should be done as soon after the knives are used as possible, as stain and rust quickly sink into steel.
TO CLEAN KNIVES AND FORKS
Knives are now generally cleaned by means of a knife-cleaning machine, which gives very little trouble, and is very effective. Before putting the knives into the machine, they should be first washed in a little warm (not hot) water and then thoroughly wiped; if put into the machine with any grease on them, it adheres to the brushes, which become unfit for use. When this precaution is not taken, the machine must come to pieces, so causing an immense amount of trouble, which may all be avoided by having the knives thoroughly free from grease before using the machine. Brushes are also used for cleaning forks, which facilitate the operation. When they are so cleaned, see that they are carefully polished, wiped and the knives with a good edge, the ferrules and prongs of forks free from dirt, and place them in the basket with the handles all one way.
TO KEEP KNIVES NOT IN USE
Knives not in use will soon spoil. They are best kept in a box in which sifted quicklime has been placed, deep enough to admit of the blades being completely plunged into it. The lime must not touch the handles, which should be occasionally exposed to the air, to keep them from turning yellow.
TO CLEAN DISH COVERS
Wash in hot soapy water, and then rub the inside of the cover with sweet oil and a rag. Clean the outside with finely powdered whitening and polish with leather.
TO DETECT AN ESCAPE OF GAS
Never take a light into the room or look for the leak with a light. Soap and water mixed, and applied with a brush to the pipe will commence to bubble if there is a leak. Send for the plumber at once.
TO CLEAN AND STORE A BICYCLE
A little box containing all the accessories necessary for cleaning a bicycle is obtainable from any dealer. After a ride, and while the mud and dust are quite fresh, brush the machine thoroughly. Clean the chain with paraffin, and oil very slightly with cycle oil, taking care to wipe carefully afterwards, or dust will accumulate on the oil and clog the machine. Wash the enamelled and plated parts, dry carefully and polish the latter with plate powder. Avoid wetting the tyres. In storing a bicycle away for the winter, cover the metal parts with vaseline. If the room in which the bicycle is to be kept is very dry, keep a basin of water there. A moist atmosphere will prevent the tyres from spoiling.
Recipes for the Coachman and Groom
STABLE FURNITURE
The furniture of a stable, with coach-house, consists of coach-mops, jacks for raising the wheels, horse-brushes, spoke-brushes, water-brushes, crest and bit-brushes, dandy-brushes, curry-combs, birch and heath brooms, trimming-combs, scissors and pickers, oil-cans and brushes, harness-brushes of three sorts, leathers, sponges for horse and carriage, stable-forks, dung-baskets or wheel barrow, corn-sieves and measures, linen-cloths and stable-pails, horn or glass lanterns. It is desirable that there should be accommodation for the coachman or groom to sleep over the stables.
THE HARNESS-ROOM
A harness-room is indispensable to every stable. It should be dry and airy, and furnished with a fireplace and boiler, both for the protection of the harness and to prepare mashes for the horses when required. The partition-wall should be boarded, and around the walls hooks and pegs should be placed, for the several pieces of harness, at such a height as to prevent their touching the ground; and every part of the harness should have its peg or hook—one for the halters, another for the reins, and others for snaffles and other bits, and metal-work; and either a wooden horse or saddletrees for the saddles and pads. All these parts should be dry, clean and shining. This is only to be done by careful cleaning and polishing, and the use of several requisite pastes. The metallic parts, when white, should be cleaned with a soft brush and plate-powder; the copper and brass parts burnished with rottenstone-powder and oil; steel with emery-powder—both made into a paste with a little oil.
HARNESS POLISH
An excellent paste for polishing harness and the leather work of carriages is made by melting 8 Ib. of yellow wax, stirring it till completely dissolved. Into this pour 1 lb. of litharge of the shops, which has been pounded up with water, and dried and sifted through a sieve, leaving the two, when mixed, to simmer on the fire, stirring them continually till all is melted. When it is a little cool, mix this with 1 lb. of good ivory-black; place on the fire, and stir till it boils anew, and then let it cool. When cooled a little, add distilled turpentine till the mixture has the consistence of a thickish paste. Scent with any essence at hand; thin when necessary from time to time by adding distilled turpentine.
HARNESS PASTE
Mix 2 ozs. of ivory-black, 4 ozs. of beeswax, ½ an oz. of Prussian blue, and 3 ozs. of spirits of turpentine in a jar, and dissolve them by heat, by placing the jar in a saucepan of hot water.
HARNESS DYE
Put 2 lb. of logwood chips, 3 ozs. of copperas, 3 ozs. of nut-gall, 1 oz. of indigo, a 6d. packet of British ink powder into 2 quarts of water, and let all boil gently for half an hour. This dye will be found very useful for harness which has been for some time neglected and become rusty-looking.
HARNESS-MAKERS' JET
Take 1 drachm of indigo, ¼ of an oz. of isinglass, ½ an oz. of soft soap, 4 ozs. of glue, 1 pennyworth of logwood raspings and 1 quart of vinegar; boil the whole over a slow fire till reduced to 1 pint. A small quantity is then taken up on a piece of clean sponge and thinly applied to previously well cleaned harness, boots, etc.
HARNESS BLACKING, FOR PRESERVING THE LEATHER
Melt 4 ozs. of mutton suet with 12 ozs. of beeswax; add 12 ozs. of sugar-candy, 4 ozs. of soft soap dissolved in water, and 2 ozs. of indigo, finely powdered. When melted and well mixed, add a pint of turpentine. Lay the blacking on the harness with a sponge, and polish off with a brush.
TO CLEAN LEATHER
When the leather is old and greasy, it should be cleaned, before applying this polish, with a brush wetted in a weak solution of potass and water, washing afterwards with soft river water, and drying thoroughly. If the leather is not black, one or two coats of black ink may be given before applying the polish. When quite dry, the varnish should be laid on with a soft shoe-brush, using also a soft brush to polish the leather. When the leather is very old, it may be softened with fish-oil, and, after putting on the ink, a sponge charged with distilled turpentine passed over, to scour the surface of the leather, which should be polished as directed.
TO CLEAN LIGHT-COLOURED LEATHER
For fawn or yellow-coloured leather, take a quart of skimmed milk, pour into it 1 oz. of sulphuric acid, and, when cold, add to it 4 ozs. of hydrochloric acid, shaking the bottle gently until it ceases to emit white vapours; separate the coagulated from the liquid part, by straining through a sieve, and store it away till required. Clean the leather with a weak solution of oxalic acid, washing it off immediately, and when dry apply the composition with a sponge.
WHEEL-GREASE
Wheel-grease is usually purchased at the shops; but a good paste is made as follows:—Melt 80 parts of grease, and stir 20 parts of fine blacklead powder into it, mixing thoroughly and smoothly. Store in a tin box.
TO PROTECT HORSES' HOOFS
Gutta-percha may be used to protect the feet of horses when tender. Cut it into small pieces, soften with hot water, then mix with half its weight of powdered sal-ammoniac, and melt the mixture in a tinned saucepan over a gentle fire, keeping it well stirred. When required for use, melt in a glue-pot, scrape the hoof clean, and apply the mixture with a knife.
TO STOP HORSES' FEET
This, in some cases, is a very useful operation. It depends, however, upon the nature of the sole, for if the sole is flat and very thin, the additional moisture afforded by stopping will do more harm than good. When the sole is dry, thick and hard, stopping is useful: it is only practised on the fore feet. The best stopping is a mixture of clay and cowdung, and the proper manner of using it is to fill the hollow of the sole of the foot with it up to the level of the shoe. Some horses require their feet to be stopped much oftener than others. In hot summer weather it is frequently desirable to use stopping two or three times a week, and if the horse stands in the stable, to keep it in from Saturday till Monday. Some grooms use tow, and some moss, both of which must be kept moistened with water, as stopping; but there is nothing better or more easily managed than clay and cowdung well mixed together.
TO ROUGH HORSES
The old-fashioned plan of turning up the shoe is a very bad and dangerous one. Many horses have done themselves great injury while standing in their stables with their shoes so roughed. The movable calking answers every purpose. In frosty weather, every time a horse is fresh shod, the shoes should have holes drilled in them, one at each heel and one at the toe, to admit of the small iron calkings being screwed into them, when the horse has to travel on a slippery road. As soon as he comes into the stable the calking should be unscrewed, and put aside till again required for the road. The horse so roughed is in no danger of accident or injury.
TO ROUGH HORSES FOR ANY EMERGENCY
In our very variable climate frost often sets in so suddenly that there is little or no opportunity of having horses roughed in the usual way, which always takes some time, even when the farrier is close at hand. Whenever such is the case, the following simple plan is recommended:—With a chisel and hammer rough well the surface of the shoe. This operation, with the proper tools, may be easily and quickly performed The hammer may be an ordinary one, but the chisel should be short and stout, of the best cast steel, and what is usually termed "diamond-pointed." With such tools, that might easily be carried in the pocket, any one may rough a horse sufficiently to carry him firm and safe upon ice for a long journey. Take up the horse's feet, one after the other, precisely as the farrier would, and, if the shoe is tightly nailed on, with the point of the chisel on the flat surface, inclining to the toe of the shoe, give sharp blows with the hammer, and you will raise projecting barbs or teeth, deeper cut than any on a farrier's rasp, and quite large enough to prevent all possibility of slipping upon the smoothest of ice. In the depth of winter, troopers, horse-artillerymen, cabmen and others who are often on the roads, should always carry such simple tools with them.
WOUNDS IN HORSES
All wounds of a bad character require the attention of an experienced veterinary, and they are best let alone till he comes. All that can be done is to sponge the place well with warm water to keep it clean. If the wound be not deep-seated, and also not in a dangerous place, the divided parts of the skin should be carefully drawn together by means of a few stitches with a needle and thread. Strappings of adhesive plaster may be made use of, friar's-balsam applied upon a piece of lint, and the whole secured by a bandage. When the edges of the wound are so far apart that they cannot conveniently be drawn together, the best plan is to apply a poultice, either of linseed meal or bread and water; the former is to be preferred, as retaining warmth for the longest time. If the place comes to a swelling, and is likely to break, it may be forwarded by the free use of the following liniment:—4 ozs. of fresh olive-oil, 1½ ozs. of spirits of turpentine, 1 oz. of tincture of camphor, 1 oz. of tincture of opium, the yolk of 1 fresh egg. Mix all these ingredients well together, and keep them in a bottle for use. Apply the liniment warm to the wound, but do not touch the surrounding swelling. When all the matter has been discharged, wash the part with warm water, and dress it with friar's-balsam or tincture of arnica diluted in the proportion of one part arnica to ten of water. If proud flesh appears, it must be got rid of by the judicious application of caustic, or by a little blue-stone or burnt alum.
CRACKED HOOFS
When horses' hoofs are inclined to crack, it is an evidence that the horn is not in a healthy state. The cause may be uncertain; very often it is the result of washing the legs and feet without drying them. To promote the growth of the horn and get rid of cracks, nothing is better than to anoint the top of the hoof, just round the coronet, with a salve made of equal parts of soft soap and tar. The cracks, as far as possible, should be kept cut, so as to present a smooth surface and prevent them from going any further.
CRAMP IN HORSES
This is a dangerous complaint in horses unless timely remedies be applied. It comes on very suddenly, and the pain is at times most intense. The general causes of cramp and spasms are drinking profusely of cold water while the horse is heated, exposure to cold, improper food, rank grass, etc. It is hardly possible to mistake the symptoms of it. The horse shows evident marks of uneasiness, shakes, lies down and rolls about while the fit is on him. He then becomes quiet again, and will, perhaps, take food. As soon as the complaint is detected, no time should be lost in administering the following anti-spasmodic draught:—Mix together 1½ ozs. of laudanum, 3 ozs. of turpentine, 1 pint of linseed oil. If the symptoms do not abate shortly, apply hot fomentations to the belly and administer the following laxative ball: 6 drachms of Barbadoes aloes, 1 scruple of croton bean, 1 drachm of calomel. Take the horse off his corn; give him dry bran and cut hay, and keep him warm in a loose box.
TO TREAT BROKEN-WINDED HORSES
This complaint is no doubt in some cases hereditary; but, in general, it is brought about by injudicious management, and especially by the use of mouldy hay. Owners of horses cannot be too particular about the hay they buy. Bad and indifferent hay is dear at any price, and no horse should be allowed to eat hay with the slightest tinge of mould about it. Much relief may be given to a broken-winded horse by proper feeding. Never give long hay. Let the food be the most nutritious possible, and that which will go into the smallest compass, as cut hay, and corn, and a few beans. Also be careful never to let a broken-winded horse have water within an hour after taking him out. The breathing will be much improved, and the horse will do its work more pleasantly if a ball of the following mixture be administered about half an hour before he takes a journey. Mix together equal parts of linseed-meal, hog's lard, and tar; and give for a ball a piece about the size of a walnut, in paper.
TO CLIP HORSES
The value of clipping for horses cannot be overrated. Every horse that is worked at such a pace as to cause sweating should be clipped at the proper season. The best time for clipping is when the winter coat is "well up," as it is termed. The sooner this is the case the better, for the autumn is proverbially a faint time for horses. The clipping lasts best the later in the year it is done, for the colder the weather the less the coat grows; still, for the reason we have stated, the coat should be taken off as early as possible, and when it starts again, it should be kept down by singeing. Every one must appreciate the benefit of clipping who knows the difficulty of getting a horse, with its winter coat on, dry after a journey. The labour is immense, and, what is worse, generally ineffectual; for the horse after the first drying will break out into a heat again, and in all probability be found quite wet in the morning.
Recipes for the Valet
TO CLEAN BOOTS
Three good brushes and good blacking must be provided: one hard brush to brush off the mud; the second soft, to lay on the blacking; the other of a medium hardness, for polishing; and each should be kept for its particular use. The blacking should be kept corked up, except when in use, and applied to the brush with a sponge tied to a stick, which, when put away, rests in a notch cut in the cork. When boots come in very muddy, it is a good practice to wash off the mud, and wipe them dry with a sponge; then leave them to dry very gradually on their sides, taking care they are not placed near the fire, or scorched. Much delicacy of treatment is required in cleaning ladies' boots, so as to make the leather look well-polished, and the upper part retain a fresh appearance, with the lining free from handmarks.
TO CLEAN PATENT LEATHER BOOTS
Patent leather boots require to be wiped with a wet sponge, and afterwards with a soft dry cloth, and occasionally with a soft cloth and sweet oil; black and polish the edges of the soles in the usual way, but so as not to cover the patent polish with blacking. A little milk may also be used with very good effect for patent leather boots.
TO CLEAN TOP-BOOTS
While cleaning the lower part in the usual manner, protect the tops, by inserting a cloth or brown paper under the edges and bringing it over them. In cleaning the tops, let the covering fall down over the boot; wash the tops clean with soap and flannel, and rub out any spots with pumice-stone. If the tops are to be whiter, dissolve an oz. of oxalic acid, ½ an oz. of muriatic acid, ½ an oz. of alum, ½ an oz. of gum-arabic, and ½ an oz. of spirit of lavender, in 1½ pints of skimmed milk "turned." Apply these mixtures by means of a sponge, and, when dry, polish with a rubber made of soft flannel.
BOOT POLISH
Take 4 ozs. of ivory-black, 4 ozs. of treacle, 1 oz. of sulphuric acid, 2 spoonfuls of best olive oil, 1½ pints of best white-wine vinegar: mix the ivory-black and treacle well in an earthen jar; then add the sulphuric acid, and stir; next pour in the oil; and, lastly, add the vinegar, stirring it in by degrees, until thoroughly incorporated.
JAPAN BLACKING FOR BOOTS AND SHOES
Take 8 parts of treacle, 1 part lamp-black, 1 part sweet oil, 1 part gum-arabic, 1 part isinglass, 32 parts water, 1 oz. of spirits of wine, and a little ox-gall. Mix the treacle, lamp-black, sweet oil, gum and isinglass in the water; set the pipkin over the fire to heat, stirring it well; add the spirits of wine and ox-gall, and as soon as possible bottle it. Warm the bottle before using the blacking, which must be put on with a sponge.
BLACKING (Five Methods)
- Mix 12 ozs. of ivory-black, 1 oz. of olive oil, 8 ozs. of treacle and ½ an oz. of powdered gum-arabic into a paste, then gradually add 2 quarts of vinegar and stir well. Next add 1½ ozs. of sulphuric acid.
- Rub of a ¼ lb. of ivory-black, ¼ of a lb. of treacle, and 1 oz. of sweet oil together until the oil is quite "killed," then gradually add 1 oz. of vitriol, diluted with three or four times its weight of water. Mix well and let stand for 3 or 4 hours, when it may be reduced to its proper consistence with water or sour beer.
- Mix 2 ozs. of ivory-black, 2 ozs. of brown sugar-candy, and 1 tablespoonful of sweet oil; add gradually 1 pint of cold vinegar and stir the whole gently until incorporated.
- Dissolve 8 ozs. of gum-arabic and 2 ozs. of treacle in a pint of ink and 2 ozs. of vinegar; then strain and add the spirits.
- Rub 1 lb. of ivory-black in fine powder, ¾ of a lb. of molasses and 2 ozs. of sweet oil together until the oil is quite "killed"; then add 1 pint of beer, and 1 pint of vinegar.
TO POLISH BROWN BOOTS
Remove stains with lemon juice, and polish with beeswax dissolved in turpentine.
WASH FOR BOOT-TOPS
1. Mix in a phial 1 drachm of chlorate of potass with 2 ozs. of distilled water, and when the salt is dissolved, add 2 ozs. of muriatic acid. Then shake well together in another phial 3 ozs. of strong spirits of wine, with an ⅓ oz. of the essential oil of lemons; unite the contents of the two phials, and keep the liquids thus prepared closely corked for use. This chemical liquid should be applied with a clean sponge, and dried in a gentle heat, after which the boot-tops may be polished with a soft brush, and they will appear like new leather.
TO BRUSH CLOTHES
Fine clothes require to be brushed lightly, and with a rather soft brush, except where mud is to be removed, when a hard one is necessary; previously beat the clothes lightly to dislodge the dirt. Lay the garment on a table, and brush in the direction of the nap. Having brushed it properly turn the sleeves back to the collar, so that the folds may come at the elbow-joints; next turn the lapels or sides back over the folded sleeves; then lay the skirts over level with the collar, so that the crease may fall about the centre, and double one half over the other, so that the fold comes in the centre of the back.
TO RENOVATE FELT HATS
Mix equal quantities of benzine and water, and after well brushing the hat apply the mixture with a sponge.
TO REPAIR A MACINTOSH
Shred finely some pure indiarubber, and dissolve it in naphtha to the consistency of a stiff paste. Apply the cement to each side of the part to be joined, and leave a cold iron upon it until dry.
CHIMNEY ON FIRE
Close all doors and windows tightly, and hold a wet blanket in front of the fire to prevent any draught going up the chimney.
Recipes for the Lady's-Maid
TREATMENT OF THE HAIR
Twice a month wash the head with a quart of soft water, in which a handful of bran has been boiled, and in which a little white soap has been dissolved. Next rub the yolk of an egg, slightly beaten, into the roots of the hair, let it remain a few minutes, and wash it off thoroughly with pure water, rinsing the head well. Wipe and rub the hair dry with a towel, and comb the hair up from the head, parting it with the fingers. If the hair has been very dry before the washing, a little pomatum should be used.
POMADE
Take the marrow out of a marrow bone, place it in warm water, heat almost to boiling point, then let it cool and pour the water away. Repeat this three times, until the marrow is thoroughly "fined," then beat the marrow to a cream with a silver fork, stir ½ pint of oil in drop by drop, beating all the time; when quite cold, add 4 pennyworth of citronella, pour into jars and cover down.
POMADE (Another Method)
Beat up ¼ of a lb. of unsalted lard well; then add 2 pennyworth of castor-oil, and mix thoroughly together with a knife, adding a few drops of any scent that may be preferred. Put the pomatum into pots, which keep well covered to prevent it turning rancid.
POMATUM
Mix 8 ozs. of olive-oil, 1 oz. of spermaceti, 3 pennyworth of essential oil of almonds, and 3 pennyworth essence of lemon together, and store away in jars for use.
POMATUM (Another Method)
Wash 1½ lb. of lard well in elder-flower water; drain, and beat it to a cream. Mix ½ a pint of olive oil and ½ a pint of castor oil together, and heat them sufficiently to dissolve 4 ozs. of spermaceti, which should be beaten fine in a mortar. Mix all these ingredients together with whatever kind of scent may be preferred; and whilst warm pour into glass bottles for use, keeping them well corked. The best way to liquefy the pomatum is to set the bottle in a saucepan of warm water. It will remain good for many months.
TO MAKE BANDOLINE
Ingredients.—1 oz. of gum-tragacanth, ¼ pint of cold water, 3 pennyworth of essence of almonds, 2 teaspoonfuls of old rum.
Mode.—Put 1 oz. of gum-tragacanth into a wide-mouthed bottle with of a pint of cold water; let it stand till dissolved, then stir into it 3 pennyworth of essence of almonds; let it remain for an hour or two, and then pour 2 teaspoonfuls of old rum on the top. This should make the stock bottle, and when any is required for use, dilute it with a little cold water until the desired consistency is obtained, and keep it in a small bottle, well corked, for use. This bandoline improves the hair by increasing its growth and making it always smooth and glossy.
TO PROMOTE THE GROWTH OF HAIR
Ingredients.—Equal quantities of olive-oil and spirit of rosemary; a few drops of oil of nutmeg.
Mix equal quantities of olive-oil and spirit of rosemary and a few drops of oil of nutmeg together, rub the roots of the hair every night with a little of this liniment, and the growth of it will very soon sensibly increase. When illness is the cause of the loss of hair, brandy should be applied 3 times a week, and cold cream on the alternate nights.
WASH FOR THIN HAIR
Mix 8 ozs. of elder-flower water, 4 ozs. of distilled vinegar, 2 ozs. of good rum, 4 drs. of glycerine, 4 drs. of tincture of bark well together, and apply the lotion every night;
Note.—Loss of hair is often occasioned by a weak state of health, and tonics taken in those cases will do more towards restoring the hair than any washes.
WASH FOR THE HAIR
Pour 1 pint of boiling water over 1 pennyworth of borax and a pint of olive-oil; let it cool; then put the mixture into a bottle. Shake before using, and apply with a flannel. Camphor and borax, dissolved in boiling water and left to cool, makes a very good wash for the hair; as also does rosemary-water mixed with a little borax. After using any of these washes, when the hair becomes thoroughly dry, a little pomatum or oil should be rubbed in, to make it smooth and glossy.
TO WASH BRUSHES
Dissolve a piece of soda in some hot water, allowing a piece the size of a walnut to a quart of water. Put the water into a basin, and after combing out the hair from the brushes, dip them, bristles downward, into the water and out again, keeping the backs and handles as free from the water as possible. Repeat this until the bristles look clean; then rinse the brushes in a little cold water; shake them well, and wipe the handles and backs with a towel, but not the bristles, and set the brushes to dry in the sun, or near the fire; but take care not to put them too close to it. Wiping the bristles of a brush makes them soft, as does also the use of soap.
TO CLEAN COMBS
If it can be avoided, never wash combs, as the water often makes the teeth split, and the tortoiseshell or horn of which they are made, rough. Small brushes, manufactured purposely for cleaning combs, may be purchased at a trifling cost; with this the comb should be well brushed, and afterwards wiped with a cloth or towel.
TO REMOVE THE SMELL OF ONIONS FROM THE HANDS
Rub well with celery or parsley.
TO REMOVE TAR STAINS FROM THE HANDS, ETC.
Paraffin is the most efficacious remedy for this.
TO MAKE THE HANDS SOFT AND WHITE
Put a pinch of powdered alum into a basin and break into it the white of an egg. Mix this up and spread over the hands just before retiring. The hands should have been previously washed in hot water and thoroughly dried. A little borax in the water used for washing the hands is an excellent thing, as also is dry oatmeal rubbed on after washing.
CHAPPED HANDS
If the hands are washed in soft water with the best honey soap, and well rubbed dry with a soft towel, they will never chap. It is generally imperfect and careless washing and drying which causes this inconvenience. When the hands are badly chapped, rub them 2 or 3 times a day with lemon-juice, or rub them over occasionally with an ointment made of fresh hog's-lard washed in rose or elder-flower water, a spoonful of honey, 2 spoonfuls of fine oatmeal well beaten up with the yolks of 2 new-laid eggs; or a useful wash for chapped hands may be made by adding 14 grains of sulphuric acid to 1 pint of rose-water and ½ an oz. of oil of almonds, well shaken together, and when used diluted with a little water.
ANTI-FRECKLE LOTION
Mode.—Mix 2 ozs. of tincture of benzoin, 1 oz. of tincture of tolu, a drachm of oil of rosemary well in a corked bottle. When required for use, add a teaspoonful of the mixture to a wineglassful of water, and apply the lotion where required night and morning, gently dabbing it in with a soft linen cloth.
VIOLET POWDER
Reduce 6 ozs. of the best starch to the very finest powder, and sift it through a piece of muslin; then rub into it 2 drachms of powdered orris-root. This powder can be tinted with rose-pink or a little stone-blue It can also, if desired, be scented with a drop or two of any essential oil, viz., lavender, lemon, or attar of roses; but the simple ingredients are quite sweet enough, and best without any addition.
MILK OF ROSES (An Invaluable Wash for Sunburns, Freckles, etc.)
Beat 2 ozs. of blanched almonds to a fine paste in a mortar, then add 12 ozs. of rose-water gradually, so as to make an emulsion. Have ready 2 drachms of soap, 2 drachms each of white wax and oil of almonds and reduce to a liquid in a covered jar near the fire. Work the mixture gradually into the mortar with the emulsion; strain the whole through a fine muslin and add 1 drachm of oil of bergamot, 15 drops of oil of lavender, and 8 drops of attar of roses, which should previously have been mixed with 3 ozs. of rectified spirits.
A cheaper preparation of milk of roses may be made by using 1 oz. of blanched almonds, 5 ozs. of rose-water, 1 oz. of spirits of wine, ½ a drachm of Venetian soap, 2 drops of attar of roses, beating the almond in a mortar to a paste, then the soap in the same way, and mixing them, adding the rose-water and spirit; after which the mixture should be strained, and the scent added.
ATTAR OF ROSES
The delicious perfume known by this name is a volatile oil, of soft consistency, nearly colourless, and which is for use dissolved in alcohol. The best quality is prepared at Ghazipoor, in Hindoostan. It is apt to be adulterated with sandal wood and other oils. In the spring of the year, the country about Ghazipoor is a vast garden of roses, and presents a most beautiful appearance. The flowers are gathered and steeped in stone jars filled with water. These are set out in the open air over-night, and early in the morning the essential oil is skimmed off. This is the attar, and the water is sold for "rose-water." Two hundred thousand well-grown roses are required to produce half an ounce of the attar; and this quantity, when manufactured, sells, if genuine, for about £12 at the English warehouses. It is very difficult, however, to obtain the genuine article, as even the original manufacturers adulterate it.
Fill a large earthen jar, or other vessel, with the leaves of rose-flowers picked over and freed from all dust and dirt. Pour upon them as much pure spring water as will cover them, and from sunrise to sunset, for 6 or 7 days in succession, set the vessel where it will receive the sun's rays. At the end of the third or fourth day a number of particles of a fine yellow oily matter will float on the surface, which, after a day or two, will gather into a scum. This is the attar of roses. It must be taken up as often as it appears, with a piece of cotton wool tied to a stick, and squeezed from this into a small phial, which must be kept corked and tied over.
AROMATIC VINEGAR
Mode.—Put 2 quarts of best vinegar, with 2 ozs. of each of sage, rosemary, mint, rue and wormwood, into a jar, and let it stand by the side of the fire for a week; then strain it, and add ½ an oz. of spirits of wine.
ARECA-NUT TOOTH-POWDER
Reduce to a very fine charcoal 2½ ozs. of areca nut, and pound as finely as possible another ½ oz. in its raw state, then mix with 1 oz. of finely powdered cuttlefish bone, and flavour with cloves or cassia according to taste.
PRESERVATIVES AGAINST THE RAVAGES OF MOTHS
Place pieces of camphor, cedar-wood, Russia leather, tobacco-leaves, bog-myrtle, or anything else strongly aromatic, in the drawers or boxes where furs or other things to be preserved from moths are kept, and they will never take harm.
A PLEASANT PERFUME AND PREVENTIVE AGAINST MOTHS
Take 1 oz. each of cloves, caraway-seeds, nutmeg, mace, cinnamon and Tonquin beans; add as much Florentine orris-root as will equal the other ingredients put together; grind the whole well to powder, and then put it in little bags among your clothes, etc. Almost anything aromatic will keep off moths. The common bog-myrtle, which grows so freely in swampy places, is an excellent antidote.
A piece of linen, moistened with turpentine and put into the wardrobe or drawers for a single day, 2 or 3 times a year, is also a sufficient preservative against moths.
TO CLEAN CLOTH
Mix dry fuller's-earth moistened with lemon-juice, and a small quantity of pulverised pearlash into balls with sufficient lemon-juice to moisten. Scour the cloth with the balls.
TO CLEAN CLOTHES FROM GREASE AND OTHER STAINS
Take 1 peck of new lime; pour over it as much water as will leave about 2 gallons of clear liquid after it has been well stirred and has settled. In about 2 hours pour off the clear liquid into another vessel; then add to it 6 ozs. of pearlash; stir well, and when settled bottle for use. With this liquid wash the clothes, using a coarse piece of sponge for the purpose. If the clothes are of very fine fabric and delicate colour, the liquid must be diluted with clear, soft water.
TO CLEAN FURS
Moisten some bran with hot water, rub the fur with it, and dry with a flannel. Then rub with a piece of muslin and some dry bran.
TO REMOVE SPOTS AND STAINS FROM DRESSES
To remove grease-spots from cotton or woollen materials, absorbent pastes, purified bullock's blood, and even common soap, are used, applied to the spot when dry. When the colours are not fast, place a layer of fuller's-earth or pulverised potter's clay over the spot, and with a very hot iron. For silks, moires, and plain or brocaded satins, pour two drops of rectified spirits of wine over the spot, cover with a linen cloth, and press with a hot iron, changing the linen instantly. The spot will look tarnished, for a portion of the grease still remains; this will be removed entirely by a little sulphuric ether dropped on the spot, and a very little rubbing. If neatly done, no perceptible mark or circle will remain; nor will the lustre of the richest silk be changed, the union of the two liquids operating with no injurious effects from rubbing. Eau-de-Cologne will also remove grease from cloth and silk. Fruit-spots are removed from white and fast-coloured cottons by the use of chloride of soda. Commence by cold-soaping the article, then touch the spot with a hair-pencil or feather dipped in the chloride, and dip immediately into cold water, to prevent the texture of the article being injured. Fresh ink-spots are removed by a few drops of hot water being poured on immediately after applying the chloride of soda. By the same process, iron-mould in linen or calico may be removed, dipping immediately in cold water to prevent injury to the fabric. Wax dropped on a shawl, table-cover, or cloth dress, is easily discharged by applying spirits of wine; syrups or preserved fruits, by washing in lukewarm water with a dry cloth, and pressing the spot between two folds of clean linen. Essence of lemon will remove grease, but will make a spot itself in a few days.
TO CLEAN RIBBONS
Mix ½ a pint of gin, ½ a lb. of honey, ½ lb. of soft soap, ⅓ of a pint of water together; then lay each breadth of silk upon a clean kitchen-table or dresser, and scrub it well on the soiled side with the mixture. Have ready three vessels of cold water; take each piece of silk at two corners, and dip it up and down in each vessel, but do not wring it and take care that each breadth has one vessel of quite clean water for the last dip. Hang it up dripping for a minute or two, then dab it in a cloth and iron it quickly with a very hot iron.
TO CLEAN FEATHERS
Cover the feathers with a paste made of pipe-clay and water, rubbing them one way only. When quite dry, shake off all the powder and curl with a knife. Grebe feathers may be washed with white soap in soft water.
TO 'RENEW VELVET
Hold the velvet, pile downwards, over boiling water, in which two pennyworth of stone ammonia is dissolved, double the velvet (pile inwards) and fold it lightly together.
TO RENOVATE CRAPE
Place a little water in a tea-kettle and let it boil until there is plenty of steam from the spout; then, holding the crape with both hands, pass it to and fro several times through the steam, and it will be clean and look nearly equal to new.
TO REMOVE PAINT FROM CLOTHING
Rub immediately with a rough rag wetted with spirits of turpentine.
TO RESTORE CRAPE WHEN SPOTTED
Black crape when wetted by rain is almost certain to spot. When this is the case, lay the crape whether a veil or piece of trimming on a table, and place a piece of old black silk underneath the stains; then dip a soft camel-hair brush in black ink, and carefully paint the stains over with it: gently wipe off with a piece of silk the superabundant ink, and the stains will disappear as the places dry.
TO REVIVE BLACK LACE
A BREAKFAST TABLE.
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INVALID FURNITURE.
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Hot Water Pillow, Air Cushion, Hot Water Bed, Adjustable Reading Easel, Self-Propelling Chair, Gout Stool, Go-Cart or Walking Horse, Recumbent Chair, Bed Table.
TO REVIVE BLACK LACE (Another Method)
Wash the lace thoroughly in some good beer; use no gum-water; clap the lace well, and proceed with ironing and drying, as in the former recipe.
TO CLEAN JEWELLERY
Jewels are generally wrapped up in cotton wool and kept in their cases; but they tarnish from exposure to the air and require cleaning. This is done by preparing clean soap-suds from fine toilet-soap. Dip any article of gold, silver, gilt or precious stones into this lye, and dry by brushing with a brush of soft badger's hair, or a fine sponge; after-wards polish with a piece of fine cloth, and lastly, with a soft leather. Gold or silver ornaments, and in general all articles of jewellery, may be dressed by dipping them in spirits of wine warmed in a bain marie, or shallow kettle, placed over a slow fire or hot plate. Silver ornaments should be kept in fine arrowroot, and completely covered with it.
TO CLEAN DIAMONDS
Wash with soap and water, and dry carefully with blotting paper which, rolled to a point, will reach all the crevices in the setting.
TO TAKE STAINS FROM SILK
Mix 2 ozs. or essence of lemon and 1 oz. of oil of turpentine together in a phial. Grease and other spots in silks are to be rubbed gently with a linen rag dipped in this mixture.
TO RENOVATE SILK
Sponge faded silks with warm water and soap; then rub them with a dry cloth on a flat board; afterwards iron them on the inside with a smoothing iron. Old black silks may be improved by sponging with spirits. In this case, the ironing may be done on the right side, thin paper being spread over to prevent glazing.
TO WASH SILK
For a dress to be washed, the seams of a skirt do not require to be ripped apart, though it must be removed from the band at the waist, and the lining taken from the bottom. Trimmings or drapings, where there are deep folds, the bottom of which is very difficult to reach, should be undone so as to remain flat. A black silk dress, without being previously washed, may be refreshed by being soaked during twenty-four hours in soft, clear water, clearness in the water being indispensable. If dirty the black dress may be previously washed. When very old and rusty, a pint of gin or whisky should be mixed with each gallon of water. This addition is an improvement under any circumstances, whether the silk be previously washed or not. After soaking, the dress should be hung up to drain dry without being wrung. The mode of washing silks is this:—The article should be laid upon a clean smooth table. A flannel just wetted with lukewarm water should be well soaped, and the surface of the silk rubbed one way with it, care being taken that this rubbing is quite even. When the dirt has disappeared, the soap must be washed off with a sponge and plenty of cold water, of which the sponge must be made to imbibe as much as possible. As soon as one side is finished, the other must be washed precisely in the same manner. Let it be understood that not more of either surface must be done at a time than can be spread perfectly flat upon the table, and the hand can conveniently reach; likewise the soap must be quite sponged off one portion before the soaped flannel is applied to another portion. Silks, when washed, should always be dried in the shade, on a linen-horse, and alone. If black or dark blue, they will be improved if they are placed on a table when dry, and well sponged with gin or whisky, and again dried. Either of these spirits alone will remove, without washing, the dirt and grease from a black necktie or handkerchief of the same colour, which will be so renovated by the application as to appear almost new.
TO CLEAN WHITE SATIN AND SILK
Pin the breadths on a soft blanket; then take some stale bread-crumbs, and mix with them a little powder-blue. Rub this thoroughly and carefully over the whole surface with the hand or a piece of clean linen; shake it off and wipe with soft cloths. Satin may be brushed the way of the nap with a clean, soft hair-brush.
BLACK REVIVER FOR CLOTH
Macerate 2 ozs. of blue galls, bruised; ½ an oz. each of logwood, sulphate of iron, sumach, and 1 pint of vinegar, in a close vessel with heat for twenty-four hours; strain off the clear liquid, add the galls, and shake twice a day for a week. Keep in a corked bottle, and apply with a brush or sponge. This is improved by the addition of a little sugar and gum.
TO REMOVE SCORCH MARKS FROM LINEN
TO REMOVE IRON-MOULD FROM LINEN
Oxalic acid and hot water will remove iron-mould, so also will common sorrel bruised in a mortar and rubbed on the spots. In both cases, the linen should be well washed after the remedy has been applied.
TO REMOVE IRON-MOULD FROM LINEN (Another Method)
Rub the spot with a little powdered oxalic acid, or salts of lemon and warm water. Let it remain a few minutes, and well rinse in clear water, or wash the spots with a strong solution of cream of tartar and water. Repeat if necessary, and dry in the sun.
VARNISH FOR BOOTS
Dissolve 1 tablespoonful of isinglass in ½ a pint of water, and then add to it the yolks of 6 eggs, well beaten, and 2 ozs. of treacle, using sufficient lamp-black to give the required colour. If the colour needs restoring take a small quantity of good black ink, mix it with the white of an egg, and apply it to the boots with a soft sponge.
TO PRESERVE CUT FLOWERS
A bouquet of freshly-cut flowers may be preserved alive for a long time by placing them in a glass or vase with fresh water, in which a little charcoal has been steeped, or a small piece of camphor dissolved. The vase should be set upon a plate or dish, and covered with a bell glass, around the edges of which, when it comes in contact with the plate, a little water should be poured to exclude the air.
TO REVIVE CUT FLOWERS
Plunge the steins into boiling water, and by the time the water is cold, the flowers will have revived. Thin cut the ends of the stems afresh, and place in fresh cold water.
UMBRELLAS
An umbrella should not be folded up when it is wet. Let it stand with handle downwards so that the wet can run off the ends of the ribs instead of running towards the ferrule end and rusting that part of the umbrella.
Recipes for the Housemaid and General Servant
TO SWEEP A CARPET
The Patent Carpet Sweepers are so effective and cheap that they are now in use every where, but where the floor is to be swept with the ordinary broom proceed as follows: before sweeping rooms strew the floors with dried tea-leaves; these will attract the dust and save much harm to the furniture, which, as far as possible, should be covered up during the process. Tea-leaves also may be used with advantage upon druggets and short-piled carpets. Light sweeping and soft brooms are desirable. Many a carpet is prematurely worn out by injudicious sweeping. In sweeping thick-piled carpets, such as Axminster and Turkey carpets, always brush the way of the pile: by so doing they may be kept clean for years; but if the broom is used in a different way, all the dust will enter the carpet and soon spoil it.
TO LAY CARPETS
This can hardly be well done without the aid of a proper carpet-fork or stretcher, which may be purchased for about 2s. 6d. at any ironmonger's. Work the carpet the length way of the material, which ought to be made up the length way of the room. Nail one end all along, but do not nail the sides as you go along until you are quite sure that the carpet is full stretched, and that there is no ruck anywhere in the length of it.
TO CLEAN CARPETS
Carpets in bedrooms and stair-carpets may be kept clean by being brushed with a soft hair-brush frequently, and, as occasion requires, being taken up and shaken. Larger carpets should be swept carefully with a whisk-brush or hand-brush of hair, which is far better, especially in the case of fine-piled carpets. Thick carpets, as Axminster and Turkey, should always be brushed one way. Grease spots can be removed from carpets by means of a paste made of boiling water poured on equal quantities of magnesia and fuller's-earth. This paste, while hot, must be placed upon the grease spots and brushed off when quite dry. When carpets are very dirty, they may be washed in the following manner:—To every 2 gallons of boiling water add 1 oz. of yellow soap and 1 drachm of soda. With a clean flannel wash the carpet well with the liquid; do a small piece at a time and rinse well with clean hot water. When all has been gone over, the carpet should be left to dry. The colours will be greatly improved by afterwards rubbing over with a clean flannel dipped in a strong solution of ox-gall and water.
TO CLEAN CARPETS (Another Method)
Melt 1 lb. of yellow soap and ½ a lb. of soda in an oven; then mix them well in a gallon of water to which add 1 oz. of nitric acid. With a clean scrub-brush wash the carpet well from seam to seam with this mixture, and rinse it off quickly with clean soft water. Do only a small piece of carpet at the time, and rub dry with a clean cloth as much as is washed.
TO SCOUR CARPETS WITH GALL
Let the carpets first be well beaten and brushed to free them from all dust and dirt. Then scour them quickly with a solution of ox-gall, which will both extract grease and refresh the colours. One pint of gall in three gallons of soft water, warmed, will be sufficient for a large carpet. It is better not to mix the whole at once, but to do a portion of the carpet at a time, especially if it be a large one; for when the mixture in use gets cold and dirty it should be thrown away. Care must be taken that the carpet does not shrink in drying. It is best washed in the room, after it is nailed down.
TO REMOVE STAINS FROM BOARDS
Take ¼ of a lb. of fuller's-earth and of a ¼ lb. of pearlash; make them into a paste with about a quart of boiling water; spread a thick coating of this over the grease-stains and leave it for ten or twelve hours; then wash it off with clean water, using sand if necessary. If the grease-stains are very numerous and the floor very dirty, a coating may be spread all over the floor, and left for 24 hours before it is washed off. In washing boards never rub crossways; but always up and down with the grain.
TO SCOUR BOARDS
Mix in a saucer three parts of fine sand and one part of lime; dip the scrubbing-brush into this and use it instead of soap. This will remove grease and whiten the boards, while at the same time it will destroy all insects. The boards should be well rinsed with clean water. If they are very greasy, they should be covered over in places with a coating of fuller's-earth moistened with boiling water, which should be left on 24 hours before they are scoured as above directed.
TO CLEAN FLOORCLOTH
Shred half an ounce of good beeswax into a saucer, cover it entirely with turpentine, and place in the oven until melted. After washing the floorcloth thoroughly with a flannel, rub the whole surface lightly with a flannel dipped in the wax and turpentine, then rub with a dry cloth. Beside the polish produced, the surface is lightly coated with the wax, which is washed off together with any dust or dirt it may have contracted, while the floorcloth is preserved. Milk is also very useful for cleaning floorcloth, applied after the usual washing with a damp cloth, and it should then be rubbed over with a dry one.
TO WHITEN STONES
Wash the surface with clean water, and let it dry; then rub it lightly over with a flannel dipped in a mixture of the following materials:—Boil 2 cakes of pipeclay, 2 tablespoonfuls of carbonate of lime, ½ a pint of size and a pint of stoneblue-water, in 2 quarts of water. When the stones are dry, after this mixture has been applied, rub them with a dry flannel till they look well.
TO CLEAN PAINT
Dirty paint should never be wiped with a cloth, but the dust should be loosened with a pair of bellows, and then removed with a dustingbrush. If very dirty, wash the paint lightly with a sponge or soft flannel dipped in weak soda-and-water, or in pearlash and water. The sponge or flannel must be used nearly dry, and the portion of paint gone over must immediately be rinsed with a flannel and clean water; both soda and pearlash, if suffered to remain on, will injure the paint. The operation of washing should therefore be done as quickly as possible, and two persons should be employed: one to follow and dry the paint with soft rags, as soon as the other has scoured off the dirt and washed away the soda. No scrubbing-brush should ever be used on paint.
TO DISPERSE THE SMELL OF PAINT
Place some sulphuric acid in a basin of water and let it stand in the room where the paint is. Change the water daily.
TO REMOVE BAD SMELLS
Place a jar of permanganate of potash in the vicinity of the obnoxious smell.
TO MAKE PASTE FOR PAPER HANGING
Mix flour and water to the consistency of cream, and boil. A few cloves added in the boiling will prevent the paste going sour.
FURNITURE POLISH
Mix equal proportions of linseed-oil, turpentine, vinegar and spirits of wine. When used, shake the mixture well, and rub on the furniture with a piece of linen rag, and polish with a clean duster. Vinegar and oil, rubbed in with flannel, and the furniture rubbed with a clean duster, produce a very good polish.
FURNITURE POLISH (Another Method)
Boil 1 pint of soft water, let it get cold; shred 1 oz. of white wax and 1 oz. of Naples soap into it, stand it in the oven until all is melted; add 1 pint of turpentine slowly, stirring as it is dropped in; stir it until cold; bottle and cork closely; it is fit to use the next day.
FURNITURE PASTE
Mix 3 oz. of common beeswax, 1 oz. of white wax, 1 oz. of curd soap, and 1 pint of turpentine together, adding 1 pint of boiled water when cold; shake the mixture frequently in the bottle, and do not use for 48 hours after it is made. It should be applied with a piece of flannel, the furniture polished with a duster, and then with an old silk rubber.
GERMAN FURNITURE GLOSS
Cut ¼ of a lb. of yellow wax into small pieces and melt it in a pipkin, with 1 oz. of black rosin pounded very fine. Stir in gradually, while these two ingredients are quite warm, 2 ozs. of oil of turpentine. Keep this composition well covered for use in a tin or earthen pot. A little of this gloss should be spread on a piece of coarse woollen cloth, and the furniture well rubbed with it; afterwards it should be polished with a fine cloth.
TO CLEAN MARBLE
Mix with ¼ of a pint of soap-lees, ½ of a gill of turpentine, sufficient pipeclay and bullock's gall to make the whole into a rather thick paste. Apply it to the marble with a soft brush, and after a day or two, when quite dry, rub it off with a soft rag. Apply this a second or third time till the marble is quite clean.
TO CLEAN MARBLE (Another Method)
Take two parts of soda, one of pumice-stone, and one of finely-powdered chalk. Sift these through a fine sieve, and mix them into a paste with water. Rub this well all over the marble, and the stains will be removed; then wash it with soap and water, and a beautiful bright polish will be produced.
TO REMOVE STAINS FROM MARBLE
Make a paste of powdered pipe-clay and fullers'-earth; mix with strong soap lye; lay a thick coating of this paste on the marble, and pass lightly over it a moderately warm flat-iron until it is dry. Leave it for a short time, and then wash it off with clean water. If the marble be not entirely free from grease, repeat the process till every stain disappears. Discolourisation by smoke may be removed in the same manner.
POLISH FOR BLACK GRATES
Melt 1 lb. of common asphaltum, and add gradually to it a ½ pint of linseed-oil, 1 quart of oil of turpentine. Apply this with a small painter's brush, and leave it to become perfectly dry. The grate will need no other cleaning, but will merely require dusting every day, and occasionally brushing with a dry blacklead brush. This is, of course, when no fires are used. When they are required, the bars, cheeks and back of grate will need black-leading in the usual manner.
POLISH FOR BRIGHT STOVES
Mix 2 tablespoonfuls of turpentine and 2 tablespoonfuls of sweet oil together, stirring in sufficient emery-powder to make the mixture of the thickness of cream. Put it on the article with a piece of soft flannel; rub off quickly with another piece, then polish with a little emery-powder and clean leather.
TO PRESERVE FROM RUST
Make a strong paste of fresh lime and water, and with a fine brush smear it as thickly as possible over all the polished surface requiring preservation. By this simple means, all the grates and fire-irons in an empty house may be kept for months free from harm, without further care or attention.
TO REMOVE RUST
When bright grates are once neglected, small rust-spots begin to show themselves, which a plain leather will not remove; the following method of cleaning them must then be resorted to:—First, thoroughly clean with emery-paper: then take a large smooth pebble from the road sufficiently large to hold comfortably in the hand, with which rub the steel backwards and forwards one way, until the desired polish is obtained. It may appear at first to scratch, but continue rubbing, and the result will be success.
TO LIGHT A FIRE
Clear out all ash from the grate and lay a few cinders or small pieces of coal at the bottom in open order; over this a few pieces of paper, and over that again eight or ten pieces of dry wood; over the wood, a course of moderate-sized pieces of coal, taking care to leave hollow spaces between for air at the centre; and taking care to lay the whole well back in the grate, so that the smoke may go up the chimney, and not into the room. This done, fire the paper with a match from below and, if properly laid, it will soon burn up; the stream of flame from the wood and paper soon communicating to the coals and cinders, provided there is plenty of air at the centre.
Another method of lighting a fire is sometimes practised with advantage, the fire lighting from the top and burning down, in place of being lighted and burning up from below. This is arranged by laying the coals at the bottom, mixed with a few good-sized cinders, and the wood at the top, with another layer of coals and some paper over it; the paper is lighted in the usual way, and soon burns down to a good fire, with some economy of fuel, it is said.
TO CLEAN BRITANNIA METAL
TO CLEAN BRASS
Dissolve 1 oz. of oxalic acid in one pint of soft water. Rub it on the brass with a piece of flannel, and polish with another dry piece. This solution should be kept in a bottle labelled "poison," and the bottle well shaken before it is used, which should be only occasionally, for in a general way the brass should be cleaned with pulverised rottenstone, mixed into a liquid state with oil of turpentine. Rub this on with a piece of soft leather, leave for a few minutes, and then wipe it off with a soft cloth. Brass treated generally with the latter, and occasionally with the former mode of cleaning, will look most beautiful. A very good general polish for brass may be made of a ½ a lb. of rottenstone and 1 oz. of oxalic acid, with as much water as will make it into a stiff paste. Set this paste on a plate in a cool oven to dry, pound it very fine, and apply a little of the powder, moistened with sweet oil, to the brass with a piece of leather, polishing with another leather or an old silk handkerchief. This powder should also be labelled "poison."
TO BRIGHTEN GILT FRAMES
Take sufficient flour of sulphur to give a golden tinge to about 1½ pints of water, and in this boil four or five bruised onions. Strain off the liquid when cold and with it wash with a soft brush any gilding which requires restoring, and when dry it will come out as bright as new work. Frames may also be brightened in the following manner:—Beat up the white of eggs with chloride of potass or soda, in the proportion of 3 ozs. of eggs to 1 oz. of chloride of potass or soda. Blow off as much dust as possible from the frames, and paint them over with a soft brush dipped in the mixture. They will immediately come out fresh and bright.
{{c|TO CLEAN OIL PAINTINGS Rub a freshly cut slice of potato damped in cold water over the picture. Wipe off the lather with a soft damp sponge, and then finish with luke-warm water, and dry and polish with a piece of soft silk that has been washed.
TO TAKE OUT MARKS FROM MAHOGANY
The whitest stain left on a mahogany table by a jug of boiling water, or a very hot dish, may be removed by rubbing in oil, and afterwards pouring a little spirits of wine on the spot and rubbing dry with a soft cloth.
TO CLEAN LOOKING-GLASSES
Remove, with a damp sponge, fly stains and other soils (the sponge may be damped with water or spirits of wine). After this dust the surface with the finest sifted whiting or powder-blue, and polish it with a silk handkerchief or soft cloth. Snuff of candle, if quite free from grease is an excellent polish for looking-glass.
CEMENT FOR CHINA AND GLASS
Dissolve 1 oz. of gum-mastic in a quantity of highly-rectified spirits of wine; then soften 1 oz. of isinglass in warm water, and, finally, dissolve it in rum or brandy, till it forms a thick jelly. Mix the isinglass and gum-mastic together, adding ¼ of an oz. of finely-powdered gum-ammoniac; put the whole into an earthen pipkin, and in a warm place, till they are thoroughly incorporated together; pour it into a small phial, and cork it down for use.
In using it, dissolve a small piece of the cement in a silver teaspoon over a lighted candle. The broken pieces of glass or china being warmed, and touched with the now liquid cement, join the parts neatly together, and hold them in their places till the cement has set; then wipe away the cement adhering to the edge of the joint, and leave it for twelve hours without touching it: the joint will be as strong as the china itself, and if neatly done, it will show no joining. It is essential that neither of the pieces be wetted either with hot or cold water.
TO CLEAN WALL PAPER
If not very dirty, the paper of any room will be much improved by brushing it over in straight lines with a soft broom, covered with a clean soft cloth; if, however, the paper be much soiled, very stale bread is the best thing to clean it with. Cut a very stale quartern loaf into slices, and, in the lightest manner possible, wipe the paper with it in a downward direction. Clean about a yard at a time, all one way, and be careful to leave no marks. By this process very dirty paper-hangings may be made to look like almost new.
TO DESTROY FLIES
Beer or treacle in a saucer or treacle smeared on sheets of paper will attract and kill flies. If a small quantity, say the equivalent of a teaspoonful, of carbolic acid be poured on a hot shovel it will drive the flies from the room.
TO DESTROY CRICKETS AND BEETLES
Place a fairly deep saucer of stale beer upon the hearth at night time, and rest three or four sticks upon the edge of the saucer for the insects to crawl up.
Recipes for the Laundry-Maid
TO MAKE STARCH
Allow ½ a pint of cold water and 1 quart of boiling water to every 2 tablespoonfuls of starch. Put the starch into a tolerably large basin; pour over it the cold water, and stir the mixture well with a wooden spoon until it is perfectly free from lumps and quite smooth. Then take the basin to the fire, and whilst the water is actually boiling in the kettle or boiler, pour it over the starch, stirring it the whole time. If made properly in this manner, the starch will require no further boiling; but should the water not be boiling when added to the starch, it will not thicken, and must be put into a clean saucepan, and stirred over the fire until it boils. Take it off the fire, strain it into a clean basin, cover it up to prevent a skin forming on the top, and when sufficiently cool that the hand may be borne in it, starch the things. Many persons, to give a shiny and smooth appearance to the linen when ironed stir round two or three times in the starch a piece of wax-candle, which also prevents the iron from sticking.
TO MAKE STARCH (Another Method)
Mix a teacupful of starch to a paste with warm water, adding about an inch of composite candle, 3 or 4 drops of turpentine, and a tiny piece of spermaceti, then pour into this boiling water, stirring all the while, till the starch becomes clear.
COLD-WATER STARCH
Mix the starch to a smooth cream with cold water, then add borax dissolved in boiling water in the proportion of a dessertspoonful to a teacupful of starch.
TO GLAZE LINEN
The gloss, or enamel, as it is sometimes called, is produced mainly by friction with a warm iron, and may be put on linen by almost any person. The linen to be glazed receives as much strong starch as it is possible to charge it with, then it is dried. To each pound of starch a piece of sperm or white wax, about the size of a walnut, is usually added. When to be ironed, the linen is laid upon the table and moistened very lightly on the surface with a clean wet cloth. It is then ironed in the usual way with a flat-iron, and is ready for the glossing operation. For this purpose a peculiar heavy flat-iron, rounded at the bottom, as bright as a mirror, is used. It is pressed firmly upon the linen and rubbed with much force, and this frictional action puts on the gloss. "Elbow grease" is the principal secret connected with the art of glossing linen.
TO BLEACH LINEN
Make a solution of ¼ of a lb. of chloride of lime and 1 quart of soft water and keep the bottle closely corked: dilute what is required for use with an equal quantity of water. This will remove stains from table-linen. etc, that resist milder treatment.
BALL BLUE OR STONE BLUE
Take finely powdered indigo and starch in equal quantities, and make them into a paste with warm water, then form the mass into small lumps or cakes. The quantity of indigo must be increased if the blue is required to be of a very deep colour.
TO REMOVE RUST FROM IRONS
Scour with dry salt and beeswax.