Democratic Sentinel, Volume 4, Number 41, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 November 1880 — USEFUL HINTS. [ARTICLE]

USEFUL HINTS.

The fine siftings of coal ashes are ex- ’ cellent to scour knives with. Drive two large nails through two . spools, as far apart as your broom-handle is thick, and hang your broom on, brush up, to keep it straight. i Brooms should always be hung up, • and kerosene cans should always be ! set in an old tin dish which is past using for baking purposes. To Raise the Pile on Velvet.— When the pile is pressed down, cover a hot smoothing-iron with a wet cloth, and hold the velvet firmly over it; the vapor I arising will raise the pile of the velvet with the assistance of a light whisk or i clothes bnish. Wintering Flower Roots. The i roots of many useful and ornamental plants, such as cannas, dahlias, : and gladiolus, may be safely wintered in dry soil by means of external coverings. ■ But, as they do not require light during the winter, it is safer to lift and store i them in a dry cellar or building from : \vhich the frost is excluded. We find them to keep best, says an agricultural writer, packed in a soil just moist enough to keep the roots from swelling. The following oil is recommended as in excellent compound preparation for restoring and strengthening the hair : Take of purified beef marrow, say four ounces ; purified lard, two ounces; concrete oil of mace, four ounces; oil of aloes, lavender, mint, rosemary sage and thyme, each two drachms; balsam of tolmu, four drachms; camphor, one drachm ; alcohol, one ounce; place the alcohol in a glass mattress, and with the heat of a warm-water bath dissolve therein the balsam of tolmu; add the camphor and essential oil. On the other hand, melt together the marrow, lard, oil of mace, and as it congeals add the alcoholic solution made, and stir the whole until it is entirely cooled. Lubricate the head with oil once or twice every twenty-four hours. Repairing a Scratched Mirror.— Remove the silvering from the glass around the scratch so that the clear space will be about a quarter of an inch wide. Thoroughly clean the clear space with a clean cloth and alcohol. Near the edge of a broken piece of lookingglass mark out a piece of silvering a little larger than the clear space on the mirror to be repaired. Now place a very minute drop of mercury on the center of the patch, and allow it to remain for a few minutes; clear away the silvering around the patch, and slide the latter ■from the glass. Place it over the clear spot on the mirror, and gently press it ■ down with a tuft of cotton. This is a difficult operation, and we would advise j a little practice before trying it on a large mirror.— Scientific American. Fancy Scrap-Bag.—Take two medi-um-sized, three-ply wooden plates ; bore i in each twelve holes near the edge and at equal distances from each other, leaving a space where there are no holes for the opening of the bag. Paint or draw with India ink on the bottom of each i plate—which is to be the outside—some p.-etty design. Take a piece of satin about three-quarters of a yard long and ove r an eighth of a yard wide; hem each end and run in a short piece of elastic. Gather each side and draw up till it makes a puff just long enough to reach between the two end-holes of a plate. Bind the edges of the puff, i Then make twelve little slits in each binding corresponding *to the holes in the plates. Take two yards of satin ribbon, half an inch wide; put it through the first hole on the outside of I the plate and through the first slit in the binding, through the second slit and i second hole, and so on till it comes out through the twelfth hole in the plate. | Tie the ends together in a bow. Take two yards more of ribbon and do the same with the other plate. By careful cutting, three-eighths of a yard of satin is enough for the puff and binding.