Democratic Sentinel, Volume 4, Number 50, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 January 1881 — USEFUL HINTS. [ARTICLE]

USEFUL HINTS.

Usk aqua ammonia for the stings of bees. Castor gloves may be cleansed bv rubbing them wh’ie on the hands with dry corn meal. Forty drops are equal to one spoonful, and four teaspoonfuls are equal to one table-spoonful. A pretty house plant is a lemon tree, easily grown from seed, and some of the leaves can be used for flavoring. A few tied in a cloth and dropped in apples (for sauce) while cooking impart a pleasant flavor. Two on throe newspapers pasted together will afford as much war mth as an additional blanket. The paper should be placed between two thicknesses of other covering. Paper coverings are now manufactured in England, seven feet by five, and sold at 30 cents each. They have been in use in China and Japan' for thousands of years. Often articles of value in polished steel, particularly knives, are left damp, or water is unfortunately spilled lipin them. If this is discovered before the rust has eaten through the plating or polished surface, it can easily be removed without defacing the article. But if they have lain long untouched and the rust has made its way through the surface, they must be taken to some manufactory where there is an emery-wheel used for polishing, or some jeweler will lie able to finish them off as good as new. But in tho case of knives and forks they will never be quite as strong, because in removing the rust they must be ground do ' n before repolisliing, and will consequently be thinner.

Baldness may or may not be curable. Every hair grows out of a small cell, and sometimes the hair falls out temporarily from disease, ■ sometimes from tho “death” of the cell. In the latter caso nothing can ever force the hair to glow again. In the former, proper remedies may restore the action of the cell. Tho patented preparations are worthless, or worth no more than any home-made and domestic remedy. Friction and stimulants are the principal remedial measures. Equal parts by measure of bay rum and castor oil, well mixed, make as good a stimulant as a dollar bottle of “restorative.” Sage tea is a favorite stimulant in England, and is an excellent preventive when tho hair is falling out; but the best preventives are cleanliness and the thorough use of the brush. There is nothing looks nicer in its way than a clean, bright-looking set of harness, nor is there anything more quickly damaged by neglect. Harness should be washed and oiled frequently. To do this effectually the straps should be unbuckled aud detached, and then washed with soft water and crown soap;, and hung by a slow fire or in the snn until nearly dry, then coated with a mixture of neatsioot oil and tallow, and allowed to remain in a warm room for several hours, and, when perfectly dry,, rub thoroughly with a woolen rag. Tho rubbing is important, as it, in addition to removing the surplus oil and gr< ase, tends to close the pores and give a finish to the leather. In hanging harness, care should be taken to allow ail the straps co hang their full length. All closets should be well-ventilated, and, when possible, be well lighted. To clean Mated mountings, use u chamois with a ittle tripoli or rotten-stone; but they should be scoured as little us possible.