Democratic Sentinel, Volume 5, Number 9, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 April 1881 — USEFUL HINTS. [ARTICLE]

USEFUL HINTS.

To fukefy a sink or drain : Dissolve one-half pound of copperas in two gallons of water. Pour half of this liquid one day and the other half next Co An oil will take out ink stains, even after they have been washed with soap. Pour on the oil, and rub the spot in the hands; if it does not remove it the first application, try more; the second application will remove it entirely. Take a wineglass of cologne and another of lemon juice, then scrape two cakes of brown Windsor soap to a powder, and mix well in a mold. When hard this will be found both pleasant and efficacious in rendering the hands smooth and white.

An experienced book man says that books should never be allowed to get really cold, for when a thaw comes and the weather sets in warm, the air, laden with damp, penetrates the inmost recesses, and working its way between the volumes, and even between the leaves, deposits upon their cold surface its moisture. A steam-heated library is said to be safest for books. Librarians do not favor a glass-doored bookcase as a preservative of books, as the dampness will penetrate in spite of the glass, an* the absence of ventilation will assist in the formation of mold. Ornamental brass wire work is recommended instead of glass. Vbby pretty vases can be made from long-necked bottles as follows : Saturate candle-wicking or string with kerosene, wrap it around the bottle twice, and tie it, placing it where you want the neck of the bottle to be broken off. the wick all around, and in a few minutes a cracking noise will be heard, which tells you the bottle is severed in two, and will leave you an article shaped like a tumbler. It is preferable to have them as long as possible, unless you desire more than one. If so, two tall ones and one about twothirds their size make a pretty set. Out out bands of gold paper and paste around near the top and bottom, also a circle for the center. Or, should you desire, they can be painted any color and ornamented with gilt stars and embossed pictures, after the manner of decorating pottery.

Use water of about the same temperature aa the room plants are growing in. Even if anybody tells you that you oan grow them better or bloom them quicker by setting their pots in saucers filled with hot water, do not practice any such nonsense. In applying water, do not pour it on in the middle of the pot just at the base of the stem, but near the side of the pot instead, and as far from the stem as you can. The stream may be as large as you please, providing you pour out gently. Always use soft water if you can. Washing the leaves, so as to remove dust, dirt and insects, will promote health; therefore, do it often. Use a sponge, cleannrater and a little soap, and, as you finish washing each plant, shower it with clear water. In washing plants lay them on their sides, so as to keep the dirt and insects from the pots and the water from saturating the soil. If there should be a crust of honey-dew or “black stuff” on the leaves or stems, do not scrub it off, but rather keep those leaves and stems thoroughly wetted for three or five hours, then wipe off with your sponge. In this way, stubborn cases yield easily.