Democratic Sentinel, Volume 17, Number 8, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 March 1893 — ABOUND THE HOUSE. [ARTICLE]

ABOUND THE HOUSE.

Try fresh cologne for removing oil spots from cloth. For polishing tables and wooden trays use a soft cloth sprinkled with linseed oil. You can drive nails into hardened wood without bending them if you dip them first in lard. Dusting and Sweeping. —An apartment may lie, to all appearance, neat and well swept, says the household editor of the Tribune , when in reality the dirt is only hidden. It surges from the carpet under a heavy footfall; it is under the furniture; it is all over the doors and windows, but to the careless observer the room may seem perfectly neat. If the weekly sweeping of the rooms is thoroughly done, it will be only necessary to brush them up and dust them at other times. If it is done in a perfunctory manner the rooms will bs in disorder continually and require sweeping two or three times a week and yet will never be clean. It is the old story of Molidusta, “who is anon and anon, sir, frisking about in a whirlpool of bustle ‘ and confusiou, and is always dirty under pretence of being always cleaning.” The first thing to do when the time for the weekly sweeping of a room arrives is to open the windows and close the register. The blinds and the window-sills should then be brushed and dusted, so that no dust from them will fly into the room. Then the smaller pieces of movable furniture, including the chairs and stands, should be dusted and taken out of the room, with all the bric-a-brac and tiny ornaments. The larger pieces should then be dusted and covered up closely. The ceiling should be brushed down with long brushes for the purpose, and then the sweeping should begin. Sweep with short, strong strokes, first a space in the direction of the rep of the carpet, then across the same space. When the carpet has been thoroughly gone over in this way and the dust taken up, go over it a second time with a broom dampened with salt and water. Use a half worn broom for this purpose, as the dampening would soon ruin the regular broom. Then brush out all the edges of the carpet and the corners with a little whisk-broom. The dust will have settled enough under these operations to begin dusting. Dust the windows, the ledges,over the windows and doors; and all the ledges of the walls. Dust off the mantelpiece and wipe off -the hearth if there is an open fireplace, or if there is a register, dust out the register. It is almost needless to say that in the case of an open fire or stove in the room, the removal of the ashes is the first thing to do before the sweeping is begun. Now remove the dusting sheets from the larger pieces of furniture and wipe off any dust which may have gathered under the sheets. Wash • the mirrors. Examine the glass globes and wash or dust them, according to their condition. Wash the windows after the dusting-sheets have been shaken’outof them. Put down tha windows, arrange the window-shades in place, bring back the smaller pieces of furniture and the bric-a-bac and ornaments. Then is the room thoroughly swept and dusted and purified, so that it may be kept clean with slight care for a week.