Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 294, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 December 1918 — YEOMAN SERVICE BY HOME AGENTS [ARTICLE]

YEOMAN SERVICE BY HOME AGENTS

States Relations Workers Do Not Hesitate When Called Upon for Help. ~ i~. MAKE FIGHT ON INFLUENZA 1 J 1 ■■ Special Food Prepared by or Under Their Direction for Sick—Open r Hospitals and Supply Nurses in North Carolina. When the influenza epidemic made it impossible to hold meetings of any kind, tiie home demonstration agents all; over the country, in response to the call for trained, Intelligent help, went to: the rescue and have been doing yeoman service throughout the fight to gain the upper hand of the "flu.” Knowledge of Foods. Particularly valuable has been these women's knowledge of foods and diets. Vast quantities of broth, egg lemonades, custards and other good things have been made ready for the sick by the energetic agents and workers. Of much Importance in aiding to combat any disease are nourishing and proper foods. Six hundred and sixteen pounds of beef and chicken were, in a short time, in’the kitchen of the states relations .service of the department of agriculture in Washington, turned into broth. Dozens of eggs and gallons of milk went from the same kitchen to the hospital in nourishing guises. Volunteers aided those qn the staff. The entire charge of the food sent those ill from the influenza from one of the emergency centers in Washington, as well as the feeding of the doctors and nurses'there, was under the direction of the states relations service kitchen.

Another particularly valuable kitchen was one established in Tampa, Fla., for the relieving of influenza patients there. Splendid Work In North Carolina. Agents In severin’counties, It Is reported from Raleigh, opened and operated diet kitchens, co-operating with the Red Cross in furnishing proper nourishment to the sick, while agents connected with the department of agriculture in other counties have supplied hot broth either directly to the families of the afflicted or by boy scouts under V. M. C. A. direction. A home demonstration agent for Cabarrus County, North J Carolina, writes: "I came to Kannapolis this morning to turn our cannery building into a soup kitchen. It is ideal for the purpose. There are over 800 people absent from the mill today, which will show you how our efforts are needed. The Y. M. C. A. director is having our soup distributed by the boy scouts, and we are sending It out in glass jars, fitted Into the pasteboard boxes in which they were bought This keeps the soup hot.” * - Act as Emergency Nurses. The central district agent in North Carolina is nursing in the emergency ward at the State College of Agriculture and Engineering ; the eastern district agent has been emergency nurse for members of the extension service sick in Wilson; a specialist is in charge of the diet at the same institution and Is In close touch with the ideal Red Cross chapter, which supplies many forms of nourishment. Emergency diet kitchens have been established in the domestic sclenoa department in the high school at Asheville, and in the courthouse at Whiteville. Washington, N. C., also has a kitchen operated by a home demonstration county agent who reports: “We keep open until far Into the night, and we have been able to fill a real need.”

Cook Dried Fruit Proper Way. Unless dried food Is prepared In a palatable fashion,•families will tire of it and ft will be wasted. This will react unfavorably on the gardens for next year and on the drying campaign. The main difference between dried and fresh food lies in the proportion of water they contain. Therefore the first step In preparation is to put back water about equal In amount to that lost during drying. One reason why dried foods have been unpopular I 9 that they so often have been undersoaked and overcooked. When -the time of soaking is long, and that of cooking short, the flavor will be more like that of fresh food. Shape and texture must be considered, the more solid the article the longer the time required for drying, and hence the longer the period of soaking required. After washing, such foods should be put Into three er four times their bulk of' water and left covered In a cool place from three to forty-eight hours, according to their substance. Should any indication of fermentation appear, they must be scalded at once. Otherwise leave them until they regain, their original size or lose most of the 1 wrinkles in the surface; then the time of cooking will be but little longer than that needed by the same fruit or vegetable fresh from the garden. The water in which fruits have soaked should be used to cook the food. In case of high-flavored fruits, like the apricot, more water may be used for cooking and that in which It soaked win serve to give flavor to tasteless apples or a gelatin dessert.

Buying New Equipment.' Is it easy to keep clean and will it lessen labor and save These are the two pertinent points when buying new equipment. Because an article Is widely advertised does not guarantee that it will be of practical use to the housekeeper. There are so-called labor-saving devices on the market which add to the time and labor because thpy are complicated to operate and difficult to keep clean. The economy of any utensil or tool is that the housekeeper Is able to finish a task more quickly and easily with It than without The department of agriculture advocates that the necessity to conserve fuels indicates the wisdom of buying one of the cooking devices for saving fuel if such is not already included in the equipment. These Include the fireless cooker, the pressure cooker, compartment steamer and the triple saucepans to fit over one gas plate or oil burner.

A pint of boiled rice added to each two quarts of mince meat, cooking the ingredients thoroughly together, will reduce the quantity of meat required and proportionately the expense. The product is-also equally de-. Ucious.