Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 22, Number 31, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 January 1901 — THE HOUSEHOLD [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

THE HOUSEHOLD

Rapid Fruit Stem Clipper. In sections of the country wherelarge crops of fruit are harvested every year it is a tiresome task to pull each

individual apple, pear or peach from the tree with the hands, and yet this is necessary in order to preserve the fruit to the best advantage, As an aid in a c c o mplishlog this work Nicholas

B. McChee, of Orange, Cal., has designed the fruit clipper which is illustrated herewith. It comprises a pair of blades pivoted together at one end and provided with rings to attach the clipper to the thumtj and forefinger. A slight pressure with the thumb and finger is sufficient to close the knives and sever the stem. It wilt be noticed that the clipper allows the use of the hand to catch the fruit the moment the stem is severed, thus enabling it to be gathered rapidly with one hand, while the other fs used for drawing In the boughs of trees or for bolding a,receptacle. The clipper could also probably be used to advantage by florists in gathering their flowers for market. By adjusting the position of the two Tings the leverage of the clipper can be increased at will for severing large add small stemmed fruits. Polishing Floors. Floors may be easily varnished and waxed by a delicate woman in this way: Take a very low chair or stool, so low that a brush held in the hand can easily reach the floor without stooping, and, by moving the chair along, the entire surface of titffloor can be easily covered first varnish and afterward, w-hen dry, with the wax. Where a heavy weighted floor brush is not available, the, old French way may be substituted—U-e., wrapping up the feet in flannel <%d shuffling over the floor or skating on a brush. It is funny to see a servant who has been trained to wax floors 1* this way In Europe at his work, performing a sort of shuffling dance over the floor, with his feet looking like puddini bags and his eyes fixed on vacancy, solemnly dances to and fro, quite unconscious of the laughable spectacle he presents. Little Conveniences. To misplace a kitchen fork or spoon may burn to a cinder the most carefully prepared dish. The convenient holder lost from its naif may burn the cake or burn the pie, and Incense the cook. A cook table, full of drawers, where flour, spices, roling pins and cake cutters are kept, with bake pans hanging over it, will save you miles of travel and hours of time. A small shelf near the stove, kept for extra salt and pepper, will save you fifty miles of travel in ten, years. Only for one day, count how many times you go from eook table to stove, seasoning variodLujlshes, and you will see what this moans. lu finding places for kitchen utensils study every time to place them where it wilL take the fewest steps to reach them. —~ ■!, . - Pumpkin Pie* Stew the pumpkin in as little water as possible until tender. Press through a colander; To every half-pint of pumpkin add butter the size of a walnut and a quarter teaspoonful of salt. Let stand until cold. Take one pint of pumpkin, one pint of milk, half teaspoinful of ground mace, the same of cinnamon and one teaspoonful ginger. Sweeten to taste. Add four eggs well beaten { This will make four pies. J Bake in a quick oven»about thirty minutes. Curry of Turkey. Put two tablespoonfuls of butter in the chafing dish, with goo/f-sized onion chopped fine, eight or ten pepper corns, a dish of mace and two or three bay leaves. Stir until the onion is nicely browned, then add two tablespoonfuls of flour, one tablespoouful of curry powder, juice of half a lemon, salt and pepper and one pint of good stock. Let simmer for ten minutes, strain, and add one pint of cold boiled turkey cut into dice. Any kind of cold meat may be substituted for the turkey.

Cream Sauce for Ontonp. Thicken one cup of hot milk with one tablespoonful of butter and flour rubbed together, and season with salt and white pepper. J ■ Household Hints. £. . Do not put salt into soup until you are done skimming it, as salt will stop the rising of the scum. < When baking bread, have the oven quite hot when the loaves are first put ( in, and let the heat diminish. Don’t fail to add a drop or tiro of vanilla flavoring to a pot of ehofolate, as it is a great improvement. When grating a nutmeg, alwaMMfrt from the blossom end. Why? cause it will grate more Scald out and air bread and cakeboxes twice a week. Bread molds j quickly, and extra care is r To have a custard pie of aw eve', ’ nice brown when baked, sprinkle * _ tie'' sugar over the top just before *** ting into the oven. /*’' When stoning raisins, rub butter on the fingers and kni r relieve the task of raisin-se stickiness and discomfort