HOUSEHOLD HINTS.

King Country Chronicle, Volume IX, Issue 735, 9 January 1915, Page 6

HOUSEHOLD HINTS.

• A small bag- of sulphur, suspended in a.bird's cage, is healthy for tin' birds, and will keep away parasites. Pencil marks on linen should bo rub bed off before washing, as water sett . the lead mark. An indiarubber bottlo filled wlitU nearly boiling water will relieve cold in the chest and internal pains of most kinds. Salt will curdle new milk; hence in preparing milk porridge, gravies, etc., the salt should not bo added until tlv dish is prepared. Wooden tubs which- are not in daily use, should have a little cold water left in them. If allowed to dry, they,«, will crack and fall to pieces. Hot dripping must never be poured into a vessel containing cold dripping-, or <it will turn musty in a very short time. A handful of raisins cut in halved! and " stewed with pears is a good and inexpensive substituto for the port wine which is usually cooked with them.

If a handkerchief hag been washed at homo, and an :iron is not handy, stretch it over the looking-glass, with the embroidered side out, sand it will be beautifully smooth when dry. Pastry to which baking-powder has been added should be placed in the oven as quickly as possible, otherwise the effect of the baking-powder will bo wasted. If a person gets a. fish-bono fast in the throat a piece of 1 onion shouiu bo eaten as soon as possible. The lemon will, cause the bono to dissolve immediately. Refrigerators should be thoroughly cleaned once a week, everything removed, shelves and nicks washed in warm soda water, wiped dry, and then sunned if possible. Beforo cooking the joint, cut through the lean part at a point which will give sufficient for usu whilo hot; the remainder! will then be found much nicer to cat cold, as it retains the juices, which cold meat cut hot does not. Applo parings should bo dried and used as a purifier in a sick-room. Put some red-hot coal on to a shovel, with a few dried. parings on it. Carry this about to the room, and it will leave a delightful fragrance.

To keep outdoor brass bright, clean the brass as usual, then rub it carefully over with a soft cloth dipped in vaseline, and afterwards polish with a dry duster. This will keep them from tarnishing quickly, even in the dampest weather.

sit is a very good plan to keep a pot of soil from the garden on tho kitchen sink. -.. When the "cooking; knafo" has been used in preparing onions or fish, stick tho blade in this, and leave for several hours, then wash and clean, and all the smell will have disappeared.

A piece -of .sandpaper tacked to the end of tho ironing-boardwill be found very useful for cleaning tho irons. A little salt will remove starch from irons. A piece of beeswax rubbed upon tho iron will prevent it from sticking. Unless a drop of water will run quickly off the iron, it is not hot enough for use.'

The reason that piano keys turn yellow is because they absorb the grease from the fingers. It will thercforo be necessary to remove this. If a paste is made of whiting- and a solution of potash is laid on, and allowed to remain. about twenty-four hours, the ivory will bo very nearly restored, if not entirely, to its original color. •

The practice of putting dishes in th» oven to warm them for tho tablo is a bad one. The dry heat causes the enamel to crack in time, and then tho grease soon penetrates them, to their utter ruination. Put tho dishes to bo heated in a dish-pan, and pour boiling/* water over them. Lot them stand and steam until ready to servo the meal, then wipe them with a clean, dry towel.

To prevent knives not in daily use getting rusty, rub them over after cleaning with a little sweet oil. Then . wrap in tissue paper, and afterwards ,y in thick brown paper, tying the parcel tightly, up, so that as little air as possiblo may get to the knives. Keep thorn in the driest storing place you have. If wanted for use, put them in hot soapy water, dry, and tjivc a slight _ rub on'' the knifeboard to restore the polish, „

When glazed tiles become, discolored or spotted they should be rubbed with a cloth moistened with lemon-juice, left for si quarter of an hour, mid polished with a soft cloth. They should never bo washed in Iho ordinary way; but rub* bod witli a damp cloth, and then polished witli skim-milk and water. A rag . just moistened with: liaraffin also gives a brilliant polish, bub the tiles should bo well rubbed with a. clean soft cloth' after. Remember that paj-affin is verj iinflammable, and must not be nonr a light or fire. w'L*l^