Flannels.

Have the water in which you wash flannel as hot as you can bear your hands in, and rub the soap in the water, or it will shrink the flannel. The water it is rinsed in should also be hot.

When flannels have become yellow and fulled up, I have often smoked them with brimstone, and they will be as white as new, and the fulled places will open. The best plan is to have a box or chest, with strings put across to hang the flannels on, and a drawer to pull out where you can set in a pan with coals and brimstone. Have the flannels nicely washed, and put them in wet, close it up till you think it wants more brimstone, when you can pull out the drawer and renew it.

After they are bleached, they should hang up in the air to let the smell of the brimstone escape. If you have but a few things to do, you can put strings across the top of an old barrel, (with both the heads out,) cover it with a thick cloth, and lift it up to put in a pan of brimstone and coals. Always wash scarlet flannel with hard soap.

Mending Clothes.

All clothes should be looked over before they are put away, and if any require mending it must not be neglected; a broken stitch that can be mended in a few minutes, if left till it has been worn again, will require much more time. If young housekeepers suffer their mending to get behind hand, it will discourage them. After mending a shirt, it should be pressed before it is put away. If stocking heels are run while they are new, and the thin places darned in time, it saves much work.

Washing Windows.

A little soda dissolved in the water is valuable for washing windows; do not let it run on the sash, or it will stain the paint; rinse them in clear water, and wipe dry with a clean soft towel. When they are but little soiled, clear water will answer, but if smoked or coated with any thing, soda should be always used. Some persons rub their windows with soft buckskin or newspaper, when they are dry and clean, to give them a polish.

To Make White or Colored Washes, Dyeing, &c.

Take half a bushel of unslaked lime, slack with boiling water, covering it during the process to keep in the steam. Strain the liquid through a fine sieve or strainer, and add to it a peck of clean salt, previously dissolved in warm water, three pounds of ground rice boiled, to a thin paste; stir in, boiling hot, one pound of Spanish whiting, one of clean glue, dissolved by soaking it well, and simmering over a slow fire in a small kettle within a larger one containing water; add five gallons of boiling water to the whole mixture; stir it well, and if you are not ready to use it, cover it close. It should be put on quite hot; for this purpose, it can be kept in a kettle on a portable furnace. Coloring matter may be added to make any shade desired. Spanish brown stirred in will make a pink color, more or less deep according to the quantity, a delicate tinge of this is very pretty for inside walls. Indigo mixed with the Spanish brown makes a delicate purple, or alone with the mixture, a pale blue. Lamp-black, in moderate quantity, makes a slate color, suitable for the outside of buildings.

Lamp-black and Spanish brown together, produce a reddish stone color, yellow ochre, a yellow wash, but chrome goes further and makes a brighter color. It is well to try on a shingle, or piece of paper, or board, and let it dry to ascertain the color. If you wash over old paper, make a sizing of wheat flour like thin starch, put it on, and when dry, put on the coloring, for a white-washed wall, make a sizing of whiting and glue water. This precaution should always be taken before using chrome yellow or green, as the previous use of lime injures the color of the chrome. When walls have been badly smoked, add to your white-wash sufficient indigo to make it a clear white.

To Mix White-wash.

Pour a kettle of boiling water on a peck of unslaked lime, put in two pounds of whiting, and half a pint of salt, when all are mixed together, put in half an ounce of Prussian blue, finely powdered, add water to make it a proper thickness to put on a wall.

White-wash for Buildings or Fences.

Put in a barrel, one bushel of best unslaked lime, pour on it two buckets of boiling water, and when it is mixed put in six pounds of fine whiting, fill up the barrel with water, stir it well, and keep it covered from the rain, let it stand several days before you use it, when stir it up; thin it with milk as you use it, and put half a pint of salt to each bucket full. This makes a durable wash for a rough-cast or frame house, or for fences; the salt prevents it from peeling off.

Chrome Yellow-wash.

Mix four pounds of whiting with as much water as will go over the room; dissolve a tea-cupful of glue, and put in; then wash the walls with this to prevent the lime from affecting the chrome; if they come in contact, the walls will be striped, and will not look at all well. Mix a wash of whiting, water and glue, and color it with two pounds of chrome yellow. After walls have been yellow, and you want to have them white, they must be washed over with whiting and glue, and then white-washed in the usual way.

Yellow Ochre wash.

Dissolve a pound of glue in hot water, and stir into it three pounds of yellow ochre, and one of whiting; mix it well, and thin it with water or skim milk. It is a suitable wash for a common room or kitchen.

Lamp-black mixed with molasses, and put in white-wash, makes a good color for a kitchen.

To Dye Orange Color.

For five pounds of woolen yarn, have one pound of annotta; dissolve it in boiling water, and put it in a pot of soft water with half a pound of pearl-ash; boil them ten minutes, stirring it well; wet the yarn in soap-suds; put it in, and let it boil twenty minutes; then hang it in the sun, and when dry, if it is not deep enough, dip it in again; and after it is thoroughly dry, wash it in soap and water.

Green-wash.

Take four pounds of blue vitriol, pound it fine, and mix with it three pounds of beat whiting, and half a pound of potash; pour on them six quarts of boiling water, and mix in half a pound of glue dissolved in water. Wash the walls with whiting before it is put on.

Chrome Yellow for Dyeing Carpet Rags.

Dissolve the chrome in warm water in an earthen vessel; dip the rags in vinegar and water, then in the chrome dye, and hang in the sun to dry. This color will stand for years in a rag carpet, and is very little trouble. Six cents worth of chrome will dye several pounds.

To Dye a Dark Drab.

For ten pounds of cotton or wool, have half a bushel of maple bark, the same of sumach berries, and a peck of walnut hulls or bark; put a layer of this in an iron pot, and a layer of the wool, till all is in; cover it with water, and boil it slowly for three hours, keeping the pot filled with water; then hang it out, and when dry, wash one skein, and if it is not dark enough, strain the dye, and put in a tea-cup of copperas; put in the yarn, and let it scald a few minutes; take it out, dry it, and wash it well with soft soap and water.

To Dye Cotton or Woollen Black.

To each pound of yarn, have one ounce of copperas, nine of logwood, a handful of salt, and a quart of good vinegar, which boil with copperas ten minutes in a brass kettle; shave the logwood, and boil it in an iron pot; when the color is extracted, strain it into the vinegar; put in the yarn, and let it simmer twenty minutes stirring it; then hang it in the air, and if it is not black enough, boil it over. You should have a clear day to do all coloring in.

Cedar Dye.

Boil the boughs of cedar in two or three gallons of water, for several hours, in an iron vessel; strain it off, add half a tea-spoonful of copperas, put it on the fire, and put in the articles you wish to dye; let them boil a few minutes, then hang them up to dry. This will dye sage color, and can be used for cotton, woollen or silk, and has the advantage of retaining its color. The cedar boughs should he used in the fall of the year, when the berries are on them. Pear bark is an improvement and makes the color darker.

To Dye Olive.

Make a strong sage tea, and add copperas and alum till it is dark; strain it; dip the cloth or silk in weak soap-suds, and then in the dye, and air it, till it is the color you wish.

Maple bark and copperas make a good dark color for common purposes.

To Dye Yellow.

Boil peach leaves when they are turning yellow in the fall, with a little alum.

Onion skins boiled with alum make a good yellow.

To Dye Brown.

Take young walnuts, with some of the leaves and bark; wash your wool in soap-suds; put a layer of it in a barrel, and a layer of the walnuts; fill it up with water, and put a weight on the top; at the end of a week wring it out, and let it lay in the hot sun two hours; put it back in the dye, and at the end of another week, sun it again; keep it in until sufficiently dark, when wash it in soap-suds. This makes a pretty brown that will not fade, and is stronger than when dyed with copperas.

To Dye Red.

To four pounds of yarn, take one pound of fine alum, and boil it in as much water as will cover the yarn; put in the yarn, and let it boil gently half an hour; then take it out and dry it; make a dye of two pounds of madder, and two ounces of crude tartar pulverized, and boil it; then put in the yarn, and let it boil half an hour; take it out and air it, and if it is not dark enough, put it in again, and boil it longer.

Brazil Wood Dye.

Tie two pounds of red or Brazil wood in a thin bag, and boil it for several hours in a brass or copper kettle in water; take out the Brazil wood and add a pound of alum, then put the rags in, and let them boil some time; hang them in the sun, and dry without washing them. This will dye woolen red, and cotton pink. Washing in soap suds will change it to purple.

Lead Color.

Take four ounces of red wood, two of logwood, half an ounce of pounded nut-galls, and quarter of a pound of green copperas; boil them in ten gallons of water, and strain it; wash the wool or cloth in soap-suds, put it in, and let it remain till it is as dark as you wish it; dry it in the sun, and wash it in soap-suds. Sugar paper, boiled in vinegar, makes a good lead color for stockings.

To Dye Scarlet.

Take one pound of blood root, and one pound of madder, boil them in six gallons of ley, then stir them three or four times in twenty-four hours, till there are signs of fermentation. This dyes ten pounds of cotton or linen.

To Dye Yarn Green.

Take one ounce of best Spanish indigo, finely powdered, and half a pound of oil of vitriol; put them in a bottle, and let them stand in the sun a week; shake it often, but do not cork it tight, lest it should burst the bottle; take four pounds of black-oak bark, and the same of hickory, shave them fine, and soak them till wet through; then boil them in ten gallons of water till all the color is extracted; when take out the chips, put in a pound of alum; shake the bottle of indigo and vitriol, and pour it in; let them boil together a few minutes, and put in the yarn; turn it over several times, and let it boil half an hour; then spread it out in the sun for about an hour, and wash it well in strong soap-suds through two waters, to keep it from becoming tender. This will color ten pounds of yarn. You may have a fine blue color by omitting the bark. It will not answer for any thing but wool or silk, as the vitriol will destroy linen or cotton.

To Dye Cotton Blue.

Boil a pound of chipped logwood in water enough to cover the cotton; take out half a gallon, and dissolve in it an ounce of verdigris, and one of alum; boil the yarn in the logwood water an hour, stirring it, and keeping it loose; then take it out, and mix in the verdigris; put back the yarn, and let it boil four hours, stir all the time, and take it out every hour to give it air, dry it in the sun, and the next day boil it in soap-suds. This will dye six pounds of cotton a deep blue. After it is done, you may put in as much more, and it will dye a pale blue.

To Keep Apples in Winter.

Pick them carefully, so as not to bruise them; put them in an out-house, exposed to the north, either in boxes, or barrels, or lying in heaps; after they have been several weeks in this situation, pick them over and put them in barrels which should be headed; if the weather is not severe, let them remain in this cold situation as long as it will be safe, without their being frozen, then remove them to the cellar. Do not shut the windows till the severe weather comes on. Some persons pack them, in dry chaff, or sand, and put them in barrels and boxes in a cool garret.

Directions for Making Matresses.

If you have an old curled hair matress, you can make two, that will be equally useful as those that are composed of curled hair, by using cotton and hackled corn husks, in alternate layers with the hair. Some persons use a quantity of green corn, and save all the husks, and strip them with a fork, or hackle, and spread them on a garret floor to dry; they are nicer in this state than prepared from the dry husk; but if you have not sufficient, take the dry husks from corn that has been stripped off the top and blade in the field, and have it hackled as flax; for one matress, have as much as will fill two flour barrels tightly packed; sixteen pounds of refuse cotton, (such as is sometimes sold very low at the factories,) and half the hair of an old matress, (which should be well picked;) measure the bedstead you wish it for, and allow to each breadth of the ticking, a quarter of a yard in length over; for a small matress less should be allowed, and the same in width, (as it takes up in making;) cut the side strips as deep as you wish the matress, fit the corners, cut out a place for the foot posts, or fit each end square alike; after the bottom and sides are sewed together, run a tuck all round to save binding, sew the tick in a quilting frame, and stay it to the end pieces as a quilt; put a table under to support the weight, (which can be shifted as it is sewed;) first put a layer of hair, then cotton, then husks alternately, till it is done; be careful to let the hair be next the ticking; put some all round the sides and edges. When all is in, put on the top, and baste it down with strong thread; then with a chalk line strike across, to form squares to sew it by. Have a long needle prepared and polished smoothly, threaded with twine, or several strands of strong shoe thread; this should be well waxed, and long enough to go through and back again; have tufts, or two pieces of strong cloth prepared, to secure the stitches on both sides; one person should be under the frame, to pull the needle through and put it back; it should be tied tightly as possible; when you have done stitching, the matress should be sewed all round, taken out of the frame and the raw edges bound. They can be made of cotton and husks, without hair, or cotton alone. Those that have sheep can use the coarse wool, (and such as is not profitable for manufacturing,) with the husks, it is more elastic than cotton. Many persons are deprived of one of the greatest comforts in summer, and sleep on feathers, when a little care in preparing the materials, and putting them together would furnish your chambers with the most healthy and pleasant beds; a large cotton sheet should be kept on a matress, or a case made of unbleached muslin, this covering should be occasionally washed and starched. If you cannot get husks, straw will answer, or hay.

To Make a Rag Carpet.

Ten pounds of purple warp, ten of green, four of yellow, seven of red, will make a pretty stripe, mingled and arranged according to your fancy; the above quantity of warp, with fifty-eight pounds of rags will make forty-two yards, yard wide. In most cities warp can be purchased ready colored. A very good proportion is a pound and a quarter of rags, and three-quarters of a pound of warp to the yard. Save all the scraps in cutting out work; have a bag for the purpose hanging in a convenient place, and when you have leisure cut them. Old muslin garments that are not worth giving away, may be torn in strips and colored. In cutting out clothes for boys, from men's garments, there will always be scraps and strips. By purchasing a little red flannel to mix in, the appearance is improved. A carpet wears cleaner to be about one-third cotton, and two-thirds woollen rags to mix the colors. Do not sew a strip that is longer than three yards, and the cotton should be much shorter, as the warp is usually of that material, there is more danger from fire.

To Keep Furs and Woollens.

Crack the grains of black pepper, and sprinkle in among your furs and woollen clothes; after they have been shaken and aired, fold them smooth and put them in linen bags or sheets; keep them in a large trunk or dark closet, and look at them once through the summer to see that they are safe. Tobacco and camphor are also good to pack them in, but the smell continues with them a long time, and is disagreeable to some persons. They should be well shaken and aired before they are worn.

To Keep Curtains.

Take the curtains down in the spring, shake them carefully and brush the dust from them; let them air a day, but not so that the sun will fade them; then fold them neatly, and pin them up in sheets.

Moreen or worsted curtains require the same care as woollen cloths.

To Keep Blankets in Summer.

If you have any blankets that are soiled and require washing in the spring, have it nicely done; when they are perfectly dry, put them on a bedstead in a spare chamber, keeping out one to use on each bed through the summer; spread a large sheet over; tuck under all round, and secure the corners with pins; tins will keep them from dust and moths, and makes a good bed to use in hot weather.

Carpets, &c.

When you take up carpets in the spring to put down matting, have them well shaken, and if there are any spots on them, they should be washed off with a stiff brush and dried; if there is oil or grease spilt on them, mix up whiting or nice clay with water; spread it on both sides of the spot, and baste thick paper over it. When dry, fold it up the size of a bedstead, and pin a coarse sheet round it. In this way they will be secure from moths, and the addition of a few quilted comforts on the top, makes a very pleasant bed in summer. The small moth-fly appears early in the summer, and should always be destroyed when seen, as the moth is produced from the eggs which they deposit in woollens; by being careful to kill them when they first come, a house may be kept nearly clear of them. Select the softest brooms for sweeping carpets, as stiff ones wear them out.

House Linen.

Have a book in which to set down all the bed and table linen, towels and napkins; every article of which should be marked and numbered, and counted at least once a month.

To Clean Paint.

Rub some whiting very fine on a plate; have ready some clean warm water, and a piece of flannel, which dip in the water and squeeze very dry; then take as much whiting as will stick to the flannel, and rub the paint to remove dust or grease, then wash it well with clean water and wipe it dry with a soft cloth.

Bran boiled in water, and left to settle, is very good to clean paint; use a soft cloth or flannel; it will take off fly specks and impart a gloss to the paint; wipe it quite dry. Unless soap is used with great care, it will injure paint.

Varnished paint requires nothing but clean warm water and to be wiped dry.

To Clean Bedsteads.

In the summer, bedsteads should be brushed and searched every week; if they are infested with bugs, boil the sacking in ley and water, or put it in an oven, on some boards, after the bread is taken out, to kill the eggs; fill a large bottle with red pepper pods of the strongest kind, and fill it up with vinegar; put this in each crack of the bedsteads every morning, until they entirely disappear; never omit to search the bedsteads longer than a week. It is a good way to fill up all the cracks of the bedsteads with resin soap. After they are cleaned, move the bed from the wall and fill up every crack in the plastering with calcined plaster and water, or putty.

Sometimes bed-bugs are brought in the cleanest houses before the family are aware of it. When persons return from travelling, the trunks should always be examined before they are taken into the chambers, or put away; a little care at the proper time will prevent much trouble. Some persons scald their bedsteads with boiling vinegar; the acid is said to dissolve the shell of the egg. If poison is used, great care is necessary.

It is said that lard is good to use on bedsteads that are infested with bugs; the grease prevents their increase. All the cracks should be filled after the bedstead has been well searched.

To Clean Floors.

Scour all the spots with soap and sand, then go all over with the long scrubbing brush, a few boards at a time; rinse it well and wipe it dry. A floor that has been well cleaned, and dried without being walked on, will keep clean much longer than one that has been half done; too much soap or ley makes a floor look yellow.

Bare floors are very pleasant in summer, and when they get a few spots, they can be taken out with dry white sand, and a shoe-sole, and will not need scrubbing more than two or three times in a summer.

Cleaning Cellars—Rats, Roaches.

In the spring, cellars should be swept, and all refuse vegetables taken out; if left till warm weather, they will become putrid, and endanger the health of your family. The sprouts should be rubbed from the potatoes; all the barrels should be moved and swept under. Have boards laid on the floor for meat and fish barrels, and after they are emptied, have them washed and drained ready for use. Empty flour barrels should be swept out and the heads and hoops saved. Have lime sprinkled over the cellar floor twice during the summer, or oftener if it should be necessary. If the windows are kept shut in warm weather, the air will be unwholesome. Do not trust to servants, examine and see that it is done thoroughly.

The apartments where cold meat and milk are kept should be cobwebbed and swept once a week, and the safe washed out at least that often. If the cellar is paved with brick, keep a part of it washed clean, to set cold meat and milk on; cover them with tin pans and put a weight on the top if rats are troublesome. If there are rat holes have them stopped with pieces of brick, and broken glass bottles; never use ratsbane without the greatest caution, as it is a dangerous remedy. No food or milk should be in the cellar at the time, and keep it locked up all the while it is there. I have heard of lives being lost by it. Have water set about in pans for the rats to drink, and after three days, clear it all away and have the cellar cleaned and aired before putting any thing in it. Several persons have been in great danger from burning the arsenic; when it is used it should be put deep in the ground and covered up.

Mice are kept under by a good cat, and traps. If roaches are troublesome, set bowls or deep dishes, with molasses and a plate on the top, with room for them to get in, and set it close to a wall. I have seen hundreds caught in this way in one night, and it is much safer than setting any thing poisonous about the kitchen or pantry. They should be burnt in the morning, and the dishes set again at night. If you find a closet infested with ants, remove every thing that will attract them, scald and clean it well, and they will soon leave it. It is said that strips of cotton or linen dipped in spirits of turpentine, and placed about the closets, will drive them away.

Mats should be placed at all the outside doors, and at the top and bottom of the cellar stairs.

Putting Straw under Carpets.

It is thought that carpets wear better when straw is spread over the floor before they are put down, and it will prevent the dust from rising so much. Care should be taken to have them well tacked down, as it is dangerous on account of fire. Where straw is used, they may be kept down a much longer time without being shaken.

Picking Geese, &c.

When you pick geese and ducks, have a tub of boiling water; dip each one in, turning it over to let every part be well scalded, and as each one is scalded, wrap it up in a cloth, and when they are nearly cold, pick them. In this way the pen feathers are loosened, and they can be picked much cleaner. Wetting the feathers does not hurt them if they are well dried. They should be put in bags, and frequently sunned. Baking them in the oven after the bread comes out, cures them more thoroughly than any other way. Turkey and chicken feathers are not so good for beds as goose and duck; they may be picked in the same way.

Marble, &c.

Marble mantles should be washed but seldom; wipe off spots with a damp cloth, and rub them dry. Hearths should be washed with soap and water. When there is a spot of grease, mix clay or whiting with soft soap, and put on. Soap-stone hearths may be scoured with soap and fine sand, and washed off.

To Restore Colors taken out by Acid, &c.

Hartshorn rubbed on a silk or woollen garment will restore the color without injuring it. Spirits of turpentine is good to take grease or drops of paint out of cloth; apply it till the paint can be scraped off. Rub French chalk or magnesia on silk or ribbon that has been greased and hold near the fire; this will absorb the grease so that it may be brushed off.

To make New Feather Beds.

In making new feather beds, put half a pound of cayenne, and half a pound of black pepper in each bed; this will prevent the moths from getting into new feathers that have not been well cured. It is best to air your beds frequently, and shake them up, even if they are not slept in. It is the oil in the feathers that makes them smell bad, and when in constant use the heat of the body dries it up gradually; when beds or pillows have acquired this unpleasant smell, open them and put a few pounded cloves in each.

When new beds are covered with cases, the moth will sometimes eat through without its being discovered. Covers also prevent the air from sweetening the feathers, and when new they should never be covered unless in use. When beds are slept on, it is best to have a thick cotton sheet, or if it is cold weather, a blanket between the under sheet and the bed, and have them washed and aired occasionally.

To Clean Silver.

Wash the silver in soda water, rub it with whiting, and polish it with a piece of dry buckskin. Embossed silver requires a stiff brush. Another way is to let the silver lay in chalk and water for an hour, then take it out, and wipe it dry on flannel; polish it with a piece of buckskin.

Britannia Ware.

First wash it clean in soap-suds, then rub it with a woollen cloth and whiting, and polish off with dry buckskin.

Brass.

First rub the brasses with turpentine, vinegar or whiskey, then with rotten-stone and a woollen cloth, and polish off with a piece of soft leather.

For brasses that have been long out of use, chalk and vinegar may be used.

To Clean Stoves or Grates.

Have the stove slightly warm, and if there is rust on it rub it off with a dry brush; mix some black lead or British lustre with boiling water, rub it on a small part of the stove at a time, and polish it with a stiff brush. If the stove needs but little cleaning, wet the spots with water, dust a little lead on the brush and rub it quickly. The black lead should be washed off several times a year, and then renewed. Sheet iron stoves should be rubbed with a woollen cloth, as a brush is apt to streak. The lead may be mixed with the white of an egg in cold water. Alum water is good to mix lustre; it prevents the stove from rusting.

To polish the hearth of a Franklin stove, rub it over with a piece of grindstone, or use coarse sand with the sole of a shoe; when it begins to look bright, polish it with pumice stone.

Cement to Mend Cracks in Stoves.

Take two parts of ashes, three of clay, and one of sand; mix them well together with water, and put it on when the stove is cold. It is also good to stop a leak in a roof.

Fire-proof Cement.

Slack a peck of lime in boiling water; put into it three pounds of salt, three of brown sugar, and one of alum; mix them well together, and color it with lamp-black or ochre. This has been recommended to put on the roof of a building that is exposed to fire.

To Take Spots out of Mahogany.

Put a piece of paper on the spot, and hold a warm iron over it, then rub it with a waxed cloth. If furniture is hurt with flies, it should be well washed with a cloth, and rubbed with a cork and a waxed cloth.

Varnished furniture should be first rubbed with sweet oil, and then with a waxed cloth.

To Take Grease out of Floors.

Mix clay or fullers' earth with ley, and put a thick coat on the grease spot; scrape it off every few days, and put on more. To put soft soap on the place, and rub it over with a hot iron, will take out the grease.

Wash for Hearths.

Mix red ochre in milk, and put it on the hearths with a brush.

Blacking for Boots and Shoes.

Take one ounce of vitriolic acid, one wine-glass of olive oil, two ounces of ivory black, an ounce of gum arabic, a quart of vinegar, and a tea-cup of molasses; put the vitriol and oil together, then add the ivory black and other ingredients; when all are well mixed, bottle it.

To Make Boots and Shoes Water-proof.

Take one pint of linseed oil, one ounce of Burgundy pitch, two of beeswax, and two of spirits of turpentine; melt them carefully over a slow fire. With this you may rub new or old shoes in the sun, or at a short distance from the fire, and they will last longer, never shrink, and keep out water.

To Make Blacking for Morocco Shoes.

Pound some black sealing wax, and put in a bottle with half a pint of alcohol; shake it frequently, and when it is dissolved, you may rub it on morocco shoes when they are scaled or defaced, and they will look almost like new; dry it on in the sun.

To Grease Eggs for Winter.

In the spring when eggs are plenty and cheap, it is very well to put up several hundred, to use in the winter, when it is very difficult to get them, even in the country.

Grease each egg with sweet lard, and as you do so, lay them in a keg or jar, or old tin vessels that are out of use; put them in a dry closet and keep them covered over; if they are put in the cellar, they are liable to mould, which spoils them entirely. Do not put in any cracked ones, or they will injure the rest. In this way they have been known to keep a year, and were nearly as good for puddings, or batter cakes, as fresh eggs. They do not do to boil, or make pound or sponge cake, as they lose part of their lightening property.

To Keep Eggs in Lime Water.

Pour two gallons of hot water on a pint of lime and half a pint of salt; put the eggs in a jar or keg, and when it is cold, pour it over them, and put them in a cellar to keep; be sure that there are no cracked ones. Eggs may be kept a month or longer, spread out separately on dishes, so as one will not lay on another. They will keep best in a dark closet.

To Clean Soiled Eggs.

When eggs are discolored from laying on the ground, wash them first in strong vinegar, and then in cold water, and wipe them dry on a soft towel.

Chloride of Lime.

A few spoonsful of chloride of lime dissolved in some water in a bowl or saucer, is very useful to purify the apartment of an invalid, or in any case where there is an unpleasant smell, of any kind. It is a cheap article, and should always he kept convenient where there is sickness in the house.

To Take Lime out of Cloth.

Lime spots on woollen clothes may be effectually removed, by putting a little strong vinegar on the part, which completely neutralizes the lime, and does not usually effect the color; but it will be safest to wash it over with a cloth dipped in water, and rub it till nearly dry.

Hartshorn and alcohol mixed together are very useful in taking spots out of cloth or merino, applied with something that will not leave lint.

To Take Wax or Spermaceti out of Cloth.

Hold a red hot flat-iron within an inch or two of the cloth, and this will make the wax or spermaceti evaporate entirely; then rub the place with a towel (that is free from lint) or clean brown paper.

To Remove a Stopper from a Decanter.

Wet a cloth with hot water and wrap it round the neck of the bottle; this will cause the glass to expand, and the neck will be enlarged so as to allow of the stopper to be withdrawn, without any trouble.

Precautions against Fire.

Perhaps it may not be improper to remark that houses have been saved from being destroyed by fire at night, by there having been buckets of water left in the kitchen.

Never go to bed without seeing that there is a supply in readiness. Housekeepers should also arrange their family affairs so as to have as little going about with lights by servants as possible. Chimneys should be swept at proper intervals, and if you burn them, let it be on a rainy morning and never at night.

To Take Ink and Stains out of Linen.

Dip the spotted part in pure melted tallow, then wash out the tallow and the ink will come out with it. If you get a stain of fruit of any kind on linen, boil a little new milk, and dip the parts in and out for a few minutes; this must be done before any water is used, or it will not be likely to succeed. Oxalic acid, or salt and lemon juice are good, and care should be taken to rinse the articles well after the application.

Herbs, Gardens and Yards.

If you have a garden, be careful to raise herbs, both for cooking and to use in sickness. Parsley, thyme, sage and sweet marjoram occupy very little room in a garden, and cannot very well be dispensed with for kitchen use; and every family should have a bunch of wormwood; it is a fine tonic, either made while fresh, cut fine, with cold water, or after it has been dried, made with boiling water. Tansey is also a useful herb. Hoarhound is excellent for coughs, and is particularly useful in consumptive complaints, either as a syrup or made into candy. Balm is a cooling drink in a fever. Catnip tea is useful when you have a cold, and wish to produce a perspiration, and is good for infants that have the colic. Garlic is good for colds, and for children that have the croup; you should have some taken up in the fall to use through the winter. The root of elecampane gathered in the fall, scraped, sliced, and strung with a needle and thread to dry, will keep its strength for several years, and is useful for a cough with hoarhound. Rue is a valuable herb, a tea made of it and sweetened is good for worms.

It is not expected that persons living in a town should have room in their garden for herbs, but they are generally to be purchased at market, and should always be kept in the house, as sometimes in the winter they are much needed when it is difficult to find them.

Herbs should be spread out on a cloth to dry; turn them every day; when dry, put them in thick paper bags, and close up the top, so as to exclude the air. They can be kept hanging up, or laid on the shelf of a closet, where they will not be affected by damp.

Such herbs as sage, thyme and sweet marjoram, when thoroughly dry, should be pounded, sifted, and corked in bottles. Parsley should be cut fine with a pair of scissors, dried, and put in bottles; it is nearly as good this way as when fresh; keep it in a dark closet.

Where you have a garden, do not throw away the soap-suds that are left from washing, as they are very good to water herbs and flowers.

It is very important to have early vegetables. A garden that is spaded, or ploughed in the winter, is ready to plant much earlier. There are many things that will bear the spring frosts without injury, and if planted early will be ready to grow when the fine weather comes. Tomatoes should be sowed in boxes or a hot-bed to be ready to transplant.

The scrapings of a cellar are good to put in the garden to enrich it. Ashes sprinkled on a yard, or grass plat, will keep down the coarse grass, and produce white clover.

The grass should be cut out of a brick pavement with a knife, and boiling ley poured on to kill the roots.

Seeds should be saved as they ripen, from the finest plants; they should be kept in a box with a tight lid to keep them from mice.

Greasers for Bake-irons.

Take pieces of fat from the back bone, or chine of pork; cut them in pieces of half a pound each; leave the skin on; salt them. They will do to grease the bake-iron where you have buckwheat cakes every morning in winter, and should be kept in a cool place; after remaining in salt several weeks, they may be hung up in an airy place. This is nicer than suet.

Cement for the Tops of Bottles or Jars.

Take equal parts of rosin and brick-dust pounded fine; a lump of beeswax; stew them together, and keep in an old tin, melting it when you want to seal your bottles or jars.

Cement for Mending Cast-iron.

To mend a crack or sand hole in an iron pot, beat up the white of an egg, and mix equal weight of salt and sifted ashes; work it very smooth and fill up the crack, let it harden before it is used. If it is a large sand hole you wish to mend, put in a rivet and secure it with the cement, if it gets loose it is easily fastened by the same process.

Weather Proof Cement.

Take of fine sand one part, two of clay, three of ashes; mix with linseed oil to the consistency required. Put it on with a towel or brush. It is said to become as hard as marble.

To Cleanse Vials, &c.

Put ashes and water in each one, and boil them in water, letting them heat gradually. Pie plates may be cleansed in the same way. Iron pots that have been used for boiling milk, may be cleaned by boiling ashes and water in them.

Mending China with Milk.

China can be mended if not too badly broken, by boiling it in skim milk, it should be entirely clear of cream, or the oily particles will prevent its adhesion. Tie the pieces with tape or fine cord, put them into a kettle of cold milk, and let them boil two hours, then take it off the fire, and when cold take the china out, and set it away; let it stand for several months. China pitchers, tea-pot lids, cup-plates and dishes, have been used for years after being mended in this way.

Mending China with White Lead.

Take the bottom of an old paint keg, and carefully with a small knife, put it on the edge of glass or china, close the parts together, and place away; if badly broken, mend the small parts first, and set away; then when dry, putty the edges you wish to join carefully, and set on the top shelf of a closet, where it will be undisturbed for a year.

Linseed Oil for Furniture.

For polishing mahogany or walnut furniture, (that has never been varnished) linseed oil has been recommended. It possesses a tendency to harden and become solid, on long exposure to the air. It is this peculiar quality that renders it useful in its application to furniture. Rub the furniture you wish to polish (having previously washed all the wax from it with soap and water) all over with the oil; a small piece of sponge is suitable for the purpose, let it remain a few minutes so as to sink in the wood; then rub it in with a soft cloth, and again with a clean cloth. Do this every other day and your table will soon be fit to use for breakfast or tea without fear of spoiling the polish; when you wash it off it should be done with plain warm water, as soap will injure it. It is best not to use a table till it has had several rubbings with the oil, and then apply it once a week. The pores being filled with the application it becomes hard. Always give a table that is in use a rub with a dry cloth every morning.

For Filtering Water.

Put a thick layer of pounded charcoal, (say six inches,) at the bottom of a large earthen flower-pot; over this, lay a bed of fine sand, which has been washed, (to prevent its giving a taste to the water;) pour the water in the filterer and put a large stone pitcher under to receive it.

On A Larger Scale.

Prepare a tight barrel by charring it on the inside, (by having some hickory or oak shavings burnt in it,) then put in half a peck of quick lime, and fill it with water. After the lime water has stood in the barrel for two weeks, it will be ready for use.

This preparation of the barrel is necessary to remove the acid from the wood, which would communicate an unpleasant taste to the water.

Fit a partition in the barrel, (perforated with many holes,) about three inches from the bottom of the barrel, and having put in a tube, to go down from the top through the partition nearly to the bottom, put on the perforated partition some broken charcoal, then finer charcoal a foot thick, then about a foot of clean washed sand.

To use this filter pour the water through the tube, (which should be open at the top like a funnel;) the water runs to the bottom, and filters upward, leaving all the impurities at the bottom.

The pure water is drawn off from the top of the barrel by means of a spile or faucet.

To Keep Water Cool in Summer, when you have not Ice.

Where you live at a distance from water, and wish to keep it cool, put a large stone vessel in the coldest place you can find; fill it with water, cover it with a towel and wrap a wet cloth around it; this will keep it cool for some hours, which is a comfort in warm weather.

To Purify Water.

To put a small lump of lime into your water-cask is useful. Agitating and exposing it to the air, will help to keep it fresh.

Strain muddy water through a sieve, in which a cloth or sponge, (or a layer of fine sand or charcoal,) has been placed.

Hard water may be softened and rendered suitable for washing, by adding to every twelve gallons of water, about a quarter of a pound of sal soda.

Gum Arabic Paste.

Pulverize in a mortar an ounce of gum arabic, pour on boiling water and stir it till dissolved; do not put too much water. If you wish to keep this paste any length of time, put it in a wide-mouthed phial, and pour alcohol over it; keep it corked, and as you use it, you may thin it with water if required; put it on with a feather or brush.

Preserving Kettles.

Bell-metal, copper and brass kettles require very nice cleaning immediately before they are used, or it will endanger your health. Vinegar with salt or ashes should be used; save the vinegar that is left in the pickle jars for this purpose.

To Clean Knives and Forks.

In some families the knives are a great care to the housekeeper, but by proper management it is rendered easy. After using them, they should be wiped with a cloth, dipped in warm water, then wiped dry, (the handles should never be put in hot water,) then polish them with Bristol or Bath brick, which, with the rubbing cloths, should be kept in a small box, with a strip of leather nailed on one edge, on which to polish them after they are rubbed with the brick.

Knives that are not in daily use should be wrapped in raw cotton and then in paper, and if kept in a dry place will not be liable to rust.

To Clean Teeth. With Remarks on Fixing the Habit, &c.

Pulverized charcoal mixed with honey, is very good to cleanse teeth, and make them white. A little Peruvian bark put in a phial with lime water is excellent to use occasionally by those that have offensive teeth; and tincture of myrrh mixed with a little water, may be used with advantage, to harden the gums. A little Peruvian bark put in the teeth just before going to bed, and washed out in the morning, is an excellent preservative of teeth. It is very important for parents to insist on children cleaning their teeth, at least, it is well for them to begin before they lose their first set, as it makes them last longer, and fixes the habit, which is of great importance.

To Clean Kid Gloves.

Take a piece of flannel; moisten it with a little milk; rub it on a cake of mild soap, and apply it to the soiled spots on the gloves; as soon as the dirt is removed, rub the spot with a dry piece of flannel, and dry them on the hands. Care must be taken that the gloves are not made too wet, or they will have a wrinkled appearance. Dark gloves that are worn in winter, should be exposed to the sun for about a quarter of an hour in the spring, before putting them away, or they will be liable to spot.

To Clean Papered Walls.

Cut the crust off of stale bread very thick, and rub the walls carefully from top to bottom, in a straight line, using a fresh piece of bread as soon as it looks much soiled.

To Take Old Putty from Window Glass.

Warm an iron, and rub it on the glass opposite the putty; this melts the oil, and you may easily remove the putty.

Cutting Glass for Mending Windows.

If you want to cut glass for mending windows, and have no diamond, dip a piece of cotton twine into turpentine, and stretch it tightly across the glass where you wish to break it; then set the string on fire, and after it is burned, break the glass while it is warm.



SIMPLE REMEDIES.

The following remedies are for diseases which occur in almost every family, and have been proved to be useful in a number of instances. As most old housekeepers have their favorite recipes, it is for the young and inexperienced these are particularly intended, and may be used with safety, when a physician is not at hand.

Remarks upon a Deeply Seated Cough.

It is very important to begin in time with a cold. Consumption is sometimes prevented by very simple remedies. To put Burgundy pitch plasters on the breast and back of the neck, often has a good effect; they should be re-spread frequently, and when one part is irritated, change them to another place. Put one on your side if you have a pain there.

Flannel should be put on next the skin by all means, which, with the above simple remedies, will cure a cold, if begun with in time.

I have frequently known new flannel put on those that usually wore it, greatly to benefit a delicate person. The increased irritation of the new flannel acts on the pores of the skin and promotes circulation. Hair soles worn in the shoe, or socks made of flannel, or soft buckskin worn under the stockings, are very good to keep the feet warm and dry. Persons predisposed to consumption should have nourishing food, and not eat too much at a time; they should avoid strong tea or coffee, and drink milk. Eggs, oysters, fresh fish and fowls, are very good for them. Fruit of all kinds is useful.

They should take exercise in the air, particularly riding on horse-back, or take a short walk, but not so as to be fatigued; to work moderately in a garden, when the ground is not too damp, is good exercise for a delicate person; the smell of fresh earth, and of flowers, is beneficial to both body and mind. After taking exercise, a glass of lemonade is very refreshing, and promotes appetite.

If there should be perspiration at night, change the sheets and pillow-cases frequently, and the under garments; air the chamber and bed-clothes every day; if the weather is too damp to raise the windows, shake up the bed, and leave it unmade half of the day, and put it out in the sun occasionally.

By all means avoid strong medicine, or any thing that has a tendency to weaken the body.

Sometimes blisters are used with very good effect; also, rubbing the breast and back with camphor or spirits, or with a piece of dry flannel.

Taking anodyne drops, particularly laudanum, should be avoided, if possible; they may still the cough during the night, but it will come on with increased violence in the morning; they weaken the stomach, increase the fever, and sometimes cause delirium.

Everything that tends to excite or irritate the mind, should be kept from them. It is very important to talk cheerfully to sick persons, particularly if confined to their chamber, which can be done without lightness or trifling.

If they see gloomy faces around them, it has a very disheartening effect; and, if the mind sinks, such is its intimate connection with the body, that it is hard to raise it.

I have known persons by judicious management to live for many years, after it was thought they were in a deep decline, by avoiding weakening medicines, taking exercise on horse-back and on foot, and never indulging in a full meal.

Sometimes such persons have very good appetites, and it is a satisfaction to their friends to see them eat heartily; but they should eat something frequently, rather than over-load the stomach too much. When they come in hungry from a ride, to beat up an egg with a tea-spoonful of wine, and a little sugar and nutmeg put in a tumbler with some milk, and taken with a cracker or biscuit, or a piece of thin toast broken up in it, has a very strengthening effect.

Persons are seldom benefitted by a strict diet, but it is sometimes enforced till they lose their appetite and cannot eat.

If the weather is so that exercise cannot be taken out of doors, some method should be devised for taking it in the house. Rubbing furniture and playing battle-door, are good exercise for a female, but should not be taken too much at a time.

Men that are confined to the house are sometimes very much at a loss what to do; if such would purchase a few tools, and appropriate a spare room as a workshop, it would promote their health. I have known men that were but little acquainted with the use of tools, do many useful and ornamental pieces of work, that were greatly valued by their friends; and the exertion kept their spirits from sinking, when the weather was too inclement to take exercise in the open air.

For a Cough.

Take a wine glass of the juice of the green hoarhound, or if that cannot be obtained, a strong decoction from the dry herb will answer; mix it in half a pint of new milk, sweetened either with sugar or honey; take this half an hour before breakfast. It has been known to cure obstinate coughs, and persons that have taken it for four weeks or more, have gained strength and flesh, and the pain in the breast was relieved. Flannel should be worn.

Elecampane and Hoarhound Syrup.

Put a pint of hoarhound in a quart of water, and let it draw by the fire; put a tea-cupful of dried elecampane root in a pint of water, cover it close, and let it boil till all the strength is out; strain it and the hoarhound together, and put them to boil with a pound of sugar; when it is a rich syrup, pour it in a pitcher to cool, and bottle it. Take a table-spoonful at a time when the cough is troublesome. Sometimes flaxseed is a useful addition to this syrup.

Brown Mixture for a Cough.

Take of paregoric, liquorice and gum arabic, each an ounce, from fifty to one hundred drops of antimonial wine and two gills of hot water; mix them well together, and when cold, bottle, and cork it tight; take two tea-spoonsful at a time; if it should nauseate, give a smaller quantity. If this produce profuse perspiration avoid going in the air unless well wrapped up. This has been useful in the latter stages of the whooping cough.

Ginger Tea. With Remarks on its Use, &c.

Strong ginger tea, sweetened and taken hot on going to bed, is very good. Where persons have been exposed to the air, and think they have taken fresh cold, keep the feet warm by taking a hot brick to bed, and do not increase the cold the next day. If it is not deeply seated, taking this a few nights will give relief. A piece of ginger root, kept about the person to chew, is good for a tickling in the throat, which many persons are subject to, when sitting in close heated apartments, in lecture rooms, or places of worship.

Lemon Mixture for a Cough.

Put two fresh eggs in a jar; cover them with the juice of six large lemons; let it stand until the hard shell of the eggs is eaten off; then beat it together; strain it, and add half a pound of rock candy, one gill of brandy and two table-spoonsful of sweet oil.

Mixture of Lemon Juice and Honey.

Take half a pint of honey and squeeze the juice of four lemons on it; mix well together, and add a small portion of sugar; take a tea-spoonful every time the cough is troublesome.

Hoarhound Candy.

Put two pounds of sugar in a pint of hoarhound tea, as strong as can be made, which may be done by drawing two sets of hoarhound in the same water, till the strength is out of each; when it is cold, mix in the sugar and the white of an egg; when it begins to boil, take off the scum as it rises, boil it slowly till it becomes thick, so that when you drop it on a plate, it will be hard and crisp, and pour it out in plates that have been greased with a little sweet butter; when cold, you can break it up for use, and tie it up in a jar. This is quite as useful as the candy you buy, and is much cheaper; it is very convenient for persons that have a cough, to have a little box of this about them to take when there is a tickling in the throat.

Mustard Bath for the Feet—Soap Stones, &c.

It gives relief to a bad cold in the early stages, to soak the feet in warm water, in which you have put half a tea cup of salt and two table spoonsful of pulverized mustard, and to drink ginger tea. You may keep your feet in the bath for half an hour, and then retire with a warm soap stone wrapped in a cloth and placed near them. A soap stone, the size of a brick will, when thoroughly heated, keep warm till morning, and is invaluable for an elderly person or one that suffers with cold feet.

Liverwort Syrup.

Make a quart of strong liverwort tea by extracting two sets of herbs in the same water, tie a tea cup of flaxseed in a bag and put with it; keep it covered while drawing; when the strength is all out, strain it on a pound of sugar, and let it boil slowly till it is thick—keeping it covered to prevent the strength from going off, when cold, bottle it, and set the bottle in a cool place while using it. Take a table-spoonful at a time about six times a day. This has been used for a cough with great benefit.

For Sore Throat.

Make a gargle of cayenne pepper, honey and spirits, or sage tea, with alum and honey, or figs boiled, mashed and strained, and use it once in two hours. If it is very bad, steam the mouth with a funnel held over hot vinegar, and put on a hot poultice of hops, boiled in weak ley and thickened with corn-meal; there should be a little lard spread over; renew it every time it gets cold. Another very good poultice, is hot mush strewed with powdered camphor; put it on as hot as can be borne, and change it when cold. A purgative should be given, either of senna and salts, castor oil; or rhubarb and soap pills. An emetic is of great importance, and has caused the throat to break when persons have been very ill.

Sore throats have been cured when quinsy was apprehended, by using powdered camphor and lard on flannel. It is a good way, when persons are subject to it, to keep an ounce of camphor mixed with lard, in a wide-mouthed bottle, or jar; and corked tight. The cayenne pepper and honey gargle should also be kept ready mixed, and used when the first symptoms appear; or in a violent attack, a plaster of snuff and lard may be applied with benefit, keeping it on only a few minutes at a time. Sometimes a bag of hot ashes sprinkled with vinegar, and applied hot as can be borne, has cured a sore throat in one night. Persons that have been afflicted for years with repeated attacks of sore throat and quinsy, have been cured by bathing the throat, neck and ears with cold water every morning. The constant use of the shower bath is very important. Keep the feet warm.

Molasses Posset for a Cold.

Take a pint of the best molasses, a tea-spoonful of powdered ginger, a quarter of a pound of fresh butter, and let them simmer together for half an hour: then stir in the juice of two lemons, or if you have not these, two table-spoonsful of strong vinegar; cover over the sauce-pan, and let it stand by the fire five minutes longer. Some of this may be taken warm or cold.

For Whooping Cough.

Dissolve a scruple of salts of tartar in a gill of water, put in half a scruple of pulverized cochineal, sweeten it with loaf sugar, give an infant a tea-spoonful of this mixture four times a day, and a child four years old or upwards, a table-spoonful. In some cases the relief is instantaneous.

Another Remedy.

Half a pint of honey, half a pint of vinegar, two table-spoonsful of sweet oil stewed together a few minutes; when cold put it in a bottle, and put in a tea-spoonful of laudanum; shake it well, and give a table-spoonful when the cough is troublesome, and a dose just before going to bed. For an infant of six months, a small tea-spoonful is a dose, and for a child of four years, two tea-spoonsful. Where there is not much fever, a little port or claret wine, mixed with sugar and water, and taken with toast broken in it, is beneficial. Children should be taken out riding if possible, and should be well wrapped up.

For the Croup.

Put the child in warm water, and keep up the temperature by putting in more hot water; keep it in fifteen or twenty minutes, then wipe it dry and put it in a warm bed, or wrap a blanket round it and hold it on the lap; give it an emetic, and put powdered garlic and lard to the throat and soles of the feet; keep up the perspiration, by giving a few drops of antimonial wine every half hour. The next morning give it a dose of rhubarb tea or castor oil, and keep it from the air for several days. This treatment has been very beneficial when a physician was not at hand; and nothing had been done till his arrival, perhaps the child would have been too far gone to recover. In cases of croup, to wet a piece of flannel with, alcohol, and apply it to the throat as hot as it can be borne, has often a salutary effect, applied frequently. It is also good to use for a bad cold, &c.

Molasses stewed with a lump of butter, and a table-spoonful of vinegar, taken just before you go to bed, and to grease the nose, forehead and breast with mutton tallow, will sometimes cure a child without any thing else. To pound garlic in a rag and squeeze out the juice, mix it with molasses, and give a tea-spoonful at a time, has given relief when a child was very ill. Sliced onions, or garlic stewed with sugar and water, or molasses, is very good to take for a cold. Where children are subject to the croup, you should always have a pot of water over the fire, and light-wood near, to heat it as quick as possible. Children that are subject to these attacks should have their feet kept warm and dry, and always wear flannel next to the skin.

It is the duty of parents to make use of the most simple remedies, which may always be in readiness, and, if applied in time, may prevent the necessity of giving strong medicines, which injure the constitutions of young children. The least symptom of the disease should be attended to. Lobelia is a certain remedy for croup. If the case is light, a few drops of the tincture, increasing the dose according to the age of the child, given at short intervals, will cause it to vomit and prevent danger; but if the attack is a severe one, you should give the "third preparation of lobelia;" for a child of ten years, ten drops, and so on in proportion; mix it with sugar and water. Every mother should keep lobelia at hand, as it has been known to give certain relief in many cases.

A child of twelve months, may take of the tincture ten drops every fifteen or twenty minutes, till it acts as an emetic, or relieves by perspiration; one of two or three years may take twenty or thirty drops. The third preparation is of much greater strength than the tincture.

Infants' Colic, &c.

Tea made of catnip, and sweetened, given to an infant when it appears to be in pain, is often useful. Sweet marjoram tea also relieves pain, and has a soothing effect on the nerves.

To put the feet in warm water, and put a warm piece of flannel to the stomach, is important; but if neither of these relieve the child, put it in warm water for about ten minutes, and cover it from the air carefully; wipe it dry, and keep it warm afterwards. A little weak ginger tea is good for the colic; as also tea made of dried damask rose leaves; a tea-spoonful of leaves will make a tea-cupful of tea.

Uneasiness is frequently caused by their stomachs being overloaded with food, and care should be taken in this respect.

Having lately met with some remarks in the "Baltimore American," with which I am much pleased, I take the liberty of inserting them. "Narcotics and anodynes cannot be given with too much caution, the sensitive and nervous system of an infant should never be acted upon by these powerful drugs unless in extreme cases, and of these, few mothers should presume to judge. Two drops of laudanum, says the London Medical Gazette, have been known to kill an infant; and a single drop, it is said, stole the life of a new born babe.

"The most experienced medical men never administer medicines of this class to the very young, without exercising the utmost caution, and making the most accurate calculations.

"In the present day, the more general diffusion of correct facts in physiology and pathology has caused a large class of young mothers to reject the old system of giving narcotic drugs to infants. In carrying out this salutary reformation like all other reformers, they have a strong opposition to contend with; old fashioned nurses do much harm in opposing all nursery reformations, consequently young mothers will have a hard task to execute.

"Too many have not the steady courage to hold on to the end in mild, but firm opposition to all erroneous, but well meant interference. But there are others whose pure and unswerving love for their tender off-spring keeps them firm to their duty; to these the next generation will owe much. They are the little band of true-hearted reformers, whose good example will be like leaven, spreading until its influence is felt throughout the wide circle of maternal responsibility."

Summer Diseases.

The food of children in summer, should be light and nourishing; if of milk, be careful that it is sweet. If you cannot get it fresh as often as you want it, boiling will keep it sweet. Sour milk and improper food sometimes bring on the summer disease, which is easier prevented than cured.

A little rhubarb tea or tincture, with a small quantity of prepared chalk, will sometimes check it in its early stages, but the most effectual medicine that I have tried is called by some apothecaries, "red mixture," of which I will give a recipe.

Chicken water, slightly salted, is very good; make but a little at a time, and have it fresh.

Rice gruel, sweetened with loaf-sugar, and a little nutmeg, is nourishing. To make a drink of slippery-elm, shave the bark fine and put it in water; strain it, mix it with milk, and sweeten it. Elderberry and blackberry cordials are also good in cases where there is no fever.

The stomach and back should be bathed with spirits, and a little bag of pounded spices, wet with spirits, applied to the stomach, may be used with safety, when not within reach of a physician.

A bark jacket has been used with success in many instances, cut it out of fine muslin, to be double, spread it open, and cover one side with about two ounces of the best Lima bark, and twelve pounded cloves; put on the other side, sew it up, and quilt it across; put on shoulder straps and strings of soft ribbon; sprinkle it with spirits twice a day.

The child should have the benefit of the morning and evening air. If it is not convenient to ride it out, walking will answer, in the arms of a careful nurse, carried on a pillow, with an umbrella to protect its eyes from the light.

When a child is taken sick in a city, removing it to the country often has a beneficial effect. Milk thickened with arrow root is good diet for children. Flour dried in an oven for several hours, and used to thicken milk or water, is also good, sweetened with loaf-sugar, and is nutritious. They should eat but a small portion of any thing at a time.

To cut slices of lean fresh beef or mutton, put it in a bowl, and pour a pint of boiling water on it, and let it set close to the fire for an hour, is very good to give children occasionally, with but little salt; the stomach will sometimes retain this when other things are rejected. As thirst is an attendant on this disease, much salt should be avoided in all their food. Every thing about a sick child should be kept clean, and its clothes well aired before changing them. If it is too ill to carry out of doors, have it changed from one room to another, and the apartment it left well aired.

Children who are afflicted with this disease, sometimes crave fruit. Ripe peaches, fresh from the tree, or ripe apples, baked or roasted before the fire, may he occasionally administered in small quantities with perfect safety.

To make toast-water, the bread should be toasted on both sides very dry, and boiling water poured on it.

I hope these hints will be useful to persons that cannot procure a physician, which is often the case in the country.

Mustard Whey.

Boil a pint of milk, and the same of water, with an ounce and a half of bruised mustard seed, until the curd separates—when strain the whey. This is a most desirable way of administering mustard; it warms and invigorates the system, promotes the different secretions, and in the low state of nervous fevers, will often supply the place of wine. It is also of use in chronic rheumatism, palsy and dropsy.

Red Mixture.

Take sixteen grains of powdered rhubarb, thirty of soda, fifty of prepared chalk, and two drops of the oil of spearmint, mixed in a vial with two ounces of water; keep it corked up and shake it before giving a dose. A child of ten months old should take a tea-spoonful every three or four hours. If there is much pain, two drops of laudanum may be added to every other dose. A table-spoonful is a dose for a grown person.

Erysipelas.

The decoction of sarsaparilla has proved useful in cases of erysipelas. Take two ounces of sarsaparilla, one of sassafras, one of burdock root, and one of liquorice; boil them slowly in three pints of water, keeping it covered close, until reduced to one-half. Take two table-spoonsful four times a day.

While taking medicine for the erysipelas, meat and all strong food should be avoided, and every thing that has a tendency to inflame the blood. Dusting the parts affected, with rye or buckwheat flour, sometimes has a cooling effect, and bathing with camphor or spirits will allay the irritation.

Nettle rash is very much like erysipelas, and the same treatment is good for both. Slippery-elm bark, chipped, and let to stand in cold water till it becomes thick, is a very cooling drink. It may be filled up the second time. Barley water is also a suitable drink.

Erysipelas is frequently brought on by violent exercise, and the perspiration being checked too suddenly. Persons that have once had it, should avoid extremes of heat and cold, and pay strict attention to diet—not eating any thing that disagrees with them. All acids, particularly pickles, are improper.

The stomach should be cleansed by emetics. Small and frequent doses of senna and salts, if taken just at going to bed, will not occasion much sickness, and tend greatly to relieve the system of this unpleasant disease. Where the case is slight, the rhubarb pills sometimes give relief. The pores of those that are subject to it are generally open, and flannel should be worn all the year, to prevent too sudden a check of perspiration.

Magnesia, Charcoal and Salts.

Form a valuable compound for family use: one ounce of each mixed together, and put in a wide-mouthed bottle; it is useful for head-ache, or diseases of the skin. Cases of erysipelas have been cured by its continued use. Take a tea-spoonful of the mixture, in a little water two or three times a day, or on going to bed at night. Persons of sedentary occupations, that are in the habit of taking pills, will find it to their relief to use this simple remedy. It has been found beneficial in cases of tetter and ringworm in the head, using at the same time, as a wash on the part affected, borax dissolved in strong vinegar.

In cases of erysipelas, the "charcoal mixture" has been used with great benefit; it is excellent for purifying the blood. Take it in small doses for two or three weeks, then discontinue it, and take it again at intervals. If this medicine should be found unpleasant, take a tea-spoonful of jelly, or something of that kind after it. It will answer quite as well to keep the magnesia, charcoal and salts in separate bottles, and mix them just as you take the dose, taking about an even tea-spoonful of each.

For Dropsy.

Put a quarter of a pound of cream of tartar, and a pound of new nails, in a stone jug, with half a gallon of water, let it stand three or four days, occasionally shaking it; take a table spoonful three times a day, on an empty stomach, and half an hour after each dose, take two spoonsful of mustard seed or scraped horse-radish. If the swelling abates, you may take the medicine less frequently, or omit every other day, but do not leave it off until you are entirely cured. After it has stood some time, it becomes stronger, when you may put in more water. This has been highly recommended for the dropsy.

Another Remedy.

Take a quart of gin, put into it one handful of the white buds of the common pine; shake it frequently, and take half a wine glassful at a time, twice a day, about an hour before a meal, and occasionally eat a little brown mustard seed; this should be persevered in, and has been known to afford great relief, in two obstinate cases.

For Rheumatism

Persons are liable to have the rheumatism from taking cold in the winter. Where the pain is most violent, put on plasters of Burgundy pitch, spread on leather. Persons that are subject to it, should always keep pitch in the house to use, as it will give relief; a silk handkerchief tied round the joint, keeps it warm and relieves stiffness. If the pain is in the back part of the head, put a blister on the neck, by all means. When persons have a bad spell of rheumatism, they should always take medicine, and avoid eating meat for a few days. Equal parts of rhubarb and castile soap, made into pills, with a little water, is a valuable medicine for rheumatism, and suits aged persons; the pills should be taken at night on going to bed. They are easily made, and should always be at hand: it is valuable as a cathartic in almost every case where mild medicine is necessary. The use of the shower bath is also beneficial. Flannel should always be worn next the skin, and the feet kept dry. Bathing with camphor sometimes relieves the pain, but there is a danger of driving it to a more vital part. Salt and water is useful to bathe for the rheumatism, when it is of long-standing.

Deafness, Remarks, &c.

A remarkable case of deafness was cured by the following remedy: (An aged person, whose hearing had been very good, gradually became so deaf as not to be able to hear common conversation; after suffering some months, the patient thought of trying the following remedy:) of honey, brandy and sweet oil, each a tea-spoonful, warm and mix well together; sew a soft linen rag to the eye of a strong darning needle; dip this mop in the mixture while warm, and put it in the ear; hold it in till cold, when renew and move it gently about; by so doing, wax that had accumulated, hardened, and stopped the cavity, was discharged, and the hearing of the patient restored. Wool should be worn in the ears, and an occasional use of the mixture; also flannel round the head at night. A young person was relieved by the persevering use of the following remedies: Put a small blister of Spanish flies behind the ears, very high up on the hard part, so as to be clear of the leaders (or it will occasion pain); when drawn, dress them in the usual way, and as soon as healed renew them; repeat this several times, keeping wool in the ears dipped in sweet oil, and at night put in small pieces of fat bacon that has been boiled, and tie a handkerchief around to keep them warm. When the blisters are healed, the hair should be cut short, to enable the patient to bathe the head in cold water, which should be poured from a pitcher; begin with it a little warm and gradually get it colder; this should be persevered in, even in cold weather; wipe the head and tie it up till dry. I have been induced to make these remedies public, by seeing several interesting young persons suffering from deafness, with a hope that they may be of use.

Remedy for Sick Head-ache.

A table-spoonful of table salt; dissolved in a pint of water, as warm as you can drink it; take at two doses, and drink freely of luke-warm water, until it causes vomiting; put a hot brick to the feet, and avoid the air, which will check the perspiration.

The Oil of Butter. A Remedy for Dysentery, &c.

Put half a pound of fresh butter in a quart of boiling water, to extract the salt; let it melt and boil up. If there should be any curds on the top, take them off, then skim off the clear butter, and keep it covered by the fire; give from one to two table-spoonsful at a time, three or four times a day.

This is useful in cases of dysentery, and is also soothing to the stomach, after violent vomiting for a long time. Sometimes a plaster of mustard put on the stomach stops vomiting.

For Dysentery and Diarrhoea.

The following prescription from an eminent physician has proved valuable: Take of calcined magnesia two drachms, of aromatic spirits of ammonia two and a half drachms, of water half a pint, mix well together, and as a dose for a grown person, give a table-spoonful every half hour until relieved.

Some country nurses recommend dittany tea, or spice-wood berries boiled in new milk. A large poultice on the stomach and bowels, made of new milk, thickened with light bread, has given relief—keeping it warm.

Be careful to keep the patient's feet warm, and to bathe the back and stomach with spirits. Where the dittany and spice-wood cannot be obtained, other aromatics, as cinnamon and cloves, are good substitutes.

Remedies for the Dysentery and Cholera Morbus.

Take the roots of the low running blackberry or dewberry; make a strong tea; sweeten it, and drink it occasionally. Take a large apple; cut out the core, and wrap in wet paper; cover it up in hot ashes, and when cooked, take off the paper and eat it cold.

Take one pint of good hard cider, that is entirely sound, put a table-spoonful of hot ashes into it, and stir it as soon as it settles; take a table-spoonful once every hour for a grown person, until relief is obtained.

Remedy for the Ear-ache.

Mix a few drops of French brandy with sweet oil and a drop of laudanum, and pour it in the ear a little warm.

Another valuable remedy is to take a few wood lice, and stew them in a little lard, (which should be very pure,) for three or four minutes; then strain it and pour some in the ear before it gets cool.

This gives almost immediate relief. The heart of a roasted onion put warm in the ear, and tie around the head a silk handkerchief, has given relief.

A Wash for Sore Ears.

Make a tea of the black or candle-alder, wet a soft rag with it, and lay it on; it should be applied three times a day, and occasionally wash it with castile soap and water. The patient should take a mild purgative. If the ears are very much inflamed, there should be a bread and milk poultice put on occasionally. Elder ointment is also beneficial.

Weak Eyes.

Make a strong decoction of chamomile flowers, by boiling them in new milk; with this bathe the eyes several times a day—continue it for several weeks; to bathe the eyes in cold water before going to rest, is also good. Pure rye whiskey is very good to bathe weak eyes. Persons that are afflicted with sore eyes, have often been benefitted by putting a small blister behind the ears, very high up on the hard part, so as to avoid the leaders. Infants should not be exposed to the light too soon; it sometimes weakens the sight and seriously injures the eyes. The pith of sassafras put in water, is good to bathe inflamed eyes; a decoction of young hyson tea is also used with benefit. Persons afflicted with weak eyes should avoid a strong light, and should not strain their eyes with reading or sewing at night. I have known small doses of "charcoal mixture," relieve the eyes when there was slight inflammation. Attention to diet is necessary. Fold a linen handkerchief, dip it in cold water, and bind it over the eyes at night on retiring, and you will experience relief. Pain in the eyeballs is also relieved, by gently rubbing the finger and thumb over the lids towards the nose. This was published some years since, and I have known it give relief and strengthen the eyes.

For Worms.

Equal parts of salt and sugar, taken while fasting, are good for worms; a tea-spoonful is sufficient for a child two years old; to take half a cup of chamomile, rue or wormwood tea, with a little sugar, two hours before breakfast, is also good. Give a dose of senna after they have been taking this three days. It is very important to bruise garlic and rue, to apply to the stomach; put it in a bag, and wet it with spirits every day. The garlic and rue is said to keep the worms out of the stomach. Wormseed oil, a few drops at a time, has given relief, but should be used cautiously. Old cheese grated and given to a child, has been known to afford relief: it is also beneficial when a child is seized with sudden illness from having eaten too many cherries.

For Tooth-ache.

Reduce two drachms of alum to a very fine powder, and mix with it seven drachms of nitrous spirits of ether; apply it to the tooth. Alum burnt on a hot shovel, and powdered, is sometimes good; also half a drop of the oil of cinnamon, on a piece of cotton or lint, where the tooth is hollow. Cayenne pepper on cotton, and moistened with spirits of camphor, has been known to afford relief. A poultice of hops applied to the cheek, or a piece of raw cotton with red pepper dusted on it, or a mustard plaster, will relieve a swelling which proceeds from tooth-ache.

Cure for Cholera Morbus.

Put a table-spoonful of hot ashes in half a pint of good hard cider, and give the patient three table-spoonsful of it at a time. This has given relief in half an hour.

Another cure is to take a soft cork and hum it thoroughly; when it ceases to blaze, powder the coal very fine on a plate. Mix a table-spoonful of this powder with a little milk or water, or any thing agreeable to the palate; repeat the dose till the disorder ceases, which it generally does after two or three doses. This has given relief to a person in the greatest agony with the bilious colic.

For Colic.

Drink strong ginger tea, while hot, and put hot bricks to the stomach and feet; if this does not give relief, take a dose of rhubarb or castor oil. Persons subject to the colic should keep a piece of ginger about them to chew after eating; wear flannel next the skin, and be careful to keep the feet dry: they should avoid strong coffee and tea, and eat nothing that disagrees with them. Dry toast without butter, and crackers, are good for persons that have the colic. For violent cases, take two table-spoonsful of brandy, and half a tea-spoonful of black pepper.

For Bilious Colic and Indigestion.

Pour three quarts of boiling water on a quart of hickory ashes and a tea-cup of soot; let it stand a day, then filter it, and if the complaint is bad, take a wine-glassful before and after each meal. This has been very beneficial to persons with the above complaint.

Warner's Cordial for Gout in the Stomach.

Take one ounce of rhubarb, two drachms of senna, two of fennel seed, two of coriander seed, one of saffron, and one of liquorice; stone and cut half a pound of good raisins, and put all in a quart of good spirits; let it stand in a warm place for ten days, shaking it every day; then strain it off and add a pint more spirits to the same ingredients; when all the strength is extracted, strain it and mix the first and last together. Take from two to four spoonsful of this cordial in as much boiling water as will make it as hot as you can take it; if the pain is not removed in half an hour, repeat the dose, and if your stomach will not retain it, add ten drops of laudanum.

Dr. Warner remarks, "after twenty years' experience of this medicine in myself and others, it is impossible for me to speak of it in terms higher than it deserves. When the vital parts are affected, persons subject to the gout should never sleep without it in their chamber."

Cure for Tetter.

Take one tea-spoonful of powdered Spanish flies, put them in half a pint of French brandy; wash the part affected occasionally. This has been highly recommended to me, as a remedy for tetter on the hands, but I have never seen it tried.

For Cramp in the Stomach.

Dissolve a tea-spoonful of table salt, in a tea-cup of warm water; if this does not stop the vomiting and cramp, repeat the dose; this is very useful in stopping the operation of an emetic, when it has continued too long. Flannel cloths dipped in hot spirits, and sprinkled with cayenne pepper, and applied to the stomach, sometimes relieves the pain; a mustard plaster is also of use.

For Cramp.

A foot-board to the bedstead is of great service, when you are taken with the cramp in the night, and by placing the foot against it, will sometimes give relief. Another remedy is to tie a string round the limb, between the body and the pain, about as tight as a physician does to draw blood; wear a bandage filled with pounded brimstone round the limb, to prevent a return of it. Sometimes to hold a roll of brimstone in each hand will relieve the cramp, and persons subject to it should keep some by the bed-side to use in the night.

For Scalds and Burns.

When persons are badly scalded or burned, to put raw cotton on immediately, and wet it with spirits, is very good; other remedies are, linseed oil and lime water; starch and cream; scraped potatoes, molasses, and eggs beaten up and put on immediately. Almost any thing will relieve the pain, that excludes the air. Be careful not to break the skin, as it will be longer in healing.

If a foot is scalded, pour cold water over it and cut the stocking. You should be careful to use linen rags about a burn, as cotton rags cause irritation.

After the place begins to heal up, a salve may be applied, made of equal parts of Burgundy pitch, beeswax, sheep's tallow, and sweet oil, melted together over the fire; renew it twice a day, washing the place each time with milk and water, and a little castile soap. A wash of weak sugar of lead water, is also good for burns. A poultice of powdered elm bark mixed with water, and put on frequently, wetting the sore with thick cream, is also soothing; be careful that the limb does not contract, as there is great danger if the sinews are affected. If there should be fever, a mild cathartic should be given. "Comstock's Pain Extractor" sometimes gives great relief; you may also apply immediately, with benefit, a tea-spoonful of air-slaked lime and a table-spoonful of lard; sift the lime and rub them well together. For a burn by vitriol or any caustic substance, apply whites of eggs mixed with powdered chalk, putting it on with a feather. Linen rags dipped in cold water and changed every few minutes, I have known applied day and night to give relief to a bad burn on the foot; but avoid putting the foot in water, although it gives present relief, it is dangerous.

For Ague.

Take half an ounce of coarsely powdered race ginger, infused in three gills of boiling water; when cool, strain and sweeten it; and for a dose give a heaped tea-spoonful of Peruvian bark, in a wine-glassful of the ginger tea, every two hours during the absence of the fever. To one ounce of best Peruvian bark, add two ounces of cloves powdered, and a half an ounce of cream of tartar; mix them well, and give two tea-spoonsful at a time every two hours: when clear of fever, begin at four in the morning, and give it until twelve at noon. Wormwood seed, a heaped tea-spoonful in a cup of water, as a dose, is also good. A third recipe is to take two ounces of best Lima bark, twelve heaped tea-spoonsful of magnesia, to be well mixed together, and divided into twelve doses. Take four doses on each well day, at intervals of four hours each, this has cured a number who had suffered with ague a long time.

Chilblains.

Put as much alum in hot water as will make it very strong, put the feet in when it is as hot as can be borne, and keep them in till it is cold, warm it over, and soak them every evening till they are entirely cured, by beginning in time, it need only be applied two or three times.

When blisters are formed, take one ounce of camphor, one of sheep's tallow, and one of sweet oil, stew them together gently till it becomes an ointment, and rub the feet with it.

Take an ounce of glue, and melt it in a pint of hot water over the fire, stir it until the glue is dissolved, pour it out and dip the part that is affected in this dilution until the uneasiness or burning is allayed, which is mostly in a few minutes.

Lockjaw.

If lock-jaw is apprehended from a scratch or wound, bathe the injured part frequently with weak ley, or warm pearl ash water, make a poultice by boiling bitter herbs in weak ley, and thicken it with corn-meal; put a little grease in just as you put it on. Bacon skin and the rind of fresh pork bound tightly on, are said to be good.

Falls.

If a child receives a fall, examine every part, and rub your hand on its back to tell if any part is injured. There are instances of persons being cripples for life, from receiving a hurt, that was not known of at the time. To rub with camphor and sweet oil, and bathe the child in warm water, is soothing.

For the Bite of a Spider.

Moisten a slice of wheat bread with sugar of lead, or pearl-ash water; bind it on, and keep wetting it as it becomes dry. If the place swells very much, take a table-spoonful of sweet oil every hour, till it is relieved. To drink water with salaeratus dissolved in it has been useful.

For the Sting of a Bee.

Rub the place with hartshorn or salaeratus water, immediately after it is stung, to prevent it from swelling; bruised peach leaves bound on, are also good, and laudanum, where it is very painful. If it swells very much, apply a poultice of onions and cream, or ley and bitter herbs.

For Bruises.

The oil of St. Johnswort applied on lint, is an excellent remedy for bruises, and if used immediately will prevent the blood from settling on the place; when children get their fingers or toes mashed, this is very good, and soon gives relief; salt butter is also very good. The leaves of the Jamestown weed, mashed with cream, are good for a stone-bruise.

For Felons.

Make a poultice of quick lime slaked in soft soap, and bind it on the finger; renew it every half hour. The leaves of Jamestown weed, bruised with cream or lard, are also good. Also, roast coarse salt in a piece of wet brown paper, or a cabbage leaf, about twenty minutes; when cool, pound it and mix it with resin soap; bind it on the felon; it is said to be a certain cure. The white of egg, with unslaked lime, has been known to give immediate relief.

For a Sprained Limb.

Strong vinegar and salt, put on brown paper, will soon cure a slight sprain, if applied frequently. If very painful, a bath should be made of bitter herbs, bran and vinegar, put on as hot as you can bear it. Great care should be taken not to use the limb too soon after it has been sprained. Some sprains of several months' standing have been greatly relieved by taking several electric shocks a day. St. Johnswort oil is good to rub on a sprained limb.

For a Sprained Ancle.

Of chalk, soft soap, salt, and brandy, take a spoonful each, and add the white of an egg; beat the mixture, and spread it on raw cotton, and apply it at once, when it will generally afford relief; and after repeatedly changing, it may be left off in twenty-four hours. The ancle is often weak when recovering, and benefit is derived from pouring cold water on it from a pitcher held high above you. Tallow and salt, mixed and spread on a piece of muslin, are good for a sprain.

Cuts or Wounds, &c.

When cuts bleed very much, tie a handkerchief tight above the wound, or place a finger on it until you can get a physician: in the country, persons should be supplied with a surgical needle and adhesive plaster, and have lint scraped and linen rags in a convenient place. Balsam apple put in a bottle when fresh, and whiskey poured on it, is an excellent application for fresh cute or bruises. For the stick of a needle or pin, try to make it bleed, and hold the finger in strong vinegar and salt, as hot as you can bear it, this will prevent a gathering. A mashed finger should be held in hot water a few minutes. No. 6 is a most valuable remedy for cuts or wounds; bind a linen rag over the cut, and pour on the No. 6.

For Tetter, Warts, &c.

Dig up the pocoon root that grows in the woods, wash and slice it, and put it in a bottle with strong vinegar; bathe the parts with it several times a day. Celandine root is also good, used in the same way, and either of them will remove warts and ringworms.

Poisons, Accidents, &c.

These are valuable remedies, and should hold a place in the memory of every one, if possible.

Mix a spoonful of powdered mustard in a tumbler of warm water, and drink it immediately; it acts as an emetic, and has proved effectual where an ounce of poison had been taken into the stomach. Where the skin is poisoned, use a wash of smartweed steeped in water, or mix soot and cream, and apply it frequently; bruised Jamestown weed and cream is also good. If you have been exposed to poisonous plants, wash your face and hands immediately in salt and vinegar, or salt and water. When "corrosive sublimate," has been swallowed, the whites of two eggs taken immediately will neutralize the poison, and change the effect to that of a dose of calomel.

Persons struck by lightning should be laid on the ground, and pour water over them till life is restored. When "oil of vitriol" or "aqua fortis" have been swallowed in large quantities, sweet oil should he taken, (as much as can be retained on the stomach.) For "oxalic acid," give magnesia or chalk and water.

For "tartar emetic," give Peruvian bark and water, (or a strong decoction of green tea, if you have not the bark.) For "saltpetre," give an emetic of mustard seed with water, and afterwards elm bark mucilage, and small doses of laudanum. This is also good in cases where arsenic has been swallowed.

When a child has swallowed a cent, pin or needle, give it the white of egg immediately; this forms a coating round the metal, and prevents injury in most cases; then give moderate doses of medicine, such as castor oil or salts.

When a fish bone has been swallowed, take the white of an egg, which will help to carry it down the throat; also cut a hard crust of bread.

Insects taken into the stomach, may generally be destroyed by taking a small quantity of vinegar and salt. When insects get into the ears, use a little salad oil, or melted lard.

Tar Ointment for the "Milk Crust."

Take a quarter of a pound of lard, and the same of sheep's tallow, three table-spoonsful of tar, an even spoonful of sulphur, an ounce of white turpentine, a lump of beeswax the size of a hickory-nut, the same quantity of powdered resin and scraped chalk, a tea-cupful of the inside bark of elder, a little celandine, southern wood, and English mallows; bruise the herbs, and put them on to boil, with the lard and tallow, and a little water to keep it from burning; when all the strength is out, strain them, and put the grease back in the pot, with the tar, and add the other ingredients a little at a time, and stir till all is melted; then strain it in a jar, and keep it covered for use.

Tar ointment is good for ringworms in the head, which some children have, and has cured children where the head and face was covered with what is called the "milk crust."

Before it is applied, the place should be washed with milk and water, and a gentle purgative should be administered occasionally. Rhubarb tea is good for this purpose.

If it is wanted in the winter, when you cannot get all the herbs green, dried ones will do; and when made, it will keep good several years.

If there is much hair on the head of a child, it should be cut off before this is put on.

It is very dangerous to give infants that are affected with the milk crust, calomel, or any strong medicine. They should he carried out in the air occasionally, and not kept all the time in a warm nursery; sometimes a change of food is attended with a good result.

There have been instances of infants dying very suddenly, where powerful medicines had been administered.

Hop Ointment.

Take a table-spoonful of the yellow dust of hops, and put it in three spoonsful of melted lard, and mix it well; put it away in a cup for use. This has proved beneficial in cases of swelling of the breast; when cold has been taken, it will sometimes backen gatherings; bathe the place with a warm hand several times a day, and keep flannel over it. Young mothers should keep this ready, as it is much better than preparations of camphor, which are injurious.

Precipitate Ointment, &c.

Take one ounce of Venice turpentine, half an ounce of powdered precipitate, half a pound of lard, and two table-spoonsful of cold water; mix the turpentine and precipitate together with a knife; then add the lard and water, a little at a time, till it is well mixed; then put it in little boxes. This is useful to dry up a breaking out on the face or hands; care should be taken while using it, not to take cold.

Camphor dissolved in alcohol, or any white spirits, is very good to use on pimples on the face.

Blister Ointment.

Sometimes after a blister has been drawn with cabbage leaves, it becomes very sore and inflamed; a salve may be made of the leaves of evergreen, (a plant which grows in gardens with a thick leaf;) pound the leaves, and stew them in cream or sweet lard; spread it on a fine linen rag, and apply it to the blister after it has been washed with milk and water.

Another salve for blisters is to bruise the leaves of the English mallows with a little southern wood; stew them in sweet lard until they are crisp, and strain it; apply it three times a day. This is good to heal a burn.

Lily Ointment.

Gather the flowers of the sweet white lily, while they are fresh, and stew them in sweet lard. This is good for a swelling, or sore.

Elder Ointment for Burns, &c.

After peeling off the outside bark of the elder, scraps off the green bark that is under, and stew it in lard till it is crisp; then strain it in a jar, and put it away to heal a blister or burn, or an old sore.

St. Johnswort Ointment, and its Uses.

Gather the yellow flowers of St. Johnswort while in full bloom; put them in a wide-mouthed bottle, and fill it with equal quantities of lard and sweet oil; tie a skin over it, and hang it in the sun for a month; then strain it, put it back in the bottle, and cork it up. This is one of the most effectual remedies for bruises, or for a mashed foot or hand. It should always be kept where there is a family of children.

Ointment for Mortification.

Take the berries, leaves and bark of the black alder, and bruise them well in a mortar; stew them in lard for an hour, stirring all the time; then strain it, and add a small piece of beeswax.

A poultice can be made for mortification, of the berries, leaves and bark of black alder, boiled in sweet cream, and thickened with wheat bread.

Another good poultice may be made of the inmost bark of sassafras root, pounded and boiled in weak ley, and thickened with corn meal. The patient should drink tea made of the roots of sassafras and burdock.

Bread and Milk, and Flaxseed Poultices.

Boil half a pint of sweet milk, and thicken it with crumbs of bread; let it boil till soft. This is the mildest poultice that can be made.