Original White House Cookbook

To Preserve Bouquets : — Put a little saltpetre in the water you use for your bouquets and the flowers will live for a fortnight. To Destroy Cockroaches: — Hellebore sprinkled on the floor at night. They eat it and are poisoned. To Remove Iron Rust : — Lemon juice and salt will remove ordinary iron rust. If the hands are stained there is nothing that will remove the stains as well as lemon. Cut a lemon in halves and apply the cut surface as if it were soap. To Keep Bar Soap : — Cut it into pieces and put it into a dry place ; it is more economical to use after it has become hard, as it does not waste so readily. To Brighten Carpets : — Carpets after the dust has been beaten out may be brightened by scattering upon them corn meal mixed with salt and then sweeping it off. Mix salt and meal in equal proportions. Carpets should be thoroughly beaten on the wrong side first and then on the right side, after which spots may be removed by the use of ox-gall or ammonia and water. Silver Tea and Coffeepot: — When putting away those not in use everyday lay a little stick across the top under the cover. This will allow fresh air to get in and prevent the mustiness of the contents, familiar to hotel and boarding-house sufferers. To Prevent Creaking of Bedsteads: — If a bedstead creaks at each movement of the sleeper, remove the slats, and wrap the ends of each in old newspapers. To Clean Unvarnished Blach Walnut: — Milk, sour or sweet, well rubbed in with an old soft flannel, will make black walnut look new. To Prevent Cracking of Bottles and Fruit Jars: — If a bottle or fruit-jar that has been more than once used is placed on a towel thoroughly soaked in hot water, there is little danger of its being cracked by the introduction of a hot liquid. To Prevent Lamp-wicks from Smoking: — Soak them in vinegar, and then dry them thoroughly. Rub the nickel stove-trimmings and the plated handles and hinges of doors with kerosene and whiting, and polish with a dry cloth. Death to Bugs: — Varnish is death to the most persistent bug. It is cheap — ten cents’ worth will do for one bedstead — is easily used, is safe, and improves the looks of the furniture to which it is applied. The application must, however, be thorough, the slats, sides, and every crack and corner receiving attention. That salt should be eaten with nuts to aid digestion. That milk which stands too long makes bitter butter. To Clean Drain Pipes: — Drain pipes, and all places that are sour or impure, may be cleaned with lime-wator or carbolic acid. If oil-cloth be occasionally rubbed with a mixture of beeswax and turpentine, it will last longer. To Remove Mildew from Cloth: — Put a teaspoonful of chloride of lime into a quart of water, strain it twice, then dip the mildewed places in this weak solution ; lay in the sun ; if the mildew has not disappeared when dry, repeat the operation. Also soaking the article in sour milk and salt ; then lay in the sun ; repeat until all the mildew is out. To Take Ink out of Linen: — Dip the ink spot in pure melted tallow, then wash out the tallow and the ink will come out with it. This is said to be unfailing. Milk will remove ink from linen or colored muslins, when acids would be ruinous, by soaking the goods until the spot is very faint and then rubbing and rinsing in cold water.