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GARDEN NOTES. -
GARDEN NOTES. THE fibrous-rooted begonias are important stove, or, intermediate house plants, and those that have been struck from cuttings this year will, if they have received proper attention (says W. B."), be making fine examples. My plants are kept in a well-venti- lated house, and the greatest care is taken not to give too much water either at the roots or in the atmo- sphere, as the only outcome of too warm a temperature is a leggy, sappy growth, the very thing that one must avoid. A very beautiful section is that which comprises such varieties, or rather hybrids, as John Heal, which is an exceptionally free-blooming kind, the flowers crimson, and make a bright effective display. Mine are grown in the intermediate house, and not exposed to too much sun. Euphorbia jacquinise- flora, one of the most useful plants that can be grown in the stove for supplying winter flowers, has a warm moist corner in the stove. I have trained the shoots near the glass, and no shade is given. In this way a greater quantity of bloom is gained. The propaga- tion of late poinsettias is over, and attention is given to potting them from the pots in which the cuttings have been struck singly into one size larger. It is only necessary to keep the house moderately close until they have thoroughly recovered from the shift, but afterwards give freer ventilation. I have made re- peated allusion to the blue flowered eranthemum pulchellum, which always makes when in bloom a pretty feature of the stove. The plain fact is that cultivators try it but fail, simply through the reason that it is a plant that requires plenty of warmth and abundant moisture. Therefore at this period, in particular, encourage as much as possible a free growth, and if the specimens are unduly tall stop them. The cuttings will make useful plants if they are placed singly, similar to poinsettias, in a three- inch pot. They may be permitted to flower in this size. A plant that has been very beautiful with me is Lagerstrcemia indica, which is planted out in an annexe to the stove, the soil used being a mixture of good fibry loam and peat, with plenty of sharp silver sand added. The flowers are of no value for cutting, but produced in the greatest profusion and of a charming cnmpled form, the colour what is known as shrimp pink. Give a slight rest during winter, just giving sufficient water to prevent the shoots from shrivelling, but with the spring months more water and heat are essential. It is a native of China and Japan. There is also a white variety, but I do not know it. The flowers are white instead of pink. ANY orchids, other than those of a purely botanical nature, that flower at this season of the year (observes W. H. Young) are of value, and amongst those in bloom just now are a few species of Miltonia that deserve a note. The best is M. spectabilis and its varieties, of which there are several, the most notable being M. s. Moreliana, which differs from the type in having flowers of a rich purple colour, whereas M. spectabilis has pure white sepals and petals, and the lip white shaded with rosy-violet. A good way to grow this species is on pieces of troe-fern in a pan to form a pyramid, and on this fix the plants with wire pegs, filling in the crevices with a little live sphagnum. I find that they do remarkably well treated thus. They should always be well supplied with water, only during the winter a little less must be given than when the plants are growing. The leaves of this species usually havea yellow appearanee, not-as some imagine —from exposure to the light, but it is, I believe, their natural tint. Another useful species is M. Regenelli, having rosy-white sepals and petals, the lip of a lilac and rose colour. Pot culture suits this best, and to induce it to flower well the plants should be kept a little on the dry side during thejwinter months. M. Clowesi is an old but valuable species, having been in cultivation since 1840. It should be grown in pots. A piece of fern-stem placed upright in the pot, just high enough for the base of the plant to rest upon, is a great aid to the plant to affix itself to, filling round the fern-stem with a little peat and moss. Miltonia bellula is rather rare, but is somewhat like M. Regnelli. It grows freely in a basket, but it should not be hung very near the glass unless it is in a very shady position. All the above species may be grown on the shady side of the cattleya house, or in an intermediate house. THERE are still several kinds of cattleyas in flower, viz., C. Dowiana, and the variety aurea, and C. chrysotoxa, which, in my opinion, is a variety of Dowiana, also the recently-introduced C.warocqueana, or, more correctly speaking, the autumn-flowering C. labiata. Recently I saw plants in Mr. Warocque's collection that had made bulbs over a foot long, and with sheaths fully six inches in length. His plants are nearly all grown in baskets, hung up near the glass. One of our best plants rotted off immediately after flowering last year, which was due, no doubt, to having a little too much material about the roots, it being grown in a pot, and when watered the soil remained wet too long. If grown in baskets it is possible to fix the plants firmly with less material than if grown in pots. There are very few bulbophvllums worth growing excepting as botanical curiosities; but B. umbellatum, which we have in flower just now, and carrying 10 spikes, makes quite a pretty plant. It succeeds well in a pot placed in the in- termediate house, and kept moderately dry during the winter. Amongst a host of new orchids that have been introduced during the last twelve years, few equal and none surpass Vanda Sanderiana, which was im- ported from the Philippine Islands in 1881.'A grand display of this magnificent species was made by Mr. Sander at the Drill Hall, Westminster, on September 6, on which occasion two plants were exhibited, each carrying six spikes of their finely-coloured flowers. Basket culture suits this species best, and they should be placed near the glass in a light position, as they make sturdier growths and flower better than if they are heavily shaded. At all times large quantities of water should be given them, excepting for a short time in the winter, when a short rest should be afforded by withholding water. Calanthes and pleiones are'beginning to lose their leaves, but they must still be supplied with plenty of water. Later on much less will suffice, but now that the bulbs are swelling up and the flower spikes forming, a little liquid manure will greatly aid the latter if given now. THE second early apples are now (says R. R.") fit for gathering. These include such cooking sorts as Ecklinville Seedling, Lord Grosvenor (or Jolly Beggar), Old Hawthornden, Lord Suffield, Keswick Codlin, and others. The dessert varieties include Worcester Penrmain and Red Astrachan. I do not like to gather any of the above-mentioned kinds before the middle of the month, because I believe the fruit continues to increase in weight up to the time it comes readily away from the branches. I find, moreover, that the longer the fruit is left on the tree the better colour it gains. There are so few pears generally this season, that the only sorts likely to require attention just now are Beurre d'Amanalis, Beurre Giffard, and Brockworth Park. These may be taken to the fruit room at once. It is well to bear in mind that ripe apples or pears become contami- nated if in contact with anything objectionable, such as old and worm eaten woodwork. To prevent the flavour of the fruit in such cases suffering, I advise that the shelves be covered with paper. Those who have to send ripe pears a distance should do so before the fruit is too soft, or they must be as carefully packed as peaches. With regard to the condition of the trees growing in the form of cordons or pyramids, they are in some cases so vigorous (owing to there being no fruit to check their luxuriance) that I can plainly see that we shall have to resort to root pruning to prevent an excess of vigour next year, which, if allowed to go unchecked, would probably prove injurious to future crops. If the weather continues fairly dry, all the trees that require this attention will be operated upon before I write under this head- ing a fortnight hence. Much as I am in favour of root pruning over-luxuriant trees, I have learned from experience that some judgment is necessary in selecting those to be operated npon. I have no objection to lifting bodily and replanting a young tree that has been only four years planted, but after they have been established longer than that I am satisfied that it is safer to cat asunder the large roots on one side of the tree only, and to deal with the remaining half one year or two years later. With regard to unproductive pyramid trees ten feet high, with nearly that much in diameter of branches, it is better not to root prune, but to allow the tree to exhaust its strength by leaving the branches to grow unchecked until the end of September in each year. Wall trees of the same age being more manage- able, as thera are no branches extending outwards, can be lifted with comparative ease without seriously injuring the roots, and when so dealt with it frequently turns a barren tree into a fruitful one after a year or two. Many a stubborn tree has been brought into a productive condition by cutting asunder the large roots that had gone down into a bad cold soil, and lifting the smaller ones nearer the surface. When I have such trees to deal with, I do not wait for all the leaves to fall, but accomplish the work early in October. The work in the orchard house just now is not of a serious character, but it is necessary to keep the trees from which the fruit has been taken syringed of an evening. I find that there is a slight indication of red spider at one end, and this must not be allowed to increase.- Gardener,q Magazine.
AMERICAN FUN. .
AMERICAN FUN. A RURAL newspaper says Without intending to be personal, we feel bound to declare that if our postmaster would resign, many timid persons would feel safer about their money letten." AN American interviewer stops short after writing the words Prince Demetrius Tschawtschawadze, and utters this remark Imagine such a name on an umbrella handle. It would hang over the ferrnle." RECENTLY the local paper at Grass Valley said: The prettiest girl in Grass Valley doesn't carry her- self straight enough when promenading." For a week after, all the Grass Valley girls stalked about like so many bean-poles, and every girl said That horrid paper Ma, don't I walk straight ?" A PERSONAL in the New York Herald a week ago stated that if "John Smith, formerly of Philadelphia, would call at No. Blank-street, he will hear of something to his advantage." John called. There was about 250 of him-and he has been calling at the rate of 47 per day ever since the personal" ap- peared. A FUNNY story is told of two Vermont farmers who are not grangers. They induced their wives to join and report before they would commit themselves. Now, when they will, they cannot; two blackballs greet every application. Meanwhile the wives go regularly and triumphantly to every grange meeting, and the men stay at home and tend the babies. LADIES in fashionable attire are supposed to look captivating even to the eyes of unsophisticated nature. But look at the facts. A dog, brought up on a whaling vessel, who had been absent on a three years' voyage, and had never seen a woman, was so frightened at the first he saw when he finally reached the haunts of civilisation that he immediately fell into a fit. A NEVADA woman recently knocked down seven burglars, one after another. Her husband watched her from the top of the stairs, and felt so brimful of battle that he couldn't cool off until he had jerked his eight-year-old boy out of bed and beaten him for not getting up and helping his mother. A MILWAUKEE boy has swallowed half-a-dozen steel buttons, and his mother doesn't have to scream for him when he is out on the street playing with those Cluckenon boys. She just brings a magnet to the door, and he flies to it like a needle to the pole. A SEEDY-LOOKING curb-stone stock operator, whose strawberry mark covered the whole end of his nose, was yesterday complaining that he was "busted." What busted you ?" asked a bystander. Buying mint on a margin," said the operator who wore the nose. Said the other, I guess it was not the mint that busted you-it was the brandy and water you got with it." The "nose" at once started across the street to see a friend, and give him a point." AN American gives the following: In Tennessee, a snake which measured several feet in length was killed while caught in the crack of a fence, half its body being on each side. Examination developed that the snake had swallowed a rabbit before it attempted to crawl through the crack, and that after its body was half through the crack it caught and swallowed another rabbit, thus having a rabbit on each side of the fence. The rabbits could not get through the crack, which was unfortunate for the snake, as it cost him his life." GRANDMA, do you know why 1 can see up in the •ky so far ?" asked Charlie, a little four-year-old, of the venerable lady who sat on tho irr—flrn iwpti, knitting. No, my dear; why is it ?" said grandma, bending her eye eager to catch and remember the wise saying of the precious little pet. Because there is nothing in the way," replied the young philosopher, resuming his astronomical research, and grandma her knitting. A SUCCESSFUL poultry dealer being sneered at for setting up a carriage, one of his friends declared that it was eminently the proper thing for him to do, as he was in duty bound to make his coop-pay (coupi) if possible. WE are justified in supposing that the primitive man must have been a woolly haired, prognathous, dolicocephalous being, of a dark brown or blackish colour. Glad the thing is explained; it always puzzled us a little. A WESTERN paper, describing a duel, informs its readers that one of the parties was severely wounded in the breast, while his opponent fired in the air." AN hotel-keeper at a station on the Central Pacific Railroad is said to call his guests to dinner by dis- charging one barrel of a double-barrelled shot gun. He reserves the other barrel to collect with. AFTER many days of arid dissication, the vapoury captains marshalled their thundering hosts, and poured out upon thirsty humanity and pulveris- ing vegetation a few inches of aqsaflitvialis. That's the way one of those editors out West took to tell his readers that it had rained. My eyes with tears is red and dim, 'cause he loves she and I love him but they'll be better by-and-bye, when she cuts him and he loves I." IT looks bad to see a dog preceding his master down the street, and calmly turn into the first liquor saloon he approaches. It shows there is something wrong, something lacking-a deplorable tendency on the part of the dog. JOHN HENRY'S father-in-law, aged 85, took it into his head to get his life insured. But, sir, you are too old for us to take the risk," said the agent. Why so ?" queried the old man. Because speedy death is too sure a thing." Well, I have been looking at your tables/' said the father-in-law, and I find there ain't one man dies at my age to a hundred that die younger." The insurance agent couldn't see it, but John Henry says it is good logic. THERE'S said to be a man up in Maine who can go on the ice in a pair of skates and write a pro- missory note in four months at such perfection that the sun will be sure to liquidate it at or before maturity. A LADY, who says she is the homeliest woman in Kentucky, advertises for a husband. He must be middle-aged, good-natured, but not beautiful, ad I want to love him all myself." A BRIDE in Indiana, at the conclusion of the marriage ceremony, stepped gracefully forward and requested the clergyman to give out the hymn, This is the way I long have sought." A YOUNG coloured lady of Philadelphia wears shoes 17 inches long, and there is so much of her on the ground that she never gets the dampness out of her system. AMONG the rules of the United States post-office are some that read strange to the less cultivated The postal law does not exempt postmasters from working on the public roads." Ladies' garters, in packages not exceeding 12oz., are subject to a postage of two cents for each 2oz." Packages of human hair not exceeding 12oz. in weight may be sent by mail at the rate of two cents for each 2oz." A husband has no right under the postal law to control his wife's correspondence." Honey-bees are not considered proper matter for transportation by mail." When a lady, holding the position of postmaster, marries and changes her name, a vacancy is created." Apitopos of old bachelorhood, we quite agree with a contemporary who advises young men not to lend themselves to its support. In this sense, as in many wot f°r a man to be a loan. WELL, farmer, you told us your place was a good place for hunting; now we've tramped it for three hours and found no game." Just so; well, I calcu- late, as a general thing, that the less game there is the more hunting you have." A JOLLY Davenport doctor called on a lady on his way home from a dinner party, so elated that he could not count her pulse-beats. Conscious of the cause of his difficulty, he, in a moment of irritation, blurted out, Tipsy, by JOTe P" and rushed out of the house. The next day the lady sent for him and said that she lamented that he had discovered her condi- tion, and begged he would keep it a secret.
THE FARMER'S COLUMN. ) -
THE FARMER'S COLUMN. ) THE HARVEST.—It is satisfactory (says the Daily Chronicle) to learn that while the harvest of the North is still in jeopardy, there are other parts of the country, including all but the later districts, where the harvest-homes which follow the ingather- ing are already taking place. It is too early to speak with certainty of the result of the harvest, but it seems pretty certain that barley has not been con- siderably damaged, though some of it has been dis- coloured. As to wheat, there is no doubt that the crop will prove disappointing in quantity; and the price-which has touched 27s. per quarter for new English-must prove disastrous to wheat growers. With reduced prices for corn and stock, the question of rents will have to be seriously considered. RENTS.—British farmers having bound themselves in many cases to pay impossible rents, the revolt" among the agriculturists of Lancashire need not (ac- cording to a farming writer)surpriseus. Farm labourers had their revolt" in East Anglia 20 years ago, on the ground that they were paid too little. The com- plaint among the farmers is that they are paying too mnch. We have often pointed out that the main object of many landlords is to obtain the highest possible rents, and that the farmers who submit to them display a rashness quite unaccountable in such a sober class. The manifesto issued by the Lancashire Tenant Farmers' Association states that on some few estates rents are fair and conditions reasonable, but on the bulk of the farms the tenants are borne down by excessive rentals," and they desire therefore to induce landlords to make such per- manent redactions of rent as shall meet the reason- able necessities of occupiers." It is said that rents in Lancashire went up between 1864 and 1883 20 per cent., and that they have not come down again in pro- portion to the reduced price of produce. If that be true it seems a healthy sign that a considerable number of farms in the Fylde district alone, where the complaints are loudest, are now tenantless. The farmers complain, We cannot plead face to face with our landlords, and their agents are seldom ready to listen to our appeal." One would think that there should be no pleading on either side. The tenant should be as free as his landlord, and he is by no means bound to farm at a loss for another man's advantage. The highly-rented farms should be avoided, as well as the obsolete covenants which bind tenants to a worn-out system and the growth of wheat. It seems that they manage these things better in Berks, where the depre- ciation of rents during the past 10 years on several great estates has not been less than from 45 to 50 per cent. WHEAT PRicus.-IAibst autumn, in consequence of the Russian famine and the extraordinary under- estimates of the American crop, the price of wheat rose to 44s. per quarter. The bright vision of high prices crossing the farmers' path increased the breadth of wheat sown at that time. There is no such illusion now to dazzle the eyes, and the hazard of sowing wheat in all but the most suitable soils will no doubt be recognised at the coming seedtime. HORSES AND HORSE-JUDGING.—One of the judges of horses at the Easingwold Agricultural Show re- marked that in judging in Yorkshire he always ex- Eerienced the feeling that half the spectators around imwerejustas good judges as himself. Horses always form the principal feature at Easingwold, and this year's display was quite up to the average of recent years, and included many hunters, hackneys, and roadsters which had already made their mark in show-yards. It is much to the credit of this county that in looking through the American agricultural papers one is always struck with the number of advertisements in which Ameri- cans claim the credit of having bought Yorkshire horses. Horse-breeding is taking its proper place in Cheshire, where 200 horses were exhibited at the Middlewich Agricultural Show, or three times as many as three years ago, a number of special prizes having been offered by the gentlemen of the district, as well as by the Tarporley Hunt Club and the society itself. Among the light horses there was not a single un- sound animal in the field, and on the other hand one of the judges of heavy horses said that a gradual im- provement in the quality of horses of that description had taken plaee in the district during the last five or six years. Cheshire was always noted for cows and pigs, but till latterly the horses had not been so good. As might have been expected, the milch cows at the show were a very strong lot. BUTTBR MAKING.-With the help of the County Council in Cheshire, lecturers have been going about the county imparting valuable information and in- struction in the making of butter and cheese, and at Worleston a dairy farm has been taken up by the County Council, and the necessary buildings added to it, with room for 14 pupils. All the arrangements have been made to meet the requirements of agri- cultural training. WHEAT REAPING.—Mr. James Long, who farms largely in the corn-growing county of Hants, esti- mates the cost of cutting eight acres of wheat with a self-binding reaper at £ 1 2s. 6d. Four horses are employed to cut that quantity in a day, and 2s. 6d. is charged for each horse, with 2s. 6d. for the driver, and Is. 3d. per acre for the string. The total cost per acre is about 2s. 10d., or about one- fourth the cost of cutting the crop by hand. Something, however, should be charged to pay the cost of the machine, and on the other hand it may be said that farm horses often stand idle in the stable while the corn is being reaped, and, as they earn nothing, little or nothing should be charged for them when drawing the reaping machines. Machine work is superior to that done by hand, leaving a shorter stubble and binding the sheaves less tightly, so that they dry quicker in sun and wind. HORSII RATIONS.—In feeding a pair of carriage horses, the following ration has been tried with success, the horses being moderately worked. The hay and straw are chopped twice a week in the fol- lowing proportions: 501b. of hay, 201b. of wheat straw, mixed with 211b. oats, 211b. maize, and 151b. bran, total 1271b., which supplies the horees for three and a half days with as much as they can eat. Each horse gets 81b. per day of corn and bran and 101b. per day of hay and straw chaff, and the cost, at farm prices, is 10d., or 5s. 10d. per week for the food of one horse doing light work. Tramway horses, which are harder worked, would require more corn and nitrogenous food, such as beans or peas. PROLIFIC STOCK.—A correspondent of the Live I Stock Journal gives a well-authenticated case of a shorthorn cow which, at 18 years and five months old, had produced 22 calves, 19 of the number living. Four times she had enlarged her owner's herd with twins, and once with triplets. The cow was born in 1853 in the herd of that very famous breeder of Southdown sheep, the late Jonas Webb, Babraham, Cambridgeshire, and her rather illustrious pedigree and that of her calves, and the dates of births, are supplied by Mr. Henry Webb, the well-known breeder. PRODUCING GOOD MILK.—If there is one thing more than another which is looked on as certain in connection with cows in this country, it is (writes Mr. Primrose M'Connell, in the Agricultural Gazette) that rich food will produce rich milk, as well M more of it. It has long been known that the solids not fat" in milk remain pretty nearly constant under all conditions, or, at most, vary very slightly as between different breeds and systems of feeding; but we have always believed that there was a great range of variation in the butter-fat, and that, further, this variation could be controlled- within certain limits—by the amount of albu- minoids in the food in other words, that the feeding of such nitrogenous foods as cotton-cake or bean-meal had an immediate effect in increasing the percentage of cream or butter-fat, while also slightly raising the quantity of milk. But now, from Professor Henry, of Madison, Wisconsin, comes the astounding in- formation that the composition of the milk of any cow is fixed and immutable, and that this cannot be altered by feeding, the quantity only being in- fluenced. If it were any man of lesser repute than Professor Henry the matter might be passed over, but statements emanating from him deserve serious consideration, whatever their import. Moreover, he does not lay down the dictum on his own autho- rity, but quotes the evidence of experiments at the Ontario Agricultural College, and also at the Iowa Agricultural College, in his favour. His most emphatic statement we give verbatim from Hoard's Dairyman:" The milk of the cow seems to be a defi- nite substance, as incapable of change from feeding as is the colour of her hair or her size and general form. If this is true, then, we in this country have been all along making most expensive and disastrous mis- takes; expensive, because the nitrogenous food we desire has to be bought at a high price in the shape of cake or meal; and disastrous because this high feeding has worn out the animals at an earlier age, brought incipient diseases to a climax sooner, and raised the death rate immensely. In justice to Pro- fessor Henry it is necessary to give his qualifying evidence as well. He says that a cow will give her normal milk irrespective of poor feed so long as her body holds out. She will yield up the fat of her own tissues so long as there is any left to make the fat in her milk up to its normal percentage, and any amount of feeding with the butter-fat yield- ing elements in food will not increase this, but only increase the quantity of milk. In other words, the composition of the milk of a cow fed on wheat straw will be the same-so long as the cow holds out-as that from the same cow fed on clover, maize meal, and oilcake meal.
THE. HOUSEHOLD.I
THE. HOUSEHOLD. I HOUSEWORK AS AN EXRRcisE.-To keep the com- plexion and spirits good, to preserve grace, strength, and agility of motion, there is no gymnasium so valu- able, no exercise more beneficent in result than sweeping, dusting, making beds, washing dishes, and the polishing of brass and silver. One year of suoh muscular effort within doors, together with regular exercise in open air, will do more for a woman's com- plexion than all the lotions and pomades that were ever invented. Perhaps the reason why housework does so much more for women than games, is the fact I that exercise which is immediately productive cheers the spirit. It gives women courage to go on living, and makes things seem really worth while.- I Medical Record. ONIONS AND CHOLERA.-Durin our last epidemic of cholera in England it puzzled the sanitary in- spectors of a northern town to understand why the inhabitants of one cottage in a certain row were not affected by the disease which was raging among their neighbours. Finally, it became noticed that a net of onions was suspended in the fortunate house, and on examination these were all found to be diseased. It is also related that during a former outbreak of in- fectious fever in Somers Town and St. Giles, the French priests, who constantly use garlic in all their dishes, visited the worst cases in the dirtiest hovels with impunity, while the English clergy, who were similarly engaged, but who did not eat onions in like fashion, caught the infection in many instances, and fell victims to the disease. Raw onions contain an acid volatile oil, sulphur, phorphorus, alkaline earthy salts, starch, and free, uncrystallised sugar. The fresh juice is colourless, but by exposure to the air becomes red.—Ihe Hospital. SALAD A LA Russic.-Procure a ring-shaped mould about one and one-half inches deep, one and one-half inches wide, and as large round as a dinner plate. Pour into this a little clear aspic jelly, and when partially set, fill it in lightly with a dainty mixture of vegetables, such as asparagus points, new carrots, gherkins, capers, French beans, beetroot, &c., &c., which have all been carefully prepared and cut into small, fanciful shapes, taking care that in the arranging of the various items the colours are taste- fully blended, as this adds considerably to the appearance of the salad. Cover the whole with more jelly, and set the mould in a cool place to stiffen; then, when required, turn it out on to a pretty dish, then, when required, turn it out on to a pretty dish, and fill in the centre with a high mound of carefully prepared fresh vegetable salad. Pour a little rich creamy dressing over the fresh salad, but be careful not to let it touch the border, as that would decidedly mar the effect. Then ornament the surface with tiny patches of lobster coral, garnish round the edge of the dish with quarters or slices of hard-boiled eggs with a small sprig of crisp watercress, or a little heap of mustard and cress between each, and serve with more of the dresssing separate.-Good House- Keeping. APPLE JELLY.—Take a peck of good hard keeping apples, wipe them, and cut them in quarters, but do not peel them. Place them in a jar with one quart of cold water, flavour with the thin rind of a lemon and a little cinnamon. Cover the jar with a flour and water paste and bake for four hours, or all night in a cool oven. When reduced to a pulp, strain the juice through a cloth, and to every pint allow one pound of loaf sugar. Bring it the to boil, and boil fast for 20 minutes. Pour into jars and cover with egged paper. CHEESE TOAST is a nice, savoury, and easily pre- pared. Soak a tablespoonful of bread-crumbs in milk, beat with it an egg; season with made mustard, salt, and cayenne. Lastly, stir in two and a half ounces of grated cheese. Prepare some lightly baked toast cut into squares and fingers, spread each evenly into the mixture. Brown in a quick oven, and just before serving, dust with finely-chopped parsley. GRENUDINES OF VEAL.—Take eight or ten chops from a neck of veal. Remove the bones and fat from them, and trim them neatly. Lard eaeh chop with fat bacon. Place a, pint of good brown gravy into a stew-pan, with a sliced onion and a bouquet of sweet herbs. With a vegetable cutter, cut a carrot and turnip into shapes, and put them into the pan. Lay the meat on top. Cover closely, and stew for three-quarters of an hour. The meat must be put in a quick oven to brown. Arrange the chops in the centre, thicken the gravy and pour it round, garnish with heaps of the turnip and carrot shapes. LEMON CHEESE CAKES.—This mixture may be made now when butter and eggs are cheap, and will keep good for a year. Grate the rinds and squeeze the juice of six large lemons. Stir in gradually one pound of castor sugar, six well beaten eggs, and a quarter of a pound of butter cut in small pieces. Place the mixture in a stew-pan over a slow fire, stir it till it thickens like honey, which should be in about fifteen minutes. Great care must be taken that the mixture does not burn. Pour into preserve pots for keeping. COCOANUT BUNs.-Take five ounces of fine flour, three ounces of ground rice, three ounces of castor sugair, and three ounces of desiccated cocoanut, one small teaspoonful of baking powder. Rub three ounces of butter into the flour with the tips of the fingers, add the other dry ingredients, and lastly two well-beaten eggs. Form the mixture into a stiff paste. Bake in pieces the sizes of a walnut on a buttered baking-sheet for 15 minutes. When baking buns the oven should always be quick. SEVILLE PUDDING.-Take the weight of one esg in butter, and the weigheof two in castor-sugar and fine flour; two tablespoonfuls of marmalade, and half a teaspoonful of baking-powder. Cream the butter and sugar, add the two eggs, the yolks and whites beaten separately, then the rest of the ingredients. Pour into a buttered mould, and steam for four hours. FISH SCALLOPS. —This is a dainty way of using up the remains of any white fish. Remove the skin and bones, add to it an equal portion of potato, or less if preferred; season with anchovy sauce and cayenne. Add a little cream, melted butter, or plain butter. Place a small portion in each scallop shell, of which a few should be kept for the purpose (fishmongers will always give is these shells away when the fish is in season). Sprinkle bread-crumbs over, place a small bit of butter in each, and bake for 15 minutes in a quick oven. This dish is always popular and is most economical. GINGER JAM.—Take four pounds of vegetable marrow free from pulp and seeds. Cut it into pieces about an inch and a quarter square. Place it in a pan with four pounds of loaf sugar, let it stand for 24 hours. Pour into a preserving-pan, add to it the juice and rind of two lemons. Tie in a muslin bag an ounoe and a half of bruised ginger and six chilies let this boil with the jam until it tastes strongly enough of ginger, then take out. Boil the jam until it is clear. When this is made from old vegetable marrows they must be peeled thickly, or the part next to the |r 4 will never boil clear. This jam when propeil/ made should be like preserved ginger, the marrow remaining in square pieces in the myrup- To MAKJII JAM FROM "JOHNNIE M'GORXES."— Madge," in Truth, says: When the dog-roses die, leaving the hedgerows gay with scarlet hips, or Johnnie M'Gories," as the Irish peasants call them, it is not everyone who sees them who knows that they make an excellent preserve. The fruit should be plucked on a fine day towards the end of July or the beginning of August, but this must depend on the season. Let them be quite ripe, but not soft, and choose only the finest and largest for preserving. Rub them with a clean, coarse cloth, cut off the tops, and empty the fruit of seeds by means of a small penknife or even of a new steel pen. This is tiresome work, and must be thoroughly done without breaking the skin. When they are ready, throw the hips into boiling water for a few minutes until nearly, -but not quite, soft; then drain on a sieve. Meantime boil one pound of sugar for every pound of fruit to a syrup in water, or, if an acid taste be preferred-as often happens in Germany-in white wine vinegar. When brought to the proper point, throw in a little cinnamon and as much of the fruit as will cover the bottom of the pan without sticking together, and boil until it is sufficiently done, but on no account must the hips be allowed to form a mash each should retain its outline. When cool, fill into jars and cover in the usual way. Some recipes advise adding some ginger that has been previously scraped, cleaned and sliced. To make marmalade, clean and prepare the hips as in the recipe given, and boil them in water until quite soft. Pass them through a hair sieve, discarding the husks, and throw into syrup (made by boiling one pound of sugar for every pound of fruit in rather less than half a pint of water) till fairly stiff. When cold, fill into jars and cover.
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THE best and most thoughtful editors now allow contributors to the waste basket to write on both sides of the paper.
THE WOMAN'S WORLD. -
THE WOMAN'S WORLD. ONE of the new aut umn mantles is a deep three- quarter-length coat in a woollen material of a lovely sober shade, somewhat recalling the Hogarthian puce, but called after the lees of wine from supposed re- semblance. It is modelled somewhat after the Russian pattern, is bordered with mink, and has large sleeves and waistcoat of velvet of the same shade brightened by narrow bands of a rich jewelled passe- menterie. A very handsome theatre or carriage-cloak is made of a woollen material brocaded in silk, black, green, and heliotrope, all being judiciously blended. A deep shoulder-cape of olive- green velvet is covered with a rather heavy black lace, and bows and long ends of olive-green satin ribbon hang down both in front and behind. A Watteau pleat of olive-green velvet gives fulness and distinction to the back. THIS will be remembered as the season of the blouse. It is true that last season saw it in high favour, but this year it has reached a development never before attained. The neatness and finish about it are only compatible with the costliness of fabric of which this convenient little garment is sometimes composed. A sky-blue bengaline, with yoke of antique brocade in green and blue, and sleeves of old lace, unlined, is suitable for theatre wear, and is fastened in at the waist with a deep band of brocade and a very long, old-fashioned buckle of antique silver, studded with precious stones. Another pretty blouse is made of pink bengaline, with a yoke of pink velvet, studded over with small round jet beads, a fringe of jet falling over the fulness, and hiding the join between silk and velvet. The collar is in black lace and jet, and the short basque of the blouse that appears below the belt is edged with a frill of black lace beaded with a narrow fringe of jet. "Blouse" is hardly an applicable name for a dainty little bodice of this kind, but-at present no other has been disco- vered to suit it. _r_ THE rumour that outside pockets are to be worn again sets one wondering whether lockets will ever be revived. Being useless, and, except when quite small and unobtrusive, a particularly hideous article of feminine adornment, they have a good chance of coming into fashion again. Twelve or 15 years ago no lady of quality was dressed without a huge gold or silver locket, adorned with a raised device or a bunch of forget-me-nots, and containing on the re- verse side a lock of hair or a portrait. Nowadays lockets have fallen on bad times, and the big silver ones are mostly patronised by "'Arry when he reck- lessly indulges in presents to his lady friends. IT is always difficult (remarks the Globe) to dress young girls with good taste combined with economy. They grow so quickly that no sooner has a dress adapted itself completely to their figures than it has to be altered and let down. Some mothers are very clever in making the necessary additions without depriving the gown of its character, while others are sadly careless, and allow their young daughters to wear dresses that are not only too short, but too tight, impeding the natural develop- ment of the frame. For a short skirt, a band of fur is a suitable addition in winter, and can be added on over a false hem composed of similar lining to that of the dress. Sometimes a ruching of the material is sufficient. These are made by cutting bands of the stuff on the cross, ravelling out the edges, and then making them up in box pleats of the triple sort, which are sewn firmly down in the centre and fluffed out at either edge. Another con- venient way to add to the length of a skirt is by means of a band of astrakhan cloth, matching the fabric of the dress. Some of it must also be introduced upon the bodice to bring the upper part of the frock into consonance and harmony with the skirt. THE cross-grained bachelor" who writes com- plaining about the perambulator nuisance will have the sympathy of suburban dwellers. It is no un- common thing to have one's progress altogether blocked by go-carts and perambulators, accompanied by nursery-maids and their friends. When one's legs get entangled in the wheels, whilst the nurses make no effort to take their vehicles out of the wav, and Master Freddie inside the coach claps his hands in delight, the most affectionate admirer of infancy begins to see something of its disadvantageous side. Perhaps mothers might give their nursemaids a judicious hint on the subject. THE complaint that a lady makes in one of the papers about the difficulty of finding a needlewoman is certainly well founded. It is curious that, in an age where so much difficulty is experienced in finding work for women, it should be next to impossible to find anyone who will undertake mending and inex- pensive dressmaking. Ladies seem bent upon crowd- ing into those fields of labour which are already overrun with feminine workers, with the result that wages are reduced below the limit upon which decent existence is possible. There are hundreds of applicants of every age for posts varying in salary from 8s. to £ 1 a week so long as the work be in an office whereas good needlewomen, ladies or otherwise, who can earn 3s. a day and all their meals by sewing and dressmaking, are almost unobtainable. Almost all girls have some little facility with their needle, which, properly trained and developed, would be quite as lucrative and infinitely less drudgery than clerk's work. A NOVELTY in lamp-shades will be welcomed. The fluffy masses of chiffon that charmed us at first have palled upon us these many days. The newest are made of wired gauze embroidered with beads and cut into strange devices. The gauze stands out almost horizontally from the funnel, and from its outer edge hang down innumerable strands of narrow ribbon in every diverse shade, weighted with beads. The shades have a fantastic Oriental appearance, and will be considerably more durable than those of chiffon. No jacket is better adapted for warmth and com- fort during the chilly season (says Lloyd's Newspaper) than the Russian, which promises to be generally worn, fand is certainly more becoming than the straight-backed style. Usually it is seen made of cloth, or serge, bat it also looks well made of tweed. It reaches almost to the knee, and is confined to the waist by a belt; at the throat is a deep collar band, and the full loose sleeve is gathered into a broad band at the wrist. When a smart effect is desired the waist, collar, and wristbands are rimmed with galon braid in which gold and red appear. The whole- back jackets, instead of being worn straight down as hitherto, now have bands drawing in the fulness to the back of the waist. Loops of silk twist are placed in the side seams under the arms, while jacket hooks sewn each end of the band fasten it on, thus produc- ing the effect of the Russian style. This band may be .worn or not according to the will of the wearer, for the loops are so placed that they are scarcely, visible should the band be removed. IT is a delightful fact that trains are only to be worn for dressy in-door occasions, and that short skirts are coming in for every-day gowns. This is as it should be, for trained skirts are quite out of place in the streets, though charmingly graceful for the drawing-room. Gored and umbrella skirtsare being made wider, and with this one exception there will be little change for the next few months. No wide full flounces are now seen; only the tiniest of frills, pleats, or ruches are permissible at the edge. Sleeves still retain plenty of fulness; they no longer stand high on the shoulder, but droop in a downward direction. Plaid silk blouses have been worn for some time in Paris, and are now to be all the rage in London. WITH regard to millinery, the newest hats are entirely composed of velvet. In shape they are flat, and the coloured velvet bow which reaches from front to back is the only trimming. Black felt hate are now taking the place of summer straws; these have the' brim lined with coloured velvet, the old- fashiooed magenta re-appearing with good effect on many. Artistic little bonnets are now seen principally composed of folds of velvet lying flat and close to the head, with the trimming, which consists of a small upright bow, or ostrich plume, lightly placed in front. Velvet string come from the back of these bonnets, and tie beneath the chin.
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THERE is nothing more damaging than the witness that proves too much. Miss Edgeworth tells us somewhere of an Irish peer who, travelling in France with a negro servant, directed him, if questioned on the subject, always to say his master was a French- man. He was punctiliously faithful to his orders; but whenever he said," My massa am a Frenchman," he always added, so am I!"
LITERATURE AND ART. -
LITERATURE AND ART. SURELY the most fatuous course that a man can take, if he wishes to enjoy again and again the restful delights of a beautiful spot unknown to fame, is to write a book or an article about it. Yet there is hardly a week in which the charms of some village by sea or river, on hill or in valley, of which the world bad not hitherto heard the name, are not trumpeted forth by a visitor, who, after describing the wild scenery of the coast, the sylvan beauties of the country, or the unsophisticated innocence of the people, winds up with an expression of his hope that the place may never become a popular resort." It does not take much to reduce a place—especi- ally a seaside town or village to that condition when once the start has been made. That the vast majority of men and women should prefer a gre- garious existence at all times, and that a crowded spa at home or abroad, or a seaside town where one can hardly move on the parade on account of the crush of promenaders, should afford them the most delightful change, need not be matter for surprise. But that any one who loudly professes to hate all this, and quotes scraps of poetry by the dozen about the pleasures of solitude, of pathless woods, and of being alone beneath the stars, should do his best to turn the particular spot where he has been enjoying all these advantages into a place of parades, and bandstands, and two shilling excursions is suggestive either of humbug or of crass stupidity. Yet at this moment dozens of holiday-makers are planning shilling books on short articles about the havens of rest wherein they have passed the last few weeks, and inventing fanciful names for localities whose chief charm, ac- cording to their discoverers, is that they are qnite un- known to the world. THE novelists are still confessing in the ear of a London evening paper why they don't write plays. Only two reasons are possible-either they can't or they don't want to: And why any one should seek a more precise explanation is not apparent, though opinions may differ as to which of the two reasons is the true one. Whether there is a single novelist in England who possesses the real dramatic gift ia ex- ceeding doubtful. But to pretend-as the dramatist is wont to assume—that the average novelist could not write the average play, even if he chose, seems absurd. An acquaintance with German farces, and an introduc- tion to a manager, has made the fortune of many a playwright, and the worst writer of novels has a better equipment than that. For drama which is also literature there has long ceased to be a demand, and it would be a manifest anachronism for a writer with a gift of fiction to waste his powers in the exercise of an art which is dead of disuse. The playwrights win all the money prizes, and should be content to leave the reputation to the fictive artists," as they call them in America. THE keeper of the Dublin Museum has presented his report to the Science and Art Department. It ap- pears from it that some interesting additions have been made to the art collections under his charge. Among the objects recently acquired are several specimens of 16th century wood and stone carvings of Italian origin, and some paintings in enamel of the 18th century period, including a fine portrait of the celebrated Peg Woffington. THE ceramic collection of the same musenm was also enriched by the addition of a remarkable tankard of Greussen pottery, by two stands of shell and rockwork of Chelsea china, and several painted and encaustic tiles of Persian ware. A clever water- colour drawing of the old market-cross at Kilkenny, executed by an artist of the last century, was pur- chased. Besides these, important casts of sculptures and architectural details from Florence, Innsbruck, Pistoja, Limoges, Beauvois, and Versailles were acquired. CANON MACDONNELL will have a good deal of labour in compiling the life of Archbishop Magee, which he has undertaken to write. He will have a tremendous mass of material of one kind or another to get through, for Magee's was a life of brilliant activity. The archbishop was a voluminous letter writer, and none of your niggardly half-page correspondents either. Canon Macdonnell will be getting correspon- dence from all quarters, and the difficulty will be to select from it judiciously. IT is naturally hard for the most gifted eon to shine in the light of a gifted father. It cannot be more easy for a father to succeed beside the success of a son. Nevertheless, Mr. J. Lockwood Kipling, Rudyard's father, has tasted distinct success with his work Beast and Man in India." It is going into a new edition, and as the price will be cheaper, .there is every likelihood that it may become widely known. Recently Mr. Kipling pere was in this country; now he has gone back to Lahore. He is a member of the text book committee of Lahore University and secre- tary of the educational exhibition shortly to take place in that Indian city. Mr. Lockwood Kipling has the advantage of his son in one respect-he can illustrate his writings with real cleverness. IN the national competition in drawing, painting, writing, and lettering in 1892, it appears that £ 2810 9s. has been distributed in prizes, and that among the competitors were 314 in drawing and 38 in painting. IT was said of Archdeacon Denison's Notes of my Life" that it spoiled all the good stories pre- viously told of him. Mozley's Reminiscences were full of these stories, and other works relating to the Oxford of his time teemed with good things about the pugnacious archdeacon. The new volume which is in the Press will deal with his ever-active life since 1879, including his part in the Athanasian- Creed controversy and the later days of the Ritual prosecutions. Quite a melancholy interest attaches te its concluding pages, for these will record the break with all his old friends over Lux Mundi." THE council of the Birmingham Architectural Association have made arrangements with the authorities of the Municipal School of Art, by whieh they will undertake jointly a special course of archi- tectural lectures and classes. The historical subjects will be dealt with at the School of Art, and the asso- ciation will be responsible for the technical part of the curriculum. THE Due d'Au male seems to have thoroughly en- joyed the visit of the Library Association to Chan- tilly. Mes confreres les amis des livres," as he amiably styled his guests, were delighted with the beautiful library in which is preserved the valuable and interesting archives of the House of Conde. Till lately these historical documents, which were first collected by the old Prince de Conde, were in an un- classified mass, and were practically useless to the Historians^ who wished to avail themselves of their aid'. But M. Macen, the Due d'Au- male's learned librarian, spent manv months going through and sorting them, and now they are alphabetically arranged and in perfect order. The Due d'Aumale is not only a lover of books he is one of the most zealous collectors of rare and ancient bindings in Europe. In his library are to be found volumes stamped with the arms of every Royal biblio- phile, beginning with the Prayer-book of Catherine de Medici down to a music album which belonged to Marie Antoinette, and which remained lying on one side for something like 80 years in the storeroom of a Versailles secondhand dealer. The due's auto- graph collection of authors is also very complete. He is eclectic in his literary tastes, and manages to be on friendly terms with every modem writer of note, from Emile Zola, who is often bidden to lunch at Chantilly, to Francois Copp6e, the Due d'Aumale's favourite colleague in the French Academy. MR. THOMAS BROCK'S bronze statue of the Earl of Angus, the first colonel-in-chief of the 26th (Came- ronian Regiment), has been set up at Douglas Muir, Lanarkshire. It is erected as a memorial of the first ftuster of the Cameronians in 1669. It stands on a pedestal of local freestone, and has cost over jElOOO. A model of this statue was in the Royal Academy two years ago. ——— THE attempts to reconstruct the Venus of Milo have been many, and daring and quaint. The latest is from the brain of Mr. J. Bell, of Kensington, who holds that she stood in the amphitheatre of Melos, the accepted site for the holding of high public festivals, and for the bestowal of honours for public service, and the arts." Starting from this theory, he invests her in his attempt at restoration with the character of a great goddess conferring honours. Her right arm and hand are advanced in the act of bestowing a wreath of glory, the left hand holds others in reserve. Mr. Bell calls his attempt at restoration a Venus Donatrix.