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The Rhondda Leader

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HINTS FOR THE HOME.

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HINTS FOR THE HOME. USES OF SALT. Besides being such an essential part 01 culinary art, salt has many other uses, perhaps not generally known. Salt cleanses the palate and furred tongue, and a gargle of salt and water is often effi- cacious. A pinch of salt on the tongue, followed ten minutes afterwards by a drink of cold water, often cures a sick headache. Salt hardens the gums, makes the teeth white, and sweetens the breath. Salt water and alcohol in solution should be used for rubbing weak ankles. Salt used dry in the same manner as snuff will do much to relieve colds, hay fever, &c. Salt in warm water if used for bathing tired eyes will be found very refreshing. Salt and water will stop haemorrhage from tooth pulling, THE CARE OF SAUCEPANS. The careful housewife will always have a watchful eye for her saucepans, for they need constant attention to keep them in good order. If the pans are of copper, and in constant usa, an inspection should be made, say, every three months, to see whether there is need for re- lining. Aluminium saucepans, now coming into more general usage, should be cleansed inside and out, but care must be taken not to have soda in the water, as this spells ruin for the pans. Where enamel-lined saucepans are used, special caution should be observed as to chips or cracks in the lining. The enamel is so apt to flake off when the pan has been in use for a time, and there is the risk of fragments being incorporated with the contents of the pan. Each time that an iron saucepan has been used, it should be placed on the fire with clean cold water and a little soda. When the water is hot, it should be emptied away, and the inside of the saucepan scoured with sand. In France a wisp of hay or straw is often employed to clean out the bottoms of pans, and has been found to be a most successful means of rubbing off any crust which may have f rmed. Lids should always be well wiped underneath directly after anything has been boiled in the saucepan. If they are washed in strong soda and water, dried immediately, and rubbed with a clean cloth, they will keep bright and will only require to be polished once a week. The stockpot should receive special attention, and the contents never allowed to remain over night, but should be strained into a clean bowl. The pot must be well scoured, washed in hot soda water, and dried thoroughly before it is used again. TAKE TIME. This is a busy world, and most of us have the excuse that we have no time to do many things that we should do. The mother of the home must take time to be in sympathy with the pleasures and pastimes of her children and her husband. When her children talk of their plans or games, she must not sit in silence, and when h r husband talks of current events she should be able to keep up her end of the conversation. The husband thinks he has a better excuse than any other member of the family for not having time to attend to little affairs of home life which constantly need looking after. There are numerous trifles getting out of order every day in the home. The door will not latch or lock, the latches on the windows may be broken or loose, the taps of the water works, or parts of the stove may be disabled, or a glass may be broken in the windows. Surely the husband must not say that he has no time to look after these affairs. Many husbands ail end to these little things them selves. It often takes more time to secure a mechanic .0 do the work than it does to make the repairs personally. It is not right or proper that we should encumber our- selves with work so that we cannot do our duty as parents in our own home, in a social and sympathetic manner. BREAKFAST AND HEALTH. The old-fashioned notion that one should eat a substantial meal in the morning, whether one feels in the mood for it or not, is practically I an exploded notion among those independent women folk who have learnt to think and act for themselves, and who prefer to follow the dictates of common sense rather than those of popular opinion. Some there are, it is true, who still tread along the beaten path of established custom, and who affect to believe that if they did not begin the (by's work by consuming the regulation breakfast, consisting of porridge, bacon, eggs, toast, and coffee, they could not long maintain their hold upon the land of the living; but thece, after all, are in the minority —and even then are made up of women who work less with their brains than with their hands. The intellectual woman knows better, in these enlightened times, than to tx her digestive organs for the whole day, before she h is so much as started out from home in the morning, and so contents herself with a meal that is at once ligh., dainty, and nourishing. and that will not send her out to her daily duties-whatever they may be—with blunted senses and an aching head. THE CARE OF THE HANDS. It is a mistake to undervalue the appearance of the hands. If Nature has been cruel and ha.s denied us the possession of small white hands, with perfectly formed fingers and almond- shaped nails, care and unfailing perseverance can still do much to compensate us for the natural deprivation. Frequent washing will not roughen or coarsen the skin if the water is soft, and care is taken afterwards to dry the hands thoroughly. The soap should be of the finest quality the water must be warm but not too hot. Make a good lather, rub the hands well, rinse them several times, and when perfectly free from soap dry them thoroughly with a very soft damask towel. Then rub an emollient into the pores, and clust with a little fine oatmeal powder. Rub the hands at night with some good cream. To wear loose white gloves occasi onally at night is a good plan, but if this is done too frequently it will make the skin yellow. Red hands can often be avoided by attending to the health. A poor circulation is a frl quent cause, and a moderate amount of exercise, woollen underwear, and avoidance of tight clothes will do much to obviate this trouble. Never wear gloves that are a size too small, or which are tight at the wrist. Boots that coin- press the feet should likewise be avoided. SOME WAYS OF COOKING SOLES. ITALIAN METHOD.—Skin and fillet two soles. Put the bones to stew in a pan with a cupful of water and stock. Reduce to half and strain. Skin and bone a whiting, pound it in a mortar, add 4oz. of breadcrumbs, moistened with two tablespoonfuls of cream, a finely-chopped shallot, and a little flaked lobster. Mix thoroughly, adding Ii-oz. of butter, the yolks of three eggs, pepper, salt, and chopped parsley. Put all through a sieve. Spread one side of each fillet of sole with this forcemeat, roll up, and wrap in buttered paper. Place in a buttered tin, sprinkle with a few drops of lemon juice, put in the oven for five minutes, add one gill of white wine, baste well, and cook another ten minutes. Fry some eroMons of bread, spread each with a little of the remaining forcemeat, and bake a few minutes. Take the fillets, remove the paper, put each up- right on a crouton, and keep hot. Place a star cut out of a truffle on each, and serve with lobster sauce. GERMAN METHOD.—Clean, wash, and bone two soles, cut each into four fillets, and lay them to soak in lemon juice, salt, and chopped parsley. Remove them, dip in a beaten egg, sprinkle over some grated nutmeg, roll in fine breadcrumbs, and fry a golden brown in deep fat. For the sauce: Take three hard-boiled eggs, put the yolks through a sieve, add a tea- spoonful of made mustard, six dessertspoonfuls of oil, one of sugar, a little over a gill of vinegar, four drops of meat essence, a little chopped pickled onion, white pepper, salt, and ft few sardines boned and pounded. Stir all well together, pass through a sieve, add a few ctpers, and iirvi cold with the fried lolt. I FRENCH METHOD.—Butter a dish. dust over with salt and pepper, lay the sole in it, white side uppermost, and pour over the following sauce: Melt in a saucepan a. piece of butter the size of an egg, and add a spoonful of flour. Stir till the flour is well browned, add one or two shallots, or one onion chopped very small, and gradually a cupful of water and two teaspoonfuls of brandy. Let this simmer fifteen to twemy minutes. After ten minutes, add a tablespoonful of (liopped mushrooms. Pour this over the sole and 1; t it cook in it very slowly, as often as possible covering it with a spoonful of the hot sauce. Five minutes before it is done, sprinkle well with line breadcrumbs and brown in the oven.

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