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Show HOME AND FARM. -Mr. J. L. Erwin writes to the Prairie Farmer of a piece of underdrained road that "never gets muddy except for a few days when the frost comes out of the ground, and then only on the surface." -On account of the adornment of its ground with trees and flowers the Connecticut Farmer characterizes Pomfret Station, on the N. Y. & N. E. road as an "oasis in the desert of rural railroad depots." -An Indiana sheepkeeper proved by experiment that clean wool shrinks five per cent per annum; another packed 200 pounds in a tight box and the decrease in a year was twenty pounds. "It is grease and water that is lost. There is nothing lost to the manufacturer." -A French paper recommends a solution of three-fourths of an ounce of salt in a quart of water for testing the ages of eggs. It states that an egg placed in this solution on the day it is laid will sink to the bottom: one a day old will not quite reach the bottom of the vessel; an egg three days old will swim in the liquid, while one more than three days old will swim on the surface. -Bananas are delicious for tea; slice them-not too thin-scatter powdered sugar over them, and before it dissolves squeeze the juice of several oranges over them, or oranges may be cut up and be mixed with them, or they may be served with cream and sugar alone. They make an agreeable dessert with whipped cream sweetened and flavored with vanilla poured over them. A tablespoonful of gelatine dissolved and stirred into the cream gives a little body to it. Serve with sponge-cake.-N. Y. Post. -Cherry Pie. Line a pie-tin with rich crust, nearly fill with the carefully seeded fruit, sweeten to taste, and sprinkle evenly with a teaspoonful of corn starch or tablespoonful of flour; add a tablespoonful of butter cut into small bits and scattered over the top; wet the edge of the crust, put on upper crust, and press the edges closely together taking care to provide holes in the center for the escape of the air. Pies from blackberries, raspberries, etc., are all made in the same way, regulating the quantity of sugar by the tartness of the fruit.-N. Y. Tribune. -Shirred round hats are made of the polka-dotted white and ecru muslins that are so popular for neckerchiefs. The crown and brim are formed of many small puffs that are drawn together on rattans, and the trimming is a handkerchief or fichu with embroidered dots and scolloped edges arranged around the crown, with the square ends knotted in an Alsacian bow in front. Those of ecru mull with brown, red, or blue dots and scollops are liked, as they retain their look of freshness longer than the pure white ones. They cost only $2.50.-Harper's Bazar. -Tomato and lettuce salad: Select firm, round, ripe tomatoes of equal size. Peel them with a thin, sharp knife (do not scald them to peel them), and handle them as delicately as possible. Cut each tomato into thick slices, but do not separate the slices, so that the appearance of whole tomatoes may be preserved. Place them upon ice to become thoroughly chilled. Just before the salad is to be served arrange them upon a bed of crisp lettuce leaves, and put a spoonful of thick mayonnaise sauce upon each. There is no more inviting and delicious salad then this.-Chicago Journal. |