Letter T
THAT housekeeper must be a noteworthy exception to the majority of the members of that honorable body whose heart does not yearn to possess a goodly store of china and glass. She may begin her married life with the resolve to content herself with very little, but she will find, in this form of acquisition as in nearly every other, that appetite comes with eating, and the more she has the more she wants. Curiously enough, she learns also that although she may get along very comfortably for a long while without certain articles, she has not owned them a month without reaching a state of mind where she cannot understand how she ever managed to keep house lacking the new possessions.
In these days a bride is usually pretty well supplied with handsome china and glass bythe friends who send them to her as wedding presents. She receives from them at least the luxuries of table furniture, if not the necessities. Among her gifts she has almost always one or more fine cut-glass bowls or dishes, and possibly several small bonbon, pickle, or olive saucers. An ice-cream set is also a favorite gift, and the bride usually receives also a set of after-dinner coffee cups and saucers and at least a dozen fruit-plates. A few young couples are so fortunate as to number a complete dinner set among their presents; and they may deem themselves lucky indeed, for the cost of this necessary purchase makes a big hole in the sum that the bride received, or that she has laid aside for household plenishing.
Of course there are some young married people to whom money is, so to speak, no object, who have but to go to a shop and order whatever pleases their fancy. But they are few and far between. To most newly made housekeepers the filling of their china closets must be slow work, and each new addition is generally the evidence of abit of economy or good management, or else a memento of some Christmas or holiday, and all the more valued on that account. Even when the proud young manager is beginning to view with pride the accumulation of months, she is sadly liable to find their ranks lessened some woful day by one of those accidents which will happen so long as china and glass are breakable commodities. The cheese-dish, the berry-bowl, or the cake-plate has come to grief in Bridget's or Gretchen's or Dinah's hands.
"Shure, ma'am, it jist slipped out of me hands as I was a-wipin' it," or, "It came in two pieces when I put it into the wather. Feth an' it must have been cracked before."
Of course a dish will get broken occasionally. Once in a while one will go to pieces even under the careful touch of the mistress, and no hireling can be taught to handle fragile things as carefully as will their owner. A potent aid in inculcating caution is the habit of deducting from a servant's wages the price of the pieces broken. This rule should not be enforced in the case of a reallycareful maid, but only with one who shows a decided tendency to heedlessness. Even with this penalty there will be chips and cracks that will prove almost as great a trial to the mistress as a total fracture. To the importance of these minor accidents the average serving-maid seems serenely unconscious.
"Norah, if I treated you as you deserve, I would take the value of this out of your wages," said a mistress, ruefully contemplating a Limoges chocolate pot, from the lip of which a triangular fragment had been neatly chipped.
"Indade, ma'am, an' can't ye use it as well as iver ye did?" was the surprised reply.
Without going as far as one woman, who used to declare she would rather have a piece of china completely smashed than to see it cracked, one may safely say that the good housekeeper never perceives even a trifling breakage in any piece of her table-ware without a real pang at heart. To avert these accidents she is wise if she intrusts to no hands but her own or those of an exceptionallycareful maid the cleansing of her most precious belongings of porcelain and crystal. Sometimes, however, a woman's other duties are so pressing that she cannot spare the time to wash the delicate dishes which she prides herself upon having in constant use, and then she must simply make up her mind to be resigned to the losses she must sustain if she permits her servants to take entire charge of these breakables.
Without using unsightly stone-ware, it is yet possible to procure for every-day service pretty crockery that is less easily broken than the delicate French china. In purchasing a dinner set which is to do steady duty, the housewife must be guided by prudential as well as artistic considerations. She can find what is known as the English Dresden and one or two other kinds of china which combine pretty designs with durability of material, and are not very expensive.
Often there are included in a dinner set a full dozen each of tea, breakfast coffee, and after-dinner coffee cups; and sometimes the set can be purchased to greater advantage bytaking them all. Frequently, too, the dealer will not break the set. Unless either or both of these conditions should prevail, there is little gain for the housekeeper in taking the whole set. Usually she already has a fair number of cups and saucers, and in any case she would not need as many as the set comprises. By a little search it is often practicable to pick up a broken set, consisting of a certain number of plates, vegetable and meat dishes, and in this day there is no obligation upon one to have everything to match. The principal pieces should be alike, if possible; but the fish, salad, dessert, and fruit plates may all be of different designs, and be none the worse on that account.
Her dinner dishes purchased, the young mistress may congratulate herself. There is no other equally heavy pull ahead of her in the line of china. Now she may at her leisure pick up her pretty harlequin set of cups and saucers, her dessert dishes, her large cake and bread plates, and her small bread and butter plates, her fish set, her chocolate-pot, her bouillon-cups, her nappies, her individualdishes for shirred eggs, for scalloped fish, oysters, or chicken, and the dozen of other dainty fancies with which the china shops are crowded. Her accumulations will be all the dearer to her because many of them have been procured at the cost of a little personal sacrifice.
When one begins to price cut glass she is generally wofully discouraged. The cost of the plainest cut is very high if the glass is heavy, and a little experience soon teaches the housekeeper that it is very poor economy to buy the thin glass for every-day use. It will often break in washing in spite of the most careful handling, and a slight blow to it means fracture. Now that pressed glass comes in such pretty patterns, it may be made to do duty for common use, and is so attractive that no one need be ashamed to put it on her table.
"You should see my new glass dish," said a young housekeeper, gleefully. "It cost me just seventy-nine cents, and when you set it on handsome damask it looks like the real cut. Of course you can't put two cheapthings together, but my table-cloths are all so good that I can afford to set a few imitations on them."
The advantages of this heavy glass are seen less in the dishes, large and small, than in the goblets or tumblers that are in daily use. Here the havoc is dreadful when the glass is of the egg-shell species. Cheap though it often is, it does not pay to purchase it when its destruction is merely a question of a few days or weeks.
Letter E
EVEN at the best, securing a provision of table linen is bound to be a heavy expense. Whatever economies the housekeeper may practise by purchasing Japanese or stout English porcelain, and pressed glass, she will never find that it pays to buy cheap damask. It does not look well even at the first, and it is worse after each washing. No matter how handsome may be the china, silver, and glass put upon it, a sleazy damask will give a cheap appearance to the whole table.
On the other hand, really good linen pays by its wearing qualities for the original outlay. If it is not allowed to become so dirty before it is washed that hard rubbing is required to make it clean, it will last for years. The first tiny breaks must be carefully watched for and repaired at once. By suchprecautions even a cloth which is in daily service may be made to last several years. Above all, no washing-soda, no bleaching preparation of any kind, must ever be used upon it. It may whiten the linen at first, but the small holes with which the damask will soon be riddled will tell more plainly than words the harm the fabric has sustained from the alkali. Should the linen become yellow, it may be whitened by being laid on the grass in the dew or rain first, and afterwards in the sunshine.
Linen should never be put away damp, as it is almost certain to mildew. These spots may sometimes be removed or lessened by boiling the stained linen in buttermilk, or by the use of Javelle water, but it is a difficult and doubtful task.
A young housekeeper does not need a large supply of table linen at the beginning of her career. Of course it is very delightful to her to feel that her sideboard drawers are so thoroughly stocked that they will not need to be replenished for years to come; and if she has had a long engagement inwhich to make her preparations, or if she has followed the wise old-fashioned custom of beginning a linen chest while yet a young girl, she may be able to rejoice in a generous assortment of table-cloths, napkins, and doilies. Or possibly some kindly relative or friend has given her a check to be expended in this fashion; or she may have a wealthy father whose liberality relieves her from the necessity of economizing in this direction.
Taking it for granted, however, that every dollar counts, the young wife must consider seriously just what she will need. If she expects to entertain a good deal of company, she will have to lay in a large supply of linen. But if she intends to live in comparative quiet, not giving many luncheons or dinner parties, even although always ready to receive her own or her husband's friends, she will find that she can manage comfortably without a large quantity of napery. In a family where there are few children, and where ordinary care is observed, it is quite practicable, barring accidents, to get along easily with but one white table-cloth a week.In this case, of course, a colored cloth must be used for breakfast and lunch or for breakfast and tea. If the bare table is used at lunch, the housekeeper may manage to make shift with one breakfast cloth, with the accompanying dozen napkins. If she can possibly afford it, however, she should buy two colored cloths and two dozen colored napkins. For dinner use she must provide two white cloths with the napkins to match. These cloths may be about two and a quarter or two and a half yards long. Besides these, she should have one handsomer white cloth a little longer, to use when she wishes to entertain several guests. There is no reason in her purchasing the long table-cloths that range from twelve to sixteen feet in length, unless she has a very large dining-room and anticipates an occasional family party, which will oblige her to use the table in its most extended form.
To buy table-cloth damask by the yard is cheaper than to purchase the cloth in one piece. The designs are often very pretty, but the separate cloth is usually more satisfactory.Large flaring patterns are out of place on a small table. Such designs as the old and always pleasing snow-drop pattern, or a little block or diamond, or ivy or fern leaves, or small stars or shells, one does not weary of so soon as of something more showy. It is not worth while to purchase a cloth chiefly on account of its attractive border, for this is seldom seen. The centre figures are those which receive the most attention.
In doing up table-cloths there should always be a suspicion of starch used, but there should be none in the napkins.
With the provision of table-linen described above and a set of fruit napkins, the housekeeper will be able to manage very easily. Of course she will desire tray cloths, sideboard covers, centre-pieces, doilies, and the like, but these may be made by her own fingers. The costliness of these consists in the work bestowed upon them, and they can be made at home for half or less than half the price asked for them in the shops. By working them herself play is given to the ingenuityof her fancy, and she may have the pleasure of knowing that she has something different from what every one else can buy.
The housewife can hardly have too many doilies. Not only are they useful to put under finger-bowls, and to lay on cake and bread plates, but they are admirable to place under hot dishes, to lay between a scallop-shell and the plate, under pâtés, etc. And when the home mistress has enough of these, she may set to work to provide herself with carving-cloths, corn and biscuit napkins, and the many other pretty pieces of table linen that are always in demand.
There is very seldom a bride who does not receive enough small silver, such as forks and spoons, to supply her own table. If she is not so fortunate, however, she should, if possible, try to buy solid silver, even if she can afford to get but half a dozen pieces of each kind. Should this be beyond her means, she will find plated silver in neat designs, although it will in time wear out, while the solid silver will last a lifetime or longer. Itnever pays to buy thin silver, for this bends and dents easily.
Some people who own solid small silver lock it up except upon rare occasions, and use only plated ware whenen famille, affirming that the peace of mind thus gained is worth more than the luxury of using real silver. In this matter every one must judge for herself; but if a vote were taken the chances are that those who use the solid silver would testify that its care costs them very little time or thought. The simple expedient of counting it two or three times a week is generally sufficient to insure its safety, and the duty of carrying it up-stairs at night is too trifling to deserve mention.
Those who have ever been so fortunate as to possess plated silver vegetable dishes or a soup tureen would never willingly use those of china. Not only do the silver vessels keep their contents hot, but they are not breakable, and a dent may be remedied at a small cost. They are not hard to keep clean. A plunge into clean scalding water, and a quick wiping afterwards, whenever they havebeen used, with an occasional rubbing with a piece of flannel or chamois-skin, will generally keep them bright.
Whenever silver, solid or plated, needs a thorough cleaning, electro-silicon may be used; and after the scouring has been done with a brush dipped in the powder, the pieces should be rinsed off in scalding water containing a little ammonia, and well rubbed with flannel. Even the most tarnished silver may be brightened by this means.
THE END.
BOOKS FOR THE HOUSEHOLD.
PRACTICAL COOKING AND DINNER GIVING. A Treatise containing Practical Instructions in Cooking; in the Combination and Serving of Dishes, and in the Fashionable Modes of Entertaining at Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. ByMary F. Henderson. Illustrated. 12mo, Water-proof Cover, $1 50.
DIET FOR THE SICK. A Treatise on the Values of Foods, their Application to Special Conditions of Health and Disease, and on the Best Methods of their Preparation. ByMary F. Henderson. Illustrated. 12mo, Cloth, $1 50.
FAMILY LIVING ON $500 A YEAR. A Daily Reference Book for Young and Inexperienced Housewives. ByJuliet Corson. 16mo, Cloth, $1 25.
WHAT TO EAT—HOW TO SERVE IT. ByChristine Terhune Herrick. 16mo, Cloth, $1 00.
HOUSEKEEPING MADE EASY. ByChristine Terhune Herrick. 16mo, Cloth, $1 00.
CRADLE AND NURSERY. ByChristine Terhune Herrick. 16mo, Cloth, $1 00.
CHOICE COOKERY. ByCatherine Owen. 16mo, Cloth, $1 00.
MAN AND HIS MALADIES; or, The Way to Health. A Popular Hand-book of Physiology and Domestic Medicine in Accord with the Advance in Medical Science. ByA. E. Bridger, B.A., M.D., &c. 12mo, Cloth, $2 00.
DELICATE FEASTING. ByTheodore Child. Post 8vo, Cloth, $1 25.
VIRGINIA COOKERY-BOOK. ByMary Stuart Smith. 12mo, Cloth, $1 50; 4to, Paper, 25 cents.
BAZAR COOKING RECEIPTS. Cooking Receipts fromHarper's Bazar. 32mo, Paper, 25 cents; Cloth, 40 cents.
BEAUTY IN DRESS. By MissOakey. 16mo, Cloth, $1 00.
BEAUTY IN THE HOUSEHOLD. By Mrs.T. W. Dewing, Author of "Beauty in Dress." Illustrated. 16mo, Cloth, $1 00.
OUNCES OF PREVENTION. ByTitus Munson Coan, M.D. 12mo, Paper, 25 cents; Cloth, 50 cents.
THE UNRIVALLED COOK-BOOK and Housekeeper's Guide. By Mrs.Washington. 12mo, Water-proof Cover, $2 00.
THE BAZAR BOOKS: The Bazar Book of Health.—The Bazar Book of Decorum.—The Bazar Book of the Household. 16mo, Cloth, $1 00 each.
HINTS TO WOMEN ON THE CARE OF PROPERTY. ByAlfred Walker. 32mo, Paper, 20 cents; Cloth, 35 cents.
Published by HARPER & BROTHERS, New York.
☞Any of the above works will be sent, postage prepaid, to any part of the United States, Canada, or Mexico, on receipt of the price.
MISS CORSON'S FAMILY LIVING ON $500 A YEAR.
Family Living on $500 a Year. A Daily Reference Book for Young and Inexperienced Housewives. ByJuliet Corson. 16mo, Cloth, $1 25.