1884. 2_s._ 6_d._

Eardley F. Bailey Denton: ‘Handbook of House Sanitation, for the use of all persons seeking a healthy home.’ London, 1882. 8_s._ 6_d._ H. Percy Boulnois: ‘Practical Hints on taking a House.’ London, 1885. 1_s._ 6_d._ C. J. Richardson: ‘The Englishman’s House; a practical guide for selecting or building a house, with full estimates of cost, quantities, &c.’ London, 1882. 7_s._ 6_d._ Ernest Spon: ‘The Modern Practice of Sinking and Boring Wells, with geological considerations and examples.’ London, 1885. 10_s._ 6_d._ Charles Hood; ‘A Practical Treatise on Warming Buildings by Hot Water, Steam, and Hot Air; &c.’ London, 1885. 12_s._ 6_d._ William Richards: ‘The Gas Consumer’s Handy Book.’ London, 1877. 6_d._ E. Hospitalier: ‘Domestic Electricity for Amateurs.’ London, 1885. 9_s._ Clarence Cook: ‘The House Beautiful; Essays on Beds and Tables, Stools and Candlesticks.’ New York, 1881. 1_l._ Lewis Foreman Day: ‘Everyday Art; Short Essays on the Arts not Fine.’ London, 1882. 7_s._ 6_d._ M. E. James: ‘How to Decorate our Ceilings, Walls, and Floors.’ London, 1883. 4_s._ Rhoda and Agnes Garrett: ‘Suggestions for House Decoration in Painting, Woodwork, and Furniture.’ London, 1876. 2_s._ 6_d._ _THE LARDER_ Much attention has been given in recent years to the art of conserving foods. The subject really divides itself into 3 distinct branches, viz.: (_a_) Keeping foods _fresh_ for a limited time, (_b_) _storing_ them without changing their character, and (_c_) submitting them to a _curing_ process which will preserve them for an unlimited time. (_a_) _Keeping foods fresh for a limited time._ Some very useful remarks on this point were published by Miss Ascham in the _Exchange and Mart_ a short time since, and will bear repetition. A housewife’s duty is to prevent waste. She must therefore know what is likely to go to waste and why, or perhaps she will do just what is wanted to spoil things which would have kept a little longer if they had been left alone. Most things in the larder are perishable, but not all alike. Meat will keep three weeks in dry, frosty weather, and more than a week in cold dry weather, but not one week in damp, and hardly a day in very hot weather. If it has been frozen, it must lie in a rather warm place 3-4 hours before it is cooked. Meat should be taken down from the hooks every day, well looked over and wiped dry, and the hooks scalded and dried before the meat is put up again. Do not flour it. In very hot weather it is sometimes necessary to rub salt over the outside of a joint which is not to be cooked that day; but putting into a pan of treacle is much better, only it requires care, so as not to leave bits of fat, &c., in the pan when you take out the meat, and plenty of cold water to wash off what sticks to the joint when it comes out. It must, however, be carefully looked over when it comes from the butcher, and any doubtful bits pared off and burnt. If meat shows signs of “turning,” it must at once be put into a very hot oven for ½ hour, so as to be partly cooked. If it has really spoilt, nothing will save it, because the inside of the joint is then bad; but if it is browned, not just scorched, in time, the inside will be found perfectly nice. Of course, in a doubtful case, it may all be sliced up and fried; but then, as a joint, it is spoilt. The dripping from a half-spoilt joint is useless for food, and the bone will certainly spoil soup. Some cooks will plunge the meat into boiling water to save it, but this additional wetting is much more likely to hasten the catastrophe. In hot weather every bone must be baked, whether it is to make stock that day or not. Soup is just as good from baked bones as from raw ones. Every bone that has been boiled must be placed in a sharp heat and quite dried, and “scraps” which would help to make stock must be burnt if the cook has no time or room to make it. For one little bone is enough to spoil all the milk and cream, and will cause all perishable things in the larder to be just ready to decay. The microscope helps us to understand the amazing rapidity with which germs multiply and diffuse themselves, but no one is yet able to say where their venom stops; probably they do harm to the entire house at the least. If bones are thoroughly dried, they will do no harm. All fat and suet should be cooked as soon as possible after it comes into the house; it should be wiped, sliced thin, and boiled for 2-3 hours, then strained, and the skin, which seems like leather, burnt in the middle of a hot fire. As soon as the fat is hard, it should be removed from the gravy, soup, or stock, wiped dry, and folded in thin paper. In very hot weather, sometimes it will not cake. Then a plate must be spared for it. The superfluous fat from a joint reduced to mince should be treated in the same way. Fish must be cooked as soon as possible after it is caught. If, however, there is more than can be eaten in one day, the superfluous part should be boiled for 5 minutes, even if it is to be fried afterwards--it can be dried: but nearly all fish is very nice stewed like eels, with the same sauce; parboiled fish is as good this way as if it were quite fresh. It is said that Condy’s fluid will perfectly cleanse meat or fish just beginning to taint on the outside; but prevention is much better than cure. Never allow any meat or fish to lie if you can hang it up. Game and poultry should be drawn, but not plucked or skinned, dried inside, and hung head upward. Milk is the most troublesome article in the larder, and really wants a little safe to itself. It “takes up” the slightest suspicion of taint, and becomes most objectionable without turning sour. City people, at any rate, should boil the milk as soon as it comes in, from April to December. Then it should be strained into a clean flat pan, which must be scalded and rinsed with, first, a little soda, and then clean water, every time it is used. It is a help to mistress and maid to have two pans--one brown, one white--to use on alternate days, so as to ensure time for purification. Country milk a little sour may be used for a pudding, or to make scones (½ pint to 1 lb. of oatmeal or brown meal, into which you have mixed ¼ oz. soda carbonate); but the milk which has been rattled about from 2 A.M. to 8 or 9 generally seems good for nothing when stale. In case of serious illness in hot weather, or when a young child’s nourishment is in question, ice is necessary. In default of “professional” apparatus, tie up as much ice as half a yard of flannel will hold, pass a stout lath through the string, and lay it across a metal tub; oval is more convenient than round. The ice will hang down and drip in the middle of the tub, and jugs of milk, bottles of soda water, or anything else will stand at the ends. Cover the tub, stick and all, with a thick board, and that with a damp, almost wet cloth. The milk may be boiled first, but must, of course, be cold before it is put with the ice. A damp cloth, without ice, keeps things much cooler than they are when uncovered. Cheese, uncut, only needs to be kept dry. After it is cut, it should be wrapped in a buttered paper scraped almost dry. Butter may be rendered less troublesome in summer by being covered with a huge flower-pot large enough to enclose the plate and rest in a tray in which there is some cold water. Leaving butter in water spoils it. Bread should be covered closely from the air. The pans want wiping once or twice a week, and then heating very hot; the bread must not be put in again until the pan is cold, nor warm bread ever covered up. Baker’s bread often acquires a most disagreeable smell and taste if these precautions are neglected. All vegetables, when cut, may be kept fresh by putting the stalks into water. Servants generally insist on immersing them, which favours decomposition. Parsley in particular can seldom be guarded from a watery grave. Carrots, turnips, and the like, if placed in layers in a box of sand, will keep for many weeks, if not months. Clean new-laid eggs will keep quite fresh for months if buried in dried salt well closed. Boiled potatoes ought to be laid out on a plate, and are then as good for frying or mashing as if they were freshly cooked. Servants have an unaccountable fancy for throwing them away, or, if desired to fry them, chopping and mashing them first, which entirely spoils them. If left heaped up, they will often spoil in one night, and must be burnt. No vegetables should be put into soup until the day that it is to be used. If any soup, complete, is left, it must be sharply boiled the next morning, and put into a fresh, clean pan. The grey earthenware jars made for salt are most valuable for such purposes and for keeping viands hot or stewing things. Chopped spinach can be warmed in one of them, and, as it takes time to prepare, may be boiled, &c., the day before, and thus served in perfection at the early dinner or luncheon. Cabbage, French beans, and vegetable marrows are better dressed as salad if they have cooled, and in hot weather are almost as treacherous for keeping as shell-fish. Fruit, like vegetables, will keep very fresh if you can manage to put the stalk into water, only it must not be in a close or dark place. When apples, oranges, pears, lemons, &c., are to be stored, they must not touch each other, and must be protected from heat, cold, and damp as much as possible; sunshine is not desirable. It would be easy, if an amateur carpenter was at hand, to make a frame of laths, like a Venetian blind, which would contain a very large quantity of such fruit, and take up hardly any room. Flour and meal, sago, macaroni, semolina, and all like substances, are sometimes attacked by mites. They are so small as to be invisible singly, but a peculiar fine powder is to be seen at the top of the farina, and is not motionless. There is also a smell something like honey or fermentation. They never appear in a dry storeroom, though they are sometimes brought from the grocer’s. The only thing to be done is to burn the infected store, and heat the jar almost red hot before using it again. (_Exchange and Mart._) Every one is familiar with the beneficial influence of ice in preserving foods in hot weather. It is the active medium in the various kinds of refrigerating safes now in use. But the first matter is to secure a supply of ice for summer use, unless it is to be bought of the ice merchant at enhanced prices. Various contrivances may be adopted with success, as enumerated below:-- (1) Build round a brick well, with a small grating for drain at bottom for the escape of water from melted ice. Cover the bottom with a thick layer of good wheat straw. Pack the ice in layers of ice and straw. Fix a wooden cover to the well. (2) Fire-brick, from its feeble conducting power, is the best material to line an ice-house with. The house is generally made circular, and larger at the top than at the bottom, where a drain should be provided to run off any water that may accumulate. As small a surface of ice as possible should be exposed to the atmosphere, therefore each piece of ice should be dipped in water before stowing away, which, by the subsequent freezing of the pieces into one mass, will remain unmelted for a long time. (3) Make a frame-house the requisite size, with its floor at least the thickness of the bottom scantling from the ground, thus leaving space for drainage and a roof to shed off the water. The boards of the wall should be closely joined to exclude air. Then build up the blocks of ice, cut in the coldest weather, as solid as possible, leaving 6 in. all round between them and the board walls; fill up all interstices between the blocks with broken ice, and in a very cold day or night pour water over the whole, so that it may freeze into a solid block; shut it up till wanted, only leaving a few small holes for ventilation under the roof, which should be 6 in. above the top of the ice. It is not dry heat or sunshine that is the worst enemy of ice, but water and damp air. If all the drainage is carried promptly off below, and the damp vapour generated by the ice is allowed to escape above, the column of cold air between the sides of the close ice-house and the cube of ice will protect it much better than it is protected in underground ice-houses, which can neither be drained nor ventilated; sawdust also will get damp, in which case it is much worse than nothing. [Illustration: 65. Ice-house.] (4) An improved sort of ice-house, recommended by Bailey, gardener at Nuneham Park, Oxford, is shown in plan and section in Fig. 65, where the dotted line indicates the ground level. The well or receptacle for the ice _a_ is 10 ft. 6 in. wide at the base, and 3 ft. wider near the top; the walls are hollow, the outer portion being built of dry rough stone, and the inner wall and dome _f_ of brick. The outer wall _e_ might be replaced by a puddling of clay, carried up as the work proceeds. Over the top is a mound of clay and soil _g_, planted with shrubs to keep the surface cool in summer. The drain _i_ carries off the water formed by the melted ice, and is provided with a trap _h_ to prevent the ingress of air through the drain. There is a porch or lobby _b_ provided with outer and inner doors _c_; and apertures at _d_, to get rid of the condensed moisture, which, if not removed, would waste the ice. These ventilating doors should be opened every night, and closed again early in the morning. The most important conditions to be secured are dryness of the soil and enclosed atmosphere, compactness in the body of ice, which should be broken fine and closely rammed, and exclusion as far as possible of air. (_Gard. Mag. Bot._) (5) A very cheap way of storing ice has been described by Pearson of Kinlet. The ice-stack is made on sloping ground close to the pond whence the ice is derived. The ice is beaten small, well rammed, and gradually worked up into a cone or mound 15 ft. high, with a base of 27 ft., and protected by a compact covering of fern 3 ft. thick. A dry situation and sloping surface are essential with this plan, and a small ditch should surround the heap, to carry rapidly away any water that may come from melted ice or other sources. (_Gard. Jl._) (6) The following is an economical method of making small ice-houses indoors:--Dig a hole in a cool cellar, and make it of a size corresponding to the quantity of ice to be kept. At the bottom of this hole dig another of smaller diameter, the edge of which goes down with a gentle slope. This kind of small pit, the depth of which should be greater in proportion as the soil is less absorbent, must be filled with pebbles and sand. The whole circumference of the large hole is to be fitted up with planks, kept up along the sides with hoops, to prevent the earth from falling in. Then the bottom and all the circumference of this sort of reservoir must be lined with rye straw, placed upright with the ear downwards, and kept up along the planks by a sufficient number of wooden hoops. The ice is to be heaped up in this ice-house, which must be covered over with a great quantity of hay and packing cloth, on which should be placed a wooden cover and some light straw. (_Les Mondes._) (_b_) _Storing Foods without change._--This embraces the keeping of fruits, roots, eggs, &c. To have a fruit room in a garden does not always argue that the fruit stored in it will be well preserved. Such a store-house is of the first importance; but, unless care is observed, and some special attention given to the different kinds of fruit it may contain, much loss is likely to be the consequence. As to the structure itself, it is sufficient to say here that it should be perfectly dry, and so constructed as to maintain an equable temperature at all times. An ice house, if dry, makes a good fruit room--without the ice, of course--for a fruit room, once the fruit is placed in it, does not require much ventilation, unless it can be given without altering the temperature. Heats and cools, alternately producing condensation and evaporation, soon produce decay and rottenness, and should be guarded against as much as possible; the fruit should always feel dry to the touch. Possibly, the very best position that an apple or pear, for example, could be placed in, to preserve it, would be to suspend it by the footstalk in the air, and free from contact with any other object. Onions done up in strings in the old-fashioned way invariably keep much better than those laid on shelves or on a floor, and it is the same with fruit. Fruit rooms which are above ground should be double-walled, and ceiled; but when sunk or partially sunk in the ground this is not so important, if damp is otherwise excluded. Hardy fruits and grapes are often kept long and well in a fruit room that is more like a cellar (only dry) than anything else. The shelves and tables for holding the fruit should be sparred, and before the fruit is stored they should be covered with a layer of clean wheat straw, but so thinly that one can see through between the spars of the shelves, which will allow a free circulation of air amongst the fruit. When the room is empty during the summer-time, it should be thoroughly ventilated, washed and dried, and made sweet and clean, and, when the fruit is stored, shut up and kept in darkness. A writer in the _Field_ expresses himself thus:--The easiest and best method of keeping fruit, and one practised for years, is simply to take ordinary wine cases, halves and quarters, as different sizes are handy, line the bottoms well with short sweet hay, and take them on a hand-barrow to the orchard. There the fruit should be laid carefully in them, taken at once to the fruit room, and placed on close-bottomed shelves. Under such circumstances it will keep until April, and even until June in sand. The greatest care is used in the picking and handling of the fruit. It may be thought that, when in single layers, fruit is more easily examined, and decaying fruit cleared away; but from many years’ experience in storing fruit in barrels and boxes, only a small quantity is lost by decay or wilting. Nor is such vigilance required in the way of periodical gleanings as some would believe. The very act of searching for such is inimical to the good keeping of the rest, as we cannot see the side farthest from us; consequently the fruits have to be handled, and the oftener this is done the sooner will the bloom--the best safeguard to keeping--get rubbed off. In boxes this is avoided. Simply commence using from the top, and go on until the bottom is reached; and not only does the fruit come out clear and clean-skinned, but as sound and firm as when put away. (J. K.) Apples and Pears.--(_a_) When the fruit room cannot hold all the crop, it should only be used for the best sample, which should be gathered without bruising, and spread out on the shelves in a single layer, and barely touching each other. In plentiful seasons the different varieties are often piled up in hillocks, on the shelves and floors, to the destruction of large quantities of the fruit; for it is not possible to keep fruit long in that condition, and it soon becomes rotten and useless. In most establishments the wants of the kitchen and dessert can be judged very nearly; and such being the case, it is far better to dispose of the fruit which cannot be used at home, and keep and care for a supply of the better dessert and kitchen fruit only. In many establishments it is the custom, in plentiful seasons, to store all the crop in a house that was never intended to accommodate it, and throughout the autumn and winter preservation consists principally in picking out the rotten fruit periodically, and wheeling it to the pigsty or the rubbish heap. It would be better to have given it away for nothing at the beginning. Such waste is simply disgraceful; but it is what happens in many large private gardens. Apples and pears soon decay and rot if they are carelessly stored, but it is surprising how long even the so-called worst-keeping varieties can be preserved with a little care. Apples of the Codling and Lord Suffield class, and pears like the Jargonelle and Hessel, or “hogel,” as it is called in the north, are not supposed to keep many days; but they will keep nevertheless for a considerable time if they are not piled up in heaps like potatoes. Codling apples, indeed, will keep till they become insipid and flavourless without showing signs of decay. In some cases it is necessary to keep the fruit in store till it can be disposed of advantageously; and when that is so, and it cannot be accommodated in the fruit room proper, it should be stored in a dry loft or shed, and covered over with dry straw to protect from the vicissitudes of the weather. Common fruit laid up in heaps in this way soon ripens and turns yellow, but does not keep. (_b_) Where there is no room for storing apples in the usual way, they may be treated as follows: All the later keeping sorts, after being picked and laid out thinly in a room, may be stored in a pit, the same as potatoes. Mark out the pit 3 ft. wide and 9 in. in depth; put a layer of clean straw in the bottom. Commence at one end with the latest keeping sorts, and make them into a ridge about 2 ft. high in the centre; put a layer of straw between the sorts to keep them from getting mixed; then take the next sort, and so continue with the latest until the whole is finished. A covering of dry turves or straw must then be put over the whole, and this must be covered with soil, the same as is generally done with potato pits. Blenheims keep in this way in very fine condition till the middle of January, and later keeping sorts according to their times of ripening. When pitting the fruit, great care must be taken to pick out all that are bruised or damaged. Faults of this kind will be readily seen after 9-12 days from the time when the fruits are gathered. Bruised apples soon rot, and cause others to do the same; but, if carefully stored, scarcely one will be found decayed when taken from the pits, if taken out about the time they are generally ripe. (W. C.) Artichokes.--Boil as many artichokes as you intend to keep, only just enough to be able to pull off all the leaves and choke: lay the bottoms on a tin plate, and put them in the oven. When thoroughly dry, and quite hard, put them in a paper bag, and hang them in a dry place. Before using they must be soaked in warm water for 3-4 hours, changing the water very often. Let the last water be boiling hot, the bottoms will then be very tender, and eat as well as fresh ones. Asparagus.--Boil fresh-gathered, well-scraped asparagus for 5 minutes in salted water. Strain off the water, dip them in cold water and drain on a cloth; put them in tins with the points all one way. Have an ironmonger ready to solder on the lids immediately; when the solder is cold put the tins in a cauldron of water and boil for 1½ hour. Keep them with the points of the asparagus upwards. It is better to mark the top of the tin to prevent their being reversed. Cherries.--These can only be successfully preserved on the tree, and then only when the trees are grown against walls or as espaliers. On standards it is almost impossible to keep them from the birds, except by much trouble and expense. Early cherries can be preserved a month or more after they are ripe by covering the trees with mats, and keeping them quite dark. The trees do not suffer so much by this practice as one would imagine, although the leaves fall off prematurely, owing no doubt to the wood being pretty well matured before the fruit is ripe; but it is not advisable to cover the same trees every year in succession. Morello cherries of course keep best when grown on a north wall, and it is hardly necessary to mat them; but they must be netted to keep off vermin. Currants.--Take when ripe, separate from the stem, put in glass jars, set them in a kettle of cold water, then put them over the fire, and boil 15-20 minutes; cork tight, and set away where the frost will not get to them. Eggs.--(_a_) Most of the recipes given for preserving eggs direct that the egg should be coated with something to stop up the pores. Many seem equally efficacious if the covering is complete, with one exception--fat, which becomes rancid, and imparts its own flavour through the pores of the shell. Gum, the white of an egg, collodion, or gelatine have all been used with success, but paraffin wax has often failed. Anything that the eggs are packed in gives its own flavour to their contents; therefore bran, chaff, and straw are to be avoided as being likely to become musty. It is far better to set the eggs on end, the larger ends upwards, in a wire or wooden rack, and to allow free passage of air between. The eggs need not then be turned, for the yolks are tethered to each end by a membranous cord, and if they settle, it is always to one side, which would here be impossible, nor to either extremity. One writer has used and approved the following method: To 1 teaspoonful salicylic acid add about 1 pint boiling water. Let it cool, dip the eggs in one by one, dry them, and store them on racks in an airy cupboard. Again some people dip each egg into boiling water, and so make an impervious lining of its own white; but this requires more care to prevent cracking, and does not preserve the eggs for so long a time as the recipes given above. Eggs are also packed in boxes in lime, and turned frequently. The advantage of this plan is the small space that a number of eggs occupy; its great disadvantage is that the lime acts upon the shell and thins it down to exceeding brittleness. Much better is it to make a tub of lime water, by pouring cold water over ordinary unslaked lime, and when it has settled and is clear, pour off the water into a deep vessel. Put the eggs in this and cover it over. The air is here effectually kept away from the eggs, and the difficulty of wire racks is avoided. For cooking purposes lime packing is all that can be desired, though for the breakfast table some much prefer the salicylic acid. Whatever plan is chosen the eggs should be put by at once, not after they are a week or two old. (_b_) When you collect your eggs in a morning, sort them into sizes, and put 10-12 into a net; have ready a large saucepan of water at the full boil. Take the net with the eggs and hold it in exactly 2 seconds; this kills the germ of the egg and closes the pores of the shell. It is necessary, as the eggs always differ much in size, to take one of each size, immerse them separately, and time them exactly, as the white must on no account be in the least degree set. When they are finished, pack all away in tin boxes until required for use. (_c_) Get a brick of salt, pound it fine and dry it, then place the eggs freshly gathered, and not cracked, with the pointed ends downwards in the salt, and pack them firmly in a box or jar; then keep them in a dry place. Most of them will be quite fit for the table when kept not more than 3 months; after that they still poach well, and are good for culinary purposes. The same salt used for several years is better than new. One great convenience of this plan is that on opening a box, or 4 lb. biscuit tin containing about 60, you are not compelled to use them all quickly, for each egg is isolated in salt and remains fresh till wanted. The weight of testimony on all sides is much in favour of salt over all other plans. (_d_) To 1 gal. water put 1 lb. quicklime; pour the water, when boiling, on the lime, and let it stand till the next day. Procure a large brown earthenware pan, well glazed inside, and large enough to hold about 100 eggs; put them in carefully, that they do not get in the least cracked, pour in the lime water, cover over the vessel with a slate, and put it in the cellar, but do not let it touch the floor. A little salt in the lime keeps the water from freezing. Eggs thus treated will keep good for many months. Figs.--These should not be gathered from the tree until they are ripe and tender in the skin, after which they will keep in the fruit room for a few days without growing mouldy, but no longer; on ice, however, they will keep for 2-3 weeks. Filberts.--Get some stone jars, such as are used for pickles, about 2 ft. in height and 1 ft. in diameter; fill them with filberts, and then cork them down very tightly with a bung. Bury them about 1 ft. in the earth, or place them in a damp wine-cellar. French Beans.--(_a_) Cut the beans up as usual, boil for 10 minutes in water without salt, put into a colander. Fill tins with them almost to the top, leaving only a little room for enough boiling water to cover them; then solder the tins down, after which boil them for an hour; take the tins out, and keep them in a dry place. (_b_) Gather the beans when young, and in dry weather. Have ready a brown earthenware pan or crock holding about ½ basket, and when the beans have been gathered string and cut them as if for immediate use; cover the bottom of the crock well with salt--the coarse kind used for pickling pork--add a layer of French beans, well cover them with salt, then add layers of beans and of salt alternately until the crock is full; tie it down with thick brown paper, keep it in a cool cellar where it is not too dry, and by Christmas the beans will be ready for use. It is not necessary to have sufficient beans at one time to fill the crock, provided care is taken to cover the last layer with plenty of salt. To prepare them for use during the winter, take out of the crock as many as are wanted for immediate use, put them in a pan, and pour enough hot (but not boiling) water over them to cover them (the salt will then fall to the bottom), lift out the beans, and put them into fresh hot water 3 or 4 times, allowing them to remain in each water ¾-1 hour, then boil them in the ordinary way. A pinch of soda carbonate in the water they are boiled in gives them the bright green colour they have when fresh gathered. Towards the end of the winter they require ¼-½ hour’s extra boiling, as the salt is apt to make them hard. Keep the crock tied down between the times of using the beans. By attention to these rules they will remain good till the following May or June. Gooseberries and Currants.--Bushes of both these in the open quarter may be matted up when the fruit is ripe, and it will keep, under ordinarily favourable conditions, till November; but by far the best plan is to grow the trees against a north wall, where they may be kept till late in the season with little trouble. Grapes.--(_a_) Many people are deterred from adopting the very useful plan of keeping late grapes in bottles of water, from the idea that some elaborately fitted up or air-tight compartment is necessary; but this is by no means the case, as, with a little contrivance, a good grape room may be extemporised in any compartment enclosed with 4 brick walls. The principal point is to get a steady temperature, that would not be liable to sudden fluctuations: and for this reason a room with a northern aspect is desirable, or, what is better still, an apartment that does not communicate directly with the outside air. The advantage of having the grapes thus securely bottled, when severe frosts and sunshine render it impossible to maintain the houses in which they were grown at anything like an equable temperature after the beginning of the year, can only be fully realised by those who have had to keep them on the vines until late in spring, besides the benefit which the vines derive by being released of their crop and pruned, cleaned, &c., at the most favourable period. (_b_) Cut them with about 6 in. of wood below the bunch, and 2 in. or 3 in. of wood above. Place the bunches in bottles filled with water and a bit of charcoal in each. The grapes must hang quite free, without touching the bottles. A slip of wood placed between the stalk and the bottle ensures this. Grapes keep in this way for many months. They must be stored in a dry place. Green Peas.--(_a_) The Russian method is to shell the peas, put them into a saucepan of boiling water, let them remain but a short time, and put them to drain in a colander; when thoroughly drained, spread them out on a cloth on the kitchen table to dry; next put them in the oven (which must be cool) in flat tin dishes just for a few minutes to harden; keep them in paper bags hung up in the kitchen or other warm, dry place. When wanted for use, soak in soft water 1 hour, then place them in a saucepan of cold water with a small piece of butter, and boil them until they are fit to serve. (_b_) The peas must be quite fully grown, but not old. They must be gathered on a fine day and be perfectly dry. After shelling, put them into wide-mouthed bottles. These, too, must be quite dry; any dampness would cause the peas to turn mouldy. When in the bottles, shake them a little to make them lie as close as possible, cork the bottles, and tie moistened bladder tightly over them to exclude the air. Set the bottles side by side in a large fish-kettle, with hay at the bottom and round the sides, as well as around each bottle. Pour in cold water up to the necks of the bottles, put the pan on the fire, and after the water boils let it continue boiling for 2 hours; then take the pan off, and leave the bottles standing in it until the water is perfectly cold. When cold, take them out, wipe them dry, apply melted rosin over the tops, and put them away to keep in a cool, dry place. Honey.--Honey, if required to be kept in the comb, should be left undisturbed in the supers, and cut out as required; that which is sealed over will keep a long time without alteration. One very good way of preserving honey, when it is white comb and perfectly free from bee-bread, as that of all good bee-keepers should be, is to melt the whole by placing it in an earthen vessel, and standing it in a saucepan of boiling water. When the wax has melted and risen to the top, tie the jar down tightly with bladders, and the whole will keep, if undisturbed, for many months without alteration or loss of flavour. Lemons.--(_a_) Wrap each in common tissue paper, and lay them out on a shelf so that they do not touch each other. The shelf should be in a dry, dark cupboard, free from draughts. (_b_) Lemons will keep good for months by simply putting them in a jug of butter-milk, changing the butter-milk about every 3 weeks. When the lemons are required for use, they should be well dried with a cloth. (_c_) They will keep some time in a jar with fresh dry earth mould covering each separately. (_d_) Put them in a basin of water, which latter should be changed twice or thrice weekly, taking care not to bruise the lemons. Lemon Juice.--To preserve this, squeeze a number of fine lemons, taking care that they are all quite fresh. Strain the juice through muslin, and pour it into bottles with just enough of the best olive oil to cover the surface. Cork well, and keep in a dry place. Or it may be done with sugar, allowing ½ lb. powdered sugar to ½ pint lemon juice. They must be stirred together with a silver spoon until the sugar is quite dissolved. Pour it into small bottles, corking them well, and tying bladder tightly over the corks. Melons.--Some varieties of the melon keep much better than others, and are all the more valuable on that account. It is a pity that raisers of new varieties do not give a little more attention to this point. By selecting from those kinds which are coconut-shaped and firm of rind, particularly at the end, we should no doubt have melons of excellent keeping qualities, as well as of good flavour. As it is, at present none of the recent new sorts is superior to, if as good, as those which were cultivated 20-30 years ago. All the varieties should be cut when just ripe, and kept in a cool, dry room. (_b_) _Eingemacht melonen_, the German way of preparing which is the following: Remove the outer part and the seeds of the melon; cut it into convenient pieces, and lay it for 24 hours in some good white wine vinegar, with a few pieces of cinnamon and of ginger, and the thin rind of 1 or 2 lemons. Then make a sweet syrup with lump sugar and some of the vinegar; boil and skim it, and when cold lay the pieces of melon in it; after 2 days take them out, boil up the syrup, and replace them in it when it is cold. Repeat this operation once more, taking care to boil down the liquor to a very thick syrup; then put by the preserve in jars in the usual way. (The G. C.) (_c_) Put them in a strong brine of salt and water in a wide-mouthed jar; cover them with cabbage leaves, cap the jar with paper, and set it in the chimney corner till the leaves become yellowish, when the melons must be put in fresh salt and water with fresh cabbage leaves, covered close, and put on a very slow fire to warm gently but not to boil; then take them out, clean the pan, and put them in fresh cold water to stand 2 days, changing the water thrice daily (to take the saltness off); prick them with a fork, and cut all the large ones into convenient pieces, removing all the seeds; lay them in more cold water, while you make a syrup thus: boil 1 lb. loaf sugar in 1 full gill water, taking off the scum, and add afterwards 1 oz. bruised brown ginger to each lb., and the very thin rind of a lemon. When the syrup is thick, set it by till cold; then put in the pieces of fruit. Take the fruit out again, and boil up the syrup 3 times a week for 3 weeks, and never put the fruit in again till cold. At the end of 3 weeks tie papers over the jars, and put them by. (C. E.) Mushrooms.--(_a_) Pick and cut off the stalks, wipe them clean, from the large ones remove the brown part, peel off the skin, and lay them on paper in a cool oven. When dry put them into paper bags, and keep them in a dry place. When required for use, simmer them in gravy, and they will swell to their original size. (_b_) Allow to each qt. of mushrooms 3 oz. butter, pepper and salt to taste, and the juice of 1 lemon. Peel the mushrooms, and put them into cold water, with a little lemon juice; take them out and dry them very carefully in a cloth. Put the butter into a stewpan capable of holding the mushrooms. When melted, add the mushrooms, lemon juice, pepper, and salt. Let them remain over a slow fire until their liquor is boiled away, and they have become quite dry. Be careful not to allow them to stick to the bottom of the pan. When done, put them into pots, and pour over the top clarified butter. If required for immediate use, they will keep good a few days without being covered over. To re-warm them, put the mushrooms into a stewpan, strain the butter from them, and they will be ready for use. Peaches and Nectarines.--These, like the plums, vary in their keeping qualities; and certainly to be a good keeper is not the least merit a peach or nectarine can possess, for, owing to the crop frequently coming in suddenly during a spell of warm weather, the gardener is forced to gather large quantities of fruit, and keep it the best way he can. Every one does not possess an ice-house, otherwise most varieties keep on for ice 4-6 weeks; but they must be used as soon as taken out, and almost before they have cooled. In the fruit room, placed on a cool airy shelf, the Royal George peach, Belle-garde, Grosse Mignonne, Borrington, and Late Admiral will keep a fortnight or longer, according to the weather; and the Malta is said to keep even longer. But much depends, of course, how the fruit is gathered. Nectarines are better keepers than peaches, and the Victoria is one of the best. Most of the kinds will keep a fortnight at least without deteriorating in flavour if they are pulled at the right time, which is just before they are quite ripe to the base. Pineapples.--By far the best keepers of these are the smooth Cayenne, Charlotte Rothschild, and Queen. The first two will keep 6 weeks after they are ripe if the plants are moved into a cool structure and kept dry at the root, but if they are cut off the plant they do not keep so long. Queens keep 4-5 weeks on the plants under the same conditions. Some recommend the fruit, whether cut or on the plants, to be removed before it gets quite ripe; but when good flavour is an object this practice is not advisable, as the fruit will keep nearly as well if it is allowed to get quite ripe before taking it out of the pinery. Plums and Apricots.--Both plums and apricots are difficult to keep long, though some varieties keep much better than others, particularly of plums. Apricots perish on the tree if they are not gathered in time, generally rotting on the ripe side, particularly if the weather be wet, or if the fruit has been injured by wasps or other vermin. The only plan is to gather the fruit before it is quite ripe on the shady side, and lay it on a sieve in the fruit room, or in a cool cellar. In this way it will keep for a week perfectly perhaps, but scarcely longer. Plums keep tolerably well, and some sorts, like that excellent variety, Coe’s Golden Drop, keep an astonishingly long period under certain favourable conditions. The best-preserved samples we ever saw of this variety were suspended to footstalks on lines stretched across a dry room; and if we remember rightly, they have been kept in that condition for 2 months. Some wrap the fruit in dry paper, and, if we are not mistaken, Reeves has somewhere stated that he has eaten them in good condition 12 months after they were gathered when preserved in that way. Considering what an excellent dessert variety Coe’s Golden Drop is, it is a wonder it has not long ago became the subject of special culture, under glass if necessary, just like the peach and nectarine--it is well worth a house to itself. Another excellent keeping plum of the same breed as Coe’s Golden Drop is the Ickworth Impératrice, which hangs on the tree till it shrivels, and keeps for a long while in the fruit room. Knight, who raised it, states in the Transactions of the Horticultural Society that he has kept fruit of it, wrapped in blotting-paper and kept in a dry room, till the end of March. Blue Impératrice is also said to be a good keeper; and the old damson, so useful for tarts and preserving, is not one of the worst, as it will keep for several weeks if the fruit is spread out thinly on the shelves as soon as gathered. None of the plums keep well after they have been basketed and stored, even for a short time. They get bruised, and, no matter how carefully they are kept afterwards, they soon rot. Everything depends on gathering them before they get dead ripe, and storing properly at once. Roots.--The action of frost is not thoroughly understood by farmers generally. This is shown by the way clamps are covered with manure on the top and half-way down the sides. The singular fact, however, is, that the top of a clamp is never injured--that is, unless the frost is so severe and prolonged that the whole mass is frozen--if the clamp be fairly covered with straw and earth at starting. The severity of an attack of frost begins and continues from the outer soil at the base of a clamp or brick store, as a barn or other building. Whether this is because a gentle fermentation of the roots or potatoes goes on, the warmth thus caused rising to the top, or whether it is because the lowest temperature is nearest the immediate surface of the earth, has not been decided; but the result invariably is that, if a body of roots or potatoes be partly injured, the rotten ones will be found at the bottom. If the clamp be broadside to the north or east wind, the rotten ones will be found in the form of a triangle on the side where the wind has blown, the base of the triangle being at the bottom; if, however, the clamp had been situated with the end to the wind, the rotten roots will be found at that end in the form of an inverted M, that is, there will be a decayed triangle on each side. The length and depth to which this decay would extend along the clamp would of course depend on the severity and length of the frost. The required precaution is therefore shown. In the case of clamps after several days of severe frost, with a prospect of its continuing, long manure, straw, hedge-trimming, or whatever may be at hand, should be packed 1 ft. or more thick, and 1 yd. or so wide on the surface soil at the base of the clamp, at the side on which the blast is impinging. It is the same with a brick building. If a bed or heap of potatoes or mangold be stored in a barn, either all over a bay or in one or more corners, and the same be well covered with straw, there will be no fear of the top or outer side of the heap being frozen. But the part of the heaps which are near to the wall will be found to have been frozen in the form of a triangle, as mentioned. The fact is the frost rises, so to express it, from the foundation of the brickwork being communicated with from the surface soil outside. This shows the importance of packing a body of long manure or a quantity of straw on the surface soil outside the brickwork. Rowan Berries.--(_a_) Fill a large earthenware jar with strong salt and water. Put in the berries; tie it down. They will keep in this way till Christmas, (_b_) Gum them well all over so as to make them adhere to their stalks, and sealing-wax the ends where cut from the tree, and keep them in a tin box till required for use. Tomatoes.--(_a_) Cut up a number of tomatoes, and let them simmer gently in a stewpan over a slow fire until reduced to a pulp. From this squeeze all the juice by pressing it through a fine hair sieve; boil it until it thickens, and then pour it into small bottles. Stand these in a large fish-kettle or boiler, filling it with cold water, and putting some hay between the bottles and against the sides of the boiler, to prevent them from touching it or each other. Set the boiler on the fire, and let all boil for ¼ hour after the water comes to the boil. Let the bottles get cold in the water after taking the boiler off the fire. Then cork and seal them, and keep them in a dry place. Take care that none of the water gets into the bottles while boiling. (_b_) If these are not to be packed for travelling, stone jars are better for their preservation than tins. Gather the tomatoes when perfectly ripe, and discard all that have blemishes. Pack them lightly till the jar is full, then entirely cover with strong vinegar and water in equal parts; add a few whole cloves and a sprinkling of sugar. Cover with a piece of flannel, letting it sink into the vinegar, then tie over with thick paper or bladder. Truffles.--To keep truffles till required for use choose the blackest, let them be fresh gathered; when thoroughly washed and brushed, peel them carefully with a sharp knife, and reject all that are not perfectly sound; put them into bottles as close as they will lie, cork them tightly, and boil them for an hour in the bain-marie. Vegetable Marrows.--(_a_) To preserve these for winter use, choose such as are fully ripe--turned yellow. When cut, arrange them in a dry place, resting on the flower end, with the stalk end upwards. They will then keep good the whole winter. (_b_) Cut them when fully grown, lay them on the pantry floor, and turn them twice a week, or put 2 pieces of tape or listing round them, and suspend them from a ceiling. The marrow improves in flavour, becoming quite nutty; they will keep in this way far into spring. Walnuts.--(_a_) Walnuts intended for keeping should be suffered to fall of themselves from the trees, and be afterwards laid in a dry, open, and airy place, till they become thoroughly dried. Then pack them in jars, boxes, or casks, in alternate layers with fine clear sand, which has previously been well dried in the sun, in an oven, or before the fire; set them in a dry place, but not where it is too hot, and they will keep good till the latter end of April. Before they are sent to table wipe the sand off, and if they have become shrivelled steep them in milk and water for 6-8 hours; this will make them plump and fine, as well as cause them to peel easily. (_b_) Place them, fresh gathered and unwashed, in earthen jars, tied down with stiff glazed brown paper, and keep them on the floor of the wine-cellar. They are perfectly good until the new ones come in again, (_c_) Put the new walnuts in earthen jars with salt; cover them close, and leave them in a damp cellar. When you want to use them, wash them in cold water. At Christmas they will peel and eat like fresh fruit. (_c_) _Curing foods for lengthened preservation._ This branch of the subject may be conveniently divided into several sections, according to the means employed for rendering the foods less susceptible to change under the influence of the air. The most important agents are smoke and salt in the case of flesh, sugar for fruits, and vinegar for vegetables. [Illustration: 66. Smoking Apparatus.] _Smoking._--Professor W. R. Brooks, in _Rural New Yorker_, gives the following simple but very effective smoking arrangement for all kinds of meats, especially hams, shoulders, and bacon. The smoking is effected in a very thorough manner and in a short time, about six hours sufficing for breakfast ham. The arrangement can be made by any one without the least trouble, and it is sure to “work” every time. The sketch almost explains itself. The device consists of the barrel _a_ (Fig. 66) of any suitable size. An ordinary flour or apple barrel will smoke four or five moderate sized hams or shoulders. Both heads are removed and a movable cover is provided for the top. This may be of boards, or an old oil-cloth or tight blanket will answer. A short trench is dug, in which is laid a length of old stove pipe _b_. A larger excavation _c_ is then made, in which a pan of burning corn cobs or chips can be placed. This is covered by a tightly fitting plank _d_. One end of the stove pipe communicates with this excavation; over the other end the barrel is placed, the earth banked up around the bottom of the barrel and over the stove pipe, to keep all tight, as plainly shown in Fig. 66. The meat may be suspended from a stick laid across the top of the barrel, and then all covered tight with an oil-cloth or blanket. On placing a pan of smoking cobs or chips in the place provided, the smoke passes through the stove pipe into the barrel, filling it with a dense, cool smoke. Should the support of the hams, &c., break, the latter cannot be hurt by coming in contact with the fire or ashes, as sometimes happens in the regular smoke-house. The ordinary smoking-chimney is described by Robinson as follows:--“It should be placed in some outhouse or shed, or even in a yard, so that no annoyance may be caused to the inmates of the dwelling, by even the smallest escape of smoke. It should be built of brick, and carried up to the height of 8 ft. at least from a brick or stone floor, 1 yd. wide and 2 ft. deep inside measure, and at the height of 3 ft. from the floor there should be a door frame reaching to the top of the chimney, or nearly so, on which a door, well jointed and fitted, must be hung. A small door of 1½ ft. square, of sheet iron, must also be made on the floor, through which the embers from the fire may be raked, and fuel or sawdust added from time to time, as the process of smoking goes on. A false floor, of sheet iron, perforated all over with holes, ¾ in. in diameter and 4 in. apart, must be placed (not fixed) inside the brickwork, on a level with the bottom of the wooden door-frame, viz. 3 ft. from the floor; this will serve to scatter the smoke equally in its ascent--be a preventive to danger from flame, if any should arise--and receive any small fish that may fall off the frames on which they are suspended. Four strong iron rods, with movable hooks on them, must be inserted in the brickwork near the top of the chimney, from which may be suspended sides of bacon, hams, heavy salmon, &c. &c. An outlet for the smoke must be made at or near the top, and a wooden pipe, 4 in. square, with a slide or valve in it (to confine or dismiss the smoke at pleasure), will completely rid the premises of any unpleasant odour. On each side of the chimney inside, and above the false floor, a framework of inch-square scantling must be fixed, with bars of wood of the same size nailed across to rest the rods and frames on; the bars must be fixed 11 in. above each other, and be continued until they come to the iron rods. “The wooden rods or spits on which herrings are to be hung should be perfectly round, 3 ft. in length, ½-¾ in. in diameter, and pointed a little at one end that they may more easily be run through the gills of the fish. They may be of deal or any other tough wood, and 16 herrings will smoke conveniently on each rod. “Frames for sprats and other small fish must be made thus:--The rims or outsides may be of deal, ¾ in. thick, and 2 in. wide: the whole frame must be 3 ft. high, and 2 ft. 9 in. wide, that it may fit into the chimney without trouble; and on each end of the top bar must be screwed a small plate of thin iron, projecting beyond the side of the frame 1 in., which will serve to hang the frames upon with the bars that are fixed up the sides of the chimney. Then take small deal rods ½ in. square, and with a bradawl or sprig-bit insert 32 sprigs, at equal distances from each other, in each rod, which, of course, will be 2 ft. 9 in. long; and if the sprigs be driven through on each side, it will be seen that each rod will carry at this rate 64 fish. These must be nailed on to the outside frame at the distance of 4½ in. from each other, and consequently each frame, when completed, will have 8 bars holding 64 fish each, or 512 on each frame. Wrought-iron sprigs may be used, which (being more than an inch long, and driven up to the head) will project ½ in. on the other side, and thus serve to hang small fish on; but this is left to the choice of the party making the frames; and if they are driven in with the points directed upwards, it will be easy to loosen the fish, when smoked, from the nails by turning the frames upside down, and shaking them over a sheet laid on the floor. “A horse or frame of wood of 2 in. square scantling, with ribs 1 in. square nailed across the sides, and 11 in. apart, will be requisite to hang the herring rods on, along with the frames, when they are drawn from the chimney; and for the purpose of cooling the fish, it should be placed in a draught of air. Mackerel, or any other fish that will not suit the frames so well, may easily be suspended from the herring rods by small wire hooks made to run on them. “The draught of smoke in the chimney may be increased or diminished at any time by opening more widely the iron door at the bottom; and if you want to inspect the articles while they are smoking, you may smother the smoke entirely for a few minutes by scattering sufficient sawdust over the embers: only take care that the sawdust is perfectly dry before attempting to use it. “In putting the rods and frames into the chimney, be careful that the fish do not touch each other, but rather place them so that a free current of smoke may ascend between them; for instance, 3 in. apart. As to fuel, the fire may be lighted with shavings and chips of deal; but oak sawdust should be used generally, mixed sometimes with beech, birch, and other woods. I decidedly prefer the small branches of the oak, such as charcoal is made from, after it has been peeled for the tanners’ bark: for these emit a much milder smoke than the sawdust of adult wood. They should be procured in the proper season, and stored in a dry room or shed. Never use old oak or other slabs (which are often little more than sap), nor old barrels, not knowing what their contents have been. As a general rule I would direct that, when delicate articles are to be smoked, you should make use of the milder woods, and dust mixed with oak; but for hams, bloaters, &c., the stronger flavour is the best. The embers must never be disturbed while any goods are smoking, as dust would ascend and spoil their appearance.” (‘Art of Curing.’) _Salting._ Bacon.--(1) Lay a middle of pork (a side with the hand and ham removed), with the ribs in, in a trough with salt for 12-14 hours; wipe dry, wash out the trough, and replace the side; boil for 10 minutes 1 gal. soft water, 2 lb. each common and bay salt, 2 oz. saltpetre, 2 lb. sugar, and a handful of chopped bay leaves; skim, pour on cold, rub in twice daily, and turn often for a fortnight; wipe dry, hang in the air for 24 hours, and smoke at least 3 weeks. (2) Spiced. Remove all bones from a middle or side and soak for 12 hours in renewed pans of water to extract all blood; pickle for 16 days in 1 gal. water, 1 lb. each salt and sugar, and ¼ lb. sal prunelle; wipe dry, and strew one side with powdered sage, bay leaves and white pepper; roll tightly and tie at every 3 inches; smoke for 14 days. Bath Chaps.--Select cheeks from pigs not exceeding 8 score; split, and remove all offal; for each stone of meat mix 1 lb. each of coarse sugar and bay or rock salt and 1 oz. each of pepper and saltpetre; rub well daily for a week; turn in the pickle for another fortnight; wipe dry, coat with warmed coarse oatmeal, and hang dry for a week; smoke for a month, preferably with oak and turf. Beef, Collared.--Take 14-16 lb. of the flank of a well-fed beast; cut square or oblong and take off the inner skin; make a brine of bay salt and water to float an egg, and let the meat lie covered in it for one week; take out, dry well, and rub all over with finely powdered saltpetre; let remain for a week longer in the former pickle, then wipe it completely dry, and beat 1 oz. powdered white pepper, 1½ oz. grated nutmeg, 1 oz. mace, 1 oz. cloves, and four shallots, shredded fine, into a paste (in a mortar); spread evenly and completely over the inner side of the meat; roll up the beef as closely as possible, tie tightly round with tape, and hang up to smoke for a fortnight. Beef, Corned.--The following is a very old and excellent recipe for corning beef, called “Pocock pickle”; 4 gal. fresh water, 1½ lb. coarse brown sugar, 2 oz. saltpetre, 7 lb. common salt; put all into a boiler, take off the scum as it rises, and when well boiled let it remain to get cold. Have sufficient to cover the meat, lay a cloth over it, and keep the meat pressed down by means of bricks or any weight. The same pickle may be used again by re-boiling and adding a small quantity of each ingredient fresh. Beef Hams.--Take the leg of a prime young heifer, rub well with common salt, and let lie a day and night to extract the blood; wipe dry, and put under a press to flatten; cut in the shape of a common ham. For every 12 lb. of beef, allow 1 lb. each coarse sugar, common salt, and bay salt, and 1 oz. saltpetre; rub this mixture in well, in all parts, for a month, turning the meat every day, at least; take out of pickle, rub dry, and give a good coat of coarse oatmeal and bran mixed, which will adhere by friction with the hand; smoke as hams, not less than a month. Beef, Potted.--2 lb. lean beef, 6 oz. butter, 1 teaspoonful each pepper, salt, and mace. Free the beef from all skin and gristle, and put it into an earthenware jar with 1 gill water; cover, and place it in a deep stewpan full of boiling water, and simmer slowly for 5 hours. Take out the beef, mince it very finely, and pound it in a mortar with the above-named seasoning; when smooth, add the butter. Press the mixture into small pots, pour clarified butter over the top when cool, tie down, and keep in a cool place. Beef, Spiced.-½ lb. common salt, 1 oz. saltpetre, 2 oz. bay salt, 3 oz. moist sugar, ¼ oz. whole pepper, ¼ oz. long pepper, 2 blades mace, ¼ oz. whole allspice, 2 bay leaves, 5 or 6 sprigs of thyme, ditto marjoram, 2 stalks basil, 4 or 5 of white savoury. The whole to be boiled in 3 pints water for ½ hour, the saltpetre and bay salt to be pounded. The beef to be rubbed all over with a little salt previous to its being put in the pickle, when that is cold; 14-15 days to remain in pickle, turned often. This quantity of pickle is for a piece or hand of beef of 8 lb. Bloaters, Potted.--Put 8 or 10 large bloaters (soft-roed ones are best) into a dish or tin, and cook them in an oven about 15-20 minutes; then, if thoroughly cooked, remove all the bones and skin, and put the fish into a mortar with a piece of butter (about 2 oz.), some cayenne pepper, a very little mixed spice, and salt if necessary. Pound all together till the paste may be spread, then put into pots and cover the top of each pot of the paste with mutton suet melted or good salt butter. Boar’s Head.--Take head of large bacon pig; open, and remove gullet, tongue, eyes, small bones, brain, &c., and cleanse out thoroughly with salt and water; wipe dry, rub with salt, and drain for 24 hours; boil together for ¼ hour 1 gal. water, 2 lb. each treacle and bay salt, 3 oz. sal prunelle, 2 oz. each juniper berries and pepper, 1 oz. shallots, and ½ oz. chopped garlic; skim, and pour cold over the head and tongue lying in deep stoneware vessel; turn on alternate days for a month; at end of first 2 weeks remove the tongue, boil up the pickle with 1 lb. more salt, and pour on again cold; on removing from pickle, wipe dry, and score lines 2 in. apart in the skin running from nose to base of head; cut off any superfluous fat, and rub all over with dried oatmeal, skin the tongue and place it in the mouth, holding it with a skewer; close the sides with twine and smoke for 3 weeks in brown paper, using 3 parts birch and beech chips, 2 parts oak sawdust, and 1 part grass or fern; store in malt coomb and bake for table. Brawn.--The head, feet, tongue, and ears of a pig, having been salted, are boiled with the outside skin of a loin, also salted for a few days. Boil very gently for a long time, till the bones will easily slip out. Take great care that every one is carefully picked out. Keep the skin of the loin whole, but cut the rest into pieces about 2 in. square. Line the brawn mould with the skin, then roll each piece lightly in mixed spice and powdered herbs, flavoured to taste. Pack them tightly in the brawn tin, put on the top, and press it with a heavy weight 24 hours. It is then ready for turning out. Keep it in the following pickle: Take a sufficient quantity of water (more than will be enough to cover your brawn); add to every gallon of water 2 handfuls whole malt, and salt enough to give it a strong relish. Let the mixture boil for 1 hour; then strain it into a clean vessel. When quite cold, pour it off into another vessel, keeping back the white sediment; then put in your brawn. A little vinegar maybe added, if liked. Fresh pickle should be made about once in 8 days, if the brawn is to be kept long. A common brawn tin is a cylinder of tin without top or bottom, but with 2 round pieces of tin which fit loosely inside it. The tin is about 5 in. diameter and 1 ft. in height. A heavy weight must fit inside it. Slack’s fruit or meat press answers admirably. Char, Potted.--The following is an old family recipe: When in high season choose a dozen fine fish; clean and scale them; wash them twice, drying with a fresh cloth each time. Rub into them 1 oz. Jamaica pepper, 1 oz. saltpetre, 1 oz. common salt, all in the finest powder; lay the fish on a board, raised at one side, and let them drain for 12 hours. Then carefully wipe off the spice and salt, and season again with 48 cloves, 14 blades mace, 2 large nutmegs, ¼ oz. pepper, and 1 oz. common salt, all finely powdered. As each fish is seasoned, lay it carefully into the pan, which should be just large enough to hold the 12 fish; lay butter over them, cover with one white and several brown papers, tie down close, and bake 4-5 hours in a moderately quick oven. When a little cooled, drain the liquor from the fish, and lay them round a potting or char pan, backs upwards, as close as they will lie without breaking, and finish packing them in the centre. Smooth the surface with the bowl of a large spoon, that there be no cavities to absorb the butter, which must not be put on till the next day; then let it be ½ in. thick. The gravy, in small proportions, is an excellent addition to soups or made dishes. Hamburgh Beef.--Take a piece of meat from the bed, or other fleshy part; scatter common salt under and over it, and let lie 24 hours to void the blood; then put into a pickle made with 1 gal. water that has been boiled, 1 lb. common salt, 1½ lb. coarse sugar, 2 oz. saltpetre, ½ pint vinegar; simmer until all are melted, and pour the liquor over the meat placed in a deep narrow pan, so that it may be covered completely; it will be ready for smoking in 3 weeks; well dry with a cloth, and rub pea meal all over it until you have got a coat on it; if well smoked, it will come out bright yellow, and will keep any length of time. (Robinson.) Hams.--(1) Four days after being killed, rub them all over with common rough salt, particularly about the hip-bone and knuckle joints. Having brushed off the salt (which should remain on for a day and night), and dried the hams with a coarse cloth, rub thoroughly and equally into each, 1 oz. finely powdered saltpetre, and let it lie for 24 hours, then take 1 oz. saltpetre, ½ lb. common salt, ¼ lb. bay salt, 1 lb. coarse sugar. Make them hot in a pan--but be careful not to melt them--and rub them well in, while hot, all over the fleshy and rind sides, and finish with ½ lb. more of common salt. Let them lie thus until a brine appears, and then with plenty of bay leaves, strewed both under and over, turn them every day, and rub and baste them well with the brine for the space of 3 weeks; then take them out of pickle and immerse them in cold spring water for 24 hours; let them drip; wipe them well with a cloth; rub hog’s blood, that has coagulated, all over them, and put them to smoke for a week, well smothered. (Robinson.) (2) Three days after killing rub well with 1 oz. saltpetre, ½ lb. bay salt, 1 lb. treacle, and a handful each of bay leaves, marjoram, and thyme, chopped fine; keep on rubbing and basting for a week, turning over each day; next strew salt on an inch thick, and let remain till the salt and brine are well mixed; boil the pickle, and pour it hot (not scalding) over the meat; let lie for 14 days; smoke, without wiping, for a week in gentle heat for the first 6 hours and afterwards cool. (3) Take a leg of pork about 20 lb. and rub all over with 3 oz. saltpetre; let lie 14 hours; then boil 2 qt. stale beer or porter, 2 lb. salt, 2 lb. coarse sugar, 1 lb. pounded bay salt, skim well, and pour hot over the meat; let lie a month, rubbing and turning every alternate day; take out, rub dry, and roll for ½ hour in malt-dust or oatmeal; when well covered, smoke for 3 weeks; and immediately wash over with a hot paste of quicklime and water; leave for a week, and hang in cool dry place. (4) Take a leg of pork 16-18 lb.; rub in 1 oz. sal prunelle and leave for 24 hours; boil 12 oz. bay salt, 10 oz. common salt, 1½ oz. saltpetre, 2 lb. treacle, 2 qt. vinegar, 3 heads garlic, and a handful of chopped sage; skim, pour hot over the meat, and well rub in daily for 10 days; let lie 10 days with frequent turning; dry, and smoke for 3 weeks. Herrings.--The fish are spread on a floor, and sprinkled with salt; when sufficiently salted, they are thrown into large vats, and washed. Each fish is then threaded through the gills, on long thin spits holding 25 each. These are hung upon trestles in the smoking-room, where fires of oak-boughs are kept smouldering. For “bloaters,” to be consumed in England, the smoking lasts about 24 hours; “red-herrings” for export are salted more, and are smoked for 3 or 4 to 40 days, usually about 14 days. “Kippers” are taken while fresh, and split up. They are then washed, and thrown into vats with plenty of salt for a few minutes; finally they are spread out on tenter-hooks, on racks, and hung up for 8 hours’ smoking. Herring Paste.--1 doz. herrings put in a pan, cover with hot water; when pretty soft, pull them to pieces, take out all the bones (use only white part of fish and soft roes), pound in a mortar, with ½ lb. butter, cayenne to taste, ¼ pint anchovy sauce; when well pounded, put into small pots with lard over. Will keep good for months, and will be found delicious. Hungarian Beef.--Take about 10 lb. of fine fat short rib or sirloin of beef that has been killed 4 or 5 days; rub thoroughly with ½ lb. coarse sugar or treacle until none can be seen; after lying 2 days take 2 oz. juniper berries, ½ lb. bay salt, 2 oz. saltpetre, 1 oz. sal prunelle, 1 lb. common salt, all finely beaten to powder, and some bay leaves and thyme chopped small; rub in for an hour, and let lie for 3 weeks in an earthen pan, rubbing well every day with the brine; take out, wipe well, and plunge into cold water for 12 hours; rub perfectly dry, and colour with bullocks’ blood; hang up in gentle smoke for 3 days, after which smoke until nearly black. Mackerel.--Take the mackerel as soon as caught (for they quickly become dark and lose flavour), and with a light knife split open the back from head to tail; take out the guts, roes, livers, and gills, and be particular you do not burst the gall; wipe each fish well inside and out, and put into the following pickle:--1 gal. cold pure water, 1 oz. saltpetre, 2 lb. common salt, 1 lb. coarse sugar; if the fish be large and thick, let them lie in this state 6 hours; then take out and put two stretch laths across the back of each, extending them as much as possible; wash through the pickle once, and hang to dry for 2 hours; after which place in a hot smoke for 1 hour, and afterwards in a cool one for 20 hours, or until they become of a dark chestnut colour. When cold, pack them one on the other in bundles of 6, and keep them rather in a dry than in a damp room. Mutton Hams.--Select a short, thick, round leg of wether mutton about 14 lb. weight; rub thoroughly for 20-30 minutes with coarse sugar, and let lie 12 hours, turning 3 times; plunge into the following pickle, with what sugar you have on the dish;-½ lb. bay salt, 1 lb. common salt, 1 oz. saltpetre, 2 oz. juniper berries, 1 handful each of thyme and bay leaves, 2 qt. soft water; simmer together one hour, and use lukewarm; let remain in this pickle 3 weeks; take out, but do not wipe; then smoke, but insist on its being turned frequently, sometimes shank upwards, and _vice versâ_, for a fortnight, in a strong regular fume; when cold, put into a calico bag, and hang up in the kitchen until you want to dress it; then bury it in the bag in a dry garden soil for 20 hours or so; and take care, when it is boiled, to put plenty of bay leaves, thyme, and marjoram into the pot along with it. (Robinson.) Norfolk Chine.--Select the chine of a 10-score pig; remove rind and superfluous fat, and rub and turn daily for a week in 1 lb. each salt and treacle, and 1 oz. each bay and laurel leaves; then boil 3 qt. water with 1 lb. salt, 1 oz. each crushed juniper berries and shredded bay and laurel leaves, and a handful each of thyme and marjoram; skim, and pour cold over the meat so that it mingles with the first pickle; turn for 3 weeks, wipe dry, and coat with bran and then pea flour; smoke for 14 days with equal proportions dried fern, oak lops, and birch or beech chips; bake and eat cold. Oysters.--A method of preserving oysters is adopted by the Chinese. The fish are taken from the shells, plunged into boiling water for an instant, and then exposed to the sun till all the moisture is removed. They remain fresh for a long time, and retain their full flavour. Only the fattest can be so treated. Oysters are also largely “canned,” much in the same way as salmon. Pickled Pork.--Cut into convenient sized pieces and remove principal bones; rub well with saltpetre and then with a mixture of 2 parts bay salt and 1 part common salt; pack in a clean vessel with plenty of salt around the sides and covering the top. Porker’s Head.--Choose a dairy-fed porker of 7 score; open the head, and remove gullet, tongue, eyes, &c.; wash 5 minutes in salt and water; rub well all over with coarse sugar and sliced onions; let remain in a deep dish 48 hours; boil ½ oz. powdered bay leaves, ¾ oz. saltpetre, 1 lb. bay salt or rock salt, 2 oz. ground allspice, 1 qt. water; skim well, and when cold, pour it over the head in a deep straight-sided earthen vessel; let lie 3 weeks, turning and basting with the pickle every other day; wipe dry, place the tongue in (having meantime cured it as neats’ tongue) and stuff all cavities with onions fried in olive oil or sweet lard, and powdered dried sage; bind the cheeks close together with tape, and smoke 3 weeks with 2 parts beech chips, 2 parts fern, 1 part peat, 1 part oak sawdust; keep in same packing as hams, tongues, &c., for 2 months; bake and eat cold. Salmon.--The fish are beheaded and cleaned, and cut by a series of knives into the right lengths to fill 1 lb. cans. When these have been filled to within ¼ in. of the top, the covers are put on and soldered. In an air-tight condition, the full cans are passed to the boilers, vats measuring 5 ft. × 4 ft. × 4 ft., where they are steamed for 1 hour. They are then taken out and cooled. A small hole in the centre of each lid, hitherto remaining soldered up, is opened by applying a hot iron, and the air and cooking-gases are allowed to escape. The cans are then instantaneously made air-tight again, and are boiled for two hours in a bath of salted water, the salt being added to raise the boiling-point. They are then left to stand till quite cool. Salmon, Kippered.--Lay the fish on a board with the tail towards you, and the back to the right hand; insert the knife at the point of the nose, and split down the backbone, or as near to it as possible. Take out the inside and the roe, and scale and wipe the fish perfectly clean; remove the backbone and every particle of blood. When clean, rub in a mixture of equal parts salt, brown sugar, and ground black pepper, about 4 large spoonfuls of each ingredient to a 10 lb. fish. Let the fish remain in the pickle 2-3 days, according to size, turning it every day. Afterwards press it between 2 flat stones in a cool place for 2-3 days more, then sprinkle it with ground pepper, and hang it out in the sun against a wall until dry, with wooden skewers to keep it flat, or it may be hung above the fireplace in the kitchen when it is warm, but not hot. After that it may be smoked for 2 days and nights in the smoke of dried seaweed and oak sawdust, or painted over with pyroligneous acid, or with Smith’s Cambrian essence. Salmon, Pickled.--Take a good salmon; cut it across in 2 or 3 pieces without splitting it; wash carefully and boil in pickle made with coarse salt and spring water strong enough to float an egg. The fish must be put down in cold pickle, and allowed very slowly to boil till it begins to separate from the bone, keeping it well skimmed all the while. Put the fish on a table to drain, and when cold pack it in a crock or keg as closely as possible without breaking the pieces, sprinkling a small quantity of powdered saltpetre, a little salt, and some bay leaves on each layer. Then cover with a pickle made thus: 1 qt. vinegar, 3 pints spring water, ¼ lb. lump sugar, 16 drops oil of cloves. This pickle will preserve any kind of fish fit for pickling, and is particularly good for oysters. These should be boiled slowly before put in it. Sardines.--The beheaded and cleaned fish are spread upon sieves, and plunged for 1 or 2 minutes beneath the surface of boiling oil in coppers. After draining a little, the fish are packed closely in tin boxes, which are filled up with pure cold oil, and soldered. The quality deteriorates with every immersion, owing to the matters disengaged by the boiling oil, and the coppers need frequent replenishing with oil. Sausages.--(_a_) Take a quantity of pig’s meat, remove all nerves and skin with great care; then chop it as finely as possible. Put it in an earthenware pan, add to it garlic, parsley, mint, thyme, marjoram, and burnet finely minced; pepper and cloves powdered; and salt, all in such proportions as taste may suggest. Work the whole with a wooden spoon for some time, so as to get all the ingredients well mixed; then add a tumblerful of white wine for every 2 lb. meat, and work it for some time longer. Have some skins perfectly cleaned, rub them well all over with lemon juice, and put them in water with plenty of lemon juice squeezed into it. Take them out one at a time, dry them, fill them with the meat, and tie them in lengths of about 3 in. The sausages should then be hung up to dry in a strong current of air for some days. These sausages are best eaten boiled with cabbages or greens. (The G. C.) (_b_) Beef sausages are prepared in exactly the same manner as pork. The best part to use is beef steak. To 1 lb. of this use ¼ lb. beef suet or other good fat, ¼ pint stock, or water, 1½ oz. sifted breadcrumbs, 1 large teaspoonful salt, ½ teaspoonful dried and sifted parsley mixed with a similar quantity of thyme, and 1 small teaspoonful salt. If these sausages are properly made and cooked, they will, when cut, give plenty of gravy; they are considered somewhat less rich than those made of pork. (_c_) 1½ lb. pigmeat cut from the griskin, without any skin, 1½ lb. veal, 1½ lb. beef suet, the yolks and whites of 5 eggs, 1 dessertspoonful sifted sage (after being well dried), pepper and salt to taste. Chop the meat into small pieces, pound it together in a marble mortar till it is soft and tender, chop the suet very fine, and when the eggs are well beaten together (after the specks are taken out) pour the liquid over the pounded meat and chopped suet, kneading it well together with a clean hand, throwing in the sifted sage and pepper and salt from a coarse pepper-box during the operation, so as to let them impregnate the whole mass without being predominant in any part of it. Press the whole, when well mixed together, into a wide-mouthed jar, and keep it from the air in a cold place; roll the sausages on a floured board, and use very little grease in frying them, as they will be almost fat enough to fry themselves, with the aid of a frying-pan. They should be made into small flat cakes, about the size of a five-shilling piece. Lovelock’s sausage-making machine is very useful. (_d_) To each lb. veal put ½ lb. ham, in equal quantities of fat and lean. Season with ½ teaspoonful salt, a whole one of pepper, a pinch of nutmeg and sweet herbs; mix with 1 oz. sifted breadcrumbs, and moisten with 4 tablespoonfuls stock made from trimmings of the veal and ham. Proceed as for pork sausages. Shrimps.--To preserve shrimps in a dried state, they are boiled for ½ hour with frequent sprinkling of salt; then spread out on hard dry ground, with frequent turning, to dry and bleach for 3 or 4 days. They are then trampled to remove the shells, and are winnowed and bagged. Shrimps, Potted.--Take some freshly boiled shrimps and half their weight of butter, pick out the meat from the tails, and chop it up fine; take the rest of the shrimps and pound them up with a little of the butter until reduced to a smooth paste, then add the meat from the tails and pound all together, seasoning well with pounded mace, grated nutmeg, and cayenne pepper; put it into pots, and cover with clarified butter. Smoked Geese.--When geese are cheap, take as many as you please, only seeing that they are fresh, and not in the least damp or muggy; then cleanly draw, pick from pen-feathers, and wipe well out with a cloth dipped in strong salt and water; after which immerse in the following (quantities for 6 geese):--2 lb. coarse sugar, 1 lb. bay salt, 3 oz. saltpetre, 1 handful finely beaten sage, 3 shallots, 2 handfuls crushed bay leaves; boil together 10 minutes, and afterwards simmer ½ hour; when cold, pour over the geese, which must be turned often, and, if possible, kept covered with the pickle; let remain 48 hours; take out and let them drip (do not wipe), and rub cayenne pepper plentifully inside each until it adheres; smoke 3 days and nights in a cool smoke, and hang each up in a calico bag in the kitchen; when wanted for table, dissect them, and broil over a clear fire. Smoked Neats’ Tongues.--Take 6 tongues and rub well with sugar for 2 days; then rub well with common salt and saltpetre for 2 days more, apart from the sugar; then take 1 qt. each of water and porter, ¼ lb. saltpetre, 2 lb. bay salt, 2 lb. common salt, and with the sugar first used make a hot pickle, which skim well, and pour over the tongues laid in a deep narrow tin pan completely covered; let lie for 8 days more, and they will be fit for use in any way; if to be smoked, wipe them well, and turn in the chimney 4 or 5 times for 5 days. Sprats.--Pick out the largest, and then the second size, rejecting the remainder, or refuse, which, however, may be useful to pot. Put into baskets, and well wash in salt and water; then set to drain an hour, and afterwards plunge into a pickle that will float an egg: the smaller ones may be taken out of pickle in 4 hours, and the large ones in 6 hours, and be set to drain; which done, proceed to stick them on frames, the eye being pierced by each nail, and then, with a steady hand, put into the chimney. Set on a gentle heat for ½ hour, and let it be succeeded by a strong smoke for 12 hours longer; when cold, they will be fit for immediate consumption; but if you want them to keep a month or so, you must continue the smoke on them for 30 hours, or until they become a dark brown colour; and if for packing, they should be placed as bloaters, keeping the same-sized ones together in a dry room, and after a few hours they will have sweated in the packages, and will be very mellow and fine flavoured. Sprats, Pickled.--For this purpose the sprats must be quite fresh and unsalted. Clean, take off the heads, and thoroughly wash them. Drain, and put in layers and rows, heads and tails, into china-lined earthen pie-dishes, wide, well glazed, or stoneware crocks, with whole pepper, allspice, chili-pods, and bay leaves; of the latter sparingly. Dissolve 1 spoonful salt in hot water, pour it over the fish, and add vinegar to cover them completely. Cover and bake slowly for 1-2 hours, according to quantity, till all the fish are well cooked through. Take off the cover and let them cool before putting away for use. Add a little more vinegar if too dry. A few shallots or slices of silverskin onions can be added if approved of. Sprats pickled thus should come to the table in the vessel they are cooked in, and removed in layers. In cold weather, if kept for a week or two, the bones will be found to be quite dissolved by the action of the vinegar. Fresh herrings, trout, salmon peal, eels, and a variety of fresh-water fish can be thus prepared. Sprats, Potted.--Pour some boiling (slightly salted) water on the sprats, cleaned as above-mentioned, in a deep pan. After a few minutes the meat can easily be removed from the bones. When this is done, mash it up finely and carefully with a silver fork. Add red and white pepper and a little more salt to taste. Grease 1 lb. jam-pots with clarified butter. Pack the fish closely into these, and bake for ½-1 hour in slow heat. When cold, pour some of the clarified butter or some American tinned marrow fat to the depth of 1 in. on the top of each pot, and allow to harden before tying down for use. These will keep well 1-3 weeks. Tongues.--(_a_) Sprinkle the tongue well all over with common salt, and let it stand 2 days. If it appear slimy, remove the salt with the slime, then mix 1 lb. saltpetre and 1 tablespoonful coarse brown sugar together, with which rub the tongue well, and let it be in pickle 3-7 weeks, taking care to turn and baste it well every day during that time. If it be allowed to remain in pickle as long as 7 weeks, it should be taken out, rubbed dry, and hung up to keep for five days before using it. It is better, however, not to keep them in so long, as tongues are always best used straight out of the pickle. Like all other boiled meats, tongues require great care in cooking. The fact is they never should boil; they should be soaked for 2 hours or more after they are taken out of the pickle, according to the number of weeks they have been in it, and should then be put into a large saucepan or stewpan in cold water. As soon as this shows symptoms of boiling, and before it begins regularly to boil, the pan should be drawn sufficiently to the side of the fire to keep up a constant simmering, to be kept up until it is done. In this way the tongue will be as tender as possible, and, cured with saltpetre as described, it should have a nice red colour. (_b_) ½ oz. saltpetre, ½ oz. salprunella, 1 lb. salt, ½ lb. very coarse sugar, 4 bay leaves, 10 juniper berries, 1 tablespoonful vinegar, and 3 pints water. Let all boil for ½ hour, skim off the scum, and pour the liquid into a pickling dish, when it is quite cold put the tongue in, and turn it every day for 3 weeks, if you wish to cook it green, but if you intend to hang it, let it stop for a month in pickle. This pickle will keep good for months if reboiled and skimmed. Every tongue put in should be well rubbed with salt, left to drain for 3 days, and wiped dry before being put in. Trout, Potted.--(_a_) Pour boiling water on the fish, and let them steep ½ hour; bone and skin them, and pound them in a mortar with ½ lb. butter to double the quantity of fish; add by degrees, salt, cayenne, and spices to taste; when reduced to a smooth paste, put it into pots and cover with clarified fat or butter. (_b_) Mix together the following quantity of spices, all finely pounded. 1 oz. cloves, ½ oz. Jamaica pepper, ¼ oz. black pepper, ¼ oz. cayenne, 2 nutmegs, a little mace, and 2 teaspoonfuls ginger; add the weight of the spices and half as much again of salt, and mix all thoroughly. Clean the fish, and cut off the heads, fins, and tails; put 1 teaspoonful of the mixed spices into each fish, and lay them in a deep earthen jar with the backs downwards; cover them with clarified butter, tie a paper over the mouth of the jar, and bake them slowly for 8 hours. When the backbone is tender the fish are done enough. Take them out of the jar and put them in a pan with the backs upwards; cover them with a board, and place a heavy weight upon it. When perfectly cold remove the fish into fresh jars, smooth them with a knife, and cover them with clarified butter. _Pickling._--The chief agent in pickling is hot vinegar, and the best way to prepare it is as follows:--Bruise ¼ lb. each of black pepper, ginger, cloves, pimento, and mace, with some garlic, horse-radish, capsicums, and shallots, in 1 qt. of the strongest and best vinegar in a stoneware jar; cork tightly, cover with a bladder soaked in the pickle, and place on a trivet near the fire for 3 days, shaking it up 3 or 4 times a day. Gherkins and similar articles should be pricked before immersion, to admit the pickle better. The addition of a little alkali (such as soda bicarbonate) heightens the green colour of the pickles. Glazed or block-tin vessels should alone be used for making pickles in. Glass or earthenware jars are best for strong pickles; they must be tightly corked and tied down with bladder soaked in the pickling liquor. A damp store cupboard is fatal to them. Cabbage.--Choose a fine closely-grown red cabbage, strip the outside leaves off, cut it across in rather thin slices, and lay on a dish, scattering salt over; cover with a cloth, and let lie 20 hours; drain the cabbage on a sieve, and put it in a clean jar with allspice, whole pepper, and a little ginger sliced; pour cold white wine vinegar over it to cover it well, and tie closely from the air. Chutney.--(_a_) Cayenne pepper, ¼ oz.; mustard seed, 2 oz.; brown sugar, ½ lb.; ground ginger, 1 oz.; vinegar, 1½ pint; stoned raisins, ¼ lb.; garlic, 2 oz.; onions, ¼ lb.; salt, 2 oz.; apples, 1½ lb. Boil until soft enough to mash through a colander. (C. G. J.) (_b_) Peel 4 lb. green mangoes, take out the stones, and cut them into quarters lengthwise; boil them slightly in 1 bottle vinegar, and put it aside in a jar till cold. Take another bottle of vinegar, to which add 2 lb. sugar, and boil it till it becomes a thin syrup; put aside till cold. Take 1 oz. salt, 2 lb. picked and dried raisins, 1 oz. yellow mustard seed, 1 oz. garlic, 2 oz. dried chillies, 1 lb. green ginger sliced. Pound the garlic, chillies, and ginger finely in a mortar; mix all the ingredients together, bottle and expose to the sun for 3-4 days, or place it in a cool oven. Apples can be used instead of mangoes; they should be finely cut up. (_c_) Apple.--6 large sharp apples, 3 large onions, 6 oz. sultana raisins, 1 teaspoonful ground ginger, 1 saltspoonful red pepper, 1 dessertspoonful salt, 2 tablespoonfuls tomato sauce or the pulp of 2 or 3 tomatoes, 1 dessertspoonful anchovy essence, 1 dessertspoonful Indian soy, 1 tablespoonful salad oil, ½ vinegar. Chop very finely the apples and onions, and chop the raisins roughly. Now put all the ingredients, with the exception of the vinegar, into a mortar, and pound together, and by degrees add the vinegar. When all the ingredients are well blended together, put into wide-mouthed bottles, and cork tightly. (_d_) Elder.--The berries that remain from elder ketchup, an onion finely minced, ¼ oz. ginger, and a blade of mace and 6 cloves; pound the spice together, and put all the ingredients into an enamelled stewpan, with 3 oz. sultana raisins, 2 oz. Demerara sugar, ½ pint vinegar, 1 saltspoonful cayenne pepper, and 1 teaspoonful salt, and, if convenient, a few mulberries; boil all together 5 minutes, take from the fire, and, when cold, put into wide-mouthed bottles, and cork tightly. This makes a very good chutney for cold meat; it can be made hotter if liked. (_e_) Green Gooseberry.--4 pints green gooseberries boiled in 1½ pint brown vinegar, 2 lb. brown sugar made into a syrup, 1½ pint vinegar; 1½ lb. raisins, stoned and chopped; 6 oz. garlic, pounded and dried; 6 oz. mustard seed, gently dried and bruised; 2 oz. dried chillies, pounded. Mix all together, put in a cool oven for some hours on several different occasions; and after, if too dry, add a little vinegar, as may be required, at the end of a month or two. (_f_) Tomato.--Take 4-5 lb. ripe tomatoes, pick out the stalks, wipe the fruit with a dry piece of flannel, place them in a jar with a lid, add a breakfastcupful of salt, the same of vinegar, close the jar by placing a stiff paste of flour and water round the edge of the lid so as to make it air-tight, place the jar in a large pan of boiling water, let the fruit simmer slowly for 6 hours, then pulp through a colander to get quit of the skins and cores. Shred 2 oz. red chillies, the same of garlic, make a syrup of 2 pints vinegar and 2 lb. loaf sugar, cut small 2 oz. ginger, mix all with the tomatoes, place on a slow fire, simmer gently; when it comes to the boil take off the chutney, bottle when cold, cork tight, keep in a warm, dry place. Cucumbers.--Cut them small and unripe; make an incision at the side, and, taking out a piece of the fruit, save it entire, and extract the seeds thoroughly; put the cucumbers, with the pieces which have been cut from them, into a strong pickle of salt and water, and leave in it for 10 days, or until they become yellow; place in a pan, with thick layers of fresh vine leaves between them; dissolve a little powdered alum in the brine from which they have been taken, pour it on, and set the pan over a moderate fire; keep the cucumbers at a scalding heat for 4 hours at least, without on any account allowing them to boil; by that time they will be of a fine green colour; drain on a sieve, and when cold put a stick of horse-radish, some mustard seed, 4 cloves of garlic, and ¼ oz. of peppercorns into each cucumber; fit in the piece that was taken out, and stitch with a needle and green silk; boil 2 oz. each of black peppercorns, long pepper, and sliced ginger, 4 oz. mustard seed, 1 oz. each of garlic, mace, and cloves, and 1 gal. best white wine vinegar, together for 8 minutes; lay the cucumbers in a deep jar, and when the pickle is cold pour it on; tie first bladder, and then leather, closely over. Gherkins.--Soak 250 gherkins in a pickle of 2½ lb. common salt to 1 gal. water; let lie 3 hours; drain on a sieve, wipe separately, and place in a jar; boil 1 gal. best white wine vinegar, 6 oz. common salt, 1 oz. each of allspice and mustard seed, ½ oz. each of cloves and mace, 1 sliced nutmeg, and 1 stick of horse-radish, sliced, for 12 minutes; skim well, and pour when cold over the gherkins; let stand 20 hours covered up close; put altogether into a pan over the fire, and let simmer only until they attain a nice green colour; place in jars, pour the liquor and spices over them, and tie closely with bladder and leather. Grapes.--The grapes must be carefully cut from the stalk before they are ripe, and care must be taken not to bruise the skin, or they will become soft instead of crisp. Boil 4 pints vinegar, 2 oz. whole ginger, 1 oz. peppercorns, 2 doz. cloves, and a very small piece of mace. When cold pour it over the grapes, and let them be well covered, and remain 3 days; then boil the vinegar again, and pour it cold on the grapes. Bottle and cork securely. Grape Leaves.--A writer in the _Country Gentleman_ recommends the use of fresh green grape-leaves to place on top of pickles in jars in place of flannel or other cloth usually employed. He claims the leaves will preserve the vinegar sharp and clear and impart a nice flavour. The leaves should be rinsed in pure water and left to drain before use, and occasionally changed. They exclude the air, and besides imparting a delightful flavour to the pickle cause less trouble to the housewife. Ketchup.--(_a_) Elder.--Put into a jar 3 pints elderberries, picked from the stalks, 2 large blades of mace, 2 oz. ginger, 6 oz. anchovies, ½ oz. whole pepper, 1½ pint vinegar; set it in a rather cool oven, and let it remain there all night. Next morning strain the liquor from the berries, and put into an enamelled stewpan, with the ginger, mace, anchovies, pepper and salt; let it boil till the anchovies are dissolved. Strain off, and, when cold, put into small bottles, cork and seal. This is a nice ketchup for broiled fish. The berries will make a chutney. (_b_) Mushroom.--The mushrooms should be gathered in the morning before the sun is on them. Break them in small bits, put them in a large dish, and sprinkle a good deal of salt upon them; let them lie for 4 days, turning them daily, and adding a little salt. Lay the pieces upon a sieve, or put them in a thin bag. Let them run all night until the juice is all run from them; put the juice in a stewpan, beat up the whites of 2 eggs, add them to the ketchup, with plenty of mixed spices. Let it boil for one minute, run it through a piece of muslin into a basin, and when cold bottle it up, cork, and seal it; keep it in a dry place. (_c_) Ditto.--Break up the mushrooms, and add ¼ lb. salt to every 3½ lb. mushrooms; let them stand for 2 days, and drain all the juice you can procure from them by pressure; then boil it slowly for an hour, with 2 oz. of salt, a few cloves, and ¼ oz. peppercorns and whole ginger, to each qt.; then strain, and when cold bottle, using new corks, and sealing them down. (_d_) Ditto.--Take for this full-grown flap mushrooms, crush them with the hands, and put a handful of salt to every peck; let them stand all night, then put into broad-mouthed jars, and set them for 12 hours in a quick oven, then strain through a hair sieve. To every qt. of liquor put ¼ oz. cloves, black pepper, and ginger; boil till half is wasted; when cold bottle for use. (_e_) Walnut.--Take 6 half-sieves of green walnut shells, put them into a tub, mix up well with 2-3 lb. common salt; let them stand for 6 days, frequently beating and mashing them, till the shells become soft and pulpy, then, by banking it up on one side the tub, at the same time raising the tub on that side, the liquor will drain clear off to the other; then take that liquor out. The mashing may be repeated as often as liquor is found. The quantity will be about 6 qt. When done, let it be simmered in an iron boiler as long as any scum rises; then bruise ¼ lb. ginger, ¼ lb. allspice, 2 oz. long pepper, 2 oz. cloves; let it slowly boil ½ hour. When bottled, let an equal quantity of spice go into each bottle, cork them tight, seal them over, and put them into a cool, dry place for one year before they are used. (C. G. J.) Lemon.--Grate the rind from 1½ doz. lemons, taking care only to remove the extreme outer coating, leaving the white well covered with a tinge of yellow. Cut them in quarters, but do not let the knife go quite through them, leaving just enough at the bottom to hold the quarters together; rub ¾ lb. bay salt equally over them, and spread them out on a dish. Place this in a cool oven, and let them remain there until the juice has dried into the peels. This, if preferred, may be done in front of the fire, but it must be done very gradually. When the juice is so absorbed, put the lemons in a large jar, with somewhat less than 1 oz. mace, the same of grated nutmeg, half the quantity of pounded cloves, 3 oz. peeled garlic, and ¾ breakfastcupful mustard seed bruised a little and tied in a muslin bag. Over all this pour 3 pints boiling vinegar, close the jar well, and stand it near the fire for 4-5 days, shaking it up every day. Then tie it up and let it remain for 3 months to take off the bitter taste of the peels. At the end of this time turn the whole out on to a hair sieve, moving it about to get out the liquor; let it stand a day, and then pour off the fine part and bottle it. The other part must stand for 3 days more, and it will refine itself. Pour it off and bottle it, let it stand again and bottle it, till the whole is refined. It may be put in any sauce, and will not spoil the colour. If for white sauce, 1 teaspoonful is enough, or 2 for brown sauce. Should cream be used in the sauce, the pickle must be put in before the cream or other thickening is added, or it will probably cause it to curdle. Mixed Pickles.--1 gal. vinegar, sixpennyworth turmeric, 2 oz. black pepper ground, 2 oz. long ditto pounded, 1 oz. cloves pounded, 4 oz. flour of mustard, 3 oz. mustard seed, whole cayenne to your taste, 2 oz. ginger pounded fine, white cabbage cut in slices, quantities of horseradish scraped, ½ pint garlic, 1 pint shallots, 2 doz. large onions cut in quarters, a cucumber, a cauliflower, a few French beans, and a few radish pods, plenty of capsicums. Lay them in a red pan. You cannot put too much salt about them. Let the vegetables remain 3 days in salt, then strain them out and shake them. Lay them on a linen cloth in the sun to dry, then put them into your jar near the fire. Then boil all your spice with the vinegar, and pour it on boiling off the fire. They will be fit to use in 2 months. For an ordinary family ¼ of the above, with half the vegetables, will be found sufficient to make at a time. Mushrooms.--Take the smallest and roundest button mushrooms, throw into cold water, and rub each separately with a piece of flannel dipped in salt to clean them thoroughly; put them again, as you proceed, into fresh cold water, and finally into a pan with a handful of table salt scattered over them on a moderate fire, covering them close that the steam may not escape, for 10 minutes, or until they are thoroughly hot and the water is drawn well out of them; pour them on a sieve, and quickly dry them well between the cloths; let remain covered up from the air till they are cold; place in clean dry glass bottles with a little mace, and fill up with distilled or white wine vinegar, adding to each bottle a teaspoonful of salad oil; cork and seal them up so as to exclude air. Nasturtiums.--Gather within a week after the blossoms have fallen off; take a gallon of them, and throw into a pail of salt and water, cold, in which to keep them, changing the water 3 times at least, 3 days and nights; lay in a sieve to drain, and rub perfectly dry between cloths; boil for ten minutes 1 gal. white wine vinegar, 1 oz. each of mace and nutmeg, 2 oz. white peppercorns, 4 sliced shallots, and 4 oz. common salt; skim well, and when nearly cold, pour the whole over the fruit placed in jars, and tie close. Onions.--Take the smallest clear silver onions; after peeling, immerse in cold salt and water, and let lie for 10 days, changing the pickle daily; drain on a sieve, put into a jar, pour newly-made brine of salt and water boiling hot over them, and let stand closely covered, until cold; repeat the scalding with new pickle, and, when cold and well drained, put in bottles or jars, with a slice or two of the best ginger, a blade of mace, and a bay leaf; fill up with distilled vinegar, and be sure to add salad oil to float on the top; tie close, and seal down. Piccalilli.--Slice up a closely-grown, sound-hearted white cabbage and a sound white beetroot, with a cauliflower divided into several small branches, a few clear gherkins, some radish-pods, and kidney beans; lay in a sieve with two or three handfuls of common salt scattered over, and expose to the sun or fire for 4 days; when you think all the water is extracted from them, put them into a large stoneware pan, mixing well, and scattering plenty of good sound mustard seed amongst them as you go on; to each gallon of best vinegar, add 3 oz. peeled and sliced garlic, and 1½ oz. turmeric; boil, skim well, and pour the liquor while hot over the vegetables; let them lie 10 days, at least, with strong paper tied over, near a fire, until they have become a fine yellow colour, and have imbibed a fair quantity of the vinegar; then boil 3 qt. best white wine vinegar, 1½ oz. each of white pepper and mace, and ½ oz. each of long pepper, nutmegs, and cloves, for 10 minutes; skim well, and pour all over the pickles; tie the jar with bladder and leather. Samphire.--By persons living near the sea it is usually preserved, when freshly gathered, in equal parts vinegar and sea water, or even sometimes in the water only; but when brought inland it should be steeped 2 days in brine, then drained, and put into a stone jar, covered with vinegar, and having a lid, over which put a thick paste of flour and water, and set it in a very cool oven all night, or in a warmer oven till it nearly but not quite boils. Then let it stand on a warm hob for ½ hour, and allow it to become quite cold before the paste is removed; then add cold vinegar if any more is required, and secure as other pickles. Tomato.--(_a_) Gather 4 doz. tomatoes when turned, but not too ripe. Lay them in salt and water for 2 days, changing them twice; drain them, and dry them in a coarse cloth; put them in a pickling jar. To 1 gal. vinegar add 1 oz. ginger, shred, 1 oz. whole pepper, ½ oz. cloves, 1 pint mustard seeds, and 2 tablespoonfuls mustard flour, curry powder, turmeric, 2 oz. garlic, 2 oz. shallots, shred, 1 oz. bay salt, and a little common salt. Half of the spice to be strewed in the jar, and the other half to be boiled in the vinegar, and to be poured hot over the tomatoes; then let them be covered close with a flannel, and a weight at the top to keep in the steam, and let them stand in the chimney corner for 2 days, but not too near the fire. The vinegar must be boiled up twice more, and poured over the tomatoes as before. When quite cold fill up with more vinegar previously boiled, so that the tomatoes are covered and tied up with bladder. (_b_) Cut some green tomatoes in slices, sprinkle them with salt, and let them stand 12-15 hours, drain, and put them in a saucepan over the fire with fresh water, changing it until all the salt is washed out. When thoroughly scalded and partially cooked, drain them again and put them into a boiling hot syrup, made with 1 pint vinegar, 3 lb. sugar, ½ oz. cinnamon, ¼ oz. cloves, simmer them in this until tender, then carefully lift them out and put them into jars, reduce the syrup and pour it over them. After a day or two boil up the syrup again, pour it afresh over the tomatoes, and when cold tie them down carefully. Vinegar.--(_a_) To every gal. water put 2 lb. coarsest West India sugar; boil and skim this. Pour the mixture into a common clean washing mug, and, when sufficiently cool, take 4 pints from it into a basin, and stir well into it ½_d._ worth good fresh yeast if 3 gal. vinegar are to be made, or in that proportion, and set the basin, near a fire, covered with a cloth, to get it to work. When this end is obtained, put it back to the larger quantity from which it came, and which ought to be still lukewarm; stir well round with a wooden preserving spoon, and cover the mug with a cloth, and in a few hours, or by next morning (if made in an evening) the mixture will be found in full work. Let it stand one week from the day it was made, then carefully skim the barm off it, and put it into a barrel or mug in a warm place in winter, or in the sun in summer. It will be fit for use in 4-6 months, and then bottle off for use. As soon as you have bottled off a making of vinegar, immediately begin again, as the jelly-like “mother,” called the vinegar plant, formed on the surface by the time it is ready for bottling, helps the making of the next vinegar. Add it on pouring the mixture into the barrel or closed mug. (_b_) Make vinegar from a vinegar plant by mixing ½ lb. coarse brown sugar and ½ lb. treacle with 5 pints water, stirring it until all the sugar is dissolved; then laying the fungus on the top, and covering it with thick brown paper tied down. In 6 weeks (or a little longer in cold weather), the liquid is turned to vinegar, and must then be strained off and bottled, and a fresh mixture made for the plant. It must be put in a white ware vessel--a washstand basin is very suitable, as the vinegar corrodes the yellow glazed ware, and is injurious. The plant does not get useless if kept “going,” but improves by growing thicker. (_c_) Best of all, buy Beaufoy’s vinegar, and run no risk of subsequent fermentations. Vinegar, Primrose.--To 18 qt. water add 6 lb. moist sugar; boil and stir it very well. Let it stand until it is just warm, then add 1 peck primroses with their stalks, and a little yeast. Let it stand all night, then put it into a cask, bung it up, and allow it to remain for 2 months. Then give it a little air, and let it stand 2-3 months longer. Then taste, and, if not sour, let it stand till it is. It must be placed in a warm situation: a great deal depends on where it is kept. Vinegar, Raspberry.--Put 1 lb. very fine raspberries in a bowl, bruise them well, and pour upon them 1 qt. best cider vinegar; next day strain the liquor on 1 lb. fresh ripe raspberries, bruise them also, and on the following day do the same, but do not squeeze the fruit, or it will make it ferment, only drain the liquor as dry as you can from the fruit. The last time pass it through a canvas bag, previously wetted with vinegar to prevent waste. Put the juice into a stone jar with 1 lb. sugar to every pint of juice; the sugar must be broken into lumps, stir it, and when melted, put the jars into a saucepan of water, let it simmer a little, skim and remove from the fire. When cool, bottle off. Vinegar, Tarragon.--Gather full-grown shoots of tarragon the day before they are wanted. Fill a ½ gal. jar with as many as it will hold without pressing them down; add 3 cloves and the thin rind of 1 lemon, and fill up the jar with white wine vinegar; leave it, tightly corked, exposed to the sun for 2-3 weeks, then strain off the vinegar, wringing the tarragon in a cloth, filter it through paper, and bottle it. Walnuts.--Take 50 large walnuts gathered before the shell is hard; folding them separately in vine leaves, place them in a jar amidst plenty more leaves, so that they do not touch each other; fill up so as to cover them with best pale vinegar, and tie down closely that the air may be excluded; let stand 20 days; then pour off the vinegar and wrap the fruit again in fresh leaves, and fill up the jar again with fresh pale vinegar, standing 14 days longer; take off the leaves, put them in a jar, and make a pickle of white wine vinegar and salt that will float an egg, in which simmer for ¼ hour ¼ oz. mace, ½ oz. each of cloves and nutmeg, and 2 heads of garlic, peeled and sliced; pour hot over the walnuts; tie close with bladder and leather. _Preserving with Sugar._--This embraces the whole range of jams and jellies, which closely resemble each other. In all cases the fruit must be fully ripe, gathered quite dry, and freed of stems, &c., but stone fruits should not be stoned. The chief differences consist in the proportion of sugar required and the duration of the boiling, which latter should always be done in a copper pan. The scum must be removed as it rises in boiling. For the most popular jams the quantities and times are as follow:-- Black currant 1 of fruit to 1 of sugar; 10 minutes Raspberry 1 ” ” 1 ” ½ hour Strawberry 1 ” ” 1 ” 20 minutes Gooseberry 6 ” ” 4 ” 2 hours Red currant 1 ” ” 1 ” 10 minutes Blackberry 1 ” ” ½ ” 1 hour Cherry (stoned) 2 ” ” 1 ” till stiff Keeping Jams.--A not unfrequent cause for their becoming mouldy is that the jars in which jams are kept are sometimes not perfectly dry when the jam is put into them. The jam-pots put away from last year will necessarily be dusty, and require washing; and with thoughtless servants it but too often happens that they will wash the jars the same day the jam is made. They may imagine they have dried them with a cloth, but probably a slight dampness still remains which would be quite sufficient to cause the best-boiled preserve to turn mouldy, even if afterwards kept in a dry place. Have jars washed the day before they are used, have them washed in very hot water, and, after drying with a cloth, have them put down in trayfuls before the kitchen fire, to do away with the possibility of damp. The jars should then be set aside in the kitchen until the next day, covering them with cloths to keep out the dust. For making common jams, such as red and black currants, raspberries, gooseberries (and strawberries when not to be preserved whole), allow ¾ lb. loaf preserving-sugar to every lb. of fruit after it has been picked from the stalk. The fruit must be picked on a dry day, and should be ripe, but not bruised or injured. Set the fruit on the hot plate or fire in a large copper preserving pan, which must, of course, be as bright and clean as possible; let it cook gently, until it is hot through and the juice begins to run out, then add the sugar gradually (this must have been previously crushed, but need not be pounded); keep stirring with a long-handled wooden spoon, when it comes to the boil let it remain boiling for ¾ hour, then try if it will set by putting a few drops on a cold plate, and when this condition is arrived at, pour it off into jars prepared as described. Some jams do not take so long to boil as others, so it is as well to begin to try whether they will set after they have been boiling ½ hour. Many people carefully take off all the scum as it rises, but it is quite unnecessary; if properly boiled, and constantly stirred, it will all disappear before the jam is ready to be poured off, preventing the great waste caused when it is skimmed. Care must be taken to stir constantly during the whole process. After filling the jars, let them stand till next day, when they must be tied down and set in a dry, cool place to keep. Bottling Fruit.--Have ready some wide-necked glass bottles, with good-fitting corks and some wax to cover the corks with, in order to prevent any air from entering. The wax is prepared thus: 1 lb. common rosin, ¼ lb. beeswax, ¼ lb. tallow; pound the rosin fine, and cut the beeswax into shreds; put the rosin, wax, and tallow into an old tin, and melt the mixture gradually over the fire; boil it gently for 5 minutes, stirring it well with a smooth, flat stick. It must be kept hot enough to run easily while being put on the corks. Fill the bottles with fruit, and set them in a boiler of warm water (not hot) up to their necks, without letting any water enter the bottles; have some warm syrup ready, made in the proportion of ¼ lb. loaf sugar to 1 pint water, boiled 10 minutes, and then allowed to cool until lukewarm; fill the bottles with this syrup, and let it cover the fruit, just leaving enough space for the cork to fit in. The bottles must not be corked. Set the boiler on the fire; a little straw should be placed on the bottom of the boiler to prevent the bottles from cracking. When the water has boiled for 10 minutes, take one bottle out at a time, cork it at once, and run the wax all over the cork, spreading it evenly with the flat stick, being careful to cover every part, lest the air should enter, and so peril the safe keeping. Gooseberries will require 10 minutes’ boiling; and raspberries, strawberries, and currants about 5 minutes. Plums must have ¼ hour if large. Whatever fruit is done in this way must be thoroughly heated through, and then rendered air-tight. Should there be a flaw in the glass bottle, it will probably crack while in the boiling water; but these unpleasant accidents have to be put up with. This mode of bottling fruit is very good when the fruit is required to be kept as whole as possible. Another method is to allow ¼ lb. sugar to each lb. of fruit. Put the sugar in a preserving pan, with sufficient hot water to moisten the bottom well and help the sugar to melt. When all the sugar is melted, put in the fruit, and let it boil rapidly for 10 minutes; if raspberries or small fruit, 5 minutes is enough. It does not need skimming. Have some hot jars or bottles ready, and pour the boiling fruit into the hot bottles; cork directly each one is filled, and wax it over, or paste 3 layers good paper over each bottle. When dry, these 3 layers of paper will be equal to parchment, and are sure to exclude the air. The reason why the fruit must be put into the bottles boiling hot is because the heat expels the air contained in the bottles, which must be secured immediately they are filled, else the air will rush in directly they begin to cool. Having the bottles in a bath of hot water before filling them with the hot fruit prevents the glass cracking. The bottles need not be dried, but a good shake must be given to free them as much as possible from the water. For green gooseberries or rhubarb, it is better to use ½ lb. sugar to 1 lb. fruit. Apple Ginger.--2 lb. Ribstone or other hard apples, pare, core, and cut them into 8 pieces, put them into cold water whilst doing this to preserve their colour; make the syrup of 3 lb. white sugar, a little water, and 4 oz. tincture of ginger (not Oxley’s). Put in the apples and simmer very slowly until transparent. The pieces of apple should be kept whole. It will keep for a year. Apple Jam.--Select good baking apples, which cut in round slices into a brown milk-pan, taking out the cores; to every 1 lb. apples add 1 lb. brown sugar; to the panful add the juice and peel of 4 lemons, ½ lb. whole young ginger, and 1 oz. cloves. Let all stand till next day, when boil. The slices become of an amber colour, and perfectly clear when sufficiently boiled. Apple Jelly.--Choose apples with red skins, wipe, and cut into quarters, do not peel them. To each lb. fruit put 3 pints cold water, bring to a boil, then boil rapidly for 30 minutes. Strain, and to every pint juice allow 1 lb. loaf sugar, return to the pan, and again boil rapidly for 30 minutes. Apple Marmalade.--(_a_) Peel, core, and thinly slice, good cooking apples (apples that cook to a smooth pulp easily); allow ¾ lb. loaf sugar to 1 lb. apples; put the sugar in a preserving pan (a tin or iron saucepan will turn them black), with ½ teacupful water to 6 lb. sugar; let it gradually melt, and boil it for 10 minutes. Then put in the sliced apple, and a few cloves, cinnamon, or lemon peel, to flavour if liked. Boil rapidly for an hour, skim well, and put in jam-pots. It should be quite a smooth pulp, clear, and a bright amber colour. Will keep good for 12 months. (_b_) Another way, to look like orange marmalade: Choose hard apples that do not cook to a soft pulp, such as russets; core, but do not peel them; make a syrup of 3 lb. loaf sugar to 1 pint water, and boil it rapidly for 20 minutes to make it syrup. Put in the apple thinly sliced, and boil quickly for an hour; flavour as preferred. This marmalade bears a great resemblance to orange marmalade in appearance, if the right kind of apples are chosen. Sufficient syrup should be made to ¾ cover the apples. Stir frequently. Barberries, Preserved.--(_a_) Put them into a jar in layers, a good sprinkling of salt between each layer. (_b_) Take some bunches of barberries and tie several together; make a syrup with ¾ pint water to every lb. sugar, clarify it with white of egg. When quite clear throw in the bunches of fruit, and boil quickly until the fruit looks quite clear. Put them into jars, pour the syrup over them, and when cold tie them down. Beetroot, Preserved.--Peel, trim, and slice in rather thick slices, some beetroots, fill some wide-mouthed jars about ¾ full with them, then add ½ oz. pounded sugar, 3 or 4 cloves, and either ¼ oz. coriander seeds or ½ oz. carraway seeds to every 1 lb. beetroot; fill up the jars with boiled vinegar, fasten them down with bladder. Blackberry Jam.--For this it is necessary that the fruit should be quite ripe and perfectly dry when gathered. After picking from the stalks, weigh it, and allow ¾ lb. crushed white preserving sugar to every lb. of fruit. Set them together over a slow fire, stirring with a wooden or silver spoon to prevent burning at first, before the juice begins to run from the berries. The stirring must be almost constant during the whole process, as for any other sort of jam. After coming to the boil, it will be about ½ hour before it jellies, which must be ascertained by putting a very little from time to time on a cool plate. Some people very carefully take off the scum as it rises, but it is not really necessary; if constantly stirred, it will all disappear in the process of boiling, avoiding the waste caused by skimming, while the jam itself keeps equally well. When done, pour it off into jars, taking care that they are quite dry; let them stand till next day, cover the jars with paper, and put them by to keep in a cool, dry place. Another way is to mix ¼ lb. any good cooking apples, weighed after paring and cutting up, to every lb. blackberries; the sharper the kind of apple the better, but they must be ripe. More sugar is required when done in this way, 1¾ lb. sugar to every 2 lb. fruit. The grated rind and strained juice of lemons are also used with blackberries instead of apples, the larger proportion of sugar being allowed, and one lemon (small) to every 2 lb. berries. Some people object very much to the small seeds in this jam. These may be avoided by rubbing the fruit through a sieve as soon as it is sufficiently cooked to admit of it; it must then be put back into the preserving pan to boil till it sets. In this way, supposing the jam to be made of blackberries alone, half its own weight of sugar will be enough when weighing the uncooked fruit, as so much is afterwards lost by removing the seeds. Blackberry Jelly.--(_a_) Put the fruit in the oven, and press it through canvas when tender. Allow rather more than ¾ lb. lump sugar to 1 lb. fruit syrup, and boil ¾ hour. This jelly is much improved by using equal quantities of bullaces and blackberries. The acid flavour of the bullace takes away the flatness of the blackberry. Put the jelly into moulds and cover with papers in the usual way. It is more likely to turn out well after being kept a month or two than at first. (_b_) Boil together a quantity of apples cut small and blackberries that are thoroughly ripe, in the proportion of 1 lb. blackberries to ½ lb. apples. When boiled quite soft and pulpy, strain through a hair sieve and reboil, with ½ lb. loaf sugar to each pint juice, about ½ hour. ¼ pint water to every 4 lb. fruit may be boiled with it to advantage. Black Currants, Bottled.--Fill some bottles as full as you can with the currants, add as much cold water as they will hold; then put them in a boiler filled with cold water, and let them boil until the fruit sinks in the bottles. Then take them up, cork them while hot, and paste thick brown paper over them. Black Currant Jelly.--To 1 lb. picked and washed black currants add 1 gill water. Set this in a preserving pan, which should be of copper. Bruise the fruit well with a wooden spoon; afterwards take off the preserve and strain through a hair sieve. To each 1 lb. fruit allow 1 lb. white sugar. Boil 10 minutes. Carrot Jam.--Well wash and scrape all black bits off some carrots; cut only the red part outside into pieces; put in a pan, with water to cover, and boil till it will rub through a hair sieve. To 4 lb. pulp allow 4 lb. loaf sugar, ¼ lb. bitter almonds blanched and chopped fine, the rind grated and the juice strained of 4 lemons, and 6 tablespoonfuls brandy to make the jam keep. Let the sugar and pulp boil up thoroughly, and then simmer for 15 minutes; skim and stir all the time. When cold, add the other ingredients, and stir all well together 2 or 3 times; then pot and cover with gummed paper. Cherries, Bottled.--Gather the cherries on a dry day; be careful that they are not over-ripe or cracked at all. Fill the bottles or jars quite full with the cherries, and put them to stand in a boiler or large saucepan of cold water, and keep the jars covered closely; boil slowly until the fruit has sunk in the jars and the skins begin to crack; then lift one by one off the fire, and immediately fill quite full each jar with boiling water. Tie down twice with bladders, and put them in a dry place until required. Put them where they will not be disturbed, as if moved they ferment. If glass bottles are used care must be taken when filling with boiling water that they do not crack. Be particular to have all you need before taking the jars out of the water, and the kettle of water boiling fast, as the great secret in bottling fruit is in filling up the bottles and tying them down as quickly as possible. Cherries, Dried.--Stone large sweet cherries with a small pointed skewer no larger than a quill toothpick, breaking them as little as possible; throw them into a boiling hot syrup, made with 1 small teacupful water to 1 lb sugar. Scald them in this syrup for 10 minutes, but do not allow them to boil, or they will break; remove them from the fire, pour them into a pan, and cover them till next day. Then draw off the syrup, boil it up, skim it, and pour it back upon the cherries. Do this for 3 days successively. On the fourth day drain the cherries on a cane sieve till entirely free from excess of moisture; then lay them on wire sieves, and dry them by slow heat for several hours until, when touched, they do not stick to the fingers. When cold, sprinkle sugar over them, and pack in layers between white paper. If too much heat is used in drying them, they will be dark and unsightly. Cherries, Preserved.--Take equal quantities sugar and cherries, cut off the stalks from the cherries, wipe them clean with a soft cloth, and strew over them a little finely-powdered sugar; boil the sugar with 1 pint water to every 3 lb. sugar, clarify it with whites of egg, strain it, and then boil it to candy height. The next day boil up the cherries with the syrup for 5 minutes, and let them remain in the syrup for 24 hours; strain off the syrup, boil it again to the second degree, and pour this over the cherries. The next day boil up the sugar to the third degree, dip each cherry separately in the syrup, and put them on a sieve in a warm place to dry. Cherry Jam.--For this use ripe fruit, but carefully reject any which is bruised or over-ripe. The Kentish is the best for this purpose, having a pleasant acid taste; other kinds are too sweet for the quantity of sugar necessary in preserving fruit. To every lb. stoned fruit add ¾ lb. loaf sugar well broken; it will require stirring occasionally from the first, and continuously after it once comes to the boil, after which it must continue boiling for ¾ hour; then try a little on a cold plate to see if it sets or jellies; if it does, pour it off into jars, and set in a cool dry place till the following day, when it should be covered down for keeping, if not, continue boiling until it will so set. It will not require skimming during the process of boiling, the scum will all boil away. The easiest way of stoning cherries is to tie a little loop of iron wire about the shape of a hairpin, on to a stick the length of a pencil; bind the two ends firmly to the stick, leaving the loop standing up about 1 in. long, and slightly bent forward. With this the stones are easily extracted. Citrons, Preserved.--Put them in strong salt and water in a jar, with a cabbage leaf to keep them down; tie a paper over them, set them in a warm place till they are yellow, take them out, and set them over the fire in fresh water, with a little salt and a fresh cabbage leaf; take care they do not boil; if they are not a good green change the water (and even fresh leaves will help to green them), and make hot and cover them as before; when they are a good green take them off the fire, let them stand till they are cold, then cut them in two or make a hole at the end, to take out the seeds and soft part, and put them in cold water. Let them stand 2 days, but change the water twice each day to take out the salt, then make a syrup, and put it cold to them; boil it once in 2 days for 3 weeks. For the syrup: 1 lb. loaf sugar, ½ pint water; set over the fire; when well boiled and looking clear, take it up; when cold, throw it over the citron. Crab-Apple Jam.--To every lb. of fruit put the same quantity of preserving sugar. Having melted it with a little light wine, put it on the fire and let it boil well; when it has been skimmed clear and is boiling, put in the fruit with a few cloves; let all simmer together till the fruit begins to break, when it is done. The fruit should be rubbed dry and the stalks removed before it is put into the sugar. Crab-Apple Jelly.--Remove the stalks from the apples and cut them in half, put them into a preserving pan, and boil till the fruit is perfectly soft; do not stir it. When soft, pour off the water, and to every pint allow 1 lb. sugar. Put it into another pan, and let it boil slowly for ½ hour, taking off all the scum that rises. It should by this time be clear. Fill your glasses or jars with it. Now take the fruit and mash it; rub it through a coarse tammy; to every lb. allow 1 lb. sugar and ½ pint water. Let it boil slowly till it thickens, then put it into bowls. When used cut it in slices. Crab-Apples, Preserved.--Gather them just before they are fully ripe. Put a quantity of them into a pan of boiling water, and barely scald them. As soon as one of the skins begins to crack remove them from the fire, and strain them through an earthenware colander; they may then be very easily peeled. In the meantime make a thin syrup, and, having peeled the apples, place them in jars, and pour the syrup over them quite hot. As they rise to the surface they must be pushed back, so as to keep them all under the syrup. Let them remain uncovered till the following day, when they must again all be poured out into the colander, placing the syrup in the stewpan with more sugar, to ensure its being thick. Boil and skim it well, return the fruit to the jars, and again pour the hot syrup over it. Let them still remain open; and the next day, if the fruit seems soft enough, and the syrup sufficiently thick and clear, they may be considered finished, and they may be tied down with bladder; if not, repeat the process a third time, and keep for another day. About a week after they have been tied down it is well to examine them, and, should they show any signs of fermentation or mould, the syrup must again be boiled down as before. The core is never removed from Siberian crabs; it has in itself a most delicate flavour, which improves the whole preserve. Cranberries, Preserved.--Gather the fruit in clusters, before it is quite ripe. Pick away any dead leaves and injured berries, and keep the clusters in strong salt and water, in jars well covered. Look to them occasionally, and when the pickle begins to ferment change it. Cranberries thus preserved will retain their flavour and quality for many months. Cucumbers, Preserved with Ginger.--Take small cucumbers, and large ones that will cut into quarters, the greenest and most free from seeds; put them in a jar with strong salt and water, covered with cabbage leaves; tie a paper over them, and keep the jar in a warm place till they yellow; wash them out, and put them over the fire in fresh water, a little salt in it, and a fresh cabbage leaf over them; cover the pan very close, and take care they do not boil. If they are not a fine green change the water and make them hot again. When a good green, take them off the fire, let them stand till cold, then cut them in halves or quarters; take out the seeds and soft parts; put them in water, and let them stand 2 days; change the water twice a day to take out the salt. Take 1 lb. white sugar, ½ pint water, set it on the fire, skim it clear, then put in the rind of a lemon, and 1 oz. ginger with the outside scraped off. When the syrup is pretty thick, take it off, and, when cold, wipe the cucumbers dry and put them in; boil the syrup once in 2-3 days for 3 weeks, and strengthen if required, for there is more fear of them spoiling at first. The syrup must be quite cold when put to the cucumbers. Damsons, Bottled.--Fill the bottles with damsons, and add to each bottle ½ lb. castor sugar. Put the bottles in cold water in a large pan on the fire, where they must remain for ½ hour after they have begun to boil. When boiled, let them cool, cork down tight, and tie bladder over the corks, and keep in a very dry place. Care should be taken that no bruised fruits are put in. Whilst the bottles are on the fire, hay should be put between them to keep them from breaking. Figs.--Weigh the fruit, and have an equal quantity of sugar, the peel of 1 large lemon, and a little ginger. Lay the figs in cold water for 24 hours, then simmer them till tender; put them again into cold water, and let them remain for 2 days, changing the water every day. If not quite soft simmer again, and replace in cold water until next day. Take their weight in loaf sugar, and with ⅔ of it make a syrup, in which simmer the figs for 10 minutes. In 2 days take the third of the sugar, pounded fine, and pour the syrup from the figs on it. Make a rich syrup with the peel of the lemon and a little raw ginger, and boil the figs in it, then mix all together and put into large jam pots. The figs may be cut in half, if preferred, after they have simmered until soft. Ginger, Preserved.--Put the ginger for 2 weeks every night and morning into boiling water. Take off the outside skin with a sharp knife. Boil the ginger in water till quite tender; slice it. Prepare a syrup of 1 lb. sugar to ½ pint water. Clarify it, and put the ginger in it. Boil it till clear. Leave it to cool before putting it into jars. Gooseberries, Bottled.--Pick off the soft brown outside part at the top of each gooseberry, but be most particular to leave the hair-like fibre which it surrounds; cut the stem close, and if any one gooseberry breaks open reject it, as a single broken one might spoil a whole bottleful. Put them into wide-mouthed bottles (pickle bottles suit very well), fill them up with cold water, and place them standing in a fish-kettle or any large, flat-bottomed pot; also filled with water as high as the necks of the bottles, over a very slow fire, where they are to remain until they come to a gentle boil and begin to change colour; then take them out of the pot, and let them stand until they become cold, when the bottles are to be filled up with olive oil, and they need not be corked. Look at them from time to time, and fill up with fresh oil, as some may evaporate. Keep the bottles on a shelf in a dry place, for damp spoils them, and when wanted for use, have them washed in water and soda by putting them into a colander, and then a shower of fresh water at the end, just to take off any soda which might remain. Gooseberry Jam.--(_a_) Allow ¾ lb. lump or white crystallised sugar to each lb. gooseberries; a few spoonfuls of water must be put at the bottom of the preserving pan and care taken that the fruit does not burn. Pot ½ hour after the jam boils; keep it well stirred. (_b_) For every lb. picked gooseberries, put ¾ lb. sugar and 1 pint water in a bowl or pan; when dissolved, place it on the fire. Beat the white of an egg well up, and stir into it when boiling: when on the point of boiling over check it by pouring in a little cold water. On its rising up the second time, take it off, and place it on one side to allow the black scum to rise, which must be taken off carefully with a skimmer. Pour the liquor away quickly, leaving the sediment at the bottom; add your fruit in the syrup, simmer gently until the fruit looks clear, break it with a wooden spoon, put the jam into pots, and cover up. Gooseberry Jelly.--Take 1-2 gal. fruit when green, and a little more than 1 qt. water to each gal. gooseberries. Boil till quite a pulp, strain through a jelly bag of coarse flannel; when strained add to every pint of juice 1 lb. loaf sugar. Boil till set. Grape Jam.--(_a_) The grapes must be ripe. Wash them well, then stew them until they become a soft pulp, and pass them through a sieve. Weigh, and to every lb. add an equal quantity of sugar. Boil for 20 minutes, stirring well. (_b_) A delicious preserve from unripe grapes can be made in the following way: They should be carefully picked, and all that are at all injured should be rejected. To 1 lb. grapes add ½ lb. sugar; no water but what hangs about them after they have been washed. Put the grapes into a preserving pan, then a layer of sugar, then a layer of grapes. Boil on a moderate fire, stirring it all the time to prevent its burning, and as the grape stones rise take them out with a spoon, so that by the time the fruit is sufficiently boiled the stones will have all boiled up and been taken out. Grape Jelly.--Take some bunches of common outdoor white grapes, unripe will answer the purpose; rinse them in a plentiful supply of water, strip them from their stalks, and put them in a preserving pan; set them over a moderate fire for about 2 hours, or till they burst freely. Strain them through a colander or sieve, and to every lb. of pulp and juice, add 1 lb. sugar; boil them about ½ hour. Each shape will require ½ oz. gelatine; wet the moulds, and set them in a cool place. It makes a pretty dessert dish, being a light green, and tastes like greengage if managed well. Care must be taken to use either a silver or wooden spoon, and an enamelled or a copper preserving pan is important to preserve the colour. Guava Jelly, Imitation.--This is made from medlars. It takes a great number of medlars to make a small quantity of jelly, as they contain so little juice. Put the medlars, which must be ripe, into a preserving pan with just enough cold water to cover them. Let them cook gently until they are quite soft, then put them into a jelly bag, and let the juice drain off gradually; this will be a long process, as they must not be squeezed, or the jelly would not have the clear brightness of guava jelly. It is a good plan to leave them to drain all night. To every pint of juice allow 1 lb. best white sugar, pounded. Boil them together in a preserving pan, stirring constantly with a silver or wooden spoon to prevent burning, and carefully removing the scum as it rises. It will probably take about ½ hour to boil, but it must be tested by dropping a little from time to time on a cold plate; when it jellies it is done, and must then be poured off into small jars or moulds, care being taken that they are not only clean, but perfectly dry. The next day tie them down in the usual way, and keep in a dry cool place. When this is properly made it resembles guava jelly very closely, both in colour, flavour, and consistency. Hip Jam.--Collect the hips from the rose bushes when ripe, boil them in water until they become soft enough to be easily crushed, and press them through a very fine sieve. Take an equal weight of sugar to that of the fruit, boil the hips, when pulped through the sieve, thoroughly with sugar, and put the jam into a large stone jar. It is liable to ferment a good deal, and therefore requires space. When taking any out for use, mix and stir it up well with a little white wine, and add sugar to taste if required. This jam is excellent, either for eating alone as a sweatmeat, or for making sauce. Hip Marmalade.--Gather hips, when perfectly ripe, wash them, and boil them in water, in the proportion of ½ pint water to 1 lb. fruit. When quite tender, pass them, water and all, through a sieve fine enough to keep back all the seeds. To each lb. pulp put 1 lb. refined sugar, and boil until your marmalade will jelly well. When a little cooled, pour it into jelly glasses or small jars, with a few small pieces of preserved ginger in each glass. Cover while hot. Hips in Sugar.--For this, gather hips as soon as they have become red. Boil them gently until tender (but they must not be allowed to break) in sufficient water to cover them. Cut the stalks even, and a small piece from the blossom end of each berry, and with a pointed penknife or quill carefully remove all the seeds. Allow 1 lb. sugar and a little cinnamon to each lb. prepared hips. Put the sugar in a preserving pan, with just sufficient water to dissolve it--as little as possible, as the syrup should be very thick and clear. When the sugar is melted, put in the fruit, and boil gently until it is done and the syrup becomes thick; let it cool a little, and then put it carefully in glasses. It is important that the shape of the fruit should be preserved, and the largest berries obtainable should be used. A little lemon juice may be added to the above syrup if liked. Hips in Vinegar.--Gather from the dog rose some of the largest berries you can obtain, as soon as they are quite red, but not over-ripe; cut the stalks even, leaving a short piece on each berry, wash and put them in a stewpan with as much boiling water as will cover them well. Boil gently until they are quite tender, but not at all broken. Drain the water from them, but do not throw it away. As soon as the hips are cold, cut a small piece from each at the blossom end, and with a pointed penknife or quill remove all the seeds, taking care not to break the fruit. For a syrup for 2 lb. berries allow 1 pint good vinegar, ½ pint of the liquid in which the fruit was boiled (which should be strained in muslin), 2 lb. loaf sugar, ¼ oz. cinnamon, and ¼ oz. cloves. Put all these in a preserving-pan, stir with a wooden spoon until the sugar is dissolved, let the syrup boil for 15 minutes, then put the hips in, and boil for 20 minutes, or until the syrup is rich and thick. Store, spice and all, in small jars or glasses, and cover like any other preserve. This will keep good for 2 years and more. It is a delicious substitute for red currant jelly with game or roast mutton, and is also good for colds in the throat or chest. Lemon Marmalade.--Take any number of lemons; 6 make a nice quantity. Slice them very thin, only putting out the seeds. To each lb. sliced fruit add 3 pints cold water; let this stand 24 hours. Then boil it until the chips are tender, pour into an earthen bowl, and allow it to remain until the next day. Then weigh it, and to every lb. boiled fruit add 1½ lb. of lump sugar, boil the whole together until the syrup jellies and the chips are rather transparent; in taking out the pips be careful to leave all the white pith in, as that goes towards making syrup. Lemon Peel, Candied.--Cut the lemons into quarters lengthwise, remove the juicy part, and throw the peels into strong salt and water, to soak in it for about 6 days. The brine should be strong enough to float an egg. At the end of the time take them from the salt and water, and throw them into cold water, where they should remain for 1 hour; remove them from this, and place them in a copper preserving-pan with as much fresh cold water as will cover them, and let them boil until quite soft. Try if they are done with a silver fork; if it will go in easily they have boiled long enough. Place them on a large hair sieve to drain the water from them, and during the time make a syrup in the proportion of 1 lb. loaf sugar to 1 qt. water; let them boil together until forming a thin syrup, in which boil the peels for about ½ hour, or until they look clear. Some more sugar must now be boiled with only just as much water as it will absorb; there must be enough of this made to just cover the peels when they are put into it. Again boil them, and continue boiling until the sugar begins to candy; they must then be taken out and again drained; before they are quite dry place them in large dishes, when a little very finely powdered sugar must be shaken over them. Set the dishes in a warm place for the peels to dry. They may then be stored away for use. While the boiling is going on the syrup will require constant stirring with a new wooden spoon to prevent burning. Limes, Preserved.--(_a_) Take double the weight of crushed loaf sugar to the weight of limes. Boil the limes in water gently until the rinds are sufficiently tender to be easily penetrated with a silver fork; the water should be changed 2 or 3 times. When soft enough, drain the water from them, and cut them with a sharp knife into very thin slices, remove the pips, and put the slices of limes into a deep jar. Make a syrup, allowing 1 qt. water to every 5 lb. sugar, and let it boil gently until you can see the bottom of the preserving-pan, by which time it will be clear; stir frequently, using a silver spoon for the purpose. When ready, pour this syrup boiling hot over the limes, and let it remain for 2 days. On the third turn it all out into a preserving-pan, and let it boil for about ½ hour, or until it jellies. Then pour off into jars, and the following day, when quite cold, tie them down as you would any other preserve. Tangerine oranges would be done in the same way; but ¾ lb. sugar would be enough to 1 lb. fruit. (_b_) Another way of preserving limes is to make them into pickle. For this make some incisions in the rinds of 12 limes, into which rub ¼ lb. common salt, lay them out in a deep dish and let them remain in the meat screen near the kitchen fire for 4-5 days or until soft. Boil enough vinegar to cover them, with ½ oz. whole pepper, 2 oz. bruised ginger, and the same of mustard-seed. Put the limes into jars when soft enough, also the salt, and pour the boiling vinegar over them; the limes should be quite covered with it. The next day cork the jars, and either brush melted rosin over the corks, or tie a piece of moistened bladder tightly over each. Medlar Jelly.--Fill a large jar with ripe medlars, and place it in a saucepan of boiling water; it must be large enough to allow of the water coming up to the neck of the jar, but care must be taken not to let any of the water go into it. The jar must be uncovered. Put the lid on the saucepan, and keep the water boiling until the medlars are thoroughly cooked and quite soft. Then put them into a linen jelly-bag, and let them drip into a basin; the bag must not be squeezed or the jelly would not be clear. Medlars being a very dry fruit, a great many will be required to make even a small quantity of jelly; the juice comes from them but very slowly, so that this first process should be gone through the day before the jelly is to be made, and the straining should be allowed to go on during the night. Measure the juice, and allow 1 lb. loaf sugar to every pint. The sugar must be pounded and passed through a hair sieve to have it very fine; put it in a dish before the fire, or in the oven, until it is so hot that it would not remain any longer without melting. Boil the juice in a copper preserving-pan, stirring it with a silver spoon; when boiling add the sugar by little and little, a teaspoonful at a time; this should be shaken gently over the surface, the stirring continuing all the while. When the sugar is all in, take the preserving-pan off the fire, as no further boiling will be necessary. This jelly should be beautifully clear, and of about the same consistence as guava jelly, which it also somewhat resembles in flavour. Melons, Preserved.--Medium-sized melons are better than very large ones for preserving, and they should not be over-ripe. Peel them, and press the juice from the pulp and seeds, which should be taken from the melons with a silver spoon: Wash the melons after this, and add the water in which they have been washed to the juice obtained from the pulp and seeds. The melons should be cut lengthwise into eight pieces, if possible using a silver knife; allow them to soak a day and night in cold water with a little salt and vinegar, in the proportion of 1 teaspoonful salt and 2 of white vinegar to ½ gal. water, throwing a clean cloth over during the time to keep out the dust. In the meanwhile prepare a syrup with the juice from the pulp and seeds, boiling 1 lb. good loaf sugar for 15 minutes to every ½ pint of the juice, and then letting it stand to become cold. After the pieces of melons have soaked for 24 hours--care being taken that they have been quite under the water all the time--place them in a preserving-pan and add the cold syrup as prepared; set it on the fire, and, after it comes to the boil, let it simmer for about ¼ hour, skimming it during the time; then remove the slices of melon into a bowl, taking care not to break them and pour the syrup over them. For 3 successive days pour off the syrup, give it a boil up and pour it over again; on the third day place the slices of melon in wide-mouthed bottles adding some bruised ginger to each; fill the bottles with the hot syrup, let them remain until cold, and then tie tightly down with bladder. Mulberry Jam.--Take ripe mulberries and allow 1 lb. sugar and 1 pint mulberry juice to every lb. picked fruit; boil and skim the sugar with the juice for 5 minutes after the sugar is thoroughly dissolved; then add the fruit, and boil quickly for ½ hour, stirring well; take off the fire, and, if quite stiff when cold, it is done sufficiently, if not, boil for another ¼ hour. Mulberry Jelly.--It should be made like red currant jelly: the fruit first stewed, by putting it in jars and setting the jars in a saucepan of water and letting it simmer till the juice is well drawn; then strain it off, and to every pint of juice put 1 lb. lump sugar; boil gently for ¾ hour. Two or three kernels of peaches or almonds are a great improvement. Orange Chips.--Cut your oranges longways, take out all the pulp, and put the rind into rather strong salt and water for 6 days, then boil them in a large quantity of spring water until they are tender; take them out and lay them on a hair sieve to drain, then make a thin syrup of fine loaf sugar (1 lb. to 1 qt. water), put in your peels, and boil them over a slow fire till you see the syrup candy about the pan and peels, then take them out and grate fine sugar over them. Lay them on a hair sieve to drain, and set them in a stove or before the fire to dry. Lemon chips or candied peel may be made in the same way. Orange Jelly.--Peel 6 oranges very thin, and 1 lemon. Put a little hot water on the peel, and let it soak. Scoop out all the inside of oranges and lemon into a basin. Then pour 1 oz. melted gelatine over it, boil it a little while over the fire, and add white lump sugar, sweetening to taste. Then pour it hot over the peel which has been soaking in a little warm water, strain it all through some muslin, and then put it into a shape till cold. Orange Marmalade.--(_a_) Put 6 lb. oranges (bitter) and 6 lemons into a brass pan, cover them completely with water, and boil until soft (about 3 hours). Lay a plate on the top of the oranges, to keep them below the water during the boiling. When soft take them out, cut in halves, scoop out the pulp, and throw away the stones. Scrape the skins free from the white fibre inside, then cut into very thin stripes with a silver knife. Strain the water in which oranges were boiled--probably now reduced to less than 1 qt.--put it into the pan with 12 lb. loaf sugar, another qt. of water and the pulp; boil 15 minutes, add the cut skins, boil 10 minutes, and pot. (_b_) Cut up, say, 12 Seville oranges very thin and small, pick out the seeds, and to each lb. sliced fruit add 3 pints cold spring water; let them stand 24 hours, then boil till tender. The seeds should be put in a muslin bag, and boiled with the oranges. Let all stand till next day, then to each lb. boiled fruit add 1½ lb. loaf sugar; boil, stirring constantly, till the syrup jellies and the chips are quite clear. The grated rind and juice of 2 China oranges will improve the flavour at the last boiling, or the juice and grated rind of 2 lemons. This quantity will require a large preserving pan, and, when finished, ought to be quite clear and jellied. Excellent marmalade can also be made from oranges cut up in large pieces and put twice through the mincing machine, instead of being sliced in the ordinary way. (_c_) An equal weight of Seville oranges and loaf sugar must be allowed. Wash and dry the oranges, and grate the peel of about ¼ them, setting aside the grating for after use. Pare off the peel from the other ¾ of the oranges, and cut it into very fine chips; tie these chips in a thin cloth, and let them boil slowly for 2-3 hours. Cut the oranges into pieces, and scrape out the pulp, separating from it the pips and white parts or refuse; put this refuse into a basin with about 1 pint cold water, and when all the oranges are scraped, strain this refuse through a cloth, and throw the liquid from it and the pulp over the sugar in the boiling pan, and place it on the fire or hot hearth, allowing the sugar to melt slowly. After it comes to the boil, put in the chips, first straining the water from them, and let the whole boil slowly for at least ½ hour. The grating to be put in 10 minutes before the marmalade is taken from the fire. The juice of 2 lemons added is an improvement. Oranges Preserved Whole.--Take, say, ½ doz. nice looking oranges, cut a small hole near the stalk at one end, and carefully scoop out the pips, and press out the juice without damaging the fruit, and allow the pulp to remain. Put them in a basin with 2-3 qt. fresh, spring water, and leave them 3 days, changing the water each day. In the meantime strain the juice as soon as squeezed out, and place the jar into which it is strained in a pan of boiling water for about ¼ hour, after which boil it with 1 lb. loaf sugar. Put this syrup, just as it comes off the fire, into a jar, tie it over with a bladder, and set it by. On the third day lift the fruit into a lined preserving pan, strain the water on to them, and let them boil very gently for about 2 hours. Leave them in the pan as they are till the next day, when boil again until quite tender. Then add another lb. sugar, bring it to the boil and leave it to cool. Next day boil up the syrup and pour it over the fruit in the pan, adding another lb. sugar and hot water to supply any deficiency caused by boiling. Lift out the fruit, and repeat the boiling of the syrup every day for a fortnight, pouring it daily boiling hot on the fruit, then do it only every 2-3 days, adding more and more sugar up to 3 lb. When the fruit looks clear and bright boil up the syrup again, adding the juice that was set by at the commencement, boil them up together and skim. Put the fruit into wide-necked jars, pour the syrup on, and tie up quickly with bladders. Peaches, Brandied.--(_a_) Drop the fruit into a weak boiling lye until the skin can be wiped off. Make a thin syrup to cover them, boil until they are soft to the fingernail; make a rich syrup, and add, after they come from the fire and while hot, the same quantity of brandy as syrup. The fruit must be covered. (_b_) The peaches must be ripe, but firm. Prick them to the stone several times all over with a pin; clarify some sugar, allowing ¾ lb. to each lb. fruit. Break the sugar in large lumps; dip each lump into cold water quickly, and put it into the preserving pan. The quantity of water absorbed by the lumps in dipping will be right for boiling. Watch carefully that it does not boil over. When it has come to a boil, let it simmer slowly, and be ready with a cold spoon to check it whenever it begins to rise. When it forms little beads it is boiled enough. Now lay in the peaches, and let it simmer slowly till it is a little softened but still firm; then set it all by to get cold. Next day take out the fruit and drain it on a sieve or dish. Boil down the syrup to thicken, and when it is cold mix it with an equal quantity of pale brandy. Arrange the fruit in glasses, and pour the brandy syrup over. ½ lb. sugar to the lb. of fruit is often considered sufficient. Peach Jam.--Cut the peaches in quarters, and take off the skins and stones, put them in a pan with equal weight of white powdered sugar, let them stand all night in the sugar, and next day boil them slowly until they become quite soft and the juice jellies well. Fruit that is not quite ripe is far preferable, because, when ripe, peaches have so much juice that it is impossible to reduce it sufficiently to keep well. Cover the pots with paper dipped in brandy, like all other preserves, but not till a few days after it is made. Pear Jelly.--The pears must be a juicy sort. Cut them into quarters without paring or coring. Put 8 lb. in a pot with 1 qt. water, and boil on a slow fire to a pulp, then throw them into a jelly bag, made of coarse glass cloth, and let them remain all night to drain. Next morning squeeze any remaining juice out of the bag, and to each 1 lb. juice add ½ lb. lump sugar, and a very little lemon juice to flavour. Boil it on a quick fire till it comes to a jelly. Great care must be taken not to let this burn. It takes about 2 hours to boil to a jelly, but is more easily done in small quantities. Coarse, juicy pears are the best. Pears, Preserved.--Take some small pears as soon as the pips are black; set them over the fire in a preserving pan with water to cover them; let them simmer until they will yield to the pressure of the finger; then with a skimmer take them out, and put them into cold water; pare them carefully, leaving on a little of the stem and the blossom end; pierce them at the blossom end to the core; then make a syrup of 1 lb. sugar to 1 pint water for each lb. of fruit. When it is boiling hot pour it over the pears, and let it stand until the next day; then drain it off; make it boiling hot again, and pour it over the fruit. After a day or two put the pears in the syrup over the fire, and boil it gently until it is clear; then take out the fruit, boil the syrup till thick, and put it and the fruit in jars. The jargonelle pear is considered the best for preserving, or any small firm pear. Pineapple Jam.--Choose ripe fruit, but it must not be over ripe; if at all bruised be careful to cut all the bruised parts out. Peel, and remove all the eyes; cut into slices about ½ in. thick, and again into pieces about 1 in. square. Weigh the fruit after preparing it, and to every lb. allow 1 lb. powdered white sugar. Put the fruit only in a bright copper preserving-pan on the fire until it is quite hot and the juice flowing, stirring it from the moment of putting on the fire with a wooden spoon. Then add the sugar gradually, continuing to stir all the while, and let it boil for ½-¾ hour, or until it will set. This jam requires especial care to prevent burning. If it burn in the very least, the flavour is spoilt and the colour too. After filling the jars, let them remain until the next day before tying them down to keep. Pineapple Jelly.--Take a tin of preserved pineapple, pound the contents in a mortar, add 6 oz. sugar and ½ pint water; boil the whole for ¼ hour, then strain through a napkin, add the juice of a lemon and 1 pint clarified calves’-foot jelly. Pour into a mould, and when set turn it out by dipping the mould in warm water. Pieces of pineapple may be put in the jelly. Pineapple Preserve.--To every lb. of fruit, weighed after being pared, allow 1 lb. loaf sugar and ¼ pint water. The pines should be perfectly sound, but ripe. Cut them into rather thick slices, as the fruit shrinks very much in boiling; pare off the rind carefully, that none of the pine be wasted, and in doing so notch it in and out, as the edge cannot be smoothly cut without great waste. Dissolve a portion of the sugar in a preserving-pan with ¼ pint water; when this is melted, gradually add the remainder of the sugar, and boil until it forms a clear syrup, skimming well. As soon as this is done, put in the pieces of pine, and boil well for at least ½ hour, or until it looks nearly transparent. Put it into pots, cover down when cold, and store away in a dry place. Plums, Bottled.--Take care to gather them on a dry day. They should be quite ripe, but not over ripe, and any which are bruised must be rejected. The following manner of preserving applies also to damsons and bullaces. Fill wide-necked bottles with the fruit, pack it closely, leaving only room enough in each bottle to put over the fruit ¼ lb. castor sugar. Tie a piece of moistened bladder tightly over each bottle, and place them standing upright in a fish-kettle: put a little hay between each and all round them, so as to keep them from touching each other and the sides of the kettle. Folded cloths should be placed beneath the bottles. Fill the kettle with cold water just high enough to cover the shoulders of the bottles; let them boil at the side of the fire, which must not be a very fierce one, until the fruit has sunk considerably, and appears done enough. Then take the kettle from the fire, but let the bottles remain in it until the water becomes perfectly cold. They must then be taken out, wiped dry with a cloth, and set in a cool, dry place to keep. The bladders must be constantly moistened while on the fire, or they will burst. Should any of them burst, the first piece of bladder must instantly be replaced by a fresh piece, duly moistened. When required for use the whole bottle must be taken, for, after once being exposed to the air the fruit will not keep. One bottle will make a moderately-sized tart. Bottling without sugar is not recommended. Plum Jam.--Take equal quantities fruit and sugar, pound the sugar, pare and cut up with a silver knife some ripe plums, remove the stones, lay the fruit in a dish, strew over them half the sugar, and leave them till the following day; then boil and skim the remainder of the sugar, add the fruit, boil it up quickly, well skimming and stirring for 20 minutes; add the blanched kernels halved, boil for 10 minutes more, and the jam will be ready to pot. Plums Preserved in Brandy.--Choose fine plums, not over ripe, prick them slightly, put them into cold water, and let them simmer gently until the water is nearly boiling. Take them out, and throw them immediately into cold water. Have ready some clarified syrup, put the plums into it, and boil gently for 20 minutes; take them off the fire, and let them remain in the syrup until the following day; then take out the plums, and put them into a wide-mouthed bottle, boil up the syrup with an equal quantity of brandy, pour this over the plums, and when cold cork them up tightly. Plums in Syrup.--Gather the fruit when full grown, and just as it begins to turn. Pick all the largest out, and save about ⅔ of the fruit; to the other third put as much water as you think will cover the whole. Let this boil, and skim well; when the fruit is boiled very soft, strain it through a coarse hair sieve, and to every qt. of liquor put 1½ lb. sugar. Boil it and skim it very well; then throw in the rest of the fruit, just give them a scald; take them off the fire, and when cold put them into bottles with wide mouths, pour the syrup over them, lay a piece of white paper over them, and cover them with oil. Be sure to take the oil well off when you use them, and do not put them in larger bottles than you think you will use at a time, because all these bottled fruits should be used when the bottles are once opened. Plums in Vinegar.--Gather the plums with the stalks, prick them with a needle, and put them, with layers of cloves and cinnamon, into glass jars. For every 4 lb. plums boil up 2 lb. sugar and 1 qt. best vinegar, and pour it warm over the plums. Next day pour off the vinegar, boil it up again, and pour over the fruit. This must be repeated a third time. Tie up with bladder. This preserve improves much by keeping. Prune Jelly.--Put ½ lb. prunes into a saucepan, with 2 oz. white sugar, a piece of lemon, a little cinnamon, and sufficient water to cover them, stew until tender; take out the stones, pass the prunes through a sieve, crack the stones, and put back the kernels into the prune pulp. Steep ½ oz. gelatine in a little cold water, add this to the prunes with a glass of red wine; boil all together. Ornament a plain line mould with almonds blanched and split, pour the jelly into the outer part, and leave it to get cold; when quite set remove the lining, turn out the jelly, and fill up the centre with ½ pint of cream whipped to a stiff froth. Prune Preserve.--Take some prunes, wash them well, then cover them with water and stew gently, with the grated rind of a lemon, until quite tender, and pass the prunes through a sieve; weigh the pulp, to every lb. of pulp allow ½-¾ lb. sugar. Boil the sugar with a little water until melted, then add it to the pulp, boil both together for ¼ hour, skim well, and stir, and the preserve will be ready to pot. Pumpkin Jam.--Weigh the pumpkin, have ready the same weight of sugar; take off the skin and take out the inside and seeds, cover the latter with water, and boil; cut the rest into thin slices, strain the seed water over it, with sufficient to cover the whole, and boil with 1 oz. whole ginger to 2 lb. pumpkin, until the latter is nearly done enough, take it out and boil the sugar in the same water until clear, then add the fruit and boil slowly for 1½ hour, take out the ginger, and tie up in pots. Quinces, Brandied.--Peel some small ripe quinces, and allow ½ lb. loaf sugar to 1 lb. fruit; boil the quinces ½ hour in barely sufficient water to cover them; drain them, and put aside to get cool; empty the water out of the preserving-pan and put in the sugar, moistening it with a little of the water in which the quinces were boiled, and let the sugar boil for 10 minutes; put in the quinces and let them boil rapidly for ½ hour. Place them in wide-mouthed jars, as free from syrup as possible, boil down the syrup until it jellies when dropped on a plate, set it aside in a large jug or bowl, and when quite cold mix an equal quantity of good brandy with the syrup, and pour over the quinces in the jars. Cover closely with paper dipped in white of egg. Quince Jam.--Peel and quarter your quinces, leaving the seeds in, as they readily impart their mucilage to water, and thus thicken the syrup. Allow ¾ lb. loaf sugar to 1 lb. fruit; put the fruit and sugar into a preserving-pan, and ½ teacupful water to moisten the bottom of the pan; stir the fruit and sugar frequently, and when it boils keep it boiling rapidly until the fruit is soft, and a clear red colour. It will take about an hour, reckoning from the first boiling up. Put into jam pots, and cover when cold. Quince Jelly.--For preserving, it is essential that the quinces should be quite ripe and perfectly sound. Pare and slice them, and put them into a copper preserving pan with just enough water to float them. Let them boil till tender, and the fruit reduced to a pulp; strain off the juice, letting it filter through the jelly-bag more than once, if necessary, to be quite clear; to every pint of juice allow 1 lb. powdered loaf sugar. Boil both together for about ¾ hour, removing the scum as it rises; when it sets, by pouring a little on a cold plate, it is done. Some people do not peel the quinces, thinking it makes the jelly a better colour to boil them down after slicing with the peel on. In this case they would have to be carefully washed before cutting up. Quince Marmalade.--Peel the quinces, quarter them, and remove the cores and pips. The quarters should be thrown into a pan of cold spring water as they are cut, to preserve the colour. The quinces should then be put into a covered jar with 1 qt. water to 4 lb. fruit, and stewed in a slow oven for several hours, till they are quite tender, and of a bright red colour. When they are thus prepared for marmalade weigh them, and to every lb. of fruit allow ¾ lb. crushed lump sugar. Put the fruit into a preserving pan, and bring it gently to a boil, stirring frequently all the time. Continue boiling till the whole is quite soft, and a smooth pulp; then add the sugar, and again bring the fruit to a boil. Continue boiling gently for 20-25 minutes. Take the pan from the fire, and paste down the marmalade in jars while hot with double papers, care being taken to have the paste quite boiling, and to strain the papers tightly over the jars. Quinces Preserved Whole.--Pare some ripe quinces, and put them in a preserving-pan, ¾ covered with cold water (if they should float while the water is being poured on them, press them down with a plate until you have gauged the exact height of the water); take the quinces out, measure the water, and to every pint allow 3 lb. broken loaf sugar; let this boil rapidly in the preserving-pan for five minutes, and then put in the quinces. The syrup should not cover them at first, but when they are half-cooked it will then amply cover the fruit. Boil the quinces rapidly, until soft enough for a knitting-needle to pierce them easily, which should be in 1½ hour, reckoning from the first boiling up. Take the quinces out carefully so as not to break them, and lay them on dishes to cool. Run the syrup through a jelly bag, or a piece of new flannel put in a gravy strainer; this frees it of all odd little bits that may boil from the outside of the quinces and makes it clearer. Put the syrup back in the preserving-pan, and boil it rapidly until it will jelly when dropped on a plate; put the quinces into the boiling syrup, and let them simmer gently for 10 minutes. Place each quince carefully in wide-necked jars, pour the hot syrup over them, and when cold cover in the usual way. Raspberry Jelly.--Put the raspberries in an enamelled preserving-pan over the fire, or in a stone jar in the oven, having first carefully picked out any that are mouldy; squeeze through a piece of cheese cloth, doubled. To each qt. raspberry juice add ½ pint red currant juice extracted in the same manner; to each pint allow ¾ lb. lump sugar; boil ½ hour moderately; skim, and stir frequently. Use a wooden spoon for mashing the fruit, and a silver one for skimming; iron spoils the colour. Red Currant Jelly.--(_a_) To 3 lb. red currants, which should be fresh and not over ripe, mix 1 lb. white. Place these into a preserving-pan, and gently stir over a clear fire until the juice flows freely; then turn them into a fine hair sieve, and drain; pass the juice through a jelly bag, weigh it, and boil it fast for 15 minutes, adding to each lb. 8 oz. coarsely powdered sugar. Set this aside on the hob, stirring well till all the sugar be dissolved. Then thoroughly boil the jelly for 15 minutes, and pour it into a pot. An excellent jelly may be made with equal parts of the juice of the red and white currants and raspberries. Be sure that whenever scum rises, before or after the sugar be put in, to remove it, or the preserve will be cloudy. (_b_) Take fresh red currants and put them in the oven to draw the juice; then let them drain gradually. Take equal weights juice and lump sugar. Pound the sugar fine in a mortar, pass it through a fine sieve, then place it on a dish before the fire to get well heated. When the juice is cold put it in the preserving pan, and place it on the fire; put the sugar in slowly by handfuls, stirring all the time. By the time the sugar is all in, the juice is ready to set. The colour should be of a beautiful red. Rhubarb, Bottled.--Bottling rhubarb is a little more troublesome than other fruits as you must be so particular in peeling it. To obviate this, use the early foreign rhubarb, which, though a little more expensive, makes much the prettiest preserve from its bright red colour, and does not require peeling. Cut the rhubarb into lengths of 1 in.; have ready wide-mouthed bottles (also the corks in boiling water to soften them) with about ½ teacupful cold water in each, fill them with fruit to the end of the neck of the bottle; place them in a pot of cold water, without corking them; place a little hay or anything soft between the bottles to prevent their knocking together, which they will do when the water boils; let them boil for about 15 minutes, and cork at once. When the water has cooled, remove the bottles, and leave them till next day. Cut the corks level, and cover them with bottlewax. Bottled fruits retain their colour by being kept in the dark, buried in the earth if possible. Rhubarb Jam.--Wipe the rhubarb dry, and cut it into pieces a little more than 1 in. long; unless it is old, there is no need to peel it. To every lb. of rhubarb add 1 lb. white sugar, and put a few bits of whole ginger in the preserving-pan with the rhubarb and sugar; let it reach boiling point slowly; when once it boils decidedly, keep it on the fire 20 minutes if the rhubarb is young, ½-¾ hour if it is old. Just before you take it off the fire stir in a spoonful of essence of lemon. Take out the bits of ginger as you put the jam in pots. The quantity of lemon and ginger is quite a matter of taste. Rhubarb Jelly.--To be made in September. Cut nice stalks of red rhubarb and put them into a large jar. To 6 lb. rhubarb add the peel of three lemons, and let it get soft in a moderate oven. When cooked, pour off the juice into an enamelled sauce-pan, and add the juice of the 3 lemons. Let it simmer gently for ½ hour, and strain through a jelly-bag. Then add 1½ lb. lump sugar to every pint juice; when it is dissolved boil it in a preserving-pan for 40 minutes, keeping it well stirred and skimmed. Pour into pots, and when cold tie down with brandy paper. To use up the pulp, well boil it in the preserving-pan, adding ¾ lb. lump sugar to every 1 lb. pulp and either halved or pounded bitter almonds or candied peel. Rhubarb and Orange Marmalade.--To every pint cut-up rhubarb allow 3 oranges and 12 oz. crushed loaf sugar. Peel the oranges, take out some of the white pith, and cut the rinds into thin strips as for orange marmalade. Cut up the insides of the oranges into slices, removing the pips. Put rhubarb, oranges, and sugar into a preserving-pan, and let them boil gently over a moderate fire until sufficiently done, which may be ascertained as above. As the scum rises it should be removed. When the jam sets pour it off into jars, to be covered down next day when cold. Rowan Jelly.--(_a_) The rowans should be quite ripe. Pick them off the stalks and put them into the pan, and cover with water. Take them off before they come to the boil, break them well down with a wooden spoon, and strain through a jelly-bag; then add 1 lb. sugar to every pint of juice, and boil till it jellies. (_b_) Apples and rowans equal weight. Slice the apples without paring or coring, put them in the pan with the rowans, water just sufficient to cover the fruit. Warm slowly until they boil; then bruise with a wooden spoon, and pass through a sieve. Strain through muslin, and boil 1 lb. sugar to every lb. fruit juice. Boil to the thickness desired. It keeps better when thick. Strawberry Jam.--Gather the strawberries on a fine dry day, pick off the stalks carefully, and reject all that are the least unsound. Weigh the fruit, and take an equal quantity of pounded sugar; put the fruit into a preserving-pan on the fire and when the juice runs out add the sugar; let it simmer, stirring gently, and skimming well. When it boils keep it boiling, not too fast, for 20 minutes, stirring most carefully, so as not to break the fruit, all the time with a wooden spoon. Strawberry Jelly.--Take 3 lb. strawberries, and 2 lb. pink rhubarb or red currants. If rhubarb, cut it in small lengths. Put these into a very wide-mouthed jar, and set it on a hot stove, with a ring under it lest it should catch. Cover the fruit with a plate or saucer small enough to go inside the jar, so that as the fruit sinks down you may be able to press it gently from time to time, and drain off the juice into a basin. When 1½ pint is extracted, pass it through a hair sieve into a stewpan, and put to it 2 oz. gelatine, which has been soaked for ½ hour, in ½ pint of cold water, 6 oz. loaf sugar, and the beaten whites and crushed shells of 3 fresh eggs. Stir until the gelatine is dissolved, and the jelly boils. Put the lid on the stewpan, and let it boil gently, without stirring or skimming for ½ hour. Let it stand away from the fire for a few minutes, and then strain as you would calf’s foot jelly. Oil the mould you intend using well with a little good salad oil. Arrange prettily in the bottom of it, according to its pattern, a few nice strawberries and blanched almonds. Pour in sufficient of the lukewarm jelly to set the fruit, and put in a cool place until set. Keep the remainder of the jelly in a liquid state until you are ready to fill up the mould, then set the whole if possible, on ice to get firm. Turn it out just before serving in a glass dish, with or without a custard, round, but not over it. The fruit pulp left from this may be made into a tolerable preserve for nursery use, if boiled with ¾ lb. sugar to a pint of pulp. Strawberries Preserved Whole.--Take equal weights largest strawberries procurable and fine loaf sugar, lay the fruit in deep dishes, and sprinkle half the sugar over them in fine powder; give the dish a gentle shake that the sugar may touch the under part of the fruit. The next day make a syrup with the remainder of the sugar and the juice drawn from the strawberries, and boil it until it jellies; then carefully put in the strawberries, and let them simmer nearly an hour; then put them with care into jars or bottles, and fill up with the syrup, of which there will be more than required; but the next day the jars will hold nearly or quite the whole. Cover the jars or bottles with brandy papers. (E. A. G.) Tomato Preserve.--(_a_) Take those tomatoes not entirely ripe (the very green ones late in the autumn are nice) and remove the stems; allow ½ lb. white sugar to 1 lb. fruit; put into the preserving kettle, and add water enough to make sufficient syrup. Do not put too much water in at first, as you can add to it if there is not enough. Lemons should be sliced and put into it in the proportion of 1 lemon to every 2 lb. fruit. Cook until done through and the syrup looks thick. They make an excellent preserve and taste almost like figs. (_b_) Take the sound fruit as soon as ripe, scald, and peel them. To 7 lb. tomatoes add 7 lb. white sugar, and let them stand overnight. Take the tomatoes out of the sugar and boil the syrup, removing the scum; put in the tomatoes and boil gently 15-20 minutes. Remove the fruit again and boil until the syrup thickens; on cooling put the fruit into jars, and pour the syrup over it; add a few slices of lemon to each jar. Vegetable Marrow Preserve.--Take a ripe marrow about 9 lb. weight, with the same amount of sugar, pare the marrow and remove the seeds and any soft parts; cut in pieces 1 in. thick and 2 in. length; put them in a basin with layers of sugar all night, with 1 tablespoonful capsicums tied up in muslin, and double the quantity of rough ginger well bruised and tied in muslin. In the morning pour the liquid over the remainder of the sugar, which boil and skim; then add the fruit, also the juice and rind of a lemon to each lb. of fruit, and 1 teaspoonful cochineal for colouring; boil till the fluid is clear; before taking off 2 glasses of brandy may be added. Walnuts, Preserved.--Gather the walnuts when they are full grown, but not hard. They should be in that state that a pin will penetrate them. Prick each walnut over with a large pin, put them in cold water, and leave them for 2 hours; then pour that water away, and fill the pan with fresh. Let the walnuts remain thus for 4 days, changing the water every 24 hours, to take out all the bitterness. At the end of the time change the water, and set them on the fire. As soon as they are soft take them out carefully with a skimmer, put them again into cold water, and leave them 4-5 days, changing the water as before every 24 hours. Then place the walnuts in a large glazed pan; then take common brown sugar, boil this with some water, and run the syrup through a jelly bag. Boil it again until it becomes thick, let it stand, and when about half cold pour it over the walnuts, and leave them. Next day drain off the syrup, boil it again, and when half cold pour it on the fruit. Repeat this every 24 hours, increasing the thickness of the syrup each time of boiling. A small quantity of coarse sugar should be added at every boiling, as the fruit ought to be covered with the syrup. On the ninth day put a few cloves and some cinnamon in a glass of water for 24 hours, then cut each clove into 4 pieces lengthwise; cut the cinnamon also into bits about the same size. Take the walnuts out of the syrup, and stick 4 pieces of clove and as many of cinnamon into each walnut. In the meanwhile boil the syrup up again, and when half cold pour it over the fruit and leave it. In 24 hours drain off the syrup, and set it on the fire for the last time. As soon as it begins to boil put in the fruit; let them boil up together about 12 times, and then take them from the fire. Make the bottles quite hot, put in the walnuts one by one with a skimmer, pour the syrup on (they should be well covered with it), and, when cold, cork them tight and tie a parchment over every one. You must not try to hurry the preserving, or you will get a bitter jam. These walnuts may be eaten immediately, or they will keep for 10 years; but, as in course of time the fruit sucks up the syrup, they should be filled up with fresh. You might use loaf sugar in preference to brown. _THE DAIRY._ The dairy should either be an isolated building or attached to the farm-house. It must be built with a view to keeping it dry, airy, light, cool, and above everything clean. Nothing absorbs the taint of bad odours more quickly than milk. The best aspect for a dairy is the north, and while the windows admit plenty of light (which develops colour in the cream) they should be shaded with evergreens to exclude sunshine and heat. The temperature should range between 60° and 65° F., never exceeding 65° nor descending below 55°. In a temperature of 40° F., milk keeps fresh for a very long time, but the cream becomes bitter before it can be skimmed. In a temperature of 70° to 72° F., the milk sours readily and yields less cream, which latter will make a soft butter very prone to rancidity. Where the dairy is isolated, provision must be made in the building for washing the utensils. This will need much care to avoid conflicting with the conditions just mentioned. The dairy site must be well drained. The walls may be of brick, built double with an air space between, on concrete footings 12 in. thick, with a damp-course as described on p. 5. The best material for flooring is well-laid Portland cement concrete; the floor should incline gently to one corner, where an outlet can be fitted so that the floor can be thoroughly flushed at intervals. All sharp corners, and edges, and mouldings must be avoided, as they form nests for the collection of dirt. The walls may be plastered throughout with material that will make a smooth surface capable of being washed, or they may be covered with glazed tiles. Shelves for holding the milk dishes should be about 5 ft. from the floor and preferably of enamelled iron or thin slate or stone slabs. Perforated shelves afford better circulation of air. The shelves should in any case be quite independent of the walls of the room. A typical dairy in Chester county, United States, is thus described by Hazard. The main building, which is built on a hillside, is 50 ft. long by 13 ft. wide. The room for the milk is 6 ft. below the surface and 12 ft. from floor to ceiling. This allows ample room for ventilation and light by side-windows. The troughs for holding the water in which the milk is set are formed of brick and cement, with their bottoms 1 ft. above the level of the floor of the building. They are 28 in. wide, so as to take in two rows of ordinary milk-pans. Across one end is a trough formed similar to the others, except that it is so arranged as to receive and hold the water to a greater depth than the side-troughs, so as to contain the cream-cans. In all there is an ingenious arrangement for increasing or decreasing the depth of the water so as to suit the temperature outside. The water is drawn from a well by a “telegraph” pump, and the surplus is passed off by a drain, secured against the upward passage of odours by a “bell-trap.” During the winter no water is used, and a fire is lighted to keep the temperature to the proper point. The utmost care is taken in ventilation, even to a small ventilator under which to set the lamp used when too dark for skimming without artificial light. At the front and in each side of the main building is a wing 13 ft. square; one of these contains the power-machine, the other the needful arrangement for heating the water and washing pans. For working the butter a large inclined table and lever are used, and the printing is done by an ingenious machine for stamping and marking in squares. This milk-house is made for a dairy of 50 cows; and it would seem, therefore, the proper proportions are 13 ft. wide by 1 ft. in length for each cow. A supply of ice is a valuable provision in hot weather, and in some climates an ice-house may be considered as an essential adjunct to the dairy. Ventilation demands extreme care. “The position of the milk-room with relation to the other rooms of the dairy, as the churning and the cheese-room, and the scalding or washing-room, should be such that air can be admitted on three sides of the room, so as to ensure an equable supply of air all over the interior of the milk-room. The means adopted for ensuring a supply of fresh air by the windows are of very simple character, namely, making each window in halves, the lower and upper halves being hinged to a bar stretching horizontally across the centre of the window frame; the lower half being hinged so that it opens inwards and upwards, the upper half inwards and downwards. By adjusting the opening of the two halves, the fresh air may be admitted in any required volume, and in any direction--upwards towards the ceiling, and downwards towards the floor. For removing the used air, there are many plans. One good suggestion is that the ceiling be made up of narrow fillets so placed that spaces are left throughout the whole surface of ceiling; through these spaces the air passes, into the space between the inner ceiling and the outer roof, in which are placed ventilators with valves, which may be opened and closed as desired. If a ceiling be dispensed with and an open roof adopted, the roof will require to be double, that is, a hollow space between the inner and outer boarding; this will tend to keep the temperature of the dairy more equable, than if the boarding and slates are the only covering. The double roof is simply made by lining the inner side of rafters with inch boarding tongued and grooved. The inner surface of boarding will be all the better if papered with a glazed white paper. The door of the milk-room should be double.” (Darton.) While efforts are required to keep the milk-room cool in summer, there may be need of warming in winter. The best means of warming is by hot-water pipes. In some dairies the milk pans stand in a series of troughs on an inclined plane, and all inter-communicating; in this way a current of warm water may be made to surround the pans in winter, and of cold water in summer. Gauze coverings should envelop the pans to exclude insects. Milk pans may be made of glass, glazed earthenware, or tinned iron, 15 to 18 in. across, and less than 6 in. deep. _Devonshire Cream._--The milk should be left in the pan till the cream has sufficiently risen--about 12 hours in summer, and 24 hours in winter. The whole pan must then be placed over a close range or on a stove, and left there till the milk becomes quite hot, when the surface will look thick, and bubbles will appear. Then take the pan back to the dairy, and skim the cream off on the following day. The milk must not be allowed to boil, and it should be heated slowly. The time that it takes to scald the cream will depend upon the heat of the fire, the temperature of the milk, and other circumstances; and it is only by practice that you will learn to know when it is sufficiently done. In Devonshire, celebrated for its clotted cream, the pans are of tin and shallow. They contain 10-12 qt. milk. These, after standing 10-12 hours, are placed on an iron hot-plate, or over a stove, until the cream has formed, which is indicated by the air bubbles rising through the milk, and producing blisters on the surface of the cream; it is then near boiling point, and the pan must be removed at once to a cool place. After some hours the cream is skimmed off with a slice. Milk which is carried from a distance, or much agitated before being put into pans to settle for cream, never throws up so much, nor such rich cream, as if used directly after being milked. The last drawn milk of each milking is at all times richer than the first, and for that reason should be set apart for cream. _Devonshire Junket._--(_a_) If you cannot get milk from the cow warm, take fresh milk, and put it in the oven, or on a hot stove, until it becomes the same warmth as from the cow. Put a glass of brandy and powdered sugar into it sufficient to sweeten it; add a piece of rennet to the milk, or if you cannot get this use the essence of rennet, which you can buy at the chemist’s. If you have used the former, remove it in a few minutes, and leave the milk to set in solid curd, which it will soon do; then lay over the top of it either very good cream, quite smoothly, or Devonshire cream, or you may whip the cream. The real Devonshire way is to remove cream from the top of a dairy pan in one sheet, and lay it over. Ornament the top with nutmeg. (_b_) Rub 2 large lumps of sugar on a lemon, put them with 1 pint milk and ½ pint cream in a saucepan, and make warm, but be careful not to let it be hotter than you can hold your finger in. Have ready in a china bowl a small teacupful of brandy, pour the milk and cream into it; suspend a piece of rennet (which you must well wash from all the salt) by a string, and place it in a cool place to set. When turned enough, take it out, pour ½ pint cream on the top, add some powdered cinnamon, and serve. _Swiss Cream._--This may be made in a mould in the following way, and will be found extremely good. Soak 1 oz. gelatine in cold milk for ½ hour. Steep the rind of 2 lemons in 1½ pint milk with sugar to taste; put it over the fire, but do not let it boil. Bake up the yolks of 5 fresh eggs, and pour the flavoured milk (strained) upon them. Mix well, and then stir over the fire until the custard thickens; add the gelatine, and stir again over the fire without letting it boil until the gelatine is dissolved, then pour it into a basin. Dip a mould in water, ornament it with preserved cherries, when cool pour some of the above cream into it, put a layer of macaroons, previously soaked in a little white wine, another layer of custard, and so on until the mould is quite full. Set it on ice, or in a cool place to set, and when wanted turn it out carefully. _Butter._--The room where the cream is churned, and the butter made, should be fitted with a table of marble or slate, and shelves for holding the butter. The yields of cream from milk, and butter from cream, are subject to much variation. The richness of milk differs too at morning and evening. But the average figures are approximately these:--12 qt. of milk should give 1 qt. of cream, and 1 qt. of cream should afford 14 oz. of butter. Morning milk is richer than evening milk, and the last portion drawn from the cow at each milking, is richer than the first. Autumn milk is best for butter, summer milk for cheese. Milk to be sold fresh as such should be cooled immediately it is drawn from the cow, because while warm and exposed to the air, the sugar present undergoes oxidation with consequent liberation of lactic acid, which is indicated by the milk turning sour. When promptly cooled, milk can be kept sweet and transported without risk, besides which it gives up its cream more readily. The Americans have introduced various coolers, all of which are more or less effective. As fast as brought in, the milk should be run through a hair sieve. This, and also the vessels with which the milk comes in contact, must be kept scrupulously clean by the aid of constant scalding, to be followed by rinsing with cold water, and drying in the air. The milk is exposed in the pans for varying periods in order that the globules of fat may have an opportunity of separating from the milk and floating on the surface. This process is now very commonly replaced by the use of a hydro-extractor, in which centrifugal action breaks up the milk into cream and “skim milk” without any need for waiting. According to the older practice the milk is left to stand for a considerable time, but no advantage is gained by exceeding 24 hours; in fact the best authorities say that it should be skimmed before the surface begins to look wrinkled, as this appearance is a symptom of incipient putrefaction. Large shallow perforated tin ladles are used for removing the cream, which should be carefully deposited, without splash, in white stoneware jars holding 2 to 12 gal., according to the size of the dairy. Common glazed earthenware is to be avoided on account of injurious chemical action. Skimming should be done twice daily, and each time an addition of cream is made to the jar the whole contents should be well but gently stirred with a stoneware spoon. The jars should be covered with gauze to exclude insects. In some dairies skimming is avoided by the simple plan of having a hole in the bottom of the milk dish by which the milk is drawn off, leaving the cream undisturbed. Butter consists of the fatty portion of the milk, which is separated by the process known as “churning,” the object of which is to rupture the envelopes which hold the fatty matter. The bulk of this fatty matter resides in the cream. Butter may be “made” by churning either the milk or only the cream; and these may be either in a sweet or sour (“lappered”) state. The most general practice is to churn the cream alone in a lappered condition. For this reason the cream is set to ripen in stoneware jars for several days, averaging about 3 days in summer, and 5 or 6 in winter, preferably with occasional stirring. It is the general opinion that to get the best butter, the operation of churning should be comparatively slow, from ¾ hour to 2 hours--an hour being a fair average, varying, however, according to the season; the operation being much more tedious in winter than in summer. After the butter is separated from the cream, the buttermilk remains, containing the casein, salt, and sugar present in the original cream, though a portion of these is taken up with the butter. The greater the proportion of casein left in the butter, the poorer is the latter in quality, and the more readily will it become rancid. Commenting on Jenkins’ pamphlet, ‘Hints on Butter-making,’ the _Field_ recently published the following remarks:-- “Cheese-making, owing to American importations, has recently been so unprofitable that there is the more necessity for attention to butter-making. Why should the dairies of France, Holland, Denmark, and Sweden be able to supply an article in our markets which is superior to the bulk of our own make? And why, above all, in the matter of fresh butter, should Normandy be preferred by our large purveyors to the home dairies, were it not that by superior cleanliness and systematic management the quality is more dependable? For instance, we have been told that the manager of the Midland Hotel at Derby obtains all his butter from Normandy, because he finds it more reliable and of better and more uniform quality than English produce, notwithstanding that he lives in the centre of a great dairy district, and that the foreign produce is liable to deterioration by the journey. Here, then, the English farmer has an opportunity which he is very wrong to neglect. Cheese does not pay--at least, such varieties as are usually made; the demand for milk is limited; but good sweet butter will always command a fair and often a very high price. The reasons given by Jenkins for the inferior butter are these: That the milk is not skimmed early enough--often not before a certain amount of sourness has been developed in the milk, and an appreciable amount of curd has therefore become mixed with the cream. It is true that this curd increases the quantity, but it affects the quality; the butter becomes rank, and fetches a low price. Careless skimming, by taking off some of the milk with the cream, causes the same results. Carelessness in churning or in the manipulation of the butter, by which buttermilk and water are left in the butter. It may be that this is sometimes intentional, as more weight is obtained; but the quality is greatly injured. Much handling of the butter in making up is also a source of injury. Dirt in any form, bad smells, unskilful milking, bad food and water given to the cows; bad water, soap, or other noxious substances used in washing the dairy and vessels, are all causes of bad butter which must be guarded against. Temperature being allowed to vary, bad packing, &c., are all elements that require more care than is usually bestowed. As regards the food, Jenkins points out that in a wet season, grass alone cannot be depended on to give a good result--it is too succulent in its nature, and should be modified by the use of 4 lb. of bean meal given to each cow daily; whilst under ordinary circumstances the ration may consist of 2 lb. to 3 lb. of decorticated cotton cake, or 2½ lb. of bran and 2½ lb. of oatmeal, or 3 lb. of oatmeal and 2 lb. of bean meal. And he states, what all who have had experience will confirm, that by the use of such food more cows can be profitably kept, and that a farmer should look upon grass and hay as the most expensive articles of food. Then Jenkins proceeds to describe the process of butter-making adopted in the best districts of Normandy. We shall make no apology for publishing these directions _verbatim_, as we shall thereby assist the society in the dissemination of useful knowledge. “1. Clean all dairy utensils by rinsing them with clean cold water, and afterwards scrubbing them with boiling water; after which repeat the cold rinsing. “2. Cool the milk directly it is brought into the dairy by placing the cans in a running stream, or by any other available method. This, we may be permitted to observe, whilst most desirable, is often not easily attainable. The Americans, in selecting the site for the dairy, always prefer the base of a hill, so as to secure two very important factors--shelter from the sun and a cold spring of water. If running water cannot be obtained, that from a deep well may be used. “3. Set the milk at a temperature of not exceeding 55°F. in glazed earthenware or tin pans. The question of whether these shall be shallow or deep will depend upon our facilities for reducing the temperature. If we have running water or ice, there is no doubt that the deep cans thus surrounded offer a greater surface of milk to the cooling influence, and this rapid and regular cooling causes the cream to rise freely and quickly; but if we have not these facilities, then shallow pans are preferable. “4. Skim after 12 hours with a perforated tin saucer, and take care that nothing but cream is removed; 12 hours after, skim a second time; but this should not be mixed with the first skimmed cream at all, if our object is to make the finest class of butter; but otherwise it must be mixed with the first cream just before churning. Of course by following this plan we do not obtain the maximum produce, but we have the best quality. If the cream is too thick, a little pure water may be added, but the addition of milk should be avoided. “5. Keep the cream, until the time for changing, in the coldest place available, in covered earthenware or tin vessels. “6. Churn the cream at a temperature of 57° to 60° F., and obtain this by gradually raising or lowering the temperature by placing the vessel in a bath of warm or cold water. Use an ordinary revolving barrel, or a midfeather churn, fitted with a spigot. The more simple the churn, and the less mechanism, the more easily is it churned. Thomas and Taylor’s Self-acting Eccentric Churn (Stockport, Cheshire), which gained the first prize at Bristol, is recommended, to be turned at from 50 to 60 revolutions per minute. Stop the churning at once when the butter comes, however small the globules may be. Remove the buttermilk by allowing it to run through a hair sieve, and return any butter globules to the churn. “7. Work the butter slowly with cold water by half filling the churn, giving it 3 or 4 turns, and then withdrawing the water. Repeat the working until the water comes out clear; this is of great importance. Remove the butter by a pair of wooden patters, and press out the water by passing it under a kneading board, or on a larger scale, by using a revolving butter worker. The board and roller can be obtained for 13_s._ 6_d._, of How, 13, Bishopsgate-street, E.C.; or of T. Bradford and Co., 140, High Holborn. Avoid using the hand. “8. Make up the butter as is most saleable, and pack it in small packages, lined first with white paper, and then with new and clean muslin previously well rinsed in boiling water and again cooled, &c.” We often consider the French our inferiors in agricultural matters, but they have built up a position upon butter and cheese which has made two or three departments absolutely wealthy, and they still pursue the system in a most business-like and thrifty manner. We wish we could point to a single English county in which one-half is done with butter that is done in Calvados; but while we are content to grow corn at a loss, and buy our dairy produce at considerably more than we can get it for at home, we shall continue to contribute to the wealth of Normandy and the difficulties which beset the land question at home. Our producers must first break the back of the middleman, and then there will be no such facts existing as the best fresh butter a drug at 11_d._ a lb. in some of our country districts, while it is 1_s._ 10_d._ in London. Butter, Potting.--The best month of the year in which to pot butter is May, or, at any rate, the business should be completed before the hot weather comes on. If the butter is to be kept for several months, it will be necessary to put a good deal of salt with it; 1 oz. salt to 1 lb. butter will not be found too much. To ensure the proper incorporation of the salt, it is best to add it by small quantities at a time, kneading and re-kneading the butter till the whole is thoroughly mixed. It must then be pressed firmly into wooden tubs, or “kits,” as they are technically called; or stone jars may be used if preferred. It is hardly necessary to add that great care must be taken to have every vessel employed in the preparation as clean and sweet as possible. Another very simple way to preserve butter is to have a good-sized earthenware jar or pan filled with some strong brine, and place it at hand in the dairy. Into the brine put from time to time, as it can be spared, ½ lb. of fresh butter, each piece being folded up separately in thin muslin. The only care required is to be certain that the butter is always thoroughly covered with brine: it will sometimes be necessary to put a weight on the butter, as it has a tendency to rise to the surface when the brine is strong. The butter will keep in this manner for weeks, or even months, and, besides the advantage gained by this plan of being able to take out just as much as is required for use at a time; there is the additional benefit of having preserved fresh butter, as it does not absorb the salt. Butter, Rancid.--(_a_) Rancid butter may be recovered and sweetened by washing and kneading it well, first in new milk, and afterwards in cold spring water, butyric acid, on which the rancidity depends, being freely soluble in new milk. (_b_) Let the butter be melted and skimmed as for clarifying; then put into it a piece of bread, well toasted all over. In a minute or two the butter will lose its offensive smell and taste. (_c_) Beat the butter in a sufficient quantity of water, in which you put 25-30 drops lime chloride to 2 lb. butter. After having mixed it till all its parts are in contact with the water, it may be left in for 1-2 hours, afterwards withdrawn, and washed anew repeatedly in fresh water. _Cheese._--When milk is curdled, it separates into two portions, curd and whey. The former consists of the butter and casein, and produces cheese; the latter is mainly water, with the sugar and mineral constituents of the milk in solution. Milk for cheese-making, which is more or less rich in cream, according to the kind of cheese, is placed in vats at a temperature varying from about 70° to 85° F., with the due amounts of rennet and colouring matter, for 1-1½ hour under cover. The rennet must be prepared from perfectly fresh (untainted) calves’ veils soaked in soft water--the halves of 1½ veils steeped in ½ gal. water will suffice for 250 lb. of cheese. The best colour is liquid arnatto, ½ fl. oz. to 25 lb. cheese. As soon as the curd has set, say 1-1½ hour, the curd is “cut” by a special implement and broken up by the hand, a process demanding much skill and care. This completed, the curd is subjected to pressure, with the object of expressing the whey, which latter is drained off. The pressure is increased and judiciously regulated as the curd hardens, so as to remove all the whey without losing any butter. Various appliances are in use for this purpose. When the curd has been thoroughly freed from whey, it is broken up, salted in due proportion, and again submitted to repeated and increasing pressings. Finally it goes into the curing room to ripen. Rennet.--Rennet is easily made at home, and costs less than half what the same quantity is charged when bought ready-made. Home-made rennet is also much stronger than the bought preparation and is useful in making summer delicacies. Get a calf’s maw from a butcher. They always keep them on hand, and charge about 1_s._ each. Tie the skin tightly at one end, with a double loop of twine, and leave it in a dairy or cool larder. When you want rennet, cut a piece about 1 in. square, and soak it in a teacupful warm water all night. Next day, take out the bit of maw, and to 1 pint cream or milk, use 1 large tablespoonful of the liquid. As a rule, the Gloucestershire cheese-makers do not manufacture their own rennet but buy it ready prepared. The kind generally employed is Hansen’s Patent Rennet Extract, which is used in the proportion of 1 teaspoonful extract to 6 gal. milk. Cream Cheese.--Take ½ pint very richest cream and a cheese cloth. Pour the cream into the cloth, and lay it upon one of your dairy pans for an hour. Then take a perfectly clean knife and scrape off any cream that may have stuck to the cloth, and lay it on the top and sides of the cheese. Tie it up somewhat loosely, and hang it up to drip; open it from time to time, and remove any cream that has stuck to the cloth, and place it as before. When it stops dripping the cheese is ready, and will turn out easily. The cheese should always be used the same day it is made. In summer a few hours will suffice. If you tell your dairywoman the day before, she will have thicker cream for the cheese by keeping some of the milk that is set for cream 12 hours or more beyond the usual time for ordinary purposes before skimming it. The quantity of cream depends of course on the number of your party; ½ pint is enough for 6-8 people. If the cream be rich and the cheese well made, it will be soft, but without losing its round shape in the least. Though tied up loosely at first, it should be gradually tightened, after being opened from time to time as directed above. New-milk Cheese.--Mix 4 gal. new milk with a breakfastcupful of salt, and a small teacupful of prepared essence of rennet. The milk should be used warm as it comes from the cow, or, if it has cooled, all or a part of it should be heated again, so that the whole marks about 95°F. The cheese is better if a pint or more of cream is added to the milk, but it is not necessary. The curd and the cheese will be hard if the milk is too hot. After about 2 hours the curd will have set. It should then be slashed across in all directions, and some of the whey ladled out with a cup. Next the curd should be drained in a cloth laid over a colander, and then put into a wooden or tin cheese mould in layers, with salt between. This should not be done until the curd is fairly dry. The mould should be covered and turned every day. Only a very light weight (if any) should be laid over. At the end of 2 weeks the cheese should be put in a muslin bag, and hung up in an airy, dry place, where the sun cannot reach it. Late in the year try half or a third this quantity, as, though there is more waste in a small cheese, it ripens quicker. May and June are the best cheesemaking months. Cheese moulds are generally round or cylinder shaped; but any strong box of wood, with gimlet holes at top, bottom, and sides, and a lid that fits inside and not over (so that as the cheese shrinks it still presses on it), will do for a makeshift. Rush Cream Cheese.--To 1 pint thick, fresh cream, add ½ pint new milk, warm from the cow, 1 teaspoonful pounded loaf sugar, and 1 tablespoonful rennet. Let it remain near the fire till it turns to curd. Take the curd up with an egg slice, and fill the rush shape, made as directed, and covered with a piece of straining cloth inside. Lay a ¼ lb. weight on a saucer over the curd the first day; afterwards a ½ lb. weight. Change the cloth every day until the cheese is firm and begins to look mellow. Then dispense with the cloths, and return the cheese to the rush shape and leave it to ripen there. It may be ripened more quickly by keeping it from first to last in a tolerably warm room. Although cream cheeses are generally considered to be only in season during the summer, there is no reason why they cannot be as readily made at any time of the year, and of late they have come to be considered an almost indispensable delicacy at a fashionable dinner-table. A little extra trouble is all that is needed to ensure success. The cream and milk must be made rather more than new milk warmth, and if rennet is used, the cream must be covered and put in a warm place until the curd is come. During the whole process the temperature should never be lower than 65°F. Sage Cheese.--This is made by colouring the milk with juice pressed from young red sage leaves and spinach. It should be added with the rennet to the milk. Much obscurity has hitherto hung around the natural processes concerned in the development of flavour in cheese. Cheeses of different districts and of different countries possess (apart from mere richness due to the quantity of cream fat contained) each a piquancy characteristic of itself, which the differences in the mode of manufacture appear frequently much too slight to adequately account for. In the cheese-making districts of the Continent, however, this matter has been made the subject of scientific investigations; and already results are forthcoming which throw much light upon the subject. Among these, the researches of Duclaux, at the dairy station at Fau, Cantal, France, deserve particular attention, from the suggestiveness of the conclusions adduced. This _savant_ has succeeded in isolating and in studying the life history of certain microscopic organisms (microbia), in which he recognises the primary agent that is engaged in modifying the constituents of cheese. These organisms are nourished by the casein or curd of the cheese, which they break up into a number of substances of simpler constitution, some of which, like the fatty acids, are characterised by highly piquant qualities. There are several ferments which produce these odorous principles in different proportions, and thus give rise to the differently flavoured cheeses; and the skill of the dairyman largely consists (though he does not know it) in always employing the same ferments or ripening agents, and in preventing other and less desirable organisms from gaining a foothold. Fortunately, in course of time, the useful ferments establish themselves in large quantities in the dairy; they impregnate the air of the factory, and cling to the vessels and the clothing of the operatives. From the moment the milk is drawn, it becomes exposed to the influence of these germs, which, developing rapidly in the warm milk, and becoming entangled in the curd when the rennet is added, accompany it through the operations that follow. On the Continent it appears common to curdle the milk at a much higher temperature than we do. Duclaux speaks of the rennet being frequently added just as the milk comes from the cow; and if it has been allowed to cool, it is warmed up to the natural temperature, 95°-98° F. In making fine cheeses but little rennet is used, and the coagulation takes a long time. The curd is soft and full of whey, which is drained off slowly and as completely as possible, in order to get rid of the milk sugar. That which is left is chiefly converted into lactic acid, which renders the new cheese slightly acid. Soon, however, the casein ferments begin to develop over the surface of the cheese, giving rise to carbonate of ammonia, which neutralises the acid, and leaves the cheese in the end slightly alkaline. From the living cells of the ferment are at the same time secreted a diastase similar to the active principle which in malt, and in all germinating seeds, converts the starch into sugar. This penetrates the curd little by little, and renders it soluble, and thus a yellow translucent layer creeps gradually inward to the centre, and replaces the white and opaque casein. When isolated, this diastase attacked curd so strongly as to reduce it in 3 or 4 days to the consistency and appearance of Camembert cheese; but, as the flavouring organisms were absent, the resulting product was insipid and tasteless. This action resembles strongly the digestion to which the cheese is afterwards more completely subjected in the body. Indeed, the similarity in properties between this peculiar principle and the ferment of the pancreas is very marked. Simultaneously with the digestive diastase there is also secreted a diastase capable of coagulating the casein; but the cheese maker does not wait for this to be developed, but adds to the milk some rennet, which is a solution containing this diastase in considerable quantity. Such, in short, is the rationale of cheese curing--first, an organised ferment decomposes the curd, and produces in small quantities highly flavoured compounds, which, like a condiment, give relish to the whole mass; and secondly, a diastase, or unorganised ferment secreted by the organism, mellows the curd and renders it more easily soluble. The conditions most favourable for the exclusive development of these organisms have been learnt by long practice; but should these conditions at any time fail to be observed, some other ferment, incapable of producing the particular kind of ripening wished for, may intrude itself. The chamber is then said to be “sick,” and has sometimes to be temporarily abandoned. Special members of the yeast and mould families are also largely concerned in the ripening of certain cheeses, and their action is very similar to that mentioned above. Roquefort and Pontgibaud cheeses, for example, are ripened by _Penicillium glaucum_, or, in other words, bread mould. These cheeses are kept as near as possible to 32° F., not because so low a temperature is most favourable to the development of the mould, but because other ferments, and especially such as give rise to putrefaction (vibrios), are thereby checked. From the low temperature and unsuitable soil the ripening is apt to proceed so slowly that it is customary to expedite the fermentation by a liberal inoculation of mouldy bread, and by piercing holes to enable the plant to penetrate inwards. In Gruyère cheese are found long cells constricted in the middle like an elongated figure of 8. These cells multiply by splitting in two at the constricted part, forming two individuals. A gelatinous layer surrounds each cell when young, and also divides and envelopes the new individuals. This, however, disappears with age, leaving the cell naked. The action of this organism is to resolve any milk sugar that may be present into alcohol, acetic acid, and carbonic acid, and as this latter is a gas, it forms a number of small bubbles in the cheese. Gruyère is a cooked cheese; for in order to hasten the elimination of the whey, and enable the curd to be pressed in the mould as quickly as possible, the curd is heated slowly, and with constant stirring, to about 120° F. This requires considerable care, for if the heating be too rapid, the grains formed are large, and in the press flatten out and adhere to one another, and so clothe the cheese with an impenetrable layer, through which the whey is unable to escape. On the other hand, an undercooked curd is liable to retain an excess of whey; and the evil of this is that too much gas is given off by the fermentation of the sugar, and consequently, instead of bubbles, long channels appear in the cheese, which depreciate the value of the product. Again, as the ferment is killed at a temperature very near 120° F. (varying a little with the acidity or alkalinity of the curd), it is very possible to destroy it by overheating, and then the cheese becomes dry, is difficult to mature, and is said to be “dead.” Under any circumstances the ripening of Gruyère cheese is a very slow process. In Duclaux’s own district of Cantal, a soft, quickly maturing, uncooked cheese is made, which has the disadvantage of slowly depreciating after ripening, owing to the large quantity of moisture it contains. The practice is to curdle the milk rapidly, and then, while the curd still retains a considerable amount of whey, to allow it to ferment till all the milk sugar has disappeared. On pressing the mass, there is squeezed out a certain amount of liquid and much ferment; but the remainder, equivalent to half the weight of the cheese, is retained, owing to a curious change in the properties of the curd. So obstinately is this held, that, with additional pressure, fat is forced out in preference to water. Duclaux finds, however, that with cheese containing less fat--say, half skimmed and half raw milk--more liquid can be extracted, and thus a better-keeping cheese obtained. As the flavour and odour are derived almost entirely from the alteration products of the casein, the main characteristics of the Cantal cheese are not altered by this modification, and he consequently recommends its adoption. The most praiseworthy part of Duclaux’s investigations--that on the life history of these organisms, and the isolation and investigation of the diastases secreted by them--is of too scientific a nature to be reproduced here. We may mention, however, that Manelli and Mussi, in their researches on the maturing of Parmesan cheese, have independently come to much the same conclusion as those given above; so there is every reason to consider that we possess now a correct explanation of the phenomena of cheese ripening. Apart from the interest attached to the explanation of an every-day process, researches such as these are sure in the end to lead to results of direct practical utility. Little by little we are getting to understand that no process of fermentation or putrefaction can be truly called “spontaneous.” They are as much the result of sowing as a thistle that turns up in a field where it was not purposely planted; and just as we can keep our agricultural crops in order by due attention, so crops of ferments can be controlled, the valuable ones being cultivated, and the pernicious weeds sterilised. Methods are known to the vinegar maker by which he can rear, when he needs it, unmixed crops of _Mycoderma aceti_ to ferment his liquors; and the high-class brewer already uses the microscope to ascertain the healthiness of his yeast plant and its freedom from bacteria. May not even cheesemaking, then, be raised from an empirical art into a science, and each cheese factory of the future devote itself knowingly to the cultivation of its own appropriate fungus, learning its likes and its dislikes, and the enemies that have to be contended with? Even the mould sowing of the Roquefort peasants might be improved upon, and pure crops of ferment be raised to inoculate our cheeses. Granted that even then our finest cheeses would not be made better, yet the possibility of raising all cheese to the highest standard of quality of which it is capable is surely sufficient to claim for the scientific experimenter respect and encouragement. In France there are a variety of cheeses which vary in consistence, constitution, flavour, and ability to keep, and these differences are rather owing to the process of manufacture than to the nature of the soil or the peculiarity of climate. The various denominations applied to them, too, indicate differences in manipulation rather than any change in their matter. Nevertheless, we are far from partaking of the opinion of those who deny that both sun and soil have any influence; for as with wine and cider, so with butter and cheese, the pasture has a marked action upon aroma and quality. If we consider the general manner or process of manufacture, we find that it comprehends five distinct operations, which in France are called: 1st, _coagulation du lait_, or the formation of the curd; 2nd, _rompage_, or breaking up of the curd; 3rd, _égouttage_, or drainage, which is accompanied in some cases by _pressage_ or pressing; 4th, _salaison_, or salting; and 5th, _fermentation_, or maturing of the cheese. It is in the various methods, many of which differ very little from each other, and in all of which these operations are in force, but carried out under different conditions, that it is found possible to make 40 or more varieties of cheese, which are divided into 4 categories; 1st, fresh soft cheese; 2nd, salt ditto ditto; 3rd, firm or medium-pressed ditto; 4th, cured cheese, more or less hard and pressed. In the first category we have the Neufchâtel, the manufacture of which is extensive and profitable in the district of Bray; the Brie, the Pont l’Evêque, and the Camembert may be mentioned as examples of the second; Roquefort and Dutch of the third; and Gruyère and Parmesan of the fourth. There are defects to which even the best cheeses are commonly subject--defects, of the causes of which the professed cheese-makers themselves do not always give consistent accounts. Every good cheese should be of uniformly smooth surface, and perfectly firm; of colour unvarying throughout the whole surface, save only where the marks of age, necessary to certain kinds, appear. Softness and soapiness of texture; cracks, attributed by some to the action of lime on pasture, by others to the employment of too strong a draught in the process of drying; and holes, caused by “heaving” or “sweating,” are patent signs of imperfection which should warn the most careless purchaser against the cheese in which any of them are found. “Marbling,” the worst of all faults, is a mottled appearance of the surface, somewhat resembling the veining of marble. It is due to one or more of the following causes: not properly scalding the cheese; adding the colouring (which should be put in before the rennet) after the cheese has come; not properly squeezing out the whey. Wherever this occurs, it imparts to the cheese an exceeding ill flavour--in fact, makes it unfit to be eaten. It is especially dangerous in cheeses of the North Wilts kind, where the surface is invisible to the purchaser. Rankness of flavour, which can of course be guarded against by those who buy their own cheese, is also to be met with in the best kinds. This has been imputed to impurity of rennet; but, as it is frequently found in the cheeses of Scotland, where it is pretended that the greatest care is taken of the rennet, it may possibly also result from bad quality of pasture. In the Scotch dairy farms it is said to be obviated by pouring a very small quantity of saltpetre into the pail before milking the cows. Following are some remarks on the chief British cheeses, culled from the _Field_. Cheddar.--The manufacture of this, the king of cheeses, occupies a large tract of country, its head-quarters being at and about Pennard, a few miles from the cliffs of Cheddar in the Mendips. For richness combined with delicacy of flavour, and, indeed, for every good quality that may become a cheese, it is without a rival. None can serve better its purpose at dinner. This cheese is made of circular shape, of large surface, and considerable depth; its price about 13_d._ per lb. at a good cheesemonger’s. It is mostly white, but is occasionally coloured red, for which purpose Nicholl’s “colouring” is used. It is said to make no perceptible difference in the flavour. Cheddar, to be in perfection, must be kept for at least 2 years before being eaten, when it will not show any outward signs of decay. It is said, that the facility of exportation given by railways at present has caused much of this cheese to be moved before it is properly ripe, thereby producing a considerable general deterioration of its quality in the markets. Yet by taking a little pains, and by selection of right places of purchase, the best of it may still be obtained. Cheshire.--This justly celebrated cheese, though for delicacy of flavour inferior to Cheddar, was, and is still by many good judges, held to be the best of English cheeses. In taste it is a good deal stronger, not to say coarser, than Cheddar, but it is equally rich in substance. Perhaps, owing to its strength, it may be considered as better adapted for dinner than luncheon. It is of large size, and circular in shape. Like Cheddar, it must be kept at least 2 years before eating, and no cheese is more improved by age. It is for the most part made in the county the name of which it bears, though, of course, the general area of its distribution exceeds the limits of that county, and very good specimens of it may be had at some distance beyond the borders. Much of its excellence is, however, said to be imparted by the peculiarity of the soil of Cheshire itself, and by the salt springs with which that soil abounds. At least, wherever such salt springs are most found, the cheese there produced has always been deemed of superior quality. The price of the best quality in London shops is mostly the same as that of Cheddar. Cottenham.--Some say that it is a much superior cheese to Stilton. In external appearance it closely resembles Stilton, and might easily be mistaken for it. The interior, however, which is of a far richer and creamier texture, is very different. The flavour is fuller, though equally delicate; and although Cottenham, to be really good, requires, like Stilton, to be kept until decay shows itself, yet it is in itself not so insipid but that it may be eaten before that decay is very fully developed. The veins with which it will then be marked are of a brownish hue. It is about the same size as Stilton, or perhaps a little larger, and its price ought to be about the same as the price of that cheese. Daventry.--A rare cheese of remarkably pleasant flavour, very delicate of taste, and possibly rich of substance. It is of medium size, flat and circular of shape, of whitish colour, and should be marked when fit for eating with veins, somewhat after the manner of Stilton, but of deeper green than is usual with that cheese. Dorset (Double), or Blue Vinney.--This cheese is generally known throughout a large tract of country, but is in fact a poor enough cheese, and only adapted to make a tolerable luncheon off. It is circular and flat, of white colour, mottled with a network of blue veins; whence its name, though the etymology of the name has disappeared in the popular spelling of it. Dunlop.--This, the most famous--indeed, the only famous--Scotch cheese, is made in the counties of Ayr, Renfrew, Lanark, and Galloway, in various sizes from ¼ to ½ cwt. In texture and taste it somewhat resembles double Gloucester, and, like it, is well adapted for toasting. Gloucester, Double and Single.--Double Gloucester is also a very rich cheese, but with a certain poverty of flavour, by reason of which it can hardly be recommended for use at dinner, although at luncheon it may not be unacceptable. Its taste is peculiarly mild, and this, combined with its waxy texture, which allows it to be cut into thin slices without crumbling, admirably adapts it for toasting, for which purpose it is, with hardly an exception, the best cheese we possess. It is of circular shape, and generally weighs about 22 lb. The single Gloucester is currently reported to be of the same substance and richness as the double; but in fact, as a rule, is made of far poorer materials, being composed of milk skimmed overnight, or partially thereof; it is also of only about half the weight and thickness. It is fit for nothing but toasting. Leicester--commonly called in London shops _Derbyshire_--is chiefly made in the county from which it takes it name; it is in shape flat and circular, and very shallow, of moderate size, and coloured a deepish red. It is a good second-rate cheese, and if any one shall desire a serviceable article, whether for luncheon or dinner, very equal in quality and agreeable of taste, let him try Leicester. The price should be 9-10_d._ per lb. North Wilts.--This, which derives its name from the county of its birth, is a rich and nice little cheese, of a very delicate and agreeable flavour. From the extreme mildness of its taste, it is far fitter for the luncheon than for the dining-table. In shape it is cylindrical, with a smooth hard rind, and weighs about 10-12 lb. It is coloured red with arnatto. The price in London is 10-11_d._ per lb. Stilton.--At Stilton, in Huntingdonshire, where the coaches of the great north road were wont to stop for luncheon, this cheese was first introduced to the public. Its sole connection with Stilton is its name, the cheese itself having been made in the neighbourhood of Melton Mowbray. Since then it has extended itself over most of the rich lowlands of Leicestershire and a portion of Nottinghamshire. In shape it is cylindrical, the outside covered with a whitish rind, very thick and rough. The flavour of a good Stilton is exquisite, though, perhaps rather cloying as compared with the finer sorts of “plain” cheese. It is unfit to be eaten--indeed, is of a nauseous insipidity--until pretty well covered with blue veins. This will occur in about 2 years, and should be allowed to come on gradually and naturally, by merely keeping the cheese moist enough not to check the decay. Many artifices, however, are resorted to in order to hasten its maturity, as by placing it in a damp but warm cellar; sinking it, wrapped in brown paper, in a hotbed, &c. The practice of pouring port wine into Stilton is condemned by some as at once wasting good wine and spoiling good cheese. Stilton will be found most acceptable both at luncheon and dinner. In size it averages 12 lb., and its price is from 1_s._ 6_d._ per lb. There is, however, no cheese so unequal in quality, whether from accidents to which it is liable during manufacture, or from whatever other cause, and the utmost care must be taken in its purchase. Subjoined is an account of the best known foreign cheeses, from the same source. Camembert.--This cheese, which is made in Brittany, is a kind of cross between the “real” and “cream” cheese. It reminds one much of the best privately made cream cheese of our own country, with a rich and peculiar flavour superadded. It is of a soft and creamy texture, of a yellowish white, flat and very shallow, with a dark brown rind, very thick and soft. It may be confidently recommended as a real delicacy, rather for the dinner than the luncheon-table. The price of Camembert cheeses, which are o£ small size, is about 9-10_d._ each. Cream Cheeses.--In this production the palm must be yielded by the English to the foreign market. Our own cheeses of the kind, including the best of private manufacture, are made to be eaten at once, and will not bear keeping, by which process the Continental cheese, more skilfully put together, is much improved. The principal foreign cream cheeses are Stracchino (Milan), which is a long way the best; Brie (Meaux), Marolles, and Pont l’Evêque, all very good of their kind, and Neufchatel, which last is, of all, the most commonly met with on this side of the Channel. Neufchatel, frequently called “Bondon,” from being made of the shape and size of the _bondon_ (Ang. “bung”) of a cask, is made at Neufchatel, in Normandy. It is simply a white cream cheese, and when fresh, extremely insipid--in fact, hardly equal to our own Yorkshire and Bath cheeses. By keeping, however, until it becomes “ripe,” it acquires a flavour by no means to be despised, though hardly on a level with some of the cream cheeses already mentioned. Crême de Brie has been alluded to as once the _crême de la crême_ of cheeses, and even now “running a good second” to Roquefort. La Brie is situated near to Paris, in the Department of Seine et Marne, with proximity, together with the difficulty of distant transport and the fondness of the Parisians for the thing itself, causes the most dainty to be almost entirely eaten in Paris. Imitations of it are many, and, as a rule, as worthless as is the genuine article valuable, for of all the French cheeses it is the most expensive by reason of its not keeping sound beyond a few days, and the large quantities in which it is partaken of at a meal. Brie is a soft, creamy cheese, made in rounds of large size but of little thickness. Dutch (Holland and Belgium).--This cheese is perhaps better known in kitchens than in the upper regions. It has, however, many good points, and is of by no means disagreeable flavour, though, owing to the process of making, a little too salt for delicate taste. It is also in general very safe, and very equal in quality. Being extremely mild, it is hardly suited to the dinner table, but affords an excellent luncheon. For domestic use it is eminently serviceable, and will be found (which is a great merit) generally acceptable in the kitchen. It is of a spherical oval shape, softish in texture, and coloured red. Its cheapness is also a recommendation, as it costs but 8_d._ or 9_d._ a lb. An imitation of this cheese is made in the district of Calvados, Normandy. Gorgonzola (North of Italy).--This is an excellent cheese, and one that bears a close resemblance to Stilton. It has, however, so strongly marked and distinct a character of its own, that it would be injurious to institute a comparison between it and any other cheese. In texture and marking it is not altogether unlike Stilton, but is of deeper yellow, and the veins of a greener hue. It is equally good for luncheon and dinner, having great delicacy combined with fulness of flavour. Price about 1_s._ 5_d._ a lb. Gruyère.--Gruyère is made in the Canton of Fribourg, and in the Vosges, the Jura, and Ain. The best cheeses of this kind are selected for exportation. Gruyère is a flat cheese of some 3 in. in depth, of a pale yellow colour, and plain surface, marked sparsely with large holes, which contain moisture. The rule laid down on the “plain” cheeses of England as to uniformity of colour in the surface of cheese holds good abroad as well as at home, but uniformity of surface in foreign plain cheeses need not be so closely looked for. In fact, the holes that abound in some of these cheeses constitute neither blemish nor unsoundness. The odour of Gruyère is strongish, but the taste mild and delicate. If anything, it is a little cloying. It is a fair cheese, but cannot be called more than fair, for dinner; but will serve very well for luncheon, though perhaps likely to pall on the taste if eaten constantly at this meal. The wholesale price is 11_d._ a lb. Parmesan (from the district in the North of Italy between Lodi and Cremona) is a finer cheese than Gruyère. The cows from whose milk it is made are kept in the house nearly all the year round, and fed in summer on cut grass, in winter on hay. The process of making both Gruyère and Parmesan is the same, but the quality of the milk considerably differs. Parmesan is of great size, sometimes reaching 180 lb. and is perhaps, of all cheese imported from abroad, the most useful “all round.” It is the only cheese that can be used grated for soup or macaroni. It is the custom of a good many people to supply grated Parmesan as a dinner cheese, but grated cheese, as compared with whole, suffers a certain deterioration of flavour. However this may be, avoid, if the cheese is served whole, the cutting of either this or Gruyère into thin slices, as the manner of some is. Let the cheese have fair play, and its full flavour, which it will not, unless it be cut, like any other cheese, of a reasonable thickness. Parmesan is of a yellowish-green hue, of firm and hard surface, marked by small holes. The time for ripening it properly is about 3 years. When not wanted for use, it should be kept covered with a cloth slightly steeped in sweet oil. The wholesale price is 1_s._ 5_d._ a lb. Port du Salut.--This cheese is hardly as well-known in England as are the Roquefort and other French cheeses. It is, when fresh, a soft, pasty, mild, most palatable cheese, generally made in round cakes of 5-8 lb. in weight, and stamped with a cross and words showing its place of manufacture. Roquefort, made in the department of Aveyron, in the south of France, is not only the most highly priced and most highly prized of the cheeses of that country, but a most formidable rival to any of the best cheeses made on the continent, and even to our own more celebrated “fancy” cheeses. It has been likened by some to Stilton; but, beyond a certain similarity of surface texture, the two have not much in common. They are, moreover, made of very different matter, Roquefort being composed of sheep and goats’ milk intermixed. Its peculiar excellence is said to be due to the natural qualities of the cellars wherein it is placed for ripening, and partly also from the manner of milking the sheep in making it. It should be kept until considerable progress of decay has been made. It is of very delicate though rather pungent flavour, and, if it lacks something of the softness and mellowness of the Stilton, will be found equally agreeable with it, at least at the dinner table. For luncheon Stilton has the preference. Its wholesale price per lb. is 1_s._ 5_d._ Schabzieger.--This cheese is of spherical shape, of size somewhat larger than a cricket ball, with a dark thick rind. Its colour is yellow, with green veins. It is of a strong odour, and, unlike Gruyère, of an equally strong and rank taste. There is no doubt of its power to fulfil one purpose of cheese, the annihilation of the taste of anything you may have previously eaten, and for this it will be found to do good and useful service. It is a deservedly popular delicacy. The price of each cheese is about 8_d._ See also p. 1002. SUPPLEMENTARY LITERATURE. John Darton: ‘The Dairyman: a Practical Guide to Cow-keeping, and the Making of Butter and Cheese.’ London. 1872. 1_s._ Willis P. Hazard: ‘Butter and Butter-making, with the Best Methods for Producing and Marketing it.’ Philadelphia. 1877. H. M. Jenkins: ‘Hints on Butter-making.’ London. 1886. 6_d._ J. P. Sheldon: ‘Dairy Farming.’ London. 1_l._ 11_s._ 6_d._ Canon Bagot: ‘Easy Lessons in Dairying.’ London, 1883. 6_d._ The _Field._ London. Weekly. 6_d._ _THE CELLAR._ A great mistake is sometimes made in ventilating cellars. The object of ventilation is to keep the cellar cool and dry; but this object often fails of being accomplished by a common mistake, and instead the cellar is made both warm and damp. A cool place should never be ventilated, unless the air admitted is cooler than the air within, or is at least as cool as that, or a very little warmer. The warmer the air, the more moisture it holds in suspension. Necessarily, the cooler the air, the more this moisture is condensed and precipitated. When a cool cellar is aired on a warm day, the entering air being in motion appears cool, but as it fills the cellar the cooler air with which it becomes mixed chills it, the moisture is condensed, and dew is deposited on the cold walls, and may often be seen running down them in streams. Then the cellar is damp, and soon becomes mouldy. To avoid this, the windows should only be opened at night, and late--the last thing before retiring. There is no need to fear that the night air is unhealthful--it is as pure as the air of midday, and is really drier. The cool air enters the apartment during the night, and circulates through it. The windows should be closed before sunrise in the morning, and kept closed and shaded through the day. If the air of the cellar is damp, it may be thoroughly dried by placing in it a peck of fresh lime in an open box. A peck of lime will absorb about 7 lb. or more than 3 qt. of water, and in this way a cellar may soon be dried, even in the hottest weather. [Illustration: 67. Barrel Stand.] _Barrel Stand._--A simple and effective barrel stand may be made in the manner described below. It consists of a stout frame on 4 legs 9-12 in. high, made of quartering which may vary from 2 in. sq. for small casks to 3 in. sq. for larger ones. The proportions given in the annexed illustration (Fig. 67) are suited to a 9 gal. cask. This should be 22 in. long, 15 in. wide, 9 in. high, and made of 2½ in. stuff, of which it will consume about 9½ ft. run. It will be seen that the sides _a_, _b_ are joined to the legs _c_, _d_, _e_, _f_ by mortice and tenon joints, while the ends _g_, _h_ are dovetailed into the sides _a_, _b_. The joints are secured by pins of oak or red deal driven into holes bored by a gimlet. The stand thus made is only adapted to carry casks stood on end. For holding them steadily on their side, and at the same time giving them a tilt forward to allow all the clear contents lying above the sediment to be drawn out without disturbing the barrel, use is made of 2 pieces of board hollowed out to receive the barrel. For the sized cask mentioned (9 gal.), 15 in. will suffice in length and 1 in. in thickness for each piece. Both are prepared for letting down into the frame by cutting out a piece 2½ in. sq. from each of the 2 bottom corners as at _a_, and can then be screwed to the cross piece _b_ of the frame. Previously the cradle is formed by describing on the piece of wood an arc of a circle corresponding to the size of the cask at the point where it is to be supported. Supposing the diameter of the cask to be 15½ in., the radius of the circle to be described will be 7¾ in., as shown. This gives the correct arc, but as the cask will lie sloping and not flat, the foremost edge of the arc must be shaved away till the cask will rest on the entire breadth of the edges of the cradle _c_. For the front cradle the board may be 6½ in. wide, and for the back 8½ in. _Cleaning Casks._--(1) The acid smell very often found in casks may be attributed to absorption in the pores of the wood of acetic and lactic acids--a very small quantity of either of them having power to communicate their principle to any fermenting liquid with which they may be brought in contact, and increasing very fast at the expense of the alcohol in the liquid, while at the same time causing unsoundness to a greater or less extent, according as the temperature of the atmosphere may be high or low. Bearing this in mind, it is of the utmost importance that all free acid which the cask may contain should be carefully neutralised before filling with a liquid so liable to change as fermenting wort. Casks before filling, after being well washed with boiling water, should be allowed to cool, and then examined by some responsible person as to their cleanliness, acidity, and probable mustiness; the cask is well smelt, and usually a light is passed through the tap-hole, so that the examiner may view the interior. Any cask that may smell sour (especially in summer weather, or when required for stock or pale ales) should be rejected, and be well treated with lime. This should be put into the casks _dry_, small lumps of the lime being broken, so that they can be easily inserted in the bung-holes, and when sufficient has been put in (say, about 4 lb. to a barrel), then about 4 gal. of _boiling_ water must be added, the casks bunged up, and kept so for a few hours, occasionally rolling about. The lime should then be well washed out, and the casks steamed, and allowed to cool, when they will be in a fit condition for containing the most delicate liquid without any injury. The hard brown substance, which on being scraped with a nail leaves a white mark, so often found in casks, is a deposit that forms from the constituents of the liquid contained in them, and is often carbonate of lime, or yeast dried, or both. When this is formed, the only effectual method of cleansing is to take out the head, and put it into the cooper’s hands to be well scraped, until every particle of the fur is removed. Cask-washing machines never remove fur or thick dry deposit properly; they are very convenient in a general way for the usual run of casks, but any exceptionally bad must be unheaded, and cleaned by hand. For stock ales it is a good plan to rinse with solution of bisulphite of lime just before filling trade casks. (2) With regard to the coating spoken of in (1), it not only preserves the wood but keeps it clean and sweet, and does no harm at all to the beer. It takes some considerable time before the wood is coated with such a protecting enamel. It occurs alike in rounds, puncheons, and stone squares. Formerly it was customary to have all vessels that were furred over thoroughly dressed by the cooper, but now intelligent coopers advise brewers to keep it on. (3) Blow sulphur fumes into foul casks by fumigating bellows, such as gardeners use when fumigating conservatories. The sulphurous acid formed by burning brimstone is a powerful purifier, and will not leave an unpleasant taste, being easily washed away. (4) Cider casks.--Half fill each cask with boiling water, and add ¼ lb. of pearlash, then bung it up, and turn over occasionally for 2 days, then empty, and wash with boiling water. (5) Scald out with boiling water; if the heads are out, put them over a straw fire for a few minutes, so as to slightly char the inside. If you have a steam boiler, partially fill with water, and admit steam through the bung-hole by a pipe down into the water, and so boil. (6) Vinegar casks.--Old vinegar barrels become impregnated to such an extent with acetous substances that it is next to impossible to render them fit for the storage of any other liquid. Fill the barrels with milk of lime, and let this remain in them for several months, then rinse out well with plenty of warm water, and steam them inside for ½ hour. _Cleaning Bottles._--(1) The commonest plan is by means of water and small shot. But lead shot, where so used, often leaves lead carbonate on the internal surface, and this is apt to be dissolved in the wine and other liquids afterwards introduced, with poisonous results; and particles of the shot are sometimes inadvertently left in the bottle. Fordos states that clippings of iron wire are a better means of rinsing. They are easily had, and the cleaning is rapid and complete. The iron is attacked by the oxygen of the air, but the ferruginous compound does not attach to the side of the bottle, and is easily removed in washing. Besides, a little oxidised iron is not injurious to health. Fordos found that the small traces of iron left had no apparent effect on the colour of red wines; it had on white wines, but very little; but he thinks it might be better to use clippings of tin for the latter. (2) Take a handful of common quicklime, such as bricklayers use, and a handful of common washing soda; boil them in a large kitchen iron saucepan (which will only be cleaned, not damaged, by the process). When cold, the fluid will be lye; put this into the vessel you want to clean with some small pebbles; make it warm if you can, and shake up or let it soak according to the nature of the vessel. (3) Gypsum, free from silicate, marble, or bruised bones, is preferable to shot or sand. Sulphuric acid and bichromate mixed, are best to free porcelain and glass from organic matter. _Drying Bottles._--After washing, bottles and decanters should be thoroughly dried inside. Let them first drain completely, then warm them slightly and blow in fresh air by means of a pair of bellows; this will absorb the moisture and leave the interior quite dry. _Corks and Corking._--Cheap bad corks are always dear; the best corks are soft, velvety, and free from large pores; if squeezed, they become more elastic and fit more closely. If good corks are used, of sufficiently large size to be extracted without the corkscrew, they may be employed many times in succession, especially if they are soaked in boiling water after, which restores them to their original shape, and renews their elasticity. [Illustration: 68. Corking Bottles.] The most common mode of fastening down corks, is with the ginger-beer knot, which is thus made:--First the loop is formed as at _a_ Fig. 68, then that part of the string which passes across the loop is placed on the top of the cork, and the loop itself is passed down around the neck of the bottle, and by pulling the ends of the cord it is made tight beneath the rim; the ends of the string are finally brought up, and tied either in a double knot, or in a bow on the top of the cork. For effervescing drinks, such as champagne, which require to be kept a longer time and are more valuable, a securer knot is desirable, which may be made thus:--A loop as at _b_ is first formed, and the lower end is then turned upwards and carried behind the loop, as shown at _c_; it is then pulled through the loop as at _d_, and in this state is put over the neck of the bottle; the part _a_ being on one side, and the two parts of the loop on the other; on pulling the two ends, the whole becomes tight round the neck, and the ends, which should be quite opposite, are to be brought up over the cork, twice twisted, as at e, and then tied in a single knot. Insects are often troublesome in devouring corks. This evil may be prevented by the following remedies. (1) Smear petroleum over the corks and bottle-necks, (2) Dip the cork and neck into a paste of quicklime which has just been slaked, and let it concrete on the bottle. =Aerated Drinks.=--These may be divided into two classes, alkaline and saccharine. The alkaline, usually called mineral waters, are such as soda, seltzer, potass, &c.; while the saccharine are those which contain a portion of sugar, such as ginger beer, lemonade, and the various drinks made from the syrups. The alkaline mixtures after settling in the tanks, are usually passed through a lawn sieve, and then pumped through the machine, which impregnates them with carbonic acid gas. Saccharine drinks do not undergo this process, but a given quantity is put into each bottle or siphon, and the aerated water is forced into the bottle on it. Either hard or soft water may be used for aerated drinks, so long as it is pure; when any doubt exists, it is always best to have it filtered. When a choice of water can be had, use hard or spring water for saccharine drinks. The following recipes may be varied considerably. Some of the best beverages have been produced by mixing several of the essences together, and altering the colour. In all these drinks it is the essence that is used, as the fresh fruit will not do for bottle goods; while for the fountain drinks, the fresh fruit, being consumed as soon as mixed, forms a creamy beverage much in demand. In all cases, in warm weather, it is advisable to have the factory as cool as possible, and more particularly the water. It is a good system and is employed in many factories, to have the pump of the machine surrounded with ice, the refrigerator being external; any kind of ice may be used. In regard to the machinery, fountains, &c., used in the manufacture and dispensing of aerated beverages the reader is referred to the catalogues of the various manufacturers of the same. Saccharine drinks are never pumped through a machine, but a given quantity of the syrup is put into each bottle by means of a syrup measure-tap, or better still, a syrup pump attached to the filling machine, and the aerated water is bottled on it. Following are the principal saccharine aerated beverages:-- _Champagne Cider._--This is lemonade syrup flavoured with pear essence, and coloured with the sugar colouring. _Gingerade._--(1) Mix 5 oz. essence of cayenne, 5 oz. essence of ginger, and 5 oz. water; (2) dissolve 3 lb. citric acid in ½ gal. hot water; (3) dissolve 4 oz. magnesia and 20 lb. fine loaf sugar in 3¼ gal. pure water. Filter the first compound and add 7 oz., also 14 oz. of the second, to the third; there will be no cloudiness; bottle at a pressure of 70 to 80 lb., using 1 oz. syrup to a bottle. _Ginger Ale._--This is ginger-beer syrup coloured slightly with sugar or saffron colouring. An addition of pineapple will also greatly improve the flavour. Bottle as for lemonade. Add albumen compound, q.s. _Ginger Beer._--This is lemonade syrup flavoured with essence of ginger and capsicine. The soluble essence of ginger is added to the syrup by dropping the quantity required on to pieces of sugar, when the syrup is lukewarm; the palate will be the best guide for quantity, as the essences vary much in strength. The albumen compound is to be added at the same time as the essence; bottle as for lemonade, using ¾ oz. to a bottle. (_a_) A strong ginger beer is made by boiling with every gallon of water, 2 lb. loaf sugar, and 1 oz. bruised ginger, 1 oz. cream of tartar, and one small lemon, sliced. To the cooled mixture some yeast is added, and the whole is set aside for fermentation. When the tumultuous fermentation is over, the liquid is bottled. Ginger beer thus made is, when properly fermented, of considerable alcoholic strength, equal at least to the strongest Scotch ale. (_b_) Keeps for many months. Take white sugar, 20 lb.; lime juice, 18 (fluid) oz.; honey, 1 lb.; bruised ginger, 22 oz.; water, 18 gal. Of course the quantities can be modified. Boil the ginger in 3 gal. water for ½ hour, the sugar, the lime juice, and the honey with the remainder of the water, and strain through a cloth. When cold, add the white of one egg and ½ oz. (fluid) essence of lemon. After standing four days, bottle. (_c_) Boil a sliced lemon with 1 oz. ground ginger in ½ pint water for ½ hour; stand to settle, and pour off clear part into a vessel containing 5 qt. cold water; add 1 lb. lump sugar and 1 oz. cream of tartar; ferment with 2 oz. German or other yeast spread on toast or plain bread; stand to ferment in warm place; cover from dust; bottle soon as fermented; drink in three days. (_d_) White sugar, 1 lb.; cream of tartar and ginger, each 1 oz.; honey, 2 oz.; lemons, 2; water, 2 gal.; tartaric acid, 40 gr.; white of an egg. Bruise the ginger, and let the water boil for 10 minutes; pour it on the cream of tartar, sugar, and lemons. Let it stand till cold, then add white of an egg and a tablespoonful of yeast; let it work 6 hours, then add tartaric acid and bottle directly. (_e_) Put into a 30 gallon brew 2 lb. of good fresh brewer’s yeast, and stir it up well. Now allow it to ferment, taking care that there shall be a gradual rise in temperature during fermentation. Skim the yeast off carefully until the beer is ready for bottling (which will not be under 24 hours), then add your eggs, and bottle quickly. After bottling lay the bottles down, as they will mature better than if standing up. The eggs have no effect on the strength of the beer. The barm should not be skimmed off too often; it is necessary to allow a good head to form before skimming. About three times should be sufficient. 70° F. is too high a temperature to commence a fermentation; better commence at 63° or 64° F. Beat up the eggs with a birch rod, mixing well with 2 or 3 pints of beer; add it to the beer after the fermentation is finished, then well mix the whole together and bottle. If the fermentation has been conducted properly, it will not be necessary to rack into a clean cask before fining and bottling. Use sufficient yeast (2 lb.), avoid skimming too often, and do not have the liquor too hot. _Ginger Champagne._--This refreshing and agreeable beverage is, according to a French recipe, made as follows:--Take 60 gal. water; add 40 lb. ginger cut in small pieces, and gently boil for ½ hour, carefully removing any froth that may arise. Cool the liquor as quickly as possible, and when at a blood-heat (100° F.) add 9 lb. raisins chopped fine, and the juice of 6 doz. oranges and 6 doz. lemons. Allow the liquid to ferment, and after standing a month it may be bottled in the usual manner. If desired, the ginger may be omitted, and the number of oranges increased to 18 doz. _Lemonade._--(_a_) A difference of opinion exists as to whether this syrup is best by simmering over a slow fire, or by merely pouring boiling water on the ingredients; but this is greatly influenced by the quality of the water used. The quantity of sugar and citric acid used to a gallon of syrup is also subject to variation, as some like it more acidulated than others. The usual proportions are 27 lb. loaf sugar and 12 oz. citric acid, previously dissolved, to 3 gal. water. Simmer over a slow fire for 5 minutes; carefully skim it and strain through a felt bag while hot; when cooled down to the warmth of new milk, add about ½ oz. oil of lemon. A slight head is considered an improvement, to produce which add about ½ oz. of the French gum extract to 1 gal. syrup; 1 oz. of syrup is to be put into the bottle, and the aerated water bottled on it at a pressure of 90 to 100 lb. (_b_) Rinse out with boiling water an earthen glazed vessel, to warm it; put into it about 27 lb. loaf sugar and 12 oz. citric acid, previously dissolved in a small quantity of boiling water; stir occasionally, and when properly dissolved, strain it through a felt bag. Drop oil of lemon on some large lumps of sugar till they have taken up ½ oz.; when the mixture has cooled down to the warmth of new milk, drop in the lumps of sugar, and see that they are dissolved before proceeding to use it. Tartaric acid may be used in place of citric acid, but it is not so good. Use 1 oz. to each bottle, and bottle as for (_a_). As lemonade syrup forms the basis for so many of the saccharine drinks, it may be as well to state that some makers prefer to use less water, as well as to vary the proportions of citric acid and sugar; it is also considered an improvement to add a drop or two of otto of roses to each gallon of syrup; this, without adding at all to the quality of the drink, throws off a pleasant aroma on the opening of a bottle. Caramel is used for a strong colour. _Nectar._--This is lemonade syrup, flavoured with the essence of pineapple. _Orange Champagne._--Take 7 gal. water, 20 oz. citric acid, 54 lb. sugar. When cold add to each gallon 3½ oz. orange tincture; colour to fancy (sugar colouring), add ¼ oz. albumen compound at the rate of 1½ oz. to a ½ pint bottle. This is a very delicious drink, and should be put up in champagne bottles; a special corking machine is required, and also a better cork than the one used for lemonade. _Pepper Punch._--Take 1¼ oz. concentrated punch to 1 gal. plain syrup; mix well; add a few drops essence of capsicine. About 1½ oz. of the syrup for each bottle, filling up with aerated water. _Tonic Lemonade._--Lemonade syrup flavoured with quinine, using the same quantity as for tonic water; or to suit the palate. The chief ingredient in all saccharine aerated drinks is the syrup. This is formed by making concentrated solutions of sugar in pure water, or in water containing the principles of various flavouring substances; the former are called simple, and the latter compound syrups. There are many precautions to be taken in order to ensure the production of good syrups, the most important being, perhaps, the selection of the sugar. Cane-sugar only should be used, and that should be perfectly refined. The least shade of colour in the sugar is due to the presence of impurities, and syrup prepared from such sugar not only has an unpleasant flavour, but is also very difficult to keep. The use of common or brown sugar may be regarded, in many cases, as an adulteration. Syrups are very easily prepared. A hemispherical copper basin, not tinned, but well polished, and kept scrupulously clean, is the apparatus employed. This basin stands on three legs, and is furnished with a false bottom, which is also hemispherical. The two hemispheres are surrounded by a copper cylinder, fitted with a lid; the three parts of the apparatus are fixed together by means of two circular iron rings, which are fitted to the circumference of the hemispheres and to the bottom of the cylinder, the whole being well pinned or bolted together. A stop-cock in the outer hemisphere communicates by means of a short pipe with the inner one, and serves to withdraw the contents. Another cock, placed almost at the top, serves for the admission of steam between the two bottoms; and the condensed water is drawn off by means of a third cock communicating only with the outer bottom, and placed at a short distance from the first. The whole apparatus may be of any convenient size. Its chief advantage is that the syrup can be heated to the required degree with the utmost nicety; the steam is admitted until this degree is reached, and the supply may then be stopped in a moment, thus ensuring perfect regularity of working. There are many circumstances which tend to produce changes in syrups when made, and to cause them to degenerate and become worthless; these must be carefully guarded against. The most common is fermentation; this may be either the result of too short or too long-continued boiling; or of the presence of an excess of mucilaginous substances; or an imperfect clarification of the syrup will also produce it in the course of time. But the most frequent cause of fermentation is found in leaving the syrup in a warm place, or in vessels which are not completely filled, and especially if they happen to have been wet when the syrup was introduced. In order to guard against under or over-boiling of simple syrups, it should be laid down as a rule that they stand at 32° B. when boiling, and when cold at 34° B. in winter, and 35° B. in summer. They should then be bottled, and stored in a cool cellar. In the preparation of syrups, which are solutions of sugar, more or less strong according to the object for which they are used, care should be taken to employ only the best refined sugar, and either distilled or filtered rain-water, as they will be rendered much less liable to spontaneous decomposition, and become perfectly transparent without the trouble of clarifying. When, however, impure sugar is employed, clarification is always necessary. This is best done by dissolving the sugar in the water or fruit juices cold, and then beating up a little of the cold syrup with some white of egg and 1 or 2 oz. cold water, until the mixture froths well; this must be added to the syrup in the boiler, and when the whole is frisked up to a good froth, heat should be applied, and the scum which forms removed from time to time with a clean skimmer. As soon as the syrup begins to simmer it must be removed from the fire and allowed to stand until it has cooled a little, when it should again be skimmed, if necessary, and then passed through a clean flannel. By using refined sugar, however, all this trouble of clarification can be avoided. When vegetable infusions or solutions enter into the compositions of syrups, they should be rendered perfectly transparent by filtration or clarification, before being added to the sugar. The proper quantity of sugar for syrups will, in general, be found to be 2 lb. to every pint of water or thin aqueous fluid. These proportions allow for the water that is lost by evaporation during the process, and are those best calculated to produce syrup of proper consistence and possessing good keeping qualities. They closely correspond to those recommended by Guibourt for the production of a perfect syrup, which, he says, consists of 30 parts of sugar to 16 parts of water. In the preparation of syrup it is of great importance to employ as little heat as possible, as a solution of sugar, even when kept at a temperature of boiling water, undergoes slow decomposition. The best plan is to pour the water (cold) over the sugar, and to allow the two to lie together for a few hours in a covered vessel, occasionally stirring, and to apply a gentle heat, preferably that of steam or of a water-bath, to finish the solution. Syrups are sufficiently boiled when some taken up in a spoon pours out like oil, or a drop cooled on the thumb nail gives a proper thread when touched. When a thin skin appears on blowing the syrup, it is judged to be completely saturated. These rude tests, however, often lead to errors, which might be easily prevented by employing the proper proportions, or determining the specific gravity by immersing in the syrup one of Baumé’s saccharometers or syrup gauges, as indicated in the following table:-- Sugar in 100 parts. Sp. Gr. Deg. Baumé. 0 1·000 0 5 1·020 3 10 1·040 6 15 1·062 8 20 1·081 11 25 1·104 13·5 30 1·128 16·3 35 1·152 19 40 1·177 21·6 45 1·204 24·5 50 1·230 27 55 1·257 29·5 60 1·284 32 67 1·321 35 A fluid ounce of saturated syrup weighs 577½ gr.; a gallon weighs 13½ lb.; its specific gravity is 1·319 to 1·321 or 35° Baumé; its boiling point is 221° F., and its density at the temperature of 212° is 1·260 to 1·261, or 30° Baumé. The syrups prepared with the juices of fruits mark about 2° or 3° more on Baumé’s scale than the other syrups. According to Ure, the decimal part of the number denoting the specific gravity of a syrup multiplied by 26 gives very nearly the number of pounds of sugar it contains per gallon. The preservation of syrups, as well as of all saccharine solutions, is best promoted by keeping them in a moderately cool, but not a very cold place. Let syrups be kept in vessels well closed, and in a situation where the temperature never rises above 55° F. They are kept better in small than in large vessels, as the longer the bottle lasts the more frequently will it be opened, and the syrup consequently exposed to the air. By bottling syrups while boiling hot, and immediately corking down and tying the bottles over with a bladder, perfectly air-tight, they may be preserved even at a summer heat for years, without fermenting or losing their transparency. The candying of syrups may be prevented (unless the syrup be over-saturated with sugar) by the addition of acetic or citric acid, 2 or 3 dr. per gallon. Confectioners add a little cream of tartar to prevent granulation. Syrups may be effectually prevented from fermenting by the addition of a little sulphite of potash or lime; also by the use of salicylic acid in small quantities. Fermenting syrups may be immediately restored by exposing the vessel containing them to the temperature of boiling water. The addition of a little spirit is also good, say about 10 per cent. A solution of sugar prepared by dissolving 2 parts of double refined sugar in one of water, and boiling this a little, affords a syrup which neither ferments nor crystallises. The basis of most mineral water syrups is simple syrup, which is prepared by adding 16 lb. of finest white sugar and the whites of 4 eggs to 1 gal. water; stir until all the sugar is dissolved; simmer over a gentle heat for 2 or 3 minutes; skim well and strain through a fine flannel bag. The best way to keep fruit syrups from fermenting is by bottling while hot, into suitable bottles or larger vessels, and to prevent access of air. This is the principle, and it may be carried out in various ways. For instance, fill the syrup while hot in quart bottles, previously warmed, and fill them almost full. Cover or cork the bottles temporarily until the syrup cools a little and contracts in volume; then, having heated a small quantity of the syrup, refill the bottles, cork them securely and wax them. A great variety of syrups are made by the addition of proper flavouring ingredients to simple syrup; but in other cases, especially when the juices of fruits are employed, the syrup is not first prepared and then flavoured, but the processes go hand-in-hand. In such instances specific instructions will be given. It is always advisable, when fresh fruit can be obtained, to use it in preference to the essence. One general recipe, which answers for nearly all fresh fruit, is as follows: Use nothing but the very best fresh fruit, which must be freed from stocks, &c., and crushed with a wooden instrument (not metal); when well mashed, let it stand in a room of even temperature (about 68° F.) for 4 days, which will give sufficient time for fermentation to take place; press out the juice from the fruit and let it settle in a cool cellar for 2 days, after which 5 lb. of the clear juice is to be simmered with 9 lb. loaf sugar; while warm, strain through flannel. The colour may be improved by a solution of some colouring agent. It is advisable to add to the fresh fruit before setting it for fermentation, about 2 lb. powdered loaf sugar for every 100 lb. fruit. When cold, it is ready for bottling. Cleanliness should be strictly observed in all the utensils used. When bottling for storing, skim the top off any floating matter from the syrups in the large pan, and see that no residue at the bottom goes into the bottles. Most of the syrups not made of fruit, may have a little mucilage of gum arabic added, in order to produce a rich froth. The following recipes comprise syrups made from the fruit, and also from essences. These may be varied to suit taste and requirements. A variety of syrups have been brought into use by adding the various wines, such as claret, hock, sherry, &c., to simple syrup; others, by the addition of spirits, as milk punch, by adding to vanilla cream Jamaica rum and nutmeg. Almost any syrup may be made by the addition of a sufficient quantity of flavouring essence to simple syrup; but these artificially prepared syrups are inferior to those made from fresh fruits. _Red Colouring for Soda-Water Syrups._--The most convenient is probably tincture of cudbear, as it affords a good, substantial, and natural-looking colour miscible with syrups without cloudiness. It may be made as follows:--2 to 4 oz. powdered cudbear, 1 pint diluted alcohol. Exhaust by maceration or displacement. Used alone, the tincture gives a shade of red closely imitating the colour of raspberries or currants. For deeper red, like blackberries, the addition of some caramel is all that is necessary. The strawberry colour is best imitated with tincture of cochineal. Aniline red, owing to its cheapness, is often used for colouring syrups, but it produces a glaring, artificial-looking bluish-red, and is liable to the objection that it sometimes contains arsenic. _Ambrosia Syrup._--A mixture of equal parts of vanilla and strawberry syrups. _Apple Syrup._--As for pineapple syrups. _Banana Syrup._--As for pineapple syrups. _Blackberry Syrup._--Prepared from ripe fruit the same as raspberry syrups. Improved by adding 1 oz. best French brandy to each quart. _Capillaire Syrup._--9 lb. loaf sugar, 5 lb. orange-flower water. Boil till the sugar is dissolved and the syrup is clear; while hot, strain through flannel; add to the cool syrup 2 dr. tartaric acid, previously dissolved in 8 oz. strongest orange-flower water; lastly add 4 oz. best Rhine wine. _Cream Syrup._--(_a_) 1 pint condensed milk, 1 pint water, 1¼ lb. sugar. Heat to boiling and strain. This will keep for over a week in a cool place. (_b_) Imitation.--Make an emulsion with 3 oz. fresh oil of sweet almonds, 2 oz. powdered gum arabic, and 2 oz. water; then dissolve 1 lb. white sugar by gentle heat, strain, and when cool, add the whites of two eggs. It should be put up in small bottles, well corked, in a cool place. This is not only an excellent imitation and substitute for cream syrup, but will keep for a considerable time. _Currant Syrup._--(_a_) 6 pints simple syrup, 2 pints water, 2 oz. tartaric acid, 3 dr. fruit essence. Mix; colour with liquid carmine for red currants, and with burnt sugar, for black. (_b_) 1 pint red currant juice, 1 gal. simple syrup. _Ginger Syrup._--(_a_) 6 pints simple syrup, 2 pints water, 1 oz. tartaric acid, 2 oz. ginger. Burnt sugar to colour. (_b_) 4 oz. extract Jamaica ginger, 1 gal. syrup. Shake well. A few drops of tincture curcuma to colour. (_c_) 9 lb. loaf sugar, 5 lb. water, 12 oz. essence of ginger, 4 oz. Rhine wine. Boil sugar and water until dissolved and clear; when cool, add ginger and wine. Mix well and let settle. _Grape Syrup._-½ pint brandy, 1 oz. tincture of lemon, 1 gal. simple syrup, 1 qt. tincture red saunders. _Imperial Syrup._--Equal parts of raspberry and orange syrups. _Lemon Syrup._--(_a_) Grate off the yellow rinds of lemons, and beat it up with a sufficient quantity of granulated sugar; express the lemon juice; add to each pint of juice 1 pint of water, 3½ lb. granulated sugar, including that rubbed up with the rind; warm until the sugar is dissolved and strain. Under no circumstances must the syrup be allowed to boil, and the less heat that can be used to effect the complete solution of the sugar the better will be the syrup. (_b_) Add to 1 gal. simple syrup when cold, 20 drops fresh oil lemon and ½ oz. citric acid, previously dissolved in 3 oz. water; mix by shaking well in a bottle; add 4 oz. gum solution, made by dissolving 2 oz. fine white gum arabic in 2 oz. warm water. (_c_) 6 pints simple syrup, 2 pints distilled water, 2 oz. essence of lemon, 2 oz. citric acid, dissolved in boiling water. Mix, and, if required, colour with saffron. _Maple Syrup._--3½ lb. maple sugar, 1 qt. water. Dissolve, and, if desired, add a small proportion of gum solution to produce a rich froth. _Milk-Punch Syrup._--To 1 pint heavy syrup add ½ pint each brandy and Jamaica rum; flavour with 2 teaspoonfuls of an extract prepared by macerating 2 oz. ground nutmegs in 8 oz. alcohol. The syrup is first to be poured into the glass in the proper quantity, and ordinary cream syrup added before drawing the soda water. _Mulberry Syrup._--Made from the fruit, the same as strawberry, and acidulated slightly with a solution of citric acid. It may also be made from the fruit essence in the same manner as for strawberry, using about half the quantity of tartaric acid. _Nectar Syrup._--(_a_) 1 oz. extract of vanilla, 1 oz. extract of rose, 1 oz. extract of lemon, 1 oz. extract of bitter almonds. Mix and add 1 gal. of simple syrup; colour pink with cochineal. (_b_) Mix 3 parts vanilla syrup with 1 each of pineapple and lemon syrups. _Orange Syrups._--These may be made from the fresh fruit or from the essence in a similar manner as for lemon syrups. Orange syrups may be coloured slightly with tincture of saffron or of turmeric. _Orgeat Syrup._--(_a_) ½ pint cream syrup, ½ pint simple syrup, 1 pint vanilla syrup, 5 drops oil bitter almonds. (_b_) Beat to an emulsion in a mortar 8 oz. blanched sweet almonds and 4 oz. bitter ones, adding a little water; when smooth, add 3 pints water; mix and strain; dissolve in this without heat 6 lb. sifted white sugar, and 4 oz. fresh orange-flower water. (_c_) An excellent imitation of orgeat syrup is made by flavouring cream syrup, made with eggs and milk, with a few drops of oil of bitter almonds. _Pear Syrup._--As for pineapple syrups. _Pineapple Syrup._--(_a_) Take a convenient number of the fruit; pare and mash them in a marble or porcelain mortar, with a small quantity of sugar; express the juice; for each quart of juice take 1½ pint water, and 6 lb. sugar; boil the sugar and water, and add the juice; remove from the fire; skim and strain. (_b_) 6 pints simple syrup, 2 pints distilled water, 1 oz. tartaric acid, 1 dr. essence of pineapple. Saffron to colour. (_c_) Proceed as for raspberry (_d_); but the hard nature of this fruit requires pounding with a heavy chump of wood (not metal) in a tub with a strong bottom; when well mashed, it will require great pressure to extract all the juice from this fruit; a cider press will answer the purpose; add 14 lb. sugar to 1 gal. juice and a little pure acetic acid; put it on a slow fire, and stir until the sugar dissolves; when cold, bottle and tie down. _Raspberry Syrup._--(_a_) Take fresh berries and enclose them in a coarse bag; press out the juice, and to each quart add 6 lb. white sugar and 1 pint water; dissolve, raising it to the boiling point; strain; bottle and cork hot, and keep in a cool place. Raspberry syrup is improved by adding 1 part of currants to 4 parts of raspberries. (_b_) 5 qt. raspberries, 12 lb. white sugar, 1 pint water. Sprinkle some of the sugar over the fruit in layers, allowing the whole to stand for several hours; express the juice and strain, washing out the pulp with the water, add the remainder of the sugar and water; bring the fluid to the boiling point, and then strain. This will keep for a long time. (_c_) 6 pints simple syrup, 2 pints water, 2 oz. tartaric acid, 2 oz. essence of raspberry. Colouring sufficient. Colouring for raspberry, blackberry, &c., syrups may be made by boiling 1 oz. cochineal with half a teaspoonful cream of tartar; filter. (_d_) Take any quantity of fully ripe fruit; free them from stalks; place them in a tub and crush them with a wooden spatula; after they have been mashed, let them remain for 3 or 4 hours, and strain the crushed berries through a strong flannel bag or strainer into a suitable vessel. Dissolve ½ oz. citric acid in 3 oz. water, and add this quantity to each gallon of juice; mix 14 lb. broken sugar to every gallon of juice; put on a slow fire and stir until all the sugar is dissolved (not boil); take off the fire, and when cold, bottle and cork for future use. If too thick when cold, it may be brought to a proper consistency by the addition of water. (_e_) Imitation.--3 oz. bruised orris root, 2 oz. acetic acid, 1 oz. acetic ether, 1 pint alcohol. Cochineal to colour. Mix and allow to stand a few days; filter, and use to flavour simple syrup. _Rose Syrup._--1 gal. simple syrup, 1 oz. essence of rose. Colour pink with prepared cochineal, and acidulate lightly with a solution of citric acid. _Rowan Syrup._--Dry the berries till they are quite shrivelled. Then place them in brandy, and leave them in it for 7-10 days. Strain it off the berries at the end of that time, and mix with an equal quantity of thick very clear syrup made with loaf sugar in a brass boiler. A handful of picked berries is sufficient for 1 pint brandy. This is a very palatable liqueur. _Sarsaparilla Syrup._--(_a_) 1 gal. simple syrup, 2 oz. essence of sarsaparilla. Colour with caramel. (_b_) 1 gal. simple syrup, essence of sarsaparilla, q.s., 1 oz. powdered extract licorice, 15 drops oil of sassafras, 15 drops oil of wintergreen, 10 drops oil of aniseed. Stir the oils with the powdered licorice; add a portion of the syrup; stir smoothly, and mix the whole together by agitation. _Sherbet Syrup._--Mix equal parts of orange, pineapple, and vanilla syrups. _Sherry Cobbler Syrup._--To 1 pint good sherry add an equal measure of heavy simple syrup, and one lemon cut in very thin slices. Allow the syrup to stand a few hours; strain through a sieve, and bottle for use. _Strawberry Syrup._--Proceed as for raspberry syrup (_d_); but the fruits being more stubborn will require a good beating with the spatula to mash them; when they have stood 3 or 4 hours, strain and press the juice out by squeezing the strainer between the hands; add to the juice the same quantity of citric acid; dissolve in each gallon 14 lb. loaf sugar; simply warm the juice sufficiently to dissolve the sugar; take from the fire, and when cold bottle and cork till required. _Vanilla Syrup._--(_a_) 1 gal. simple syrup, 1 oz. extract vanilla, ½ oz. citric acid. Stir the acid with a portion of the syrup; add the extract of vanilla; mix. (_b_) 4 pints simple syrup, 2 oz. extract of vanilla. The essences used by aerated water makers are usually purchased ready made, though in many cases it is found desirable to prepare them at the factory. Below are given a few recipes for those most commonly used:-- For essence of lemons, remove the outer rinds of 40 lemons, without a particle of pulp, and macerate them with 6 qt. perfectly pure alcohol at 85°. After two or three days, distil to dryness in a water-bath; add 2 qt. water and rectify to obtain 5 qt. of the essence. The essences of oranges and cedrats are made in precisely the same way. For essence of strawberries and raspberries, take 56 lb. of the fresh fruit, free from stalks and leaves, and place them in 45 qt. pure alcohol at 80°. Macerate for 24 hours in a vessel closed in a water-bath; add 20 qt. water, and distil to obtain 44 qt., each containing 17½ oz. of essence. =Beer.=--Owing in a great measure to Excise restrictions, very little home-brewed beer is made now in England; but a few notes may be useful. _Half-hogshead of Ale._--Take 5 bush. pale malt, 4 lb. best Worcester hops; put into mash tub 30 gal. hot water (202° F.), 13 gal. cold water (49° F.), mean heat 166° F.; shake the malt in and stir it well about, and let it stand 1½ hour; draw off the wort and mix it with the hops; pour over the grains sufficient hot water at 200° F. to fill your barrel, allowing some for waste in boiling and working. Boil the wort and hops for one hour. Put 1 pint yeast to 3 gal. wort, at 72° F., to begin to work, and add the remainder at 68° F. _Summer Beer._--Over 1 bush. (40 qt.) malt pour enough boiling water to enable you to draw off 100 qt. of wort. Put into the wort ½ lb. hops, and boil it an hour. Having washed your mashing tub well from the grains, pour the wort into it, and, when cooled to the temperature of new milk, add in summer ½ pint of yeast, in winter a little more. Cover the tub with a cloth, and let it work till next day; pour it into your barrel before it begins to sink, and rack it before the barrel is stopped up. It will be fit to drink in a fortnight or three weeks. _Champagne Beer._--According to Teltscher, of Breslau, this beer is prepared in the following manner:--A light, strongly hopped, bottom-fermentation beer is left in cask until fit for consumption, and is then mixed with 2 per cent. of “Krausen-beer” (that is to say, beer in the first stage of active fermentation), and bottled. The bottles are filled up, carefully corked, and racked with the necks downwards, in which position they are left for a fortnight. The mixture develops an amount of carbonic acid not obtainable in other light bottom-fermentation beers strongly hopped. The reversed position of the bottles causes the floating particles of yeast to settle inside the necks, and by drawing the bottles lengthwise through the hands daily, these particles are detached and settle down finally on the cork. When the beer has generated enough carbonic acid gas, as indicated by its paleness, which sometimes occurs as early as the eighth day, the bottles are taken one by one in the left hand, with the neck inclining outwards and downwards, and the cork being removed with the right, the internal pressure is allowed to blow away the sediment from the neck. The bottles are then carefully re-corked. In this way a light bottom-fermentation beer, strong of the hop, and perfectly free from yeast, is obtained, which, owing to the large proportion of carbonic acid it holds, retains its refreshing properties at temperatures as high as 18° C. (64° F.), whereas beers of a _like_ character with little or no carbonic acid become flat at 8° C. (46° F.). That the beer can be drunk without artificial cooling is put forward as another recommendation. _Bottling Beer._--(_a_) The bottles should be clean, sweet, and dry, the corks sound and good, and the beer “fine.” When the bottles are filled, if for home consumption, they should not be corked till the day following, and if for exportation to a hot climate, they must stand 3 days or more (if the liquor is new); it should be well corked and wired, but for family use they may do without wiring, only they should be well packed in sawdust, and stand upright. But if some are wanted ripe, keep a few packed on their sides, so that the liquor may touch the corks, and this will soon ripen, and make it fit for drinking. (_b_) Choose clear weather, and leave the bung out of the cask all night. Fill the bottles, throw sheets of paper over them to keep out the dust, let them stand 24 hours, then cork, wire, and pack away in a cool place. If for immediate use, ripen by adding a piece of sugar to each bottle before corking. _Brightening Cloudy Beer._--Add calcined oyster shells, but after the application of oyster shells the ale requires to be rapidly drunk, as it will not keep good for any length of time. At the time of being brewed, if it is rapidly cooled, it never will become cloudy. All depends upon the time it takes to cool. _Restoring Sour Beer._--When beer has once been sour, i.e. has once been through acetous fermentation, it never again will have its former brilliancy, liveliness, or full flavour; it will always remain acid. Procure a 4½ gal. cask (commonly called a pin), rack the ale into it, and get about 3 oz. of new hops, which put in the pin, bung it down tight, put it in a cellar, where let it remain six months at least; it may then be better. If beer is sour in bottles, put ¼ teaspoonful of soda carbonate and a large teaspoonful of brown sugar into each bottle; then cork well, and tie it down the same as ginger beer, and place the bottles cork downwards for about 3 weeks, where it is not too cold. _Finings._--(_a_) Take 1½ pints water and 2 oz. unslaked lime, mixed well together; let them stand 4 hours, and when the sediment is settled pour it off clear and mix 2 oz. isinglass, cut small, in ½ pint water. When dissolved put it into a barrel of beer. (_b_) Eggs, any quantity; beat them to a froth and expose them to a gentle heat or in the sun to dry; then powder. In some cases a little fine wheat flour is added, the paste made into balls, and dried in the sun or a warm room, and then powdered. (_c_) Isinglass, 1 lb.; water, 8 gal.; vinegar, 4 gal. Mix the vinegar and isinglass, and macerate for 4 days, then add the water. (_d_) Isinglass, 1 lb.; sour beer or cider, 5 gal.; water, 6 gal. Digest the first two until the isinglass is dissolved, then add the water, and strain. _Weevil in Malt._--This can be killed by heat or checked by cold. If the temperature is raised to 167°-190° F., the insects die; if cold air is introduced, they cease to breed. Frequent turning of the malt, careful whitewashing of the walls, and the introduction of cold air (leaving all the windows open for two or three frosty nights) are the best preventives. =Bitters.=--The following are the chief kinds in vogue. _Amazon._--90 gal. plain proof spirit; 3¼ lb. red Peruvian bark; 3¼ lb. calisaya bark; 1⅛ lb. calamus root; 4¾ lb. orange peel; 3½ oz. cinnamon; 3½ oz. cloves; 3½ oz. nutmeg; 2 oz. cassia buds; 6½ lb. red sanders wood. First mash all the ingredients, put them in the spirit, and let them infuse 14 days, stirring the mixture well twice every day. Rack off and colour with 11 pints brandy colouring, to get a dark red tint. Stir ¼ hour. Dissolve 30 lb. white sugar in 30 gal. water; add, and again stir ½ hour. Let the mixture rest 4 or 5 days, and when bright, bottle. If the sanders wood is not used, the colour will be a bright amber. Compounded according to the above directions, will yield 120 gal. 25° below proof. _Angostura._--4 oz. gentian root; 10 oz. each calisaya bark, Canada snake-root, Virginia snake-root, liquorice root, yellow bark, allspice, dandelion root, and Angostura bark; 6 oz. cardamom seeds; 4 oz. each balsam of tolu, orangetis, Turkey rhubarb, and galanga; 1 lb. orange peel; 1 lb. alkanet root; 1½ oz. caraway seed; 1½ oz. cinnamon; ½ oz. cloves; 2 oz. each nutmegs, coriander seed, catechu, and wormwood; 1 oz. mace; 1¼ lb. red sanders wood, and 8 oz. turmeric. Pound these ingredients and steep them for 15 days in 50 gal. proof spirit; before filtering, add 30 lb. honey. _Aromatic._--Macerate 2¾ lb. ground dried small orange apples, ¼ lb. ground dried orange peel, 2 oz. ground dried calamus root, 2 oz. ground dried pimpinella root, 1 oz. ground dried cut hops, for 14 days, with 10 gal. of spirit at 45 per cent.; press, and add 2½ pints brown-sugar syrup. Filter. Colour dark brown. _Boker’s._--1½ oz. quassia; 1½ oz. calamus; 1½ oz. catechu (powdered); 1 oz. cardamom; 2 oz. dried orange peel. Macerate for 10 days in ½ gal. strong whisky, and then filter and add 2 gal. water. Colour with mallow or malva flowers. _Brandy._--Grind to coarse powder 3 lb. gentian root, 2 lb. dry orange peel, 1 lb. cardamom seeds, 2 oz. cinnamon, 2 oz. cochineal. Infuse 10 days in 1 gal. brandy, 8 gal. water, and filter. _Essence._--40 gal. proof spirit, 1 drm. oil of anise, 1 drm. oil of caraway, ½ drm. oil of cloves, 1 drm. oil of lemon, 1 drm. oil of oranges, 1 drm. oil of cinnamon, ½ drm. oil of bitter almonds, 1 gal. sugar syrup. Cut the oils in 95 per cent. alcohol, and mix. Colour with brandy colouring. _French Cognac._--1½ lb. each red Peruvian bark, calisaya bark, bitter orange peel, and sweet orange peel; 2 oz. calamus root; 4 oz. cardamom seeds; 1½ oz. each cinnamon, cloves, and nutmegs; 4 oz. caraway seed; and 3 lb. wild cherry bark. Pound all these ingredients to a coarse powder and steep for 15 days in 45 gal. proof spirit (or 60 gal. spirit 25° below proof), stirring occasionally. Then rack it off, and mix sufficient caramel to make it a dark red; add 15 lb. white sugar dissolved in 15 gal. water; let the whole settle, then filter. If the bitters are required to be of an amber colour, omit the wild cherry bark and the caramel colouring. _Hamburg._--Grind to a coarse powder 2 oz. agaric, 5 oz. cinnamon, 4 oz. cassia buds, ½ oz. grains of Paradise, 3 oz. quassia wood, ¾ oz. cardamom seeds, 3 oz. gentian root, 3 oz. orange apples dried, 1½ oz. orange peel; macerate with 4¼ gal. 95 per cent. alcohol, mixed with 5¾ gal. water; add 2¾ oz. acetic ether. Colour brown. _Nonpareil._--Grind to coarse powder 2 oz. Peruvian bark, ½ oz. sweet orange peel, ½ oz. bitter orange peel, 25 gr. cinnamon, 25 gr. cloves, 25 gr. nutmeg, 15 cayenne seeds. Infuse 10 days in 2 gal. 65 per cent. alcohol, then filter. _Orange._--(1) Macerate 6 lb. orange peel for 24 hours with 1 gal. water, cut the yellow part of the peel from off the white, and chop it fine; macerate with 4¾ gal. 95 per cent. alcohol for 2 weeks, or displace; then add a syrup made of 4¼ gal. water and 16 lb. sugar. Filter through Canton flannel. (2) ½ oz. Seville orange peel, ¼ oz. lemon peel, ¼ oz. gentian root, ¼ oz. ginger, all bruised and put into a jug; pour a pint of boiling water on it, and cover up with a cloth. _Peruvian._--8 oz. red Peruvian bark; 8 oz. orange peel; 1½ drm. each cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg; and 75 cayenne pepper seeds. Infuse them, well bruised, in 8 gal. proof spirit, for 15 to 20 days, stirring every day. Draw off and filter. _Spanish._--Grind to coarse powder 5 oz. polypody, 6 oz. calamus root, 8 oz. orris root, 2½ oz. coriander seed, 1 oz. centaurium, 3 oz. orange peel, 2 oz. German camomile flowers; then macerate with 4¾ gal. 95 per cent. alcohol, and add 5¼ gal. water and 1½ oz. of sugar. Filter, and colour brown. _Stomach._--Grind to a coarse powder ½ lb. cardamom seeds, ⅛ lb. nutmegs, ¼ lb. grains of Paradise, ½ lb. cinnamon, ¼ lb. cloves, ¼ lb. ginger, ¼ lb. galanga, ¼ lb. orange peel, ⅛ lb. lemon peel; then macerate with 4¾ gal. 95 per cent. alcohol, and add a syrup made of 4½ gal. water and 12 lb. sugar; filter. _Stoughton._--(1) To 12 lb. dry orange peel, 3 lb. Virginia snake-root, 1 lb. American saffron, 16 lb. gentian root, add 1 lb. red sanders wood. Grind all the ingredients to a coarse powder, and macerate for 10 days in 20 gal. 65 per cent. alcohol, then filter. (2) 2 lb. ginseng; 2 lb. gentian root; 1½ lb. dry orange peel; ½ lb. Virginia snake-root; 1 oz. quassia; ¼ lb. cloves; 3 oz. red sanders wood; 3 gal. alcohol 95 per cent.; 3 gal. soft water. Grind all the ingredients to coarse powder, infuse 10 days, and filter. _Wild Cherry._--Wild cherry bark, 4 lb.; squaw vine (Partridge berry), 1 lb.; Juniper berries, 8 oz. Pour boiling water over, and let stand for 24 hours; strain, and pour again boiling water on the ingredients; let macerate for 12 hours, then express and filter through paper, so that the whole will make 5 gal., to which add 3½ lb. of sugar; 1½ gal. molasses; 6 oz. tincture of peach kernels; 3 oz. tincture of prickly ash berries; 2 qt. alcohol. =Cordials and Liqueurs.=--These consist mainly of best spirit flavoured with essences and sweetened with white-sugar syrup. _Absinthe._--This liqueur is prepared in various ways. (_a_) The genuine Swiss absinthe is prepared in the following manner: by macerating 4 oz. wormwood herb, 2 oz. star anise-seed, 2 oz. green cherry leaves, 2 oz. sage herb, in 5 gal. proof spirit; and after one week’s maceration add ¼ oz. oil of anise, ½ oz. oil of bergamot, ¼ oz. oil of fennel. (_b_) Another recipe for making the absinthe is, to dissolve the best oil of wormwood, say 2 oz., in 5 gal. pure spirit, and add ½ oz. oil of anise, ¼ oz. oil of calamus, ¼ oz. oil of orange, 1 gal. white syrup, and prepare the colour from neutral extract of indigo, made green with tincture of turmeric. (_c_) 4 lb. tops of _Absinthum majus_, 2 lb. tops of _A. minus_, 15 gr. angelica root, 15 gr. Chinese aniseed, 15 gr. calamus aromaticus, 15 gr. dittany of Crete, 4 gal. brandy 12 u.p.; macerate for 10 days; add 1 gal. water; distil 4 gal. by gentle heat, and dissolve 2 lb. crushed white sugar in the distilled spirit. _Alkermes._--(_a_) 1 lb. bay leaves, 1 lb. mace, 2 oz. nutmegs, 2 oz. cinnamon, 1 oz. cloves, all bruised; 3½ gal. cognac; macerate for 3 weeks, frequently shaking; distil 3 gal., and add 18 lb. clarified spirit of kermes, 1 pint orange-flower water; mix well, bottle. (_b_) 4 gal. British brandy; spice as (_a_), 1 gal. water; macerate as (_a_); distil 4 gal. and add 2 gal. capillaire and ¼ pint sweet spirit of nitre. Cassia often replaces the cinnamon. _Angelica Cordial._--To 1 oz. oil of angelica add ¼ oz. calamus, dissolve them in 1 gal. pure spirit, and add 1 gal. white-sugar syrup. _Angelica Ratafia._--1 dr. angelica seeds, 4 oz. angelica stalks, 1 oz. bruised, blanched bitter almonds, 6 qt. proof spirit or brandy; digest for 10 days, filter, add 1 qt. water, 3½ lb. white sugar; mix well, and in a fortnight decant clear portion through flannel. _Anise Liqueur._--1 lb. essence of anise, ¼ lb. tincture of orris, 20 drops oil of coriander, 2 bar. pure spirits. _Anise-seed Cordial._--Dissolve 3 dr. oil of anise-seed in 2¾ gal. 95 per cent. alcohol; then add 2½ gal. fine white syrup, mixed with 4¾ gal. water. Stir and filter. _Anisette._--(_a_) Dissolve 2 oz. oil of anise and ½ oz. oil of star anise in 10 gal. pure spirit, and add 2 gal. white-sugar syrup to it. (_b_) 2 oz. aniseed (or 1½ dr. essential oil) and 3 lb. sugar per gal. If weaker than 45 u.p. it cannot be made full flavoured without liability to milkiness. (_c_) 4 oz. aniseed, 1 oz. bruised coriander seeds, 1 oz. bruised sweet fennel seeds, ½ gal. rectified spirit, 3 qt. water; macerate for 5 or 6 days; distil 7 pints, and add 2½ lb. lump sugar. (_d_) 15 drops oil of aniseed, 6 drops cassia oil, 6 drops caraway oil; rub with a little sugar, and dissolve in 3 qt. spirit 45 u.p. by well shaking together; filter if necessary, and dissolve 1½ lb. sugar in the clear liquid. (_e_) 1 gal. brandy or proof spirit, ¾ lb. sugar, dissolved in 1 pint aniseed water. (_f_) Put in a barrel 13 gal. 95 per cent. alcohol. Dissolve 3½ oz. essence of green anise-seed in 1 gal. 95 per cent. alcohol, and add ½ gal. orange-flower water, 8 or 10 drops infusion of mace, and 5 drops essence of cinnamon. Then put in the barrel 26 gal. sugar syrup 25° Baumé. Stir and filter. _Apple or Cider Brandy._--1 lb. oil of apple, ½ lb. oil of pear, 1 gal. syrup of gum arabic, 5 bar. good rectified spirit. _Aromatic Wine-bitters._--Macerate 1 lb. orange peel, 2 lb. orange buds, ½ lb. agaric, ½ lb. Peruvian bark, 1 lb. gentian root, 5 gal. Teneriffe wine, 20 gal. spirits of wine. _Blackberry Brandy._--(_a_) 1 lb. essence of blackberry, 1 gal. blackberry juice, 1 gal. syrup of gum arabic, 4 bar. pure spirit. (_b_) To 10 gal. blackberry juice and 25 gal. spirit 40 above proof, add 1 dr. each of oil of cloves and oil of cinnamon dissolved in 95 per cent. alcohol, and 12 lb. white sugar dissolved in 6 gal. water. Dissolve the oils separately in ½ pint 95 per cent. alcohol; mix both together, and use half the quantity; if the cordial is not sufficiently flavoured, use the balance. (_c_) ¼ oz. each of cinnamon, cloves, and mace, 1 dr. cardamom. Grind to a coarse powder; add to 16 lb. blackberries, mashed, and 5 gal. 95 per cent. alcohol. Macerate for two weeks; press; then add 10 lb. sugar, dissolved in 3⅜ gal. water. Filter. _Blackberry Cordial._--(_a_) Crushed blackberries, 1 gal.; sugar, 2 lb.; brandy, 1 gal. Macerate the berries in the brandy for 5 or 6 days; express the liquor; add the sugar and after 2 weeks decant and filter. (_b_) Dried blackberries 16 oz. Or fresh blackberries 4 pints. Powdered blackberry root 12 oz. Powdered mace 1½ oz. Powdered cassia 9 dr. Powdered allspice and cloves, of each 5 dr. Sugar 60 oz. Brandy 2 pints. Port wine 1½ pints. Alcohol 1 pint. Water q.s. Soak the berries, if dry, in q.s. of water, and express, and repeat until 6½ pints of juice are obtained. If the berries are fresh, express the juice, and mix water with residue, to wash out all juice; then add water to make it measure 6½ pints. Mix the spirit with the 6½ pints of juice; moisten the powders with this mixture, and pack in a percolator. Allow it to drain, and pour on water until percolate measures 10 pints; then add the sugar, dissolve and, if necessary, filter. _Brandy Shrub._--1 gal. brandy, 1 pint orange juice, 1 pint lemon juice, peel of 2 oranges and 1 lemon; digest for 24 hours, strain, add 4 lb. white sugar dissolved in 5 pints water; in a fortnight decant the clear liquid. _Cacao._--Infuse 1 lb. Caraccas cacao nuts, cut small, add ½ oz. vanilla in 1 gal. brandy for 8 days; strain, and add 3 qt. thick syrup. _Caraway._--From the essential oil or the seed (1 fl. dr. of the oil = ¼ lb. seed), using 2½ lb. sugar per gal., and adding a little cassia oil and essence of lemon or orange. _Cedrat._--(_a_) 1 pint spirit of citron, 1 qt. spirit of cedrat, 3 qt. proof spirit, 16 lb. white sugar dissolved in 2 gal. pure soft water. (_b_) ¼ oz. cedrat essence, 1 gal. pure proof spirit; dissolve; add 3 pints water; agitate well; distil 3 qt., and add equal measure of clarified syrup. _Celery Cordial._--To 1 lb. essence of celery, add 1 gal. pure spirit and 1 gal. syrup of white sugar. _Chartreuse._--Macerate 64 parts by weight, each, of the fresh herb of sweet balm and hyssop, 32 parts of fresh root of angelica, 16 of cannella, and 4 each of Spanish saffron and mace, in 1000 parts of alcohol, for 8 days. Then distil it on to a certain quantity (which varies according to the colour desired) of fresh balm and hyssop; after a time these are expressed, the liquor sweetened with 125 parts of sugar, and filtered. _Cherry-bounce._--(_a_) This is a very wholesome cordial, and may, with great benefit, be taken by persons affected with cough of long standing, or those suffering with lung complaint. Take 5 gal. cherry juice, 2 gal. syrup of white sugar. And dissolve in 1 gal. pure spirit, ½ oz. oil of bitter almonds, ¼ oz. oil of cloves, ¼ oz. oil of cinnamon. Mix all together. (_b_) To 15 gal. cherry juice, add 15 gal. 80 per cent. spirit; 30 gal. Catalonia or Marseilles wine; 1½ oz. essence of noyeau; 3 oz. mace infused in 1 qt. 95 per cent. alcohol; ½ lb. cinnamon infused in ½ gal. water; ¼ lb. cloves ground and infused in 1 qt. water. Put all the above ingredients in a clean barrel and add 60 gal. sugar syrup 25° B. Stir up the ingredients well, and filter after 4 or 5 days. If the colour is not deep enough, add a little sugar colouring. The above recipe is to make 120 gal., but a much smaller quantity may be made by reducing the quantity of each ingredient and observing the same proportion in all. (_c_) To 12 gal. cherry juice, add 30 gal. 80 per cent. spirit; 30 gal. Catalonia or Marseilles wine; 3 oz. essence of noyeau; ½ lb. cinnamon ground and infused in ½ gal. water; ½ lb. cloves ground and infused in ½ gal. water; 1½ oz. mace infused in 1 pint 95 per cent. alcohol. Mix all the above ingredients in a clean barrel, and add 60 gal. sugar syrup 13° B. Stir up all the ingredients well together, and filter after 4 or 5 days. Make the colour a little darker with sugar colouring, and to give a good shade add a little orchil. _Cherry Brandy._--(_a_) 1 lb. essence of cherry, ¼ lb. essence of pineapple, ¼ oz. oil of cinnamon, ¼ oz. oil of cloves, 4 bar. pure rectified spirits, 2 gal. cherry juice. (_b_) Mash 16 lb. of black cherries with their stones; 5 gal. 95 per cent. alcohol. Macerate for 2 weeks; press; then add 10 lb. sugar, dissolved in 3⅜ gal. water. Filter. _Cherry Cordial._--Good French brandy, 1 qt.; juice of cherries, 1 qt.; best white sugar, finely powdered, 2 lb. Add the sugar to the juice and stir until it is thoroughly dissolved; add the brandy, and filter through blotting-paper. _Cherry Ratafia._--8 lb. Morella cherries with kernels bruised, 1 gal. brandy or proof spirit, 2 lb. sugar; as currant. _Cinnamon._--Usually made from cassia bark or oil (1 oz. oil = 8 lb. bark or buds), with 2 lb. sugar per gal., adding 5 or 6 drops each of essence of lemon and orange peel, with a spoonful of essence of cardamoms per gal. About 1 fl. dr. of the cassia oil suffices for 2½ gal. Colour with burnt sugar. _Cinnamon Brandy._--1 lb. essence of cinnamon, ½ lb. essence of cherry, 1 gal. syrup of gum arabic, 4 bar. pure spirits. _Citron._--From the oil or peel, with 3 lb. sugar per gal. _Citronelle._--(_a_) 2 oz. fresh orange peel, 4 oz. fresh lemon peel, ½ dr. cloves, 1 dr. coriander seed, 1 dr. cinnamon, 4 pints proof spirit; digest for 10 days, add 1 qt. water, and distil to ½ gal.; add 2 lb. white sugar dissolved in 1 qt. water. (_b_) 1 dr. essence of lemon, ½ dr. essence of orange, 10 drops clove oil, 10 drops cassia oil, 20 drops coriander oil, 5 pints spirit 58 o.p.; agitate till dissolved; add 3 pints distilled or soft water; well mix, filter through paper, if necessary; finally add q.s. dissolved sugar. _Clairet._--1 oz. aniseed, 1 oz. fennel seed, 1 oz. coriander seed, 1 oz. caraway seed, 1 oz. dill seed, 1 oz. candy-carrot seed, ½ gal. proof spirit; digest for a week, strain, and add 1 lb. loaf sugar dissolved in water. _Clove._--1 oz. bruised cloves (or 1 fl. dr. essential oil), 3 gal. proof spirit: when distilling, add some salt, and use a quick fire; sweeten with fully 3 lb. sugar per gal.; and colour with poppy flowers or burnt sugar; add 1 dr. bruised pimento or 5 drops of the oil per oz. of cloves. _Clove Brandy._--1 lb. essence of cloves, ½ lb. essence of cherry, ¼ lb. essence of ginger, 1 gal. syrup of gum arabic, 4 bar. pure spirit. _Clove-pink Ratafia._--4 lb. clove pinks without the white buds, 15 gr. cinnamon, 15 gr. cloves, 1 gal. proof spirit; macerate 10 days, express tincture, filter, and add 2½ lb. white sugar. _Cocoa Ratafia._--1 lb. Caraccas cacao, ½ lb. W. Indian, both bruised and roasted; 1 gal. proof spirit; digest 14 days, filter, and add 2½ lb. white sugar, ½ dr. tincture of vanilla; decant in a month, and bottle. _Coffee Ratafia._--1 lb. roasted and ground coffee, 1 gal. brandy or proof spirit, 2 lb. sugar dissolved in 1 qt. water. _Coriander._--As cloves, adding a few sliced oranges. _Cream Ratafia._-¼ pint noyeau cream, ¼ pint sherry, ½ pint capillaire, 1 pint fresh cream; beaten together. _Crême de Macarons._--(_a_) 1 dr. cloves, 1 dr. cinnamon, 1 dr. mace, all bruised, 7 oz. bitter almonds, blanched and beaten to a pulp, 1 gal. spirit 17 u.p.; digest for a week, filter, and add 6 lb. white sugar dissolved in 2 qt. pure water. (_b_) 2 gal. clean spirit 24 u.p., ¾ lb. bitter almonds, 1½ dr. cloves, 1½ dr. cinnamon, 1½ dr. mace, in coarse powders; infuse 10 days, filter, and add 8 lb. white sugar dissolved in 1 gal. pure water; tint with infusion or tincture of litmus and cochineal. The almonds may be reduced to half. _Crême de Naphe._--7 qt. spirit 60 u.p. containing 3½ lb. sugar per gal., 1 qt. orange-flower water. _Crême des Barbades._--As citronelle, adding orange juice and 1 lb. more sugar per gal. _Crême d’Orange._--3 doz. sliced oranges, 2 gal. rectified spirit; digest 14 days; add 28 lb. loaf sugar, previously dissolved in 4½ gal. water; 1½ fl. oz. tincture of saffron, 2 qt. orange-flower water. _Curaçao._--(_a_) This liqueur derives its name from the Curaçao peel, as it is nothing else but a tincture of the Curaçao orange peel, sweetened and flavoured with more essential oils. Macerate 5 lb. green Curaçao orange peel in 6 gal. pure spirits, adding about ¼ lb. red sanders wood for obtaining at the same time the reddish brown colour; after a week’s digestion, strain off, and dissolve ¼ oz. oil of bitter almonds, ¼ oz. oil of cinnamon in the above tincture, and then add 1 gal. white-sugar syrup; when all ingredients are mixed, filter and fill in bottles, and after standing a few weeks it will produce a delightful cordial. (_b_) Spirit 56 u.p., containing 3½ lb. sugar per gal., flavoured with a tincture made by digesting the “oleo-saccharum,” prepared from 9 Seville oranges, 1 dr. cinnamon and ¾ dr. mace in 1 pint rectified spirit; colour by digesting 1 oz. powdered Brazil wood for 10 days, and mellow with burnt sugar. (_c_) 2 lb. Curaçao orange peel, ½ lb. Ceylon cinnamon. Let them soak in water; boil them for 5 minutes with the juice of 32 oranges and 14 gal. white plain syrup; then add 6 gal. 95 per cent. alcohol; strain, filter; colour dark yellow with sugar colouring. (_d_) 2 oz. each essence of bitter oranges and neroli; ¼ oz. essence of cinnamon; 3 dr. mace infused in alcohol. Dissolve the above essences in 1 gal. 95 per cent. alcohol, then put in a clean barrel 13 gal. 85 per cent. alcohol, 26 gal. sugar syrup 30° B., and add 1 gal. perfumed spirit. Colour with saffron or turmeric. _Curaçao Cordial._--Oil of orange, very fresh, 1 dr.; oil of cinnamon, 1 drop; oil of juniper berries, 2 drops; oil of coriander seed, 2 drops; deodorised alcohol, 3 pints; simple syrup, 2 pints; water, sufficient to complete 1 gal. Mix the alcohol with an equal volume of water, and add the mixture slowly to the essential oils previously rubbed in a mortar with carbonate of magnesia or phosphate of lime. Transfer the whole to a bottle, and set it aside with occasional agitation, for 2 or 3 days. Then add the simple syrup, the remainder of the water, and filter through paper. This gives the _white cordial_; for the _red_, infuse in the alcoholic menstruum about 2 dr. of cudbear. _Currant Ratafia._--1 qt. black currant juice, 1 dr. cinnamon, ½ dr. cloves, ½ dr. peach kernels, 1 gal. brandy, 3 lb. white sugar; digest for fortnight, and strain through flannel. _Dorée._-½ oz. cinnamon, ½ oz. bitter orange peel; ½ oz. Peruvian bark, ¼ oz. hay saffron, 3 qt. brandy, 3 qt. Malaga wine; digest for a week, strain, and add 2 lb. lump sugar. _Dry Ratafia._--5 pints gooseberry juice, 1 pint cherry juice, 1 pint strawberry juice, 1 pint raspberry juice, 6 qt. proof spirit, 7 lb. sugar; macerate. _Elixir Vitæ._--Macerate for 10 days, in 5 gal. pure spirits, 1 oz. zedoary root, 1 oz. ginger root, ½ oz. gentian root, ½ oz. agaric, ¼ oz. rhubarb root. Strain off the clear tincture, and add 2½ gal. water and ½ gal. syrup. _Extract Bishop_ or _Glow-wine_.--1 lb. tincture of Curaçao peel, ¼ lb. tincture of orange buds. Dissolve in the same 5 drops of the oil of nutmegs, 10 drops of the oil of cloves, 20 drops of the oil of cinnamon. Mix them together, and add about ½ gal. sugar syrup. _Extract Punch._-½ oz. essence of Jamaica rum, 1 oz. tartaric acid, 1 gal. sugar syrup, 2 gal. pure spirits, 10 drops oil of lemon. Dissolve the oil of lemon and essence of rum in the spirits, and the tartaric acid in a little water, before adding all together. _Four-fruit Ratafia._--30 lb. cherries, 15 lb. gooseberries, 8 lb. raspberries, 7 lb. black currants; express the juice, and add 6 oz. sugar to each pint, with 6 gr. cinnamon, 3 gr. mace, and 3 gr. cloves. _Ginger Brandy._--1 lb. essence of ginger, 20 drops oil of bergamot, ¼ lb. tartaric acid, 1 gal. elderberry juice, 1 gal. syrup of gum arabic, 4 bar. pure spirits. _Ginger Cordial._--To 1 qt. essence of ginger add 1 gal. pure spirit and 1 gal. white-sugar syrup. _Gold Cordial._--1 lb. sliced angelica root, ½ lb. raisins, 2 oz. coriander seeds, 1½ oz. caraway seeds, 1½ oz. cassia, ½ oz. cloves, 4 oz. figs, 4 oz. sliced licorice-root, 3 gal. proof spirit, 1 gal. water; digest 2 days, and distil 3 gal. by gentle heat; add 9 lb. sugar dissolved in 1 qt. rose water and 1 qt. clean soft water; colour by steeping 1¼ oz. hay saffron. _Grenoble Ratafia._--(_a_) 2 lb. small wild black cherries, with kernels bruised, 1 gal. proof spirit, 3 lb. white sugar, a few gr. citron peel; as Juniper. (_b_) 1 qt. cherries with bruised stones, 2 qt. rectified spirit; mix; digest for 48 hours, express the liquor, heat to boiling in a close vessel; when cold add enough sugar or capillaire, with a little noyeau, syrup of bay laurel and galangal, to flavour; decant in 3 months, and bottle. _Hop Cordial._--The following is recommended as a palatable preparation, not inferior to many of the so-called “Hop Bitters.” Hops 2 oz. Dandelion 2 oz. Gentian 2 oz. Camomile 2 oz. Stillingia 2 oz. Orange peel 2 oz. Alcohol, water, of each 77 fl. oz. Syrup, simple 12 fl. oz. Exhaust the solids, with the alcohol and water, and add the syrup. _Huile de Venus._--2½ oz. wild carrot flowers, 3 lb. sugar per gal. spirit; coloured by cochineal powder. _Juniper Ratafia._-¼ lb. juniper berries, each pricked with a fork, 40 gr. caraway seed, 40 gr. coriander seed, 1 gal. finest malt spirit 22 u.p., 2 lb. white sugar; digest a week, strain with expression. _Kirschwasser._--Dissolve 1 oz. oil of bitter almonds in 3 gal. pure spirits, and add 1 gal. white-sugar syrup. _Kümmel._--1 lb. essence of caraway, ¼ oz. oil of anise, ¼ oz. oil of fennel, 20 drops oil of neroli, 1 gal. syrup of gum arabic, 2 bar. pure spirits. _Lemon Cordial._--2 oz. fresh lemon peel, 2 oz. dried lemon peel, 1 oz. fresh orange peel, digested in 1 gal. proof spirit for a week; strain with expression, add enough soft water to reduce to desired strength. _Lime-juice Cordial._--4 oz. glucose, 1 pint syrup, 1 pint lime juice, 36 oz. water; tincture of lemon peel and triple orange-flower water, each sufficient to flavour. _Liquodilla._--3 sliced oranges and 3 sliced lemons, with 2½ lb. sugar per gal. _Lovage._--1 oz. fresh lovage roots per gal., ¼ oz. each fresh roots of celery and fennel; also sometimes a little fresh valerian root and oil of savin before distillation. _Malliorca d’Espagne._--40 gal. 55 per cent. alcohol, 5 oz. essence green anise-seed and 5 oz. essence of star anise dissolved in 95 per cent. alcohol, ½ dr. ether (to give the cordial age). Stir and filter. _Mandarin Delight._--1 gal. spirit 22 u.p., ½ gal. pure soft water, 4½ lb. white sugar, crushed small, ½ oz. Chinese aniseed, ½ oz. ambrette, ¼ oz. safflower; digested together in a stone jar of double the capacity and agitated every day for a fortnight. _Maraschino._--(_a_) This is an Italian cordial, while the curaçao is a favourite in Holland. Maraschino derives its aroma from the oil of bitter almonds, blended with the oils of cinnamon and rosewater, &c. 10 gal. pure spirits, 1 oz. oil of bitter almonds, ½ oz. oil of cinnamon, ¼ oz. oil of cloves, ¼ oz. oil of vanilla, 5 drops oil of rose, 5 drops oil of neroli, 5 drops oil of bergamot. To this solution add 2 gal. white-sugar syrup, ¼ gal. rosewater, and ¼ gal. orange-flower water; mix together, filter, and fill in bottles. (_b_) Dissolve in 1½ gal. 95 per cent. alcohol, 1½ oz. essence of maraschino, 1½ dr. essence of rose, ½ dr. essence of noyeau, 5 drops essence of cloves, and 8 drops essence of cinnamon; add ½ gal. orris root flavouring. Mix the above with 12 gal. 95 per cent. alcohol and 26 gal. syrup of 30° B. Stir thoroughly and filter. (_c_) 4 oz. essence of noyeau; 1 oz. essence of rose; ½ oz. essence of neroli (genuine); 4 dr. of mace, infused in 95 per cent. alcohol; ¼ lb. cinnamon, infused in 1 qt. water; 2 oz. cloves, infused in 1 pint water; 2 lb. orris root (powdered), infused in 2 gal. 95 per cent. alcohol for 15 days. Dissolve the essences in 2 gal. 95 per cent. alcohol. Mix, put into a barrel 41 gal. 85 per cent. alcohol; add the aromas, in 4 gal. 95 per cent. alcohol, sugar syrup, 90 gal. at 32° B. Stir all the ingredients well together for at least ½ hour and let the mixture stand 2 weeks; then filter and put in the filter 2 or 3 sheets of filtering paper. (_d_) 1¼ oz. essence of maraschino, 1½ dr. essence of rose, ½ dr. essence of noyeau, 8 drops essence of cinnamon, 5 drops essence of cloves, ½ lb. orris root (powdered), infused in ½ gal. 95 per cent. alcohol for 15 days. Dissolve the essences in 1 gal. 95 per cent. alcohol. Mix, put in a barrel 12 gal. 80 per cent. alcohol and add 2 gal. 95 per cent. perfumed alcohol (as described above); sugar syrup, 26 gal. at 25° B. Mix and filter. (_e_) 3½ oz. essence of noyeau, 6 dr. essence of rose. Dissolve in ½ gal. 95 per cent. alcohol, and add 4 spoonfuls of magnesia, 1 gal. orange-flower water, ½ lb. cinnamon (bruised) infused in ½ gal. water, ¼ lb. cloves (bruised), infused in ¼ gal. water, 4 dr. mace infused in alcohol, 2 lb. orris root (powdered) infused in 2 gal. 95 per cent. alcohol for 15 days. Mix 41 gal. 80 per cent. alcohol, 90 gal. syrup at 25° B., and add 4 gal. perfumed spirits, as described above. Stir and filter as already directed. _Molucca Balm._-½ oz. cloves, 1 dr. mace, 1 gal. clean spirit 22 u.p.; infuse for a week in a well-closed jar, frequently shaking; colour with burnt sugar; to clear the liquor, add 4½ lb. loaf sugar dissolved in ½ gal. pure water. _Nectar Cordial._--1 oz. oil of bitter almonds, ½ oz. oil of orange, ½ oz. oil of cloves. Dissolve them in 1 gal. pure spirits, and add 1 gal. white-sugar syrup and 2 gal. of Teneriffe wine. _Noyeau._--This cordial is generally drunk by ladies, and requires to be very sweet. Take 1 oz. oil of bitter almonds, ½ oz. oil of orange, ¼ oz. oil of cinnamon. Dissolve in 2 gal. pure spirits, and add 1 gal. syrup of white sugar. _Noyeau Ratafia._--120 peach or apricot kernels, bruised, 2 qt. proof spirit or brandy, 1 lb. white sugar; digest for a week, press, filter. _Orange._--As lemon, using ½ lb. fresh orange peel per gal. _Orange Brandy._--2 oz. oil of orange, 10 drops oil of neroli, 1 lb. essence of orange, 1 gal. syrup of gum arabic, 4 bar. pure spirits. _Orange Elixir._--(_a_) To 5 gal. pure spirits add ½ lb. orange peel, ¼ lb. calamus root, ¼ lb. hops. After macerating for one week, strain, and add 1 gal. sugar syrup, and colour with sugar colouring. (_b_) Dissolve in 3 gal. pure spirits, 1 oz. oil of orange, ¼ oz. oil of calamus, add 1 gal. white-sugar syrup, and colour the whole with sugar colouring. _Orange-flower Ratafia._--2 lb. fresh orange petals, 1 gal. proof spirit, 2½ lb. white sugar; as clove pink; 1 dr. neroli may replace the orange-flower. _Orange Gin._--The rinds of 8 Seville oranges and 8 large lemons, cut very thin, put into 1 gal. gin for 4 days. Then strain off the spirit from the rinds. Have ready 4 lb. loaf sugar boiled in 1 pint water, which must be thrown into the spirit boiling hot and well stirred, to cause it to mix well together. When cool, bottle. _Orgeat._--To milk of blanched sweet almonds, 2 lb., add 2 dr. oil of bitter almonds, 1 dr. oil of orange, 1 gal. white-sugar syrup, ½ gal. spirit. _Parfait Amour._--(_a_) Macerate in 10 gal. pure spirit, 2 oz. orris root, 4 oz. raisins, 2 oz. figs, for one week. Then dissolve ¼ oz. oil of lemon, 1 dr. oil of cinnamon, 1 dr. oil of juniper, 1 dr. oil of calamus, 1 dr. oil of cloves, 1 oz. oil of vanilla. Colour by sugar colouring, and add 4 gal. white-sugar syrup: it is then filtered through a woollen filtering-bag, and filled in bottles. (_b_) 3 lb. sugar per gal., flavoured with yellow rind of 4 lemons, and a teaspoonful of essence of vanilla; coloured with cochineal. _Peach Brandy._--(_a_) 1 lb. essence of peach, 1 gal. syrup of gum arabic, 1 oz. acetic ether, 1 oz. pineapple ether, 4 bar. pure spirits. (_b_) Mash 18 lb. of peaches, with their stones; macerate them for 24 hours with 4¾ gal. of 95 per cent. alcohol and 4 gal. water. Strain, press, and filter; add 5 pints white plain syrup. Colour dark yellow with burnt sugar colouring. (_c_) Take 4½ oz. powdered bitter almonds, 3¼ gal. 95 per cent. alcohol, 5¼ gal. water. Mix together, and macerate for 24 hours; then add a strained syrup, made of 3¾ lb. sugar, 1 pint peach jelly, 2¼ oz. preserved ginger, 1 lemon cut in slices, 1 dr. grated nutmegs, 1 dr. allspice in powder, and 5 pints of water boiled for 2 minutes. Mix the whole, and filter. _Peppermint._--5 oz. peppermint oil, 3 pints rectified spirits of wine, well agitated for some time in a corked bottle holding 4 pints; empty into a 100 gal. cask, pour in 36 gal. white and flavourless proof spirit, and agitate 10 minutes; add solution of 2¾ cwt. best double-refined lump sugar in 35 gal. pure filtered rain-water, and “rummage up” for 15 minutes; add sufficient clear rain-water to make up to 100 gal., containing 5 oz. alum in solution, and again shake for ¼ hour; then bung down and let repose a fortnight before broaching. If at all thick, add 2 oz. salt of tartar dissolved in 1 qt. hot water, and let stand a few days. _Peppermint Brandy._--To 40 gal. proof spirit add 4 oz. essence of peppermint, dissolved in 95 per cent. alcohol. Colour with ½ lb. powder of turmeric infused in 1 gal. spirit 95 per cent. Use this infusion in such quantity as to get the proper shade. _Peppermint Cordial._--To 1 oz. oil of peppermint dissolved in 1 gal. pure spirit, add 1 gal. syrup of white sugar. _Peppermint Liqueur._--1 lb. essence of peppermint, ¼ lb. sulphuric ether, 1 gal. syrup of gum arabic, 2 bar. pure spirit. _Plum or Zwetschen Brandy._--(_a_) This favourite German liquor, also called Sligowitz, is prepared from 1 lb. plum essence, ½ lb. acetic ether, ½ lb. banana, 1 gal. syrup of gum arabic, 4 gal. pure spirits. (_b_) Another mode of preparing the sligowitz or plum brandy is from prunes, which are mashed together with the kernels, and exposed to fermentation, when it is again distilled, and produces a fine spirit. _Provençal Ratafia._--1 lb. striped pinks, 1 qt. brandy or proof spirit, ¾ lb. white sugar, ¾ pint strawberry juice, 20 gr. saffron; as Clove-pink. _Quince Ratafia._--3 qt. quince juice, 3 dr. bitter almonds, 2 dr. cinnamon, 2 dr. coriander seeds, ½ dr. mace, 15 gr. cloves, all bruised; ½ gal. flavourless rectified spirit; digest for a week, filter, add 3½ lb. white sugar. _Railroad Liqueur._--To 5 gal. pure spirits add ¼ oz. oil of peppermint, ¼ oz. oil of absinthe, 10 drops oil of roses. Add to the solution 1 gal. white syrup, and colour the liqueur with blue orchil. _Raspberry Brandy._--1 lb. essence of raspberry, 1 lb. acetic acid, 1 gal. syrup of gum arabic, 1 gal. raspberry juice, 4 bar. pure spirits. _Raspberry Cordial._--Take 5 gal. raspberry juice, 2 gal. white-sugar syrup, and 1 gal. pure spirits. Quince, gooseberry, strawberry, black and red currant, peach, nut, and apple cordials, are all prepared in the same manner from their respective juices. _Red Ratafia._--3 qt. black cherry juice, 1 qt. strawberry juice, 1 qt. raspberry juice, 1 dr. cinnamon, 15 gr. mace, 15 gr. cloves, 2 gal. proof spirit or brandy, 7 lb. white sugar, macerate. _Roman Punch._--This very refreshing beverage is prepared from 1 oz. lemon juice or citric acid, ½ oz. essence of rum, dissolved in 1 gal. pure spirit, adding ½ gal. syrup of sugar. Mix all together, and filter. _Rose Cordial._--To ½ oz. otto of rose add ¼ oz. oil of bitter almonds. Dissolve in 1 gal. highest-proof alcohol, add 1 gal. syrup of white sugar, and colour by cochineal rose colour. _Rum Shrub._--34 gal. proof rum, 2 oz. orange oil, 2 oz. lemon oil, dissolved in 1 qt. rectified spirit, 300 lb. good lump sugar dissolved in 20 gal. water; mix well by “rummaging”; gradually and cautiously add enough Seville orange juice or solution of tartaric acid in water to produce pleasantly perceptible acidity; rummage for 15 minutes; add sufficient water to make up 100 gal.; again rummage for ½ hour; bung loosely, and let remain for about a fortnight, when it should be sufficiently “brilliant” for racking. It is much improved by adding 1 oz. each of bruised bitter almonds, cloves, and cassia, the peel of about 2 doz. oranges, and a “thread” of the essences of ambergris and vanilla. _Sarsaparilla Mead._--(_a_) Sarsaparilla root, contused, 1 lb.; sassafras, 8 oz.; aniseed, 2 oz.; ginger, 2 oz.; cloves, 1 oz. Boil for 15-20 minutes in 8 gal. water; strain and set the liquor aside for several hours to become clear. Then decant, and transfer to a 10 gal. soda-water fountain, adding to it molasses, 3 qt.; honey, 3 pints. Complete with water the 10 gal., and charge with carbonic acid gas. (_b_) Another way is to add to the completed mixture 1 qt. brewer’s yeast, and when the fermentation is about half completed, to bottle the mead in ordinary soda-water bottles. _Shrub._--1 pint Seville orange juice, 3 pints rum or brandy, 2 lb. white sugar. When the sugar is dissolved, strain the mixture through a jelly-bag and bottle it. _Sighs of Love._--(_a_) Proof spirit, flavoured with equal parts otto of roses and capillaire. (_b_) 6 lb. sugar, enough pure water to make 4 gal. syrup; add 1 pint eau-de-rose, 7 pints proof spirit; colour pale pink by powdered cochineal; 1 drop essence of ambergris or vanilla improves it. _Sloe Gin._--(_a_) To 1 gal. gin in a 2 gallon jar put 3 qt. sloes, ½ oz. bitter almonds, 2½ lb. loaf sugar, or the same quantity of sugar candy, if preferred. Let it be well shaken twice a week for 3 months. Then strain and bottle it, and well seal the corks. It will keep for years, and improve whilst in bottle. (_b_) Pick the sloes free of stalks, and let them be quite dry. Fill wine or other bottles, that are wide enough at the mouth to admit the fruit, with them. Next put in as much white pounded sugar as you can, then fill up with gin and cork. Shake well every few days for 14 days. Leave for 6 months, then strain off through a piece of muslin into clean bottles. _Strawberry Cordial._--Take any quantity of thoroughly ripe strawberries, pour over as much proof spirit as will cover them; allow to stand for 24 hours; drain off and replace with the same quantity of fresh proof spirit; allow to stand another 24 hours; now drain off and replace with water; add fine sugar or syrup in the proportion of 3 lb. to every gallon of the mixed liqueur; also, a gill of orange-flower water. Filter and bottle. _Tears of the Widow of Malabar._--As molucca balm, using ½ oz. mixed cloves, 1 dr. shredded mace, and 1 teaspoonful essence of vanilla for flavouring; also ¼ pint orange-flower water. Slightly colour with burnt sugar. _Tent._--1 qt. port wine, 1 qt. plain spirit 22 u.p., 1 pint sherry, 1 pint soft water, ¼ pint orange-flower water, ¼ pint lemon juice, 2 drops essence of ambergris, 2 lb. sugar. _Tolu Ratafia._--1 oz. tolu balsam, 1 qt. rectified spirit, dissolve; add 3 pints water; filter, and further add 1½ lb. white sugar. _Vermouth._--Take of Peruvian bark ½ oz.; lemon peel, angelica root, balm leaves, lesser centaury, of each 3 dr.; juniper berries, coriander seeds, cinnamon, mace, of each 1½ dr.; wormwood, 1 dr.; syrup of bitter orange peel, 4 oz.; spirits of wine, 3 oz.; dry white wine, 3 gal.; macerate for some days and filter. _Violet Ratafia._--3 oz. orris powder, 4 oz. litmus, 2 gal. rectified spirit; digest 10 days, strain, add 12 lb. white sugar dissolved in 1 gal. soft water. _Walnut Ratafia._--60 young walnuts with soft shells, pricked; 2 qt. brandy, 15 gr. mace, 15 gr. cinnamon, 15 gr. cloves; digest for 8 weeks; press, filter, add 1 lb. white sugar; keep for some months. _Wormwood Liqueur._--1 lb. essence of wormwood, 1 oz. oil of tansy, 1 oz. oil of calamus, 2 oz. oil of orris, 1 gal. syrup of gum arabic, 3 bar. pure spirits. =Wine, and Miscellaneous Drinks.=--Fruits intended for making wine must be perfectly ripe and sound, and gathered in dry weather. The most convenient sized cask is 10 gal. All utensils must always be scoured and scalded, and set out of doors to sweeten the day before being used. The tub in which the liquor is put to settle should have a tap within 3 in. of the bottom, so that the wine may be drawn, instead of poured off, without disturbing the lees or sediment; which must not on any account be put into the cask until it has been filtered well. The sieves and flannel strainers should be kept perfectly sweet, and exposed to the fresh air, and nothing of brass or copper used. Never add the yeast for fermentation until the liquor is cool enough to receive it: 85° F. is about the proper temperature. Stir the liquor well occasionally, and cover the vessel close in cold weather. When liquor is working in a cask, it must be kept quite full to allow it to work out, or the wine will not be clear; keep a tile over the bung-hole that the froth may escape, or put the bung on lightly. Fermentation will be accelerated by mixing the yeast with 2 qt. of the liquor in a jar for 10 minutes, and then adding it to the whole quantity. Wines made from raspberries, mulberries, elderberries, blackberries, and all such fruits as produce much sediment, should always be filtered through flannel bags into the cask, as this saves much trouble in fining and racking. Wines never “feed” on the lees, but, on the contrary, fret; and if not made strong, frequently go sour. When the liquor is ready for putting into the cask, draw it off as long only as it runs clear; then filter the lees more than once, if necessary, and fill completely. Put any overplus into bottles, with a small quantity of brandy, as a reserve for filling up in future. When brandy is to be added, take out 3 qt. of the wine, pour in the spirit, and then fill up. Never add water to wines when casked; should there by accident be a deficiency of the liquor, add foreign wine mixed with brandy. Racking off is best performed by drawing the wine off into a clean vessel as long as it runs perfectly clear, then put in a cork, and turn the lees out in a separate tub, and filter it well. Next return all that is bright into the same cask; add what is recommended, and stop it up again securely. This should be done in cool weather, or early in the morning. When bottling take care that your bottles are clean and not specked, or they will leak; fill them so that the wine will just come in contact with the cork when driven home. Use the best corks, and dip each in some of the wine, or in brandy, which is better. Seal the corks of such white wines as require caution when ripe, with green wax to distinguish them, and fasten them with wire. All newly-made wines should be kept in cool, dry, dark cellars. When casks are emptied, stop all the holes to prevent their becoming musty or foul. Bins are formed of brickwork, board, or iron. Place some fine dry sand over the bottom of each bin, and make it quite level. On this lay down 2 or 3 laths, so that the necks of the first layer of bottles may rest on them, and at the same time be quite level. They are usually placed in rows two deep, and in laying them down, be careful the shoulders of one row do not touch those of the opposite one, or they will break from the pressure. Be sure that the bottom rows are perfectly secure, as upon these depends the safety of the whole pile. Upon the first layers of bottles place a lath, to support the necks of those in the second row, the bottoms of which should rest on the laths placed over the necks of the first in the intervals between each bottle neck. Continue in this way until the piles are 3 or 4 ft. high. All the bins that contain wine should be labelled, to specify the kind of wine and the date of their being bottled. To cool wine, swathe the bottle or decanter in a wet bandage, and stand it in the full heat of the sun; when the bandage is nearly dry the wine will be found as cool as if iced. _Apple Wine._--Cut up 1 lb. of apples into quarters, add ½ lb. sugar, and then pour over them ½ gal. boiling water. Let it get cold, and then pulp the apples. Pour the fluid over the pulp, let it stand an hour, and then strain. This forms an agreeable drink, the acid of the apple blending with the sweet of the sugar pleasantly, so as to be grateful to a parched palate. _Apricot Wine._--Boil 10 gal. river water ½ hour, and set it to cool in a clean vessel. Cut 45 lb. ripe apricots into thick slices, and put them, with their juice, into the water, adding 25 lb. best loaf sugar, and stir them well; then cover the vessel closely, and let them steep until the day following. Boil the liquor and fruit together, stir in the whites of 8 eggs well beaten, and take off the scum as it rises. When the liquor is clear, and the fruit is reduced to a pulp, press, and strain it through a fine sieve, into a cooler, add the stones broken, and stir well. Spread good yeast on both sides of a toast, and when the liquor is at its proper warmth, work it well 2 days, and strain it through a jelly-bag into the cask, put on the bung lightly, and let it work over, keeping the cask full, and when it has done fermenting, add to it 2 qt. French brandy, and 2 oz. white sugar-candy. Then put in the bung, and secure it well, keep it 12 months, and then bottle it. It must remain in bottle a year or more, for it is a very rich wine, and will improve greatly by age. _Badminton._--(_a_) 1 bot. vin ordinaire, 2 bot. soda water, 1 small glass pale brandy; add lemon peel, sugar, and ice. (_b_) 1 bot. light claret, 1 or 1½ glass sherry, 1 bot. soda water, crushed sugar to taste. (_c_) Put the parings of half a cucumber in a cup with white sugar; pour on 1 bot. claret, and let stand ½ hour in ice; add 1 bot. soda water. _Balm Wine._--Into 8 gal. water put 20 lb. moist sugar; boil for 2 hours, skimming thoroughly; then pour into a tub to cool; place 2½ lb. balm tops, bruised, into a barrel with a little new yeast; when the liquor is cold, pour it on the balm; stir it well together, and let it stand 24 hours, stirring it frequently; then close it up tightly at first, and more securely after fermentation has quite ceased; when it has stood 2 months, bottle off, putting a lump of sugar into each bottle; cork down well, and keep in bottle at least a year. _Barley Water._--Wash the barley well, add a few strips of lemon-peel, very thin, and pour on the water boiling. The juice of the lemon should be squeezed in fresh just before it is served. Robinson’s patent barley is best (see p. 775). _Beetroot Beer._--Having well cleansed and scraped the roots, removing the discoloured portion near the set of the leaves, cut them into pieces of an inch or so in thickness, fill the copper with them, and then put in as much water as will just cover them. Boil for about 5 hours, place them lightly in a wicker basket or sieve to drain, but do not put any pressure upon them. Then put the liquor back into the boiler, and to every 7 pails liquor put 3 lb. hops; boil together for 2 hours, and then strain through the sieve. When cool work it with yeast, the same as other beer. The scum which rises should be removed before casking. Beetroot may be substituted for malt if deprived of the greater part of its juice by pressure, then dried and treated in the same manner as the grain intended for brewing. The beer made from beetroot has been found perfectly wholesome and palatable, and little inferior to that prepared from malt. _Bilberry Wine._--The fruit should be picked on a very dry day, when it is quite ripe. The leaves and stalks must be carefully removed from the berries and the fruit, then weighed. To 4 gal. fruit allow either 6 gal. cold water or 3 gal. water and 3 of cider, and 10 lb. good moist sugar; let all these ingredients ferment in an open tub until working is over; then add ½ gal. brandy, a handful of lavender and rosemary leaves mixed, 2 oz. powdered ginger, and 2 oz. powdered tartar; let the liquor rest after this addition for 48 hours, then strain very carefully through a hair sieve into a perfectly clean cask, laying the bung lightly on the bung-hole until the working is quite over, and no hissing sound is heard; then close down quite tightly, and bottle off at the end of 3 months; keep 6-8 months in bottle before use. _Birch Wine._--(_a_) Take 11 gal. of the sap of a healthy birch tree, fresh as you can get it, boil it gently as long as any scum rises, which must be carefully taken off to avoid wasting it. Add to the clear liquor 25 lb. best loaf sugar, boil it again 20 minutes with the whites of 10 eggs beaten to a froth, and skim frequently until it is beautifully bright. Set it in a clean vessel to cool, and when at 96° F. put into it a toast well spread on both sides with thick fresh ale yeast, and keep it closely covered up, 6 or 7 days, stirring daily. Rinse a sweet 10 gal. cask with a pint of old raisin wine, filter the liquor into it, add the thin yellow rinds of 2 lemons and 3 Seville oranges, and 3 qt. French brandy, put in the bung, and secure it with paper and sand. Set it in a cool cellar, and bottle it in 2 years; fasten the corks down with wire, and seal with wax. A year later it will be in perfection. (_b_) Boil 9 gal. healthy birch sap with 2 lb. clarified honey ½ hour, skimming it well. Beat 9 whites of eggs up with ½ oz. isinglass, dissolved in a cupful of cold water, and put in 20 lb. loaf sugar broken small. Mix this well with the liquor when cool, and boil it ½ hour longer, skimming and stirring until it is quite clear. Put it into a tub, and when milk warm stir well into it ¼ pint of strong yeast; let it work 3 days in the tub, then put it into your cask, add the rinds of 6 lemons and 2 lb. best raisins, and keep the bung out until the fermentation has ceased. Put to the wine a bottle of old Madeira and 1 qt. the best brandy; stop the cask up safely, and let it stand 6 months. Draw off the wine into a clean vessel as long as it runs clear, then filter the dregs through 3 folds of flannel, and put all back again into the same cask; fasten the bung in well, and put clay over it. In 6 months you may bottle it; seal and wire the corks to prevent accidents, for it is a lively wine, and should be kept in a cool cellar. When it has been bottled 6 months it will be fit for use. _Bishop._--Make several incisions in the rind of a lemon; stick cloves in the holes and roast the lemon at a slow fire. Put small but equal quantities of cinnamon, cloves, mace, and allspice into a saucepan, with ½ pint of water; let it boil until it is reduced one-half. Boil a bottle of port wine; burn a portion of the spirit out of it by applying a lighted paper to the saucepan. Put the roasted lemon and spice into the wine; stir it up well, and let it stand near the fire 10 minutes. Rub a few knobs of sugar to taste on the rind of a lemon, put the sugar into a bowl or jug, with the juice of half a lemon (not roasted), pour the wine into it, grate some nutmeg into it, sweeten it to your taste, and serve it up with the lemon and spice floating in it. Oranges are sometimes introduced instead of lemons. _Blackberry Wine._--Mix 45 qt. ripe blackberries, well picked and pressed, with 10 lb. good honey, and 26 lb. strong, bright, moist sugar; boil it with 12 gal. soft water and the whites of 12 eggs, well beaten, until it is reduced to 10 gal., skimming it until perfectly clear. Strain it into a tub, and let it stand until the next day, then pour it clear off the lees, and boil it again ¾ hour, adding the lees filtered twice, and 2 oz. isinglass dissolved in 1 qt. water. Skim well, and put in 2 oz. Jamaica pepper, cloves, and best ginger, all bruised, and tied loosely in a piece of muslin. Put into your cooler the thin rinds of 6 Seville oranges and 1 pint lemon juice; strain the liquor upon them, stir well, and when cool enough, work it with 1 pint fresh yeast stirred well into 1 gal. of the liquor. Cover it up close, and let it work 5 or 6 days, taking off the top scum and stirring twice daily; then strain, and filter it into the cask, put on the bung lightly, keep the cask well filled up, and when it has ceased fermenting, let a day elapse, and add 2 qt. French brandy, and 1½ oz. isinglass, dissolved in a little water, and mix with 1 gal. of the wine 10 minutes, 1 oz. bitter almonds blanched and slit, and 6 oz. sugar candy broken small. Stop up the bung, paste strong white paper over it, or coarse linen, and place plenty of sand over all, wetted a little. Keep it 2 years in a cool cellar, then bottle it; seal the corks, and keep in bottle 2 years; then use it. If allowed greater age, it will still improve. _Bucellas._--Press the pulp and juice out of 30 lb. Lisbon grapes, add 6 gal. cold soft water that has been well boiled; stir well, and covering the vessel close, let it stand 24 hours; add 30 lb. bright, strong, moist sugar, stir well until it is dissolved, and in 3 days more strain the liquor into your cask upon the thin rinds of 8 lemons and 1 oz. bitter almonds, blanched, and beaten with a spoonful of water in a stone mortar. When you have filled the cask, cover the bung-hole with a tile, and let the liquor work over; when it has ceased fermenting, pour in 3 pints French brandy and 4 oz. sugar candy, and stop it up for a year; then bottle it, seal the corks, and keep it 12 months. _Burgundy Cup._--(_a_) 1 bot. ordinary Burgundy, ½ gill ordinary brandy; 4 fresh black currant leaves or buds, steeped in the brandy 2 hours; sweeten with 1 oz. powdered sugar candy; when all well blended, strain the leaves; add bottle of aerated lemonade, and, just before serving, 1 lb. ice, in small lumps. (_b_) Peel and juice of 2 lemons; 1 qt. seltzer water; 2 bot. Burgundy; sugar to taste; when well iced, draw out the peel and serve. _Buttered Jack._--Take a brass pan, put in ½ lb. lump sugar, 1 glass sherry, and 1 lb. fresh butter to melt; beat up 6 fresh eggs well with a little sherry, and having moderately cooled the pan with 2 bot. light dinner sherry, add the eggs while gently stirring, and place on the hob till quite hot, taking care not to let it boil; sweeten to taste. The pan must not be too hot when pouring in the eggs, or they will curdle. _Cardinal._--The same as Bishop. Substitute claret for port wine. _Chablis Cup._--(_a_) Dissolve 5 lumps sugar in 1 pint boiling water; add a little thin lemon peel; when cool, add wineglass of dry sherry, 1 bot. Chablis, and 1 lb. ice. (_b_) Put 1 bot. Chablis and a liqueur glass of chartreuse, maraschino, or noyeau, into a jug embedded in ice; add a lump of ice; immediately before serving add a bottle of seltzer water. _Champagne Cup._--(_a_) 1 qt. bot. champagne, 2 bot. soda water, 1 liqueur glass of brandy or curaçao, 2 tablespoonfuls powdered sugar, 1 lb. pounded ice, and a sprig of green borage. (_b_) 1 bot. champagne (iced); 1 gill Amontillado; liqueur glass of citronelle or maraschino; juice and paring of a Seville orange or lemon, rubbed on sugar; verbena and cucumber; sugar to taste; 1 bot. seltzer water. (_c_) 1 bot. sparkling champagne (iced), 1 bot. soda water (iced), 2 oz. powdered loaf sugar, sprig of borage and balm, juice and thin peel of one lemon; pour the champagne on the lemon, sugar, and herbs; cover the vessel, which is in ice, till the sugar is dissolved; add the soda water. _Cherry Brandy._--(_a_) Take ripe black geans (Scotch wild cherries); pick off the stalks, and pick over the fruit as for a tart, but do not wash them. Half fill large wide-mouthed bottles with layers of fruit and pounded white sugar, weight for weight; fill up with good French brandy; cork well, and the longer it stands the finer it is. Bruise a few of the fruit, so as to crack the stones. It is useless to attempt to make good liqueurs with anything but French brandy, and that of the best. If you cannot procure black geans, use fine Morella cherries, each of which must be wiped and pricked with a bone stiletto or knitting needle. In this case the cherries are a good dessert dish. (_b_) Get the largest Morella cherries, cut off half the stalk, pricking each cherry with a needle, and putting them into a wide-mouthed bottle. Add ¾ of the weight of the cherries in white candy sugar bruised, between the layers of the cherries, until full; add a gill of noyeau, and then fill up with French brandy; cork tight, and tie a bladder over the bottle. (_c_) Having cut off half the stalks of some Morella cherries, put them very gently in and ¾ fill a wide-mouthed glass bottle that contains 1 qt. Add 4 oz. white sugar candy finely powdered, fill close up with the best brandy, adding one clove, 2 dr. dried Seville orange peel, and 1 dr. cinnamon. The three last ingredients to be taken out in 14 days; then fill up the vacant space with brandy, and cork carefully. _Cider._--Bottling.--Cider or perry, when bottled in hot weather, should be left a day or two uncorked, that it may get flat; but if too flat in the cask, and soon wanted for use, put into each bottle a small lump or two of sugar candy, or four or five raisins. Cider should be well corked and waxed, and the bottles put upright in a cool place. Restoring Flavour.--(_a_) Cider, 1 hhd.; rum, weak flavoured, 2 gal.; alum, dissolved, 1 lb.; honey, or coarse sugar, 15 lb.; bitter almonds, ½ lb.; cloves, ½ lb. Mix, and after a few days fine it down with isinglass. (_b_) To fine and improve the flavour of 1 hhd., take ½ oz. cochineal, 1 lb. alum, and 3 lb. sugar candy; bruise them all well in a mortar, and infuse them in 1 gal. good French brandy for a day or two; then mix the whole with the cider and stop it close for 5 or 6 months. After which, if fine, bottle it off. _Cider Cup._--(_a_) 1 bot. cider, 1 bot. soda water, 2 glasses sherry, powdered sugar, sprig of borage. (_b_) 2 bot. sparkling cider, ½ gill curaçao, ½ gill brown brandy, ¼ lb. sugar; the juice, strained, and the peel of one lemon, rubbed on sugar; slice of cucumber; pour ½ pint boiling water on the sugar; when dissolved and cool, add the brandy, cucumber, liqueur, and juice; in a few minutes add the cider and 1 qt. shaven ice; use immediately. (_c_) Grate into a cup some nutmeg and a little ginger; add a well-browned toast, a glass or two of sherry, sugar to taste; add a bottle of cider, poured on slowly. It may be drunk at once. _Claret Cup._--(_a_) 1 bot. claret, 1 bot. soda water, ½ lb. pounded ice, 4 tablespoonfuls powdered sugar, ¼ teaspoonful grated nutmeg, 1 liqueur glass maraschino, and a sprig of green borage. (_b_) To 1 bot. ordinary claret add 1 bot. soda water, a glass of sherry or curaçao, the peel of a lemon cut very thin, powdered sugar according to taste. Let the whole remain an hour or two before serving, and then add some lumps of clear ice. (_c_) To (_b_) add a few slices of cucumber, or some sprigs of borage instead of the cucumber. (_d_) As (_b_), except the lemon peel, for which substitute, when in season, a pint of ripe raspberries or 4 or 5 peaches or nectarines, cut in slices. (_e_) 2 bot. claret, 1 of sparkling champagne, wine glass of maraschino or citronelle; borage, balm, and sugar to the flavour required; ice well, and before serving add 2 bot. seltzer water. (_f_) 2 bot. claret, 1 pint dry sherry, ½ gill brandy, 1 bot. champagne (iced); ½ gill noyeau; infuse some borage and balm leaves in the sherry; when sufficiently herbed, strain; add this to the claret, sweeten to taste, add the noyeau and spirit, ice up; just before serving, add 2 bot. iced potash water, 1 pint shaven ice, and the champagne; serve immediately. (_g_) Peel one lemon fine, cover with pounded sugar, pour over a glass of sherry; add 1 bot. claret, sprig of verbena, and bottle of iced soda water. _Clary Wine._--Mix 9 gal. cold soft water with 6 lb. honey, 30 lb. best loaf sugar, and the whites of 12 eggs beaten to a froth; boil 1½ hour, skimming and stirring nearly the whole time. Put the liquor into a cooler, and add 14 qt. clary tops in flower; work it at the proper temperature with good fresh ale yeast, keeping it closely covered, and stirred well. Pick, stone, and cut in pieces, 14 lb. good Malaga raisins, pour on them 3 gal. lukewarm water, that has been well boiled; stir well, and let steep 5 days; then press the fruit in a hair bag, strain the liquor, and put it into a sweet 10 gal. cask; strain the liquor from the flowers, add to it the rinds of 10 lemons pared thin, and their juice strained, and put this into the cask, filling up, and keep it open 3 or 4 days, until the fermentation has entirely ceased. Then add 2 qt. French brandy, and stop it up for 3 months, after which rack it off into a clean vessel, filter the lees, and fill the same cask again, adding 6 oz. sugar candy bruised, and 1 oz. isinglass dissolved in 2 qt. of the wine. Stop it up securely, and keep it 18 months in a cool dry cellar; then bottle it, seal the corks, and in a year more it will be fit for use. _Coltsfoot Wine._--Boil 1 gal. water with 2½ lb. moist sugar and the beaten white of an egg, for ¾ hour; pour the boiling liquor on ¼ peck of fresh-gathered coltsfoot flowers and 1 lb. raisins stoned and cut small. Cover the vessel close, and let the ingredients infuse for 3 days, stirring thrice daily; then add a tablespoonful of yeast, keep it well mixed and covered close until it has worked freely; then strain into a cask upon ½ oz. best bruised ginger and the rind of half a Seville orange; let it remain open, covering the bung-hole with a tile until it has ceased fermenting; add a gill of French brandy, stop it up securely, and keep it for 12 months, then bottle it and use it 6 months later. _Corn Beer._--5 gal. water, 2 qt. molasses, 1 qt. sound corn. Put all into a keg and shake well; in a few days fermentation will have been brought on as nicely as with yeast. Keep it bunged tight. It may be flavoured with oil of lemon, &c. The corn will last five or six makings. If it gets too sour, add more molasses and water in the above proportions. This drink is cheap, healthy, and there is no better with yeast. _Cottage Beer._-½ pint good wheat bran, 3 handfuls hops, 2 tablespoons yeast, 10 gal. water, 2 qt. molasses. Boil bran and hops in the water until both sink to the bottom; strain through a hair sieve; when lukewarm put in the molasses and stir till it is melted. Put in a cask; bung up, and it will be ready for use in a few days. _Cowslip Syrup._--Take of fresh cowslip flowers, 12 oz.; boiling water, 1 pint: infuse for 24 hours, strain, and then add ½ lb. white sugar; boil it gently until it attains the consistence of a syrup. The cowslip was at one time very highly celebrated for its narcotic virtues; and cowslip water and infusion of cowslip have been much recommended. The infusion is made in the following manner: ½ oz. dried cowslip flowers, or 1 oz. fresh, must be put to stand in a close vessel with 1½ pints boiling water for ½ hour, when it may be drunk in the same manner as tea. _Cowslip Wine._--(a) To 2 gal. water add 2½ lb. powdered sugar; boil them ½ hour, and take off the scum as it rises; then pour it into a tub to cool with the rinds of 2 lemons; when cold add 4 qt. cowslip flowers to the liquor with the juice of 2 lemons. Let it stand in the tub 2 days, stirring it every 2 or 3 hours, and then put it in the barrel. Let it stand a month; bottle it, and put a lump of sugar into each bottle. It makes the best wine to have only the tops of the peeps. (_b_) To 6 gal. water add 21 lb. lump sugar and the whites of 2 eggs; boil it (taking off the scum as it rises) till it clears itself, which will be in about ½ hour; when nearly cold add 24 qt. cowslips, the rinds of 2 lemons, and a spoonful of brewers’ yeast spread upon toast. Let it ferment for 3 days, stirring it twice or thrice a day, and then put it into a barrel, adding 1 pint of brandy, and cork it tight. When it has done fermenting, which will be in about 3 weeks, put into the cask a syrup made of 6 lemons and 1½ lb. sugar, which has stood till cold. Let it stand 4 months, when you may bottle it for use. Take out the rinds of the lemons before you put it into the cask. _Cream Mead._--A very agreeable drink may be prepared for convalescents as follows:--Dissolve 3 lb. white sugar in ½ gal. boiling water, and while cold add 3 oz. tartaric acid previously dissolved in 1 pint cold water. Now add the whites of 3 eggs well beaten; flavour to taste, and bottle. When it is to be used, stir in a few grains of soda bicarbonate, and a delicious effervescing drink is the result. _Currant Wine._--Gather the currants on a fine day, and, when they are fully ripe, pick them from the stalks, and squeeze out all the juice through a clean muslin bag. To 1 gal. juice put 2 of cold water, and 2 tablespoonfuls yeast. Let it work 2 days, then strain through a hair sieve, and, to 1 gal. liquor, add 3 lb. powdered sugar; stir all well together, put it into a clean cask, and to every gallon add 1 wineglassful brandy. Close the cask, and let it stand 3 months, then bottle. _Damson Wine._--Boil 10½ gal. pure river water with 32 lb. strong moist sugar, and the whites of 10 eggs well beaten, for ½ hour, skimming well; then add 32 qt. ripe prune damsons well picked from the stalks, and stoned, and boil them ½ hour longer, skimming and stirring, until the liquor is beautifully bright. Strain it off the fruit in a fine hair-sieve into your cooler, and when at the proper temperature, work it with fresh yeast, spread on a toast, 3 or 4 days. Then draw it off the sediment, put it into the cask, filter the lees, and fill up, letting it work out at the bung. When it has ceased hissing, put to it 1 qt. French brandy, and stop it up safely, pasting paper over the bung. Let it stand 6 months, then rack it off, filter the lees through flannel twice folded, and filling the cask again, add 1 oz. isinglass, dissolved in 2 qt. of the wine. Secure the bung well, and let it remain 2 years; then draw it off and bottle, sealing the corks. This being a rich wine should not be drunk until it has been bottled 2 years or more. _Dandelion Tea._--Pull up 6 or 8 dandelion roots, according to size, and cut off the leaves; well wash the roots and scrape off a little of the skin. Cut them up into small pieces and pour on 1 pint boiling water. Let them stand all night, then strain through muslin, and the tea is ready for use. It should be quite clear, and the colour of brown sherry. 1 wineglassful should be taken at a time. The decoction will not last good for more than 2-3 days, and therefore it must only be made in small quantities. _Egg Flip._--(_a_) Boil 3 qt. ale with a little nutmeg; beat 6 eggs and mix them with a little cold ale; then pour in some of the hot ale, and return it several times to prevent it curdling; stir it well, and add a piece of butter and a glass of brandy, with sugar, nutmeg, and ginger to taste. A few cloves are an improvement. (_b_) Break 2 fresh eggs into a jug, to which add 4 teaspoonfuls sugar, a little grated nutmeg and ginger. Some put a little allspice. Beat the eggs, sugar, and spices well up with a fork. Place 1 qt. ale on the fire in a pan, and when warm pour a little of the ale into the jug, and again well beat the eggs, &c. Then pour all the ale out of the pan into the jug, and from the jug into the pan, backwards and forwards several times, until the whole is well mixed. Heat the ale again if not hot enough, and sweeten to taste. It is best drunk warm. A little rum may be added for those who like it, and more than 2 eggs put in a quart of ale if desirable--say 3 or 4. Care must be taken not to let the ale boil, or it will be spoiled. (_c_) Beat 2 eggs with a little water and 1½-2 oz. sugar; add a little grated nutmeg or allspice or cloves. Boil 1 pint sound ale, and when boiling pour it on the eggs, stirring the mixture the while; pour it backwards and forwards, and if it does not become thick, put it on the fire, carefully stirring until it does so. (_d_) The yolks of 8 eggs well beaten up, powdered sugar, and a grated nutmeg; extract the juice from the rind of a lemon by rubbing loaf sugar upon it; put the sugar, a piece of cinnamon, and 1 qt. strong beer into a saucepan, take it off the fire when boiling, pour into it 1 glass cold beer, or a glass of gin if agreeable; put it into a jug, and pour it gradually among the yolks of the eggs, &c., stirring all the time; add sugar if required. Pour the mixture as swiftly as possible from one vessel to the other till a white froth is obtained. _Elderberry Wine._--(_a_) Gather your elderberries when quite ripe, bake them in an oven prepared for bread, then strain the juice; for every quart of juice take 1 gal. water, and boil in it ½ lb. moist sugar for 1 hour, skimming it carefully, and adding more water to make up for the evaporation, so as to leave at the end 1 gal. syrup. When cool, add the juice, spread a toast thickly with yeast, put it in, and let it ferment for a week in an open vessel; then pour it into a cask, with 1 lb. raisins, and 1 oz. each sugar and allspice. Let it stand 3 months, strain and bottle, adding ½ pint brandy at the last moment. (_b_) To 3 qt. of berries put 1 gal. water; boil the berries for 15 minutes, then strain; boil not quite 3 lb. of sugar to the gallon for 45 minutes; and then add some ginger and cloves according to taste. _Elder-flower Wine._--To 1 gal. water put 4 lb. white sugar, ½ pint elder flowers _loosely_ packed, and one tablespoonful of yeast. Mix and put all in a barrel, stirring the whole every morning for a week; then stop it up close, and it will be ready to bottle in 6 weeks. _Ginger Beer._--(_a_) 1¼ lb. lump sugar, ¾ oz. ginger well pounded, the peel of 1 lemon cut very thin; put them into a pitcher, then add 11 pints boiling water; stir the whole, then cover it up. When cooled till only milk warm, put 2 spoonfuls of yeast on a piece of toast, hot from the fire; add the juice of the lemon. Let work 12 hours; strain through muslin and bottle. Will be fit to drink in 4 days. (_b_) 2 lb. loaf sugar, 2 oz. bruised ginger, 1 lemon; put all together and pour 2 gal. boiling water on it; let stand one day, then strain, and put 2 spoonfuls of yeast to it; bottle. (_c_) To 10 gal. water put 12 lb. sugar, 6 oz. bruised ginger (unbleached is the best). Boil 1 hour, put into a barrel with 1 oz. hops and 3 or 4 spoonfuls of yeast. Let stand 3 days; then close the barrel, putting in 1 oz. isinglass. In a week it is fit for use. Draw out in a jug and use as beer. (_d_) The rinds of 3 lemons pared very thin, 1½ oz. cream of tartar, ¼ lb. ginger (bruised), 3½ lb. loaf sugar, 2½ gal. boiling water. Let all stand till milk warm; then add a dessertspoonful of yeast. Let remain all night, then strain off, and add ½ pint brandy. Bottle in very clean half-pint glass bottles, and tie down the corks. It will be ready for drinking in a week’s time. Lemon juice may be added, if desired. (_e_) 18 gal. water, 24 lb. sugar, 24 lemons, whites of 18 eggs, 2 lb. ginger, 1 oz. isinglass, 3 tablespoonfuls yeast. Boil the water and sugar, add the whites of eggs; when coming to the boil, add the ginger; boil for ½ hour, then add the lemon peel and juice; boil for 10 minutes, strain into a tub, add the isinglass; when nearly cold, add the yeast; when done fermenting, close up. Let stand for a fortnight, then bottle. (_f_) Put 4 lb. loaf sugar in a crock, also 6 lemons (sliced), 5 oz. cream of tartar, 4 oz. ground ginger, 24 cloves in a small bag; pour on the above 4 gal. boiling water; cover up close. When nearly cold, whisk in the whites of 3 eggs, then add 3 tablespoonful a good yeast on a slice of toast; ferment 24 hours, then strain and skim and bottle off. Lay the bottles on their sides for 24 hours. (_g_) White sugar, 5 lb.; the juice and peel of 3 or 4 lemons; ginger (bruised), 5 oz.; Water, 4½ gal. Boil the ginger in 1 gal. of the water for ½ hour, with the peels of the lemon, then add the sugar, and lemon juice, with the remainder of the water at a boiling heat, and strain through a cloth; when cold, add the quarter of the white of an egg, beaten up with a small quantity of the liquid. Let the whole stand 4 days, and bottle. Will keep good many months. (_h_) Crush 12 oz. best ginger, and put it in a large tub; boil 8 gal. water and pour thereon; add 5 lb. best white sugar, 1 oz. cream of tartar, and 1 oz. tartaric acid; stir the whole up with a stick till the sugar is dissolved; allow it to stand till milk warm, then add 1 gill brewers’ yeast; stir this in, let it stand for 12 hours, or until a scum forms on the top, then drain it off; clear by means of a tap about an inch from the bottom of the tub; whisk the white of an egg to a froth, and mix it with a teaspoonful of the essence of lemon; strain through a flannel cloth; bottle and tie down. (_i_) 5 gal. water, ½ oz. tartaric acid, 4 lemons, sliced thin, 12 oz. ginger, ¾ oz. cream tartar, whites of 2 eggs, ½ oz. compressed yeast, 5 lb. sugar. Proceed as (_h_). (_j_) 8 gal. boiling water, 5 lb. best white sugar, ½ oz. cream tartar, white of egg beaten to a froth, ½ lb. best ginger, 2 oz. tartaric acid, 1 teaspoonful essence lemon, 1 gill brewers’ yeast. Leave to work 24 hours before bottling. _Ginger Brandy._--1 lb. raisins, the rind of one lemon, and ¾ oz. bruised ginger. Steep them in 1 qt. best French brandy, strain, and add 1 lb. powdered loaf sugar. _Ginger Wine._--(_a_) Boil together 3 gal. water and 10 lb. loaf sugar; then turn it out to cool, except 1 qt., in which boil for ½ hour the thin rind of 3 large lemons and 1 Seville orange, with 4 oz. pounded ginger, and 4 oz. raisins; when nearly cold, mix all together, adding the juice of the orange and lemons, 1 oz. isinglass, and 2 tablespoonfuls yeast; put into a cask, and stir daily for 2 days, or till the fermentation ceases; then close, and leave for 6 weeks; rack carefully into a clean cask, and leave for another month; then bottle. If required to be strong, you must add (after the fermentation ceases) 1 bot. brandy. (_b_) 4 gal. water, 7 lb. sugar, boil ½ hour, skimming frequently; when the liquor is cold, squeeze in the juice of 2 lemons; then boil the peels with 2 oz. white ginger in 3 pints water, 1 hour; when cold put all into the cask, with 1 gill finings and 3 lb. Malaga raisins; bung; let it stand 2 months, then bottle. March is considered the proper time to make it, and it would be better if you were to add a little brandy to each bottle. (_c_) To 7 gal. water put 19 lb. sugar, and boil it for ½ hour, removing the scum as it rises; then take a small quantity of the liquor, and add to it 9 oz. best ginger bruised. Put it all together, and when nearly cold, chop 9 lb. raisins very small, and put them into a 9 gal. cask; slice 4 lemons into the cask, after taking out the seeds, and pour the liquor over them, with ½ pint fresh yeast. Leave it unstopped for 3 weeks, keeping it filled up, and in about 6 or 9 weeks it will be fit for bottling. (_d_) To 37 qt. water add 1¼ lb. best white ginger, well bruised, 27 lb. sugar, loaf or moist, and the rinds of 12 lemons thinly pared; boil together 1 hour, taking off the scum as it rises in the copper. Strain off when cool, ferment it with 2 tablespoonfuls of yeast and let remain until next morning, then put it into the cask with the rinds and the juice of the lemons (observe to strain the juice first), the ginger, and 3 lb. good raisins broken open. Stir once a day for 10 days, then add 1 oz. isinglass. Care must be taken not to bung the cask quite close until the fermentation has ceased; bottle in 6 or 8 weeks, and use. The rinds of the lemons are to be boiled, but _not_ the juice: that is to be put into the cask _without_ having been boiled. _Gin Sling._--Take a large tumbler or silver tankard, put into it a liqueur glass of maraschino of noyeau or of plain syrup (made by dissolving in spring water as much pounded loaf sugar as it will possibly take up). Half fill the tankard with little blocks of ice, and put in a thin paring of the outer yellow skin of a lemon. Then add a sufficient quantity of unsweetened gin to suit the taste. Now empty into the tumbler the contents of a bottle of soda water, and stir well up with a tablespoon to amalgamate the whole. A sprig of borage with one blue flower may be added. _Gooseberry Wine._--(_a_) To 1 lb. gooseberries, when picked and bruised, put 1 qt. fresh cold spring water; let stand 3 days, stirring two or three times a day. To 1 gal. juice put 3 lb. loaf sugar in a barrel, and when it has done working, to every 20 qt. of liquor put 1 qt. brandy and a little isinglass. The gooseberries should be picked when they are just changing colour, and may be of any sort or kind. It should stand in the barrel 6 months. Taste frequently, and bottle when the sweetness is sufficiently gone off. (_b_) To 10 gal. cold water take 10 gal. unripe large gooseberries, cut them in halves, and throw them into the water; let them lie 4 or 5 days, frequently stirring; strain off the liquor, and add 30 lb. white sugar; dissolve the sugar, strain the whole into a cask. It will probably remain in a state of fermentation for 2 months; when that has subsided, bottle. _Greengage Wine._--Take 40 qt. ripe greengage plums, stone them, and press the fruit in a tub; pour 10 gal. boiling water on, and let them lie till the following day. Boil them with the liquor and 25 lb. of good loaf sugar, ½ hour, skimming well, then add the whites of 8 eggs well beaten, and boil 20 minutes longer, skimming until the liquor is quite clear. Break the stones, put the shells and kernels into the cooler, strain the liquor through a sieve upon them hot, cover close, and when properly cooled, add a toast well covered with thick fresh yeast, and let it ferment 4 or 5 days, stirring it twice each day. Let it settle, take off the scum, and put the clear liquor into the cask, upon 6 oz. of white sugar candy, the thin rinds of 4 Seville oranges and 4 lemons, and 6 lb. of Smyrna raisins stoned and cut in pieces. Filter the lees and add them to the rest, filling the cask; put paper and a tile over the bung-hole, and let it work out. When fermentation has ceased, add 3 pints of French brandy, and stop it up securely for 12 months; then rack it off, filter the lees, and fill the cask again, adding 1 oz. of best isinglass dissolved, and 4 or 5 oz. of white sugar candy bruised. Secure the bung well. _Hop Beer._--4 lb. sugar, water q.s., 6 oz. hops, 4 oz. ginger, bruised. Boil the hops for 3 hours with 5 qt. water, then strain; add 5 more qt. water and the ginger; boil a little longer, again strain, add the sugar, and when lukewarm add 1 pint yeast. After 24 hours it will be ready for bottling. _Horehound Beer._--To make 6 gal., make an infusion of 1½ oz. quassia with a dozen sprigs of horehound; boil with part of this liquid 24 cayenne pods for 20 minutes, then add 6 fl. oz. lime juice and 1½ oz. licorice (dissolved in cold water); strain the mixture and put with it 6 gal. cold water, with 2 lb. brown sugar, colouring with burnt sugar; allow the whole to work 4 days. Now take 2 qt. of it, warm it rather warmer than new milk, mix with this 8 tablespoonfuls good brewers’ yeast, and stand in a warm place till in a brisk state of fermentation; mix it with the rest of the liquor, and in a few hours it will be all in full work. Give it a stir twice a day for the first two days to promote fermentation; keep it from contact with cold air for the following two days, and skim the top off as it gets yeasty. The beer must be now drawn off as clear as possible into a clean vessel by passing it through a filtering bag. Clean the tub well, and return the liquid to it, and add ½ dr. pure dissolved isinglass; stir the whole well together, and put a cloth over the tub, and also a lid on it, to exclude the air as much as possible; in 30 hours the beer may be bottled off. In summer this will be ripe and fit to drink in 8 days. A superior quality may be made by putting a small piece of sugar into each bottle just before corking. _Imperial Pop._--(_a_) 1 oz. cream of tartar, ¼ lb. lump sugar, the juice and peel of 1 lemon or less, according to taste. Pour over this 4 qt. of boiling water, and drink when cold. (_b_) 1½ gal. boiling water, 1½ lb. best white sugar, 1 oz. best ginger, 1 oz. lemon juice. When cool, strain and ferment with 1 oz. yeast, and bottle. _Lawn Sleeve._--The same as Bishop. Substitute Madeira or sherry for port, with 3 glasses hot calves’-foot jelly. _Lemonade._--(_a_) Can be used in powders, and carried when out shooting, fishing, &c.: soda bicarbonate, 20 gr.; citric or tartaric acid, 15 gr.; sugar to taste--the sugar and soda in one glass, and the acid in another; mix. (_b_) Take lemon juice, sugar, and water only. About 1 lemon to 1 pint water, adding the peel cut very thin, and sugar to the palate. _Lemon Beer._--1 lb. sugar, 1 lemon sliced, 1 teacupful yeast, 1 gal. boiling water, 1 oz. ginger, bruised. Let it stand 12 to 20 hours, after which it may be bottled. _Lemon Shrub._--The juice of 12 lemons, the thin rind of 2, 1 lb. sugar, the whites of 2 eggs well whisked, 1 pint water, ½ pint rum, and ½ pint brandy. Mix and strain. _Lemon Whey._--1 pint boiling milk, ½ pint lemon juice, sugar to taste. Mix and strain. _Linseed Tea._--Take 3 tablespoonfuls linseed, about 1 pint water, and boil for 10 minutes. Strain off the water, put in a jug with 2 lemons, cut in thin slices; put also some brown sugar. A wineglassful of wine is an improvement. This has been found most nourishing for invalids. _Loving Cup._--(_a_) ½ oz. cloves, allspice (whole), and cinnamon; mix them together with 1 pint water; boil till reduced to one-third, then strain it off. Add 2 bot. sherry, 2 Madeira, 1 port, 1 claret, the juice of 6 lemons, 1½ lb. loaf sugar, 2 nutmegs grated finely, 1 qt. water. Flavour with the spices according to taste. This is sufficient for 150 guests. Send round cold. (_b_) Extract the juice from the peel of the lemon by rubbing sugar on it, cut 2 lemons into thin slices; add the rind of 1 lemon cut thin, ¼ lb. loaf sugar, and ½ pint brandy; put the whole into a large jug, mix it well together, and pour 1 qt. cold spring water upon it; grate a nutmeg into it, and add 1 pint Madeira, and 1 bot. cider; sweeten it to taste with capillaire or lump sugar; put (in summer) a handful of balm, and the same quantity of borage, in flower, into it, stalks downward; then put the jug containing the liquor into a tub of ice, and when it has remained there 1 hour it is fit for use. The balm and borage should be fresh gathered. In winter use ale instead of cider, omit ice, and drink warm. _Mangold-wurzel Beer._--Wash the roots, scrape and pare them, cut them up as for sheep, fill the boiler with them and then pour as much water to them as it will hold. Let them boil about 6 hours, and then strain them through a basket, but do not press them. Measure the liquor back again into the boiler and to every 7 pails put 3 lb. hops, 6 lb. coarse brown sugar, and ½ lb. mustard-seed. Boil together for 2 hours, then strain through the brewing-sieve; when cool, work it with yeast the same as other beer. Before putting into the barrel the next day, skim off the dark-looking froth. _Marigold Wine._--Boil 25 lb. good loaf sugar and 4 lb. honey with 10 gal. soft water, and the whites of 8 eggs well beaten, 1 hour, skimming until quite clear; pour hot upon 3 pecks marigold flowers and 4 lb. good raisins, stoned and shredded, covering the vessel close. Next day stir the liquor continually 20 minutes, and let remain covered until the following morning. Then strain, and put into cask upon the rinds of 6 Seville oranges pared very thin, and 8 oz. sugar candy broken small, reserving 2 gal., which must be made nearly boiling hot, and stirred amongst the rest. Then work with 7 or 8 tablespoonfuls good fresh yeast, cover the bung-hole with a tile, and let it work over, filling it up every day as the liquor decreases. When it has ceased fermenting, put in 3 pints French brandy, and 1 oz. dissolved isinglass, and stop it up securely. It will be fine in 9 months, and fit to bottle, but will improve if kept longer. Let it remain in bottles well corked and sealed 12 months. _May Drink._--Put into a large glass mug or china bowl about 2 doz. black-currant leaves, a small handful of woodruff, and a quantity, according to taste, of pounded lump sugar and lemon juice; pour in 2 bot. hock or Moselle, never mind how common. Stir the whole occasionally for ½ hour, and serve. _Mead._--(_a_) Dissolve 1 oz. cream of tartar in 5 gal. boiling water; pour the solution off clear upon 20 lb. fine honey, boil them together and remove the scum as it rises. Towards the end of the boiling add 1 oz. fine hops; about 10 minutes afterwards put the liquor into a tub to cool; when reduced to the temperature of 70° or 80° F. (rather less than the warmth of new milk), according to the season, add a slice of bread toasted and smeared over with a little yeast. The liquor should now stand in a warm room, and be stirred occasionally. As soon as it begins to carry a head, it should be tunned, and the cask filled up, from time to time, from the reserve, till the fermentation has nearly subsided. It should now be bunged down, leaving a small peg-hole; in a few days this also may be closed, and in about 12 months the wine will be fit to bottle. (_b_) 10 gal. water, 2 lemons, cut in slices, 2 gal. honey, a handful dried ginger root. Mix all together, and boil ½ hour, carefully skimming all the time. While boiling add 2 oz. hops. Remove from the fire, and while the liquid is lukewarm add a strong yeast, and put into a cask to work about 3 weeks, when it is fit for use. (_c_) 1 gal. water, 3 lb. strained honey. Boil about ½ hour, adding to it ½ oz. hops; skim carefully, and drain the skimmings through a hair sieve, returning what runs through. Remove from the fire, and when the liquid is lukewarm stir into it ½ pint yeast, which is sufficient for 9 gal. mead. Put into a cask and let it work over, filling it up until fermentation subsides. Put a strong paper over the bung-hole. This mead may be flavoured with spices while boiling, and make a delicious summer drink. _Milk Lemonade._--Loaf sugar 1½ lb., dissolved in 1 qt. boiling water, with ½ pint lemon juice, and 1½ pint milk; this makes a capital summer beverage; ½ pint sherry added is a great improvement. _Milk Punch._--(_a_) Pare the rind off 12 lemons and 2 Seville oranges thinly; put them to steep in 6 pints rum, brandy, or whisky for 24 hours; then add 2 lb. refined sugar, 3 pints water, 2 nutmegs grated, and 1 pint lemon juice; stir it till the sugar is dissolved; then take 3 pints new milk, boiling hot, and pour on the ingredients; let stand 12 hours, closely covered; strain through a jelly-bag till quite clear; bottle. (_b_) Pare 18 lemons very thin, infuse the peel in 1 qt. rum, and keep closely covered. The next day squeeze the juice of the 18 lemons over 4 lb. white sugar, and keep this also closely covered. The third day mix the above ingredients together, and add 3 qt. more rum (or 1 qt. rum and 2 qt. best cognac, which is preferred by some), and 5 qt. water that has been boiled, but is cold when added, also 2 qt. boiling milk; stir the whole mixture for about 10 minutes, cover close, and let it stand for about 3 hours, until quite cold; strain through a flannel bag 2 or 3 times, till quite clear. In bottling, care should be taken that the corks fit tight, and it will keep 3 or 4 years. (_c_) The following is a celebrated Cambridge recipe for milk punch:--Beat up 4 new-laid eggs in the bowl in which you intend sending the punch to table; then add the following ingredients (recollecting always to put in the noyeau first), ½ pint noyeau, of rum, and of brandy, and then ½ pint noyeau, rum, and brandy mixed in equal proportions. Have 2 qt. milk boiling, to which add ½ teacup sugar, and then pour it on to the spirit, putting a little nutmeg grated on the top. _Molasses Beer._--1 lb. brown sugar, 1 oz. bruised ginger, 1 lb. molasses, ½ oz. hops. Boil for a few minutes with 3 qt. water; strain and add 5 qt. water and a spoonful of yeast; let this work all night, and bottle in the morning. _Moselle Cup._--(_a_) To 1 bot. still or sparkling Moselle add 1 bot. soda-water, 1 glass sherry or brandy, 4 or 5 thin slices of pineapple, the peel of half a lemon cut very thin, and powdered sugar according to taste; let the whole stand about 1 hour, and before serving add some lumps of clear ice. (_b_) As (_a_), except the pineapple, for which substitute 1 pint fresh strawberries, or 3 or 4 peaches or nectarines. (_c_) As (_a_), but add, instead of fruit, some sprigs of woodruff. Woodruff is a herb much used on the Rhine for making May drink, its peculiar flavour being most powerful in May; it is to be found in forests in many parts of England also. (_d_) When neither fruit nor woodruff can be obtained, add, instead of sherry or brandy, a glass or two of milk punch or essence of punch, and a little more of the lemon peel. _Mulled Ale._--To 1 qt. strong ale add 1 large wineglass gin or whisky. Pour it into a clean saucepan, and put it on a brisk fire until it creams, adding at the same time brown sugar, grated ginger, and nutmeg to taste; add cold ale until the whole is lukewarm. Serve in a brown earthenware two-handled cup, adding a thick piece of toasted bread. The toasted bread is covered with brown sugar, and eaten with toasted cheese. _Nectar._--Citric acid, 1 dr.; potash bicarbonate, 1 scr.; White sugar, 1 oz. Fill a soda-water bottle nearly full of water; drop in the potash and sugar, and finally the crystals of citric acid. Quickly cork the bottle and shake. The crystals being dissolved, the nectar is fit for use. _Nettle Beer._--1 peck green nettles, 1 handful dandelion, 1 oz. ginger, 1 oz. yeast, 1 handful coltsfoot, 2 lb. brown sugar, 1 oz. cream tartar, 3 gal. boiling water. Infuse the herbs in the boiling water, and when cold strain the liquor. In it dissolve the cream of tartar and the sugar, adding the yeast and bruised ginger. Let the whole work about 12 hours, skim the liquor carefully, and put into champagne bottles. Close tightly with good corks softened in boiling water, and tie the corks down. After a few days the beer is ready for use. _Nettle Wine._--Boil 25 lb. best loaf sugar with 10 gal. river or rain water, and the whites of 8 eggs well beaten, 1 hour, skimming well; pour the hot liquor upon 5 pecks young tops of nettles previously bruised a little, and cover the vessel close with cloths. When at a proper temperature work it with 8 tablespoonfuls of good yeast, stirring well 3 days; then strain the liquor into the cask upon 8 oz. cream of tartar, 4 lb. Malaga raisins stoned, the rinds of 8 lemons pared very thin, and 6 oz. white sugar candy broken; leave out the bung, keeping the cask quite full until fermentation has ceased. Add 3 pints white French brandy, stop up the cask securely, and keep it in a cool cellar 10 months; bottle it, wire and seal the corks, and in 6 months it will be excellent. _Oatmeal Drink._--Mix ½ lb. oatmeal with 5 gal. cold water, boil it for ½ hour, and strain it through a rather coarse gravy strainer; add brown sugar to taste while hot. It is very much improved by the addition of ½ oz. citric acid or 1 oz. tartaric acid. The thinly-cut rind of 2 or 3 lemons or oranges may be boiled in it; or a still cheaper flavouring is to add, before boiling, a bit of cinnamon stick or a few cloves. To be served cold. _Orange Wine._--The oranges must be perfectly ripe. Peel them and cut them in halves, crossways of the cells; squeeze into a tub. The press used must be so close that the seeds cannot pass into the must. Add 2 lb. white sugar to each gallon of sour orange juice, or 1 lb. each gallon of sweet orange juice, and 1 qt. water to each gallon of the mixed sugar and juice. Close fermentation is necessary. The resultant wine is amber-coloured, and tastes like dry hock, with the orange aroma. Vinegar can be made from the refuse, and extract from the peels. _Oxford Grace Cup._--Extract juice from peeling of a lemon, and cut the remainder into thin slices; put it into a jug or bowl, and pour on it 1½ pints strong beer, and a bottle of sherry; grate a nutmeg into it; sweeten it to taste; stir till the sugar is dissolved, and then add 3 or 4 slices bread toasted brown. Let stand 2 hours and strain off. _Oxford Mull._--Boil a small quantity of cinnamon, cloves, and mace in ½ pint water; pour into it a bottle of port wine, and when it is nearly boiling add 2 lemons thinly sliced; sweeten it to taste. _Oxford Punch._--Extract the juice from the rind of 3 lemons by rubbing loaf sugar on them; the peeling of 2 Seville oranges and 2 lemons cut very thin, the juice of 4 Seville oranges and 10 lemons, 6 glasses of calves’-foot jelly in a liquid state: put into a jug and stir well together. Pour 2 qt. boiling water on the mixture, cover the jug closely, and place it near the fire for ¼ hour, then strain the liquid through a sieve into a punch-bowl or jug, sweeten it with a bottle of capillaire, and add ½ pint white wine, 1 pint French brandy, 1 pint Jamaica rum, and 1 bot. orange shrub. The mixture to be stirred as the spirits are poured in. If not sufficiently sweet, add loaf sugar, gradually, in small quantities, or a spoonful of capillaire. To be served hot or cold. _Parsnip Wine._--May be made by infusing 5 or 6 lb. of the chopped stem in 1 gal. hot water till cold; strain, and add to each gallon of the infusion 3 or 4 lb. white sugar, 1 oz. cream of tartar, and about 2 to 5 per cent. brandy. When well made and strong, this wine is of rich and excellent quality, especially after fermentation. _Parting Cup._--Put 2 or 3 slices of very brown toast in a bowl; grate over the same a little nutmeg; then pour in 1 qt. ale (mild preferable), and ⅔ bot. sherry; sweeten with syrup, and (immediately before drinking) add 1 bot. soda water; a little clove or cinnamon may be added, if approved of. _Primrose Wine._--Pick the flowers of fresh-gathered primroses from the stalks, and put 3 pecks of them and 1 peck cowslip pips into a clean vessel; boil 30 lb. good loaf sugar with 2 oz. best ginger bruised, and 10 gal. of river or rain water, ¾ hour, skimming it well; then add the whites of 10 eggs well beaten, boiling and skimming until it is perfectly clear; pour this boiling hot upon the flowers, stir well 10 minutes, and cover the vessel up closely for 3 days, adding 6 lb. Smyrna raisins cut small, and stoned, the juice of 10 lemons, and their rinds pared off very thin; let them infuse, stirring well twice daily, and on the fourth day warm the liquor, and work it at the proper temperature with ½ pint good yeast; when it has fermented 3 days, strain well, and filter into the cask; cover the bung-hole with a tile, keep the cask full, and let it work out; when it has ceased fermenting, pour in 3 pints white French brandy and 1 oz. best isinglass dissolved in 1 qt. of the wine; stop up the cask, put sand on the bung, and keep it in a cool cellar 12 months; bottle it, and in 6 months more it will be ready. _Punch._--(_a_) Take the juice and thin rind of 1 lemon, juice of 2 sweet oranges, taking out the pips; pour on these 3 pints boiling water; add ½ lb. loaf sugar, and when the sugar is dissolved, add ½ pint old Jamaica rum, and ½ pint cognac. Let stand for 6 hours, and bottle. (_b_) Rub ¼ lb. white lump sugar over 1 large lemon until it has absorbed all the yellow part of the skin; then put the sugar into your bowl, add the juice of the same lemon, and mix well together. Pour over them 1 pint boiling water, stirring well together; then add ½ pint rum, ½ pint brandy, and ½ teaspoonful nutmeg; again mix well together, and it is ready to serve. Great care should be taken that the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated. (_c_) ½ pint rum, ½ pint brandy, ½ pint stout (made hot), 1 quartern of cloves, 1 quartern of shrub, 1 lemon sliced, and the juice of one, ¼ lb. loaf sugar, 1 qt. boiling water. (_d_) 1 bot. rum, 1 of sherry, 1 pint brandy, the juice of 3 lemons and 3 Seville oranges, 1½ lb. lump sugar; rub the rinds of the lemon and oranges with some of the sugar; add 1 qt. new milk to these ingredients, not quite boiling. Let stand 24 hours covered close, strain through a jelly bag, and bottle close. It will keep many years. _Raisin Wine._--Pick the raisins from their stalks, and put them into a tub with 1 gal. spring water (which has been boiled and allowed to cool) to every 8 lb. fruit; stir it thoroughly every day, then strain it into a cask, and leave it until the fermentation has ceased; add a bottle of brandy, bung up the barrel tight, and leave it for 12 months. Then strain it again into a clean cask. It may be bottled after standing 2 years. _Rhenish Cup._--(_a_) Take with 1 bot. light hock about 1 doz. sprigs of woodruff, ¼ orange cut in small slices, and about 2 oz. powdered sugar. The herbs are to be removed after having been in the wine ½ hour or longer, according to taste. A bottle of sparkling wine, added to 4 or 5 bot. still hock, is a great improvement. A little ice is recommended. (_b_) Instead of woodruff and orange, take to each bottle of hock about ½ pint highly flavoured strawberries. Sugar as above. The fruit to be taken with the wine after having been in it about 1 hour. (_c_) Take some thin slices of pineapple instead of the strawberries. (_d_) Take to each bottle of hock 2 highly flavoured peaches, peeled and cut in slices. Sugar as above. _Rhubarb Wine._--(_a_) The rhubarb must be quite ripe; to 1 gal. rain-water, boiling, cut 8 lb. rhubarb into thin slices, put into pan or tub, cover close with a thick cloth or blanket, and stir 3 times a day for a week; then strain through a cloth, and add 4 lb. loaf sugar, the juice of 2 lemons and the rind of 1. To fine it, take 1 oz. isinglass and 1 pint of the liquor, and melt it over the fire; be sure you do not add it to the rest of the liquor till quite cold; then cask it. When the fermentation is over, bung it down. Bottle in March, and the following June it will be fit for use. (_b_) To every 5 lb. rhubarb stalks, when sliced and bruised, put 1 gal. cold spring water; let stand 3 days, stir 2 or 3 times every day, then press and strain through a sieve, and to 1 gal. liquor put 30½ lb. loaf sugar, stir it well, and when melted barrel it; when it has done working, bung it up close, first suspending a muslin bag with isinglass from the bung into the barrel (say 2 oz. for 15 gal). In 6 months bottle it and wire the bottles; let them stand up for the first month, then lay 4 or 5 down lengthwise for a week, and if none burst all may be laid down. Should a large quantity be made it must remain longer in cask. (_c_) Take 18 lb. rhubarb, cut it into small pieces, put them with 20 gal. soft water in a copper, and boil till soft; then strain through a sieve, add 5 or 6 handfuls balm, fresh or dried. To 1 gal. liquor put 3 lb. lump sugar and ½ lb. Malaga raisins, chopped; when lukewarm, put it into the barrel, and in 3 weeks stop it down. In 6 months, bottle. It will be fit to use in 3 months, or it will keep 20 years. You may make it pink colour by adding 1 pint damson juice. (_d_) In the absence of a press to extract the juice, the stalks are boiled in a common stove boiler, using 2 qt. water to a boilerful of stalks. The stalks are very juicy, and after boiling require no pressing; they are merely left to drain; to 1 gal. juice add 2 lb. sugar, and place in a barrel to ferment; after fermenting, it should be corked tight. (_e_) Cut up fruit into pieces, 2 in. long; to 1 gal. such add 1 gal. water and 3½ lb. loaf sugar. Fermentation will soon commence; stir up twice daily; when the pulp ceases to rise, wring out 1 qt. at a time in a piece of thin canvas; cork down in stone bottle or cask. Ease the cork for a minute twice daily the first week, as an after fret (fermentation) may occur. Good to drink in about 6 months. To please fancy you may add a little cut up dandelion root (fresh) or a handful of the leaves per gallon: but it must be all put together at commencement. Nearly all other fruits may be treated in the same way. _Sarsaparilla Beer._--Take of compound syrup of sarsaparilla 1 pint; good pale ale 7 pints; use no yeast. _Sham Champagne._--1 oz. tartaric acid, 1 oz. ginger root, 2½ gal. water, 1 good-sized lemon, 1½ lb. white sugar, 1 gill yeast. Slice lemon, bruise ginger, and mix all, except the yeast; boil the water and pour on, letting stand till cooled to blood heat. Add the yeast and stand in the sun one day. Bottle at night, tying the corks. In 2 days it may be used. _Sherry Cobbler._--Procure some clean ice, slice it on an ice plane, or pound it with a hammer, putting the ice into a linen or paper bag; then half fill a tumbler with it, and add 1 or 2 glasses sherry, ½ tablespoonful lemon juice, and 1 spoonful powdered white sugar, more or less according to palate. Imbibe through a straw. _Smoker’s Drink._--(_a_) In a large tumbler put a coffee-cup of hot (very strong) Mocha coffee, pure, a piece of sugar, according to taste (it ought not to be too sweet), a handsome dash of pure cognac; then fill up with pure cold water, and drink after stirring well up. (_b_) Lemon and water, with or without sugar. _Spruce Beer._--(_a_) Take 10 gal. boiling water, 10 lb. sugar, 4 oz. essence of spruce, mix, and when nearly cold add ½ pint yeast. Next day bottle, and tie down as ginger beer. (_b_) 2 oz. hops, 10 gal. water, 2 oz. chip sassafras. Boil ½ hour, strain and add 7 lb. brown sugar. 1 oz. essence of ginger, 1 oz. essence of spruce, ½ oz. ground pimento. Put into a cask, and cool; add 1½ pints of yeast; let stand 24 hours, and bottle. _Still Lemonade._--The juice of 3 lemons, the peel of 1, ¼ lb. lump sugar, and 1 qt. cold water. Mix, digest for 5 hours, and strain. _Sulphuric Orangeade._--3 oz. dilute sulphuric acid, 3 oz. concentrated compound infusion of orange peel, 12 oz. simple syrup, and 4 gal. boiled filtered water. A wineglassful of this mixture is taken as a draught in as much boiled and filtered water as may be agreeable. _Summer Drinks._--(_a_) Cold tea flavoured with sliced lemon and dashed with cognac. The tea should be properly made--not allowed to stand until it becomes rank, but boiling water should be poured on the leaves, allowed to stand 5 minutes, then poured into a jug with slices of lemon at the bottom. A wineglass of good brandy added when cool. (_b_) Mix together 2 qt. best bottled cider--old, if possible--sweeten to taste, taking care that the sugar is perfectly melted. Add ½ nutmeg grated, a little powdered ginger, a glass of brandy, a glass of noyeau; cut a lemon into it in moderately thin slices, and let them remain there. Make it 2 hours before wanted, and stand in some ice. (_c_) Sherry, 6 tablespoonfuls; brandy, 2 tablespoonfuls; sugar, 1½ oz.; 2 or 3 shreds of fresh lemon peel, cut very thin. This is the stock. It will be found convenient, when a quantity is required, to make a syrup of the sugar (1 oz. water to 2 oz. sugar), and to prepare the stock beforehand. The above quantity of stock should be added to 1 bot. claret and 1 bot. soda water. These should be kept in a cool place--a refrigerator, for instance--and only opened just before drinking. A lump of ice and a little borage are improvements; 2 bot. soda water instead of one can be used in summer. (_d_) To 1½ pint good ale allow 1 bot. ginger beer. For this beverage the ginger beer must be in an effervescing state, and the beer not in the least turned or sour. Mix them together, and drink immediately. (_e_) Get 3 pints water, 3 oz. tartaric acid, 3½ lb. lump sugar; mix and put to the fire to warm, not quite boil. While the above is getting hot, get the whites of 3 eggs and 4 teaspoonfuls wheaten flour, which well beat together, then mix by well stirring it with the water, acid, and sugar, then boil the whole 3 minutes. When cold, flavour with essence of lemon; bottle off. For use put a medium-sized spoonful of the liquor into a tumbler, fill up with water, and add a little soda carbonate; stir up and drink. A small quantity of brandy or sherry with the soda is a great improvement. (_f_) Milk and whisky; quantity according to taste; the less spirit the better. (_g_) Melt or dissolve by a gentle heat 1 oz. black currant jelly in ½ pint syrup; when cold add the same quantity of rum. In summer the above is best; for the winter months, do as follows: Pick fine dry black currants, put them into a stone jar, and then the jar into a saucepan of boiling water till the juice is extracted; strain, and to every pint add ½ lb. loaf sugar; give one boil and skim well; when cold add the same quantity of rum (or gin, if you prefer it), shake well, and bottle. (_h_) 8 or 10 drops sulphuric acid added to a glass of water make a very wholesome subacid refreshing drink, having tonic properties, and well adapted to check the tendency to diarrhœa that exists during sultry weather. (_i_) Mix 1 oz. essence of ginger and 1 oz. essence of cloves; put 20-30 drops into a tumbler of water. This renders even tepid water good. _Syllabubs._--(_a_) Put 1 pint beer and 1 pint cider into a punchbowl, grate in a small nutmeg, and sweeten it to your taste. Put the bowl under a cow and milk in about 3 pints milk; wash and pick some currants, make them plump before the fire, and strew them over the syllabub. (_b_) Take 1 qt. cream, 3 gills white wine, the juice of 1 lemon and of 2 Seville oranges, add sugar to taste, beat it well, and fill up your glasses as the froth, rises. (_c_) Take ¼ lb. loaf sugar in one piece, and rub on it 2 lemons till you have got all the essence out of the rinds, then pour over the sugar 1 gill white wine, and when it is dissolved add the juice of the lemons and 1 pint cream, whip it well, or mill it with a chocolate mill. (_d_) Take ½ pint cream, ½ pint white wine, and the juice of a lemon, sweeten it to your taste with white sugar, put in a piece of the paring of the lemon and some powdered cinnamon, beat it well, and as it rises take up the froth with a spoon and lay it on a sieve to drain; fill your glasses half full with wine, sweeten it, and fill up with the whisked cream. (_e_) Put into a china bowl 1 pint port wine and 1 pint sherry, sugar to taste, milk the bowl nearly full, cover it with clotted cream, grate nutmeg over it. _Toast and Water._--(_a_) Hold a small piece of bread before the fire until it is the colour of mahogany, but do not let it burn. Put it in a jug and pour boiling water upon it, cover it down close until cold. (_b_) The bread should be very slowly and thoroughly toasted, great care being taken to prevent its burning in the slightest degree; cold water should then be poured over it. It must stand some time before being used. _Wassail Bowl._--Put into a bowl ½ lb. Lisbon sugar; pour on it 1 pint warm beer; grate a nutmeg and some ginger into it; add 4 glasses sherry and 5 additional pints beer; stir well; sweeten to taste; let stand covered up 2 or 3 hours; then put 3 or 4 slices bread (cut thin and toasted brown) into it. Sometimes a couple or three slices of lemon, and a few lumps of loaf sugar rubbed in the peeling of a lemon, are introduced. _White Wine Negus._--Extract the juice from the peel of a lemon by rubbing loaf sugar on it, or cut the peel of a lemon very thin, and pound it in a mortar; cut 2 lemons into thin slices, add 4 glasses calves’-foot jelly in a liquid state, small quantities of cinnamon, mace, cloves, and allspice. Put the whole into a jug, pour 1 qt. boiling water upon it, cover the jug close, let stand ¼ hour, and then add 1 bot. boiling white wine; grate half a nutmeg into it, stir well together, sweeten to taste. In making port wine negus, omit the jelly. Negus is not confined to any particular sort of wine; if the jelly is omitted, it can be made with any or several sorts mixed together. _Wines, British._--There are many persons who would rather buy their drinks than have the trouble and expense of making them. Such will be glad to know that Beaufoy’s British wines and non-alcoholic drinks are to be recommended before all others. _THE PANTRY._ =Bread.=--Household bread may be made with brewers’ yeast (barm) or with German yeast. (_a_) _With Brewers’ Yeast._--Take a small quantity--say 2 lb. flour. This should be perfectly dry, or the dough will not rise well. Put it into a bowl--a brown earthenware one glazed on the inside is best--which should also be perfectly dry, and in the winter slightly warmed. Stir in 1 teaspoonful salt, then make a hole about 1½ in. in depth in the centre of the flour. Have ready 1½ tablespoonful fresh brewers’ yeast, mixed in 1 teaspoonful warm--not _hot_--water; pour this into the hole, and stir a handful of flour lightly into it with a wooden spoon. Then cover with flour again, lightly. Lay a thick cloth over the pan, taking care that it does not press on the flour, and stand it in a warm corner. When the flour at the top of the yeast begins to crack, and the “sponge”--i.e., fermented dough--runs through, which, if the yeast be perfectly fresh and good, it will do in about ½ hour; it is then fit to knead. Now the potatoes may be added, but they must first be finely mashed. A jug of warm water must be ready, and a small quantity at a time poured into a pan; this should be thoroughly mixed with the other ingredients--_not_ with a spoon this time, but the hand. Continue pouring in water and mixing till the mass is perfectly free from lumps, and about the consistency of pastry for pies or puddings. Then turn it out of the pan on to a well-floured pastry board, and roll to and fro for about 3 minutes. Put it back into the pan, again covered with a thick cloth, and leave to rise. Another ½ hour or so will find it fit for the oven. This can easily be ascertained by pulling the dough slightly apart; if it be close and heavy, it must remain a while longer; but if it looks spongy and rises again quickly after the pressure is removed, it is ready for the baking. If tins are to be used, they should be warmed, and a very little butter or dripping should be rubbed over the bottom and sides, to prevent the dough sticking. Many people prefer “cottage” or “batch” loaves as they are called in some countries, made something in the shape of a brioche cake; but a tyro in the art will find it safest to trust to the tins till she has by practice become light-fingered enough to manipulate the dough easily and quickly; for it must be borne in mind that dough, like pastry, becomes heavy by rough or too frequent handling. (Bessie Tremaine.) Ovens and Baking.--With regard to the baking. The loaves must not be put into too hot an oven at first, or they will not rise; neither must the oven be too cool, or the bread will be underdone, and taste heavy and sodden. A good test is to sprinkle a little flour on the bottom of the oven, and shut the door; if in 5 minutes the flour is found to be coloured a golden brown, the bread may with safety be put in; if, on the contrary, the flour is a deep brown and smells burnt, the oven is too hot, and the fire should be slightly checked, also the oven door left open for a few minutes. The best way of regulating the temperature of the oven is to use a Bailey’s pyrometer (W. H. Bailey and Co., Albion Works, Salford, near Manchester), by which it is easy to see whether the fire should be urged or checked, ensuring the proper degree of heat without wasting fuel. Bread is generally supposed to have a more pleasant flavour when baked in a brick oven. One reason why this is so is because the brick oven (when there is one attached to a house) is generally so large and cumbrous, besides being troublesome to heat, that it is only used on baking days for bread or cake; so that there is no stale flavour of meat, game, or poultry hanging about it. This should be borne in mind when the baking is to be done in a kitchener, which should be thoroughly ventilated and washed out before the bread is put in. If this is attended to, the difference in the taste will be scarcely perceptible. (Bessie Tremaine.) Mention may here be made of Perkins’ Patent Steam Oven (Seaford Street, Gray’s Inn Road), in which the baking is remarkably even and regular; and of the portable gas oven (J. Baker and Sons, 58 City Road). See also p. 1003. Yeast.--(_a_) First get 6 good-sized potatoes, wash and pare them and boil them in 2 qt. water with a handful of hops (the latter in a small bag kept for the purpose). When quite soft take them out, mash fine, and pour upon them the water in which they were boiled, adding a little water for what may have boiled away, and also ½ cup salt and same of white sugar. When cooled down to a lukewarm temperature add 1 cup yeast to ferment it with. It does not rise, it works like beer, and having been covered closely and kept in a warm place, in the course of 5-6 hours the entire surface will be covered with fine bubbles, which indicate that it is ready for use. It should now be bottled and put in the cellar, where it will keep a long time. The bottles must not be corked tight at first, or they will be liable to burst. If the theory be true that some of the same kind must be used to start with, some difficulty may be encountered in introducing it where it is not used. (_b_) Boil and mash 1 lb. potatoes, mix with them ¼ lb. coarse raw sugar and 1 teaspoonful salt, add 1 qt. tepid water, and let the mixture stand in a warm place for 24 hours; then boil a small handful of hops for 10 minutes in ½ pint water, strain, and add the liquor to the yeast. Again let it stand for 24 hours; if it does not then ferment, get a little brewers’ yeast, and let it work for 24 hours; then strain it, and it is fit for use. When cold, put away the yeast in stone bottles, the cork tied down firmly. Keep in a cool dry place until wanted. About ½ pint yeast will be required to ferment 7 lb. flour. (_c_) _With German Yeast._--The one great point is to knead well. Not only should the dough be well kneaded, but the sponge, where it is placed to rise, should be well and rapidly beaten with a wooden spoon. The effect will be speedily seen, for the grain of the sponge becomes closer and finer, and, when put in a suitable place, will at once begin to rise in very fine bubbles. Potatoes much improve bread, and, in order to use them with a good effect, they must be steamed and beaten to a pulp, or, rather, to a cream; for a little water must be added to the pulp as soon as all the lumps have been beaten away, and this water should be in quantity just sufficient to give the potatoes the consistency of thick cream. This potato cream is to be put in the sponge before the beating commences--in fact, it is part of the sponge. It is advisable to put German yeast in water over night, and in the morning, when you are ready to lay your sponge, you must add to the yeast and water 2 lumps sugar. As the sugar assists the yeast to ferment, it must not be carelessly put in and left. As soon as it is dissolved the sponge should be mixed. Bread mixed with milk is much better than that made with water. Therefore, if you can procure it, place some milk on the fire to boil, and when it has partly cooled it is ready for use. An easy mode of cooling milk that has boiled is to place the can containing it in a pail of cold water. Never make bread with raw milk, for the chances are that the dough will become sour, and, although a little soda carbonate will counteract the acidity when in the sponge, it is impossible to remedy any such accident in the dough. It is a very difficult thing to tell anyone how much liquid to use to any given quantity of flour. American flour, which makes the finest bread, requires more liquid than English flour. The reason is obvious--the better the flour the drier, and American flour is very dry. Although commanding a higher price than English, it is in reality much more economical, as a stone of American flour will produce a much larger batch of bread than a stone of English flour will. ¼ lb. yeast will be found sufficient for an ordinary baking. It is a general rule to lay the sponge in the centre of the flour that you intend shall form the dough. This is a mistaken idea, and the better plan is to have a bowl about the size of a toilette basin. Warm it; do not quite half fill with flour. Have your yeast and sugar ready dissolved and smoothly mixed with cold water; have also in a jug at your left hand some milk that has been boiled and lost its scalding heat. Your bread will be improved if you provide yourself too with some warm creamed potatoes (you may with advantage have as much potato as flour in your sponge). It is quite out of the question to say when it will have risen--the weather affects it, and it will vary each time. The better way is to keep a watchful eye on it. It is fit to be taken when it has risen to a fine spongy mass, presenting the appearance of froth. Have a large bowl ready warmed, place in this as much flour as you judge will make the quantity of bread you desire; but do not more than half fill your bowl, or there will be no room for rising. Make a hole in the centre of the flour, and pour in the sponge, add a small quantity of salt, and proceed to knead it up, moistening from time to time with milk, or water, as the case may be. Do not have the dough too stiff. It is as well to use the right hand first, and keep the left free to add the liquid from the jug. The right hand has most power, and vigour is required in kneading bread. We have proof of this in the Italians, who knead their dough with such force as to produce corns on the knuckles of the hand. When you find you have sufficient liquid, let the left hand take its share in pounding and working the dough. Draw the dough from the sides of the pan to the middle in kneading, and continue to do this until it ceases to stick either to the hands or bowl. Having arrived at this point, place the bread-bowl in a warm position, and cover with a cloth. When the dough is ready to be made into loaves it will be risen and cracked all over. The bread-tins must be rubbed inside with lard before using. Remember, when you cut your dough into loaves, that it is necessary to knead it up again before placing in the tins. It is a good plan to nearly ¾ fill the tins, prick through with a fork, and put to rise again. Stand your tins together, if possible, and place a clean light cloth over them, to keep any dust off, and also to prevent the surface of the dough from drying. The loaves must rise until they nearly reach the tops of the tins. Now place in an oven that has a moderately good heat, and do not open the door during the first 15 minutes. The middle shelf of an oven is the proper place for bread, and the tins should stand on rings; there is then no chance of burning the bottoms of the loaves. After the loaves have been in the oven ½ hour, change their positions. An hour should bake an ordinary loaf. During the last ½ hour the heat of the oven may be allowed to decrease. As soon as your bread is baked, take the loaves out of the tins and wrap them in a clean old blanket kept especially for the purpose. The object is to prevent hard crust, and the blanket will absorb any moisture caused by the steam. When quite cold the bread may be placed in the bread-pan, which should be kept in a cold damp place. No bread will keep in a good state which is in a dry, warm situation. It is certain to dry, crack, and mould. It will be found a good plan to bake once a week during the winter, and twice during the summer months. Should any difficulty be experienced during very sultry weather, make the dough in the evening with quite cold water or milk, there will be no sponge to lay in this case; all must be kneaded up at once, and in the morning it will be ready for use. Bread made up in this way is excellent if well kneaded, but never has such delicate grain as that made by the above directions. The only real enemy to success in bread-making is warm sultry weather. When the air is charged with electricity, the housewife may think of danger. Want of attention is, in the majority of cases, the real cause of mishaps. (Harriett Estill.) The flour called “seconds” makes a more economical loaf for family use than the first quality; when, however, a very white light kind of bread is preferred, “best whites” must be used. German yeast should be perfectly fresh and sweet, in which state it is nearly white and quite dry. Dissolve 1½ oz. in a few spoonfuls of cool water, and then stir into it 3½ pints tepid water; pour it rapidly over 5 lb. flour, in which 1 tablespoonful salt has been mixed; beat it up with the hand or a wooden spoon until well mixed, then gradually work in 2 lb. more of flour, kneading it well. When finished, the dough will be perfectly smooth, and not a particle will adhere to the hands or pan. Set the dough in a warm place to rise for an hour, then work it up with a handful of flour until it is stiff; divide it into 2 or 3 loaves, working them up into a compact shape. Put them on a floured baking sheet, and bake them in an oven as hot as it can be without burning the bread, as it will then keep its shape. In about 10 minutes the heat may be moderated and kept equal until the bread is finished. A 5 lb. loaf will take 1¼ hour to bake. A skewer may be thrust into the loaf, and if it comes out clean the bread is done enough, but generally the appearance of the loaf should indicate this to anyone having the least experience. (Mary Hooper.) =Biscuits, Cakes, and Fancy Breads.=--Of these there is an endless variety, the majority being well adapted for making at home. _Abernethy Biscuits._--(_a_) Dissolve ¼ lb. butter in ½ pint warm milk, and with 4 lb. fine flour, a few caraways, and ½ lb. sugar, make a stiff but smooth paste; to render the biscuits short and light, add ½ dr. ammonia carbonate in powder. Roll out very thin; stamp the biscuits, pricking them with a fork, and bake in tins in a quick oven. (_b_) Into 7 lb. flour rub 1 lb. butter; add 1 lb. moist sugar, powdered, and 2 oz. caraway seeds; make into smooth dough with 2½ pints water containing 4 oz. sal volatile; roll into thin sheets; cut into biscuits, place on buttered tins, wash tops with white of egg, bake in quick oven. _Almond Bread._--8 oz. sweet almonds, 1 oz. bitter almonds blanched and dried; pound fine with 18 oz. loaf sugar in a mortar; pass through sieve; mix into soft batter with yolk of egg; grate off the peel of 1 lemon, and add it with 2 oz. flour; mix lightly as for sponge cake; pour the batter into square, flat, tin dishes, turned up about 2 in., and buttered inside; bake in cool oven. _Almond Cakes._--Cover 1 lb. sweet almonds with boiling water in a saucepan; when just boiling, strain off, and rub skins off; slice up 2 oz. of them; put remainder into a mortar with 2¼ lb. loaf sugar, 1 tablespoonful orange-flower water and white of 6 eggs, pound fine; spread wafer-paper on a tin, and drop on pieces of the paste as large as walnuts; sprinkle each with the shredded almonds; bake in slow oven. _Almond Savoy Cake._--Take 1 lb. blanched sweet almonds (4 oz. of them may be bitter), 2 lb. sugar, 1 pint yolk of egg, ½ pint whole eggs, 1 lb. flour, and the whites of 12 eggs beaten to a firm froth. Pound the almonds with the sugar in a mortar, and sift through a wire sieve, or grind in a mill, and mix with the sugar in the mortar. First mix the whole eggs well with the almonds and sugar, then add the yolks by degrees, stirring until quite light; then mix in the whites, and afterwards the flour lightly; prepare some moulds as for Savoy cakes, or only butter them. Fill the moulds ¾ full, and bake in a moderate oven. _American Biscuits._--Rub ½ lb. butter with 4 lb. flour; add 1 pint milk or water; mix well; break up the dough; bake in hot oven. _Apple Bread._--After having boiled 1 lb. peeled apples, bruise them while quite warm into 2 lb. flour, including the proper quantity of leaven, and knead the whole without water, the juice of the fruit being quite sufficient. When this mixture has acquired the consistency of paste, put it into a vessel, in which allow it to rise for about 12 hours. By this process you obtain a very sweet bread, extremely light. _Banbury Cake._--(_a_) 1½ lb. flour, 1 lb. butter; roll the butter in sheets in part of the flour; wet up the rest of the flour in nearly ½ pint water and a little German or brewers’ yeast; make into a smooth paste, roll in a large sheet, and lay on the butter; double up, and roll out again; do this 5 times; cut into square pieces, about 1½ oz. each. Mix together currants, candied peel chopped fine, moist sugar, and a little brandy; put 2 teaspoonfuls of this mixture on each piece of paste; bring the two corners together in the middle, and close them up of an oval shape; turn the closing downwards; sift finely powdered loaf sugar over the tops; put on a cold tin; let stand awhile in the cold to prove; bake in rather a cool oven. (_b_) 2 lb. currants, ½ oz. each ground allspice and powdered cinnamon; 4 oz. each candied orange and lemon peel; 8 oz. butter, 1 lb. moist sugar, 12 oz. flour; mix the whole well together; roll out a piece of puff paste; cut into oval shape; put a small quantity of composition into each, and double up in the shape of a puff; put on a board, flatten down with rolling-pin, and sift powdered sugar over; do not put too close together; bake on iron plates in a hot oven. _Bath Buns._--1 lb. flour, peel of 2 lemons grated fine, ½ lb. butter melted in teacup of cream, 1 teaspoonful yeast, 3 eggs; mix; add ½ lb. powdered loaf sugar; mix well; let stand to rise; quantities will make about 3 dozen buns. _Bath Cake._--Roll 1¾ lb. moist sugar till fine; add ¾ pint water; let stand all night; into 4½ lb. flour rub 3 oz. butter; make a hole in it, and pour in the sugar and water with ½ pint honey water; roll thin; cut out, place on buttered tin, wash over with water, bake in quick oven. _Biscuit Powder._--Dry the biscuits in a slow oven; grind with a rolling-pin on a clean board till the powder is fine; sift through a fine hair-sieve, and it is fit for use. _Bordeaux Cake._--Make a mixture as for pound-cakes, leaving out the fruit, peel, and spices; bake in a round or oval hoop. When baked and cold, cut into slices ½ in. thick; spread each slice with jam or marmalade. The outside of the cake may be cut round, or fluted to form a star; and the centre of the cake is occasionally cut out to about 1½ in. from the edge, leaving the bottom slice whole: this may be filled with preserved wet or dry fruits, creams, or a trifle. The top is ornamented with piping, wet or dry fruits, and peels, or piped with jam and icing. _Brandy Snaps._--(_a_) Rub ¼ lb. butter into ½ lb. flour, add ½ lb. moist sugar, ½ oz. ground ginger, and the grated rind and juice of a lemon. Mix with a little treacle to a paste thin enough to spread on tins. Bake in a moderate oven, and when done enough cut it into strips whilst still on the tins, and then roll it round the fingers. When cold put in a tin at once, or they will lose their crispness. (_b_) Take 1 lb. flour, ½ lb. coarse brown sugar, ¼ lb. butter, 1 dessertspoonful allspice, 2 of ground ginger, the grated peel of half, and the juice of a whole lemon; mix altogether, adding ½ lb. treacle; beat it well; butter some sheet tins, and spread the paste thinly over them, bake in rather a slow oven. When done cut it into squares, and roll each square round the finger as it is raised from the tin. (_c_) ½ lb. salt butter, ½ lb. moist sugar, ½ lb. treacle and flour (more treacle than flour), 1½ oz. finely-powdered ginger. The butter, treacle, and part of the sugar to be made boiling hot, and poured on the remainder of the ingredients well mixed. Spread it very thinly with a knife on a sheet tin which has been buttered, and bake. When done, to be taken off with a knife. _Breakfast Cake._--Mix ½ oz. German yeast with ½ pint warm milk in a pan; weigh 2 lb. flour and take sufficient of it to make the milk the consistence of batter. When this sponge has risen, take a little milk--melt in it 3 oz. butter; add a teaspoonful of salt, and the yolks of 8 eggs; mix well with the sponge, and make into a dough with the remaining portion of flour. Do not use more milk with the eggs than will make ½ pint, or the dough will be too soft. When the dough is proved, make it into cakes about 2 in. thick; put them into buttered hoops; lay the hoops on iron plates, and when they are lightly risen, bake them in a warm oven; cut into slices ½ in. thick and butter each. _Bride Cake._--Cleanse and dry 2½ lb. currants; stone ½ lb. muscatel raisins; pound ¼ oz. mace, ⅛ oz. cinnamon; scald ¼ lb. sweet almonds, remove skins, and shred; slice up 2 oz. each candied citron, lemon, and orange peel; break 8 new eggs into a basin; sift 1 lb. powdered loaf sugar into 1¼ lb. flour; in a warmed pan beat 1 lb. butter by hand till it melts, then add the sugar and beat again; add ⅕ of the flour, stir, and add nearly half the eggs; beat up, add more flour and remainder of eggs; beat again and stir in rest of flour and currants; next add the raisins, almonds, candied peel, spices, and ½ gill brandy; thoroughly mix; double paper the tin, and bake in a very slow oven. _Brighton Biscuits._--Take 1¼ lb. good moist sugar; roll fine; mix with 2½ lb. flour, and sift through a flour sieve; rub in 2 oz. butter; make a hole in the middle, and strew in a few caraway seeds; pour in ½ pint each honey-water and milk; mix into dough, but do not work too much; roll out in thin sheets; cut into biscuits and put 2 in. apart on buttered tin; wash with milk; bake steadily. _Buttered Biscuits._--Rub 1 lb. butter into 7 lb. flour; wet up with 1 qt. warm water, and ½ pint good yeast; break smooth; prove; cut into biscuits; bake in strong heat. _Captain’s Biscuits._--Rub 6 oz. butter into 7 lb. flour; wet up with 1 qt. water; break smooth; bake in good strong heat. _Chelsea Buns._--Take ½ or 1 quartern light bread dough; dust the dresser or table with flour, and roll out with a rolling-pin into a sheet about ¼ in. thick; over the surface put 4-6 oz. butter, in little bits, work up and roll out 2 or 3 times, the same as for making puff paste. The last time it is rolled out, spread thinly and evenly over the surface, either moist or powdered loaf sugar; moisten by sprinkling with water; cut into strips, ½-¾ in. wide; roll up so as to form a coil or roll of dough about 2 in. in diameter. Lay these pieces (when rolled up) on a clean baking-tin, with some butter rubbed over the surface, to prevent the buns adhering when baked. Place rather more than ¼ in. asunder, with one of the cut edges downward. Put in a warm place, covered with a cloth, to prove, or rise; bake in a moderately warm oven. May be made richer by using more butter and sugar, and seeds or spice may be added at pleasure. When baked, some sugar may be sifted over the surface. _Cheese Cake._--Beat 4 oz. butter with the hand in a warm pan, till it comes to a fine cream; add 4 oz. powdered sugar; beat well; add yolks of 2 eggs; beat again; add a little milk; beat all well together, and mix in 4 oz. clean currants; lay puff paste in the patty-pans; fill half full; shake a little sugar over, and bake in a good heat. _Cinnamon Buns._--Same as saffron, omitting the caraway seeds and saffron, and substituting ground cinnamon. _Cinnamon, Currant, and Caraway Cake._--Rub 1 lb. butter into 3½ lb. flour; in a hole put 1 lb. powdered loaf sugar; then wet up with ½ pint each honey-water and milk. Divide the dough into 3 parts; add to one part a little powdered cinnamon; to another a few currants; to another a few caraway seeds. Roll in sheets to the thickness of the currants; cut to about the size of a penny; wash with a little milk, and bake in a steady heat. _Colchester Bread._--(_a_) Prepare dough as for Bath cakes; cut with a Colchester cutter to about the thickness of a penny; wash with milk; bake quick; wash with egg and milk while hot; when cold cut apart. (_b_) Put ¾ lb. loaf sugar into a saucepan, with ¼ pint water over steady fire; stir till dissolved; beat 6 eggs with a whisk in a pan; when the sugar boils pour it gently on the eggs, beating till cold; stir in ¾ lb. fine sifted flour; paper frames; fill ¾ full with the batter; sift sugar over; bake in steady oven. _Cracknel Biscuits._--Rub 6 oz. butter into 3½ lb. flour; in a hole put 6 oz. powdered loaf sugar; wet up with 8 eggs and ¼ pint water; break dough smooth; make and dock like captain’s biscuits; form on the reel; drop into a stew-pan of water boiling over the fire; when they swim, take out with a skimmer, and put into a pailful of cold water; let remain 2 hours before baking; drain in a cloth or sieve; bake on clean tins in a brisk oven. _Crumpets._--These are made of batter composed of flour, water (or milk), and a small quantity of yeast. To 1 lb. best wheaten flour add 3 tablespoonfuls yeast. A portion of the liquid paste, not too thin (after being suffered to rise), is poured on a heated iron plate, and baked, like pancakes in a pan. _Curd Cheese Cake._--Warm 1 pint new milk; stir in a little rennet; keep warm till a nice curd appears; break and strain the whey through a hair-sieve; put mixture prepared as for cheese-cakes, but without any currants, into sieve with curd; rub all through together; mix in currants; fill out, and bake in a good heat. _Derby Cake._--Rub 1 lb. butter in 2½ lb. flour; in a hole put 1 lb. powdered loaf sugar; beat 2 eggs with 3 tablespoonfuls honey-water, and milk to make up ½ pint; add ½ lb. currants; mix; bake in a steady oven. _Diet Bread._--Whisk the yolks of 12 and the whites of 6 eggs, together, so as just to break them; put ¼ pint water into a saucepan or small stew-pan, add 1 lb. loaf sugar, and put on the fire; take it off just before it boils; put in the eggs, and whisk well till cold; stir in lightly 1 lb. flour; put mixture into papered square tins; sift sugar over tops; bake in cool oven till dry and firm on top. _Drop Biscuits._--Warm the pan; put in 1 lb. powdered loaf sugar and 8 eggs; beat with a whisk till milk warm; then beat till cold; stir in lightly 1 lb. sugar, 2 oz. fine sifted flour, ½ oz. caraway seeds; put batter into a bladder, drop through the pipe, in quantities about the size of a nutmeg, on wafer-paper; sift sugar over the top; bake in quick oven. _Drops._--Whisk ½ teacup water, 6 eggs, and 1 lb. sifted loaf sugar together till thick; add a few caraway seeds, and 18 oz. flour; mix lightly together; drop on wafer-paper, about the size of a small walnut; sift sugar over, and bake in a hot oven. _Filbert Biscuits._--Rub 1 lb. butter into 3½ lb. flour; make a hole, and put in 10 oz. powdered loaf sugar; wet up with 4 tablespoonfuls honey-water, 1 of orange-flower water, and ¾ pint milk; break dough smooth; mould as large as a nutmeg, and round; cut twice across the top each way, about half through, with a sharp knife; place on tin; bake in steady heat. _French Rolls._--Set a sponge with 1 qt. warm water, and ½ pint good small-beer yeast; let sponge rise and drop; melt 1 oz. butter in 1 pint warm milk, and 1 oz. salt; wet up about 7 lb. flour; let lie ½ hour; put on warm tins; prove well; bake in quick oven. _Ginger Cake._--Prepare dough as for Bath cakes; add as much ground ginger as will give a pleasant taste; cut as thick as a shilling and as large as a penny; wash with water; bake quick. _Hot Cross Buns._--Take 1 qt. milk, 12 oz. butter, 12 oz. sugar, ½ oz. mixed spice, 2 eggs, 2 oz. German yeast, or ½ teacupful of good thick small-beer yeast, and 4 lb. flour. If to be made with currants, add 1 or 1½ lb. currants, clean washed, picked, and dried. Make the milk blood-warm; if the weather is cold, rather warmer; put it into a gallon pan, with half the sugar, 6 oz. of flour, the yeast and eggs; mix together, cover the pan, and put in a warm place. When this has risen with a high, frothy head, and again fallen and become nearly flat, it is ready for the remaining portion of the ingredients to be mixed with it; but while rising, the butter should be rubbed in with the flour between the hands, until reduced to small crumbles. Mix the whole together into a nice mellow dough. If the flour is not very good and strong, about 4-6 oz. more may be required to make the dough of the required consistence. Cover the pan; let remain in a warm place for about ½ hour, or until the dough has risen 4 in. Make into buns by moulding the dough up into small balls lightly under the hands, and place on warm tins, slightly rubbed over with butter, about 3-4 in. asunder. Half-prove, and cross; brush the tops over with milk, and finish proving; bake in a hot oven; when done, brush the tops over again with milk. The best method for proving is to put the tins on shelves in a warm cupboard near the fire. Place a pan with hot water at the bottom, but put no tin on the pan. Put a piece of heated iron or brick into the water in the pan occasionally, to cause a steam to ascend, which will keep the surface of the buns moist, when they will expand or prove to their full size, otherwise the surface will be hardened, and prevent expansion. Keep the cupboard door close shut until ready to bake. _Italian Bread._--Take 1 lb. butter, 1 lb. powdered loaf sugar, 18 oz. flour, 12 eggs, ½ lb. citron and lemon peel. Mix as for pound-cake. If the mixture begins to curdle, which is most likely from the quantity of eggs, add a little of the flour. When the eggs are all used, and it is light, stir in the remainder of the flour lightly. Bake in long, narrow tins, either papered or buttered; first put in a layer of the mixture, and cover with the peel cut in large thin slices; proceed in this way until ¾ full, and bake in a moderate oven. _Lemon Biscuits._--Prepare dough as for filbert biscuits, but leave out orange-flower water and use 6 drops essence of lemon; cut out, dock with lemon docker; bake in good steady heat. _Lemon Cheese Cake._--Prepare as for common cheese-cakes; grate rind of fresh lemon; squeeze the juice, and mix. _Lord Mayor’s Cake._--Whisk 1 lb. sifted loaf sugar and 8 eggs in a warm earthen pan for 15 minutes, or until quite thick; add a few caraway seeds and 1 lb. flour; mix lightly with a spoon, and drop on paper, about the size of a small teacup; place on iron plates; sift sugar or caraway seeds on top; bake in hot oven; when done, take off the papers, and stick two together. _Lunch or School Cake._--Mix ½ lb. moist sugar with 2 lb. flour; in a hole in the middle put 1 tablespoonful good thick yeast (not bitter); warm ½ pint milk rather more than blood warm, but not hot enough to scald the yeast; mix ⅓ with the yeast and a little of the flour; when it has risen (say ¾ hour if the yeast is good) melt ½ lb. butter in a little more milk; add 1½ lb. currants, a little candied peel, and grated rind of lemon, and 1 teaspoonful powdered allspice; mix; butter hoop or tin, put in, and set in warm place to rise; bake in warm oven. This cake should be mixed up rather softer than bread dough. _Macaroons._--Pound 1 lb. blanched and dried sweet almonds fine in a mortar; pass through wire sieve; make into softish batter, with whites of 5 or 6 eggs, and a spoonful or two of orange-flower water; beat well; lay on oval wafer-paper; dredge tops with powdered loaf sugar; bake in rather cool oven. _Madeira Cake._--Whisk 4 eggs very light, and, still whisking, throw in by slow degrees the following ingredients in the order named--6 oz. each sifted sugar and flour, 4 oz. butter, slightly dissolved but not heated, the rind of a fresh lemon, and ⅓ teaspoonful soda carbonate; beat well just before moulding; bake for 1 hour in moderate oven. Each portion of butter must be beaten into the mixture until no appearance of it remains, before the next is added. _Muffins._--These should be baked on a hot iron plate. To 1 peck flour add ¾ pint good small-beer yeast, 4 oz. of salt, and water (or milk) slightly warmed, sufficient to form a dough of rather soft consistency; when light, small portions of the dough are put into holes, made in a layer of flour about 2 in. thick, placed on a board; cover up with a blanket, and stand near a fire, to cause the dough to rise to a semi-globular shape; place on heated iron plate, and bake; when bottoms begin to acquire brownish colour, turn, and bake opposite side. _Naples Biscuits._--Take 6 oz. each moist and loaf sugar, ¼ pint water; proceed as for diet cake, with 6 eggs and ¾ lb. flour; have tins papered: fill nearly full of the batter; sugar the tops; bake in rather slow oven. These biscuits are diet-bread batter, fancifully dropped into tins, papered with white paper, and baked in a warm oven, with a little sugar sifted over the top. _Oatmeal Cakes._--These are composed of oatmeal and water; and the difficulties lie, first, in wetting, with sufficient quickness, the whole of the meal, without drenching any portion of it; secondly, in properly kneading and rolling out the cakes with dexterity and despatch; and, finally, in turning them while baking, or “firing.” They are sometimes baked on a “girdle” or “griddle”--a flat piece of cast iron, placed over a bright fire; sometimes on a “toaster,” which is similar to a hanger, with a sliding back, which supports the cake in front of the fire; and sometimes in an American oven. The process of making is as follows:--Put 2 or 3 handfuls of meal into a 3 pint basin; stir while pouring in boiling water; when all is moistened, having scattered a handful of dry meal over the paste-board, turn out the “leaven” with a spoon or your hand, dusted with meal; take a piece, according to the size of cake required, and knead out, using the rolling-pin if wanted thin; shape with a knife or tin cutter 4-5 in. in diameter. As oatmeal swells and dries very rapidly, to have cakes that will stick together, and, at the same time, eat short or “free,” this process cannot be done too expeditiously. Each of the three modes of baking gives a different flavour. For toasting let the cakes be 10 or 12 in. in diameter, nip up the edge all round, and cut them across twice, which makes a square edge for them to stand on. In this form they are called “farls.” For turning, use a broad, supple knife, or a piece of tin plate. A little butter melted in the water is an improvement. _Parkin._--(_a_) 4 lb. oatmeal, 4 lb. treacle, 1 lb. sugar, 1 lb. butter, 2 oz. powdered ginger. Set a pan before the fire with the treacle and butter in it. When dissolved, add the other ingredients, and stir it as stiff as you can with a knife, but do not knead it. Add 1 teacupful brandy (if liked), and bake it in a cool oven in dripping pans or flat dishes about 2 in. thick. Do not turn it out till quite cold, or it will break, but cut it across with a knife where you would like it divided. It must be baked in a cool oven. Some people make it in round cakes. (_b_) 1 lb. Yorkshire oatmeal, 1 lb. thick treacle (not golden syrup), ¼ lb. butter, ¼ lb. moist sugar, mixed spice and ginger to taste. Rub the butter into the meal with the sugar and spice, then add the treacle (melted, if too thick), mix all well together, and bake in flat tins, such as are used for Yorkshire puddings, in a slow oven, for 2 hours or more. Parkin is not fit for eating for 2-3 days, till it has become perfectly soft. (_c_) 7 lb. oatmeal, 1 lb. butter, 2 lb. treacle, 3 tablespoonfuls soda carbonate; to be baked in hoops the same as teacakes. The butter to be melted and mixed with the treacle warm. (_d_) 4 lb. oatmeal, ¾ lb. butter, ¾ lb. lard; currants, raisins (candied lemon peel if approved), ginger, and cayenne pepper to taste. Add sufficient treacle to make the whole into a soft paste. Bake in a slow oven. The treacle, butter, and lard should be warmed a little together. Butter and lard keep the cake moist longer than if only butter were used. _Plum Cake._--(_a_) Set a sponge with 1 lb. flour, ½ pint warm milk, and 3 tablespoonfuls good yeast; beat up 4 oz. butter, 4 oz. powdered sugar, 2 eggs, and 4 oz. flour as for pound cake; put in sponge, and beat all well together; add 1 lb. currants; bake without proving in a slow oven. (_b_) Beat 1 lb. butter with your hand in a warm pan till it comes to a fine cream, add 1 lb. powdered loaf sugar; beat together to a nice cream; have 1¼ lb. flour sifted, put in a little, and stir; add 4 eggs; beat well; add a little more flour and 4 more eggs; beat it well again; stir in remainder of flour; for small cakes, butter the tins; for large ones, paper; sugar over the top, and bake in moderate heat. (_c_) Sift 1 lb. loaf sugar; add 1 lb. fresh butter, melted a little, and worked by hand to consistency of cream; beat together; while doing so, add 10 eggs; beat till well incorporated; mix 4 oz. candied orange or lemon peel, shred or cut small, a few currants and 1 lb. flour well together; put in a hoop; sift sugar on top; bake in warm oven. _Porridge._--Put on the fire a pan, of the size that will hold the quantity required, about ⅔ full of water; when the water is quick boiling take a handful of meal, and holding the hand over the pan--of course high enough to avoid being burned by the steam--let the meal slide slowly through the fingers into the water, the other hand stirring all the time with a wooden spoon, or what Scotch cooks call the “spurtle.” Continue this till enough of meal is put into the water, then add salt to taste, and, allow the porridge to boil for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally lest it stick to the pan and scorch. Porridge is not good if boiled less than 20 minutes; but for children, or delicate stomachs it should be boiled the full ½ hour, by which time the meal is so well swelled and softened that it becomes a digestible and most nutritious article of food. Letting the meal slide slowly into the water is an important element in making good porridge. If it is thrown in too quickly, or the water allowed to cease boiling, it forms into lumps, and is not so good. It is not easy to give any rule as to the proportion of meal to water, as the thickness of porridge is quite a matter of taste. Of course it must be still thin when one stops putting in the meal, as it swells to more than half as much again with the boiling. _Pound Cake._--The following table gives the ingredients necessary for rich pound-, Twelfth-, or bride-cakes of different prices:-- ---------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+------- Ingredients. |10s.6d.| 12s. | 15s. | 18s. | 1l.1s.|1l.11s.| 2l.2s. ---------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+------- | | | | | | | | lb.oz.| lb.oz.| lb.oz.| lb.oz.| lb.oz.| lb.oz.| lb.oz. Butter | 0 11 | 0 13 | 1 1 | 1 4 | 1 6 | 2 1 | 2 12 Sugar | 0 7 | 0 8 | 0 10 | 0 12 | 1 0 | 1 6 | 1 12 Currants | 1 4 | 1 6 | 1 10 | 2 0 | 2 8 | 3 12 | 5 0 Orange, lemon, | 0 6 | 0 7 | 0 8 | 0 10 | 0 12 | 1 2 | 1 8 and citron | | | | | | | (mixed) | | | | | | | Almonds | 0 1½| 0 2 | 0 2 | 0 3 | 0 3 | 0 4 | 0 6 Mixed spice* | 0 0½| | 0 0¾| | 0 1 | 0 1½| 0 2 Flour | 0 11 | 0 13 | 1 1 | 1 4 | 1 6 | 2 1 | 2 12 Eggs (number) | 6 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 18 | 24 Brandy, or | Wine | glass | full | | ¼ pt.| | ½ pt. brandy and | | | | | | | wine | | | | | | | ---------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+------- * Nutmegs, mace, and cinnamon, of equal parts, in powder. These proportions allow for the cake being iced. If more sugar is preferred, it may be the same as the butter; less is used that the cake may be light, and to allow for the sweet fruit. Double the quantity of almonds may be used. To make: warm a smooth pan, large enough for the mixture; put in the butter, and reduce it to a fine cream, by working it about the pan with your hand. In summer the pan need not be warmed; but in winter keep the mixture as warm as possible, without oiling the butter. Add the sugar and mix it well with the butter, until it becomes white and feels light in the hand. Break in 2 or 3 eggs at a time, and work the mixture well before more is added. Continue doing this until all are used and it becomes light; then add the spirit, currants, peel, spice, and almonds, most of the almonds being previously cut in thin slices, and the peel into small thin strips and bits. When these are incorporated, mix in the flour lightly; put it in a hoop with paper over the bottom and round the sides, and place on a baking-plate. Large cakes require 3 or 4 pieces of stiff paper round the sides; and if the cake is very large, a pipe or funnel, made either of stiff paper or tin, and well buttered, should be put in the centre, and the mixture placed round it; this is to allow the middle of the cake to be well baked, otherwise the edge would be burnt 2 or 3 in. deep before it could be properly done. Place the tin plates containing the cake on another, the surface of which is covered 1 or 2 in. thick with sawdust or fine ashes to protect the bottom. Bake it in an oven at a moderate heat. The time required to bake it will depend on the state of the oven and the size of the cake. A guinea cake in an oven of a proper heat will take 4 to 5 hours. When the cake is cold proceed to ice it. Wedding-cakes have generally, first, a coating on the top of almond icing; when this is dry, the sides and top are covered with royal or white icing. Fix on gum paste or other ornaments while it is wet; and when dry, ornament with piping, orange-blossoms, ribbon, &c.; the surface and sides are often covered with small knobs of white sugar candy whilst the icing is wet. Twelfth-cakes are iced with white or coloured icing, and decorated with gum paste, plaster ornaments, piping-paste, rings, knots, and fancy papers, &c., and piped. _Prussian Cake._--Rub 4 oz. butter into 7 lb. flour; wet up with 1 qt. warm milk, 1 pint warm water, 4 yolks of eggs, and ½ pint good thick yeast; if obliged to take more yeast, leave out some of the water; let dough lie 10-20 minutes; mould up round, ½-¾ lb. each; place on tins, about 2 in. from each other; put in warm place, and prove well; bake in steady heat; melt a little butter and wash over when done. _Queen’s Biscuits._--Rub 1 lb. butter into 2 lb. flour; add 1 lb. powdered sugar; make a hole and pour in ¼ pint milk, to mix it up with; add a few caraways, if you choose; roll the paste in sheets of the thickness of a halfpenny, cut into biscuits with a small round or oval cutter: place on clean tins, see that they do not quite touch; prick with a fork, and bake in a quick oven till they begin to change colour; when cold, they will be crisp. _Queen’s Cake._--Warm 1 lb. butter a little in an earthen pan, and work it by hand to a smooth cream; add 1 lb. finely-powdered and sifted loaf sugar; stir well with the butter for 5 minutes; add 8 eggs and 2 spoonfuls water gradually, continuing the beating until the whole is well mixed: stir in lightly 20 oz. flour, and a handful of currants; fill some small round buttered tins; dust tops with powdered loaf sugar; bake in warm oven. _Queen’s Drops._--Prepare as for pound cakes; add 2 oz. more flour, 1½ lb. currants; drop on whited brown paper, about the size of large nutmegs, about 2 inches from each other; put sheets on tins; bake in steady oven. _Queen’s Gingerbread._--Take 2 lb. honey, 1¾ lb. moist sugar, 3 lb. flour, ½ lb. sweet almonds blanched, ½ lb. preserved orange peel cut in thin fillets, the yellow rinds of 2 lemons grated off, 1 oz. cinnamon, ½ oz. each cloves, mace, and cardamoms, mixed and powdered; put the honey into a pan over the fire, with a wineglassful of water, and make quite hot; mix other ingredients together; make a bay, pour in the honey, and mix; let stand till next day; make into cakes, and bake; rub a little clarified sugar until it will blow into bubbles through a skimmer, and with a paste-brush rub over gingerbread when baked. _Rice Pound-cake._--Take 1 lb. butter, 1 lb. powdered loaf sugar, 12 oz. flour, ½ lb. ground rice, and 12 eggs. Mix as Italian bread, and bake in a papered hoop. If required with fruit, put 2 lb. currants, ¾ lb. peel, 1 grated nutmeg, and a little pounded mace. _Rout Biscuits._--Put 1 lb. powdered loaf sugar into a basin, with 3 gills milk, and let stand 2 hours, stirring occasionally; rub ½ lb. butter into 2 lb. flour; make a hole in it, add a little sal volatile pounded fine, and an egg, with the dissolved sugar; stir together, and mix into smooth dough; let lie 10 minutes; cut out; place on buttered tins; wash with milk; bake quickly. _Rout Cake._--Pound 1 lb. sweet almonds, blanched and dried, and 1 lb. loaf sugar in a mortar; sieve; put what will not pass into a mortar again, with 4 yolks of eggs, and the rind of a lemon; pound very fine, put in what has passed through sieve, and mix all together; make any shape; sprinkle lightly with a little water; sift sugar over, and put on tins that have been rubbed with a bit of butter, so as not to touch each other; bake in rather brisk oven till lightly coloured over; if coloured too deep at bottom, put cold tins under to finish baking. (_c_) Take shape, butter it, sift sugar into it, and turn out all the sugar that does not stick to the butter; mix ½ lb. sifted sugar, and 6 oz. sifted flour; warm pan, put in sugar, break in 4 whole eggs and 1 yolk; whisk till warm and then cold; stir in flour, turn batter into the shape, and bake in slow oven about 1 hour; when done, turn out bottom uppermost. _Rusks._--Put 1 qt. warm milk into a pan, with 1 oz. German yeast, 4 oz. moist sugar, and about 6 oz. flour; mix, and put aside in warm place to rise. Rub 6 oz. butter into 3½ lb. flour, and make into a dough with the ferment as soon as ready; prove a little, and divide in pieces of about 1½ lb. each; roll in long rolls about size of rolling-pin; place on buttered tins, 3-4 in. apart; flat down a little with the hand; prove well; bake in moderately heated oven; when cold, cut across in slices; place on tins, and brown off on both sides in brisk oven. _Saffron Buns._--Made with the same mixture as hot cross buns, but with the addition of 1 oz. caraway seeds, and colouring with saffron. _Sally Lunns._--Take flour, a little salt and butter, 2 or 3 eggs, a small quantity of yeast, and milk and water; make light dough; set to rise after kneading; make dough into cakes, large enough to slice into rounds for toasting; bake slightly and quickly in hot oven. _Savoy Biscuits._--Powder and sift 1 lb. loaf sugar; sift 1 lb. flour; warm a pan, and put in the sugar; break 1 lb. eggs upon it; beat both together with a whisk till warm; beat till cold; stir in your flour; have a bladder and pipe ready; put batter into the bladder, and force through on sheets of paper; sift sugar over, and bake in quick oven; when cold, turn up, and wet bottom of paper; turn back again, and in 5 minutes they will come off easily. _Savoy Cake._--(_a_) Hot Mixture.--Take 1 lb. powdered loaf sugar, 1 pint good eggs, and 14 oz. flour. Warm a pan, free from grease, with the sugar in it, in the oven until you can scarcely bear your hand against it; then take out and pour in the eggs; whisk with a birch or wire whisk until quite light and cold, when it will be white and thick. If it should not whisk up well, warm again and beat as before; or it may be beat over the stove fire until it is of the warmth of new milk. When finished, sift the flour and stir it in lightly with a spoon, adding a few drops of essence of lemon to flavour it. Butter some tin or copper moulds regularly, with rather less on the top than the sides. Dust with loaf sugar sifted through a lawn sieve. Knock out all that does not adhere, and again dust with fine flour; turn out, and knock the mould on the board. Tie or pin a piece of buttered paper round the mould, so as to come 2 or 3 in. above the bottom. Fix the mould in a stand and nearly fill it. Bake in a moderate oven. When done, the top should be firm and dry. Try it by pushing in a small piece of stick or whisk, and if it comes out dry, it is done. The surface of the cake should be quite smooth. There is as much art in buttering the mould properly as in preparing the mixture. (_b_) Cold Mixtures.--Separate the yolks from the whites when you break the eggs. Put the yolks into a clean pan with the sugar, and the whites in another by themselves. Let the pans be quite free from grease. If they are rubbed round with a little flour, it will take off any which may be left. Wipe out with a clean cloth. Beat up the yolks and sugar by themselves, with a wooden spoon, and afterwards whip up the whites to a very strong froth. If they should happen to be rather weak, a bit of powdered alum may be added. When the whites are whisked up firm, stir in the yolks and sugar. Sift the flour and mix it lightly with the spatula, adding a little essence of lemon to flavour. Fill the moulds and bake as before. When cakes are made in this way, the eggs should be quite fresh and good, otherwise the whites cannot be whipped up. When weak, pickled eggs are used. A good method is to beat the eggs first by themselves, over a fire, until they are warm; then add the sugar, and whip it over the fire until again warm, or make as for hot mixtures, and heat twice. _Scones._--Warm fresh milk almost to boiling; stir in as much flour as will make a mass that will turn clean out of the bowl without leaving anything adhering to the sides, roll out thin; cut into rounds; bake lightly and quickly. _Seed Cake._--As for pound cakes, but instead of currants and candied lemon peel, substitute a few caraway seeds; omit sugar on top. _Short-Bread._--Rub 1 lb. butter into 3 lb. flour; add 1½ lb. powdered loaf sugar; wet up with ¼ pint each honey-water and milk, and 2 eggs; break in pieces about 1½ oz. each; roll oval or round to size of tea-saucer; pinch round edge; place 1 in. from each other on clean tins, not buttered; cut ½ lb. candied orange or lemon peel into pieces, and lay on top; bake in steady oven. _Shrewsbury Cake._--Mix ¾ lb. powdered loaf sugar with 1¼ lb. flour; rub ¾ lb. butter in with the flour and sugar; add 1 white and 3 yolks of eggs; mix together to a smooth paste; roll into thin sheets; cut out cakes about size of half-a-crown; place on clean tins; bake in slow oven till they begin to change colour. _Simnel Cake._--In some counties these are called “Mothering” cakes, it being the custom to have them on mid-Lent or Mothering Sunday. A simnel cake is really neither more nor less than any other very rich plum cake, the only difference being that it is first boiled and then baked (very slowly) in a crust of flour and water, with which has been mixed some saffron to make it look yellow. To make the cake, beat up 1½ lb. butter with the hand till it becomes a cream, and whip the whites of 8 fresh eggs to a froth; mix these with the creamed butter, and afterwards add the 8 yolks well beaten; add 1 lb. castor sugar, 2 teaspoonfuls salt, 2 lb. well cleaned and dried currants, 1½ lb. flour, ½ lb. candied lemon peel, and the same of citron, cut very thin, ½ oz. pounded nutmeg, cinnamon and allspice, ½ lb. blanched almonds pounded, 6 large lumps of sugar rubbed on the rinds of 4 oranges and then pounded, beating each of the above ingredients into the flour before adding the next; also stir in 1 wineglassful brandy, continuing to beat the cake for more than ½ hour. Roll out the paste, made as directed, somewhat less than ½ in. thick; put a cloth wrung out of boiling water and floured into a large basin, over this put the rolled-out paste, and into the paste put the cake mixture when sufficiently beaten. Close the paste by folding it over, and then tie it up in the cloth. Remove it from the basin, which was merely to support the cake while tying it up, and put it on to boil for 3 hours. Remove the cloth, and place the cake on a baking tin the smooth side upwards. When nearly cold, brush it well over with egg, and put it to bake in a very slow oven until the crust is as hard as wood. The crust should be a light colour. _Soda Scones._--To 2 lb. flour add 1 oz. butter, ½ oz. soda bicarbonate, ¼ oz. tartaric acid, and 1 qt. milk or butter-milk; mix and bake as scones. _Spice Gingerbread._--Take 3 lb. flour, 1 lb. butter, 1 lb. moist sugar, 4 oz. candied lemon or orange peel cut small, 1 oz. powdered ginger, 2 oz. powdered allspice, ½ oz. powdered cinnamon, 1 oz. caraway seeds, and 3 lb. treacle; rub the butter with your hand into the flour; add the other ingredients, and mix it in the dough with the treacle; make into nuts or cakes; bake in cool oven. _Spice Nuts._--Take 7 lb. treacle; rub 1 lb. butter into 9 lb. flour; mix 4 oz. each ground allspice and ground ginger, 2 oz. each caraway and coriander seeds powdered, with butter, flour, and treacle; roll 1 lb. moist sugar, and strew over top; roll out in long rolls about size of finger; cut in pieces size of nutmeg; place on buttered tins; wash with water or small-beer; bake in steady oven. _Sponge Cake._--Into ¾ lb. powdered sugar, break ¾ lb. eggs in a warm pan; whisk till cold; stir in ½ lb. flour; have tins ready buttered and sugared; put about ¾ tablespoonful into each; sift sugar over; bake in moderately brisk oven. _Sweetmeat Nuts._--Take 7 lb. treacle; mix 4 oz. ground ginger, 6 oz. ground allspice, 8 oz. candied lemon and orange, cut small, with 9 lb. flour; wet up with treacle; beat in dough 4 lb. butter and 5 lb. moist sugar; lay off on buttered tins, about the size of walnuts, flat down, wash with water, and bake in slow oven. _Sweet Rusks._--Cut a diet-bread cake into thin long slices; lay on iron plates, and brown quickly in very hot oven; turn when of a light-brown colour; when of same colour on other side, they are done. _Tea Cake._--Break 8 eggs into a warm pan on 1 lb. pounded and sifted loaf sugar; beat together till thick and whitish; stir in lightly 1 lb. sifted flour; with a bag and pipe, as for Savoy biscuits, form mixture into drops about size of half-a-crown, 1 in. apart, on sheets of whited brown paper; dust lightly with powdered loaf sugar; place on tins; bake in good heat till nicely coloured; remove from paper as Savoy biscuits. _Thick Gingerbread._--Take 7 lb. treacle; rub ¾ lb. butter into 12 lb. flour; mix 3 oz. caraway, 2 oz. ground coriander seeds, and 2 oz. ground allspice, with flour and treacle; mould; in a week make into cakes, on a mould or print; butter the sides, and place close together on buttered tins; put up-sets round, wash with milk, and bake in steady heat; when done, wash with egg and milk. _Tops and Bottoms._--Prepare as for rusks; make into small balls about the size of a large walnut; place on tins in straight rows just to touch; prove well; bake in a moderate heat; when cold, draw a sharp knife between rows; to cut balls out square turn on side, and cut through middle, one at a time: place close on tin, with cut part upwards; put in warm oven; done when nicely browned over. _Twelfth Cake._--Prepare as for plum or bride cake; or, if as for plain pound cake, take 3 lb. currants, 4 oz. candied orange and lemon peel, to every pound of sugar; make any size; when done, ice over, and lay on ornaments while ice is wet. _Venice Cake._--Cut a Savoy cake in slices ½ to ¾ in. thick, in a parallel direction from the bottom to the top; spread each slice with raspberry or apricot jam, or some of each alternately, or any other sort of preserve. Replace each piece in its original form: when completed, make an icing as directed for cakes, with 4 whites of eggs to 1 lb. sugar, which will make it rather thin. It may be coloured with cochineal, &c.; spread it over the cake, which, being thin, will run into the flutes and mouldings of the cake, when it will appear of the same form as before. Let dry in the mouth of the oven, but be careful it does not get discoloured. When dry, ornament with piping. Savoy cakes are often done in the same manner, without being cut in slices, to ornament them; or they may be done without icing, and either piped, or ornamented with gum-paste borders, &c., which are fixed on with dissolved gum arabic. Volutes or high and projecting figures are supported with pieces of small wire. _Vienna Bread._--Add to 1 pint new milk, 2 oz. fresh German yeast, 6 oz. each best loaf sugar and good butter, and sufficient best Vienna flour to form a tight or stiff dough; shape into rolls, pointed at each end; bake rich brown colour in quick oven. _Wine Biscuits._--2 lb. flour, 1 lb. butter, 4 oz. sifted loaf sugar; rub the sugar and butter into the flour, and make into a stiff paste with milk; pound in a mortar; roll out thin, and cut into sizes or shapes to fancy; lay on buttered paper or iron plates: brush tops with milk; bake in warm oven; glaze by brushing over with a brush dipped in egg; caraway seeds may be added. _York Biscuits._--Prepare as for filbert biscuits; dock; bake in hot oven, and do not wash over. _Yorkshire Cake._--Rub 4 oz. butter into 7 lb. flour; wet up with 1 qt. warm milk, 1 pint warm water, and ½-¾ pint good yeast; prove about 20 minutes; make into cakes, and put on warm tins; when well proved, make a hole in the middle, size of finger; bake in hot oven; when done, wash with a little melted butter. _Yule Cakes._--Put 1 lb. sifted flour into a large basin, to which add 1 saltspoonful salt; dissolve ¼ oz. German yeast in ½ pint tepid water, and stir into the flour with a wooden spoon; cover it with a thick cloth, and let it stand in a warm place for an hour to rise, add ½ lb. butter beaten to a cream, ½ lb. moist sugar, ⅙ nutmeg (grated), ¾ lb. currants, 4 oz. candied peel (chopped), and 2 beaten eggs; mix well, and only half fill the tin into which you put it; bake in a moderate oven for 1¾-2 hours; turn it out of the tin to get cold. _THE KITCHEN._ This chapter may be divided into 3 sections, dealing respectively with (1) the Fittings, embracing the cooking range, pots, pans, &c.; (2) the Processes of Cookery; and (3) Recipes for the preparation of a great variety of dishes and their adjuncts, such as sauces, &c. THE FITTINGS. _Ranges._--There is no subject more interesting to the housekeeper, or of more importance in the household, than the proper preparation of our food by cooking, and good results can only be obtained by two means, a fair knowledge of cookery, and (absolutely necessary under any circumstances) an efficient cooking apparatus. There are stringent laws governing our sanitary arrangements, and it is to be regretted that equally stringent laws do not exist to govern the efficiency of the apparatus under discussion, for it must be acknowledged that if the latter is not fairly perfect, it interferes with the health and comfort of a household. A vast number of badly fixed and badly constructed ranges are in use at the present moment. The speculative builder, not being governed by any rules or laws, is apt to purchase and use a cheap range, provided its general appearance is pleasing, “brick-flue” ranges being invariably adopted. It is in the construction of these brick flues where the trouble generally arises, as the flues in question have to be made by the builders’ man or fixer, who is more or less experienced in range work (commonly less), and, as everyone knows, the flues are the most important part of the range. Their importance is so great that one small error or want of judgment will ruin the most costly brick-flue range made. Brick-flue ranges, wherever possible, should be fixed by the makers, and the same remark may be applied to “iron-flue” ranges. The difference between a brick-flue and an iron-flue range is, that in the former all the flues are built in brickwork by the person fixing the stove, and in the latter all the flues are made of iron by the range manufacturer. It is acknowledged that the latter are superior, but they are not generally adopted on account of increase in cost (not great). The superiority consists in the greater durability, never requiring re-setting, greater efficiency, and, most important, it being almost impossible for even an ignorant man to set them wrongly. Iron flues also are slower in becoming fouled and more easily cleaned. But these flues should be of cast iron, and not less than ¼ in. substance. Brick flues have several failings as is known to almost everyone, for it is a very common saying that the range does not work because it is not set well, or wants re-setting. In the first place, a bricklayer, however skilled, cannot know the correct size of flues for certain ranges so well as the manufacturers, and secondly, on the first occasion that such a range is used, expansion takes place and, in cooling, the metal and the brickwork part company, causing leakage of draught, and so tending to spoil efficiency; and in time the unequal expansion and contraction make re-setting necessary, which should never arise with an iron-flue range. It may be here mentioned that immediately air or draught leaks into the flues from any cause whatever, the good results will be diminished, or, in other words, it will take a greater quantity of fuel to do a certain amount of work, apart from the inconvenience, worry, increased labour, &c. It will be noticed that the above remarks only apply to the comparatively modern close-fire ranges or kitcheners. Open-fire Ranges.--The now old fashioned open range, although very often met with, is rapidly dying out, as its disadvantages are very great, and it is ill adapted for modern cookery (which may be correctly defined as hot-plate cookery). Its disadvantages may be summed up as follows:--dirtiness, as all the cooking vessels have to be put in contact with the fire; aptness for smoking, as under almost the best of circumstances, a “blower” is necessary; extravagance; intense heat radiated into the kitchen, and so necessitating the use of a screen (or what might be more properly termed a cook protector); and irregularity in action, as unless the cook is careful or really skilful in attention, it cannot be relied upon one day to give the results it gave the previous day, and the chimney requires very frequent sweeping. It is a capital range for roasting in front, an advantage highly appreciated by many (but in England only). Hot Plates.--A hot-plate consists very generally of a mass of brickwork surmounted by a strong cast-iron plate with several apertures in it, these apertures being provided with covers; a furnace or fire-place is situated at one end of the structure and at the opposite end is the chimney; between the furnace and the chimney a flue or passage for the flame and heat is provided, and this flue is situated immediately under the iron plate, so that when the fire is alight the plate quickly reaches a very high temperature, hence the term “hot-plate.” A hot-plate, as will be understood, is adapted for boiling, stewing, &c. only, and it cannot be recommended as economical. Baking Ovens.--These are made exactly like the ovens used by bakers but upon a smaller scale, suited for domestic requirements. They consist of an oven having a flue passing up each side of it, the fire or furnace being situated at the base. The results are very good, as the oven thus has an excess heat at bottom, which is so necessary for the baking of bread and pastry. Close-fire Ranges or “Kitcheners.”--This is the form of cooking-ranges now in general favour, and under ordinary circumstances very satisfactory results are obtained both in efficiency and economy. Close-fire ranges are made in various forms, the smaller and medium sizes generally having an oven on one side and a boiler on the other, the fire being situated between. The larger sizes are also made like this if desired, but more generally they have one or more ovens On each side of the fire, the boiler (either high or low pressure, or steam) being placed at the back of the fire. This is the most economical arrangement, as the boiler then utilises the only space that cannot be used for anything else. The ovens of these ranges are invariably heated by means of flues; a flue is a passage by which the flame-heat and products of combustion pass from the fire to the chimney, and a flue is so constructed that the heat in passing is caused to impinge upon the under surface of the hot plate, upon the oven, and upon any part or surface where heat is needed. Fig. 69 (in section) will acquaint the reader with the general arrangement of a close-fire range, such as is at present in use. The oven, it will be noticed, is heated by means of a flue passing over down the outer side and under the oven, and an oven of this description is known as a “Leamington” oven, as it is the arrangement that was first introduced in what is known as the “Leamington range.” The Leamington range was first made (in Leamington) some 30 years ago, and with at the time such a vast improvement upon the cooking apparatus then in use that it has remained in favour up till the present day, and it will be noticed in the ranges that are described farther on that very little improvement has been made upon it, except in one or two instances. From the illustration it will be seen that the oven must necessarily have an excess heat at top and the least heat at bottom. This is the best arrangement for meat roasting, as the heat is not required under the roasting-pan; but for pastry, this arrangement is ruinous, as the oven is thus heated in precisely an opposite manner to a baker’s oven, and this is its only objection. Every housekeeper knows that pastry requires a bottom heat to make it rise and be light. As the heat passes over the oven, it also heats the hot plate which forms the upper surface of the flue. It must now be explained why the flame, &c., passes around the oven when its natural tendency is of course to go upwards. The up-current of air or draught that exists in a chimney is treated and explained under Heating (see p. 79); this draught or up-current, as it rises, naturally causes fresh air to rush into the chimney to take the place of that which has risen. When a range is properly set the only opening through which this fresh supply of air can pass is through the fire, and thence by way of the flues into the chimney, this current is very rapid, and so carries all products from the fire with it, thus effectually distributing the heat as desired. When these products reach the bottom of the oven, they pass into a flue at the back, which is carried up and terminated in the chimney as shown. [Illustration: 69. Section of Close Range.] It will also be noticed from the illustration (and it is known to all who have used close ranges) that for the fire to be effectual it must be kept up, or in other words the flue-box must be kept _full_ of fuel as _all the work is done from the top of the fire_. It cannot be comprehended why range-makers still insist upon making such deep fires; they average about 10-12 in. in depth (or height), whereas 5-6 in. will give as good results with decidedly less fuel, as can be proved by anyone by using a high false bottom (this cannot be done if a high-pressure boiler is at back of fire, as it will prevent the heat passing under the flue). The reason is that, as before stated, all the work is done from the top of the fire, the hot plate and the entrance to the flues being both situated there; and it will be found that the fire-box, however deep, will not heat the oven or hot plate if it is only three-fourths full of fuel, as there will naturally be a space above the fuel where the air can pass through into the flues without being first heated, and will so tend to cool the ovens and hot plate most effectually. The only part of a range that still answers fairly when the fire-box is not full is the boiler at the back, as the flue of this is always at the bottom of the fire. _It is imperative with these ranges that all the air that passes into the chimney should first pass through the fire._ The dampers are metal plates which slide through suitable slots into the flues that are carried up the back of the range, they have knobs or handles in front by which they are pushed in or drawn out as desired. When drawn fully out, they leave the flue clear and do not obstruct the draught; when pushed quite in, they close the flue and stop the draught. They can be put in any intermediate position; their object is to regulate the draught to the requirements; by regulating the draught the heat and the consumption of fuel are regulated also, and by means of the dampers the heat can be closed off or put on to the oven, or boiler, &c., as desired. It is to the mismanagement of these dampers that the extravagance in many instances is due; if the draught is good, they should never be pulled out fully, as this will cause the fire to “roar;” they should be pushed in (both for ovens and boilers) until a murmuring sound is heard; this is the correct speed for all purposes in general. It cannot be too strongly impressed upon housewives that a “roaring” fire gives really _less_ result than a steadily burning one as described. Too fierce a fire has other serious results, viz., undue wear and tear to the range, overheating the kitchen, increased labour in attention and stoking, and the probability of the ovens, &c., becoming too hot; in fact general inconvenience is experienced by this, irrespective of the great waste of fuel. A good feature in a close-fire range is a means of making an open fire when no cooking or work is required to be done between meals, and in the evening. An open fire is very slow burning as it is not affected by the draught; it will burn 2 hours without attention, and is thus very economical, saves labour, and if desired the cook can leave the kitchen for a considerable time without anxiety as to whether the fire wants replenishing. The closed fire is decidedly the best form for cooking purposes, but when no cooking is required it must be attended to frequently or be permitted to go out. An open fire is also a ventilator, is cheerful for those in the kitchen, and if a good fire is left open at night, the boiler will be found to contain fairly warm, if not hot water in the morning. Ovens should always be provided with 2 ventilators, viz., an inlet and an outlet; there are very many ovens with even modern ranges that are only fitted with one ventilator, but a moment’s consideration will show that one ventilator is useless, as you cannot get air to pass out of an oven unless there is a means for a corresponding volume of air to pass in to replace it, and _vice versâ_, and means should be provided to warm the air as it passes in, for reasons that are obvious. The use of the ventilators is to take off the excess heat, the steam, smells of cooking, &c., from the oven (the outlet ventilator opening into the flue), and by use of the ventilators meat can be either roasted or baked in an oven, the distinction between roasting and baking being that to roast meat the air must have free access to the joint by opening the vents, whereas in baking meat the vents are closed and the meat is cooked in its own vapour, &c. The former method has the greatest number of advocates, as the results are the same as if it was roasted in front of the fire, _provided it has the same attention in basting, &c._ It may be here mentioned that in oven-roasting, a water-pan should be used, as it prevents the oven becoming foul by the burning and splashing of fat, and has other advantages; this pan really consists of 2 pans, one fitting within the other, a space of about ½ in. existing between, and a properly constructed meat-stand fitting into the upper one. The joint is put in position on the stand, and the whole is placed in the oven, _after_ which the space between the two is filled with water through an aperture provided for the purpose. These pans are very satisfactory in use, and are now in general favour. The cleaning of flues should be done once weekly, if the chimney has a good draught, or with hard fuel this time may be exceeded; but it is desirable to say once weekly, as it is then done at regular periods on a certain day; with a very sluggish draught it is sometimes found necessary to clean them a little oftener, as the soot is then nearly all deposited in the flues, and as the fire is longer in becoming bright, more soot is naturally formed (with a bright fire scarcely a particle of soot is formed, the combustion being nearly perfect). The correct method to clean the flues of a kitchen (close fire) range is as follows:--First remove all small flue-doors, loose covers, &c., then draw out the dampers to their full extent, take the flue-brush and pass it first up and then down the flues that are carried up the back of the range, inserting the brush through the openings that are provided just below the dampers; then brush the soot from the tops of the ovens down the flues at the sides; brush down these side flues; and lastly carefully scrape and brush out all the soot that has now accumulated in the flues under the ovens. But it must not be forgotten that the _bottom_ of the oven requires well brushing; this is often omitted, yet it is most important, as in many instances, as before explained, the utmost heat is needed at the bottom, and if it is coated with soot very little heat will pass through, as soot is a fairly good non-conductor of heat. After cleaning the flues, carefully replace all doors, covers, &c.; it cannot too strongly be impressed upon housewives that no opening must be left for the air to pass in, except first passing _through_ the fire. Soot in flues produces two different ill effects, viz., reducing the draught by choking the flues, and preventing the heat coming in proper contact with the oven, as it is a very bad conductor. The flue-brush for the average of flues should be about 4 in. in diameter at the hair, with a 3 ft. 6 in. or 4 ft. wire handle. Chimneys do not require sweeping nearly so often with close ranges as with open. With an entirely closed range it will with proper care go about 10 to 12 months; with a close range that can be opened (when not cooking) about 7-9 months, varying with different coals, &c. The management of a close-fire range has now been nearly all explained; it may be summed up as follows. At first lighting (after clearing the fire-box of ash, &c., in the usual way), draw out all dampness until the fire is established, after which push in dampers to a more or less extent according to draught. Never permit the fire to make a roaring noise, whether for oven or boiler. If the range has a high-pressure boiler, direct the heat to this until the water is hot, or until the range is required in preparing breakfast. After this meal, the dampers must be pushed in as far as possible to slacken the fire down until it is required for the midday meal (unless the range is required for any other purpose between these times), and the same follows after this meal. There are, however, very many residences where cooking, to a more or less extent is going on all day, in which case the regulation of the dampers must be left to the discretion of the cook. Thoroughly clean the flues _at regular periods_; if a high-pressure boiler exists, clear the flue under it of cinders, &c., every morning. Thoroughly clean inside the ovens and the oven shelves of any grease, &c., as this is the very general cause of unpleasant smells that pervade the house. When cooking, keep the fire-box well filled with fuel, by feeding it moderately often but in small quantities, as the fire must not be permitted to get low. Do not permit the hot plate to become red-hot; should it do so, push in dampers to decrease the draught, as the fire is burning too fiercely. Want of draught, which sometimes occurs, and causes an utter failure of the range is due to several causes, the chief of which are:--(_a_) Other flues running into the kitchen chimney, generally a copper flue, not provided with a damper to close it when not in use. (_b_) Leakage of air into the flues through some aperture, commonly around the range, caused by imperfect or hurried setting. This can be discovered by holding the flame of a candle near any likely spot, when the flame will be drawn through if any leakage exists. (_c_) Insufficient height of chimney; about 20 ft. is sufficient for say a 4 ft. range, but the chimney top must be as high as any adjacent building, or impeded or down draught will occur. Suburban villas, &c., are frequently designed with the kitchen situated at the back, in an addition to the main building, this addition generally being lower, in which case, if the chimney is not carried up to the necessary height great inconvenience and annoyance will ensue. Impeded or down draught is sometimes caused by high trees being situated near the chimney. (_d_) Sooty flues, through want of regular cleaning, or failing to put one of the flue doors in position after cleaning. The use of the door in the top covering-in plate of the range is, by partially opening it, to take off the objectionable smell when frying, &c.; to reduce the draught to the whole of the range; and for the sweep to operate through when sweeping the chimney. When a range is newly fixed, it will not give its best results until it has had good use for 6-8 days, as everything around it, the brickwork, &c., is damp and cold. They will sometimes smoke at first lighting, and as ranges differ considerably, a new range requires a certain amount of getting used to. When a range is newly set, the workmen should, before leaving, clear the flues, but this is sometimes neglected, and careless workmen have been known to leave even their tools in the flues. In instances where a strong draught exists, and the servants cannot be depended upon to regulate the dampers or open the door at top to decrease it, an excellent method is to cut a hole into the flue through the chimney breast above the mantelpiece and there insert a ventilator, but it must be a self-acting one. Arnott’s patent is the best suited for this purpose, as it can be set to a nicety, so that, when the draught is excessive, the valve opens and the chimney gets part of its air, without affecting the fire; this reduces the draught, and then the valve partially or wholly closes, and so it continues. The results are similar to those ensured by the governor on a steam engine, viz., giving uniform regularity to the work. Fuels.--The ordinary coals of commerce, such as Wallsend, Silkstone, Derby Main, &c., &c., although in general use, are not best adapted for close-fire ranges, which are really furnaces on a small scale, and should be treated as such. Coals such as the above are too highly charged with bitumen (tar), the major portion of which distils off as smoke, fouling the flue, and, as every particle of smoke is unconsumed fuel, there is considerable waste. These coals have also too great a proportion of hydrogen (producing flame) for furnace purposes, as combustion is so rapid; it will be noticed that when burning these soft bituminous coals, upon feeding the fire, volumes of smoke are first given off, after which the fuel fuses into a soft and sometimes sticky mass: this then flames violently for a short period, after which it is time to replenish the fire again. It must not, however, be concluded that fuels entirely free from hydrogen, such as anthracite, coke, charcoal, &c., are well suited for this work, as a fuel free of hydrogen gas burns without flame, and it is found desirable to have some flame, for the heat has to travel some 6 ft. (3 sides of the oven) before its work is performed. It is found that coke and anthracite give an intense local heat (i.e. immediately in or near the fire); but this has an ill effect with the Leamington oven, as making the top of the oven of so much higher a temperature than the bottom, which is fatal to pastry. Where, however, other fuels are not conveniently attainable, coke and anthracite can be used; but the results are not so satisfactory. Coke is almost always used on yachts, so that the sails, decks, &c., may be spotless; but a yacht range is of special make. Coke, broken to the size of a large walnut, and ordinary coal, mixed in about equal proportions, is found very satisfactory; but the best fuel for close-fire (or the convertible close or open fire) ranges is what is commonly known as hard steam coal; this is not the technical appellation for it, but it is generally recognised by this name, and any good firm of coal merchants stock it, as it is much used for small furnace work. This coal has several advantages, viz., low price (about 16_s._ to 19_s._ per ton), much less smoke and soot, more intense heat evolved, and greater length of time in consumption. This is a coal bordering upon anthracite in its nature and composition, but has a moderate percentage of hydrogen; care must be exercised to see that the correct coal is obtained, as should a coal merchant not keep it, he might consider that the low price was the chief consideration and would send a cheap soft coal, which is very unsuitable. This coal has one disadvantage, which is that it cannot be burned in the ordinary open grates unless the grate is provided with a blower, or some means of causing a draught to pass through the fire at first lighting or when heavily fed; it is therefore necessary to have convenience for keeping two sorts of coal. The best size of coal for these ranges is “nuts,” this is a size that will pass through a 2 in. hole (in a coal sieve) and not through a 1 in. hole. “Cobbles,” which is a 4 in. coal, is too large for this work. It is commonly understood that “nuts” and “cobbles” indicate certain qualities of coal, but it is not so, they denote size only. The kitchen range should be made to burn all the rubbish of the kitchen, provided it is combustible at all; but this should be done when the cooking of the day is finished. The following are some ranges of modern and reliable make which have withstood the criticism of the public and the trade, and are all having a fair share of favour. [Illustration] _The “National” Patent Open and Close Fire Kitchener_ (GEORGE WRIGHT & SONS, 113 Queen Victoria Street, E.C.). This method of converting from a close to an open fire, or _vice versâ_, is a great improvement on the ordinary arrangements for this purpose owing to its extreme simplicity, one movement only being required to effect the change, as will be seen by reference to the sectional diagrams, Figs. 70,