Chapter XV: Part V: Mistress--Mother--Nurse--And Maid (3)

You must next clean the sink, which, if of stone, is best done with a hard brush and a little soda; or, if of lead, with the following mixture:--One pennyworth of pearlash, one pennyworth of soft-soap, and one pennyworth of fuller's-earth, (the fuller's-earth dried,) mixed together in a pipkin, or something of the kind, with a quart of water. About a table-spoonful of this on a piece of flannel will clean the leaden sink.

982. _Cleaning the Spit, Frying-pan, &c._--The spit, if one is used, must also be always perfectly cleaned when done with. A little dripping rubbed on a hot frying-pan or gridiron, after cleaning it, will greatly remove the smell and taste of fish; but some persons rub a little salt well about the inside of a hot frying-pan, with a piece of clean paper, which also removes the taste of fish or onions. If these things are put away into damp places, they will soon become unfit for use.

983. _Cabbage-water to be thrown away._--Always remember that green water, that is, water in which cabbage, or any other vegetable is boiled, should be thrown down the sink the moment the vegetables are out of it, while it is quite hot, and then a pailful of cold water thrown after it, will prevent the unhealthy smell arising from green water; but if it be left till it is cold, or nearly cold before you throw it away, twenty pails of water thrown after it will not prevent the smell.

984. _Scalding Milk vessels._--Be careful to scald every vessel which has contained milk, having previously let it stand for some time filled with cold water, and never let any other liquid be put into it till it has undergone this process; or whatever you put in will be spoiled.

985. _Cleaning Bread-pans, &c._--Your pan for keeping bread should be wiped out every day, and scalded once a week; in the same way clean the cheese-pan, or both your bread and cheese will become mouldy and musty; and cheese should always be kept standing on its _rind_; and the rind should be scraped before it is sent to the table.

986. _Keeping Beer._--You should not let beer stand in a pot or jug; but, if there be any left, put it into a clean bottle, with a tea-spoonful of sugar, and cork it tightly.

987. Never suffer two things to be put together, which would give to each other a disagreeable taste or flavor. Never cut bread, or butter, or meat, with a knife which has been used for cheese or onions, or the bread, butter, or meat will taste of them. Therefore, you should put the knife which you have used for these purposes, in some place separate from the other knives, and never allow it to be put with them until it has been properly cleaned.

988. _Washing Pickle and Preserve-Jars._--Whenever pickle or preserve jars are empty, wash them well in cold water--dry them thoroughly--and put them in a dry place. If you wash pickle or preserve-jars in hot water, it will crack their glazed surface, and make them porous, which spoils them for use, as pickles and preserves require to have the air kept from them.

989. _Cleaning Dish-Covers._--Dish-covers should always be wiped and polished as soon as they are removed from the table. If this is done whilst they are warm, it will be but little trouble; but, if the steam be allowed to dry on them, you will find much difficulty in getting the tarnish off from the insides. When they are wiped and polished, hang them up in their places immediately.

990. _Of the Paste-Board, Rolling-Pin, &c._--After making puddings or pastry, wash your rolling-pin and paste-board, without soap, and put it away quite dry. Never use, nor allow others to use, any of the family dinner or tea-service, in the kitchen; as, if one thing be broken, it would perhaps spoil a valuable set; but, always use for cooking, the plates, dishes, and cups, provided for that purpose, which are usually plain, and though of course equally clean, are much less expensive. Keep the bread, cheese, butter, flour, dripping, milk, eggs, and every thing else you may require in cooking, in their distinct and separate places; and be careful to put them away as soon as you have done with them.

991. _Of keeping Hot Water._--It is highly necessary that you should keep a plentiful supply of hot water, by constantly filling-up the boiler whenever water is taken out of it. A self-acting boiler does not require to be filled, as it fills itself as fast as the water is drawn out; but you must be very careful in frosty weather, to watch whether the water continues to run; for if the water in the pipes becomes frozen, and you allow the boiler to get empty, the consequence is almost sure to be, that when the frost melts, the cold water comes suddenly into the hot boiler, and splits it. The damage can only be repaired by having a new boiler, which costs, perhaps, from ten to twenty-five dollars; so you may see how important it is that you should prevent so serious an accident.

992. _Of Ventilating Rooms._--Do not keep your kitchen always hot, and be sure you let in fresh air. If the attention of every master or mistress of a family turned to the ventilation of their dwelling, it would be greatly the means of insuring health. One single ventilator in the uppermost staircase window, would effect a great deal. Great attention ought to be paid to letting the chamber-windows down from the top, frequently through the day, particularly where the family sits.

993. _Of preparing Tea._--When the tea-time arrives, it is your duty to cut the bread-and-butter, or make the toast. You should never send up more than one or two rounds of buttered toast at once, according to the number to partake of it, that it may be hot and fresh when it is handed round. You must cut off the crusts as close as you can, after it is made and buttered. If a tea-urn is used, it will be your duty to get it ready in time, and put in the boiling water when it is wanted: you must also remember to make the urn-iron red-hot, by putting it into the kitchen fire after dinner, or at least for an hour before tea-time. When you use the tea-urn, be careful to do as follows:--

Take care that the water boils, and that the urn-heater is red-hot; then, in the first place, dust the urn, and put the boiling water into it, before you put in the heater; and, to prevent giving an unpleasant taste, or spoiling the boiling water by dust, or particles of the hot iron, (which may rub off the heater as you are putting it into its place,) be careful to put on the round rim, or ring, before you put in the red-hot heater; and be sure, also, to avoid pouring any water into the place where the heater goes; otherwise, when the iron is put in, the steam may fly up in your face, and scald you seriously. Taking the urn up into the parlor or drawing-room, is the housemaid's business; and she should not forget the rug to place it on, or the heat issuing from it will certainly spoil the polished table: and it is also the housemaid's business to empty the urn when done with, which she must be careful to turn upside down, to drain.

994. _Taking care of the Fire._--The cookmaid's last duties of the day, are--to take great care that the kitchen fire is so nearly out, as to be quite safe; and that nothing is left hanging before the fire-place; then she must see that the kitchen windows and shutters are fastened, and lock and bolt all the doors and windows that have not been fastened earlier in the evening.

995. _Cleaning Knives, Forks, &c._--If a lad or man-servant is kept, he cleans the steel knives and forks, as well as the shoes and boots; and also brushes the gentlemen's clothes: but, in that large number of families who keep no boy nor man, it becomes the business of the cookmaid to clean the steel knives and forks. [See the best manner of preparing the knife-board, &c., in another part of this book.]

996. _Care of Table-Knives._--Be careful to keep a good edge to your knives, and do your utmost to preserve them from notches, especially the carving-knife, otherwise a hot joint may get cold while the knife has to be sent from table to be sharpened. A keen edge may be given by cleaning alone, if care be taken, in passing the knife from you, not to let the edge lean on the board, but, in drawing it towards you, to lean with a little pressure on the edge.

The knives which are not in daily use, should, after being wiped with a dry cloth, be put into the cases, or wrapped in very dry brown paper, and so placed as not to touch each other, the same way as the cutlers keep them. Great care should be taken that the place in which they are put is perfectly dry--as all articles made of steel have a tendency to contract rust, that metal having the property of extracting damp from the atmosphere, or from anything moist near to it. If the ivory handles of the knives and forks get stained, or become discolored, mix a table-spoonful of water with a few drops of spirits of salt--rub it well on with a little bit of clean rag--wash it off with cold water--and wipe them perfectly dry.

997. _Of cleaning Boots and Shoes._--Where no man-servant is kept, the cook or housemaid must clean the shoes and boots. First, scrape the dirt off the shoe with a wooden knife, or piece of firewood, cut to something of an edge. When the worst of the dirt is thus taken off, use your hard brush to remove the remainder, or the leather will never be bright. Stir the blacking with a short fine sponge, tied round one end of it; and, with this, put some blacking on the blacking-brush, and black the shoe all over; use the polishing-brush directly, while it remains damp, and rub it lightly, yet briskly, till the shoe shines perfectly bright. When boots or shoes are laid down before a fire to dry, let them be placed at a good distance, or the leather will harden and shrink, and the shoes get out of shape.

998. _Of cleaning Candlesticks._--It is the duty of the cookmaid to clean the chamber candlesticks used by the servants, and the candlesticks belonging to the kitchen (those used by the family in the parlors, drawing-rooms, and best bed-rooms, belong to the housemaid's work). Before you commence, have a sheet of thick brown paper laid on a table, or on whatever else you intend to clean them, to save making a grease. Then scrape off the grease on to the brown paper with a piece of firewood, and put all you scrape off into your kitchen-stuff. The candlesticks should then be put, upside down, in the deepest candlestick, at a little distance from the fire, so that all the grease may melt, and drain into one. This grease should also be put into the kitchen stuff, and the candlesticks wiped perfectly clean with the candlestick-rag, or with a cloth kept for that purpose. The polishing should be done with a little dry rotten-stone, or dry whiting, put on a leather. The cookmaid has usually a candle-box provided for her, into which she puts all the pieces of candle, for kitchen use. This box should be lined with white paper, which should be frequently renewed, or the candles will become very dirty, and be unpleasant to burn, from bits of the snuff sticking to them. Always set the candles in the candlesticks in the fore part of the day, that they be ready when wanted, and that all the dirty work may be done before cooking commences.

999. _Washing-Day._--If the washing be done at home, the cookmaid will have to assist; and the changes of linen, and the kitchen things, usually fall to her share. She generally folds and irons all but the fine things and the dresses. It is usual also for her to fill the copper; and for the housemaid to sort the clothes ready for the wash. Much time as well as labor will be saved by preparing the clothes for the wash the day before the washing-day; that is by putting them in soak, the fine things and coarse things in different tubs, after having examined, and rubbed with soap such places as are most dirty, such as the collars and wristbands of shirts, the parts of table-cloths cloths which are most soiled, and any place in the different articles which would require more than usual rubbing. Indeed, everything should be prepared the day before; the copper filled with soft water, the tubs rinsed and wiped, inside and out (taking care that they do not leak). The best way to prevent the tubs from leaking, is to turn them bottom upwards after using, and keep the bottom filled with water, without which they will not only leak but fall to pieces, in summer weather.

1000. _Care of Clothes-lines, &c._--Clothes-lines, when done with, should be wiped quite clean, and put away dry in a bag, for future use, or they will dirty the clothes. A bag should also be kept for the pegs; and both bags should be kept in a dry place.

1001. _Folding and Mangling._--Before you begin to fold the clothes, let the board be quite clean and dry, and a clean linen cloth placed upon it. Separate those things which are to be mangled, and those which are for rough-drying. Turn shirts, shifts, night-gowns, pillow-cases, petticoats, &c., the right side outwards; fold them very smoothly, and sprinkle them to a proper dampness for ironing. If the collars, wristbands, and frills, or pleated front of a shirt, be dipped in a little starch, then into water, and rolled up without squeezing, it will bring the whole of the shirt to a proper dampness, when it has lain for some time.

The articles usually mangled are, sheets, towels, table-linen, pillow-cases, and other straight things; but if there be any folds, they will not look well when mangled. Pearl-buttons will break in the mangle, and cut the cloth, therefore, all things with buttons, and even pillow-cases, if they have buttons, should not be mangled.

1002. _Of Ironing._--The ironing-blanket should be made of a thick kind of flannel, called swan's-skin, and a coarse cloth should be spread between it and the board. When you are ironing, be careful to try your iron first upon some coarse article, or one of little value, for fear of its soiling or singeing the better clothes. Let the heat be in proportion to the article you are about to iron, and be sure to make every part perfectly smooth.

After they are ironed, the things should be hung upon the horse to air. The cookmaid is now done with the washing, as it is the housemaid's business to air them, and to place them in the drawers, when aired; but in many families, the putting of them away is done by the mistress of the house, or by some of the young ladies.

In ironing the skirts of dresses, it is best and most proper to have a board about thirteen inches wide and four feet long, on which fasten, with tapes, an ironing-blanket; place one end of it on a table, and the other end on the dresser, or something that is firm, of the same height as the table. In using this board, pass it through the skirt, taking care that the wet part of the dress falls into a clothes-basket, or a cloth, which you must first put on the floor, under the middle of the board, to save the skirt from being soiled; and turn the skirt of the dress round the board, as you iron it.

1003. _Save the Rags._--All rags of cotton or linen should be saved by the cookmaid; they should never be thrown away because they are not clean. Mop-rags, lamp-rags, all should be washed, dried and put in the rag-bag. There is no need of expending soap on them; just boil them out in the suds after you have done washing.

Linen rags should be carefully saved; for they are extremely useful in sickness. If they have become dirty and worn by cleaning silver, &c., wash them, and scrape them into lint.