teful and strengthening.

STONE STAIRS AND HALLS. In order to clean these properly, boil a pound
of pipe-maker's clay with a quart of water, a quart of small beer, and a
bit of stone blue. Wash the stairs or the floor with this mixture, and
when dry, rub it with flannel and a brush.

STOPPLES. When a glass stopple is set fast, in a bottle or decanter, rub
a drop or two of olive oil round it, close to the mouth of the decanter,
and place it near the fire. The oil will soon insinuate itself
downwards, and the stopple may then be loosened by the hand, or by
striking it lightly with a piece of soft wood. Sometimes the rubbing of
the neck of the bottle with a small key, and striking the head of the
stopper, will be sufficient to loosen it, without the application of any
oil.

STORING. The storing of fruits, vegetables, and roots, has been
performed in various ways, which are well known already; but lately some
better modes have been suggested for this purpose. For apples and pears,
after they have been carefully gathered from the trees, and laid in
heaps covered with clean cloths or mats for sweating, which is effected
in three or four days, they remaining for that length of time
afterwards, they are to be wiped separately with clean cloths; when some
glazed earthen jars are to be provided with tops and covers, and
likewise a quantity of pure pit-sand, which is quite free from any
mixture. This is to be thoroughly dried upon a flue. Then put a layer of
this sand an inch thick on the bottoms of the jars; above this layer of
fruit, a quarter of an inch free of each other; covering the whole with
sand to the depth of an inch; then a second course of fruit is to be
laid in, and again covered with an inch of the sand, proceeding in the
same way until the whole be finished and completed. An inch and a half
in depth of sand may be laid over the last or uppermost layer of fruit;
when the jars are to be closed and placed in some dry situation, as cool
as possible, but entirely out of the way of frost. The usual time at
which each kind of such fruits should be ready for the table being
known, the jars containing such fruit may, it is said, be examined, by
turning out the sand and fruit together cautiously into a sieve. The
ripe fruit may then be laid upon the shelves of the fruit-room for use,
and the unripe be carefully replaced in the jars as before, but with
fresh dry sand. Some kinds of apples managed in this way, will, it