y, with as large a mouth as any bottle you
have, into which cut your lemon and orange peel when they are fresh
and sweet. This brandy gives a delicious flavor to all sorts of
pies, puddings, and cakes. Lemon is the pleasantest spice of the
two; therefore they should be kept in separate bottles. It is a good
plan to preserve rose-leaves in brandy. The flavor is pleasanter
than rose-water; and there are few people who have the utensils for
distilling. Peach leaves steeped in brandy make excellent spice for
custards and puddings.

It is easy to have a supply of horse-radish all winter. Have a
quantity grated, while the root is in perfection, put it in bottles,
fill it with strong vinegar, and keep it corked tight.

It is thought to be a preventive to the unhealthy influence of
cucumbers to cut the slices very thin, and drop each one into cold
water as you cut it. A few minutes in the water takes out a large
portion of the slimy matter, so injurious to health. They should be
eaten with high seasoning.

Where sweet oil is much used, it is more economical to buy it by the
bottle than by the flask. A bottle holds more than twice as much as a
flask, and it is never double the price.

If you wish to have free-stone hearths dark, wash them with soap, and
wipe them with a wet cloth; some people rub in lamp-oil, once in a
while, and wash the hearth faithfully afterwards. This does very well
in a large, dirty family; for the hearth looks very clean, and is not
liable to show grease spots. But if you wish to preserve the beauty
of a freestone hearth, buy a quantity of free-stone powder of the
stone-cutter, and rub on a portion of it wet, after you have washed
your hearth in hot water. When it is dry, brush it off, and it will
look like new stone. Bricks can be kept clean with redding stirred up
in water, and put on with a brush. Pulverized clay mixed with redding,
makes a pretty rose color. Some think it is less likely to come
off, if mixed with skim milk instead of water. But black lead is far
handsomer than anything else for this purpose. It looks very well
mixed with water, like redding; but it gives it a glossy appearance
to boil the lead in soft soap, with a little water to keep it from
burning. It should be put on with a brush, in the same manner as
redding; it looks nice for a long time, when done in this way.

Keep a bag for odd pieces of tape and strings; they will come in use.
Keep a bag or box for old buttons, so tha