l, clap on its cover, set it into the nest,
push the cushion into the top of the cooker, clamp down the lid, and
your work is done, for the cooking will go merrily on all alone by
itself in your fireless cooker.

While you are making your fireless cooker, remember that the thermos
bottle is made on the same principle. And remember, too, that your
non-conducting packing material will keep heat out just as well as it
keeps heat in. In the summer time you may wish to keep your ice cream
cold for a while in your fireless cooker. Perhaps you will see how this
might help on a hot summer's day and what a comfort a fireless cooker
might prove in a sick room.

The Ice Chest. How It Is Made

In taking care of food we must be provided with a cool place, for the
storage of milk, butter, cream, and all cooked food that may spoil. In
summer this is especially important; in an apartment, and in most city
houses the ice chest is needed all the year around; in the country, it
is needed only in the warm months.

The ice chest is built much as the fireless cooker is made. Its case is
usually made of wood, its packing material must be non-conducting, and
its lining must be some smooth surface through which water cannot pass.
Some ice chests are lined with zinc and some with porcelain tiles. In
some ice chests, food and ice are kept in the same box, which usually
opens at the top; in other chests there is a separate chamber for the
ice. From the ice chamber a drain pipe carries away the water which
drips from the melting ice.

Every ice chest must be kept clean and sweet. It should be looked over
every day and washed carefully at least once a week. No crumbs of food
should be left on the shelves. If you spill anything, wipe it up _clean_
at once.

The drain pipe must be kept clean. A long wire brush is used for this.
If you are buying an ice box, get one with removable pipes, which are
easily cleaned. If there is any odor from the chest, scald with water
and soda, a teaspoonful of soda to a quart of water. Rinse with fresh
cold water.

If your ice chest drips into a pan which must be emptied daily, have a
regular time for emptying it. An overflowing pan in an apartment may
damage the ceiling below. If it drips into a pan which drains itself, be
sure that the drain is kept clean and the entrance to the pipe
unclogged. Clean the drip pan whenever you clean the ice chest.

It is a good plan to keep food in closed containers like fr