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CHAPTER XXX.
ON THE CARE OF BREAKFAST AND DINING-ROOMS
An eating-room should have in it a large closet, with drawers and shelves, in which should be kept all the articles used at meals. This, if possible, should communicate with the kitchen, by a sliding window, or by a door, and have in it a window, and also a small sink, made of marble or lined with zinc, which will be a great convenience for washing nice articles. If there be a dumb-waiter, it is best to have it connected with such a closet. It may be so contrived, that, when it is down, it shall form part of the closet floor.
A table-rug, or crumb-cloth, is useful to save carpets from injury. Bocking, or baize, is best. Always spread the same side up, or the carpet will be soiled by the rug. Table-mats are needful, to prevent injury to the table from the warm dishes. Teacup-mats, or small plates, are useful to save the table-cloths from dripping tea or coffee. Butter-knives, for the butter-plate, and salt-spoons, for salt-dishes, are designed to prevent those disgusting marks which are made, when persons use their own knives, to take salt or butter. A sugar-spoon should be kept in or by the sugar-dish, for the same purpose. Table-napkins, of diaper, are often laid by each person's plate, for use during the meal, to save the tablecloth and pocket-handkerchief. To preserve the same napkin for the same person, each member of the family has a given number, and the napkins are numbered to correspond, or else are slipped into ivory rings, which are numbered. A stranger has a clean one, at each meal. Tablecloths should be well starched, and ironed on the right side, and always, when taken off, folded in the ironed creases. Doilies are colored napkins, which, when fruit is offered, should always be furnished, to prevent a person from staining a nice handkerchief, or permitting the fruit-juice to dry on the fingers.
Casters and salt-stands should be put in order, every morning, when washing the breakfast things. Always, if possible, provide fine and dry table-salt, as many persons are much disgusted with that which is dark, damp, and coarse. Be careful to keep salad-oil closely corked, or it will grow rancid. Never leave the salt-spoons in the salt, nor the mustard-spoon in the mustard, as they are thereby injured. Wipe them, immediately after the meal.
For table-furniture, French china is deemed the nicest, but it is liable to the objection of having plates, so made, that salt, butter, and similar articles, will not lodge on the edge, but slip into the centre. Select knives and forks, which have weights in the handles, so that, when laid down, they will not touch the table. Those with rivetted handles last longer than any others. Horn handles (except buckhorn) are very poor. The best are cheapest in the end. Knives should be sharpened once a month, unless they are kept sharp by the mode of scouring.
On Setting Tables
Neat housekeepers observe the manner in which a table is set more than any thing else; and to a person of good taste, few things are more annoying, than to see the table placed askew; the tablecloth soiled, rumpled, and put on awry; the plates, knives, and dishes thrown about, without any order; the pitchers soiled on the outside, and sometimes within; the tumblers dim; the caster out of order; the butter pitched on the plate, without any symmetry; the salt coarse, damp, and dark; the bread cut in a mixture of junks and slices; the dishes of food set on at random, and without mats; the knives dark or rusty, and their handles greasy; the tea-furniture all out of order, and every thing in similar style. And yet, many of these negligences will be met with, at the tables of persons who call themselves well bred, and who have wealth enough to make much outside show. One reason for this, is, the great difficulty of finding domestics, who will attend to these things in a proper manner, and who, after they have been repeatedly instructed, will not neglect nor forget what has been said to them. The writer has known cases, where much has been gained by placing the following rules in plain sight, in the place where the articles for setting tables are kept.
Rules for setting a Table
1. Lay the rug square with the room, and also smooth and even; then set the table also square with the room, and see that the legs are in the right position to support the leaves.
2. Lay the tablecloth square with the table, right side up, smooth, and even.
3. Put on the teatray (for breakfast or tea) square with the table; set the cups and saucers at the front side of the teatray, and the sugar, slop-bowls, and cream-cup, at the back side. Lay the sugar-spoon or tongs on the sugar-bowl.
4. Lay the plates around the table, at equal intervals, and the knives and forks at regular distances, each in the same particular manner, with a cup-mat, or cup-plate, to each, and a napkin at the right side of each person.
5. If meat be used, set the caster and salt-cellars in the centre of the table; then lay mats for the dishes, and place the carving-knife and fork and steel by the master of the house. Set the butter on two plates, one on either side, with a butter-knife by each.
6. Set the tea or coffee-pot on a mat, at the right hand of the teatray, (if there be not room upon it.) Then place the chairs around the table, and call the family.
For Dinner
1. Place the rug, table, tablecloth, plates, knives and forks, and napkins, as before directed, with a tumbler by each plate. In cold weather, set the plates where they will be warmed.
2. Put the caster in the centre, and the salt-stands at two oblique corners, of the table, the latter between two large spoons crossed. If more spoons be needed, lay them on each side of the caster, crossed. Set the pitcher on a mat, either at a side-table, or, when there is no waiter, on the dining-table. Water looks best in glass decanters.
3. Set the bread on the table, when there is no waiter. Some take a fork, and lay a piece on the napkin or tumbler by each plate. Others keep it in a tray, covered with a white napkin to keep off flies. Bread for dinner is often cut in small junks, and not in slices.
4. Set the principal dish before the master of the house, and the other dishes in a regular manner. Put the carving-knife, fork, and steel, by the principal dish, and also a knife-rest, if one be used.
5. Put a small knife and fork by the pickles, and also by any other dishes which need them. Then place the chairs.
On Waiting at Table
A domestic, who waits on the table, should be required to keep the hair and hands in neat order, and have on a clean apron. A small teatray should be used to carry cups and plates. The waiter should announce the meal (when ready) to the mistress of the family, then stand by the eating-room door, till all are in, then close the door, and step to the left side of the lady of the house. When all are seated, the waiter should remove the covers, taking care first to invert them, so as not to drop the steam on the tablecloth or guests. In presenting articles, go to the left side of the person. In pouring water never entirely fill the tumbler. The waiter should notice when bread or water is wanting, and hand it without being called. When plates are changed, be careful not to drop knives or forks. Brush off crumbs, with a crumb-brush, into a small waiter.
When there is no domestic waiter, a light table should be set at the left side of the mistress of the house, on which the bread, water, and other articles not in immediate use, can be placed.
On Carving and Helping at Table
It is considered an accomplishment for a lady to know how to carve well, at her own table. It is not proper to stand in carving. The carving-knife should be sharp and thin. To carve fowls, (which should always be laid with the breast uppermost,) place the fork in the breast, and take off the wings and legs without turning the fowl; then cut out the merry thought, cut slices from the breast, take out the collar bone, cut off the side pieces, and then cut the carcass in two. Divide the joints in the leg of a turkey.
In helping the guests, when no choice is expressed, give a piece of both the white and dark meat, with some of the stuffing. Inquire whether the guest will be helped to each kind of vegetable, and put the gravy on the plate, and not on any article of food.
In carving a sirloin, cut thin slices from the side next to you, (it must be put on the dish with the tenderloin underneath;) then turn it, and cut from the tenderloin Help the guest to both kinds.
In carving a leg of mutton, or a ham, begin by cutting across the middle, to the bone. Cut a tongue across, and not lengthwise, and help from the middle part.
Carve a forequarter of lamb, by separating the shoulder from the ribs, and then dividing the ribs. To carve a loin of veal, begin at the smaller end and separate the ribs. Help each one to a piece of the kidney and its fat. Carve pork and mutton in the same way.
To carve a fillet of veal, begin at the top, and help to the stuffing with each slice. In a breast of veal, separate the breast and brisket, and then cut them up, asking which part is preferred. In carving a pig, it is customary to divide it, and take off the head, before it comes to the table; as, to many persons, the head is very revolting. Cut off the limbs, and divide the ribs. In carving venison, make a deep incision down to the bone, to let out the juices; then turn the broad end of the haunch towards you, cutting deep, in thin slices. For a saddle of venison, cut from the tail towards the other end, on each side, in thin slices. Warm plates are very necessary, with venison and mutton, and in Winter, are desirable for all meats.
CHAPTER XXXI.
ON THE CARE OF CHAMBERS AND BEDROOMS
Every mistress of a family should see, not only that all sleeping-rooms in her house can be well ventilated at night, but that they actually are so. Where there is no open fireplace to admit the pure air from the exterior, a door should be left open into an entry, or room where fresh air is admitted; or else a small opening should be made in a window, taking care not to allow a draught of air to cross the bed. The debility of childhood, the lassitude of domestics, and the ill-health of families, are often caused by neglecting to provide a supply of pure air. Straw matting is best for a chamber carpet, and strips of woollen carpeting may be laid by the side of the bed. Where chambers have no closets, a wardrobe is indispensable. This is a moveable closet, with doors, divided, by a perpendicular partition, into two apartments. In one division, rows of hooks are placed, on which to hang dresses. The other division is fitted up with shelves, for other uses. Some are made with drawers at the bottom for shoes, and such like articles. A low square box, set on casters, with a cushion on the top, and a drawer on one side to put shoes in, is a great convenience in dressing the feet. An old champaigne basket, fitted up with a cushion on the lid, and a valance fastened to it to cover the sides, can be used for the same purpose.
A comfortable couch, for chambers and sitting-rooms, can be made by a common carpenter, at a small expense. Have a frame made (like the annexed engraving, Fig. 38,) of common stuff, six feet long, twenty-eight inches wide, and twelve inches high. It must be made thus low, because the casters and cushions will raise it several inches. Have the sloping side-piece, a, and head-piece, b, sawed out of a board; nail brown linen on them, and stuff them with soft hay or hair. Let these be screwed to the frame, and covered with furniture patch. Then let slats be nailed across the bottom, as at c, c, four inches apart. This will cost two or three dollars. Then make a thick cushion, of hay or straw, with side strips, like a mattress, and lay this for the under-cushion. To put over this, make a thinner cushion, of hair, cover it with furniture-calico, and fasten to it a valance reaching to the floor. Then make two square pillows, and cover them with calico, like the rest. Both the cushions should be stitched through like mattresses.
Fig. 38.
The writer has seen a couch of this kind, in a common parlor, which cost less than eight dollars, was much admired, and was a constant comfort to the feeble mother, as well as many other members of the family.
Another convenience, for a room where sewing is done in Summer, is a fancy-jar, set in one corner, to receive clippings, and any other rubbish. It can be covered with prints, or paintings, and varnished; and then looks very prettily.
The trunks in a chamber can be improved in looks and comfort, by making cushions of the same size and shape, stuffed with hay and covered with chintz, with a frill reaching nearly to the floor.
Every bedchamber should have a washstand, bowl, pitcher, and tumbler, with a washbucket under the stand, to receive slops. A light screen, made like a clothes-frame, and covered with paper or chintz, should be furnished for bedrooms occupied by two persons, so that ablutions can be performed in privacy. It can be ornamented, so as to look well anywhere. A little frame, or towel-horse, by the washstand, on which to dry towels, is a convenience. A washstand should be furnished with a sponge or washcloth, and a small towel, for wiping the basin after using it. This should be hung on the washstand or towel-horse, for constant use. A soap-dish, and a dish for toothbrushes, are neat and convenient, and each person should be furnished with two towels; one for the feet, and one for other purposes.
It is in good taste to have the curtains, bedquilt, valance, and window-curtains, of similar materials. In making featherbeds, side-pieces should be put in, like those of mattresses, and the bed should be well filled, so that a person will not be buried in a hollow, which is not healthful, save in extremely cold weather. Featherbeds should never be used, except in cold weather. At other times, a thin mattress of hair, cotton and moss, or straw, should be put over them. A simple strip of broad straw matting, spread over a featherbed, answers the same purpose. Nothing is more debilitating, than, in warm weather, to sleep with a featherbed pressing round the greater part of the body. Pillows stuffed with papers an inch square, are good for Summer, especially for young children, whose heads should be kept cool. The cheapest and best covering of a bed, for Winter, is a cotton comforter, made to contain three or four pounds of cotton, laid in batts or sheets, between covers tacked together at regular intervals. They should be three yards square, and less cotton should be put at the sides that are tucked in. It is better to have two thin comforters, to each bed, than one thick one; as then the covering can be regulated according to the weather.
Few domestics will make a bed properly, without much attention from the mistress of the family. The following directions should be given to those who do this work.
Open the windows, and lay off the bed-covering, on two chairs, at the foot of the bed. After the bed is well aired, shake the feathers, from each corner to the middle; then take up the middle, and shake it well, and turn the bed over. Then push the feathers in place, making the head higher than the foot, and the sides even, and as high as the middle part. Then put on the bolster and the under sheet, so that the wrong side of the sheet shall go next the bed, and the marking come at the head, tucking in all around. Then put on the pillows, even, so that the open ends shall come to the sides of the bed, and then spread on the upper sheet, so that the wrong side shall be next the blankets, and the marked end at the head. This arrangement of sheets is to prevent the part where the feet lie from being reversed, so as to come to the face, and also to prevent the parts soiled by the body from coming to the bedtick and blankets. Then put on the other covering, except the outer one, tucking in all around, and then turn over the upper sheet, at the head, so as to show a part of the pillows. When the pillow-cases are clean and smooth, they look best outside of the cover, but not otherwise. Then draw the hand along the side of the pillows, to make an even indentation, and then smooth and shape the whole outside. A nice housekeeper always notices the manner in which a bed is made; and in some parts of the Country, it is rare to see this work properly performed.
The writer would here urge every mistress of a family, who keeps more than one domestic, to provide them with single beds, that they may not be obliged to sleep with all the changing domestics, who come and go so often. Where the room is too small for two beds, a narrow trucklebed under another, will answer. Domestics should be furnished with washing conveniences in their chambers, and be encouraged to keep their persons and rooms neat and in order.
On Packing and Storing Articles
Fold a gentleman's coat, thus:—Lay it on a table or bed, the inside downward, and unroll the collar. Double each sleeve once, making the crease at the elbow, and laying them so as to make the fewest wrinkles, and parallel with the skirts. Turn the fronts over the back and sleeves, and then turn up the skirts, making all as smooth as possible.
Fold a shirt, thus:—One that has a bosom-piece inserted, lay on a bed, bosom downward. Fold each sleeve twice, and lay it parallel with the sides of the shirt. Turn the two sides, with the sleeves, over the middle part, and then turn up the bottom, with two folds. This makes the collar and bosom lie, unpressed, on the outside.
Fold a frock thus:—Lay its front downward, so as to make the first creases in folding come in the side breadths. To do this, find the middle of the side breadths by first putting the middle of the front and back breadths together. Next, fold over the side creases so as just to meet the slit behind. Then fold the skirt again, so as to make the backs lie together within and the fronts without. Then arrange the waist and sleeves, and fold the skirt around them.
In packing trunks, for travelling, put all heavy articles at the bottom, covered with paper, which should not be printed, as the ink rubs off. Put coats and pantaloons into linen cases, made for the purpose, and furnished with strings. Fill all crevices with small articles; as, if a trunk is not full, nor tightly packed, its contents will be shaken about, and get injured. A thin box, the exact size of the trunk, with a lid, and covered with brown linen, is a great convenience, to set inside, on the top of the trunk, to contain light articles which would be injured by tight packing. Have straps, with buckles, fastened to the inside, near the bottom, long enough to come up and buckle over this box. By this means, when a trunk is not quite full, this box can be strapped over so tight, as to keep the articles from rubbing. Under-clothing packs closer, by being rolled tightly, instead of being folded.
Bonnet-boxes, made of light wood, with a lock and key, are better than the paper bandboxes so annoying to travellers. Carpet bags are very useful, to carry the articles to be used on a journey. The best ones have sides inserted, iron rims, and a lock and key. A large silk travelling-bag, with a double linen lining, in which are stitched receptacles for toothbrush, combs, and other small articles, is a very convenient article for use when travelling.
A bonnet-cover, made of some thin material, like a large hood with a cape, is useful to draw over the bonnet and neck, to keep off dust, sun, and sparks from a steam engine. Green veils are very apt to stain bonnets, when damp.
In packing household furniture, for moving, have each box numbered, and then have a book, in which, as each box is packed, note down the number of the box, and the order in which its contents are packed, as this will save much labor and perplexity when unpacking. In packing china and glass, wrap each article, separately, in paper, and put soft hay or straw at bottom and all around each. Put the heaviest articles at the bottom; and on the top of the box, write, "This side up."
