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                           THE LADIES' BOOK
                                  OF
                          USEFUL INFORMATION.


                      COMPILED FROM MANY SOURCES.


                             London, Ont.:
              LONDON PRINTING & LITHOGRAPHING CO. (LTD.)
                                 1896.

Entered according to Act of the Parliament of Canada, in the year
1897, on behalf of the unnamed author, by P. J. Edmunds, at the
Department of Agriculture. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.




                               Preface.


To the ladies of America is this little work, “THE LADIES' BOOK OF
USEFUL INFORMATION,” dedicated. It is a book written expressly for
women. This book is full from cover to cover of useful and necessary
information for women. Never before has so much knowledge with which
women should be acquainted been printed in one book. It is a perfect
storehouse of useful facts. Almost every lady spends many dollars
every year for cosmetics, medicines, household articles, etc., which
this book would save her.

This is a book which every lady should have, and which every mother
should place in the hands of her daughters as they come to years of
understanding. Every girl of twelve and upwards should read this
valuable work.

Many books costing from three to five dollars do not contain half the
information contained in this work. Everything described in this
preface is taught in this book.

It teaches ladies the secret of Youth, Beauty, Health.

The first chapter teaches all about Personal Beauty.

Every lady desires to be beautiful, and it is the duty of every woman
to be as attractive as possible. All may enhance their charms and be
lovely by following the directions of this book. Few persons know how
to improve their natural looks so as to captivate, charm, and win the
admiration of those whom they meet. This book tells the wonderful
secret—all the ancients ever knew, and all that has been discovered
since. It teaches how to wonderfully improve the person in loveliness.
The real secret of changing an ordinary looking person into one of
great beauty makes this book of great value. Nature does something for
us, but art must make the perfect man or woman.

If you desire bright, melting eyes, a clear, soft, rose-tinted
complexion, beautiful hands and graceful figure, well-developed and
perfect, use the knowledge which you will find in this book.

It teaches how to acquire a beautiful, delicate loveliness which
cannot be surpassed, and which can be retained to a very late age. By
means of this teaching a woman of thirty-five or forty can easily pass
for a girl of twenty-five.

It teaches how to conceal the evidence of age, and how to make the
most stubbornly red and rough hands beautifully soft and white.
Remember that “THE LADIES' BOOK OF USEFUL INFORMATION” does not teach
the use of paint and powder, which is injurious to the skin, but how
to make the _cheek glow_ with health, and the _neck_, _arms_ and
_hands_ to rival the lily in whiteness. It teaches how to cure Greasy
Skin, Freckles, Pimples, Wrinkles, Blackheads, Crow's-feet, Blotches,
Face Grubs, Tan, Sunburn, Chapped Hands, Sore Lips, etc.

It teaches how to cure and prevent redness and roughness, and to make
the skin soft, smooth, white and delicate, producing a perfectly
natural appearance. It teaches how to cure and refine a coarse skin,
so that it will be clear and white.

It tells what has never before been published: How to restore a fair,
rosy complexion to its original freshness, after it has become sallow
and faded. This is a wonderful secret, and is sure in its results. It
will also cause those who have always been pale to have beautiful,
bright, rosy cheeks, and the eyes to be brilliant and sparkling.

It teaches how to have soft, white and attractive hands, even though
compelled to do housework. Every lady desires to have nice hands, and
all may do so by following the directions of this book. The most
coarse, rough, red hands will, by following this teaching, become
beautifully delicate and white, and it causes very little trouble to
care for them.

It teaches how to care for the hair so as to improve the growth and to
have a beautiful and luxuriant head of hair; how to keep the skin of
the scalp healthy, to cure Dandruff, to prevent the hair falling, and
to have it of a nice glossy hue.

It teaches how to have clear and brilliant eyes, with beautiful, long,
drooping lashes; also, how to cure sore and weak eyes.

It teaches how to care for the teeth so as to have them white and
sound, telling how to treat those that are decayed, and how to prevent
the decay of sound ones.

It teaches how to have beautiful ripe red lips, and how to cure sore
and chapped lips.

It teaches how to cure Warts, Corns, Bruises, Sprains, Cold Feet, Bad
Breath, etc.

It teaches how to bleach, purify and whiten the most stubbornly red,
rough skin, so that it will be beautifully clear and white; and a
complexion that is naturally passable will be admired by all who see
it after being treated as here described.

The second chapter teaches: The different human temperaments; how to
tell to which temperament you belong yourself, and also the
temperaments of those whom you meet;

The fortunate and unfortunate days of the month, and their importance
at the hour of birth;

Important advice to females regarding their thirty-first year;

How to know whom you will marry;

The signs of a good genius;

All about Electrical Psychology, or Psychological
Fascination—Mesmerism;

How to make persons at a distance think of you (this is a purely
natural phenomenon);

How to win the affection of the person of the opposite sex whom you
sincerely love. There is no black art about this, but merely
psychological attraction, and by its use you can win the love of the
person whose affection you desire.

When you desire the “love” of any one whom you meet, you can very
readily reach him if you observe the directions here given.

Chapter three is a special chapter for young women, on a special
subject, and contains advice which every young lady should study.

It teaches them: What marriage is, and explains how highly injurious
it is to entertain low ideas regarding it;

How a young lady should act in the presence of young men;

What a girl should do when a prospect of marriage occurs.

It tells some of the most prolific sources of matrimonial
difficulties, and how to remedy them;

What ladies should do who desire that their husbands should be amiable
and kind;

What attentions are due to you _as a lady_.

Cautions against the failing of young ladies making themselves too
cheap.

Tells what “woman” is formed to be.

Warns against indiscretions before marriage, and teaches that under
all circumstance a lady will be looked to to resist any advances, and
maintain her purity and virtue.

Tells what is the nature, naturally, of young women;

How a young woman should act when receiving the attentions of a young
man;

How you will know when the young man whom you _should marry_ presents
himself to you;

What a man needs a wife for, and how to qualify yourself for the
position;

About misunderstandings in early married life;

How a young mother feels towards her first-born.

Tells the good influence of virtuous love;

What young people should know before they become engaged.

Chapter four teaches about Love and Marriage; the attraction of the
sexes for each other; what love is; what causes it; individual loves;
fondness for cousins; different kinds of love; flirtation; the object
of marriage; should marriage be for life.

Chapter five: When to Marry—How to Select a Partner on Right
Principles.

Treats of the proper age to marry; which marriages are the most happy;
which are the most productive of handsome children; how nature assists
art in the choice of partners; the attributes of a handsome couple,
etc.

Chapter six: Sexual Intercourse—Its Laws and Conditions—Its Use and
Abuse.

There is an alarming and increasing prevalence of nervous ailments and
complicated disorders that could be traced to have their sole origin
in the ignorance, which is so universal, of the laws of these organs.

This chapter teaches all about sexual morality; how men and women
should live; the law from the age of puberty to marriage; the law of
marriage; what a man who truly loves a woman will do; a true union;
how women are protected; the false and the true sense of duty; what is
the most powerful restraint from evil.

The above is discussed in a chaste, simple, manner, and should be read
by every lady. There is nothing impure in this book from beginning to
end, but subjects in which women are woefully ignorant are discussed
in a plain, moral manner to which no objection can be raised.

Chapter seven: Marriage.

What marriage is; how far back the marriage tie has existed; polygamy,
what it is; monogamy, what it is; polyandry, and what it is; marriage
customs; the basis of a happy marriage, etc.

Chapter eight: Pregnancy—Labor—Parturition.

Perhaps there is no more eventful period in the history of woman than
that in which she first becomes conscious that the existence of
another being is dependent upon her own, and that she carries about
with her the first tiny rudiments of an immortal soul.

This chapter explains all the signs of pregnancy; the changes that
take place in the face and neck; the suppression of the monthly flow;
changes in the breast, etc.

Then it gives a sure test for the detection of pregnancy. It tells how
a pregnant woman should live during the period of gestation.

Childbirth is not necessarily either painful or dangerous. It can be
accomplished easily and safely and with comparatively no pain by
following the directions given in “THE LADIES' BOOK OF USEFUL
INFORMATION.”

Numerous instances are known where ladies who had previously suffered
with severe labor in childbirth have, by attending to the directions
here given, been delivered of fine, healthy children with comparative
ease.

No mother who has attended to the teaching here given but has blessed
the knowledge of it, and it has saved many a young mother much
needless terror.

It tells all about the ailments that almost always torment women
during the trying time of pregnancy, making life itself seem a burden.

These troubles are: Morning Sickness, Toothache, Palpitation of the
Heart, etc. It shows that there is no necessity for women suffering as
they almost invariably do during this time; but that these troubles
may be overcome by simple, safe remedies which are described in this
book, and which may be safely taken by the patient.

It tells all about the medicine which is taken by the Indian women of
North America during the period of gestation. It is well known that
the women of these tribes suffer very little during childbirth, and it
is almost all due to the effects of this wonderful medicine.

The recipe for this medicine, “Parturient Balm,” was obtained from an
Indian doctor, and is given in this book, together with instructions
as to how it is to be taken.

This chapter alone is worth the price of the book to any lady. Every
mother, and everyone who ever expects to become a mother, should
carefully study the above chapter, as it may be the means of saving
her much pain and suffering.

The same chapter explains all about a case of labor; the signs that
show when labor has commenced; what to give to help the patient; the
different kinds of pains; the length of time between the pains; the
length of time the pains should last, etc.; the taking of the child
from the mother; how to care for the child; the taking away of the
afterbirth; what to do in case of flooding; how to relieve afterpains,
etc.

It also explains what “Abortion” is; what causes abortion; what causes
premature labor; the difference between the two; symptoms of
threatened abortion, and how to prevent the same if possible; what to
do for miscarriage, and to try and prevent it, etc.

The ninth chapter teaches all about: Menstruation—Change of
Life—Falling of the Womb, etc. Tells the time of life at which the
menses should appear.

Every mother should watch her young daughter as she nears this
critical time. The health for many years to come depends to a great
extent on how a girl passes this period. This chapter tells all the
symptoms of the near approach of the monthly flow. It shows a mother
how to care for her daughter, and to see that she has proper attention
during this time.

It tells the age at which the periodical flow should commence; the
symptoms of its approach; how a girl should be treated at this time;
how to cure Chlorosis, or Green Sickness; how to relieve and cure
painful and suppressed menstruation, etc.

If the instructions of this book are followed in cases like the above,
it will save many young girls much needless suffering.

This chapter also treats on: Whites, or Flour Albus, and Falling of
the Womb.

Many delicate women suffer great agony through these two distressing
complaints. This chapter describes all the symptoms of these
complaints, and gives simple, safe remedies for them. A lady can
easily attend to herself and avoid exposure.

It also treats on Change of Life.

By the phrase “Change of Life,” or “The Critical Period,” we
understand the final cessation or stoppage of the menses. This chapter
explains all about this trying time, the symptoms of its appearance,
and the ages at which it usually occurs.

With proper care this period may be safely passed, and a happy and
comfortable old age be spent. All the dangers incident to this period
are described, and how to successfully combat them.

Chapter ten: Collection of valuable Medical Compounds.

Any of the formulas in this chapter will be readily filled by your
druggist. Each recipe will give an article which is the _very best_
thing that can be used for the disease which it is recommended to
cure.

The first is “Magic Kidney and Liver Restorer.”

Most people are afflicted to some extent with Kidney and Liver
trouble. This medicine is a sure cure.

Do you have:  A frequent headache over the eyes;
              A susceptibility to chills and fever;
              A bitter or oily taste in the mouth;
              A sour stomach;
              A complexion inclined to be yellow;
              A great depression of spirits;
              Specks before the eyes, and flushed face;
              A done-out, tired feeling;

besides many other symptoms too numerous to mention? If you have, you
are afflicted with Kidney and Liver complaint, and should use “Magic
Kidney and Liver Restorer.” This great remedy will do away with all
these disagreeable symptoms, and will make you feel like a new person.
It is a splendid spring medicine, cleansing the blood and purifying
and toning up the system.

Another formula given is “Dyspeptic Ley.”

This is a _sure, certain_ cure for dyspepsia. It never fails.

The symptoms of dyspepsia are:
              Feeling of weight in the stomach;
              Bloated condition after eating;
              Belching of wind;
              Nausea;
              Vomiting of food;
              Water brash;
              Pain in the stomach;
              Heartburn;
              Bad taste in the mouth in the morning;
              Palpitation of the heart;
              Cankered mouth; loss of flesh;
              Fickle appetite; depression of spirits;
              Lack of energy; headache and constipation.

If you have _any or all_ of the above symptoms, then you are afflicted
with Dyspepsia, and should endeavor to obtain relief. “Dyspeptic Ley”
is a certain cure. It is easily prepared, and should be taken by
everyone who is afflicted with any of the above distressing symptoms.

The same chapter tells how to cure Ague, Intermittent Fever,
Neuralgia, Sick Headache, Neuralgic Headache, Rheumatism, Dysentery,
Epileptic Fits, Hysteria, Bleeding of the Lungs, Coughs, Bowel
Complaint, Scrofula, Worms, Sore Eyes, Cholera, Piles, Warts, Corns,
Deafness, Inverted Toe-nail, etc.

All these diseases are described, together with the best method of
treating them.

Chapter eleven teaches how to Prepare Nourishment for the Sick Room.
Very few people know how to prepare nourishment for the sick. This
chapter teaches how to prepare a great number of nourishing dishes.
Every lady should know how to prepare food for the sick, as at some
time or other there is almost certain to be sickness in every family.
There are over forty recipes given in this chapter for food for the
sick and convalescent.

Chapter twelve describes things Curious and Useful.

It tells: How to get clear of mosquitoes; how to get rid of bedbugs;
to obtain fresh-blown flowers in winter. By this process the buds of
flowers can be gathered in summer and autumn and kept until the
winter, when they can be used as required. The flowers open and are as
beautiful as though fresh plucked from the garden. Any one can
understand the process, as it is very simple.

Also: How to transfer all kinds of pictures on to glass—a very pretty
art; how to prevent horses being teased by flies; how to prevent flies
lighting on to windows, pictures, mirrors, etc.; to render paper
fireproof; to render boots waterproof; how to extract the essential
oil from any flower; how to take leaf photographs; to cure
drunkenness; to make different kinds of perfumes; to write secret
letters, etc.;

To prepare flowers so that their beauty will remain unimpaired for
years. Roses and other flowers can be had to last for years by this
beautiful art. The process is very easy, and the directions are so
simple that a child may follow them.

Chapter thirteen treats of Home Decoration.

It teaches how to arrange a house so as to furnish it cheaply and
harmoniously. It gives complete instructions for every room—Hall,
Parlor, Library, Dining-room, Bedrooms, etc., and attends to every
detail. This is a splendid guide to all who wish to make their home
attractive.

Chapter fourteen teaches all about caring for House Plants. It tells
the right temperature to keep them in; the proper soil for potting;
how to make plants grow luxuriantly; how to have plenty of blossoms;
to keep plants without a fire at night; to destroy bugs and
rose-slugs; to raise plants with the least trouble; the best varieties
of plants to raise, etc.

It tells how to preserve autumn leaves so that they can be bent in any
form desired, and so that they will retain their color.

It tells how to prepare skeleton leaves—a very pretty amusement.

Chapter fifteen is devoted to The Laundry.

It tells: How to make washing fluid; to take out scorch; to make
plain, fine, and coffee starch; to make enamel for shirt bosoms, so
that any housekeeper can do them up as nicely as they do at the
laundry; to clean velvets and ribbons; to take grease out of silks,
woolens, paper, floors, etc.; to take out fruit stains; to take out
iron rust and mildew; to wash woolen goods and blankets so that they
will not shrink, etc.

The sixteenth chapter teaches how to do all kinds of Stamping.

In this chapter are given full instructions for wet and dry stamping;
for making stamping powder; how to mix white paint for dark goods, and
dark paint for light goods; it tells how to prepare all the necessary
articles for stamping; how to prepare transfer paper; how to transfer
any pattern you may see; how to make a distributor; how to enlarge
designs; how to prepare all kinds of stamping powder; how to do French
indelible stamping; what kind of a brush to use; and how to care for
patterns. If the directions here given are followed the stamping will
always be satisfactory.

Chapter seventeen teaches how to do Bronze Work.

Bronzing is the latest improvement in wax work, and if properly made
cannot be detected from the most expensive, artistic bronze. It is
used for table, mantel and bracket ornaments, and may be exposed to
dust and air without sustaining the slightest injury. It can be dusted
like any piece of furniture, and makes a very desirable, inexpensive
ornament. The colors it is made in are Gold, Silver, Copper, Fire, and
Green Bronze. Among the articles described are a vase in bronze, a
motto in bronze, a floral basket in bronze, animals and birds in
bronze, statuary in bronze, flowers and leaves in bronze.

The art of making each of the above articles is carefully described so
that any one can follow the directions.

The art of Decalcomania is also taught in this chapter. This is used
upon almost everything for which ornamentation is required, such as
Crockery, China, Porcelain, Vases, Glass, Bookcases, Folios, Boxes,
Lap desks, Ribbons, etc. It is a very pretty art, and is much admired.

Chapter eighteen gives twelve recipes for articles needed in every
household. It will tell you how to save a large percentage of
household expenses, and also how to have a great many of the articles
you use in your daily housework of a superior quality, vastly better
than the ones you are using at the present time.

It is a fact not generally known, that a great many of the articles
used in daily household work cost little more than one-tenth of the
price the consumer pays. We purpose to show the readers of this book
how to have, in most instances, better articles than those they buy,
for a small percentage of the cost. To do this, we have, by our own
personal investigation, gathered a number of valuable recipes
together, and have paid for the privilege of using them.

We give in “The Ladies' Book of Useful Information” twelve recipes
which have never before been published, and which, if you once
possess, you will never wish to be without, as they are truly valuable
secrets.

The list is as follows: Healing salve; Magnetic croup cure; Worm
elixir; Brilliant self-shining stove polish; Wonderful starch enamel;
Royal washing powder; Magic annihilator; I X L baking powder; Electric
powder; French polish or dressing for leather; Artificial honey.

It also contains a list of all the poisons and their antidotes. It
describes the symptoms of poisoning and how to proceed in each case.




                               CONTENTS.


                              CHAPTER I.

Teaches all about Personal Beauty. Every woman desires to be
beautiful, and every woman may enhance her charms and be lovely by
following the directions of this book. Few persons know how to improve
their natural looks so as to captivate, charm, and win the admiration
of those whom they meet. This book tells this wonderful secret—all
the ancients ever knew, and all that has been discovered since. It
teaches how to wonderfully improve the person in loveliness. The real
_secret_ of changing an ordinary looking person into one of great
beauty makes this book of great value. Nature does something for us,
but art must make the perfect man or woman. If you desire bright,
melting eyes; a clear, soft, rosy-tinted complexion; beautiful hands;
and graceful figure, well-developed and perfect, use the knowledge
which you will find in this book.

It teaches how to conceal the evidence of age; how to make the most
stubbornly red and rough hands beautifully soft and white. Remember
that “The Ladies' Book of Useful Information” does not teach the use
of paint and powder, which is injurious to the skin, but how to make
the cheek glow with health, and the neck, arms, and hands to rival the
lily in whiteness. It teaches how to cure Greasy Skin, Freckles,
Wrinkles, Pimples, Blackheads, Crow's-feet, Blotches, Face Grubs, Tan,
Sunburn, Chapped Hands, Sore Lips, etc. It teaches how to cure and
prevent redness and roughness, and to make the skin soft, smooth,
white and delicate, producing a perfectly healthy and natural
appearance. It teaches how to cure and refine a coarse skin, so that
it will be clear and white.

It teaches how to have soft, white and attractive hands, even though
compelled to do housework. Every lady desires to have nice hands, and
all may do so by following the directions of this chapter.

It teaches how to care for the hair so as to improve the growth and to
have a beautiful and luxuriant head of hair; how to keep the skin of
the scalp healthy; to cure dandruff; to prevent the hair falling, and
to have it of a nice color.

It teaches how to have clear and brilliant eyes, with beautiful, long,
drooping lashes. Also, how to cure sore and weak eyes.

It teaches how to care for the teeth so as to have them white and
sound, telling how to treat those that are decayed, and how to prevent
the decay of sound ones.

It teaches how to have beautiful ripe red lips, and how to cure sore
and chapped lips.

It teaches how to cure Warts, Corns, Bruises, Sprains, Cold Feet, Bad
Breath, etc.

The following formulas for Toilet Preparations are all given in this
book. They are vastly superior to the much-advertised cosmetics which
flood the market. Your druggist will fill any of these recipes for a
very small sum, and you will always have a superior article. Each of
these preparations will do exactly what is claimed for it.

The following is a list of what is given in the first chapter: Lotion
to remove freckles and tan; To expel freckles; Cleopatra's Freckle
Balm; Lemon Cream, for sunburn and freckles; Wash to prevent sunburn;
Grape lotion, for sunburn; Pate Axerasive of Bozin, to soften and
whiten the skin; To remove red pimples; To remove black specks or
flesh-grubs; Preparation for whitening the face and neck (bleaches and
whitens the skin); To cure profuse perspiration; Cleopatra's Enamel
for whitening the hands and arms; To cure freckles, and parched, rough
skin; To purify the breath; To bleach and purify the skin of the face
and neck; To permanently remove black specks or flesh-worms; French
face-wash (purifies and brightens the complexion); To remove pimples;
Kalydor for the complexion—for pimples, freckle-tanned skin, or scurf
on the skin; To improve the skin; Wash a la Marie Antoinette (gives a
beautiful brilliancy to the complexion); Liquid Rouge (harmless), a
perfect imitation of nature; Milk of Roses, a cosmetic; Circassian
Cream; Toilet Vinegar; Bloom Rose; Certain cure for eruptions,
pimples, etc.; To clear the complexion and reduce the size of the
face; To cure and refine a stippled or blotched skin; To cure and
prevent wrinkles; Wash for wrinkles; To remove wrinkles; How to have
brilliant, beautiful eyes; To cure weak eyes; To improve the
eyelashes; To cure weakness of eyes; How to have beautiful eyelashes;
To cure watery and inflamed eyes; To strengthen the sight; What to do
for nearsightedness; How to have a beautiful mouth and lips; To make
lip salve; French lip salve; German lip salve; To care for the teeth;
To cure toothache; Premium tooth powder; Feuchtwanger's tooth paste;
Fine tooth powder; Rye tooth powder; To cure foul breath; To have
white and beautiful teeth; For decayed teeth; To remove yellow color
from teeth; Camphor paste; Powerfully cleansing dentifrice;
Infallible cure for toothache; Mixture for decayed teeth; To whiten
and beautify the teeth.

How to have soft, white and beautiful hands; How to care for the
hands; Bleaching lotion for the hands (renders them beautifully
white); To remove stains from hands; To make the hands white and
delicate; Remedy for chapped hands; To whiten coarse and dark-skinned
hands; To cure red hands; Almond paste for the hands; To care for the
nails.

To cause the skin to become satin-smooth and to smell like violets.

To cause those who have lost the bloom and fairness of early youth to
regain them.

How to care for the hair; How often to wash the hair; To improve the
growth and luxuriance of the hair; To make the hair glossy; To impart
curliness or waviness to the hair when it is naturally straight; On
changing the color of the hair; To have elegant hair; Wild Rose
curling fluid; To cause the hair to grow very thick; Lola Montez hair
coloring; Hair Restorative; For bald heads; Excellent hair wash; To
cure baldness; Stimulants for the hair; The golden hair secret; For
keeping the hair crimped or curled in summer; To bleach the hair; For
improving the hair; Pomade for preserving the hair; To make the hair
grow and to prevent it from falling; To make the hair grow quick; Wash
for scald heads, etc.

Powders and their use: Boston Burnet powder for the face; Queen Bess
complexion wash.


                              CHAPTER II.

Treats of miscellaneous matters: The human temperaments—How many
there are—What they are; How to tell to which temperament you belong.

The fortunate and unfortunate days of the month; Days of the week, and
their importance at the natal hour.

Important advice to females.

To know whom you will marry.

The signs of a good genius.

Electrical Psychology, or Psychological Fascination.

Mesmerism.

How to make persons at a distance think of you.

How to win the love of the person whom you love.


                             CHAPTER III.

A special chapter for young women: On marriage; What young women look
forward to; What it is best to do when a prospect of marrying occurs;
What a husband looks for; What marriage affords; On making yourself
cheap; How to protect yourself; About courtship; Care of your
character; How easily men are led astray, and how cautious you should
be; What state of life is most honorable; Important points for your
consideration; To make a husband happy; Nature of young women; On
attracting the attention of young men; Young man's part; Young woman's
part; Parents' wishes; How young men act in female company; Modesty;
Courtship; On near relations marrying; On dress; What men need wives
for; A mother's pleasure at the birth of her first child; How
differently girls and boys are constituted; What young people should
study before they become engaged.


                              CHAPTER IV.

Love and marriage; The attraction of the sexes for each other; What
love is; What causes love; Individual loves; Fondness for cousins;
Different kinds of love; Flirtation; Monogamy; Polygamy; The special
object of marriage; Should marriage be for life.


                              CHAPTER V.

When to marry; How to select a partner on right principles; Very early
marriages; The best age to marry; When marriages are most happy; The
attributes of a handsome couple.


                              CHAPTER VI.

Sexual Intercourse—Its laws and conditions—Its use and abuse: A
prevalent error; The law of sexual morality; What men expect; How men
and women should live; Age of puberty to marriage; The law of
marriage; What a man who truly loves a woman will do; A true union;
Seduction; How women are protected; The false and the true sense of
duty. What is the most powerful restraint from evil.


                             CHAPTER VII.

Marriage: What marriage is; How far back the marriage tie has existed;
Polygamy—What it is; Monogamy—What it is; Polyandry—What it is;
Marriage customs; The basis of a happy marriage.


                             CHAPTER VIII.

Pregnancy—Labor—Parturition: The signs of pregnancy; The changes
that take place in the appearance; How soon after conception these
changes take place; The period of gestation; Changes in the breasts;
What causes labor; How labor may be rendered safe and easy; What the
diet should consist of; The period of quickening; How to relieve the
toothache, cramping of the legs, palpitation of the heart, morning
sickness, etc., with which pregnant women are liable to be troubled;
Sure test for the detection of pregnancy; Parturient Balm, a very
important medicine; Abortion; Premature labor; The cause of abortion;
Symptoms of threatened abortion; What to do for a threatened abortion;
What to do for miscarriage; To prevent miscarriage.


                              CHAPTER IX.

Menstruation: The time of life at which it should appear; Signs of
approaching puberty; Duty of mothers; Delayed and obstructed
menstruation—What to do for it; Chlorosis, or green sickness—What to
do for it—What it is caused by; Too profuse menstruation—How to
treat it; Painful menstruation, or menstrual colic—How to treat it;
Amenorrhœa, or suppressed menstruation—What causes this, and how
to treat it.

Cessation of the menses, or change of life: Very important advice is
given as to the way in which the patient should treat herself, which,
if followed, will be of great benefit.

Falling of the Womb: What causes it, and how the patient should be
treated.

Leucorrhœa—Whites—Flour Albus: What this disease is; What causes
it; How to relieve and cure it.


                              CHAPTER X.

Collection of valuable Medical Compounds: Magic kidney and liver
restorer; Hop bitters; Alterative or liver powders; Anti-dyspeptic
pills; Dyspeptic ley (sure cure for dyspepsia); Ague pills; Certain
remedy for ague or intermittent fever; Fever powders; Ague drops;
Pills for neuralgia; Sick headache pills; Anodyne headache pills;
Rheumatic pills; Pills for dysentery; Epileptic pills; Pills for
asthma; Hysteric pills; Pills for neuralgia; Cure for bleeding of the
lungs; Cure for consumption; Cough syrup; Soothing cough mixture;
Expectorant tincture; Sure remedy for bowel complaints; Cordial for
summer complaint; Scrofulous syrup; Eyewater; Tincture for rheumatism;
Worm elixir; Dr. Jordan's cholera remedy; Pile ointment (sure cure);
To cure warts and corns; Cure for deafness; Cure for inverted
toe-nail.


                              CHAPTER XI.

Things for the Sick Room. Tells how to prepare the following articles
for the sick and convalescent: Barley water; Sage tea; Refreshing
drink for fevers; Arrowroot jelly; Irish moss jelly; Isinglass jelly;
Tapioca jelly; Toast; Rice; Bread jelly; Rice gruel; Water gruel;
Arrowroot gruel; Beef liquid; Beef tea; Panado; French milk porridge;
Coffee milk; Drink for dysentery; Crust coffee; Cranberry water; Wine
whey; Mustard whey; Chicken broth; Calves'-foot jelly; Slippery elm
jelly; Nutritive fluids; Gum acacia restorative; Soups for the
convalescent; Eggs; Milk for infants; Water gruel.


                             CHAPTER XII.

Things Curious and Useful: To get clear of mosquitoes; To get rid of
bedbugs; To obtain fresh-blown flowers in winter; To increase the
laying of eggs in hens; The art of transferring on to glass; To
prevent horses being teased by flies; To prevent flies lighting on
windows, pictures, mirrors, etc.; To make leather wear forever; To
prepare waterproof boots; To render paper fireproof; To cure
drunkenness; To cure laziness; To take leaf photographs; To make lamp
wicks indestructible; To make different kinds of perfumes; To write
secret letters; To preserve flowers.


                             CHAPTER XIII.

Home Decoration: On furnishing a house; How to furnish the Parlor,
Library, Dining-room, Hall, Chambers, and Kitchen; Telling the proper
way of arranging each room tastefully and economically.


                             CHAPTER XIV.

How to Care for House Plants: How to succeed with plants; A good
collection of plants; To kill the spider; To start slips; To keep
plants without a fire at night; To kill rose-slugs; On watering
plants.

To prepare autumn leaves and ferns; To prepare skeleton leaves; Pretty
hanging baskets.


                              CHAPTER XV.

The Laundry: To make washing fluid; Gall soap; For washing woolens and
fine prints; To take out scorch; To make bluing; To make coffee
starch; To make flour starch; To make fine starch; Enamel for shirt
bosoms; To clean articles made of white zephyr; To clean velvet; To
clean ribbons; To take out paint; To remove ink stain; To take out
fruit stains; To remove iron rust; To take out mildew; To wash
flannels in tepid water.


                             CHAPTER XVI.

How to do your own Stamping and make your own Patterns: The articles
needed for stamping; To make perforated patterns; To enlarge designs;
To stamp; To make blue powder; To do French indelible stamping; To
make paint for stamping; The proper brush to use; To make a
distributor; To care for patterns.


                             CHAPTER XVII.

Bronze Work: What bronze work is; The articles required for doing
bronze work; The art of making a vase in bronze; A motto; A floral
basket; Copper bronze statuary; The art of making exotic leaves; To
make leaves and flowers, etc.; Decalcomania—The uses to which it may
be put.


                            CHAPTER XVIII.

A chapter of useful things to know. How to prepare: Healing salve;
Magnetic croup cure; Worm elixir; Brilliant self-shining stove polish;
Wonderful starch enamel; Royal washing powder; Magic annihilator; I X
L baking powder; Electric powder; French polish, or dressing for
leather; Artificial honey. Table of poisons and their antidotes.




                           THE LADIES' BOOK
                                  OF
                          USEFUL INFORMATION.




                              CHAPTER I.

                           PERSONAL BEAUTY.

       Treating of the Care of the Skin, Hair, Teeth, and Eyes,
            so as to have each arrive at the highest degree
                  of beauty of which each is capable.


A great object of importance, of care to every lady, is the care of
her complexion. There is nothing more pleasing to the eye than a
delicate, smooth skin; and besides being pleasing to the eye, is an
evidence of health, and gives additional grace to the most regular
features. The choice of soaps has considerable influence in promoting
and maintaining this desideratum. These should invariably be selected
of the finest kinds, and used sparingly, and never with cold water,
for the alkali which, more or less, mingles in the composition of all
soaps has an undoubted tendency to irritate a delicate skin; warm
water excites a gentle perspiration, thereby assisting the skin to
throw off those natural secretions which, if allowed to remain, are
likely to accumulate below the skin and produce roughness, pimples,
and even eruptions of an obstinate and unpleasant character. Those
soaps which ensure a moderate fairness and flexibility of the skin are
the most desirable for regular use.

Pomades, when properly prepared, contribute in an especial manner to
preserve the softness and elasticity of the skin, their effect being
of an emollient and congenial nature; and, moreover, they can be
applied on retiring to rest, when their effects are not liable to be
disturbed by the action of the atmosphere, muscular exertions or
nervous influences.

The use of paints has been very correctly characterized as “a species
of corporeal hypocrisy as subversive of delicacy of mind as it is of
the natural complexion,” and has been, of late years, discarded at the
toilette of every lady.

The use of cosmetics has been common in all ages and in every land.
Scripture itself records the painting of Jezebel; and Ezekiel, the
prophet, speaks of the eye-painting common among the women; and
Jeremiah, of rending the face with painting—a most expressive term
for the destruction of beauty by such means. For the surest destroyers
of real beauty are its simulators. The usurper destroys the rightful
sovereign.

That paint can ever deceive people, or really add beauty for more than
the duration of an acted charade or play, when “distance lends
enchantment to the view,” is a delusion; but it is one into which
women of all times and nations have fallen—from the painted Indian
squaw to the rouged and powdered denizen of London or Paris.

Milk was the favorite cosmetic of the ladies of ancient Rome. They
applied plasters of bread and ass's milk to their faces at night, and
washed them off with milk in the morning.

As a cosmetic, milk would be harmless, but we doubt its power of
improving the skin. As a beverage, no doubt, it whitens the complexion
more than any other food.

But before we speak of improving the complexion, it will be well to
explain to our readers the nature and properties of the skin.

This is what an American physician has recently told us about it:—


       THE SKIN—ITS BEAUTY, USES, CONSTRUCTION, MANAGEMENT, ETC.

Every person knows what the skin is, its external appearance, and its
general properties; but there are many of my readers who may not be
aware of its peculiar and wonderful construction, its compound
character, and its manifold uses. It not merely acts as an organ of
sense, and a protection to the surface of the body, but it clothes it,
as it were, in a garment of the most delicate texture and of the most
surpassing loveliness. In perfect health it is gifted with exquisite
sensibility, and while it possesses the softness of velvet, and
exhibits the delicate hues of the lily, the carnation, and the rose,
it is nevertheless gifted with extraordinary strength and power of
resisting external injury, and is not only capable of repairing, but
of actually renewing itself. Though unprotected with hair, wool or
fur, or with feathers or scales, as with the brute creation, the human
skin is furnished with innumerable nerves, which endow it with extreme
susceptibility to all the various changes of climate and of weather,
and prompt the mind to provide suitable materials, in the shape of
clothing, to shield it under all the circumstances in which it can be
placed.

The importance of the due exposure of the body to daylight or sunlight
cannot be too strongly insisted on. Light and warmth are powerful
agents in the economy of our being. The former especially is an
operative agent on which health, vigor, and even beauty itself,
depend. Withdraw the light of the sun from the organic world, and all
its various beings and objects would languish and gradually lose those
charms which are now their characteristics. In its absence, the
carnation tint leaves the cheek of beauty, the cherry hue of the lips
changes to a leaden-purple, the eyes become glassy and expressionless,
and the complexion assumes an unnatural, cadaverous appearance that
speaks of sickness, night and death. So powerful is daylight, so
necessary to our well-being, that even its partial exclusion, or its
insufficient admission to our apartments, soon tells its tale in the
feeble health, the liability to the attacks of disease, and the pallid
features (vacant and sunken, or flabby, pendent and uninviting) of
their inmates. Even the aspect of the rooms in which we pass most of
our time, and the number and extent of their windows, is perceptible,
by the trained eye, in the complexion and features of those that
occupy them. So in the vegetable world—the bright and endlessly
varied hues of flowers, and their sweet perfumes—even their very
production—depend on sunlight. In obscure light plants grow lanky and
become pale and feeble. They seldom produce flowers, and uniformly
fail to ripen their seeds. In even partial darkness the green hue of
their foliage gradually pales and disappears, and new growths, when
they appear, are blanched or colorless.

The best method of keeping the skin clean and healthy, by ablution and
baths, may here be alluded to. The use of these, and the washing of
the skin that forms part of the daily duties of the toilet, appear to
be very simple matters, but writers on the subject differ in opinion
as to the methods to be followed to render them perfect cleansers of
the skin. Some of them regard the use of soap and water applied in the
form of lather with the hands, and afterwards thoroughly removed from
the skin by copious affusions, rinsing or sluicing with water, or
immersion in it, as the best method. This is probably the case when
the skin is not materially dirty, or its pores or surface obstructed
or loaded with the residual solid matter of the perspiration or its
own unctuous exudation and exuviæ. To remove these completely and
readily, something more than simple friction with the smooth hand is
generally required. In such cases the use of a piece of flannel or
serge, doubled and spread across the hand, or of a mitten of the same
material, will be most ready and effective. Friction with this—first
with soap, and afterwards with water to wash the soap off—will be
found to cleanse the skin more thoroughly and quickly than any other
method, and, by removing the worn-out portion of its surface, to
impart to it a healthy glow and hue that is most refreshing and
agreeable. This effect will be increased by wiping and rubbing the
surface thoroughly dry with a coarse and moderately rough, but not a
stiff, towel, instead of with the fine, smooth diapers which are now
so commonly employed. At the bath, the fleshbrush usually provided
there will supersede the necessity of using the flannel.

The small black spots and marks frequently observed on the skin in hot
weather, particularly on the face, generally arise from the
accumulation of the indurated solid matter of the perspiration in its
pores. When they assume the form of small pimples (_acne punctata_),
and often when otherwise, they may be removed by strong pressure
between the fingers, or between the nails of the opposite fingers,
followed by the use of hot, soapy water.

The subsequent daily application of a weak solution of bichloride of
mercury—as in the form commonly known as Gowland's lotion—or of
sulphate of zinc, will completely remove the swelling, and generally
prevent their re-formation.

=Eruptions= are too well known to need any lengthy description here.
They are usually classified, by writers on the subject, into:
animalcular eruptions, or those due to the presence of animalcula
(minute acari) in the scarfskin, which occasion much irritation, and
of which the itch furnishes a well-marked example; papular eruptions,
or dry pimples; pustular eruptions, or mattery pimples, of which some
forms are popularly known as crusted tetters; scaly eruptions, or dry
tetters; and vesicular eruptions, or watery pimples.

The treatment of all of the above, except the first, in simple cases,
where there is not much constitutional disarrangement, consists mainly
in attention to the general principles of health, cleanliness,
exercise, food, ventilation, and clothing. Occasional doses of mild
saline aperients (Epsom salts, cream of tartar, or phosphate of soda,
or of sulphur combined with cream of tartar) should be taken, and warm
or tepid bathing, preferably in sea-water, or, if not convenient, rain
water, frequently had recourse to. Stimulants of all kinds should be
avoided, and the red meats, ripe fruits, and the antiscorbutic
vegetables should form a considerable portion of the diet. Lemonade,
made by squeezing the juice of a lemon into a half-pint tumbler full
of water, and sweetening with a little sugar, should be frequently and
liberally taken as one of the best beverages in such cases. To relieve
the itching and irritation (except in the pustular, crusted, and
vesicular varieties), brisk friction with a fleshbrush or a fleshglove
may be employed. The parts should also be wetted with an appropriate
lotion after each friction or bath, or the use of soap and water.

In all the scaly eruptions, iodide of potassium internally, and
ioduretted or sulphuretted lotions or baths are invaluable. In many of
them of a malignant or obstinate character, as _Lepra Psoriasis_,
_Lupus_, etc., small doses of solution of arsenite of potassa (liquor
arsenicalis; the dose, from 3 to 5 drops, gradually and cautiously
increased to 7 to 9 drops, twice a day, after a meal) prove highly
serviceable. In the forms of psoriasis popularly called baker's itch,
grocer's itch, and washer-woman's itch, the application of ointment of
nitrate of mercury, diluted with ten or twelve times its weight of
lard, has been highly recommended. A course of sarsaparilla is also in
most cases advantageous.

The small, hard, distinct pimples—“acne, or acne simplex” of medical
writers—that occur on the forehead, and occasionally on the temples
and chin, generally yield to stimulating lotions, consisting of equal
parts of strong vinegar, or spirit, and water, or to weak lotions of
sulphate of zinc, assisted by occasional doses of cooling laxatives,
as the salines, or a mixture of sulphur or cream of tartar.

=Freckles=, or the round or oval-shaped yellowish or brownish-yellow
spots, resembling stains, common on the face and the backs of the
hands of persons with a fair and delicate skin who are much exposed to
the direct rays of the sun in hot weather, are of little importance in
themselves, and have nothing to do with the general health. Ladies who
desire to remove them may have recourse to the frequent application of
dilute spirit, or lemon juice, or a lotion formed by adding acetic,
hydrochloric, nitric, or sulphuric acid, or liquor of potassa, to
water, until it is just strong enough to slightly prick the tongue.
One part of good Jamaica rum to two parts of lemon juice or weak
vinegar is a good form of lotion for the purpose. The effect of all
these lotions is increased by the addition of a little glycerine.

The preceding are also occasionally called “common freckles,” “summer
freckles,” and “sun freckles.” In some cases they are very persistent,
and resist all attempts to remove them while the exposure that
produces them is continued. Their appearance may be prevented by the
greater use of the veil, parasol or sunshade, or avoidance of exposure
to the sun during the heat of the day.

Another variety, popularly known as cold freckles, occur at all
seasons of the year, and usually depend on disordered health or some
disturbance of the natural functions of the skin. Here the only
external application that proves useful is the solution of bichloride
of mercury and glycerine, or Gowland's lotion.

=The Itch=—“psora” and “scabies,” of medical authors; the “gale” of the
French,—already referred to, in its common forms is an eruption of
minute vesicles, generally containing animalcula (acari), and of which
the principal seats are between the fingers, bend of the wrist, etc.
It is, accompanied by intense itching of the parts affected, which is
only aggravated by scratching. The usual treatment is with sulphur
ointment (simple or compound) well rubbed in once or twice a day; a
spoonful (more or less) of flowers of sulphur, mixed with treacle or
milk, being taken at the same time, night and morning. Where the
external use of sulphur is objectionable, on account of its smell, a
sulphuretten bath or lotion, or one of chloride of lime, may be used
instead. In all cases extreme cleanliness, with the free use of soap
and water, must be strictly adhered to.

The small, soft discolorations and excrescences of the skin, popularly
called moles, may be removed by touching them every second or third
day with strong acetic or nitric acid, or with lunar caustic. If
covered with hair they should be shaved first.

=Extreme paleness= of the skin, when not symptomatic of any primary
disease, generally arises from debility, or from the languid
circulation of the blood at the surface of the body; often, also, from
insufficient or improper food, want of outdoor exercise, and the like.
The main treatment is evident. Warm baths, friction, and stimulating
lotions and cosmetics may be here employed, together with a course of
some mild chalbeate (as the lactate, protophosphate, or
ammonia-citrate of iron) and hypophosphate of soda.

=Roughness and Coarseness= of the skin, when not depending on any
particular disease, may be removed or greatly lessened by daily
friction with mild unguents or oil, or by moistening the parts, night
and morning, with a weak solution of bichloride of mercury containing
a little glycerine.

=Rashes and redness= of the skin, of a common character, often arise
from very trifling causes, among which indigestion, suppressed
perspiration, irritation, and the like, are the most frequent. Nettle
rash or urticaria, so called from the appearance and tingling
sensations resembling those caused by the sting of nettles, in some
people, is very apt to follow the use of indigestible and unwholesome
food. It is usually of short duration and recurrent. The treatment
consists in the administration of mild saline aperients, and, in
severe cases, of an emetic, particularly when the stomach is still
loaded with indigestible matter. These should be followed by copious
use of lemonade made from the fresh expressed juice. The patient
should be lightly but warmly clothed during the attack, and exposure
to the cold, or to draughts of cold air, should be carefully avoided.
The further treatment may be similar to that noticed under
“eruptions.” To prevent the recurrence of the attack, the
objectionable articles of food, and any other known exciting causes,
must be avoided. Red rash, red blotch, or fiery spot, a common
consequence of disordered health, a sudden fit of dyspepsia, and, in
females, of tight lacing, and rose rash, false measles, or roseola,
having commonly a similar origin to the preceding, for the most part
require the same treatment.

=Scurf=—“furfur or furfura”—is a formation depending on the natural
and healthy exfoliation of the skin on every part of the body on which
hair or down grows, but most extensive and observable on the scalp, on
account of the abundance and darker color of the hair there.
Scurfiness, or excessive scurfiness, is the result of morbid action,
and may be treated by the frequent use of the fleshbrush or hairbrush,
ablution with soap and water, and the use of mild stimulating,
astringent, or detergent lotions.

=Scurvy=—“scorbutus” of medical writers—is a disease which, even in
its incipient and early stages, when its presence is often
unsuspected, is most injurious to the skin and complexion. It usually
commences with unnatural sallowness, debility, and low spirits. As it
proceeds, the gums become sore, spongy, and apt to bleed on the
slightest pressure or friction; the teeth loosen, and the breath
acquires a fœtid odor; the legs swell, eruptions appear on
different parts of the body, and at length the patient sinks under
general emaciation, diarrhœa, and hemorrhages. Its chief cause is
improper food, or, rather, the absence or insufficient supply of fresh
meat and vegetables in the diet; to which cold, humidity, want of
exercise and fresh air may be added as secondary ones. Hence its
frequent, fatal visitations formerly on shipboard, and its still
occasional occurrence in ill-victualled ships during long voyages. The
treatment mainly consists in adopting a liberal diet of fresh animal
food and green vegetables, with ripe food and an ample allowance of
mild ale or beer, or lemonade made from the fresh expressed juice, as
beverages. In serious cases, tonics, as quinine and steel, should also
be administered.

=Wrinkles= and looseness of the skin depend chiefly on the attenuation
of the cutis or true skin and the reduction in the bulk of the
underlying surfacial portions of the body. They cannot be regarded as
a disease of the skin; but are the result of long continued bad
health, anxiety and study, and of general emaciation and old age.
Cleanliness, nutritious food, vigorous outdoor exercise, agreeable
occupation of the mind, and an equable and happy temper, retard their
formation. Whatever tends to promote the general health and to
increase the bulk of the body, and particularly the disposition of fat
in the cellular tissues, also tends to remove them and to increase the
smoothness and beauty of the skin. The free and frequent use of warm
water and soap, followed by the daily use of mild, stimulating,
cosmetic lotions or fomentations, or friction with warm oil of a like
character, and cod-liver oil internally, is all that art can do for
the purpose.

=Excoriations=, in popular language, are those cases of soreness
produced by chafing under the arms, behind the ears, and in the
wrinkles and folds of the skin generally. They occur chiefly in
infancy, and in stout persons with a delicate skin, who perspire
excessively. Extreme cleanliness, and carefully wiping the parts dry
after washing, with the subsequent use of a little violet powder, or
finely powdered starch, or French chalk scraped or grated very fine,
dusted over the parts once or twice a day, will generally remove them
and prevent their recurrence.


                         WASHES FOR THE FACE.

We do not approve of face washes, but as some ladies will use them, we
recommend the following as harmless: Dampen with glycerine tempered
with rose-water, then powder with the finest magnesia. It imparts a
charming whiteness.

Less harmless, but more frequently used, is to procure five cents'
worth of bismuth, of flake white, and of powdered chalk; mix with five
cents' worth of rose-water. Great care must be taken to wash off this
preparation before retiring to rest, as the bismuth is of a hurtful
nature.

=To Remove Freckles.=—Freckles are of two kinds: Those occasioned by
exposure to the sunshine, and consequently evanescent, are denominated
“summer freckles”; those which are constitutional and permanent are
called “cold freckles.” With regard to the latter, it is impossible to
give any advice which will be of value. They result from causes not to
be affected by mere external applications. Summer freckles are not
difficult to deal with, and with a little care the skin may be kept
free from this cause of disfigurement by using either of the following
lotions:—

First: Scrape horse-radish into a cup of sour milk, let it stand
twelve hours, strain, and apply two or three times a day.

Second: Into half a pint of milk squeeze the juice of a lemon, with a
spoonful of brandy, and boil, skimming well; add a dram of rock alum.
Apply freely.

=Magic Lotion for Removing Freckles.=—Dissolve three grains of borax in
five drams each of rose-water and orange-flower water. A splendid and
harmless remedy is equal parts of pure glycerine and rose-water,
applied every night and allowed to dry on the skin.

=To Remove Freckles and Tan.=—Tincture of benzoin, one pint; tincture
of tolu, one-half pint; oil rosemary, one-half ounce. Put one
teaspoonful of the above mixture in one-quarter pint of water, and
then with a towel thoroughly bathe the face. Do this every night and
morning.

=To Expel Freckles.=—Finely powdered nitre is excellent. Apply it to
the face with the finger moistened with water and dipped in the
powder.

=Cleopatra's Freckle Balm.=—A splendid article. Venice soap, one ounce;
lemon juice, half ounce; oil of bitter almonds, quarter ounce;
deliquidated oil of tartar, quarter ounce; oil of rhodium, three
drops. Dissolve the soap in the lemon juice, then add the two oils,
and put the whole in the sun till it acquires the consistency of
ointment, and then add the oil rhodium. Anoint the freckly face at
night with this balm, and wash in the morning with pure water.

=Lemon Cream for Sunburn and Freckles.=—Put two spoonfuls of sweet
cream into half a pint of new milk, squeeze into it the juice of a
lemon, add half a glass of genuine French brandy, a little alum and
loaf sugar; boil the whole, skim it well, and when cool it is fit for
use.

=Wash to Prevent Sunburn.=—Take two drams of borax, one dram of Roman
alum, one dram of camphor, half an ounce of sugar candy, one pound of
ox-gall. Mix and stir well together, and repeat the stirring three or
four times a day until it becomes transparent; then strain it through
filtering or blotting paper, and it will be fit for use. Wash the face
with the mixture before you go into the sun.

=Grape Lotion for Sunburn.=—Dip a bunch of green grapes in a basin of
water; sprinkle it with powdered alum and salt mixed; wrap the grapes
in paper, and bake them under hot ashes; then express the juice, and
wash the face with the liquid, which will remove either freckles, tan
or sunburn.

=To Soften and Whiten the Skin—Pate Axerasive of Bozin.=—This
celebrated perfume has the distinction of being highly commended by
the French Royal Academy of Medicine. It is better for toilet use than
soaps, which contain alkali.

Take powder of bitter almonds, eight ounces; oil of the same, twelve
ounces; savon vert of the perfumes, eight ounces; spermaceti, four
ounces; soap powder, four ounces; cinnabar, two drams; essence of
rose, one dram. Melt the soap and spermaceti with the oil in a bath
water; add the powder, and mix the whole in a marble mortar. It forms
a paste which softens and whitens the skin better than any soap.

=To Remove Red Pimples.=—Sulphur water, one ounce; acetated liquor of
ammonia, quarter ounce; liquor of potassa, one grain; white wine
vinegar, two ounces; distilled water, two ounces.

=To Remove Black Specks or Flesh-worms.=—Squeeze them by pressing the
skin, and then wash with warm water and rub well with a towel. Then
apply the following lotion: Liquor of potassa, one ounce; cologne, two
ounces.

=Preparation for Whitening the Face and Neck.=—For bleaching and
purifying the skin of the face and neck, making them beautifully
smooth and white: Terebinth of Mecca, three grains; oil of sweet
almonds, four ounces; spermaceti, two drams; flour of zinc, one dram;
white wax, two drams; rose-water, six drams. Mix in a bath water, and
melt together. After washing, before retiring (use water as hot as can
be borne), anoint the face and neck freely with this preparation.

=To Cure Profuse Perspiration.=—Bathe the hands, feet, and parts of the
body where the perspiration is greatest, with a cold infusion of
rosemary and sage, and afterwards dust the stockings and
under-garments with a mixture of two drams of camphor, four ounces of
orris root, and sixteen ounces of starch, the whole reduced to a fine
powder. Put the mixture in a coarse muslin bag, and shake it over the
clothes.

=Cleopatra's Enamel for Whitening the Hands and Arms.=—One ounce of
myrrh, four ounces of honey, two ounces of yellow wax, six ounces of
rose-water. Mix well together the wax, honey and rose-water in a dish
held over boiling water, and add the myrrh while hot. Rub this thickly
over the skin before going to bed.

=To Cure Freckles and Parched or Rough Skin.=—Take one ounce of sweet
almonds, or of pistachia nuts, half a pint of elder or rose-water, and
one ounce of pure glycerine; grate the nuts and put the powder in a
little linen or cotton bag, and squeeze it for several minutes in the
rose-water; then add the glycerine and a little perfume. Use it by
wetting the face two or three times a day. This is a grateful
application for a parched, rough skin, and is good for the removal of
freckles. It should be allowed to dry thoroughly. When it feels pasty
or sticky it may be washed off with a little warm water without soap.


                         TO PURIFY THE BREATH.

There is nothing more disagreeable to people with whom we associate
than for them to be able to detect a bad odor from our breath when in
their company. Yet a great many are afflicted in this way. The
following will purify and sweeten the breath: Chlorate of lime, seven
drams; vanilla sugar, three drams; gumeratic, five drams. Mix well
with warm water to a stiff paste, and cut into lozenges. Take a
lozenge occasionally.


          TO BLEACH AND PURIFY THE SKIN OF THE FACE AND NECK.

A celebrated physician gives the following as a good skin bleacher and
purifier: Half a pint of skim milk; slice into it as much cucumber as
it will cover, and let it stand an hour; then bathe the face, neck,
and hands. Wash them off with clean soft water when the cucumber
extract is dry. If the skin is rough from exposure to the wind, an
application of buttermilk at night, washed off with fine carbolic soap
in the morning, will make the skin smooth and natural.

=To Permanently Remove Black Specks or “Flesh-worms.”=—Sometimes little
black specks appear about the base of the nose, or on the forehead, or
in the hollow of the chin, which are called flesh-worms, and are
occasioned by coagulated lymph that obstructs the pores of the skin.
They may be squeezed out by pressing the skin, and ignorant people
suppose them to be little worms. They are permanently removed by
washing with very warm water, and severe friction with a towel and
then applying a little of the following preparation: Liquor of
potassa, one ounce; cologne, two ounces; white brandy, four ounces.

=French Face Wash Purifies and Brightens the Complexion.=—Take equal
parts of the seeds of the melon, pumpkin, gourd, and cucumber, pounded
till they are reduced to powder; add to it sufficient fresh cream to
dilute the flour, and then add milk enough to reduce the whole to a
thick paste. Add a grain of musk and a few drops of the oil of lemon.
Anoint the face with this, leave it on twenty or thirty minutes, or
over night if convenient, and wash off with warm water. It gives a
remarkable purity and brightness to the complexion.

Or, try this; splendid.—Infuse a handful of well-sifted wheat bran
for four hours in white wine vinegar; add to it five yolks of eggs and
two grains of musk, and distill the whole. Bottle it, keep carefully
corked for fifteen days, when it will be fit for use. Apply over
night, and wash in the morning with tepid water.

=To Remove Pimples.=—There are many kinds of pimples, some of which
partake almost of the nature of ulcers, which require medical
treatment; but the small red pimple, which is most common, may be
removed by applying the following twice a day: Sulphur water, one
ounce; acetated liquid of ammonia, one-quarter ounce; liquor of
potassa, one grain; white wine vinegar, two ounces; distilled water,
two ounces. These pimples are sometimes cured by frequent washing in
warm water and prolonged friction with a coarse towel. The cause of
these pimples is obstruction of the skin and imperfect circulation.

=To Remove Tan.=—_Creme de'l Enclos._—New milk, half a pint; lemon
juice, one-quarter ounce; white brandy, half ounce. Boil the whole and
skim it clear from all scum. Use night and morning.

=A Cosmetic Bath.=—Take two pounds of barley or bean flour, eight
pounds of bran, and a few handfuls of Borage leaves. Boil these
ingredients in a sufficient quantity of spring water. This both
cleanses and softens the skin in a superior manner.

=Kalydor for the Complexion.=—For pimples, freckle-tanned skin, or
scurf on the skin. Take emulsion of bitter almonds, one pint;
oxymuriate of quicksilver, two and one-half pints; sal ammoniac, one
dram. To be used moderately by means of a sponge, after washing the
face and hands with pure soap and warm water.

=To Improve the Skin.=—Take two ounces of Venice soap and dissolve it
in two ounces of lemon juice. Add one ounce of the oil of bitter
almonds and a like quantity of the oil of tartar. Mix the whole and
stir it well till it has acquired the consistence of soap, and use it
as such for the hands. The paste of sweet almonds, which contains an
oil fit for keeping the skin soft and elastic and removing
indurations, may be beneficially applied to the hands and arms.

=Wash a la Marie Antoinette.=—Gives a beautiful brilliancy to the
complexion. Take half a dozen lemons and cut them in small pieces, a
small handful of the leaves of white lilies and southernwood, and
infuse them in two quarts of cows milk, with an ounce and a half of
white sugar and an ounce of rock alum. These are to be distilled in
palneum mariæ. The face at bedtime is to be rubbed with this liquid,
and it will give a beautiful luster to the complexion. It is a safe
application, and its effects are certain.

=Liquid Rouge.=—Harmless—a perfect imitation of nature. For ladies who
wish to use a little artificial bloom the following is recommended. A
liquid rouge to produce a perfect imitation of the colors of nature is
prepared as follows: Add to a pint of French brandy, half an ounce of
benzoin, an ounce of red sandalwood, half an ounce of Brazil wood and
the same quantity of rock alum. Cork the bottle carefully, shake it
well once a day, and at the end of twelve days it will be fit for use.
The cheeks are to be lightly touched with it.

=Milk of Roses.=—This is a cosmetic. Pound an ounce of almonds in a
mortar very finely; then put in shavings of honey soap in a small
quantity. Add enough rose-water to enable you to work the composition
with the pestle into a fine cream; and in order that it may keep, add
to the whole an ounce of spirits of wine, by slow degrees. Scent with
otto of roses. Strain through muslin. Apply to the face with a sponge
or a piece of lint.

=Circassian Cream.=—This celebrated preparation is made, according to a
published recipe, in this way: Castor oil, one pint; almond oil, four
ounces; liquid potassa, three drams; essence of bergamot, oil of
cloves, and oil of lemon, in equal quantities; and about a dozen drops
of otto of roses.

=Toilet Vinegar.=—Add to the best malt vinegar, half a pint of cognac
and a pint of rose-water. Scent may be added, and if so, it should be
first mixed with the spirit before the other ingredients are put in.

=Bloom Rose.=—This is a preparation of carmine for the face and lips.
Take a quarter of a dram of carmine and place it in a phial with half
a dram of liquid ammonia; keep for a few days, occasionally shaking
the mixture; then dilute with two ounces of rose-water, to which half
a dram of essence of roses has been added. Draw off and keep a week or
ten days, then apply with the corner of a soft handkerchief, taking
care that if the color is too bright it is reduced by means of pure
water.

=Certain Cure for Eruptions, Pimples, Etc.=—Having in numerous
instances seen the good effects of the following prescription, I can
certify to its perfect remedy: Dilute corrosive sublimate with the oil
of almonds, apply it to the face occasionally, and in few days a cure
will be effected.

=To Clear the Complexion, and Reduce the Size.=—It is essential that
the blood should be cleansed. Take a teaspoonful of powdered charcoal,
mixed with water or honey, for three successive nights, then use a
seidlitz powder to remove it from the system. It acts splendidly upon
the system and purifies the blood; but under no circumstances must the
physic be neglected to carry the chemicals from the system; if not,
ill effects are certain to follow.

=To Cure and Refine a Stippled or Blotched Skin.=—A small dose of
teraxacum every other night will most materially aid in refining the
skin. It is a month's or six weeks' job to accomplish the desired
result. You must also wear a mask of quilted cotton, wet in cold
water, over night. Do not get discouraged, for it is worth the
trouble.


                     TO CURE AND PREVENT WRINKLES.

=Pomade d'Hebe.=—This pomade is used for the removal of wrinkles. To
make: Melt white wax, one ounce, to gentle heat; add juice of lily
bulbs, two ounces; add honey, two ounces; rose-water, two drams; and
otto of roses, a drop or two. Use twice a day.

=Lotion for Wrinkles.=—Beautifies the face, preserves the freshness of
youth, and gives a beautiful brilliancy to the skin. Take the second
water of barley, one pint, and strain through a piece of fine linen;
add a dozen drops of the balm of Mecca; shake it well together until
the balm is thoroughly incorporated with the water, which will be
effected when the water assumes a whitish or turgid appearance. Before
applying, wash the face with soft water. If used once a day, this
lotion will beautify the face, remove wrinkles, preserve the freshness
of youth, and give a surprising brilliancy to the skin.

=Wash for Wrinkles.=—Take two ounces of the juice of onions, two ounces
of the white lily, two ounces of Norboune honey, and one ounce of
white wax; put the whole into a new earthen pipkin until the wax is
melted, then take the pipkin (crock) off the fire, and continue
stirring briskly until the mixture grows cold. This should be applied
on going to bed and allowed to remain on till the morning.

=To Remove Wrinkles.=—To one fluid ounce of tincture of gum benzoin add
seven fluid ounces of distilled rose-water and one-half ounce of
glycerine. Bathe face, neck, and hands with it at night, letting it
dry on. Wash off in the morning with a very little pure white castile
soap and soft water. This is a famous cosmetic, and has been sold
under various names. It is an excellent remedy for tan, freckles, and
sunburn also.


                HOW TO HAVE BRILLIANT, BEAUTIFUL EYES.

Beautiful eyes are the gift of nature; but even those of the greatest
beauty may owe something to the toilet, while those of an indifferent
kind are very susceptible of improvement. We entirely discountenance
any tampering with the eye itself, with a view to giving it luster or
brightness. The sight has often been injured by the use of belladonna,
preparations of the calabar bean, eyebright, and other substances
having a strong effect on the eyes. But without touching the eye
itself, it is possible to give the effect of brightness, softness,
etc., by means of the eyelids and eyelashes. Made-up eyes are by no
means desirable, and to many are singularly displeasing; but the same
may be said of made-up faces generally. Some ladies are, however,
persuaded that it adds to their charms to give the eyes a long, almond
shape—after the Egyptian type—while very many are persuaded that the
eye is not seen to advantage unless its apparent size is increased by
the darkening of the lids. Both these effects are produced by kohl, a
black powder, which may be procured at the chemist's, and is mixed
with rose-water and applied with a camel's-hair brush.

=To Cure Weak Eyes.=—It is well to have on the toilet table a remedy
for inflamed eyes. Spermaceti ointment is simple and well adapted for
the purpose. Apply at night, and wash off with rose-water in the
morning. Golden ointment will serve a like purpose. Or, there is a
simple lotion made by dissolving a very small piece of alum and a
piece of lump sugar of the same size in a quart of water. Put the
ingredients into water cold and let them simmer. Bathe the eyes
frequently with it. Sties in the eyes are irritating and disfiguring.
Foment with warm water; at night apply a bread and milk poultice. When
a white head forms, prick it with a fine needle. Should the
inflammation be obstinate, a little citerine ointment may be applied,
care being taken that it does not get into the eye, and an aperient
should be tried.

=To Improve the Eyelashes.=—Many people speak highly of this secret.
Trim the tiny points slightly, and anoint with this salve: Two drams
of ointment of nitric oxida of mercury, and one dram of lard. Mix the
lard and ointment well, and anoint the edges of the eyelids night and
morning, after each time, with milk and water. This will restore the
lashes when all other remedies fail. It is not known in this country,
and is a valuable secret.

=To Cure Weakness of Eyes.=—Sulphate of copper, fifteen grains;
camphor, four grains; boiling water, four ounces. Mix, strain, and
when cold make up to four pints with water. Bathe the eyes night and
morning with a portion of the mixture.

=How to Have Beautiful Eyelashes.=—The effect of the eyes is greatly
aided by beautiful eyelashes. These may be secured to a certain extent
by a little care, especially if it is taken early in life. The extreme
ends should be cut with a pair of small, sharp scissors, care being
taken to preserve the natural outline, not to leave jagged edges.
Attention to this matter results in the lengthening of the lashes.
Dyeing them is another expedient often resorted to for increasing
their effect. A good permanent black is all that is needed, and for
this use Indian ink. As an impromptu expedient to serve for one night,
a hairpin held for a few seconds in the flame of a candle, and drawn
through the lashes, will serve to color them well, and with sufficient
durability. It need scarcely be added that the hairpin must be
suffered to grow cold before it is used, or the consequence may be
that no eyelash will be left to color. Good eyebrows are not to be
produced artificially. It is possible, however, to prevent those that
are really good from degenerating through neglect. When wiping the
face dry after washing, pass a corner of the towel over the forefinger
and set the eyebrows in the form you wish them to assume. And when
oiling the hair, do not forget to oil the eyebrows also.

=To Cure Watery and Inflamed Eyes.=—Foment frequently with decoction of
poppy heads. When the irritation and inflammation occur, a teaspoonful
of cognac brandy in four ounces of spring water may be used three or
four times in the course of the day as a strengthening lotion.

=General Care of the Eyes.=—The eyes, of all the features, stand
pre-eminent for their beauty and ever-varying powers of expression,
and for being the organs of the most exalted, delicate and useful of
the senses. It is they alone that “reveal the external forms of beauty
to the mind, and enable it to perceive them, even at a distance, with
the speed of light. It is they alone that clothe the whole creation
with the magic charms of color, and fix on every object the identity
of figure. It is the eyes alone, or chiefly, that reveal the emotions
of the mind to others, and that clothe the features with the language
of the soul. Melting with pity, or glowing with hope, or redolent with
love, benevolence, desire, or emulation, they impart to the
countenance those vital fascinations which are the peculiar attributes
of man.” “And when the mind is subdued by fear, anxiety or shame, or
overwhelmed by sorrow or despair, the eyes, like faithful chroniclers,
still tell the truthful story of the mental disquietude. And hatred,
anger, envy, pride, and jealousy, ambition, avarice, discontent, and
all the varied passions and emotions that torment, excite or depress
the human soul, and find a resting place in the human breast, obtain
expression in the eyes. At one moment the instruments of receiving and
imparting pleasure, at another the willing or passive instruments of
pain, their influences and changes are as varied and boundless as the
empire of thought itself.” Through their silent expressions the mind
reveals its workings to the external world in signs more rapid and as
palpable as those uttered by the tongue. It is “the eyes alone that
stamp the face with the outward symbol of animation and vitality,” and
which endue it with the visible “sanctity of reason.” The eye is,
indeed, the chief and most speaking feature of the face, and the one
on whose excellence, more than any other, its beauty depends.

Theories have been based on even the peculiar color of the eyes. Thus,
it is said that dark blue eyes are found chiefly in persons of
delicate, refined or effeminate mental character; light blue eyes, and
more particularly gray eyes, in the hardy and active; hazel eyes, in
the masculine, vigorous, and profound; black eyes, in those whose
energy is of a desultory or remittent character, and who exhibit
fickleness in pursuits and affection. Greenish eyes, it is asserted,
have the same general meaning as gray eyes, with the addition of
selfishness or a sinistrous disposition. These statements, however,
though based on some general truths, and supported by popular opinion,
are liable to so many exceptions as to be unreliable and valueless in
their individual applications.

Shakespeare is said to have had hazel eyes; Swift, blue eyes; Milton,
Scott, and Byron, gray eyes. Wellington and Napoleon are also said to
have had gray eyes.

A beautiful eye is one that is full, clear, and brilliant; appropriate
in color to the complexion, and in form to the features, and of which
the connected parts—the eyelids, eyelashes, and eyebrows, which, with
it, in a general view of the subject, collectively form the external
eye—are also beautiful, and in keeping with it.

To increase the beauty and expression of the eyes, various means are
occasionally had recourse to, nearly all of which, except those herein
mentioned in connection with the eyelashes and eyebrows, are not
merely highly objectionable, but even dangerous. Thus, some
fashionable ladies and actresses, to enhance the clearness and
brilliancy of their eyes before appearing in public, are in the habit
of exposing them to air slightly impregnated with the vapor of prussic
acid. This is done by placing a single drop of the dilute acid at the
bottom of an eyecup or eyeglass, and then holding the cup or glass
against the eye for a few seconds, with the head in an inclined
position. It has also been asserted, and I believe correctly, that
certain ladies of the demimonde rub a very small quantity of
belladonna ointment on the brow over each eye, or moisten the same
part with a few drops of tincture of belladonna. This produces
dilation of the pupil, and gives that peculiar fullness and an
expression of languor to the eyes which, by some, is regarded as
exceedingly fascinating. The use of these active medicinals in this
way must be manifestly injurious; and when frequent, or long continued
or carried to excess, must necessarily result in impaired vision, if
not in actual blindness.

The following means of repairing and restoring the sight, which has
for some time been going the round of the press, being based on
scientific principles, may be appropriately inserted here:

For nearsightedness, close the eyes and pass the fingers, very gently,
several times across them outward, from the canthus, or corner next
the nose, towards the temple. This tends slightly to flatten the
corner and lens of the eye, and thus to lengthen or extend the angle
of vision. The operation should be repeated several times a day, or at
least always after making one's toilet, until shortsightedness is
nearly or completely removed. For long sight, loss of sight by age,
weak sight, and generally for all those defects which require the use
of magnifying glasses, gently pass the finger, or napkin, from the
outer angle or corner of the eyes inward, above and below the eyeball,
towards the nose. This tends slightly to “round up” the eyes, and thus
to preserve or to restore the sight. It should be done every time the
eyes are washed, or oftener.


                  TO HAVE A BEAUTIFUL MOUTH AND LIPS.

The beauty of the human mouth and lips, the delicacy of their
formation and tints, their power of expression, which is only inferior
to that of the eyes, and their elevated position as the media with the
palate, tongue, and teeth, by which we communicate our thoughts to
others in an audible form, need scarcely be dilated on here. The poet
tells us that:

    “The lips of woman out of roses take
    The tints with which they ever stain themselves.
    They are the beautiful, lofty shelves
    Where rests the sweetness which the young hours make,
    And which the earnest boy, whom we call Love,
    Will often sip in sorrow or in play.
    Health, when it comes, doth ruddiness approve,
    But his strong foe soon flatters it away!
    Disease and health for a warm pair of lips,
    Like York and Lancaster, wage active strife:
    One on his banner front the White rose keeps,
    And one the Red; and thus with woman's life,
    Her lips are made a battle-field for those
    Who struggle for the color of a rose.”

A beautiful mouth is one that is moderately small, and has a
well-defined and graceful outline; and beautiful lips are gracefully
molded, neither thick nor thin, nor compressed nor lax, and that are
endowed with expression and are tinted with the hues of health.

The ladies of Eastern nations commonly heighten the hue and freshness
of their lips by means of cosmetics, a practice which in Western
Europe is only adopted on the stage, and occasionally by courtesans
and ladies of the demimonde.

Chapped lips most frequently occur in persons with pale, bluish, moist
lips and a languid circulation, who are much exposed to the wind or
who are continually moving from heated apartments to the external air.
East and north-east winds are those that generally produce them. The
occasional application of a little cold cream, lip salve, spermaceti
ointment, or any other mild unguent, will generally prevent them, and
remove them when they have already formed. A still more elegant and
effective preventive and remedy is glycerine diluted with about twice
its weight of eau-de-rose, or glycerinated lip salve or balsam.

The moist vesicular eruption of the lips, referred to above, may also
generally be prevented by the use of glycerine, or any of the
preparations just mentioned. After its accession, the best treatment
is to freely dust the affected portion of the lips with violet powder,
finely powdered starch, prepared chalk, or French chalk or talc
reduced to an impalpable powder by scraping or grating it.

The following formulas of preparations are all valuable for
beautifying and preserving the beauty of the lips:—

=White Lip Salve—No. 1.=—Take half a pound spermaceti ointment,
liquify it by the heat of warm water, and stir in one-half dram neroli
or essence de petit-grain. In a few minutes pour off the clear portion
from the dregs (if any) and add twenty drops of oil of rose. Lastly,
before it cools, pour it into jars.

=Lip Salve—No. 2.=—This indispensable adjunct to the toilet is made by
melting in a jar, placed in a basin of boiling water, a quarter of an
ounce each of white wax and spermaceti; flour of benzoin, fifteen
grains; and half an ounce of oil of almonds. Stir till the mixture is
cool. Color red with two-penny worth of alkanet root. Splendid for
keeping the lips healthy and of a beautiful crimson color.

=French Lip Salve.=—Lard, twenty-six ounces; white wax, two ounces;
nitre and alum in fine powder, of each one-half ounce; alkanet to
color.

=German Lip Salve.=—Butter of cacao, one-half ounce; oil of almonds,
one-quarter ounce; melt together with a gentle heat, and add six drops
of essence of lemon.


                        THE CARE OF THE TEETH.

The influence which the teeth are capable of exercising on the
personal appearance is usually known and admitted.

The teeth have formed especial objects of attention, in connection
with the toilet and cosmetic arts, from almost the earliest ages of
the world to the present time. History and tradition, and the
researches of archæologists among the remains of the prehistoric
nations of the East, show us that even dentistry may trace back its
origin to a date not very long subsequent to the “confusion of
tongues.”

We are told that the ancient Welsh took particular care of their
teeth, by frequently rubbing them with a stick of green hazel and a
woollen cloth. To prevent their premature decay, they scrupulously
avoided acid liquids, and invariably abstained from all hot food and
drink.

Europeans pride themselves on teeth of pearly whiteness; but many
Asiatic nations regard them as beautiful only when of a black color.
The Chinese, in order to blacken them, chew what is called “betel” or
“betel nut,” a common masticatory in the East. The Siamese and the
Tonquinese do the same, but to a still greater extent, which renders
their teeth as black as ebony, or more so. As the use of the
masticatory is generally not commenced until a certain age, the common
practice is to stain the teeth of the boys and girls with a strong
preparation of it, on the former attaining the age of ten or twelve.

Keeping the lips apart and breathing through the mouth instead of the
nose, and, particularly, sleeping with the mouth open, are habits
which are very prejudicial to the teeth and gums. In this way the
mouth forms a trap to catch the dust and gritty particles floating in
the atmosphere, which soon mechanically injure the enamel of the teeth
by attrition.

On the subject of cleanliness in connection with the teeth and mouth,
it may be said that the mouth cannot be too frequently rinsed during
the day, and that it should be more particularly so treated after each
meal. Pure cold water is the best for the purpose. It not only cleans
the teeth and mouth, but exerts a tonic action on the gums, which warm
water, or even tepid water, is deficient in. When cold water cannot be
tolerated, tepid water may be employed, the temperature being slightly
lowered once every week or ten days until cold water can be borne.
Every one who abhors a fœtid breath, rotten teeth, and the
toothache, would do well to thoroughly clean his teeth at bedtime,
observing to well rinse the mouth with cold water on rising in the
morning, and again in the day once, or oftener, as the opportunities
occur. With smokers, the use of the toothbrush the last thing at night
is almost obligatory if they value their teeth and wish to avoid the
unpleasant flavor and sensation which teeth fouled with tobacco smoke
occasion in the mouth on awakening in the morning.

As to tooth powders or pastes to be used with the brush, the simplest
are the best. Plain camphorated chalk, with or without a little finely
powdered pumice stone or burnt hartshorn, is a popular and excellent
tooth powder. It is capable of exerting sufficient friction under the
brush to ensure pearly whiteness of the teeth without injuring the
enamel, whilst the camphor in it tends to destroy the animalcula in
the secretions of the mouth, whose skeletons or remains constitute, as
we shall presently see, the incrassation popularly called “tartar.”
Recently-burnt charcoal, in very fine powder, is another excellent
tooth powder, which, without injuring the enamel, is sufficiently
gritty to clean the teeth and remove the tartar from them, and
possesses the advantage of also removing the offensive odor arising
from rotten teeth and from decomposing organic matter. The charcoal of
the heavy hardwoods, as lignum-vitæ, boxwood, oak, are the best; and
these, as to quality, range in the order given. Still more valuable as
a dentifrice is areca nut charcoal, which, besides possessing the
properties of the other vegetable charcoals in an eminent degree, has
valuable ones peculiar to itself.

Some dentists, and some persons in imitation of them, in order to
whiten the teeth, rub their surfaces with hydrochloric acid, somewhat
dilute; but the practice is a most dangerous one, which, by a few
repetitions, will sometimes utterly destroy the enamel and lead to the
rapid decay of all the teeth so treated. Should the teeth be much
discolored, and ordinary tooth powder prove ineffective, a little
lemon juice used with the brush will generally render them perfectly
white. It should only be employed occasionally, and the mouth should
be well rinsed with water afterwards. A little of the pulp of an
orange, used in the same way, is also very effective and safe, as are
also ripe strawberries, which may be either rubbed on the teeth with
the fingers or applied with the brush. The last form, perhaps, the
very best natural dentifrice known. Besides possessing singular power
in whitening and cleaning the teeth and rapidly removing tartar, they
destroy the offensive odor of rotten teeth and impart an agreeable
fragrance to the breath.

The importance of a judicious attention to the teeth, in connection
with health, cleanliness, and personal comfort and appearance, cannot
be too often alluded to and enforced.

It is no exaggeration to say that, taking the whole community, there
are few, very few, who clean their teeth, or even wash their mouths,
once a day. With the masses the operation, if performed at all, is
confined to the Sabbath day, or to holidays; whilst refined, educated,
and cleanly persons regard the operation of cleaning the teeth as a
daily duty, as necessary as washing the face and hands. The dirty and
vulgar—the two words are here synonymous—wholly neglect it, and too
often even consider it as unnecessary, effeminate, and absurd. The
consequences of the careless performance, or the neglect, of this
really necessary personal duty are not long in being developed.
Passing over the degradation of the other features, the offensiveness
of the breath, often to a degree which renders the individual
uncompanionable, and the unfavorable impression which, like other
marks of uncleanliness, they convey of the taste and habits of their
possessor, as the immediate effects of habitually neglected and dirty
teeth, let us look at the more distant, but not less certain, ones:—

In cases of ordinary toothache, even severe ones, chewing a small
piece of really good pellitory will often give relief in a few
minutes. Chewing a piece of strong, unbleached Jamaica ginger will
often do the same in light cases. The celebrated John Wesley
recommended a “few whiffs” at a pipe containing a little caraway seed
mixed with tobacco as a simple and ready means of curing the
toothache. I can bear testimony to the fact that in some cases it
succeeds admirably.

Scarcely anything is more disagreeable, and in marked cases, more
disgusting, than fœtid breath. It is unpleasant to the person that
has it, and it renders him unfit for the society of others. The cause
of stinking breath may generally be traced to rotten teeth, diseased
stomach, or worms. When the first are the cause, the teeth should be
thoroughly cleansed and then “stopped” in the manner already
indicated; or, when this is impracticable, the offending tooth, or
teeth, may be removed and replaced by artificial ones. When this
cannot be done, or is inconvenient, the evil may be greatly lessened
by the frequent use of an antiseptic tooth powder, areca nut charcoal
or camphorated chalk. Dirty teeth, even when quite sound, always more
or less taint the breath. When a foul or a diseased stomach is the
cause, mild aperients should be administered; and if these do not
succeed, an emetic may be given, scrupulous cleanliness of the teeth
being observed, as in the former case. When worms are the cause, worm
medicine, under medical direction, will be necessary.

=To Cure Foul Breath.=—When bad breath is occasioned by teeth, or any
local cause, use a gargle consisting of a spoonful of solution of
chloride of lime in half a tumbler of water.

=To Have White and Beautiful Teeth.=—An article known as “The Queen's
Tooth Preserver” is made as follows: One ounce of coarsely powdered
Peruvian bark, mixed in half a pint of brandy for twelve days. Gargle
the mouth (teeth and gums) with a teaspoonful of this liquid, diluted
with an equal quantity of rose-water. Always wash off the teeth after
each meal with water. Also, twice a day, wash the teeth with the ashes
of burned bread—bread burned to ashes.

=For Decayed Teeth.=—There is nothing better than two scruples of myrrh
in fine powder, one scruple of juniper gum, and ten grains of alum,
mixed in honey. Apply often to the teeth.

=To Cure Toothache.=—Take equal parts of camphor, sulphuric ether,
ammonia, laudanum, tincture of cayenne, and one-eighth part oil of
cloves. Mix well together. Saturate with the liquid a small piece of
cotton, and apply to the cavity of the diseased tooth, and the pain
will cease immediately.

=Premium Tooth Powder.=—Six ounces prepared chalk, one-half ounce
cassia powder, one ounce orris; mix well.

=Mouth Pastilles for Perfuming the Breath.=—First: Extract of
liquorice, three ounces; oil of cloves, one and a half drams; oil of
cinnamon, fifteen drops. Mix, and divide into one-grain pills.

Second: Catechu, seven drams; orris powder, forty grains; sugar, three
ounces; oil of rosemary (or of cloves, peppermint, or cinnamon), four
drops. Mix, and roll flat on oiled marble slab, and cut into very
small tablets.

=Feuchtwanger's Tooth Paste.=—Powdered myrrh, two ounces; burned alum,
one ounce; cream tartar, one ounce; cuttlefish bone, four ounces; drop
lake, two ounces; honey, half a gallon. Mix. Reduce the proportion for
a small quantity.

=Fine Tooth Powder.=—Powdered orris root, one ounce; Peruvian bark, one
ounce; prepared chalk, one ounce; myrrh, one-half ounce. Mix.

=To Remove Offensive Breath.=—For this purpose, almost the only
substance that should be admitted to the toilet is the concentrated
solution of chloride of soda. From six to ten drops of it in a
wineglassful of spring water, taken immediately after the operations
of the toilet are completed.

In some cases, the odor arising from caries is combined with that of
the stomach. If the mouth be well rinsed with a teaspoonful of the
solution of the chloride in a tumbler of water, the bad odor of the
teeth will be removed.

=Rye Tooth Powder.=—Rye contains carbonate of lime, carbonate of
magnesia, oxide of iron, manganese, and silica, all suitable for
application to the teeth. Therefore, a fine tooth powder is made by
burning rye, or rye bread, to ashes, and grinding it to powder by
passing the rolling-pin over it. Pass the powder through a sieve, and
use.

=Camphorated Chalk.=—This favorite tooth powder is easily made. Take a
pound of prepared chalk, and with this mix two drams of camphor very
finely powdered, and moisten with spirits of wine. Thoroughly mix.

=To Remove the Yellow Color from Teeth.=—Take of dry hypochlorite of
lime, one-half dram; red coral, two drams. Tincturate and mix
thoroughly. This powder is employed in the following manner: A new
brush is slightly moistened, then dipped in the powder and applied to
the teeth. A few days after the use of this powder the teeth will
acquire a beautiful white color.

=Camphor Paste.=—Take one ounce of oil ammoniac, four drams of camphor.
Let the above be very finely powdered, then mix it with sufficient
honey to make it into a smooth paste; triturate it until entirely
smooth. This is a most excellent paste for preserving and beautifying
the teeth.

=Preservative Tincture for the Teeth and Gums.=—Take four drams of
camphor, one ounce of tincture of myrrh, one ounce of tincture of
bark, and one ounce of rectified spirits of wine; mix them, and put 30
or 40 drops in a wineglassful of water. Pour a little of this upon
your brush before you apply it to the powder, and when the teeth are
clean, wash the mouth, teeth, and gums with the remainder. It will in
ordinary cases prevent toothache.

=Powerfully Cleansing Dentifrice.=—Take fine powder of pumice stone,
four drams; fine powder of cuttlefish bone, four drams; add one
scruple of subcarbonate of soda. Mix them well together, color and
scent according to taste, and then pass it through a fine sieve.

=Infallible Cure for Toothache.=—Take alum, reduced to an impalpable
powder, two drams; nitreous spirits of ether, seven drams. Mix, and
apply them to the tooth. This is said to be an infallible cure for all
kinds of toothache, unless the disease is connected with rheumatism.

=Mixture for Decayed Teeth.=—Make a balsam with a sufficient quantity
of honey, two scruples of myrrh in fine powder, a scruple of gum
juniper, and ten grains of rock alum. A portion to be applied
frequently to the decayed tooth.

=To Whiten and Beautify the Teeth.=—Take gum tragacanth, one ounce;
pumice stone, two drams; gum arabic, one ounce; cream of tartar, one
ounce. Dissolve the gums in rose-water, and adding to it the powder,
form the whole into little sticks, which are to be dried slowly in the
shade, and afterwards kept for use. Use on the brush like soap.


             HOW TO HAVE SOFT, WHITE AND BEAUTIFUL HANDS.

There are very few beautiful hands, but to make the hands beautiful
rests, with scarcely an exception, with the possessor. Now that
chiromancy has become so fashionable as to be a part of a great many
entertainments, it is very desirable that the hands should present an
attractive appearance. A soft, white, delicate hand, with neatly-kept
nails, forms an important factor in a pleasing personal appearance,
and is something any man or woman may possess themselves of with a
little care. Of course it goes without saying, that requisite is
perfect cleanliness of both the hands and nails. The best and purest
soap should be used, and when soft water cannot be obtained, a few
drops of ammonia, or a little borax, should be added to the water in
which the hands are washed, and they should always be thoroughly
dried. A lotion of one ounce glycerine, one ounce rose-water, ten
drops of carbolic acid, and forty drops of hamamelis, is excellent to
use on the hands before they are dried each time they are washed.

Persons who do housework should wear the India rubber gloves which are
made for the purpose and can be purchased in any size for from $1.00
to $1.25 as they are with or without wrists.

Rubbing the hands once or twice a day in oatmeal tends to whiten them
and make them soft and flexible.

The following bleaches the hands and arms and makes them beautifully
soft and white:—

=Bleaching Lotion.=—Bitter almonds, ten ounces; iris powder, one ounce;
pulverized horse-chestnut, two ounces; essence of bergamot, one dram;
carbonate of potash, two drams; mix. Use on the hands after washing,
and on retiring for the night.

Five grains of chloridated lime in a pint of warm water will whiten
the hands and remove all stains, but as this is not always quite
harmless to a delicate skin, it is perhaps better to remove stains
with a cut of lemon, and use the preparation given above for whitening
them.

Tight lacing and tight sleeves, and even tight shoes, will cause the
hands to be an unsightly red, for which no lotion or care is a remedy.
If, however, all the clothing is worn so as to allow a free
circulation, and the directions which have been given are regularly
and constantly followed, any hand will become white, supple and
delicate—a pleasure to both possessor and beholder; and it is really
worth the care, which after a little time becomes a fixed habit and so
is scarcely noticeable, to have such hands.

=To Make the Hands White and Delicate.=—Should you wish to make your
hands white and delicate, wash them in hot milk and water for a day or
two. On retiring to rest, rub them well over with palm oil, and put on
a pair of woollen gloves. The hands should be thoroughly washed with
hot water and soap the next morning, and a pair of soft leather gloves
worn during the day; they should be frequently rubbed together to
promote circulation. Sunburnt hands should be washed in lime water or
lemon juice. Should they be severely freckled, the following will be
good to use: Take of distilled water, half a pint; sal ammoniac, half
a dram; oxymuriate of quicksilver, four grains; divide the two last in
spirit, and gradually add the water to them; add another half pint of
water, mix well together, and it is ready for use. It should be
applied as often as desirable, with a piece of soft sponge. If
rose-water is substituted for distilled water, the effect is
pleasanter.

=Remedy for Chapped Hands.=—The simplest remedy is the camphor ball, to
be obtained of all chemists. Powdered hemlock bark put into a piece of
muslin and sprinkled on the chaps is highly recommended. Or, wash with
oatmeal, and afterwards rub the hands over with dry oatmeal, so as to
remove all dampness. It is a good thing to rub the hands and lips with
glycerine before going to bed at night. A good oil is made by
simmering: Sweet oil, one pint; Venice turpentine, three ounces; lard,
half a pound; beeswax, three ounces. Simmer till the wax is melted.
Rub on, or apply with a rag.

=To Cure Red Hands.=—Wash them frequently in warm, not hot, water,
using honey soap and soft towel. Dry with violet powder, and again
with a soft, dry handkerchief. Take exercise enough to promote
circulation, and do not wear gloves too tight.

=Almond Paste for the Hands.=—Take one pound of sweet almonds,
one-quarter of a pound of bread crumbs, one half a pint of spring
water, one-half a pint of brandy, and the yolks of two eggs. Pound the
almonds with a few drops of vinegar or water, to prevent them oiling;
add the crumbs of bread, which moisten with the brandy as you mix it
with the almonds and the yolks of eggs. Set this mixture over a slow
fire, and stir it continually or it will adhere to the edges.

=Almond Paste for Chapped Hands= (which will preserve them smooth and
white).—The daily use of the following paste will keep the hands
smooth and white: Mix a quarter of a pound of unsalted hog's lard,
which has been washed in common, and then in rose, water, with the
yolks of two fresh eggs and a large spoonful of honey. Add as much
paste from almonds (well pounded in a mortar) as will work it into a
paste.

=General Remarks.=—The human hand, regarded either with reference to
its ingenious construction and usefulness, or to its beauty, stands
alone, in its superlative excellence, in the whole animal world. In no
species of animal is the hand so wonderfully formed and so perfectly
developed as in man.

To preserve the delicacy and beauty of the hands, some little care,
and more than that which is ordinarily bestowed on them, is required.
Foremost in consideration must be the subject of cleanliness. Dirty
and coarse hands are no less marks of slothfulness and lowbreeding
than clean and delicate hands are of refinement and gentility. To
promote softness and whiteness of the skin, mild emollient soaps, or
those abounding in oil or fat, should alone be adopted for common use;
by which means the tendency to contract chaps and chilblains, and
roughness from drying winds, will also be lessened. The coarse, strong
kinds of soap, those abounding in alkali, should be rejected, as they
tend to render the skin rough, dry and brittle. Rain, or soft, water
is the best natural water for washing the hands, as it cleanses them
more rapidly and completely than ordinary hard water, and with the use
of less soap. It may be advantageously used tepid, or even warm; but
hot water should be avoided. Distilled water, when obtainable, is
preferable to even rain water. In the absence of these, water that
has been boiled and allowed to settle and cool may be employed. With
hard water the hands are cleansed with difficulty, and though it may
be readily softened by the addition of a little soda, such an addition
tends to make the skin of a delicate hand somewhat hard and rough. If
hard water must be used to wash with, the only harmless substance that
can be conveniently added to it is a little good powdered borax. This
will also cause it to exert a genial action on the skin. Oatmeal and
warm water used every night and morning as a wash will whiten and
soften the roughest and darkest hands.

=Coarse, Red, Dark-Skinned Hands= may be whitened by the occasional use
of a few grains of chloride of lime, with warm water, in the manner
mentioned above.

=Roughness of the Hands=, induced by exposure to cold and drying winds,
may, in general, be removed by the use of a little powdered pumice
stone with the soap in washing them. The subsequent application,
particularly at night, of the above lotions, or of two or three drops
of almond or olive oil, well rubbed in, will usually effect the object
completely.

The hands may be preserved dry for delicate work by rubbing a little
club moss (lycopodium), in fine powder, over them. So repellent is
this substance of moisture, that if a small quantity of it be
sprinkled on the surface of a basin of water, the hand, by a little
adroitness, may be plunged to the bottom of the basin without becoming
wet.

Excessive moisture or perspiration of the hands without obvious cause
is generally indicative of debility, or disordered stomach, and
requires corresponding treatment. Frequently washing the hands in
moderately cold water often proves a local remedy for the
inconvenience. The addition of a few grains of alum, sal ammoniac, or
sulphate of zinc, or of a teaspoonful of vinegar, to the water greatly
increases its efficacy. Extremely delicate and susceptible persons
cannot always bear the excessive perspiration of their hands to be
thus suddenly lessened, and therefore some discretion should be
exercised by them in their attempts to check it.

=The Finger Nails= require special attention if we desire to preserve
them in their highest condition of beauty and usefulness. To keep them
clean, the nailbrush and soap and water should be used once or oftener
daily, as circumstances demand. Once a day at least, on wiping the
hands after washing them, and whilst they are still soft from the
action of the water, the free edge of the scarfskin, which, if not
attended to, is apt to grow upward over the nails, should be gently
loosened and pressed back in a neatly rounded form, by which the
occurrence of cracks and sores about their roots (agnails, nail
springs, etc.) will be prevented, and a graceful, oval form, ending in
a crescentlike space of white, will be ensured. The skin, as a rule,
should never be cut, pared, picked or torn off, as is commonly done,
and the less it is meddled with, otherwise than in the way just
mentioned, the better. The ends or points of the nails should be pared
once every week or ten days, according to the rapidity of their
growth, which somewhat varies with the season of the year and the
habit of the individual. This is best done with a sharp penknife or
nail-knife. Scissors are less convenient for the purpose, and have the
disadvantage of straining and distorting the nails during the process.

The length and shape of the nails, both for beauty and use, should
exactly correspond with the tips of the fingers. Nails extending
beyond the ends of the fingers are vulgar, clawlike, and inconvenient;
whilst if shorter, particularly much shorter than the fingers, they
are unsightly and of little use, and cause the tips of the fingers to
become thick and clumsy. Biting the nails should be avoided as a dirty
and disagreeable habit, and one utterly destructive to their beauty,
strength, and usefulness.

To remove stains and discolorations of the nails, a little lemon juice
or vinegar and water is the best application. Should this fail, a few
grains of salt of sorrel, oxalic acid, or chloride of lime, each
diluted with warm water, may be applied, care being taken to
thoroughly rinse the hands in clean water, without soap, afterwards.
Occasionally a little pumice stone, in impalpable powder, or powdered
cuttlefish bone, putty powder (polisher's peroxide of tin), may be
used along with water and a piece of wash-leather, flannel, or the
nailbrush, for the same purpose. The frequent use of any of these
substances is, however, injurious to the healthy growth, strength, and
permanent beauty of the nails. The common practice of scraping the
surface of the nails cannot be too strongly censured, as it causes
them to become weak and distorted. Blows on the nails, and, indeed,
violence to them in any form, also distorts and marks them.

The ladies of Oriental nations commonly dye the nails; and amongst
many savage tribes the same practice is adopted, and is not confined
to the gentler sex. Amongst Western Europeans, and Americans, white
and regularly-formed nails are alone esteemed.

=Chapped Hands= are common among persons with a languid circulation, who
are continually “dabbling” in water during cold weather, and
particularly among those with a scrofulous taint, who, without the
last, expose their ungloved hands to bleak, cold winds. The best
preventives, as well as remedies, are the use of warm gloves out of
doors, and the application, night and morning, of a little glycerine,
diluted with twice its weight of water, or a little cold cream,
spermaceti cerate, salad oil, or any other simple unguent or oil,
which should be well rubbed in, the superfluous portion being removed
with a towel. This treatment will not only preserve the hands from the
effects of cold and damp, but also tend to render them soft and white.
Deep chaps which have degenerated into sores should be kept constantly
covered with a piece of lint wetted with glycerine or spread with
spermaceti ointment, the part being at the same time carefully
preserved from dirt, cold, and wind. It is said that a once favorite
actress, celebrated for the beauty of her hands, even when in the
“sere and yellow leaf,” covered them nightly with the flare of a calf
or lamb, with the fat attached, over which was drawn a glove or mitten
of soft leather. The application of a little glycerine or fatty
matter, in the way just indicated, would have been equally effective.

=Warts=, like chilblains, are too well known to require description.
They chiefly attack the hands, and particularly the fingers, but
sometimes occur on other portions of the body. They may be removed by
rubbing or moistening their extremities every day, or every other day,
with lunar caustic, nitric acid, concentrated acetic acid, or aromatic
vinegar, care being taken not to wash the hands for some hours after.
The first is an extremely convenient and manageable substance, from
not being liable to drop or spread; but it produces a black stain,
which remains till the cauterized surface peels off. The second
produces a yellow stain, in depth proportioned to the strength of the
acid employed. This also wears off after the lapse of a few days. The
others scarcely discolor the skin.

=To Cause the Skin to become Satin-smooth, and to Smell like a bunch of
Violets.=—Any one using the following preparation will be noted for
the fair softness of her complexion and the delicate perfume which
emanates from her person. For ladies who like perfume, and care for a
satin-smooth skin, the following is an invaluable toilet
preparation:—

Have your druggist mix for you one ounce tincture of orris, one ounce
tincture of benzoin, ten drops oil of neroli, and ten drops oil of
lemon. To use this perfume, add a tablespoonful of it to about a pint
of warm water. It will turn as white as milk, and the real perfume
will be given off, whereas while in the bottle it has anything but a
pleasing odor. Now, after your bath, just take a soft cloth and go
over yourself with this milk, dry thoroughly, and you will smell like
a bunch of violets. The perfume may be altered to suit you, or you may
add any handkerchief extract, but don't omit the benzoin, for that is
what gives permanence to the perfume and softness and smoothness to
the skin.

=To Cause Those Who have Lost the Bloom and Fairness of Early Youth to
Regain Them.=—Many ladies who as young girls were fair with a lovely
rosy bloom, lose these beauties very early in life; very many do this
at twenty, or very little later, and become sallow and heavy-eyed,
thus losing their principal charm. Now, this is very easily remedied.
Go to your druggist and ask him for some iron pills and for some
simple purgative to take with them. Get from him directions for taking
both, and take strictly according to his directions. In a very short
time you will again be fair and rosy and your eyes bright and
sparkling; in fact, you will seem to have renewed your youth, and,
indeed, you will feel like another person, so light-hearted will you
become, in addition to your return of beauty.


                               THE HAIR.

=Its Estimation, Structure, Growth, Management, Etc.=—The hair is not
only invaluable as a protective covering of the head, but it gives a
finish and imparts unequalled grace to the features which it
surrounds. Sculptors and painters have bestowed on its representation
their highest skill and care, and its description and praises have
been sung in the sweetest lays by the poets of all ages. Whether in
flowing ringlets, chaste and simple bands, or graceful braids
artistically disposed, it is equally charming, and clothes with
fascination even the simplest forms of beauty.

    O wondrous, wondrous, is her hair!
    A braided wealth of golden brown,
    That drops on neck and temples bare.

If there is one point more than another on which the tastes of mankind
appear to agree, it is that rich, luxuriant, flowing hair is not
merely beautiful in itself, but an important, nay, an essential,
auxiliary to the highest development of the personal charms. Among all
the refined nations of antiquity, as in all time since, the care,
arrangement and decoration of the hair formed a prominent and
generally leading portion of their toilet. The ancient Egyptians and
Assyrians, and other Eastern nations, bestowed on it the most
elaborate attention. The ancient Jews, like their modern descendants,
were noted for the luxuriance and richness of their hair and the care
which they devoted to it. Glossy flowing black hair is represented to
have been the glory of the ancient Jewess, and in her person to have
exhibited charms of the most imposing character; whilst the chasteness
of its arrangement was only equalled by its almost magic beauty. Nor
was this luxuriance, and this attention to the hair, confined to the
gentler sex, for among the pagan Orientals the hair and beards of the
males were not less sedulously attended to. Among the males of Judah
and Israel, long flowing ringlets appear to have been regarded as
highly desirable and attractive. The reputed beauty and the prodigious
length and weight of the hair of Absalom, the son of David, as
recorded in the sacred text, would be sufficient to startle the most
enthusiastic modern dandy that cultivates the crinal ornament of his
person. Solomon the Wise, another son of David, conceived the beauty
of hair sufficiently dignified to express figuratively the graces of
the Church.

The hair, though devoid of sensibility and unsusceptible of expression
under the influence of the will and the ordinary mental feelings, like
the mobile portions of the face, and though it may be popularly
regarded rather in the light of a parasitic growth than as an
essential portion of the body, is capable of being affected by the
stronger emotions and passions, and even of aiding their expression in
the features. Who is there that, at some period or other of his life,
if only in childhood, in a moment of sudden terror or horror, has not
experienced the sensation popularly described as “the hair standing on
end?” Or who is there that, at some time or other, has not witnessed
the partial erection of the hair in children or females under like
violent emotions, or seen the representation of it in sculptures or
paintings? Those passions, so aptly styled by Gray the “vultures of
the mind,” frequently affect with wonderful rapidity the health of
both the body and the mind, which wreck the hair soon sympathizes with
and shares. Instances are recorded in which violent grief in a few
weeks has blanched the hair and anticipated the effects of age; and
others in which intense terror or horror has affected the same with
even greater celerity, the change having occurred in a few days or
even in a few hours.

Besides daily attention to the hair, something else is necessary to
insure its cleanliness and beauty and the perfect health of the skin
of the head from which it springs. For this purpose the head should
be occasionally well washed with soap and water, an abundance of water
being used and great care being subsequently taken to thoroughly rinse
out the whole of the soap with the water in which the head has been
washed. The water may be either tepid or cold, according to the
feelings or habit of the person; and if the head or hair be very
scurfy or dirty, or hard water be used, a few grains of soda (not
potash or pearlash) may be advantageously added to the water. This
will increase its detersive qualities. After the hair has been washed,
which should be done quickly, though thoroughly, it should be freed as
much as possible by pressure with the hands and then wiped with a
soft, thick towel, which should be done with care, to avoid entangling
it. After laying it straight, first with the coarse end of the
dressing comb and then with the finer portion, it may be finally
dressed.

In ordinary cases once every two or three weeks is often enough to
wash the hair and head. The extreme length of ladies' hair will
sometimes render the process of washing it very troublesome and
inconvenient. In such cases the patient and assiduous use of a clean,
good hairbrush, followed by washing the partings and the crown of the
head with soap and water, may be substituted.

The occasional washing of the head is absolutely necessary to preserve
the health of the scalp and the luxuriance and beauty of the hair when
much oil, pomatum or other greasy substance is used in dressing it.

Medical writers have frequently pointed out the ill effects of the
free or excessive use of oily or greasy articles for the hair; but
their warnings appear to be unheeded by the mass of mankind. Some
object to their use altogether. There are, however, exceptions to
every rule, and some of these exceptions are noticed elsewhere in this
volume. The ill effects referred to chiefly occur from their being
used when not required, and in excess, and are aggravated by the
neglect of thorough cleanliness.

To improve the growth and luxuriance of the hair, when languid or
defective, the only natural and perfectly safe method that can be
adopted is to promote the healthy action of the scalp by increasing
the vigor of the circulation of the blood through its minute channels.
For this purpose nothing is so simple and effective as gentle
excitation of the skin by frequent continued friction with the
hairbrush, which has the convenience of ease of application and
inexpensiveness. The same object may be further promoted by the
application of any simple cosmetic wash or other preparation that
will gently excite or stimulate the skin or exercise a tonic action on
it without clogging its pores. Strong rosemary water or rosemary tea,
and a weak solution of the essential oil of either rosemary or garden
thyme, are popular articles of this kind. They may be rendered more
stimulating by the addition of a little ammonia or a little spirit, or
both of them. The skin of the head should be moistened with these on
each occasion of dressing the hair, and their diffusion and action
promoted by the use of a clean hairbrush. Aromatized water, to which a
very little tincture or vinegar of cantharides (preferably the former)
has been added, may also be used in the same way, and is in high
repute for the purpose. When the skin is pale, lax, and wrinkled,
astringent washes may be used. Strong black tea is a convenient and
excellent application of this kind. When the skin and hair are dry,
and the latter also stiff and untractable, a little glycerine is an
appropriate addition to each of the preceding washes or lotions. The
occasional use of a little bland oil, strongly scented with oil of
rosemary or of origanum, or with both of them, or with oil of mace, or
very slightly tinctured with cantharides, is also generally very
serviceable when there is poorness and dryness of the hair. When the
hair is unnaturally greasy and lax (a defect that seldom occurs), the
use of the astringent washes just referred to, or of a little simple
oil slightly scented with the essential oil of bitter almonds, will
tend to remove or lessen it.

All the articles named above promote the glossiness and waviness of
the hair, and are also among the simplest, safest, and best
applications that can be employed when the hair is weak and begins to
fall off.

To impart some degree of curliness or waviness to the hair when it is
naturally straight, and to render it more retentive of the curl
imparted to it by papers or by other modes of dressing it, various
methods are often adopted and different cosmetics employed. The first
object appears to be promoted by keeping the hair for a time in a
state intermediate between perfect dryness and humidity, from which
different parts of its structure, being unequally affected in this
respect, will acquire different degrees of relaxation and rigidity,
and thus have a tendency to assume a wavy or slightly curly form,
provided the hair be left loose enough to allow it. For this purpose
nothing is better than washing the hair with soap and water, to which
a few grains of salt of tartar (carbonate of potash) have been added;
or it may be slightly moistened with any of the hair washes mentioned
in the last paragraph, in each half-pint of which a few grains of the
carbonate (say ten or twelve), or a teaspoonful of glycerine, has
been dissolved. The moistened hair, after the application of the
brush, should be finally loosely adjusted as desired with the
dressing-comb. The effect occurs as the hair dries. When oils are
preferable to hair washes, those strongly scented with the oil of
rosemary, to which a few drops of oil of thyme or origanum may be
added, appear to be the most useful.

To cause the hair to retain the position given to it in dressing it,
various methods and cosmetics are commonly employed. When the
arrangement is a natural one and the hair healthy and tractable, the
free use of the hairbrush will usually be sufficient for the purpose.
When this is insufficient, the application of a few drops of oil, or,
better still, moistening the hair with a little simple water, will
effect the object satisfactorily. In very elaborate and unnatural
styles of dressing the hair, and to cause it to remain in curl or to
retain its position during dancing, or violent exercise, bandoline and
cosmetique or hard pomatum are the articles commonly employed in
fashionable life. Mild ale or porter has a similar effect, and is
often substituted for the preceding expensive cosmetics. The frequent
use of any of these articles is objectionable, as they clog up the
pores of the skin and shield both it and the hair from the genial
action of the atmosphere, which is essential to their healthy vigor.
They should, hence, be subsequently removed by carefully washing the
head with a little soap and tepid water. Their use may be tolerated in
dressing for the ballroom, but on no other occasion. Simple water
skillfully employed, as noticed elsewhere, is the best and safest
mixture, and under ordinary circumstances is amply sufficient for the
purpose.

The practice of artificially changing the color of the hair, and
particularly of dyeing it, has descended to us from remote antiquity,
and though not so common in Western Europe as formerly, is still far
from infrequent at the present day. This might be inferred from the
multitude of nostrums for the purpose continually advertised in the
newspapers, and from the number of persons who announce themselves as
practicing the art, even though the keen and experienced eye did not
frequently detect instances of it, as it now does, in the hair and
beards of those we see around us. The recent rage after light auburn
or reddish hair in fashionable life has, unfortunately, greatly
multiplied these instances. The consideration of the subject, however,
in its ethical relations does not come within the province of the
present work, and I shall confine myself to pointing out how the color
of the hair may be changed in the safest and most satisfactory
manner.

To change the color of the hair various methods and preparations are
employed. The principal of these are intended to darken it, but
sometimes the contrary is aimed at. Whichever object is desired, it is
necessary that the article or preparation employed to carry it out be
not of a caustic or irritant nature, capable of injuriously affecting
the delicate skin to which it is applied, or that it may be liable to
come in contact with, as is the case with many of the nostrums vended
for the purpose. Some of the substances that necessarily enter into
the composition of hair strains and hair dyes, or that are used in
connection with them, possess these objectionable properties in a high
degree, and can, therefore, only be safely employed in a state of
proper dilution and combination. If any doubt exists respecting such
an article, it is a wise precaution to regard it with suspicion and to
test its qualities before applying it for the first time. This may be
done by placing some of it on the soft skin of the inner side of the
wrist or fore-arm, and allowing it to remain there as long, and under
the same conditions, as it is ordered to be left in contact with the
hair or skin of the head or face. In this way the injury or loss of
the hair, sores, and other serious consequences that too often follow
the use of advertised and ill-prepared hair dyes may be generally
avoided.

To gradually darken the shade of the hair on these principles,
provided its normal sulphur be still secreted by the hair-bulbs and be
still present in its structure, it will, therefore, generally be
sufficient to occasionally employ a weak solution of any of the milder
salts of iron as a hair wash. The menstruum may be water, to which a
little spirits and a few drops of oil of rosemary to increase its
stimulating qualities have been added. In applying it, the head being
first washed clean, care should be taken to thoroughly moisten the
whole surface of the hair and the skin of the head with the wash; and
its absorption and action should be promoted by the free use of a
clean hairbrush. Wine is the favorite solvent for the iron; ale and
beer are also sometimes so employed. Most of the fashionable
ferruginous hair washes also contain a few grains of acetate of copper
or distilled verdigris, the objections to which have been already
pointed out.

The daily use of oil or pomatum, with which a few grains of carbonate
of lead, lead plaster, or trisnitrate of bismuth, have been blended by
heat and careful trituration, has generally a like effect on the hair
to ferruginous solutions; so also has a leaden comb, but its action is
very uncertain. None of these last are, however, safe for
long-continued use. Atrophy of the scalp, baldness, and even local
paralysis, have sometimes, though rarely, been caused by them.

When the normal sulphur of the hair is absent, or deficient, the
preceding substances fail to darken the hair. In this case the desired
effect may often be produced by also moistening the head, say twice a
week, with water, to which a little sulphuret of potassium or
hydrosulphuret of ammonia has been added.

When it is desired to dye or darken the hair more rapidly, as in a few
hours, or even a few minutes, plumbite of lime, plumbite of potassa,
or nitrate or ammonia—nitrate of silver—is usually employed. The
first is commonly produced by the admixture of quicklime with oxide of
lead (litharge), carbonate of lead, or acetate of lead. These
ingredients should be in appropriate proportions, but very generally
the reverse is the case in those of the shops.

It may be laid down as a rule that when the lime is in greater
proportion than about two to one of the oxide, and to the
corresponding equivalents of the other substances mentioned, or when
the lime has not been prepared in a proper manner, the compound is not
safe, and very likely to prove injurious to the skin and hair-bulbs,
and perhaps to act as a depilatory. The effects of these lead dyes
arise partly in the way previously described and partly by direct
chemical action between the sulphur of the hair and the lead which
they contain, sulphuret of lead being formed in the surfacial portion
of the hair. It is on the last that their more immediate effect
depends. If there be no sulphur in the hair, they will not darken it.
After the necessary period of contact, they should be gently but
thoroughly removed from the hair and skin by rubbing them off with the
fingers, and by the use of the hairbrush, the head being then washed
clean with tepid water. Should the tint imparted by them not be deep
enough, or be too fiery, it may be darkened and turned on the brown or
black by moistening the hair the next day with a very weak solution of
sulphuret of potassium, or of hydrosulphuret of ammonia.

None of the compounds of lead stain the skin, an advantage which has
led to a preference being given to them by many persons who are clumsy
manipulators, and to the more extensive use of them than of other hair
dyes.

The salts of silver above referred to are more rapid in their action
as hair dyes than those containing lead. It is only necessary to wash
the hair quite clean and free from grease, then to moisten it with a
weak solution of one of them, and, lastly, to expose it to the light,
to effect the object in view. Sunlight will fully darken it in a few
minutes, but in diffused daylight it will take two or three hours, or
longer, to acquire the deepest shade. To avoid this delay and
inconvenience, the common practice is, a few minutes after applying
the silver solution, to moisten or wet the hair with a solution of
sulphuret of potassium, or of hydrosulphuret of ammonia. The effect is
immediate, and the full depth of shade which a silver solution of the
strength employed is capable of imparting is at once produced. A few
minutes later and the hair and skin may be rinsed with tepid water,
gently wiped dry, and the hair finally adjusted with the comb. The
effect of its application, its rapid action, and the satisfactory
nature of the effect produced, all tend to render a solution of
nitrate of silver the favorite hair dye of those who have sufficient
skill and steadiness of hand to use it properly.

It will be useful here to inform the inexperienced reader that all
solutions and compounds which contain nitrate of silver stain the skin
as well as the hair, if they be allowed to touch it. These stains may
be removed, when quite recent, by rubbing them with a piece of rag or
sponge wetted with a weak solution of potassium, of hydrosulphuret of
ammonia, or of iodide of potassium; but as this is attended with some
trouble and inconvenience, the best way is to avoid the necessity of
having recourse to it. The hairdressers commonly adopt the plan of
smearing hard pomatum or cosmetique over the skin immediately
surrounding the hair to be operated upon, in order to protect it from
the dye. By very skillful manipulation, and the observance of due
precautions, the hair may be thoroughly moistened with the silver
solution without touching the adjacent skin; but this can only be done
when the hair of the head is under treatment by a second party.

In reference to the tone and shades of color given by the substances
commonly employed to dye the hair, it may be useful to state that the
shades given by preparations of _iron_ and _bismuth_ range from dark
brown to black; those given by the salts of silver, from a fine
natural chestnut to deep brown and black, all of which are rich and
unexceptional. The shades given by lead vary from reddish-brown and
auburn to black; and when pale or when the dye has been badly applied
or compounded, are generally of a sandy, reddish hue, often far from
agreeable. However, this tendency of the lead dyes has recently led to
their extensive use to impart that peculiar tint to the light hair of
ladies and children which is now so fashionable. Other substances,
hereafter referred to, are, however, preferable, as imparting a more
pleasing hue.

The reddish tint produced by lead, as already hinted, may be generally
darkened into a brown, more or less rich, by subsequently moistening
the hair with a weak solution of either sulphuret of potassium or
hydrosulphuret of ammonia.

The favorite compounds for external use in baldness, and, perhaps, the
most convenient and best, are such as owe their stimulating quality to
cantharides or Spanish flies, or to their active principle,
cantharidine. This application of these drugs has received the
sanction of the highest medical authorities, both in Europe and
America. The leading professional hair-restorers now rely almost
exclusively on cantharides, and all the more celebrated advertised
nostrums for restoring the hair contain it as their active ingredient.

Oils and pomades, very strongly impregnated with the essential oil of
garden thyme (origanum) and rosemary, and lotions or liniments
containing ammonia with a like addition of these essential oils,
probably come next in the frequency of their use as popular
restoratives of the hair in actual and incipient baldness.

=To Have Elegant Hair.=—Every girl should have thick, magnificent hair.
It is essential to clip the ends of the hair once a month after a
child is four years of age. Ammonia and warm water is an excellent
wash for the hair and scalp, and gives life and vigor to it when all
other articles fail.

=Wild Rose Curling Fluid.=—Take two drams (avoirdupois) dry salt of
tartar; (carbonate of potassa) powdered cochineal, half dram; liquor
of ammonia and spirit de rose, each one fluid dram; glycerine,
one-fourth ounce; rectified spirit, one and one-half imperial fluid
ounces; distilled water, eighteen ounces; digest with agitation for a
week, and then decant or filter. The hair to be moistened with it, and
then loosely adjusted. The effect occurs as it dries.

=To Cause the Hair to Grow very Thick.=—One of the most powerful
stimulants for the growth of the hair is the following: Take a quarter
of an ounce of the chippings of alkanet root, tie in a scrap of coarse
muslin, and suspend it in a jar containing eight ounces of sweet oil
for a week, covering it from the dust. Add to this sixty drops
tincture of cantharides, ten drops oil of rose, sixty drops of neroli,
and sixty drops oil of lemon. Let this stand twenty days, closely
corked, and you will have one of the greatest hair-invigorators and
hair-growers that this world has ever produced.

=Lola Montez Hair Coloring.=—This celebrated woman published the
following, and claimed that it was as harmless as any preparation that
would really color the hair: Ten grains of gallic acid, one ounce of
acetic acid, one ounce of tincture of sesgurichloride of iron.
Dissolve the gallic acid, sesgurichloride, and add the acetic acid.
Wash the hair with soap and water; when dried, apply the dye by
dipping a fine comb in it and drawing through the hair so as to color
the roots thoroughly. Let it dry, then oil and brush well.

=Hair Restorative.=—Four drams oxide bismuth, four drams spermaceti,
four ounces pure hog's lard. The lard and spermaceti should be melted
together. When nearly cool, stir in the bismuth and perfume. Prevents
the hair from turning gray, and restores gray hair.

=For Bald Heads.=—A most valuable remedy for promoting the growth of
the hair is an application, once or twice a day, of wild indigo and
alcohol. Take four ounces of wild indigo and steep it about a week or
ten days in a pint of alcohol and a pint of hot water, when it will be
ready for use. The head must be thoroughly washed with the liquid,
morning and evening, application being made with a sponge or soft
brush.

Another excellent preparation is composed of three ounces of castor
oil, with just enough alcohol to cut the oil, to which add twenty
drops tincture of cantharides, and perfume to suit. This not only
softens and imparts a gloss to the hair, but also invigorates and
strengthens the roots of the hair.

=Excellent Hair Wash.=—Take one ounce of borax, half an ounce of
camphor; powder these ingredients very fine and dissolve them in one
quart boiling water. When cool the solution will be ready for use.
Dampen the hair frequently. This wash effectually cleanses,
beautifies, and strengthens the hair, preserves the color, and
prevents early baldness. The camphor will form into lumps after being
dissolved, but the water will be sufficiently impregnated.

=To Cure Baldness.=—Cologne water, two ounces; tincture of cantharides,
two drams; oil of lavender or rosemary, of each ten drops. These
applications must be used twice a day for three or four weeks, but if
the scalp becomes sore they may be discontinued for a time or used at
longer intervals.

When the hair falls off, from diminished action of the scalp,
preparations of cantharides are excellent. The following will cause
the hair to grow faster than any other preparation: Beef marrow
(soaked in several waters, melted and strained), half a pound;
tincture cantharides (made by soaking for a week one dram of powdered
cantharides in one ounce of proof spirit), one ounce; oil of bergamot,
twelve drops.

=Stimulants for the Hair.=—Vinegar and water form a good wash for the
roots of the hair. A solution of ammonia is often used with good
effect for the same purpose. For removing scurf, glycerine diluted
with a little rose-water will be found of service. Any preparation of
rosemary forms an agreeable and highly cleansing wash. The yolk of an
egg beaten up in warm water is a most nutritious application to the
scalp. A very good application is made in this way: Take an ounce of
powdered borax and a small piece of camphor and dissolve in a quart of
boiling water. The hair must afterwards be washed in warm water. Many
heads of hair require nothing more in the way of wash than soap and
water. The following recipe will strengthen the hair and prevent its
falling out: Vinegar of cantharides, half an ounce; eau de cologne,
one ounce; rose-water, one ounce. The scalp should be brushed briskly
until it becomes red, and the lotion should then be applied to the
roots of the hair twice a day.

=The Golden Hair Secret.=—The rage for light, gold color, or even red
hair, which has prevailed for some time, has led to various expedients
for procuring it. Many ladies have sacrificed fine heads of hair, and
in place of their own dark tresses have adopted light wigs; but the
prevailing absurdity has been the use of strong alkalies for the
purpose of turning dark hair light. This is the purpose of the
ausicomus fluid, which may be procured of any hairdresser; but we warn
our fair readers that the use of these products is apt to be
disappointing. They certainly will turn black to a brick-dust hue, but
the color is often disagreeable. It is apt to present itself in
patches in different hues, and the effect on the hair is terrible—it
often rots and crumbles away. In place of this absurd practice, we
recommend the following as available for trying the effect for dress
purpose: Procure a packet of gold powder of the hairdresser. Have
ready a very weak solution of gum and water, and one of the small
perfume vaporizers now in use. When the hair has been dressed,
sprinkle it with gum and water by means of the vaporizer and then
shower on the gold powder. It may be put on thick enough to hide the
color of the hair, and owing to the gum it cannot be danced off. The
effect by artificial light is beautiful.

=For Keeping the Hair Crimped or Curled in Summer.=—A quarter of an
ounce of gum tragacanth, one pint rose-water, and five drops of
glycerine; mix and let stand over night. If the tragacanth is not
dissolved, let it remain half a day longer; if it is thick add more
rose-water and let it remain for some hours. If then it is a smooth
solution, nearly as thin as glycerine, it is fit for use. Dampen the
hair before crimping or curling.

=To Bleach the Hair.=—It has been found in the bleaching of hair that
gaseous chlorine is the most effectual. The hair should be cleaned for
that purpose by a warm solution of soda and washed afterwards with
water. While moist it is put into a jar with chlorine gas introduced
until the air in the jar looks greenish. Allow it to remain on for
twenty-four hours, and then, if necessary, repeat the operation.

=A New French Remedy for Baldness.=—Croton oil, one of the best French
remedies for baldness, is employed by simply adding to it oil or
pomade, and stirring or agitating the two together until admixture or
solution is complete. The formula adopted by the eminent French
physician who introduced this remedy, and who speaks in the most
confident and enthusiastic way of the success attending its use, is:
Take croton oil, twelve drops (minims); oil of almonds, four troy
grains. Mix. A little is to be well rubbed on the scalp twice a day.
Soft down, we are assured, appears in three weeks.

=For Improving the Hair.=—_Palma Christi oil for thickening the hair_:
Take one ounce of Palma Christi oil, add oil of lavender or bergamot
to scent it. Let it be well brushed into the hair for two or three
months, particularly applying it to those parts where it may be most
desirable to render the hair luxuriant. This is a simple and valuable
oil, and not in the hands of any monopolist.

=To Dye the Hair Flaxen.=—We have heard the following is effective:
Take a quart of lye prepared from the ashes of vine twigs, briony,
celandine roots, and tumeric, of each half an ounce; saffron and lily
roots, of each two drams; flowers of mullein, yellow stechas, broom,
and St. John's wort, of each a dram. Boil these together and strain
off the liquor clear. Frequently wash the hair with the fluid, and it
will change it, we are told, in a short time to a beautiful flaxen
color.

=A Powder for Preserving the Hair.=—The following powder has the name
of facilitating the regeneration of the hair and strengthening its
roots. Still more valuable properties have been ascribed to it, such
as that of rousing the imagination to vigorous efforts and
strengthening the memory—delightful properties if they could be
realized by such simple means. Take an ounce and a half of red roses;
a small quantity each of calamus aromaticus (sweet-scented flag), and
of the long cyperus; an ounce of benzoin; six drams of aloes (the wood
of); half an ounce of red coral, and the same quantity of amber; four
ounces of bean flour; and eight ounces of the root of Florentine iris.
Let the whole be mixed together and reduced to a very fine powder, to
which add a few grains of musk. This powder is to be sprinkled on the
hair in the same manner as hair powder is generally used, and, having
remained for a time embedded with the hair, to be removed by means of
comb and brush; and to be occasionally applied and removed. It is said
to regenerate the hair and strengthen the roots, and to possess the
properties which are above enumerated.

=To Make the Hair Grow and to Prevent It from Falling.=—The following
recipes are selected from a work published some years ago in Paris,
entitled “Manuel Cosmetique des Plantes”:—

Take the roots of young vines, the roots of hemp, and young cabbages,
of each two handfuls. Dry, and then burn them. Make afterwards a lye
with the ashes. Before the head is washed with this lye it must be
rubbed with honey, and continue both for three successive days. This
will not only make the hair grow, but restore it upon bald places,
under certain habits and constitutions of body. Pulverize some parsley
seed, and use it as hair powder for three nights at the commencement
of the year, and it will prevent your hair from falling.

=To Make the Hair Grow Quick.=—Dip, every morning, the teeth of your
comb in the juice of nettles, and comb the hair against the grain.

=Mixture for Shampoo.=—Bay rum, one pint; tincture of cantharides, one
dram; carbonate of ammonia, one half dram; salts tartar, one half
dram. Mix.

=To Prevent the Hair Falling Out.=—Boxwood shavings, six ounces; proof
spirit, twelve ounces; spirits of rosemary, two ounces; spirits of
nutmeg, one half ounce. Mix.

=Wash for Scald Heads.=—Take one half ounce of sulphate of potassa, one
pint of lime water, one ounce of soap liniment. Mix, and apply to the
head two or three times a day.


                        POWDERS AND THEIR USES.

The powders usually sold by druggists are injurious to the complexion,
owing to harmful ingredients. If a powder is perfectly pure, a
moderate use of it will not harm the complexion, but if it is impure
it soon causes the face to turn sallow and yellow. The following is
perfectly pure, and is a splendid article, giving a lovely, refined
complexion:—

=Boston Burnet Powder for the Face.=—Five cents' worth of bay rum, five
cents' worth of magnesia snowflake, five cents' worth of bergamot,
five cents' worth oil of lemon; mix in a pint bottle and fill up with
rain water. Perfectly harmless, and splendid.

=Queen Bess Complexion Wash.=—Put in a vial one dram of benzoin gum in
powder, one dram nutmeg oil, six drops of orange-blossom tea or apple
blossoms; put in half a pint of rain water, and boiled down to a
spoonful, and strained; one-pint of sherry wine. Bathe the face
morning and night; it will remove all flesh-worms and freckles, and
give a beautiful complexion. Or, put one ounce of powdered gum benzoin
in a pint of whisky. To use: Put in water in washbowl till it is
milky.


                         FLESH-WORMS—TO CURE.

Black specks on the nose disfigure the face. Remove by washing
thoroughly in tepid water, rubbing with a towel, and applying with a
soft flannel a lotion made of three ounces of cologne and half an
ounce of liquor of potash.


            TO WHITEN THE SKIN AND REMOVE FRECKLES AND TAN.

Bathe three times a day in a preparation of three quarts water, one
quart alcohol, two ounces of cologne and one of borax, in proportion
of two teaspoons mixture to two tablespoons soft water.




                              CHAPTER II.

                  TREATING OF MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS.


=The Human Temperaments.=—By these are meant certain types, forms or
conformations of the human body, each known and distinguished from the
other by certain characteristics, which enable those who are familiar
with these peculiarities to readily distinguish one temperament from
the others. The existence of the temperaments is believed to depend
upon the development of certain parts or systems in the body, and each
is accompanied by different degrees of activity of the brain, and
corresponding difference in the talents and manifestations of the
individual. They are four in number, viz.: Nervous, Sanguine, Bilious,
and Lymphatic. When the brain and nerves are predominant, it is termed
the _nervous_ temperament; if the lungs and blood vessels
constitutionally predominate, the _sanguine_; if the muscular and
fibrous systems are in the ascendency, the _bilious_; and when the
glands and assimilating organs are in the ascendency, it is termed the
_lymphatic_ or _phlegmatic_.

First: The nervous is indicated by fine, thin hair, small muscles,
thin skin, pale countenance, brilliant eyes, with great quickness and
sensitiveness to impressions, and is really the mental or intellectual
temperament.

Second: The sanguine is known by a stout, well-defined form, a full
face, florid complexion, moderate plumpness, firm flesh, chestnut or
sandy hair, and blue eyes. This is the tough, hardy, working
temperament, excessively fond of exercise and activity, and a great
aversion to muscular quiescence and inactivity, and consequently
averse to books and close literary pursuits.

Third: The bilious is indicated by a thin, spare face, dark skin,
black hair, firm flesh, moderate stoutness, with rough, harsh, and
strongly marked features. This temperament gives great will,
elasticity, and powers of endurance, and, when combined with the
nervous, is the great, efficient, moving temperament in the great
events of the world.

Fourth: The lymphatic is indicated by paleness, roundness of the form,
softness of muscle, fair hair, sleepy, half-closed eyes, and a dull,
sluggish, inexpressive face. In this temperament the brain and all
other parts of the body appear to be slow, dull, and languid, and the
whole body little else than one great manufactory of fat. These
temperaments, however, are rarely found pure, but mixed or blended in
an almost endless variety of ways, producing the ever-varying
peculiarities of human character and intellect.


           THE FORTUNATE AND UNFORTUNATE DAYS OF EACH MONTH.

                              FORTUNATE.

In January, six days—the 1st, 2nd, 15th, 26th, 27th, and 28th.
In February, four days—the 11th, 21st, 25th, and 26th.
In March, two days—the 10th and 24th.
In April, five days—the 6th, 15th, 16th, 20th, and 28th.
In May, three days—the 3rd, 18th, and 31st.
In June, five days—the 10th, 11th, 15th, 22nd, and 25th.
In July, three days—the 9th, 15th, and 28th.
In August, six days—the 6th, 7th, 10th, 11th, 19th, and 25th.
In September, five days—the 4th, 8th, 17th, 18th, and 23rd.
In October, five days—the 3rd, 7th, 16th, 21st, and 22nd.
In November, three days—the 5th, 14th, and 20th.
In December, six days—the 15th, 19th, 20th, 22nd, 23rd, and 25th.


                             UNFORTUNATE.

In January, seven days—the 3rd, 4th, 6th, 13th, 14th, 20th, and 21st.
In February, seven days—the 3rd, 7th, 9th, 12th, 16th, 17th, and 23rd.
In March, eight days—the 1st, 2nd, 5th, 8th, 12th, 16th, 28th, and 29th.
In April, two days—the 24th and 25th.
In May, five days—the 17th, 20th, 27th, 29th, and 30th.
In June, eight days—the 1st, 5th, 6th, 9th, 12th, 16th, 18th, and 24th.
In July, four days—the 3rd, 10th, 17th, and 18th.
In August, two days—the 15th and 16th.
In September, two days—the 9th and 16th.
In October, six days—the 4th, 9th, 11th, 17th, 27th, and 31st
In November, four days—the 3rd, 9th, 10th, and 21st.
In December, two days—the 14th and 21st.


         DAYS OF THE WEEK—THEIR IMPORTANCE AT THE NATAL HOUR.

A child born on Sunday shall be of long life and obtain riches.

A child born on Monday will be weak and effeminate.

Tuesday is more unfortunate still, though a child born on this day
may, by extraordinary vigilance, conquer the inordinate desires to
which he will be subject; still, in his violent attempts to gratify
them, he will be in danger of a violent death.

The child born on Wednesday will be given to a studious life, and
shall reap great profit therefrom.

A child born on Thursday shall attain great honor and dignity.

He who calls Friday his natal day shall be of a strong constitution,
and perhaps addicted to the pleasures of love.

Saturday is another ill-omened day; most children born on this day
will be of heavy, dull, and dogged disposition.


                     IMPORTANT ADVICE TO FEMALES.

It has often been observed, and experience has shown the observation
to be a true one, that some event of importance is sure to happen to a
woman in her thirty-first year, whether it prove for her good or it be
some evil or temptation; therefore we advise her to be circumspect in
all her actions. If she is a maiden or widow, it is probable she will
marry this year. If a wife, that she will lose her children or
husband. She will either receive riches or travel into a foreign land;
at all events, some circumstance or other will take place during this
remarkable year of her life that will have great effect on her future
fortunes and existence.


                            THE MAGIC RING.

=To know whom you will marry, and what kind of a fate you will have
with them.=—Borrow a wedding ring, concealing the purpose for which
you borrow it; but no widow's or pretended marriage ring will do—it
spoils the charm; wear it for three hours at least before you retire
to rest, and then suspend it, by a hair off your head, over your
pillow; write within a circle resembling a ring, the sentence from the
matrimonial service beginning with, “_with this ring I thee wed_,” and
round the circle write your own name at full length, and the figures
that stand for your age; place it under your pillow, and your dream
will fully explain whom you are to marry, and what kind of a fate you
will have with them. If your dream is too confused to remember it, or
you do not dream at all, it is a certain sign that you will never be
married.


                PHYSIOGNOMICAL SIGNS OF A GOOD GENIUS.

A straight, erect body, neither over tall nor short, between fat and
thin. The flesh naturally soft. The skin neither soft nor rough, but a
medium between. The complexion white, verging to a blush of redness.
The hair between hard and soft, usually of a brown color. The head and
face of a moderate size. The forehead rather high. The eyes manly,
big, and clear, of a blue or hazel color. The aspect mild and humane.
The teeth so mixed that some are broad and some narrow. A subtle
tongue, and the voice between intense and remiss. The neck comely and
smooth. The channel-bone of the throat appearing and moving. The back
and ribs not over fleshy. The shoulders plain and slender. The hands
indifferently long and smooth. The fingers long, smooth, and equally
distant. The nails white, mixed with red, and shining. The carriage of
the body erect in walking.


         ELECTRICAL PSYCHOLOGY, OR PSYCHOLOGICAL FASCINATION.

The most easy, sure and direct mode to produce electro-psychological
communication is to take the individual by the hand, in the same
manner as though you were going to shake hands. Press your thumb with
moderate force upon the _ulnar nerve_, which spreads its branches to
the ring and little finger. The pressure should be nearly one inch
above the knuckle, and in range of the ring finger. Lay the ball of
the thumb flat and particularly crosswise so as to cover the minute
branches of this nerve of motion and sensation. When you first take
your subject by the hand, request him to place his eyes upon yours,
and to keep them fixed, so that he may see every emotion of your mind
expressed in the countenance. Continue this pressure for half a minute
or more, then request him to close his eyes, and with your fingers
gently brush downward several times over the eyelids, as though
fastening them firmly together. Throughout the whole process feel
within yourself a fixed determination to close them, so as to express
that determination fully in your countenance and manner. Having done
this, place your hand on the top of his head and press your thumb
firmly on the organ of individuality, bearing partially downward, and
with the other thumb still pressing the _ulnar nerve_, tell him, _You
cannot open your eyes!_ Remember that your manner, your expression of
countenance, your motions, and your language must all be of the same
positive character. If he succeed in opening his eyes, try it once or
twice more, because impressions, whether physical or mental, continue
to deepen by repetition. In case, however, that you cannot close his
eyes, nor see any effect produced upon them, you should cease making
any further efforts, because you have now fairly tested that his mind
and body both stand in a positive relation as regards the doctrine of
impressions. If you succeed in closing the subject's eyes by the above
mode, you may then request him to put his hands on his head, or in any
other position you choose, and tell him, _You cannot stir them!_ In
case you succeed, request him to be seated, and tell him, _You cannot
rise!_ If you are successful in this, request him to put his hands in
motion, and tell him, _You cannot stop them!_ If you succeed, request
him to walk on the floor, and tell him, _You cannot cease walking!_ As
so you may continue to perform experiments, involving muscular motion
and paralysis of any kind that may recur to your mind, till you can
completely control him in arresting or moving all the voluntary parts
of his system.


                              MESMERISM.

If you desire to mesmerize a person, who has never been put in that
state, nor in the least affected, the plan is to set him in an easy
posture and request him to be calm and resigned. Take him by both
hands, or else by one hand and place your other gently on his
forehead. But with whatever part of his body you choose to come in
contact, be sure to always touch two points, answering to the
_positive_ and _negative_ forces. Having taken him by both hands, fix
your eyes upon his, and, if possible, let him contentedly and steadily
look you in the face. Remain in this position until his eyes close.
Then place both your hands on his head, gently pass them to his
shoulders, down the arms, and off at the ends of his fingers. Throw
your hands outward as you return them to his head, and continue these
passes till he can hear no voice but yours. He is then entirely in the
mesmeric state. When a person is in the mesmeric state, whether put
there by yourself or someone else, you can awake him by the upward
passes, or else do it by an impression, as follows: Tell him, “I will
count _three_, and at the same instant I say _three_ I will slap my
hands together, and you will be wide awake and in your perfect senses.
Are you ready?” If he answers in the affirmative, you will proceed to
count “One, two, three!” The word three should be spoken suddenly, and
in a very loud voice, and at the same instant the palms of the hands
should be smitten together. This will instantly awake him.


            HOW TO MAKE PERSONS AT A DISTANCE THINK OF YOU.

Let it be particularly remembered that “faith” and concentration of
thought are positively needful to accomplish aught in drawing others
to you, or making them think of you. If you have not the capacity or
understanding to operate an electric telegraph battery, it is no proof
that an expert and competent person should fail in doing so. Just so
in this case; if faith, meditation, or concentration of thought fail
you, then will you also fail to operate on others. First, you must
have a yearning for the person you wish to make think of you; and,
secondly, you must learn to guess at what time of day or night, he may
be unemployed—passive—so that he may be in a proper state to receive
the thought which you dispatch to him. If he should be occupied in any
way, so that his nervous forces were needed to complete his task, his
“human battery,” or thought, would not be in a recipient or passive
condition, therefore your experiment would fail at that moment. Or, if
he were under heavy narcotics, liquors, tobacco, or gluttonous
influences, he could not be reached at such moments. Or, if he were
asleep, and you operated to effect a wakeful mind or thought, you
would fail again at the moment. To make a person at a distance think
of you (whether you are acquainted with him or not, matters not), I
again repeat, find out or guess at what moment he is likely to be
passive—by this I mean easy and careless; then, with the most fervent
prayer or yearning of your entire heart, mind, soul, and strength,
desire he may think of you. And if you wish him to think on any
particular topic in relation to you, it is necessary for you to press
your hands, when operating on him, on such mental faculties of your
head as you wish him to exercise towards you. This demands a meager
knowledge of Phrenology. His “feeling nature,” or “propensities,” you
cannot reach through these operations, but when he thinks of you (if
he does not know you, he imagines such a being as you are) he can
easily afterwards be controlled by you, and he will feel disposed to
go in the direction where you are, if circumstances permit and he is
his own master, for, remember, circumstances alter cases. I said you
cannot reach his “feeling,” but only his “thinking,” nature, truly,
but after he thinks of you once his “feeling nature,” or propensities,
may become aroused through his own organization. In conclusion on this
topic, let me say that if you wish the person simply to think of you,
one operation may answer; but, on the contrary, if you wish him to
meet you, or go where you are, all you have to do is to persevere, in
a lawful and Christian manner, to operate, and I assure you, in the
course of all natural things—that is, if no accident or very
unfavorable circumstances occur—he will make his way towards you, and
when he comes within sight, or reaching distance of you, it will be
easy to manage him.


              HOW TO CHARM THOSE WHOM YOU MEET AND LOVE.

When you desire to make any one “love” you with whom you meet,
although not personally acquainted with him, you can very readily
reach him and make his acquaintance, if you observe the foregoing
instructions in addition to the following directions: Suppose you see
him coming towards you, in an unoccupied mood, or recklessly or
passively walking past you, all that remains for you at that moment is
to concentrate your thought, and send it into him as before explained,
and, to your astonishment, if he was passive, he will look at you, and
now is your time to send a thrill to his heart, by looking him
carelessly, though determinately, in the eyes, and praying him, with
all your heart, mind, soul, and strength, that he may read your
thought and receive your true love, which God designs we should bear
one another. This accomplished, and you need not, and must not, wait
for a cold-hearted, fashionable, and popular Christian introduction;
neither should you hastily run into his arms, but continue operating
in this psychological manner, not losing any convenient opportunity to
meet him at an appropriate place, when an unembarrassed exchange of
words will open the door to the one so magnetized. At this interview,
unless prudence sanction it, do not shake hands, but let your manners
and loving eyes speak with Christian charity and ease. Wherever or
whenever you meet again, at the first opportunity grasp his hand in an
earnest, sincere, and affectionate manner, observing at the same time
the following important directions, viz.: As you take his bare hand in
yours, press your thumb gently, though firmly, between the bones of
the thumb and the forefinger of his hand, and at the very instant when
you press thus on the blood vessels (which you can before ascertain to
pulsate) look him earnestly and lovingly in the eyes, and send all
your heart's, mind's, and soul's strength into his organization, and
he will be your friend, and if you find him not to be congenial, you
have him in your power, and by carefully guarding against evil
influences, you can reform him to suit your own purified, Christian,
and loving taste.




                             CHAPTER III.

                  A SPECIAL CHAPTER FOR YOUNG WOMEN.


                               MARRIAGE.

Advice upon this subject is very much needed. I am assured that it is
a subject not often talked of in families—at least, as it ought to
be—nor is it much alluded to in the pulpit, and the result is that
young people commonly get their notions about it from those only a
little older than themselves, and who therefore know but little more
than they do, or from those who form their opinions from the abuse
they see of it and so hold degrading and unworthy ideas respecting it.
Sometimes all that is known about it amounts to this, that it is a
delightful thing to be married.

It is quite true that it often is, and always ought to be, delightful;
still, you know it is frequently the reverse. You cannot, then, be too
cautious in the matter.

Nothing can be more orderly, right, proper, and holy than marriage. It
is not, however, quite so simple an affair as you may fancy. Every
good thing (and this is one of the best) requires some effort to
obtain it, and unless you take the right course you must not expect to
succeed.

You may often see a young woman who, from not entertaining correct
views on the point, is certainly taking a wrong course, her endeavors
being rather to make what she considers a good match than by acquiring
kind and orderly habits to qualify herself to become worthy of a
worthy husband.

That the best things are liable to the greatest abuses is notorious,
and from the lamentable fact that marriage is often abused we may
fairly infer its pre-eminent worth. In truth, there is nothing more
valuable. It is, then, highly injurious to entertain low notions
respecting it, and men who indulge in loose conversation on the
subject are likely at the same time to think meanly of women. Beware
of them, and if you hear them expressing such opinions in your
presence, withdraw from them at once as unworthy of your company.
Never fear but they will respect you the more for the rebuke.

Of course you are looking forward to settling happily, and will do
your best for that purpose. On this let me remark that all happiness
(that is, all that is genuine, and therefore worthy of the name) comes
from connection with the one great source of all good, and He has
freely and fully provided all the means necessary for our being happy,
both here and hereafter. He has placed each of us where it is best for
us to be, and in the circumstances that are best for us at the time,
and this applies to you and to me now. Howsoever much appearances may
be to the contrary, He cares as much for each of us as if we were the
sole objects of His care. It is only by doing our duty in humble
dependence on His assistance, which He never withholds, that we can be
happy. It behooves you, then, to consider well what is your duty, in
order that you may do it and may enjoy the blessings He is so ready to
bestow. I hope you may have been a loving and dutiful daughter, an
affectionate sister, and a faithful friend; then you may have good
ground of hope for the future.


                      WHEN A PROSPECT OF MARRIAGE

occurs you cannot do better than consult your mother, aunt, or other
discreet relative that has your welfare at heart, from whom you may
reasonably expect the best and most disinterested advice; and this it
will be well for you to be guided by. Women of mature years can judge
far better than you whether a man is likely to make a good husband.
You should likewise quietly and cautiously make your own observations
among your married acquaintances, especially where you believe there
is a comfortable and happy home. You will doubtless find that to a
very great extent this happy home depends on the wife's management and
economy. Very often it happens that when two husbands have the same
income, with the same number of children, there will be comfort in the
one home and discomfort in the other. Now, there must be a reason for
this, and you should endeavor to find it out and profit by the lesson.
It is said “Cleanliness is next to godliness,” and truly the value of
cleanliness cannot be overrated. In point of time, it should go before
godliness, for where there is not cleanliness there can hardly be
godliness; and the health of body and mind are greatly dependent on
these two. Moreover, where can there be complete happiness without
health?

One of the most prolific sources of matrimonial difficulties is the
lack of knowledge on the part of wives of the duties of housekeeping.
In these days there are a hundred young ladies who can drum on the
piano to one who can make a good loaf of bread.


                         YET A HUNGRY HUSBAND

cares more for a good dinner than he does—as long as his appetite is
unappeased—to listen to the music of the spheres. Heavy bread has
made many heavy hearts, given rise to dyspepsia—horrid dyspepsia—and
its herd of accompanying torments. Girls who desire that their
husbands should be amiable and kind, should learn how to make good
bread. When a young man is courting, he can live well at home; or, if
he has to go a distance to pay his addresses, he usually obtains good
meals at an hotel or an eating-house; but when he is married and gets
to housekeeping, his wife assumes the functions of his mother or his
landlord, and it is fortunate for her if she has been educated so as
to know what a good table is. Those who are entirely dependent upon
hired cooks make a very poor show at housekeeping. The stomach
performs a very important part in the economy of humanity, and wives
who are forgetful of this fact commit a serious mistake.

You know full well that most young men—and most young women, too—are
desirous of marrying and having a family; but they do not sufficiently
consider that it is God who gives them this desire, and that for the
wisest of purposes; not only that this world may be peopled, but also
that its inhabitants may be prepared for heaven.

Nothing is more certain than that


                           MARRIAGE AFFORDS

the fairest opportunities for preparing for a better world. In it we
have others dearer than ourselves to think about and provide for; and
in doing so, we have often to practice that very useful virtue,
self-denial. Let me here impress upon you most deeply, that it is only
by making others happy that we can become happy ourselves. The angels,
we may be assured, are happy, because they are always actively good;
and for a similar reason it is that God himself is infinitely happy.
If you try to secure you own happiness by any other means than a
faithful discharge of your duty to God and your neighbor, you will
certainly fail.

I dare say you will find that


                  YOUNG MEN ARE FOND OF YOUR COMPANY,

and of paying you every polite attention, and you, as a right-minded
woman, are well pleased to be so treated. It is due to you _as a
woman_. Now, each of them is, or ought to be, looking out for a wife,
and it is well that you should know this. It is, too, more important
than you perhaps are aware, that you should be carefully making your
own observations, so that when the time arrives for one of them to ask
you to become his wife you may not be taken by surprise, but may know
how to act on the occasion.

Let me caution you here against a failing that is common among young
women. I mean that of making themselves too cheap. They feel flattered
by the attentions paid to them, and are not sufficiently aware that
many young men are fond of indulging in flattery; and such, if they
find a young woman weak enough to be pleased with it, will perhaps
play upon her feelings and gain her affections without having any
honorable intentions towards her.

As a protection against such, I recommend you to have a proper respect
for yourself, and to consider with what object or purpose you receive
their attentions. If you respond without an object, you may be doing
them wrong; if you accept them when they have no right intentions, you
allow them to wrong you. For this purpose consider well what you
are—a human being intended for an eternity of bliss. God has made you
a woman; and, believe me, as there is no fairer, so there is no nobler
creature than woman. She is formed to be her husband's helpmate and
the mother of his children, and the all-important work of training
these for heaven depends mainly upon her. Great, then, is her
responsibility; but God has given her the requisite love and power to
do her duty with satisfaction and delight. He has placed you in this
beautiful world that by doing your duty as a daughter, sister, wife,
mother, and friend, you may become fitted to enter His heavenly
kingdom.

During your courtship let me entreat you to be very careful and
circumspect. There is no period of life that can compare with this
delightful season. It is, or should be, full of sunshine and sparkling
with the poetry of life; but alas! to many it is the opposite. A want
of judgment—a momentary indiscretion—has not only blotted out this
beautiful springtime of life, but has marred, darkened, and blighted
the whole of the after lifetime.

No maiden can, under any circumstances, place her character in the
hands of any man before marriage. No matter how sincere the love, how
ardent the protestations, how earnest or plausible the pleadings, you
must not, you cannot, surrender your honor. You must preserve your
prudence and virtue; it is only by possession of these that you can
keep


                  THE LOVE AND RESPECT OF YOUR LOVER.

Be firm, be circumspect; a rash word or a false step may extinguish
forever all your bright hopes and prospective joys. Even should your
lover redeem his promises and take you to be his wife, this
indiscretion, or crime, will surely hang over you like a curse,
creating discord, trouble, and sorrow, the greatest portion of which
will fall to your share.

You must know that young men, however amiable, worthy or honorable
they may be, may, in a moment of intense excitement, commit a sin that
in their calmer moments they would not be guilty of for worlds.

But under all circumstances you will be looked upon to resist any
advances, and maintain your purity and virtue. No matter how high the
tide of passion may run in unguarded moments, and set in against
heaven and against society, the terrible and painful ebb will surely
follow and leave you stranded forever on the bleak and barren shore of
your earthly existence.


               THERE IS NO STATE OF LIFE MORE HONORABLE,

useful, and happy than that of a wife and mother. There must and ever
will be inequalities of station, but happiness is equally attainable
in them all. To be happy, however, you must be good. Of course, I do
not mean absolutely good, for “there is none good but One”; but I mean
that you should be relatively good, and should aim at becoming better
and more innocent as you advance in life. Now, you cannot respect
yourself unless you know that you are worthy of respect; and if you do
not respect yourself, you cannot expect that anybody else will; and in
such case you will not be worthy of the love of any good man, and none
such will be likely to pay court to you. If, however, you take the
right means, in which I include prayer for divine guidance, you will
have the respect and friendship of all your acquaintances, and then in
God's own time, and, let me add, without your seeking it, the man whom
you can make happy will present himself and propose to make you his
wife, if it be God's will that you should become one.

Here are two very important points for your consideration: First, that
it should be your constant endeavor to


                       MAKE YOUR HUSBAND HAPPY;

and, second, that before you consent to marry him, you should
ascertain that he has those qualifications that will secure your
happiness. It most nearly concerns yourself that you do your duty to
God and your neighbor at all times, so that it becomes your habit; and
you will find it much easier, and safer, too, to do it every day
rather than on only particular occasions; for this would require a
special effort, and for the time, perhaps, put you into a state of
excitement, which, in all probability, would be followed by a
depression of spirits. What you should rather aim at is a uniformly
cheerful state of mind, resulting from a conscious and confident
dependence on Providence. If your husband knows from experience that
such is your character, he cannot fail, provided he be worthy of you,
to be content and happy.


                    IT IS THE NATURE OF YOUNG WOMEN

to be affectionate, and it is pleasant and usual for them to have
several dear friends, enjoying more or less of their confidence. Among
these may be included some of their male acquaintance. Now, while they
may esteem each of these as they would a dear cousin, they should know
and act upon the knowledge that it is only to _one_ they can give
their unlimited confidence and individual affection as a wife. It is
the height of cruelty and wickedness for either a man or a woman to
trifle with another's affection. Such base conduct has cost many a
young woman her health and peace, and even her life, and cannot,
therefore, be too much depreciated and avoided.

Let me, then, advise you to be


                             VERY CAUTIOUS

before you allow a young man to pay you such marked attentions as may
lead to marriage. It is not, you know, to terminate in seven years,
like an apprenticeship or a commercial partnership, but it is an
engagement for the life of one of the parties. I want you, then, to
profit by the experience of others, too many of whom enter into
marriage from light and low considerations, and not to settle in life
till you, and also your friends, see that there is a reasonable
prospect of your securing happiness, as well as comfort and a
respectable position.

When a young woman has property or expects it, or is possessed of
superior personal attractions, she should be especially prudent in her
conduct towards the numerous admirers which such qualifications
usually attract. No woman should allow herself to accept the
attentions of any man who does not possess those sterling qualities
which will command her respect, or whose love is directed to her
fortune or beauty rather than herself. On such a one she can place no
reliance, for should illness or misfortune overtake her she may find
herself deprived of that love which she had valued as the great
treasure of her life. Possessed of this, she feels that earthly riches
are but of secondary importance, and that the want of them can never
make her poor.

Moreover, a worthier man than any of her interested suitors may have a
sincere respect and affection for her, but be kept in the background
by the overzealous attention of his rivals. Still, if she has
sufficient self-command to patiently and calmly investigate their
general private character, she may find reason to decline their suit,
and may discover that the more modest and retiring youth is the one
that is deserving of her love.

While on this subject, let me caution you against the foolish
affectation which some girls practice in order to attract the
attention of young men. In their company be natural in your manners,
open and friendly and ready to converse on general subjects; not
appearing to expect that every one who pays you the ordinary
courtesies of society is going to fall in love with you. This mode of
behavior, which is more common with those who are vain of their beauty
than with others, frequently leads to such young women being more
neglected than their less pretending sisters; for prudent young men,
who are impressed with the necessity of a right decision in the
all-important step of marriage, instinctively shrink from those who
seem unwilling to give them a fair opportunity of judging whether
their hearts and minds are as attractive as their persons.

You may innocently admire many a young man for the noble qualities God
has bestowed upon him, without at all entertaining the idea either
that he would make you happy as his wife, or you him as your husband.
Thank God we are constituted of such different temperaments that all
may find suitable partners without clashing with each other's tastes,
if they will only be content to watch and wait.

It is the part of a young man to _watch_, to be actively desirous of
meeting with a suitable partner. In doing this, his first
consideration should be to seek for such a one as he can make happy;
not to look primarily for beauty, fortune, wit, or accomplishments—things
all very good in themselves, but by no means constituting the
essentials of happiness. If he is influenced by pure and simple
motives, he will not find, or expect to find, more than one that can
satisfy his desire, and he will not be in much danger of exciting the
envy or the rivalry of his companions.

On the other hand, it is becoming in a young woman to


                            WAIT PATIENTLY

till, from the assiduous and respectful attentions of a young man, she
can have no doubt that he is in earnest, when, and not before, she may
freely give him her company, and with every expectation of a happy
result. Be assured that no sensible young man is ever attracted by a
young woman whom he sees on the lookout for a lover; he is more likely
to think meanly of her, and to avoid her society.

It may, however, happen that a young man makes the offer before the
young woman knows enough of him for it to be right for her to accept
it, and before he, on his part, ought to take the step. In such case
it would be well for her, even supposing she is inclined to like him,
to tell him that he has taken her by surprise, and that she cannot
think of entering on so important a subject without consulting her
friends, to whom she accordingly refers him. It would then become her
duty to intimate to him that, although his attentions are agreeable to
them, he must wait a while, till, from further acquaintance, they are
enabled to judge whether it will conduce to the mutual happiness of
their daughter and himself for her to accept the offer he has so
kindly made.

But it is not only young men who


                          ARE APT TO BE HASTY

in these matters. It is, as is well known, not uncommon for parents,
especially mothers, very soon after a young man has begun to pay
attention to their daughter, to give him to understand that they wish
to know his intentions in reference to her. By such proceedings a
young man may be taken aback, and either hurry into a match, which
turns out unhappily, or be led to withdraw from a union which might
have resulted in the happiness of all the parties concerned.

That your parents should wish you to be married is only natural,
especially if their own marriage has been a happy one. It will be
gratifying to them to see a worthy young man paying attention to you,
and most probably they will let things take their own course. Marriage
is too important a matter to admit of being hastened.

There are, I am aware, unwise parents, who, from various motives, will
throw obstacles in the way of young people who are desirous of coming
together. Some are so selfish as to be unwilling to part with their
daughter, preferring their own happiness to hers. Others are so silly
as to think no ordinary man good enough for her, and therefore, if
they had their own way, would have her to become an old maid.
Fortunately, such shortsighted people are not infrequently outwitted.

If your parents are, as I hope they are, reasonable in their views and
expectations, one of the chief concerns of their life will be the
promotion of your happiness, and it behooves you to pay the utmost
deference to their opinion; and should they, from circumstances they
become aware of, deem it advisable that you should either postpone or
even break off an engagement, they will doubtless give you such
weighty reasons as will justify you in acting on their advice. Where,
however, as sometimes happens, they unwisely refuse their consent to
their child's marriage at a time when she well knows from her own
feelings, and also from the sanction she receives from the opinion of
trustworthy and judicious friends, that she would be making a real
sacrifice were she to comply with their wishes; if, I say, under such
circumstances she acts disobediently and marries the man she loves,
more blame attaches to the parents than to herself, and the sooner
they forgive her the better.

It is very common for young men, when going into the company of young
woman, together with their best dress to put on their best behavior;
in fact, to assume a character which is not their natural one, but far
superior to it.

Some hold the opinion that


                    “ALL IS FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR.”

To me it appears there cannot be greater folly and wickedness than for
young people who are thinking of marrying to attempt to deceive each
other. What is the good of it? A very short period of married life
will entirely dispel the illusion. I suppose people of the world may
think it fair to overreach one another in their dealings, saying
“everyone for himself.” They have no intention of seeking to promote
the other's happiness; present gain is all they want. But a married
pair, to be happy, must


                 RESPECT AND ESTEEM, AS WELL AS LOVE,

each other; and this cannot be attained except by the constant
endeavor to _be_ as well as to _appear_ true and good.

That young men should behave well in the presence of women is only
natural and right; none but a fool would do otherwise. But you, long
before thinking of marrying, should take all fair means to learn what
is the general conduct and habits of your male acquaintance in their
family circle and with their daily connections. “Are they good-humored
and kind—able to bear the troubles they meet with? Are they
industrious, frugal, temperate, religious, chaste? Have they had the
prudence to insure against sickness and death?” Or, on the other hand,
are they addicted to drinking, smoking, betting, keeping late hours,
frequenting casinos, etc.? Your mother and other prudent friends will
assist you to find this out. Those who do not come up to the proper
standard, however agreeable they may be as acquaintance, certainly
cannot make good husbands. In company of such, it behooves you to be
well on your guard, and accept no attention from them. Should you
marry such a one, you would be sure to be miserable.

While, however, it is quite right that you should be careful about the
character of the young man who is paying court to you, it is of far
more importance to you that you should be careful about your own, and
this whether you marry or not. Indeed, a chief object in our being
placed in this world is that we may acquire good habits, and so be
fitted to associate with the just made perfect in heaven!

Be very guarded in your actions and demeanor. Cultivate purity of
heart and thought.

No woman is fit to become a wife who is not perfectly modest in word,
deed, and thought. No young man, who is worth having, would ever
entertain the thought for a moment of taking the girl for a wife who
is habitually careless in her conversation and displays a levity in
her manners. Young men may like your free and hearty girls to laugh
and talk with, but as to taking one for a wife, let me assure you they
would not tolerate the idea for a moment.

You may at times be unavoidably compelled to hear a vulgar word spoken
or an indelicate allusion made; in every instance maintain a rigid
insensibility. It is not enough that you should cast down your eyes or
turn your head, you must act as if you did not hear it; appear as if
you did not comprehend it. You ought to receive no more impression
from remarks of this character than a block of wood. Unless you
maintain this standing, and preserve this high-toned purity of manner,
you will be greatly depreciated in the opinion of all men whose
opinion is worth having, and you deprive yourself of much influence
and respect which it is your privilege to possess and exert.


             COURTSHIP, AFTER ALL, IS A MOMENTOUS MATTER.

After taking all the counsel that may be offered, you must at last, in
a great measure, rely on your own judgment. Within a few short months
you have to decide, from what you can see of a man, whether you will
have him in preference to your parents, friends, and all others that
you know, to be a life companion. What can you do? How shall you
judge? How arrive at a correct conclusion? My dear young girl, there
is only One who can assist you. He, in His mercy to your helplessness
and weakness, has given to every virtuous and pure-minded woman a
wonderful, mysterious, and subtle instinct; a peculiar faculty that
cannot be analyzed by reason, a faculty that men do not possess, and
one in which they do not generally believe. At this all-important
period, this eventful crisis in your life, this womanly instinct
guides and saves you. You can feel in a moment the presence or
influence of a base, sensual, and unworthy nature. An electric-like
thrill animates you, and you are naturally repulsed from him. When
your suitor is a man of incongruous temper, ungenial habits, and of a
morose and unsympathetic disposition, this same precious, divine
instinct acts, and the man feels, though he cannot tell why, that all
his arts and aspirations are in vain. It will seldom be necessary for
you to tell him verbally of his failure; but should such a one blindly
insist upon intruding his attentions, do not hesitate to tell him
kindly but firmly your decision. Should your suitor be one who is
worthy, who will make you happy, this same blessed instinct will
whisper in your soul the happy news. From the first interview there is
frequently thrown around the maiden a peculiar, undefined spell; she
will feel differently in his presence, and watch him with other eyes
than she has for the rest of men, and in due time, when he shall ask
her to decide upon the question which shall seal the temporal and
eternal destiny of two human souls, she will gladly respond, giving in
loving trustfulness that which is the most precious, the most enviable
thing on earth: a maiden's heart, a woman's love.

Many persons, of both sexes, however amiable and pure their minds may
be, should conscientiously abstain from marriage. This applies to all
who have a tendency to consumption, scrofula, insanity, or any other
of those diseases which are so frequently transmitted to offspring.
This very important matter is not sufficiently known, and therefore is
not attended to as it ought to be; hence the great amount of sickness
and early death among children.

The tendency to inherit qualities is very evident in the case of
drunkards, whose children are often inclined to practice the vice of
their parents. The children of the blind, and of the deaf and dumb,
are also liable to be afflicted as their parents were. These facts go
far to show that it is literally true that the sins of the fathers are
visited upon the children. It is, however, gratifying to know—and
there are many well-attested cases to prove it—that whereas the
children born to a man while he was addicted to drunkenness were
similarly addicted to that vice, those born after he gave up his
vicious indulgence, and by that means improved his bodily health, were
free from the evil tendency.

One strong reason


               WHY NEAR RELATIONS SHOULD NOT INTERMARRY

is that, as the same general tendencies prevail in families, when the
parents are nearly related they are very likely to have the same evil
tendency, whatever that may be; and, therefore, there is a great
probability that their children will also have the same, but more
strongly developed, and, consequently, the difficulty of their
overcoming it will be much increased.

How plainly, then, is it the duty of those about to marry, as well as
of those who are married, to strive to their utmost, with God's help,
to overcome disorderly habits of every kind; for, be assured, it is
only by such means they can hope to be blessed with good and healthy
children, and thereby contribute to their own happiness, and at the
same time to the improvement of the race as subjects both of this
world and of heaven.

As it is by no means certain that you will marry, and the time may
come when it will no longer be convenient to your parents to support
you, it will be good for you, keeping these contingencies in mind, to
qualify yourself to earn your own maintenance by some honest industry.
You will then have a right feeling of independence, and not be tempted
to marry, as too many young women do, not from the true principle of
sincere affection, but mainly for a living. They may thus obtain a
competence, and jog on comfortably, but they have no right to expect
that genuine happiness which I recommend you to aim at. When, too, you
see so many left widows, with small families, and, as we say, totally
unprovided for, you will become sensible of the soundness of the
advice I am offering you. As the Lord's tender mercies are over all
His works, it is evident, from what is occurring around us, that
trouble and adversity are better suited to the state of some people,
to prepare them for their eternal destination, than any amount of
prosperity would be. The poor are no less His children than the rich,
and he cares equally—that is, infinitely—for them all. It is
certainly wise, then, to be prepared to meet adversity, should He
suffer it to come upon you.

Again, suppose you should not have any suitable offer of marriage,
such as you would feel it your duty to accept, you are not on that
account to be disheartened, and fancy yourself overlooked by
Providence.

Single life is evidently the best for some persons; they escape many
troubles which perhaps they would find it very hard to bear. There are
many ways in which single people can lead a useful life, and be


                     AS HAPPY AS THE DAY IS LONG.

No one that is actively useful can be unhappy. What do you see around
you? Many, I admit, who are not so happy as we should like them to be;
but in most cases, if we could fully investigate the matter, it would
perhaps be found to have arisen from their thinking too much about
themselves and not enough for others. But, on the other hand, it not
infrequently happens, when a woman is left, and sees that the support
and welfare of herself and children depend on her own exertions, she
is enabled to so successfully put forth her energies and to employ her
talents which, till she needed them, she hardly knew she possessed, as
to surprise both herself and the most sanguine of her friends.

Now, it must be confessed that we are fallen creatures, and therefore
prone to evil. We are consequently always in danger of going wrong
and forming bad habits, but our Heavenly Father watches over us at all
times and gives us power to “refuse the evil and choose the good.” We
are, I know full well, too much inclined to yield to evil influences;
still, as we always have divine aid if we implore it, I am not sure
that, on the whole, it is not as easy to acquire good habits as bad
ones. This much is certain, that whichever we acquire, they are likely
to remain with us and are not easily to be got rid of.

Among the subjects deserving attention as affecting our happiness is
one on which, perhaps, I am not entitled to say much. I refer to
dress. Now, I hold it to be a duty for people to dress well—that is,
according to their position, means, and age; and this not so much for
their own sakes as for the sake of giving pleasure to others. It is, I
admit, difficult to determine how much of one's income should be
devoted to dress, but I think few will deny that at present dress
occupies too much time, attention, and money. For my own part, I
confess I am most affected by female dress, and although certainly I
like to see women well dressed, and would rather see them a little too
fine than slovenly, I am often pained at witnessing the extravagance
and, to me, ridiculous taste exhibited. Whenever I see a handsome and
expensive dress trailing in the dirt, I regard it as culpable waste
and in bad taste, and when I see it accidentally trodden on I am not
sorry. I am inclined to believe that many women can hardly find time
or opportunity to perform any useful duty; they have quite as much as
they, poor things, can do to take care of their dress. I also believe
(and this is the serious point of the matter) that many a young man is
deterred from soliciting a maiden in marriage by knowing that his
means would not enable him to let her dress as he is accustomed to see
her, and this is doubtless one of the many reasons why so many of both
sexes remain unmarried. I hold, too, that whatever forms an obstacle
to marriage has a tendency at the same time to obstruct the entrance
to heaven.

I will now allude to some of the duties which will devolve upon you as
a wife; and recollect that it is on the faithful discharge of these
duties that your happiness, here and hereafter, mainly depends. All
labor is honorable, and you know who it is that says, “My Father
worketh hitherto, and I work.” Being married, you must make your
husband feel


                    “THERE IS NO PLACE LIKE HOME.”

His business will probably take him from home most of the day, and it
should be your care, as I doubt not it will be your delight, to see to
his comfort, both before he starts and when he returns. It may
sometimes happen in his fighting the battle of life that he has to
encounter much that is unpleasant, and he may return home depressed.
You will then have to cheer him, and be assured no one can do it so
effectually, so pleasantly—aye, and so easily—as yourself.

It is not to sweep the house, and make the bed, and darn the socks,
and cook the meals, chiefly, that a man wants a wife. If this is all
that he needs, hired help can do it cheaper than a wife. If this is
all, when a young man calls to see a young lady, send him to the
pantry to taste the bread and cake she has made. Send him to inspect
the needlework and bedmaking; or put a broom into her hands and send
him to witness its use. _Such things are important_, and the wise
young man will quietly look after them. But what a true man most wants
of a true wife is her companionship, sympathy, courage, and love. The
way of life has many dreary places in it, and a man needs a companion
to go with him. A man is sometimes overtaken with misfortune; he meets
with failure and defeat; trials and temptations beset him; and he
needs one to stand by and sympathize. He has some stern battles to
fight with poverty, with enemies, and with sin; and he needs a woman
that, while he puts his arm around her and feels that he has something
to fight for, will help him fight; that will put her lips to his ear
and whisper words of counsel, and her hands to his heart and impart
new inspirations. All through life—through storm and through
sunshine, conflict and victory, and through adverse and favoring
winds—man needs a woman's love. The heart yearns for it. A sister's
or a mother's love will hardly supply the need. Yet many seek for
nothing further than success in housework. Justly enough, half of
these get nothing more; the other half, surprised beyond measure, have
got more than they sought. Their wives surprise them by bringing a
nobler idea of marriage, and disclosing a treasury of courage,
sympathy, and love.

And I would here caution you against giving way to little
misunderstandings in early married life. Sometimes trifling matters,
for want of some forbearance or concession on one side on the other,
perhaps on both sides, accumulate into serious results. These
differences might be avoided by married partners studying each other's
peculiarities of character, with the aim of mutually correcting, in a
kindly spirit, any wrong tendency or temper which may sometimes show
itself. Should you find you have inadvertently given pain to your
husband, do not rest until you have ascertained the cause of his
disquiet and succeeded in allaying the unhappy feeling. The earnest
desire to please each other should by no means terminate on the
wedding day, but be studiously continued through married life. Each
should always endeavor to think the best of the other, and instantly
reject every thought that might tend to weaken the bond of mutual
preference and perfect trust.

If he be wise, he will leave the housekeeping entirely to you; his
time and attention can be better employed elsewhere. To enable you to
do this wisely, you should, long before you marry, become familiar
with the quality and prices of articles of consumption, and where they
can best be obtained. Every wife should be able to cook well, whether
she has to do it herself or not. Health and good humor greatly depend
upon the food being of good quality, well cooked, and nicely served
up. She should also be able, if needful, to make and mend her own and
children's clothes.

Too much importance cannot be attached to cleanliness. Men may be
careless as to their own personal appearance, and may, from the nature
of their business, be negligent in their dress, but they dislike to
see any disregard in the dress and appearance of their wives. Nothing
so depresses a man and makes him dislike and neglect his home as to
have a wife who is slovenly in her dress and unclean in her habits.
Beauty of face and form will not compensate for these defects. The
charm of purity and cleanliness never ends but with life itself. These
are matters that do not involve any great labor or expense. The use of
the bath, and the simplest fabrics, shaped by your own supple fingers,
will be all that is necessary. These attractions will act like a
magnet upon your husband. Never fear that there will be any influence
strong enough to take him from your side.

An experience of many years of observation has convinced me that where
a pure, industrious, and cheerful wife meets her husband with a bright
smile on the threshold of her dwelling, that man will never leave the
home for any other place.

As all people are liable to illness, every young woman should aim at
being an efficient nurse. In case of illness, it is now generally
admitted that good nursing is of more value than medicine. To a sick
husband, a little gruel or other trifle prepared and given by his
wife's own hands will confer much more benefit than if prepared and
given by another. Should it happen to you to fall ill, you may expect
your husband to do his best; but you must not be surprised if he is
not your equal in that department. Nursing is one of the many useful
things which women can do better than men. A practical knowledge of
nursing will enable you to be useful beyond your own family, and will
enhance your value as a neighbor.

You have often, I trust, experienced the pleasure of serving others
from disinterested motives, and found that the pleasure has been
deeper and purer when you have engaged in doing good to those who
could not make you any return. This you have found to be the case
wherever you have had charge of a baby—one of those little ones of
whom the Lord says: “Their angels do always behold the face of my
Father which is in heaven.” You have perhaps been surprised to find
how easy it was to perform such a duty, and let me assure you that you
may always expect to find it easy to perform your duty in that state
of life to which it shall please God to call you. He never requires
anything from any of His creatures beyond what He gives them power to
do. He is no hard task-master. You have only to look to Him and do
your best, and then you may safely leave the result in His hands.

Of all God's creatures, I know no happier one than a young mother with
a good husband and a healthy baby. I say a _healthy_ baby, for that
implies healthy parents, especially a healthy mother. She may justly
feel proud that God has intrusted a young immortal to her care, and
she should at all times bear in mind that it is His gift. While it is
on all hands considered honorable to hold a commission from the
President, and to fill a high office, contributing to the welfare of
many people, a mother may feel her office at least as honorable,
seeing she has intrusted to her the rearing and training of an
immortal being, and that she holds her commission direct from the King
of Kings. For, recollect, it is only by God's blessing that she
becomes a mother; for such is the present state of society that many
very worthy married people have not the privilege of offspring,
although they are intensely fond of children and seem to have no other
earthly want. They may, nevertheless, be very useful, and therefore
happy, in a different sphere, by the adoption of nephews and nieces or
in some similar way.


                    AT THE BIRTH OF HER FIRST CHILD

there is opened in the mother's heart a new well of love, such as she
had not known before; and although she may fancy that this is all
spent upon her babe, it is not so, for she loves her God, her husband,
and everybody else better than ever. The father, too, is similarly
affected; he also has a warmer love for his wife and for all his
connections.

A similar idea is well expressed by Möhler, a German writer, who says:
“The power of selfishness, which is inwoven with our whole being, is
altogether broken by marriage, and by degrees love, becoming more and
more pure, takes its place.” When a man marries he gives himself up
entirely to _another_ being; in this affair of life he first goes out
of himself, and inflicts the first deadly wound on his egotism. By
every child with which his marriage is blessed, nature renews the same
attack on his selfhood, causes him to live less for himself, and
more—even without being distinctly conscious of it—for others; his
heart expands in proportion as the claimants upon it increase, and,
bursting the bonds of its former narrow exclusiveness, it eventually
extends its sympathies to all around.

Whenever a mother is supplying her baby with the food which God has so
wisely provided for it, or is ministering to any other of its numerous
and increasing wants, she may feel that everything she does for it is
pleasing to her Heavenly Father and has its immediate reward in the
delight she experiences in the act.

I can fancy that when a mother has washed her baby, and before she
dresses it has a good romp with it, smothering it with kisses, calling
it all the beauties and darlings and pets and jewels she can think of,
and talking any amount of nonsense at the top of her voice—the baby
all the while cooing, chirping, or even screaming with delight—at
such a time, I say, I can easily fancy that the angels are looking on
approvingly and enjoying the scene. And why not? “Of such is the
kingdom of heaven.”

From the time that an infant first becomes conscious of its wants, and
long afterwards, it looks to its mother to supply them all, fully
believing her able to do so. She is, in fact, in place of God to it,
and it would be well for many of us if we trusted our Heavenly Father
as simply and as fully as the infant does its earthly mother.

Those who know no better, when they see a mother patiently watching
her sleeping babe, might wonder that she does not feel the want of
company. She has, however, company that they know not of, and of which
even she herself may not be conscious. If only our eyes were open, we
might see that she is not the only one that is so engaged—that
angels are also occupied in watching the babe and in supporting her.
I entirely agree with Dr. Watts, where, in his “Cradle Hymn,” he makes
the mother say:

    “Hush! my babe, lie still and slumber,
    Holy angels guard thy bed.”

You probably know the beautiful Irish superstition that when a baby
smiles in its sleep the angels are whispering to it.

“Before I became a father, I took little or no interest in babies; I
rather thought them troublesome things. But the arrival of one of my
own wrought a great change in me. It enlarged at once my views and my
heart, and I had higher and stronger motives to exertion. My interest
in them has not yet begun to weaken, and I have no reason to think it
ever will.”

Girls are differently constituted from boys. God makes the intellect
predominate in males, and affection in females. Accordingly, a little
girl early shows a love for a doll, regarding it quite as her baby and
never taking into account that it is not alive. She has many of a
mother's cares and anxieties, as well as pleasures, about it; indeed,
as many as she is then capable of. It is a constant source of
amusement and employment to her. In all this we may plainly see the
hand of Providence. It forms a suitable introduction to some of the
interesting and important duties which will devolve on her if it
should be His good pleasure for her to become a mother.

You will, I dare say, readily see the object I now have in view. It is
that I wish to impress on you how desirable it is that you should take
every opportunity of becoming acquainted with the habits and wants of
babies, and the best way of managing them. The more you have to do
with them the more you will like the labors, and the easier and more
delightful it will become. It is fair that, before you have children
of your own, you should get your knowledge as to the management of
them by experience with other people's. I take it for granted you will
at all times do your best for them. You will then have but little
cause to fear accident; and if accident should happen, as with all
your care it sometimes will, you will have more confidence in your
powers, and will be more likely to do what is best at the moment, than
if you were unused to children. Much of the disease and early death
that happens among children arises from the ignorance of the mothers,
who, however, are much more to be pitied than blamed in the matter.
They had never been taught their duties toward their future
offspring.

Few mothers are, perhaps, sufficiently aware of the great influence
which their manners, habits, and conversation have upon the tender
minds of their children, even from birth. The child should grow up
with a feeling of reverence for its parents, which can only be the
case when wisdom, as well as affection, is exercised in its bringing
up. Hence the necessity of the mother fitting herself, both
_intellectually_ and _morally_, for her sacred office, that the child
may become accustomed to yield perfect obedience to her wishes, from a
principle of love, and may acquire, as it advances in life, the habit
of yielding a like obedience to that which is right.

As you well know that you are not perfect yourself, you must be
prepared to find that your husband has also his imperfections, and it
is no unimportant part of your duty to help him to get rid of them.
Indeed, it is one of the highest uses of marriage for each partner to
assist the other on the journey to the heavenly Canaan. But before you
attempt to point out a fault in him, consider how you had best proceed
so as to attain your object; for unless you adopt a judicious mode,
and an affectionate as well as earnest manner, you may do as much harm
as good. You must also carefully watch your opportunity; for what
would be favorably received at one time and under certain
circumstances, might under other circumstances give offence and
altogether fail of the good effect intended and hoped for. You do not
know how powerful you may be for good to your husband. There is much
truth in the saying, “A man is what a woman makes him.”

Previous to your marriage it will be expedient for you not to give
your lover that full and unlimited confidence which it will be your
duty—and your inclination, too—to give him when he becomes your
husband. I refer chiefly to family and other private matters, not to
anything he ought to know to enable him to judge of your character and
position. Many unhappy marriages have been brought about through the
young woman letting it be known that she has “great expectations.” A
worthless fellow may, in consequence, have succeeded in winning her
hand.

There is another point to which I must just allude before concluding
this address. It is doubtless the order of Providence for marriage to
take place, when possible, on our arriving at years of maturity. But I
would guard you against the evil results of _too early_ marriage,
before either body or mind is perfectly matured. We scarcely need
consult either medical or moral science to satisfy ourselves on this
by no means trifling point. We may find in society too many sad
instances of such immature and indiscreet unions. The minds of young
persons should be expanded by a certain amount of experience in the
world before entering upon engagements involving so many momentous
duties.

In your daily walks abroad, if you examine the countenances of those
you meet, you will doubtless be led to conclude that there is a great
deal of disease and misery in the world; but judging from my own
observation, I think you will find that the greater number of persons
exhibit signs of health and happiness. Much of the disease, and misery
with which the world is afflicted is the direct result of the
misconduct of the individuals themselves; but no little of it is
attributable to their parents, who have neglected or violated God's
laws of health, their misconduct thus affecting their descendants to
the “third and fourth generation.” I cannot, therefore, too much
impress upon you the importance of your honestly trying to find out
any bad habits to which you are inclined, with a view to getting rid
of them, one by one, and supplying their place by good habits. By
pursuing this course you will not only do much for your own happiness,
but also for that of your children, if God should bless you with a
family. Children, you know, are often striking likenesses of their
parents, and in their minds and habits they likewise often resemble
them. You should strive, then, to be good—not from mere self-love and
that you may get to heaven, but because your duty to others requires
it.

Earl Granville, when laying the foundation-stone of the Alexandria
Orphanage, in England, thus expressed himself in reference to the
great value of children: “Few will deny that a child is 'an
inestimable loan,' as it has been called, or refuse to acknowledge,
with one of our greatest poets, that the world would be a somewhat
melancholy one if there were no children to gladden it.” Children,
more than any other earthly thing, equalize the conditions of
society—to rich and poor they bring an interest, a pleasure, and an
elevation which nothing else that is earthly does.

Now, young people, before they think of engaging themselves, should
clearly know each other's peculiar views of religion; because if they
differ seriously on this point there is danger of it interfering with
that full confidence which is so essential to happiness.




                              CHAPTER IV.

                          LOVE AND MARRIAGE.


The attraction of the sexes for each other, though based upon the dual
principle of generation which pervades the living world and which has
its analogies in the attractive forces of matter, yet pervades the
whole being.


                          LOVE IS NOT MERELY

the instinctive desire of physical union, which has for its object the
continuation of the species—it belongs to the mind as well as to the
body. It warms, invigorates, and elevates every sentiment, every
feeling; and in its highest, purest, most diffusive form unites us to
God and all creatures in Him.


                              ALL LOVE IS

essentially the same, but modified according to its objects and by the
character of the one who loves. The love of children for their
parents, of parents for offspring, brotherly and sisterly love, the
love of friendship, of charity, and the fervor of religious love, are
modifications of the same sentiment—the attraction that draws us to
our kindred, our kind; that binds together all races and humanity
itself, resting on the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man.
It is but natural that this love should vary in degrees. Attractions
are proportional to proximity. Family is nearer than country; we
prefer our own nation to the rest of the race.

Each individual has, also, his own special attractions and repulsions.
There is love at first sight and friendship at first sight. We feel
some persons pleasant to us; to be near them is a delight. Generally
such feelings are mutual—like flows to like, or as often, perhaps,
differences fit into each other. We seek sympathy with our own tastes
and habits, or we find in others what we lack. Thus the weak rest upon
the strong, the timid are fond of the courageous, the reckless seek
guidance of the prudent, and so on. The sentiment of


                       LOVE FOR THE OPPOSITE SEX

—tender, romantic, passionate—begins very early in life. Fathers and
daughters, mothers and sons, have a special fondness for each other,
as, also, have brothers and sisters; but the boy soon comes to admire
someone, generally older than himself, who is not a relation. Very
little girls find a hero in some friend of an elder brother.


                         FONDNESS FOR COUSINS

generally comes more from opportunity than natural attraction, though
a cousin may have very little appearance of family relation. The law
appears to be that free choice seeks the diverse and distant. A
stranger has always a better chance with the young ladies of any
district than the young men with whom they have always been
acquainted. Savages seek their wives out of their own tribe.

It is my belief that naturally (I mean in a state of pure and
unperverted nature, but developed cultivated, and refined by
education) every man loves womanhood itself, and all women so far as
they approximate to his ideal; and that in the same way every woman
loves manhood, and is attracted and charmed by all its gentle, noble,
and heroic manifestations. By such a man, every woman he meets is
reverenced as a mother, sister, daughter, or, it may be, cherished in
a more tender relation, which should be at first, and may always
remain, free from any sensual desire. Such love may have many objects,
each attracting the kind and degree of affection which it is able to
inspire. Such love of men for women, and women for men, may be free
and will be free just in the degree in which it is freed from the
bondage of sensual passion.


                    SUCH LOVE HAS A DIRECT TENDENCY

to raise men above the control of their senses. The more of such love
one has and the more it is diffused, the less the liability to sink
into the lower and disorderly loves of the sensual life.

The idea that every attraction, every attachment, every love between
the sexes must lead to marriage—that no love can be tolerated but
with that end in view—is a very false and mischievous one. It
deprives men and women of the strength and happiness they might have
in pure friendships and pure loves, and it leads to a multitude of
false and bad marriages. Two persons are drawn together by strong
attractions and tender sentiments for each other who have no more
right to be married than if they were brother and sister, but who have
the same right to love each other. But their true sentiments for each
other, and consequent relation to each other, are not understood by
those around them and perhaps not by themselves. They are urged by the
misapprehension of others, by their expectation, by ignorant gossip,
by the prejudice of society, based upon low and sensual estimates of
life, to marry; they find that they must either marry or lose the
happiness they have in each other's society, and they make the
irrevocable mistake.

When it is understood that there are


                              OTHER LOVES

than that of marriage; when the special attraction that justifies
union for life, and the begetting of offspring, is discriminated from
all the other attractions that may bring two souls into very near and
tender relations to each other, there will be more happiness in the
world and fewer incomplete, imperfect, and, therefore, more or less
unhappy, marriages. Nothing can be more detestable than that playing
with fire which goes by the name of


                              FLIRTATION;

but there are men and women who have the happiness of living and of
being tenderly and devotedly loved by persons of the opposite
sex—loved purely, nobly, happily—without injury and with great good.
When such loves are accompanied by perfect trust in the goodness,
purity, truth, and honor of the beloved, there can be no jealousy, no
desire for selfish absorption, no fear of deprivation of any right.
There is no reason why a husband or a wife should limit the range of
pure and spiritual affection to near relatives.


                         THE MAN WHO CAN LOVE

a sister as sisters are often loved, may love in the same way, or as
purely, any woman who might be his sister. As men and women learn to
purify their lives, the world will grow more tolerant and love will
become more universal. The tender and fervent exhortations to mutual
love to be found in the Gospels and Epistles of the New Testament are
now almost without a meaning. But they had a meaning to those to whom
they were addressed, and when we are better Christians, and bring our
lives to the purity of Christian morality, they will have a meaning to
us and we shall learn that, in a sense we have not dreamed of, God is
Love.


         IN THE HUMAN RACE ALL CIRCUMSTANCES POINT TO MONOGAMY

as the lawful or natural condition. Males and females are born in
almost equal numbers. If there are two or three per cent. more of
males than females, the risks of life with males soon make the number
even. Therefore, as a rule, no man can have more than one wife without
robbing his neighbor.

_Polygamy_ is therefore a manifest injustice, and may become the most
grievous of all monopolies.

Children are the most helpless of all young creatures and require the
care of parents for the longest period. The care of a husband for his
wife, and of a father for his child, is an evident necessity. The
proper care and education of a single child should extend over at
least fifteen years, and that of a family may reach to thirty years,
or throughout the greatest part of an ordinary life. During all
periods of pregnancy, childbearing, nursing, and the education and
care of a family, every woman has a right to the sympathy, sustaining
love, and constant aid of her husband. No man has a right to desert or
leave helpless, or even dependent upon others, except in extraordinary
cases, the mother of his children.

Marriage, like celibacy, should be a matter of vocation.


                    THE SPECIAL OBJECT OF MARRIAGE

is to have children; the co-operating motive is that two persons drawn
to each other by a mutual affection may live helpfully and happily
together. A selfish marriage, for its merely animal gratifications—a
marriage in which strength, health, usefulness, often life itself, are
sacrificed to sensuality and lust—is a desecration of a holy
institution, and somewhat worse in its consequences than promiscuous
profligacy, for the consequences of that may not fall upon one's
children and posterity.

There are many persons who have no right to marry. There should be a
kind and amount of love that will justify and sanctify such a
relation. There should be a pure motive and the fixed intention of
making the relation what it ought to be to husband, wife, and
children. There should be a reasonable assurance of the power to
provide for a family. There should be that amount of health, that
freedom from bodily and mental disease, that physical and moral
constitution which will give a reasonable prospect of children whose
lives will be a blessing to themselves and to society.

When there is deformity of body, or an unhappy peculiarity of temper
or mind liable to be inherited, people should not marry, or if they
live together, should resign the uses of marriage. People should
conscientiously refrain from propagating hereditary diseases. Persons
near of kin are wisely forbidden to marry, for there is in such cases
the liability of imperfect generation—the production of blind, deaf,
idiotic or insane offspring.


                     SHOULD MARRIAGE BE FOR LIFE?

As a rule, undoubtedly. Every real, proper, true marriage must be. It
takes a lifetime for a husband and wife to make a home and rear and
educate and provide for a family of children. But what if people make
mistakes and find that they are not suitably married? These are
mistakes very difficult to remedy. If a man, after deliberately making
his choice of a woman, ceases to love her, how can he honorably
withdraw from his relation to her, and enter upon another,


                       WHEN SHE STILL LOVES HIM,

and is ready to fulfill her part of the contract? Laws cannot very
well provide for mistakes. If the distaste for each other be mutual,
and both parties desire to separate, a separation may of course be
permitted; but it is a serious question whether two such persons can
go into the world and find new partners, with justice to the rest. The
law which permits of no divorce certainly bears hard upon individual
cases; but if it leads to greater seriousness and care in forming such
relations, it may be, on the whole, the best thing for society that it
should be strictly observed.




                              CHAPTER V.

                 WHEN TO MARRY—HOW TO SELECT A PARTNER
                         ON RIGHT PRINCIPLES.


The proper age to marry is a somewhat vexed question, but needlessly
so, because that age varies much, according to temperament and other
circumstances relating to the individual. Although after puberty the
sexual organs are capable of reproduction, yet it by no means follows
that they should be used for that purpose. Their early activity is
intended for the perfection of the body and mind, and not for the
continuation of the species.


                         VERY EARLY MARRIAGE,

therefore, should be avoided, because the nervous force expended in
amative indulgence is imperatively required in both sexes for
developing the physical and mental faculties. The zoösperms produced
by the male in the first years of puberty are inferior in power and
less capable of producing healthy offspring than those of mature
years. The early germs, also, of the female are less fitted for
fecundation than those that appear later in life; nature evidently
intending these early efforts to be used on the individuals themselves
in building up their bodies, strengthening their minds, and preparing
them to reproduce their species in maturer years. There is a serious
day of reckoning for early indulgence; for precocious persons (unless
their constitutions are as powerful as their desires) who give way to
their passions at their first exactions, barter their youth for their
enjoyment, and are old and weary of the world at an age when people of
more moderate habits are only in the meridian of pleasure and
existence.


                   GENERALLY THE BEST AGE TO MARRY,

where the health is perfect, is from twenty-one to twenty-five in the
male and from eighteen to twenty-one in the female. As a general rule,
marriages earlier than this are injurious and detrimental to health.
Men who marry too young, unless they are of cold and phlegmatic
constitution, and thus moderate in their conduct, become partially
bald, dim of sight, and lose all elasticity of limb in a few years;
while women in a like position rarely have any bloom on their cheek or
fire in their eye by the time they are twenty-five. And all profound
physiologists agree that from the same cause the mental faculties
suffer in the same ratio.

A medium, however, is to be observed. It is not well to defer till
middle age the period of connubial intercourse; for too tedious
spinsterhood is as much calculated to hasten the decay of beauty as
too early a marriage. Hence, there is rarely any freshness to be seen
in a maiden of thirty; while the matron of that age, if her life has
been a happy one, and her hymeneal condition of not more than ten
years' standing, is scarcely in the heyday of her charm's. And the
same rule will apply with equal force to the other sex; for, after the
first prime of life, bachelors decay and grow old much faster than
married men.

The rich are qualified for marriage before the poor. This is owing to
the superiority of their aliment; for very nutritious food, and the
constant use of wines, coffee, etc., greatly assists in developing the
organs of reproduction; whereas the food generally made use of among
the peasantry of most countries—as vegetables, corn, milk,
etc.—retards their growth. Owing to this difference of diet, the
daughter of a man of wealth, who keeps a good table, will be as
adequate to certain duties of married life at eighteen as the daughter
of a humble peasant at twenty-one. Singular as it may seem, it is none
the less true, that love novels, amorous conversations, playing parlor
games for kisses, voluptuous pictures, waltzing, and, in fact, all
things having a tendency to create desire, assist in promoting puberty
and preparing young persons for early marriage. Those who reach this
estate, however, by artificial means and much before the natural
period will have to suffer for it in after life.

The female who marries before the completion of her womanhood—that
is, before her puberty is established—will cease to grow and probably
become pale and delicate, the more especially if she become pregnant
soon after marriage. A person who is thus circumstanced will also be
liable to abortions and painful deliveries.


                           MARRIAGE, UNLESS

under very peculiar circumstances, should not take place until two or
three years after the age of puberty. Many instances could be cited of
the injurious effects resulting from not observing this rule. The case
of the son of Napoleon I. is a notable instance, who, at the age of
fifteen or sixteen, began his career of sexual indulgence, which ended
his life at the early age of twenty-one years. He was an amiable,
inoffensive, and studious youth, beloved by his grandfather and the
whole Austrian court; and though the son of the most energetic man
that modern times has produced, yet, from his effeminate life, he
scarcely attracted the least public attention.

Let me, therefore, advise the male reader to keep his desires in
leading-strings until he is at least twenty-one, and the female not to
enter the pale of wedlock until she is past her eighteenth year; but
after these periods marriage is their proper sphere of action, and one
in which they must play a part or suffer actual pain as well as the
loss of one of the greatest of earthly pleasures.


                       MARRIAGES ARE MOST HAPPY

and most productive of handsome and healthy offspring when the husband
and wife differ, not only in mental conformation, but in bodily
construction. A melancholy man should mate himself with a sprightly
woman, and _vice versa_; for otherwise they will soon grow weary of
the monotony of each other's company. By the same rule should the
choleric and the patient be united, and the ambitious and the humble;
for the opposites of their natures not only produce pleasurable
excitement, but each keeps the other in a wholesome check. In the size
and form of the parties the same principles hold good. Tall women are
not the ideals of beauty to tall men; and if they marry such, they
will soon begin to imagine greater perfections in other forms than in
those of their own wives. And this is well ordered by nature to
prevent the disagreeable results which are almost certain to grow out
of unions where the parties have a strong resemblance.

For instance, tall parents will probably have children taller than
either, and mental imbecility is the usual attendant of extreme size.
The union of persons prone to corpulency, of dwarfs, etc., would have
parallel results; and so, likewise, of weakly and attenuated couples.
The tall should marry the short, the corpulent the lean, the choleric
the gentle, and so on, and the tendency to extremes in the parents
will be corrected in the offspring.

Apart from these considerations, there are reasons why persons of the
same disposition should not be united and wedlock. An amiable wife to
a choleric man is like oil to troubled waters; an ill-tempered one
will make his life a misery and his home a hell. The man of studious
habits should marry a woman of sense and spirit rather than of
erudition, or the union will increase the monotony of his existence,
which it would be well for his health and spirits to correct by a
little conjugal excitement; and the man of gloomy temperament will
find the greatest relief from the dark forebodings of his mind in the
society of a gentle, but lively and smiling partner.

However, in some particulars the dispositions and constructions of


                    MARRIED PEOPLE MUST ASSIMILATE

or they will have but few enjoyments in common. The man of full habits
and warm nature had better remain single than unite his destinies with
a woman whose heart repulses the soft advancements of love; and the
sanguine female in whose soul love is the dominant principle should
avoid marriage with a very phlegmatic person, or her caresses, instead
of being returned in kind, will rather excite feelings of disgust.
Thus the discriminations to be made in the choice of a partner are
extremely nice.

Nature generally assists art in the choice of partners. We
instinctively seek in the object of our desires the qualities which we
do not possess ourselves. This is a most admirable arrangement of
Providence, as it establishes an equilibrium and prevents people from
tending to extremes; for it is known that unions of dwarfs are
fruitful of dwarfs, that giants proceed from the embrace of giants,
and that offspring of parents alike irritable, alike passive, alike
bashful, etc., inherit the prominent qualities of both to such a
degree as to seriously interfere with their prospects in the world.

It has another advantage. Through its means “Every eye forms its own
beauty”; hence, what one person rejects is the _beau ideal_ of
another's conceptions, and thus we are all provided for.

In fine, with man as with animals, the best way to improve the breed
is to cross it, for the intermarriage of like with like and relative
with relative not only causes man to degenerate, but if the system
became universal would in time bring the human race to a termination
altogether.

A male or female with a very low forehead should carefully avoid
marriage with a person of like conformation, or their offspring will,
in all probability, be weak-minded or victims to partial idiocy.

The system of crossing is so perfect that marriages between persons of
different countries are likely to be pleasant and fruitful. Speaking
on this subject, an English writer says: “The Persians have been so
improved by introducing foreigners that they have completely succeeded
in washing out their Mongolian origin.” And the same author adds to
the effect that in those parts of Persia where there is no foreign
intercourse the inhabitants are sickly and stunted, while in those
that are frequented by strangers they are large and healthy.

To make what is called


                         “A HANDSOME COUPLE,”

the female should be about three inches less than the male, and the
parties should be proportionately developed throughout their system.


                        “A WELL-FORMED WOMAN,”

says a modern physiologist, “should have her head, shoulders, and
chest small and compact; arms and limbs relatively short; her
haunches apart; her hips elevated; her abdomen large and her thighs
voluminous. Hence, she should taper from the center, up and down.
Whereas, in a well-formed man the shoulders are more prominent than
the hips. Great hollowness of the back, the pressing of the thigh
against each other in walking, and the elevation of one hip above the
other, are indications of the malformation of the pelvis.”

From the same writer I take the following, which is applicable here.
It is very correct in its estimates of beauty in both sexes:—

“The length of the neck should be proportionately less in the male
than in the female, because the dependence of the mental system on the
vital one is naturally connected with the shorter courses of the
vessels of the neck.

“The neck should form a gradual transition between the body and
head—its fullness concealing all prominences of the throat.

“The shoulders should slope from the lower part of the neck, because
the reverse shows that the upper part of the chest owes its width to
the bones and muscles of the shoulders.

“The upper part of the chest should be relatively short and wide,
independent of the size of the shoulders, for this shows the vital
organs which it contains are sufficiently developed.

“The waist should taper a little farther than the middle of the trunk,
and be marked, especially in the back and loins, by the approximation
of the hips.

“The waist should be narrower than the upper part of the trunk and its
muscles, because the reverse indicates the expansion of the stomach,
liver, and great intestine, resulting from their excessive use.

“The back of woman should be more hollow than that of man; for
otherwise the pelvis is not of sufficient depth for parturition.

“Women should have more extended loins than men, at the expense of the
superior and inferior parts, for this conformation is essential to
gestation.

“The abdomen should be larger in woman than in man, for the same
reason.

“Over all these parts the cellular tissue, and the plumpness connected
with it, should obliterate all distinct projection of muscles.

“The surface of the whole female form should be characterized by its
softness, elasticity, smoothness, delicacy, and polish, and by the
gradual and easy transition between the parts.

“The moderate plumpness already described should bestow on the organs
of woman great suppleness. Plumpness is essential to beauty,
especially in mothers, because in them the abdomen necessarily
expands, and would afterwards collapse and become wrinkled.

“An excess of plumpness, however, is to be guarded against. Young
women who are very fat are cold and prone to barrenness.

“In no case should plumpness be so predominant as to destroy the
distinctness of parts.”

A male and female formed on the above models would be well matched and
have fine children.




                              CHAPTER VI.

                    SEXUAL INTERCOURSE—ITS LAWS AND
                     CONDITIONS—ITS USE AND ABUSE.


There is an increasing and alarming prevalence of nervous ailments and
complicated disorders that could be traced to have their sole origin
from this source. Hypochondria, in its various phases, results from
the premature and unnatural waste of the seminal fluid. Then speedily
ensues a lack of natural heat, a deficiency of vital power, and
consequently indigestion, melancholy, languor, and dejection ensue;
the victim becomes enervated and spiritless, loses the very attributes
of man, and premature old age soon follows.


                        IT IS A PREVALENT ERROR

that it is necessary for the semen to be ejected at certain times from
the body; that its retention is incompatible with sound health and
vigor of body and mind. This is a very fallacious idea. The seminal
fluid is too precious—nature bestows too much care in its elaboration
for it to be wasted in this unproductive manner. It is intended, when
not used for the purpose of procreation, to be reabsorbed again into
the system, giving vigor of body, elasticity and strength to the mind,
making the individual strong, active, and self-reliant. When kept as
nature intended, it is a perpetual fountain of life and energy—a
vital force which acts in every direction, a motive power which
infuses manhood into every organ of the brain and every fiber of the
body.


                      THE LAW OF SEXUAL MORALITY

for childhood is one of utter negation of sex. Every child should be
kept pure and free from amative excitement and the least amative
indulgence, which is unnatural and doubly hurtful. No language is
strong enough to express the evils of amative excitement and unnatural
indulgence before the age of puberty; and the dangers are so great
that I see no way so safe as


                         THOROUGH INSTRUCTION

regarding them at the earliest age. A child may be taught, simply as a
matter of science, as one learns botany, all that is needful to know,
and such knowledge may protect it from the most terrible evils.

The law for childhood is perfect purity, which cannot be too carefully
guarded and protected by parents, teachers, and all caretakers. The
law for youth is perfect continence—a pure vestalate alike in both
sexes. No indulgence is required by one more than the other—for both
nature has made the same provision. The natures of both are alike, and
any—the least—exercise of the amative function is an injury to one
as to the other.


                              MEN EXPECT

that women shall come to them in marriage chaste and pure from the
least defilement. Women have a right to expect the same of their
husbands. Here the sexes are upon a perfect equality.

On this subject, Dr. Carpenter (physiological works) has written like
a man of true science, and, therefore, of true morality. He lays it
down as an axiom that _the development of the individual and the
reproduction of the species stand in an inverse ratio to each other_.
He says: “The augmented development of the generative organs at
puberty can only be rightly regarded as _preparatory_ to the exercise
of the organs. The development of the _individual_ must be completed
before the procreative power can properly be exercised for the
continuance of the race.” And in the following extract from his
“Principles of Human Physiology,” he confirms my statement respecting
the unscientific and libertine advice of too many physicians: “The
author would say to those of his younger readers who urge the wants of
nature as an excuse for the illicit gratification of the sexual
passions, 'try the effects of _close mental application_ to some of
those ennobling pursuits to which your profession introduces you, in
combination with _vigorous bodily exercise_, before you assert that
appetite is unrestrainable and act upon that assertion.' Nothing tends
so much to increase the desire as the continual direction of the mind
toward the objects of its gratification, whilst nothing so effectually
represses it as a determined exercise of the mental faculties upon
other objects and the expenditure of nervous energy in other channels.
Some works which have issued from the medical press contain much that
is calculated to excite, rather than to repress, the propensity; and
the advice sometimes given by practitioners to their patients is
immoral as well as unscientific.”


                      EVERY MAN AND EVERY WOMAN,

living simply, purely, and temperately—respecting the laws of health
in regard to air, food, dress, exercise, and habits of life—not only
can live in the continence of a pure virgin life when single, and in
the chastity which should be observed by all married partners, but be
stronger, happier, and in every way better by so living.

Chastity is the conservation of life, and the consecration of its
forces to the highest use. Sensuality is the waste of life, and the
degradation of its forces to pleasure divorced from use. Chastity is
life; sensuality is death.


                  FROM THE AGE OF PUBERTY TO MARRIAGE

the law, is the same for both sexes—full employment of mind and body,
temperance, purity, and perfect chastity in thought, word, and deed.
The law is one of perfect equality. There is no license for the male
which is not equally the right of the female. There is no
physiological ground for any indulgence in one case more than in the
other. No man has any more right to require or expect purity in the
woman who is to be his wife than the woman has to require and expect
purity in her husband. It is a simple matter of justice and right. No
man can enter upon an amative relation with a woman, except in
marriage, without manifest injustice to his future wife, unless he
allow her the same liberty; and also without a great wrong to the
woman, and to her possible husband.

It is contended that the sins of men against chastity are more venial
than those of women, because of the liability of women to have
children. But men are also liable to be the fathers of children, who
are deeply wronged by the absence of paternal care. The child has its
rights, and every child has the right to be born in honest,
respectable wedlock, of parents able to give it a sound constitution
and the nurture and education it requires. The child who lacks these
conditions is grievously wronged by both father and mother.


                          THE LAW OF MARRIAGE

is, that a mature man and woman, with sound health, pure lives, and a
reasonable prospect of comfortably educating a family, when drawn to
each other by the attraction of mutual love, should chastely and
temperately unite for offspring. The sexual relation has this chief
and controlling purpose. The law of nature is intercourse for
reproduction. Under the Christian law, marriage is the symbol of the
union of Christ with the Church; husband and wife are one in the Lord;
they are to live in marriage chastity, not in lust and uncleanness;
and there cannot be a more hideous violation of Christian morals than
for a husband to vent his sensuality upon a feeble wife; against her
wishes and when she has no desire for offspring and no power to give
them the healthy constitutions and maternal care which is their right.

The law of Christian morality is very clear. It is the sexual union
first and chiefly for its principal object. It is for the husband to
refrain from it whenever it is not desired; whenever it would be
hurtful to either; whenever it would be a waste of life; whenever it
would injure mother or child, as during pregnancy and lactation.


                     A MAN WHO TRULY LOVES A WOMAN

must respect and reverence her, and cannot make her the victim of his
inordinate and unbridled, selfish and sensual nature. He will be ever,
from the first moment of joyful possession to the last of his life,
tender, delicate, considerate, deferent, yielding to her slightest
wishes in the domain of love, and never encroaching, never trespassing
upon, never victimizing the wife of his bosom and the mother of his
babes. We have romance before marriage, we want more chivalry in
marriage.

This is not the world's morality, yet it seems to one the world must
respect it. This, high and pure Christian morality is not always
enforced by Christian ministers, some of whom yield too much to human
sensuality and depravity, instead of maintaining the higher law of
Christian purity, which is but nature restored or freed from its
stains of sin. The world requires that unmarried women should be
chaste, while it gives almost unbridled license to men. A girl
detected in amours is disgraced and often made an outcast. In young
men such irregularities are freely tolerated. They are “a little
wild”; they “sow their wild oats”; but open profligacy, the seduction
of innocence, the ruin of poor girls, adultery, harlotry and its
diseases do not hinder men from marrying, nor from requiring that
those they marry should have spotless reputations. It is not for a
moment permitted that women in these matters should behave like men,
and a pure girl is given to the arms of a wasted debauchee, and her
babes are perhaps born dead, or suffer through life with syphilitic
diseases, while she endures a long martyrdom from disordered,
diseased, and unrestrained sensuality. For the unmarried, young men,
soldiers, sailors, and all who do not choose to bear the burdens of a
family, society has its armies of prostitutes—women like others, and
more than others, or in less reputable fashion, the victims of the
unbridled lust of men. They are everywhere tolerated as


                          “NECESSARY EVILS,”

and, in some places, protected or regulated; and, from economical or
philanthropic considerations, or both, combined efforts are made to
free them from the contagious diseases which for some centuries have
been a curse attending this form of the violation of the laws of
nature—one of the consequences of lust which is the divorce of the
sexual instinct from its natural use and purpose.

The Christian


                           LAW OF MARRIAGE,

as set down in the Holy Scriptures, and defined by the best writers on
moral theology, is in harmony with nature, in consonance with the
higher nature of man. “God hath set the earth in families.” Adultery
is a sin, because it disorders that divine arrangement. Fornication is
a sin, because it prevents pure marriages. Prostitution is a sin,
because it is a sacrifice of women, who might be wives and mothers, to
the selfish lusts of men. All useless indulgence is a waste of life,
and a kind of suicide. In a pure marriage union, men and women unite
themselves with God in acts of creative power. The progress of
humanity depends upon individual development and the conditions at
generation and gestation. With culture and a harmonized development,
we acquire a higher and more integral life. When two parents are in
their highest condition and in


                             A TRUE UNION

with each other, the child combines the best qualities of both
parents. When parents are not in the unity of a mutual love, the child
may be inferior to either parent. The intensity of mutual love tends
to the reproduction of the best faculties of both parents in the
child. When men or women are exhausted or diseased the race
deteriorates. Health is therefore one of the conditions of progress.

“It is all very fine,” I shall be told, “to talk of purity and
chastity; but we must take men as they are. How are you going to make
men pure and chaste, and respectful of the purity of women? How can
you get men with strong amative propensities to live like anchorites?”

How can you get men to do anything right, or refrain from any wrong
thing? There are three motives—fear of punishment, hope of reward,
and sense of right or the principle of duty. The first of these is the
lowest, but often the most effectual; the second is higher, and
appeals to hope and the love of happiness; the third, the highest of
all motives, pure and unselfish as the love of truth, as in
mathematics, acts on noble minds with great power. Men of real
conscientiousness love the right for its own sake. They are just from
love of justice; pure from a sense and love of purity. They love good,
and God as the source of all good; and do right, not from fear or
hope, but from pure love.

We must appeal to all motives. Men refrain from theft and other
dishonest conduct from the dread of disgrace and punishment, because
they see that “honesty is the best policy,” and from a sense of
justice and regard to the rights of property, or a sense of honor
which makes a mean action impossible. By similar motives great numbers
are restrained from drunkenness and other vices. Children are to be
restrained from impurity by the fear of the terrible consequences of
unnatural indulgence in causing disease and pain, by the hope of a
pure, healthy and happy life of love in manhood and womanhood, and by
a sense of the beauty and holiness of chastity and the sacredness of
the functions by which the race is recreated and preserved. The
religious feelings that our bodies are to be kept pure, healthy, and
holy in every way as the temples of the Holy Ghost cannot be too early
instilled into the infant mind, which is open to the highest
sentiments of veneration, devotion, and heroic religion. In youth
there are the same motives. Indulgence in solitary vice is
self-destructive of all that youth most values—a profanation of his
own body.


                               SEDUCTION

is a desecration of what he should hold in the most tender reverence.
To the young man, womanhood should be sacred, and every woman, mother,
sister, beloved of the present or the future, should never be wronged
by one thought of impurity. In this matter instinct goes with right.
The inward voice supports the outer law of morality. Before men can
become bad, their instinctive modesty must be broken down. Unless very
badly born, with disordered amativeness, hereditary from a diseased
and lustful parentage, they must be perverted and corrupted before
they can act immodestly and impurely.


                          WOMEN ARE PROTECTED

by a strong public sentiment around them. They have the dread of
disgrace. For them to yield to their own affectionate desires, or the
solicitations of a lover, is a fall, is ruin. They have the hope of a
loving husband, a happy home, and the respect of society. And in woman
passion has commonly less force, and the sentiment of modesty and
purity more power. Women are weak in yielding to solicitation, giving


                         EVERYTHING FOR LOVE;

but we see how protective of female virtue are these motives to vast
numbers.

Men can perfectly restrain the sensual part of their natures whenever
they have a strong motive to do so. A child would be simply mad who
was not controlled by the presence of father, mother, and persons he
respected or feared. Young men have no difficulty when they are in the
company of pure women. They are in no trouble when their lives are
full of mental and muscular activity, and particularly if their habits
of eating simply and temperately, of refraining from heating and
exciting stimulants, and sleeping in cold beds and fresh air, are such
as health requires. There needs but the strong will to live purely in
any one, and at any age, the will that comes from the high motives of
conscience and religion, or all motives combined. A strong sense of
what is just and right controls even the motions of our bodies and
actions which seem to be involuntary. A man who has a vivid sense of
the right and duty of refraining from sensuality, and preserving his
own purity of mind and body and the chastity of all women, will do so
even in his dreams. When the will is right, all things are soon
brought into its subjection. The mind controls the organization, and
the life forces are directed into other channels. A strong man, full
of


                            LIFE AND LOVE,

can safely hold a virgin in his arms, and respect her virginity, if he
have but the motives and the will to do so. If he be pure in his
will, how can he commit impurity? If a woman be sacred in his eyes,
how can he profane her? It is not that men have not the power of
restraint, the power to do right; it is that they lack the motive.
They have lost the sense of right; they are even impelled to do wrong
by the pressure of opinion around them. Boys and young men are driven
into libertinage by the ridicule of their companions. Vice is
considered manly. They seek sensuality in an evil emulation, as they
learn to smoke, or gamble, or drink; and, later on, vanity has often
more to do with excess than the force of lust. Young men seduce girls
that they may boast of it. They keep mistresses because it is the
fashion. They exhaust themselves because they wish to give a high idea
of their manly powers. Even in marriage, women are injured and have
their health destroyed by yielding weakly, or from


                        A FALSE SENSE OF DUTY,

to a husband whose own motive is the desire to acquit himself manfully
in what he considers his marital duties. Men and women are, in
thousands of cases, wretched victims to what they imagine to be the
wants or expectations of each other. A man, ignorant of the nature of
women and the laws of the generative function, goes on in a process of
miserable exhaustion, to please his wife. She submits, sometimes in
pain, often in disgust, weariness, and weakness, to what she dare not,
from


                             LOVE OR FEAR,

refuse. Men have to know what is right and to will to be right. This
will is omnipotent. God helps those who have the will, who have even
the desire, to do right.

If the presence of those we fear or reverence, respect or love,
restrain us from sin and stimulate us to right action, faith in the
existence and presence of God and angels, and the spirits of the
departed, must have a more powerful and pervading influence. No one
who really believes in the existence of a Supreme Being, no one who is
strongly impressed with the reality of a spiritual life, can go on
doing what he knows to be wrong. A religious faith is therefore the
most powerful of all restraints from evil and incitement to good.




                             CHAPTER VII.

                               MARRIAGE.


                           WHAT IS MARRIAGE?

Marriage is in law the conjugal union of man with woman, and is the
only state in which cohabitation is considered proper and
irreprehensible. The marriage relation exists in all Christian
communities, and is considered the most solemn of contracts, and,
excepting in Protestant countries, it is regarded as a sacrament. In
some countries its celebration falls under the cognizance of
ecclesiastical courts only, but in the United States it is regarded as
merely a civil contract, magistrates having, equally with clergymen,
the right to solemnize it, though it is usually the practice to have
it performed by a clergyman and attended with religious ceremonies.
Marriage, as a legalized custom, is of very ancient origin. It is
doubtful whether even the primitive man was not governed in the
intercourse of the sexes by some recognition of the union being
confined to one chosen one. No greater promiscuity can certainly be
supposed than occurs in the lower animals, where pairing is the law.
The nobler animals, as the lion, elephant, etc., never have but one
mate, and even in case of death do not remate. As men advanced, civil
codes were inaugurated and certain protection given to the choice of
the parties. The earliest civil code regulating marriage, of which we
have any account, was that of Menes, who, Herodotus tells us, was the
first of the Pharaohs, or native Egyptian kings, and who lived about
3,500 years before Christ. The nature of his code is not known.

The Biblical account extends further back, but it does not appear that
any laws existed regulating marriage, but each one was allowed to
choose his wife and concubines, and it is supposed that common consent
respected the selection. Next, Moses gave laws for the government of
marriage among the Israelites. The early Greeks followed the code of
Cecrops, and the Romans were also governed in their marital relations
by stringent laws. In fact, the necessity of some law regulating the
intercourse between the sexes must have become very apparent to all
nations or communities at a very early period. It certainly antedates
any legal regulations with regard to the possession of property. It is
very probable that every community did by common consent afford to
each male one or more females, and the presumption is that such choice
or assignment, as the case may have been, was respected by common
agreement as inviolable. It is doubtful if ever promiscuity was the
law or privilege with any community of men, even in their primitive
state. The possession of reason is antagonistic to such a belief; and
man was most probably elevated above the beast by the faculty of
reason in this respect as in others. Promiscuous indulgence is always
evidence of debauchery, and a departure from that natural course which
is prompted by an innate sense of propriety characterizing mankind.
The law is very indefinite with regard to what constitutes a legal
marriage. It is an unsettled question, both in England and this
country, whether a marriage solemnized by customary formalities alone
is legal, or if one characterized by the mere consent of the parties
is illegal. The latter has been held as legal in some instances in
both countries. Kent, in his “Commentaries,” lays down the law that a
contract made so that either party recognizes it from the moment of
contract, and even not followed by cohabitation, amounts to a valid
marriage, and also that a contract to be recognized at some future
period, and followed by consummation, is equally valid. It is
unfortunate that the law is so undecided in this respect. The
decisions arrived at, for or against, were not dependent upon any
recognized law, but seem to be influenced by the character of the
cases, either for favor or discountenance. As long as the law
recognizes cohabitation legal only in marriage, it seems to me that if
consummated under consent of the parties to bear marital relations
with each other, or promise of marriage, the act should be
unhesitatingly pronounced as the equivalent of a valid marriage in all
instances. If cohabitation is only a marital prerogative, the law
should not stultify itself by recognizing it as possible to occur in
any other relation. If either of the parties is married, the law
defines it as adultery, and very properly defines the punishment. It
is necessary to the progress of the age that some such principle
should be recognized in common law so as not to subject the decision
of the question to the individual opinion of any judge. It would at
once obviate the confusion of sentiment now held in regard to it and
besides arrest the decision in test cases from mere caprice of the
tribunal. It is certainly as correct a principle as any in common law,
and would, in its operations as a statute law, be free from injustice,
and capable of doing much good.


                         POLYGAMY—WHAT IT IS.

Polygamy is a state in which a man has at the same time more than one
wife. It has existed from time immemorial, especially among the
nations of the East. The custom was tolerated by the laws of Moses,
and, in fact, no positive injunction against it is found in the whole
of the Old Testament. It is questionable whether more than one was
recognized as the _bona fide_ wife, the others simply being wives by
right of concubinage. But if polygamy was in its strictest sense the
legal custom, it soon grew unpopular, for no trace of it is met in the
records of the New Testament, where all the passages referring to
marriage imply monogamy as alone lawful. The custom has been almost
universal in the East, being sanctioned by all the religions existing
there. The religion of Mohammed allows four wives, but the permission
is rarely exercised except by the rich.

In Christian countries polygamy was never tolerated, the tenets of the
Church forbidding it, though Charlemagne had two wives, and Sigbert
and Chilperich also had a plurality. John of Leyden, an Anabaptist
leader, was the husband of seventeen wives, and he held that it was
his moral right to marry as many as he chose.

In England the punishment of polygamy was originally in the hands of
the ecclesiastics. It was considered a capital crime by Edward I., but
it did not come entirely under the control of the temporal power until
a statute of James I. made it a felony, punishable by death. George
III. made it punishable by imprisonment or transportation for seven
years.

It is the offspring of licentiousness, and its advocates merely wish
to give legal color to licentious habits. Every student of history
will find that as soon as a nation became morally depraved, polygamy
was practiced, and that monogamy was the rule in all countries truly
civilized.

Polygamy has, of late years, been most shamefully revived and
outrageously practiced in face of law by the Mormons. They claim it as
a religious duty, and defend the system by claiming that unmarried
women can in the future life reach only the position of angels who
occupy in the Mormon theocratic system a very subordinate rank, being
simply ministering servants to those more worthy, thus proclaiming
that it is a virtual necessity of the male to practice the vilest
immorality in order to advance the female to the highest place in
heaven.

Mormonism is a religion founded by Joseph Smith, who was born in
Sharon, E. V., Dec. 23rd, 1805, and killed at Carthage, Ill., June
27th, 1844.

It is a most singular fact that a sect like the Mormons could have
been established in a country peopled with such law-abiding people as
of the United States, and maintain a system of marriage, antagonistic
to the law and religion of the land. Neither could they have done so
if they had not possessed two great virtues, temperance and industry.
It is to be hoped that the legal process now instituted for its
abolition will effectually remove the blot from the national
escutcheon.

The “Oneida Communists” are essentially polygamic, although they have
no marriage system. They do not marry, and ignore all marriage codes.
Cohabitation is under no restrictions between the sexes. Marriage is
also not observed among the “Shakers.”


                         MONOGAMY—WHAT IT IS.

This is the conjugal union of a male with one female only. We have
seen that monogamy was coequal with civilization, and that most
probably the majority of the males had but one wife, even among
polygamic nations. Universal polygamy is practically impossible, the
scarcity of females and the poverty of the males forbidding it. The
excess of females is not so great in any country as to allow to each
male more than one wife, except the male portion is depleted by long
and disastrous wars. Monogamy has done more for the elevation of the
female than any other custom of civilization. The rich could only
afford to practice polygamy, and should the poor imitate the example
it would necessarily subject the wives to a state of serfdom. In the
economy of nature it is designed that the male should be the protector
of the female, and that by his exertions the provision of food and
raiment should be secured. In polygamous nations the female has not
attained that social state that she has reached in countries where the
male is entitled to but one female as his wife. Woman's highest sphere
is not in the harem or zenana, but in that dignified state in which
she is the sole connubial companion of but one man. It is debasing to
her nature, and subversive of her dignity in the rank of humanity, to
make her the equal only with others in the marital union with one
male. She becomes only the true, noble and affectionate being when she
is conscious of a superiority to others in the connubial companionship
with her accepted one. The female bird chirps but for her single mate,
and she is pugnaciously monogamic, as well as virtuous, allowing
neither male or female at or near her home. The spirit of independence
she gains by being the mate of but one male gains for her the victory
over the intruders.

The physical and mental welfare of the female is also dependent upon
monogamic marriage. We have demonstrated that temperate indulgence is
conducive to the sanitary condition of the sexes, and that absolute
abstinence is opposed to the designs of nature. It is also evident
that the male is not endowed with greater power, vigor or capacity
than the female; therefore, confinement or limitation of the congress
to the companionship of one male with one female, as in monogamic
marriage, gives the healthy balance to the marital union. The
polygamic husband must either suffer from the consequences of
excessive indulgence or his wives from poverty of sexual
gratification; probably both would be the case.


                               POLYANDRY

is equally as proper as polygamy, yet it never in the history of man
obtained a foothold. The system is more logical than polygamy, because
the wife's dependence would be distributed between two or more
husbands, in which case she would be better insured against poverty
and her support would be guaranteed by greater probability.

We have now described the history and aspect of the two customs, and
will conclude the subject by remarking that a man is morally and
physically entitled to but one wife, and that a plurality is a great
wrong to the female and in total opposition to the ordinance of
nature. Wherever polygamy is the custom the female is held in slavish
subjection. It only prospers in proportion to the ignorance of the
sex. Intelligent and civilized woman will always rebel against such
debasement and servitude.


                           MARRIAGE CUSTOMS.

It would probably be interesting to many to describe the marriage
ceremonies observed by different nations, but to enter into a
descriptive detail would occupy too much space. It is sufficient to
say that while some wives are wooed and won, others are bought and
sold; while in some countries the husband brings the wife to his home,
in others, as in Formosa, the daughter brings her husband to her
father's house, and he is considered one of the family, while the
sons, upon marriage, leave the family forever. In civilized countries,
the ceremonies are either ministerial or magisterial, and are more or
less religious in character; while in others, less civilized, the
gaining of a wife depends upon a foot-race, in which the female has
the start of one-third the distance of the course, as is the custom
in Lapland. In Caffraria, the lover must first fight himself into the
affections of his ladylove, and if he defeats all his rivals she
becomes his wife without further ceremony. Among the Congo tribes, a
wife is taken upon trial for a year, and if not suited to the standard
of taste of the husband, he returns her to her patents. In Persia, the
wife's status depends upon her fruitfulness; if she be barren, she can
be put aside. In the same country they have also permanent marriages
and marriages for a certain period only—the latter never allowed to
exceed ninety years.

In fact, the marriage ceremonies differ in nearly all countries. To us
some may appear very absurd, and yet our customs may be just as
amazing to them. It matters but little how a conjugal union is
effected so long as sanctioned by law or custom and it obligates the
parties, by common opinion, to observe the duties pertaining to
married life.


                    THE BASIS OF A HAPPY MARRIAGE.

The state of conjugal union should be the happiest in the whole of the
existence of either man or woman, and is such in a congenial marriage.
Yet in the history of very many marriages contentment or happiness is
palpably absent and an almost insufferable misery is the heritage of
both parties. It is therefore important that previous to the marital
union the parties should take everything into consideration that
fore-shadows happiness after marriage, as well as everything
calculated to despoil conjugal felicity.

The first requisite of congenial marriage is love. Without being
cemented by this element the conjugal union is sure to be uncongenial.
It is the strongest bond, the firmest cord, uniting two hearts
inseparably together. Love for the opposite sex has always been a
controlling influence with mankind. It is the most elevating of all
the emotions and the purest and tenderest of all sentiments. It exerts
a wonderful power, and by its influence the grandest human actions
have been achieved. Of what infinite worth it is to either sex to be
compensated with a worthy and satisfying love, and how ennobling to
the impulses and actions it is to bestow the sentiment upon one worthy
to receive and willing to return.


                        LOVE IS THE MAINSPRING

that regulates the harmony of conjugal life, and without it there is a
void in the machinery, productive only of jars, convulsive movement,
and a grating and inharmonious action. The soul yearns for love and
to love, and unless the desire is compensated human life is a blank
and becomes a purposeless existence. Love ever stimulates the good and
suppresses the bad, if kept in a proper channel and guided by pure
affections.

Another requisite of a happy marriage is health. No person has a moral
right to engage in wedlock who cannot bring to his partner the
offering of good health.

Another consideration is _evenness of temper_. In the wooing days
everyone is a lamb, and only becomes the howling wolf after marriage.
Circumstances that ruffle the temper in the presence of the intended
are but like the harmless squib, but would become like the explosive
torpedo in his or her absence or in after-marriage. Quarreling caused
by matrimonial differences is the most frequent cause of infelicity,
and most of it is caused by an innate irate temper of either husband
or wife.

The _tastes_ should not be dissimilar. Some of them may be
unimportant, but others are a fruitful source of disagreement. The
social wife will never be contented with the unsocial husband, and the
gay husband, though his gayety may not be commendable, will always
accuse his wife if she lacks a social disposition to a great extent.
The religious wife will never excuse a tendency to irreligion in her
husband, and though he may be far from being immoral, she is unhappy
if he does not participate in her devotions. The one devoted to
children will never be happy with one having a natural repugnance for
them. In this way we might multiply facts illustrative of the
importance of an investigation into the similarity of taste previous
to marriage. Great love, however, overcomes almost every obstacle.


               THE PARTIES SHOULD BE NEARLY OF ONE AGE.

The husband should be the elder. The union of the old husband to the
young wife, or the reverse, is seldom a happy one. It is seldom that
such a marriage occurs in which the incentive is not the wealth of
either of the parties.

Marriages are usually contracted to gratify various desires, as love,
fortune or position. The results are more truthfully stated by an
eminent divine in the following:

“Who marries for love, takes a wife; who marries for fortune, takes a
mistress; who marries for position, takes a lady.”

To a man there is but one choice that he can rationally make, a
marriage of love. My female readers, I hope, will decide rather to wed
a husband than the master or the elegant gentleman.

A little foresight, a little prudence, and a little caution will
prevent in most cases the entrance into a marriage which, by the very
nature of the alliance, is certain to be an unhappy and improper one.




                             CHAPTER VIII.

                     PREGNANCY—LABOR—PARTURITION.


Perhaps there is no more eventful period in the history of woman than
that in which she first becomes conscious that the existence of
another being is dependent upon her own and that she carries about
with her the first tiny rudiments of an immortal soul.


                        THE SIGNS OF PREGNANCY

are various. Many females are troubled with colic pains, creeping of
the skin, shuddering, and fainting fits immediately on conception
taking place. Where such symptoms occur immediately after connection,
they are a certain indication of impregnation.


                          A REMARKABLE CHANGE

takes place in the face in most cases, varying in time from three days
to three months. The eyes are dull and heavy, and present a glassy
appearance; the nose pinched up; the skin becomes pale and livid, and
the whole countenance appears as if five or ten years' advance in life
had been taken at a single step.

Another important and remarkable sign, and one the most to be relied
on, is an increase in the size of the neck. This often occurs at a
very early period, and many females, by keeping a careful daily
measurement of the neck, can always tell when they are pregnant.

A suppression of the menstrual flow is another strong presumptive
sign. It is true a partial flow of the menses often occurs after
pregnancy, from the lower part of the womb, but when the flow is
suddenly stopped without any apparent cause, pregnancy is generally
the predisposing cause.


                         SOON AFTER CONCEPTION

the stomach often becomes affected with what is called morning
sickness. On first awaking, the female feels as well as usual, but on
rising from her bed qualmishness begins and perhaps while in the act
of dressing retching and vomiting takes place.

This symptom may occur almost immediately after conception, but it
most frequently commences for the first time between two and three
weeks after. Now and then it is experienced only during the last six
weeks or two months of pregnancy, and subsides about the time the
movements of the child begin to be felt.


                         CHANGES IN THE BREAST

are generally considered as strong signs of pregnancy. When two months
of pregnancy have been completed, an uneasy sensation of throbbing and
stretching fullness is experienced, accompanied by tingling about the
middle of the breasts, centering in the nipples. A sensible alteration
in their appearance soon follows, they grow larger and more firm. The
nipple becomes more prominent, and the circle around its base altered
in color and structure, constituting what is called the areola, and as
pregnancy advances milk is secreted.


                       THE PERIOD OF GESTATION,

at which these changes may occur, varies much in different females.
Sometimes, with the exception of the secretion of the milk, they are
recognized very soon after conception; in other instances,
particularly in females of a weakly and delicate constitution, they
are hardly perceptible until pregnancy is far advanced or even drawing
toward its termination.

The changes in the form and size of the breasts may be the result of
causes unconnected with pregnancy. They may enlarge in consequence of
marriage, from the individual becoming stout and fat or from
accidental suppression of the monthly flow.

The changes which take place in the nipple, and around its base, are
of the utmost value as an evidence of pregnancy.


                    ABOUT THE SIXTH OR SEVENTH WEEK

after conception has taken place, if the nipple be examined it will be
found becoming turgid and prominent, and a circle forming around its
base, of a color deeper in its shade than rose or flesh color,
slightly tinged with a yellowish or brownish hue, and here and there
upon its surface will be seen little prominent points from about ten
to twenty in number. In the progress of the next six or seven weeks
these changes are fully developed, the nipple becoming more prominent
and turgid than ever, the circle around it of larger dimensions, the
skin being soft, bedewed with a slight degree of moisture, frequently
staining the linen in contact with it; the little prominences of
larger size, and the color of the whole very much deepened.

Calculations of the


                        DURATION OF PREGNANCY,

founded upon what has been observed to occur after casual intercourse,
or perhaps a single act, in individuals who can have no motive to tell
us what is false, are likely to be correct. The conclusion drawn from
these is, that labor usually, but not invariably, comes on about 280
days after conception, a mature child being sometimes born before the
expiration of the forty weeks, and at other times not until that time
has been exceeded by several days. A case is on record where the
pregnancy lasted 287 days. In this case the labor did not take place
until that period had elapsed from the departure of the husband for
the East Indies, consequently the period might have been longer than
287 days.


                   CHILDBIRTH IS A NATURAL PROCESS,

and however complicated and painful habits or disease have made it,
yet the work must be left to nature. Any efforts to assist or hurry
matters will only end in harm. The only cases where interference is
justifiable is where her powers are exhausted or some malformation
exists or malpresentation occurs. When labor is about to commence, the
womb descends into the bottom of the belly and the motions and weight
of the child will be felt much lower down than usual. If in a natural
position the head will fall to the mouth of the womb and press upon
it. This drives forward the membranes which retain the water at the
orifice, and at the proper moment they break and labor then commences.

Labor is caused by involuntary contractions of the uterus and
abdominal muscles. By their force the liquor amnii flows out, the head
of the fœtus is engaged in the pelvis, it goes through it, and soon
passes out by the valve, the folds of which disappear. These different
phenomena take place in succession and continue a certain time. They
are accompanied with pains more or less severe, with swelling and
softening of the soft parts of the pelvis and external genital parts,
and with an abundant mucous secretion in the cavity of the vagina. All
these circumstances, each in its own way, favor the passage of the
fœtus.

It is proper here to remark that parturition is not necessarily either
painful or dangerous. It is well known that women in an uncivilized
state suffer very little pain or disablement in bringing forth
children. Generally neither pregnancy nor labor interrupt the ordinary
avocation of the mother, except for an hour or two at the birth
itself. The suffering and debilitating influences that often attend
childbirth now are caused by our unnatural modes of living and
nonattention to the laws of health. Numerous well-authenticated
instances are known where women who had previously suffered with
severe labor in childbirth have, by attention to health and diet as
here shown, been delivered of fine healthy children with comparative
ease.

From the


                        BEGINNING OF PREGNANCY

more than ordinary care should be used in taking regular exercise in
the open air, being careful to avoid fatigue and overexertion. During
the whole period of pregnancy every kind of agitating exercise, such
as running, jumping, jolting in a carriage, and plunging in cold
water, should be carefully avoided, as well as the passions being kept
under perfect control.


                               THE DIET

must chiefly consist of fruits and farinaceous food, as sago, tapioca,
rice, etc. In proportion as a woman subsists upon aliment which is
free from earthy and bony matter will she avoid pain and danger in
delivery; hence, the more ripe fruit, acid fruit in particular, and
the less of other kinds of food, but particularly of bread or pastry
of any kind, is consumed, the less will be the danger and sufferings
of childbirth. Nearly all kinds of fruit possess two hundred times
less ossifying principle than bread or anything else made of wheaten
flour.

Honey, molasses, sugar, butter, oil, vinegar, etc., when
unadulterated, are entirely free from earthy matter. Common salt,
pepper, coffee, cocoa, spices, and many drugs are much worse than
wheaten flour in their hardening and bone-forming tendency, and should
therefore be avoided. The drink should be tea or lemonade made with
water, soft and clear, and, when practicable, distilled.

No mother who has adopted this mode of living but has blessed the
knowledge of it, and it has saved many a young mother from needless
terror.

In the third month of pregnancy, but not before, the belly begins to
enlarge or swell, and gradually increases in size till the full term
of pregnancy is completed. Between the sixteenth and twentieth week
the womb rises up into the belly, and the motion of the child is felt,
which is called


                              QUICKENING.

The first time a woman is with child this sensation of quickening is
like that of a bird fluttering within her; at other times she feels a
tickling or pushing sensation, or the child gives a kick or a jump,
and this, too, with so much energy as to move the petticoats, a book,
or any light article she may have in her lap.

It is important to remember these symptoms, and the order in which
they occur: first, cessation of the menses; second, morning sickness;
third, swelling and darting pains in the breast, and dark color around
the nipples; fourth, gradual enlargement of the abdomen or belly;
fifth, the movement of the child.

In ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, if these symptoms are present
the woman is pregnant. Pregnant women are generally affected with
heartburn, sickness of a morning, headache, and that troublesome
disease, toothache, which accompanies pregnancy; all of which may
usually be avoided by keeping the bowels gently open with seidlitz
powders, caster oil, or pills of rhubarb, which should be taken
occasionally, either alone or in combination with colocynth and soap.
A clyster made of warm soapsuds will often be sufficient if repeated
every few days; or senna and manna; and if there is any aversion to
taking medicine, give some simple articles, such as roasted apples,
figs, prunes, or anything that will quiet the stomach and prevent
costiveness of the bowels.


                             THE TOOTHACHE

often complained of by pregnant women, and which may occur at any
period, is seldom relieved by extraction, having its seat in the
adjacent nerves of the face or jaws, and is neuralgic. The teeth ought
not to be drawn during pregnancy, unless urgently required, but should
be relieved by applying hot fomentations to the face, as a camomile
poultice. Rubbing the jaw externally with spirits of camphor or
laudanum, or applying mustard plasters or blisters behind the ears,
will afford relief.


                     THE CRAMPS OF THE LEGS. ETC.,

in pregnancy, caused by the pressure of the enlarged womb on the
nerves, are often troublesome, but not attended with any danger, and
may be speedily relieved by a change of posture, and friction, or
rubbing with opodeldoc, spirits of camphor, or hot whisky and salt.
Palpitation of the heart occurs frequently, and usually about the
period of quickening. In general, it is the result of a disordered
stomach and may be relieved by attention to diet and moderate doses of
magnesia and Epsom salts, of equal quantities.


                     THE PALPITATION OF THE HEART

may be produced by a morbid state of the nerves, and is then termed
hysterical. Attention in all such cases should be paid to the diet,
air, exercise, etc., with the view of improving the strength, the
bowels being kept open by mild means. All exciting or agitating
subjects should be carefully avoided, and the mind of the pregnant
woman kept calm and tranquil; for the mind, in the early stages of
pregnancy, exercises the most powerful influence over the child
through life; and how many peculiar traits of character have been
indelibly fixed upon their offspring from these exciting causes is
evident in many families.

When the palpitation occurs from the state of the nerves, as before
described, producing uncomfortable feelings, a teaspoonful of the
tincture of castor or asafœtida, with an equal quantity of compound
spirits of lavender, mixed in a little water, will seldom fail to
afford relief, which may, if necessary, be repeated on its recurrence.


                           MORNING SICKNESS

is one of the most painful feelings attendant on the pregnant state,
and it is one of those which medicine commonly fails to relieve. A cup
of camomile or peppermint tea, taken when first awaking, and suffering
the patient to be still for an hour, will frequently alleviate the
distressing sickness; but should it recur during the day, and if these
means fail, two or three teaspoonfuls of the following mixture should
then be taken either occasionally or, when the vomiting and heartburn
are more continual, immediately after each meal:

Take of—
    Calcined magnesia,                   One dram;
    Distilled water,                     Six ounces;
    Aromatic tincture of rhatany,        Six drams;
    Water of pure ammonia,               One dram.

Mix. The anxiety and sometimes despondency of mind—in other words,
lowness of spirits—to which pregnant women are more or less liable
greatly depends on the state of their general health and the natural
temper and character of the individual; but it can be greatly
aggravated, and may often be excited by circumstances or officious
persons. Let me, then, urge upon you the _important necessity_ of
keeping the mind as tranquil and cheerful as possible, particularly
during the first four months of pregnancy. A judicious course of this
kind will produce the most beneficial and well-balanced mind in the
child; while, if the contrary, a desponding and nervous temperament,
with many other peculiarities, will be the consequence.


               SURE TEST FOR THE DETECTION OF PREGNANCY.

M. Nauche has found that the urine of pregnant women contains a
particular substance, which, when the urine is allowed to stand
separates and forms a pellicle on the surface. M. Enguiser, from an
extensive series of observations, has confirmed the fact, and
ascertained that kisteine, as this particular substance has been
called, is constantly formed on the surface of the urine of women in a
state of pregnancy. The urine must be allowed to stand for from two to
six days, when minute opaque bodies are observed to rise from the
bottom to the surface of the fluid, where they gradually unite and
form a continuous layer over the surface. This layer is so consistent
that it may be almost lifted off by raising it by one of its edges.
This is the kisteine. It is whitish, opalescent, slightly granular,
and can be compared to nothing better than the fatty substance which
floats on the surface of soups after they have been allowed to cool.
When examined by the microscope, it has the aspect of a gelatinous
mass without determinate form; sometimes cubical shaped crystals are
discovered on it, but this appearance is only observed when it has
stood a long time, and is to be regarded as foreign to it. The
kisteine remains on the surface for several days; the urine then
becomes turbid, and small opaque masses become detached from the
kisteine and fall to the bottom of the fluid and the pellicle soon
becomes destroyed.

The essential character of the urine of pregnancy, then, is the
presence of the kisteine; and the characters of the pellicle are so
peculiar that it is impossible to mistake it for anything else. A
pellicle sometimes forms on the surface of the urine of patients
laboring under phthisis, abscess, or disease of the bladder, but may
be easily distinguished by this circumstance, that it does not form in
such a short time as the kisteine, and that in place of disappearing,
as this last, in a few days, it increases in thickness and at last is
converted into a mass of moldiness. There exists, likewise, a very
marked difference between its mucous aspect and that of kisteine; a
difference which is difficult to describe, but which is easily
recognized.

Kisteine appears to exist in the urine from the first month of
pregnancy till delivery. It has even been recognized in the urine of a
few gravid animals.


                          “PARTURIENT BALM,”

_For Rendering Childbirth Easy and Less Dangerous—A very Important
Medicine._

Take blue cohosh root, four ounces; lady's-slipper root and spikenard
root, of each one ounce; sassafras bark (of root) and clover, of each
half an ounce. Bruise all, and simmer slowly for two hours in two
quarts of boiling water. Strain, and add one pound of white sugar.

Dose: A wineglassful twice a day for two weeks or a month previous to
expected confinement, for the purpose of rendering parturition, or
childbirth, more easy.

Should be taken by every pregnant woman.


                               ABORTION.

Abortion, or miscarriage, means, in plain language, a woman losing her
child previous to the seventh month of her pregnancy; that is, before
its due time. When this occurs after that period it is called


                           PREMATURE LABOR.

Miscarriage involves pain and weakness in addition to the loss of
offspring, and is often a severe trial to the maternal constitution.
It may occur at any period of pregnancy, but particular stages are
more liable to the accident than others. These are generally
considered to be about the time of the first menstruation after
conception; again at the twelfth week, and toward the seventh month;
and the liability is increased at those times which correspond to the
menstrual period. When abortion has once taken place it is more likely
to occur again, and some have so strong a tendency to it that they
never go beyond a certain stage, but then invariably miscarry.


                         THE CAUSE OF ABORTION

may exist in the constitution of the female herself, being the result
of weakness and irritability, or of an overfull habit or a diseased
condition of the womb; or the fœtus, or child, may die or be
deficient in development, when it is cast off like a blighted fruit.
Suckling after conception has taken place is not infrequently a cause
of miscarriage. Active diseases occurring during pregnancy, such as
fevers, severe inflammation, eruptive fevers, etc., are almost certain
to occasion the expulsion of the uterine contents. Continued
diarrhœa and the action of strong purgative medicines, particularly
the aloetic, are dangerous. This is a very good reason for those who
are pregnant avoiding all quack aperient medicines; they almost all
contain aloes, and may be very injurious. All undue exertion or
agitation of body or mind, sudden jerks or jumps, riding on horseback
in the early stage, or in a shaking carriage in the latter stages of
pregnancy, may any of them bring on miscarriage. To these may be
added: exertion of the arms in doing anything on a level above the
head; costive bowels and straining consequent therein; sexual
indulgence, or, in plain language, too much connection with your
husband; and luxurious habits. Those who have once suffered from
abortion ought to be extremely careful during succeeding pregnancies,
and all ought to bear in mind the possibility of the occurrence.


                  THE SYMPTOMS OF THREATENED ABORTION

vary with the constitution. In the strong and plethoric it is often
preceded by shivering and febrile symptoms and by a feeling of weight
in the lower bowels. In the weak there is languor, faintness,
flaccidity of the breasts, general depression, and pains in the back
and loins. Intermittent pains, and discharge of blood from the
passage, tell that the process has begun. If miscarriage occurs within
the first month or two after conception, the process may be
accomplished with so little inconvenience as to escape notice and be
mistaken for a menstrual period. More generally, however, the severity
of the pain and an unusual clotted discharge of blood render the case
evident. The pain, the discharge, and, at the same time, the danger of
an abortion, are in proportion to the advancement of the pregnancy.
When a miscarriage goes on, the pains increase in force and frequency,
and continue, with discharge of blood, fluid or in clots, until the
ovum, or first formation of the child, is expelled; after which both
become moderated till they cease altogether and the red flow gives
place to a colorless one. It is very important that those in
attendance upon the patient should examine every clot that comes away.
If large, tear it in pieces, that they may ascertain whether the
contents of the womb are expelled or not, for there is no safety or
rest, where miscarriage is progressing, till it has taken place and
everything is cast off.


                          AS SOON AS A FEMALE

experiences threatenings of abortion she ought at once to retire to
bed, upon a mattress, and keep perfectly quiet till every symptom has
disappeared. Sometimes this simple measure, _promptly adopted_, is
sufficient to avert the threatened evil. If there is much feeling of
fullness, and the patient is of full habit generally, eight or a dozen
leeches may be applied to the lower part of the bowels; if there is
fever, saline medicines may be given, such as the common effervescing
draft of carbonate of soda and tartaric acid or lemon juice; or, if
the bowels are much confined, seidlitz powders, assisting the action
by cold clysters, if necessary. When the pains are severe,
particularly in the weak and irritable, twenty or thirty drops of
laudanum should be given, and may be repeated in a few hours if the
symptoms are not improved. In the case of profuse discharge, the
patient should be kept very lightly covered, movement avoided, and
every article of food or drink given cold, or iced if possible,
provided the vital powers are not excessively reduced. Cloths dipped
in cold or iced water should also be applied to the lower part of the
body and frequently changed. Acid drinks, with cream of tartar, may be
freely given. Ten or fifteen drops of elixir vitriol may be given in a
wineglassful of water every two or three hours. Should slight
faintness come on, it is better not to interfere with it, but use
outward remedies—camphor, cold water, vinegar, etc.—as they maybe
salutary. If it reaches to an extent to threaten life, stimulants, as
brandy and water, and others, must be had recourse to. Profuse and
continued discharge, though it may not threaten life, must occasion a
weakness which will take a long time to overcome, and which may
ultimately, if not properly attended to, promote the development of
other diseases of the womb.


                      IF THE FLOODING IS PROFUSE

and uncontrolled by the means before mentioned, one grain and a half
of sugar of lead may be given every two or three hours, and washed
down with a drink of vinegar and water, to which, if there is much
pain, add from five to ten drops of laudanum.

Pieces of linen or cotton cloth should be soaked in a strong solution
of alum, or a decoction of oak bark; and then well oiled; with this
cloth plug the passage or birthplace; or, some of this astringent wash
may be thrown up with a syringe.

But, during the time and after miscarriage, the general strength must
be supported by a strengthening diet, such as soups, meat, etc.,
avoiding stimulants as much as possible. Nevertheless, in some cases
wine or malt liquors may be necessary in convalescence, or when
recovering, and if so may be assisted by tonic or strengthening
medicines, such as contain mineral acid. Bark or iron are generally
given as the most appropriate remedies. The bowels will, in some
cases, require strict attention, as indeed they do throughout, and for
this purpose castor oil is a good medicine, or clysters of cold or
tepid water are most useful. A teaspoonful of Epsom salts dissolved in
half a pint of water, either cold or slightly warmed, to which add
fifteen drops of elixir vitriol, forms a most excellent and mild
purgative, which should be taken before breakfast. In all cases where
the constitution of the woman has a tendency to miscarriage or
abortion, a quiet state of mind should be observed, avoiding all
violent exertions, particularly lifting heavy weights. These
principles of treatment are to be kept in mind in the management of
miscarriage:

The first, to prevent it, if possible, by rest, opiates, etc.

The second, to allay pain, moderate the discharge of blood, and to
save and support the strength of the patient.

The third, when abortion must take place, to expedite the separation
of the ovum and free the contents of the womb. This is generally done
by simply occasionally drinking cold water, and in difficult cases, if
necessary, by the administration of spurred rye. The dose is a strong
infusion or tea given every twenty or thirty minutes until the desired
effect is produced, as long as the stomach will bear it.

The health of pregnant females should at all times be an object of
great care and interest; and they should be impressed with the
conviction that while


                        BEARING THE FIRST CHILD

they may, by proper care and attention, lay the foundation for their
future health and that of their offspring; while by neglect and
imprudence in this matter, they may not only enfeeble their
constitution, but entail upon their children an inheritance of
infirmity and disease.

Miscarriage, or abortion, which includes all cases in which delivery
takes place before the sixth month, seldom occurs without being
preceded, or accompanied, or followed, by a morbid discharge of blood
from the womb, which is commonly known by the name of _flooding_.
Abortion, or miscarriage, takes place with the first pregnancy, and
during the first two months; therefore, great care should be observed
during this period, as any cause which either destroys the life of the
child in the womb or brings on morbid or premature contractions in
that organ may induce miscarriage. Coughing severely, or vomiting, a
blow or fall, or a misstep leading to an effort to prevent falling,
may, and does frequently, result in miscarriage; and this having once
occurred, it is, without proper care, exceedingly liable to be the
case again at the same period of a subsequent pregnancy. The same
result may follow any vivid moral impression; for fright, or mental
excitement by passion, or witnessing any accident, will be found often
to end in miscarriage. In some healthy females, however, it occurs
without any other cause than mere fullness of blood. A bleeding from
the womb is often in such cases a first symptom of abortion, and
should be attended to as early as possible before it goes to any
considerable extent. The amount of flooding, in most cases, is in
proportion to the early period of pregnancy at which it takes place,
for in the latter months there is seldom much blood lost. But there
are cases in which pregnant women will lose blood repeatedly from the
womb and yet not miscarry, but these are very rare cases.

In most cases, the occurrence of a woman's flooding between the first
and fourth months, unless very slight, or quickly relieved, is usually
followed by a miscarriage; but as soon as the child and its membranes
are both expelled by the contraction of the womb the flooding soon
ceases. In many such cases it is often very difficult, and sometimes
impossible, to deliver the afterbirth and membranes, which remain and
finally pass off after putrefaction has taken place, resulting in long
and offensive discharges from the womb, and which, unless treated by
the most skillful management, frequently result in many internal
mischiefs of a serious character, such as ulcers, cancers, etc.

In all cases, those who are constitutionally disposed to abortion, or
have a tendency to miscarriage, should take great care to preserve a
quiet state of mind and to avoid all violent exertion; and all active
purgatives should be avoided, and exposure to great heat or cold,
during the time of gestation or pregnancy.

When the miscarriage has really taken place, and the fœtus, or
child, is expelled, together with the contents of the womb, the same
precautions should in general be observed as in childbirth.


                        TO PREVENT MISCARRIAGE,

when it is threatened, or on the appearance of the first symptoms, the
patient should lie down and be as quiet as possible; live on very
light diet; bowels be kept freely open; and an injection of thirty
drops of laudanum should be given in half a pint of slippery elm tea.
Should flooding be present, cold lemonade should be drank freely, and
cloths wet with cold or ice water applied to the thighs and lower part
of the birthplace, which should be repeated until the flooding is
relieved.


                     MEANS OF PREVENTING ABORTION.

To prevent abortion, women of weak or relaxed habit should use solid
food, avoiding great quantities of tea, coffee, or other weak or
watery liquors. They should go soon to bed and rise early, and take
frequent exercise, but avoid fatigue. They should occasionally take
half a pint of the decoction of lignum-vitæ, boiling an ounce of it in
a quart of water for five minutes.

If of a full habit, they ought to use a spare diet and chiefly of the
vegetable kind, avoiding strong liquors and everything that may tend
to heat the body or increase the quantity of blood; and when the
symptoms appear, should take a dram of powdered nitre in a cup of
water gruel every five or six hours.

In both cases the patient should sleep on a hard mattress and be kept
cool and quiet; the bowels should be kept regular by a pill of white
walnut extract or bitterroot.




                              CHAPTER IX.

                             MENSTRUATION.


Though this is not a disease, but a healthy function, and as, from
various causes, derangement of the function occurs, it is proper that
it should be perfectly understood. Menstruation is the term applied to
the phenomenon that attends the rupture of what is called the
_Graafian follicles_ of the ovaries and the discharge of an ova, or
egg. It is a bloody discharge from the female genitals; not differing
from ordinary blood, excepting that it does not coagulate, and in its
peculiar odor. The blood comes from the capillaries of the womb and
vagina.


                  MENOPHANIA, OR THE FIRST APPEARANCE

of the menses, is usually preceded by a discharge of a fluid whitish
matter from the vagina, by nervous excitement, and by vague pains and
heaviness in the loins and thighs, numbness of the limbs, and swelling
and hardness of the breasts. The first appearance is an evidence of
capacity for conception. It generally appears about the age of
fourteen, but varies from nine to twenty-four years. In warm climates
women begin to menstruate earlier and cease sooner than in temperate
regions; in the cold climates the reverse of this holds as a general
rule. The manifestations of approaching puberty are seen in the
development of the breasts, the expansion of the hips, the rounded
contour of the body and limbs, appearance of the purely feminine
figure, development of the voice, and the child becomes reserved and
exchanges her plays for the pursuits of womanhood.

More or less indisposition and irritability also precede each
successive recurrence of the menstrual flux, such as headache,
lassitude, uneasiness, pain in back, loins, etc. The periods succeed
each other usually about every twenty-eight days, although it may
occur every twenty-two, twenty, eighteen, fifteen, or thirty-two,
thirty-five, or forty days. The most important element is the
regularity of the return. In temperate climates each menstrual period
ordinarily continues from three to six days, and the quantity lost
from four to eight ounces. The menses continue to flow from the period
of puberty till the age of forty-five or fifty. At the time of its
natural cessation the flow becomes irregular, and this irregularity is
accompanied occasionally by symptoms of dropsy, glandular swellings,
etc., constituting the _critical period_, _turn_ or _change of life_;
yet it does not appear that mortality is increased by it, as vital
statistics show that more men die between forty and fifty than women.

It should be the


                         DUTY OF EVERY MOTHER

or female in charge of a child in whom age or actual manifestations
suggest the approach of puberty to acquaint her with the nature of her
visitation and the importance of her conduct in regard to it. She
should be taught that it is perfectly natural to all females at a
certain period, and that its arrival necessitates caution on her part
with regard to exposure to wet or cold. The author has made the
acquaintance of the history of many cases of consumption and other
diseases which were directly induced by folly and ignorance at the
first menstrual flow. The child is often kept in extreme ignorance of
the liability of womanhood occurring to her at a certain age, and,
hence, when she observes a flow of blood escaping from a part, the
delicacy attached to the locality makes her reticent with regard to
inquiry or exposure; she naturally becomes alarmed, and most likely
attempts to stanch the flow by bathing or applying cold water to the
part, thus doing incalculable mischief.

This purely feminine physiological function should be well studied and
understood by all females. At least, they should know that the
phenomenon is a natural one, liable to disorder, and that the best
interests of their general health demands care and prudence on their
part to maintain regularity, etc., of the flow. Disregard of such a
duty will surely entail much misery.


                 DELAYED AND OBSTRUCTED MENSTRUATION.

When the menses do not appear at the time when they may naturally be
expected, we call it delayed or obstructed menstruation. It is,
however, of great importance to know whether a girl is sufficiently
developed to make it necessary for the menses to appear, although she
may have reached the proper age. As long as the girl has not increased
physically, if she has not become wider across the hips, if her
breasts have not become enlarged, and if she experience none of the
changes incident to this period, an effort to force nature is
positively injurious. In this case a general treatment will be called
for. She should be required to exercise freely in the open air, retire
early to bed and rise at an early hour in the morning. She should not
be allowed to be closely confined to school, if attending. Her diet
should be generous but free from all rich food, which will disorder
the stomach. If, however, she is fully developed, and she suffers from
time to time from congestions of the head, breast or abdomen, it will
be necessary to interfere. The following are symptoms which will
generally be found in these cases: Headache, weight, fullness, and
throbbing in the center of the cranium and in the back part of the
head; pains in the back and loins; cold feet and hands, becoming
sometimes very hot; skin harsh and dry; slow pulse, and not
infrequently attended with epilepsy.


                              TREATMENT.

It is well for the patient, a few days before the period, to take a
warm hip bath or foot bath twice a day, and at night, when retiring,
to apply cloths wet in warm water to the lower part of the abdomen.

The bowels should be kept open by some mild catharsis, as castor oil
or a pill of aloes. If there is pain and fullness of the head during
the discharge, or before it, use the following:

    Tincture of aconite leaves,          Two drams;
    Tincture of belladonna,              One dram;
    Tincture of cantharides,             One dram;
    Morphia,                             Three grains;
    Simple syrup,                        Quarter ounce.

Mix. Dose: One teaspoonful three times a day. If the pain is severe it
may be taken every two hours.

Between the monthly periods, if the system is weak, the following may
be taken:

    Precip. carbonate of iron,        Five drams;
    Extract of conium,                Two drams;
    Balsam Peru,                      One dram;
    Alcohol,                          Four ounces;
    Oil wintergreen,                  Twenty drops;
    Simple syrup,                     Eight ounces.

Dose: Two teaspoonfuls three times a day. Shake the mixture before
using.


                     CHLOROSIS, OR GREEN SICKNESS.

This disease generally occurs in young unmarried females who are weak
and delicate. It manifests itself about the age of puberty, and is
accompanied by feeble appetite and digestion. There is no menstrual
discharge, or else it is very slight.

It is caused by innutritious food and residence in damp and
ill-ventilated apartments. It may be hereditary, all the females of
the family being liable to the same disease. Those who drink largely
of tea, coffee, diluted acids, bad wines, and indulge in tight lacing;
are predisposed to this disease. Among the exciting causes may be
mentioned disturbing emotions, unrequited love, homesickness,
depression of spirits, etc. When we take into consideration the fact
that the cause of the disease is impoverishment of the blood, the
treatment will not be difficult.


                              TREATMENT.

Exercise freely in the open air; protect the body from chilliness with
warm clothing and plenty of it. The patient should sleep on a mattress
in a well-ventilated room. The diet should be nourishing without being
stimulating. It is important that the habits should be regular, and
the mind kept cheerful by society and innocent amusements. Before the
medical treatment is commenced the exciting causes of the disease must
be removed. A complete change must be made in the existence of the
patient. If she is confined closely at school, she must be removed; if
she is inclined to confine herself to the house, send her to the
country. Picture to her the danger she is in by the continuance of
such a life; give her plenty of outdoor exercise. The mental and moral
causes are the most difficult to remove, but a change of scenery and
new friends will do much towards it. For those who are shut up in
factories, or who work all day in a stooping position, a change of
employment must be made. A bath of tepid water in the morning,
followed by a brisk rubbing, will be beneficial; also the frequent use
of the sitting-bath, and the sponge bath in the evening. Active
exercise should precede and follow all baths. During menstruation all
applications of water should be omitted. The following remedies are
recommended by a famous Philadelphian doctor. They are to be taken on
alternate days; that is, take No. 1 one day, No. 2 the next day, etc.:

No. 1.—Precip. carbonate of iron, five drams; extract of conium, two
drams; balsam Peru, one dram; oil cinnamon, twenty drops; simple
syrup, eight ounces; pulverized gum arabic, two drams. Mix. Dose: Two
teaspoonfuls three times a day, every other day, after meals. Shake
before using.

No. 2.—Tincture of nux vomica, one dram; syrup iodide of iron, one
ounce; simple syrup, four ounces. Mix. Dose: One teaspoonful three
times a day, every other day, after meals.

Another treatment is as follows:

Clear the bowels with the following mixture: Sulphate of magnesia, one
ounce; nitrate of potash, ten grains; extract of liquorice, one
scruple; compound infusion of senna, five and one-half ounces;
tincture of jalap, three drams; spirit of sal volatile, one dram. Mix.
Dose: Two or three tablespoonfuls at a time, at intervals of two hours
until an effect is produced. This is to be followed by sulphate of
iron, five grains; extract of gentian, ten grains. Make into three
pills and take a pill twice a day, with the compound aloes or rhubarb
pill every night.


                   PROFUSE MENSTRUATION—MENORRHAGIA:

By menorrhagia we understand an immoderate flow of the menses. There
is no fixed amount of blood which is lost at the menstrual period, but
it varies in different women. It will average, however, from four to
eight ounces. The quantity discharged may be estimated by the number
of napkins used. Each napkin will contain about half an ounce, or one
tablespoonful, so that eight napkins would contain four ounces;
twenty, ten ounces; etc. In some females the discharge may be
excessive without impairment of the general health.

Some females are predisposed to uterine hemorrhages, from a relaxed or
flabby state of the texture of the uterus. Frequent childbearing,
abortion, high living, too prolonged and frequent suckling, may induce
flooding. Among the exciting causes we may mention overexertion,
dancing, falls, lifting heavy weights, cold, and mental excitement.


                              TREATMENT.

The patient must lie down on a hard bed, and abstain from all
stimulating food and drinks. The room should be cool and she should be
lightly covered with bedclothes. Soak the feet in warm water, and if
the flowing is excessive apply cloths wrung out in vinegar and water
to the lower bowels. The hips must be elevated higher than the head.
Only in extreme cases should plugging be resorted to. This may be
done by pieces of linen, about four inches square, thrust into the
vagina until it is full, and a bandage applied between the legs. Cold
hip baths and vaginal injections of cold water will be beneficial when
the hemorrhage is slight.

Use also the following:

    Diluted sulphuric acid,         Two drams;
    Syrup of orange peel,           Two ounces;
    Cinnamon water,                 One ounce.

Mix. Dose: A teaspoonful in a wineglassful of water two or three times
a day.

If there is much pain administer the following every two or three
hours:

    Morphia,             Quarter grain;
    Cayenne,             Four grains;
    Rosin,               Four grains.

Mix. Give in blackberry syrup.


          PAINFUL MENSTRUATION—MENSTRUAL COLIC—DYSMENORRHEA.

Dysmenorrhea means a difficult monthly flow, and is always preceded by
severe pains in the back and lower part of the abdomen. It is caused
by taking cold during the period; fright, violent mental emotions,
obstinate constipation, sedentary occupations, smallness of the mouth
and neck of the womb. Females subject to this trouble are generally
relieved by marriage. The symptoms are severe bearing-down pains in
the region of the uterus, like labor pains; restlessness, coldness,
flashes of heat, with headache; aching in the small of the back, lower
part of the abdomen, and thighs; the discharge is scanty, and contains
shreds of fiber and clotted blood.


                              TREATMENT.

The patient should immediately go to bed and cover up warmly.
Stimulating food and drinks should be avoided. Use a warm foot bath
and sitting-bath, with hot poultices of hops or cloths wet in hot
water applied to the abdomen.

In the interval of the menses, take active exercise, with a tepid hip
bath three nights in the week, injecting some of the water high up in
the vagina. Keep the bowels open by a pill of aloes and myrrh, and
take a small teaspoonful of the volatile tincture of guiacum three
times a day, in water. On the approach of the period, take the
following at night:

    Calomel,              Three grains;
    Opium,                One grain.

In the morning a dose of caster oil, and on the appearance of the
menses, the Dover's Powder and mixture as before. Repeat this
treatment, in each interval, until permanently relieved.

The following is recommended by an eminent physician, to be taken a
few days before the period:

    Acetous tincture of colchicum,     Three drams;
    Magnesia,                          One dram;
    Sulphate of magnesia,              Three drams;
    Distilled mint or cinnamon water,  Four ounces.

Mix. Dose: A small wineglassful every two or three hours until it
operates. This should be preceded the night before by a small dose of
blue pill.


                 SUPPRESSION OF THE MENSES—AMENORRHŒA.

By suppression is meant a disappearance of the menses after they have
become established, and may be either acute or chronic. It is caused
by cold caught during the flow, by exposure to night air or by wetting
the feet; fear, shocks, violent mental emotions, anxiety, fevers and
other acute diseases. Chronic suppression may be either a consequence
of the acute, or caused by delicate health; also, from diseases of the
ovaries or womb. It may also be occasioned by an imperforate hymen, in
which case it must be cut open by a physician.


                              TREATMENT.

When the suppression is caused by some disease in the system, that
disease must be cured before the menses will return. For sudden
suppression, use the warm sitting-bath or foot bath. Apply cloths wet
in warm water to the lower part of the abdomen, and drink freely of
warm water. If the suppression is chronic and the patient is delicate,
in the interval between the menses use the shower or the full bath of
cold or tepid water, rubbing the body briskly with a coarse towel,
especially around the abdomen, loins, and genital organs.

As soon as the discharge has ceased, a warm hip bath will generally
bring it on. If there is much inflammation of the uterus give the
following:

    Tincture aconite leaves,          Two drams;
    Sweet spirits of nitre,           One ounce;
    Simple syrup,                     Three ounces.

Dose: One teaspoonful every two or three hours.

If the discharge cannot be brought on, wait until the next period. A
few days before the term the bowels should be freely opened and kept
open until the period for the discharge has arrived. A pill of aloes
and iron is one of the best that can be given. Give from one to three
pills daily. If there is no evident reason for the discharge not
appearing, such as pregnancy, inflammation of the neck of the womb,
and the woman is suffering from the suppression, use the following:

    Caulophyllin,              One dram;
    Extract aconite,           Eight grains;
    Aloes,                     Ten grains;
    Sulphate of iron,          Ten grains.

Make into forty pills. Dose: Two or three pills, taken night and
morning.

The remedies should always be taken a few days before the period
arrives for the menses. If the chronic suppression is the result of
any acute disease, the health must first be re-established, otherwise
it would be wrong to force the menses. When this has been done,
immediately before the return of the period a warm hip bath should be
taken every night for six nights, and one of the following pills taken
three times a day:

    Fresh powdered ergot of rye,      Fifty grains;
    Barbadoes aloes,                  Twelve grains;
    Essential oil of juniper,         Twelve drops.

Make into twelve pills with syrup or mucilage, washing down each pill
with a cupful of pennyroyal tea.


                CESSATION OF THE MENSES—CHANGE OF LIFE.

By the phrase, “change of life,” or, the critical period, we
understand the final cessation, or stoppage, of the menses. It usually
takes place between the ages of forty and fifty, although in some
cases it may occur as early as thirty, and in others not until sixty.
However, we can expect the change about the forty-fifth year.

The symptoms will vary according to the constitution of the woman. In
some the change occurs by the discharge gradually diminishing in
quantity; in others, by the intervals between the periods being
lengthened. A woman may pass this period without having any more
unpleasant symptoms than an occasional rush of blood to the head, or a
headache. Others, however, may have very severe symptoms arise, which
will require the care of an intelligent physician. These disagreeable
sensations should receive a careful consideration and not be hushed up
with the reply that these complaints arise from the “change of life”
and will vanish whenever that change takes place. The foundation of
serious trouble may be laid which will make the remainder of her
existence a burden and cut short a life which might have been
conducted to a good old age. While this change is in progress, in
probably the majority of cases there is more or less disturbance of
the health. It is sometimes quite impossible to say exactly what is
the trouble with the patient, except that she is out of health. The
following are some of the symptoms which may arise: Headache,
dizziness, biliousness, sour stomach, indigestion, diarrhœa, piles,
costiveness, itching of the private parts, cramp and colic of the
bowels, palpitation of the heart, swelling of the limbs and abdomen,
pains in the back and loins, paleness and general weakness.


                              TREATMENT.

Eat and drink moderately; sleep in airy, well-ventilated rooms;
exercise daily in the open air, either by walking or riding; avoid
violent emotions; shun exposure to wet, stormy weather, wet feet, etc.

Keep the bowels regulated with the following:

Mercurial pill, one grain; ipecac powder, one-half grain; compound
rhubarb pill, three grains. Mix for a pill to be taken every night.

Or, one ounce of hicra picra, or powdered aloes with castella, mixed
in a pint of gin, which should stand for four or five days, after
which a tablespoonful in a glass of water may be taken every morning
or second morning, as the case may be.

If the patient is large and fleshy, of full habit, the following is
recommended:

Sulphate of magnesia, one and one-half ounces; compound infusion of
roses, five ounces; cinnamon water, one ounce. Mix, Dose: Two
tablespoonfuls once a day.

If there are nervous symptoms prominent, give valerianate of zinc,
eight grains; tincture of valerian, two drams; orange flower water,
three and a half ounces; syrup of red poppies, two drams. Mix. Dose: A
tablespoonful every six hours.


                          FALLING OF THE WOMB

                         _(Prolapsus uteri)._

Falling of the womb is simply a sinking down of the organ, and may be
so slight as not to be noticed or so great that the organ will
protrude between the legs through the external opening. It is not a
disease of the womb itself, but of some of its supports.

So long as the vagina retains its natural size and the ligaments are
but two and a half inches long the organ will not be displaced.
Whatever tends to relax and weaken the system may cause the complaint.
The muscles of the abdomen which support the intestines being weakened
from any cause will allow the intestines to press down upon the womb
and its ligaments, and, in consequence of this constant pressure, they
give way. Another cause is too early exercise after childbearing.
Flooding and leucorrhœa, or whites, if allowed to continue for a
long time, will produce it; in delicate females, continued running up
and down stairs, also tight lacing, dancing, leaping, and running,
particularly during the period of menstruation, when the womb is
increased in weight by the blood contained in it. The use of medicines
to loosen the bowels, which is very common among many, is still
another cause of the disorder.

Most females who are troubled with falling of the womb think that it
is necessary to a cure that they should wear some kind of a support to
the abdomen. These supporters, however, do a vast amount of harm, for
by being worn tightly around the abdomen they increase the pressure on
the bowels, thus forcing down, more and more, the womb and its
appendages. All that is necessary is to raise up the womb to its
natural position, and use an instrument that will keep it in place.
This instrument is called a pessary. This pessary is a ring or hollow
cup-shaped globe, made of gold, silver, ivory, wood or gutta-percha,
and is placed in the vagina or birthplace, thus supporting the womb.
The cold hip bath should be used once a day, at the same time
injecting cold water into the vagina with a syringe. Lie down as much
as possible, and avoid becoming fatigued. Apply cold bandages to the
abdomen on going to bed.

If the womb has descended to the external orifice it is often
necessary to restore it to its natural position by pressing it upward
and backward by a finger or two pressed into the vagina. If the
process be accompanied with pain, the vagina should be well washed by
injections of thick flax seed or slippery elm bark tea for a day or
two before the astringent washes are used.

Avoid tight corsets and heavy skirts, suspend the under-garments from
the shoulders and not from the waist, as is usually done. Use plain
vegetable diet, and avoid tea, coffee, spirituous drinks, and all
sensual indulgences. Allow the clothes to be loose. These things must
be attended to closely. The diet should be plain and nourishing, but
not stimulating.

Use an injection of an infusion of white oak bark, geranium, or a
solution of alum, in the proportion of one ounce to the pint of water.
If there is inflammation of the womb, this must be subdued before
using the pessary. Give tincture of aconite, compound powder of ipecac
and opium, with injections of an infusion of hops and lobelia, or an
infusion of belladonna.

If there is heat and difficulty in passing water, drink an infusion of
marsh mallow and spearmint. If the patient is weak, give the following
tonic:

Sulphate quinine, twenty-five grains; citrate of iron (soluble),
thirty-five grains. Make into twenty-four powders. Take a powder three
times a day, after each meal, in sweet wine.


                    LEUCORRHŒA—WHITES—FLOUR ALBUS.

The word leucorrhœa is derived from two Greek words, and means
literally a “white discharge.” It is also known as “flour albus,”
“whites,” and “female weakness,” and consists of a “light colorless
discharge from the genital organs, varying in hue from a whitish or
colorless to a yellowish, light green, or to a slightly red or
brownish; varying in consistency from a thin, watery, to a thick,
tenacious, ropy substance; and in quantity from a slight increase in
the healthy secretion to several ounces in the twenty-four hours.”
This discharge generally occurs between the ages of fifteen and
forty-five, seldom during infancy or old age. When it occurs in young
female children, it will not infrequently be produced by the presence
of pinworms in the vagina, which make their way there from the rectum.
There will be intense itching of the parts, and the worms can be
removed with a small piece of cloth, after separating the lips.

This disease may be either acute or chronic. The acute form generally
results from taking cold, and is simply a catarrhal inflammation of
the mucous membrane lining the vagina. The chronic form is but a
continuation of the acute, and is generally caused by the acute stage
having been neglected or improperly treated. Ulceration of the neck of
the womb sometimes results. There are two forms of leucorrhœa:
Vaginal leucorrhœa, when the discharge comes from the walls of the
vagina; and cervical leucorrhœa, when the discharge proceeds from
the neck of the womb.

Causes: Taking cold from sitting on the ground, or exposure of the
neck and shoulders; over sexual excitement, and sexual intercourse;
tight lacing; piles, miscarriages, and abortions; displacements of the
womb; purgatives, improper articles of diet; warm injections, or
injections of any kind; late hours, etc. It may also be hereditary.


                              TREATMENT.

The treatment, to be successful, requires that the patient should
first be placed in a favorable condition. Anything which tends to
excite the disease must be avoided, as dissipations, late suppers,
etc. The diet must be plain and nourishing without being stimulating,
and be taken regularly. Exercise, short of fatigue, will be
beneficial. The clothing should be warm and worn loosely, especially
about the waist. Water is of great importance in the treatment of this
trouble. The sitting-bath may be used every day, and injections of
cold or tepid water should be used three or four times a day,
according to the severity of the discharge.

An injection of weak green tea will be found good in some mild cases,
as also sweet cider or a weak solution of alum.

One of the best tonics is the muriated tincture of iron, of which take
twenty or twenty-five drops in half a tumbler of water three or four
times a day. An excellent injection is made by taking three drams of
tannic acid and an ounce of alum, dissolving in a quart of water, and
inject one-third three times a day. The bowels should be kept open by
Rochelle or Epsom salts, or seidlitz powder. When there is great
debility of the organs, or when the disease has been brought on by
exposure to cold, pregnancy, abortions, etc., the following will be
found very successful:

Tincture of aloes, two ounces; muriated tincture of iron, four drams.
Mix. Dose: Thirty-five drops in water three times a day. At the same
time use the following injection: Sulphate of zinc (white vitriol),
two drams; sugar of lead, two drams. Mix in one quart of water, and
use one-fourth for each injection.




                              CHAPTER X.

               COLLECTION OF VALUABLE MEDICAL COMPOUNDS.


Do you have—
    A frequent headache over the eyes?
    A susceptibility to chills and fever?
    A bitter or oily taste in the mouth?
    A sour stomach?
    A complexion inclined to be yellow?
    A great depression of spirits without known cause?
    Specks before the eyes, and flushed face?
    A done out, tired feeling?

Besides many other symptoms too numerous to mention? If you have you
are affected in your liver and kidneys, and should do something for
it. The following preparation, “Magic Kidney and Liver Restorer,” acts
on these organs and, when diseased or out of order, restores them to a
healthy state. Everyone should keep a bottle of this preparation in
the house, as it is an invaluable medicine. Splendid to take in the
spring to tone up the system:


                   MAGIC KIDNEY AND LIVER RESTORER.

    Two ounces of alcohol;
    One and a half ounces of glycerine;
    One ounce of liverwort;
    Three hundred and twenty grains of saltpetre;
    Forty drops of wintergreen.

Steep the liverwort in a quart of water down to half the quantity,
then throw in the other ingredients while hot. Dose: One tablespoonful
about four times a day.


                             HOP BITTERS.

    One ounce mandrake root;
    One ounce gentian root;
    One ounce dandelion root;
    One ounce buchu leaf;
    One ounce sarsaparilla leaf;
    One ounce blackberry leaf;
    One ounce hops.

Infuse in cold water, three quarts, two or three days. Add a pint of
whisky, and bottle. Dose: A teaspoonful three times a day.


                     ALTERATIVE, OR LIVER POWDER.

Take podophyllin and sanguinaria, of each ten grains; leptandrin,
twenty grains; white sugar, forty grains. Triturate or rub the whole
well together in a mortar and divide into twenty powders, and take one
night and morning. If they operate much on the bowels take but one a
day.

_Uses:_ Valuable in liver complaint, torpidity of the liver, and as an
alterative to act on the secretions of the system generally. A
complete substitute for blue pill and free from any danger.


                    HEPATIC AND ALTERATIVE POWDER.

Take equal parts, say of each half an ounce, of finely powdered blue
flag root, bloodroot, May apple root, golden seal root, and
bitterroot. Mix all together and pass through a fine sieve. Dose: As
an alterative and to act on the liver and secretions, from two to five
grains two or three times a day.


                      CATHARTIC AND LIVER PILLS.

Take podophyllin, sixty grains; leptandrin and sanguinaria, ipecac and
pure cayenne, each thirty grains. Make into sixty pills with a little
soft extract of mandrake or dandelion. This is the best pill that can
be used as a cathartic and liver pill and to act on the secretions
generally. As a purgative the dose is from two to four pills for a
grown person, and as an alterative and substitute for blue mass and to
act on the liver, one pill once a day or every other day.


                         ANTI-DYSPEPTIC PILLS.

Take Socotrine aloes, two drams; colocynth, gamboge, rhubarb, and
castile soap, each one dram; cayenne, thirty grains; oil cloves,
thirty drops. Make into one hundred and twenty pills with extract of
gentian or dandelion. Dose: For dyspepsia, inactive liver or
costiveness, one or two pills once a day; as a cathartic, three to
five pills at a dose. This is a splendid pill. It cleanses the
stomach, gives tone and energy to the digestive organs, restores the
appetite, excites the liver and other secretory organs, without
causing any debility.


                     ANOTHER ANTI-DYSPEPTIC PILL.

Take Quevenne's powdered metallic iron, forty grains; rhubarb, twenty
grains; extract of nux vomica, one grain. Triturate well in a small
mortar, so as to mix them perfectly, and make into twenty pills with
extract of boneset or gentian. Take one pill before each meal. This is
one of the best anti-dyspeptic pills known.


                            DYSPEPTIC LEY.

Take hickory ashes, one pint; soot, three or four ounces; boiling
water, two quarts. Pour on in a suitable vessel or crock, stir, and
let stand, over night, then pour off clear and bottle. Dose: Half a
teacupful three times a day, and if too strong weaken with water until
palatable. A sure remedy for dyspepsia.


                              AGUE PILLS.

Take quinine, twenty grains; piperine, ten grains; Dover's Powder, ten
grains; cayenne, ten grains. Mix, pulverize, and make into twenty
pills with a little gum arabic or extract of gentian or boneset. To be
taken at the rate of one pill an hour when there is no fever, or
during intermission, until twelve pills are taken, the balance to be
taken on the third day or next well day. Good as a remedy for the
chills or fever and ague.


          CERTAIN REMEDY FOR THE AGUE OR INTERMITTENT FEVER.

Take quinine, twelve grains; ipecac and cayenne, of each six grains;
pulverized opium, three grains. Make into twelve pills with
precipitated extract of Peruvian bark, or if you cannot get this, use
either extract of dogwood or boneset, sufficient to form into pill
mass. Two or three pills to be taken every two or three hours, during
the well day or intermission, till all are taken. A very certain and
effectual remedy for the ague or intermittent fever.


                             FEVER POWDER.

Take finely pulverized gum myrrh, bloodroot, and lobelia seed, or
ipecac, of each half an ounce; gum camphor and nitre, of each two
drams. Pulverize, mix, and rub well together in a mortar, and bottle
for use. Dose: Three to five grains every hour of two during fever.
Good to allay the excitement, act on the skin and promote
perspiration; also a good expectorant powder in coughs, colds,
pneumonia, and oppressed breathing.


                              AGUE DROPS.

Take quinine, twenty grains; water, one ounce; sulphuric acid, twenty
drops. Mix in a vial. Dose: A teaspoonful every hour or every two
hours during the well day till all is taken. A certain cure for the
ague, or chills and fever.


                         SICK HEADACHE PILLS.

Take Socotrine aloes, gamboge, and castile soap, of each one dram;
ipecac and scammony, of each thirty grains; oil of anise, thirty
drops. Make into sixty pills with a little mucilage, gum arabic or
extract dandelion. Dose: One to three pills. Useful in sick headache,
habitual costiveness, dizziness, sour stomach, and indigestion, and
may be used whenever a good vegetable cathartic is needed. For an
attack of headache, take three pills, and repeat in three hours if the
first does not operate. Will invariably give relief.


                        ANODYNE HEADACHE PILLS.

Take extract of hyoscyamus, thirty grains; extract stramonium, ten
grains; quinine, twenty grains; morphine, two grains. Mix well and
make into twenty pills, adding a little powdered liquorice root, or
any other innocent powder, if necessary, to thicken the mass. The
pills are one of the best remedies known for nervous headache,
neuralgia in the face or head, toothache and nervous and neuralgic
pains in any part of the system, that I have ever used. Dose: One
pill, for a grown person, and may be repeated every two or three hours
till relief is obtained. The extract of belladonna may be used instead
of the stramonium, in the same proportion, with equally good effect.


                           RHEUMATIC PILLS.

Take jalap, colchicum seeds, and gum guaiac, of each one dram.
Pulverize and mix veil, and make into sixty pills with extract of poke
root (or berries). The dose is one or two pills three or four times a
day. Good in all cases of chronic rheumatism, neuralgia, sciatica, and
the like.


                           ANOTHER FOR SAME.

Take macrotin and pulverized gum guaiac, of each one dram;
podophyllin, ten grains. Make into sixty pills with extract of poke
root. Dose: One pill two or three times a day. An excellent pill for
rheumatism and neuralgia.


                         PILLS FOR DYSENTERY.

Take rhubarb, ipecac, and castile soap, each thirty grains; pulverized
opium, fifteen grains. Make into thirty pills with mucilage, gum
arabic, or any other suitable substance. Dose: One pill every three to
six hours for diarrhœa and dysentery. After three or four are taken
they should not be taken oftener than once in six hours.


                           ANOTHER FOR SAME.

Take leptandrin, forty grains; rhubarb, twenty grains; morphine, four
grains. Mix, and triturate well in a mortar so as to mix perfectly,
and make into twenty pills with mucilage of gum arabic. Dose: In
dysentery and diarrhœa, one pill every six to twelve hours. Two or
three pills are generally sufficient to cure any ordinary case, if
given during the early stage. They may be relied on in all cases and
stages of bowel diseases, and especially in dysentery. A second pill
may be given three hours after the first, a third six hours after the
second; after that not oftener than once in twelve hours, and never
more than one pill at a time.


                           EPILEPTIC PILLS.

Take sulphate of zinc, sixty grains; rhubarb and ipecac, each thirty
grains; cayenne, sixty grains. Make into sixty pills with extract of
hyoscyamus. Dose: One pill night and morning for one week, then leave
off for a week, and then resume again, and so on every other week. An
important remedy, and has cured many cases of epileptic fits when
taken in the early stages.


                           PILLS FOR ASTHMA.

Take powdered elecampane root, powdered liquorice root, powdered anise
seed, and sulphur, of each one dram. Make into ordinary sized pills
with a sufficient quantity of tar, and take three or four pills at
night on going to bed. This is an admirable remedy for asthma and
shortness of breath.


                            HYSTERIC PILLS.

Take asafœtida and carbonate of ammonia, of each one dram;
pulverized opium and macrotin, of each thirty grains. Melt the first
two articles over the fire, and then stir in the others. Mix well and
make into sixty pills. Dose: One or two pills, in cases of hysteric
fits, every two or three hours; also good in female nervous attacks
and spasmodic affections.


                     PILLS FOR CHRONIC BRONCHITIS.

Take pulverized skunk cabbage root, two drams; pulverized extract of
liquorice, one dram; sanguinaria and macrotin, of each thirty grains.
Make into large sized pills (say from eighty to one hundred) with a
sufficient quantity of tar, and take one pill from three to six times
a day, and continue for several weeks if necessary. One of the best
remedies known for chronic bronchitis, and what is sometimes called
“clergyman's sore throat.”


                         PILLS FOR NEURALGIA.

Hyoscyamus, extract of, one dram; extract of aconite, thirty grains;
macrotin, twenty grains; morphine, five grains. Make into forty pills,
thickening the mass, if necessary, with a little powdered liquorice or
ginger. Dose: One pill every three hours till relief is obtained. Good
in neuralgia and all severe nervous pains.


                        BLEEDING AT THE LUNGS.

Eat freely of raw table salt, or take a teaspoonful three or four
times a day of equal parts of powdered loaf sugar and rosin, or boil
an ounce of dried yellow dock root in a pint of milk. Take a cupful
two or three times a day.


                           FOR CONSUMPTION.

Take a teaspoonful of the expressed juice of horehound (the herb) and
mix it with a gill of new milk. Drink it warm every morning. If
persevered in it will perform wonders.


                             COUGH SYRUP.

Take horehound herb, elecampane root, spikenard root, ginseng root,
black cohosh, and skunk cabbage root, of each a good-sized handful.
Bruise and cover with spirits or whisky, and let stand ten days; then
put all in a suitable vessel, add about four quarts of water and
simmer slowly over a fire (but don't boil) for twelve hours, or till
reduced to about three pints, then strain and add one pint of strained
honey, half a pint each of number six, tincture lobelia, and tincture
bloodroot (the vinegar or acetic tincture of bloodroot is the best)
and four ounces of strong essence of anise, and you will have one of
the best cough syrups known. Dose: A tablespoonful three to six times
a day, according to circumstances. Good in all kinds of coughs and
incipient consumption.


                        SOOTHING COUGH MIXTURE.

Take mucilage of gum arabic, oil of sweet almonds, syrup of balsam
tolu, and wine of ipecac, of each one ounce; tincture of opium, half
an ounce. Dose: For a grown person, one to two teaspoonfuls as often
as required.


                            COUGH MIXTURE.

Take extract of liquorice, one ounce, powdered; nitrate of potash
(saltpetre) and muriate of ammonia, of each two drams. Dissolve in
half a pint of boiling water, and when cool add wine of ipecac, syrup
of balsam tolu, and essence of anise, of each one ounce. Dose: From a
teaspoonful to a tablespoonful several times a day. An excellent
remedy for bronchitis, colds, and catarrhal coughs.


                         EXPECTORANT TINCTURE.

Take pulverized lobelia (seed or herb), powdered bloodroot, and
powdered rattleroot (black cohosh), of each three ounces; alcohol and
good vinegar, of each one pint. Digest for ten days or two weeks, then
strain or filter and add four ounces each of wine of ipecac and
tincture balsam of tolu and one ounce strong essence of anise. A
portion of honey may be added if preferred. Dose: One to two
teaspoonfuls repeated as often as circumstances require. Highly useful
as an expectorant in coughs, colds, and all affections of the lungs.


                      COMPOUND TINCTURE OF MYRRH.

Take best gum myrrh, eight ounces; cayenne, balsam of fir, and
nutmegs, of each one ounce; good brandy, two quarts. Bruise the solid
articles, and let stand two weeks to digest (shake it once or twice
every day), then strain or filter. Or, it may be made for immediate
use by putting the whole in a stone jug and placing this in a warm
sand bath or in a vessel of boiling water for twenty-four hours,
shaking frequently. Dose: A teaspoonful is an ordinary dose for a
grown person. Good in colic, pains in the stomach and bowels,
diarrhœa, headache, sick stomach, and wherever a powerful stimulant
is indicated. It is also valuable as a wash or external application
for sprains, bruises, and foul ulcers and old sores. It is a
preparation that no family should be without.


                   SURE REMEDY FOR BOWEL COMPLAINTS.

Take half an ounce bruised turkey rhubarb and half an ounce saleratus,
steep or simmer slowly for fifteen minutes in a pint of water, strain
and add a teacupful of white sugar, and heat again to dissolve; then
add sixty drops oil of peppermint dissolved in one ounce of alcohol.
Dose: From a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful every hour till relieved.
An excellent remedy for diarrhœa, dysentery, and especially adapted
to the bowel complaints of young children.


                    CORDIAL FOR SUMMER COMPLAINTS.

Take cloves, allspice, and cinnamon bark, of each half an ounce; white
oak bark, one ounce. Bruise all, and boil in one quart of water down
to half a pint; strain, add four ounces white sugar, dissolve by
melting, then add half as much good brandy as there is of the liquid.
Dose: One, two or three teaspoonfuls three to six times a day or
oftener, according to age and urgency of symptoms. An infallible cure
for cholera infantum, or summer complaints of children, and for all
bowel complaints.


                           SCROFULOUS SYRUP.

Take yellow dock root, two pounds; stillingia root and bark of
bittersweet root, of each one pound. Boil slowly in three or four
gallons of water down to three quarts; strain, and add six pounds of
white sugar. Dose: Half a wineglass three times a day. A valuable
remedy for scrofula, and all scrofulous skin diseases, as tetter,
herpes, leprosy, and the like; also a valuable alterative in all
constitutional diseases.


                               EYEWATER.

Take half an ounce each of green tea and lobelia herb, and tincture a
few days in four ounces of alcohol and water, equal parts. An
invaluable eyewater for weak eyes and all kinds of sore and inflamed
eyes. Use it two or three times a day.


                       TINCTURE FOR RHEUMATISM.

Take pulverized gum guaiac and allspice, of each four ounces;
bloodroot, pulverized, two ounces; pearlash, one ounce; fourth proof
brandy, one quart. Let stand and digest three or four days, shaking it
two or three times a day. Dose: A teaspoonful three or four times a
day, in a little milk, syrup or wine. An almost infallible remedy for
rheumatism.


                             WORM ELIXIR.

Take gum myrrh and aloes, of each one ounce; saffron, sage leaves, and
tansy leaves, of each half an ounce. Tincture in a pint of brandy for
two weeks, and give to children a teaspoonful once a week to once a
month as a preventive. They will never be troubled with worms as long
as you do this.


                     DR. JORDAN'S CHOLERA REMEDY.

Take gum guaiac, prickly ash berries (or double as much bark of the
root), cloves, and cinnamon bark, of each two ounces; gum camphor and
gum myrrh, of each one ounce; gum kino, half an ounce. Reduce all to a
coarse powder and add to one quart of best French brandy. Let it stand
ten days or two weeks to digest, shaking the bottle two or three times
a day to keep the ingredients from becoming impacted at the bottom;
then strain and press out, and then take oil anise and oil peppermint,
of each two drams; alcohol, four ounces. Mix the oils and alcohol
together in a bottle and shake well till they are cut, then add to the
former, and it is ready for use. Dose: From one to two teaspoonfuls
every five, ten, fifteen or thirty minutes, according to the urgency
of the symptoms. In cholera it should be given frequently, and if
there are nausea and vomiting small doses are preferable; a single
teaspoonful every five minutes till urgent symptoms are checked, then
give it less frequently. It should always be given alone, unmixed with
anything else. In ordinary diarrhœa, one or two teaspoonfuls taken
once an hour will be sufficient. It is also an excellent remedy for
colic and pains in the stomach and bowels, and will generally settle
the stomach very soon in case of vomiting or nausea. It should always
be kept in the house. Where it is needed for immediate use, it may be
made in an hour or less by using alcohol instead of brandy and by
boiling all in a stone jug, uncorked, by placing the jug in a vessel
of boiling water, shaking or stirring frequently.


                            PILE OINTMENT.

Take say a teacupful of hog's lard, put in a flat or pewter dish, and
take two bars of lead, flattened a little, and rub the lard with the
flat ends and between them till it becomes black or of a dark lead
color. Then burn equal parts of cavendish tobacco and old shoeleather
in an iron vessel till charred. Powder these and mix into the lard
till it becomes a thick ointment. Use once or twice a day as an
ointment for the piles. An infallible cure.


                           WARTS AND CORNS.

The bark of the common willow burnt to ashes, mixed with strong
vinegar and applied to the parts, will remove all warts, corns, and
other excrescences.


                               DEAFNESS.

It is seldom that the power of hearing once entirely lost can ever be
restored, and not always that even partial deafness can be cured,
though it may often be relieved. Partial deafness is frequently owing
to the accumulation and hardening in the ear of the ear wax, which may
generally be remedied by dropping into the ear such articles as are
calculated to soften, relax, and stimulate. For this purpose the
following preparations are recommended as the best:

Take sulphuric ether, one ounce, and add to it one dram pulverized
carbonate of ammonia. Let it stand a few days to form a solution. If
it does not all dissolve, pour off carefully the liquid from the
dregs, and of this liquid drop into the ear once a day from three to
six drops. The patient should lay his head upon the opposite side at
the time, and remain in that position a few minutes to allow the
liquid to penetrate. This preparation is highly recommended, and if
persevered in will, it is said, overcome almost any partial deafness
or greatly relieve it.


                               ANOTHER.

Take pure olive oil, say one ounce, and half an ounce each of the
tincture of lobelia and tincture of cayenne. Mix; and from a warm
teaspoon drop into the ear four to six drops of this twice a day,
shaking the vial well always before using it. This is relaxing,
softening, and stimulating, and in all ordinary cases will answer the
purpose. Turkey oil (or grease) is said to be still better than olive
oil and may be used instead of it in this preparation. The following
remedy, long kept a secret, is said to be infallible where it is
possible for anything to effect a cure:

Take a common eel, remove the skin and intestines, and hang it up
before the fire and let the oil drip into a pan or vessel. When done
dripping, bottle the oil, and of this drop into the ear once a day or
twice a day five or six drops from a warm teaspoon. I have heard
remarkable accounts of the efficacy of this remedy, and doubt not but
it is good. I believe it has never been published but once before. The
secret was obtained with some difficulty from an old negro.


                          INVERTED TOE-NAIL.

This is a very troublesome and often painful affection. The edges or
sides of the nail are disposed to turn down and grow into the flesh,
giving rise to inflammation, ulceration, and often great pain and
suffering. The best remedy I have ever known in this difficulty is to
scrape with some sharp-pointed instrument, as the point of a penknife,
a sort of groove or gutter in the center of the nail lengthways from
the root to the end. It must be scraped down to near the quick, or as
thin as it can be borne. This renders the nail “weak in the back,” so
that it will gradually and ultimately turn up at the sides until the
edges come above and over the flesh. Continue this as fast as the nail
grows out and grows thicker, and you will eventually succeed in
getting the nail in its proper shape and position. It will be proper
to poultice if there is much inflammation, and also apply healing
salve. If ulceration, bathe the part also occasionally with tinctures
aloes, myrrh, and opium, equal parts mixed.—_Gunn's Domestic
Physician._




                              CHAPTER XI.

                       THINGS FOR THE SICK ROOM.


Many people are ignorant of what constitutes good, nourishing,
refreshing food and drink for sick people. The following dishes are
all palatable and nourishing, and are very refreshing to an invalid.
Every one should have these recipes for “Things for the sick room”:


                             BARLEY WATER.

Pearl barley, two ounces; boiling water, two quarts. Boil to one
quart, and strain. If desirable, a little lemon juice and sugar may be
added. This may be taken freely in all inflammatory and eruptive
diseases: measles, scarlet fever, small-pox, etc.


                              RICE WATER.

Rice, two ounces; water, two quarts. Boil one hour and a half, and add
sugar and nutmeg to suit the taste. When milk is added to this it
makes a very excellent diet for children. Should the bowels be too
loose, boil the milk before adding.


                               SAGE TEA.

Dried leaves of sage, half an ounce; boiling water, one quart. Infuse
for half an hour, and strain. May add sugar if desired. Balm,
peppermint, spearmint, and other teas are made in the same way.


                     A REFRESHING DRINK IN FEVERS.

Boil one ounce and a half of tamarind, two ounces of stoned raisins,
and three ounces of cranberries in three pints of water until two
pints remain. Strain, and add a small piece of fresh lemon peel, which
must be removed in half an hour.


                           ARROWROOT JELLY.

Stir a tablespoonful of arrowroot powders into half a cupful of cold
water, pour in a pint of boiling water, let it stand five or ten
minutes and then sweeten and flavor it to suit the taste.


                           IRISH MOSS JELLY.

Irish moss, half an ounce; fresh milk, one and a half pints. Boil down
to one pint. Strain, and add sugar and lemon juice sufficient to give
it an agreeable flavor.


                           ISINGLASS JELLY.

Isinglass, two ounces; water, two pints. Boil to one pint; strain, and
add one pint milk and one ounce of white sugar. This is excellent for
persons recovering from sickness, and for children who have bowel
complaints.


                            TAPIOCA JELLY.

Tapioca, two large spoonfuls; water, one pint. Boil gently for an
hour, or until it appears like a jelly. Add sugar, wine, and nutmeg,
with lemon juice to flavor.


                              RICE JELLY.

Mix a quarter of a pound of rice, picked and washed, with half a pound
of loaf sugar and just sufficient water to cover it. Boil until it
assumes a jellylike appearance; strain, and season to suit the taste
and condition of the patient.


                                GRAPES.

In all cases of fever, very ripe grapes of any kind are a beneficial
article of diet, acting as both food and drink and possessing soothing
and cooling qualities. They are also extremely grateful to every
palate.


                                TOAST.

To make a most excellent toast for a reduced or convalescent patient,
take bread twenty-four or thirty-six hours old, which has been made of
a mixture of fine wheat flour and Indian meal and a pure yeast batter
mixed with eggs. Toast it until of a delicate brown, and then (if the
patient be not inclined to fever) immerse it in boiled milk and
butter. If the patient be feverish, spread it lightly with cranberry
jam or calves' foot jelly.


                                 RICE.

In all cases where a light and nice diet for patients who have been or
are afflicted with diarrhœa or dysentery is required, rice, in
almost any cooked form, is most agreeable and advantageous. It may be
given with benefit to dyspeptics, unless costiveness accompanies the
dyspepsia. To make rice pudding, take a teacupful of rice, and as much
sugar, two quarts of milk, and a teaspoonful of salt. Bake, with a
moderate heat, for two hours. Rice flour made in a batter and baked
upon a griddle makes a superb cake; and rice-flour gruel, seasoned to
the taste, is most excellent for the sick room.


                             BREAD JELLY.

Boil a quart of water and let it cool. Take one-third of a common loaf
of wheat bread, slice it, pare off the crust, and toast it to a light
brown. Put it in water in a covered vessel and boil gently till you
find, on putting some in a spoon to cool, the liquid has become a
jelly. Strain and cool. When used, warm a cupful, sweeten with sugar,
and add a little grated lemon peel.


                              RICE GRUEL.

Ground rice, one heaping tablespoonful; water, one quart. Boil gently
for twenty minutes, adding, a few minutes before it is done, one
tablespoonful of ground cinnamon. Strain and sweeten. Wine may be
added when the case demands it.


                             WATER GRUEL.

Oat or corn meal, two tablespoonfuls; water, one quart. Boil for ten
minutes and strain, adding salt and sugar if desired by the patient.


                              SAGO GRUEL.

Sago, two tablespoonfuls; water, one pint. Boil gently until it
thickens; stir frequently. May add wine, sugar, and nutmeg, according
to taste.


                           ARROWROOT GRUEL.

Arrowroot, one tablespoonful; sweet milk and boiling water, each one
half pint. Sweeten with loaf sugar. This is very good for children
whose bowels are irritable.


                               TAPIOCA.

Tapioca is a very delightful food for invalids. Make an ordinary
pudding of it, and improve the flavor agreeably to the desire of the
patient or convalescent by adding raisins, sugar, prunes, lemon juice,
wine, spices, etc.


                             BEEF LIQUID.

When the stomach is very weak, take fresh lean beef, cut it into
strips and place the strips into a bottle with a little salt; place in
a kettle of boiling water and let it remain one hour; pour off the
liquid and add some water. Begin with a small quantity, and use in the
same manner and under similar circumstances as beef tea. This is even
more nourishing than beef tea.


                               BEEF TEA.

Cut one pound of lean beef into shreds, and boil for twenty minutes in
one quart of water, being particular to remove the scum as often as
any rises. When it is cool, strain. This is very nourishing and
palatable, and is of great value in all cases of extreme debility
where no inflammatory action exists, or after the inflammation is
subdued. In very low cases a small teaspoonful may be administered
every fifteen or twenty minutes, gradually increasing the amount given
as the powers of life return. In cases of complete prostration, after
the cessation of long exhausting fever it may be used as directed
above, either alone or in conjunction with a little wine.


                                PANADO.

Put a little water on the fire, with a glass of wine, some sugar, and
a little grated nutmeg; boil all together a few seconds, and add
pounded cracker or crumbs of bread, and boil again for a few minutes.


                         FRENCH MILK PORRIDGE.

Stir some oatmeal and water together; let the mixture stand to clear,
and pour off the water. Then put more water to the meal; stir it well,
and let it stand till the next day. Strain through a fine sieve, and
boil the water, adding milk while so doing. The proportion of water
must be small. With toast this is admirable.


                             COFFEE MILK.

Put a dessertspoonful of ground coffee into a pint of milk; boil a
quarter of an hour, with a shaving or two of isinglass; let it stand
ten minutes, and then pour off.


                          RESTORATIVE JELLY.

Take a leg of well-fed pork just as cut up, beat it and break the
bone; set it over a gentle fire, with three gallons of water and
simmer to one. Let half an ounce of mace and the same of nutmeg stew
in it. Strain through a fine sieve. When cold, take off the fat. Give
a coffee cup of this three times a day, adding salt to the taste. This
is very valuable in all cases of debility where animal food is
admissible.


                          DRINK IN DYSENTERY.

Sheep's suet, two ounces; milk, one pint; starch, half an ounce. Boil
gently for thirty minutes. Use as a common drink. This is excellent
for sustaining the strength in bad cases of dysentery.


                             CRUST COFFEE.

Toast slowly a thick piece of bread cut from the outside of a loaf
until it is well browned, but not blackened; then turn upon it boiling
water of a sufficient quantity, and keep it from half an hour to an
hour before using. Be sure that the liquid is of a rich brown color
before you use it. It is a most excellent drink in all cases of
sickness.


                           CRANBERRY WATER.

Put a teaspoonful of cranberries into a cup of water and mash them. In
the meantime boil two quarts of water with one large spoonful of corn
or oat meal and a bit of lemon peel; then add the cranberries and as
much fine sugar as will leave a smart flavor of the fruit; also a
wineglassful of sherry. Boil the whole gently for a quarter of an
hour, then strain.


                              WINE WHEY.

Heat a pint of new milk until it boils, at which moment pour in as
much good wine as will curdle and clarify it. Boil and set it aside
until the curd subsides. Do not stir it, but pour the whey off
carefully, and add two pints of boiling water with loaf sugar.


                             ORANGE WHEY.

Milk, one pint; the juice of an orange with a portion of the peel.
Boil the milk, then put the orange into it and let it stand till it
coagulates. Strain.


                             MUSTARD WHEY.

Bruised mustard seed, two tablespoonfuls; milk, one quart. Boil
together for a few minutes until it coagulates, and strain to separate
the curd. This is a very useful drink in dropsy. A teacupful may be
taken at a dose, three times a day.


                            CHICKEN BROTH.

Take half a chicken, divested of all fat, and break the bones; add to
this half a gallon of water, and boil for half an hour. Season with
salt.


                            VEGETABLE SOUP.

Take one potato, one turnip and one onion, with a little celery or
celery seed. Slice, and boil for an hour in one quart of water. Salt
to the taste, and pour the whole upon a piece of dry toast. This forms
a good substitute for animal food and may be used when the latter
would be improper.


                          CALVES'-FOOT JELLY.

Boil two calf's feet in one gallon of water until reduced to one
quart. Strain, and when cool skim carefully. Add the white of six or
eight eggs, well beaten; a pint of wine, half a pound of loaf sugar,
and the juice of four lemons. Mix them well, boil for a few minutes,
stirring constantly, and pass through a flannel strainer. In some
cases the wine should be omitted.


                          SLIPPERY ELM JELLY.

Take of the flour of slippery elm, one or two tablespoonfuls; cold
water, one pint. Stir until a jelly is formed. Sweeten with loaf sugar
or honey. This is excellent for all diseases of the throat, chest, and
lungs; coughs, colds, bronchitis, inflammation of the lungs, etc. It
is very nutritious and soothing.


                           NUTRITIVE FLUIDS.

Following will be found directions for preparing three nutritious
fluids, which are of great value in all diseases, either acute or
chronic, that are attended or followed by prostration; debility,
whether general or of certain organs only; derangement of the
digestive organs, weak stomach, indigestion, heartburn or sour
stomach, constipated bowels, torpidity or want of activity of the
liver, thin or poor blood. These fluids are highly nutritious,
supplying to the blood, in such a form that they are most easily
assimilated, the various elements which are needed to enrich it and
thus enable it to reproduce the various tissues of the body that have
been wasted by disease. In cases where the stomach has become so
weakened and sensitive that the lightest food or drinks cannot be
taken without causing much uneasiness and distress these fluids are
invaluable. They strengthen the stomach and neutralize all undue
acidity, while at the same time they soothe the irritation by their
bland and demulcent qualities. When carefully and properly prepared,
according to the directions following, they very nearly resemble rich
new milk in color and consistency, while their taste is remarkably
pleasant. Care should be taken that all the ingredients are of the
best quality. Soft water must be used in all cases. Fresh rain water
is to be preferred, but spring water may be used if perfectly soft.
Hard water will cause the fluids to be of a yellow color, and if the
milk is old they are apt to separate:


                             FLUID NO. 1.

Put a pint of new milk (the fresher the better) and two pints of soft
water, in a vessel perfectly free from all greasy matter, over a slow
fire. Rub two even teaspoonfuls of superfine wheat flour and two
teaspoonfuls of carbonate of magnesia, together with a little milk,
into a soft batter, free from lumps; add this to the milk and water as
soon as they begin to boil. Boil gently for five minutes—_no
longer_—stirring constantly. Pour into an earthen or glass dish to
cool, adding at the same time two teaspoonfuls of loaf sugar and one
teaspoonful each of saleratus and table salt, rubbed fine. Stir until
cold. The fluid must not be allowed to remain in a metallic vessel of
any kind, and it must be kept in a cool place.


                             FLUID NO. 2.

Put one pint of fresh milk and two pints of soft water in a vessel
over a slow fire. Rub together with a little fresh cream into a soft
batter, free from lumps, one tablespoonful each of good sweet rye
flour, ground rice, and pure starch; which add to the milk and water
as soon as they begin to boil. Boil for five minutes, stirring
constantly. Remove from the fire and add three teaspoonfuls of loaf
sugar and one teaspoonful each of saleratus and table salt. Observe
the same precautions as in No. 1.


                             FLUID NO. 3.

Put in a vessel, over a slow fire, one pint of fresh milk and two
pints of soft water. When they begin to boil, add one tablespoonful of
wheat flour, two tablespoonfuls of pure starch, and two teaspoonfuls
of carbonate of magnesia, rubbed, together with a little milk into a
soft batter, free from lumps. Boil gently for five minutes, stirring
constantly. Pour into an earthen vessel to cool, and add one
teaspoonful of the best gum arabic dissolved in a little warm water,
one teaspoonful each of saleratus and table salt, and one
tablespoonful of pure strained honey. Stir until cold. The same
precaution must be observed as in preparing No. 1.


                              DIRECTIONS.

One half pint or less of these fluids may be taken at a dose, and at
least three pints should be taken during the day and the amount
gradually increased to two or three quarts. Commence with No. 1 and
use two weeks, then use No. 2 for the same length of time, after which
No. 3 is to be used for two weeks. Continue their use as long as
necessary, taking each for two weeks before changing. In all the
diseases mentioned above, the use of these fluids, in connection with
proper remedies, will insure a speedy restoration to health.


                        GUM ACACIA RESTORATIVE.

Take two ounces of pure white gum arabic (procure the lump, the
powdered is very apt to be adulterated), pulverize it well, and
dissolve by the aid of a gentle heat in a gill of water, stirring
constantly. When it is entirely dissolved, add three tablespoonfuls of
pure strained honey. Let it remain over the fire until it becomes of
the consistency of a jelly. The heat must be very gentle, it must not
boil. If desirable, flavor with lemon or vanilla. This will be found a
very pleasant article of diet for a weak stomach. When the articles
used are pure it will be transparent and of a light golden color. This
will be borne by the weakest stomach when everything else is rejected.
_It is highly nutritious._


                            MALT INFUSION.

Infuse one pint of ground malt for two hours in three pints of
scalding water. The water should not be brought quite to the boiling
point. Strain; add sugar, if desired; flavor with lemon juice. This is
an excellent drink in inflammatory fevers, acute rheumatism, etc.


                                 PEAS.

Take young and fresh shelled green peas, wash them clean, put them
into fresh water, just enough to cover them, and boil them till they
take up nearly all the water. This dish, if prepared according to
directions, and eaten warm, will not harm any invalid, not even one
suffering from diarrhœa.


                                 MILK.

In some cases where a milk diet is advisable, owing to the peculiar
condition of the patient's stomach it will cause distress. This is
frequently the case where there is undue acidity. In such cases, let
it be prepared in the following manner and it will be found to set
well: Take a teacupful of fresh milk, heat nearly to boiling; dissolve
in it a teaspoonful of loaf sugar; pour into a large sized tumbler,
and add sufficient plain soda water to fill it. Prepared in the above
directed manner it will be free from all unpleasant effects.


                      SOUPS FOR THE CONVALESCENT.

To extract the strength from meat, long and slow boiling is necessary;
but care must be taken that the pot is never off the boil. All soups
should be made the day before they are used, and they should then be
strained into earthen pans. When soup has jellied in the pan, it
should not be removed into another. When in danger of not keeping, it
should be boiled up.


                                 EGGS.

In cases of extreme debility, eggs are most excellent. They should
never be boiled hard. The best way to prepare them is to beat them
well with milk and sugar. When it will be appropriate to the case, add
some fine pale sherry wine.


                           MILK FOR INFANTS.

Fresh cow's milk, one part; water, two parts; sweeten with a very
little loaf sugar. When children are raised by hand it is always
necessary to dilute the milk. As the child advances in age the
proportion of water stated above may be gradually lessened.


                             WATER GRUEL.

Corn or oat meal, two tablespoonfuls; water, one quart. Boil ten or
fifteen minutes, and strain. Add salt and sugar to suit the taste of
the patient. This should be used freely during and after the operation
of cathartic medicines.




                             CHAPTER XII.

                      THINGS CURIOUS AND USEFUL.


                      TO GET CLEAR OF MOSQUITOES.

Take of gum camphor a piece about one-third the size of an egg and
evaporate it over a lamp or candle, taking care that it does not
ignite. The smoke will soon fill the room and expel the mosquitoes.


                      HOW TO GET RID OF BEDBUGS.

Bedbugs cannot stand hot alum water; indeed, alum seems to be death to
them in any form. Take two pounds of alum, reduce it to a powder—the
finer the better—and dissolve it in about four quarts of boiling
water. Keep the water hot till the alum is all dissolved; then apply
it hot to every joint, crevice and place about the bedstead, floor,
skirting or washboard around the room, and every place where the bugs
are likely to congregate, by means of a brush. A common syringe is an
excellent thing to use in applying it to the bedstead. Apply the water
as hot as you can. Apply it freely, and you will hardly be troubled
any more that season with bugs. Whitewash the ceiling with plenty of
dissolved alum in the wash, and there will be an end to their dropping
down from thence on to your bed.


               TO OBTAIN FRESH-BLOWN FLOWERS IN WINTER.

Choose some of the most perfect buds of the flowers you would
preserve, such as are latest in blowing and ready to open. Cut them
off with a pair off scissors, leaving to each, if possible, apiece of
stem about three inches long. Cover the end of the stem immediately
with sealing wax, and when the buds are a little shrunk and wrinkled
wrap up each of them separately in a piece of paper perfectly clean
and dry and lock them up in a dry box or drawer, and they will keep
without corrupting.

In winter or at any time when you would have the flowers blow, take
the buds at night and cut off the end of the stem sealed with wax and
put the buds in water wherein a little nitre or salt has been
diffused, and the next day you will have the pleasure of seeing the
buds opening and expanding themselves and the flowers display their
most lively colors and breathe their agreeable odors.


                TO INCREASE THE LAYING OF EGGS IN HENS.

Pulverized Cayenne pepper, half an ounce, to be given to one dozen
hens, mixed with their food every second day.


        THE NEW AND BEAUTIFUL ART OF TRANSFERRING ON TO GLASS.

Colored or plain engravings, photographs, lithographs, water colors,
oil colors, crayons, steel plates, newspaper cuts, mezzotints, pencil,
writing, show cards, labels, or, in fact, anything.


                              DIRECTIONS.

Take glass that is perfectly clear (window glass will answer), clean
it thoroughly; then varnish it, taking care to have it perfectly
smooth; place it where it will be perfectly free from dust; let it
stand over night, then take your engraving, lay it in clear water
until it is wet through (say ten or fifteen minutes), then lay it upon
a newspaper, that the moisture may dry from the surface and still keep
the other side damp. Immediately varnish your glass the second time,
then place your engraving upon it, pressing it down firmly, so as to
exclude every particle of air; next, rub the paper from the back until
it is of uniform thickness, so thin that you can see through it, then
varnish it the third time and let it dry.

These transferred pictures make lovely ornaments for table, bracket,
mantel, etc.


                   MATERIALS FOR MAKING THE VARNISH.

Take two ounces balsam of fir to one ounce spirits of turpentine.
Apply with a camel's-hair brush.


               TO PREVENT HORSES BEING TEASED BY FLIES.

Boil three handfuls of walnut leaves in three quarts of water; sponge
the horse (before going out of the stable) between and upon the ears,
neck, and flank.


                 TO PREVENT FLIES LIGHTING ON WINDOWS,
                        PICTURES, MIRRORS, ETC.

No fly will light on a window or other article which has been washed
in water in which garlic has been boiled.


                     TO MAKE LEATHER WEAR FOREVER.

Let it receive as much neat's-foot oil as it will take. If regularly
repeated every three months, leather so treated seems to be impervious
to outward action and will last for years.


                      TO RENDER PAPER FIREPROOF.

Whether the paper be plain, written, printed, or even marbled,
stained, or painted for paper hangings, dip it in a strong solution of
alum water and thoroughly dry it. In this state it will be fireproof.


                     TO PREPARE WATERPROOF BOOTS.

Take three ounces of spermaceti and melt it in an earthen pot over a
slow fire; add thereto six drains of India rubber cut into slices, and
after it dissolves add of tallow, eight ounces; amber varnish, four
ounces. Mix it, and it will be ready for use immediately.


                         TO CURE DRUNKENNESS.

Keep the patient for one week freely dosed with figwort. This is a
sure cure.


                           TO CURE LAZINESS.

Give the patient an occasional dose of ferri. The sulphate of ferri is
the best. It acts on the liver and vital organs, and is a sure cure
for laziness.


             TO EXTRACT THE ESSENTIAL OIL FROM ANY FLOWER.

Take any flower you like, which stratify with common salt in a clean
glazed pot; when filled to the top, cover it well and carry it to the
cellar; forty days afterwards put a crape over a pan and empty the
whole to strain the essence from the flowers by pressure. Bottle this
essence, and expose it for four or five weeks in the sun and dew of
the evening to purify. One single drop of this essence is enough to
scent a whole quart of water.


                       TO TAKE LEAF PHOTOGRAPHS.

A very pretty amusement, especially for those who have just completed
the study of botany, is the taking of leaf photographs. One very
simple process is this: At any druggist's get an ounce of bichromate
of potassium. Put this into a pint bottle of water. When the solution
becomes saturated—that is, the water has dissolved as much as it
will—pour off some of the clear liquid into a shallow dish; on this
float a piece of ordinary writing paper till it is thoroughly
moistened, and let it dry in the dark. It should be of a bright yellow
color. On this put the leaf, under it a piece of black soft cloth and
several sheets of newspaper. Put these between two pieces of glass
(all the pieces should be of the same size) and with spring
clothespins fasten them together. Expose to a bright sun, placing the
leaf so that the rays will fall upon it as nearly perpendicular as
possible. In a few moments it will begin to turn brown; but it
requires from half an hour to several hours to produce a perfect
print. When it has become dark enough, take it from the frame and put
it into clear water, which must be changed every few minutes until the
yellow part becomes white. Sometimes the veinings will be quite
distinct. By following these directions it is scarcely possible to
fail, and a little practice will make perfect.


                  TO MAKE LAMP WICKS INDESTRUCTIBLE.

Steep common wicks in a concentrated aqueous solution of tungstate of
soda, and then dry thoroughly in an oven.


                 TO MAKE DIFFERENT KINDS OF PERFUMES.

                      BALM OF A THOUSAND FLOWERS.

Deodorized alcohol, one pint; nice white bar soap, four ounces. Shave
the soap when put in; stand in a warm place till dissolved; then add
oil of citronella, one dram, and oils of neroli and rosemary, of each
one-half dram.


                             FRANGAPANNI.

Spirits, one gallon; oil of bergamot, one ounce; oil of lemon, one
ounce: Macerate for four days, frequently shaking; then add water, one
gallon; orange flower water, one pint; essence of vanilla, two ounces.
Mix.


                             JOCKEY CLUB.

Spirits of wine, five gallons; orange flower water, one gallon; balsam
of Peru, four ounces; essence of bergamot, eight ounces; essence of
musk, eight ounces; essence of cloves, four ounces; essence of neroli,
two ounces. Mix.


                              LADY'S OWN.

Spirits of wine, one gallon; otto of roses, twenty drops; essence of
thyme, one-half ounce; essence of neroli, one-quarter ounce; essence
of vanilla, one-half ounce; essence of bergamot, one-quarter ounce;
orange flower water, six ounces. Mix.


                              UPPER TEN.

Spirits of wine, four quarts; essence of cedrate, two drams; essence
violets, one-quarter ounce; essence of neroli, one-half ounce; otto of
roses, twenty drops; orange flower essence, one ounce; oil of
rosemary, thirty drops; oils of bergamot and neroli, each one-half
ounce. Mix.

If you wish to make a small quantity of any of the above perfumes, use
small quantities of the ingredients, preserving the same proportions.


                       TO WRITE SECRET LETTERS.

Put five cents' worth of citrate of potassa in an ounce vial of clear
cold water. This forms an invisible fluid. Let it dissolve, and you
can use on paper of any color. Use goose quill in writing. When you
wish the writing to become visible, hold it to a red-hot stove.


                   TO PRESERVE FLOWERS SO THAT THEIR
                      BEAUTY WILL LAST FOR YEARS.

Make a strong solution of gum arabic, two ounces of the gum to one
pint of boiling water; shake until dissolved; then take your flowers
and immerse in the solution, taking care that every part is well wet
with the solution. When dry, repeat the operation. Do this three
times. Flowers treated thus will last for years.




                             CHAPTER XIII.

                           HOME DECORATION.


The chief features to be observed in house furnishing are color, form,
and proportion. All stiffness of design in furniture should be
avoided. Do not attempt to match articles, but rather carry out the
same idea as to color and form in the whole. It is not _en règle_ to
have decorations in sets or pairs; the arrangements should all be done
with odd pieces. Every room in the house should be arranged for
occupancy, having nothing too good for use, and the judicious
housewife will follow a medium course and adopt no extreme of fashion.

The style and arrangement of the furniture should correspond with the
size of the room, with a due regard to the place a piece of furniture
or ornament will occupy. The order of arrangement in furnishing is
subject to individual taste, but the following suggestions may not be
inappropriate:—

In decorating a dining-room, deep, rich tones should be used; a
drawingroom or parlor should have bright, cheerful shades; in a
library use deep, rich colors, which give a sense of worth; a
sleeping-room should have light, pleasing tints, which give a feeling
of repose.


                               THE HALL.

The hall being the index to the whole house, due care should therefore
be given to its furnishing. Light colors and gilding should be
avoided. The wall and ceiling decorations now mostly used are in dark,
rich colors, shaded in maroons or deep reds. Plain tinted walls and
ceilings in fresco or wainscot are also frequently used. The latest
shades of wall paper come in wood colors, dark olive-greens, stone
color, and grays, in tile, arabesque and landscape designs, and with
these are used a corresponding dado and frieze.

A tile or inlaid floor is the most appropriate, but if circumstances
do not admit of one of these, a floor stained a deep wood-brown, base
board and moldings to correspond, may be substituted; when India
mattings and rugs may be used.

The colors now in vogue for hall carpets are crimson or Pompeiian
reds, with small figures of moss-green or peacock-blue. The prevailing
shades of the walls and floor should be incorporated in the stair
carpet.

If the hall is narrow, none but the most essential pieces of furniture
should be used; but if wide enough, there may be a lounge placed
against one of the walls, an old-fashioned clock of the cuckoo style
set in a quiet corner, two high-backed chairs upholstered in leather,
a table, an umbrella-stand placed near the door, a jardinière filled
with tropical plants set near the foot of the stairway, and a hall
mirror with a deer's head and antlers placed above it and a wooden or
marble slab underneath. The slab should be covered with a Roman scarf,
allowing a fall of twelve inches at each end. The hatrack must also
find a place. Family portraits or a few well-selected pictures are
appropriate for these walls.

If the door-lights are not stained glass, lace shades in designs of
birds, cupids, and garlands of flowers are used; also, etchings in
various colors and designs are worked on different fabrics. Crimson
silk shades lined with black netting are very desirable, as the light
penetrating through them fills the hall with a rich, subdued glow.


                              THE PARLOR.

The furnishing of the parlor should be subject to its architectural
finish. The first things to be considered are the walls and floor. The
former may be decorated in fresco or papered, according to individual
taste and means. The prettiest styles of parlor paper are light tints
of gray, olive, pearl, and lavender grounds, and in small scroll
patterns, panels, birds, and vines, finished in heavy gold traceries,
with dado and frieze to correspond.

The styles of carpet mostly used are Brussels, Wilton, tapestry, and
Axminster. A tapestry carpet in light canary ground, with clusters of
lotus, or begonia leaves, makes a charming background to almost all
the colors generally used in upholstery.

In selecting the furniture, the first thought should be given to its
true worth. Chairs and couches should be chosen for comfort rather
than for style. They should be of solid make, easy, graceful, and of
good, serviceable colors and materials. The most serviceable woods to
select in frames are ebony, oak, walnut, cherry, and mahogany. These
frames are finished in different styles—plain, carved, inlaid, and
gilt—and are upholstered in all shades of satin, plush, rep, silk,
and damask. These come at prices within the means of a slender purse.
That slippery abomination in the shape of haircloth furniture should
be avoided. The latest design in parlor furniture is in the Turkish
style, the upholstery being made to cover the frame. Rich Oriental
colors in woolen and silk brocades are mostly used, and the trimmings
are cord and tassels or heavy fringe.

Formerly the parlor appointments were all in sets or pairs, but this
fashion is no longer observed, as the most tastefully arranged parlor
has now no two pieces of furniture alike; but two easy-chairs placed
opposite each other are never out of place. Here may stand an
embroidered ottoman, there a quaint little chair, a divan can take
some central position; a cottage piano, covered with some embroidered
drapery, may stand at one end of the room, while an ebony or mahogany
cabinet, with its panel mirrors and quaint brasses, may be placed at
the other end, its racks and shelves affording an elegant display for
pretty pieces of bric-a-brac.

Marble-topped center-tables are no longer in use. Tables in inlaid
woods, or hand-painted, are used for placing books or albums on. A
small, airy-looking table, elaborately mounted in gilt, may stand near
a window or wall. The mantel mirror, with its beveled edges and small
racks arranged on each side, looks very effective when decorated with
pretty oddities—ferns, grasses, and pieces of old china. A jardinière
filled with living plants and placed near a bay window makes an
elegant ornament. Care should be taken in arranging that the room be
not over-crowded. There should be a few good pictures or painted
plaques mounted in plush hung on the walls; a portrait may be placed
on a common easel and draped with a scarf in old gold or peacock-blue,
and tiny lambrequins, painted or embroidered, may hang beneath a
bracket supporting a bust or flower-vase.

An embroidered scarf with fringed ends may be placed on the back of a
chair or sofa in place of the old lace tidy. A sack made of small
pieces of bright-colored plush or silk in crazy work may be flung
across the table, the ends drooping very low. The mantelpiece may be
covered with a corresponding sash, over which place a small clock as
centerpiece and arrange ornaments on each side—statuettes, bannerets,
flower-holders, small Japanese fans, pieces of odd china, painted
candles in small scenes, may all find a place on the mantel.

Window curtains of heavy fabric, hung from brass or plush mounted
poles, may be gracefully draped to the sides, while the inner lace
ones should be hung straight and be fastened in the center with some
ornament or bow of ribbon corresponding in shade to the general tone
of the room. The straight shades next to the glass may correspond in
tone to the outside walls or window-facings; but this is a mere matter
of taste. White or light-tinted shades, finished in etching or narrow
lace, are always in vogue.

The dado shades are the latest innovation in window decoration. These
come in all colors, from the lightest to the darkest shades, with dado
in tile, arabesque and fresco patterns, finished in lace, fringe, and
brasses.

Portières (curtain doors) have superseded folding doors. These should
be in shades to contrast with the general blending of the colors in
the room. The fabrics mostly used are India goods, but they may be of
any material, from expensive tapestries, satins, and plushes, to
ten-cent factory cottons. The curtains, if made from striped tapestry
and Turcoman, will give the finishing artistic touches to almost any
room, but the last softening polish comes only from the genial
presence of trailing and climbing vines.


                           THE SITTING-ROOM.

The sitting or everyday room should be the brightest and most
attractive room in the house. Its beauty of decoration should not be
so much in the richness and variety of material as in its comfort,
simplicity, and the harmony of its tints—the main features being the
fitness of each article to the needs of the room. In these days of so
many advantages much can be done in adornment by simple means.

The wall papers mostly used come in grounds of cream, amber, rose,
pale olive, fawn, ceil blue and light gray, with designs and traceries
of contrasting hues.

The carpet, if in tapestry, looks more effective if in grounds of pale
canary or light gray, with designs in bright-colored woodland flowers
and borders to match. The new ingrain carpets, with their pretty
designs and bright colors, are very fashionable for rooms that are
much used.

Whatever may be the prevailing tint of the carpet, the window curtains
should follow it up in lighter tones or contrast with it. The curtains
may correspond with the coverings of the chairs, sofa, mantel and
table draperies in color and fabric. If the furniture is of wicker,
bamboo or rattan, the curtains should be of Japanese or any kind of
Oriental goods. Curtains of muslin (either white or tinted),
gay-colored chintzes, lace or dotted Swiss muslin, looped back with
bright-toned ribbons, look very pretty and are appropriate for the
sitting-room at almost any season. That clumsy structure called the
cornice, for putting up curtains on, has happily given place to the
more light and graceful curtain pole.

One large table, covered with a pretty embroidered cloth, should be
placed in some central location for a catch-all. A low divan, with a
pair of square, soft pillows, may stand in some quiet nook; a rocker,
handsomely upholstered, with a pretty tidy pinned to its back; a
large, soft easy-chair; a small sewing-chair placed near a table; and
a bamboo chair, trimmed with ribbons, will be tastefully arranged in
the room. Window stands and gypsy tables may be draped with some rich
fabric, the surrounding valance being caught up in small festoons and
fastened with bows or tassels, finished around the edge of the table
with cord or quilted ribbon.

If the furniture is old or in sets it can be covered with different
patterns in cretonne or chintz, which not only protects the furniture
but breaks up the monotony and lends a pleasing variety to the room. A
Turkish chair is a grand accessory to the family room. This may be
made by buying the frame and having it upholstered in white cotton
cloth and covering it with a rich shade of cretonne, finishing it with
cord and fringe.

A foot-rest frame can be made in the same way and covered with a piece
of homemade embroidery, finishing it off with a cord or narrow gimp
around the edge. Homemade easels, screens, and pedestals may be made
out of black walnut, and when stained and draped look exceedingly
pretty. An old second-hand cabinet may be bought at a trifle, and when
polished up may be set in a corner on which to display some pieces of
bric-a-brac.

If the house has no library, the sitting-room is just the place for
the bookcase.

With house plants in the windows, a room of this character, with
floods of sunshine, makes a most attractive and comfortable
living-room.


                             THE LIBRARY.

The walls of the library should be hung with rich, dark colors, the
latest style in wall paper being a black ground with old gold and
olive-green designs.

The carpet comes in Pompeiian red, with moss-green and peacock-blue
patterns. Statuary and the best pictures should find a place in the
library. The library table should be massive and the top laid with
crimson baize. There should be a few high-backed chairs, upholstered
in leather, a reading-chair, soft rugs, foot-rests, a mantel mirror, a
few mantel ornaments, and the _piece de resistance_—the bookcase. In
large libraries the bookcases are built in the wall. It is quite in
vogue to hang curtains on rods in front of bookcases instead of doors,
but we think the old style is the best, inasmuch as the books may be
seen and the glass doors exclude the dust.

Heavy curtains of raw silk, Turcoman, and canton flannel, with a full
valance at the top, are used for the window drapery.


                               CHAMBERS.

The walls of bedrooms should be decorated in light tints and shadings,
with a narrow rail and deep frieze. Most housekeepers prefer rugs and
oiled floors to carpets, but this is a matter of individual taste.
Rugs are as fashionable as they are wholesome and tidy. These
floor-coverings should be darker than the furniture, yet blending in
shade. If carpets are chosen they should be the lightest shades and in
bright field-flower patterns. Avoid anything dark and somber for the
sleeping-room. Pink and ceil blue combined are very pretty, scarlet
and gray, deep red and very light blue. Dark blue with sprays of lily
of the valley running through it is exceedingly pretty for bedrooms.
Dark furniture will harmonize with all these colors, but the lighter
shades are preferable. Cretonnes in pale tints and chintzes in
harmonizing colors are used for light woods. Square pillows of
cretonne on a bamboo or wicker lounge are very pretty. Canton matting
is often used, either plain or in colored patterns.

Formerly the bed-coverings were spotlessly white, but the profluent
tide of color has included these also. The coverings now in vogue are:
Nottingham lace, darned net, applique, antique lace, and Swiss muslin.
These are used over silk and silesia for backgrounds, and are
exceedingly pretty, with pillow shams to match. Cretonnes, chintzes,
dimities, and silk in crazy work and South Kensington patterns are
also used.

Cheese cloth, bunting, Swiss muslin, cretonne, and Swiss curtains are
used for window drapery. These may be trimmed with the same fabric or
antique lace. They are hung on poles above the windows and draped back
with ribbons.

The appointments of a bedroom are a low couch, a large rocker, a small
sewing-chair, a workbasket, footstools, a toilet table prettily draped
with muslin, or a dressing-case, brackets for vases, flowerpots, a few
pictures, small table, hanging shelves for books, etc., and the bed.

The washstand should have a full set of toilet mats, or a large towel
with a colored border may be laid on it; also, a splasher placed on
the wall at the back of the stand is very essential. A screen is a
very desirable part of the bedroom appointments. A rug should be
placed in front of the bed and dressing-case.


                           THE DINING-ROOM.

The dining-room should be furnished with a view to convenience,
richness, and comfort. Choose deep, rich grounds for the
walls—bronze-maroon, black, Pompeiian red, and deep olive—and the
designs and traceries in old gold, olive or moss-green, with dado and
frieze to correspond. Or, the walls may be wainscoted with oak,
walnut, maple, etc. Some are finished in plain panels, with different
kinds of wood; others, again, are elaborately carved, with fruit,
flowers, and emblems of the chase.

The floor is the next point for consideration. It may be of tile or
laid in alternate strips of different colored woods, with a border of
parquetry. Rugs or carpets may be used on these floors or dispensed
with, according to taste. If a carpet is used, the dark, rich shades
found in the Persian and Turkish designs should be chosen.

The window drapery should be those deep, rich colors that hold their
own despite time and use—the pomegranates, rich crimsons, dark blues,
dull Pompeiian reds, and soft olives. These curtains may be hung on
poles, and should fall in heavy folds to the floor, then looped back
with a wide embroidered dado.

Screens of stained glass are now used in the windows. They are both
useful and ornamental, for they exclude the strong rays of the sun,
and the light filtering through them beautifies the room with its many
mellow hues.

Dark wood should be used for the furniture. The chairs should be
chosen in square, solid styles, and upholstered in embossed or plain
leather, with an abundance of brass or silver headed nails which are
used for upholstering leather and add much to the substantial
appearance of the articles.

The dining-table should be low, square or bevel cornered, heavily
carved, and when not in use should be covered with a cloth
corresponding in shade to the window drapery.

A buffet may stand in one corner for the display of ceramics or
decorated china. The sideboard should be of high, massive style, with
shelves and racks for glassware and pieces of china.

A few pictures—two or three fruit pieces and one or two plaques of
still life—are appropriate.

A case of stuffed birds, a few large pots of tropical plants, and a
fernery are in keeping with the dining-room appointments. A three-leaf
folding Japanese screen should not be forgotten; also, a lamp shade of
antique lace, lined with crimson silk, is very desirable.


                             THE KITCHEN.

It is a remark too often made that this or that “is good enough for a
servant.” If all knew that unpleasant surroundings made unpleasant
servants and ill-prepared meals, we think more pains would be taken to
have pleasant and comfortable kitchens. There should be a pleasant
window or two through which fresh air and floods of sunlight may come,
a few plants on the window sill, a small stand for a workbasket, an
easy-chair that the servant may “drop into” when an opportunity
offers, the walls painted or calcimined with some cheerful tint, and a
general air of comfort pervading the whole kitchen.—_The Popular Art
Instructor._




                             CHAPTER XIV.

                                FLORAL.


                     HOW TO CARE FOR HOUSE PLANTS.

Plants that require a high or low temperature or a very moist
atmosphere and plants that bloom only in summer are undesirable.
Procure fresh sandy loam, with an equal mixture of well-rotted turf,
leaf mold, and cow-yard manure, with a small quantity of soot. In
repotting plants use one size larger than they were grown in.
Hard-burned or glazed pots prevent the circulation of air. Secure
drainage by broken crockery and pebbles laid in the bottom of the pot.
An abundance of light is important, and when this cannot be given it
is useless to attempt the culture of flowering plants. If possible
they should have the morning sun, as one hour of sunshine then is
worth two in the afternoon. Fresh air is also essential, but cold,
chilling drafts should be avoided. Water from one to three times a
week with soft, lukewarm water, draining off all not absorbed by the
earth.


                             DO NOT PERMIT

water to stand in the saucers, as the only plant thriving under such
treatment is the calla lily; and even for these it is not necessary,
unless while blooming. Dust is a great obstacle to the growth of
plants. A good showering will generally remove it, but all the
smooth-faced plants (such as camellias, ivies, etc.) should be
carefully sponged so as to keep the foliage clean and healthy.


                          PLANTS SUCCEED BEST

in an even temperature, ranging from sixty to seventy degrees during
the day and from ten to twelve degrees lower at night. If troubled
with insects, put them under a box or barrel and smoke from thirty to
sixty minutes with tobacco leaves.


                          FOR THE RED SPIDER

the best remedy is to lay the plants on the side and sprinkle well or
shower. Repeat if necessary. If manures are used, give in a liquid
form.

Some of the plants most suitable for parlor culture are: Pelargoniums,
geraniums, fuchsias, palms, begonias, monthly roses, camellias,
azaleas, oranges, lemons, Chinese and English primroses, abutilons,
narcissus, heliotrope, petunias, and the gorgeous flowering plant,
_Poinsettia pulcherrima_. Camellias and azaleas require a cooler
temperature than most plants, and the Poinsettia a higher temperature.
Do not sprinkle the foliage of the camellia while the flower buds are
swelling or it will cause them to droop, nor sprinkle them in the
sunshine. They should have a temperature of about forty degrees and
more shade. By following these rules, healthy flowering plants will be
the result.

A good way


                            TO START SLIPS

is to partly break off the slip (but do not entirely sever it from the
parent stock), leaving it hanging for ten or twelve days; then remove
and plant in a box of half sand and half leaf mold and it will be well
rooted in a week. Do not water too freely or the slip will rot.

If house plants are watered once a week with water in which is mixed a
few drops of ammonia they will thrive much better. Sometimes small
white worms are found in the earth—lime water will kill them. Stir up
the soil before pouring it on, to expose as many as possible. For
running vines, burn beef bones and mix with the earth.


                TO KEEP PLANTS WITHOUT A FIRE AT NIGHT.

Have made, of wood or zinc, a tray about four inches deep with a
handle on either end, water-tight. Paint it outside and in, put in
each corner a post as high as the tallest of your plants, and it is
ready for use. Arrange your flowerpots in it and fill between them
with sawdust. This absorbs the moisture falling from the plants when
you water them and retains the warmth acquired during the day, keeping
the temperature of the roots even. When you retire at night spread
over the posts a blanket or shawl, and there is no danger of freezing.


                       SURE SHOT FOR ROSE-SLUGS.

Make a tea of tobacco stems and a soapsuds of whale oil or carbolic
soap; mix and apply to the bush with a sprinkler, turning the bush so
as to wet the under as well as the upper part of the leaves. Apply,
before the sun is up, three or four times.


                  TO PREPARE AUTUMN LEAVES AND FERNS.

Immediately after gathering take a moderately warm iron, smear it well
with white wax, rub over each surface of the leaf once, applying more
wax for each leaf. This process causes leaves to roll about as when
hanging on the trees. If pressed more they become brittle and remain
perfectly flat. Maple and oak are among the most desirable, and may be
gathered any time after the severe frosts; but the sumac and ivy must
be secured as soon after the first slight frost as they become tinted
or the leaflets will fall from the stem. Ferns may be selected any
time during the season. A large book must be used in gathering them,
as they will be spoiled for pressing if carried in the hand. A weight
should be placed on them until they are perfectly dry; then, excepting
the most delicate ones, it will be well to press them like the leaves,
as they are liable to curl when placed in a warm atmosphere. These
will form beautiful combinations with the sumac and ivy.


                      TO PREPARE SKELETON LEAVES.

When properly prepared, skeleton leaves form a companion to the
scrapbook or collection of pressed ferns, fronds, etc. This is a
tedious operation and requires skill and great patience to obtain
satisfactory results. Some leaves are easier to dissect and make
better specimens than others, and, as a rule, a hard, thin leaf should
be chosen; that is, when a special variety is not required.

Among those which are skeletonized most successfully are the English
ivy, box elder, willow, grape, pear, rose, etc. They should be
gathered during the month of June, or as soon as the leaf is fully
developed. The leaves should be immersed in a vessel of rain water and
allowed to remain till decomposed. When this takes place, press the
leaf between pieces of soft flannel, and the film will adhere to the
flannel, leaving a perfect network. Dry off gradually and clean the
specimen with a soft hair pencil. Place between folds of soft blotting
paper, and when perfectly dry place in your collection.


                         TO BLEACH THE LEAVES,

dissolve one half pound of chloride of lime in three pints of rain
water, strain, and use one part of the solution to one of water. For
ferns, use the solution full strength. When perfectly white remove to
clear water, let stand for several hours, changing water two or three
times, float out on paper, and press between blotting paper in books.

In mounting use mucilage made of five parts gum arabic, three parts
white sugar, two parts starch, and very little water; boil and stir
till thick and white.


                           HANGING BASKETS.

A correspondent of the _Gardener's Monthly_ tells of a new style of
hanging basket made of round maple sticks about one inch in diameter,
eight inches in length at the bottom, increasing to fourteen at the
top. In constructing, begin at the bottom and build up, log-cabin
fashion; chink the openings with green moss and line the whole basket
with the same. These are easily kept moist, and the plants droop and
twine over them very gracefully. A good way to keep the earth moist in
a hanging basket without the trouble of taking it down is to fill a
bottle with water and put in two pieces of yarn, leaving one end
outside. Suspend the bottle just above the basket and allow the water
to drip. This will keep the earth moist enough for winter and save a
great deal of time and labor. Plant morning glory seeds in hanging
baskets in winter; they grow rapidly and are very pretty.—_Buckeye._




                              CHAPTER XV.

                             THE LAUNDRY.

            TELLING OF A GREAT MANY USEFUL AND LABOR-SAVING
                      PRACTICES FOR THE LAUNDRY.


                        TO MAKE WASHING FLUID.

Bring to a boil one pound of sal soda, half a pound of unslaked lime,
a small lump of borax, and five quarts of water. Let cool, pour off,
and bottle. Use one teacupful to a boiler of clothes. This is
superior.


                              GALL SOAP.

For washing woolens, silks, or fine prints liable to fade. One pint
beefs gall, two pounds common bar soap cut fine, one quart boiling
soft water; boil slowly, stirring occasionally until well mixed. Pour
into a flat vessel, and when cold cut into pieces to dry.


                          TO TAKE OUT SCORCH.

If a shirt bosom or any other article has been scorched in ironing,
lay it where bright sunshine will fall directly on it. It will
entirely remove it.


                                BLUING.

Take one ounce of Prussian blue, one-half ounce of oxalic acid;
dissolve in one quart of perfectly soft rain water. Insert a quill
through the cork of the bluing bottle to prevent waste or putting too
much in clothes and you will be pleased with the result. One or two
tablespoons of it is sufficient for a tub of water, according to the
size of the tub. Chinese blue is the best and costs twelve and a half
cents an ounce, and the acid will cost three cents.


                            COFFEE STARCH.

Make a paste of two tablespoons best starch and cold water; when
smooth stir in a pint of perfectly clear coffee, boiling hot; boil
five or ten minutes. Stir with a spermaceti or wax candle. Strain and
use for all dark calicoes, percales, and muslins.


                             FLOUR STARCH.

Have a clean pan or kettle on stove with one quart boiling water, into
which stir three heaping tablespoons flour, previously mixed smooth in
a little cold water; stir steadily until it boils and thereafter
enough to keep from burning. Boil about five minutes, and strain,
while hot, through a crash towel. The above quantity is enough for one
dress, and will make it nice and stiff.


                         TO MAKE FINE STARCH.

Wet the starch smooth in a little cold water in a large tin pan, pour
on a quart of boiling water to two or three tablespoons of starch,
stirring rapidly all the while; place on stove, stir until it boils
and then occasionally. Boil from five to fifteen minutes, or until the
starch is perfectly clear. Some add a little salt or butter or pure
lard or stir with a sperm candle; others add a teaspoon of kerosene to
one quart of starch. This prevents the stickiness sometimes so
annoying in ironing.

Cold starch is made from starch dissolved in cold water, being careful
not to have it too thick. Since it rots the clothes, it is not
advisable to use it.


                       ENAMEL FOR SHIRT BOSOMS.

Melt together, with a gentle heat, one ounce white wax and two ounces
spermaceti. Prepare in the usual way a sufficient quantity of starch
for a dozen shirt bosoms, put into it a piece of this enamel the size
of a hazelnut. This will give your clothes a beautiful polish.


                TO CLEAN ARTICLES MADE OF WHITE ZEPHYR.

Rub in flour or magnesia, changing often. Shake off and hang in the
open air a short time.


                         HOW TO CLEAN VELVET.

Invert a hot flatiron, place over it a single thickness of wet cotton
cloth, lay on this the velvet (wrong side next the wet cloth), rub
gently with a dry cloth until the pile is well raised, take off the
iron, lay on a table, and brush it with a soft brush or cloth.


                           TO CLEAN RIBBONS.

Dissolve white soap in boiling water; when cool enough to bear the
hand, pass the ribbons through it, rubbing gently, so as not to injure
the texture; rinse through lukewarm water and pin on a board to dry.
If the colors are bright yellow, maroon, crimson or scarlet, add a few
drops of oil of vitriol to the rinse water; if the color is bright
scarlet, add to the rinse water a few drops of muriate of tin.


                          TO TAKE OUT PAINT.

Equal parts of ammonia and spirits of turpentine will take paint out
of clothing. Saturate the spot two or three times, and then wash out
in soapsuds.


                         TO REMOVE INK STAIN.

Immediately saturate with milk, soak it up with a rag, apply more, rub
well, and in a few minutes the ink will disappear.


                          TO TAKE GREASE OUT

of silk, woolens, paper, floors, etc., grate chalk thick over the
spot, cover with brown paper, set on it a hot flatiron and let it
remain until cool; repeat if necessary. The iron must not be so hot as
to burn paper or cloth.


                             FRUIT STAINS.

Colored cottons or woolens stained with wine or fruit should be wet in
alcohol and ammonia, then sponged off gently (not rubbed) with
alcohol; after that, if the material will warrant it, washed in tepid
soapsuds. Silk may be wet with this preparation when injured by these
stains.


                         TO REMOVE IRON RUST.

While rinsing clothes, take such as have spots of iron, wring out, dip
a wet finger in oxalic acid and rub on the spot, then dip in salt and
rub on and hold on a warm flatiron, and the spot will immediately
disappear; rinse again, rubbing the place a little with the hands.


                          TO TAKE OUT MILDEW.

Wet the cloth and rub on soap and chalk, mixed together, and lay in
the sun; or, lay the cloth in buttermilk for a short time, take out
and place in the hot sun; or, put lemon juice on and treat in the same
way.


                         TO WASH WOOLEN GOODS.

Many woolen goods, such as light-colored, heavy sacques, nubias, etc.,
may be washed in cold suds and rinsed in cold water. The garments
should be well shaken out and pulled into shape.


                   TO WASH FLANNELS IN TEPID WATER.

The usefulness of liquid ammonia is not as universally known among
housewives as it deserves to be. If you add some of it to a soapsuds
made of a mild soap it will prevent the flannel from becoming yellow
or shrinking. It is the potash and soda combined in sharp soap which
tend to color animal fibers yellow; the shrinking may be partially due
to this agency, but above all to the exposure of the flannel while wet
to the extremes of low and high temperature. Dipping it in boiling
water or leaving it out in the rain will also cause it to shrink and
become hard. To preserve their softness, flannels should be washed in
tepid suds, rinsed in tepid water, and dried rapidly at a moderate
heat.—_Buckeye._




                             CHAPTER XVI.

        HOW TO DO YOUR OWN STAMPING AND MAKE YOUR OWN PATTERNS.


In the following chapter are given full instructions for dry and wet
stamping, explaining how to make stamping powder, how to mix white
paint for stamping dark goods and black paint for stamping light
goods.

The articles necessary are a sheet of writing paper and a piece of
transfer paper. The transfer paper can be made by rubbing white paper
with a composition consisting of two ounces of tallow, one-half ounce
powdered blacklead, one-quarter pint linseed oil, and sufficient
lampblack to make it of the consistency of cream. These should be
melted together and rubbed on the paper while hot. When dry it will be
fit for use.

In order to make a perforated pattern of any engraving, procure a
piece of writing paper larger than the design to be traced and put a
piece of transfer paper on the writing paper, then place both sheets
directly under the engraving and pin the three sheets together at one
end, having the transfer paper between and dark side facing the
writing paper. You then take a quill with a fine point (a knitting
needle will do nicely) and without leaning too hard go over all the
outline of the engraving. You must be careful not to press your
fingers on the engraving, as this would cause a deposit of powder the
same color as the transferring paper on the writing paper. Now remove
the transfer paper and you have the design accurately traced and the
pattern is ready to be perforated. Lay a couple of folds of velvet or
felt on the table, place the pattern on this, and with a needle of
medium size or tracing-wheel prick out the pattern, being careful to
follow the outline closely and make the perforations quite close.


                  MECHANICAL ENLARGEMENT OF DESIGNS.

The simplest way is to enlarge by the eye, as the artists do. One
method is to divide the whole design into squares and rule off the
paper to be enlarged in corresponding squares of larger size. Each
portion within the square is then exactly reproduced, copying the
portion in the smaller square. For embroidery designs especially we
should think this would be very good.


                             DRY STAMPING.

This is done by a process known as pouncing. The process is as
follows: Place the pattern (rough side up) on the material to be
stamped, placing heavy weights on the corner to keep it from slipping;
then rub the powder over the perforations with the pouncet or
distributor described below till the pattern is clearly marked on the
material. This can be ascertained by lifting one corner of the pattern
slightly. Then remove the pattern carefully, lay a piece of thin paper
over the stamping and pass a hot iron over it. This melts the gum in
the powder and fastens the pattern to the material. The iron should be
as hot as possible without scorching the cloth. Should the heat change
the color of the material, iron it all over. Do not do any stamping by
this process on a hot or damp day if it can be avoided. Keep the
powder in a cool, dry place. In stamping with light-colored powder,
the best way to fasten it is to hold the back of the cloth against the
stovepipe or the face of the iron. French stamping is better, however,
for all dark materials. To take the powder up on the distributor, have
a tin plate with a piece of woolen cloth glued on the bottom, sprinkle
a little powder on the cloth, and rub the distributor over it, taking
care to shake off all the powder you can—enough will remain to stamp
the pattern clearly.


                        TO MAKE A DISTRIBUTOR.

Take a strip of fine felt almost an inch wide (a strip from an old
felt hat is as good as anything), roll it up tightly into a roll,
leaving the end flat, and rub the end over a piece of sand paper to
make it smooth and even.


                         TO MAKE BLUE POWDER.

Take equal parts of gum damar and white rosin and just enough Persian
blue to color it. Mix well together.

Other colors are made the same, using for coloring chrome yellow (for
light-colored powder), burnt sienna, lampblack, etc. Black powder is
improved by adding a little blue to it.


                         TO MAKE WHITE POWDER.

Take one ounce white lead; half ounce gum arabic, in the impalpable
powder; half ounce white rosin, in the fine powder. All well mixed.


                      SUPERIOR DARK BLUE POWDER.

One ounce white rosin; one half ounce gum sandarac; one half ounce
Prussian blue, in fine powder. Mix all thoroughly.


                      FRENCH INDELIBLE STAMPING.

This is the best process for all dark materials; in fact, this and the
blue powder are all that will ever be needed. By this process a kind
of paint is used instead of powder, and a brush instead of a pouncet.
Place the pattern on the cloth, smooth side up if you can (though
either side will work well), weight the pattern down as in stamping.
Rub the paint evenly over the perforations, and it will leave the
lines clean, sharp and distinct. After the stamping is done, the
pattern must be cleaned immediately. This is done by placing the
pattern on the table and turning benzine or naphtha over it to cut the
paint and then wiping the pattern dry on both sides with an old cloth,
or, better still, with common waste—such as machinists use to clean
machinery; this is cheap and absorbs the paint and naphtha quickly.
Hold the pattern up to the light to see if the holes are all clear; if
they are not, wash it the second time. Do not use the pattern for
powder immediately after it has been washed; let it dry a short time,
otherwise the moistened gum will clog the perforations.


                          TO MAKE THE PAINT.

Take zinc white, mix it with boiled oil to about the thickness of
cream, add a little drying, such as painters use. Keep in a tin pail
(one holding about a pint is a good size); have a piece of board cut
round, with a screw in the center for a handle, to fit _loosely_ into
the pail; drop this on the paint and it will keep it from drying up.
Add a little oil occasionally to keep the paint from growing too
thick, and it will always be ready for use.


                              THE BRUSH.

Take a fine stencil brush (or any brush with a square end), wind it
tightly with a string from the handle down to within one half inch of
the end; this will make it just stiff enough to distribute the paint
well. Keep the brush in water, to keep it from drying up, taking care
to wipe off the water before using.


                         THE CARE OF PATTERNS.

New patterns, before being used, should be rubbed over on the rough
side with a smooth piece of pumice stone; this wears off the burr and
makes the stamping come out cleaner and finer. When patterns are so
large that they have to be folded, iron out the creases before using
them. After using the patterns for powder stamping, snap the pattern
to shake the powder from the perforations. After using the patterns
for paint stamping they should be washed thoroughly with naphtha until
the perforations are all perfectly clear. Keep the naphtha away from
the fire. After the pattern has been washed, do not use it for powder
until it has had time to thoroughly dry, otherwise it will gum up the
holes and spoil the pattern.

If these directions are carefully followed the stamping will always be
satisfactory.—_Popular Art Instructor._




                             CHAPTER XVII.

                             BRONZE WORK.


Bronzing is the latest improvement in waxwork, and if properly made
cannot be detected from the most expensive artistic bronze. It answers
for table, mantel, and bracket ornaments, and may be exposed to dust
and air without sustaining the slightest injury. It can be dusted with
a feather duster like any piece of furniture, and is a very desirable
and inexpensive ornament.

The colors required in bronze are: Silver bronze, gold bronze, copper
bronze, fire bronze, and green bronze.


                  THE ART OF MAKING A VASE IN BRONZE.

For instruction, let us take a vase to be finished in copper bronze.
First the vase must be molded. The casting material is one part wax,
one part spermaceti, two parts mutton tallow. Melt the three articles
together and color with burnt umber. Have a coil of fine hair wire,
cut into one-half inch lengths, and when the mixture is melted to the
consistency of thick cream stir in the cut wire by degrees until there
is a sprinkling of it throughout the mixture; then pour into the
elastic mold and let stand till perfectly cold and solid; then loosen
the sections of the mold and take it out. Should any of the ends of
the wire project, they can be cut with a pair of sharp scissors. Trim
the seams caused by the sections of the mold; then take a piece of
soft flannel cloth, dip it in the refined spirits of turpentine and
polish the vase with it, after which it is ready for bronzing.

Take copper bronze No. 4000, and with the tinting brush bronze the
vase evenly, and polish it with a soft piece of white silk. Now take
another brush and with copper bronze No. 6000 give it the last coat
The vase is now ready for draping. The most simple drapery is an ivy
vine. Take an embossed ivy leaf (or embossed muslin leaves, as they
are named), lay a fine wire along its midrib, leaving two or three
inches of wire for stem; cover the leaf with brown sheet wax, press
them together well with the finger and thumb to make the wax adhere to
the leaf, get the impression, and hold the wire firmly; then lay
another piece of wax on the under side, press the edges together and
cut away the superfluous wax, leaving the edge plain (the ivy leaf is
not serrated), cover the wire stem with wax and the leaf is ready for
bronzing. Rub both sides with turpentine, give one coat of bronze No.
4000, then the last coat of bronze No. 6000. When all the leaves are
finished, weave them into a spray, grading them from large to small
till the end of the vine is reached, then bronze and drape around the
vase in an easy, natural way.

The natural fall leaves, pressed, make pretty draperies for these
kinds of vases. Sprays of mixed leaves, oak leaves and acorns, small
maple leaves, the holly leaf and berry, mixed ivy and fern leaves, and
many other kinds of leaves and vines are equally pretty.


                 THE ART OF MAKING A MOTTO IN BRONZE.

Take a box frame of the ordinary motto-frame size (gilt face) and line
it with either crimson or royal purple velvet, and it is ready for any
design. The word “Welcome” is the simplest to begin with. Take a thick
blotting pad, lay it on a table, rub some arrowroot or rice power over
its upper surface, and lay a sheet of either calla or pond lily wax,
_extra thick_, on this powdered surface. Select the style of letter
preferred; German text is very appropriate for the motto “Welcome.”
Cut the pattern letters out in pasteboard, or any kind of thick paper,
if tin letter-cutters are not convenient.

Begin with the letter W. Lay it on the sheet of wax and cut out the
waxen letter after the pattern with a penknife previously dipped in
water. Next cut the E, and so on till the seven letters are cut out,
care being taken to powder the blotter every time a new sheet of wax
is laid on. Lay the back of the box on the table, having melted glue
ready, and with a camel's-hair brush apply a small portion of it to
the back of each letter as it is set in its relative position,
pressing it gently against the velvet with the palm of the hand. The
letters should be set an inch apart, and when all on the frame should
be set away until the glue is thoroughly dry and the waxen letters
adhere firmly to the velvet, then they are ready for ornamenting. This
is done in various ways, and all depends on the artist's taste, but a
few suggestions may not be amiss.

Take a two-inch fern-cutter and cut the ferns out of double sheet wax;
then bronze them as directed on both sides, either with gold or silver
bronze. Begin with draping the letter W. Take the stem end of the fern
leaf and with the bead end of the curling-pin fasten it to the lower
side of the letter; then turn it over and fasten it down in the
middle, letting the point turn outward. Set the ferns on the letters
in such a way as not to obscure their form, _i. e._, the form of the
letters. If the motto is made in white wax it should be frosted with
diamond dust.

A pretty style of motto is clasped hands in the center, of pure white
wax, surrounded with sprays of fine flowers and buds, finished in fire
bronze.

Another style of motto is a vase in the center, from which vines in
different colors of bronze run. Green, fire, and copper bronzing
should have a light background; silver and gold bronzing should have a
dark background.


             THE ART OF MAKING A FLORAL BASKET IN BRONZE.

Take a medium-sized basket (chip or any solid substance), brush it
with glue on the inside, fill it with moss, and set it away to dry
till the moss is stuck to the basket. The moss should be raised in the
center in the form of a mound. Have the wax sheeted in carmine. Make
the center of the basket in roses, rosebuds, and carnations, as they
are the most durable. Mold the petals over the embossed muslin petals
and bronze them with fire bronze—Nos. 4000 and 6000—as previously
directed. Drape the basket and the handle in smilax, having the wax
for the smilax sheeted in chrome green; then mold over the embossed
muslin leaves, bronze in green bronze, and drape loosely. Such a
basket makes a pretty table ornament.


                       DIRECTIONS FOR BRONZING.

All kinds of ornaments may be made in bronze—small animals, fish,
shells, birds, statuary, etc. The mixture for casts should be the same
shade as the bronze used.

Fish may be bronzed in silver, gold, and copper bronze; shells in
silver, copper, gold, and some may be tinted with fire bronze on the
exterior of the shell, but the interior of almost all shells must be
tinted with paint; dogs in zinc, silver, and copper; birds in almost
any shade.


                        GREEN BRONZE STATUARY.

Prepare the mixture in chrome green No. 1. A little rosin may be added
and a thick sprinkling of cut wire. Trim the object and rub with
spirits of turpentine, then apply the green bronze—the two numbers,
as directed.


                        COPPER BRONZE STATUARY.

Prepare the mixture in burnt umber and proceed as directed.


                         BRONZING STATUETTES.

Statuettes, or any object in plaster of Paris, may be made to resemble
bronze by first rendering the plaster nonabsorbent with drying linseed
oil and then painting it with a varnish made by grinding waste gold
leaf with honey or gum water.

Another method is by first painting the article, after it has been
rendered nonabsorbent, of a dark color made of Prussian blue, yellow
ochre, and verditer, ground in oil. Before this becomes quite dry,
bronze powder of several colors should be dusted on those most
prominent parts which may be supposed to have worn bright. Plaster
casts may also be made to resemble bronze to a certain extent by
merely brushing them over with graphite, which is a brilliant
blacklead.


               METHOD OF MAKING EMBOSSED MUSLIN LEAVES.

Take a piece of green muslin or calico and size it well with
isinglass, then take the natural leaf, lay the sized piece of muslin
over it on the under or veined side of the leaf, let the muslin remain
on it till almost dry and the impression is set; then with a pair of
sharp scissors cut the muslin around the leaf, either plain or
serrated.

The impression may be taken of any leaf or flower in this way. The use
of muslin leaves tends to make the work more durable and is found very
convenient for the artist.


                   THE ART OF MAKING EXOTIC LEAVES.

The begonia rex makes a beautiful parlor plant. Five or seven leaves
make a nice-sized plant: Select five or seven healthy begonia leaves
of different sizes, as no two leaves of the rex are of one size on the
same plant. Cut the leaves closely off the stem and immerse them in a
solution of cold water and castile soap. Leave them in this twelve
hours before using. Melt the wax to the consistency of cream, in
chrome green, permanent green, dark olive-green, and verdigris-green.
Now take a leaf out of the soapsuds and lay it on a marble slab,
keeping the under surface or veined side uppermost; then with a
camel's-hair brush lay on the melted wax in different shades,
following the shades of the natural leaf. The soapsuds having made the
leaf transparent, all the shades and spots can be plainly seen on the
veined side, which is the side the waxen leaf has to be formed on. The
belt of light green over the silvery markings of the leaf should be
put on with verdigris-green. Begin the leaf in the center and continue
on each side of the midrib till the edge is reached and the leaf has a
thick coating of wax. Then lay a wire along the midrib or center of
the leaf, fasten it in the wax by pressing, care being taken to leave
it long enough for eight or nine inches of stem. Wire must also be
laid on all the side ribs or veins leading to the midrib. These small
wires are all brought to the center wire and laid evenly by its side
till they all come to the stem, where they are all twisted around it
to form one long, thick stem. Give the leaf another coating of dark
olive-green wax (this covers the wires), then finish with a thin
coating of burnt umber tinted with Vandyke brown, and the under
surface of the leaf is finished. Remove the natural leaf from the
waxen and tint the veins lightly with carmine. Brush a little carmine
loosely on the darkest shade in the center of the leaf, and before it
sticks blow off as much as possible, when enough will be left to give
it that reddish-green tint peculiar to the begonia rex leaf. The next
is to finish the silver belt or silvery leaf-markings midway between
the center and the edge of the leaf. This strip must be rubbed with
spirits of turpentine; then with the tinting brush apply a coating of
silver bronze (Nos. 4000 and 6000), care being taken that the bronze
does not scatter over the leaf. Now the leaf is finished.

If the work is done according to directions, the waxen leaf will be a
true copy of the original. Continue in the same way till all the
leaves are made, then wax the stems and run them through the begonia
stemming, when they may be arranged in their natural growing manner in
a flowerpot filled with moss; or, if preferred, the flowerpot may be
filled with wax, in _terre-verte_ green, and the stems must be placed
in it before the wax gets hard.


                     HOW TO MAKE BEGONIA STEMMING.

Procure the bristles of a very young pig, five or six weeks old. After
washing, put them in a very strong solution of chloride of lime and
let them remain in it till whitened; then rinse well in warm water
till free from chlorine. Color them while damp, some in different
shades of green and some in different shades of brown. After the
bristles are ready, the next thing is to make the stemming. Take a
square piece of cambric and fasten it in a stretcher, then give it a
thick coating of mastic varnish, and when the varnish is dry cut the
cambric on a true bias into straight strips of different widths, from
an inch to two inches, and half a yard in length. Lay one of these
strips on a table or some smooth surface, add another coat of varnish,
then cover it with glaucous green flock, care being taken to leave a
narrow margin bare on one side to lap under the other when the piping
is being made. Dip the bristles in mastic varnish, sprinkle them
thickly over the flock, and leave for twenty-four hours to dry; when
thoroughly dry, revarnish the bare edge, and turn it in underneath the
other edge, thus forming the strip into a pipe, ready to receive the
wire stems of the leaves. Brown and crimson flock may be used.

For begonia rex, use crimson flock; for the rubra, use glaucous flock;
and for the palmata, use brown flock. Very good stemming may be made
by tinting canton flannel, which has a very long nap or pile.


                    GERANIUM LEAVES—ROSE GERANIUM.

This leaf is of a dark chrome green. Prepare the wax in two shades,
dark chrome green and light; immerse the leaves in soapsuds for six
hours; take out of the soapsuds and lay it on the marble slab. As
there is neither shading nor marking on the leaf, all that is required
is to give it a coat of dark chrome green, thick enough to prevent the
wires from showing; then lay the wires over the veins and coat them
over with a light shade of green. Remove the natural leaf, and as the
texture of the rose geranium leaf is rather rough, rub it over with
green flock mixed with hair powder. The stems may be left in different
lengths.

The best directions that we can give for the tinting and marking of
leaves is to copy from nature. The cyclamen leaf is well adapted for
the practice of marking and tinting.

The leaf of the pond lily, lotus, canna, maranta, rubber tree,
magnolia, camellia, orange, and all leaves which have a waxy surface,
should either be varnished or bronzed.

All kinds of leaves may be made by the foregoing directions.—_Popular
Art Instructor._


                             DECALCOMANIA.

This is another name for a style that has been in vogue for an
indefinite, period of time, and comes under the head of transferring.
It is almost superfluous to mention the variety of purposes to which
decalcomania may be applied, as it can be transferred upon everything
for which ornamentation is required, and the variety of designs which
are printed especially for it is so great that something may easily be
procured to suit the taste of the most fastidious.

A few of the articles that may be decorated can be mentioned by way of
showing what a variety this style of ornamentation will embrace: All
kinds of crockery, china, porcelain, vases, glass, bookcases, folios,
boxes, lap desks, ribbons, dresses, etc. The method of transferring
beautiful designs is so simple, and all the materials requisite for
the art so easily procured, that it brings it within the means of
everyone. Flat surfaces are more suitable than concave or convex ones
for this style of decorating, for when the surface is curved the
design has to be cut to accommodate the shape, and in this way is
often spoiled unless done by the most careful and skillful hand. The
materials required are cement, copal varnish, designs, a duck-quill
sable, and a flat camel's-hair brush.

Cut your designs neatly with a small pair of scissors, apply the
cement by means of the sable to the article to be decorated, place on
your design and press equally over its entire surface to exclude the
air; dampen it a little and keep pressing equally so that the design
may adhere firmly in every part. When the cement is sufficiently dry
dampen again with water (a little more freely) and remove the paper.
Be careful in manipulating this process, or you will remove some of
the colored part with it. If such should occur, instantly replace it
as well as you are able, or, if you have a knowledge of Oriental
painting, your panacea will be in that. You can retouch with these
colors and bring it back nearly to its original beauty. In case you
have no knowledge of Oriental painting, match the colors as nearly as
possible with water-color paints, allow time to dry, and varnish with
copal.

Sometimes the cement becomes too thick for use. It may be restored to
its proper flowing consistency by placing the bottle in a bed of warm
sand, and can then be applied while warm. If you apply your design to
a dark groundwork, it would be desirable to give your picture a
coating of Winsor and Newton's Chinese white. The reason for this is
that some parts of the picture are semi-transparent, and these would
lose their brilliancy if transferred directly upon a dark background
without first painting.


                         TO TRANSFER ON WOOD.

Dissolve some salt in soft water, float your engraving on the
surface—picture side uppermost—and let it remain about an hour. The
screen, box or table on which you wish to transfer the design should
be of bird's-eye maple or other light-colored hardwood, varnished with
the best copal or transfer varnish.

Take the picture from the water, dry a little between blotters, place
the engraving—picture side downwards—on the varnished wood and
smooth it nicely. If the picture entirely covers the wood after the
margin has been cut off so that no varnish is exposed, lay over it a
thin board, on which place a heavy weight, and leave it for
twenty-four hours. If you wish but a small picture in the center of
the surface of the wood, apply the varnish only to a space the size of
the picture. Dip your finger in the solution of salt and water and
commence rubbing off the paper; the nearer you come to the engraving
the more careful you must be, as a hole in it will spoil your work.
Rub slowly and patiently until you have taken off every bit of the
paper and left only the black lines and touches of your picture on the
wood, in an inverted direction. Finish up with two or three coats of
copal varnish.


                         TO TRANSFER ON SILK.

Apply a coating of mastic varnish to the design and allow it to dry;
then with a brush wash the paper surrounding the design carefully;
this removes from the paper the preparation, which would otherwise
soil the silk. Apply a second coating of the same varnish, and when
this is slightly dried place the design upon the silk or other fabric
to be decorated, and with the roller press it well down. With the
brush wet the back of the paper covering the design, when the paper
may be at once lifted off. Another method is to cut out the design
carefully and cover it with a thin coating of mastic varnish, and lay
it upon the silk or other fabric (which should be dampened) and roll
thoroughly with a rubber roller; dampen the back of the paper with the
brush and lift it off as previously directed.


                         TO MAKE WAX FLOWERS.

The following articles will be required to commence waxwork: Two
pounds white wax, one quarter pound hair wire, one bottle carmine, one
bottle ultramarine blue, one bottle chrome yellow, two bottles chrome
green No. 1, one bottle each of rose pink, royal purple, scarlet
powder, and balsam fir; two dozen sheets white wax. This will do to
begin with. Now have a clean tin dish, and pour therein a quart or two
of water; then put in about one pound of the white wax and let it
boil. When cool enough so the bubbles will not form on top it is ready
to sheet, which is done as follows: Take half of a window pane, 7 × 9,
and, after having washed it clean, dip into a dish containing weak
soapsuds; then dip into the wax, and draw it out steadily and plunge
it into the suds, when the sheet will readily come off. Lay it on a
cloth or clean paper to dry. Proceed in like manner until you have
enough of the white; then add enough of the green powder to make a
bright color, and heat and stir thoroughly until the color is evenly
distributed, then proceed as for sheeting white wax. The other colors
are rubbed into the leaves after they are cut out, rubbing light or
heavy according to shade.

For patterns you can use any natural leaf, forming the creases in wax
with the thumb nail or a needle. To put the flowers together, or the
leaves on to the stem, hold in the hand until warm enough to stick. If
the sheeted wax is to be used in summer, put in a little balsam of fir
to make it hard. If for winter, none will be required.

You can make many flowers without a teacher, but one to assist in the
commencement would be a great help, though the most particular thing
about it is to get the wax sheeted. The materials I have suggested can
be procured at any drug store, and will cost from $3.00 to $4.50.




                            CHAPTER XVIII.


Dear lady subscriber, if you are a housekeeper, or ever intend to be
one, this chapter will more than repay you for what you have given for
this book. It will tell you how to save a large percentage of your
household expenses, and also how to have a great many of the articles
you use in your daily household work of a superior quality—vastly
better than the ones you are using at the present time.

It is a fact not generally known that a great many of the articles
used in daily household work cost little more than one-tenth of the
price the consumer pays for them. We propose to show the ladies of our
great Continent how to have, in most instances, better articles than
those they are in the habit of purchasing, and at a small percentage
of the cost. To do this, we have, by our own personal investigation,
gathered a number of valuable recipes together, and have paid for the
privilege of using them. Remember, these are not common recipes, but a
full explanation of the manufacture of different articles needed in
every household; and they combine the embodied wisdom of practical and
successful men and women of the past and present.

We give in this chapter a number of recipes which have never before
been published, and which, once possessing, you will never wish to be
without, as they are truly marvelous discoveries. The first three
every mother should have; the remainder no housekeeper should be
without.

No. 1 is


                            HEALING SALVE.

This salve heals all sores, chaps, cuts, bruises, sore lips, chafed
limbs, roughness, etc. It is invaluable as a healing ointment and may
be applied to the tenderest skin without injury, and yet it will heal
the most painful sores. A three-ounce box will only cost you ten
cents, and the directions are so plain that a child can follow them.

_Recipe:_ Take one ounce of sweet oil, one-half ounce of camphor gum,
and one-half ounce of mutton tallow. Melt all together over a slow
fire, and stir continually until cold.

_To use:_ Rub on part affected at night; wash off in the morning with
warm water and castile soap.

No. 2 is


                         MAGNETIC CROUP CURE.

This is the best remedy for croup ever discovered. It will save
parents much trouble and anxiety. With this remedy all that is
necessary is (if you have any fear of croup on putting your child to
bed) to take a piece of brown paper large enough to cover the throat
and chest and spread it with the ointment and put across the throat
and lungs; place over that several thicknesses of flannel so as to
keep the stomach warm, and keep in place with a string or bandage. Put
the child to bed, and you need have no fear of croup that night. This
ointment is also excellent for cuts, bruises or sores. Twelve cents
will make enough to last a year, even if you use it frequently.

_Recipe:_ One-half pound of lard, quarter of a pound of raisins,
quarter pound of fine cut chewing tobacco. In the morning place the
tobacco in a tin can and cover it with water; set it on the stove and
let it cook and boil all day, replacing the water when it is
necessary; then squeeze all the juice from the tobacco. The next
morning chop your raisins, put them in the tobacco water and cook well
till noon; then again squeeze the raisins out of this water. Now to
this water add the lard and let them simmer together until the water
is evaporated. Now the croup remedy is ready for use. On putting the
child to bed, if you fear an attack, take a piece of brown paper large
enough to cover the throat and chest and spread it over with the
ointment and put it across the throat and lungs. Place over that and
tie several thicknesses of flannel; put the child to bed, cover up
warmly, and you need have no fear of croup that night.

If taken with croup unexpectedly, on hearing the cough, spread a piece
of brown paper with the ointment and lay it across the throat and
chest; then heat flannel as hot as can be borne and lay over the
paper; change in about ten minutes for another hot cloth. If no fire
is on while waiting for it, heat cloths on a lamp chimney. As soon as
you get the stomach covered and warm, give a teaspoonful of melted
butter; repeat the dose in five minutes.

No. 3 is


                             WORM ELIXIR.

The best remedy for worms known. No mother should be without it. Also,
if given occasionally it is a splendid preventive. Children will never
be troubled with worms who are given a dose of this once a month, or
fortnight.

_Recipe:_ Take gum myrrh and aloes, of each one ounce; saffron, sage
leaves, and tansy leaves, of each half an ounce; tincture in a pint of
brandy two weeks, and give to children a teaspoonful once a week to
once a month as a preventive. They will never be troubled with worms
as long as you do this.


                            WORM VERMIFUGE.

Make a strong decoction of sage, two parts; wormseed, one part;
strain, and add sugar enough to make into candy, and let the child eat
of it. Infallible.

No. 4 is


                 BRILLIANT SELF-SHINING STOVE POLISH.

This is one of the greatest inventions of the age. It has been the
result of a large amount of study on the part of the inventor to
perfect a polish that would work easily and satisfactorily in a
perfectly dry state, thereby obviating the disagreeable task of mixing
and preparing. A good stove polish is an absolute necessity in every
family. To be assured that this is the best you need give it only one
trial. Now, remember, first, that this polish requires no water or
mixing like the various cake and powder polishes; second, that it is
self-shining and no labor is required; and third, that it has no equal
in the world.

Below are the recipe and directions for preparing this polish. You can
prepare enough in ten minutes to last a year. A box holding two ounces
will cost but three cents.

_Recipe:_ Get from the hardware store plumbago (blacklead), pulverize
it finely and it is ready for use.

_Directions for use:_ Use a damp woolen rag, dip in the polish and
apply to the stove; then rub with a dry cloth, and a most beautiful
polish will appear.

No. 5 is


                       WONDERFUL STARCH ENAMEL.

For polishing shirt bosoms, collars, cuffs, lace curtains, etc.,
putting on the same gloss and hard pearl finish as when bought at the
store new. Every lady should use the wonderful enamel for the
following reasons: It enables an ordinary ironer to compete with any
laundry; it makes the clothes clear and white; it makes clothes iron
smoothly, and prevents the iron sticking; it makes old linen look
like new; and it saves a woman many hours' hard work each week. It is
easily made, and five cents' worth will last an ordinary family six
months.

_Recipe:_ Melt half a pound of refined paraffine wax in a tin pan over
a slow fire. When melted remove from the fire and add twenty drops of
oil of citronella. Take a tin pan and oil with sweet oil, put the pan
on a level table, and pour in enough of the hot wax to make a depth of
an eighth of an inch. When cool, but not cold, cut in pieces about the
size of an ordinary candy lozenge. Lay them aside to cool, but do not
let them touch each other.

_Directions for use:_ To a pint of boiling starch stir in one cake.
Use starch while warm.

No. 6 is


                         ROYAL WASHING POWDER

—the laundress' assistant; warranted not to injure the finest fabric.
No acid; no potash. In the wash room it saves time, labor, expense,
muscle, temper, and hands. The clothes will come out cleaned and
white, without wear or tear or rubbing on washboards, therefore will
last twice as long. For housecleaning it is unequaled. One girl can
wash more clothes, paint, walls, windows or floors in a day with
perfect ease with this powder than she could in four days with hard
labor, soap, and scrubbing brush, and the paint will look new and
bright. It only requires to be tested to be appreciated. Packages of
one pound will only cost seven cents.

_Recipe:_ Mix any quantity of soda ash with an equal quantity of
carbonate of soda crushed into coarse grains. Have a thin solution of
glue or decoction of linseed oil ready, into which pour the soda until
quite thick. Spread out in a warm apartment to dry. When dry shake up
well and pack away for use. Use as other washing powders.

No. 7 is


                          MAGIC ANNIHILATOR.

Removes all kinds of grease and oil spots from every kind of
wearing-apparel—such as coats, pants, vests, dress goods, carpets,
etc.—without injury to the finest silks or laces. It will shampoo
like a charm, raising the lather in proportion to the amount of
dandruff and grease in the hair. A cloth wet with it will remove all
grease from door knobs, window sills, etc., handled by kitchen
domestics in their daily round of kitchen work. For cleaning silver,
brass, and copper ware it cannot be beaten. It is certain death to
bedbugs, for they will never stop after they have encountered the
Magic Annihilator. It is useful for many other things. A quart bottle
costs about ten cents.

_Recipe:_ To make half a gallon, take aqua ammonia, one pint; soft
water, one-half gallon; best white soap, one-half pound; saltpetre,
one ounce. Shave the soap fine, add the water, boil until the soap is
dissolved, then add the saltpetre, stirring until dissolved. Now
strain, let the suds settle, skim off the dry suds, add the ammonia,
and bottle and cork at once.

_Directions for use:_ For grease spots, pour upon the article to be
cleaned a sufficient quantity of the Magic Annihilator, rubbing well
with a clean sponge and applying to both sides of the article. Upon
carpets and coarse goods where the grease is hard and dry use a stiff
brush and wash out with clear cold water. For shampooing, take a small
quantity, with an equal quantity of water; apply to the hair with a
stiff brush, brushing into the scalp, and wash out with clear water.
For killing bedbugs, apply to the places they frequent.

No. 8 is


                         I X L BAKING POWDER.

An unsurpassed article. Can be relied on for strength and purity. So
many of the baking powders sold contain injurious substances and are
altogether unreliable. This powder can be relied on for strength and
purity. It produces the most delightfully white, light and flaky
biscuits. For cakes it is unsurpassed. Try it and be convinced. This
powder is composed of the very best and purest substances, and
therefore is perfectly wholesome. Any lady can prepare enough in a few
minutes to last her six months. It will only cost a trifle—not
one-quarter of what you would have to pay your grocer for the same
amount.

_Recipe:_ Take one pound of _tartaric_ acid (in _crystals_), one and
one-half pounds bicarbonate of soda, and one and one-half pounds of
potato or corn starch. Each must be powdered separately, well dried by
a slow fire, and well mixed through a sieve. Pack hard in a tin, or
paper glazed on the outside. Buy the articles from a druggist.

_Directions for use:_ For biscuits, pie crust, johnnycake, etc., use
three teaspoonfuls to one quart of flour or meal; for cakes, two
teaspoonfuls to a teacup of flour. Mix well with the flour.

No. 9 is


                           ELECTRIC POWDER.

This is one of the best articles on our list—something that every
housekeeper needs. It is used for gold, silver, plated ware, German
silver, copper, brass, tin, steel, window glass, or any material where
a brilliant luster is required. To make two ounces costs but three
cents, and it is the best article of its kind known.

_Recipe:_ To one pound best quality whiting add one-half pound cream
tartar and three ounces calcined magnesia. Mix thoroughly together and
store away for use.

_Directions for use:_ Use the polish dry, with a piece of canton
flannel moistened with water or alcohol, and finish with the polish
dry.

No. 10 is


                FRENCH POLISH OR DRESSING FOR LEATHER.

This is a grand article. All that is necessary is to have your boots
clean and apply this dressing with a sponge. The boots appear like the
very best French leather. Much hard work is saved, as no brushing is
required. To make a quart vessel full will only cost about twenty
cents.

_Recipe:_ Mix half a pint of the best vinegar with a quarter pint of
soft water; stir into it one ounce of glue (broken up), two ounces
log-wood chips, one-sixteenth ounce of finely-powdered indigo,
one-sixteenth ounce of the best soft soap, one-sixteenth ounce of
isinglass. Put the mixture over the fire, let it boil ten minutes or
more; then strain, bottle and cork. When cold it is fit for use. Apply
with a sponge.

No. 11 is


                           ARTIFICIAL HONEY.

Equal to bee honey, and often mistaken by the best judges to be
genuine. It is palatable and luxurious. All persons are more or less
aware that honey should be used in every household, and it would be so
if every family could have it at a very moderate price. As a
health-establishing nutriment in the chamber of the invalid, and as a
delicious luxury for the well, honey cannot be too highly recommended.
Any one using this honey regularly will find that he is strengthened
and refreshed by it. He will have greater energy and if at all
inclined to dyspepsia will find himself greatly helped. This honey
costs but eight cents per pound to prepare, and our directions are so
simple a child ten years old can follow them.

_Recipe:_ Take two ounces of slippery elm bark and put into three
quarts of warm water and let it stand four hours; strain and add eight
pounds of white sugar; boil four minutes; then add one pound of bee
honey while hot. Flavor with a drop of the oil of peppermint and a
drop of the oil of rose.

       *       *       *       *       *

Any lady will readily see what a saving the possession of the above
recipes may cause in her household expense. Thus, you can get a ten
cent box of stove polish for three cents, a twenty-five cent package
of washing powder for seven cents, a twenty-five cent box of starch
enamel for five cents, etc. Any of the articles contained in the list
will take but a short time to prepare a large supply.


                     POISONS AND THEIR ANTIDOTES.

The first thing to do in a case of poisoning is to cause the ejection
of the poison by vomiting. To do this, place mustard mixed with salt
on the tongue and give large quantities of lukewarm water; or, tickle
the throat with a feather. These failing, instantly resort to active
emetics, like tartar emetic, sulphate of copper or sulphate of zinc.
After vomiting has taken place with these, aid it, if possible, by
copious draughts of warm water until the poison is entirely removed.
Of course, if vomiting cannot be induced the stomach pump must be
employed, especially if arsenic or narcotics have been taken. The
following table may be useful for emergencies:—

    POISONS.                                 ANTIDOTES.
    Acids,                       Alkalies: Soap and milk, chalk or soda.
    Alkalies,                    Vegetable acids, vinegar, oil in
                                 abundance.
    Alcohol,                     Common salt, moderately.
    Arsenic,                     Send for the doctor and his stomach pump.
    Antimony,                    Oak bark, strong green tea.
    Baryta or lime,              Epsom salts, oils, magnesia.
    Bismuth,                     White of eggs, sweet milk.
    Copper,                      White of eggs, strong coffee.
    Gases,                       Cold douche, followed by friction.
    Iodine,                      Starch, wheat flour in water.
    Creosote,                    White of eggs, sweet milk.
    Lead,                        Strong lemonade, Epsom salts.
    Opium and other narcotics,   Emetics, cold douche, and heat.
    Phosphorus,                  Magnesia in copious draughts.
    Zinc,                        White of eggs, sweet milk.
    Mad-dog bite,                Apply fire in some form to the wound,
                                 thoroughly and immediately.
    Bite of insect,              Ammonia, applied freely.
    Bite of serpent,             Same as for mad dog, followed by whisky
                                 to intoxication.

The foregoing are the more common and more important poisons and their
antidotes.—_Buckeye._


                            TURKISH LOTION.

_The New and Wonderful Discovery for Beautifying the Skin._

Gives to a woman of forty the fresh, bright complexion of a girl. No
more wrinkles, crow's-feet or sallowness.

Turkish Lotion completely cures freckles, pimples, blackheads, moles
and superfluous hair, tan, greasy skin, blotches, redness, sore or
chapped lips, chapped and red, rough hands; and, best of all,
completely eradicates and prevents wrinkles, crow's-feet, and
sallowness.

Turkish Lotion creates a perfect complexion.

After using Turkish Lotion for a short time a lady's skin will be as
exquisitely soft and velvety, as clear and pure, as that of a little
child. It is not an artificial cosmetic, but a cleansing, refining,
whitening tonic. It feeds and nourishes the skin, preventing and
banishing wrinkles, crow's-feet, and sallowness. It is perfectly
harmless and composed of the purest ingredients.

Turkish Lotion is invaluable to every lady. It conceals the evidences
of age. By its use a lady of middle-age will have the charming, fresh
look of a girl. Every womanly woman desires to appear fresh and
youthful as long as possible, thereby making herself the wonder of her
own sex and the admiration of the opposite. By using this lotion
according to directions every lady may have a fresh, rosy tinted
complexion of exquisite pearly fairness, free from wrinkles,
crow's-feet, and sallowness.

One application will make the most stubbornly red and rough hands
beautifully soft and white.

Turkish Lotion is not a paint or powder, but a new and great
discovery—a cleansing, healing, whitening tonic that causes the cheek
to glow with healthy action of the skin, and the neck, arms and hands
to assume an exquisite pearly whiteness. By its use all redness and
roughness is prevented and the skin is beautified and rendered soft,
smooth, and white, thereby imparting a delicate, refined loveliness
impossible to describe. Any lady using Turkish Lotion will present a
fresh, youthful, natural appearance, with a pearly, rose-tinted
complexion that is positively bewitching. It is without doubt the best
face lotion ever discovered, being as it is a medicated lotion
possessing healing qualities. Many ladies are troubled during cold
weather with sore lips, rough, parched skin, and chapped hands upon
the slightest exposure. By moistening at night with this wash the
parts affected, all soreness and roughness will be completely cured
and the face and hands will be as delicately soft and smooth as those
of a little child.

No one need suffer any longer from any defect of the skin.

       *       *       *       *       *

_Recipe for Turkish Lotion:_ To one fluid ounce of tincture of gum
benzoin add seven fluid ounces of distilled rose-water and one-half
ounce of glycerine.

_Directions for use:_ Bathe face, neck, and hands with Turkish Lotion
at night, letting it dry on. Wash off in the morning with a very
little pure white castile soap and soft water. If the water is hard,
add a very little dissolved borax. This will prevent and cure greasy
skin, freckles, tan, wrinkles, pimples, blackheads, crow's-feet,
blotches, sunburn, chapped hands, sore lips, rough skin, etc.

_To Cure Sallowness:_ Use as above directed, and ask your druggist for
some good iron tablets. Take as directed. In a short time your
complexion will be beautifully white and rose-tinted.

_To Remove Hairy Moles and Superfluous Hair:_ Procure prepared pumice
stone from your druggist; cut the hair as close as possible to the
skin, dip the pumice in cold water and rub on the part on which the
hairs grow, commencing gently at first (as it may cause slight
irritation of the skin), then gradually increase the friction. After
using the pumice stone, anoint freely each time with Turkish Lotion.
Do this twice daily, and it will surely remove superfluous hair.

Always, after using Turkish Lotion, rub gently with the hands until
the skin becomes dry. This will remove and prevent wrinkles and
lines.




                                INDEX.


                                                        PAGE.
Almond paste for the hands,                               48
Apt to be hasty,                                          80
All is fair in love and war,                              81
Age to marry, the best,                                   99
Age of puberty to marriage, from the,                    107
A happy marriage, the basis of,                          118
Abortion,                                                128
Abortion, the cause of,                                  129
Abortion, means of preventing,                           133
Amenorrhœa—suppression of the menses,                    140
Alterative, or liver powder,                             147
Anti-dyspeptic pills,                                    147
Ague pills,                                              148
Ague drops,                                              149
Anodyne headache pills,                                  149
Arrowroot jelly,                                         157
Arrowroot gruel,                                         159
Autumn leaves and ferns, to prepare,                     181
Articles of white zephyr, to clean,                      184
Artificial honey,                                        205

Breath, to purify the,                                    31
Bleach and purify the skin, to,                           31
Bloom rose,                                               34
Brilliant, beautiful eyes, how to have,                   35
Beautiful eyelashes, how to have,                         36
Beautiful mouth and lips, to have a,                      39
Bleaching lotion,                                         47
Baldness, to cure,                                        61
Bleach the hair, to,                                      63
Boston Burnet powder,                                     65
Birth of the first child,                                 89
Bleeding at the lungs,                                   151
Barley water,                                            157
Bread jelly,                                             159
Beef liquid,                                             159
Beef tea,                                                160
Bedbugs, to get rid of,                                  166
Bleach the leaves, to,                                   181
Bluing,                                                  183
Blue powder, to make,                                    188
Brush, the,                                              189
Bronze work,                                             191
Bronzing, directions for,                                193
Bronzing statuettes,                                     194
Begonia stemming, to make,                               195
Brilliant self-shining stove polish,                     202

Cleopatra's freckle balm,                                 29
Cure profuse perspiration, to,                            31
Cleopatra's enamel,                                       31
Cure freckles, to,                                        31
Cosmetic bath, a,                                         32
Certain cure for eruptions,                               34
Clear the complexion, to,                                 34
Cure and refine a blotched skin, to,                      34
Cure and prevent wrinkles, to,                            34
Cure weak eyes, to,                                       36
Cure watery and inflamed eyes, to,                        37
Care of the teeth, the,                                   40
Cure foul breath, to,                                     44
Cure toothache, to,                                       44
Camphorated chalk,                                        45
Camphor paste,                                            45
Cure red hands, to,                                       48
Coarse hands, to whiten,                                  49
Chapped hands,                                            51
Cause the skin to become satin-smooth, to,                51
Cause the bloom of youth to return,                       52
Cause the hair to grow, to,                               60
Charm those whom you meet, to,                            72
Courtship a momentous matter,                             83
Conception,                                              121
Change, a remarkable,                                    121
Changes in the breast,                                   122
Childbirth a natural process,                            123
Cramps of the legs, etc.,                                126
Chlorosis, or green sickness,                            137
Cessation of the menses—change of life,                  141
Cathartic and liver pills,                               147
Certain remedy for ague,                                 148
Consumption, for,                                        151
Cough syrup,                                             152
Cough mixture,                                           152
Compound tincture of myrrh,                              152
Cordial for summer complaints,                           153
Coffee milk,                                             160
Crust, coffee,                                           161
Cranberry water,                                         161
Chicken broth,                                           161
Calves'-foot jelly,                                      162
Chambers,                                                176
Coffee starch,                                           183
Copper bronze,                                           194

Decayed teeth, for,                                       44
Decayed teeth, mixture for,                               46
Dye the hair flaxen, to,                                  63
Days of the week—their importance,                        68
Duration of pregnancy,                                   123
Diet, the,                                               124
Detection of pregnancy, sure test for the,               127
Delayed menstruation,                                    135
Duty of mothers,                                         135
Dyspeptic ley,                                           148
Dr. Jordan's cholera remedy,                             154
Deafness,                                                155
Drink in dysentery,                                      161
Drunkenness, to cure,                                    168
Different kinds of perfume, to make,                     169
Dining-room,                                             177
Do your own stamping, how to,                            187
Dry stamping,                                            188
Distributor, to make a,                                  188
Dark blue powder,                                        189
Decalcomania,                                            196

Eruptions,                                                24
Extreme paleness,                                         26
Excoriations,                                             28
Eyes, to cure weak,                                       36
Eyes, to care watery and inflamed,                        37
Eyes, general care of,                                    37
Eyelashes, to improve the,                                36
Eyelashes, to have beautiful,                             36
Elegant hair, to have,                                    60
Electrical psychology,                                    69
Early marriage,                                           99
Everything for love,                                     111
Expectorant tincture,                                    152
Eggs,                                                    165
Extract the essential oil from flowers, to,              168
Enamel for shirt bosoms,                                 184
Exotic leaves,                                           194
Electric powder,                                         205

Freckles,                                                 25
Freckles, to remove,                                      29
Flesh-worms, to remove,                                   30
French face wash,                                         32
French lip salve,                                         40
Fine tooth powder,                                        44
Finger nails, the,                                        49
French remedy for baldness,                               63
Fortunate and unfortunate days,                           67
Fondness for cousins,                                     95
Flirtation,                                               96
False sense of duty,                                     112
Falling of the womb,                                     143
Fever powder,                                            149
French milk porridge,                                    160
Fluid, No. 1, 2, and 3,                                  163
Fresh-blown flowers in winter,                           166
Flour starch,                                            184
Fine starch,                                             184
Fruit stains,                                            185
Flannels, to wash,                                       186
Floral basket in bronze,                                 193
French polish for leather,                               205

German lip salve,                                         41
Golden hair secret, the,                                  62
Gestation, period of,                                    122
Gum acacia restorative,                                  164
Get rid of bedbugs and mosquitoes, how to,               166
Gall soap,                                               183
Grease, to take out,                                     185
Green bronze,                                            193
Geranium leaves,                                         196

Hands, chapped,                                           51
Hair, the,                                                52
Hair restorative,                                         61
Hair, to bleach,                                          63
Hair, to dye flaxen,                                      63
Hair, keeping curled and crimped,                         63
Hair, powder for preserving,                              64
Hair to make grow quickly,                                64
Hair falling out, to prevent,                             65
Human temperaments, the,                                  66
How to charm those whom you meet,                         72
Hop bitters,                                             146
Home decoration,                                         171
House plants, to care for,                               179
Healing salve,                                           200

Itch, the,                                                17
Improve the skin, to,                                     33
Improving the hair, for,                                  63
Important advice to females,                              68
Inverted toe-nail,                                       156
Irish moss jelly,                                        158
Isinglass jelly,                                         158
Iron rust, to remove,                                    185
I X L baking powder,                                     204

Kalydor for the complexion,                               33

Lemon cream,                                              29
Lip salve, white, No. 1,                                  40
Lip salve, No. 2,                                         40
Love and respect,                                         77
Love and marriage,                                        94
Leucorrhœa, whites, flour albus,                         144
Laziness, to cure,                                       168

Milk of roses,                                            33
Mouth pastilles,                                          44
Mixture for shampoo,                                      64
Mesmerism,                                                70
Marriage,                                                 73
Married people,                                          102
Monogamy,                                                116
Marriage customs,                                        117
Morning sickness,                                        126
Menstruation,                                            134
Malt infusion,                                           164
Milk for infants,                                        165
Magnetic croup cure,                                     201
Magic annihilator,                                       203

Necessary evils,                                         109
Nutritive fluids,                                        162

Preparation for whitening the skin,                       30
Pimples, to remove,                                       32
Pomade d'Hebe,                                            34
Preservative tincture for the teeth,                      45
Powder for preserving the hair,                           64
Polygamy,                                                125
Polyandry,                                               117
Pregnancy, labor, parturition,                           121
Parturient balm,                                         128
Premature labor,                                         128
Pills for asthma,                                        151
Pills for chronic bronchitis,                            151
Pills for neuralgia,                                     151
Pills for dysentery,                                     150
Pile ointment,                                           155
Panado,                                                  160
Prevent horses being teased by flies,                    167
Prevent flies lighting on windows, pictures, etc.,       167
Poisons and their antidotes,                             206

Rouge, liquid,                                            33
Rye tooth powder,                                         45
Red hands, to cure,                                       48
Rough hands, to cure,                                     49
Rheumatic pills,                                         150
Rice water,                                              157
Refreshing drink, a,                                     157
Rice,                                                    158
Rice jelly,                                              158
Rice gruel,                                              158
Restorative jelly,                                       160
Render paper fireproof, to,                              168
Royal washing powder,                                    203
Rashes and redness,                                       27

Skin, the,                                                22
Scurf, scurvy,                                            27
Soften and whiten the skin,                               30
Soft, white hands,                                        46
Sexual intercourse—its laws and conditions,              105
Seduction,                                               110
Soothing cough mixture,                                  152
Scrofulous syrup,                                        153
Sago gruel,                                              159
Scorch, to take out,                                     183

Turkish lotion,                                          207

Wrinkles,                                                 28
Wrinkles, to remove,                                      35
Wrinkles, lotion for,                                     35
Wrinkles, wash for,                                       35
Wash for scald heads,                                     65
Whiten the skin, to,                                      65
Warts,                                                    51
Waterproof boots, to prepare,                            168
Worm elixir,                                             201
Wonderful starch enamel,                                 203




                          TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES


Obvious typographical errors have been fixed. See below for the
detailed list.


page  11—typo fixed: changed 'Decalcomanie' to 'Decalcomania'
page  14—typo fixed: changed 'Feuchwanger's' to 'Feuchtwanger's'
page  15—typo fixed: changed 'Montey' to 'Montez'
page  27—typo fixed: changed 'expoliation' to 'exfoliation'
page  31—typo fixed: changed 'pitachia' to 'pistachia'
page  32—typo fixed: changed 'skum' to 'scum'
page  39—typo fixed: changed 'domimonde' to 'demimonde'
page  43—typo fixed: changed 'opreation' to 'operation'
page  44—typo fixed: changed 'Teuchwanger's' to 'Feuchtwanger's'
page  45—typo fixed: changed 'Talk' to 'Take'
page  51—typo fixed: changed 'particulary' to 'particularly'
page  59—typo fixed: changed 'strengh' to 'strength'
page  72—typo fixed: changed 'magnitized' to 'magnetized'
page  72—typo fixed: changed 'through' to 'though'
page  90—typo fixed: changed 'bady' to 'baby'
page  93—typo fixed: changed 'elevaton' to 'elevation'
page 101—typo fixed: changed 'eighteeth' to 'eighteenth'
page 102—typo fixed: changed 'probabilty' to 'probability'
page 106—typo fixed: changed 'Carpentar' to 'Carpenter'
page 122—typo fixed: changed 'preceptible' to 'perceptible'
page 128—typo fixed: changed 'increase' to 'increases'
page 153—typo fixed: changed 'rhubard' to 'rhubarb'
page 155—typo fixed: changed 'corbonate' to 'carbonate'
page 191—typo fixed: changed 'tupentine' to 'turpentine'
page 202—typo fixed: changed 'diagreeable' to 'disagreeable'
page 206—typo fixed: changed 'flower' to 'flour'





End of Project Gutenberg's The Ladies Book of Useful Information, by Anonymous