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it
over a piece of burning sulphur; then wash thoroughly, or else the spots
may reappear.

To Remove Oil Stains.--Take three ounces of spirits of turpentine and
one ounce of essence of lemon, mix well, and apply it as you would any
other scouring drops. It will take out all the grease.

Iron Stains may be removed by the salt of lemons. Many stains may be
removed by dipping the linen in some buttermilk, and then drying it in a
hot sun; wash it in cold water; repeat this three or four times.

To Remove Oil Stains from Wood.--Mix together fuller's earth and soap
lees, and rub it into the boards. Let it dry and then scour it off with
some strong soft soap and sand, or use lees to scour it with. It should
be put on hot, which may easily be done by heating the lees.

To Remove Tea Stains.--Mix thoroughly soft soap and salt--say a
tablespoonful of salt to a teacupful of soap, rub on the spots, and
spread the cloth on the grass where the sun will shine on it. Let it lie
two or three days, then wash. If the spots are wet occasionally while
lying on the grass, it will hasten the bleaching.

To Remove Stains from Muslin.--If you have stained your muslin or
gingham dress, or similar articles, with berries, before wetting with
anything else, pour boiling water through the stains and they will
disappear. Before fruit juice dries it can often be removed by cold
water, using a sponge and towel if necessary.

To Remove Acid Stains.--Stains caused by acids may be removed by tying
some pearlash up in the stained part; scrape some soap in cold, soft
water, and boil the linen until the stain is gone.

To Disinfect Sinks and Drains.--Copperas dissolved in water, one-fourth
of a pound to a gallon, and poured into a sink and water drain
occasionally, will keep such places sweet and wholesome. A little
chloride of lime, say half a pound to a gallon of water, will have the
same effect, and either of these costs but a trifle.

A preparation may be made at home which will answer about as well as the
chloride of lime. Dissolve a bushel of salt in a barrel of water, and
with the salt water slake a barrel of lime, which should be made wet
enough to form a thin paste or wash.

To Disinfect a Cellar.--A damp, musty cellar may be sweetened by
sprinkling upon the floor pulverized copperas, chloride of lime, or even
common lime. The most effective means I have ever used to disinfect
decaying vegetable matter is chloride of lime in solution. One pound may
be dissolved in two gallons of water. Plaster of Paris has also been
found an excellent absorbent of noxious odors. If used one part with
three parts of charcoal, it will be found still better.

How to Thaw Out a Water Pipe.--Water pipes usually freeze up when
exposed, for inside the walls, where they cannot be reached, they are or
should be packed to prevent freezing. To thaw out a frozen pipe, bundle
a newspaper into a torch, light it, and pass it along the pipe slowly.
The ice will yield to this much quicker than to hot water or wrappings
or hot cloths, as is the common practice.

To Prevent Mold.--A small quantity of carbolic acid added to paste,
mucilage and ink, will prevent mold. An ounce of the acid to a gallon of
whitewash will keep cellars and dairies from the disagreeable odor which
often taints milk and meat kept in such places.

Thawing Frozen Gas Pipe.--Mr. F. H. Shelton says: "I took off from over
the pipe, some four or five inches, just a crust of earth, and then put
a couple of bushels of lime in the space, poured water over it, and
slaked it, and then put canvas over that, and rocks on the canvas, so as
to keep the wind from getting underneath. Next morning, on returning
there, I found that the frost had been drawn out from the ground for
nearly three feet. You can appreciate what an advantage that was, for
picking through frozen ground, with the thermometer below zero, is no
joke. Since then we have tried it several times. It is an excellent plan
if you have time enough to let the time work. In the daytime you cannot
afford to waste the time, but if you have a spare night in which to
work, it is worth while to try it."

How to Test a Thermometer.--The common thermometer in a japanned iron
case is usually inaccurate. To test the thermometer, bring water

The Handy Cyclopedia of Things Worth Knowing / A Manual of Ready Reference