Buckeye cookery

Hulled Corn.—This old-fashioned luxury is really a delicious dish when properly prepared. Take a six-quart pail full of ashes (hard wood ashes, if possible, as they are stronger); put them into an iron kettle with three gallons of water; let them boil about five minutes, then set off from the fire, and turn in a pint of cold water to settle it. The water should then feel a little slippery. Turn off the lye and strain; put it into an iron kettle, and put in six quarts of shelled corn; put it over a brisk fire, and let it boil half an hour, skimming and stirring frequently (the outside skin of the kernels will then slip off); strain off the lye, and rinse thoroughly in several clear waters. When the lye is thus weakened, turn the corn into a large dish-pan, and turn in water enough to cover it; then rub thoroughly with the hands, till the black chits come off; rinse and strain off till the water looks clear; then put back into a clean kettle, with water enough to cover it, and let it boil; then turn off water, put on again, and parboil three or four times (it will swell to about double the first quantity); the last time boil till quite soft; it may be necessary to add water occasionally; stir often, so as not to burn at the bottom. of the kettle; when quite soft, -put in two large table-spoons of salt, and stir well; to be eaten with milk, or butter and sugar. It is a wholesome dish, and although there is trouble in preparing it, yet it is good enough to pay for the labor and trouble. It is good either hot or cold, and was considered by our grandparents to be one of the greatest luxuries of the table. Wheat hulled in the same way is considered a great delicacy, and a very beneficial diet for invalids, but is not so staple or nutritious as Indian corn. Smaller quantities can be prepared by using less lye and corn. ; Water.—Pure water is as necessary to health as pure air. Rain-water, — filtered to remove any foreign matters caught from the roof or in the smoky atmosphere, is the purest attainable. It isa debatable question whether the mineral matters held in solution in hard water are injurious to health, but vegetable or animal matters are agreed by all chemists to be injurious, and, in many cases, rank poisons, breeding fatal fevers, and other violent diseases. Water that is at all doubtful, should be boiled before drinking, as the vegetable and animal matters are thus destroyed, and the mineral deposited on the bottom of the kettle. Wells, even in the country, are very doubtful sources from which to procure a supply of pure water. In cities the sources of well-supply are almost invariably poisoned by the numerous cesspools, vaults and drains that filter through the earth until they reach the underground streams of water, poisoning them as surely as they would a surface stream or pond. When itis remembered that all water in wells must come . first from the surface, and that it dissolves all sorts of filth as it passe into the earth, carrying a good deal with it, particularly if the soil is sandy and porous, it will be readily understood that wells are apt to furnish impure water. People who throw dirty water or other slops near a well, poison the water as surely as if they scattered arsenic. Wells should be covered to exclude all leaves and vegetable matter. The ground should slope away from the well so as to carry away surface water, and it should be located as far as possible from barns and out-buildings where filth accumulates. There are various good filters in the market, but one may be easily and cheaply made as follows: Take a large flower pot, and insert a sponge in the hole in the bottom, fill the pot with alternate layers of sand, charcoal, and small pebbles. The flower pot thus filled up may then be placed on a jar or other convenient vessel, into which the water can be received as it filters through.