Beds and Bedding should all be taken down and out, one at a time.
Mattresses should be at least thoroughly beaten, sunned and aired. All
unpainted parts of bedsteads should be washed with strong soap-suds,
then given a thorough washing with boiling hot salt and water; or
alum water is still better. A small paint brush is an excellent thing
with which to apply the brine to the slats and corners of bedsteads and
spring beds. The latter should be well brushed out, and if upholstered
they should be turned over and dusted thoroughly with a dampened
cloth. If there is a hint of the horrible bug that infests so many of
the rented houses, take an ounce of corrosive sublimate to a quart of
alcohol. A small can (such as are used on sewing machines', is the
best thing for the purpose, but every part of the wood and floor must
be dry. Or this : Pour boiling alum water into the joints and crevices
and it is instant death. Wash the bedsteads and sponge the mattresses
with it. Then scatter pulverized borax in all the crevices and corners,
and not an insect will be seen or felt. Ammonia is also good and kills
the eggs as well as insects. All painted furniture should be washed in
suds, not too hot.
When Mattresses and Feather Beds are soiled, mix equal quantities
of soft soap and pulverized wheat starch into a soft paste and rub it
thoroughly into the spot. Let it dry in the sun ; then scrape off the
paste and wash it off with a sponge. If it does not look clean when
it is dry, apply it again. If feather beds have been in use some years
without being renovated, put them on the grass when the rain pours
heavily, and let them become thoroughly wetted. Then turn on the
other side and let the ticking have a good soaking. When the sun
shines brightly it will dry quickly. Let it lie out several days, bringing
it in at night to keep it from the dews. When perfectly dry, hang it on
a strong line and beat it as you would a carpet until all the dust is out
of it, and you will have a clean, sweet bed, as well repaired as if the
feathers had been run through a machine with a steaming apparatus
attached. If the hair mattresses are lumpy, rip them open, take out
the hair and pull them apart thoroughly.
After a Carpet has been well beaten and the floor perfectly dry, it can
be nailed down tightly, and then the soiled portions can be cleaned with
two quarts of cold water with a bullock's gall dissolved in it✪ Carpet Cleaning. Put on
SPRING HOUSE-CLEANING. 199
with a soft brush and wipe dry with a clean cloth. Potter's clay mixed
as a paste (thick) with water and spread on with a knife, wet, will clean
them nicely. Cover over with several thicknesses of heavy brown
paper, leaving it for a day or two; then brush off. If not entirely
removed, apply again. It never fails when properly used. If spots of
grease are upon them, saturate the spot with spirits of turpentine and
let it remain several hours ; then rub it between the hands. It will
crumble away without injuring the color or texture. When a color has
been destroyed by acid (unless some shade of red), ammonia will neu-
tralize the acid, and chloroform will restore the original color. A solu-
tion of oxalic acid crystals, one part by measure to eight of soft water,
will entirely remove dry ink stains. The goods must be afterwards
thoroughly washed, as the acid destroys the cloth.
Page 176 · 1 recipe record on this page
Presented as published in 1886. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
Beds and Bedding should all be taken down and out, one at a time. Mattresses should be at least thoroughly beaten, sunned and aired. All unpainted parts of bedsteads should be washed with strong soap-suds, then given a thorough washing with boiling hot salt and water; or alum water is still better. A small paint brush is an excellent thing with which to apply the brine to the slats and corners of bedsteads and spring beds. The latter should be well brushed out, and if upholstered they should be turned over and dusted thoroughly with a dampened cloth. If there is a hint of the horrible bug that infests so many of the rented houses, take an ounce of corrosive sublimate to a quart of alcohol. A small can (such as are used on sewing machines'), is the best thing for the purpose, but every part of the wood and floor must be dry. Or this : Pour boiling alum water into the joints and crevices and it is instant death. Wash the bedsteads and sponge the mattresses with it. Then scatter pulverized borax in all the crevices and corners, and not an insect will be seen or felt. Ammonia is also good and kills the eggs as well as insects. All painted furniture should be washed in suds, not too hot.
When Mattresses and Feather Beds are soiled, mix equal quantities of soft soap and pulverized wheat starch into a soft paste and rub it thoroughly into the spot. Let it dry in the sun ; then scrape off the paste and wash it off with a sponge. If it does not look clean when it is dry, apply it again. If feather beds have been in use some years without being renovated, put them on the grass when the rain pours heavily, and let them become thoroughly wetted. Then turn on the other side and let the ticking have a good soaking. When the sun shines brightly it will dry quickly. Let it lie out several days, bringing it in at night to keep it from the dews. When perfectly dry, hang it on a strong line and beat it as you would a carpet until all the dust is out of it, and you will have a clean, sweet bed, as well repaired as if the feathers had been run through a machine with a steaming apparatus attached. If the hair mattresses are lumpy, rip them open, take out the hair and pull them apart thoroughly.
After a Carpet has been well beaten and the floor perfectly dry, it can be nailed down tightly, and then the soiled portions can be cleaned with two quarts of cold water with a bullock's gall dissolved in it. Put on
with a soft brush and wipe dry with a clean cloth. Potter's clay mixed as a paste (thick) with water and spread on with a knife, wet, will clean them nicely. Cover over with several thicknesses of heavy brown paper, leaving it for a day or two; then brush off. If not entirely removed, apply again. It never fails when properly used. If spots of grease are upon them, saturate the spot with spirits of turpentine and let it remain several hours ; then rub it between the hands. It will crumble away without injuring the color or texture. When a color has been destroyed by acid (unless some shade of red), ammonia will neutralize the acid, and chloroform will restore the original color. A solution of oxalic acid crystals, one part by measure to eight of soft water, will entirely remove dry ink stains. The goods must be afterwards thoroughly washed, as the acid destroys the cloth.
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Carpet Cleaning