When all the little things are out of the way and there is
no more dust to fall on the carpet you are ready to sweep.
Do not use wet tea leaves on the carpet, for they stain the
light places and one could never have enough of them ; wet
meal makes more hard work; a dampened broom answers
for a small rug, but for a large rug or carpet there is nothing
better than wet newspaper. But it should not be torn into
tiny pieces, as is the usual custom. Tear several papers in
half sheets, lay them in water and crumple just enough to
squeeze out the water until it no longer drips. Then open
the sheets and lay them lightly along the end where the sweep-
ing is to begin, a few inches from the edge. Do not lay them
flat but so they will stand up slightly, making a wall of
damp paper that covers a strip at least a foot wide and against
which the dust will lodge as you sweep. Begin at one end
and sweep with a short, bearing-down, hard stroke ; then
turn and in going back sweep the paper along with the dust.
The paper will catch and hold nearly all of it, and if the
paper is covered thickly, put down a fresh layer. With a
large rug, sweep clear to the end the way of the wool, but
with a carpet sweep from the sides to the middle, laying the
wet paper round all the edges when beginning.
Collect the sweepings and look for any straggling bits of
fluff; open the windows, and when the dust is settled, go
round again with a fresh duster.
Damp the cloth slightly, except for highly polished surfaces,
and change to a clean cloth when the first is grimy. Several
cloths are required to do an entire room.
Shaking the duster removes the fluff but not the grime,
and should not be done anywhere. If shaken out of the
window the chances are that more dust blows back than
goes out. Washing is the only way to remove it from the
cloth.
Use old soft silk, muslin, or any material that will not
shed lint. It is seldom necessary to buy a duster, for there
should be enough suitable material in the house. Dusters
10 SCHOOL KITCHEN TEXTBOOK
of mercerized cotton flannel are suitable if you have to buy,
for they are easily washed.
Wash the hands frequently during the work, — always be-
fore handling books. Put things back into their places and
give a finishing touch wherever needed.
CHAPTER III
Section I
The Care of Bedrooms
If possible have the bed placed where all parts may be
reached easily without moving the bedstead ; but if it must
be in a corner, draw it away from the wall at night.
Whether the mattress shall be of the best long curled-hair,
or short hair, or cotton or excelsior with a thin layer of hair,
will depend upon the purse. But whichever kind you have,
the part that depends upon you is to keep the ticking clean.
If possible a mattress should be made so that it may be
handled easily, especially if young girls are to do the bed-
making.
A mattress made in one part is too heavy even for a strong
woman to lift or turn over. When made in two parts, one
square and one narrow, the square part is often too large to
handle alone and the narrow part gets no wear.
Experience with mattresses made in three parts of equal
width, for double-beds and for couches, has shown that the
labor of bed-making is greatly lessened and that each part of
the mattress gets an equal amount of wear.
Page 7
Presented as published in 1915. 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
When all the little things are out of the way and there is no more dust to fall on the carpet you are ready to sweep. Do not use wet tea leaves on the carpet, for they stain the light places and one could never have enough of them ; wet meal makes more hard work; a dampened broom answers for a small rug, but for a large rug or carpet there is nothing better than wet newspaper. But it should not be torn into tiny pieces, as is the usual custom. Tear several papers in half sheets, lay them in water and crumple just enough to squeeze out the water until it no longer drips. Then open the sheets and lay them lightly along the end where the sweeping is to begin, a few inches from the edge. Do not lay them flat but so they will stand up slightly, making a wall of damp paper that covers a strip at least a foot wide and against which the dust will lodge as you sweep. Begin at one end and sweep with a short, bearing-down, hard stroke ; then turn and in going back sweep the paper along with the dust. The paper will catch and hold nearly all of it, and if the paper is covered thickly, put down a fresh layer. With a large rug, sweep clear to the end the way of the wool, but with a carpet sweep from the sides to the middle, laying the wet paper round all the edges when beginning.
Collect the sweepings and look for any straggling bits of fluff; open the windows, and when the dust is settled, go round again with a fresh duster.
Damp the cloth slightly, except for highly polished surfaces, and change to a clean cloth when the first is grimy. Several cloths are required to do an entire room.
Shaking the duster removes the fluff but not the grime, and should not be done anywhere. If shaken out of the window the chances are that more dust blows back than goes out. Washing is the only way to remove it from the cloth.
Use old soft silk, muslin, or any material that will not shed lint. It is seldom necessary to buy a duster, for there should be enough suitable material in the house. Dusters
of mercerized cotton flannel are suitable if you have to buy, for they are easily washed.
Wash the hands frequently during the work, — always before handling books. Put things back into their places and give a finishing touch wherever needed.
CHAPTER III
Section I
The Care of Bedrooms
If possible have the bed placed where all parts may be reached easily without moving the bedstead ; but if it must be in a corner, draw it away from the wall at night.
Whether the mattress shall be of the best long curled-hair, or short hair, or cotton or excelsior with a thin layer of hair, will depend upon the purse. But whichever kind you have, the part that depends upon you is to keep the ticking clean.
If possible a mattress should be made so that it may be handled easily, especially if young girls are to do the bedmaking.
A mattress made in one part is too heavy even for a strong woman to lift or turn over. When made in two parts, one square and one narrow, the square part is often too large to handle alone and the narrow part gets no wear.
Experience with mattresses made in three parts of equal width, for double-beds and for couches, has shown that the labor of bed-making is greatly lessened and that each part of the mattress gets an equal amount of wear.