Six little cooks

" I made no personal remarks, Gracie; one bookworm is very much like another, as far as my observation goes. But, as I was saying, I took my book, which happened to be a delightful new story, (and story-books were very scarce with me in those days), and was soon absorbed in it I don't know how long I read, but at last I thought of my tomatoes, and with the thought, or perhaps suggesting it, came a most powerful odor from the kitchen, which I knew betokened no good. Then I ran in fast enough, and there was my great boiler full of tomatoes—" "Burnt, Aunt Jane?" said Rose. "The lower layer burned almost to a crisp, and the whole mass so penetrated through and through with the offensive taste, that there was nothing to be done but lift off the boiler and turn the whole contents into the swillpail! You may imagine the misery and mortification of that moment. My mother arrived on the scene at the same time, and I expected the reproaches I deserved ; but she, remembering my patient toil through the early part of the day, and my good intentions, kindly tried to laugh it off, knowing that the consciousness of my failure would be punishment enough. * I have heard of " cooking by the book," said she, * but I never saw it done exactly in that way before.' " We had no tomato catsup that year." "Oh, Aunt Jane, that was too bad!" exclaimed the chorus. " Do you think we shall ever do anything like that?" " Nothing quite so bad, I hope, but I wouldn't advise you ever to take a very interesting book into the kitchen with you. Time flies so fast when we are reading, that it isn't safe to trust ourselves." " What am I going to make first, Mrs. King? " inquired Edith. "And I, and I?" chimed in several other voices. " I will give you some recipes to write down in your book," said Aunt Jane, " and then we can choose from among them. And as I don't think seven of us at once would be very welcome in the kitchen, I propose that we should divide the club into two parts, only half of them to work at one time." Chorus of groans, " Oh, that won't be half so nice!" " I think it will be nicer," said Mrs. King. " If there are so many of us we shall only get in each other's way, and then think of the quantity of dishes we should use I" So it was settled that Rose, Edith and Grace should be the performers for the next afternoon, and in order that all might be quite ready, Mrs. King gave them the following recipes, which they copied into their books: No. 4 — K. K.'s WINE JELLY. Dissolve one ounce of Cox's sparkling gelatine in a pint of cold water; then pour over it a quart of boiling water; add the grated rind of one lemon and the juice of three, half a pint of Sherry wine, a pinch of ground cinnamon, and sugar to taste. One-and-a-half pounds (or pints) of sugar will be enough for most palates. . 5 — CHOCOLATE CAKE. One cup butter, two of sugar, three and a half of flour, one scant cup sweet milk, five eggs, omitting two whites, one teaspoonful cream tartar, one-half do. soda, one do. extract vanilla.