What to eat, how to serve it

The advantages of this heavy glass are seen less in the dishes, large and small, than in the goblets or tumblers that are in daily use. Here the havoc is dreadful when the glass is of the egg-shell species. Cheap though it often is, it does not pay to purchase it when its destruction is merely a question of a few days or weeks. EVEN at the best, securing a provision of table linen is bound to be a heavy expense. Whatever economies the housekeeper may practise by purchasing Japanese or stout English porcelain, and pressed glass, she will never find that it pays to buy cheap damask. It does not look well even at the first, and it is worse after each washing. No matter how handsome may be the china, silver, and glass put upon it, a sleazy damask will give a cheap appearance to the whole table. On the other hand, really good linen pays by its wearing qualities for the original outlay. If it is not allowed to become so dirty before it is washed that hard rubbing is required to make it clean, it will last for years. The first tiny breaks must be carefully watched for and repaired at once. By such precautions even a cloth which is in daily service may be made to last several years. Above all, no washing-soda, no bleaching preparation of any kind, must ever be used upon it. It may whiten the linen at first, but the small holes with which the damask will soon be riddled will tell more plainly than words the harm the fabric has sustained from the alkali. Should the linen become yellow, it may be whitened by being laid on the grass in the dew or rain first, and afterwards in the sunshine. Linen should never be put away damp, as it is almost certain to mildew. These spots may sometimes be removed or lessened by boiling the stained linen in buttermilk, or by the use of Javelle water, but it is a difficult and doubtful task. A young housekeeper does not need a large supply of table linen at the beginning of her career. Of course it is very delightful to her to feel that her sideboard drawers are so thoroughly stocked that they will not need to be replenished for years to come; and if she has had a long engagement in which to make her preparations, or if she has followed the wise old-fashioned custom of beginning a linen chest while yet a young girl, she may be able to rejoice in a generous assortment of table-cloths, napkins, and doilies. Or possibly some kindly relative or friend has given her a check to be expended in this fashion ; or she may have a wealthy father whose liberality relieves -her from the necessity of economizing in this direction. Taking it for granted, however, that every dollar counts, the young wife must consider seriously just what she will need. If she expects to entertain a good deal of company, she will have to lay in a large supply of linen. But if she intends to live in comparative quiet, not giving many luncheons or dinner parties, even although always ready to receive her own or her husband's friends, she will find that she can manage comfortably without a large quantity of napery. In a family where there are few children, and where ordinary care is observed, it is quite practicable, barring accidents, to get along easily with but one white table-cloth a week.