HOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION
Inventions and Appliances
Health and Sanitation
NEW JULKINa MACHINE.
ANEW milking machine, significant
ly eallcd "Manes" (tha hand),
hag recently been successfully
tried ont in Sweden and is now in use
on several dairy farms. As may be
seen in the illustration, the apparatus
really does bear some resemblance to
hand, and the maehine, working on
the pressure principle, does it work in
ill
similar manner to hand milking. The
four fingers are operated by gears and
earns which give them in pairs an alter
nating motion, forward and back, and
they are also jointed to givo them an
up-and-down motion to exert pressure
on the odder, regulated by adjustable
springs. The apparatus is fastened to
the cow by two belts, and power is
transmitted to it by a flexible ' shaft
-through a friction dink, driven by a
line shaft along the stalls.
MOTORCYCLE SHIELD.
THE combination wind shield and
mud guard for motorcyclists is a
recent invention which promises to
be popular with cyclists who travel in
all kinds of weather, and mail carriers,
delivery mon, etc, who want to go
bout regardless of rain or snow. The
shield, which is in the shape of a "V,"
is adjustable, making it possible to
get the maximum amount of use from
the device regardless of which way the
wind is blowing. At the same time it
protects the leg of the driver from
weather both overhead and under tire,
keeping off rain and mud splashes.
USB CEMENT IN SETTING POSTS.
WOODEN POSTS of any kind, if set
in tho ordinary way, are inclined
to work loose, and sometimes be
gin to rot in a short time. Both these
troubles can be avoided if cement is
wed in their setting.
Make tho bole as for an ordinary
letting, but instead of filling in with
the dirt, pour soft cement around the
post until the bole iB full. This makes
a firmer setting for the post, and is
protection against rotting.
CAMP STOVES.
THE CAMP stoves illustrated are
different forms of the same idea.
Both can bo takon apart and laid
flat for packing. Iron rods, J inch in
diameter, aro used for the legs. They
are sharpened at the lower end so that
they may be easily driven" into the
ground. The rods of the one shown in
the first illustration are bent in the
form of a hook at tho upper end, and
two pieces of light tire iron, with holes
Camp-Store Top, Either Solid or
Pierced, Suported on Bods at the
Corner
in either end, are hung on these hooks.
Across these supports are laid other
pieces of tho tire iron. In the other
stove, the rods have a large head and
are slipped through holes in the four
corners of the pieee of heavy sheet
iron used for the top. A cotter is
lipped through a hole in each rod just
below the top, to hold the latter in
place.
THE SEESAW TRICK.
THIS is not exactly a new diseovery,
but there aro many who have
never made the interesting experi
ment Take two heated pins and stick
them into the center of a eandle at
right angles to the wick, which should
be left exposed at both ends. Then reBt
tho pins on the edges of two glasses
and trim the candle to balanco.
Light tho wicks Light the wicks,
and beyond tho flames at each end by
means of a piece of wire fasten two
little figures with their joints hinged.
Now as the candle begins to melt, a
dTop of grease will fall from one end,
and that end of the candto will rise a
little above the other. Then a drop will
fall from the opposite end and a gentle
oscillation will begin, which gradually
increases in speed until the little
figures at the end will perform the
most surprising antics at their game of
seesaw.
NEW WAT TO KING CHIMES.
THE GREAT BELLS in the church
towers are now being rung by elec
tricity, a device having been in
vented by means of which the press
ing of a button in the sacristy Btarts
the chimes. The bells continue to ling
until stopped by the pressure of a sec
ond button.
For more than two years, says a
New York writer, Mr. Robischung, the
inventor of the device, has been work
ing on the model of this invention.
The idea was first suggested by the
rector of the Holy Redeemer Church,
who is regarded as an expert in applied
science.
The five bells weigh almost six tons,
The inventor first tried the experiment
of ringing a boll weighing from 20 to
30 pounds.
A GREEN-CORN HOLDER.
NEAT and attractive green-corn
holders for table use can be made
of small-sized glass drawer knobs,
having a bolt 1 inch in length. The
bolt head is cut off with a hacksaw,
and its body is filed,, to make four
sides running to a taper, leaving
The Glass Knobs Make a Clean and
Sanitary Holder for the Ear of Corn.
enough threads to secure it in tho knob.
Tho threads are smeared with white
lead, then it is screwed into tbo knob
and sufficient time allowed for the
lead to set before using it.
A pair of knobs are required for
each ear of corn served. The square
bolt end will hold tho ear securely
while the kernels are eaten from the
cob.
TO REMOVE MOULD.
WTTEN DAMPNESS in a "cellar or
basement becomes objectionable it
may be removed by anhydrous
calcium chloride. One pound of the salt
is sufficient for a large cellar. It may
be placed in old tin cans. Tho mois
ture absorbed from the air collects in
the cans. This, however, is not poured
away, but is evaporated on a strong
fire, and may be UBed again.
Unslackcd lime it best suited to ex
terminate mould). It is blown, in the
shape of a fine powder, into the crev
ices and on tho walls, which must be
damp.
"RATTLE" TO FOOL SOLDIERS.
A MACHINE has been invented for
imitating the noise of an oero
plane engine, with the object of
alarming hostile troops. The Servian
and Montenegrin soldiers used a rattle
during the Balkan war to imitate ma
ehine gun fire.
Mildew on articles of clothing may
bo removed by soaking the artiees in
buttermilk. j
STOREROOM IN THE HOME.
THE 8TOREROOM for food may be
the tiny eloset of the flat dweller
in a city or tho eeilar of the vil
lage or farm house. In the last ease
it often has a commercial ae won as
a household value, since it keeps fruits
and vegetables in good condition un
til marketed, as well as until they are
needed for the home table; but in any
case, it should be dry, clean and regu
larly aired. It may be well to de
scribe a eeilar that is badly built and
carelessly kept, in order to see what
should be exactly opposite conditions.
A Disease-Breeding Cellar.
Such a cellar may be dug in wet
ground, without sufficient drainage of
the subsoil; it may even be in contact
with open sewers or drains which have
been proved in certain eases to eon
tain specific organisms capable of pro
ducing disease. In many eases the cel
lar built against an earth wall is not
protected from dampness by a layer
of moisture-proof eement, and the wa
ter may Btand in drops on its surface.
Again,' it may be dug to such an ex
tent below the surface of the ground
that the windows are wholly inade
quate for lighting and ventilation.
It may have an earthen floor, or one
of badly matched boards impossible to
keep clean. It will probably have a
musty odor, proof positive that mold
plants are there and ready to attack
any fruit and vegetables stored on
its shelves or in its dirty bins. If, in
addition to this faultv construction, the
cellar is badly kept, bits of rotting
frnit and vegetables being left about,
not only will these conditions favor the
spoiling of food, bnt they may prove
injurious to the health of the family
living abovo stairs.
A Cellar for Health.
A cellar that meets modern require
ments must be dug in ground that is
woll-drained, either naturally or by
artificial means. It must be remem
bered that a cellar is not, first of all,
storeroom. It is an essential part
of a well-planned house, especially
necessary in our northern states, in
helping to keep an equable -tempera
ture, and if its walls and floors are
what they should be it prevents damp
ness and ground air from rising into
the house.
If the house is set close to the
ground the cellar windows must be
wide enough to compensate for their
lack of height, and must be set oppo
site each other in order to insure good
draft. A method that is sometimes
used is to dig out a space in front of a
window, making a little area which,
laid in cither briek or stone, may be
whitewashed and reflect light into the
cellar; it also allows of sinking the
cellar windows deeper and obtaining
better ventilation.
Cement and Whitewash Necessary.
The walls and floors of the cellar
should be constructed of cement to
keep out moisture, and the walls and
ceilings should be whitewashed twice a
year. Even if a eeilar is kept very
clean, tho earthy smell of vegetables
that arises from it when it is well
stocked is not agreeable another rea
son for good ventilation and frequent
airing. A separate room may be par
titioned off from the eeilar in one
corner for storage purposes.
This can then be kept darker than
one would wish to keep the rest of the
cellar. Snch a room must, of course,
be aired now and then. In this storage
room should be placed a movable safe
with wire netting sides and a swinging
shelf; and broad shelves should be
built high enough so that barrels may
be stored under them.
Tiles for Floor and Walls.
The writer once saw in Holland a
cellar that met every possible require
ment of hygiene. The floors and side
walls were of closely matehed tiles laid
in cement, making it as tight as a dish
and as easily cleaned. It was not large,
but its wall space was so utilized that
it rurnisbed ample storage facilities for
a large restaurant.
HEALTH OF THE FARM.
M
EDICAL MEN tell us that the farm
is the healthiest abode of man.
They base their assertions ehieflv
on the pore air and exeroise that char-
eterize the outdoor rural life, yet
through ignorance or indifference the
home and life on the farm may be quite
the opposite of healthful.
As a rule, little or no attention is
given to the ventilation of the home.
The foul air, stagnant with every va
riety of disease germ, is breathed and
rebreathed, and if by chance a window
remains open, it is hastily closed for
fear the inmates may "catch cold."
This is especially true during the winter
season. In summer the humidity of the
atmosphere will readily cause doors and
windows to remain wide open. A good
ventilating system is very essential to
the health of the farmer and his family,
especially the wife and daughters, who
are deprived of the healthful outdoor
work of the men and boys. If there is
a fireplace in the home, it should not
be dosed, as tho foul air of the room
will escape through this opening. Pro
vision should also be made for the en
trance of fresh air. The bedroom should
receive special attention in ventilation.
Another, and a very great enemy of
health, is personal uncleanliness. The
mistaken idea exists among some farm
en that neatness and cleanliness give
them too much of a " city air. There
are persons living today who have not
taken a bath since they discarded the
garments of infancy. The face and
hands of this class are the only parts
of the body that are suffered to come
in contact with soap and water, and the
face at least only on rare occasions.
Soiled clothes are worn without change
till nothing but the patient skill and
needle of the mother or wife will save
them from the ragman's cart.
If there is anyone that needs a bath
at least once a day, and especially in
summer (and we all do), it is the farm,
er. He works out in the hot sun all
day, perspires freely, and the duet of
the fields clings to his "moist clothes;
but it does not stop there; it penetrates
to the skin and ciogs up the millions of
tiny pores of the body, causing dis
eases. Some people cannot afford an
elaborate system of bath fixtures, but
an ordinary hand-basin will fill the re
quirements of a bath tub if necessary.
"Cleanliness is next to Godliness."
It is strange that a man upon whom
all the nation depends for its food
supply Bhould consent to "stuff" hie
stomach with-eueb. indigestiblo matter
as somo farmers eat. Probably the most
conspicuous of this class are fried ham,
fried potatoes and eggs prepared in like
manner. These form very appetizing
dishes, and aro all right in their way
as long as they don't find an egress
into the stomach. Why not substitute
fruit, vegetables and the like. Pota
toes and eggs, when properly prepared,
are very nourishing, but frying render
food unwholesome and is even loss eco
nomical than boiling or Btewing. Why
not keep some of the milk that is Bent
to the creamery. It can also be con
verted into butter and cheese. If the
food we take into our bodies is un-
hcalthful, can we expect to be healthy!
Of exercise, little need be said for
most farmers have more than necessary.
A careful observance of the laws of
nature will decrease the doctor bill, pro
vide us with health and happiness and
eventually may serve to plant within
the hearts of our boys and girls a great
er love for the healthful life of the
farm as compared to that of the city.
TAN AN EVIDENCE OF HEALTH.
THE TANNED faco is an indication
of health. If one has failed to
acquire this brown after having
spent his vacation in the open air, ex
posed to the sun and wind, then there
is something wrong with the health.
The dark pigmentation in the skin is
the result of the sun burning the
hemoglobin, or red blood stuff, out of
the tissue units and depositing them in
the upper layers of the skin. The
depth of brown that may be acquired
is the measure of ono's vitality, and
a failure to acquire a good color is
proof that one should look to his
health. During the present summer va
cation season, just keep this in mind,
and note what the indox tells re
garding your physical condition.
To freshen lemons which have be
come hardened, soak them for a short
time in hot water.