PREFACE. (continued 8)

The House Steward, by the suavity of his manners, and equable deportment, has it in his power to sustain the reputation of his master in high estimation, and to make his whole household comfortable and happy.

For further hints respecting servants we refer to the Address to the Mistresses of Families, in the dedication, p. 10, 11, and 12; and to those given to the Housekeeper, p. 52, 53, and 54.

Ability to provide for the family in the best manner, is another qualification indispensably necessary in the House Steward. He is expected to be a competent judge of the nature and qualities of provisions, their comparative values, the best seasons for purchasing the several articles, and the cheapest and most economical markets or places to attend. The best way to go to market is with ready money; or to deal with tradesmen of probity, and to settle their accounts early and at regular and stated periods, but never to disappoint them, at the expected times, which makes his custom nearly equivalent to cash, and he will consequently be served with the best articles and on the lowest terms. A conscientious and honest discharge of his duty in this respect, will tend greatly to the satisfaction of his employers, and redound to his own credit. Other hints on the subject will be found under the head Housekeeper, p. 54 and 55; and directions for marketing, which may afford some hints, even to an expert and an adroit practitioner, may be found p. 75 to 88.

The abilities of the House Steward, as an accountant, are not required to be very considerable. He is merely to keep an account of monies received by him, on one page, and of monies paid or disbursed by him, on the opposite page; and these two pages being cast up, and the amount of one side being deducted from the amount of the other, will, if the account has been correctly kept, shew at once the exact balance, belonging to his employer, remaining in his hands. It will be the business of the housekeeper to examine, weigh, and compare the several articles, as they are brought in, with the tickets sent with them by the respective tradesmen, and these tickets, so examined and signed, will enable the Steward to check the tradesmen’s bills when brought in, previously to their being paid. An upright and trust-worthy Steward will discharge this part of his duty, as well as every other, with zeal, fidelity, impartiality, and integrity; bearing for ever on his mind this pleasing truth, that, “every man’s station is honourable or otherwise, as his own conduct makes it.”

Salary from 100l. to 250l. and upwards.

THE STEWARD’S ROOM BOY.

There is seldom a lad of this description kept, except in families where there is a house steward, or comptroller of the household, when the servant is appointed to attend on him, run on errands, carry messages, &c. He waits at table, or makes himself otherwise useful in the steward’s-room; trims the lamps that are in use below stairs, and cleans the servants’ boots and shoes. Wages from 8l. to 12l. per annum.

THE BUTLER.

At first rising, it is the duty of the Butler, where no valet is kept, to manage and arrange his master’s clothes, and carry them to his dressing-room, his boots and shoes being cleaned by the footman or under butler.

It is his proper business to see that the breakfast is duly set, the under butler or footman carrying up the tea urn, and the butler the eatables; he, or the under butler waiting during breakfast.[19] On taking away, he removes the tea-tray, and the under butler or footman the urn, cloth, &c.

The breakfast things being taken away, and the plate, &c. cleaned and put away under his directions, the Butler then gets his own breakfast with the housekeeper, unless the servants all breakfast together at an earlier hour.

If no valet is kept, he then attends in his master’s dressing-room, sets it in order, carries down his clothes to be brushed by the under butler or footman, and attends to every thing connected with his master’s clothes, linen, &c. or sees that what is wanted is done by others.

He now cleans himself to attend company or visitors at the door, which he is to answer, receive cards, deliver messages, &c.

At luncheon time, the cloth being laid by the under butler or footman, it is the duty of the Butler to carry in the tray, or arrange the table, and when there is company, he waits in the room assisted by the other servants.

If wine is wanted for the luncheon, it is his duty to fetch it from the cellar; and if ale, to draw or bring it up when wanted.

The keys of the wine and ale cellars are specially kept by him, and the management of the wine, the keeping the stock book, and also of ale in stock, or in brewing, are in his particular charge. This duty he generally performs in the morning before he is drest to receive company, and he then brings out such wine as is wanted for the day’s use. It is his duty to fine wine as it comes in the pipe, and to superintend the bottling, sealing it himself, and disposing it in binns so as to know its age and character. While these duties and those of brewing are in hand, he leaves the parlour and waiting duties to the under butler and footman.

Where no steward is kept, he pays all bills for wine, spirits, ale, malt, coals, and in general, all bills not in the housekeeper’s or kitchen department. Sometimes, also, he pays the other male servants.

At dinner time, the under butler or footman lays the cloth, and carries up the articles wanted, under the direction of the Butler, who gives out the necessary plate, kept by him under lock, and generally in an iron chest.

He sets and displays the dinner on the table, carrying in the first dish, waits at the side-board, hands wine round or when called for; removes every course, and sets and arranges every fresh course on the table according to his bill of fare, which is placed on the side-board for reference; and does not leave the dinner room till the dessert and wine have been placed on the table by him or under his direction.[20]

It is then his business to see that the plate, glasses, &c. are carried to the pantry, cleaned, and wiped by the under butler and footman, and the whole carefully put in their proper places.

Having taken his own dinner with the other servants out of livery, generally at one o’clock, he gets his tea while the family in the parlour are taking their wine and dessert, and in the mean time, the under butler or footman prepares the tea things for the parlour.

If the bell rings during the dessert, the Butler answers, and does the same for the remainder of the evening.

The under butler is now engaged in cleaning the plate and arranging the pantry.

The tea tray is carried up by the Butler, assisted by the footman; and in waiting at tea, the Butler hands round the cups on the tray, the footman assisting with the eatables. The Butler removes the tea-tray, and the footman the urn, &c. The footman carries in coals, but the Butler manages the candles.

When tea is made below, it is done by the housekeeper, but carried up and handed round by the Butler and footman.

If there is company, the refreshments, wine, ices, &c. are carried up by the Butler, assisted and followed by the footman.

When there is supper, the under Butler or Butler arranges the same, and it is managed like the dinner.

Slippers, dressing gown, night candles, &c. are carried up and disposed by the Butler.

After his master has gone to bed, he goes to his dressing-room, takes down such things as want cleaning or brushing, and gives them to the footman. He then looks over the plate, locks it up, sees that all the men servants are gone to bed, the doors locked, and windows fastened, and then retires to rest himself.

This business is strictly domestic, but he goes out to order things in his department, and he is sometimes employed abroad in any confidential business, to which the under servants are considered unequal.

The wages of regular Butlers, in large families, are from 50 to 80l. per annum; but in smaller families, from 30 to 50l. The perquisites, if he perform the duty of valet, are his master’s cast off clothes; and as Butler, he gets the pieces of wax candles, the second hand cards, compliments on paying tradesman’s bills, or Christmas boxes and wine for his own use. He finds his own clothes, washing, &c. and is expected to be genteel and clean in his person.

In all things connected with the establishment, he is supposed, when no steward is kept, to represent his master; and as various accounts are under his direction, he ought to be able to write a fair hand, and to be ready in the first rules of arithmetic. From this display of his duties, it will appear that his office is no sinecure; and as the good order and economy of an establishment depends much on the vigilance of the Butler, when no steward is kept, so a Butler who knows his duties, and performs them with zeal, integrity, and ability, cannot be too highly prized by judicious heads of families.

To manage foreign Wines.

The principal object to be attended to in the management of foreign wine vaults, is to keep them of a temperate heat. Care must be taken, therefore, to close up every aperture or opening, that there may be no admission given to the external air. The floor of the vault should likewise be well covered with saw-dust, which must not be suffered to get too dry and dusty, but must receive now and then an addition of new, lest, when bottling or racking wine, some of the old dust should fly into it. At most vaults, in the winter, it is necessary to have a stove or chafing-dish, to keep up a proper degree of warmth. In the summer time it will be best to keep them as cool as possible.

To Fit up a Cellar of Wines and Spirits.

Provide a good rope and tackling, to let down the casks into the vault or cellar, and a slide, ladder, or pulley for the casks to slide or roll on;

A pair of strong slings;

A pair of can hooks and a pair of crate hooks;

A block of wood to put under the pipes when topping them over in a narrow passage, or in casing them;

A small valinch to taste wine;

A crane, and a small copper pump to rack off;

Two or three gallon cans, made of wood;

A large wooden funnel;

Two or three copper funnels from a quart to a gallon each;

Two racking cocks;

Two wine bottling cocks;

A brace and various bits;

Two small tubs;

A square basket to hold the corks;

Two small tin funnels;

A small strainer;

Two cork screws;

Two or three baskets;

A wisk to beat the finings;

Three flannel or linen bags;

A strong iron screw to raise the bungs;

A pair of pliers;

Bungs, corks, and vent pegs;

Two frets or middle sized gimblets;

Some sheet lead and tacks to put on broken staves;

Brown paper to put round cocks and under the lead, when stopping leaks;

A staff with a chain at one end to rumage the wines, &c.

Shots and lead canister, or bristle brush, and two cloths to wash bottles;

Two large tubs;

Some small racks that will hold six dozen each;

A cooper’s adze;

An iron and a wooden driver to tighten hoops;

Two dozen of wooden bungs of different sizes;

A thermometer, which is to be kept in the vault, a stove or chafing-dish, to keep the heat of the vault to a known temperature;

A few dozen of delf labels;

A cup-board to hold all the tools;

A spade, two good stiff birch brooms, and a rake to level the saw-dust.

To restore pricked British Wines.

Rack the wines down to the lees into another cask, where the lees of good wines are fresh; then put a pint of strong aqua vitæ, and scrape half a pound of yellow bees-wax into it, which by heating the spirit over a gentle fire, will melt; after which dip a piece of cloth into it, and when a little dry, set it on fire with a brimstone match, put it into the bung-hole, and stop it up close.

Another Method.

First prepare a fresh empty cask, that has had the same kind of wine in it which is about to be racked, then match it, and rack off the wine, putting to every ten gallons two ounces of oyster-shell powder, and half an ounce of bay salt, then get the staff and stir it well about, letting it stand till it is fine, which will be in a few days; after which rack it off into another cask, (previously matched) and if the lees of some wine of the same kind can be got, it will improve it much.—Put likewise a quart of brandy to every ten gallons, and if the cask has been emptied a long time, it will match better on that account; but if even a new cask, the matching must not be omitted. A fresh empty cask is to be preferred.

This method will answer for all made wines.

To rack Foreign Wine.

The vault or cellar should be of a temperate heat, and the casks sweet and clean. Should they have an acid or musty smell, it may be remedied by burning brimstone matches in them; and if not clean, rinse them well out with cold water, and after draining rinse with a quart of brandy, putting the brandy afterwards into the ullage cask. Then strain the lees or bottoms through a flannel or linen bag. But put the bottoms of port into the ullage cask without going through the filtering bag. In racking wine that is not on the stillage, a wine-pump is desirable.

To manage and improve poor Red Port.

If wanting in body, colour, and flavour, draw out thirty or forty gallons, and return the same quantity of young and rich wines. To a can of which put three gills of colouring, with a bottle of wine or brandy. Then wisk it well together, and put it into the cask stirring it well. If not bright in about a week or ten days, fine it for use; previous to which put in at different times a gallon of good brandy. If the wine is short of body, put a gallon or two of brandy in each pipe, by a quart or two at a time, as it feeds the wine better than putting it in all at once. But if the wines are in a bonded cellar, procure a funnel that will go to the bottom of the cask, that the brandy may be completely incorporated with the wine.

To manage Claret.

Claret is not a wine of a strong body, though it requires to be of a good age before it is used, and, therefore, it should be well managed; the best method is to feed it every two or three weeks with a pint or two of French brandy. Taste it frequently, to know what state it is in, and use the brandy accordingly, but never put much in at a time, while a little incorporates with the wine, and feeds and mellows it.

If the claret is faint, rack it into a fresh-emptied hogshead, upon the lees of good claret; and bung it up, putting the bottom downwards for two or three days, that the lees may run through it.

To colour Claret.

If the colour be not yet perfect, rack it off again into a hogshead that has been newly drawn off, with the lees; then take a pound of turnsole, and put it into a gallon or two of wine; let it lie a day or two, and then put it into the vessel; after which lay the bung downwards for a night, and the next day roll it about.

Or, take any quantity of damsons or black sloes, and strew them with some of the deepest coloured wine and as much sugar as will make it into a syrup. A pint of this will colour a hogshead of claret. It is also good for red port wines, and may be kept ready for use in glass bottles.

To restore Claret that drinks foul.

Rack it off from the dregs on some fresh lees of its own kind, and then take a dozen of new pippins, pare them, and take away the cores or hearts: then put them in the hogsheads, and if that is not sufficient, take a handful of the oak of Jerusalem, and bruise it; then put it into the wine, and stir it well.

To make Claret and Port rough.

Put in a quart of claret or port two quarts of sloes; bake them in a gentle oven, or over a fire, till a good part of their moisture is stewed out, then pour off the liquor, and squeeze out the rest. A pint of this will be sufficient for 30 or 40 gallons.

TO RECOVER PRICKED FOREIGN WINES.

Take a bottle of red port that is pricked, add to it half an ounce of tartarised spirit of wine, shake the liquor well together, and set it by for a few days, and it will be found much altered for the better. If this operation be dexterously performed, pricked wines may be absolutely recovered by it, and remain saleable for some time; and the same method may be used to malt liquors just turned sour.

To manage Hermitage and Burgundy.

Red hermitage must be managed in the same way as claret, and the white likewise, except the colouring, which it does not require. Burgundy should be managed in the same manner as red hermitage.

To manage Lisbon Wine.

If the Lisbon is dry, take out of the pipe thirty-five or forty gallons, and put in the same quantity of calcavella, stir it well about, and this will make a pipe of good mild Lisbon: or, if it be desired to convert mild into dry, take the same quantity out as above mentioned, before, and fill the pipe with Malaga sherry, stirring it about as the other. The same kind of fining used for Vidonia will answer for Lisbon wines; or it may be fined with the whites and shells of sixteen eggs, and a small handful of salt; beat it together to a froth, and mix it with a little of the wines; then pour it into the pipe, stir it about, and let it have vent for three days; after which bung it up, and in a few days it will be fine. Lisbon when bottled should be packed either in saw-dust or leather in a temperate place.

To manage Bucellas Wine.

In fining it, proceed in the same way as with the Madeira; only observe, that if not wanted very pale, keep the milk out of the finings. This tender wine should be fed with a little brandy, for if kept in a place that is either too hot or too cold, it will be in danger of turning foul.

To improve Sherry.

If the sherry be new and hot, rack it off into a sweet cask, add five gallons of mellow Lisbon, which will take off the hot taste, then give it a head, take a quart of honey, mix it with a can of wine, and put it into the cask when racking. By this method, Sherry for present use will be greatly improved, having much the same effect upon it as age.

To improve White Wines.

If the wine have an unpleasant taste, rack off one half; and to the remainder add a gallon of new milk, a handful of bay-salt, and as much rice; after which take a staff, beat them well together for half an hour, and fill up the cask, and when rolled well about, stillage it, and in a few days it will be much improved.

If the white wine is foul and has lost its colour, for a but or pipe take a gallon of new milk, put it into the cask, and stir it well about with a staff; and when it has settled, put in three ounces of isinglass made into a jelly, with a quarter of a pound of loaf sugar scraped fine, and stir it well about. On the day following, bung it up, and in a few days it will be fine and have a good colour.

TO IMPROVE WINE BY CHALK.

Add a little chalk to the must, when it is somewhat sour; for the acidity arising from citric and tartaric acids, there is thus formed a precipitate of citrate and tartrate of lime, while the must becomes sweeter, and yields a much finer wine. Too much chalk may render the wine insipid, since it is proper to leave a little excess of acid in the must. Concentrate the must by boiling, and add the proper quantity of chalk to the liquor, while it is still hot. Even acid wine may be benefited by the addition of chalk. Oyster-shells may be used with this view; and when calcined are a cleaner carbonate of lime than common chalk.

To Renovate Sick Wine.

Wines on the fret should be racked; if their own lees indicates decay they should be racked on the sound lees of another wine of similar, but stronger quality, to protract their decline; if this be done at an early period, it may renovate the sick wine; on these occasions, giving the sick wine a cooler place, will retard its progress to acidity; if convenient, such wines should be forced and bottled. Previous to bottling, or rather at the forcing, give it one, two, or three table-spoonsful of calcined gypsum finely pulverised. This will check its tendency to acidity, without exciting much intumescence, without injuring the colour of the red wine, and without retarding its coating to the bottle, which it rather promotes. The proper forcing for red wines are, the whites of ten or twelve eggs, beat up with one or two tea-spoonsful of salt per hogshead, and well worked into the wine with a forcing-rod; the gypsum should be first boiled in a little water. This is intended to check the acetous process. To retard the vinous, the French are in the habit of burning sulphur immediately under the cask, and possibly the sulphuric acid evolved by the combustion, may check its progress and prevent the necessity of an admixture.

To Mellow Wine.

Cover the orifices of the vessels containing it with bladders closely fastened instead of the usual materials, and an aqueous exhalation will pass through the bladder, leaving some fine crystallizations on the surface of the wine, which, when skimmed off, leaves the wine in a highly improved state of flavour. Remnants of wine covered in this manner, whether in bottles or casks, will not turn mouldy, as when stopped in the usual way, but will be improved instead of being deteriorated.

German method of restoring sour Wines.

Put a small quantity of powdered charcoal in the wine: shake it, and after it has remained still for forty-eight hours, decant steadily.

To Concentrate Wines by Cold.

If any kind of wine be exposed to a sufficient degree of cold in frosty weather, or be put into any place where ice continues all the year, as in ice-houses, and there suffered to freeze, the superfluous water contained in the wine will be frozen into ice, and will leave the proper and truly essential part of the wine unfrozen, unless the degree of cold should be very intense, or the wine but weak and poor. When the frost is moderate, the experiment has no difficulty, because not above a third or fourth part of the superfluous water will be frozen in a whole night; but if the cold be very intense, the best way is, at the end of a few hours, when a tolerable quantity of ice is formed, to pour out the remaining fluid liquor, and set it in another vessel to freeze again by itself.

The frozen part, or ice, consists only of the watery part of the wine, and may be thrown away, and the liquid part retains all the strength, and is to be preserved. This will never grow sour, musty, or mouldy, and may at any time be reduced to wine of the common strength, by adding to it as much water as will make it up to the former quantity.

TO FINE WHITE WINES.

Take an ounce of isinglass, beat it into thin shreds with a hammer, and dissolve it, by boiling in a pint of water; this, when cold, becomes a stiff jelly. Whisk up some of this jelly into a froth with a little of the wine intended to be fined, then stir it well among the rest in the cask, and bung it down tight; by this means it will become bright in eight or ten days.

TO FINE RED WINES.

Take whites of eggs beat up to a froth, and mix in the same manner as in white wines.

Another Method.

Put the shavings of green beech into the vessel, having first taken off all the rind, and boil them for an hour in water to extract their rankness, and afterwards dry them in the sun, or in an oven. A bushel serves for a tun of wine; and being mashed, they serve again and again.

Mortimer recommends to gather the grapes when very dry, pick them from the stalks, press them, and let the juice stand twenty-four hours in a covered vat. Afterwards to draw it off from the gross lees, then put it up in a cask, and to add a pint or quart of strong red or white port to every gallon of juice, and let the whole work, bunging it up close, and letting it stand till January; then bottling it in dry weather.

Bradley chooses to have the liquor when pressed, stand with the husks and stalks in the vat, to ferment for fifteen days.

To fine a hogshead of Claret.

Take the whites and shells of six fresh eggs, and proceed as with port finings. Claret requires to be kept warm in saw-dust when bottled.

To fine Sherry.

Take an ounce and a half of isinglass, beat it with a hammer till it can be pulled into small pieces, then put it into three pints of cider or perry, and let it remain twenty-four hours, till it becomes a jelly. After which mix it with a quart or two of wine, and whisk it well with the whites and shells of six fresh eggs. Take four or five gallons out to make room for the finings, and stir the wine well. Then nearly fill the can of finings with wine, whisk it well, and put it in the butt, stirring it well for about five minutes; afterwards fill it up, and put the bung in loose. In two days bung it up, and in eight or ten it will be fit for bottling.

To fine pale Sherry.

Put three pints of skim-milk with the whites of eight eggs, beat well together in a can; then put in finings, in the same manner as for common sherry. If the sherry be thin and poor, feed them with good brandy, as other wines.

To fine Madeira.

Take three ounces of isinglass, and dissolve it, but if old wine two ounces will be enough, also one quart of skim-milk, and half a pint of marble sand: whisk these in a can with some wine. If the pipe is full, take out a canful, and stir the pipe well; then put in the can of finings, and stir that with a staff for five minutes; after which, put the other can of wine into it, and let it have vent for three days. Then close it up, and in ten days or a fortnight it will be fine and fit for bottling and stowing with saw-dust in a warm place.

To improve Madeira which has been round to the Indies.

Madeira should be kept in a warmer place than port wine, and therefore requires a good body, and to be fed with brandy, but if deficient in flavour or mellowness, add to it a gallon or two of good Malmsey.

To fine Vidonia Wine.

When first imported, Vidonia has a harsh and acid taste; but if properly managed it more resembles Madeira wine than any other. To take off the harshness, fine it down, and then rack it off upon the lees of Madeira or white Port, fining it again with a light fining; and if 20 or 30 gallons of good Madeira wine be added, it will pass for Madeira. For the finings, dissolve two ounces of isinglass, and the whites and shells of six fresh eggs; beat them well up together with a whisk and add a gill of marble sand.

To fine Malmsey and other Wines.

Take 20 fresh eggs, beat the whites, yolks, and shells together, and manage it the same as other finings.—Calcavella, Sweet Mountain, Paxaretta, and Malaga, should be managed and fined in the same manner as Lisbon.—Tent, Muscadine, Sack, and Bastard, should be managed the same as Malmsey, and fined with 16 or 20 fresh eggs, and a quart or three pints of skim-milk. Old Hock, and Vin de Grave, are thin, but pleasant wines, and should be fed with a little good brandy, and fined, if necessary, with the whites and shells of six or eight eggs.

To fine Port Wine.

Take the whites and shells of eight fresh eggs, beat them in a wooden can or pail, with a whisk, till it becomes a thick froth; then add a little wine to it, and whisk it again. If the pipe is full take out four or five gallons of the wine to make room for the finings. If the weather be warmish, add a pint of fresh-water sand to the finings. Stir it well about; after which put in the finings, stirring it for five minutes; put in the can of wine, leaving the bung out for a few hours, that the froth may fall: then bung it up, and in eight or ten days it will be fine and fit for bottling.

To make and apply Finings.

Put the finings into a can or pail, with a little of the liquor about to be fined, whisk them altogether till they are perfectly mixed, and then nearly fill the can with the liquor, whisking it well about again; after which, if the cask be full, take out four or five gallons to make room; then take the staff, and give it a good stirring; next whisk the finings up, and put them in; afterwards stir it with the staff for five minutes. Then drive the bung in, and bore a hole with a gimblet, that it may have vent for three or four days, after which drive in a vent peg.

To convert White Wine into Red.

Put four ounces of turnesole rags into an earthen vessel, and pour upon them a pint of boiling water; cover the vessel close, and leave it to cool; strain off the liquor, which will be of a fine deep red inclining to purple. A small portion of this colours a large quantity of wine. This tincture may either be made in brandy, or mixed with it, or else made into a syrup, with sugar, for keeping.

In those countries which do not produce the tinging grape which affords a blood-red juice, wherewith the wines of France are often stained, in defect of this, the juice of elderberries is used, and sometimes logwood is used at Oporto.

To force down the Finings of all White Wines, Arracks, and Small Spirits.

Put a few quarts of skimmed milk into the cask.

To render Red Wine White.

If a few quarts of well-skimmed milk be put to a hogshead of red wine, it will soon precipitate the greater part of the colour, and leave the whole nearly white; and this is of known use in the turning red wines, when pricked, into white; in which a small degree of acidity is not so much perceived.

Milk is, from this quality of discharging colour from wines, of use also to the wine-coopers, for the whitening of wines that have acquired a brown colour from the cask, or from having been hastily boiled before fermenting; for the addition of a little skimmed milk, in these cases, precipitates the brown colour, and leaves the wines almost limped, or of what they call a water whiteness, which is much coveted abroad in wines as well as in brandies.

To preserve new Wine against Thunder.

Thunder will turn and often change wines. Cellars that are paved, and the walls of stone, are preferable to boarded floors. Before a tempest of thunder, it will be advisable to lay a plate of iron on the wine-vessels.

To make Wine settle well.

Take a pint of wheat, and boil it in a quart of water, till it burst and become soft; then squeeze it through a linen cloth, and put a pint of the liquor into a hogshead of unsettled white wine; stir it well about, and it will become fine.

To make a Match for sweetening Casks.

Melt some brimstone, and dip into it a piece of coarse linen cloth; of which, when cold, take a piece of about an inch broad and five inches long, and set fire to it, putting it into the bung-hole, with one end fastened under the bung, which must be driven in very tight: let it remain a few hours before removing it out.

To make Oyster Powder.

Get some fresh oyster-shells, wash them and scrape off the yellow part from the outside; lay them on a clear fire till they become red hot; then lay them to cool, and take off the softest part, powder it, and sift it through a fine sieve; after which use it immediately, or keep it in bottles well corked up, and laid in a dry place.

To make a Filtering Bag.

This bag is made of a yard of either linen or flannel, not too fine or close, and sloping, so as to have the bottom of it run to a point, and the top as broad as the cloth will allow. It must be well sewed up the side, and the upper part of it folded round a wooden hoop, and well fastened to it; then tie the hoop in three or four places with a cord to support it; and when used, put a can or pail under it to receive the liquor, filling the bag with the sediments; after it has ceased to run, wash out the bag in three or four clear waters, then hang it up to dry in an airy place, that it may not get musty. A wine dealer should always have two bags by him, one for red, and the other for white wines.

To bottle Wine.

When wine is made fine and pleasant, it may be bottled, taking care afterwards to pack it in a temperate place with saw-dust or leather. After which it will not be fit to drink for at least two months. Never use new deal saw-dust, as that causes the wine to fret, and often communicates a strong turpentine smell through the corks to the wine.

To Detect Adulterated Wine.

Heat equal parts of oyster-shells and sulphur together, and keep them in a white heat for fifteen minutes, and when cold, mix them with an equal quantity of cream of tartar; put this mixture into a strong bottle with common water to boil for one hour, and then decant into ounce phials, and add 20 drops of muriatic acid to each; this liquor precipitates the least quantity of lead, copper, &c. from wines in a very sensible black precipitate.

To Detect Alum in Wine.

Wine merchants add alum to red wine, to communicate to it a rough taste and deeper colour; but this mixture produces on the system the most serious effects. For the discovery of the fraud in question, adopt the following means:—The wine is to be discoloured by means of a concentrated solution of chlorine; the mixture is to be evaporated until reduced to nearly the fourth of its original volume; the liquor is to be filtered; it then possesses the following properties when it contains alum:—1st. It has a sweetish astringent taste; 2d. it furnishes a white precipitate (sulphate of barytes) with nitrate of barytes, insoluble in water and in nitric acid; 3d. caustic potass rise to a yellowish white precipitate of alumine, soluble in an excess of potass; 4th. the sub-carbonate of soda produces a yellowish white precipitate (sub-carbonate of alumine) decomposable by fire into carbonic acid gas, alumine, easily recognisable by its characters.

TO BOTTLE BEER.

When the briskness of small liquors in the cask fails, and they become vapid and dead, which they generally do soon after they are tilted, let them be bottled.

TO TRY THE GOODNESS OF SPIRITS.

Set fire to some in a spoon; if good it will burn brightly away, without leaving any moisture in the spoon.

TO COOL LIQUORS IN HOT WEATHER.

Dip a cloth in cold water and wrap it two or three times round the bottle and place it in the sun. Repeat this once or twice.

TO PACK GLASS OR CHINA.

Procure some soft straw or hay to pack them in, and if they are to be sent a long way, and are heavy, the hay or straw should be a little damp, which will prevent them slipping about. Let the largest and heaviest things be always put undermost in the box or hamper. Let there be plenty of straw, and pack the articles tight; but never attempt to pack up glass or china which is of much consequence, till you have seen it done by some used to the job. The expense will be but trifling to have a person to do it who understands it, and the loss may be great if articles of much value are packed up in an improper manner.

TO CLEAN WINE DECANTERS.

Cut some brown paper into very small bits, so as to go with ease into the decanters; then cut a few pieces of soap very small, and put some water, milk-warm, into the decanters, upon the soap and paper: put in also a little pearl ash; by well working this about in the decanters it will take off the crust of the wine, and give the glass a fine polish. Where the decanters have had wine left to stand in them a long time, take a small cane with a bit of sponge tied tight at one end: by putting this into the decanters any crust of the wine may be removed. When the decanters have been properly washed, let them be thoroughly dried, and turned down in a proper rack.

If the decanters have wine in them when put by, have some good corks always at hand to put in instead of stoppers; this will keep the wine much better.

TO DECANT WINE.

Be careful not to shake or disturb the crust when moving it about, or drawing the cork, particularly Port wine. Never decant wine without a wine-strainer, with some fine cambric in it, to prevent the crust, and bits of cork going into the decanter. In decanting Port wine do not drain it too near; there are generally two-thirds of a wine glass of thick dregs in each bottle, which ought not to be put in; but in white wine there is not much settling; pour it out however slowly, and raise the bottle up gradually, the wine should never be decanted in a hurry, therefore always do it before the family sit down to dinner. Do not jostle the decanters against each other when moving them about, as they easily break when full.

TO MIX A SALAD.

Always inquire before you mix a salad, how your master or mistress would like to have it done. If no particular method be pointed out to you, adopt the following, which has been much approved of. Let the salad be well washed and dried in a cloth before you cut it up; save a part of the celery with a little beet-root and endive for ornament in the middle of the dish: cut the rest small as well as the lettuce and mustard and cresses, and put to it the following mixture: take the yolk of an egg boiled hard, rub it quite smooth with a table-spoonful of oil and a little mustard; when they are well mixed together add six spoonsful of milk or cream, and when these are well mixed, put six or seven spoonsful of vinegar to the whole, and mix it all together with the salad. Never make the salad long before it is wanted, as it becomes flat with standing.

TO MAKE PUNCH.

Put 40 grains of citric acid, 7 full drops of essence of lemon, 7 oz. of lump sugar, in a quart mug; pour over 1 pint of boiling water, when the sugar is melted, stir; then add ½ pint of rum, and ¼ pint of brandy.

TO PREPARE SODA WATER.

Soda water is prepared (from powders) precisely in the same manner as ginger beer, except that, instead of the two powders there mentioned, the two following are used: for one glass, 30 grains of carbonate of soda; for the other, 25 grains of tartaric (or citric) acid.

TO MAKE GINGER BEER.

Take an ounce of powdered ginger, half an ounce of cream of tartar, a large lemon sliced, two pounds of lump sugar, and one gallon of water; mix all together, and let it simmer over the fire for half an hour, then put a table-spoonful of yeast to it, let it ferment a little time, and then put it into stone pint bottles, and cork it down closely for use.

TO PREPARE GINGER BEER POWDERS.

Take 2 drams of fine loaf sugar, 8 grains of ginger, and 26 grains of carbonate of potass, all in fine powder; mix them intimately in a Wedgwood’s-ware mortar. Take also 27 grains of citric or tartaric acid, (the first is the pleasantest but the last the cheapest.) The acid is to be kept separate from the mixture. The beer is prepared from the powders thus: take two tumbler glasses, each half filled with water, stir up the compound powder in one of them, and the acid powder in the other, then mix the two liquors, when an effervescence takes place, the beer is prepared and drank off immediately.

METHOD OF PRESERVING PEAS GREEN FOR WINTER.

Put into a kettle of hot water any quantity of fresh shelled green peas, and after just letting them boil up, pour them into a large thick cloth, cover them with another, make them quite dry, and set them once or twice in a cool oven to harden a little; after which put them into paper bags, and hang them up in the kitchen for use.—To prepare them when wanted, they are first to be soaked well for an hour or more, and then put into warm water, and boiled with a little butter.

TO MEND GLASS.

The juice of garlick, pounded in a stone mortar, is said to be the strongest cement to mend broken glass.

TO CONVEY FRESH FISH.

To ensure the sweetness of fish conveyed by land carriage, the belly of the fish should be opened, and the internal parts sprinkled with powdered charcoal. The same material will restore impure or even putrescent water to a state of perfect freshness.

TO PURIFY WATER BY CHARCOAL.

Nothing has been found so effectual for preserving water sweet as charring the insides of the casks well before they are filled. When the water becomes impure and offensive, from ignorance of the preservative effect produced on it by charring the casks previous to their being filled, it may be rendered perfectly sweet by putting a little fresh charcoal in powder into the cask, or by filtering it through fresh burnt and coarsely pulverized charcoal.

TO EXTINGUISH A RECENT FIRE.

A mop and a pail of water are generally the most efficacious remedies, but if it has gained head, then keep out the air, and remove all ascending or perpendicular combustibles, up which the fire creeps and increases in force as it rises.

TO EXTINGUISH FIRE IN A CHIMNEY.

Shut the doors and windows, throw water on the fire in the grate, and then stop up the bottom of the chimney.

Another Method.

The mephitic vapour produced by throwing a handful of flour of sulphur on the burning coals, where a chimney is on fire, will immediately extinguish the flames.

THE VALET.

The duties of this servant are not so various nor so important as those of the footman; indeed, they are very frequently, and particularly in small families, a part of the business of a footman. The particular province of the valet is to attend to the personal accommodation of his master. He waits on him when dressing and undressing, has the care of his wardrobe, brushes and keeps his clothes in good order and ready to put on when wanted. For this purpose every garment or other article of wearing apparel, should be carefully examined, cleaned or brushed on the first opportunity that offers, and then put away in its proper place.

He should chuse the earliest part of the morning to clean the boots and shoes, unless it be otherwise arranged, and brush the clothes, and to do all such work, so as to be able to get to his master’s dressing-room time enough to make the necessary arrangements there before he expects him to rise. He will see that the housemaid has lighted the fire, and cleaned out and dusted the rooms; will prepare the washing-stand, fill the ewer with clean soft water, and the caroft with fresh spring water.—The basin and towels, the hair, nail, and tooth-brushes clean, and in their proper places; hot water, and all the necessary apparatus for shaving, quite ready; his dressing-gown and slippers airing before the fire; and his clean linen perfectly well aired by himself, before it be considered as fit to be put on. The coat, trowsers, &c. intended to be worn must be taken out and placed at length across the backs of chairs, the sleeves and outsides turned inward, with a clean linen or brown Holland wrapper thrown over them, to save them from dust. Having once ascertained the way in which these things are to be done, he will find it easy in future, and will be sure to please. The best way to hang up a coat is, to fold it once at full length, with the inside outward, the sleeves put straight, and the two fronts together, and then hang it on a cloak-pin by the inside of the shoulder.

If the wardrobe be sufficiently large to hold each kind of garment separately, it will be so much the better, as the coats and other articles may then be laid in smoothly and at length, as soon as they are brushed and cleaned, and a brown Holland cloth may be spread over each drawer or shelf, to preserve them from the dust.

Gentlemen who shave themselves, usually strop their own razors immediately after the operation, whilst the metal is yet warm, which is the best way: but if it be left to the valet to do, the razor must be dipped in warm water and wiped dry with a clean cloth or rag; then laying it flat on the strop, draw it diagonally, from the heel to the point, the whole length of the strop, turning the elbow in and out every time the razor is turned; half a dozen or half a score strokes backwards and forwards, as often as it is used, will keep it in good order for a considerable time. Good razors are made concave, or hollow, between the back and the edge, on both sides, for the greater security in shaving, and for the purpose of giving them a better edge in setting or stropping.

Having attended his master while dressing, combed his hair, &c. the valet will take the first opportunity, after he is gone, to set the room in order, by looking over his things, folding away his night clothes, washing the brushes and combs occasionally, when necessary, with warm water and soap, wiping them clean, and drying them at an easy distance from the fire, and then putting them away in their places.—The dressing-stand must be wiped clean and dry, the basin washed and wiped, the ewer and caroft rinsed out and filled again with clean water, the towels taken away and replaced with clean ones, the fire stirred, the room dusted, and every thing put in order, as if immediately to be used again. This must always be done as soon as possible after his master is dressed or re-dressed, and every garment or other article that has been taken off, must be brushed, folded, and put away in its proper place.

In case of the master’s coming home wet from a ride, or otherwise, an immediate change of warm dry clothes must be provided, and the wet or damp things taken away and dried at a proper distance from the fire; after having wiped the coat, or other woollen garments, with a sponge, the way of the nap, or, if only spotted, with a silk handkerchief, in the same manner, which will effectually smooth the grain of the cloth, and remove all the spots.

When preparing for a journey, care should be taken to ascertain the probable time of absence, that sufficient change of linen, &c. may be provided—nor must the shaving and dressing apparatus be forgotten. When arrived at an inn, or visiting place, all his master’s things must be carried into his dressing-room, and set in order for dressing, or for the night, as nearly as possible in the same order as at home. If the footman be not there, the valet will have to attend to his master’s accommodation below stairs also.

The valet is to be always in attendance, in case of his master’s coming home unexpectedly—and he is to assist in waiting at table at all meal-times.

As the valet is much about his master’s person, and has the opportunity of hearing his off-at-hand opinions on many subjects, he should endeavour to have as short a memory as possible, and, above all, keep his master’s council; and he should be very cautious of mischief-making or tale-bearing, to the prejudice of other persons, as calculated to involve his master in disputes, and ruin himself, if by chance he is incorrect.

The usual salary is from 30l. to 60l. per annum, but in some situations much more. Perquisites, his master’s cast-off clothes.

TO CLEAN GOLD LACE.

Rub it with a soft brush dipped in roche alum burnt, sifted to a very fine powder.

TO REMOVE STAINS FROM MOURNING DRESSES.

Boil a good handful of fig-leaves in two quarts of water till reduced to a pint. Bombazine, crape, cloth, &c. need only be rubbed with a sponge dipped in the liquor, and the effect will be instantly produced.

NEW MODE OF SHAVING.

Mix up with the brush, in prepared lather, one tea-spoonful of finely pounded best lump whiting, without the smallest danger to the razor’s edge or the surface of the chin. Perhaps the very best edge may be given to the razor also, by throwing a pinch of whiting on a moderately oiled or soaped strop.

TO CLEAN GILT BUCKLES, CHAINS, &C.

Dip a soft brush in water, rub a little soap on it, and brush the article for a minute or two, then wash it clean, wipe it; place it near the fire till dry, and brush it with burnt bread finely powdered.

TO MANAGE RAZOR STROPS.

Keep them moderately moist with a drop or two of sweet oil; a little crocus martis and a few drops of sweet oil, rubbed well in with a glass bottle, will give the razor a fine edge; pass it afterwards on the inside of your hand when warm, and dip it in hot water just before using.

TO SCOUR CLOTHES, COATS, PELISSES, &C.

If a black, blue, or brown coat, dry 2 ounces of Fuller’s earth, and pour on it sufficient boiling water to dissolve it, and plaster with it the spots of grease; take a pennyworth of bullock’s gall, mix with it half a pint of stale urine; and a little boiling water; with a hard brush, dipped in this liquor, brush spotted places. Then dip the coat in a bucket of cold spring water. When nearly dry, lay the nap right, and pass a drop of oil of olives over the brush to finish it.

If grey, drab, fawns, or maroons, cut yellow soap into thin slices, and pour water upon it to moisten it. Rub the greasy and dirty spots of the coat. Let it dry a little, and then brush it with warm water, repeating, if necessary, as at first, and use water a little hotter; rinse several times, in warm water, and finish as before.

TO CLEAN GLOVES WITHOUT WETTING.

Lay the gloves upon a clean board, make a mixture of dried fulling-earth and powdered alum, and pass them over on each side with a common stiff brush: then sweep it off, and sprinkle them well with dry bran and whiting, and dust them well; this, if they be not exceedingly greasy, will render them quite clean; but if they are much soiled, take out the grease with crumbs of toasted bread, and powder of burnt bone: then pass them over with a woollen cloth, dipped in fulling-earth or alum powder; and in this manner they can be cleaned without wetting, which frequently shrinks and spoils them.

FULLER’S PURIFIER FOR WOOLLEN CLOTHS.

Dry, pulverize, and sift the following ingredients: 6 lbs. of fuller’s earth, 1 lb. of pipe-clay, and 4 oz. of French chalk.

Make a paste of the above with the following:— 1 oz. of rectified oil of turpentine, 2 oz. of spirit of wine, and 1½ lbs. of melted oil soap.

Make up the compound into cakes, which are to be kept in water, or in small wooden boxes.

TO DRIVE AWAY, OR PREVENT THE APPROACH OF MOTHS.

Wrap up yellow or turpentine soap in paper, or place an open bottle, containing spirits of turpentine within the wardrobe. But as the smell of the latter may be unpleasant, sprinkle bay leaves, lavender, or walnut-leaves, black pepper in grains, or Russia leather shavings.

TO REVIVE FADED BLACK CLOTH.

Having cleaned it well, boil two or three ounces of logwood for half a hour. Dip it in warm water and squeeze it dry, then put it into the copper, and boil half an hour. Take it out and add a small piece of green copperas, and boil it another half hour. Hang it in the air for an hour or two, then rinse it in two or three cold waters, dry it and let it be regularly brushed over with a soft brush, over which a drop or two of oil of olives has been rubbed.

TO DRY-CLEAN CLOTH.

Dip a brush in warm gall, apply it to greasy places, and rinse it off in cold water; dry by the fire, then lay the coat flat, strew damp sand over it, and with a brush beat the sand into the cloth; then brush it out with a hard brush, and the sand will bring away the dirt. Rub a drop of oil of olives over a soft brush, to brighten the colours.

TO MAKE BREECHES BALL.

Mix 1 pound of Bath brick, 2 pounds of pipe-clay, 4 ounces of pumice stone powder, and six ounces of ox gall; colour them with rose pink, yellow ochre, umber, Irish slate, &c. to the desired shade.

CLOTHES’ BALL.

Mix 2 pounds of pipe clay, 4 ounces of Fuller’s earth, 4 ounces of whiting, and a quarter of a pint of ox galls.

TO TAKE GREASE OUT OF LEATHER BREECHES.

The white of an egg applied to the injured part, and dried in the sun, will effectually answer this purpose.

Another Method.

To two table spoonsful of spirit of turpentine, put half an ounce of mealy potatoes, add some of the best Durham mustard, with a little vinegar; let them dry, and when well rubbed, the spots will be entirely removed.

TO CLEAN LEATHER.

Take of French yellow ochre, 1 lb. sweet oil, a dessert spoonful

Mix well together, so that the oil may not be seen: then take of pipe-clay, 1 lb. starch, ¼ lb.

Mix with boiling water, when cold, lay it on the leather; and rub and brush it well when dry.

TO MAKE SCOURING BALLS.

Portable balls for removing spots from clothes, may be thus prepared. Fuller’s earth perfectly dried, (so that it crumbles into a powder,) is to be moistened with the clear juice of lemons, and a small quantity of pure pearl-ashes is to be added. Knead the whole carefully together, till it acquires the consistence of a thick elastic paste: form it into convenient small balls, and dry them in the sun. To be used, first moisten the spot on the clothes with water, then rub it with the ball, and let the spot dry in the sun; after having washed it with pure water, the spot will entirely disappear.

TO CLEAN GOLD LACE AND EMBROIDERY.

For this purpose alkaline liquors are not to be used; for while they clean the gold they corrode the silk, and change or discharge its colour. Soap also alters the shade, and even the species of certain colours. But, spirit of wine may be used without any danger of its injuring either colour or quality; and, in many cases, proves as effectual for restoring the lustre of gold, as the corrosive detergents. But, though spirit of wine is the most innocent material employed for this purpose, it is not in all cases proper. The golden covering may be in some parts worn off; or the base metal, with which it has been alloyed, may be corroded by the air, so as to leave the particles of gold disunited; while the silver underneath, tarnished to a yellow hue, may continue a tolerable colour to the whole: so it is apparent that the removal of the tarnish would be prejudicial, and make the lace or embroidery less like gold than it was before.

TO TAKE STAINS OUT OF SCARLET CLOTH.

Take soap wort, bruise it, strain out the juice, and add to it a small quantity of black soap; wash the stains a few times with this liquor, suffering it to dry between whiles, and in a day or two they will disappear.

TO TAKE STAINS OUT OF BLACK CLOTH, SILK, CRAPE, &c.

Boil a large handful of fig-leaves in two quarts of water until reduced to a pint. Squeeze the leaves, and put the liquor into a bottle for use. The articles need only be rubbed with a sponge in the liquor, and the stains will instantly disappear.

THE MAN COOK.

The man Cook, now become a requisite member in the establishment of a man of fashion, is in all respects the same as that of a female Cook. He is generally a foreigner, or if an Englishman, possesses a peculiar tact in manufacturing many fashionable foreign delicacies, or of introducing certain seasonings and flavours in his dishes, which render them more inviting to the palate of his employer, than those produced by the simply healthful modes of modern English Cooks.

The man Cook has the entire superintendance of the kitchen, while his several female assistants are employed in roasting, boiling, and all the ordinary manual operations of the kitchen. His attention is chiefly directed to the stew-pan, in the manufacture of stews, fricassees, fricandeaux, &c. At the same time, his situation is one of great labour and fatigue, which, with the superior skill requisite for excellence in his art, procures him a liberal salary, frequently twice or thrice the sum given to the most experienced female English Cook.

As the scientific preparations of the man cook would themselves fill a large volume, and are not generally useful in English families, it is not deemed necessary to give place to them in this work; but the following useful receipts having, inadvertently, been omitted under the head Cook, they are inserted in this place rather than omitted altogether.

As the art of Cookery, or gourmanderie, is reduced to a regular science in France, where an egg may be cooked half a hundred ways, so those who can afford large families of servants, and give frequent entertainments, consider a man-cook as economical, because he produces an inexhaustible variety without any waste of materials, and that elegance and piquancy of flavours which are necessary to stimulate the appetites of the luxurious. In France, all culinary business is conducted by men, and there are, at least, as many men cooks as considerable kitchens; but in England, men cooks are kept only in about 3 or 400 great and wealthy families, and in about 40 or 50 London hotels. But it is usual in smaller establishments to engage a man cook for a day or two before an entertainment.[21]

METHOD OF PREPARING AN EAST INDIA CURRY, WITH THE ARTICLES USED THEREIN.

Let the fowl, duck, rabbit, meat, fish, or vegetable, &c. be cut up into small pieces, sprinkling a little flour thereon, fried in butter, (with two middle-sized onions sliced fine,) or what is called drawn in a pan, then stewed in the gravy from a pound of beef (though water is as frequently used) over a brisk fire, for about twenty minutes, with two or three table-spoonsful of the mixture, as below, stirring the whole occasionally; or the powder may be rubbed well over the fowl, &c. and fried with it, adding two ounces of butter, the juice of a fine lemon, or half a wine glass of lemon juice, or lemon pickle,—two cloves of garlic, chopped very fine, and one tea-spoonful of salt. If any of the ingredients predominate too much, or an insufficiency prevail, subtract or add according to taste. For a larger quantify of meat than the weight of a large fowl, use more of the mixture in proportion. The curry will be much improved by the mixture being made into a thin paste with a few spoonsful of cream, and then rubbed over the meat, previously to its being put into the stew-pan.

CURRY POWDER.

Thirteen ounces coriander seed, three ounces cumin seed, two ounces black pepper, four ounces China turmeric, or curcuma root, half an ounce Cayenne pepper, one quarter of an ounce powdered cassia, one quarter of an ounce powdered white ginger, also one half of an ounce of cardamums, one quarter of an ounce of cloves, and one quarter of an ounce of allspice.

The above quantities are enough for twenty curries, but it should be kept dry in a tin canister.

The curried fowl, &c. as above, will require three quarters of a pound of rice to be a sufficiency for curry eaters. The curry and the rice should be served in separate dishes, with covers, the dishes having heaters, or in hot water dishes, such as those used for beef-steaks.

N. B.—Two or three sour apples cut into quarters, as well as a few fresh mushrooms, are great improvements to all curries; as are truffles. If the latter are used, the liquor in which they are boiled should be added to the curry.

MODE OF PREPARING MULGA-TAWNEY, AS AT MADRAS.

Cut up a fowl, duck, rabbit, beef, or mutton, boil the same in two quarts of water for a quarter of an hour; then mix the under-mentioned therein, previously bruising the spices in a mortar, rejecting the husk. For a larger quantity of meat than the weight of a large fowl, use more of the mixture in proportion.

Two table spoons over-filled of the curry powder or ingredients, answers the purpose, and better, adding the butter, onions, garlic, pease-flour, acid, &c.

One quarter of an ounce China turmeric, one sixth of an ounce Cayenne pepper, one ounce and a quarter coriander seed, one third of an ounce of powdered cassia, two drams two scruples black pepper.

One table-spoon of butter; juice from a fine lemon, or equal quantity of lemon-pickle, three middle sized onions cut fine, six cloves of garlic chopped very fine, six tea-spoons of pease-flour, high-dried or baked; then pour thereon half a pint of boiling-water, strain the ingredients through a fine cloth or sieve, then put the same with fowl, &c. over the fire, adding at this time the butter and onions previously fried together, boil the same for half an hour, adding, in the last five minutes, the acid, when the Mulga-tawney will be ready for the table; which eaten as soup and bouilli, mixing rice therein, will prove not only palatable, but an excellent stomachic. The Mulga-tawney, or soup, when done, should be nearly the consistency of cream; if it should prove otherwise, when proceeding as above, more or less water should be used on the onset, but not afterwards added. The soup with the meat to be served in a tureen, and sent to table quite hot; the rice in a dish having hot water below and a cover.

A prejudice may exist against Curry and Mulga-tawney, but there can be no doubt of both being perfectly wholesome; as, to wit, throughout the East Indies, it is the daily food of millions of all ages.

METHOD OF BOILING RICE.

The following is different from that adopted generally in England, but was followed by an old Indian officer when here, and found to answer perfectly well; but the object to be accomplished is, that the rice should be well done, as white as possible, and perfectly free from water: the rice used should be Patna; the Carolina, though much whiter, is not so good either for Curry or Mulga-tawney.

Take a pound of Patna rice, have the same well washed, looking over each grain for small stones, husks, &c. then put the rice into a saucepan, and pour thereon boiling water, put on the cover, and let the saucepan remain off the fire about a quarter of an hour; in that time, if the water was full boiling, the rice will be sufficiently softened for use; pour the water off, and to dry the rice, set it over the fire for a couple of minutes, stirring it well during the time with a fork. Proceeding as above the rice will be as dry and as well cooked as that prepared by the natives in the East Indies; great care to be taken that it does not become hard by the heat.

Another way of boiling the rice is, to soak it an hour in cold water, then put it into a saucepan and cover it with hot water, adding one tea-spoonful of salt to every tea-cup full of rice. Place it over the fire, and when it has boiled about ten minutes, the water should be poured off. Then cover the saucepan close down, and let it stand by the fire for a few minutes, when the rice will become dry, and fit to serve up with your curry.

THE HEAD COACHMAN.

On the sobriety, steady conduct, and respectable appearance of this important servant, depend the exterior appearance of the family with which he resides. Every genuine Coachman has his characteristic costume. His flaxen curls or wig, his low cocked hat, his plush breeches, and his benjamin surtout, his clothes being also well brushed, and the lace and buttons in a state of high polish. Care in driving his horses so as to preserve his own family and not injure other passengers on horse or foot, that he may not involve his master in law-suits, and wound the feelings of those he is driving, is of the utmost consequence. It is his business to have the carriage kept in repair, and to prevent his master being imposed upon by wanton charges; and in like manner to advise and assist in the purchase of horses, and in this delicate business, protect the interest of his employer. Much depends on his zeal, as to the annual expenditure of a carriage, with reference to the coach-maker, the horse-dealer, and the farrier; and he will do well always to make special contract, and leave as little as possible to the conscience of others. When only one coachman is kept, his duties generally include the whole of the stable business, as well as the cleaning, greasing, and examining the carriage; about which latter, he should never trust to chance; and consult the smith or coach-maker as often as he apprehends a possibility of danger. The following instructions apply to the coachman’s duty when assisted by an establishment, but they apply to the coachman alone when there is no stable establishment, and whether the horses are jobbed or not, his anxious attention to their welfare is equally required.

If not fatigued by late hours on the preceding night, he rises to take care of his horses, at the same hour as the other men on the establishment, and they are attended in the same manner, by himself and his assistants, as is hereafter described, under the head Groom.

The necessary morning business of the stable usually occupies the servants till breakfast time, after which they all return to the stable, shake down the litter on each side of the horses, and put the stable in good order, in expectation of their master, who probably, pays them a visit after breakfast to inspect the horses, give orders, or make enquiries.

The helpers and assistants are now busily employed in looking over and cleaning such of the harness as was last used, and remains uncleaned. This, having been washed from the wet dirt, and clean sponged over-night, after the arrival of the carriage, and being now dry, is first brushed with a dry hard brush, and the brass ornaments cleaned, for which purpose see the receipts; or the silver ornaments may be cleaned with finely-powdered charcoal, and polished off with a soft brush.

The ornaments being cleaned, the leathers are to be blacked with the liquid mixture, which is a very valuable and excellent receipt for that purpose; the brushes to be used are, 1, a hard brush for taking off the dirt; 2, a soft brush for laying on the mixture; and 3, a polishing brush.

After breakfast, the coachmen, with their assistants, or each, if more than one, proceed to clean their respective coaches; first, well washing the carriage part and wheels with a mop and a water brush. The back straps and straps of the springs are to be blacked, and in short, all the parts, that are of leather, are to be blacked in the same way as the harness, the brass or other ornaments being first cleaned. The wheels and bed of the carriage are next to be greased or oiled, and the linch-pins securely put in.

The inside of the coach is then to be brushed, the glasses cleaned, and the lamps cleaned and trimmed.

The carriage, horses, harness, and the whole equipage being now ready, the coachman attends his master or mistress for orders, if not previously received.

When the time is nearly arrived at which the coach is ordered, the helper or assistants harness the horses and put them to, while the coachman is dressing himself. He then narrowly inspects the whole equipage—sees that the coach, horses, harness, and all things are in order; when taking his whip and the reins in his left hand, a man standing at the heads of the horses, he mounts the box, on the near side, and drives off to the door.

In due time, the coach and other carriages, as well as the saddle horses, return, when the coachman alights, unbuckles the reins, and giving the horses into the care of the helpers, takes his whip with him into the stable, and deposits it in its proper place. He then, if there be time and day-light, washes and cleans his coach.

At eight o’clock, if not otherwise engaged, he attends the regular stable duties, and waters, feeds, rubs down, litters, and racks up his horses, in the usual manner.

The wages of the head or upper coachman, is from 25 to 36 guineas per annum, with generally two suits of livery—a box coat once in two or three years, two hats, and two pair of boots; also one or two stable dresses, consisting of overalls, jackets, waistcoats, and undress frock coat.

TO CLEAN BRASS ORNAMENTS ON CARRIAGES AND HARNESS.

Take half a pint of turpentine, ¼ of a pound of rotten stone, ¼ of a pound of charcoal, finely powdered, and ½ a pint of the drippings of sweet oil. Mix them, and apply the paste with leather, and polish it off with powdered charcoal.

BLACK DYE FOR HARNESS.

The colour of harness that has become rusty or brown by wear, may be restored to a fine black after the dirt has been sponged and brushed off, by using the following mixture: viz.

Boil logwood chips in three quarts of soft water, to which add three oz. of nut-galls, finely powdered, and one oz. of alum; simmer the whole together for half an hour, and it will be fit for use.

LIQUID BLACKING FOR HARNESS.

Take two oz. of mutton suet, melted, 6 oz. of purified bees wax, melted; ¼ lb. lamp black; 1 gill of turpentine; 2 oz. of Prussian blue, powdered; 1 oz. of indigo blue, ground; 6 oz. of sugar-candy, melted in a little water; and 2 oz. of soft soap. Mix, and simmer over the fire 15 minutes, when add a gill of turpentine. Lay it on the harness with a sponge, and then polish it.

TO BRING HORSES OUT OF A STABLE IN CASE OF FIRE.

Throw the saddle or harness to which it has been used over its back, and it will come out of the stable as tractably as usual.

THE FOOTMAN.

The business of the Footman is so multifarious and incessant, that in most families, if he be industrious, attentive, and disposed to make himself useful, he will find full employment in the affairs of the house, and the more useful he can make himself, in a general way, the more acceptable will be his services to the whole house, the greater will be his reward, and the more comfortable he will be himself.

In many genteel small families, the footman is the only man servant, in which case he is expected to make himself generally useful; but his particular departments are, the cleaning of the knives, shoes, plate, and furniture; answering the door, going of errands, waiting at table, and answering the parlour bell. The footman finds himself merely in linen, stockings, shoes, and washing; but if silk stockings, or any extra articles are expected to be worn, they are found by the family. On quitting service, every livery servant is expected to leave behind him any livery had within six months; the last new livery is usually reserved for Sundays and dress occasions.

For the better dispatch of his own particular business, it is indispensably necessary that the footman should rise early, and as every moment of his time will be appropriated, he must endeavour to get that part of his business, which depends upon himself, done before the family are stirring, as interruptions may then occur, and his necessary labours be unavoidably delayed, or made to interfere with other business, not less necessary.

The footman should endeavour to get the dirtiest part of his work done first; such as cleaning the shoes and boots, knives and forks, brushing and cleaning clothes, hats and gloves, and cleaning the furniture, &c. &c. For these purposes, his working dress should be generally a pair of overalls, a waistcoat and fustian jacket, and a leather apron, with a white apron to put on occasionally, when called from these duties.[22]

The business of the footman below stairs being done, he next proceeds to clean the lamps in the best rooms. The oil in them should be fine and good, and changed once a week or ten days, and the cottons should be thick and closely woven, always kept dry, and cut even at the top, and soaked a little when fresh put in, by letting down the oil to them for a short time.

For cleaning boots and shoes, he takes care to provide himself with proper brushes and good blacking. In boots he will not clean the tops till he has finished the feet and legs, when it will be necessary to cover the legs whilst he is cleaning the tops.

Ladies’ shoes are to be cleaned with milk, and other liquids, according to their colour, and merely the edges of the soles are to be blacked and polished, but in cleaning these and gentlemen’s dress shoes, great care must be taken not to soil the inside linings.

Afterwards, the next business in rotation in the morning, will be to clean the mahogany and other furniture, in the parlour and best rooms. Whether the tables, side-boards, cellerets, chairs, &c. be of a light or dark colour, they must be cleaned with a preparation or oil of an appropriate colour.

In using the different compositions, have two pieces of woollen cloth for each, one to put it on with, and the other for polishing. Sometimes a hard brush will be required to lay on the paste, and a piece of soft cork to rub out the stains. Always rub the wood the way of the grain, and remember to dust the furniture before you begin to clean it.

If oil be used, let it be rubbed off as quickly as possible, and then polished with another cloth. When wax is used, let it be applied very sparingly, and polished off with another cloth.

The brass rods or other ornaments to side-boards, cellarets, &c. should be cleaned before the mahogany is touched. The dirt on these ornaments may be removed with flannel well soaped, and polished off with the plate leather. If any brass work has the lacquer worn off, it may be cleaned with brick-dust and leather.

Every article of furniture should be cleaned and rubbed in the middle of the room, when convenient, to prevent smearing and injuring the walls.

Looking Glasses being very costly, should be cleaned with great care. First, take a clean soft sponge, just squeezed out of water, and then dipped in spirits of wine; rub the glass over with this, and then polish it off with fine powder blue, or whiting tied up in muslin, quickly laid on, and then well rubbed off, with a clean cloth, and afterwards with a silk handkerchief. If the glass be very large, no more of it should be wetted with the spirit at a time, than can be cleaned off quickly.

The frames must never be touched with any thing wet or damp. Cotton-wool is the best thing to rub them with, as it will take off the stains and dirt without doing any injury;[23] or, if the frames are varnished, they may be rubbed with the spirits of wine, which will at once take out the spots and dirt, after which they may be re-varnished.

Pictures are best cleaned lightly with a wet sponge, but should never be touched with a cloth.

The attendance of the footman will now be required in the breakfast parlour, for which purpose, he must prepare by washing himself, and throwing off his working dress.

In the directions to the butler, we have given sufficiently at large, setting out the breakfast table, and waiting at breakfast, which in small families becomes solely the business of the footman.

After breakfast, he sets the parlour to rights by sweeping up the crumbs, shaking the green cloth, and laying it again on the table, making up the fire and sweeping up the hearth.

The footman now carries out such messages and cards as he is charged to deliver.

When the footman is obliged to go out with the carriage, the butler or under butler usually undertakes to do such things in his absence, as he necessarily leaves undone.

In large families, the footman lays the cloth for dinner, and the knives and forks and glasses, and the butler arranges the silver articles, and sees that the whole is correctly laid out. When the hour of dinner approaches, notice is usually given, by the ringing of a bell by the footman, ten or fifteen minutes before the time; and during this time he is busy in carrying up every thing that he thinks may or can be wanted during dinner, so as to have every thing at hand, at that time. Again he rings the dinner bell, to announce to the family that dinner is going up, when the butler takes the first dish, and is followed by the under butler and footman with the remainder of the fish and soups, which the butler places on the table, and removing the covers, gives them to the footman and under butler, who convey them out of the room. The servants then take their respective stations,—the butler at the side-board, to serve the wines or beer when called for; the footman at the back of his master’s chair, and the lady’s footman, if any, behind his lady. When the soups and fish have been served round, the butler rings the dining-room bell to warn the cook to be ready with the removes, which are generally, solid joints of meat, or the first course, if no removes; the butler then removes the dishes from the table, and hands them to the footman or under butler, who carries them away. If wine or beer is asked for, the footman or under butler puts the empty glasses on a waiter, and the butler fills them. When a clean plate is wanted, the butler hands it to the footman, with a clean knife and fork, and the footman puts the dirty one in the proper place to be taken away.

When the butler sees that the first course is nearly done with, he again gives notice to the cook, and proceeds to take all the dishes off the table, and the footman and under butler take them away, and fetch the second course. The butler being employed, in the mean time, in setting the table in order, laying the mats, clean spoons, glasses, &c. The footman, with the assistance of the house-maids and others, having brought up the next course, the butler places the dishes on the table, takes off the covers, hands them to the footman, to be taken away, and again takes his station at the side-board, and during the whole dinner, the same kind of etiquette as before, is observed by every servant in attendance, (of which, in some cases, there are several besides the butler, under butler, and footman; namely, the lady’s footman, valet, and on particular occasions, waiters hired for the purpose.) The third course, (consisting of pastry, viz. pies, tarts, &c. with game at the top and bottom of the table, and the cheese and salads placed on the side-board) which being removed, as before, the butler with a napkin wipes off the stains and marks of the hot dishes on the tables, and places the dessert, as it is brought up by the footman and under butler. He also puts the wine on the table, and the under butler the wine-glasses, while the footman places the finger glasses before each person, and a plate, with a knife and fork and spoon on each plate, the butler putting other spoons for serving the fruits, jellies, &c. The butler takes his place behind his master’s chair, at the foot of the table, and the lady’s footman, behind his lady’s chair at the head, to hand the wines, &c. and all the other servants leave the room, taking with them all the things that have been used.

The footman, as soon as all the things are carried down, repairs to the drawing-room, makes up the fire, sweeps up the hearth, and otherwise prepares that room. The butler also taking occasion to see that the lamps and candles are lighted, and the card tables set out, with candles and two packs of cards on each, and the chairs and sofas properly arranged by the footman.

The butler and footman then retire to their several avocations in the butler’s pantry, where the footman is employed in washing and wiping the glasses, and the under butler cleaning the plate, (which the kitchen maid generally washes.) When the ladies have retired from the dining-room, and the drawing-room bell rings for coffee, the footman enters with the tray, the coffee being made below stairs, and the bread and butter, cakes, toast, &c. the under butler, or some other servant following, to take away the empty cups and saucers on a waiter or tray. At tea time, the butler carries up the tea-tray, and the footman the toast, muffins, &c. (which are prepared by the kitchen maid). Tea is announced to the gentlemen by the footman, and the gentlemen having joined the ladies, the tea and coffee is handed round by the butler, bread and butter, toast, &c. by the footman, the under butler following to take away the cups and saucers.

If there be no supper, the wine, when ordered, is carried in by the butler, and the glasses, &c. on a tray, by the footman; if sandwiches are introduced, they are carried up on a tray, covered with a clean cloth, by the footman, the butler attending in the room to hand the wines, &c.

The company being gone, the bed-room candlesticks are brought by the footman, and are handed to each person respectively as he wishes to retire to bed.

The footman then shuts up all the lower part of the house, if not before done, and retires to bed himself. The butler follows last, sees all safe, and retires also.

In going out with the carriage, the footman should be dressed in his best livery, his shoes and stockings being very clean, and his hat, great coat, &c. being well brushed; nothing being so disgraceful as a slovenly exterior. He should be ready at receiving directions at the carriage door, and accurate in delivering them to the coachman, and though he may indicate the importance of his family by his style of knocking at a door, he ought to have some regard to the nerves of the family and the peace of the neighbourhood. When the carriage waits at routs or public places, he should abstain from drinking with other servants, and take care to be within call when wanted. His expertness in letting down the steps and putting them up again, and his caution in shutting the door, so as not to injure any one, or the dresses of the ladies, are expected.

When he walks out behind his mistress, he should preserve a modest demeanour, and protect her, if necessary, from intrusion or insult; and on this duty he is expected to be particularly attentive to every part of his dress. In answering the door it is his duty to behave respectfully to all enquirers after his master or mistress, and never to presume on his knowledge of persons whom they ought to see or ought not to see, except in obedience to positive instructions.

The Footman’s wages are from 20 to 30 guineas, with two suits of livery, and two undress suits.

LIQUID FOR CLEANSING BOOT TOPS, &c.

Mix in a phial, one drachm of oxy-muriate of potass, with two ounces of distilled water; and when the salt is dissolved, add two ounces of muriatic acid. Then shake well together, mix in another phial, three ounces of rectified spirit of wine with half an ounce of the essential oil of lemon, unite the contents of the two phials, and keep the liquid thus prepared, closely corked for use. This chemical liquid should be applied with a clean sponge, and dried in a gentle heat; after which, the boot-tops may be polished with a proper brush, so as to appear like new leather.

Another Method of Cleaning Boot-Tops.

Take of white vitriol, powdered, one ounce, acid of sugar one ounce, water, one quart.

Mix together.

Put a label on it, “Rank Poison.”

Sponge the tops with water first: then mix with the liquid, and then with water again.

TO CLEAN MAHOGANY FURNITURE.

Take two ounces of bees’ wax, scrape it fine, put it into a pot or jar, and pour over it enough of spirits of turpentine to cover it; let it stand a little while, and it will be ready for use. If the furniture is to be kept a dark colour, mix a very small quantity of alkanet root or rose-pink, with it.

TO CLEAN FURNITURE WITH OIL.

Take a pint of cold-drawn linseed oil, and if you wish to colour it, take a little alkanet root or rose-pink, and mix with it: put a little on the furniture, and rub it well with a woollen cloth; do not let the oil stand long on the table before it is rubbed off.

GERMAN POLISH FOR FURNITURE.

Melt a quarter of a pound of yellow wax and an ounce of black resin, well beaten, in an earthen pipkin. Then pour in by degrees two ounces of spirit of turpentine. When the whole is thoroughly mixed, put it into an earthen jar, and keep it covered for use. Spread a little of it on the furniture with a woollen cloth, rub it well in, and in a few days the polish will be as hard and as bright as varnish.

TO WARM A CARRIAGE.

Convey into it a stone bottle of boiling water, or for the feet a single glass bottle of boiled water, wrapped in flannel.

TO PRESERVE BRASS ORNAMENTS.

Brass ornaments, when not gilt or lackered, may be cleaned, and a fine colour may be given to them by two simple processes. The first is to beat sal ammoniac into a fine powder, then to moisten it with soft water, rubbing it on the ornaments, which must be heated over charcoal, and rubbed dry with bran and whiting. The second is to wash the brass work with roche alum boiled in strong ley, in the proportion of an ounce to a pint; when dry it must be rubbed with fine tripoli. Either of these processes will give to brass the brilliancy of gold.

TO PREVENT THE SMOKING OF A LAMP.

Soak the wick in strong vinegar, and dry it well before you use it; it will then burn both sweet and pleasant, and give much satisfaction for the trifling trouble in preparing it.

If for want of the above mentioned preparation any should escape, a wet sponge suspended by a string or wire over the flame of a lamp, at a few inches distance, will absorb all the smoke and disagreeable effluvia. Rinse it in warm water when wanted the next day.

TO CLEAN WATER CASKS.

Scour the inside well out with water and sand, and afterwards apply a quantity of charcoal dust. Another and better method is, to rinse them with a pretty strong solution of oil of vitriol and water, which will entirely deprive them of their foulness.

TO TAKE STAINS OUT OF MAHOGANY.

Mix 6 ounces of spirit of salts, and ½ an ounce of rock salt of lemons (powdered) together. Drop a little on the stains, and rub it with a cork till it disappear. Wash off with cold water.

TO REMOVE SPOTS OF GREASE FROM CLOTH.

Spots of grease may be removed by a diluted solution of potash, but this must be cautiously applied, to prevent injury to the cloth. Stains of white wax, which sometimes fall upon clothes from wax-candles, are removed by spirits of turpentine, or sulphuric ether. The marks of white paint may also be discharged by the above-mentioned agents.

TO CLEAN CANDLESTICKS AND SNUFFERS.

If silver or plated, care must be taken that they are not scratched in getting off the wax or grease; therefore never use a knife for that purpose, nor hold them before the fire to melt the wax or grease, as in general the hollow part of the candlesticks, towards the bottom, is filled with a composition that will melt if made too hot. Pour boiling water over them; this will take all the grease off without injury, if wiped directly with an old cloth, and save the brushes from being greased: let them in all other respects be cleaned like the rest of the plate.

TO CLEAN JAPANNED CANDLESTICKS.

Never hold them near the fire, nor scrape them with a knife; the best way is to pour water upon them just hot enough to melt the grease; then wipe them with a cloth, and if they look smeared, sprinkle a little whiting or flour upon them, and rub it clean off.

Be very particular in cleaning the patent snuffers, as they go with a spring, and are easily broken. The part which shuts up the snuffings has in general a small hole in it, where a pin can be put in to keep it open while cleaning it; be sure to have them well cleaned, that the snuff may not drop about when using them. The extinguishers likewise must be cleaned in the inside, and put ready with the snuffers, that the candlesticks may not be taken up without them.

TO CLEAN FURNITURE.

Keep the furniture paste or oil in a proper can or jar, that there may be no danger of upsetting when using it. Have two pieces of woollen cloth, one for rubbing it on, the other for rubbing it dry and polishing; also an old linen cloth to finish with, and a piece of smooth soft cork to rub out the stains: use a brush if the paste be hard. Always dust the table well before the oil or paste is put on; and if it should be stained rub it with a damp sponge, and then with a dry cloth. If the stain does not disappear, rub it well with the cork, or a brush the way of the grain, for if rubbed cross-grained, it will be sure to scratch it. Be careful to keep the cork and brush free from dust and dirt. When the dust is cleaned off and the stains have been got out, put on the oil or paste, but not too much at a time; rub it well into the wood; if oil, be as quick as possible in rubbing it over the table, and then polish it with another woollen cloth. If wax, put a little bit on the woollen cloth, with the finger, or a small stick; rub it well with this till the table has a high polish, then have another cloth to finish it with. Be very careful to have the edges of the tables well cleaned, and the oil and wax well rubbed off.