Our Deportment Part 50

Take a piece of mould candle of the finest kind, melt it, and dip the spotted part of the linen in the melted tallow: Then throw the linen into the wash.

TO REMOVE FRUIT-STAINS.

Moisten the parts stained with cold water; then hold it over the smoke of burning brimstone, and the stain will disappear. This will remove iron mould also.

CLEANING SILVER.

For cleaning silver, either articles of personal wear or those pertaining to the toilet-table or dressing-case, there is nothing better than a spoonful of common whiting, carefully pounded so as to be without lumps, reduced to a paste with gin.

TO REMOVE GREASE SPOTS.

French chalk is useful for removing grease-spots from clothing. Spots on silk will sometimes yield if a piece of blotting-paper is placed over them and the blade of a knife is heated (not too much) and pa.s.sed over the paper.

TO REMOVE A TIGHT RING.

When a ring happens to get so tight on a finger that it cannot be removed, a piece of string, well soaped, may be wound tightly round the finger, commencing at the end of the finger and continued until the ring is reached. Then force the end of the twine between the ring and finger, and as the string is unwound, the ring will be gradually forced off.

MOSQUITOES WARDED OFF.

To ward off mosquitoes, apply to the skin a solution made of fifty drops of carbolic acid to an ounce of glycerine. Mosquito bites may be instantly cured by touching them with the solution. Add two or three drops of the ottar of roses to disguise the smell. The pure, crystalized form of the acid has a less powerful odor than the common preparation.

LINIMENT FOR THE FACE AFTER SHAVING.

One ounce of lime water, one ounce of sweet oil, one drop oil of roses, is a good liniment for the face after shaving. Shake well before using.

Apply with the forefinger.

TO REMOVE SUNBURN.

Wash thoroughly with milk of almonds, which can be obtained at the drug store.

TO WHITEN THE FINGER NAILS.

Take two drams of dilute sulphuric acid, one dram of the tincture of myrrh, four ounces of spring water, and mix in a bottle. After was.h.i.+ng the hands, dip the fingers in a little of the mixture. Rings with stones or pearls in them should be removed before using this mixture.

TO REMOVE TAN.

Tan can be removed from the face by dissolving magnesia in soft water.

Beat it to a thick ma.s.s, spread it on the face, and let it remain a minute or two. Then wash off with castile soapsuds and rinse with soft water.

TO CURE WARTS.

Take a piece of raw beef steeped in vinegar for twenty-four hours, tie it on the part affected. Apply each night for two weeks.

REMEDY FOR IN-GROWING TOE-NAILS.

The best remedy for in-growing toe-nails is to cut a notch about the shape of a V in the end of the nail, about one-quarter the width of the nail from the in-growing side. Cut down as nearly to the quick as possible, and one-third the length of the nail. The pressure of the boot or shoe will tend to close the opening you have made in the nail, and this soon affords relief. Allow the in-growing portion of the nail to grow without cutting it, until it gets beyond the flesh.

TO REMOVE WRINKLES.

Melt one ounce of white wax, add two ounces of juice of lily-bulbs, two ounces of honey, two drams of rose-water, and a drop or two of ottar of roses. Use it twice a day.

Put powder of best myrrh upon an iron plate sufficiently hot to melt the gum gently, and when it liquefies, cover over your head with a napkin, and hold your face over the fumes at a distance that will cause you no inconvenience. If it produces headache, discontinue its use.

In was.h.i.+ng, use warm instead of cold water.

REMEDY FOR CHAPPED HANDS.

After was.h.i.+ng with soap, rinse the hands in fresh water and dry them thoroughly, by applying Indian meal or rice flour.

Lemon-juice three ounces, white wine vinegar three ounces, and white brandy half a pint.

Add ten drops of carbolic acid to one ounce of glycerine, and apply freely at night.

TO CURE CHILBLAINS.

Two tablespoonfuls of lime water mixed with enough sweet oil to make it as thick as lard. Rub the chilblains with the mixture and dry it in, then wrap up in linen.

Bathe the chilblains in strong alum water, as hot as it can be borne.

When indications of the chilblains first present themselves, take vinegar three ounces and camphorated spirits of wine one ounce; mix and rub on the parts affected.

Bathe the feet in warm water, in which two or three handsful of common salt have been dissolved.

Rub with a raw onion dipped in salt.

HAIR RESTORATIVE.

The oil of mace one-half ounce, mixed with a pint of deodorized alcohol, is a powerful stimulant for the hair. To apply it, pour a spoonful or two into a saucer, dip a stiff brush into it and brush the hair and head smartly.

On bald heads, if hair will start at all, it may be stimulated by friction with a piece of flannel till the skin becomes red. Repeat this process three times a day, until the hair begins to grow, when the tincture may be applied but once a day, till the growth is well established. The head should be bathed in cold water every morning, and briskly brushed to bring the blood to the surface.

WASH FOR THE TEETH.