Chapter 280

do not hesitate when you are asked, for few people are judges of singing, but every one is sensible of a desire to please.

viii. To preserve beauty, rise early.

ix. To preserve esteem, be gentle.

x. To obtain power, be condescending.

xi. To live happily, try to promote the happiness of others.

2187. Daughters.

Mothers who wish not only to discharge well their own duties in the domestic circle, but to train up their daughters for a later day to make happy and comfortable firesides for their families, should watch well, and guard well, the notions which they imbibe and with which they grow up. There will be many persons ready to fill their young heads with false and vain fancies, and there is so much always afloat in society opposed to duty and common sense, that if mothers do not watch well, their children may contract ideas very fatal to their future happiness and usefulness, and hold them till they grow into habits of thought or feeling. A wise mother will have her eyes open, and be ready for every emergency. A few words of common, downright practical sense, timely uttered by her, may be enough to counteract some foolish idea or belief put into her daughter's head by others, whilst if it be left unchecked, it may take such possession of the mind that it cannot be corrected at a later time.

One false notion rife in the present age is the idea that women, unless compelled to it by absolute poverty, are out of place when engaged in domestic affairs. Now mothers should have a care lest their daughters get hold of this conviction as regard themselves--there is danger of it; the fashion of the day engenders it, and even the care that an affectionate family take to keep a girl, during the time of her education, free from other occupations than those of her tasks, or her recreations, may lead her to infer that the matters with which she is never asked to concern herself are, in fact, no concern to her, and that any attention she may ever bestow on them is not a matter of simple duty, but of grace, or concession, or stooping, on her part. Let mothers bring up their daughters from the _first_ with the idea that in this world it is required to give as well as to receive, to minister as well as to enjoy; that every person is bound to be useful in his own sphere, and that a woman's first sphere is the house, and its concerns and demands. Once really imbued with this belief, a young girl will usually be anxious to learn all that her mother is disposed to teach, and will be proud and happy to aid in any domestic occupations assigned to her. These need never be made so heavy as to interfere with the peculiar duties or enjoyments of her age. If a mother wishes to see her daughter become a good, happy, and rational woman, never let there be contempt for domestic occupations, or suffer them to be deemed secondary.

2188. A Wife's Power.

The power of a wife for good or evil is irresistible. Home must be the seat of happiness, or it must be for ever unknown. A good wife is to a man wisdom, and courage, and strength, and endurance. A bad wife is confusion, weakness, discomfiture, and despair. No condition is hopeless where the wife possesses firmness, decision, and economy. There is no outward prosperity which can counteract indolence, extravagance, and folly at home. No spirit can long endure bad domestic influence. Man is strong, but his heart is not adamant. He delights in enterprise and action; but to sustain him he needs a tranquil mind, and a whole heart. He needs his moral force in the conflicts of the world. To recover his equanimity and composure, home must be to him a place of repose, of peace, of cheerfulness, of comfort; and his soul renews its strength again, and goes forth with fresh vigour to encounter the labour and troubles of life. But if at home he find no rest, and is there met with bad temper, sullenness, or gloom, or is assailed by discontent or complaint, hope vanishes, and he sinks into despair.

2189. Husband and Wife.

Being hints to each other for the good of both, as actually delivered at our own table:

2190. Hints for Wives (1).

If your husband occasionally looks a little troubled when he comes home, do not say to him, with an alarmed countenance, "What ails you, my dear?" Don't bother him; he will tell you of his own accord, if need be. Be observant and quiet. Let him alone until he is inclined to talk; take up your book or your needlework pleasantly and cheerfully; and wait until he is inclined to be sociable. Don't let him ever find a shirt-button missing. A shirt-button being off a collar or wrist-band has frequently produced the first impatient word in married Life.

2191. Hints for Husbands (1).

If your wife complain that young ladies of the present day are very forward, don't accuse her of jealousy. A little concern on her part only proves her love for you, and you may enjoy your triumph without saying a word. Don't evince your weakness either, by complaining of every trifling neglect. What though her knitting and crochet seem to absorb too large a share of her attention; depend upon it, that as her eyes watch the intertwinings of the threads, and the manoeuvres of the needles, she is thinking of the events of byegone times, which entangled your two hearts in the network of love, whose meshes you can neither of you unravel or escape.

2192. Hints for Wives (2).

Never complain that your husband pores too much over the newspaper, to the exclusion of that pleasing converse which you formerly enjoyed with him. Don't hide the paper, but when the boy leaves it at the door, take it in pleasantly, and lay it down before him. Think what man would be without a newspaper, and how much good newspapers have done by exposing bad husbands and bad wives, by giving their errors to the eye of the public. When your husband is absent, instead of gossiping or looking into shop windows, sit down quietly, and look over that paper; run your eye over its home and foreign news; glance rapidly at the accidents and casualties; carefully scan the leading articles; and at tea-time, when your husband again takes up the paper, make some brief remarks on what you have read, and, depend upon it, he will put it down again. If he has not read the information, he will hear it all from your lips, and when you have read, he will ask questions in his turn, and, gradually, you will get into as cosy a chat as you ever enjoyed; and you will soon discover that, rightly used, the newspaper is the wife's real friend, for it keeps the husband at home, and supplies capital topics for every-day table-talk.

2193. Hints for Husbands (2).

You can hardly imagine how refreshing it is to occasionally call up the recollection of your courting days. How tediously the hours rolled away prior to the appointed time of meeting; how swiftly they seemed to fly when you had met; how fond was the first greeting; how tender the last embrace; how vivid your dreams of future happiness, when, returning to your home, you felt yourself secure in the confessed love of the object of your warm affections! Is your dream realised?--are you as happy as you expected? Consider whether, as a husband, you are as fervent and constant as you were when a lover. Remember that the wife's claims to your unremitting regard, great before marriage, are now exalted to a much higher degree. She has left the world for you--the home of her childhood, the fireside of her parents, their watchful care and sweet intercourse have all been yielded up for you. Look, then, most jealously upon all that may tend to attract you from home, and to weaken that union upon which your temporal happiness mainly depends; and believe that in the solemn relationship of husband is to be found one of the best guarantees for man's honour and happiness.

2194. Hints for Wives (3).

Perchance you think that your husband's disposition is much changed; that he is no longer the sweet-tempered, ardent lover he used to be. This may be a mistake. Consider his struggles with the world--his everlasting race with the busy competition of trade. What is it makes him so eager in the pursuit of gain--so energetic by day, so sleepless by night--but his love of home, wife, and children, and a dread that their respectability, according to the light in which he has conceived it, may be encroached upon by the strife of existence? This is the true secret of that silent care which preys upon the hearts of many men, and true it is, that when love is least apparent, it is nevertheless the active principle which animates the heart, though fears and disappointments make up a cloud which obscures the warmer element. As above the clouds there is glorious sunshine, while below are showers and gloom, so with the conduct of man--behind the gloom of anxiety is a bright fountain of high and noble feeling. Think of this in those moments when clouds seem to lower upon your domestic peace, and, by tempering your conduct accordingly, the gloom will soon pass away, and warmth and brightness take its place.

2195. Hints for Husbands (3).

Summer is the season of love and innocent enjoyment. What shall the husband do when summer returns to gladden the earth, and all who live upon it? Must he still pore over the calculations of the counting-house, or ceaselessly pursue the toils of the work-room--sparing no moment to taste the joys which Heaven measures out so liberally? No! Let him ask his wife once more to breathe with him the fresh air of heaven, and look upon the beauties of earth. The summers are few that they may dwell together; so let him not give them all to Mammon, but seek invigorating and health-renewing recreation abroad, which shall make the hearts of each glow with emotions of renewed love.

[TRUTH IS A ROCK LARGE ENOUGH FOR ALL TO STAND UPON.]

2196. Hints for Wives (4).

"It was!" "It was not!" "It _was!_" "It was _not_!" "Ah!" "Ha!"--Now who's the wiser or the better for this contention for the last word? Does obstinacy establish superiority or elicit truth? Decidedly not! Woman has always been described as clamouring for the last word, and men, generally, have agreed in attributing this trait to her, and in censuring her for it. This being so it remains for some one of the sex, by an exhibition of noble example, to aid in sweeping away the unpleasant imputation. The wife who will establish the rule of allowing her husband to have the last word, will achieve for herself and her sex a great moral victory! Is he _right_?--it were a great error to oppose him. Is he _wrong_?--he will soon discover it, and applaud the self-command which bore unvexed his pertinacity. And gradually there will spring up such a happy fusion of feelings and ideas, that there will be no "last word" to contend about, but a steady and unruffled flow of generous sentiment.

2197. Cider.

A beverage made from the juice of the apple, and for which sour and rough-tasted apples are generally preferred. The process of making cider varies in different localities, but in every case essentially consists of the collection of the fruit, and the expression and fermentation of the juice. The _collection of the fruit_ should not be commenced before it has become sufficiently mature. The apples, after being gathered, are usually left for fourteen or fifteen days in a barn or loft to mellow, during which time the mucilage is decomposed, and alcohol and carbonic acid developed.

The _expression of the juice_ is the next step in cider-making. The apples are ground to a pulp in a mill, consisting of two fluted cylinders of hard wood or cast iron working against each other. The pulp is afterwards put into coarse strong bags, and pressed with a heavy weight so as to squeeze out all the juice. This is then placed in large open tubs, and kept at a heat of about sixty degrees. After two or three days for weak cider, and eight or ten days for strong cider, or as soon as the sediment has subsided, the liquor is drawn off into clean casks. The casks are then stored in a cellar, shaded barn, or other cool place, where a low and regular temperature can be insured, and are left to mature and ripen until the following spring. The refuse pulp may be given to pigs and store cattle.

2198. Bottling Cider.

Preparatory to _bottling cider_, it should always be examined, to see whether it is clear and sparkling. If not so, it should be clarified, and left for a fortnight. The night previous to bottling, the bung should be taken out of the cask, and the filled bottles should not be corked down until the day after; as, if this is done at once, many of the bottles will burst by keeping. The best corks should be used. Champagne bottles are the best for cider. When the cider is wanted for immediate use, or for consumption during the cooler season of the year, a small piece of lump sugar may be put into each bottle before corking it. When intended for keeping, it should be stored in a cool cellar, when the quality will be greatly improved by age.

2199. Cider Champagne.

Cider, eighteen gallons; spirit, three pints; sugar, five pounds. Mix and let them rest for a fortnight, then fine with one pint of skimmed milk. Bottle in champagne bottles: when opened, it will be found to approach very nearly to genuine champagne.

2200. Properties of Cider.

Cider is a pleasant and refreshing beverage, and with persons in good health is not unwholesome when drunk in moderation. By persons suffering from indigestion, however, it should be carefully avoided; nor should it be drunk by persons when they are overheated, as it is apt to cause colic and other disagreeable symptoms. Persons who suffer from rheumatism, or have a tendency to it should not drink cider.

[KNOWLEDGE IS THE WING WHEREBY WE FLY TO HEAVEN.]

2201. Perry.

A beverage made from pears. The fruit used for this purpose should contain a large proportion of sugar, and be likewise astringent, or the liquor from it will be acetous when it ceases to be saccharine. In the making of perry, the pears are pressed and ground in precisely the same manner as apples are in the making of cider. The method of fermenting perry is nearly the same as that for cider; but the former does not afford the same indications as the latter by which the proper period of racking off may be known. The thick scum that collects on the surface of cider rarely appears in the juice of the pear, and during the time of the suspension of its fermentation, the excessive brightness of the former liquor is seldom seen in the latter; but when the fruit has been regularly ripe, its produce will generally become moderately clear and quiet in a few days after it is made, and it should then be drawn off from its grosser lees.

In the after management of perry the process is the same as that of cider; but it does not so well bear situations where it is much exposed to change of temperature. In bottle it almost always retains its good qualities, and in that situation it is always advisable to put it, if it remain sound and perfect at the conclusion of the first succeeding summer.

2202. Servants.

There are frequent complaints in these days, that servants are bad, and dependents and aiding hands generally are bad. It may be so. But if it is so, what is the inference? In the working of the machine of society, class moves pretty much with class; that is, one class moves pretty much with its equals in the community (equals so far as social station is concerned), and apart from other classes, as much those below as those above itself; but there is one grand exception to this general rule, and that is, in the case of domestic servants. The same holds, though in less degree, with assistants; and in less degree only; because in this last case, the difference of grade is slighter.

Domestic servants, and assistants in business and trade, come most closely and continually into contact with their employers; and they are about them from morning till night, and see them in every phase of character, in every style of humour, in every act of life. How powerful is the force of example! Rectitude is promoted, not only by precept but by example, and, so to speak, by contact it is increased more widely. Kindness is communicated in the same way. Virtue of every kind acts like an electric shock. Those who come under its influence imbibe its principles. The same with qualities and tempers that do no honour to our nature. If servants come to you bad, you may at least improve them; possibly almost change their nature. Here follows, then, a receipt to that effect:

_Receipt for obtaining good servants_.--Let them observe in your conduct to others just the qualities and virtues that you would desire they should possess and practise as respects you. Be uniformly kind and gentle. If you reprove, do so with reason and with good temper. Be respectable, and you will be respected by them. Be kind, and you will meet kindness from them. Consider their interests, and they will consider yours. A friend in a servant is no contemptible thing. Be to every servant a friend; and heartless, indeed, will be the servant who does not warm in love to you.

2203. Oyster Ketchup.

Take some fresh oysters; wash them in their own liquor, strain it, pound them in a marble mortar; to a pint of oysters add a pint of sherry; boil them up, and add an ounce of salt, two drachms of pounded mace, and one of cayenne; let it just boil up again, skim it, and rub it through a sieve; and when cold, bottle it, cork well, and seal it down.

2204. Walnut Ketchup.

Take two sieves of green walnut shells, put them into a tub, mix them up well with from two to three pounds of common salt, let them stand for six days, frequently beating and mashing them. By this time the shells become soft and pulpy, then by banking the mass up on one side of the tub, and at the same time raising the tub on that side, the liquor will drain clear off to the other; then take that liquor out: the mashing and banking-up may be repeated as often as liquor is found. The quantity obtained will be about six quarts. When done, let it be simmered in an iron boiler as long as any scum arises; then bruise a quarter of a pound of ginger, a quarter of a pound of allspice, two ounces of long pepper, and two ounces of cloves. Let it slowly boil for half an hour with the above ingredients; when bottled, let an equal quantity of the spice go into each bottle. Before corking, let the bottles be filled quite up: cork them tight, seal them over, and put them into a cool and dry place for one year before they are used.

2205. Essence of Mushrooms.

This delicate relish is made by sprinkling a little salt over either flap or button mushrooms: three hours after, mash them,--next day, strain off the liquor that will flow from them, put it into a stewpan, and boil it till it is reduced one half. It will not keep long, but is preferable to any of the ketchups containing spice, &c., to preserve them, which overpowers the flavour of the mushrooms. An artificial mushroom bed will supply these all the year round.

2206. Essence of Celery.

This is prepared by soaking for a fortnight half an ounce of the seeds of celery in a quarter of a pint of brandy. A few drops will flavour a pint of soup or broth equal to a head of celery.

2207. Tincture of Allspice

Bruised allspice, one ounce and a half; brandy, a pint. Steep for a fortnight, occasionally shaking, then pour off the clear liquor. This is excellent for many of the uses of allspice, such as making bishop, mulling wine, flavouring gravies, potted meats, &c.

2208. Horseradish Vinegar.

Pour a quart of best vinegar on three ounces of scraped horseradish, an ounce of minced shalot, and one drachm of cayenne; let it stand a week, and you will have an excellent relish for cold beef, salads, &c., costing but little. Horseradish is in the highest perfection about November.

2209. Mint Vinegar.

Put into a wide-mouthed bottle, fresh nice clean mint leaves enough to fill it loosely; then fill up the bottle with good vinegar; and after it has been corked close for two or three weeks, pour it off clear into another bottle, and keep well corked for use. Serve with lamb when mint cannot be obtained.

2210. Cress Vinegar.

Dry and pound half an ounce of _cress seed_ (such as is sown in the garden with mustard), pour upon it a quart of the best vinegar, let it steep for ten days, shaking it up every day. This is very strongly flavoured with cress, and is useful for salads, and as a sauce for cold meats, &c. Celery vinegar may be made in the same manner.

2011. Cheap and Good Vinegar.

To eight gallons of clear rain water, add three quarts of molasses; turn the mixture into a clean, tight cask, shake it well two or three times, and add three spoonfuls of good yeast; place the cask in a warm place, and in ten or fifteen days add a sheet of common wrapping paper, smeared with molasses, and torn into narrow strips, and you will have good vinegar. The paper is necessary to form the "mother," or life of the vinegar.

[LITTLE BOATS MUST KEEP NEAR THE SHORE.]

2212. Cayenne Pepper.

Dr. Kitchiner says (in his excellent book, "The Cook's Oracle" [1]):

"We advise all who are fond of cayenne not to think it too much trouble to make it of English chilis,--there is no other way of being sure it is genuine,--and they will obtain a pepper of much finer flavour, without half the heat of the foreign. A hundred large chilis, costing only two shillings, will produce you about two ounces of cayenne,--so it is as cheap as the commonest cayenne. Four hundred chilis, when the stems were taken off, weighed half a pound; and when dried produced a quarter of a pound of cayenne pepper. The following is the way to make it:--Take away the stalks, and put the pods into a cullender; set them before the fire,--they will take full twelve hours to dry;--then put them into a mortar, with one-fourth their weight of salt, and pound them and rub them till they are as _fine as possible_, and put them into a well-stoppered bottle."

[Footnote 1: London: Houlston & Sons.]

2213. Peas Powder.

Pound in a marble mortar half an ounce each of dried mint and sage, a drachm of celery seed, and a quarter of a drachm of cayenne pepper; rub them together through a fine sieve, this gives a very savoury relish to pea soup and even to gruel. A drachm of allspice, or black pepper, may be pounded with the above as an addition, or instead of the cayenne.

2214. Horseradish Powder.

The time to make this is during November and December: slice the radish the thickness of a shilling, and lay it to dry very gradually in a Dutch oven (a strong heat soon evaporates its flavour); when dry enough, pound it and bottle it.

2215. Curry Powder (1).

(a genuine Indian receipt).--Turmeric, coriander, black pepper, four ounces each; fenugreek, three ounces; ginger, two ounces; cummin seed, ground rice, one ounce each; cayenne pepper, cardamums, half an ounce each.

2216. Another Curry Powder (2).

Coriander, twelve ounces; black pepper, six ounces; turmeric, four ounces and three-quarters; cummin seed, three ounces; cayenne, one ounce and a half; ground rice, one ounce; cardamums, half an ounce; cloves, quarter of an ounce.--It is best to have the above receipts prepared at a chemist's.

2217. Another Curry Powder (3).

Take two ounces of turmeric, six ounces of coriander seed, half an ounce of powdered ginger, two drachms of cinnamon, six drachms of cayenne pepper, four drachms of black pepper, one drachm of mace and cloves, powdered fine, two drachms of pimento, four drachms of nutmeg, and an ounce and a half of fennel seed; powder finely, mix, dry, and bottle for use.

2218. Another Curry Powder (4).

Take of coriander seed and turmeric, each six drachms; black pepper, four drachms; fennel seed and powdered ginger, each two drachms; cayenne pepper, half a drachm: powder finely, mix, dry, and bottle for use.

2219. True Indian Curry Powder (5).

Turmeric, four ounces; coriander seeds, eleven ounces; cayenne, half an ounce; black pepper, five ounces; pimento, two ounces; cloves, half an ounce; cinnamon, three ounces; ginger, two ounces; cummin seed, three ounces; shalots, one ounce. All these ingredients should be of a fine quality, and recently ground or powdered.

2220. Oyster Powder.

Open the oysters carefully, so as not to cut them, except in dividing the gristle which adheres to the shells. Put them into a mortar, and when you have got as many as you can conveniently pound at once, add salt in the proportion of about two drachms to a dozen oysters; pound them, and rub them through the back of a hair sieve, dry them thoroughly, and put them into the mortar again, with as much flour as will convert them into a paste; roll this paste out several times, and lastly, flour it, and roll it out the thickness of half a crown, and cut it into pieces about one inch square; lay them in a Dutch oven, where they will dry so gently as not to get burned; turn them every half hour, and when they begin to dry, crumble them. They will take about four hours to dry. Pound them, sift them, and put them into dry bottles; cork and seal them.

Three dozen of natives require seven ounces and a half of flour to make them into a paste weighing eleven ounces, which, when dried, is reduced to six and a half ounces. To make half a pint of sauce, put one ounce of butter into a stewpan with three drachms of oyster powder, and six tablespoonfuls of milk; set it on a slow fire, stir it till it boils, and season it with salt. As a sauce, it is excellent for fish, fowls, or rump steaks. Sprinkled on bread and butter, it makes a good sandwich.

2221. Anchovy Butter.

Scrape the skin from a dozen fine anchovies, take the flesh from the bones, pound it smooth in a mortar; rub through a hair sieve, put the anchovies into the mortar with three-quarters of a pound of fresh butter, a small quantity of cayenne, and a saltspoonful of grated nutmeg and mace; beat together until thoroughly blended. If to serve cold, mould the butter in small shapes, and turn it out. For preservation, press the butter into jars, and keep cool.

2222. Lobster Butter.

Lobster Butter is made in the same manner as anchovy butter. A mixture of anchovy butter and lobster butter is considered excellent.

2223. Liver Sauce for Fish.

Boil the liver of the fish, and pound it in a mortar with a little flour, stir it into some broth, or some of the liquor the fish was boiled in, or melted butter, with some chopped parsley, a few grains of cayenne, and a little essence of anchovy, soy, or ketchup;--give the whole a boil up, and rub it through a sieve; a little lemon juice, or lemon cut in dice, may be added, if liked.

2224. Sauce for Fish.

Twenty-four anchovies, chopped; ten shalots; two ounces of horseradish, scraped; four blades of mace; one lemon, sliced; twelve cloves; one quarter of an ounce of black pepper, whole; one gill of the anchovy liquor; one quart of best vinegar; one quart of water. Let the whole simmer on the fire, in a covered saucepan, until reduced to one quart, strain, and bottle for use. If required for long keeping, add a quarter of an ounce of cayenne pepper.

2225. Apple Sauce.

Pare and core three good-sized baking apples, put them into a well-tinned pint saucepan, with two tablespoonfuls of cold water; cover the saucepan close, and set it on a trivet over a slow fire a couple of hours before dinner,--some apples will take a long time stewing, others will be ready in a quarter of an hour. When the apples are done enough pour off the water, let them stand a few minutes to get dry; then beat them up with a fork, with a bit of butter about as big as a nutmeg, and a teaspoonful of powdered sugar; some persons add lemon-peel, grated or minced fine,--or boil a small piece with the apples. Many persons are fond of apple sauce with cold pork.

2226. Grill Sauce.

To a quarter of a pint of gravy add half an ounce of butter and a dessertspoonful of flour, well rubbed together; the same of mushroom or walnut ketchup; a teaspoonful of lemon juice; half a teaspoonful of made mustard, and of minced capers; a small quantity of black pepper; a little lemon-peel grated very thin; a saltspoonful of essence of anchovies; a very small piece of minced shalot, and a little chili vinegar, or a few grains of cayenne; simmer together for a few minutes; pour a portion of it over the grill, and send up the remainder in a sauce-tureen.

2227. Tomato Sauce.

Twelve tomatoes, ripe and red; take off the stalk; cut in halves; put them in a stewpan with a capsicum, and two or three tablespoonfuls of beef gravy; set on a slow stove till properly melted; rub them through a sieve into a clean stewpan; add a little white pepper and salt, and let them simmer a few minutes.--French cooks add an onion or shalot, a clove or two, or a little tarragon vinegar.

[ONE STORY IS GOOD UNTIL ANOTHER IS TOLD.]

2228. Beef Gravy Sauce.

(_Or Brown Sauce for ragoût, Game, Poultry, Fish, &c_.)--If you want gravy, put in a thick and well-tinned stewpan a thin slice of fat ham or bacon, or an ounce of butter, and a middling-sized onion; on this lay a pound of nice juicy gravy-beef (as the object in making gravy is to extract the nutritious qualities of the meat, it must be beaten so as to reduce the containing vessels, and scored to render the surface more susceptible to the action of the water); cover the stewpan. Set it on a slow fire; when the meat begins to brown, turn it about, and let it get slightly browned (but _take care it is not at all burnt_): then pour in a pint-and-a-half of boiling water, set the pan on the fire;--when it boils, carefully catch the scum, and then put in a crust of bread toasted brown (don't burn it), a sprig of winter savoury, or lemon thyme and parsley, a roll of thin-cut lemon peel, a dozen berries of allspice, and a dozen of black pepper; cover the stewpan close, let it _stew very gently_ for about two hours, then strain it through a sieve into a basin.

If you wish to thicken it, set a clean stewpan over a slow fire, with about an ounce of butter in it; when it is melted, dredge into it (by degrees) as much flour as will dry it up, stirring them intimately; when thoroughly mixed, pour in a little of the gravy,--stir it well together, and add the remainder by degrees; set it over the fire, let it simmer gently for fifteen or twenty minutes longer, and skim off the fat, &c., as it rises; when it is about as thick as cream, squeeze it through a tamis or fine sieve, and you will have a fine rich brown sauce, at a very moderate expense, and without much trouble.

_Observe_--If you wish _to make it still more relishing_--for _poultry_, you may pound the liver with a piece of butter, rub it through a sieve, and stir it into the sauce when you put in the thickening.

2229. Chutney.

One pound of salt, one pound of mustard seed, one pound of stoned raisins, one pound of brown sugar, twelve ounces of garlic, six ounces of cayenne pepper, two quarts of unripe gooseberries, two quarts of best vinegar. The mustard seed gently dried and bruised; the sugar made into a syrup with a pint of the vinegar; the gooseberries dried and boiled in a quart of the vinegar; the garlic to be well bruised in a mortar. When cold, gradually mix the whole in a large mortar, and with the remaining vinegar thoroughly amalgamate them. To be tied down close. The longer it is kept the better it will become.

2230. Wow Wow Sauce.

Chop parsley leaves fine; take two or three pickled cucumbers, or walnuts, and divide into small squares, and set them by in readiness; put into a saucepan a piece of butter as big as an egg; when it is melted, stir into it a tablespoonful of fine flour, and half a pint of the broth of the beef; add a tablespoonful of vinegar, one of mushroom ketchup, or port wine, or both, and a tablespoonful of made mustard; simmer together till it is as thick as you wish, put in the parsley and pickles to get warm, and pour it over the beef, or send it up in a sauce-tureen. This is excellent for stewed or boiled beef.

2231. Sage-and-Onion, or Goose-Stuffing Sauce.

Chop very fine an ounce of onion and half an ounce of green sage leaves, put them into a stewpan with four spoonfuls of water, simmer gently for ten minutes, then put in a teaspoonful of pepper and salt, and one ounce of fine bread-crumbs; mix well together; then pour to it a quarter of a pint of broth, or gravy, or melted butter; stir well together, and simmer it a few minutes longer. This is an excellent relish for roast pork, poultry, geese or ducks, or green peas.

2232. Garnishes.