PRACTICAL RECEIPTS,

Asphalte for Walks-The place intended to be asphalted must be previously levelled, then put on it a coat of tar, and sift some road sand or coal ashes over it very thickly; after this is dry repeat the operation until you have got four coats of tar, and as many of coal ashes or road sand. It will make excellent walks, floors for sheds, out-buildings, &c., and will wear for many years.

Remedy for Spitting of Blood-Infusion of red roses, 5 ounces; syrup of poppies half an ounce; diluted sulphuric acid, 20 drops. Mix. One or two tablespoonfuls four times a day.

Gargle for a Sore Throat-Tincture of myrrh, 2 drachms ; common water, 4 ounces; vinegar, half an ounce. Mix.

Rusks-Beat well together six large eggs, half a pint of new milk, a quarter of a pound of melted butter, a quarter of a pint of yeast. three ounces of sugar, with as much flour, added gradually, as will make a light paste. Let it rise before the fire for half an hour, then add a little more flour, form into cakes, and bake moderately. When cold, cut them into slices the size of rusks, and put them into the oven to brown a little. A capital tea-cake when hot.

Cheap Beer-No production in this country abounds so much with saccharine matter as the shells of green peas. A strong decoction of them so much resembles, in odour and taste an infusion of malt (termed wort), as to deceive a brewer. This decoction, rendered slightly bitter with the wood sage. and afterwards fermented with yeast, affords a very excellent beverage. The method employed is as follows:-Fill a boiler with the green shells of peas, pour on water till it rises half an inch above the shells, and simmer for three hours. Strain off the liquor, and add a strong decoction of the wood sage, or the hop, so as to render it pleasantly bitter; then ferment in the usual manner. The wood sage is the best substitute for hops; and being free from any anodyne property is entitled to a preference. By boiling a fresh quantity of shells in the decoction before it becomes cold, it may be so thoroughly impregnated with saccharine matter, as to afford a liquor, when fermented, as strong as ale.

Wash for a Blotched Face-Rose water three ounces; sulphate of zinc, one drachm. Mix. Wet the face with it, gently dry it, and then touch it over with cold cream, which also dry gently off.

Rose Oil.- To make the Hair Grow.-Rose petals, beat to a pulp, 3 or 4 ounces; olive oil, three quarters of a pint; macerate in the sun or a warm place, in a covered vessel for a week, and press out the oil. Repeat the process with fresh roses till the oil smells sufficiently strong, then filter.

Cure for Chapped Hands-Instead of washing the hands with soap, employ oatmeal, and, after each washing, take a little dry oatmeal, and rub over the hands, so as to absorb any moisture.

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.

To remove Nervous Anxiety-Keep the bowe's regular with mild purgatives, take plenty of exercise in the open air, adopt a light nutritious diet, and seek pleasant society. A teaspoonful of carbonate of soda, or of magnesia, or a few drops of laudanum taken the last thing at night, will generally have the effect of preventing watch ́fulness.

Waterproof Liquid for Leather Boots and Shoes-Linseed Oil, one pint; suet, eight ounces; bees' wax, six ounces; resin, one ounce. Melt together.

Method of Breaking Glass to any required Figure-Make a small notch by means of a file on the edge of a piece of glass, then make the end of a tobacco pipe, or of a rod of iron of the same size. red hot in the fire, apply the hot iron to the notch and draw it slowly along the surface of the glass in any direction you please, a crack will follow the direction of the iron.

Excellent Medicine for Skin Eruptions-Mix together 6 drachms of antimonial wine, 1 of laudanum, and 11⁄2 of the solution of oxyinuriate of mercury. From 20 to 30 drops to be taken night and morning, in any agreeable vehicle.

Treatment for a Cold in the Head or Chest-A light or spoon diet should be adopted and animal food and fermented or spirituous liquors avoided. The bowels should be opened with some mild aperients, and if the symptoms be severe, or fever or headache be present, small diaphoretic doses of antimonials, accompanied by copious draughts of diluents, as barley water, weak tea, or gruel should be taken.

Paste for Cleaning Brass-Rotten stone, two ounces; oxalic acid, half an ounce; sweet oil, three quarters of an ounce; turpentine, enough to make a paste. Apply it with a little water.

Scouring Balls, to Remove Grease, &c, from Cloth-Soft Soap and Fuller's earth, of each half a pound; beat them well together in a mortar, and form into cakes. The spot, first moistened with water, is rubbed with a cake, and allowed to dry, when it is well rubbed with a little warm water, and afterwards rinsed or rubbed off clean. Blacking for Harness, &c.—Melt four ounces of mutton suet with twelve ounces of bees' wax; add twelve ounces of sugar-candy; four ounces of soft soap dissolved in water; and two ounces of indigo

G

finely powdered. When melted and well mixed, add half a pint of turpentine. Lay it on the harness with a sponge and polish off with a brush.

To know whether a Bed be damp or not-After the bed is warmed put a glass goblet in between the sheets, and if the bed be damp, in a few minutes drops of wet will appear in the inside of the glass. This is of great consequence to be attended to in travelling, as many persons have laid the foundation of incurable disorders, by sleeping in a damp bed.

To extinguish Fire in Female Dress-Seize anything sufficiently large, such as a green cloth, hearth rug, or even a linen cloth, if there be no woollen at hand, and wrap it round the sufferer; at the same time lay her gently down on the floor, as it is evident the flames must have much less power on a horizontal than on a perpendicular surface; this should be done even if there be no wrapper at hand.

To Renovate Silks-Sponge faded silks with warm water and soap, then rub them with a dry cloth on a flat board; afterwards iron them on the inside with a smoothing iron. Old black silks may be improved by sponging with spirits. In this case the ironing may be done on the right side, thin paper being spread over to prevent glazing.

The Queen's own Perfume-Essences of cloves and bergamote of each three quarters of a drachm; neroli, about a drachm; essence of musk, half an ounce; eau de rose, spirit of tuberose, and the strongest spirits of wine, of each half a pint; spirits of jasmine and cassia, of each one pint; dissolve the essences in the spirits of wine, then add the other spirits, and when well mixed add the rose water.

Mixture for Destroying Bugs-Take of corrosive sublimate, two drachms; spirits of wine, eight ounces. Rub them well together in a mortar until the sublimate is dissolved; then add half a pint of spirits of turpentine. This is an effectual destroyer of bugs; but, being a strong poison, great care should be taken in using it.

Fine Solder-Tin, two parts; lead, one part; melt together. Melts at 350 degrees. Use to solder tin plates &c.

Cement for China, Glass, &c.,—To a quarter of an ounce of gum mastic, add as much spirits of wine as will dissolve it. Soak a quarter of an ounce of isinglass in water till it is quite soft; then dissolve it in rum or brandy till of the consistence of glue. To this add one drachm of gum ammoniac, well rubbed and mixed. Put now the two mixtures together in a vessel over a gentle heat till properly united, and the cement is ready for use. It should be kept in a phial well corked, and when about to be used, to be set in boiling water to soften.

The true French Polish-To one pint of spirits of wine, add a quarter of an ounce of gum-copal, and a quarter of an ounce of gum

arabic, and one ounce of shell-laç. Let the gums be well bruised, and sifted through a piece of muslin. Put the spirits and the gums together in a vessel that can be closely corked; place them near a warm stove, and frequently shake them; in two or three days they they will be dissolved: strain the mixture through a piece of muslin, and keep it tightly corked for use.

Blake's Remedy for the Toothache-Alum reduced to an impalpable powder, two drachms; nitrous spirit of ether, seven drachms. Mix; and apply them to the tooth.

Shaving Fluid-The following admirable alcholic solution of soap is used for shaving, and is very convenient in travelling, as a good lather may be instantly produced without the trouble of employing a soap box :-Best soft soap two ounces; boiling water, half a pint; dissolve, cool, and add oils of cinnamon (cassia), verbena, and neroli, of each, two drops; dissolved in rectified spirits of wine, half a pint; mix well, and if not perfectly transparent, filter through blotting paper.

To Remove Stains from Mourning Dresses-Boil a handful of fig leaves in two quarts of water until reduced to a pint. Bombazines, crape, cloth, &c., need only be rubbed with a sponge dipped in this liquor, and the effect will be instantly produced.

To Choose Fish-The eyes should be bright, the gills of a fine clear red, the body stiff, the flesh firm, yet elastic to the touch, and the smell not disagreeable.

Artificial Asses' Milk-The value of asses' milk, as an article of diet for the consumptive, is well known. If it cannot be readily procured, an excellent substitute may be made by pouring a pint of water of super-carbonate of soda upon four ounces of boiling milk.

To Restore Obliterated Writing on Parchment Deeds-Dip the parchment in a vessel of fresh drawn spring water, and let it remain about a minute, then take it out, and press it between two sheets of blotting paper, to prevent its crumpling. When it is nearly dry

examine it, and if the writing is not restored, repeat the operation two or three times. If the fading is only the effect of time, you will by this means, restore the writing to its pristine state; but if the ink has been removed by any chemical process, of course it cannot be restored.

A Cooling Summer Drink-Powedered loaf sugar, five ounces; carbonate of soda, two ounces; tartaric acid, two and a half ounces; essence of lemons and oil of oranges, of each, a quarter of a drachm. Mix. A dessert-spoonful thrown into a glass of water makes a pleasant effervescing cooling beverage.

Instantaneous Ginger Beer-Fill a bottle with pure cold water, then have a cork ready to fit it, also a string or wire to tie it down with, and a mallet to drive the cork, so that no time may be lost;

now put into the bottle sugar to your taste (syrup is better). and a teaspoonful of good powdered ginger, shake it well, then add the sixth part of an ounce of super-carbonate of soda; cork rapidly-tie down-shake the bottle well,-cut the string-the cork will flythen drink ginger beer.

Emetic Draught, in case of Poison being taken into the Stomach— Sulphate of zinc, one scruple; distilled water two ounces. Mix. Remedy for Rheumatism - Take of infusion of buchu, eleven drachms, powdered tragacanth, five grains; tincture of buchu, one drachm. Mix.

To Preserve and Soften Leather-Take of linseed oil one pint and a half; yellow rosin, two ounces; bees' wax, six ounces. Melt together over a slow fire; then add one pint of neats'-foot oil, and half a pint of turpentine, which must be well mixed with it.

Potted Sprats-Wash the fish well. take off the heads, and draw the small gut. Wash them a second time in salt and water, and dry them between two clean cloths. Then lay them in an earthen pan with salt, pepper, and a little pounded mace between each layer, and a few bay leaves between every alternate one. When the pan is

nearly full, add water and vinegar; tie a piece of paper over the top of the pan, and bake in a slow oven. When cold they are fit for use. Whenever any fish are taken out, care should be taken that there be enough gravy to cover the remainder.

Cure for Scurvy-In the cure, as well the prevention of scurvy, much more may be done by regimen than by medicines, obviating, as far as possible, the several remote causes of the disease, but particularly providing the patient with a more wholesome diet, and a large proportion of fresh vegetables Beverages impregnated with the juice of lemons and oranges, or the effervescing saline draughts, are very beneficial. Cleanliness and ventilation should also be carefully attended to, and the air of the room in which the patient is confined, as well as his clothes, should be warm and dry. The bowels should be kept in an easy soluble state, and a determination of the circulation to the skin maintained by the use of mild diaphoretics. Exercise, a generous and nutritive diet, and a life of great regularity and temperance, are to be strictly and emphatically enjoined The chief diaphoretics are tarter-emetics, camphor, Dover' spowder, guaiacum, nitre, and spirit of nitre.

To Choose Hams-Stick a sharp knife under the bone, if it has a pleasant smell when withdrawn, the ham is good; but if the contrary, it should be rejected The recently-cut fat should be hard and white, and the lean fine grained, and of a lively red.

To make Fire-proof Mortar-Take two thirds of the best lime and one third of smith's black dust, and mix with the necessary quantity of water. This will form a mortar that will set nearly as hard as