KEEPING THE HOME HEALTHFUL.
THE heat and moisture of the summer months have a tendency to rust metals, mildew fabrics, and cover all sorts of substances with mold. Fermentation and putrefaction develop rapidly in vegetable and animal substances if they are not carefully watched. Lime and charcoal are two aids toward keeping the house sweet and dry, and the housekeeper should, if possible, provide herself with both of these materials. A barrel each of lime and charcoal in the cellar will tend to keep that part of the house dry and sweet. A bowl of lime in a damp closet will dry and sweeten it. A dish of charcoal in a closet or refrigerator will do much toward making these places sweet. The power of charcoal to absorb odors is much greater directly after it has been burned than when it has been exposed to the air for a length of time. Charcoal may be purified and used again and again by heating it to a red heat. The lime must be kept in a place where there is no chance of its getting wet, and not exposed to air.—Selected.