bunches. Put all these into the pickle raw, and at the end of the season, when as many vegetables have been added as could be procured, store it away in jars, and tie over with bladder. As none of the ingredients are boiled, this pickle will not be fit to eat for twave months. Keep a wooden spoon tied to the jar, and stir its contents every morning while the pickle is being made. The proportions used to each gallon of vinegar are a of a lb. of mustard, a of a lb. of bruised ginger, a of a lb. of salt, 2 oz. of mustard-seed, 11⁄2 oz of turmeric, 1 oz. of ground black pepper, of an oz. of cayenne; cauliflowers, onions, celery, sliced cucumbers, gherkins, French beans, nasturtiums, capsicums.

Pickled Onions.-(Middle of July to end of August.)—In the month of September choose the small, white, round onions; take off the brown skin; have a very nice tin stewpan of boiling water ready; throw in as many onions as will cover the top. As soon as they look clear on the outside, take them up as quick as possible with a slice, and lay then on a clean cloth; cover them close with another, and scald some more, and so on. Let them lie to be cold, then put them in a jar, or glass, or wide-mouthed bottles, and pour over them the best white wine vinegar, just hot, but not boiling. When cold, cover them. Should the outer skin shrivel, peel it off. They must look quite clear. The Reading onion is the best kind.

Spanish Onions to Pickle.-(September to February.)-Put a layer of onions cut in thin slices in the bottom of a jar, then sprinkle with salt and cayenne; continue this till the jar is full, then pour in vinegar sufficient to cover the whole. In a month the pickle will be fit for use. Tie it tight down with a leather or bladder.

A Pickle that can be used the same day it is made.—(August and September.)-Slice sufficient onions of a medium size, sauce apples and cucumbers, an equal quantity of each, sufficient to fill a pint stone jar. Be particular to cut them in very thin slices, then put them in alternate layers, with 3 tea-spoonfuls of cayenne and tea-spoonfuls of salt. Pour in soy and sherry, I wine-glassfal of each, and fill up with vinegar.

The rule of NOT TOO MUCH, by temperance taught
In what thou eat'st and drink'st, seeking from them
Due nourishment, not gluttonous delight,

Till many years over thy head return:

So mayst thou live, till like ripe fruit thou drop
Into thy mother's lap; or be with ease

Gather'd, not harshly pluck'd, in death mature.'-MILTON.

Punch à la Ford.-To make punch on a large scale, select 3 dozen of lemons, the coats of which are smooth, and whose rinds are not too thin. These should be peeled with a sharp knife into a large earthen vessel, taking care that none of the rind be detached but that portion in which the cells are placed containing the essential oil. When the first part of the process is completed, add 2 lbs. of lump sugar, and stir the peel and sugar together with an oar-shaped piece of wood for nearly half an hour; by this means a greater quantity of the essential oil will be extracted. Boiling water may be next poured into the vessel, and the whole well stirred until the sugar is completely dissolved. The lemons should then be cut and squeezed, the juice strained from the kernels, and these be next placed in a separate jug, and boiling water poured upon them, for the pips will be found to be enveloped in a thick mucilage, full of flavour; half the lemon-juice must now be thrown in, and as soon as the kernels are free from their transparent coating, their liquor should be strained and added.

The sherbet may now be tasted; more acid or sugar applied as required, and care taken not to render the lemonade too watery. The sherbet is now fit for measurement, and to every 3 quarts a pint of cognac brandy and a pint of old Jamaica rum should be allotted, the spirit being well stirred as poured in; bottling immediately to follow, and, when completed, the brewage to be kept in a cool cellar, or tank, till required. Punch thus made is much improved by time and a cool atmosphere.

Soda Negus.-A most refreshing and elegant beverage, particularly for those who do not take punch or grog, is thus made :-Put a pint of port wine, with 4 lumps of sugar, 3 cloves, and enough grated nutmeg to cover a shilling, into a saucepan; warm it well, but do not suffer it to boil; pour it into a bowl or jug, and upon the warm wine decant a bottle of soda water. You will have an effervescing and delicious negus by this means.

Cherry Brandy.-Put into a wide-necked bottle as many Morella cherries as it will hold; add a few peach or nectarine kernels, or bitter almonds; fill the bottle with the best French brandy, and cork down. In a month after, add a of a lb. of loaf sugar to every pint of brandy. Elder Wine.-In 2 gallons of water boil 1 gallon of elder berries for one hour, or until the berries sink. For every gallon of liquor provide 3 lbs. of sugar; strain the liquor over the sugar; when nearly cold, add a little yeast. The next day put it into a cask, and let it work till it has ceased to make any hissing noise. Boil 2 or 3 cloves of ginger, a few cloves, and some allspice for a short time; then put them in a small muslin bag, adding a pebble, that the spice may sink to the bottom of the cask. Bung down close. If you make 9 gallons of wine, you will require about 4 oz. of the above spice for that quantity. The addition of a few sloes or damsons will be found a great improve

ment.

Raspberry, Strawberry, Currant or Orange Effervescing Draughts.Take quart of the juice of either of the above fruits; filter it, and boil it into a syrup with 1 lb. of powdered loaf sugar. To this add 1 oz. of tartaric acid. When cold, put it into a bottle, and keep it well corked. When required for use, fill a half-pint tumbler three parts full of water, and add 2 table-spoonfuls of the syrup. Then stir in briskly a small tea-spoonful of carbonate of soda, and a very delicious drink will be formed. The colour may be improved by adding a very small portion of cochineal to the syrup at the time of boiling.

Ginger Beer.-Pour 4 quarts of boiling water upon 1 lb. of loaf sugar, 1 oz. of powdered ginger, and the rind of a lemon chopped fine; cover it over, and let it stand for six hours; then add 1 oz. of cream of tartar, the juice of a lemon, and a table-spoonful of yeast; three hours after, you can begin to bottle, tying the corks well down. If kept in a warm place it will be fit for use in twenty-four hours.

Champagne à la Minute.—If you are about to drink sharp cider, put half a tea-spoonful of carbonate of soda, and a dessert-spoonful of finelypowdered sugar at the bottom of your glass; have the cider poured on this, and you will allow that it is a very pleasant, though humble, imitation of champagne.

Drink for the Dog Days.-A bottle of soda water poured into a large

goblet in which a lemon ice has been placed, forms a deliciously cool and refreshing draught; but should be taken with some care, and positively avoided whilst you are very hot.

Milk Punch.-This seductive and nectareous drink can be made by the direction herewith given :-To a couple of quarts of spring water add 1 quart of genuine milk. Mix 1 quart of old Jamaica rum with 2 of French brandy, and put the spirit to the milk, stirring it for a short time; let it stand for an hour. Filter through blotting-paper into bottles; and, should you find that the liquid is cloudy, which it should not be, you may clarify by adding a small portion of isinglass to each bottle. This receipt will furnish half a dozen punch.

To Ripen Bottled Porter or Ale.-May, being a good season for bottling malt liquor for autumn or winter drinking, a couple of raisins or half a dozen grains of rice should be put into each bottle, which will mainly assist in generating the required effervescence.

Gin Punch.-Following the plan already given for making Punch à la Ford, add good gin, or Hollands if you can procure it, in the proper proportion before prescribed; this, bottled and kept in a cool cellar or cistern, will be found an economical and excellent summer drink.

West India experience. -To a tumbler filled with two-thirds of lemonade, add a wine-glass of brandy, and fill to the brim with green lime shrub.

A Hint from Barbadoes.-To render a glass of punch more than usually acceptable, add a table-spoonful of Guava jelly to it.

Whisky Cordial.—(Make this in July.)—Put into a large jug a lb. of ripe white currants stripped from their stalks; add a of an oz. of grated ginger, the rind of 2 lemons, and a quart of whisky. Let it remain for twenty-four hours closely covered in the jug; strain through a hair sieve; add 1 lb. of lump sugar, and let it stand twelve hours longer; then bottle, and well cork it.

Lemon Syrup.-Boil 2 lbs. of loaf sugar in 1 lb. of water. When the syrup is clarified, add an equal quantity of fresh lemon-juice; mix both together, and let it simmer for ten minutes. .

Raspberry Vinegar.-Pick 2 quarts of raspberries, and pour over them a quart of vinegar; let them steep twenty-four hours, then strain. through a sieve, but do not press the fruit. Have 2 more quarts of fresh fruit, and pour this liquor over them, leaving them to steep for twenty-four hours; strain again, and to every pint of juice allow 1 lbs. of loaf-sugar. Pour all into a deep jar, which set in hot water until the sugar is entirely dissolved. Take off the scum, and bottle for use.

E

'As when some skilful cook, to please each guest,
Would in one mixture comprehend a feast,

With due proportion, and judicious care.'-POPE.

VERY kind of preserve should be made in a copper or brass preserving-pan (uncovered); it must be scrupulously clean and bright inside. The pots or bottles must be sound, and perfectly clean and dry. Pots should be filled within a quarter of an inch of the top, and bottles just above the shoulder. The following day they must be closely covered with strong cap paper (thin whitey brown), which must be made to adhere round the edge, and then brushed over with the white of an egg, so as to exclude the air. Each pot should be written upon, to show its contents and date of making. Fruit for jellies and jams must be quite ripe and fresh, and gathered in dry weather; in such case the preserves cannot fail to be good, and the cost is something less than half that paid for those ready bought. It may be well to know that the weight is reduced about one-third in making, and also that lb. pots only hold 13 oz., and lb. pots 7 oz.

Gather the fruit when it is dry. Do not boil the fruit too long, as that hardens it; pour boiling water over the sieves used. Let the pots and jars containing fresh-made sweets remain uncovered for two days, then soak a split bladder and tie it tightly over the top; in drying, it will shrink to the net, and render the latter perfectly air-tight. Keep preserves in a dry, but not in a warm place. Be sure to use sufficient sugar; this, with keeping them air-tight, is the only way to avoid the risk of their spoiling.

To clarify Sugar for Sweetmeats.-For each lb. of sugar allow a pint of water, and for every 3 lbs., allow the white of an egg. Mix when cold, boil a few minutes, and skim it; let it stand ten minutes, then skim it again, and strain it.