Put the fruit, carefully picked, into a stone jar; cover close; set it in a kettle of cold water, which reaches not more than three parts the height of the jar. Let it boil half an hour (more or less, according to the nature of the fruit; black currants are much longer running to juice than either red currants or raspberries). Strain through a jelly-bag or lawn strainer; or the juice may be strained more quickly, by setting on the fruit in a preserving pan, and carefully stirring round the sides as it begins to heat, that it may not burn; strain through a jelly-bag or lawn strainer. To every pint of juice allow a pound of loaf-sugar. Set on the juice over a clear fire; when it boils, put in the sugar. When it has boiled some time, and the scum thickens and gathers together, skim it on to a sieve, and continue to do so while the scum rises; what runs from it may be returned to the rest. When it has boiled forty minutes, try a few drops, by putting on a plate in a cool place. If this become stiff almost immediately, the jelly is done enough. If not, it must be boiled till it will. The jelly may then be strained through a hair sieve, but if it have been properly skimmed this is not necessary, and it is a great waste. The best way is to pour it into a spouted jug that will contain the whole, and then into small jelly pots or glasses. Be very careful not to pour aside, or smear the edges, as an accident of this sort, however carefully wiped away, renders the jelly apt to turn mouldy. White currant jelly should be strained through a muslin or lawn sieve.