"There's no want of meats, sir,

Portly and curious viands are prepared

To please all kinds of appetite." - Massenger.

Buying, Cooking, Carving

Beef and mutton are considered the best animal food. Avoid buying meat of any kind when the fat is over yellow. It may denote a diseased liver and is therefore unwholesome. In the cooking of meats the whole theory is to retain as much as possible of the nutriment of it. Plunging in boiling water hardens the fibrine on the outside, encasing and retaining the rich juices. Boil or bake gently, as rapid cooking renders the meat hard and tasteless. No salt should be added until the meat is nearly done, as it extracts the juice if added too soon. Salt meat should be put to cook in cold water so that it may freshen in cooking. Allow 20 minutes to the pound for fresh and 35 for salt meats, the time to be modified of course by the quality of the meat. In carving always slice cross grain. Cold meats should be sliced very thinly and not too thick when served hut. Mrs. Sue C. Bassett.

Boiling And Stewing

Fresh meat for boiling should be put into boiling water and boiled very gently about 20 minutes for each pound. A little salt, spice or vegetables may be boiled in the water with the meat for seasoning. A little vinegar put in the water with tough meat makes it tender. The broth of boiled meat should always be saved to use in soups, stews and gravies. Stewing and simmering meats means to place them near enough to the fire to keep the water on them bubbling moderately, constantly and slowly. Salt meats should be put over the fire in cold water, which as soon as it boils should be replaced by fresh cold water, the water to be changed until it remains fresh enough to give the meat a palatable flavor when done. Salted and smoked meats require about 30 minutes very slow boiling, from the time the water boils, to each pound. Vegetables and herbs may be boiled with them to flavor them. When they are cooked the vessel containing them should be set where they will keep hot without boiling until required, if they are to be served hot; if they are to be served cold, they should be allowed to cool in the pot liquor in which they were boiled. Very salt meats, or those much dried in smoking, should be soaked over night in cold water before boiling.

Baked Ham

Trim ham as you wish for slicing and place in baking pan, cover the top of ham entirely with a stiff paste of flour and water or bread dough, have it one and one-half inches thick on ham, put on the cover and bake in a moderate oven from 3 to 4 hours; when ready to use remove the bread cover and slice. Mrs. W. C. Galloway.

Boiled Ham

Take a medium sized ham, wash in warm water and scrape clean, put in the boiler with cold water to cover it, heat to the boiling point, simmer 3 and one-half to 4 hours, be sure to keep the water to a low boiling point and do not allow it to get much above it. The ham should be turned once or twice, test with a fork and when tender remove to the back of the stove and let stand till partly cooled, trim nicely and slice in very thin slices. When the ham is put in the water put in one-half dozen cloves and pieces of red pepper if you like.

Mrs. Chas. W. Detwiler.