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POISON WEEDS BY WOODS HUTCHINSON, M.D. I* ♦. i Weed* are pesky thinge. No ontt who has ever lived on a farm has the slightest affection for them. They ere the visitxle sign and «ftermath of the faU in the Garden of Eden â€" "Cursed is the gn'ound for thy sake; in toil shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and . . . in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread." We can understand the upstandin{(, open and above-board prickly kind of rests and even have a sort of grudgr- ing i-espect for them. They stand right out, with all their bristlee up, and give us battle. Also we can make some allowance for the regula.r "professional" weeds, which boldly try to "jump the claims" of our precious crops. They know a good thing when they see it. Many of them indeed, like parsley, lamb's-quarters, dandelions and chic- ory, were garden veg;etables or pot- herbs in Europe, though we must re- member that they will eat almoet anything as potherbs in Europe â€" they have to! The dead bodies of these weeds are, in fact, beneficial when plowed under, while the work required in their de- struction tears up and loosens the ground magnificently to let in th« deep soil bacteria. ENEMIES IN DISGUISE. Yet when it comes to weeds which attack the cultivator instead of the crops, we lose patience entirely, espe- cially when they deliberately try to lure us into strUting distance by imi- tating friendly and harmless plants and by putting on lovely colors. Or, like the ragweed, having no dagger to stab or colors to attract, some launch literal gas clouds^ of sneeze pollen on the evendrig breeze. â-  The chief camouflaged Borgia of our fields and pastures is our ancient and far-tco-familiar enemy, poison ivy. He is a fakir from start to fin- ish, called ivy, but really a sumac. When he grows like a shrub we call •hdm oak, and when like a vine, ivy, but he's "pizen" all the time. You can tell him by his beautiful shiny trefoil, or three-pointed leaves, polished mahogany in the spring, vivid metallic green all summer, and crimson and gold in the fall, bis livid, greenish whitie cluster of flowers and ashy-white berries. But he is not so deadly black as he is painted. He does not spread his venom abroad upon the breeze. Yours is "the skin he loves to touch." Tha poison or toxin is a tough oily resin, and can no more evaporate into the air than could linseed oil. People who declare themselves to have been^pois- ned by walking past ivy vines thirty yards away may have kept that dis- tance from- all ths ivy they saw. But you never know what you touch with- out noticing it when you go into the woods, especially if you have your attention fixed on something besides the brush you brush up against Ivy's second redeeming feature is that he's slow to take hold, like mus- tard gas in war. A thorough scrub- bing with soap, hot water and a nail brush any time within half an hour or even an hour after the encounter will wash off all the thick, slow-melting oil resin before it has bad time to dissolve and penetrate the skin. It's a good idea, if you know you are susceptible to ivy and have been in woods or pastures where it abounds, to scrub your hands thor- oughly with sand or mud instead of soap at the first stream or pond you conte to on your way home. This will prevent nine-tenths of all possiblje poisonin<g3. The third redeeming feature of ivy ia that the worst poisonings blamed on him are really due to "bugs" scratched into the skin by exasperat- ed fln'^r nails trying to dig out the intolerable itching of his bite. Of course he is accessory before the fact, but he's not the principal offender. In other words, those terrible in- flammations that spread right up the lymph chains of the arm and make swollen and sore the glands in the arm pits are really secondary infec- tions with our old friend, Strepto- cocetm A. If you don't discover that you've been "sumacked" till you feel the itching and see the rash, tho cure is the same as the prevention. Scrub tlioroughly with soap and hot water and finish off with some form of de- natured alcohol suitable for woimd use, St' some mild antiseptic like iodine, boric acid, or one of the new coal-tar dyp antiseptics which your doctor can suggest. | If by bad luck you have both the ivy and the infection, there is no u$e to scrub; it's a doctor's Job then and a big one. Go see him at onc^. But the best and surest means of prevention is to put a note on your farm calendar for September, "Get after poison ivy and other fence- oomer brush and weeds." That is a good time, because ivy's in fuM blaao of color and as easy to detect as a prairie fire. While you're at it, you might take along also any of the other bushes or weeds that are making trouble in your section, such as bar- berries for the black rust of wheat and wild currants and gooseberries for white-pine blister. Of late years we have been discov- ering other "unfriends" among our plant neighbors whose methods are «ven cubtl^'r rj>i mora distressingly cf7ectir«: r>.id =«&:« of tbeae are Utar- oo'.ored petals, cause or spread hay fever, for the simple reason that these are fertilized by bees or other insects and have no need to fling their pollen abroad. ally members of ovr own household- not wiU men »f tba woods, like ivy and briers and nettlu* Indeed, the Arst shocking accusations invol\«d two plant friends always regarded as beauty and innocence personified â€" the red, red rose of our cottage gar- dens and the new-mown hay of our meadows. At first we repelled the absurd ac- cusations with scorn, even resentment and- indignation. The scent of the rose, the most ravishing perfume of all tin>es, worshipped by lovers; the fragrance of new-mown hay sung by every poetl For there's nothing on earth Like making love Except making hay in fine weather. That these two most ethereal de- lights should be insultingly and pro- saically linked with colds in the head, snif flings, sneezings and asthma! But unromantic scientists, blind to beauty or charm, proceeded calmly and ruth- lessly to dub one form of summer catdrrh as rose cold and another as hay fever. And the worst of it was the names stuck. But the cold-blooded scientists showed that both rose and grass were actuated solely by the worthiest and highest possible motives â€" the per- petuation of the species by the spread of their pollen. Broader studies revealed that they were by no means the only innocent offenders in this regard; indeed, quite a number of plants were literally broadcasting their pollen for purposes of fertilization. Perhaps it would be more correct to describe them as launching smoke screens of millions of tiniest pollen granules upon the winds. Some of the pollen reaches its pre- destined mark, and all is welL But some of it, with apparently more of original sin than predestination, reaches a much less romantic mark in the back of a nose â€" and all is far from well. But the question arises. Why does one human nose tune in with the broadcasted pollen of only one flower or plant, while another proboscis chimes in with meadow-hay radio and is deaf to ragfweed melody? A MATTER OP TASTE. It finally all comes down to a ques- tion of individual taste or, rather, susceptibility. All sorts of pollens are radiated far and wide everywhere in their season, and all sorts and con- ditions of men inhale them. The vast majority pronounce them all harm- less. But it is just as strawberries, are poison to one man, clams to another. The overwhelming majority cause no trouble to anybody. But when a small group of pollens get snuffed up into an even smaller group of touchy noses â€" probably not over 1 per cent. â€" trouble begins at once. It is simply an instance of "what is one man's meat is another man's poison." The hay fever, or summer catarrh, though caused by such tiny, infini- tesimal trifling, is anything but a trifle. Even in the milder forms, the sneezing, burning, running at the eyes, the "red-hot* headache, the wheezing, the swellings of nose and lips serevely interfere with both com- fort and working power; and when they have grown into the full-blown haw asthma, and we have added to all these a constant wheezing and gasp- ing for breath, which makes sleep im- possible at night and only to be snatched in cat naps during the day, well, there comes a time when the vic- tim begins to almost regret that the malady .never ends fatally. The number of snifflers attacked by this milder" spring form of hay fever is small. Usual'ly all that need be done is to keep out of the woods and orchards as much as possible and to wear pled>- gets of absorbent cotton in the nostrils and goggles over the eyes to keep the pollen out. A few cases are more severe and must be treated by inject- ing extracts of the criminal pollen to produce immunity. Th3 next crop of the disease, In hay time, is more severe and increases in virulence and number of victims, probably because the number of po'.'en-broadcasting plants incre«ises with th'3 season. Broadly speaking, there is little use trying to escape autumn hay fever. What then Is to be done. First go to your doctor and he can give you various sprays and washes and direc- tions for the use of goggles and cot- ton plugd in the no.strils which will give great relief and often tide you over for the season'. But the ono sheet anchor, the only permanent cure, is injections of alco- holic and watery extracts of the pol- len at fault. Thes? are grradually in- creased in amount until they produce! tiut curious condition of protection j known as immunity._ With patience! and skill, substantial relief and prac- tical cure can now be hoped for in al- most 75 per cent of the cases. There is nothing new about hay , fever. It has probably been with us from the time when man first began ' to till the soil. For it ia a farm dis- ' ease caused chiefly by those "plants | out of place" called weeds, which live on and around bur plowed lend. j As will have been noted by flower' friands, very few real flowars, with Kitchen AcceMories. One of the nicest things to havo, hanging in the kitchen, near the range, are several holders to use in i handling dishes, pans, etc., and while! one can buy fine ones in the house- { hold supplies sections of the stores, I most women will prefer making their own. Every one has odd pieces of materials put away, so it should never be necessary to buy anything to make these holders. Old ticking makes fine ones â€" using' only a double thickness, sewing a' small ring at one comer to hang it up by. These holders may be cut any i size that seems convenient. To make' them, turn in all the edg<>s evenly and baste the^ two parts together, then stitch all around on the machine. They launder more easily when not made too bulky. Percale, linen, un- bleached muslin, denim â€" one could al- most continue indefinitely. Make six or eight at a time, then always keep them conveniently near, and use in- stead of taking silver or dish towels. Some women like holders about twenty-seven inches long, and at each end a sort of pocket-shaped piece ia stitched on. A hand is then slipped into each pocket and in that way one holder will take the place of two. Cheesecloth â€" the medium-priced quality â€" makes good dust cloths, al- lowing one yard for each. It is bet> ter to buy the material and make them, if you have the time. Pull a thread to cut by, turn an even quar- ter-inch hem and stitch on the ma- chine. Don't forget to fasten the threads. If well made, they will last much longer than othei-wise. If you want cloths to use with furniture pol- ish use the cheesecloth, making the pieces one-half yard long. Ironing-board covers are another thing that careful housekeepers like to make. Shrink a rather heavy qual- ity of cheesecloth, then lay a length on the board and cut out", being care- ful to allow for the thickness of the board, and a good seam besides down each side. 'The material should be wide enough to reach to tiie under side. Then cut pieces for each end â€" making them about eight or nine inches deep for the broad end. and deeper for the narrow end of the board. The piece for the narrow end should be hemmed across the bottom before stitching to the cover, and for the broad end of the cover, instead of cutting this end piece in one, it should be cut in two pieces, and lapped to- gether at the outer end, finishing the ends and bottom with hems. This will allow you to slip the narrow end of the board in place and after the wide end is on fasten together with thumb tacks. Sew small rings at intervals each side of the cover and lace to- gether with flat and narrow tape. Two of these covers should be made at a time. Shrinkage in Harvested Fruit Loss of weight after harvest is an important factor in the handling of pears. It not only causes decreased tonnage, but is the main reason for wiVting, and seriously impairs appear- ance of the fruit. Wilted pears are dull and unattrac- tive and do not become aromatic. Loss in weight of only 3 to 4 per cent, is usually sufficient to cause consider- able wilt, according to investigators. In extreme cases loss of weight while in storage may total 15 per cent., it was found. Two factors are responsible for loss of weight â€" natural decomposition and excessive loss of moisture. Since Na- tural decomposition has been found to be less than a fraction of 1 per cent, for an entire storage period, it becomes clear that loss in moisture is the main reason for poor condition of pears after storage. Relative hum- idity is one of the important points in storage^ At a relative humidity of 80 to 86, loss of weight was found to be in the vicinity of less than 1 per cent., while the low humidity of 50 to 56 brought loss of weight to ap- proximately 14 per cent. Bartlett pears may lose 4 per cent, in weight if left a few days under the trees following picking, but if the boxes are covered with a wet canvas this loss is avoided. The type of wrappers has but little effect upon loss of weight in storage. Investiga- tions in the use of oil wraps and com- mon fruit tissues checked against un- wrapped fruit showed little of prac- tical significance. Time of picking, however, has an important bearing upon loss of weight, which is also, of course, loss of volume. Fruit picked in an imma- ture condition, it is well known, wilts readily. Loss also results very quick- ly with pears if any degfree of over- maturity is attained before harvest. Pressure tests are now used in feany commercial orchards to deter- mine the time of picking. In the in- vestigations in question the pressure test was utilized to determine stage of maturity and therefore the best picking time. Bartlett pears testing forty pounds on a pressure te.st lost more than 90 per cent weight during 264 days in storage, while those show- ing only twenty-five pounds' resistance to the pressure have lost 5 per cent, in the same period under identical conditions. Twenty-five to thirty pounds resis- tance to the pressure test is the rec- ognized stage for harvesting Bartlett pear."?. In making the pressure test several pears should be used, and the average taken rather than dependence placed upon a single fruit, since there will be some variation due to various natural conditions. LACK OF SYSTEM IN HOUSE MANAGEMENT BY MRS W. I passed a little house on the out- skirts of town one warm day last week during the loveliest part of the day, to me, the late afternoon, just the hour when it is so pleasant to take one's sewing or book to the porch for a brief respite before be- ginning supper preparations; but on the porch of this little house sat no cool, calm housewife enjoying the pleasant lengthening shadows. No, indeed, She was on her kne?s instead, swishing a scrubbing brush and much soapy water and looking very hot and red and tired and, to tell the truth, somewhat cross. "Work is never done in this house," â-  she remarked with a sigh as she wiped her hands and prepared for a mo- ment's chat. "I'm at it from morning to night, and then it's all to be done over again the next day and every day afterward." As it was rather late to be clean- ing the porch, I remarked that pos- sibly she had been busy at some un- usual enterprise, canning, perhaps, or ironing. But no, she said; she had merely prepared the meals and dust- ed and cleaned as usual, but that even these ordinary tasks occupied all her daylight hours. While we chatted the soapy water cooled and the shadows grew longer and longer and I felt quite guilty to be delaying the process of cleaning the porch, but she was loath to let me go. "If it were not for these' little per- iods of relaxation I don't see how I could get through the day," she re- marked plaintively. "I was saying that very thing to my next-door neighbor this morning when I ran in to see the new lamp shade she was making. It was such a lovely lamp shade, I just couldn't go home until it was finished. I would love to make ^. KING. one like it, but I cannot flni iime evw to finish the mending." And right then and there I dis- covered the reason ^^V ^^ porch' was being washed in the late after- noon and why this woman's work waa never done. She liad never learned' the secret of concentrating, of work- ing steadily during proper vrarkin^ hours and getting done. Her work was dropped at the slightest provoca- tion or whim â€" just a row to be cro-i cheted on some lace she was making,! just a page to read in some interests ing book, just a few moments' tele- phone chat, just an idle half hour with fiome casual caller, and the golden hours of the day were gone, but the work was still to be done. I did so_wish I might tell this tired housewife that half her weannesa was caused by lack of systooi, that planning ahead is the surest way of getting ahead in the matter of time as well as money; but I feared that she might resent my unasked advice. Long ago I discovered that the only way to accomplish all the things I so earnestly wished to accomplish waa to divide my day into working periods, playing periods and loafing periods. In my working periods I really work steadily and vigorously; my play periods I dcvot<» to reading or fancy work or to doing some of the 'fascinating things that I enjoy. I have not so many loafing periods in my days, but I try to res?rve a few odd moments for pure laziness or re- laxation. In my opinion the loafing period is quite as important as the others, only it need not be so long. It's sort of comforting to sit on the porch late in the afternoon just watching the sunset, with no pestering little prick of conscience tell'ing mo of some neglected task. I wish my friend in the little housa would try it. After Harvest Tillage. Only the rich fellows can stand the losses. Robber weeds reduced the grain and pasture yields on many an acre this season. Conditions becom- ing worse each year, taking more pro- fits than would pay the taxes. Plow the land that you intend to plow immediately after harvest. Cul- tivate as frequently as possible with a springtooth up to the end of Oc- tober. Rib up the land before freeze- up in November. This practice will help provide that the fence row and roadside weeds are cut in proper time to prevent seed blowing over the re- cently cultivated fields. « We have in our blackberry patch one cane that measures 211 inches in length. It is the longest I ever saw. â€" R. T. F. Slapping a man on the back is not always striking him the right way. When putty cracks and drops off the windows within a comparatively short time after it is put on, it is be- cause the wood was not painted shortly before the putty was put on. The best putty won't stick long on un- painted wood, or on old crumbly, dried-out weathered paint. There- fore, it pays to paint the wood first, let it dry and then put on the putty. A coat of paint applied on the putty after it has hardened will make it last longer. â€" H. Two bushels of oats will take the place of one of corn for beef cattle over 800 pounds. If two bushels of oats cost less than one of corn, feed the oats, for it will be cheaper. For beef animals up to 800 pounds, oats can replace corn up to two-thirds of the ration. Underfeeding is one of the greatest burdens of tho whole dairy industry. ' The first purpose for which a dairy ' cov/ uses feed is to maintain her body, ' and before feed can be used for any ' other purpose, that part of the feod needed for maintenance must be sup- plied. Sweet Pickles That Won't Shrivel. Since the delicate flavor of small sweet pickles is enjoyed by almost every member of the family, provide a number of jars of them for use on picnics and for the winter months. To keep them from shriveling make them this way: Select the small cucumbers, about 100 of them, and cover with coM '] water for an hour. Place them in a | crock and add a brine solution in the i proportions of 1 cup of coarse salt to I a gallon of water. Allow the cucum- ' bers to soak for 48 hours and be 'sura | that they are tightly covered with a plate during the last 24 hours. While : in the brine, the salt draws out the I water in the pickles and leaves them j I shriveled and tough. If canned in ' this manner, they would continue to ' I be tough, but they are not ready to ' I be put in jars at this .stage. I Soak the pickles in vinegar for an , hour in order that the water may go i back into them again and they may be made tender and turgid. (If the ! sugar is added at this time they arej ; apt to remain shriveled). After soak-1 ing in vinegar, pack in sterilized jars,' and pour boiling spiced and sweeten- 1 ed vinegar over them, and seal. \ The amount of sugar may be varied according to taste, although 1 cup of, sugar is considered a satisfactory' amount for 100 two-inch cucumbers. ; The spices may be freshly ground in the coffee grinder and tied in muslin bags if the housewife prefers to have tho vinegar remain clear in the jars. For this quantity of cucumbers, it is well to use 1 stick of cinnamon, 1 teaspoon of whole cloves, 1 tsaspcon of whole allspice, and a bay leaf. If the vinegar is too strong it is well to dilute it, since too strong vinegar tends to soften the pickles too much. T<^^:2L^Z> &\cluswej^flemt \ FRENCH DESIGNS ACKNOWL- EDGE THE FLARE. The interesting feature of thit frock lies in the cut and arrange- ment of the panel, which gracefully ripples its way across the front and In .\byssinia bars of salt are still ""**'. "'^ ^'^'^^ °^ ^^^ ^^^^^ •'^'^ t^* in use as currency. I li'P-''ne. The front and the back of tho frock are plain. The edgos of ^^^^'^^^^^^^^- '=*5^^?r!^" the panel are finished, or it may be I lined throughout with contrasting color material. It is tet in at the i shoulder seams and taclcod to the . front and at the hips. The neck is cut in 'V shape and finished with a ! tucked collar of georgette crepe, the ; same mat-crial being used for the lit- I t!o jabot. Tho !;";_n'cs ars 'once and ! simply gathered to a narrow hand j tying at the wrist. Tho diagram pic- ! tures the simp-o design of pattern No. 1077, which is in sizzs 34, 3G, .18, ! 40 and 42 inche.s bust. Size 38 bust : requires 4H yards of ,"(j-inch or -iO- inch, or 3Vi yards of 54-inch mater- â-  ial. The front panel requires 1% yards of additional material. Pric« 20 cents. I Our Fashion Bo( .<, illustrating th« newest and most practical styles, will be of interest to every home dress- maker. Price of the book '.0 centa I the copy. Each copy includes ona cou|>on good for five cents in the pur- ' chnse of any pattern. I HOW TO OiiDER PATTERNS. ! Write your namj and address plain* i ly, giving number and size of such patternj as you wnnt. Knclose 20c ia jtanr 3 or coin (coin preferred: wrap I ic carefully) for each number, and ' address your order to P&ttern Uept., ! Wilson Publishins Co.. 73 West Ad«- I laid* St., Toronto. Pattern* stnt by ! return mail. .^ Father of Canned Food. BRITISH SCHOOL TEACHERS ARRIVE IN CANADA The father of canned food 'iras a The above picture shows the party of one hundred srhcoi l?achers from the Britl.sh Lales who have come to | Frenchman. Nicholas Apport, who ^o- thJ3 country to study educational meth^s hero. They are shown outside the C'h.ueau KVontenac, at Quebec, aftar I served foot'.i by heat sterilization and they had landed from the Canadian Paslflc steamship •Empresa of Scotland." | seallaK tn 1795.