Every cellar without any exception whatever should be white. White!
They may be painted white or whitewashed white. There are also substances of the nature of calcimine which are somewhat crystalline, and are therefore especially good for whitening dark cellars.
Whitewash is often decried because it rubs off upon things which touch it and also because flakes of it fall upon the floor and into uncovered receptacles. If a little size or thin glue is put into whitewash its objectionableness in these ways is much lessened, and comes to weigh little against its excellent recommendations; it is purifying, it destroys the eggs of insects, it is inexpensive and it requires no special skill to apply it. There are a few words on this last point in the chapter on housecleaning.
Whatever is done to the cellar walls should be done over again once or twice a year. There is much dust, much dampness and much need for more cleanliness even in the cleanest cellars.
It is more convenient if the cellar is divided into rooms, that food and stores of various kinds may be kept separate from the furnace and the fuel. If this is not possible, the next best thing is to have the coalbin enclosed, for the coal makes the worst of the cellar dirt. There should be a window in the coalbin through which the coal can be put in.
One needs shelves in the cellar and receptacles for vegetables. The shelves are better fastened to supports attached to the ceiling than put against the walls. There are then no cracks and corners, for dust, and the shelves are removed from the possible dampness of the wall. Some people advocate the building of bins for vegetables. This is probably advisable if one must store many. For keeping only a few, neat boxes or baskets which may be moved about, are better. If one keeps food in the cellar, a cupboard or safe made of wire netting is a convenience. It should stand on legs which raise it two or three feet off the floor. If preserves and jellies are kept in the cellar, it is desirable to have a cupboard more completely enclosed than the safe, to protect them from dust, quick changes of temperature and dampness.
Shelves, cupboards, bins and partitions should be as white as the walls.
The housewife pays a visit to the cellar now and then with no errand except to look at it. The survey may give her housewifely satisfaction, and it may give her something to do or to have done. She should go with nose alert and eye keen.
Is there any odour noticeable beyond that slight unavoidable cellar smell? If there is, is it a spoiled sweet potato, or clam, or a working jar of canned fruit, or—what? Find it; never rest while there is an objectionable smell in the cellar.