In washing the dishes, always do the cleanest things first, in this order; glass, silver; then cups and saucers, plates, and other dishes. Empty every glass and cup, and scrape clean every plate or dish (with a plate scraper, that comes with a rubber edge and is consequently noiseless), before putting them in the water. Don’t let pitchers or glasses stand with milk in them, but rinse them at once before putting them in the water so that it will be easy to wash them. Don’t put many things into the water at a time or different kinds of things, such as teapot, sauce boat, and dinner plates; for the water will cool too quickly when so full and the plates will get chipped and spouts broken. Change the water frequently. When washing the silver, always include trays in daily use even if they do not seem soiled. Use plenty of fresh very hot suds, and, after washing the silver well, put it on the drainer and pour boiling hot water over it. This heat will almost dry it, then rub quickly with clean dish-cloth and put all the pieces at once where they belong before they can get spattered; setting them down with a dish towel to prevent finger marks. This will keep the silver so bright that the weekly cleaning is a much easier matter. The china should be rinsed just as you have the silver, only not using such very hot water. Remember that silver and brasses cannot be made bright by slow rubbing, but that you must rub them briskly.
Care of the dining-table
If the dining-table has a high polish, be careful always to put a tile or tray or a linen mat lined with asbestos under anything that is hot, otherwise a bad spot will be made. If the table has an oil finish heat will not injure it and a damp cloth will remove any spot. Two or three times a week such a dining-table should be rubbed over well with a soft cloth on which two or three drops of boiled linseed oil have been put. Too much oil will only make the table sticky and in condition to catch dust. But just a very little, rubbed in well, will, in time, give it a high polish of which you will be proud. These oiled rags are very dangerous to keep in the house, as they catch fire of themselves without any flame coming near them. Either keep them hanging on a clothes-line in the yard or else indoors in a metal box.
The weekly duties in detail, such as the thorough cleaning of dining-room, parlor, pantry, halls, silver, brasses, etc., and the Sunday arrangements and afternoons and evenings out, should appear here at the end of the waitress’s book, but, as I said before, I cannot put it in for you because that is something you have to arrange for yourself.
Description of the cook’s book
Her general work
Under this head the cook was told definitely just what rooms, closets, halls, steps, etc., she was expected to clean; whether she was expected to put any coal on the furnace or look after its drafts between the visits of the furnace man; whether she had any washing and ironing to do; how careful she should be to scrub out every part of the refrigerator once or twice a week with soda and hot water, household ammonia, or some such thing, airing it well afterwards and taking the opportunity before a fresh piece of ice was put in thoroughly to clean out the ice compartment; also the drain pipe for that compartment with a brush that comes especially for this; also that she should be careful to empty the pan under the refrigerator frequently to prevent its overflowing and rotting the floor; that the milk and butter should be kept in a compartment by themselves, and no food with strong odor, such as pineapples or melons, be put in the refrigerator with it as their flavor would be absorbed by the milk and butter which would taste bad in consequence; also that no hot food or articles wrapped in paper should be put into the refrigerator. She was cautioned not to let any scraps get into the sink pipes, but to scrape clean all plates, pots, or dishes after each meal, into a strainer kept for the purpose in the corner of the sink and frequently emptied into the garbage, and that once a week she should wash down the pipes with boiling water and lye. She was reminded that the kitchen towels should be washed in hot suds every day and thoroughly boiled once a week; that the pudding-bags or any straining-cloths should be washed after each using and put away dry and clean.
It was especially impressed upon her to keep the dumb waiter shut and any door that would allow the kitchen odors to get into the house.
The signals to the waitress during the serving of the meals were explained to her (for instance, one bell for taking course off the range, two bells to send to pantry) to prevent delay between courses; also she was told that hot food should be served on a warm platter and cold food on a cold one. In order to serve the meals promptly on time, she was reminded to see every day whether her clock agreed with her master’s. The fact that the ovens would not bake well unless the flues of the range were cleared at least once a week of all ashes, and that this should be done in the morning before the range fire was hot, was explained to her; also that when a hot fire was not needed for immediate use the dampers and drafts should be closed to prevent waste of coal and kindlings. She was cautioned not to waste anything, but to lay aside all left-over food for her mistress to see and decide about; also not to use the nice china when putting food away in the refrigerator, for fear it might get broken. The importance of being neat and clean both in her cooking and person, washing her hands before handling food, and wearing neat cotton aprons and dresses was emphasized. She was told that no visitors should be allowed in the kitchen during meals and that she should not let workmen, etc., go into the house except by permission of her mistress and accompanied by one of the other maids whom she should notify; also that the responsibility of keeping the outside kitchen door and gate locked was hers as well as the locking-up of her department at night.