How to Test Linen.
The housekeeper in selecting linen at the counter may test the linen by ravelling out some of the threads. The threads that form the woof as well as the warp should be strong, and long thread linen. Never buy linen that is stiff and glossy, as it will be thin after it is laundered. Linen should be substantial, but pliant when crushed in the hand. Never buy a table-cloth that is part linen and part cotton, as the shrinkage of linen and cotton fibre varies greatly, which causes the threads to break, and the table-cloth will soon be full of holes.
Laundry Work.
"Order is Heaven's first law," sang the poet, and to keep order in a hotel seems not such an Herculean task. System makes work easy, and the superintendent of the laundry must insist on the work being systematically performed.
Soap and water are the most important materials used in the laundry work. To do good work with little or no damage to the linen, soft water and good soap are absolutely necessary. In many parts of the United States, the water is permanently hard, and is a perplexing question to laundry workers. The first thing to do is to soften the water. It can not be made soft by boiling, and must be treated with chemicals which must be used before the soap is added. When soap is used in hard water before it has been softened, the soap unites with the minerals in the water, and clings to the linen like a greasy scum. Borax is the best softening agent for hard water.
To soften water with borax, use one tablespoonful to each gallon of water. A tablespoonful of ammonia and one tablespoonful of turpentine to each washing will keep clothes white. Hard water may be softened with potash or sal soda, which is much cheaper than borax and ammonia, but potash and sal soda are both corrosive and very injurious to the linen. Great care must be used in softening water with these alkalines. If they are not thoroughly dissolved before using in the washer, little particles are apt to escape the solvent action of the water and stick to the linen and form brown spots which soon become holes.
Good Soap a Necessity.
Soap is the next cleaning agent to be considered. You can not have pretty, white linen without good soap. A good soft soap for use in hotel laundries can be made from the refuse fat from the kitchen. This soap will effect the cleaning of the hotel bed and table-linen, but for bundle-washing, flannels, and prints, a milder soap is generally used. A very good soap for washing flannels and prints may be made from the pieces of soap that are collected from the rooms.