think it will help to keep the house clean with little trouble."

"How does it work, Daddy?" queried Paul, "and what is a vacuum?"

"A vacuum," explained Father, "means a place that is entirely empty-that has nothing whatever in it, not even air. You know that when you blow for a long time, you can force most of the air out of your lungs. Then, if you stop blowing, the air will rush into your empty lungs of its own accord. Get me one of those hollow-stemmed reeds out of the garden, Paul."

When Paul came back with the reed, Father cut off a piece of it, forming a hollow tube. "I don't want to suck dust into my lungs, he said, "so we'll represent the dust by this powdered sugar that I spilled on the cloth just now. Now, I will blow the air out of my lungs, so there is a vacuum there. Then I will hold the tube in my mouth the sugar and you watch it."

over

M

So Father put the tube into his mouth and blew until he was red in the face, then he held the tube over

the sugar while Ruth and Paul watched eagerly. Instantly the sugar flew up the tube while Father coughed and sputtered as the cloud of sugar went into his throat.

"There," he gasped, when he could speak again. "That's just the way a vacuum cleaner works. The tube and bag are empty and the dust is sucked up just the way the sugar was. It's the quickest, the easiest and the cleanest way of removing dirt that was ever invented."

"Hurrah for the new vacuum cleaner," cried Mother. "Aunt Louise will be green with envy and I suppose you children will be wanting to borrow it for the play-house right away. But if we are going to buy our provisions for to-morrow, we must clear off this lunch table and get to market. All aboard for the kitchen!"

THINGS TO DO

There are many modern inventions to help us clean our houses and buildings. Suppose you collect pictures from magazines illustrating all the devices you see advertised for cleaning anything about the home. Then arrange your pictures in a scrap-book or on a chart. Put all the articles used for the same purpose together. When you have finished note which are labor saving and which ones are money saving. Which ones do you think are most important? How many have you seen? Where?

Make an experiment to show how soap helps to remove greasy dust. Shake up some oil and water till the grease is mixed through the water. Then let it stand. Now shake up some of the same oil and water with some finely scraped soap. Let this stand. Does the grease again come to the top or has it vanished into the soapy

water? Does this help explain why soap and lots of it must be used to get greasy things really clean?

Perhaps your teacher can get for you from your State or City Board of Health some little round glass dishes filled with a certain kind of food material on which germs like to live. If so, try this experiment. While some one is sweeping at home or in school open the little dish for a few moments. Then close it and put in a warm dark place. Now get a dry cloth and dust the room. While you are doing so open another little dish for five minutes near where the dusting is going on. Then close dish. Now get a damp cloth and dust another part of the room. Open a third dish near-by. Label all the dishes, and in a couple of days look at them.

What does the experiment tell you about good ways to clean? What proof does it give that germs may be in air?

Try the experiment Father Weston showed Paul. You can use a lemonade straw very well. Explain the result to some one so that he will understand what a vacuum is.

THINGS TO REMEMBER

The problem in cleaning wood is to take away the dirt without spoiling the paint. Read these wise rules: To clean painted wood get ready warm water, white soap and a soft cloth. Wipe the wood gently with plenty of the warm soapy water. Rinse off the soap and dry the wood. Too much rubbing or too strong soap or washing powders will take off the paint.

Painted walls can be wiped down the same way. They are cleaner than paper for this reason.

Hardwood floors can be kept pretty by wiping them with a soft cloth that has a little kerosene in it. There are many other expensive floor oils, but this is as good as any if you are careful with it.

Rugs should be taken outside to be beaten and shaken because of the dust which we do not want in the house.

When you sweep remember to have windows open. When you dust remember to use a damp or slightly oiled cloth. Dust may contain germs brought in from the street with dirt on our shoes. The dust does not usually carry dangerous germs; it does irritate our throats if we inhale it. For this reason bare wood floors, painted or polished, are more sanitary than carpets. Little or no dust is stirred up if we clean them correctly.

We wash windows with Bon Ami or some other cleaning powder in water. We let the windows dry and when the glass looks white we polish it with paper till it shines.

Sinks, wash-basins and toilet-bowls or bathtubs will get greasy. Soap and warm water and some ammonia put on with a brush are needed to remove the grease. We use its own long handled brush for the toilet. We always rinse out the basins we have used with hot water after cleaning them.

Faucets and metal trimmings need to be polished with silver or nickel polish and a chamois to get them bright.

Mops and brushes and cloths used in cleaning should always be washed out in soapy water and aired before we put them away.

TO THINK ABOUT

Make a trip through your kitchen and cleaning closet. Write a list of all the articles you find there used to keep the house clean. What would you choose to cleanse the woodwork of your room? The windows?

How would you sweep and dust? What do you think would be a good costume to wear?

How would you clean up the bathroom? Can you give any reasons for what you do?

Find out how railroads clean the coaches at the end of a trip and tell about it. Notice how your school is cleaned at the end of a day. Do you or do you not think these are good ways?

CHAPTER XVII

THE MARKET BASKET

THE washing and wiping of the dishes was made more interesting because it was accompanied by a discussion as to what should be ordered for the housewarming dinner. Mother washed, Ruth wiped and Paul put away the dishes, while Father sat with pencil and paper, ready to write down the list of groceries that must be bought.

"Let's begin with the meat. What kind of meat shall we have?" said Father.

"I'd like to have Irish stew," said Ruth. "Stew isn't so stylish as chops, but I know how to make it. We learned how at the farm last summer, and it was fine, and I know Uncle George likes it."

"Very well," agreed Mother. "I think it would be nice to have a dinner that you could cook yourselves, since this is really your own housewarming. Now what vegetables shall we have?"

"There will be vegetables enough in the stew," said Father, "but let's have a salad. Something fresh and green always looks and tastes nice and is good. for us, besides."

So it was decided to have stew and a tomato and lettuce salad, with home-made ice-cream and crushed peaches for dessert. Mother was to make the icecream and Father agreed to help Paul freeze it. Ruth