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The Day's Routine: Spread

To Make Beds.-Spread the lower sheet with the seam down, the wide heading at the top, tucking it in all around. Spread the upper sheet with the hem up and the broad heading 6 inches above the top edge of the mattress. Tuck the lower end in firmly under the foot of the mattress. Spread the blankets with the open edges evenly together 6 inches from the head of the bed. Smooth downward. Tuck the bottom double edge firmly under the foot of the mattress.

Add quilts, if any, in the same fashion. If a white counterpane is used the bed need not be open. Or if not, turn back the upper sheet over the blankets at least 12 inches to cover them well. Do not tuck in metal beds at the sides. The spread should be long enough to hang over the mattress at the foot of the bed. A tuft or light comforter to match the furnishings of the room may be folded twice lengthwise, or square, with one edge turned over and placed across the foot of the bed. Or, if a wooden bedstead is used, the sheets and blankets may be tucked in at the sides before the spread is put on and tucked. Stand the pillows nearly erect.

In winter when the feet are so apt to be cold in unheated rooms an extra quilt or blanket spread over the lower half of the bed, and the other half folded under the mattress to prevent the clothes from pulling up, will help to keep the feet warm.

Bedroom Ware. -Clean all bedroom ware and the marble tops of washstands and tables with a rag dipped in turpentine. This not only cleanses but disinfects them.

How to Cool Bedrooms.-In summer it is often more important to keep hot air out than to let cool air in.

Hence if bedrooms are aired during the early part of the day and the curtains then drawn and shutters closed until night, the bedrooms may be cooler than if they had been open to the outer air all day.

Or, when very important to cool a room quickly, wet a large cloth and suspend it over a line where, if possible, a draught will strike it. This will cool the air by evaporation approximately ten degrees according to circumstances. This plan is frequently practiced in hot climates. - To Darken Rooms. Bedrooms should be provided with dark-green shades in addition to the white shades, or if these are not present a strip of dark-green baize or glazed calico may be pinned inside the blind or attached to the white shades when it is necessary to darken room. CARE OF LAMPS Lamps should be cleaned and then filled each morning and the wicks trimmed. The improved steadiness of the light will repay for the trouble.

When buying a lamp, get two or three extra chimneys and burners, and a yard or two of wicking. This will save much delay and annoyance, especially when kerosene is the only light to be had, and it is not convenient to go to the store. It is very desirable, as far as possible, to have lamps and burners alike, so that the parts and supplies may be interchangeable.

Have a 5-gallon can for kerosene oil fitted with a pump. Place this on a homemade truck fitted with casters, so that it can be rolled under a shelf or into the pantry and drawn out again without lifting.

To Clean Lamps. - Collect all the lamps in the house after the chamber work has been done, and place them "Collect All the Lamps." on a shelf near the oil can, which may be pushed under the kitchen sink.

First remove the chimneys and place them near the sink to be washed.

Trim the wicks by rubbing the crust from them with the fingers or a piece of stock, as a burnt match. Do not, as a rule, use the scissors, or, if they are necessary, cut off the corners so as to round the wick up to the center instead of cutting straight across. See that the wicks are long enough to reach the bottom of the lamp. Insert a new wick when necessary. Place the lamp on the top of the oil can and fill with a pump. Or, if a 1-gallon can is used, take care that the oil does not spatter the surrounding woodwork and perhaps cause a conflagration. Wipe the lamps clean with a cloth kept for this purpose. Do not leave cloths soaked with kerosene matter together in dark corners, as they may become ignited by spontaneous combustion.

Wash the lamps in soap and water; wash and put on the chimneys, and place them on a shelf ready for use.