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PRESERVATION OF BEDS, CARPETS, &C.
alone, in the matter of brooms, can determine the goo qua-
lities and comparative merits of these essentials to ourh
hold comfort.
  We will begin with the carpet-broom, that darling vehi-
cle of a housemaid in her daily work of destruction to the
beautiful woofs which grace our floors. With what regret
have we listened to the tearing noise of one of these vile
bundles of harsh rushes scratching up the nap, under the
strong arm and ruthless vigour of a servant! These gay
brooms, begirt with gilded crimson leather, are one of the
most expensive articles in a house; for they not only destroy
the carpets, even when quite new, but they quickly wear
down; and, in that state of stubborn jagged twigs, a stable
broom could commit little less havoc. The best brush for
our carpeted floors is a long handled one, with rounded
ends, the hairs very stiff, and about as long as those in a
clothes brush. This, at all events, will suffice for the pur-
pose six days out of the seven; so that only once a week,
instead of every day, the use of the genuine carpet broom
may be permitted. Two house-brooms should always be
provided, one for the sleeping apartments (which should be
kept up stairs), and one for the kitchen; and these, indeed
all brooms, should have round ends; we deprecate those
which are usually seen with ends sharp and square, that
seem to have been invented expressly to chip the paint from
the skirting boards.
                        CARPETS.
   When carpets are taken up to be beaten, it is a usual,
though erroneous plan, to have them dragged over a grass
plot, in order to "brighten their eolours.-No green sward
at this time of the year can be in a fit state for such an ex-
pedient; and injury from the mud and worm-casts will be
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