reason. She had nothing to "unlearn," she knew no other method whereas
I had to "unlearn" all my previous methods.

The one period, cold-pack method is so entirely different from the old
hot pack or open kettle method that to be successful you must forget
all you ever knew and be willing to be taught anew. And right here is
where many women "fall down"--they are not willing to admit that they
know nothing about it and so do not get accurate information about it.
They are so afraid of appearing ignorant. This false feeling is the
greatest obstacle in woman's way.

I still go into small towns on my lecture trips and women will say,
"Oh, that cold-pack canning isn't new to me. I have used it for thirty
years." And when I show my surprise, they further enlighten me with,
"and my mother used it before me, too." With a little tactful
questioning I usually get these answers: "Of course, I do not hot dip
and cold dip. I never heard of that before. I pack the products into
the cold jars and for all vegetables I use a preserving powder because
there is no way on earth to keep corn and peas and such things unless
you put something into them to keep them. Fruit will keep all right.
Then I cook them in my wash boiler until they are done." And when I
ask, "How do you know when they are done," I invariably get the
answer, "Oh, I take out a jar once in a while and try it." It seems
like such a hopeless task to change all these old-fashioned,
out-of-date methods of cooking but with a great amount of patience and
much actual canning it can usually be done. Not always, of course, for
there are some women who seem to delight in sticking to the old rather
than try the new.

The present book is therefore designed for all interested in greater