morning, while the few minutes required for sorting the clothes, and
putting them in water, are quite as legitimate as any needed operation.

If Monday be the day, then, Saturday night may be chosen for filling the
tubs, supposing the kitchen to be unfurnished with stationary tubs. Sunday
night enough hot water can be added to make the whole just warm--not hot.
Now put in one tub all fine things,--collars and cuffs, shirts and fine
underwear. Bed-linen may be added, or soaked in a separate tub; but
table-linen must of course be kept apart. Last, let the coarsest and most
soiled articles have another. Do not add soap, as if there is any stain it
is likely to set it. If the water is hard, a little borax may be added.
And see that the clothes are pressed down, and well covered with water.

Monday morning, and the earlier the better (the morning sun drying and
sweetening clothes better than the later), have the boiler full of clean
warm suds. Soft soap may be used, or a bar of hard dissolved in hot water,
and used like soft soap. All the water in which the clothes have soaked
should be drained off, and the hot suds poured on. Begin with the cleanest
articles, which when washed carefully are wrung out, and put in a tub of
warm water. Rinse out from this; rub soap on all the parts which are most
soiled, these parts being bands and sleeves, and put them in the boiler
with cold water enough to cover them. To boil up once will be sufficient
for fine clothes. Then take them out into a tub of clean cold water; rinse
them in this, and then in a tub of water made very slightly blue with the
indigo-bag or liquid indigo. From this water they must be wrung out very
dry, and hung out, always out of doors if possible. A wringer is much
better than wringing by hand, as the latter is more unequal, and also
often twists off buttons. The lines must be perfectly clean. A
galvanized-iron wire is best of all; as it never rusts, and needs only to
be wiped off each week. If rope is used, never leave it exposed to