boiled. When the mixture was thick enough, it was poured into tubs to cool. If a hard soap was needed, salt would be added to the boiling mixture. When the soap had set and hardened, it was cut into squares and dried to be used all year. Until this time, even the simplest household chores required a lot of work and energy. On washday, water had to pumped and carried to the house, heated on the stove, and then poured into the wash and rinse tubs. Each piece of laundry had to scrubbed on the washboard, rung-out, and then rinsed and rung-out again. Some clothing also required boiling on the stove before it was ready to be hung outside to dry. With no electricity, anything which needed ironing was done by using flat irons which were heated on top of the stove. Three or four irons would be heated on the stove at a time. As one began to cool, another was hot and ready to replace it. The wooden handle could be snapped off and attached to another iron. Among the outbuildings in the barnyard of most homes was an accommodation called the "Backhouse", "Privy", or an "Outhouse". Generally, this was a small building, approximately 6' x 8' x 7'. It had one high window at one end to let in light and air. The roof was usually slanted from the front to the back. These outdoor toilets provided a place of retreat better than modern lavatories. The seat in the interior was usually finished with smooth boards. These buildings had usually one to three holes of different sizes. The Family Herald or catalogues were preferred reading materials for these places. At least once a year, the hatch at the rear was opened and the waste was buried. The interior of the outhouse was usually given a fresh coat of whitewash every spring. Women visitors were usually shown to a guest room where they could take off their coats and have the use of a chamber pot set in a "commode". Some of these chamber pots had covers called silencers on the lids. 58