All this talk of ' Gnasher ' and his written work , rekindled fond memories of the activities of his younger sister , Amelia ' Spanker ' Montcrief .After a colourful education ,' Spanker ' took to writing a number of small books on 'Home economics'. Many of these became standard reference works on the subject. Her 1921 publication entitled ' Short hints for Washing day ' gave the following advice for Mothers who are dealing with dirty linen ;
" If clothes are very dirty ,add half a teacupful of parafin to a copperful of clothes.This must be added to the water .Before doing so ,please ensure that one's pipe is extinguished "
Sound advice indeed .
She followed this is 1923 ,with her reference book entitled ,' Insects and how to manage them '.Regarding ants in cupboards , she advised ;
" The only sure method of getting rid of ants is to catch and kill them .Set in the closets ,plates coated thickly with soft lard , with little sticks leaning against them for the ants to climb . When the lard is covered with ants,drop it into a pan of boiling water,and then repeat until the entire colony is eradicated for ever ".
She clearly had an ordered brain , far ahead of what was considered the norm ,back then .
' Spanker ' used a percentage of monies earned from these publications to carry out good works with retired clergy and actresses and her pipe smoking figure was a familiar sight in many exclusive establishments .
