In a corner of the fire-place stood, on thick squat legs, a bake-pot, filled with a savory mess, and its iron lid covered with hot embers. From beneath the chimney-piece swung the crane, whose long, horizontal arm bore a profusion of pot-hooks and trammels, from which depended innumerable pots, long-handled frying-pans and other paraphernalia of the cuisine. But no kitchen utensil was more unique than the wooden bowls which the Indians fashioned from the knots of the maple tree and sold to the house-keepers. Scoured to immaculate whiteness, they had their place in every family and were highly prized.

" At Christmas and other holiday seasons the stupendous brick ovens, without which no gentleman's house could be thought thoroughly equipped, would be filled three times a day -- first with generous loaves of wheat and rye, then with chicken and game pastries, and lastly with the succulent mince, apple and cranberry pies.

" A necessary labor in spring and autumn was the making, or dipping, of tallow candles. Six cotton wicks would be doubled over a rod, then dipped in the melted tallow and drawn between the manipulator's finger and thumb until the tallow gained some consistency. The rod was hung up while the candles dried and a' second dipping and drawing finished the work. Presently some unknown genius invented a frame that held thirty-six wicks, and eight or ten such frames made the labor quick and easy of performance. Tin molds were employed when a small supply of candles was needed, and the big box of ' dips ' nearly empty. Mr. Jesse Ryder, of Ossining, says that at one time cotton was so high priced that tow was used for wicks, and the ' dips ' gave a poor light. Candlesticks for the kitchen were cut from large, square wooden blocks.