There are many ways of accomplishing these things: in some cases the tang of the blade is cemented in the handle. This is done where the knife is used with little pressure and strength, such as the feather-curling knife of the milliner; there are some knives which are riveted such as butchers’ knives because much force is used with them; household knives are pinned and pinned and cemented sometimes, and in the case of home butcher knives as many as three pins are used to keep the handle steady. With knives like the corrugated types, there are often metal wire handles drawn out on them. The corrugations on these blades are to obviate tearing and reduce, some think, the pressure necessary in cutting. Handles themselves are made of various things,--woods, rubberoid, celluloid, metals, stag and in the case of table knives, mother-of-pearl, shell, silver over nickel, etc. The kitchen knife handle must be able to stand all heats, be impervious to hot water, be smooth and comfortable in shape, and must be nicely finished so as to give the worker a feeling of worth-whileness in his job. Sloppy tools make for sloppy work. Think of your cutlery as the dentist does his tools and you will feel professional. The housewife errs in no place quite so much as in the care of her cutlery. In nine and one-half houses out of ten the good blades are huddled and hustled into a drawer where they loosen from their handles, nick, scratch and hammer each other to their own destruction. What good is there in having good materials if they are to be stored in this manner? [Illustration: ANOTHER DEVICE DESIGNED BY THE AUTHOR FOR KEEPING CUTLERY IN CUTTING FORM] Consider the carpenter how he stores! He hangs each tool in a certain groove, and as he desires a certain thing he extracts it. He can’t afford to have auto-destruction--it is too extravagant a disease. Yet it is the hardest thing in the world to make the housewife hang up her few knives and keep them forever in good shape. Clean them after every using. It’s easier then. A little scouring powder now and then will keep them in condition. Do not use scouring powders with stainless steel, as it reduces the polish--the very thing which maintains its imperviousness to stain. All new knives should be so finished when you buy them that they need no further edging. The best manufacturers see to this and have a department just to hone and make knives ready for use. SHARPENING