tartar should be sifted with the flour.  Flour should be added gradually and batter stirred as little as possible afterwards, unless directions are given to the contrary.  Much beating after flour has been added is apt to make cake tough.  Cake will be lighter if baked slowly at first After it has raised increase heat slowly so it will brown nicely on top.  The batter, if heated slowly, will rise evenly.  This does not mean a cool oven.  To prevent cakes sticking to pans, grease pans well with lard, and sift a little flour lightly over pan.  Use baking powder with sweet milk.  Saleratus is always used with sour milk.  Use 1 teaspoonful of saleratus to 1 pint of sour milk.  Cream of tartar and saleratus combined may be used with sweet milk instead of baking powder.  One heaping teaspoonful of Royal baking powder is equivalent to 1 teaspoonful of cream of tartar and 1/2 teaspoonful of saleratus combined.  Either baking powder or a combination of saleratus and cream of tartar may be used in a cake in which sweet milk is used.  Usually take 1-1/2 to 2 scant teaspoonfuls of baking powder to two cups of flour.  Saleratus should be used alone with sour milk.  Put baking molasses in a stew-pan over fire and allow it to just come to boil; cool before using it.  It will not sour as quickly in warm weather, and the cake baked from it will have a better flavor.  The cup used in measuring ingredients for cakes holds exactly one-half pint.  All cakes are improved by the addition of a pinch of salt.  When lard is used instead of butter, beat to a cream and salt well.  In mixing cakes, beat butter and sugar together until light and creamy, then add the beaten yolks of eggs, unless stated otherwise as for angel cake, etc., then the flavoring, then mix in the flour and liquid alternately.  The baking powder, flour and salt should have been sifted together three or four times before being added.  Lastly, fold in lightly the stiffly beaten whites of eggs.  Fruit well dredged with flour should be added last, if used.  Cool the oven if too hot for baking cakes by placing a pan containing cold water in the top rack of oven.  Sponge cake particularly is improved by doing this, as it makes the cake moist.  Stir sponge cake as little as possible after adding flour, as too much stirring then will make cake tough.  Sift flour several times before using for sponge cake, as tins causes the flour to become lighter.  Layer cake, and most small cakes, require a quick oven.  The oven door should not be opened for 12 minutes after cake has been placed in oven.  Rich cakes, loaf cakes and fruit cakes must bake long and slowly.  The richer the cake, the slower the heat required in baking.  To test the oven, if the hand can bear the heat of the oven 20 or 25 seconds, the oven then is the right temperature.  After placing a loaf cake in oven do not open the oven door for 20 minutes.  If oven be not hot enough, the cake will rise, then fall and be heavy.  Angel cake, sunshine cake and sponge cake require a moderate oven.