The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1874-02-28 00:00:00

LINES TO A YOUNG LADY.
Irdlit DOLLY, who &Bowater Aid
To bell behind her through the dirt,
Folgete the oiekoame that preveltet
Of DOROTHY the Draggle-talled.—Ponch

HINTS ON THRIFT.

In London, one evening last week, the Society of
Arts met in Jehn•street, Adelphi, at eight o'clock, to
hear Mr. Bartley, Hmorary S-cretary to the Provi-
dent Knowledge Society, read a paper on " fhrift as
an Outdoor Relief Test," Mr. Bartley pointed out
that under the preeent system men were encouraged to
live from band to mouth, and a regular premium was
thus held out for poverty and destitution. Men who
by their thrift and economy had laid up agsinst a rainy
day some sort of provision for themselves, though in e
of neceasity utterly inadequate to subsistence, were
passed over, while the men who spent immediately all
they earned, with no thought for the future were
singled out for relief. The question of the relieving
cificer should be, "How much have you saved ?"
tot, "Are you abeolutely destitute?" Toe fact of a
man's belonging to a club or provident society ought
to qualify, not, as now, to disqualify. If by his
savings he had been gnat led to purchase for him•
self an annuity of 2s. 6d. or 33. a week, the parish
ought to double the sum, not refuse all help for
that very reason. The money now spent in outdoor
relief was rapbly increasing, which, of course, proved
a corresponding increase of poverty. But by enoeu•
raging thrift and economy poverty would be dis-
couraged. The same remarks might apply to medical
relief. The wage-earning man who paid a weekly or
monthly emu to a medical club should be entitled to
medical relief. The amount of that sum would, of
course, have to depend on circumstances, but in popu-
lons districts one penny a week would be found to re-
coup the iredical man for hie trouble far better than
the sum at present allowed him by the parish. If some
such plan as that be had suggested were adopted—said
1 Mr. Bartley, in conclusion—it would, he felt confident,
I enable the wage-earning class in time to place them-
selves altogether beyond the pale of outdoor relief ;it
would du away with the present premiums given to
fraud and deceit, and in all probability would even-
tually altogether do away with the entire system cf
such relief, and above all would tend to wipe out that
"fool bb t of pauperism which wan now disgracing the
richest country in the world.'
On the conclusion of the lecture the chairman in
'sited any who might please to express their opinions
on what they lied heard. An animated discussion in
consequence followed, in which, among others, Sir
Baldwin Leighton and Mr. Edwin Chadwick took past.
Some interest was alm created by a @patch from a
Mr. Issary, who announced himself as a working man,
and who considered that the upper classes, instead of
preaching the blessings of thrift and provideoce to
the lower orders, would be well to show them how
such blessinge•were to be acquired. The people, he
said, would never be thrifty unless they were clearly
shown the way. _ _ •

After a brief reply from Mr. Bartley to the various
speakers, the chairman roe to propose a vote of thanks
to the lecturer. The hour, he said, was late, and
therefore be should be most brief. It seemed to him,
however, that the later speakers had rather mimed
the point of Mr. Bartley'a proposal. It was not so
much to substitute thrif i. as the test in the ploce of
destitution as to abolish the dhqual.fication which was
now attached to thrift. Destitution mutt be relieved.
Oldest, and disease could not be prevented, and the poor
would never cesee out of the land. The results of vice and
Intemperance could not be passed by uncared for. Such a
state of things would not only be unchristimilike, but it
would not be even natural. But, paging the line of
destitution, ought we not also to toke cognizance of
the thrifty and the provident who might suddenly find
themselves' though not actually destitut' e yet in need
of help? All orgacizations, whether of labour or of
capital, ought, the speaker thought, to be safe, and if
they were under the public protection they would be
safe. It had been so from the earliest times, for the
ancient guilds were boat the precursors of the organized
societies of the present day. By thrift, he concluded,
toe classes will ripen and mature, and, growing to a
state of mutual and self.help, will be become indepen-
dent of any public relief.
With the usual compliments to the lecturer and the
chairman the meeting than separated.
THE NATIONAL SCHOOL OF
COOKERY.

lettly Barker, in an Interesting and very clearly written
little nook, pelt published nr Sle”re Mecottllno, under the
title of First Lessons in the Principle of Cooking explains
the objects of the new/y-inetltuteti Netionat Slhooll of
C.rokery, to which all our readers will cardial.y wiah 811,,
Cue

"The great point which I have reason to believe the
Committee of the National School of Cookery will insist
upon is thoroughness. No one will be allowed to run,
or try to run, before she can walk. The elementary
knowledge of how to light and manage a kitchen fire,
of scrupulous cleanliness in pots and pane, of attention ,
toe thousand small but allimportaftt details, will be
taught and insisted upon before the learner is allowed
to do anything worthy of the name of cooking. She ,
will then, probably, be surprised to find how corrpara-
lively easy it will he to acquire the art, and she may
be very sure she w.ll not be allowed to try a second
thing until elle can do the first, if it be only boiling a :
kettle or toaating a piece of bread to perfection. Such is
the plan for compltte beginners, who, by the way, gene-
rally prove the successful pupils ; but or servants
or artisans' wives who wish to ` better themselves in
their kitchens there will be a different mode of instruc-
tion, into which I need not enter here. Ladies will aleo
have an opportunity either of sitting in a chair and
listening to a lecture or series of lectures on cook-
ing, beginning with a mutton chop and ending with a
sm4le. or they may turn back their sleeves, take off
them rings and bracelets, and try for themselves. It
will be hard if any eager inquirer doe, not toad some
course or class to meet her neede, and it Is hoed that,
whatever excuse may hereafter beurged for our national
hal cookery, the reproach of the want of a place anti
opportunity of instruction will be done away with
forever. There is but one parting remai k I have to make.
It Is this. The National School of Cookery is not a
met cantile undertaking. I have no wish to attempt to
throw discredit upon such undertakinge, hut simply to
state that the School of Cookery at S futh Kenainet in
Is not one. There will be no question of dividends or
bonuses, nor will there be shareholders whose interests
and pockets must be considered. ithe school ha, every
rattern to expect that ie will be liberally supported by
contributions and tlonatiOne ; if it finds iteett mistaken
In that exp. etatton it will close its doors, and there will
be no bar t. die to anybody. It is managed by a com-
mittee of gentlemen whose names are a sufficient
guarantee fir their actions, and no one of them will be in.
dividualiy a penny the richer or the poorer whether the
undertaking succeeds or not. If the school he well
and liberally supported, it will Lea sign that the need
of improvement in cooking is telt by all dowses, and
for every shilling auletcribed it is the intention of the
CoLualit.te.• to afford means of instruction. The more
money which is forthcoming, the more widely spread
will be the benefit which the promoters of the National
School of Cookery hope and believe it is capable of
producing."

PAAca AND W. " Talk about the
el hughter of war!" said Maj,lr O'Rourke. "lan't it
the pace that kills ? "—Punch.