Butte record., 1853-11-26
HINTS ABOUT FEMALE EDUCATION.
BY MRS. L NJ. CHILD.

The difficulty is, education does not
usually point the female heart to its only
true resting place. That dear English
word " home," is not half SO powerful
talisman as "the word" Instead of the
salutary truth, that happiness is in duty,
they are taught TO consider the two things
totally distinct: and that whosoever seeks
one must sacrifice the other.
The fact is. our girls have no home
education. When quite young, they are
sent to schools where no feminine en-
ployments, no domestic habits can be
learned: and there they continue till
they ''come out'' into the world. After
this. few find any time to arrange and
make use of, the mass of elementary
knowledge they have acquired; and fewer
still have either leizure or taste for the
elegant, everyday duties of life. Thus
prepared, they enter upon matrimony.
Those early habits, which would have
made domestic care light ard easy task
have never been taught, for fear it would
interrupt their happiness; and the result
is that, when cares come, as come they
must, they find them misery l lam con-
vinced that Indifference and dislike be-
tween husband and, wife are more fire.
quently occasioned by this great error in
education, than by any other cause.
The bride is awakened from her de-
lightful dream, in which carpets, vases,
sofas, white gloves, and pearl earrings
are oddly jumbled up with her lovers
looks and promises. Perhaps she would
be surprised if she knew exactly how
much of the fascination of being engaged
was owing to the aforesaid inanimate
concern. Be that as it will, she is ava
kened by the unpleasant conviction that
cares devolve upon her. And what effect
does this produce upon her character;
Do the holy and tender influences of
domestic love render self denial and ex-
ertion bliss' No! They would have
done SO had she been property educated !;
but now she gives way to unavailing fret
FUN ess and repining; and her husband is
at first panied, and finally disgusted, by
hearing. 81 never knew what care was
when [ lived in my fathers house" eff
| were to live my life over again, [ would
remain single as long as [ could, without
the risk of being an old maid" How
injudicious, how short sighted is the
policy'which thus mars the whole happi-
ness of life, in order to make few brief
years more gay and brilliant / have
known many instances of domestic ruin
and discord produced by this mistaken
indulgence of mothers. l necer kneoC
but one achere the victim had moral cour-
age enough to change all her early habits.
She was young, pretty, and very ami
able girl, but brought up to be perfectly
useless; rag-baby would, to all intents
and purposes, have been as efficient
partner. She married young lawyer
without property, but with good and in
creasing practice. She meant to be
good wife, but she did not know how.
Her wastefulness involved him in debt.
He did not reproach, though he tried to
convince and instruct her. She loved
him: and, weeping, replied, 81 try to do
the best | can but, when | lived at
home, mother always took care of every
thing" Finally poverty came upon him
''like an armed man." and he went into
remote town in the Western States to
teach school. His wife folded her hands
and cried, while he weary and discour-
aged, actually came home from school to
cook his own supper. At last his pa
tience, and her real love for him, impellod
her to exertion. She promised to learn
to be useful, ifh would teach her. And
the change in her habits gradually
wrought such change in her husbands
fortune, that she might bring her daugh-
ters up in idleness, had not experience
taught her that economy, like grammer,
is verystiresome study, after we are
twenty years old.
One OF THE SNAKE Sroptrs.A