The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1875-08-17
Slovenly Girls.

huu WlsuOD. OuT HObtcoS, WIS, HTouCu
was a high.spirited, nervous woman will
large Ideality and CoDstructiveness. Sh,
had TWO little girls, Of ten and twelv'
years bright, winning children, but or
ganized quite differently from theil
mother
My friend, MIS- jackson. and mysel
were often panied during the visit by the
tone of criticism and coldness that char
acterized almost everything said by Mrs
French to her children. One day the
mother complained openly to us of The
carelossness of the little girls, saying:
They are so different from what l wa!
at their age, that | cannot understand
them or have any patience with them
Why, when | was twelve years old made
dress for myself; and | used to keer
my room and my bureau drawers so neat
that everybody praised me for my good
order. | am really afraid Belle and
Annie will grow up slovenly and idle, III
spite OF all that | can do"
Mrs jackson heard her through, and
then she said
My dear Mrs French, did your
mother never feel dissatisfied with you on
some other score, or were you perfect in
every respect ~
"Oh, no Satisfied ? No, not by any
means Mother was a great student, and
she was worried to death for fear | should
grow up Ounce"
"Then | suppose she made you miser.
able by perpetually mourning over your
duluess .
You are wrong there she was the
most patient woman in the world. She
gave all the opportunity | wanted to
practice my house keeping and dress.mak.
ing skill, and then she coaxed me to
study if she hadn't led me gradually to
take an interest in books. never should
have known anything"
"Your mother was wise woman" re.
piled Mrs. jackson; 'but you must par.
don me if | say that you are taking exact.
ly the opposite course with your daugh.
ters -
for books they take after their grand:
mother"
VERY true but cant you see what |
am aiming to show you? You were un'
developed IN one part Of your nature, and
developed in another ; your mother kept
you happily and usetully employed by al.
lowing you to do that which was easy and
natural for you to do; then she skillfully
and gradually encouraged the part Of you
which had the poorer start, if | may so
express it. Now, if you were to pursue
the same course in regard TO your girls,
you would encourage and praise them In
their studies, and then when they were
glowing with the delight of congenial
labor, you would direct their attention
gently to the necessity Of cultivating
every part Of the character Instead Of
that, you assume that your daughters are
to blame for not being developed as you
were"
"You are right" said Mrs. French; 81
am not acting as my mother did; but it
has always seemed to me that it was un.
natural for girl to be careless about her
room and her clothes"
81 don't think we well understand what
we mean when we say unnatural. There
are many gradations and phases Of nature.
1t is also unnatural, if you will use that
expression, for a girl to be dull at her
arithmetic and botany. We are to con-
slider our friends as farms the productive
parts we must profit by, the rest we must
cultivate; that is the way your mother
acted, and that is the way you must do il
you would not harden the soil till it is toe
late for seed.sowing"
Mrs. French was silent, but deeply at
tentive, and Mrs Jackson went on:
"I have known many cases Of sad allie
nation in families from the lack of wise
sympathy with the order Of nature il
children. Some children develop enc
quality or set of qualities first, and som'
another. What is wanted is sympathy
and tenderness with the actual child
You can not produce new growths BY
fault.fnding instead, you must concen
trate the sun of love upon the very place
that are most sterile. Suppose the sui
should refuse to shine except upon bios
SONS and fruit ?"
At the end of this speech Miss Bel
came rushing in, her apron full Of flower
for anal lyzing, her dress torn, and he
boots muddy. The mother opened he
mouth to speak. but warned by look
she was silent.
Mrs. jackson called the sweet-face
i girl to her side, helped her to classify e
specimens, and then asked her gently hoy
she got so torn and soiled. Belle locke
+. little ashamed, and meeting smil
from her mother instead Of frown, sh
y owned that she had been very careless
and had been practising leaping ditcbe
with her sister, without thinking anythin
}, about her nice boots.
It Then it was her turn for lesson ; an
!, Mrs. Jackson explained to her how me-
G essary it was for young lady to adal
her actions to the occasion and to hi
l. dress. 1T is really serious fault" ST
said, Ito spoil your expensive boots
o this way"
:; You must wear your old boots whe
U you 90 botanizing" said Mrs. French, il
e diligently.
At this Belle ran to her mother, an
s. throwing her arms around her neck, prou
n ised to try very hard to be all she wishe
It if she would only let her go for aowe
D. and stones, and not mind if she look'
., like pauper's child when she was sc
"a tramp"
)" When Belle went out Mrs. Jacks'
said
& "You see the child is not careless b
le cause she lacks perception of order al
beauty, but because her mind is direct,
exclusively to one set of ideas. Her vi
IN orous body calls for open lair exercise, al
at her thoughts turn involuntarily to I
'h subjects presented to her at school. S
does not think about her room and h