National Republican., 1877-11-06
PpfiOr and Kitchen.

Parior aud Kitchen.
BY the term "pIrlor" VIC mean not only tho
dantily- furnished drawing rooms of the rich,
but those best rooms" where the humber
classes, lin honest mcdiocrity content" bestow
their choicest accumulatiuns aud exercise their
various tastes, even TO such decorations as tho
poet sang Of
A whitewashed wall a niccly.sAnded A ,or;
4 vanished clock clicking hrhimd tie door;
hear.ng Chcst Cuntriycd double debt to pay;
4 bed by night, n set Of drawcrs by DAY;
with cedar boughs, bright blooms AMI fennel gay.
And those dismal gucst.rooms of country
houses. whose funcreal gloom Is never invaded
| by n stray sunbeam or a sniff of sweet air,
save at rare intervals when company"
| comes, and the green PAPER curtains, lined
| with countless cObwchs, arc rolled up display
| ing rows of straight backed chairs, disposed
with mathematical precision, the plaster dogs
| and ange.s upon tho mantcl, and the highly
cOlorcd countcnarUes If the immortal George
| and Martha staring sererely down upon you
from the whitewashcd wall. The
PARLoR PROPER
| Is the theatre Of tha continental and poetic
and the kitchen boards are altogether prncti-
ral aud prt,saic. The former may represent
! the realm Of imagination, aesthetic tastes, and
those rciin"ment5 Of fancy which merely beau
| tify without adding TO utility. The kitchen
is the synonym Of ever, day life typifcd by
the meals that bodily wants usist upon, the
|
snrbing claims Of romance, philosophy and
| science Tor even Asas ii,-big, noble natural
| ist that he was, coming from a teu-mils
quest after chronological spccimens-wanted
| his roast beef and nasty pudding just AS does
| the cOmnonCst butcher or baker A house,
hold can hardly be said to be complete with
out both parlora and kitchen but the latter, in
divers lands and many families, is the chief
| apartment, II not the only room in
the house; as among the EsquimauI, for
| instance, the lcelanders, the Servians,
aud Indeed among all the pcasantry OF
Europe. Imagine for a moment one Of those
novels among the heather in the land Of the
mountain and the nood"-a habitation widely
built of stones, with an aperture in tho roof
through which ascends the peat smoke from
the fire in the winter. Comp l!.i to pass her
days in such a kitchen, the sunny haired
Scotch lasSie becomes in course of years the
most hideous of snioke-dried croncs, fit to per-
sonify one of Macbeth's witches. The lap
lander is u great habitat of the kitchen, aud
the lcelander's inglc-nook is near tho lamp
which makes boil the pot of reindeer stew as
well as gives light to the household. Then. ip
striking contrast to these, is the pioverbial
NEW ENGLAND KITCHEN,
with its perfect system, immaculate clcanli-
ness and ingenious cOntrvances for saving
time and labor-nachinery whose smooth
workings have solved many problems that for
generations were sources of weariness TO fe-
male flesh and vexatious to womany spirit.
A costly parlor aud a dirty illrcgulated
kitchen may symbolic fine lady who knows
nothing of housekeeping, who pOmmels the
piano, embroiders In silk, does theorcm paint
ing, screams at the sight of kind old COW,
iaints at Il mouse, and considers 1t horribly
vulgar to peep into the place where dinner is
being prepared. But as Blanchard Jerrold
says, "Nan-glory Is like q window cushion
garnished with tasseled pendant; within 1t
| 10 nj bay bar trouI l,,, In
at" So with the woman who is adorned only
with parlor accomplishments and knows no
, kitchen love. Happier would her household
be If n better education would teach her ITO
clip the tasscled pendant and mind that the
pudding does not boil over while she reads
Epicctus;" for, with all the allurng entice-
ments of the parlor, its easy chairs, luxurious
tste-dtdtcs, fascinating pictures and articles Of
rertu, the kitchen Is the real axle upon which
the family world revolves. A well cook ed meal
is the hub where the spokes derive their i'm
pctus, and she who can prepare it to perfection
when necessity demands possesses an art that
Il queen need not disdain. II superior women
would oftcner engage in such pursuits they
will soon make them honorable: for, as Leon.
idas said when chdrd for sweeping the streets
Of Athens: "A man may make any profession
honorable, though no pI IOiessiOn can make him
So" Why should We consider as beneath our
attention any matter that lies at the fouEda-
ton of the health and happiness Of the family
When physician Is called to the bedside of q
patient, he Immediately prescribes diet as well
rs medicines. Tho house keeper should regard
. those who sit at her table as subjects for her
conservative skill and should remember also
that her own carelessness or ignorance may
drive
| NAILS INTO THEIR coFFINs,
through the medium of indigestible dinners.
The word Lady IL OF Saxon origin, from
Mfday, the bread giver;" from this high
Office, coming in conjunction with her heaven
bestowed one of rocking the cradle, II be-
hooves women to acquire among other accom-
plishments II knowledge OF physiology, a.
destined to enter into her everyday business
' of keeping people in health by enforcing
proper diet aud sanitary regulations As
wull-kept kitchen Is almost certain ausury
of u tasteful parlor, so brightness Of intellect
! in a woman Is IN apt precursor OF domestic
/. skill; and it has been thousand times proven
that the highest intellectual culture Is not in
! Compatible with the performance Of the
, hunDlest household duties. 1t Is strange
that any one should have thought
otherwise. Nobody had misgivinys lest Elihu
Burrt's linguistic attainments would inter-
frre with his blacksmithing, or Andy John
sons parliamentary lore with his tailoring, or
Abraham Lncolns administration with his
rail.splitting. Why should pobuium for any
mind interfere with the employment of the
hands? Would one be u better cook because
profoundly ignorant of chemistry, or u moro
perfect housekecper because unable to read .
German novelf Just as well expect person
to be better Christian for believing the world
TO be fiat plane and its center u lake OF literal
fro and birthstone, stuck full of hsOis, pitch
forks, aud impaling stakes, yawning for the
wicked. Is II not more reasonable to suppose
that the wiser woman the better she Is fitted
p for every duty2 Mere learning Is not educa-
tion but that woman is best educated who has
A. L..