Sharp County record., 1879-05-15
HOUSE WORK.

From tno IrSU HOuT W Juo l1soU vi -
istence every man, woman ana chllu
must have food to eat, clothes to wear
and some place to stay in. In warm
climates clothing may be largely dis,
pensed with, but not so with either tood
or habitation. Provision must be made
for disposing of the wastes OF the BODY
as well as for its renewal. Starting with
this groundwork of facts, the question
is certainly pertinent one whether the
education of our girls and boys is OF the
kind that these facts naturally suggeSC
to be the true one. =;
This train of thought was set in lively
motion by pleading letter from glrl
of IS, stating that she was nearly out OF
money, out of employment, found 1t lm,
possible to procure employment, ana
was at the time dependent on the kind
ness of friends for home. Ot house
work she "knows little, of cooking
nothing at ALL" When she was young
there was no need of her help and she
was kept at school. Now she wisely de-
termines to take lessons in house-keep'
ing of the friend with whom she is stay
ing, thus improving the time until she
finds work.
This case is by no means exceptional
There are girls by the ten thousand IN
this country who "know of housework
little, of cooking nothing at ALL" and
they are by no means all OF them the
children OF wealthy parents, or of par
ents who can afford to bring up their
daughters in idleness. The ignorance
of these girls results from several con-
ditions. In the first place, where there
is a L" hired girl in the family it is a
very difficult matter to train the daugh-
ters in practical knowledge of kitchen
work. The ordinary servant-girl gives
an uninviting look to the kitchen, and
the expression of her countenance is un-
inviting to the intruder from the sitting
room and parlor, Her tones OF voice
indicate no welcome; she prefers to be
left to do her work in her own way
without help or interference, and she
can not be made to cooperate IN any
plan which will enable the daughters OF
the house to feel at home in the kitchen
and pantry. In the next place most
mothers VINO do not employ servants
find it so much easier to do the work OF
the family themselves than to teach their
daughters how to do it and compel them
to do it, that the girls are left to occupy
themselves with more congenial pur-
suits. There are very few persons who DO
not find sweeping and dusting and dish,
washing and cooking and scrubbing and
laundry work any thing else at times
than pure drudgery; very few persons
indeed who are not quite willing 70 al
low all this work to be done TOR thelnC.
certainly the ordinary American girl Is
no exception to this rule. She likes TO
practice her music, to take lessons IN
French, to learn the last new embrold-
erv stitch, to read the latest novel, TO
keep her hands clean and put on NICE
dress in the morning and wear 1t all
day without any need of soiling it or OF
putting on an apron to protectit. She's
quite willing to put the parlor in order,
TO make the dessert for dinner or the
cake for company, to arrange flowers
on the sideboard and dining table, and
do all the little nice things that make
the home tasteful and cozy; she can
4" tithe mint, anise and cummin," but
the weightier matters of the law-oread
making meat cooking, plain sewing
mending-these are too hard, too teoi-
ous. too uninteresting. We hear
chorus of rural voices protesting tnSt
this isn't so; that there are country g lrlS
hv the hundred who pride themselves
on on their ability to do every kind OF
homework skilIfully, and aren't afraid
~ mt their own hands to the family
nlow. and do put their hands to 1t from
Pne P year,s end to the other, and run
straight.furrow from May to May AGAIN
This is all so, and yet the statement re-
mains true that there are girls oy the
Ton thousand who "know OF housework
little of cooking nothing at all. "
Now what are we going to do aooutlt'
The remedy lies chiefly in the hands OF
,nothers, To some extent writing on
the subject will do good, but example
will teach loudest and most efficiently
Of all things. When it is the fashion
for girls to do housework then it will be
nop1lar and easy, bat until then We
must be content with the old way Of
teaching these duties, cline upon line,
precept upon precept." For the lower
classes in New York City Miss Hunting
ton is doing a most beneficent work in
teaching the 250 girls in the Wilson In.
dustrial School, of which she is the head,
how to 90 through all the various opec-
ations required Of the skillful housekeep-
er. As the little housemaids work they
sing the directions for each particular
task, "suiting the word to the action, ~
and there is scarcely any department of
housework that they do not learn some,
thing about. The children of rich par
ents need this kind of teaching almost
as much as do those of poor parents, for