Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1890-03-07
VERMONT BRATTEBORO FRIDAY MARCH Z 1890
THE HOUSEHOLD.


A well-knowu western journal not long
ago contained a wall over the decadence Of
good housekeeping, contending that in the
past the head Of family knew every de
tail Of It's management, prices included.
while today the majority Of housekeepers
are a. ignorant ~ babies Of hat legitimate
expenses consist in. aud almost equally. also
Of what is fair days work for one in
their employ But another journal, near
neighbor 20 the first mentioned, has sound
ed an alarm in an opposite direction and is
convinced that any knowledge Of prices or
general expenses will send good housekeep
ing b. the winds as surely a. too much
knowledge in any direction Among other
things il SAYS: I'VE believe heartily in
women doing work and getting good wages
| for it, but their outside work has nothing
10 do with good housekeeping
Outside work may have no direct con
nection with womans capacity for good
housekeeping, but her capacity for good
housekeeping has the strongest bearing on
her ability to make a living by her own la
| hor. The woman who can plan accurately.
execute with neatness and despatch. and
carry along quietly and almost impercepti.
| bly, the mass Of details which make up the
days work for most women, has already
the qualities which will TT her for learning
in business directions In thousands Of
homes where just such qualities are exer
cised, the question is being asked, How
can ! earn quietly here, where l must re
main, enough 10 tighten some Of the bur.
dens that must he carried ~ Too often the
answer must be that there is no avenue
open And this reply is made because
there is no knowledge or training which
will serve as a foundation for any new de
parture. The women who have developed
executive capacity in the home and who
may be compelled to earn, have this advan-
tage over all who have not
1t is one Of the hard facts Of this nine
teenth century that more and more women
are forced to earn Out Of the mass who
appeal to one from the home itself j. al
ways proportion for whom such earning
Is not really vital matter, and who seek
opportunity only for the sake of little
more pin money. But the majority are in
actual need and face it often quite helpless
to accomplish the thing they most desire
Often they are Of the type likely to be pro
duced by such conviction as our exchange
records. They have been quite certain
that no housekeeper needed any informa
ton as to modes and methods Of work. aud
that the women at work in trade or shop
and the women at work under the home
roof had interests in no way Identical
The fact is, no real separation is possible
What fits one for life in the most perfect
fashion fits the other The woman who
must earn is tolerably certain that she must
at one period or another. be homemaker.
also, though the reverse may not be true for
the homemaker But each must know the
work of the other Thus far the advan-
tage has been all on the housekeeping side.
since many journals and magazines are de
voted to home interests 1t is time that to
this should be added better sense Of ~ hat
work means aud Of the live, Of workers in
general.-GoOd housekeeping