The Coeur d'Alene press. (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho) 1892-1907, 1894-07-28
GIRLS, DO YOUR DUTY
EDUCATION AND hoUsEwoRk MUST
GO HAND IN HAND.

Nearly All the Cultivated, Keen, Think.
ing Women Of This Country Are House
keeper and Pride Themselves Moro ON
Their Bread Than Brains.
A young girl finishes her school life and
comes back into the family again Sup
pose she has neither the taste nor the abil-
ity to take up any work outside her home.
Suppose, however, that she is bright, in
teliigent, fond Of books and music and
pictures. Suppose, last Of all, that the
family income is not large and that there
Is but one or, at the most, two servants in
the house. Now the question naturally
Arises what shall he the attitude Of the
young, unframed but intelligent mind
toward the homely details Of house
work. Shall she take them up or let
them alone-is Homework worthy Of the
best effort, worthy Of the time and though.
Of an educated and clever young woman,
Let us see. IF only Homework were not
30 distressing in its Details signs the
young woman, ''or II I only liked it better,
But Is It Is, it doesn't seem worth my
while. hate broOms and pots and kettles,
and my fingers crawl at the thought of a
dishcloth, and besides it seems to me that
i ought to put my time to better use; that
l ought to be improving my mind" So
here is her indictment against homework:
First, that it is unpleasant. So it is. 1t
Is very unpleasant. To deny that would
be a waste Of time, to say nothing Of its
being nonsense.
But have you never stopped to consider
that the details of most work are unpleas-
ant. The details of PHYSICIANS work are
unpleasant in the extreme. The LAWYERS
life is a hard grind after petty facts; the
teacher gets little fun out of disciplininy
youngsters and drilling at the third person
singular Of the German verb until the class
nicknames her The Third Person Singu.
lar Nobody's life is fun, young woman.
II you're taking your stand on that foot.
Just shift over to the other. Living is
pretty serious business, sud all we've got
to do is to make the best of it, And the
details Of living are sure to be undisnified
and uninteresting.
The second Indictment that this young
woman draws up is that she doesn't like it.
Or course she doesn't, What woman does
like pots and pans; yearn over brooms and
dishcloth; feel that her whole being is full
filled in soups and sauces, What woman
will convict herself Of such bad taste as
-NO Alhcs THESE Things, no
woman has any business to like them.
When she does. then it is from grace and
and not from nature.
suppose you don't like them, 1t isn't
likely that your mother likes them. But
she has done them for years, and is still do
ing them, because there's no one else. Do
them, and do well and heartily, hut don't
insist upon liking them To like the re-
suits of them is all that you will find nee
essary. A happy atmosphere in the home,
more comfort for all the family, a new ap-
probation Of your own dignity and worth
In the family-these are some Of the ends
And these should keep you working, be-
cause Indeed they are worth having There
Is dignity, but 1t is in you-not in your
work. No work is dignifed, except the
worker makes 1t so, and the dignity in the
WORKER comes from a realization of the
moral qualities that go into work.
There are many wise and helpful people
In the world who sincerely believe that we
are going to have within the next few gen
eratlons new estimate of the worth of
work-an estimate based not upon the
amount of money the piece Of work is
worth; not upon the seeming Importance
it bears to the world, but upon the con-
sclentlous spirit which goes into the work.
When, for example, We shall honor the
man and the service of him who laws a
stone wall just as well as a stone wall can
be laid, quite as much as we shall honor
the man who stands at the head Of ma.
ton or leads armies to victory.
II that day ever comes it will be the day
In which the Homework and the house !
worker will have their innings. Because
there is no work in all the world that has !
such deep spiritual significance, such a
bearing upon the welfaring of the world. /
There Is no question that good housekeep-
Ing Will not help to settle. How can you .
expect a man to entertain sane opinions on
matters that deal with women's welfare
when he puts contempt for her into his
mouth with every bit of UNIV wholesome,
sodden bread that he eats,
And SO, you see, we come to the last in
1ictment which you draw up-tha. il isn't
worth your while that you ought to be
improving your mind" Ny dear young
don't get any such inflated ideas
Is these into your head. II you don't find
plenty Of chances for mind improvement
n the exigencies and emergencies Of house
work, you won't find them in book, or in
music, or in painting. You'll get more
dentistry in one days thoughtful prowl-
ng about the cooking stove than you are
lkeiy to have got out Of school books
GU II md more physics in the plumbers
'ipe than you did in the big book you car
led INTO class SO faithfully every day.
gu IL ind human nature more interesting
no more natural in your kitchen than in
our novels. Don't worry about your mind.
can take care Of itself and will grow
Without anxious feeding, if it's any kind
I mind at all
And suppose you take into consideration
our duty to somebody else besides your
elf. That counts, because there really
) such an old fashioned thing in the world.
or all this aew-fashiOned thought Of ours,
$ our duty to others. The family income
) small, the service is small, and there is
lenty Of work for young, strong arms to
o. Then shame be unto your young,
trong self If you take no share in it; II
on Keep laying the burden Of your living
the shoulders Of your tired, willing
lother. And IL the education which
GU We been years in getting has done any
hin2 for you let it show in ability to make ,
he hard way Of work smoother and easier
the house, 1t isn't beneath the dignity
an educated young woman Do you
now that nearly all the cultivated. keen,
mixing women Of this country are famous
ousekeepers and pride themselves a deal t
lore on their bread than they do on their '
Herald.
A Curious Irish Tradition.
Ireland Is country rich in traditions. =,
nd IN places every inch Of the ground /
as It's queer history and some quaint