The record-union., 1894-09-21
CANADIAN WOMEN.
Attend TO Their Household Duties bui
Enjoy Themselves.

CANADIAN WOMEN.
Attend to Their Household Duties but
Enjoy Themselves.
Canada is land of happy home life. 1t
is often objected that the Canadian woman
Is too much absorbed in her household
duties; that she lays aside her music and
other accomplishments after marriage,
and does not continue to Improve her
mlnd." There Is truth in the criticism.
Limited means and many responsibilities
sometimes compel the sacrifice; but, on
the other hand, some Canadian women
are notably good housekeepers and find
time for mental culture. Canadian girls
now attend the University Extension
course.
The Canadian woman has not yet made
many contributions to literature. The
works of Agnes Machar, of :. L. Harri-
son, OF Sara Jeanette Duncan, author of
"A Social Departure and other books,
and of Lily Dougal, author of "Beggars
Ali" and ''What Necessity Knows"
have earned regulations beyond the bor-
ders of the Dominion. The Canadian
girl is permitted more freedom and inde-
peDdenee than her English cousin, and,
like her American neighbor, she uses
this freedom without abusing 1t.
The native Canadian is generally
faithful servant. Such servants often live
many years with one family. A woman
had been cook IL family Tor more than
twenty years. She was dying i'll Toronto,
her old mistress was living in Winnipeg.
Are you happy?' asked the nurse. y
am comfortable; you have been very
kind; but 1 long to sec the face OF my dea4
Mrs. Z. before [ die.o A telegram was
sent to Winnipeg. and the mistress set
out at once TO give her old faithful servant
that last consolation.
The Canadian girl at home knows how
to enjoy herself. In winter she goes TO
skating, snow-shoeing, sleighing and to-
bogganing parties, and she delights in
dancing, music and private theatricals.
In summer she rows, rides and swims.
She spends much time out of doors at
picnics and in camping out" a mar
ried woman must accompany the camp
ing party as chaperon, but, II possible,
the girls choose one whose spirits have
not been much weighted by household
cares. The fact that the girl must some
times do her share of the work OF house
hold does not interfere with her amuse-
ments. She disposes of her work and is
free for her play.
She can often swim like a fish, A
young man and his betrothed were on a
vessel that took fire. While the girl
looked for means Of escape for herself
and others, the man dashed past her and
leaDed overheard. AS he sprang he eX-
claimed, as If suddenly reminded of his
responsibilities, Joan. you can swim ~
Joan swan. She struck out boldly for
shore and arrived there. The young man
met her and offered his congratulations.
They were received coldly-so coldly that
he went hotelward to warm himself
Joan is still single. The man was not
Canadian.
The girl is generally brave and some
times recklessly veuturesome. A girl of
l6 years excelled as an oarswoman. One
day her father, returning from his office,
saw crowd on the bank OF the lake and
went to ascertain the cause. III the dis
tance was dark line that suggested an
outrigger cutting its way through the
rough water.
why did you let her have it?" asked
an excited young man of the builder,
who had boats for hire
''She said she must have it, and every
one knows that what Miss Audrey says
she will have she do have"
Miss Audreyr' The father skuddered.
Was it possible that his young daughter,
Audrey, was two miles from the shore in
an outrigger-a frail shell i'll which a
practlsed oarsman only would be COM
paratively safe in that rough water?
Audrey reached the shore safely. She
was disturbed by her fathers anxiety,
but greeted him with apparent uncon-
cern. Il had no idea that l should cause
a sensation she said. "Hanlan's sister
rows an outrigger, and II any other
woman can why shouldn't I?' But the
adventurous spirit OF youth is now sub
dued and transformed to Il force which
otter enables the sedate matron to cope
with many difficulties.
In the early spring of the year of the
Northwest rebellion a young married
woman, who had been brought up in a
! luxurious home in Ontario, was alone in
| her prairie cottage with two babies 1t
was necessary for her to convey some In
| formation TO a household four miles
| away, and there was not white woman
| between ber and that house. She har-
| messed her horse and set out with her
| babies. There was a bridge over small
! lake or pond, but an Indian stood on it.
She thought the horse would shy at him,
! so tried to drive across the pond, suppos-
! ing the ice would bear his weight. About
| the middle the horse broke through, He
/ extricated himself, overturned the sleigh.
| got loose and ran off, Carrying both
! children and wading through snow waist
| high, the young woman made her way to
her destination.
Far from being disheartened by her ad-
ventures, she said; ''Of course 1 was
anxious about the horse and the children,
| but l had to sit down in the snow and
| laugh when | wondered what my friends
at home would think if they could see me
with one baby hanging around my neck
and the other tucked in my slzirts.''
Despite the rigors of winter and the
heat of summer, the Canadian woman
has generally good constitution. She
suffers less from dyspepsia than her
| American nelgh Dor, for she takes more
outdoor exercise and less pie and hot
bread, but she is not so robust in APP
pearance as her British cousin. As a
rule, unless she is personally interested
in some statesman she takes little inter-
est in politics, and is not as well in
formed OIL political questions as the Eng
| lish woman or the American. But
though not politician, she is patriot
She has strong family attachment to the
mother country and TO existing rela-
tions, and looks with disfavor on any