Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1898-05-19

iaciHties and pecuniary encouragement
TINS branch of learning is discontinued
aIter the sixth grade. With the benefit
which us derived. therefore. 1t is a source
OF great regret and a manifest loss TO the
community that further and advanced
teaching in this line may not be had
IN the seventh and eighth grades the
girls are taught housekeeping. They are
instructed at cooking schools, but they
learn lar more than the mere prepare ton
OF rood for the table.
Ihere are eighteen Kitchens and
Twelve teachers. The instruction includes
not merely the preparation of food for
the table, but much which fits the girls
ior the duties of houSekeeper Food prod
uc's. their origin. properties, lfe-sus-
tanning and nourshing qualities are all
examined. explained and appreciated.
row to market how to buy, what is best
LOT given conditions, what is nutritious.
heaNhy. economical. what is essential.
what adventurous, what the body needs
ana must have. what may be avoided all
tnese things are taught the children.
with these come the actual experience
IN preparing food for eating.
one of the teachers told me an instance
showing the ignorance which has to be
enlightened. One girl had never heard
OF broiled meats. "How do you cook
steak at home?" she was asked. Fry
IT,. "Chops?' Fry then" "Neal?'
Fry it" Cant ! ask mother" And
oroiled steak. But the family now brol
their steaks and chops,
AS individual preparation is not feast
bic. being expensive and inexpedient, thu
glris are taught in groups. When one
group Is actively engaged the others Of
the class watch. make suggestions and
discuss the why's and wherefores of the
work IN hand. When the resultant is
seen 1t appears wonderful that such
young persons may be SO thoroughly in
81 n h.. = IL,
teachers of our cooking schools are doing
good work, and future generations of
husbands Will rise up and call them
blessed
An expert on the subject thus gives the
qualifications of Il good teacher: "A
teacher of cooking must possess, in addi-
ton to practical knowledge of how to
mix and cook the food material, a real
loNc ior the science. Il thorough knoWl-
edge of the English language and how to
teach 1t AMI an intimate acquaintance
win the science of physics, chemistry
botany and physiology as our homes are
the laboratories where many of the Drin-
clpleS of these sciences are daily being
demonstrated and the problems solved.
ana 1t is her business to prepare the fut-
urc home makers Concurrently with
thelr active work at sewing and cooking
the girls are obtaining strictly mental
training. AS they learn by observation
ana practice how to sew and how to cook
they reduce to" writing the impressions
GAINED. They write down rules and meth
DDS of cutting, fitting, sewing. also reci-
pes and preparation of food Thus they
not only obtain practical experience. but
also intellectual training.
Some little while ago Il party of gentle
men. who are annually Interested in the
expenses of the district. inquired what
became of the articles prepared ut the
cooking schools. The answer was that
the children ate them What! Ate them?
Why were they not sold" Let rs see what
was the value of the raw material thus
eaten by the children and learn how much
the district has lost by the goods not
being sold. Last year there were in the
grocery bill was Ss37.67. about b cents
per pupil. AS there are about thirty-live
weeks of the school year and one lesson
per week,each girl on an average actually
ate up one cents worth of food per week.
The unconscionable little sinners Is it
any wonder our estimates are cut down.
Yes at this paltry expense for mate
rial used, The girls of this city, as far as
Strengthened environment will permit. are
being prepared as competent housekecp-
ers. Nor need any advocate of womans
higher education complain. Grade for
grade, the girls keep abreast with the
boys, The latter go to their solid work
md the former to their cooking.at stated
hours. Each sex is being taught the
manual training appropriate To itSelf.and
with the two distinct classes of manual
training the mental training keeps on
apaco with equal step The regs ettable
feature is that. while the bog, though in
cramped environments proceed to higher
and more expansive forms of manual
training, the girls. perforce. must stop at
the eighth grade because We lack accom-
modations ana facilities for continuing
and enlarglng the work done in the gram
mar school grades. Bacon said that all
the field of knowledge SHOULD he his.
Feasible in his day. this is impossible to
any one mind now. But the varied field
of knowledge should be so open that each
may cultivate his own part. Let each
have his own" In no better or more ad
vantageous way can energies and money