Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1902-02-22
BY MINERVA SPENCER HANDY
Copyright 1909, by Minerva Spencer Handy

IRE tod by one historian that "al
lhough court etiquette prevailed In
thelr public NE. their home NE was
very unostehtailOus Al the clothes
worn by the general ana harself were
made IN the house Two OF Martha
Washingtons best gowns we're o. cot
ton striped with SILK. woven from The
Rawlings OF brown SIX stockings ana
old crimson chair covers
No high chairs, or IN fact any chairs
at all, Werc provided for the li'tlc tnlH7
when Martha Washington was young
Even AT the table children stood no.
spectfillv behind thcIr cldeW' chairs
tnklng what food was offered them.
I'm he better families they stood at q
side table with tronchcr IN hand. bring
Ing their food from the grcl' table,
They were never allowed % sread OK.
cept ~ DnsWer question and men
with the gtCGtest respect and courtce'
They ate very much simpler foni
you DO Tor there were no roIir is ~
bring them dantles from all payss az
the world They ate I'm silence ana aa
fast IA possible regardless Of di-es-
ton being expected 10 be moderately
satisfied and TO leave the room as soon
az possible.
There were no klndergarlcns for the
children Of that time, Learning was
hard unintereSiing pronhe but the
children were soon uut ~ it'Ond could
read and write very crclItably by the
time they were years odd ana were
able To answer correctly every ques'
ton IN the Westminster Catechism,
BOYS read Latin and Greek BY The time
our children are just beginning To mas
ter the alphabet Girls had little need
of such accomplishments, but their
simpler school lessons we're Increased
by thorough knowledge Of hatchellng
aud oardlng, spinning and Keeling
weaving and bleaching, cooking candle
and cheese making knitting embrold-
crlng and necdlework Of every descrlp'
ton Satan got few recruits from the
ranks OF the idle, Almost all waking
time was filled with some useful occu
patton
Children had few II any toys The
crudesl OF dolls comforted Martha
when things had gone wrong with her
She may have had some dolls furniture
cut out by a inckknlfe but / am sure |
she would have thought she was I'm |
faryIand could she have peeped into |
modern nursery filled with lts almost |
living playthings
Despite all these drawbacks from |
our point " View Martha Washington |
grew into beautiful loving girl, and |
brought to George Washington domes-
tic arts and home learned accomplish |
ments which did more 20 make hm |
happy than those we deem essential IN
our time Mount Vernon that ideal |
home OF the southern gentleman Of the
eighteenth century bears witness 10
her skill as a housewife The mother
and daughter power Of the colonlsts
gave race OF home bred home loving
home honorlng women Although much
In their lives seems odd and hard 20 us
born amid the ease and luxury Of the
and twentieth centuries, we
may learn many precious lessons from
Martha Washington and those other
noble women who lived when she did.
Instead Of condemnlng that (which Is
different from our way of doing let us |
reflect upon the industry simplicity, |
system. orderiness and plety Of those |
at whose primitive ways young people |
are inclined to sneer, II Ia also we'll to
remember what clever Oliver Wendell
Holmes meant when he wrote;
Little Of all we value here
Wakes on the morn of It's hundredth
year
both looking and feeling queer.