Putnam patriot., 1915-02-12
GRANGE NOTES
Senexet Grange


 The subject was tntroduced in the form of question and was answered | by several of the sisters. Question, 1 How can womanis work be made easi- CT? As one solution to this problem a ! paper was read by Mrs. Geo. Spalding, | presenting the value and use of mod 1 ern convenienees. Another answer of- | 1 fered was "Short cuts in housekeep- | ing" by Mrs. Geo. Young. Lastly, | the following essay on the subject, | "Efiicieney in managing children" was read by Mrs. George Butts. In the efficient household which the | Worthy Lecturer has requested us to l show how woman's work may be made | eosier, the management of children is | very important part. With all the 1 modern convenienees which may be introduced by the Senexet brides, with all the short cuts in housekeeping ever thought of by an ever so resoureeful | Senexet matron, the household will | fail in it's efficiency if the children are neglected. While the introduction of modern canVeuienees and the employ ment of short cuts should and do make womau's work easier, can any kind of management Of the children, efficient or otherwise, be said to make woman's work easief2
 While we recognize the importance Of the children in the household and are glad to have them to manage, and 1 if we succeed so as to send them out into the world efficient men and wo- men, we feel repaid for all, we can hardly call it easy work. IL requires more thought, patience, and persist ance to efficiently manage the children than all the rest of the household busi- ness combined.
 | Children cannot be managed by hard and fast rules, the nearest approach to it may be made during the first year or less. During that time i've can man. age them by schedule. The child is always learning and at first obeys. After time however he learns to dis obey. Whether that could be avoided by proper management l am not pre- pared to say. But 1 have a theory that if we could avoid that first diso- bedience we should be able to travel the remainder of the journey by way of Easy Street and our efficiency could be written with an E. As the child gets older and shows his individuality it becomes a different problem. While we must insist on obedience we must be reasonable, kind, patient, in short, everything that we want the child to be, for children are great imitators. We ,can almost never use the same methods with two different children. Children are children, true, but there are no two just alike. Even in the same family there is the greatest kind of difference. Often there is such mixture of traits both good and not so good, inherited from both parents, that it is almost impossible forgeither par, ent to fully understand the child.
 This we know: proper food, plenty of out of doors air and plenty of sleep induces goodness. If we can only keep them good then the work is easi- CT. Keep them busy or jet them keep themselves busy. sWe often interfere needlessly. Use few "Don 'ts.n Rath- ef say to the child; Do this because it is right or kind or will help. Never threaten, never frighten. Make no promises that cannot be fulfilled and refrain from reeounting his misdeeds, or cute ones either, in his heafings
 Because an efficient household must send out into the world efficient men and women the boys and girls must be taught to work. The best way to teach work is to make it pleasure ei- ther as play or to gratify the desire to help. The tiniest tot may learn to do certain things and there is no reason except our own inetiiciency, that the older boys and girls should not be able to do many things for themselves and for others in the household. Likes and i dislikes develop and if mo principle of right and wrong is involved why in- Ierfere with them2 If child dislikes certain kind of work it is no reason for his shirking it, nor is it a reason for enforcing it's being done by him. Where there are two or more chjl- dren let them choose .their parts. , However, when the choice is made he must be taught to abide by it.
 Children, both boys and girls, should be taught simple tasks about the house [ and should each day be expected to perform certain duties pertaining to the household, but do not forget to re- ward such work when cheerfally per formed with a word of commendation. A few words of praise twill do more to help make work easier than any amount of nagging. Manage to in- still into the minds of the children the importance of each member of the , household doing his share of the work that the pleasure may be more fully enjoyed. As children generally play up to what is expected of them it will probably help make woman's work easier.n
 The results of the Food Contest were as follows:
 | Chocolate layer cake, lst Mrs. H. T. !