No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 367 



The condition described in the last two lines is prevalent in too 

 man}^ of our homes to-day. Mothers wear themselves out in doinj^ all 

 the drudgery and work of the home, while dau<^hters are allowed to 

 j?ad about, or to loll in idleness and tine clothes, fre(iuently the par- 

 lor, probably playing- the organ or piano, to lighten the labor of the 

 mother slaving in the kitchen. I do not decry music. A knowledge 

 of it is a desirable accomplishment; but the girls of to-day will not 

 ali become ''old maids," nor will all marry rich men. Most of them 

 will become wives, and the mothers of a future generation; hence 

 they should also be taught to do all kinds of household work, so that 

 when called on to preside over a home, they will be able to adminis- 

 ter allairs properly and economically. Do not imbue them with the 

 false idea that kitchen work is degrading; but teach them that all 

 honest labor is honorable. Boys, as well as girls, should spend 

 most of their evenings at home. Parents should provide some recrea- 

 tions and amusements that will be entertaining and instructive, and 

 aim to make home as pleasant a place as possible. 



In many of our homes where no provision is made, and where there 

 are neither books nor newspapers, when evening comes, boys go to 

 the nearest village, frequent hotels and shops where cigarette smok- 

 ir g, profanity and all kinds of lewd talk are indulged in, and by asso- 

 ciation, acquiring the same habits. It is the duty of parents to coun- 

 teract these influences and inclinations. Every home should have 

 suitable literature, only that being allowed to enter which is pure 

 and elevating. I consider the Youth's Companion one of the very 

 best papers for the young that can enter any home, and if used in the 

 way suggested by Miss Hunt in her excellent essay last night, will 

 redound to the advantage of all. There are also many of the juven- 

 ile classics, excellent books for boys and girls, and so cheap that by 

 the exercise of a little economy in a few other directions, they need 

 not be excluded from any home. I would recommend poetry, history 

 and biography. "Weem's Life of Washington"' influenced Lincoln to 

 start on his useful career, and so filled him with patriotism, that 

 when elevated to the presidenc,y during the most turbulent period in 

 our historj', full of faith and courage, he seized the helm and steered 

 the ship of State through the breakers of civil war to a peaceful har- 

 bor, while the foulest stain on our national escutcheon was being 

 washed away in human blood, and a higher civilization inaugurated. 

 And many a boy while reading the sublime story of a great and noble 

 life may receive inspiration which will lead him to accomplish some- 

 thing that will link his name with those of the world's benefactors. 



Intellectual development should not be neglected. In a nation 

 like ours, where great public questions are constantly presenting 

 themsehes, and where the masses have a voice in their solution, 

 every one should have tho requisite intelligence and the firmness to 



