1887 



GLEANINGS IN 13EE CULTURE. 



571 



THE QUEEN OF THE HOME. 



How HER LABORS MAY BE LIGHTENED AND HER 

 DUTIES BE MADE PLEASANTER. 



fEW tilings that have ever appeared in Glean- 

 ings hrtve intercepted mc any more, Bro. Root, 

 than the articles wiitten by yourself and our 

 g-ood friends Prof. Cook and T. R. 'Perry, 

 looking- to the betterment of our homes, and 

 especially to making'- lighter work and pleasanter 

 life for the "queens of our homes." I am sure 

 those writings will bear good fruit in many homes. 

 I have studied much upon this matter, and I must 

 confess yet to great ignorance. Tt is much easier 

 to see what is wrong than to tell how to right it. I 

 believe there are thousands of homes where a Hen- 

 ry Bergh is needed to arrest husbands for cruelty 

 to— wives, where the husbands suppose they are 

 doing about as well as good husbands ought, and if 

 their eyes were opened they might do very differ- 

 ently. I am judging onl3' by myself. Add to this 

 ignorance a confirmed habit of carelessness on the 

 part of husbands, and it's no wonder that wives feel 

 jaded and discouraged. The fact is, that some rel- 

 ics of barbarism still remain, and we are not so far 

 removed from the savage who looks upon his wife 

 as his slave, no drudgery too great for her, if it 

 ministers to his pleasure in the slightest degree. 



We read with complacent approval the advice of 

 tliose who tell the good wives how to welcome the 

 husband home where every thing is bright and 

 cheerful, the " snow-white cloth " is laid, and all 

 that, the " neat ribbon at the throat," etc. Now, 

 there's some sense in that, and a good deal of non- 

 sense. The implied thought seems to be, that, un- 

 der all circumstances, every thing in the way of 

 ease and comfort for the wife must be set aside, 

 and her gracious lord and master is to accept it as a 

 dog snaps up a piece of meat, and then growls for 

 more. There are plenty of times when a woman's 

 work is in such shape that it is nothing short of 

 cruelty for her to be obliged to straighten up every 

 thing in applepie order, and get up a good dinner 

 at the regular time, and in fine style. It is not a 

 very unusual thing to hear something like this: 

 " Mr. A. is not going to be home to diiuier to-day, so 

 we needn't make any fuss about it; just have a 

 picked-up dinner. That will give us a chance to get 

 along so much better with oui- work when we are so 

 hurried." In this case the four or five members of 

 the family are well suited with the dinner involving 

 less work; but if the sixth member is present, in 

 the i)erson of Mr. A., the master of the house, an 

 entii'e change of programme must be made, and 

 the wife and mother lies down at night aching at 

 every joint, with the somewhat doubtful comjiensa- 

 tion of feeling thnt Mr. A. has had his regular din- 

 ner. 



A great many of our women have a pretty hard 

 time of it at best, with work that seems to me more 

 or less unnecessary; but it is a difficult thing to 

 see the way out of it clearly. But if men had 

 their eyes open they could many times help to make 

 labor lighter. In the case mentioned above, if the 

 husband should happen to notice that work about 

 the house was somewhat pressing, he might say, 

 " You're so busy to-day I don't believe I would 

 make anj- elaborate preparation for dinner; just 

 manage to make the least work about it possible;" 

 and then after dinner he could say, and say it truth- 

 fully, if he felt as he ought, " Well, now, this is a 



good dinner. I have really enjoyed it. Why can't 

 you do this way oltener'/" 



It is not a very unusual thing in my own home to 

 have meals that rccpiire very little labor. In the 

 summer time it is more or less an absolute necessi- 

 ty, for the two ladies of the house, the two house- 

 servants, and two of the field-hands in the apiary, 

 are all one and the same pair. In the winter time, 

 when they are particularly engaged at some sewing, 

 some preparation for Christmas, or what not, and 

 none of us feel that a very hearty supper is neces- 

 sary, a waiter may be brought into the sitting-room, 

 filled with all that may be needful, and perched 

 upon the organ-stool, some milk or weak coffee 

 heated on the open anthracite fire, and we all help 

 ourselves in a very informal manner. This saves 

 the trouble of starting a fire in the kitchen, setting 

 the table, clearing oft the table, and washing a lot of 

 dishes. Now, my dear brother-reader, don't rush to 

 the conclusion that because such things are done in 

 my house, therefore the lady of the house is a very 

 slovenly sort of housekeeper. I warmly resent any 

 such insinuation; she's just as good as your wife, 

 and takes great pleasure in a well-kept house. 

 Moreover, she by no means deserves the credit of a 

 state of affairs that renders it possible, on occasion, 

 to make her work a little lighter. I want you to 

 understand distinctly, that I arrogate to myself the 

 credit b3' insisting at times, in a very peremptory 

 manner, upon lightened labor, and condescending 

 to show no disapprobation at any little move in 

 that direction not suggested by myself. Neither do 

 I want to make you understand that I'm a model 

 husband. I'm not. I'm simply selfish, and can be 

 happier myself, and get more work done, by having 

 bright faces about me. A very little grumbling on 

 my part, or showing byword or look that the full 

 tale of what fashion, or what yon may please to call 

 it, e.\acts, would be made more pleasing to me, and 

 it would be given ungrudgingly and without stint, 

 at whatever sacrifice of health and strength. My 

 brothers, very largely in our own hands lies the pow- 

 er to shorten or lengthen, to make bright or burden- 

 some, the lives of the " queens of our homes." 



Marengo, 111. C. C. Miller. 



Friend C. (.'., 1 ao^ree with you exactly in 

 your position to-day. Suppose two brotiiers 

 were livincr together, and that they kept 

 house, cooking for themselves, as often 

 happens. Suppose, also, they should divide 

 their duMes so that one supplied the need- 

 ful food. During hot weather, or during a 

 time when they were greatly crowded with 

 their duties, if they should see fit to decide 

 between themselves to have occasionally a 

 meal that required very little care or prep- 

 aration, what Avould there be wrong about 

 it ? and wouldn't it be a Cliristian-like act 

 for the brother who did not cook, to tell the 

 other, under circumstances such as I have 

 mentioned, that he would not mind having 

 a simple pitcher of milk and a slice of bread 

 for his supper, or, if the case might demand, 

 even breakfast and dinner? It would sim- 

 ply be a brotherly act. Now, then : Ought 

 not a man to be as self-sacrificing and 

 thoughtftd of his wife as of his brother? 

 The question is really ridiculous. The 

 (pieen of the home stands in a nearer rela- 

 tionship to the '• lord of the home " than 

 any other that can be mentioned. Just be- 

 fore marriage, we of the sterner sex are in 



