146 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[April, 
over this, for we bad discovered lonjj before this that 
such is the natural inheritance of most of Adam's 
descendants. Here and there we find an angelic 
natural temperament — and do we not almost in- 
stinctively expect to see 6iich children take wings 
and fly to angel-land before they grow up to life's 
cares ? A well-balanced child has two strong loves, 
the love of self and the love of others ; and one is 
just as innocent as the other. Each must be taught 
its proper use. 
Human life has three stages. 1. The instinctive, 
when the instincts rule the reason. This is child- 
hood, when the guidance of wise parents is needed. 
2. The rational, when reason gradually obtains the 
control of the instincts and obliges self-love to give 
way to love of others. 3. The mature stage, when 
the warfare between the instincts and reason is 
over, and self-love freely defers to neighborly love. 
Though this seems to be the normal course of 
human development or growth of character, it is 
quite evident that many (indeed most) lives show 
no such progress. Comparatively few of us attain 
in this life to that stage where our delight and our 
duty draw in the same line. With many persons 
it is childhood through their whole lives; that is, 
outward constraint, fear of the law and its penalties, 
dread of public scorn, desire for popular favor — 
these motives alone keep them decent. As far as 
they dare, they obey only tbeir own "want to." 
Now, what I wish to do — what vie wish to do for 
our children, is to govern and train them while in 
their tender years so that they may early come 
under the command of their own reason and 
conscience. 
This was not the acknowledged aim of family 
government in former generations. Obedience to 
outward authority of some kind, beginning with 
parental authority, was the great end sought for. 
The spirit of American institutions demands some- 
thing better. " We, the people," govern ourselves, 
and there is no safety for our much-prized freedom 
except as individuals are trained to obey con- 
science and reason. We do not want here a people 
"orderly" because servilely obedient to one pow- 
erful leader. We want a people who intelligently 
choose to be orderly, and who elect faithful public 
servants to help them in all good public work. 
The idea of good family government used to be, 
and still is to a great extent, to make well-behaved 
children. I have suffered much worriment from 
the criticisms (expressed or implied) of persons 
who judge of my efforts and success in training 
my children by their present behavior and condi- 
tion without any ability or apparent inclination to 
understand my aims or to appreciate the gradual 
growth of character in the children. I see perfectly 
well that the old simple rule of " absolute unques- 
tioning obedience" of child to parent, with the 
one sweeping rule of manners, "children should 
be seen and not heard," makes better-behaved 
children, according to the popular verdict. 
Obedience I do thoroughly believe in, and never 
consciously allow disobedience in our children 
without some resulting penalty. I am not so 
anxious that they should obey their father and 
mother simply for the sake of our authority 
(though that is important for the family welfare) 
as for the sake of their learning to yield (heir own 
wills and ways to tho=e whom they know to be 
wiser than themselves. Obedience must be con- 
strained in their tenderest years, before any expla- 
nation for it can well be given ; but I would command 
as little as possible, always seeking a child's cheerful 
and intelligent cooperation in its own education, 
instead of its passive obedience to my will. 
Manners and habits are of very great importance, 
and in plastic childhood these should be well 
looked after. Gentle and courteous manners are 
better taught by example than by precept; and so 
of neat and orderly and industrious habits. It is 
very common to see parents laboring away upon 
these things with most praiseworthy fidelity, while 
tbey seem utterly unconscious of the neglected 
deeper work upon the character which is infinitely 
more important. Happy are the parents who hare 
the wisdom and ability to carry all along together. 
Most of us labor under disadvantages. Some 
things which have seemed to me of the very first 
importance in the way of a mother's outward cir- 
cumstances, and which I should once have sup- 
posed that almost every mother could easily secure, 
have been utterly out of my power. 
Let us not bnild up hopes of what our children | 
will do for us some day. It is but our reasonable i 
service to them that we give them as good an outfit 
for the work of the world, in the way of physical 
and mental and moral culture, as we are able to 
give. If we train them to generous aims, to a love | 
of helping others, it is not at all likely that they 
will treat us with unloving ueirlect in our old age. 
If our chief aim in helping them is to the end that 
we may afterwards be taken care of by them, we 
shall deserve their neglect, and our selfishness will 
probably be visited with poetic justice upon our 
hoary heads. 
Getting Oot-of-Doors. — Until one gets in the 
habit of goiug out for a walk every day, it seems a I 
rather stupid thing to bundle up aud go out with I 
no ostensible errand. With many of us it 6eems a 
selfish thing (not looking deeply at the matter) to | 
tear ourselves away from the innumerable affairs 
that seem to demand our constant attention in the 
house, and go out-of-doors simply for the sake of 
our own health. Rather silly, too, it seems, to go 
out of doors for exercise, when we are ready to 
drop down in consequence of too much exercise 
in-doors. 
Many a woman freely acknowledges (as does the 
writer of these Topics) that everybody outfit to 
get out-of-doors a little while each day, but how in 
the world can some of us accomplish this? 
When I say that everybody ought to get out-of- 
doors each day, I mean it much in the same way as 
I should say that every human being ought to have 
a good clean bed and plenty of wholesome food ; 
and I hope I do not sit in the seat of the Pharisees 
while uttering such rules, binding upon the con- 
science of my fellow-creatures burdens grievous to 
be borne, while I lift no finger to help them. If I 
know my own heart, these "oughts " of mine are 
mainly a prayer for the reign of peace and good-will 
on earth, and an expression of my faith that Christi- 
anity, enlightened by science, will yet give whole- 
some conditions to every human child. But I know 
too well in what a wretched state thousands of our 
neighbors live, how poverty binds and grinds them 
down, and what a mockery the rules of hygiene 
seem to them if thundered from a Sinai instead of 
whispered as a blessed gospel of promise. 
Persons who have near neighbors, or who live 
near shops or stores, can find errands in all sea- 
sons ; but my nearest neighbor is half a mile awny, 
and often the road between is very difficult of pas- 
sage. All winter the snow has been so deep and 
the air so cold, there has been no temptation to go 
out, and walks have been very easily put off from 
hour to hour and from day to day. (I write this 
in February.) The other day my home critics gave 
me a good berating for staying so closely in the 
house. One talked to me most earnestly because 
she really thought that my health was suffering 
from lack of out-door air. She thought I ought to 
make my walk one of the chief duties of each day, 
and that I was sinning greatly against my liirlit in 
neglecting it so much. I showed Aow it got crowded 
out, and she insisted that it ought to be put fore- 
most among duties, and let something else get the 
crowding out. For I live like many other mothers, 
with a constant accumulation of things pressing to 
be done as soon as possible, and with scarcely 
ability to get through each daily round of work. 
Another critic (not my husband, who has been ab- 
sent since December; took up the subject, and 
"laid on " unsparingly, because he imagined that 
I was preaching hygiene vigorously in these col- 
umns, and the burden of his talk was " practice 
what you preach." I got considerable satisfaction 
out of it all, for now I feci at liberty to go for a 
walk as soon as I clear off the breakfast-table, be- 
fore dish- washing and sweeping and all the little 
tilings that come pressing after, use up im' energy, 
and make the lounge look more attractive than a 
walk. Before this talk, I thought I must have the 
house in decent order for the comfort of its in- 
mates before I turned my back upon it. And now 
I hope I shall not seem to critic number two so 
very notional as he has supposed if I let a little 
out-door air into the rooms where I am obliged to 
spend my time. 
Now I have tried it, I think it an excellent plan 
to go out for a walk, or for garden exercise, when 
that is in season, before the strength is all used up 
by house-work. Where there are horses at leisure, 
and gentlemen at leisure — indeed, where there is 
leisure at all — the problem of how to get out of 
doors is made easier. I write now for busy women 
with many household cares. Fresh air is what 
such women want more than they do exercise — 
fresh air and rest. In warm weather — but I will 
speak of that another time. Ifthe pies and dough- 
nuts get crowded out by the housekeeper's walk or 
ride, she must learn how to make more simple (and 
more healthful) dishes. Here are recipes for a few : 
Wheatlets. — I know of no form of Graham 
bread sweeter than this. The sweetness comes 
from scalding the flour. Pour upon a quart of 
Graham flour enough boiling water to make a stiff 
dough when stirred into it. Knead dry flonr into 
this until you can roll it out about an inch thick. 
Cut it into biscuits of any shape yon please (but 
not very large), and bake them upon the clean rack 
in your oven, which is so hot it needs no greasing 
to keep the wheatlets from sticking. If you do 
not succeed with these the first time, try until you 
do, for no exact recipe can be given. " Use judg- 
ment," and cultivate it. 
Mcsh-Balls. — Take cold mush of any kind — 
corn-meal, oalmeal, or Graham — and knead Graham 
flour, fine flour, or canaille into it (with a little 
milk or cream if you like ; it is better so, but is not 
necessary) until it is pretty stiff. Roll it into balls 
two inches in diameter, or into rolls an inch and a 
half thick and four inches long. Bake these on the 
hot oven-grate. 
Rice Gems.— We have just tried Mrs. Katy Jack- 
son's recipe for rice gems, with considerable satis- 
faction. Here is the rule : Soak a cup of cold 
boiled rice over-night in a pint and a half of milk 
(or water! Stir into this enough Graham flour to 
make a rather stiff batter, and bake in gem-puns. 
Recipes. 
Saiisagre-UIeat. — By Mrs. C.W. B., Quincy, 
111. — For every pound of meat, two teaspoons 
powdered sage, oue teaspoon powdered thyme, 
one teaspoon black pepper, one and a half teaspoon 
6alt, two teaspoons ground coriander-seeds, or one 
teacup seeds, not ground, for every °0 lbs. of meat; 
one teaspoon saltpeter (dissolved in water) for 
every 12 lbs. of meat. After mixing thoroughly, 
make into cakes and fry as for the table; pack in 
stone jars to within two inches of the top, pour 
melted lard over until the jars are filled; cover 
closely, and they will keep a year. When wanted 
for the table, take out of the jars, and after taking 
off some of the lard that adheres to them, put into 
a skillet and heat through. They will be as nice as 
when first made. [Some might not like the cori- 
ander. — Ed.] 
Cooking- Oried Corn.- By Kate Bow- 
man, Stark Co., Hi. — I wash the coru in cold water, 
then put it in the tin or earthen vessel in which it 
is to be cooked; pour cold water enough on it to 
soak it ; let it stand over night ; I think it a great 
deal better to let it 6tand two nights, when I put it 
on the hack of the stove or reservoir, where it will 
heat but not boil. Then season ready to be served. 
Dried corn sufficiently soaked makes most excel- 
lent soup by adding milk and butter to suit the 
taste, always heating it in the water it is soaked 
in. I think the readers of the Agriculturist will 
find this recipe for cooking dried corn proportion- 
ally as good as Mrs. Rochester's recipe for cook- 
ing beans, given in January, which I think is a 
most excellent way. I shall cook beans in no other 
way so long as butter aud milk can be had. 
