194 
LADIES 1 DEPARTMENT. 
Cables’ department. 
HINTS TO COUNTRY HOUSEKEEPERS. 
My country friends have discovered long ago, 
or I have been strangely misunderstood, that I am 
a utilitarian, and therefore they will not. be sur¬ 
prised at receiving another lecture upon the advan¬ 
tages of early rising, and household economy as 
connected with it. The subject can scarcely be 
brought too frequently into the notice of young 
people; or borne too constantly in mind by those 
more advanced in years, who value time as it 
should be valued, and the acquisition of industrious 
habits, with the wonderful effects which may be 
produced by the careful management of the hours 
not necessarily devoted to sleep. I would have 
everybody, women and children not excepted, for, 
to them indeed, I especially address myself, alivays 
employed. Their occupations might be as various 
as their convenience should require, or their tastes 
dictate—from making a loaf of bread or a shirt, em¬ 
broidering a purse, arranging a bouquet, or painting 
a flower, up to studying a science or calculating the 
return of a comet; but they must be at work upon 
something ; even when the object may appear very 
trifling—unless higher duties are neglected, it is not 
waste of time,—and is better than doing nothing;: 
above all, never be guilty of so sad a mistake, as to 
dignify idleness by calling it rest. If thQ hands are 
tired, let the head work by reading and reflection ; 
if the whole frame has been overtasked, and the 
mind sympathizes too much to be exerted to advan¬ 
tage, I should recommend, as the best restorative, a 
short sleep, and a drive to visit some agreeable 
neighbor,—nothing restores the exhausted powers 
more effectually, than interchange of sentiments 
with a friend. Such extreme cases, however, can 
seldom happen, except to those who are compelled 
to labor for a livelihood, or the welfare of their 
families,—and to them rest is a luxury too rarely 
enjoyed, and too dearly bought, to be denied or 
curtailed. 
The celebrated Sir William Jones was a very 
early riser, and when he was asked how he accom¬ 
plished so much more than other men, he alluded to 
this habit, and added, “i never do nothing ”■—a 
maxim which ought to be written in letters of gold, 
and adopted by every one who aspires to excel¬ 
lence. Children love to rise early, and they should 
be allowed to continue to do so; they hate idleness, 
and they should be encouraged to employ their little 
fingers in stringing beads, making chains of dande¬ 
lion stems, or any other attractive childish pastime, 
which would teach those habits of patient labor, 
which, though they may be laid aside for a time, 
are never entirely forgotten, and are resumed much 
more easily than they can be acquired, when 
thought begins to influence the actions of young 
women. 
Let us now suppose that my fair countrywomen 
think with me, that early rising is essential to the 
good government of a family—that a late breakfast 
not only deranges the business of the whole day, 
hut by throwing a portion of it upon the next, will 
introduce confusion, not soon remedied—and then 
they will also agree with me that a farmer’s family 
should never breakfast later than six o’clock in 
summer, and seven in winter. Habit will soon 
make this agreeable, and they will wonder at their 
reluctance to adopt the plan, and be agreeably sur¬ 
prised to find how much too short even the longest 
day is, for all they wish to accomplish. 
In this country, I believe no lady delegates all the 
household cares to her domestics, however nume¬ 
rous they may be ; and in the rural districts, where 
trained servants are so hard to be obtained, and so 
difficult to keep, if she wishes to be spared the 
horrors of keeping house all day, she must devote ar. 
hour or two every morning, exclusively, to the in¬ 
spection of every department of her establishment 
—dairy, poultry-yard, kitchen, and garden—all 
must be carefully reviewed—and errors reformed 
before they become confirmed abuses. If she is 
regular and systematical her labor will be light; 
much trouble will be saved ; and, what is of much 
more importance than at first sight it appears to be, 
no one need be put out of temper by being gently 
reminded that they have broken a rule. 
The whole family should be ready to take their 
seats when the coffee is placed upon the breakfast 
table; no laggard should be waited for, nor indulg¬ 
ed in a lazy habit by having hot coffee and muffins 
ready whenever he thinks proper to make his ap¬ 
pearance. I have known a case where three or 
four cold, comfortless breakfasts, operated wonder¬ 
fully in curing a heavy sleeper of indulging in 
“ the other nap.” As soon as breakfast is over, 
and while the servants are eating theirs, the lady 
should wash the cups, glasses, &c., and arrange the 
pickle plates, castors, salt-cellars, and other matters, 
for the dinner t£ible—and even trim the lamps, 
which seldom burn well when left to the care of 
subordinates. 
Each member of a family, daughters and sisters, 
should have a regular task to perform, which may 
be taken in rotation, that all may be familiar with 
every department of housekeeping—but no inter¬ 
ference with each other’s duties should be allowed, 
beyond a kind hint to help the ignorant and inex¬ 
pert beginner. When the cook has put everything 
in its proper place, the lady should go into the 
kitchen to give her orders for dinner; review all 
that is left of cooked meats from the day before, 
and direct clearly the manner in which the fresh 
provision is to be dressed ; but this she will never 
be able to do, unless she knows practically as well 
as theoretically, how to compound each dish she 
orders—and remembering that “ spices are the in¬ 
visible spirit of cookery, which should rather be 
suspected than tasted”—she should weigh and mea- • 
sure the seasoning for every new dish, until the 
cook is a complete mistress of her art. 
The dinner table should be arranged every day 
with the same scrupulous regard to neatness, as if 
company was expected—it will not be more trou¬ 
blesome, nor more expensive, and the husband or 
father will never hesitate to carry an unexpected 
friend home to dine with him ; nor feel afraid of 
finding a soiled table-cloth and unpolished knives; 
nor the mistress of the family fretting over, and 
apologizing for a badly-dressed dinner. 
Neatness is only another word for taste and ele¬ 
gance, yet the absence of it involves all that is 
most unlovely in woman. The females of a family 
should never appear at the I reakfast-table in soiled 
