July 18.] 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
241 
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION. 
THE DARNING BASKET. 
By the Authoress 
i We perceive with regret that we have, quite unintention¬ 
ally, overlooked the query of a very kind and indulgent 
| correspondent, upon which we now hasten to remark, to the 
i best of our ability, although with a strong sense of the diffi- 
| culty of the task: “ Where there is very little money to 
procure garments of any kind, how much time must he given 
to mending, darning, and darning stockings?" 
It is most important that clothes, particularly those of 
I children, should he repaired the moment they require it; 
| not the slightest rent or broken stitch should he overlooked, 
or put by until it becomes a little larger, for by this atten¬ 
tion to trities not only is much time gained, but one stitch 
will literally “ save nine," and great expense will be avoided 
by clothes thus lasting so much longer than if mending is 
neglected or carelessly done. 
It is not possible to lay down rules for the portion of time 
necessary for this purpose. The relative to whom I have 
before alluded, and whose example and experience aid me 
materially in my suggestions, was wont, in the days of her 
children’s infancy, to till a large basket every Monday morn¬ 
ing with the clothes and household linen that needed repair; 
this basket was ever at her feet, and her needle seldom found 
repose from making and mending until Saturday night, when 
the whole of its contents were completed. Her children 
were taught to amuse themselves with their toys on the 
floor, and to give as little trouble as young children can 
possibly do ; the baby was laid on the sofa, with a bunch of 
keys fixed so that its little hands could reach and play with 
them, close to its mother’s side. When her employments 
permitted her to leave the house my sister seated herself 
beneath the shade of trees, in a field close to the pretty 
cottage, still with a smaller basket by her side, where she 
busied herself with her work while the little ones ran about 
and amused themselves. Visitors never interrupted her 
useful and necessary labours ; even her husband’s occasional 
expostulation, which raised a happy laugh, “ my dear, do 
come and take a walk; I shall find you dead some day if 
you don’t take exercise,” was playfully parried; and certainly 
the effects of her care and industry were strikingly apparent. 
A ith small means and a rising family the mother has an 
anxious, an important, and a self-denying task to perform— 
if that can ever be called self-denial which we do for those 
we love. She will have to renounce the amusements both 
of mind and taste: the fancy-work, the interesting corres¬ 
pondence, even the recreation of rational books must be laid 
aside to minister to the wants and comforts of those de¬ 
pendant upon her—for she will find but little time to do a 
thousand things that ought to be done in her little house- 
1 hold. It is, however, as I have just remarked, impossible to 
j lay down rules, because we cannot meet every case. In 
towns, where a mother cannot sit in a field while her 
children play, and where exercise is essential to general 
health, something must be sacrificed, unless a servant—a 
j trusty servant — -can be spared to accompany them in their 
daily walk. If a town house possesses but the smallest 
! garden, tiro children should be constantly out in it; a coarse 
brown “ blouse ” or pinafore, an old bonnet or hat, and a pair 
of thick shoes, will keep a child in a great degree from dirt 
and wet; for to ensure health and strength no coddliny 
should be permitted. My sister brought up her boys as she 
i herself had been brought up—to disregard weather; and she 
cheerfully submitted to the task of changing then’ wet clothes 
| whenever they came in, and seeing, herself \ that their shoes 
j and boots, &c., were properly dried before they were again 
j required. How often, when her boys were sleeping, have I 
( seen her arranging the damp jackets and trousers safely 
round the fire, after sponging off the mud or snow, that they 
might go out clean and dry in the morning, and their health 
not suffer! If it is possible to give children a run in the 
fields it is most desirable to do so ; but if it is unattainable, 
! it is vain to mourn over it. A sense of deep responsibility 
j blending with fervent trust in God, and entire submission to 
His wise and righteous will, will so preserve the balance of 
of “ My Flowers" 
the mind as to keep it in a state of watchful activity to do 
all that it can do, and of perfect peace when it cannot do all 
it would wish. 
I have alluded to a subject apparently unconnected with 
that with which I begun my remarks, because it really con¬ 
cerns it very nearly; and one anxious “ mother ” may gain 
by the example of another some useful hints for the arrange¬ 
ment of her daily duties. While children are out at play a 
good deal of quiet time can be devoted to the basket, and this 
is of real moment. If clothes and linen are well and 
regularly mended, it is a very great saving, although it does 
take up time ; and as much time as can be given to it will be 
profitably spent. This, of course, must be regulated greatly 
by circumstances, of which each wife and mother is the best 
judge ; but every moment should be treasured and employed. 
At the breakfast and tea-table sometimes we are led by the 
pleasure of social intercourse to loiter away a good many 
valuable minutes; and at these times the admirable custom 
of a very charming married lady, the mother of a young 
family, is worthy of imitation. Even when visiting her 
friends she would take out her work the moment her own 
meal was finished, and employ herself with her needle, while 
joining with delightful vivacity in the general conversation 
around the table. 
My sister found a knowledge of knitting very useful. At 
many odd moments she could catch it up and do a few rows ; 
and by this means the socks of both father and children may 
be new-footed or tipped, which all helps to reduce expense. 
Cotton stockings are the most tedious of all things to darn, 
because they ought to be done neatly, and this takes up some 
time. It is an excellent plan to have the heels and feet of 
new stockings closely and neatly run on the inside, just 
where they are most liable to wear out; this strengthens 
them considerably. In running them, the alternate stiches 
should be taken up singly, which will quite prevent the look 
of the new stockings being injured. 
The only plain work that I have heard matrons say can 
never be well done at home is shirt-malting. Husbands 
and sons, who are faultless in all other ways, are ungovern¬ 
able with regard to home-made shirts ; they are never to he 
pleased or pacified in this particular ; and, therefore, it is in 
the end the best economy to buy them ready-made. 
I trust the basket will be found a useful appendage to the 
work-table of every anxious mistress of a family, from my 
sister’s valuable experience. Every time the clothes come 
from the wash they should all be carefully looked over, and 
every defective one placed in it; at the sapae time, every 
article of wearing apparel, or household linen, that can be 
mended before it is washed should be attended to, because 
washing will always enlarge a rent, or so pull it out of shape 
as to make mending more troublesome ; and starch will also 
prevent a darn being made very neat, particularly in what we 
ladies call “ fine things.” 
To young ladies commencing housekeeping, these hints, I 
hope, may be useful. I cannot for an instant suppose they 
will benefit a more experienced class ; and lest I should be 
deemed impertinent for ottering them to all readers, I beg to 
be understood as aiming only to assist the yoiwy and inex¬ 
perienced of “my sisters.” 
WILD FLOWERS OF JULY. 
(Continued fromp.Z29.) 
Since wo penned the first part of our paper on the Wild 
Flowers of July we have had a rapid glimpse of the vegeta¬ 
tion of the North of Scotland, under circumstances of so 
peculiar a kind that we feel called upon to give the readers 
of The Cottage Gardener some account of our wanderings 
before proceeding to recount the remainder of our July 
wildlings. The present Professor of Botany in our Edin¬ 
burgh University (Dr. J. H. Balfour, the celebrated hero of 
Glen Tilt) usually devotes the Saturdays throughout the 
