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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..3631a32 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #51590 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/51590) diff --git a/old/51590-0.txt b/old/51590-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 764c91c..0000000 --- a/old/51590-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,12628 +0,0 @@ -Project Gutenberg's From Kitchen to Garret, by J. E. (Jane Ellen) Panton - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: From Kitchen to Garret - Hints for young householders - -Author: J. E. (Jane Ellen) Panton - -Release Date: March 28, 2016 [EBook #51590] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FROM KITCHEN TO GARRET *** - - - - -Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - FROM KITCHEN TO GARRET - - PRINTED BY - SPOTTISWOODE AND CO., NEW-STREET SQUARE - LONDON - - - - - FROM KITCHEN TO GARRET - - _HINTS FOR YOUNG HOUSEHOLDERS_ - - BY - - J. E. PANTON - - _SEVENTH EDITION_ - - London - - WARD & DOWNEY - - 12 YORK STREET, CONVENT GARDEN - - 1890 - - TO - - ‘PRIMROSE’ ‘MOLLIE’ ‘FRÄULEIN’ ‘CHERRY BLOSSOM’ - - AND MANY OTHERS - - WHO FROM CORRESPONDENTS HAVE BECOME FRIENDS - THROUGH THE MEDIUM OF - THESE HINTS TO YOUNG HOUSEHOLDS - - This Work is Dedicated - - BY THEIR ATTACHED MENTOR AND GUIDE - - THE AUTHOR - - - - -PREFACE. - - -In presenting this book in a completed and augmented form to the public, -I think a few words of explanation are necessary, lest the way in which -the chapters are written may lay me open to a charge of egotism. - -About two years ago I began writing a series of short articles in the -pages of the ‘Lady’s Pictorial’ on the absorbing subject of -housekeeping, meaning to confine myself strictly to the house and home -of the British matron who begins life with little money and less -experience, never thinking anything more would come of them than a mere -temporary access of work for a few weeks; but I had not begun them for -more than a month when, through the office of the paper, a regular and -increasing mass of correspondence began to reach me, asking questions on -every subject under the sun, from the proper management of a house and -the feeding of a baby to the fearful inquiry whether I thought a wife -should leave her husband or not when she discovered all too late she -liked somebody else better than she did her lord and master. Since then -I have become a species of ‘mother confessor’ to hundreds of unknown and -valued friends in all parts of the world. I have correspondents in New -Zealand, India, America, and in all parts of the Continent, and they -have demanded of me that I shall produce a book evolved from my articles -and from the pages of ‘Answers to Correspondents,’ which have been my -work and my great pleasure since the articles on the home began; and as -they persist in asking for my experience and my opinions I am obliged to -give them, though knowing and fearing I shall be accused of speaking -everlastingly about myself; still I have never mentioned a thing I have -not tried or experienced, nor spoken of a single chair, table, or, in -fact, anything that I have not honestly and truly tried myself. - -From my correspondence I have evolved quite a new profession, which I -commend to any lady who has taste and may wish to earn her living, I go -to people’s houses and advise them about their decorations, and tell -them the best places to go to for different things; I buy things for -country ladies, and write them long letters on every subject under the -sun for a set fee, and have made some of the nicest friends possible -through this means; and I feel sure that any lady who cares to take up -the ‘profession,’ and is of _sufficient social status to be above the -suspicion of taking commission or bribes from tradespeople to advertise -their wares_, and who above all possesses a quick eye and a certain -amount of taste, can make a good and steady income in a remarkably -pleasant way, while a great future would be before any gentleman -possessed of the same qualifications, for he could see to estimates for -painting, repairing, &c., and could act as a buffer between the -purchaser and the workman, and, being thoroughly acquainted with his -business, would soon become the boon and benefactor, to the ordinary -person who requires his house done up and furnished, who is much wanted, -and that no lady can be, because of the necessary fighting powers and -technical knowledge. - -In connection with my work, we have now started a society for the -employment of ladies who will either decorate a house entirely, make the -chair-covers and curtains I recommend, or work at ladies’ houses at -dressmaking and upholstering, so that I may justly pride myself on the -fact that at least my particular column in the ‘Lady’s Pictorial’ has -been of some small practical good already. The address of the ‘Workers’ -Guild’ is 11 Kensington Square, W. - -I may mention, in conclusion, that I have revised and rewritten the -whole of the articles which appeared in the ‘Lady’s Pictorial,’ and in -some cases entirely evolved new matter out of my inner consciousness; -and if only the public extends to my book half the sympathy and -appreciation I have received from my thousands of correspondents for my -articles, I shall never regret the day when, at my editor’s request, I -seized the sceptre and became the ruling genius of many and many an -unknown home. - -J. E. PANTON. - -THE MANOR HOUSE, WATFORD, HERTS. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - -CHAPTER PAGE - -I. CHOOSING A HOUSE 1 - -II. THE KITCHEN ARRANGEMENTS 9 - -III. MEALS AND MONEY 18 - -IV. THE HOUSEMAID’S CLOSET, AND GLASS AND CHINA 29 - -V. FIRST SHOPPING 36 - -VI. THE HALL 40 - -VII. THE DINING-ROOM 49 - -VIII. THE MORNING-ROOM 69 - -IX. THE DRAWING-ROOM 78 - -X. CURTAIN, CARPETS, AND LIGHTING 91 - -XI. BEDROOMS 103 - -XII. DRESSING-ROOM 135 - -XIII. SPARE ROOMS 139 - -XIV. THE SERVANTS’ ROOMS 151 - -XV. THE NURSERIES 160 - -XVI. IN RETIREMENT 180 - -XVII. THE SCHOOLROOM 192 - -XVIII. BOYS AND GIRLS 201 - -XIX. ENTERTAINING ONE’S FRIENDS 209 - -XX. THE SUMMING-UP 223 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS. - - -FIGS. PAGES - -1. SUGGESTION FOR DRAPING ARCH IN HALL 42 - -2. SUGGESTION FOR DRAPING DOOR IN HALL 43 - -3, 4. LAMPS 47 - -5-8. CHAIRS 50-53 - -9. SIDEBOARD 55 - -10. DINING-ROOM AT GABLE-END, SHORTLANDS 57 - -11, 12. WINDOW-SEAT 59, 60 - -13. CHAIR (WICKER) 63 - -14. BOOKCASE 72 - -15. DRAWING-ROOM AT GABLE-END, SHORTLANDS 79 - -16. MANOR HOUSE WINDOWS 95 - -17. A CORNER IN A BEDROOM, GABLE-END, SHORTLANDS 105 - -18. DRAPED ALCOVE FOR A BED 111 - -19. DRESSING-TABLE 117 - -20, 21. WASHING-STANDS 124, 125 - - - - - FROM KITCHEN TO GARRET - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -CHOOSING A HOUSE. - - -In the following chapters I propose to give young housekeepers, just -launching their bark on the troubled seas of domesticity, the benefit of -the experience that has been bought by me, occasionally rather dearly, -in the course of some eighteen or twenty years; for I have often been -struck with amazement at discovering how few really practical guides -there are that even profess to help newly married girls past those first -shoals and quicksands that so often wreck the little vessel, or that -spoil and waste so much that could have been usefully employed had -knowledge stood at the helm, and experience served as a lighthouse to -point out the rocks and narrows. Naturally, no one ever uses another’s -experience entirely: to do so would make life too near perfection and -too monotonous to be pleasant. Still, there are a hundred little hints -that I have constantly been asked to give, a great many helps to -household arrangement that I have bestowed on many of my young friends -starting in life; and I trust I may not be considered unduly egotistical -if I lay before my readers the result of some years of life, and a good -deal of experience obtained by looking about me generally. - -I shall propose in the first two or three chapters to sketch out some -‘notions,’ as our American cousins would say, about the questions of -house-choosing and house-furnishing, I shall then pass on to the -question of servants; then babies will have their turn; education, more -especially of girls, will not be forgotten; and I shall endeavour to do -my utmost to state plainly and describe accurately, not only how a house -should be furnished, but how it should be managed and kept going, -literally from garret to basement. - -As very rich people can place themselves unreservedly in the hands of a -professional decorator, and can moreover depend on their housekeepers -afterwards for all details of domestic management, I shall begin by -supposing the model couple who wish to choose a house and furnish it are -not rich; if they were they need not come to me for hints, for they -would be able to gratify every one of their own tastes, and need only -discover the best and most expensive shops, where skilled assistants -would be ready to hang expensive papers and brocades, and to fit up all -the thousand and one things that fashion calls necessary, without any of -my assistance. But neither are they very poor: they are young, happy, -and have taste, and are rather disheartened at finding out what a very -little way their money seems able to go. They have looked longingly at -Persian and Turkey carpets, at beautifully designed paper and exquisite -hangings, and have come home from a long day’s investigation of -shop-windows that has almost made Edwin forswear matrimony altogether, -and that has plunged Angelina into an abyss of despair that makes her -snappish to her brothers and sisters, and brings a sad look into her -mother’s eyes, who seems to see the first shadow ‘of the prison-house’ -close in around her child, and yet is powerless to help her escape, -because, poor dear soul, she has no means of doing so herself; being as -she is the victim of the old _régime_ of flock papers and moreen -curtains and heavy mahogany, and being conscious, too, of the vast sums -it cost her to start in housekeeping. However, I refuse to hear any -grumblings at all, and demand calmly enough to know if I may see the -house that our young folks mean to inhabit. Ten chances to one that they -do not even know where it is likely to be: how then, I ask, can they -possibly know what they will want, or what is likely to suit the house -or the locality, or, indeed, any of the many things that are positively -necessary to know, before as much as a roll of wall-paper can be bought -or a chair or table purchased? - -Here is hint number one. It is from not knowing and understanding the -house in which one has to live, and through purchasing furniture simply -because we like it, and not because it suits us or our domicile, that -such mistakes are made. First know your house; then, and not until then, -can you proceed to furnish it in a manner that will result in pleasure -to you and your friends for as long as you live in it. - -To young people like my couple, I would strongly recommend a house some -little way out of London. Rents are less; smuts and blacks are -conspicuous by their absence; a small garden, or even a tiny -conservatory (the joys and management of which ought to have a chapter -all to themselves), is not an impossibility; and if Edwin have to pay -for his season-ticket, that is nothing in comparison with his being able -to sleep in fresh air, to have a game of tennis in summer, or a friendly -evening of music, chess, or games in the winter, without expense; and -with Angelina’s absence from the temptations of shop-windows in town, -where, if she does not know of anything she wants when she goes out for -her aimless walk, she soon sees something that she cannot resist, which -she buys just because she has the money in her pocket, and likes the -look of an article she would never have thought of had she been outside -the range of temptation. - -Another reason for choosing the suburbs at the commencement of married -life is that in this case the rival mothers-in-law and the rival -families will not be running in and out perpetually; and neither will -Angelina be always contrasting the old ease, plenty, and amusements in -her sisters’ lives, and which used to be hers, with the somewhat -straitened and monotonous existence that she must put up with until -Edwin has made a mark in the world, and is able to keep his carriage and -live in style. Granted, then, that the suburbs have been selected, the -first few months of the engagement can be advantageously spent in -running down on Saturday afternoons to divers ‘Parks’ to look at houses -that sound so beautiful on paper, and are too often the very reverse in -the reality, in sauntering in the neighbourhood of each ‘eligible -residence’ and in endeavouring to discover what are the _pros_ and -_cons_ of each, and in finding out the soil and the aspect, and if there -are or are not any pretty walks to be found in the country round. Avoid -clay; let no persuasions, no arguments, persuade you that clay--at all -events suburban clay--can ever be anything save depressing and -rheumatic. You may drain, you may dig, but clay is like a ghost that -will not be laid, and that sooner or later asserts itself in the most -unpleasant and decided manner possible. - -One of the prettiest suburbs we know of is utterly spoiled by its clay -soil. In warm days it depresses, in damp it chills; and in an east wind -the soil looks so dreary, so parched, that the mere sight of it is -wretched, while fog and mist hang over it all the winter, and sour the -tempers and warp the minds of the inhabitants until there is a lack of -hospitality and an amount of work for the doctors that is wonderful, if -unpleasant to contemplate. - -Of course, all the S. or S.W. and S.E. suburbs are the most fashionable -and the most sought after; and although, to my mind, Penge and Dulwich -are dreary and damp, they are evidently well supported and much lived -in, but the higher parts of Sydenham are to be preferred; while Forest -Hill, the higher parts of Lordship Lane, Elmer’s End--where there are -some extremely pretty and convenient villas--and the best parts of -Bromley, Kent, are all they should be. Still, to those who do not mind -the north side of London, Finchley, Bush Hill Park--where the houses are -nice to look at and excellently arranged--and Enfield are all worthy of -consideration. - -Edwin’s work and its locality must, after all give the casting vote, -for, if it be at the West End, Liverpool Street Station is out of the -question, and Victoria, is a _sine quâ non_, and, of course, he may -choose to live in town. If he does, I should strongly persuade him not -to be guided by fashion, and to prefer a good-sized, old, well-built -house in an unfashionable locality, to a small, heated, stuffy, badly -put together residence in one of the parts of town that are inhabited by -those with whom he can never hope to associate. - -Indeed, when I have seen the tiny hovels in Mayfair where ladies and -gentlemen crowd together, and where their servants herd under tiles or -in the damp, dark cellars, I have thought that Fashion and Folly were -two names for one thing, and have had but a small opinion of those who -could condemn themselves and their poor domestics to such an unhealthy -and miserable existence, just because Park Lane is close by and it is -fashionable! - -Doubtless the great thing that strikes us when we are house-hunting is -that if women architects could get employment houses would be far better -planned than they are now. In each bedroom, it seems to me, that I have -inspected--and their name is legion--the male mind that designed the -rooms never took into consideration that a bed should not stand between -the windows and the door; which, by the way, is always put so that the -moment it opens the occupant of the bed has a full view of the passage -or landing; he has given us no recesses in which we can put shelves, and -by a judicious curtain arrangement do away with the necessity of buying -large and expensive wardrobes; he puts the fireplaces where, if we are -ill, we could not possibly enjoy ourselves with sitting over the fire -and warming ourselves; and he gives us far too many windows as a rule, -and almost ruins us in blinds and curtains, to prevent the neighbours -from gazing at us when we are dressing. - -He forgets cupboards, and in fact insists on producing month after month -an excellent shell, but one that requires altering considerably by a -lady before it really can be lived in at all; and I would strongly -suggest that female architects for domestic architecture solely would be -a great help to all who have to live in houses planned and executed by -men who have no idea of comfort, and but small appreciation for the -trifles light as air that make all the difference between that and great -discomfort. - -If Edwin be at all handy at carpentering he could do a great deal to -make even a builder’s design much better--he could rehang doors and -extemporise screens; but I look forward to a time when it shall be -necessary for houses to be passed by a sanitary commission before they -are allowed to be let at all; when all these discomforts will be -minimised, and when dust-bin refuse and bad drainage shall be penal if -used for foundations and put into houses; when the lesser evils of badly -placed doors, windows, and fireplaces will be looked after, as making -parts of what should be a perfect whole. - -Before taking his house in the suburbs, Edwin must see he holds it on a -lease that does not include structural repairs. He must give a properly -authorised inspector, _from a distance_, a fee to inspect all the -drains; he must examine the foundations and look to soil, see that the -doors and windows really fit, and that the skirting board has not shrunk -away from the flooring. He must look to the roof and the chimneys, and, -if possible, get a character for it from the last tenant; and then, and -then only, need he and Angelina come to me and say, ‘We have settled on -our Paradise; now please come and see it and tell us what we had better -buy first, and what we must do to furnish it and make it look as pretty -as we intend it to do.’ - -And yet, even when Edwin and Angelina have at last settled on their -house, and have sensibly inspected it from top to bottom, I should, long -before buying any furniture, decide definitely which room was to be -dining-room, which bedroom, and which drawing-room, and, being guided by -the sunshine obtainable in each, rather than the builder’s plan, utterly -refuse to enter a shop until I had made up my mind how the rooms are to -be appropriated. - -Sunshine is the very first necessary of life; without it sickness comes, -low spirits are one’s portion, and a thousand and one tiny ailments hang -about us, until we sum up a tremendous doctor’s bill, utterly ignorant -that we could have cured ourselves comfortably had we had any sense, and -dispensed with our blinds, regardless of the fading of our carpets and -curtains; or moved our morning-room into the sacred precincts of the -drawing-room, which obtains all the early sunshine, and has none at all -during the hours when we should be sitting there. But the possession of -a large and hideous, white marble mantelpiece and a tiled hearth to the -ugly, wasteful grate says ‘drawing-room’ too plainly for the ordinary -mind to rise above the builder’s dictum; and so a cheerful breakfast -table is sacrificed, for conventionalities that I, for one, never see -without longing to disregard, simply because of their family likeness to -every one else’s possessions, and gloom and low spirits seize their -victim, and work their wicked will, sending off the husband to town with -an aching head, and causing the wife a long, laborious morning of -snapping at servants and children, simply because she had not begun her -day with a proper amount of sunshine. I could fill a whole chapter with -praises of the life-giver, the mighty, beautiful sun; and whenever I see -blinds hardly raised, or carefully adjusted to save the furniture, I -know that I shall find inside those guarded windows faded cheeks, even -if the chairs are fresh, and weary, tired people, who are hardly aware -what sort of a day it is outside, and who are shivering over a fire -that would not be wanted were the fire nature has given us allowed to do -its work. Therefore, do not be guided in your choice of rooms by the -fact that the builder has made a sunless, dark-looking room the -dining-room, and a cheerful, light, and pretty chamber the drawing-room. -The white marble mantelpiece does not matter one bit. - -I can soon alter that, and a tiled hearth is not such a dear or precious -luxury that one cannot afford to put in another in the drawing-room, and -it is extremely nice to have a hearth where we can put down our plates -and dishes to keep hot should any one be late; and the other details are -generally so small in their differences that I am sure there is no -reason why we should not have strength of mind to be different to our -next-door neighbour, who most probably has taken things as she found -them, and in consequence is rarely, if ever, without a headache. - -Even in the smallest houses in these days there is generally a third -room, and this I should advise being kept entirely to sit in. I cannot -imagine anything nastier than to sit in a room in which one has one’s -meals; the mere worry of seeing them laid would annoy me so that I don’t -think I should be able to enjoy them afterwards; and then nothing seems -to me to quite clear away the terrible sensation, and smell of meals, -that appear to saturate the walls of any room where food is constantly -served, while the additional fire that seems the only reason that -compels people to remain all day in one atmosphere is paid for over and -over again by the extra warmth of the house itself, and the satisfactory -manner in which damps and draughts are exorcised, while no one can tell -the advantage it is to health to have a change of rooms, and to sit in a -place where food and the evil odours attending meals never can come. - -And here let me impress upon you, my readers, always to be guided by -common sense, not by fashion and conventionalities; to do a thing -because it is healthy and sensible, not because Mrs. Jones next door and -Mrs. Smith over the way do it; to buy a thing because it is required, -because it is pretty and suitable to your house and your means, not -because it is ‘so very expensive,’ and so can never become ‘common,’ or -because it is the ‘very last thing out’; and, above all, do not mind -taking advice and using your eyes, being quite sure that older folks, -even if they are stupid and slow-going, have probably seen more and know -more than you do, simply because their lives have been longer by a great -many years than yours are at present. And do not be above letting other -people have the use of your talents, for the world would be much nicer -and happier altogether if we were not all so profoundly selfish and -exclusive, and were not so desperately afraid of soiling ourselves and -our garments by rubbing shoulders against anything or any one to whom we -can apply the word ‘common.’ - -I myself should like to see every beautiful thing common. I should love -to know that all the world saw, possessed, and cared for art colours and -art furniture, and had nice tastes, and I look forward to a time when -even our poor brethren will appreciate all the inexpensive lovelinesses -that are to be had now by those who know where to get them, and I trust -that some day free art exhibitions and lectures may teach them what real -beauty is, and so enlighten and enliven lives that at present are of the -dullest and most sober description. - -In stating that life itself may be changed by sunshine and by cheerful -surroundings, and that even the bitter lot of the poor would be bettered -by art, I am aware I lay myself open to the same jeers that greeted the -Kyrle Society--that blessed society that, regardless of cold water, goes -on its way, giving of its talents to the sick and needy; but I maintain -my position for all that, and regardless of the ridicule levelled at -them, anent sunflowers and dadoes taking the place of bread and clothes, -I point to the hospital wards, transformed from bare whitewashed prisons -into artistic, charming, home-like rooms, and I should like to have the -statistics given me of all who have recovered there, and the time they -took to recover in, in the two different aspects of the walls, being -perfectly certain that there would be more and quicker recoveries in the -reign of the Kyrle Society than when the wearied, suffering creatures -had nothing to look at or think about save their own painful, cruel lot. - -Or if you wish another example still, take the well-known famous -description of the sour tempers and hard days possessed and lived by -Thomas Carlyle and his wife, and then go and inspect the house in which -they lived together for some thirty-eight years. The house itself is -delightful--an old-world place, full of beautiful corners--and could be -made charming with a little money and taste, but the hideous paper and -paint still lingering behind them, the dark windows, in some cases -half-filled with ground glass to keep out the view of a building that -looks singularly like a workhouse--all accounted to me for a great deal -of Mrs. Carlyle’s ill-health and low spirits, and for a vast quantity of -Mr. Carlyle’s dyspepsia and ill-tempered behaviour; for he could be -nothing else in sunless rooms and with walls papered in the ugly, -depressing manner in which he doubtless considered them satisfactory, -or, still more likely, thought that any paper did as long as the walls -were covered. - -Therefore, in selecting house and furniture, and choosing your rooms and -appropriating them, remember the first thing is to be cheerful. Dark -days will come in life to us all, but they will not be hopeless and too -dreadful to be endured if we cultivate a cheerful, contented spirit, and -insist on having cheerful surroundings. - -Do you recollect, I wonder, the orthodox dining-rooms of twenty-five -years ago?--the heavy, thick curtains of red or green cloth or moreen -damask; the tremendous mahogany sideboard, generally with a cellarette -underneath it, which, I recollect, made an admirable tomb in which to -bury one’s dolls or obnoxious books, generally triumphantly taken from -the schoolroom; the chairs that required two people to lift them; the -carpet that seemed immovable, and that was too heavy to be shaken more -than once a year; and the woolly-bear hearthrug that always smelt of -dust, and that was a receptacle for all sorts of cinders, toy-bricks, -leaden soldiers, and bones dragged in and buried there by a delinquent -dog or cat? Why, the mere shaking of that rug once a week resulted in -the discovery of all sorts of treasures that had been lost, and the dust -that came out was enough to choke the neighbourhood, and doubtless would -have done so had the other inhabitants not all been engaged with their -own. Ah! if you do not all of you remember the dining-room of the past, -I do; but never without a shudder, or a wonder how we managed to live in -such a dark and dusty atmosphere, where work, reading, drawing, and -writing all had to be hustled out of sight and out of the way of the -parlour-maid, who came to ‘lay the cloth,’ and renew the foul odours, -which had only just been exorcised, which breakfast had left behind it -to poison the morning with. I should think that domestic furniture was -at its very lowest depths of despair then; but that is thirty years ago, -or perhaps forty, and nothing turned the tide for quite twenty years! - -In the beginning of those evil days the graceful furniture of -Chippendale and Sheraton was pushed away and consigned to attics, or -sold cheaply at country auctions to fit up inn parlours or rooms behind -shops; and the heavy ‘handsome’ furniture of mahogany and damask bore -down upon us, and made us for a time the most depressed of people, heavy -with our ugly furnishings, and the mock of all nations that had better -taste and lighter hearts than we were possessed of. - -It would take too long to trace the gradual development of taste and -cheerfulness since then, neither do I know to whom is due our present -state of emancipation and love of pretty things, but even sixteen years -ago light was only just beginning to be vouchsafed to us. Now it is -impossible to buy an ugly thing in good shops, and each person’s house -is no longer the reflection of one particular upholsterer’s shop or of -one particular style; but it is a carefully arranged shrine, cared for -and looked after, and judiciously managed by the owner, who, if she have -not taste herself, is now shamed into using some one else’s, by the -contrast she cannot help seeing her home presents to all the others into -which she enters; and one of the most hopeless people I know, who began -life with gilt legs to her chairs and a collection of family plate -(plated) on her sideboard, has become unobtrusive, even if she can -never be tasteful, simply by seeing how different her own notions were -to those of the cleverer people with whom circumstances brought her into -contact! - -However, this chapter will become too long if I relate any more ‘fearful -examples,’ and, impressing on my readers the great necessity of sunshine -and cheerfulness in their scheme of furnishing, I will pass on to the -subject of the house itself, which must be most carefully chosen after -long and deliberate inspection thereof, as I remarked before; one of the -most necessary of all mottoes to be recollected in starting in life -being, ‘Do nothing in a hurry. More haste, less speed.’ - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -THE KITCHEN ARRANGEMENTS. - - -The other day I was asked, as I so often am by young couples, to go with -them to look over a house they had just taken, and to give them some -advice on the decoration and management generally thereof; and when we -had thought about all the pretty colours and graceful draperies we -considered suitable, I asked to look at the kitchen department, and I -was truly horrified to discern that my young folks had only been into -the kitchen once, and had no idea of its capabilities. - -I at once departed to look at it, and found all the accommodation for -the unfortunate maids consisted of a square box, one half stove, the -other half door, a couple of shelves for all the bridal glass and china, -and a larder in which one could have placed the meat, butter, and bread -without moving from the fireside, and which, useless enough in winter, -would be doubly so when summer came, and added another trial to those of -the already overburdened cook. However, the agreement was signed and the -house taken for five years, during which, I am quite certain, no servant -would remain a moment over her month, and in consequence of which that -establishment will, I know, be in a continual state of misery and -turmoil. - -Of course one can hardly expect young people to think of these prosaic -and disagreeable details for themselves, but they are most necessary -details for persons to consider. Personally I would much rather regard -life as a smooth chariot gliding along a rose-embowered road, propelled -by some mysterious and wonderful power called Love, who is, of course, -entirely ignorant of anything save kisses and blisses. I do not want in -the very least really to know how dinner is cooked, how houses are -managed, and the very names of chairs and dusters are properly -obnoxious to me--or rather would be if we could only do without them. -But, alas! we cannot; we must be clean, we should be healthy, and it is -imperative that we should have kitchens and be warmed and fed; and, as -fairies are extinct and brownies no longer appear and do work -mysteriously and pleasantly before we are up in the morning, even a -bride must be told about these unpleasant localities, and must learn to -take an interest even in her scullery and the position of her dust-bin. -Therefore, on the principle of getting rid of our disagreeable duties -first, we will begin with hints for kitchen management before thinking -about the purchase of the rest of the furniture; for it is a very good -rule to buy what we must have first, and then keep any surplus we may -have to spend afterwards; and we will begin with the kitchen, for that -department is always the most uninteresting to the young housekeeper, -for she has only a certain amount of money to spend on everything, and -she grudges, I am sure, every pound she has to spend on pots and pans, -that she thinks would be so useful if added to the small sum she has at -her disposal, for extras and ornaments in the other rooms in her house. - -If their household consist of two maids and Edwin and Angelina alone, -their _batterie de cuisine_ need be neither an extensive nor expensive -one, for after a lengthy experience of maidens and their ways I have -come to the conclusion that the fewer things they have the fewer they -will spoil, and that we are far more likely to have clean saucepans and -pots if there are none to put aside and no others to use, if, as the -maid thinks, she has not time at her disposal for the moment in which to -clean them. Now if she have only the saucepans in actual use they must -be cleaned as soon as they have been used, or the food will most -certainly tell tales of her. - -The position of the kitchen in a house makes an immense amount of -difference in the work, for if it be situated underground it makes quite -one servant’s work difference. Fortunately builders are more and more -inclined to think of this, and it is now rare to find in a new house the -unpleasant and unhealthy arrangement that exists in most London houses. -First of all, the staircase to the kitchen is always a dreadful source -of worry. We must cover the stairs to deaden the noise, and the wear and -tear is so great that the covering has to be renewed well-nigh yearly if -we are in any way to preserve a tidy appearance. The best material to -use on these stairs is a species of harshly woven Dutch carpeting. It is -made in art colours, and is about 1_s._ 6_d._ a yard; or Treloar’s -pretty crimson cocoanut matting, which is a trifle less in price, and -lasts more time, when, if it should show signs of wear, it can once more -be covered with oilcloth, and then I think the stairs will look as nice -and keep as tidy as long as possible. - -If there be any passages in and round the kitchen and servants’ -apartments generally, I have discovered that a most excellent plan here -is to have a high dado of oilcloth, headed by a real dado-rail painted -black, and then papered above with one of the blue and white washable -papers that resemble tiles, are moderately inexpensive, and always clean -and bright. At one time my passages in those regions were my despair; -they were narrow, and bits and corners--paper, plaster, and all--were -continually knocked out in the most depressing way, especially at the -back door, where, moreover, every boy who came for orders or with -parcels solaced himself while waiting by leaning his greasy head or -putting his dirty hands on the wall-paper, until the whole place looked -disgraceful almost before the paste was well dry. I was at my wits’ end. -Cretonne and matting were decidedly out of place. At last the idea of -oilcloth came into my head, and for six years it has now been up, and is -as good as the day it was purchased. I continued this up the back -staircase, with very favourable results as regards wear and tear, for a -box knocking against it does not hurt it in the least, and any marks can -be rubbed off at once with a dry duster. The oilcloth is not stretched -too tight, and it is nailed top and bottom, then secured at the top with -the dado-rail, which, being made of what is technically called -‘scantling,’ is most inexpensive; a neat pattern is chosen in -oak-browns. - -The oilcloth made like an old Roman mosaic would of course be preferable -as far as appearance goes, but this costs double, and therefore I was -obliged to have an ordinary and commonplace-looking one instead; but -should the æsthetic eye revolt against the ugly colours of cheap -oilcloth, I may mention it can be painted any colour easily, and this -can make it at once pretty to look at. - -I am of opinion that such a dado would be a great thing in the kitchen -itself, where the walls so speedily become soiled by the heat from the -hot-water pipes that the kitchen soon becomes dismal for the servants to -sit in. I do wish it would enter into the plan of even quite a small -house to have a tiny room where the servants could sit and work, or have -their meals, out of the kitchen atmosphere; and then perhaps I should -not mind the look of the kitchen quite so much; but even in a large -house there is seldom a room one can set aside for this purpose, and -often enough the only place a maid has to live in is the one in which -all the cooking is done, and where, winter and summer alike, a large -fire has to be kept going from morning until night. - -But until that happy day arrives we can make the orthodox kitchen almost -a model one, with a dado of oilcloth as high as we can get it, and a -light varnished paper above the dado; the varnishing allows of constant -washing, and though this is, of course, an expensive process, it -insures cleanliness, and, the first outlay once made, it does not -require renewing for some years. The ceiling, however, should be -whitewashed, with the scullery walls and ceiling, and those of the -cellars, &c., regularly once a year--about May. Nothing should be -thought more necessary than this; and once a year, when this is done, -the mistress should overlook every single possession she has, comparing -them with a list made at the time she entered the house, which she -should never let out of her own possession, and which she should alter -from time to time, as things are broken or lost or bought. - -The most important thing now to consider is the grate, and nowhere, I -think, does the ordinary landlord or builder ‘skimp’ more than in this; -and let me ask any young bride to put her pride in her pocket here, and -to consult her mother, or the last bride but four, or any one who has -had a grate in her own possession, before she passes the grate that the -landlord has provided her with. Of course I can only _hope_ any new -householder will take advice; the dear things always know so much better -from theory than we do from practice, and are never going to make the -mistakes we did, and from which sprang the knowledge we are as anxious -to give them as they are unwilling to take, that I can only humbly ask -them to see about the grate before they really put themselves in its -power, and I beg them to insist on having a new one; for on no other -portion of the house does so much of our comfort depend, a bad grate -spoiling the cook’s temper and wasting the food horribly, while a good -one is an endless treasure, of which we really cannot make too much. - -If our young folks are too proud to ask advice, let them go to Steel and -Garland’s, on the Holborn Viaduct, where I have seen some most -picturesque kitcheners, which I must confess to hanker after in a manner -that perhaps is not right; but I cannot help it, they look so charming, -and are, I believe, so satisfactory in their working. They have -blue-tiled backs, and have also delightful ovens and a broad expanse -over the fire that would heat any amount of saucepans at the same time; -and if Angelina goes to live in her own house, I should certainly -recommend her to see these before buying any other kitchen grate. They -are most economical as regards coal; and if Angelina be wise enough so -to manage her cook as to impress upon her what an excellent fire can be -made and kept up in a kitchener using the small coal almost like dust, -that is so very inexpensive, and that the best Wallsend need not be -taken for the purpose, she will soon save the cost of her stove over and -over again in the difference in the price of the material she uses to -keep it going. - -Of course this small coal can be burned in a kitchener that has not -blue tiles, and is a simple, ugly thing; but these are not as reliable -as a good stove is, and the ovens burn and spoil so much, owing to the -inferior iron of which they are made, that an effort is worth making to -secure a good and _reliable_ grate, else Edwin’s dinner may occasionally -not be quite as nice as could be wished for him to come home to. But, -cheap grate or dear grate, never allow for one moment that an odour -therefrom should pervade the house. This may require a battle; but it is -one to be won by the mistress if she exhibit firmness, and, above all, a -due knowledge of her business as manager of the household. The terrible -and sickening smell that so often has been known to fill a house simply -comes from grease having been allowed to fall on the oven plates inside. -This waxes hot, and then is followed by the odour, which there is -nothing like anywhere besides. To obviate this, a cook should always -carefully look after any spot or drop of grease, and if by any chance -the oven has become foul, it must be cleansed by burning some hay or -straw in it; but this need not occur at all if the cook be commonly -careful, any more than that green-water need smell, if a small crust of -bread be placed in the water while it is boiling, and then the water -should at once be emptied away into a corner of the garden, or down the -sink if there be no garden, when a little carbolic acid should be added, -which would take away the odour at once. These may appear very trivial -matters to write about, but a great deal of our comfort and, in -consequence, of our happiness depends upon these trifles. I know nothing -more disagreeable and trying than a bad smell, and if Edwin comes home -to a house reeking of dinner and the oven, what wonder that he flies to -his pipe and wishes himself back in his club; while his wife cannot -possibly smile and look pleased to see him, when she is suffering untold -miseries from the refractory grate, and a cook who would be only too -glad to save her the odours if only she knew how. - -I am no advocate for mistresses spending their lives in a perpetual -harassment of their unfortunate servants, but there is one thing that -should never be left to the tender mercies even of the best servant that -ever lived; and that is the sink, or, in fact, any drain that may be in -the kitchen regions. I cannot tell how it is, but a domestic appears to -me to be born into the world bereft of any sense of smell. They never -can smell anything. You will go into the kitchen and discover an odour -enough to appal you, and you will say, ‘What is this terrible smell, I -wonder?’ but your cook will reply, ‘Smell, mum? Oh, I don’t smell -anything; perhaps it have drifted in at the window.’ But do not be -daunted by that. Do not for one moment think you are wrong and she is -right, but persevere, and hunt that smell down, and ten chances to one -you will find something that requires your immediate attention in the -sink line, or else that, despite most stringent orders, cook has -started a private dust-bin, and has put away and forgotten something -that is breeding a fever under your very nose. - -Insist upon a regular flushing of every drain or sink every week, as a -matter of course; and I should advise you to see this done for yourself, -and, furthermore, that you should yourself supplement the flushing by -using liberally some disinfectant. If you do this yourself, keeping the -disinfectant locked up and labelled ‘Poison,’ there will be supplied to -your servant’s mind a reason why you should personally superintend the -flushing part of the business, and she will not then have the idea in -her mind that is so often in the mind of the ordinary servant, that you -are spying after her because you cannot trust her. The drains are far -too important a matter, you can tell her, to leave to any one, and -therefore you must see after them yourself. Sanitas in saucers is a very -good disinfectant, and smells most pleasantly; and permanganate of -potass diluted largely with water is excellent to put down the sinks and -drains themselves; but there is no smell about this, so I, personally, -prefer carbolic or chloride of lime, because then I know for certain -that something of the kind has been used, and the rather pleasant odour -from the disinfectant also seems to send away at once any disagreeable -smell that may have been hanging about. In the sinks themselves should -be kept a large lump of soda; this should weigh half a pound or more, -and be renewed every day or two; this prevents the grease from the -saucepans clogging the pipes, as such a large piece dissolves very -slowly, and all the water that passes over the soda serves to cleanse -the pipe in a most satisfactory way. It is always an excellent thing to -set aside particular days and hours for different duties. They are not -half so likely to be slurred or omitted as they are in a house where -_any time_ does for _anything_. Therefore Saturday, immediately after -the orders have been given, is an excellent time for seeing to the -drains. Saturday morning most people are at home, and a quarter of an -hour takes little out of the morning, while a good deed has been done, -and the house has been purified for Sunday. - -And here let me just for one instant dwell on the great necessity of -regularity, order, and, above all, early rising, in a small household. -If you lie in bed, _Sundays_ or weekdays, things cannot possibly prosper -with you; you cannot possibly either keep beforehand with life if you -live in a muddle or breakfast late; and should you be late on Sundays -you not only hurry to church yourself, or stay away altogether--a -wretched habit--but you prevent your servants attending, or allow them -to go when the service has begun, and they are too hurried and worried -to properly appreciate the weekly rest that should be such a help to -them. Every member of the household and every visitor should be punctual -at the breakfast table, and nothing save real illness should excuse a -breakfast in bed. A headache is more often cured by getting up than by -remaining in the bedroom atmosphere; and be sure of this, lying in bed -upstairs means waste, laziness, and unsatisfactory behaviour generally -in the regions of the kitchen. Hence I feel I cannot say too much -against it, or in favour of regularity, punctuality, and early rising, -without which excellent qualities no household can get along practically -or become anything save a place of hopeless muddle. - -Though it would be waste of space to write out an exact list of kitchen -utensils in these days, when every respectable firm publishes one at the -end of their catalogue, and which, by the way, may generally be halved -as regards the quantities with advantage, it may not be out of place -here to give a few general hints on the subject. And we may begin by -stating that ‘plenty makes waste,’ and that ‘enough is as good as a -feast,’ and then we will make up our minds to purchase only just -sufficient kitchen articles for the cook’s use, at all events until we -know our cook and learn if she be to be trusted; though even then I see -no reason why she should have more material at her command than she can -use; for I believe this idea of superfluity has done more harm in the -kitchen than enough, no servant being sufficiently strong-minded to -resolutely put aside anything she can do without. - -In a small and, shall I say, impecunious household it is not so much -what we want as what we can do without that has to be considered; and it -is really astonishing on how little we can ‘get along,’ as far as mere -existence is concerned, if we resolutely turn our back on all that is -not positively necessary for us, although I must confess that under such -circumstances life is certainly not worth living, and has to be a very -bare and barren matter altogether; and I hope that Angelina, at all -events, will not have to live quite such a Spartan existence as this; -still, great care must be exercised, especially in the kitchen, if she -be to have a pleasant time of it among nice and pretty things. - -In the first place, Angelina must show her cook that she really does -know her duties as mistress of a household, and she must be able to hold -her own when cook demands extravagant supplies; while at the same time -she must not expect a quart of milk a day to suffice for a household -consisting of a baby, two servants, the master and mistress, and last, -but not least, two cats, as a friend of mine did; but she must -diligently study beforehand quantities of divers things, so that she may -be ready when called upon to prove she really does know what she is -talking of; and a judicious selection of kitchen utensils will point out -to her cook at starting that her mistress has ideas of her own on the -subject of household management. - -Now six saucepans must suffice, and this is really a most liberal -allowance, as four might be made to do; two must be nicely lined with -enamel, and must be kept entirely for milk and white sauces, such as -melted butter, for nothing else should ever be cooked in a saucepan that -is required for delicate cookery. After a long experience, I must -confess that no one’s kitchen utensils please me as much as Whiteley’s -do; they are good and reasonable, and can be relied on to be as cheap -and wear as long as any one else’s. Indeed, for these things he is -really cheaper than any one I know of, and I now buy all there that I -require for kitchen use. He supplies a list of goods suitable for -different-sized houses; but no one requires, I think, all that he -considers necessary, and a little weeding should be done from even his -smallest list, according to the number of the rooms in the house. Still, -these lists are a great assistance, and Angelina would do well to write -for one before she finally makes up her mind what to order. - -There are generally three or four prices quoted for nearly all domestic -articles, such as fryingpans, gridirons, saucepans, &c., and it is safe -to make it a rule to take a medium quality. At a shop you can trust, the -very best, no doubt, must always be best, but ‘_good enough_’ for use -and wear is to be our rule, and when you have discovered that -such-and-such an establishment really tells you the truth, you may -depend that for your purpose the medium quality will answer as well as -anything, while even in some cases the lowest will occasionally be good -enough for the purpose for which you require it. There are certain -things no housekeeper should ever be without, and one is a bread-pan -with a cover, and this is sometimes quite a difficult thing to procure. -No one seems now to have time to put their bread in pans, and the milk -in those nice white-lipped basins I can never see without longing to -buy, but these two things should be insisted on in Angelina’s kitchen. -The bread taken in to-day should not be used until to-morrow, and when -received from the baker should be immediately put into the pan in the -larder and covered over. This keeps it moist and fresh, and, without -having the evil properties of new bread, is as pleasant to eat, which it -could never be if left to dry in the hot kitchen, or to become dusty and -dry, or may be even damp, on the larder shelf. The pan should be wiped -out every morning with a clean cloth, and on no account should pieces be -allowed to accumulate. - -There is, I think, more bread wasted in an ordinary household than is -quite pleasant to contemplate. Crusts are cut off and put on one side in -the dining-room, and of course no one in the kitchen will look at them -after that; or double the quantity is cut at luncheon and dinner that is -required, and once more this is put on one side. Now, it is quite easy -to calculate how much bread should be used in a small household, but it -is very difficult to find out where the waste is when the establishment -increases. Still it is possible, and I do hope Angelina will begin by -impressing on her cook that she will not allow waste, nor what makes -sometimes a fearful amount of waste, i.e. the calling at the back door -of those dreadful people with carts, who want to buy bottles, or rags, -or bones, or such like trifles; for these men often tempt young servants -to thieve, and often enough, too, snatch up a spoon or fork, should one -be lying about, while the servant’s back is turned, and she is searching -for her hoard of things, none of which really belongs to her at all. - -I recollect quite well one year, when I was at Bournemouth seeing these -carts going about regularly to different houses morning after morning, -and as my window faced the road, I had the curiosity to watch what they -received, more than once. Opposite to me lived a family, the mistress of -which had often enough lamented to me the fearful appetites possessed by -her servants, and one day, about 8.15, just when I was going down to -breakfast, I saw the cart arrive, and saw also half loaves of bread, -‘chunks’ of meat, and pieces of butter and bacon, all brought out in an -unappetising manner together, and shunted into the cart. My friend’s -breakfast-hour was half-past nine, so the cart had merrily gone on its -way long before her blinds were drawn up; but the very next time she -spoke of her servants’ gigantic capacities for putting away food, I ‘up -and spake’ of what I had seen in such a way that the cart never called -there again, and her bills were reduced to one-half in less time than it -takes to tell of them. - -The driver of that cart once stopped at my door and descended into the -kitchen. Luckily for me, I was, as usual, writing at the window at my -desk, and, seeing him come in, I waited a few moments, and then -descended into the lower regions too, and found him eloquently -persuading my good little cook to sell bones &c. to him, but she was -refusing staunchly; and then I appeared, and though, I confess honestly, -I was shaking with fright, and was only sustained by the knowledge that -the gardener was cleaning the boots near by, I gave that man a ‘piece of -my mind,’ and, informing him that it was he and his fellows who made -young servants thieves, bade him begone, telling him that if ever I -found him on my premises again I would give him in charge; which so -alarmed him that he fled at once to other houses, doubtless vituperating -me in his mind all the time; but that I did not mind, as long as he -transferred himself and his kindly attentions somewhere else. - -In a well-regulated household every morsel of food should be used; the -bones always are useful for soup, and a ‘digester’ should be one of -Angelina’s most indispensable possessions. This should always be at hand -for stock; and excellent soups, than which nothing is nicer on which to -begin one’s dinner, can be procured by aid of the digester, if Angelina -has a thoughtful cook, who uses every morsel to advantage, and never -throws away a bone, even a fish bone, all of which aid the soup, and -save buying other provisions. - -Care and thought are centred in the kitchen, and once Angelina has -carefully trained her maid into nice ways, the house will go like -clockwork, and that is why I should advise any young housekeeper to take -young girls as household servants (_not on any account, by the way, as -nurses; no young nurse is worth her keep save as an under-servant_); an -‘experienced cook’ quotes her experience, and Angelina, having none to -fall back upon, trembles and is conquered; but with a bright, -intelligent girl, Mrs. Beeton’s most excellent book on household -management (as regards food), a little common-sense, and a mother who -has brought her daughter up sensibly, Angelina can start on her way, -quite certain that she and her maidens will work together in a pleasant -and satisfactory manner, and that she will never be exposed to domestic -earthquakes such as occur with ‘experienced servants,’ who, having -brought themselves up in a big establishment where nobody cared for -them, go into Angelina’s small one in order to get as much out of it as -they can, regarding all mistresses as their natural enemies! - -One more subject as regards the kitchen. Never allow, on any pretext, -that a dust-bin or a ‘wash-tub’ is ever needed. With a kitchener every -morsel of _débris_ should be burned in the close grate; and a dust-bin -is never a necessity to any one who knows her business, and is -determined never to allow of the smallest waste. There is nothing a -kitchener will not burn--remember that, please! and flatly refuse to -allow a dust-bin in any part of the house; it only means that waste will -go on _ad libitum_, and that dirt and untidiness are favoured by one’s -cook. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -MEALS AND MONEY. - - -I am going to devote this chapter entirely to the matter of money--that -is to say, to indicating how the income should be apportioned, and what -it costs to feed a small family who are content with nice plain food, -and who do not hanker after elaborate cooking and out-of-the-way dishes; -in which case they must not come to me for advice, as I have really no -information to give them; and to further indicate as far as I -can--outside the limits of a cookery book--some of the meals that can be -managed without either much fuss and worry and an undue expenditure of -money and time. - -If Angelina really intends to marry on an income varying between 300_l._ -and 500_l._ a year, she must sit down and weigh the _pros_ and _cons_ -most carefully. Dress and house-rent are the two items that have risen -considerably during the last few years; otherwise everything is much -cheaper and nicer than it used to be before New Zealand meat came to the -front, and sugar, tea, cheese, all the thousand and one items one -requires in a house, became lower than ever they had been before; and -therefore, if she be clever and willing to put her shoulder to the -domestic wheel, she can most certainly get along much more comfortably -in the way of food than she used to do. For example, when I was married, -sugar was 6_d._ a pound, and now it is 2_d._; and instead of paying -1_s._ 1_d._ a pound for legs of mutton, I give 7½_d._ for New Zealand -meat, which is as good as the best English mutton that one can buy. -Bread, too, is 5½_d._--and ought to be considerably lower--as against -the 8_d._ and 9_d._ of seventeen years ago; and, besides this, there are -a thousand-and-one small things to be bought that one never used to see, -and fish and game are also infinitely less expensive, for in the season -salmon is no longer a luxury, thanks to Frank Buckland, while prime cod -at 4_d._ a pound can hardly be looked upon as a sinful luxury, and this -is the price we paid in the season in the Central Fish Market, where -fish is always to be obtained fresh, cheap, and in as great a variety as -at any West End shop; while of course those detestable Stores, much as I -personally dislike them, have done much for us in lowering the prices of -grocers, who are always willing to give ready-money purchasers every -advantage, the while they are civil, send the purchased articles home, -make out their own bills, and take care their customers are not worried -to death, as they are at the Stores by supercilious youths, who make the -place a rendezvous, and simper with girls who have been sent to do -shopping, and combine it with large instalments of flirtation. No, I -must say I have not one good word for the Stores; and, furthermore, I -detest them because, living as I do a little way out of town, I am -persecuted on my return journeys with enormous parcels, of all sorts and -descriptions, that jam one’s elbows, fall down incontinently on one’s -best bonnet, and are pushed under one’s feet, until the twenty minutes’ -travel are rendered purgatorial by people who will shop at the Stores, -and are in consequence turned completely for the nonce into beasts of -burden, all to save a very problematic shilling or two; but as cabs to -and from the station have to be added to the fare to town, I venture to -state they would be far better served by a local grocer, or by either -Whiteley or Shoolbred, whose prices are the same as at the Stores, and -whose carts come to one’s door. But these little points are just where -the ordinary woman’s finance comes utterly to an end. She can readily -comprehend that sugar at 2_d._ a pound is cheaper than sugar at 3_d._; -but tell her to add to the cost of this the fare to town, wear and tear -of temper, gloves, and clothes, odd cabs, and the necessary luncheon, -and she is floored at once. She recognises the 2_d._ as against the -3_d._ immediately, but she cannot grasp the rest; besides which, at the -Stores she sees one hundred and one things that she buys simply because -they are cheap, and not because she requires them in the very least; so -if Angelina values her peace of mind let her eschew the Stores, and, -instead, talk to her nearest grocer on the subject, and see what can be -done with him before she goes elsewhere. - -Now, I think, that 2_l._, or, at the most, 2_l._ 10_s._, should keep -Angelina, Edwin, and the model maid per week in comfort, and yet allow -of no scrimping; but in this case Angelina must put a good deal of -common-sense in her purse as well as money. Meat for three people need -not be more than 12_s._, 4_s._ for bread and flour, 2_s._ for eggs, -4_s._ for milk, half a pound of tea at 2_s._ 6_d._--if they will drink -tea--1lb. of coffee made of equal proportions of East India, Mocha, and -Plantation, comes to about 1_s._ 7_d._, sugar 6_d._, butter (2lbs., -enough for three people) 3_s._, and the rest can be kept in hand for -fruit, fish, chickens, washing; and the thousand and one odds and ends -that are always turning up at the most unpropitious moments; such as -stamps, boot-mending (two items that have largely assisted in turning my -hair grey), ink, paper, string, and, in fact, all those things that an -unmarried girl rather fancies grow in the house, and that she is very -much surprised to find have to be purchased. - -In any case, let me implore Angelina to pay her books every week -herself, and never on any account to run up bills anywhere for anything. -Let her never be tempted to have any single thing that she cannot pay -for on the spot; and she will live happily, and be able to ‘speak with -her enemies’--if she have any--‘in the gate’; that is to say, she can -boldly interview her tradespeople, knowing she owes them nothing, and -coming cash in hand can demand the best article in the market, which is, -after all, the due of those who go and buy for ready money and should -never be given to those who will have credit. There is nothing so dear -as credit--please remember that, my readers, and start as you mean to go -on by paying for everything as you have it; and, above all, know from -your husband what he can give you, and have this regularly once a month. -If you are fit to be his wife at all, you are fit to spend his money, -and to spend it, moreover, without the haggling and worrying over each -item that is considered necessary by some men to show their superiority -over their women folk, but which should never be allowed for a moment; -and should our bride have a small income of her own, this should be -retained for her dress, personal expenses, &c., and should not be put -into the common fund, for the man should keep the house and be the -bread-winner; but, alas! middle-class brides have seldom anything to -call their own, their parents thinking they have done all they need for -them, should they find them a husband and a certain amount of clothes. - -I very much myself disapprove of the way middle-class parents have of -marrying off their daughters and giving them nothing beyond their -trousseaux; and I do hope that soon fathers and mothers will copy the -French more in this matter of a dowry than they do now. I maintain that -they are bound to give their daughters, beyond and over such an -education as shall allow them to keep themselves, the same sum when -married as they received when unmarried, so shall they be to a certain -extent independent and have a little something to call their own. Why, -in most cases, if Angelina wants to give Edwin a present she has to buy -it out of his own money! Can there be a more unenviable position for a -young wife, to whom very often the mere asking for money is as painful -as it is degrading? It would not hurt any father to give his daughter -50_l._ a year, and the difference it would make in that daughter’s -comfort and position is unspeakable; and would not be more than half -what she would cost him were she to remain on his hands a sour old maid. - -Another thing I disapprove of is placing the household books week by -week or month by month under the husband’s inspection; it leads to -endless jars and frets, and discussions; therefore, having talked -matters over once and for all, discuss money no more until you require -additions to your allowance as the family increases; or can do with -less; only know always how matters are going in business, so as to -increase or retrench in a manner suitable, should circumstances alter. - -Domestic matters must, of course, be discussed now and again between -husband and wife; but a sensible woman keeps these subjects in the -background, and no more troubles her husband with the price of butter, -or the cook’s delinquencies, than he does his wife over the more -intimate details of his office, which he keeps for his clerks and his -partners generally; while the day’s papers, the book on hand, people one -has seen, are all far more interesting things than Maria’s temper, -Jane’s breakages, or than the grocer’s bill, which, if higher than it -ought to be, is Angelina’s own fault, and can only be altered by -herself, and not by worrying Edwin. - -Common-sense housekeeping can only be done if the eyes be constantly -open to see and the ears to hear. Waste must never be allowed. No -servant should be kept who wastes, and if there be no dust-bin, save for -cinders, no pig’s tub, no man calling at the door for bottles, and, -above all, if there be a mistress who is always on the alert to use -anyone else’s experience, housekeeping need be nothing of a bugbear, and -can be done at one quarter the price that it usually costs. But most -girls marry in perfect ignorance of everything save the plot of the -last novel, the music of the last opera, the fashion of the last dress, -and undertake duties they neither care for nor mean to understand, -seeing nothing beyond the wedding finery, which is far too often an -occasion of almost criminal display, and that must indeed appear a -mockery to the poor bride, who contemplates her foolish wedding dress -and wishes profoundly she had the money it cost her. - -The great curse now of English households is this seeming to be what you -are not, this wretched pretending of 400_l._ to be 800_l._; the shirking -of work, domestic details, and common-sense housekeeping that -characterises the bride of this day, who only wants to enjoy herself and -spend a little more, see a little more gaiety than the last bride did, -and who sees nothing holy in the name of wife, only a mere emancipation -from the schoolroom; who wants to decorate a house, not make a home; and -who sees in her children, not human souls to train for time and for -eternity, but pretty dolls to dress, to attract attention, or tiresome -objects to be got rid of at school at the earliest opportunity. - -That marriage means much more than this is gradually borne in upon the -butterfly, who either sobers down in the course of years, and becomes -faded and worn and peevish; or else, impatient of control, she breaks -all bounds, and the whole family is disgraced by an _esclandre_ that is -as terrible as it is preventible. With such women as this we have -nothing to do; but many of these poor creatures would have been saved -had they been brought up properly, so I trust, after all, my words on -the subject of common-sense housekeeping will not be considered out of -place. - -Though they are certainly a little discursive, still they have to do -with money emphatically, and that was the first part of the subject I -proposed to treat of in this chapter, so before I leave it let me say -just a few words on the best system of keeping accounts, a most -necessary portion of any woman’s business as mistress of a household. - -The best authority I know on the subject of accounts is a personal -friend who began housekeeping many years ago on a very small and -uncertain income. Her husband was a literary man, and had of course that -most tiresome and extravagance-encouraging income--a fluctuating one; -yet she told me only the other day she could tell to a sixpence what she -had spent ever since she was married; that at the end of the year she -always sat down, first with her husband, then with her grown-up -daughters, and carefully went over each month’s expenditure, and in this -way she was enabled to manage well, for a glance would show her, if she -had spent too much, where she could retrench, or where, if the income -had increased, she could best ‘launch out’ in order to insure more -comforts and less forethought and worry: in consequence of her -arrangements she was always beforehand with the world, and never owed a -sixpence she could not pay. A young housekeeper is often bewildered -between account books. She buys one, of course, and then is bothered by -detail, or begins to find ‘sundries’ a most convenient entry--and so, -alas! it is. But our model housekeeper shrinks from sundries, or any of -these somewhat mean subterfuges, and boldly discovers how she has spent -her money, although I must confess I myself am such a bad hand at this -sort of thing that, could I be seen, I feel convinced I should be found -to be blushing violently at giving advice which I far too often do not -follow; indeed, I always feel inclined to imitate the old woman-servant -whose balance sheet consisted of so many ‘foggets,’ among other items, -that her master (of course he was a bachelor), confused with the idea of -having so much firewood, begged her for an explanation, when she -remarked, ‘’Taint faggots, master; _’tis forgets_.’ Fortunately her -honesty had been tried by many a long year’s service, or she might have -got into serious trouble; and I think when we too have ‘forgets’ we are -not unlikely to get into trouble when at last we have to face boldly a -day of reckoning, which must come sooner or later. - -But if I am not a good hand at accounts my friend is, and I here append -a leaf from her account book, which, ruled and written by herself, is to -me a model of what it should be. Of course the columns can be added to, -to any extent, but this will show at once how to keep one’s bills before -one: in such a manner, that one sees at once how and where the money has -gone, and I can but hope this capital system will be adopted at once by -all those who are starting in life with the best resolve of all, that -nothing shall persuade them to get into debt. - -And here let me say that there should always be a special column for -medical attendance; and without doubting the medical profession in the -least, let me impress upon all who have to call in a physician to note -his visits in the column set apart for the purpose. I always note a -doctor’s visits in my diary, as this often checks his accounts, for, -without meaning to be dishonest, a doctor often makes the most -astounding mistakes. For example, not long ago I saved myself 7_l._ on a -doctor’s bill by sending an exorbitant account back to my then doctor, -drawing his attention to the fact that by my diary only so many visits -had been paid, whereas so many had evidently been charged for; when the -clerk wrote back to say the error had been made in the addition, and -that of course this would have been rectified next time! I can’t say if -it would have been; all I know is, I was saved the money by always -putting down the visits; so I most strongly advise Angelina to put the -column in her account book as a reminder, even if she cannot put down in -that the exact sum; and I must say I do most heartily wish it were - - +--------+---------------------+-------------+--------------+-------------> - | | | Greengrocer | Coal, Gas, & | Rent, Rates | - | | | | Lighting | and Taxes | - | | +-------------+--------------+-------------> - | 1887 | | £ _s._ _d._| £ _s._ _d._ | £ _s._ _d._| - | Jan. 1 | Messrs. Slater & Co.| -- | -- | -- | - | “ 5 | Smith | -- | -- | -- | - | “ 6 | Whiteley’s account | -- | 5 0 0 | -- | - | “ 7 | Income Tax | -- | -- | 10 0 0 | - | “ 8 | Water Rate | -- | -- | 2 4 0 | - | “ 9 | Poor Rate | -- | -- | 5 0 0 | - | “ 10 | Christmas Rent | -- | -- | 25 0 0 | - | “ 11 | One quarter Gas, } | | | | - | | due Christmas } | -- | 5 0 0 | -- | - | “ 15 | Housemaid | -- | -- | -- | - | “ 16 | Parlourmaid | -- | -- | -- | - | “ 17 | Cook | -- | -- | -- | - | “ 18 | Worth | -- | -- | -- | - | “ 19 | Mrs. Jones | -- | -- | -- | - | “ 20 | Potatoes | 0 10 0 | -- | -- | - | “ 25 | Fish account | -- | -- | -- | - | “ 27 | Sundry Groceries | -- | -- | -- | - | “ 28 | Coal | -- | 5 0 0 | -- | - | | +-------------+--------------+-------------> - | | Total | 0 10 0 | 15 0 0 | 42 4 0 | - +--------+---------------------+-------------+--------------+-------------> - - - +--------+---------------------+-------------+-------------> - | | | Wages | Dress | - | | | | | - | | +-------------+-------------> - | 1887 | | £ _s._ _d._| £ _s._ d_._| - | Jan. 1 | Messrs. Slater & Co.| -- | -- | - | “ 5 | Smith | -- | -- | - | “ 6 | Whiteley’s account | -- | -- | - | “ 7 | Income Tax | -- | -- | - | “ 8 | Water Rate | -- | -- | - | “ 9 | Poor Rate | -- | -- | - | “ 10 | Christmas Rent | -- | -- | - | “ 11 | One quarter Gas, } | | | - | | due Christmas } | -- | -- | - | “ 15 | Housemaid | 5 0 0 | -- | - | “ 16 | Parlourmaid | 6 0 0 | -- | - | “ 17 | Cook | 7 10 0 | -- | - | “ 18 | Worth | -- | 20 0 0 | - | “ 19 | Mrs. Jones | -- | -- | - | “ 20 | Potatoes | -- | -- | - | “ 25 | Fish account | -- | -- | - | “ 27 | Sundry Groceries | -- | -- | - | “ 28 | Coal | -- | -- | - | | +-------------+-------------> - | | Total | 18 10 0 | 20 0 0 | - +--------+---------------------+-------------+-------------> - - - +--------+---------------------+-------------+-------------+ - | | | Washing | Total | - | | | | | - | | +-------------+-------------+ - | 1887 | | £ _s._ _d._| £ _s._ _d._| - | Jan. 1 | Messrs. Slater & Co.| -- | 5 0 0 | - | “ 5 | Smith | -- | 1 0 0 | - | “ 6 | Whiteley’s account | -- | 6 10 0 | - | “ 7 | Income Tax | -- | 10 0 0 | - | “ 8 | Water Rate | -- | 2 4 0 | - | “ 9 | Poor Rate | -- | 5 0 0 | - | “ 10 | Christmas Rent | -- | 25 0 0 | - | “ 11 | One quarter Gas, } | | | - | | due Christmas } | -- | 5 0 0 | - | “ 15 | Housemaid | -- | 5 0 0 | - | “ 16 | Parlourmaid | -- | 6 0 0 | - | “ 17 | Cook | -- | 7 10 0 | - | “ 18 | Worth | -- | 20 0 0 | - | “ 19 | Mrs. Jones | 2 0 0 | 2 0 0 | - | “ 20 | Potatoes | -- | 0 10 0 | - | “ 25 | Fish account | -- | 3 0 0 | - | “ 27 | Sundry Groceries | -- | 2 0 0 | - | “ 28 | Coal | -- | 5 0 0 | - | | +-------------+-------------+ - | | Total | 2 0 0 |110 14 0 | - +--------+---------------------+-------------+-------------+ - -etiquette for doctors to send in their bills made out in items, instead -of that business way of ‘To medical attendance, &c.,’ for I cannot see -why they should not. Even a lawyer gives items of his detestable -accounts; and what should we say to a modiste who sent in her bill, ‘To -dress and draperies to date,’ without items? I like to know what I am -paying for; and why should not my case, mentioned above, be the case of -many? One word before I leave the doctor--pay his bill at once; no one -is kept waiting longer than a doctor; no one _usually_ deserves his -money more; it is a disagreeable bill to keep about, and should be -always settled as soon as possible. - -Now for one hint more, as applying both to meals and money. If you want -to save begin with the butcher and the brewer--not that I for one moment -want to run down beer--my husband being a brewer, I should not be likely -to do so; and I mention this fact to show I cannot be a rabid -teetotaler--but I do say and maintain that beer is not necessary for -women and for women servants, that young people especially do not -require stimulants--I, for one, never took either wine or beer until I -had passed the pleasant age of thirty-one or thirty-two--and that milk -is far better for both servants and children, youths and maidens, than -malt liquor of any sort or description, and that therefore milk should -be a somewhat large item in the housekeeping accounts. Angelina should -have milk for luncheon and milk instead of that odious tea after dinner; -Mary Jane should be encouraged to drink milk with her supper, and a -proportionate save is at once made in the accounts, though, after all, -one can only give general ideas on this subject, as, of course, -individual tastes have to be studied, and no one person’s expenditure is -quite a guide for another’s. Many people dislike milk, and this subject -of a pleasant beverage is one that often harasses me mentally a good -bit, for I don’t honestly think filtered boiled water pleasant -(unfiltered unboiled water is unsafe drinking), and unless we fall back -on milk and home-made lemonade, we are rather hopeless, for beer is out -of the question, as far as I am concerned, in kitchen and schoolroom, -and if some genius would invent something cheap, healthy, palatable, and -without alcohol in it, I for one will patronise him largely, and give -him honourable mention, if not a medal, all to himself. - -Still, until that is done I strongly advise Angelina to pay the milkman -rather than the brewer, and by drinking milk herself to set an example -which will speak louder than any amount of argument. And general ideas, -too, can only be given on the subject of meals. Yet general ideas are -most useful as a species of foundation on which to raise the rest of the -fabric, so I will shortly sketch out now a foundation scheme that should -be of great assistance to those girls who are beginning housekeeping on -small means, and less knowledge of the subject on which depends so much -of their welfare and happiness. - -It maybe of some little assistance to Angelina if I begin my short -dissertation on meals by giving her one or two hints as to what to have -for breakfast, before passing on to other subjects, as in some small -households this always appears to me to be somewhat of a stumbling-block -to a young mistress, accustomed to see a large amount of variety, -prepared for a grown-up family. - -What is eaten for breakfast depends, naturally, a great deal on -individual tastes, and there are endless little dishes that require the -attention of a first-rate cook; but Angelina and Edwin must rise -superior to this, for they will not be able to afford such things even -if they desire them, and I do hope they do not, for I do not know a more -despicable way of spending one’s time or one’s money than in squandering -it over food and expensive cooks. If things are nice and are nicely sent -to table, that should suffice, and I think perhaps a few simple hints on -the subject would not be out of place, for while Angelina should, of -course, order carefully all that is required, I see no reason why she -should rack her brain and harass her cook, particularly when that damsel -will have to do a great deal besides merely cooking the breakfast. - -Whatever else there is not, there should be a little fruit. Oranges, -pears, apples, and grapes are cheap enough if purchased with sense, and -as ‘dessert,’ as a rule, is unnecessary save for appearances--and we are -too sensible to think only of these--I should advise the fruit that -nobody appears to grudge the money for then; appearing at breakfast, -where it makes the table look pretty, and where it is really good for -both young and old folks, too. Then, if possible, have either honey or -marmalade, it is much healthier and cheaper than butter, and generally -try to have either a tongue (3_s._ 6_d._) or a nice ham (8_s._ 6_d._) in -cut, it is such a useful thing to have in the house; as also are -sardines (1_s._ a box, large size, 6½_d._ small), as if unexpected -folk drop in to luncheon, or supper be required instead of dinner, they -are there to ‘fall back upon’; and if they appear at breakfast some -really fresh eggs, nicely fried bacon, curried kidneys or plain kidneys, -mushrooms, a most healthy dish, and not too expensive at some times of -the year; curried eggs and rice, bloaters, and bloater-toast, -occasionally a fresh sole, a mackerel split open, peppered, and salted -and grilled, a cutlet of cod, an occasional sausage (and ever since I -can remember we always have had sausages for breakfast on Sundays), form -a list from which a single dish can be chosen, and which should suffice, -more especially when we consider the honey and fruit, both of which look -nice on the table, are more wholesome, and save the butter and meat -bill. And once the cook is trained into our ways, and she knows what to -do, there is no need to order breakfast, a great comfort for those who -have much domestic routine of food to think of before beginning the day. -Do not have hot buttered toast or hot bread. Those two items make the -butter bill into a nightmare, and are also most unhealthy, but have nice -fresh brown bread, Nevill’s hot-water bread, the nicest bread made, -oat-cake (2_s._ a large tin at any good grocer’s), and fresh, crisp, dry -toast, and then I think neither Edwin nor Angelina can complain, more -especially if a nice white cloth (freshly taken from the press, in which -all cloths should be put folded the moment they are taken from the -table), with a pretty red border, and nicely folded napkins, each in its -own ring and each embroidered with initials in red, be used, and I think -that I shall not be suspected of being a fussy old maid, if I suggest -that the crumbs should be brushed off by the maid and the cloth folded -with Angelina’s assistance, in which case it will last twice as long as -it would if, as usual, it is crumpled up and shaken out at the back door -in a manner much affected by careless servants. But these trifles save -the washing bill, which in these days is no light consideration. - -At first another meal that will trouble our bride is that most necessary -of all meals--luncheon. By-and-bye, when little folks have to be thought -of, this midday dinner becomes a very easy business, but I must own that -luncheon and the servant’s dinner combined is a terrible trouble during -the first year or two of married life. - -I think it was Shirley Brooks who used to say he believed that were -women left to themselves they would never have dinner at all, and that -they would either keep something in a cupboard and eat from it when -positively driven to do so by the pangs of hunger, or else they would -have a tray brought up with tea, bread-and-butter, and an egg, and think -they had done well; and I confess freely that my first idea when I hear -that the lord and master of my establishment is going out to dine is, -‘Thank goodness, there will be no dinner to order;’ but this is all very -well occasionally, albeit I don’t see why we women should not have the -same amount of food alone as when in company, but it becomes serious if -it goes on for long; therefore I once more impress upon Angelina to be -sure and have her proper luncheon, just as she used to do at home with -her sisters and mother before she was married. Another reason for the -midday meal is that no servant will ever grumble at the food prepared -for them if it has first been into the dining-room, and a good deal of -trouble of this kind would be saved. It is, I own, very difficult to -find food for three women that is economical as well as satisfactory, -but a fair arrangement would be as follows:--Of course there will be a -small piece of beef on Sunday; for a small household about 6 lbs. of the -ribs of beef is best. This should be boned (the bones coming in for -Monday night’s soup) and rolled, and sent to table with horse-radish, -placed on the meat; Yorkshire pudding, which should be cooked _under the -meat_, and sent in on a separate very hot dish, and appropriate -vegetables according to the time of year. For a large hungry family a -piece of 12 lbs. of the top side of the round should be chosen. There is -only very little bone here, and not too much fat, and besides being -cheaper than any other joint it is most economical, and as nice as -anything else. But more of this anon. - -The beef can be cold for Angelina and the maids on Monday, with, say, a -lemon pudding. On Tuesday ‘dormers’ can be made, with rice and cold -beef, and sent in very hot, with nice gravy, and simple pudding; a mould -of cornflour and jam is delicious. Wednesday, a small amount of fish -could be purchased, and cold beef used if desired. Rice pudding, made -with a méringue crust, is very good indeed. Thursday, if no more beef be -left, a nice boiled rabbit could be had, with some bacon round, and a -custard pudding. Friday, 1½ lb. of the lean part of the neck of -mutton would make a delicious stew, and pancakes could follow. Saturday, -about three pounds of pork could be roasted, and sent in with a savoury -pudding and apple-sauce, and a sago pudding to conclude the repast. This -could be finished cold at Sunday’s supper. Here is variety and economy -combined. One great thing I find in housekeeping on a larger scale is to -have one or two good-sized joints, and to fill in the corners with fish, -poultry, and rabbits. Fish can always be contracted for cheaply. I pay -2_s._ a day, and get an ample supply for dinner and breakfast, and -sometimes enough for the schoolroom tea too; and poultry and rabbits can -often be bought at the London markets very inexpensively, while I -procure my chickens from delightful people in Liverpool, Messrs. Hasson -and Co., 12 Dawson Street, who sell them to me at prices varying from -4_s._ 6_d._ to 5_s._ 6_d._ the couple, according to the time of year. - -Edwin’s dinner requires, of course, more consideration, and he may have -very pronounced tastes that require special studying, but in any case I -say it is well and economical to have soup and fish before the meat. -Soup made from bones and vegetables is as cheap and as nice as anything -I know, and sixpence or a shilling a day will keep you in fish, if you -set about this properly; but the great thing about all meals is to have -what you may like sent to table looking nice, and to have none of the -accessories forgotten, an elaborate and expensive meal ungracefully -served on ugly china, or without flowers, and with half the condiments -forgotten, being often enough to spoil any one’s temper, when a cheap, -well-cooked dinner, prettily and tastefully put before Edwin, will -satisfy him, more especially when the household books are equally -satisfactory when pay-day comes. - -Let me conclude this chapter by once more impressing on our young -housekeepers never to allow jars and squabbles about money. At first -starting know everything about your income, and settle exactly what is -to suffice for dress and food, and have a settled day, once a month is -best, on which to receive that allowance. Should Edwin have a fixed -income this is a comparatively easy matter to settle between husband and -wife; but should it fluctuate, as the income does of a man who lives by -his pen, pencil, or even by stockbroking (a manner of living that would -drive me mad) or by rents from land, it is safe to arrange expenditure -on the basis of the _least_ sum obtained by these means, drawing an -average for the last three years, any surplus going on joyfully towards -the second year, towards procuring books, taking a holiday, or bringing -something home for the house; there being no pleasure like that of -spending money we can feel is thoroughly our own, and that may actually -be wasted if we like on something delightful, because it is not required -to pay some odious bill or replace some ugly and necessary article. - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -THE HOUSEMAID’S CLOSET, AND GLASS AND CHINA. - - -One of the very first things to be recollected, either in the kitchen or -housemaid’s pantry, is that there should be a place for everything, and -yet no holes or corners where dilapidated dusters, old glass-cloths, -bottles, and other _débris_ could be stuffed away; and another axiom to -remember is that every glass, tumbler, cup, saucer--in fact, every -possession one has--should be neatly scheduled and kept in a book, which -should be inspected and gone through twice a year, or when any change -takes place in the establishment. That disagreeable remark, that so -often completely floors a mistress, ‘’Twasn’t here when I came,’ would -in this case never be heard, as the sight of the list, duly signed and -dated by both mistress and maid, would of course be a complete answer to -any such statement; and seeing at stated intervals what glass and china -had fallen victims to the housemaid is a wonderful deterrent, and also -saves any large and sudden call upon the purse, which always comes at a -time when the exchequer is at its lowest, but which need never occur in -an appreciable manner should each article be replaced the moment it is -broken. I am no advocate for having what is called best things, holding -that one’s everyday existence should be as refined and cultured as when -one has ‘company,’ yet it is necessary in most of our households to have -best glass and a best dinner-service, and these should be kept in a -proper glass closet, under lock and key, as indeed should all spare -glass and china; for, if the most trustworthy housemaid has an unlimited -supply at her command, she will never tell of each separate smash, and -reserves the grand total for the bi-annual day of reckoning with the -book, when the mistress has often to make an outlay that is most -disheartening to her, as regards not only the cost, but the blow it is -to her to discover the carelessness and deception of, perhaps, a -favourite maid, who would have been neither careless nor deceiving had -she had to come to her mistress for every single glass over and above -the few she had at her command. - -Nothing has altered more in the last twenty years, both in character and -price, than glass and china, and nothing shows the taste of the mistress -of the house more than her plates and tumblers. No one has now any -excuse for having ugly things, because good glass is as cheap as bad, -and good china can be had by any one who has the taste to choose it, and -the knowledge where to go and buy each separate thing. Granted that we -have selected our saucepans, our basins, and other necessary things -known to any one, and to be chosen from a list either sent for from -Maple or Whiteley--for Maple, I have discovered, issues these lists -too--and which, it seems to me, would only be waste of paper and time -for me to enumerate here, we must, of course, now proceed to think about -our dinner set. The best everyday one I know of is a species of plain -white china supplied by Maple, and which has the owner’s monogram on the -edge of the dish. These plates and dishes are so extremely cheap that -when I say they are 2_s._ a dozen I scarcely expect to be believed, and -even now I cannot help thinking there must be a mistake; but the rest of -the service was equally inexpensive, and I really do not think I am -making an error in giving this as the price. I invariably have my -soup-tureens, sauceboats, and vegetable dishes made without handles--a -pretty, rather oval shape, with the monogram on the side and on the top -of the cover. There is nothing makes a table look worse than chipped or -mended crockery; and how often has quite a nice service been spoiled by -the fact that either the handles were knocked off and smashed, or else -they were riveted on. Now if we have no handles or ornamental knobs to -be knocked off, the service lasts three times as long as it otherwise -would. The plain white service also insures cleanliness and absence of -greasy or black finger-marks, and one never tires of this as one does of -the elaborate patterns and colours some people prefer, and which are -extremely difficult to match once the manufacturers have broken up the -design. - -I remember some friends of mine who had a service with a whole flight of -red storks on, flying over each plate, and anything more ugly and -incongruous it is difficult to think of. I never dined there without -remembering the storks, whereas a plain service would not have been -noticed in any way. For a best dinner service we should have something -better, for of course the china I have been speaking of is not china -really; that is to say, I would not see my fingers through it if I held -it up to the strongest light that was ever made, and young people who -are asked what they would like in the shape of a wedding present should -remember that Mortlock, in Oxford Street, has quite charming designs, -but even here I should distinctly advise, buy the plain ware, with -either monogram or crest, for of this one never tires. - -I once saw a charming dinner set that had been made by Mortlock; it was -a beautiful pale buff ground, with a black monogram, and the china was -of a delicious feel and touch, and as light as possible. Each vegetable -dish was an artistic shape, and, in fact, if ever my ship comes home I -shall have one like it; at present I have plain white china with a pink -and gold band, and the crest and monogram in the centre of each plate, -&c.; of course, this was a gift, and the nuisance it is is dreadful, for -when a plate is broken I have to send the bits to Staffordshire to be -copied, where they keep me waiting months for it, and charge me so -highly that I am beginning to detest the whole thing. - -The glass for everyday wear and tear should be as inexpensive as -possible. I like quite plain glass; tumblers cost about 6_s._ a dozen, -and the glasses for wine are equally cheap; but for best glass Salviati -ware is lovely, and really, if bought judiciously, is not so very -expensive after all. Besides which, it allows one to have a different -set of glasses for each person. I have a dozen different sets of three -each, so that if one be broken and cannot be replaced exactly like its -predecessor it is not a set of thirty-six that is done for, but only a -set of three, which after all need not be spoiled quite, as having odd -glasses one still more odd does not make the blot on the table that it -otherwise would. - -The finger-glasses should also be Salviati ware. Another suggestion for -Angelina, should she be asked to write down a list of things she is most -anxious to receive as presents--a good plan, by the way, for birthdays -and Christmas, and one we always follow, as then one is sure of -receiving something one requires, and not the endless rubbish that -accumulates when well-meaning friends send gifts _quâ_ gifts to rid -themselves of an obligation; and who crack their brains pondering what -you would like, and at last send you something you not only don’t want -but think hideous, albeit it may have cost pounds. Water bottles should -invariable be coloured. The Bohemian ware--a lovely green hue--is -particularly useful for this purpose, and there is a charming shop in -Piccadilly where all sorts of coloured glasses and bottles are to be -procured--opposite Burlington House--Douglas and Co.--and nowhere else -is this charming glass as cheap and pretty as it is there. I got a sweet -blue bottle and glass for a bedroom for 9_d._, and another, quite a -beauty, for 1_s._ 6_d._ At these prices one can well remain ‘mistress of -oneself though China fall.’ The teacups and saucers can also be white or -pale buff, but my favourite ware is Minton’s ivy patterned china. We -used to have it at home, and I have it still, as it is one of those -delightful things that one can always match. It is a little expensive, -but then it is so pretty! The cups are all white, but the handles -represent a bit of ivy, the leaves of which are in relief round the -handle, and just give a pleasant, fresh look to the breakfast table. The -plates have a wreath of ivy also in relief on them, and breakfast -dishes, cruets, and plates that stand heat are made to match; so that -all can be _en suite_, except the hot-water dishes. These are plain -white, with a double dish holding hot water, that keeps bacon &c. hot, -_not_ for late comers--these lazy people should never be considered--but -for those who may prefer fish first, or like to have a second helping. -This tea ware is good enough for best as well as everyday wear; but be -sure and avoid the species that is not raised and has a gilt edge, for -no one who has not seen the two sets together could understand how -different they can be. I do not like gilt on anything; it is always -vulgar, always suggestive of _nouveaux riches_, and on china has a way -of washing off that is most trying, unless it happens to be burnished, -when it costs a young fortune, and one’s heart is broken every time a -cup or plate receives a jar. A very good way in schoolrooms or -nurseries, of which more anon, to secure the smallest amount of -breakages is to give each child its own cup, plate, and saucer, each set -to be of a different pattern. There are some lovely specimen cups, the -set of which costs about 7_s._ 6_d._--not a bad birthday present, -especially if a silver teaspoon is added, with pale yellow, marguerite, -and brown foliage depicted upon them. The same style of cup has also a -beautiful design of blackberries, and I have also seen a pale pink daisy -that was perhaps the most charming of the lot. If a child’s own plate -&c. get broken one hears of it at once, and they are at once replaced. -The governess has her own set too, and it is a good plan to have two or -three extra sets for schoolroom visitors, for in well-regulated houses, -where the governess makes herself pleasant, schoolroom tea is a -delightful meal, and, if shared by intimate friends, makes a pleasant -break for the governess, and gives the children an opportunity of seeing -outsiders, and learning how to behave when company is present. - -The best dessert service that I know of is to be bought at Hewett’s -Baker Street Bazaar. It is Oriental-looking and most uncommon. It has a -green ground, and a raised pattern of flowers, butterflies, &c., and -looks so good, no one has any idea of its cheapness; for example, a man -who set up to be a great judge of china once was dining with us, and -taking up one of my dessert plates, he began to expatiate to the lady on -his left hand on the beauty and rarity thereof. I let him go on for some -time, and at last I told him the price--2_s._ each plate; and, though he -was silent and appeared to believe me, I am certain he did nothing of -the kind. The dishes are dearer, but not too dear, and are all low and -nice shapes, and tiny plates can be obtained to match for preserved -fruits or French bonbons, all of which look nice upon a dinner-table. - -Mortlock has also a plain white dessert service, of which the edges of -the plate are pierced, and the dishes are like baskets, which are -charming, and not too expensive; but these are rather colourless on a -table unless a great deal of scarlet is used too in the flowers, and I -prefer a little colour introduced myself. Still, if we avoid those -terrible swans on sham ponds, with holes in their backs, like the Elle -women, to hold flowers, that used to be sold with the white service, we -might do worse than have this one. Of course, real china, Crown Derby, -and Worcester are all nice for this purpose; but we who cannot afford -this style of property can be consoled with the idea that there are -other things quite as pretty within our reach, although, maybe, they are -neither as costly nor as precious, nor as liable to be broken. - -While we are on the subject of glass and china I should like to say a -few words more about the arrangement of the glass and china, and -especially about the everyday dinner and breakfast table management, as -in a small establishment it entirely rests upon the shoulders of the -mistress whether the table presents a charming appearance or whether it -does not. I will not suppose that Angelina burdens herself with -experienced maidens, but I will think she has taken my advice and -secured a couple of bright pleasant girls, of whom she can make friends, -and who are not already spoiled for her use in some large establishment, -and this being so, she will no doubt at first have to lay her table -herself. This may be considered a hardship by our bride, but I am quite -sure she will soon cease to regard it as one. Anyhow, I beg she will try -my nice girls, and if they fail, why, she can but fall back on her -‘experienced’ ones after all, but she must not take them haphazard, but -must select them as she does her personal friends, because then she -will, knowing something about their family, their inherited tendencies -and their dispositions, be able to know how to manage them. We do not -‘make friends’ with strangers unless we know something of their -forbears, and this rule should apply to strange servants quite as much -as it does to acquaintances who do not live with us, and only come in -now and then, and are easily dropped should they prove uncongenial and -disagreeable. - -It is so easy to get your maiden into nice ways if she have no bad ones -of her own, out of which you have to take her first, and, beginning at -once to show her how you like things, you will soon be able to rely on -her, and she will take a pride in copying you, and you will soon have -your reward in service that is real, because it comes from the heart and -not from the eye. - -I am a great advocate for white china, because the washing of this -cannot be scamped, and as far as possible all breakfast china should be -white, with just a pattern of ivy or daisies, as described above; and -the breakfast-table could be laid something as follows, putting the -mistress at the head of the table if she wishes, and the master _at the -side_, not at the foot--a most dreary arrangement, unless the breakfast -table is filled by others besides the host and hostess, which in -Angelina’s case is most unlikely. In front of Angelina is arranged the -breakfast equipage, and I strongly advise her to have either cocoa or -nicely made coffee, and to taboo that wretched tea that destroys so many -digestions and unstrings so many nerves. Coffee is not more expensive, -and a charming drink is made from equal parts of Mocha, East Indian, and -Plantation coffee at 1_s._ 5½_d._ a pound and 1_s._ 4½_d._ It -should be bought in the berry, and ground each morning; but as this is -too much labour in our small household, I should suggest buying half a -dozen pounds, two of each kind at a time, mixing them carefully and -keeping them in a tin biscuit-box, filling up a smaller canister that -holds a pound as required. I always do this, and the coffee is as -fragrant and good the last day I use from it as on the first. This -should be made for two people in one of Ash’s kaffee kanns, purchasable -in Oxford Street, the best coffee machine I know of anywhere, and, being -furnished with a spirit-lamp, it has always means of keeping the coffee -hot, and the cheerful song of the little lamp is very pleasant when we -come down on a cold wet morning. Of course the milk must be boiled, and -sent in very hot in a china jug to match the china, and Barbadoes raw -sugar is better with it than the ordinary lump. Very pretty basins, both -for moist and lump sugar, can be bought at the Baker Street Bazaar, in -Oriental china, for 1_s._ or 2_s._; butter-dishes at 6_d._, in blue and -white china, also marmalade and honey pots, for about 2_s._; and as the -blue harmonises with green, these pots can be used quite well with my -favourite ivy service, of which I spoke before. - -In the centre of the table there should always be an art pot with a -plant in. Of course I know people _will_ consider that expensive, and -will sometimes even put another enemy of mine (a worse enemy even than -that terrible hat-stand!) in this place of honour--I mean a cruet-stand. -But let me tell you what this expensive item has cost me since this time -last year--just five shillings. I had my pot for years, naturally, and -this is not included in the outlay, but this some years ago cost 3_s._, -so no one can object on the score of expense. In this pot I had planted -a cocos palm, 3_s._ 6_d._, a most graceful plant, and the other 1_s._ -6_d._ went for three tiny ferns, all of which are flourishing mightily, -and will soon have to be transplanted and make room for smaller ones -again. Any lady fond of gardening could have planted these herself, and, -naturally, cheaper plants are to be had; but the fine, graceful foliage -of the cocos is so pretty, and the plant lasts so long, that I can -heartily recommend it from long experience. - -Of course, round the centre plant can be arranged three or four specimen -glasses of flowers; but this I have never time to do except on special -occasions, yet it adds much to the effect of a breakfast-table, and no -young housekeeper who has not a settled occupation, such as keeps me -employed from nine until one, should ever allow her table to be -flowerless or ugly. In front of Edwin should be placed any hot food -provided for breakfast, on nice china hot-water dishes; the bread should -be placed on a wooden bread platter, that has neither a text nor a moral -reflection carved on it--two things that always seem to me singularly -out of place on a bread-stand; and the knife should be one of those very -nice ivory-handled ones, made on purpose by Mappin and Webb, I believe, -that cost 7_s._ 6_d._, but that last years. - -At the corner of the table, between Edwin and Angelina, should be neatly -arranged salt, pepper, and mustard. A tiny set of cruets for breakfast -can be bought to match the ivy festooned ware, and is as pretty as can -be. Very pretty white china salt-cellars &c. can be also purchased, with -white china spoons to serve with; and Doulton makes charming sets also, -which go with any service, and are very strong, but these have plated -mounts; and I am not nearly as fond of them as I am of plain china, as -these always look and are clean; and either plated ware or silver -tarnish very soon, and make a great deal of work for our one pair of -hands; which is one very strong reason why Angelina should put away all -the pretty silver salt-cellars she is sure to receive when she is -married; reserving these and other handsome possessions until she can -afford a butler, or until she has trained her maidens well, and is -justified in taking extra help, under the housemaid, when, if she likes, -she can bring it out and use it daily. - -As in every other department, in the housemaid’s department should rules -and regulations be found. She should clean certain rooms on certain -days; she should never leave her silver in greasy, or her knives in hot -water; she should keep soda in her sink just as the cook does; and she -should be instructed how to keep her glass clean and bright, a smeared -glass or plate being at once returned to her for alteration should she -bring it up to table. - -Let the housemaid, moreover, have two or three coarse dust-sheets for -covering the furniture when she is sweeping and dusting (and see she -uses them), a large piece of ‘crash’ to place in front of the fireplace, -when she is cleaning the grate, and a housemaid’s box and gloves. She -must, furthermore, have three dusters, three glass-cloths, a good -chamois leather, a set of brushes and plate-brushes, a decanter-drainer, -a wooden bowl for washing up in, which must be kept free from grease of -any kind, and she must wash out her dusters for herself. This makes them -last much longer than they otherwise would, and if she has only a -certain number she cannot waste and spoil them. Little things like these -are what almost ruin a young housekeeper, because she does not know how -to manage, and because she is too proud, as a rule, to ask any one why -dusters vanish into thin air, and why the washing bill adds up so -mysteriously. - -Silver can be kept beautifully clean if washed in clean soda water -daily, and then cleaned with a little whitening; which glass should be -always rubbed bright with a leather. - -These items appear insignificant, but I am sure they will be useful -hints to many of my less experienced readers. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -FIRST SHOPPING. - - -In life, as in everything else, it is extremely difficult to draw the -line anywhere. I want both my young people to care about their house, -and know every detail of its management, but they must not become -domestic dummies, and think of nothing save how to make a shilling do -the work of two, and how to circumvent that terrible butcher, or that -still more awful laundry-woman. Once started, the details that seem so -ugly and wearisome on paper need never be gone into again, but it is -necessary to have some plan and stick to it, else the jarring of the -wheels of the domestic car will always be heard, and life will indeed be -stale, dull, and unprofitable. People provide their own poetry, my young -friends, and life is a very good thing if you do not expect too much -from it, or if you will not refuse to accept other folks’ experience, -for she has nothing new to give you, nothing to show you she has not -shown us all before you. You are not the only young people who have -started on a diet of roses and cream, and not the only ones either who -have found this disagree with them. So buckle too manfully, and work -your way onwards, being quite sure that every fresh home started and -kept going on excellent sound principles of health and beauty does a -work little known of, less understood about, perhaps, by those who -inhabit it, but none the less beneficial to all those who come within -its influence. - -But I do not mean to preach a sermon, much as I should like to do so, -but only to preface my remarks on the subject of our first shopping and -how we should begin our scheme of decoration. - -It is usual for the landlord to allow a certain sum for the decoration -of a house; but rarely, if ever, does that sum allow of anything like -really artistic papering and painting. Yet, I maintain, artistic -surroundings are far more important than handsome furniture or even an -elaborate wedding dress; and I think if we have common sense, and find a -good journeyman carpenter and painter, who will work himself with his -men under our directions, we shall manage very well indeed. - -Could we afford it, of course, I would employ Morris, or Smee’s people, -or Collinson and Lock, with their delicious arrangement of ‘fittings’; -but we cannot, and our first business is to find some inexpensive man -who will do as he is told. Then we can buy our papers and set to work. -There is no saving like that we can make in this first work, if we can -only put our hand on our man. And when this is done our next step is to -describe the work we shall require to be done and to ask him to send in -a contract, which is to be for everything, and is not to be departed -from on any account whatever. - -_The_ great advantage to me in employing our own man is that we buy our -own wall-papers &c. just wherever we like, and can, moreover, obtain a -large discount on them if we pay cash, and insinuate that we expect the -aforesaid discount as a matter of course. Then we can start on our -shopping and to enjoy ourselves, though I question much if shopping be -quite as charming an occupation as one expects it to be. Certainly, -unless one starts with a clear conception of one’s needs, a long day’s -shopping can result in nothing save great confusion of ideas, and a -fearful consciousness that one has bought the very things one ought not -to have purchased, and entirely forgotten the very articles of which we -were most in want. - -To avoid this disagreeable termination to our day, we must never start -in a hurry, never be obliged to hasten over our purchases; and once our -minds are made up on the subject of colours, we must not allow a -‘sweetly pretty’ pattern or beautiful hue to tempt us. Having made up -our minds what we want, let us buy that, and nothing else. - -Therefore, before going out really to purchase, we must settle -definitely what are our requirements; and after really making the -acquaintance of our house, the next thing to do is to find out what -pretty things can be bought, at which shops, and at the most reasonable -rate; and this is only to be done by a painstaking inspection of what -the different establishments have to offer us, and by not disdaining to -look in at shop windows, keeping both ears and eyes open, and using our -senses and, if possible, other people’s experiences, as much as we can. -This is a long and tedious process, but one worth going through, if we -really want our house to be a home, and the experience we purchase with -our furniture will go a long way towards helping us to solve the problem -set before so many of us: how to live pleasantly on small means. One -axiom we can undoubtedly lay to heart and remember, and that is that no -one establishment should be resorted to for everything. Long experience -teaches me that each shop has its specialties; it may supply everything -from beds to food, from saucepans to grand pianos, still there is always -some one thing that another shop has better and cheaper, and it is as -well to find this out before we start away to buy our furniture, for I -have often been made very angry by seeing exactly the same thing I gave -5_s._ for in one shop sold at 2_s._ 6_d._ in a less fashionable but -equally accessible neighbourhood, while nothing varies as much as the -price of wall-papers. I have known the self-same paper sold at 2_s._ -6_d._, 3_s._ 6_d._, and 4_s._ a piece by three different firms, all -within a stone’s throw of each other; and, naturally, patterns alter -from year to year, and we can scarcely ever match a paper unless we -purchase one designed by some well-known designer, such as Morris, -Jeffreys, Shufferey, Collinson and Lock, and Mr. E. Pither, of Mortimer -Street, W., for whose cheap artistic papers I for one can never be too -profoundly grateful. - -But even more important than to find where to get the cheapest things is -it to consult the house itself on what will suit it best in the way of -furniture, and we should never allow ourselves to buy a single thing -until we have taken our house into our confidence, and discovered all -about its likes and dislikes. This sounds ridiculous, I know; but I am -convinced a house is a sentient thing, and becomes part and parcel of -those who live in it in a most mysterious way. Anyhow, to put it on the -most prosaic grounds, what would be the use of buying a corner cupboard -that would not fit into any corner, or in purchasing a sofa for which -there was no place to be found once it was bought? - -It is, therefore, far better to know our house thoroughly before we -really begin to furnish; and I cannot too strongly advise all ladies to -buy merely the bare necessaries of life before they go into their houses -to live, reserving the rest of their money until they are quite sure -what the house really wants most. But here let me whisper a little hint -to our bride: a man before he is married is apt to be far more -generously minded than he is once he has his prize safe; therefore, -there should be a clear understanding that so much is to be spent really -and positively; otherwise the bridegroom may think, as many men do, -that, as things have ‘done’ for a while, they can ‘do’ for ever, and he -may button up his pockets and refuse to buy anything more than he has -already done. I have known more than one man do this; and even the best -man that ever lived--by which every woman means her own husband, of -course--never can understand either that things wear out or women -require any money to spend. - -When starting out on our shopping, we should put down first of all what -we wish to buy, and then what we wish to spend, and we should never be -persuaded to spend more on one thing than the outside price we have put -down for it in our own schedule. If we do, something will have to go -short, and that may be something very important both for health and -comfort. - -You know individually what you can afford, so make a note of that, and -keep to it firmly, never allowing yourself to spend any more on that -particular thing, thinking you can save elsewhere, for your list should -be so exact that you cannot possibly spare anything you have set down in -it. - -And now another axiom to be remembered when shopping: never allow an -upholsterer to direct your taste or to tell you what to buy, neither -allow him to talk you out of anything on which you have settled after -mature consideration. - -The best of upholsterers has only an upholsterer’s notions, and -naturally rather wishes to sell what he has, rather more than he desires -to procure you what you want. He spots an _ingénue_ the moment she -enters his shop, and he cannot help remembering that here is the person -likely to buy his venerable ‘shop-keepers,’ and he brings them forward -until, bewildered by the quantity and ashamed not to buy after all the -trouble she thinks she has given, Miss Innocence spends her money, and -regrets her stupidity for the rest of her life. - -All young people starting in life are so very certain that they are -going to do better than any one else, that they invariably scoff at the -idea of an upholsterer being able to direct them, but let them start -prepared for this by my hint, and let them keep their eyes open; and if -they do not see things that have not been brought to the light of day -for ages at first, and before the man has realised he has a forewarned -damsel and no _ingénue_ to deal with, they need never believe a word I -say for the future. But I have seen and watched this little comedy too -often not to know I am really stating a fact. - -Start on your shopping armed with this caution, your list, and a -determination to be content with what you can afford, and a -determination to get the prettiest things you can for your money, and -you will do well; and above all remember that your lines have fallen on -days when beauty and cheapness go hand in hand, and don’t hanker after -Turkey carpets, when the price of one would go far indeed to furnish the -whole of the room for which you would so like it, regardless of the -fact that if you purchase such an expensive luxury you will have nothing -whatever left with which to buy suitable chairs, tables, and plenishing -to match a carpet which is only fit to go where expense is no object. - -And please mark carefully the word ‘suitable,’ for there is no word so -absolutely set on one side in our English language. Do not be guided by -fashion, or by what some one else has done or means to do, or by -anything at all, save the length of your purse and the house where you -are to live; and recollect cheap things are easily replaced, while -expensive ones wear one to death in taking care of them, and in marking -sorrowfully how much sooner they fade or go into holes than we can -afford to replace them. - -If all this is remembered, laid to heart, and well thought over, the -first shopping can be commenced at any time, and should consist of a -careful selection of wall-papers and paints for at least the hall, -dining-room, and staircase. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -THE HALL. - - -Perhaps the most difficult part of a house to really make look nice is -the hall, especially in one of the small houses of the period, where -that tiresome man, the builder, appears to consider either that an -entrance to the house is not necessary at all, or that the smaller it -is, and the more the stairs are in evidence, the better and more -appropriate it is to Angelina’s lowly station in life; indeed, this -idiosyncrasy is not confined to small houses, for I know of more than -one good-sized domicile that is entirely spoiled by the manner in which -the staircase rises from the front door, scarcely allowing that room -enough to open, or which has not space even for the hat-stand and -hall-table to which the British matron is as a rule so very fondly -attached. However, there is now a distinct advance in the matter of the -hall in many of the new houses; and we will take it for granted that we -have a small space at all events that we can make the very best of, for -nothing adds so much to the appearance of a house as a nicely arranged -hall. Indeed, were I now beginning housekeeping, nothing should induce -me to take a house where there was not an appreciable distance between -the sitting-rooms and the front door, for if this latter opens direct on -them it is impossible to avoid draughts and constant catching of cold; a -nicely warmed sitting-room becoming well-nigh uninhabitable when the -front door is opened on a cold or windy night: a chill and cutting -draught enters, and in a moment a bad cold is caught. I know nothing -more important, therefore, than to consider the position of a front door -in choosing a house, as not only one’s comfort but much of one’s health -depends upon this. I have had this ‘borne in upon me,’ as the Shakers -would say, often and often, when I have been staying in a house where -there is literally not a square yard of hall, where the stairs and the -front door seem all one, and where the drawing-room literally opens out -into the place where the front door is. Even in not particularly cold -weather, nothing keeps such a house even warm, and the sudden changes of -temperature caused by this arrangement are so great that I have had to -live in a shawl and yet could not rise above freezing point; and, of -course, what it must be in the depth of winter I must leave my readers -to imagine. - -The first thing to look at, then, is what we can do with our hall, when -we have it. If the front door is very near us, we must hang over it a -good thick curtain. I should advise a double curtain of serge or felt. -This could be arranged on one of those delightful rods that are, I -believe, only to be purchased of Maple, and that move with the door -itself in some mysterious way, with a bracket arrangement, and that -prevents the necessity of drawing the curtain itself when the door is -opened. Of course this would only be for winter use and for when the -delightful east wind was blowing; but over all the doors in my hall I -have curtains which remain up all the year round, because they look so -nice, and are really of a great deal of use in more ways than one. As -the doors open inwards, these are only put up on the ordinary narrow -brass poles with rings, and are tied back with Liberty silk -handkerchiefs, or in several instances looped high with cords, as in -Illustration No. 1. This allows of the curtain being dropped in one -moment should more warmth be desired. These cords and tassels are -procurable at Smee’s, while the handkerchiefs are Liberty’s. A 3_s._ -6_d._ handkerchief, cut in half and hemmed, is the proper size to use -for this purpose, should they be preferred to the cords. Some of the -curtains are made of stamped velveteen at 2_s._ 3_d._ and 2_s._ 6_d._ -the yard, edged round the bottom and one side with a ball fringe to -match, and others are made of serge; but I prefer the velveteen--it -wears beautifully, and can be made to look as good as new by being -re-dipped by Pullar the dyer, who lives at Perth, who is very well -known, and has agents all over the kingdom, so there is no expense, -incurred in sending the things to him. The curtains over the doorways of -the sitting-rooms are always kept tied back, and I furthermore put in -tintacks down the sides nearest the wall to keep them in place, and to -keep out the draught. This does not harm the curtains in the least if -very small bits of tape are sewn on the material, and the nail inserted -in these, not in the curtains themselves. Over the door that leads into -the kitchen departments the curtains should be in one piece, capable of -being drawn; to keep this in place it is well to put the last ring over -the end of the pole, so that it cannot be drawn on more than one side. -This saves it from looking like a rag, which it would do could it be -drawn with equal ease both sides, and also secures that it shall remain -drawn over a door that would be always revealing all sorts of domestic -secrets were it not for the friendly shield of the concealing curtain, -in the praise of which I feel I cannot really say too much. - -[Illustration: FIG. 1.--Suggestion for draping arch in hall.] - -[Illustration: FIG. 2.--Suggestion for draping door in hall.] - -The flooring of the hall is our next consideration. If we have tiles, -and very many houses have tiles nowadays, I think I should be inclined -to say, leave the floor just as it is. If you put down a nice rug, dirty -boots soon reduce it to a state of dirt and squalor; and nicely washed -tiles really look as well as anything. Of course a good thick mat must -be placed at the front door. This is best purchased at Treloar’s, in -Ludgate Hill, for I really do believe his mats never wear out. I have -had one for years with ‘Salve’ on in red letters, and that mat is as -good now as the day on which I purchased it, and it has had the wear of -boys to contend with, to say nothing of, first, an extremely chalky -soil, and then a clay one. Behind the door I should put a brass stand, -just to hold the wet umbrellas. Maple has very pretty brass stands -indeed for about 25_s._ 6_d._; but when dry each member of the family -should be made to take his or her umbrella into their own room, and put -them in a corner there _not_ rolled up. The life of an umbrella is quite -doubled in length if this simple rule is remembered, and, indeed, if -there be a room where the umbrella can be allowed to dry, I should -advise its being put there at once open, for umbrella stands wear out -one’s umbrella quicker than any amount of wear. Very pretty stands are -now made from drain-pipes, which are painted, and in some cases -embellished with flowers made from clay in imitation of Barbotine ware; -but these are easily broken, and I think a brass one much the best for -all purposes. - -Now, on no account allow any one to hang up a coat or wrap in the hall. -First of all, a collection of coats and hats tempts a thief; and, -secondly, I cannot imagine anything more untidy-looking. The men of the -household can be easily trained to take their own especial property at -once into their own rooms, where there should be accommodation for them; -and visitors’ hats and coats can be taken possession of by the maid, and -hung up in the passage behind the curtained door that leads to the -kitchen, where they are out of sight at all events, and can be given -back to their owners quite as easily as if they were making our hall -like an old clothes shop, or filling it with water from outside. On no -account, therefore, buy a hall stand, brass hooks or a row of pegs in -some unobtrusive corner answering every purpose, as far as I can see. Of -course if the master comes in wet his garments must go straight to the -kitchen fire, anyhow; if he be dry, why should he not take his hat and -coat into his own dressing-room? We do not put on our bonnets and -jackets in the hall, or keep them there either, and I cannot myself see -why he should. But it is all a matter of management and use, and if he -be asked to begin properly by taking his property upstairs, I am quite -sure there will be no trouble about that detestable piece of furniture, -a hat-stand. - -Of course, nowadays no one thinks of having imitation marble-paper in -the hall--that monstrosity is at last never now to be met with; but the -hall paper is rather a difficult business, and must be chosen especially -to suit _the_ hall for which it is intended. A soft green paper makes -almost any hall and staircase look cheerful, but my pet paper is -undoubtedly Pither’s ‘blue blossom,’ at 1_s._ 6_d._ a piece, and I -especially recommend a dado here, but not a paper one--this soon gets -shabby. Children’s little paws, boxes going up and down, a thousand -things inseparable from a staircase, in the shape of wear and tear, all -have to be considered. Therefore, either a dado of matting, with a real -wooden rail, painted the colour of the paper or else a wooden dado, or -one of really pretty cretonne, are all to be preferred, because they -stand a good many hard knocks, and remain unspoiled to the last. A -matting dado, I think myself, is the very best, and, if desired, the -stair-carpets can be saved much wear by covering them in their turn -with narrow matting too. I really think a blue hall is as pretty as any, -and then old-gold curtains over the doors look charming; but a -sage-green hall looks extremely well, and I have seen a terra-cotta -paper, with a chintz dado, using Liberty’s Mysore chintz, that had a -very pretty effect indeed. If the banisters end in a round, a good -effect is procured by placing a plant in a pot there. I had one that -never got knocked over; but, for fear of a catastrophe, a brass pot with -an aspidistra should be selected, as, if this falls, it cannot be -utterly and entirely done for, as a china one would be containing a -fragile fern or a delicate palm, neither of which, by the way, would -stand the draught as the long-suffering aspidistra invariably does. I -like pictures up the staircase, and, should there be a staircase window, -artistic jugs and pots, more especially the Bournemouth and Rebecca -ware, sold by Mr. Elliot (who lives at the top of the Queen’s Road, -Bayswater, No. 18), should stand all along the window-ledge; and if the -outlook be ugly, the entire window should be covered by a fluted muslin -curtain in art colours, using either Madras, which does not wash well, -and must always be new here, or Liberty’s artistic muslins at 1_s._ a -yard, with the appearance of which I am delighted, either for window -blinds or summer quilts, or material for throwing over sofas, instead of -guipure and muslin. It is sold in all colours, and is one of the best -things I have seen for some time. - -How we furnish our hall must of course entirely depend on the room we -have. Liberty has some charming bamboo settees in black, and arm-chairs -to match. These are especially suitable for a hall, while an oak chest -with an oaken back is a most valuable possession; the chest holds -comfortably the year’s accumulation of papers and magazines until it is -time for them to go to the binder, and the top and back are charming -with heavy jugs on, made too heavy to be blown over by filling them with -sand, in which, when flowers are plentiful, blossoms can be put, and -when they are scarce, leaves and berries and pampas grasses show to -great advantage. If any small tables are about, have plants and books on -them, and above all avoid any appearance of a passage or hall--nothing -makes a house look so miserable. A good thing to bang in the hall is a -nicely illuminated card saying when the post goes out, with a box -underneath for the letters, and the time-table and a hat-brush should be -in some unobtrusive corner, whence they should never be moved on any -pretext whatever; a fixed matchbox, that should always be full, is -another institution, and a candlestick in good order should be put on -one of the tables when the hall gas is lighted. The painted -artistic-looking candlesticks sold by Liberty at 2_s._ 9_d._ are very -pretty, but a brass candlestick does not get shabby quite so soon, and -is not much if any dearer. One more axiom: never have loose mats at the -room doors outside; they only turn over with the ladies’ dresses, and -get untidy, while a piece of indiarubber tubing at the bottom of the -door keeps out far more draught than any mat possibly can. If the hall -be not tiled, I recommend it to be covered with Pither’s capital -hard-wearing drugget over felt, with one or two dhurries about, put down -carelessly, for sake of the colour; these wash beautifully and wear -excellently, and begin at 1_s._ 6_d._ each, rising in price according to -size, while one or two of the Kurd or Scinde rugs would be even better -than these, as they stand a very great deal of wear and tear. - -Before passing away from the hall, I will just mention two or three -schemes of decoration that are absolutely certain to be a success, and -therefore can be adopted without any chance of a failure: No. 1 is -Pither’s invaluable red and white ‘berry’ paper at 1_s._ 6_d._ a piece; -a dado of red and white matting--Treloar, Ludgate Hill, has a capital -one at about 1_s._ a yard, and varnished paint the exact colour of the -red on the flower; blue hard wearing drugget on the floor, and red, -white, and blue striped dhurries for _portières_. No. 2.--Paper of a -good sage-green, with dado of Japanese leather paper in sage-green, and -gold all the paint varnished sage-green and Pither’s terra-cotta -hard-wearing drugget on the floor and stairs; terra-cotta and grey-blue -serge curtains would be safe here, and if there be a back staircase and -no boys in the house, the dado may be replaced by a frieze of Maple’s -grey-gold Japanese leather paper; this resembles a flight of birds among -palm branches, and this arrangement is simply a perfect hall, but not -suitable for one where there is much traffic. All the paint, on doors, -wainscot, and frieze or picture-rail alike, must be one shade of green -only, and I most strongly deprecate for any place the odious habit of -picking out styles and wainscoting with another shade of paint; this is -never needed, only adds to the work, and draws attention to the paint, -at which we do not want to look, and which would only serve as a -pleasant background to oneself and one’s belongings. The sides of the -stairs and the balustrading should all be painted to match, though the -mahogany handrail should be left alone. - -Scheme No. 3 would only do where expense was no object, but would -undoubtedly make a most lovely hall. This would be in cream-coloured -varnished paint, with a high wooden dado painted cream colour, and then -embellished with sketches of birds and flowers by Mrs. McClelland’s -clever fingers; the paper could be a good gold-coloured Japanese leather -paper, and the carpets could be Oriental rugs sewn together, while the -hall should have a handsome Oriental square of carpet, and one or two -divans placed about it; the draperies could be Liberty’s beautiful -chenille material in Oriental colours too, and great care should be -taken with their arrangement. In all cases I strongly advise the -ceilings to be papered, no one who has once indulged in a coloured or -decorated ceiling ever going back to the cold, ugly whitewash, with -which we have all been so contented so long. It is generally safe to put -a blue and white ceiling paper with a yellow or red wall paper, a -terra-cotta and white with green walls, and a yellow and white with blue -walls, taking care to carry out this combination of colouring in the -carpets, draperies, &c. - -Much as I dislike gas, it is a necessity in any hall, and I here produce -two sketches of beaten iron gas-lamps that would be suitable for almost -any style of decoration; these are from the designs of Messrs. Strode, -48 Osnaburgh Street, Regent’s Park, and cost respectively 5_l._ 15_s._ -and 1_l._ 4_s._ each; quite simple hanging lamps are to be had from Mr. -Smee at 35_s._, in beaten iron, but these are not quite large enough by -themselves to light a hall, and two at least would be required. - -[Illustration: FIG. 3.] - -[Illustration: FIG. 4.] - -On no account, by the way, allow your front door to be disfigured with -the terrible ‘graining,’ against which I am always waging war. Painters -always beg to be allowed to ‘embellish’ at least the front door with the -hideous but orthodox arrangement of yellows and browns, scraped -mysteriously and agonisedly with a comb, or some such instrument, in a -faint and feeble attempt to deceive callers into believing that the door -is made of some highly polished wood, veined by nature, in a way that -could not deceive the veriest ignoramus; but I stoutly set my face -against such an idea, and denounce graining as the hideous and palpable -sham it undoubtedly is, advising all who come to me to have some good -deep self-colour for their front door, and generally suggesting a very -dark peacock-blue door for a ‘blue blossom’ hall, a very dark Indian red -for the red berry, and a dark sage-green for the sage-green hall, adding -brass handles and furniture; this stamps the house at once as an -artistic one, and one in which ‘graining’ will not be allowed at any -price. - -And here I will pause for a moment to beg any one who may need these -words of mine to refuse to allow any graining whatever in their houses; -it is a barbarism that should be allowed to die out as quickly as may -be; it is always ugly, always inartistic, and, being an undoubted -attempt to seem what it is not, I set my face against it always. I would -rather have deal, rubbed over with boiled oil, than the most -‘artistically’ imitated piece of walnut or mahogany ever produced by the -grainer’s tools; the one is neat, the other a vulgar sham--vulgar -because it is always vulgar to seem to be what one is not, and to -pretend to be what can be contradicted by the tiniest scratch, rather -than to be confessedly of a cheap material, and therefore graining -cannot be too strongly condemned. - -Many people cling to it who dislike it as much as I do, because they are -told nothing can be done to it, unless all the paint is burned off; -there never was a greater fallacy! To paint over graining all one has to -do is to have the paint washed thoroughly with strong soda and water, -and then rubbed down with glass-paper, then apply one coat of Aspinall’s -water-paint and one coat of his enamel, and you can possess at once all -the colour you require, without any trouble at all. Of course a perfect -‘job’ is only made by burning off the paint, but no one could ever tell -this had not been done, and very particular people can themselves apply -first of all Carson’s ‘detergent,’ sold at Carson’s paint works, La -Belle Sauvage Yard, for 5_s._ a tin; this brings off the old paint in -flakes, and leaves the bare wood ready for the painter’s brush. Still -this is not necessary, and people who have kept to graining because they -dread the burning-off process need do so no longer, unless they -positively cannot afford the new paint required to cover it over. - -A stone hall in the country looks much better if the stones are painted -a good red or blue, instead of being whitened daily, and Treloar’s -scarlet cocoanut matting is invaluable in back passages and on kitchen -stairs; and above all we must recollect that the hall gives the first -welcome to our guests, and that therefore the more it resembles a cosy, -comfortable, artistic room, the more likely is the rest of the house to -be a charming and successfully designed and furnished home. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -THE DINING-ROOM. - - -In my first chapter I laid just a little stress on the word ‘suitable’; -but in looking back at it, I find I did not say half what I intended to -on the subject of making that most suggestive tri-syllable our guiding -star, as it were, in our whole scheme of life, and it may not be out of -place just to dwell upon it a little, before proceeding to lay out any -money, because if we calmly and dispassionately regulate our desires by -their appropriateness to our purse, and our standing in the social -scale, we shall find our requirements diminish sensibly, and our -purchasing powers increased in the most pleasing and comfortable way. - -Therefore, in starting to buy the furniture for our modest dining-room, -let us consider not what is handsome or effective or taking to the eye, -but what is suitable to Edwin’s position, and what will be pleasant for -Angelina to possess, without having unduly to agitate herself and worry -herself to death in nervously protecting her goods and chattels from -wear and tear, which often enough is reflected on her, and wears and -tears her nerves, and takes up her time in a manner that would be -pathetic, if it were not so ridiculous and so extremely unsuitable to -her position as a British matron. Therefore, with a small income it is -the reverse of suitable to make purchases that can never be replaced -without months of anxious striving and saving; for though, of course, -incomes may increase, they seldom increase in proportion to the wants of -the household; and it is better to buy strong plain furniture, to -purchase cheap and pretty carpets and draperies that can be replaced -without a serious drain on our income, than to revel in expensive chairs -and tables which, should they be scratched and broken, can never be -matched without much more sacrifice than they are worth; and if we march -along manfully, determined to act suitably, not fashionably, we shall -enjoy life a thousand times better, and have at the same time the -pleasing consciousness that we are doing good to our fellow-creatures, -without knowing it perhaps, but most satisfactorily; for example is -worth a thousand precepts, and practising is more than a million -sermons, all the world over. - -How often a well-managed house, an income carefully (not meanly, not -lavishly, but _carefully_) administered, or a pretty idea pleasantly -carried out, has shone like a bright light in this naughty world--other -people have seen our strivings, may be have noted our cheerful bright -house, and seen our small but comfortable _ménage_, and have gone on -their way cheered and refreshed by our example, and in copying it have -influenced some one else in quite another part of London or the suburbs; -and, alas! how many may we not have helped on the downward path of -extravagance and foolish lavishness by our foolishness or our needless -display, which we have repented of, most likely, long before all the -bills were paid. - -Taking into consideration the fact that no one can live to themselves, -even in the purchase of chairs and tables, we may, perhaps, be forgiven -our sermon; but lest Angelina tires of our prating, and shrinks appalled -from the serious manner in which we cannot help regarding the starting -of any new home, we will leave off preaching on unsuitability, and -proceed on our journey in search of nice and suitable furniture for our -small dining-room. - -[Illustration: FIG. 5.] - -Great care must be taken in selecting our dining-room chairs, and we -earnestly advise all intending purchasers of these necessary articles of -furniture to look not so much at the appearance as to their capabilities -for affording a resting-place to a weary back; for I have often endured -a silent martyrdom at many a dinner-party, in the houses of those -amiable but mistaken people who go in for Chippendale chairs, -embellished by carvings just where one leans back, or for those other -still more agonising seats which have a round gap or space, and through -which one almost falls should one try to lean against them and so obtain -rest; and I am naturally anxious to save others from the sufferings I -have endured, either on the chairs just spoken of, or seated on one the -seat of which was so high from the ground that my legs have refused to -reach it, and I have hung suspended in mid-air, until I have hardly -known how to sit out the long and elaborate meal I was enduring, -certainly not enjoying. - -[Illustration: FIG. 6.] - -Now here are five chairs illustrated, any one of which would be quite -safe to have. No. 5 is the most expensive of all, and would cost about -3_l._ 10_s._ each. These are ebonised New Zealand pine, and are -upholstered in a dull brown morocco, which has worn splendidly. Nos. 6, -7, and 8 are Mr. Smee’s designs, and are made with a peculiar curve in -the backs, which just takes one’s shoulders, and gives one a comfortable -resting-place without appearing to be in the least a lounge. These -chairs can be had for about 32_s._ and 42_s._ respectively, No. 6 being -upholstered in a species of woollen tapestry, which wears well, and -would be singularly suitable for a small _ménage_, and is, therefore, -not out of the reach of most of us; while for folks who require -something much less expensive than even the cheapest chairs just spoken -of, there are the 3_s._ 6_d._ rush-seated black-framed chairs, sold by -Messrs. Harding Bros., Beaconsfield, Bucks, which are strong, artistic -in appearance, and infinitely to be preferred to the chairs in the -terrible ‘suites,’ that are such a temptation to the unwary, and to -those who make that most fatal of all mistakes, and do their shopping in -a hurry--than which there cannot be a greater error. - -[Illustration: FIG. 7.] - -In a small room I am much inclined to a round table; these are much more -cosy, and much more easily arranged to look nice; but, in any case, the -table need only be stained deal, with fairly good legs, for in these -days the table is always kept covered by a tablecloth, and is never -shown as it used to be in the old times, when half the occupation of the -servants, and often enough of the unfortunate mistress too, was to -polish the mahogany incubus, and bring it up to a state of perfection. -We have other and better occupations now than this constant ‘furniture -tending,’ I am glad to say; and, oh! how much prettier our houses are, -to be sure, than they used to be. - -[Illustration: FIG. 8.] - -There are two of these species of tablecloths especially to be -recommended, both for their artistic and their inexpensive merits, and -are far to be preferred to the tapestry cloths kept ready made in most -shops. Self-coloured felt or serge makes an admirable cover, especially -if a border is added of some contrasting colour. Peacock-blue serge -looks well with an old-gold border, about six inches wide; each side of -the border has a gimp combining the two colours, and the cloth itself is -edged with a tufted fringe. Two shades of red look well too; but, of -course, the cloth must be chosen to harmonise with the room in which it -is to be used, and not bought, as Englishmen all too often make their -purchases, because the thing is pretty in itself, forgetting that it -ceases to have even a claim on the score of beauty when placed among -incongruous surroundings. I may mention, now I am on the subject of -tablecloths, that I much dislike the custom of leaving the white -tablecloth on all day long; this invariably makes the room look like an -eating-house, and causes the cloth to appear messed, for dust from the -fire settles upon it; and I always insist on the white cloth being -brushed, _folded in its folds on the table by the two maids_, and then -placed at once in the press, a cloth managed like that lasting twice as -long and looking much better than the one that is left on for two or -three days at a time; for few if any of us can now afford a clean -tablecloth every day, not only on the score of the washing, but because -the washing process too often applied ruins our cloths, and results in -nothing save a series of holes, worn by chemicals and careless mangling; -therefore the white cloth must be removed, and replaced by a good art -serge or felt, made up, as suggested above, with a band of some -contrasting hue. This cloth careful people remove during meals, for no -one can be sure whether gravy or wine will not be upset; and teacups and -saucers have been known to be turned over bodily even in the -best-regulated families. These accidents do no positive damage if the -good cloth is removed; and, after all, this is a small thing to -recollect, and may save expenditure both of money and temper too. - -These tiny hints are of course meant for people who are not well off, -but may not be out of place even to those richer people who are lucky -enough not to be obliged to worry after every trifle. A penny saved is a -penny gained; and even the richest among us has need to be careful. What -he saves can after all be given to some poor brother. - -But however rich you are do not be persuaded to buy that ugly, -expensive, and tremendous thing a sideboard; neither waste your -substance on dinner-wagons, they spoil the appearance of everything; but -get some obliging and clever upholsterer to make you a cabinet or two, -one for each side of the fireplace, if you have recesses there, and take -care they are pretty, for much of the look of your home depends upon -what you have in the shape of armoires. I have two made in ebonised wood -from a design given me by a Royal Academician, which are illustrated -here. They have three shelves, then a broad space where are deep -cupboards, and then again an empty space, where books can be kept, or -great jars put to decorate it. On the three shelves I arrange china, -which is also arranged on the top of the part that has three cupboards. -These have brass hinges and good locks, and hold wine, dessert, dinner -napkins, and trifles, such as string, nails, and other necessary -articles, and answer every purpose of a sideboard, and, instead of being -ordinary, ugly things, are so - -[Illustration: FIG. 9.] - -decorative that no one ever enters my room without noticing them and -asking me where they are to be procured. I have had mine some years now, -but extremely nice ones are made by Mr. Smee, the prices beginning at -6_l._ 6_s._ in plain deal ready for painting any special hue to suit any -room, to 10_l._ 10_s._ each in oak or walnut; and I very strongly -recommend them to people who really wish their home to be artistic, and -not a mere warehouse for necessary furniture, for while they answer the -same purpose as a sideboard, they are pretty to look at, and would not -be out of place in an ordinary sitting-room. - -Up to this present moment I have said nothing about the colour or -arrangement of the walls of the dining-room, and so, before proceeding -to dilate on the rest of the furniture, I will here give my readers a -few hints on this subject. In the first place, then, let all people -about to furnish determine that their dining-room shall be cheerful -somehow, and let them eschew anything like dark colours or dingy papers, -refusing to listen to the voice of the charmer, who has his -‘appropriate’ designs to sell, and does not care in the least for your -ideas on the subject; and, having mentally selected the colour that -appeals to their taste, let them refuse manfully to be talked out of -their purpose by a man who has no ideas beyond the conventional ones of -dark colours for a dining and light ones for a drawing-room. - -For those people who can afford it, I advise invariably a plain gold -Japanese leather paper, with a bold red and gold leather paper as a -dado. The plain paper is 4_s._ 6_d._ a piece of nine yards, _French_ or -narrow width; the dado paper is 1_s._ 6_d._ a yard. All the paint in the -room should be the exact shade of the _red_ of the ground of the paper, -and the painter should be instructed to keep entirely to one shade of -paint, to do no ‘picking out’ or embellishments at all, but to paint -wainscot, shutters, dado rail, and doors alike in one uniform shade of a -good red, mixing the last coat with varnish, or else giving one coat of -Mr. Aspinall’s invaluable enamel paint, which gives a smooth and -polished appearance, particularly suitable for this special tint of red. -The dado rail is sold by Maple ready to put up at 2¼_d._ a foot; thus -it would be easy for any one to calculate exactly how much such a scheme -of decoration would cost. Then the ceiling should be papered in pale -yellow and white. The cornice should in no case be outlined or ‘picked -out’ with colours, but should be a uniform shade of cream, thus just -shading into the paper without calling attention to itself. - -Here let me pause for one moment to impress emphatically on my readers -the great necessity of recollecting that paint and paper are after all -only a background to oneself and one’s belongings, and therefore are not -to be brought unduly forward. The paint must always be kept one shade of -one colour; the cornice must always be coloured a deep cream, and the -necessary - -[Illustration: FIG. 10.--Dining-room at Gable-end, Shortlands.] - -relief in doors and shutters is obtained by filling the panels thereof -with a good Japanese leather paper, which at once causes the proper -decorative effect with the expenditure of a very little money, the -effect being heightened by the addition of brass locks and handles, -which cost very little, and yet just add the finishing touches to the -room. - -Should the Japanese paper be too expensive, the red effect could be -obtained by one of Pither’s papers with a bold frieze in a good floral -design. This is united to the paper by a frieze or picture rail, sold by -Maple at 2¼_d._ a foot unpainted, and from this frieze the pictures -hang on brass hooks made on purpose; these are about 2_s._ 6_d._ a -dozen; and the pictures are suspended from them on copper wires; this, -however, only answers where there is no gas, as gas corrodes the wire -rather quickly, and then cords must be used; but where there is no gas -the copper answers perfectly, and looks far better than anything else -can possibly do. - -Should red be objected to altogether--and I hope it may not be--here is -another scheme of decoration; a dark sage-green paper, with a very -little gold in it; a gold and green Japanese leather dado; all the paint -one shade of sage-green, and a terra-cotta and white ceiling paper; -terra-cotta serge or damask curtains edged with ball fringe, and a -sage-green tablecloth with pale terra-cotta border. With the red -decoration the curtains &c. can be a rather faint pinky terra-cotta; -this produces an excellent effect, while in some rooms a dull blue would -harmonise most excellently with the red. Let me mention one other -trifle: always insist on that ghastly round in the centre of the -ceiling, above the gaselier, being removed. Workmen always say this is -impossible, just as they generally declare they cannot paint over -graining; but it is quite an easy business, and makes an immense -difference in the appearance of any room, and is another ‘little-thing’ -the forgetting of which always annoys one, and spoils what might -otherwise be a perfect whole. - -I generally advise a dado in the dining-room, because of the rubbing the -paper always receives from the backs of the chairs; but this said -rubbing can be obviated by putting all round the room on the floor -against the wainscot a two-inch border of wood. This does not show if -painted to match the wainscot, and always keeps off a great deal of the -wear and tear the wall receives. Yet sometimes, when the paper is a -really handsome one, a dado can be dispensed with for some time; the -placing of one when the paper itself has been up a few years having the -effect often of making a new room of it, and doing away with the -re-papering process; which is always such a terror by reason of the -dilatoriness and utter worthlessness of many of the British workmen we -are forced to employ, painters, as a rule, being the most unsatisfactory -of all; and I am quite sure many young men who now starve genteelly as -clerks, either in or out of place, could earn much more money, and be -constantly employed too, if they would take to honest papering and -painting, and carry out our ideas in our houses for us, giving us -honest, _sober_ work in return for honest pay. However, we must not -sermonise more than we can help; and having suggested a few ideas for -covering the walls and buying the most necessary articles of furniture, -I now proceed to dwell upon those small extras which will make the room -comfortable, should Edwin have to sit in it when he is at home and has -letters to write; or should the bride-elect be obliged sometimes to make -it her morning room, to save the fire, or the extra work caused by a -third room to a servant. A simple window-seat, as in sketch 11, can -often be placed in a suburban bow-windowed villa, and at once makes a -cosy seat. This frame costs 7_s._, and can be made by a local carpenter. - -[Illustration: FIG. 11.] - -The top is made of sacking, and takes four yards at about 1_s._ a yard; -the front is made from a deep frill of cretonne lined with unbleached -calico, and is sewn on rings (fig. 12). These are suspended on nails, -and the whole of the top is cushioned with cretonne, cretonne cushions -being sewn on rings and hung on the wall to make a back for these seats. -The description of arrangement of curtains suitable for this will be -found in the chapter on curtains; and I maintain that no girl or woman -either need consider it a hardship if she have to spend her morning -sewing or reading here, while she could write her necessary letters at -the desk prepared for her husband, and which is a necessity in any house -for a man who has accounts to keep and letters to write. Still, if Edwin -is not a very much better specimen of a husband than the ordinary smoker -of the period makes, Angelina will have to sit in her third room -sometimes, for there is nothing more trying than an atmosphere of stale -smoke, and I look forward to a time when men of the rising generation -will be a little less selfish than they are at present in their -indulgence in a habit that, so far as I can perceive, has not one merit -to recommend it. - -[Illustration: FIG. 12.] - -How often am I asked by girls how they can get rid of the disagreeable -effects of smoke after dinner! They say--and very rightly too--that they -really dread breakfast-time, and that their morning is poisoned for them -by the indescribable odour that greets them when they come down -refreshed from their night’s rest to take up their day’s work -cheerfully; that it would be worse if Edwin smoked in the drawing-room, -and they have no small room where they could allow him and his friends -to work their wicked will, and that therefore they feel hopeless. And I -cannot keep from wondering why men should smoke as they do; and -thinking over this, and remembering how terrible it has been to me to -come down to stale smoke, I should like to beg Edwin seriously to -consider whether he need indulge in this habit in his own domicile, and -whether the save of his after-dinner cigar would not conduce to his -happiness as well as to Angelina’s comfort; and really I have small -heart to describe how Edwin can have a comfortable corner in his -dining-room when I feel convinced the more comfortable he is made the -worse effect it will have on everything in any pretty room. - -I often wonder if men ever reflect on what their smoke costs them--how -many delightful books, pleasant journeys, pretty engravings and -photographs, and, in fact, all sorts of pleasant and permanent -belongings, fly off into thin air by means of those pipes and cigars -that really seem part of a man at present, and, in fact, are far too -often their first thoughts. - -I am not speaking for myself, gentle reader. The atmosphere of smoke is -absent from my own especial domicile, and is reserved for my atom of a -conservatory, should an occasional spoiled friend come down and look -miserable without his pipe or cigarette--for cigars I cannot have even -there; but I am writing for all the young people who are beginning life, -and who think they make their husbands happy by giving them _carte -blanche_ to do just ‘as they like in their own house.’ - -My dear girls, you cannot make a greater mistake with your husbands, and -later on with your sons, than to wait upon them and give in to all their -little lazinesses and selfishnesses at home. It may sound ridiculous, -but it is a fact that old coats and slippers in the home circle mean -manners to correspond; that bad manners often show a bad heart; and that -a man is far more likely to care for the wife who exacts the small -attentions that would have been lavished on the bride, than for her who -opens the door for herself, rings the bell when he is in the room, and -fetches things for him to save him steps that ought to be taken for her -and not by her; and that boys who are allowed to bully and ‘fag’ their -sisters and their mother are sure to make the selfish, inconsiderate -husbands of which we hear so much nowadays. - -And this great smoke question means a great deal too. It is a selfish, -disagreeable habit, verily; and I can but hope that Edwin will think of -this when in his pretty dining-room, and confine himself to the garden -or conservatory with the door shut, even if he does not seriously -consider how many pleasures for both vanish into smoke with the fumes of -his post-prandial cigar; while the odours in which he condemns Angelina -to begin her day would be done away with, and cheerfulness reign instead -of dulness and a sense of nausea that are most trying to any one who -does not like cigars. - -Hoping that these words may have due effect, we will contemplate -allowing our bridegroom to have a comfortable armchair in one corner of -the room, and a big desk in another. The armchair, of course, is rather -a serious item, and should really be made for the person who intends to -sit in it. This naturally means an expenditure of from 8_l._ to 10_l._, -according to the covering; so this may be done without until Edwin is -older, if he cannot afford it. Now, in that case, I should recommend his -buying one of those delightful low wicker-work chairs, which can be -bought anywhere for 5_s._ or 6_s._ This can be painted to match the -room, or ebonised with Aspinall’s lovely and invaluable enamel -paints--paints that have a glaze upon them and wear beautifully, and can -be applied at home, and it can be cushioned by any local upholsterer, or -even by Angelina herself, if she be clever with her fingers. The best -material for covering these chairs is undoubtedly a strong tapestry at -about 5_s._ 6_d._ a yard. Maple has the best-designed tapestries for the -money in London, and one should be carefully chosen to harmonise with -the room; the cushion should be tied in its place, or sewn in its place, -with very strong tapes or thread, and should be buttoned down. It takes -two and a quarter yards double width material and four and a half single -width to make a cushion for the sides and seat, and the seat cushion -should be finished off with a frill two inches wide. The comfort of -these chairs is much enhanced by the addition of a small square soft -cushion to fill up the hollow in the centre and stuff into one’s back. -These can be easily made either out of paper torn up and rolled into -strips and then put into a piece of twilled cotton for a case, and a -second case made from the material saved out of the chair covering -itself, or small down cushions can be bought at Whiteley’s in -Turkey-pattern materials which can be hidden in a covering like the -chair, as suggested above, or--whisper this, please--the hair-cushions -placed in the back of ladies’ skirts now can be utilised for stuffing -these cushions to far more advantage than if they were retained in the -position suggested by the dressmaker; and then the appearance of the -chair is complete, with the addition of a Turkish embroidered -antimacassar at 2_s._, which always makes any chair look nice, and even -expensive (see Illustration 13). These chairs can be bought, enamelled -any colour and cushioned complete, for 31_s._ 9_d._ at Colbourne’s, 82 -Regent Street, W., made to my pattern. - -If you have a more expensive chair, do not buy one with a straight back; -comfortable as they look, they are no use in practice, and every chair -should be rounded for comfort, even if our grandmothers would shake -their heads over the decadence of a generation that requires round backs -to their chairs. Then there should be solid square arms on which books -can be placed, if we like to put one down for a few moments, or even a -cup of tea allowed to stand there, should it be necessary. Mr. Smee -made me such a chair--it was 8_l._ 18_s._ 6_d._, I think--and I would -not part with it on any consideration. It is covered with a very -beautifully designed tapestry, and is trimmed with a deep woollen -fringe, knotted and headed with broad gimp, and is simply perfect; but -he took an immense amount of trouble about it, and made it to suit me, -going on the same plan as that on which the wicker chairs are formed, -only making mine higher from the ground, the lowness of the wicker -chairs being their only failing; and even this, of course, is no failing -in the eyes of a great many of our younger brothers and sisters. - -[Illustration: FIG. 13.] - -Edwin’s desk should be wide and strong, and should have good deep -drawers. This can be bought ready made for about 12_l._, but I can -provide a similarly convenient article for 2_l._ 15_s._; that is to say, -I can provide Edwin with ideas on the subject that any small carpenter -can carry out. I have had for years a writing-table made by our own -carpenter which cost me 2_l._ 5_s._, and is now doing honourable service -as a dressing-table in a boy’s room. It was made simply in deal, had -three very deep drawers on each side, and one flat long drawer at the -top; and the top was covered neatly with a piece of Japanese leather -paper, which was quite as serviceable as good leather. I then had it -nicely painted to match the room, added brass handles and locks, and had -an extremely pretty desk or dressing-table for very little money. It is -now painted a very beautiful blue, Aspinall’s hedge-sparrow’s-egg blue, -and is most useful; deep drawers in a desk or dressing-table meaning -comfort, for there is nothing more uncomfortable than having nowhere to -put one’s things. Good inkstands--indeed, the best I know is the deep -blue-and-white china one to be bought at the Baker Street Bazaar for -sixpence--should never be forgotten. Two should be bought, one for red -and one for black (there is no ink, by the way, like Stephens’ -blue-black fluid; I cannot write without it, and always take it with me -wherever I go); a box for string, filled, a post-card case, a -letter-weigher, and a date-card and candlestick, and also a tray for -sealing-wax, pens, ink-eraser, &c., all should find places on the desk, -and above it, or on one side, should hang something to hold letters--a -basket at 4½_d._ does beautifully; beneath it should be a wastepaper -basket, and if Angelina be wise she will have a sack in a cupboard from -some paper works, into which all pieces of wastepaper should be put. The -sack soon fills, and from disposing of the contents there are seven -shillings, which come in handily for plants, or flowers, or any of the -many trifles that seem nothing to buy, but that run away somehow with so -very much money--trifles making up life after all. If possible, keep a -bunch of flowers on the desk. I am never without one winter or summer, -and there is ample room on the desk I describe for this and also for -dictionaries, two plants, and three brass pigs taking a walk, which I -always use as a letter-weight. - -The dining-room desk should always be looked after by the mistress -herself, who should also take care that fresh ink, pens that will write, -a blotting-book, and wastepaper basket are in every room in the house -that is used, including the spare bedroom. Seeing to this often saves a -good deal of time and temper too; for I know of nothing more irritating -than to have to write a note in a hurry and have nothing handy to do it -with. - -The dining-room, or, indeed, any room, would not be complete without a -few words on the subject of the mantelpiece, which is always rather a -difficult matter to arrange; for one must have a clock there, and that -means expense, unless we are content with a very charming specimen -Oetzmann, of the Hampstead Road, used to sell for 25_s._ I have had one -three, nay, four, years in my drawing-room, and it still goes -excellently. It is blue, and in a tall slender black case. It is called -the Chippendale clock. I dare say he keeps them still. Then there should -be candles in blue and white china candlesticks, and any pretty -ornaments Angelina may have, and, if none are given her, why, 1_l._ -judiciously laid out at Liberty’s or the Baker Street Bazaar will -furnish more than one mantelshelf delightfully. I could make my readers -smile over my hunt sixteen years ago for some nice candlesticks if I had -the time, and could contrast my difficulties then with the _embarras de -richesse_ now. But space does not allow of these digressions. Still, -whatever else is done without, let us be sure to have a couple of -well-filled spillcases, and a matchbox with matches in it fixed to the -wall; though, if we have the ordinary marble incubus of the orthodox -suburban residence to deal with, we shall have to think over the -mantelpiece question most seriously, for this is indeed a burning -question, and one that would daunt the stoutest heart to answer -satisfactorily, and I look forward hopefully to a time when builders -will eschew the expensive and ugly marble in favour of wooden -mantelpieces, which are, to my mind, all they ought to be. - -In the first place, a wooden mantelpiece continues, as it were, the -scheme of decoration of the room, and, without being unduly prominent, -makes the necessary unobtrusive frame for the fireplace that a staring -white marble erection can never be. And, in the second, any stain from -smoke can be washed off the painted mantelpiece, while a few days’ -carelessness, a smoky chimney, or a housemaid’s unclean paws can ruin a -marble mantelpiece beyond the hope of redemption; therefore on all -accounts I think a wooden one is to be preferred. - -Of course, some people, even in a small house, regard the possession of -the marble in the light of a patent of nobility--it is so handsome -(odious word), so genteel; but these belong to the hopeless class, for -whom little or nothing can be done. As an illustration of what I mean, I -may tell you I once was asked by one of these individuals to come down -to her country house and give my opinion on the subject of some -wall-papers she was hesitating between; and when I entered her -drawing-room, where my lady was not, but was heard scouring about -upstairs, hastily changing her dress to be fit to be seen at four -o’clock in the afternoon, I saw just such a gorgeous marble erection, -and, in a species of compromise between the taste of the day and the -sense of proud possession given by the marble, there was a valance hung -round the edge of the shelf, supported, or rather tied on, with tapes, -so that the fact of the material of which the shelf was made was visible -to the eye of the visitor. I could not take my eyes off it, and on -learning that my opinion was asked in reference to the room in which I -was, I asked about the valance, suggesting how ridiculous it looked -suspended, poor thing, in mid-air, and hinting that a board would give -it a reason for its existence; but this was received with so much -surprise that I could not recognise how beautiful the marble was, that I -got out of the room as soon as I could, knowing that here any advice I -could give would be utterly thrown away. In a great house where -gorgeousness, not prettiness, reigns, marble is, of course, more in -place than it is with us, but I do not like it at all in our cold native -land, where our grey skies and dark atmosphere cry out for colour, and I -would relegate it to Italy, where it contrasts charmingly with the -ardent skies and glowing air inseparable from that land of sun and -flowers. I do hope some builder, who is intent on building houses for -the Edwins and Angelinas of the day, may read my humble words, and, -turning his back on the marble, may put up in the pretty residences that -are now the rule and not the exception the simple wooden mantelpiece -that lends itself so kindly to decoration, and does not assert itself -like the ‘handsomer’ one does in a small house--in a manner that -resembles a rich relation come to call, and reduce the poor connection -to a sense of his position and utter lowliness. - -The mantelpiece of wood can have one or two little shelves in the comers -under the shelf itself; here can be placed cups or vases for flowers. -Then comes the shelf itself, and finally the over-mantel. In one of my -rooms where the slate mantelpiece is hopeless, I have covered the top -with a plain board, painted turquoise blue, the colour of the room. This -is edged by a goffered frill of cretonne, like the curtains, about a -foot deep. It is nailed on the front of the board, and the nails hidden -by a moulding, also painted blue. Over this I have a glass about two -feet wide with a bevelled edge, and framed in plain deal, painted blue, -and surmounted by a shelf about four inches wide, supported by two small -blue brackets. Of course the frame of the fireplace ought to be blue -too, and it is a sore subject, I can tell you, that it is not; but being -of black slate it is not so trying as it might be--not so trying, for -example, as another room would have been had I not boldly painted its -odious yellow and white marble mantelpiece black, to match my paint, and -so removed an eyesore that looked like nothing so much as poached eggs -very badly cooked and sent to table. I did go through the farce of -asking my good and indulgent landlord, who, fortunately for me, was -artistic, and gave his consent freely; but I am afraid, even if he had -not, I should have painted it quite as boldly, and trusted to ‘luck’ to -have escaped any fearful penalty when my lease was up, and I left my -decorations behind me for some one else--decorations that include -another painted mantelpiece, this time a dull grey stone thing, that is -quite lovely in a terra-cotta coat of paint, and its top covered, as I -have just described the blue covering, with a terra-cotta painted board, -and a frill of blue and white Mysore chintz. - -I am always being reminded of how much a fireplace is in a room by going -into quite charming chambers where nothing is wanting save and excepting -a nice arrangement there. The whole room is spoiled, and the ugliness -there contrasts so forcibly with the rest of the room that I can never -avoid mentioning it, and begging the owner to call at Shuffery’s, in -Welbeck Street, whose cheap wooden mantelpieces and tiled hearths cannot -possibly be too widely known, and are cheaper than those of any other -firm: though, of course, a clever draughtsman can make his own designs, -and a wooden mantelpiece could be made by an ordinary carpenter, but the -‘stuff’ must be well seasoned and carefully put up, so us to have no -risk of fire. - -Always, if possible, have a tiled hearth and a very simple fender. A -gorgeous fender is a mistake; if a tiled hearth is provided all one -requires is a black frame to enclose the hearth, with two brass knobs -just to brighten it up; then get some brass fire-irons and two standards -at Maple’s or else at Hampton’s, where brass things are very good and -cheap, and, if in any way obtainable, see your grates are Barnard’s. -They save their cost in coal in a very short time, and are very pretty -and simple. I have one that cost a little over 4_l._; it has a simple -black frame, enclosing some pretty blue and white tiles, and has -firebrick sides and bottom, and is as low as the hearthstone. The fire -in this grate keeps alight from about 11 A.M. until 2 P.M. in the -coldest winter weather, and I have never once during that time to ring -for coals. Another ordinary stove during the same hours has to be -continually watched and replenished, and while the blue and white room -is always hot, the other room, possessed of the all-devouring grate, is -never even warm, and sometimes one end thereof is hardly above freezing -point. I have an equally good grate in the drawing-room, and here a fire -made up at eight burns steadily until eleven at night, and often is -quite a gorgeous fire at bedtime. I believe these grates are made at -Norwich, but Shuffery sends them or similar grates equally satisfactory -with his wooden mantelpieces; which, by the way, are supplied with -Doulton ware fenders like the tiled hearths. These save needless trouble -to the servants, as they only require dusting and an occasional -wash-over to be always clean. - -While we are on the subject of fires, I can tell my readers of a -comfortable manner to keep in a fire in a bedroom or drawing-room, when -a fire is wanted, but not a ‘regular blazer.’ To insure there being a -fire, line the bottom and front of the grate with a newspaper, then fill -it up, nearly to the top of the fireplace, with quite small coal, on the -top of this lay an ordinary fire, with nice lumps of bright coal, wood, -&c., and set light to it; this fire will burn downwards steadily, and -can be left to take care of itself; and then, when the room is required -for use, all that is wanted is a judicious poke, and a pretty cheerful -blaze rewards you, while you have the satisfaction of knowing your fire -is in, and no waste of fuel to any appreciable extent is going on, -should the room not be in occupation. - -Before I end this chapter I may just give some few hints as to what to -do with our fireplaces when a fire is not necessary though, in my own -case, an open Japanese umbrella suffices, because the temperature in -England changes so quickly and so often that I scarcely can feel fires -are an impossibility; but quite a pretty change in the room can be made -by placing the sofa or the grand piano straight across the fireplace, of -course removing fender, &c., and so making it appear as if it had -vanished; while another nice effect is made with putting a fender made -of virgin cork instead of the ordinary one, and filling up the grate -with great ferns and flowering plants or cut flowers, frequently -changed, for nothing save the ubiquitous aspidistra lives comfortably in -this lowly and draughty situation. The cork fender should be filled with -moss, and then jam pots sunk in it full of water; in these arrange your -flowers: put a hand-basin in the grate itself, and bend large leaves of -the _Filix mas._ fern over the edges; these completely cover the bars of -the grate; then large peonies can be arranged in the basin, and the -whole looks like a bank of flowers. This can only be managed in a -country room, where flowers are plentiful; but not a bad fire-screen is -made from a wire frame with a deep flower trough in front; ivy should be -trained all over the frame, and then flowers and ferns can be arranged -in the trough at it small cost. Let this, however, be done only in one -room in the house. Never put it out of your power to have a fire -whenever you feel cold. No one knows how much illness is saved by this -small precaution. - -One or two things must also be remembered before we leave the -dining-room altogether. Footstools must be provided, and by the side of -the grate should hang a bass brush to keep the hearth tidy, a pair of -bellows to coax a lazy fire, and a fan to screen any one who should -dislike the blaze in their eyes; and the wall-paper will last all the -longer if a Japanese paper fan is nailed in such a manner that the -bristles of the brush rest on it and not on the wall; just as the carpet -will last longer if the coalscuttle stands on its own small linoleum -mat, which can be painted any colour with Aspinall’s paint, and will -always wash clean, cheerfully every day. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -THE MORNING-ROOM. - - -Even in a small house I very strongly advise the third room to be set -aside emphatically for the mistress’s own room--sacred to her own -pursuits, and far too sacred to be smoked in on any occasion whatever. -And this room can hardly be made too pretty in my eyes, for undoubtedly -here will be struck the key-note of the house, for the chamber set aside -for the mistress of the house is unconsciously a great revealer of -secrets. Is she dreamy, lazy, and untidy?--her room tells of her. Is she -careful, neat, energetic?--her room brightens up and bears witness to -her own character. Does she write?--these are her pens, and her dirty -little inkstand, looking like business; or work, or paint? Well, ask the -room sacred to her use; it will tell you of her much better than I can, -and if she be only an honest English girl, anxious to rule her house -well, and to really make it ‘home,’ her room will disclose all this, and -will be always ready for her, and for any one else who will come to her -there for the help, pleasure, or counsel she in her turn will be so -happy to give once she has bought her own little experience. - -Or should it happen that Angelina has no pronounced tastes, and does not -intend to plunge head-first among the bread-winners with pen or pencil, -she will have all the easier task in arranging her tiny room. On the -walls we may hang a pretty sage-green paper, taking great care there is -no arsenic in it. In the recesses of the walls beside the fireplace I -should put shelves, painted sage-green, the colour of the paint, and -edged with narrow frills of cretonne similar to that used on the -mantel-board; these are sewn on tapes, and the tapes nailed to the -shelves, and hidden by a moulding similar to the one on the board. And -should Angelina desire a cheap, useful species of cupboard, one of these -shelf-fitted recesses can be draped by a cretonne curtain, which would -look pretty, the while it hid any baskets or boxes or odds and ends -wished out of sight yet close at hand at the same time. These shelves -are put in to the height of the mantelpiece, and, the tops being wide, -hold a nice quantity of decorative china, and, being backed by fans or -large blue and white plates, bought very cheaply at almost any glass and -china warehouse, add immensely to the artistic appearance of the room, -the walls of which will, I hope, be hung with pretty photographs or -engravings, or sketches of home friends, or places, done by friends or -even by our bride herself. - -If she can paint, or has any girl friend who can do so, she should now -embellish her door panels with graceful pale pink flowers, remembering -never to fall into that fatal and ugly mistake of drawing or -representing flowers in the colours that nature herself never uses for -them. There is my favourite pink flower, the flowering rush, to be -remembered, and this pictured among its own surroundings, marguerite -daisies and long grasses, would be admirable on the sage-green paint, -and doing this will occupy Angelina nicely during those long hours that -are hers when the honeymoon is over, and Edwin has once more to put his -neck into the collar and set to work to keep the little house going. - -I should also like Angelina to keep round her in this her own room as -many reminiscences as she can procure of her old home. If she have a -prudent, loving mother, I think many a little imprudence may be avoided, -if a photograph of the dear face is always looking down upon her; and if -she have an honoured father, his precepts will be recalled in a similar -manner, and insensibly she will be helped on her way, as she was in her -girlhood, by the loving counsel she can never be too old to require, -live as long as ever she may. - -Then there should always be something here in the shape of a desk, for -Angelina will have to write letters, if only to answer invitations, -though I trust sincerely she may have something better to do with her -time than that. And if she can copy Edwin’s writing table, she will find -it a great comfort to her, for the deep drawers will hold paper, -envelopes, and the thousand and one things she should never be without; -such as string, untied, _not cut_ off parcels, and neatly rolled up in -lengths, half-sheets of letters to be used for notes to _familiar_ -friends or for tradesmen’s orders, paid bills--no _un_paid ones, -please--and brown papers also saved from parcels, elastic bands, and -answered and unanswered letters; which, if important or private, should -never be left on a desk in a letter-rack, for ‘maidens’ are but mortals, -and an open epistle is too tempting a thing for most servants to leave -untouched and unread. Be sure and have a wastepaper basket, and -somewhere in a cupboard the sack I mentioned before, in which to put the -contents of the basket _at once_, as soon as it is full; and do not keep -any letters about in your possession once they are replied to, -especially if they are chatty letters about people and their sayings and -doings, but destroy them at once. They are safe in the wastepaper bag; -but a letter is like a ghost, and turns up when least expected, often -working irreparable mischief; in fact, in these days of penny postage, a -letter is only written for the moment, and should be put beyond the -power of doing harm by any honourable person the moment it has answered -its purpose. Remember how often one’s opinion changes. One makes friends -or quarrels with an acquaintance, and writes to one’s intimates about -these tiny circumstances, and no harm is done if the letter be -immediately destroyed, besides which there is always the chance that -death may pounce upon one, and leave one’s hoards defenceless, and our -friend’s confidences at the mercy of our successors. Who re-reads old -letters? Life is too rapid now for this. Once answered, tear up these -amusing, compromising epistles, and beg your correspondents to do the -same, and then not very much harm will be done by them after all. - -In Angelina’s room there should always be some sort of a sofa. Maple has -beautiful deep sofas, I think for 8_l._ 8_s._; these can be covered with -serge, or else velveteen or corduroy velvet, in a good sage-green colour -or peacock blue, and finished at either end with a square pillow or -cushion covered with the same; the velveteen is 2_s._ 6_d._ a yard, and -wears beautifully; it is preserved too, when not in use, by throwing -over it a large cover made of either guipure and muslin, costing -30_s._--rather a large item--or by two or three of the striped curtains, -joined. These cost 1_s._ 6_d._ each at Liberty’s, but I personally -prefer the guipure, or else a large square of Madras muslin, edged with -a goffered frill, or else a cheap lace. This should be folded back, -should you require to lie down much on the sofa, as otherwise it soon -crushes and becomes dirty and untidy. Remember, young people, I am no -advocate for lying about on sofas, and I abhor idleness, but a proper -amount of rest and care often saves a long illness, and there will be -times in all your lives when a sofa is not a luxury but a positive -necessity. A book can always be read, or work be done, for, properly -pushed down at the back, the cushions support the shoulders, the while -the legs are supported too, and so proper rest is obtained; and if the -sofa be in Angelina’s own room, she will use it when she would think -twice before going solemnly into the drawing-room, where she may be -disturbed by visitors, or be, perhaps, fireless, to take the repose she -may possibly have been ordered. - -There should be two firm little tables, or even three, according to -space. The floor should be stained about two feet all the way round, and -the square of carpet should be as pretty as possible. Flowers and -pot-ferns should be as much used us the money will permit, as nothing -makes a room look so nice. The curtains should be cretonne and muslin -underneath, arranged as I shall describe in the chapter set apart for -curtains. There should be a work-table, a stand for newspapers with a -paper-knife attached--tied on, in fact, and re-tied when not in use, for -no possession takes quicker to its heel than does a paper-knife--and -plenty of books and magazines, obtainable from a library; or by -judicious exchanges among friends or acquaintances made by advertising; -for it is astonishing how many papers can be seen by a clever person, -who can manage to exchange the one or two she takes in for one or two -more, that in their turn go on again in exchange for others; and this is -neither extravagance nor waste of time, for every one should be as well -read in the events of the day, as most people are in the events of -bygone years; for one’s own times are, I think, quite as amusing and far -more instructive than even the events of those days when there were no -newspapers and nothing very much happened. - -Let me beg of you all to remember two things: one is, that on _no_ -account is this little room to have gas, or to be smoked in under any -pretext whatever, and that here all must be to hand that Angelina is -likely to want; she must have her own duster, her sticking-plaster, her -little remedies for tiny hurts, her cotton, needles, thimble, her -string, her stamps, her pins, her gum, her glue, and be able to put her -hand on brandy, the one spirit that I would allow inside the house, and -which is a most invaluable necessary medicine; and if she be wise and -her servants are tired, she will be able to give a sister or very -intimate friend her cup of afternoon tea without ringing, should they -come in on a busy day and require refreshment, when it would be unkind -to take Jane off her work to provide it. No lady was ever the worse for -making her own tea, or even washing her own teacups, and a little -thought for Jane will insure Jane thinking of and for you, in a time -when you may be _very_ dependent on her for this care and thought. - -[Illustration: FIG. 14.] - -The tea-things can be kept ‘handy’ behind one of the curtained recesses, -and a small brass kettle can also be concealed there; but there are some -rooms, alas! so evilly constructed as to be positively without recesses -for the shelves, and in this case the books that Angelina will require -in her own room must have a bookcase made especially for them, and the -recess for the teacups must be made as in the drawing of the bookcase on -this page. The best bookcases are undoubtedly the revolving American -bookcases, first introduced by Messrs. Trübner, the well-known -publishers, of Ludgate Hill. These hold a great many volumes, take up -small room, and on the top of them china can also be placed; but they -are expensive, a good-sized one costing 5_l._ 5_s._, and so, if this be -out of the question, I recommend a long plain oak bookcase that I have -had made for me from the design of a relative, for they hold a vast -quantity of literature, and only cost the comparatively small sum of -1_l._ 18_s._ 6_d._ This bookcase is about eight or nine feet long, and -consists of two rows of shelves, each wide enough to hold books the size -of a bound volume of ‘Good Words.’ The top of the last shelf has a -narrow battlement of oak just cut out in scallops to relieve the -plainness and to serve as a rail to support the china that stands on the -top of the bookcase; and the shelves are all edged with a two-inch frill -of velveteen or cretonne to harmonise with the rest of the room. The -shelves are divided into three parts, and the centre part looks very -well with a velveteen curtain over it, nailed to the top shelf, and -hanging in a straight line from top to bottom. Behind this curtain can -be placed all sorts and conditions of things, from paper-backed shilling -books, that are not in the least bit decorative, to string or gum, or -the cups and saucers spoken of above, if we have no other place to use -as a cupboard in the room. The shelves are hung on the wall, just -resting on the dado rail, and are supported with nails driven into the -wall and by the dado rail itself. On the top the big blue jugs and -coarse rod pottery Rebecca jars sold by Mr. Elliot, in the Queen’s Road, -Bayswater, should be placed, as then the bookcase is not only useful but -remarkably ornamental. - -To supplement the ordinary lack of cupboard room, it is occasionally -better to have one or two low square black cupboards about. Against the -wall, where a table may be put sometimes, they look very nice, and are -of incalculable use. They cost very little, and if the panels are filled -in, either with Japanese paper or imitation tapestry, and the top -covered with a cloth and used for books, plants, or pieces of china, -scarcely any one would see they were cupboards, and so you have a useful -piece of furniture doing double duty, as cupboard and table, for the -expense of one. I have in one corner of my especial room a most -beautiful cabinet which holds all my odds and ends comfortably, and is -such a success that I cannot help describing it here, although Angelina -may not of course care to go to the expense, but it is so pretty and -withal so inexpensive, as compared to the usual run of cabinets, that I -think I may venture to recommend it to her. It fits into one corner, and -is of deal, painted sparrow’s-egg-blue to match the room. It stands -about five feet eight. The under part is a cupboard. Then come three -deep drawers, flanked by two little shelves--two each side of the -drawers. The top shelf is hidden by a small curtain of old-gold -coloured velveteen, and in the under shelf stands a blue pot that cost -sixpence. There is a flat shelf forming the top of the cabinet with -china on, and at the back, which goes into an angle to fit the corner, -is another shelf about three inches wide on which more china stands. The -drawers and cupboard have brass handles and locks, and the whole thing -complete, made to order and measure by Mr. Smee, cost me 8_l._ 8_s._, -and I often look at it and wonder how I existed, or where I put all my -papers and things generally, before I saved up money enough to buy it -for myself. The chairs here can be all the deep, low, basket-work -chairs, and these need not cost much, but these chairs must be bought -with great care and circumspection, they are all such different shapes, -and should never be purchased in a hurry--that fatal hurry that is at -the bottom of so much waste and extravagance in the world; for, remember -this, a thing obtained quickly and hastily seldom is the thing one -really requires, and then a double outlay is necessary, or else -perpetual discomfort is our portion, just because we were not judicious -enough in our behaviour to take enough time over our purchases; and -nowhere is hurry more fatal than in choosing one’s chairs. You young -people are apt to think only for the day, and do not care to remember -that a time will come when legs and backs will ache; but I know this, -and this is why I want you to be quite sure that you do not get the -basket-chairs that go back too far, or are too low, or too high, but -that the medium chairs are chosen, in which you can rest thoroughly when -they are cushioned; and furthermore supplied with an extra cushion to -fill up the gap in the back, and that are not high enough to require a -footstool, but yet are not low enough to send one’s feet to sleep, -because of the manner in which they leave no room for the length of limb -possessed by the unfortunate person who sinks into their -comfortable-looking depths to rest, and cannot understand why he is so -very uncomfortable when he has been there so short a time. Cretonne -makes pretty covers for the cushions, which should be stuffed with wool -and a little flock--all wool would make these cushions too expensive; -but cretonne is not heavy enough for a man’s wear, and either tapestry -or woollen brocade or serge should be used for cushions for Edwin’s -accommodation. If a sofa be afforded, three of these chairs, or four at -the outside, will amply furnish the little room; and they can have over -their backs, as a finishing touch, an embroidered Oriental antimacassar, -arranged to show both embroidered ends one above the other, and not tied -in bows--a most inartistic and ugly arrangement in my eyes, and one -quite useless and untidy too; for there is no doubt that a properly -arranged antimacassar saves the chair cushion a great deal of the wear -and tear and the rub of dusty shoulders, and need not be any trouble if -a little thought is given to their arrangement, both in sitting down and -rising from the chair. - -If other chairs are required, higher and squarer, although I cannot -think they are necessary myself in this small room, those painted blue, -red, or black, and with cane seats, costing about 12_s._, are the best. -The cane seat should be provided with a square cushion, covered in any -odd pieces of damask or cretonne, and trimmed with a frill, and tied to -the chair by four pairs of stout black tape strings, so that the cushion -cannot slip about, as it otherwise would. These chairs would also do for -the extra chairs in the drawing-room, if even the rush-seated -Beaconsfield chairs at 3_s._ 6_d._ each are not pronounced quite good -enough. - -A very good, useful table, called the Queen Anne table, can be obtained -from Oetzmann or Maple for about 25_s._ It is square, with square legs, -and has two useful shelves, and the whole is covered in art-coloured -velveteens. I have had one in very hard wear for seven or eight years, -and it is now as good as the day when I bought it. I had some charming -square stools made on the same plan for 7_s._ 6_d._ each, to hold large -blue and yellow pots purchased at Whiteley’s for 2_s._ 11_d._ each, and -filled with palms, and these standing about in odd corners or in the -centre of a bow-window add very much to the appearance of any room, for -nothing gives so Oriental or artistic an appearance as plenty of plants, -ferns, and palms; and these need not be out of the reach of any one who -cares for pretty things, because with care they last and flourish for -years; while cut flowers and flowering plants are out of the reach of -any of those for whom I am especially writing these papers--that is to -say, unless they keep their eyes very wide open, and utilise every -morsel they can beg, or pick from the hedges and fields; that even in -the suburbs are not swept quite clear of daisies, grasses, and even -occasionally primroses and anemones. - -Footstools must be a _sine quâ non_ in each room, and more than one or -two should, if possible, be provided. The square Oriental-looking ones, -at 4_s._ 6_d._, purchasable at Shoolbred’s, are very nice, but big, -square, old-fashioned ones, made by the carpenter, or, better still, by -Edwin, are the best of all; they do not run away from you when you put -your feet on them, and their wear is everlasting. They are square frames -of wood, rather heavy, and stuffed a little with flock on the top, and -covered with a good stout woollen tapestry; they are quite half a yard -across each way, and serve for two people if necessary. Then there are -the ordinary round hassocks for 1_s._ 6_d._, covered in odds and ends of -old carpets. These are soon made artistic by covering them over the -carpet with artistic serges embroidered in crewels; white narcissus, or -oranges and the blossoms looking very nice indeed on a terra-cotta -serge; and yellow daisies or pomegranates on a peacock-blue serge being -also quite charming to behold. Brackets are very useful for corners, and -I especially recommend the bamboo brackets to be bought at the Baker -Street Bazaar and at Liberty’s. They are so cheap and light-looking, and -hold odds and ends of china so nicely, and if many pictures or -photographs do not adorn Angelina’s walls, quite a grand effect can be -obtained by making a bracket the centre of a scheme of decoration; -elaborated from Japanese fans, that can surround the bracket like a -halo, sending out branches or beams of colour from such a centre in all -directions, in a manner invaluable to those who have no other means of -decorating their walls. - -Were I Angelina I should sit here in this tiny room, and do my work here -all the morning, having every meal in the dining-room, and resolutely -spending my evenings in the drawing-room. There is, of course, rather -more firing required, but not more than is necessary to warm the house -thoroughly, and this will save in health and spirits far more than the -house coal costs. Quite a different current to one’s thoughts is given -by a change of room, and a really dull feeling often disappears when -one’s surroundings are changed, and one goes into a fresh pure -atmosphere; for whatever the weather is, I do hope Angelina has her -windows open top and bottom, and, in fact, sleeps with them open too; -but this I shall say more about when I reach the bedrooms, and talk -about health, which will be later on; though before I describe the -papering &c. of this little room I must beg Angelina not to fall into -the habit of so many young wives, of having nothing between breakfast -and dinner save perhaps cake or a cup of tea, but to have a properly -cooked chop or morsel of meat at the orthodox hour for luncheon. For -while I know how difficult it is to do this because eating by oneself is -so dull, and it does not appear worth while to have cooking done for -oneself alone, I cannot too much impress upon my bride that she must -remember health is the first consideration, and that very bad effects -are often caused by the manner in which proper food is forgotten or gone -without in the middle of the day, a matter far too many girls never -think about at all. - -It is almost impossible to lay down any hard-and-fast rules for the -decoration of a morning-room without seeing the room itself, but I am -sure no colour is so entirely satisfactory as the blue which is the -exact shade of a sparrow’s egg or an old turquoise. Mr. Smee, at my -express desire, keeps this blue paper, at 4_s._ a piece, always in -stock, and a perfect room can be made by using this paper, Aspinall’s -enamel paint, the exact shade of the ground of the paper, and a frieze -of dead gold Japanese paper at 3_s._ 6_d._ the piece of nine yards; a -frieze or picture rail painted blue unites the frieze to the ‘filling,’ -and the panels of the doors, shutters, &c., should be panelled with -_red_ and gold Japanese leather paper. The painter must not be allowed -to pick out or embellish the paint at all (I cannot repeat this too -often), and the cornice must be one uniform cream colour. The ceiling of -this room should be papered yellow and white, and curtains could be -made from the yellow printed linen sold by Mr. Pither, 38 Mortimer -Street, Regent Street, at 1_s._ a yard, and edged by ball fringe sold by -Mr. Smee at 6½_d._ a yard. - -Another arrangement for a room which had much sun could be from a -sage-green paper, with a broad frieze of one of the many beautiful -floral papers to be purchased nowadays, with a good deal of pink in; or -better still would it be to go to Mrs. McClelland, of 33 Warwick Road, -Maida Hill, W., and get her to paint a frieze of pale pink and dark red -roses on American cloth; this is put up with drawing pins and taken down -like a picture, and would make a most admirable wedding present; it -would certainly be a joy to any bride for all her life long, and should -therefore be considered by those who are about to make a marriage gift. - -In this case all the paint must be sage-green, and we must get as much -pink--really pink--and _peacock_ blue with it as we can muster. -Therefore, on the mantelpiece we can have a cretonne with pale pink -flowers; our over-mantel and board being painted sage-green, with, if -possible, sprays of pale pink chrysanthemums or roses on. And then place -on the mantelshelf first a candlestick, choosing the pretty small -embossed brass ones that Maple used to have at 2_s._ 6_d._ each; then a -spill-case in blue and white china, always remembering to keep them full -of spills--they save a great deal of waste in winter both of matches and -temper; then a photograph frame, holding a _home_ photograph of mother, -father, or sisters in an oak frame (the plush and leather ones soon soil -and look tawdry); then a vase for flowers--a low shape; then one of the -tall sixpenny Baker Street vases, that look beautiful with a single rose -or two; marguerites or fuchsias in summer; and with grasses and ferns in -winter; and then the clock, continuing the same arrangement the other -side; and, despite the sneers levelled at them, use Japanese fans as a -background as often as you can; the colour is so invaluable a help, and, -being excellently managed, goes with anything. - -The doors should be painted to match the frieze, and the over-mantel -should also be decorated in a similar manner, and the ceiling should be -papered with a good terra-cotta and white paper. Some terra-cotta or -pink should be introduced into the chair coverings, &c., but the exact -shades must be carefully chosen by some one whose eye for colour can be -trusted emphatically. - -This room should be under the care of the housemaid, who should dust and -sweep it before breakfast, and should also see to the hall. The cook -will have quite enough to do with the dining-room and her own kitchen, -while the drawing-room can be left to be looked after, when the bedrooms -are done and the breakfast things washed up; though the ornaments and -flowers must be entirely looked after by the mistress, should she only -be able to begin life with two servants. - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -THE DRAWING-ROOM. - - -It is quite useless to attempt to have a pretty drawing-room, unless the -owner really means to have it in constant use, and intends to sit in it -regularly. I am quite convinced that rooms resent neglect like human -beings do, and that they become morose and sulky-looking if they are -kept closed, or only opened when strangers are expected. - -It is no use then to bustle about to arrange this antimacassar, or to -put yonder chair just a little bit out of its constrained position, to -put flowers in the vases and books on the tables, in a spasmodic attempt -to give an air of life to the dead chamber. Something will betray you, -the chill atmosphere will inevitably chill your friends, your constraint -in an unaccustomed room will communicate itself to them, and you will -infallibly all be as stiff and unhappy as you can be, without perhaps -being able to define the cause. - -Therefore, as your room is to be lived in, let me beg of you to buy -nothing for it that you cannot replace easily, to have nothing gorgeous, -or that will not stand a certain amount of careful wear and tear, for as -sure as your room is too grand to be lived in every day, so sure will -your acquaintances find you out, and put you down at once upon the list -of dull folks to be avoided, that we all of us keep somewhere mentally -or otherwise. - -A light hue for a drawing-room has been found to be a necessity ever -since the days--those awful days--of white papers covered with gilt -stars. There is always something a little depressing about the evening. -One is tired with the day’s work, worried by domestic duties, or -disappointed at the very little fruit the long twelve hours have given -us; and therefore we should be careful to arrange our evening-room with -the intention of having cheerful surroundings, if we can have nothing -else, and that is why I should like to have our drawing-room in blue, or -else in yellows and whites. - -I must say I still hanker after a dado, because in the drawing-room I -like to hang all sorts of odds and ends upon it, which give an original -air to the room, and also insures favourite photographs, fans, or pretty -hanging baskets with flowers in being close to one’s chair, or near -one’s eyes, should we wish to look at them. A very pretty effect is -obtained by stretching a cretonne material round the base of the wall -for a dado, hiding the nails with a dado rail of bamboo. Liberty’s blue -and white cretonnes are invaluable for this, but then it is rather -difficult to - -[Illustration: FIG. 15.--Drawing-room at Gable-end, Shortlands.] - -obtain a blue paper to match. Still it is to be done and we are repaid -for the trouble, I think, by the effect when it is up. A -yellow-and-white paper looks charming with a blue dado, also a -terra-cotta paper and paint are not amiss, though I confess myself -rather disappointed with this effect in a drawing-room I once had; but -then the paint was put on in my absence, and I feel convinced it was not -the shade ordered. If people are really tired of dados, and will have -none of them, the walls can be papered blue to within about two feet of -the top; then a frieze of pale yellow and white can be put on either of -paper or cretonne, the join hidden by a rail, on which are placed hooks -which hold pictures. These then are brought down to the proper level for -light, and are not suspended out of vision, as are so many paintings and -engravings in houses of people who are artistic enough by birth and -education to know better; then, too, by using these hooks the great -expense of picture-rods going all round the rooms is saved, without -damaging the walls either by hammering in brass-headed nails. - -I think a panelled room painted blue for a drawing-room is perfect; but -unless the house that Angelina takes is panelled already, this is no use -for her, as panelling is expensive work, and would be the landlord’s -property, too, when the lease is up, so that is out of the question. -Still, I know of panelled rooms yet existent whose owners look at their -grained walls and wonder how they can make them less hideous, and -perhaps some of them may see this book, and may resolve to do away with -that terrible eyesore, a grained device, and set to work to paint the -walls a delicate sparrow’s-egg-blue, furthermore embellished by long -designs of rushes and grasses, either stencilled or painted on by some -one of the many girls who can paint, and who can be found always at Mrs. -McClelland’s studio, should we number not one of those useful damsels -among our acquaintances. Whatever style of decoration is adopted, I hope -we may have a blue wooden mantelpiece and over-mantel; brass bells, -brass locks and handles to the doors, and finger-plates must replace the -china abominations provided by the landlord; but these must be carefully -marked down as belonging to the tenant, and the china ones must be put -away carefully too, to replace the brass ones again when Angelina’s -lease is up, or she will have to feel that her money has gone into the -landlord’s pocket, which is never a cheerful subject for contemplation. - -Now for the carpet, the style and price of which can range from 35_s._ -6_d._ to almost any amount that you like to spend. The cheapest ones are -the Kidderminster squares, which can be purchased at Mr. Treloar’s, on -Ludgate Hill, or at Shoolbred’s or Maple’s. In fact, at the risk of -being vituperated by these gentlemen, I say, in low tones of caution, go -to all of these establishments, and, taking as usual plenty of time over -your choice, see all the blue carpets they have: at one or other of the -shops you will be sure to see exactly what you want. I do not think the -cheap squares are ever really artistic; but they are inoffensive, and -most wonderfully inexpensive, and wear beautifully. Still, the colours -and patterns are not quite my beau-ideal of a carpet design, but beggars -cannot, alas! be choosers, and if we must really be very economical we -can but be thankful for these carpets, because they replace the hideous -Dutch carpeting and frightful ‘Kidderminsters’ that used to be the -portion of such of our ancestors as could not afford Turkey or -Axminster, and had to fall back on these, and on the ‘best Brussels,’ -the crude and frightful greens and reds of which haunt my dreams -sometimes, when I am meditating on furniture and remember the days that -are no more; being duly and sincerely thankful that they are no more, as -far as carpets and furniture in general are concerned. - -Rising above the ‘squares,’ we ascend to the delightful blue carpets, -also in Kidderminster, that are sold by the yard. I once possessed one -which was the joy of my heart, which I bought at Shoolbred’s. But I took -a friend there the other day, having roused her to enthusiasm over mine, -to find no more were made; ‘for customers,’ said the polite man who -served us, ‘will insist on novelties, and grumble frightfully do they -see the same goods on show as they saw some years ago, whether or not -that they were as pretty as they can be. No, the cry is always for some -new thing.’ And so we could not buy any more of my blue carpet, and I -look at the one I have apprehensively, and cannot bear any one to walk -upon it, because I know, once gone, I can never replace it. It was about -4_s._ 6_d._ a yard, and wears beautifully. However, we were shown -another that quite put my poor carpet out of court, both in colour and -design; but then it was 5_s._ 6_d._ a yard, and though that did not -matter to my friend, fortunately, it mattered to me; and so I was left -carpetless, until I saw some beautiful self-coloured felt, which looks -very well with rugs on, but shows dirt, and what housemaids call ‘bits,’ -in rather a depressing manner. However, blue carpets are to be bought, I -feel convinced, and they are certainly worth the search.[1] If money is -forthcoming for a really good carpet, I should propose, first, the blue -Kidderminster, at 5_s._ 6_d._ a yard, made into a square, and edged with -woollen fringe, put down over, first of all, brown paper, and then a -carpet-felt. This insures warmth, and trebles the chances of wear. -Secondly, a really good Oriental carpet with a good deal of white in it. -Mr. Smee has a charming one, that harmonises beautifully with blue, and -that costs about 10_l._ for rather a small room. Thirdly, one could have -a nice matting (putting this down over the brown paper) at about 1_s._ -6_d._ to 2_s._ a yard, with good rugs scattered about. These are -expensive items, and would cost 8_l._ or 9_l._ to provide enough, and of -the right sort; but the wear of really good rugs is marvellous. I have -two large ones I bought at Treloar’s nearly ten years ago; they are in -the dining-room, where there is a great deal of wear and tear, and they -are as good now in appearance as the day I bought them, but I think they -cost me a little over 2_l._ 10_s._ each. - - [1] Since writing the above I have found my blue carpet at Messrs. - Colbourne’s, 82 Regent Street, where it can always be procured. - -Of course, if we spend on our carpets we must be prepared to save -elsewhere; our curtains need not cost us much. They can be either yellow -and white, or blue and white Liberty cretonne, made to the height of the -dado rail, just to draw along the windows from top to bottom to exclude -light and to hide the room from outsiders when it is lighted up, thus -saving the great and useless expense of blinds, and they can be lined -with some cheap material, or made double, and then, white ones being -fixed as described later on, last a long time without washing, and can -be either made of figured Madras, with a good deal of colour in it, at -4_s._ 6_d._ a yard, double width, or of fine muslin and guipure, which -washes beautifully--a quality I have never discovered in the many Madras -muslins that I have bought, because I could not resist their decorative -qualities, though I was angry at my own weakness all the time. - -Naturally I can lay down no really hard-and-fast lines for decorating a -drawing-room, for so much depends on the style and shape of the chamber; -and what I said of the morning-room applies here equally well. Still, a -yellow and white room, made by using Pither’s yellow and white ‘berry’ -paper, with a dado of Collinson and Lock’s ‘47’ cretonne, with ivory -paint, and yellow and white ceiling paper, and a blue carpet, makes a -charming room; while one of the flowery, expensive papers, with a -cretonne dado, is also safe to be charming too. In this case pink must -be used in the ceiling, and the carpet should be either Maple’s ‘golden -pine’ or a very carefully chosen carpet in shades of sage-green. - -As to the furniture of the drawing-room, that must be determined on and -regulated simply by the amount of money we have to spend. If we have -plenty we can purchase as many nice deep arm-chairs and small occasional -chairs as we like--then it will only be a matter of taste; but if we are -limited and have little to spend, we must go about our work -circumspectly, and must not mind going into a great many shops before we -finally obtain what will furnish our room nicely. - -Here, again, the useful wicker chairs will come in, covered with pretty -cretonnes, made in such a manner that they can have their coverings -removed to be washed; and I should also once more advise one of the -charming square sofas already described. I think I should adhere to -velveteen for the covering, unless we can procure a gold thread -tapestry sufficiently light and inexpensive for our purpose. Messrs. -Maple were the best people to apply to for these goods, but lately they -have not had the pretty ones of old days, change of fashion and need for -novelty accounting for the absence of some of the best designs I have -ever seen; but Liberty has some excellent tapestries now. - -If the room have a bow-window, a cosy summer corner can be made by -putting the sofa there, with a table in front or at the side, capable of -holding books and plants; and these tables are, again, things that we -must undoubtedly choose with a great deal of care, for there is nothing -more annoying than a rickety table, or one that is knocked over easily, -should the room be fuller than usual, or should we number an awkward -friend among the members of our acquaintances. - -I remember some years ago having to entertain such an individual in the -days when I did not know as much as I do now about the fitness of -things, and I really believe that unhappy man’s sufferings gave me a -lesson about tables I have never forgotten. I was always very fond of -pretty things, and then had the mistaken idea that one could not have -too many of them; so I fear that when we used to go in to dinner from -the drawing-room, our walk resembled nothing so much as Mr. Dickens’s -celebrated description of the family whose rooms were so full that they -had to ‘take a walk among furniture’ before they could get out of the -room. - -We were taking our walk among the furniture when the _contretemps_ -happened. My unfortunate acquaintance had fidgeted unhappily for some -time, and he finally made a dart towards the lady he had to take in to -dinner, knocking over the chair next him, and arriving at his -destination with a fringed antimacassar neatly fastened to one of his -coat-buttons. He then backed into a small table, on which stood some -books and photographs, and only saved this, to send another spinning; -this time smashing the whole concern, and depriving me of one of my pet -flower-holders, the demolition of which I have never ceased to regret. -But worse was to come: in one heroic effort to get away from the scene -of the disaster he backed once more into a ‘whatnot’ full of china, and -I draw a veil over my feelings and his, as the most merciful thing I can -do. - -Still, when next morning I stood among the ruins, like Marius among the -ruins of Rome, I was honest enough to say, ‘This is certainly my own -fault,’ and ‘turning to,’ as the maids say, I so rearranged that long -and ugly room that when next I had a dinner party I was repaid a -thousandfold for my exertions and sacrifices by the expression of relief -on the countenances of the guests, who now saw themselves saved from the -usual dangerous promenade among my belongings that had used to be their -portion. Now fortunately we can purchase tables that are small and -safe, and I think those which are made with double trays, or rather with -one tray under the top, are perfectly safe. They are to be bought -covered with stamped velveteen, or with the pretty stuffs that imitate -Turkish saddle-bags, or with plush, but I prefer them made of plain dark -wood, and either polished or else painted ivory, and the top covered -with an ordinary cloth made from tapestry, or one of Burnett’s charming -serges edged with ball fringe; as, if plants in pots are placed upon -them, drops of water are apt soon to spoil the covering, whereas serge -will stand a good deal of water; although I am of opinion that plants -should always be watered outside the room, on a balcony or in a garden -if possible, as a little carelessness soon spoils one’s things, and I -have, alas! spoilt much by not enforcing this rule both on myself and -others. - -Another very good and useful table is the square ivory Queen Anne table, -that has four square rails as an extra support to the legs. These are -about 3_l._, and can be procured in different sizes, when, of course, -the price alters too, and are extremely handy to hold the lamp for -reading books, work, &c., and are large enough to write a note upon -comfortably. - -I am a great advocate for corners--that is to say, for giving the -corners of the room an artistic look, and I also like to have my -favourite winter corner close to the fireplace. Naturally, it would be -intensely foolish if we all hankered after a corner. Still even then we -could be accommodated, if we do not mind screening ourselves off from -our fellows in a manner I must say I consider extremely ugly and silly. - -It will hardly be believed that in a house I have heard of the mistress -has erected a series of screens in her drawing-room, which resembles now -nothing so much as a restaurant fitted up with boxes. Rather than -suggest such a fearful idea I would abolish screens altogether; yet one -round the back of the sofa is often a great comfort, and, judiciously -arranged, makes the background for a very pretty corner. - -But the mistress’s corner can be arranged like this: put straight across -the corner of the wall a small black table, made safe with the -under-tray, and covered at the top with a Turkish antimacassar; this -holds a plant in the daytime and the lamp at night, and is large enough -to hold all the month’s magazines, half on each side of the centrepiece; -above this a black corner bracket for china, crowned by a big pot to -hold grasses or bulrushes, can be hung on the wall; and in front of the -table should stand a square stool, holding a large plant and pot, heavy -enough to hold its own should any one come near enough to knock it over, -were it too light. Then to the left of this, next the fireplace, put -your own particular chair, leaving room for a stool of some kind, that -is broad and low, and can hold your work-basket if you work, your -favourite book, or your newspaper-stand with the paper-knife attached; -and on the desk above and at the side of your chair hang a sabot for -flowers, your favourite photographs, and any pet piece of china or -ornaments you may fancy. One of mine consists of a mandarin’s fan and -case; the case is embroidered in silk, and gives a very pretty bit of -colour, and the fan serves as a fire-screen should any one object to the -cheerful blaze. Needless to add, I never use this screen myself. - -On the other side of the fireplace I have a pair of brass bellows and a -brass-handled brush, for I think an untidy hearth disturbs me more than -anything else; and another Japanese fan, tied to a nail by a riband, -which some of my friends find most useful when the fire is hot. Here, -too, I have a really charming chair I bought at Liberty’s. I think it -was 14_s._ 6_d._, not more. It has rather a high back, and a rush seat, -and as the front legs are taller than the other two, it just tilts back, -and is most comfortable. I added a padded back cushion, tied on with -tapes, which adds much to the effect, but none is required on the seat, -as rushes make a very comfortable and easy support, and this chair is -preferred by what is rudely called ‘the master of the house,’ my pet -cat, to any other, and he is a gentleman who really knows what comfort -is. He has made it his study, during a long and honourable life, so I -think I am not wrong in quoting him as an authority. - -While not emulating a good friend of mine, in whose house the putting on -of coals partakes of the character of a protracted and arduous ceremony, -I must say I dislike to see coals standing in a room, but the -receptacles made for them in brass are so pretty now that they may -almost be forgiven, though I would rather not see them in a -drawing-room. However, if one is required, the brass baskets, _without_ -covers, are the best, and hold quite enough coals for the evening, -indeed more than enough if the grate is as I described before, and -moreover judiciously laid and managed. Brass fire-irons and dogs are a -necessity, but then a little black poker, price 1_s._ 6_d._, called a -‘pokerette’ in the shops, and ‘the curate’ in the drawing-room, must -supplement the brass one, or that will very soon be black and spoiled. - -I do not like a rug laid down in front of the fire, for more reasons -than one. I have known a little foot catch in it, and the owner -precipitated with his poor little head on the hard fender; and it always -is an assistance to a careless or dirty housemaid, who is thus served -with a screen should she break one of the rules that should be enforced -in every household, and proceed to clean her grate without first putting -down the rough piece of material with which she should be furnished. She -is obliged to do this should there be no rug, for then every mark would -show, and she would not dare to put down black-lead in a _cracked_ -saucer, fire-irons, brushes, and a thin newspaper full of ashes, as I -once discovered a girl doing in an apartment furnished with a wide rug, -that hid this, as well as a multitude of other sins. - -While being lived in and used, a drawing-room is and must be essentially -a best room, and is invaluable as a teacher to the untidy or -unmethodical mistress or servant. Fine manners are a necessity, and a -certain amount of fine manners is maintained by use of a room that holds -our dearest treasures, and sees little of the seamy side of life. It is -on little things that our lives depend for comfort, and small habits, -such as a changed dress for evening wear with a long skirt, to give the -proper drawing-room air, the enforcement of the rule that slippers and -cigars must never enter there, and a certain politeness maintained to -each other in the best room, almost insensibly enforced by the very -atmosphere of the chamber, will go a long way towards keeping up the -mutual respect that husband and wife should have for each other, and -which is a surer means of happiness than anything I know--than any -amount of foolish terms of endearment, that are apt to be forgotten when -the gloss of the honeymoon is rubbed off, and life becomes too full of -anxieties and hurry for the old pet names. - -Remember, please, I am not writing for votaries of fashion or for rich -people, who could tell me doubtless a great many things I do not know, -but for the ordinary educated middle-class girl who may never leave her -country home until she is married, or may have had few opportunities of -seeing the world, even in London; and she does require, I know full -well, to be reminded that home should not excuse faded finery, -down-at-heel shoes, or slovenliness of mind or body in either husband or -wife, for nothing grows so easily as untidy habits or slovenly manners, -and it is worth a little struggle to prevent oneself or one’s friends -deteriorating ever such a little bit. - -The drawing-room would not be complete without a piano, and this is all -too often a very ugly piece of furniture. I am glad to say white frames -painted with beautiful flowers and designs are now being made, and these -are easy to treat, but in ordinary rooms the usual cottage piano has to -be thought of, and another corner can be made by placing the instrument -across one side of the room in such a manner that the performer could -see her audience. This naturally leaves the back of the piano exposed to -view, and, as piano manufacturers still adhere to the red flannel or -baize back, this is not a pretty object to contemplate. However, it is -one that is easily changed, as it can be replaced by either a -crewel-worked piece of art coloured serge, the useful and cheap Japanese -leather paper, or else by a square of cretonne similar to that used for -the curtains; but I prefer either the serge or paper to this. If the -serge be worked with bulrushes and iris and grasses, or with long sprays -of honeysuckle, the effect is charming. Then along the top can be -placed a piece of serge, or felt or damask, worked too, and edged with -an appropriate fringe, which thus makes an excellent shelf for odds and -ends of china and bowls of flowers, as the top of the piano is seldom, -if ever, opened by the ordinary piano player. - -If a more careless arrangement be desired, a large square of drapery can -be arranged gracefully over the back, securing it with small tintacks on -the inside of the lid, or a large Japanese screen can be placed before -it; but I think the best thing to do is to replace the baize back as -suggested, not omitting to take out the crude red or green silk or -elaborate carved wood front, and treat that as you treat the back. - -I have seen a very pretty front to a piano made out of sage-green silk -worked with rosebuds, or of turquoise-blue material worked in pale -yellow campanulas, or yellow Scotch roses with their brown foliage. I -have also seen a painted front put in, with dancing figures depicted on -it; and, of course, all these arrangements are much to be preferred to -the one supplied by the piano manufacturer, who is the only man, it -seems to me, who resolutely refuses to march with the times, and makes -no effort to improve the appearance of his manufactures. - -The chair by the piano can be any pretty chair fancied by the owner. I -have a very nice one in white wood, with the seat covered in Indian -tapestry, which I gave a guinea for at Liberty’s. A very good plan is to -have an extra cushion, attached by ribbon to the side of the chair, for -the use of any one who may prefer a higher seat than we may happen to -care for. This should, of course, be made square, and be covered with -the same material that is used for the chair, and does away with the -necessity for a music stool with an adjustable seat--an article I cannot -endure, as it always shakes, is most unsteady, and squeaks appallingly -whenever there is to be a change in the weather. Another idea for a seat -by the piano is to have a square ottoman, made to open. Two people can -sit upon this to play duets; but I do not care for this very much, as -there is no back, but in a small room it is of great use, as it holds a -great deal of music, is cheap, and does not look badly if properly -covered with a pretty material, nailed on, and adorned with a frill that -serves a double purpose, being highly ornamental and hiding the opening -of the box at the same time. Another receptacle for music can be made -out of one of the small square black cupboards which I have spoken of -before, and which serve as tables besides, if the top be covered with -some sort of a cloth, and books and ornaments be scattered about too. - -The grand piano, coffin-like as it undoubtedly is, is far more easily -made into a decorative article of furniture, and while the bend in the -structure makes a capital ‘corner,’ the whole thing can be admirably -arranged if we commence by draping the entire end with some square of -material, or, if we possess it, with a length of old brocade or an -Indian shawl. The drapery is placed so that it hangs over the end and -sides, and is secured in place by, first of all, a nice plant in a good -pot, which keeps the cloth in place, and has no effect whatever on the -tone of the piano. At the end I place Leech’s collection of sketches, -which we always call the ‘long Punches,’ in contradistinction to the -bound volumes, and then any small things that I think look -picturesque--not too many, nor any that cannot easily and comfortably be -moved, should I have to entertain a pianist who wishes to imitate -thunder, and cannot do so without having the lid opened widely. A good -arrangement in the bend is a big palm in a brass pot on a black stand. -These brass pots are to be procured at Hampton’s, in Pall Mall East, but -I fear they are very expensive. I have often looked and longed for one, -but never dared purchase it, much as I hanker after such a -possession--they are extremely decorative, and have a style of their -own. Failing that, a nice square table with more plants and books, and a -couple of low chairs, placed in a ‘conversational’ manner, are suitable, -with another plant on a square stool placed in front of the table. This -gives a very finished look to the piano, and I venture to state that -when this is done the piano is not the first thing visitors see when -they enter the room: indeed, I have once or twice been asked if I have a -piano, so little in evidence is this instrument to any one who merely -comes to make an ordinary call. Talking of calls reminds me, before we -leave the drawing-room, to make a small protest about one of the most -idiotic customs that still linger among us--that of making morning -calls; and I should like to see a good deal of reform in this matter. - -Formal visiting I never will or can go in for; and I have come to the -conclusion that, if people are only known casually and in such a manner -that to call on them is an effort, to make which we are braced up by the -idea, and cherished with the hope, that the person one calls on, -card-case in hand, will be out, life is too short for such nonsense, and -that calling as per fashion ordained is more honoured in the breach than -in the observance, and that for us ordinary folk, who have work to do in -life, this fantastic waste of time can quite well be given up. I should -much like to see, at the same time, more co-operation in our lives. I -should like more freedom among us, less of the idea that an Englishman’s -house is his castle, and therefore I am always glad to note any step in -the right direction, which is not followed when we set out in our best -garments to make a round of calls. - -Of course, people will say, ‘If we do not make calls, we can neither -extend our circle nor keep up our friendships,’ but I really cannot see -how cards conduce to either. That delightful institution of -five-o’clock tea has done more for us, who cannot afford to give big -entertainments, than a bushel of pasteboard; and I am convinced the idea -of calls could be done away with altogether with very little trouble, -and one way of doing this, especially in a small community, is to have -one day, or even one evening, a week, or even a fortnight, when we are -known to be at home and ready to see our friends. - -I know some people scoff at the notion of an ordinary middle-class woman -‘aping her betters,’ and having her day at home; but the scoffers should -reflect before they scoff, then, perhaps, they would alter their ideas. -First of all, in a small household the servants can so manage their work -that visitors on the day being expected, are no trouble at all. The fire -would always be burning brightly in winter, the flowers and plants would -be at their best in summer, and the mistress and her room together would -be ready to see any one. I can speak from experience that my friends -always turned up in shoals in dear hospitable Shortlands when I had my -Thursdays, and came week after week to see me, secure of a cup of tea -and a chat after a walk or drive; and I know how the winter sped along -when I felt confident that So-and-so would be in any day of the week, -and that I can ‘turn into’ this or that pleasant room any hour between 4 -and 5.30, and find a welcome and a cup of tea ready for me, neither -being in the least less warm because the previous Monday, and the Monday -before that too maybe, my feet took me in precisely the same direction. -In winter these informal gatherings are particularly pleasant, because I -think the hours between the end of your drive or walk and dinner are -occasionally a little depressing, and are not good preparation for the -evening, which goes off much better if we have had a chat in the -afternoon with a friend or two, which takes us out of our grooves and -gives us something to talk about over the meal; while in summer, the -fact that one is at home for certain on one day in the week brings -friends from a distance to see us, and often causes impromptu tennis -parties and little gatherings, all the pleasanter because they are -informal and almost unexpected; while in these days of ostentation and -glitter it is an excellent thing to know how to entertain well and -cheaply, and see one’s friends, without feeling each time we do so that -we are so many steps nearer the Bankruptcy Court. If we contemplate -seeing society in the way I have indicated above, a tea-table is a _sine -quâ non_ in our drawing-room. A very good sort of table is the rush and -bamboo table, with little trays for cakes, that open and close, and -therefore take up very little room in a chamber; there is a second tray -under the top one where spare cups can be placed. And still another -table is the useful little Sutherland table, that shuts up and stands -modestly and unseen in a corner when not in use, and that is brought out -in a moment, without fuss or trouble, and can be used for whist, chess, -or any ordinary game; while a small nest of four narrow tables, adapted -from an old Chippendale design, is an invaluable possession. Closed, the -‘nest’ takes up a very small space, and, opened out, the owner has four -little tables to put about beside her guests, who thus are provided with -places to put down their cups and plates upon, and are thus relieved of -what is sometimes an intolerable nuisance. - -The best five-o’clock teacloth is a fine white damask edged with torchon -lace, and with a torchon lace insertion which washes beautifully, and -this should be marked with a large monogram in scarlet thread. A really -large, good monogram has an excellent effect. I purchased my cloths at -Shoolbred’s, who also procured me some one to work the monograms, as I -am unfortunately no ‘stitchist,’ as Artemus Ward would say, and cannot -sew one bit. But they are a little expensive. Still, if any one can work -themselves, the cloths are only 5_s._ 6_d._; the lace comes to about -3_s._ more; and then there is the monogram, which of course could be -saved to any one who possesses cleverer fingers than have been given to -me, but which are now worked for me at 1_s._ and 1_s._ 6_d._ each by a -lady who thus is enabled to make a perceptible addition to her income, -and who may be heard of at the Workers’ Guild, 11 Kensington Square, W. -Other tablecloths have red and blue borders; but I prefer the plain -white with the monogram to any other. A nice bright copper kettle and a -trivet should be always brought in with the tea, and a cosey should -never be forgotten, while buns (home-made buns and scones are most -excellent), biscuits, and bread and butter suffice for quite a large -party of friends, and there is neither extra trouble nor fuss of any -kind. Of course, teacups and saucers are of all sorts and conditions, -but I think small blue and white ones on a china tray are the prettiest -of all, and can generally be replaced should a misfortune happen to -them; while Liberty’s ornamental china cups and saucers are always -pretty, and can invariably be matched. - -No room is bearable without, or looks ugly with, plants and flowers, so -I hope that these may always be found in the drawing-rooms, at least, of -any of those who do me the favor to read, mark, and inwardly digest the -pages of this little book. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -CURTAINS, CARPETS, AND LIGHTING. - - -Of course, in writing on the subject of curtains, we must begin first by -saying that a great deal depends upon the shape and size of the windows, -for all these particulars have to be carefully considered before we -start on any expedition to inspect and buy our material for our -draperies; for if a window be small or high up it requires far less -management than the large bow-windows that take so much thought, and, -alas! so much material too. Then, as there are French windows to be -arranged for, and, in fact, square windows as well, we have to spend -much time and thought over how we shall arrange, so as to suit all, -before we cast our eyes over cretonnes, damasks, plushes, and the -thousand and one materials, all more or less suited to the purpose for -which they were designed. - -The ordinary window, with the two sashes and the square frame, is very -easily managed, even supposing that one has to keep out the neighbours’ -eyes as well as a certain amount of sunshine. The muslin curtains should -be put up on rods like small stair-rods, fastened against the window -frame top and bottom in such a way that they do not interfere with the -free raising of the sash, which must open top and bottom; this -arrangement--illustrated in my chapter on the dining-room--insures the -curtains remaining in their place, and prevents them floating in and out -on every dust-laden breeze that blows, while it leaves no long tail of -draggled muslin to sweep the floor, and get torn and dirty almost before -they have been up a week. - -The best white curtains are undoubtedly made of soft clear muslin, edged -and furthermore embellished by insertions of guipure lace--the insertion -is put in a slip close to the edge, and washes beautifully--but those -curtains, unless made at home, are undoubtedly expensive. Still, nothing -looks like them, and if they are arranged on the rods in such a manner -that the edges of the outside lace just touch, they form a complete -screen, and yet hide nothing from the owner of the house, who can see -from her windows comfortably without being spied over, and, being fixed, -last clean really a very long time indeed. And then, if the thicker -curtains are placed on a straight brass rod, as narrow as the weight -they have to support will allow, no blinds are required, for the warm -drapery draws straight over them, and either serves as a blind to keep -out the light or a screen to keep out the draughts, and so does away -with the expensive blind with its rollers, its cord eternally out of -order, and its ugly effect from both inside and outside the house. - -A good ‘book’ or Swiss ‘mull’ muslin costs about 10½_d._ a yard, the -guipure edging and insertion about 1_s._ 6½_d._; therefore the cost -of these curtains is easily calculated by any one who measures her own -windows and sees what length and quantity of material is required for -them. Bedroom windows look extremely nice if treated in a similar manner -in the French checked muslin, such as the _bonnes_ use for their caps -and aprons, and of which our Sunday summer frocks used to be made in our -young days, and which costs 10½_d._ a yard. If this be used, the -curtains must be edged with a two-inch goffered frill, which must -invariably edge all the curtains that are not treated with lace edgings, -for nothing looks worse than the hard line of a curtain that is neither -frilled nor lace-trimmed. - -Of the popularity of the soft and beautiful Madras muslins there is -scarcely any necessity to speak, as it is now familiar to most of us; -but despite its beauty and (in some cases) its cheapness, I must add a -word of warning on the subject of Madras, especially addressed to our -young friends with limited means, for the cheap sort of Madras does not -wash satisfactorily, and should, therefore, be avoided by all those who -have to study economy, and have not only to buy things, but to select -them in such a manner that they shall last after their first visit to -the wash-tub at the very least. - -The cheap Madras washes into holes, and all the pretty colours vanish, -and a limp rag returns to us instead of the charming curtains that gave -such a style to the appearance of the outside of our house; and the -expensive ones, too, are apt to ‘run’ in the washing, and are out of the -purchasing power of any one whose means are really limited; for these -cost from 6_s._ 9_d._ to 8_s._ 9_d._ a yard, and therefore become -expensive items in our expenditure at once, although they contrast -favourably with the fine lace and embroidered curtains sold ready to put -up at 5_l._ or 6_l._ a pair, or at times even more than that. But -ready-made curtains designed with large and marvellous patterns must not -even enter a really artistic home. They mean nothing, can never be -anything save vulgar and pretentious, and are therefore to be avoided; -for if we are rich we can have the best Madras, the finest guipure and -muslin; and if we are poor we can yet have our white muslin, either -frilled or edged with guipure, as rich as our modest means will allow; -or the valuable Mysore and artistic muslins at 9¾_d._ and 3¾_d._ a -yard, which wash excellently if done at home--in water without soda and -with a few drops of vinegar in to ‘set the colours,’ as the washerwomen -say. - -A bow-window, the orthodox suburban villa bow-window, is, I own, a very -difficult subject to treat, but I have circumvented even that by an -arrangement of curtains on rods managed as described above, and in the -first-named window have two narrow white curtains meeting at the top of -the window, and gradually sloping away until they are about five inches -apart at the bottom; the wider centre sash is treated in the same manner -with wider curtains, the plain edge of which meets the edge of the -curtain that fits the narrow sash on both sides of the broader window; -for the usual bow is made of a flat sash in the middle, between two -narrow sashes that bow slightly; the muslin is ‘taut’, as sailors would -say, and is always tidy, and by using these narrow _very_ cheap rods all -expensive fitted and formed poles and valances are done away with, and a -most expensive and vexatious item in our expenditure completely swept -off our schedule of payments to be made. The muslin curtains neatly up, -a thicker rod can be fixed in three portions, each portion separate and -distinct, for the heavier curtains. Those in any dining-room can be made -of several materials. Shoolbred had a beautiful gold figured damask, -double width, at 4_s._ 9_d._, which looks like silk, though naturally it -is nothing of the kind; this drapes beautifully and looks charming, as -it falls into folds and never fades; it can be edged with a ball fringe -to match, which adds a good deal to the expense, but looks better than -anything else, or else by a frill, but this is a little heavy, as the -material is thick. This material can be had in a beautiful pale blue and -a good terra-cotta as well as in the yellow, but I have no experience of -the wear of the two former colours, and therefore cannot tell whether -they last as well and as satisfactorily as the yellow does. To make the -window look really nice, you require one breadth hung down straight at -the end of the first slip of window against the wall, edged all round -the sides and bottom with ball fringe or the frill; then another breadth -on the other side of the slip to pull halfway across the wider window to -meet a third curtain hanging straight in the middle of the other -division, and being met in its turn by a fourth, which, when undrawn, -should hang straight against the wall in the same way that curtain -number one does. - -The artistic serges sold by Colbourne & Co., 82 Regent Street, at 1_s._ -11½_d._ a yard, and Stephen’s Sicilienne damasks at 7_s._ 9_d._ a -yard, are excellent curtain materials also, as are the stamped jutes and -corduroy serges sold for this purpose by Mr. Smee. - -But, whatever the material, in no case should the curtains be draped, or -tied up or chained as if they were wild beasts, with great gold or brass -chains (truly the very ‘foolishest’ things that were ever invented for -the purpose), and they should never come below the window sill or the -dado line, save and except in the case of a French window opening to a -garden or conservatory, when the white drapery should be fixed on rods -to the frame of the door, and the warmer curtains should be draped so as -to keep out the draughts and be drawn readily; and this is done by -sewing them to large rings that run easily on a brass pole, which must -be as small and unobtrusive as possible; and when not in use the -curtains must be drawn close to the wall and tied back, if wished, with -Liberty soft silk handkerchiefs--the 3_s._ 6_d._ size makes two of these -ties--in a colour to harmonise or contrast with that employed in the new -curtains themselves. These curtains must be about an inch longer than -the length from the pole to the floor, and must rather more than touch -the floor, because a French window means a draught to one’s toes, that -can only be circumvented by longish curtains, and a thick mat, so placed -as to be easily moved, should the window open into the room itself. - -Roman sheetings are also excellent for curtains, and plush is the king -of materials, if we could afford it; the shades of colour in the folds -are perfect, and the tints in which plush is made are always lovely; but -as we cannot afford that, we must turn our eyes away from such -enchanting visions, and look out for a nice Mysore chintz for the -drawing-room, which must be lined, to make it warmer and more durable, -and trimmed with the goffered frill that always looks well in all -washing materials; the frill need not be lined. For bedrooms, there is -nothing better than the dark blue and white cretonne, the same both -sides; or Burnett’s excellent ‘marguerite’ cretonnes, in different -colours, at 9½_d._ a yard; the dark blue and white need not be lined -unless the bedroom receive the very early sun, when a lining is -necessary if blinds be done without; but I should make the curtains -double, as the material is as cheap as any lining procurable, and looks -far better than any self-colour could possibly look. These cretonnes -wash most beautifully, and begin at 9_d._ a yard. The chairs, frill to -the mantel-board, eider-down, and any bookcase edges should all be -finished with the same style of cretonne, though, of course, any other -harmonious colour can be introduced to avoid too much sameness. The -chair covers should be loose, and edged with a frill, as also should be -the eider-down cover; this spoils any room if kept in its -Turkey-patterned material, and should always be put into a cretonne -washable cover, as much for beauty as for health. But these details must -be kept for another chapter, as they do not enter into the great subject -of curtains. - -It may sound ridiculous, but I here state boldly that I can invariably -make a more than shrewd guess of the character of the folks who inhabit -a house by noticing what sort of ideas they have on the subject of -draperies; and I may safely say that I have never been mistaken. The -carefully and prettily and tidily arranged curtains tell me at once of -the pleasant folk I shall find inside; just as surely as the dirty, -untidy muslin or the gorgeously patterned, expensive, and pretentious -curtains warn me against the slattern, or the vulgarian with whom I have -nothing in common, should I ever have the bad fortune to have to enter -behind those warning marks; while the soft Madras or delicate lace -indicate an artistic mistress with whom I shall, I know, spend many -pleasant hours. This being the case, do not wonder, dear readers, that I -lay much stress and write at great length on this momentous subject, for -it is one on which almost volumes could be written; for while the inside -of your houses only speak to your friends and relations, the outside -tells a great deal to strangers, and either repels or attracts, -according to the manner in which you arrange your windows. - -[Illustration: FIG. 16.] - -Unless your windows are very small, as in sketch 16, never be without -white curtains of some kind, for if you are the house resembles some one -who has forgotten her cuffs and collar or white frillings, but if they -are like the sketch, you cannot do better than use Pither’s -old-gold-coloured, printed linen edged with ball fringe; this serves all -purposes of blinds and curtains alike, and always looks artistic, while -the windows are not obscured and stuffed up, as are those in most of our -English houses. - -And here let me say most emphatically that ordinary blinds are not -necessary, and are never useful; if the house has very much sun, -_inside_ blinds are no use at all; the heat that makes most town houses -unendurable is caused by the sun striking down on the glass of the -window, and to obviate this the glass itself must be covered _outside_. -Our summer is but a short one at best, but if we cannot bear the sun we -must put up _outside_ blinds, or hang grass mats over the glass outside; -these are the only really necessary blinds; to say the least the others -are unhealthy. The sun is the life-giver, after all, and he had better -fade our curtains and our carpets than that the lack of his beams should -fade our own and our children’s cheeks! This, too, is another reason why -we should never buy very expensive curtains or carpets; fortunately -hardly any of the materials I have spoken of cost much, while -Kidderminster squares--my favourite matting and rugs--or even stained -floors and rugs, are all within the powers of the humblest of us. - -I myself prefer matting for a dining-room at 1_s._ 6_d._ a yard, and -covered here and there with rugs, put down where the greatest amount of -traffic may be expected; but this is expensive, if set against the -pretty carpets in art colours, made at Kidderminster, and sold by the -yard at about 3_s._ 6_d._ a yard, the colours of which are extremely -good. And if we cannot afford matting in the dining-room, a carpet that -would go very well with the room would be shades of very faint -sage-green, with dashes of terra-cotta in. But I much prefer the -matting, and should always advise this for any one who could afford it, -and yet could not afford the Oriental carpet that is, of course, the -carpet for a dining-room. The rugs range from 7_s._ 6_d._, but these are -Scinde rugs, and do not wear very well. Liberty, Maple, and Shoolbred -have all an excellent choice, but I think Maple’s rugs are the best for -people with a small amount of money to spend; and there is this to -consider about rugs, they can be shaken at least once a week and -continually turned about, and when too shabby for downstairs they can be -taken upstairs, finally dying an honourable death before the kitchen -fire or by the bedsides of the maids. Still, much as I like matting, I -must confess the total cost is more than three times the cost of a -Kidderminster square, which in its turn can be taken up, shaken, and -moved about, as, being square, there are no corners to consider, and no -back and front and sides to think about either. But we must put carpet -felt or paper-felt under our squares if we wish them to wear and to feel -soft and pleasant under our feet; and it is as well to put down large -sheets of brown paper before even the felt goes down. All this adds -considerably to the wear of the carpet. - -There is a curious habit in some parts of Canada of making a species of -bed of hay under the carpet, and it gives a very pleasant feeling to any -one walking thereon; of course soft, fine hay is chosen, and it is most -carefully laid down, and evenly and tightly packed; and in a room on the -basement floor, as so often rooms are situated in small suburban houses, -it is a great comfort; it is very warm in winter and cool in summer, and -if the hay-bed is made about twice a year, I believe it requires no -further attention. - -An old friend of mine who lived in poor circumstances in a stone-floor -cottage in Dorsetshire, who had passed some years of her life in Canada, -always stretched her carpet over such a bed, and I well remember how -delightful her floor felt, and how she never suffered, as so many of her -neighbours did, from rheumatism and other evils inseparable from the -ordinary covering to a stone or brick floor. I have more than once -recommended this in a basement kitchen or servants’ sitting-room, and -never without hearing that it was pronounced a great and unfailing -success and source of comfort to the domestics. - -If, however, a Kidderminster square is chosen, the boards for about two -feet from the wainscot must be stained a good brown shade: if the boards -are pretty good, and do not require stopping with putty to keep out the -draughts, as so many of our suburban houses require ‘stopping,’ owing to -the shrinking of the green wood used, alas! for the purposes of floors, -doors, and windows, Edwin or Angelina can well manage this themselves. -Whiteley keeps Ryland’s stain ready prepared in a big tin jar, and with -the right sort of brush this is soon put on; when dry it should be well -and thoroughly polished with beeswax and turpentine, and if this is done -weekly I am sure the floor will never require staining for many years; -but if ‘stopping’ is necessary, the workmen employed can stain the -floors too; for the extra charge will be but small, and it will save a -back-ache, and insure the work being thoroughly and properly done. - -These hints about carpets are perhaps a trifle prolix, but they will do -for the whole of the house--of course varying the colours to suit the -rooms, and being very careful in the selection of patterns. Mr. Morris -has some of his very best designs manufactured in Kidderminster, so the -cheap make of the mere carpet need not be sneered at; but we cannot -afford Morris, much as we should like to do so, for his Kidderminsters -are as costly as most people’s Brussels; and if we are careful, we can -get nearly as pretty patterns elsewhere at one fourth the cost, but we -must be _very_ careful, for there are some red carpets, some blue, and -some a fearful nondescript hue, suggestive of the workhouse--I know not -why--that would irretrievably and utterly spoil any room in which they -were put; but there is a royal blue with paler blue flowers, or rather -‘fan-like things,’ that is perfect; this is, however, sold by the yard, -and has to be made into a square, without a border, and just trimmed -with a woollen fringe, which is procurable at Colbourne’s, 82 Regent -Street, and which wears magnificently: I have had one down now for three -years in a room that experiences a great deal of traffic, and it is at -the moment of writing as good as ever it was, and is admired by every -one who comes in; and the sage-green carpet mentioned before is also -quite safe to suit almost any room. This is also sold by the yard, and -has to have a woollen fringe too. - -If the house have bow-windows, an extra square of carpet, or else a -Scinde rug at 7_s._ 6_d._, can be laid down there; there is not much -‘traffic’ in a bow-window, and the rugs look nicer than anything, and -wear quite a reasonable time in such a locality, and these can be easily -replaced. A piece of the carpet itself always looks out of place -somehow, and spoils any room. - -For a really good carpet, I like a fine Oriental carpet, with a good -deal of white in it, or a Wilton, or velvet pile; but I always like -something cheaper myself, as I do not like _old_ carpets or old -curtains. They must retain a certain amount of dust and dirt, and I -therefore infinitely prefer either a good Kidderminster, or else the -matting and rugs spoken of at first, which can be replaced when shabby -without too great an effort for a moderate income. There are just one or -two trifles that I should like to speak of here. Matting should be swept -_one way_ regularly, and by a proper matting brush. It can be washed -with soap and a little water, and it has a wonderful way of never -collecting dust that is marvellous. Oriental rugs and carpets should be -swept _one_ way only also; and the Kidderminster squares should be -shaken often, but not continually swept; the shaking gets rid of the -dirt, while sweeping wears them out much quicker than need be. - -In connection with the carpets and curtains, we may just as well speak -of the lighting of the sitting-rooms before passing away from them to -the bedchambers. And here I must impress upon my readers never to have -gas anywhere where they can avoid using it, and to pray heartily for -that bright day to dawn when the electric light shall be within the -reach of all, and when Mr. Swan tells us how to light our houses as -perfectly as he has done his own; and I confess that when I recollect -that charming abode, where fairies seem to superintend the lighting, so -wonderfully is it managed, I feel consumed with rage and anger, to think -that I was not born in a time when the electric light will be as much a -matter of course as the present odious system of lighting by gas is; but -as we are still unemancipated from the thraldom of gas, we must try to -make the best of a bad job, and confine the enemy to where it can do -least harm, and be of the most good at the same time. - -An oil lamp in the hall is apt to give a gloomy impression to guests, -and also is rather a difficult matter to manage. It is expensive, and is -apt to get out of order at a critical moment; so I think gas must be -adhered to here. A cathedral glass hanging lamp, square shape, and -framed in brass, and fitted with an Argand burner, is as good a thing as -one can possibly procure for gas, unless we select the more artistic -beaten iron lamps sold by Strode and Co., of 48 Osnaburgh Street, W. The -prices are about equal, I think, and quite a beautiful one can be bought -for about 4_l._ It requires no cleaning beyond the ordinary cleaning, -and gives a strong, steady light, the glass sides of the lantern or lamp -presenting any flickering when the hall door is opened suddenly. I have -occasionally seen a hall lighted from the sides, but I do not care for -this, as it does not have the genial effect of the lighting from the -top; but should this be preferred, a man at Whitechapel makes very -charming side lanterns, of cathedral glass, that go round and almost -cover in the gas bracket, thus preventing any danger of fire, and -keeping away a very great deal of the heat and burnt atmosphere that -make gas always so trying to any sensitive person. I think these -lanterns are from 5_s._ to 10_s._ each, and they are, at all events, -very artistic to look at. - -Then there are beaten shields of brass, with the owner’s initials on, -from whence protrude the gas bracket, also in brass, and there are, -furthermore, those delightful revivals of the old hammered iron trade -that were to be seen in the Old London street at the Inventions, and the -use of which would almost reconcile me to burning gas. These iron -brackets and lamps are expensive, quite small brackets costing 1_l._ -12_s._; but they are well worth the money if we have it to spend, -because they are so nice to look at. In our sitting-rooms we should -never for one moment allow ourselves to have gas. I always burn in a -very large drawing-room two of Mortlock’s blue and white china lamps -fitted with duplex burners. At first, when the fiat went forth that gas -was tabooed, those lamps were the bane of my life. I had a most -excellent housemaid in those days, who did her work most beautifully, -but only in her own way and in none other. True to my principles of -non-interference, I had allowed her this way of hers, because it was as -good a one as could be wished for; but when it came to suddenly cutting -off her precious privilege of lighting up the gas and drawing the -curtains, I soon saw that war was before me, and felt that now or never -was I to maintain my right to my lamps, did I prefer them to what the -gas company of the tiny town I then lived in facetiously called gas; but -that was an awful smelling compound, which burned with a feeble and -ghastly blue flame on weekdays, and which generally failed us altogether -when Sunday meant gas in the church. Of course then we had comparatively -to go without, as _that_ gas would not be in church and our houses at -the same time, and our lives bid fair to be & misery to us in the long -December afternoons and evenings; when my good genius said ‘Lamps,’ and -I then invested in those I still have, rejoiced to think we could see to -read now, whether the gracious gas company deigned to allow us any gas -(?) or no. - -I had received full directions with the lamps, and knew exactly what to -do with them. They were guaranteed not to smell, my one dread, and I was -accordingly armed at every point to meet Emily’s objections. She had -work enough. Well, beyond cutting the wicks and refilling the brass -cups, there was no addition; so she took them off with a flounce and a -bang into her own particular sanctum, and looked like a walking volcano -for the rest of the day. However, to make a long story short, those -lamps were made to behave as if they were possessed by the very spirit -of mischief. They smelt, they flared, they smoked, they sang a -blood-curdling little song I feared meant explosions; but insisting on -their being taken out of the room night after night and brought back -until they did burn finally conquered Emily, and as she saw I meant to -have my lamps she gave in, and they now never smell, and never give me a -moment’s trouble. - -I mention all this to guide those young people who are apt to be treated -as I was, and who, knowing paraffin _does smell_, may perhaps be -inclined to give in and return to gas, because their servant declares -she cannot manage the ‘dratted thing.’ The smell comes from some of the -oil having been dropped on the brass part of the lamp, which gets -heated, and, of course, smells abominably, and if the lamp be dull it is -because the poor thing is clogged with oil and literally cannot manage -to breathe; then drop the brass parts of the lamp, minus the wick, of -course, into some clean water, and boil them as you would an egg over -the fire. This loosens and gets away all the stale oil, which need never -be there if the housemaid is really careful, and your lamp once more -burns as brightly as ever it did. I use no screens over my lamps, as I -put them behind me in such a manner that the light falls only on my -book, and, of course, on the books and work of those who may also be in -the room; but charming screens can be made by taking a sheet of tissue -paper in such a manner in the centre that you can pass it rapidly up and -down through your hands until it is a mass of crinkles and waves; then -tear off the piece you have been holding and you have a pale pink -wavy-looking screen that is charming, and costs the fraction of a -farthing. The Germans also make beautiful lamp screens by cutting out -scalloped pieces of tissue paper, on which are placed real leaves and -coloured grasses. These are covered by another piece of tissue paper -gummed lightly round the edges, and the effect of these when nicely -arranged is really positively beautiful. About five of these scalloped -pieces of tissue paper make one shade, and they are tied together with -very narrow ribbon bows at the top, which allows of their being -regulated to the size of the lamp. And yet another still more beautiful -shade can be made by buying a wire frame made on purpose at Whiteley’s, -and covering all the divisions with thin blue silk, the palest shade -possible. Each division should be covered in such a way that the -stitches do not show. Round the edge sew a two-inch silk fringe, and -arrange fluffy ruches of the silk down each rib and round the edge of -the lamp-shade. This is not very expensive, and is the best shade -possible. By the way, red and yellow shades should always be avoided; -the first makes every one look like apoplectic fits, and the second as -if jaundice were imminent; and don’t ever buy the abominations of shades -that are meant for owls’ heads; they are monstrosities to be classed -with the Mahdi notepaper and other vulgarisms of the day. Other nice -occasional lamps are the very cheap brass lamps sold at 7_s._ 6_d._ and -10_s._ 6_d._ each. I do not think these good enough to read by, but they -are most useful for ordinary use at dinner or to write a note by, and -are also useful to put back on the buffets that do duty for sideboards -in my dining-room, to give a little more light when we have extra folk -to dinner, and I use my candelabra for lighting the larger table, but -for all everyday use at table those brass lamps are quite enough, and, -being easily lighted and kept clean, are really invaluable. - -One is obliged to have gas in rooms where there are children, because -candles and lamps are so easily knocked over, and it is useful, too, in -bedrooms where a sudden light may be required, but it is a most -unhealthy, destructive thing, and, as I said before, I look forward to -Mr. Swan doing as much for us as he has done for himself. - -If my readers--any of them--should doubt for one moment the truth of -what I have said about the relative values of lamps and gas, let them -for the next six months give the two things a fair trial in two separate -rooms in the same house; let them look at the ceilings in those rooms, -examine the picture-cords, and the relative cleanliness of the blinds -and draperies, and let them--no; they, poor things, will need no -examination. I was going to add, let them examine, too, their plants; -but in one of those rooms there will be none left to examine, for they -will be dead as surely as ever they were plants at all. Half the weary -headaches and lassitude we have all felt at times come from this -pernicious enemy; and there are few doctors whose first directions to an -invalid’s nurse do not contain emphatic orders to lower the gas and, in -fact, to substitute candles for it as soon as possible; but if bedroom -candles are used, they should never be allowed without a glass -shield--sold, I think, by Messrs. Field and Co., the nightlight people. -This insures that the carpets are free from being dropped upon by the -wax or composite, and furthermore insures a certain amount of safety -from fire, which is a vast consideration, for a draught, a floating -curtain, and a bare unguarded candle may often result in a serious -calamity, for, even if much damage by fire is not done, a serious fright -may be given to some who are ill able to bear anything of the kind. Gas -should never be in servants’ bedrooms--the best of them cannot help -burning it to waste; neither should they be allowed candles--they are -careless, the very best of them; and I always provide my maidens with -tiny paraffin lamps, costing 6_d._, which I can only buy in a -Dorsetshire town (Messrs. A. and A. Drew, Wareham, Dorset, is the -correct address)--even Whiteley doesn’t keep them. These have a tiny -brass cap that puts out the light, and are not in any way dangerous, -because there is nothing to spill, the sponge and wick inside absorbing -all the oil, and if they are knocked over they are so small the light -pops out at once; yet there is light enough to dress by, if not to read -novels in bed by, and the maids themselves prefer these small lamps to -anything else. - -In conclusion, remember that crystal A 1 oil, at 10_d._ the gallon, is -the best, most economical oil to burn. It should be had in in a -five-gallon tin, which fills up the small tins from whence the lamps are -filled in their turn, which _must be filled by daylight_, and recollect -also that china lamps are much the cleanest, and least likely to smell -with the most careless housemaid, who must always be made to take her -lamps out of the room over and over again; the mistress never _once_ -overlooking a smoking, dirty, or odoriferous lamp, until perfection is -attained. That this is possible--ay, and easy--to obtain I have, I hope, -demonstrated to all of my readers by the before-mentioned anecdote. If, -however, the housemaid is really a good one, I should prefer to use -Strode’s beautiful copper and beaten iron lamps, with tinted glasses for -shades; or else with pale blue silk shades, stretched between copper -ribs that give a wonderfully artistic look to any room. Benson, who -sells his wares at Smee’s and Liberty’s, designs perfect lamps also, and -all these should be seen by the intending purchaser before finally -deciding which to buy. Again I say, never do your shopping in a hurry: -if you do, you are sure to see something you like better--in the next -street may be, and, oh! agony, at half the price! - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - -BEDROOMS. - - -At first the only upstairs rooms that will have to be furnished are -Angelina’s bedroom, Edwin’s dressing-room, one spare room, and a room -for the maid or maids, leaving any others until a nursery be required; -for if our young people have only one servant it is quite impossible -that they will be able to have a constant succession of folks staying in -the house, and, therefore, one bedroom besides their own is all that -should be prudently ready for occupation. I say ‘prudently,’ for few -young housekeepers can resist at first the delights of showing off their -houses and their presents to their less fortunate relations, and, in -consequence, a stream of visitors is invited to pour into the house, to -the detriment of anything like order, and to the dismay of the servant, -who is most certainly right to grumble at all the extra work; and, by -the way, I may mention here that to this same stream is due more than -half the worry brides have at first with their domestics. - -Also, the bedrooms should be kept very nice. This no one servant can do, -unless she is considered and helped, and I should strongly advise -Angelina not to be above making her own bed, even if she have a -housemaid as well as a cook, for she and the housemaid together can -shake it up and fold the blankets and sheets nicely and neatly, while -the cook is clearing away breakfast, and interviewing the tradespeople -downstairs, whose orders should be ready written out for them by the -mistress, so that there should be no loitering at the back door, wasting -time for both the cook and the men too. But before I go into the divers -methods of bed-making, and speak of the beds themselves, I should like -to describe one or two rooms, as far as paper and paint go, and give -some idea of the colours I consider fittest for a bedroom. Formerly, -anything in that way did for a room, where no one then seemed to -remember we had to spend a good part of our lives, and where we had -occasionally to be ill and miserable, and wanted as much help over our -troubles as we could obtain from our surroundings; and who does not -recollect the orthodox bedroom of her youth--the fearful paper, all blue -roses and yellow lilies, or, what was worse still, the dreary drab and -orange, or green upon green scrolls and foliage, that we used to -contemplate with horror, wondering why such frightful papers were made! -Then came the carpet, a threadbare monstrosity, with great sprawling -green leaves and red blotches, ‘made over,’ as the Yankees say, from a -first appearance in a drawing-room, where it had spent a long and -honoured existence, and where its enormous design was not quite as much -out of place as it was in the upper chambers. Indeed, the bedrooms, as a -whole, seemed to be furnished, as regards a good many items, out of the -cast-off raiment of the downstairs rooms; and curtains that had seen -better days, and chairs too decrepit to be honourable company in the -downstairs apartments, all crept up into the bedrooms, anything being -good enough for a room where ‘company’ would not be expected to enter. - -I myself remember a carpet that began life quite forty years ago, for it -was over ten years old when I made its acquaintance in a country -dining-room; it was drab, and was ‘enlivened’ with spots of brown, like -enlarged ladybirds. It lived for twenty years in that room, covered in -holland in the summer, and preserved from winter wear by the most -appallingly frightful printed red and green ‘felt square’ I ever saw; it -then was altered for the schoolroom, then went up into ‘the girl‘s’ -bedroom, and still exists in strips beside the servants’ beds, although -the original owner of that fearful possession has been dead over twenty -of those forty years; and when I consider the dirt and dust that has -become a part and parcel of it, I am only thankful that our pretty cheap -carpets do not last as carpets used to do, for I am sure such a -possession cannot be healthy; though the present proud possessor points -to the strips, as a proof of how much better things used to wear in her -mother’s days, than they do now, in these iconoclastic ones of ours. - -I am afraid I am not an orthodox housekeeper, for I confess most frankly -I do not want my things to wear for ever, certainly not my carpets and -curtains, and that is one reason why I am so thankful for the present -style of pretty light cretonnes, mattings, and Kidderminster carpets. -They are so clean and bright, and enable us to have our bedrooms fresh, -pleasant, and new, instead of making them up out of things that have -seen their best days in another sphere; and as I want Angelina to -recollect she may have to spend some little time in the bedroom -occasionally, as years go by, I wish to impress upon her to remember all -this in the arrangement of the house, and to be sure and buy only those -colours that give her pleasure, and to have no jarring ugliness to fret -her, and add in any measure to her time of illness and convalescence; -for, as I have said before, no one knows how much we are affected -insensibly by our surroundings, and how much our spirits are affected -too by what we have to look at! - -The first thing to recollect in choosing one’s paper is that there -should be nothing aggravating in it--no turns and twists that shall -bother us as we lie in bed; no squares or triangles that flatly refuse -to join; in fact, nothing special that can possibly worry us. I had once -on one of my walls a - -[Illustration: FIG. 17.--A corner in a bedroom, Gable-end, Shortlands.] - -charming paper of Japanese chrysanthemum design. It had little colour -about it--only a faint pink flush, that just gave the idea of warmth -without a glare. To give body to this, the dado was of Indian matting -with a dado rail and wainscot paint of a good terra-cotta; the pink -shade, not the brown. The ceiling was papered with a pale -diaper-patterned terra-cotta paper, which was most pleasant to look at, -and I had matting and rugs on the floor. A slight idea of this room can -be obtained from the illustration on the previous page. - -The doors, mantelpiece, &c. were all painted to match, and the doors -were panelled with terra-cotta chintz at 9_d._ a yard at Burnett’s, and -had brass fittings, which I bought at Maple’s eleven years ago, and -which have done service in two houses, and will go with me to a third, I -hope, before long. On the mantelpiece I had a full flounce of blue and -white Lahore cretonne, which is also used for covering the eider-down, -and gave the necessary piece of blue colour there, which was repeated in -the tiles at the back of the washing-stand, and on a big settee in one -of the windows, which is a most useful possession, as it serves for a -sofa, and opens wide to hold the dresses in. Maple keeps these box -ottomans at about 2_l._ 10_s._, covered with odds and ends of cretonnes; -to cover them with anything pretty costs a few shillings more, though, -of course, occasionally the original covering may be pretty enough for -use. Mine was hideous--great pink roses and green leaves, on a black -ground; but for 10_s._ I made it quite a thing of beauty with blue and -white cretonne, properly frilled, and I also added a big square frilled -pillow, and a large drapery of gold thread tapestry, the same pattern I -use for toilet-covers and tablecloths, over my two square -cupboard-tables that serve to hold boots and odds and ends inside, and -books, &c., on the top, thus answering a double purpose. - -I think these small cupboards are really the most useful things I have -ever invented, and so I will describe them fully, hoping other people -may find them as satisfactory as I have done. When I was in Dorsetshire, -I think I lived in the very awkwardest house in the whole county; and it -was so badly arranged that to have a morning-room at all I was obliged -to copy our French friends, and make what was a bedroom by night a -charming sitting-room by day. But perhaps I ought not to grumble, as it -was entirely due to this inconvenient house that I turned my mind more -especially to making the most of every room I had; and as I had to stow -away my belongings in pretty odds and ends, I thought of these small -cupboards, and they have proved the greatest success. - -They are made of deal, are about three feet high, and are quite square; -they are painted some self-colour to match the room, and panelled with -Japanese leather paper, and have one shelf inside; the handle is brass -and so is the lock, and the hinges might be brass too if further -decoration were required. They hold quite a quantity of things, and I -cover them with a tapestry tablecloth, place a fern in a pot in the -middle, and dot books and photographs about them just as one would on a -table. I had them made by our own man, and I think they cost about -10_s._ or 12_s._, not more, and they are most useful, for they can be -put anywhere, and are never in the way; and this obviates any necessity -of the unsightly appearance of boots and shoes lying about the floor, -while it allows of keeping some in reserve, for boots and shoes should -never be bought and put on, but should be kept quite four months before -taking them into wear, as they wear twice as long if this very simple -precaution be taken. - -The curtains to this room are short, as so often described, and are of -the terra-cotta cretonne used to panel the doors, while loose muslin -curtains that draw, of Liberty’s yellow and white printed muslin, hang -over the glass to keep off the eyes of ‘over the way’; and as I had no -blinds I supplemented these in summer by large dark blue serge curtains, -at 1_s._ 11½_d._ a yard, which hang flat against the wall, and depend -from very narrow brass rods at the top of the windows, the other -curtains being only below the cathedral glass top windows (which are -never shut winter or summer), and which, being opaque, require no -permanent shading. - -I may mention, by the way, that even in the bedrooms I should always -remove the hideous china handles provided by the landlord and replace -them with brass fittings. These are undoubtedly cheaper at Maple’s than -elsewhere, and cost, the brass finger-plates 1_s._ 10½_d._ each, and -handles 1_s._ 11_d._ for two; brass bell-handles cost about 5_s._ 6_d._ -each for downstairs, while very pretty brass rings are sold for about -2_s._ 6_d._ at Maple’s, to be sewn on flat straps of plush, cretonne, or -serge worked in some conventional design for bell-pulls; these are the -nicest bell-pulls possible, and last years with care. All these fittings -can be removed when the tenant leaves the house, only remember to -carefully put away the china door-fittings yourself, or they will be -mysteriously lost when you wish to replace them--a wasteful item that -can be guarded against with just a little care. Especially also would I -paper the bedroom ceilings with some cheap and pretty paper. Maple has -an ideal bedroom ceiling at 4_d._ the piece in a peculiarly charming -shade of blue, which is always pleasant to look at; and furthermore -would I insist on a real dado, either of cretonne or matting, as this -always keeps a room tidy and prevents the wall being spoiled, by the -energetic manner in which the bed is always pushed into the wall, which -is the housemaid’s idea of placing it in position. - -All Mr. Pither’s papers are excellent for bedrooms, in either the -‘berry’ or the ‘blossom’ pattern; and the sage-green ‘blossom,’ with -sage-green paint, a dado of sage-green marguerite cretonne, and -terra-cotta ceiling papers and cretonnes, and ash furniture make an -excellent bedroom; while the darkest blue ‘berry,’ with yellow and white -cretonne dado and curtains, blue carpet and ceiling paper, and white, or -rather cream, paint and furniture make another charming room; the -flowery papers like old-fashioned chintzes in subdued colours, with -either a chintz or matting dado, and ivory paint can furthermore be -relied on to make a beautiful room. None of these decorations, by the -way, is expensive really, and as the dados wear as long as the walls -themselves they cannot be called a ruinous addition, and one is repaid -for the outlay over and over again by knowing that nothing can harm -one’s walls; and as I have the walls sized behind the dado material, and -have more than once taken down the dado to see if any dirt had crept -behind, and found the wall as clean as the day when the dado was put up, -I find the last objection to these dados done away with; for there are -only two that have ever been made to me--viz. expense, and possible -culture of dirt and creeping things. - -And here, reminded of the enemies spoken of above, let me impress upon -my readers never to buy bedroom furniture _at least_ in sale-rooms. How -can we know we are not buying infection, or how can we guarantee that we -shall not become possessors of more than we have paid for? Therefore -avoid sales, and go to some respectable firm and buy one or two good -things, supplementing them later as money allows, and making shift for -extras, as far as one can, until one can afford good solid furniture. In -any case let the grate be seen to, and, if possible, buy one of Mr. -Shuffery’s slow-combustion stoves and pretty over-mantels, or at least -have the stove. A bedroom fire is _not_ waste or extravagance. I never -believe firing is extravagance anywhere, and the slow-combustion stove -will save its own cost in one month’s consumption of coal; while a -narrow strip of looking-glass about a foot wide, and enclosed in a -painted deal frame, makes a pretty bedroom shelf; this can be -supplemented by fans, brackets, and the ever-useful cheap and pretty -chinas to be had of Gorringe. - -Expensive as it doubtless is, I cannot see how Angelina is to do without -something in the shape of a wardrobe, unless she is lucky enough to come -across a little house already provided with cupboards. Some of the new -houses, both at Bush Hill Park and at a queer, pretty little corner of -the world called Brookgreen, Hammersmith (that I stumbled upon the other -day, and was delighted with), have great receptacles that reminded me of -the good days of old, when recesses in bedrooms were part of the house, -and room-like cupboards were a portion of the structure; but I am -compelled to confess that such conveniences are few and far between. - -For example, most of the modern houses, and certainly one in which I -once lived, have not one single attempt at one, and have not even deep -recesses in which hooks and a curtain on a rod could be a substitute for -a cupboard, and in consequence we were compelled to spend a small -fortune on wardrobes. I purchased some very nice cheap ones at Maple’s -made out of deal, and painted a revolting drab colour, and also grained -to imitate maple--bird’s-eye maple. I only wish you could have heard the -chorus of anger when these arrived home, you would all have been amused; -but I said nothing, sent for my friend the painter, and gave them into -his hands, and in a short time they returned, one painted a lovely -sparrow’s-egg blue, further embellished with Japanese leather panels and -brass locks; the other an equally pretty shade of terra-cotta ‘treated’ -very much in the same way. I am almost afraid to say how little these -cost. One has a long glass in, and I think was 4_l._ 10_s._, and the -other 4_l._; but they have ample accommodation, and are extremely pretty -pieces of furniture, and match the dressing-tables, washing-stands, and -chairs, of which more anon. These painted wardrobes can be embellished -at home, if we use Aspinall’s invaluable enamel paints, remembering that -two coats of this make any old grained thing beautiful; all one has to -do is to scrub the old paint well with strong soda-water, rubbing it -down afterwards with glass-paper. All graining, by the way, can be -treated like this, though naturally painters much prefer to add up a -bill and insist on burning off all old paint. Should the graining be -very thick, an application of ‘Carson’s detergent’ is advisable; this -costs 5_s._ at La Belle Sauvage Yard, London, E.C., and removes the old -paint in flakes immediately--a much cheaper and far less offensive -proceeding than the burning off of the paint so dear to the soul of the -ordinary workman. - -In my own room I must confess to greater extravagance, for I had a large -dressing-table in light wood, and so fancied I must have all the rest to -match, and in consequence I had to give 12_l._ or 14_l._ for my -wardrobe. This I bought of Messrs. Hampton, in Pall Mall East, and -better tradesmen I for one do not know. After I had had that wardrobe a -few months the glass suddenly cracked straight across from no reason -that I could discover, save from pure ‘cussedness,’ as the Yankees say. -However, I wrote to the firm, telling them what had occurred, and they -at once sent down an employé, who discovered a warp in the wood, and -without a word or an atom of expense to me they removed the spoiled -glass and door, and sent me a brand-new one--a perfectly fair thing to -do, of course, as the fault was in the manufacture, but one very few -people would have done, I venture to state, without acrimonious -correspondence, and an attempt to charge at any rate. Why, only the -other day I bought an umbrella at a shop I should love to ‘name,’ as -they do in the House, and when it went into holes, real holes, in less -than a month they declined altogether even to re-cover it, saying it had -not had fair wear. It was not worth a fight, but that shop will now lose -my custom, and I most certainly will never recommend it to any one. If -tradesmen knew how far a little civility and courtesy went, some of them -would, I am sure, imitate the noble conduct of the Messrs. Hampton. - -My wardrobe has a deep drawer for hats, a place for hanging jackets, and -plenty of shelves and other drawers for linen and dresses, and I could -not do without it in the least, though, of course, it may be too dear -for Angelina, in which case I must strongly recommend her to buy a cheap -deal one and have it painted to match her room, putting on brass -handles--the drop handles are the best and most decorative--and filling -up any panels that there may be with Japanese paper, or tightly -stretched cretonne, like that used for the hangings. - -If Edwin be a clever carpenter, he can easily make a frame to simulate a -wardrobe. The top can be formed of very tightly stretched holland (it -does not show, and the glaze resists dirt and damp, I think, better than -anything else), and the front can be hidden by a nice curtain--serge -lined with holland would be best. The sides of the frame should have -rings on, like picture rings, to fasten them to the flat surface of the -wall, and can be painted. Edwin could put in some wide shelves, but -these make-believe cupboards are best for hanging one’s dresses and -jackets in, as they will not stand much weight. A less costly thing even -than this can be made with an arrangement of curtains, rods, and -brackets, but the one suggested above should not cost 30_s._, curtain -and all, would last years, and be removable from house to house, as no -cupboard is. - -The most valuable things I know, too, are Maple’s box ottomans. No one -makes them quite so cheaply as he does, and they are invaluable for -ball-dresses, spare blankets, ordinary dresses--in fact, for anything; -and, with a judicious arrangement of cushions, form sometimes an -excellent substitute for a sofa. Though, if the room be large enough, I -recommend Angelina to possess herself of what I always used to call ‘a -long chair,’ which was originally a camp bedstead, is made of iron and -sacking, lets down to a bed or rises up to an arm-chair, possesses an -extra leg for a sofa, and finally has a long cushion, covered with -cretonne or serge, that can be made to serve as a mattress if a spare -bed is wanted in a hurry. I think this curious article of furniture -costs 30_s._, and there is nothing like it for comfort. The sacking -gives with one’s weight, and never fatigues one, and it is even superior -to a deck cane chair, which is very nice, but will creak and groan under -one, and is apt to feel hard and ridgy after lying there for some time. - -I do hope my readers will not think I am given to ‘lying - -[Illustration: FIG. 18.--Draped alcove for a bed.] - -down’; it is an action I scorn when I am well; but I know, alas! too -well how necessary it is to be ready for an ‘emergency,’ and to know one -has a place of refuge and rest if life grows too much for one, and one’s -headache is just a little too bad to bear without retiring into private -life for a while. At first, of course, Angelina will have the house to -herself, but that will not last--at least I hope for her sake it will -not--and she will then be glad to have opportunities of resting for five -or ten minutes, secure of safety from interruptions, and servants, and -children, or visitors. Besides, when she is recovering after any illness -there would be her sofa ready, and she would not be perpetually fretted -and worried by seeing the room disorganised by the sudden introduction -of a strange piece of furniture; the bringing in of which, and the -bumping and banging inseparable from this same movement, often brings on -a nervous attack, and fidgets her so much that she would rather be -without it than witness the commotion caused by the moving. - -If one’s home has these little conveniences it adds immeasurably to -one’s comfort, and they are not costly; and here I may mention that I -consider a screen indispensable too, for this can be moved to circumvent -draughts or too much light, and can also be used to protect the patient -from worry when the bed is made, &c.; things that always drive me -distracted to witness, and that screened off cease to be, as far as I am -concerned. - -In most houses, too, the door opens confidingly on the only place where -the bed can stand, and then a screen is invaluable; it hides the bed -itself, and does not leave it exposed as it would were curtains used as -a substitute. Curtains, too, are things I always disapprove of. I do not -even like Mr. Arthur Smee’s most excellent arrangement of wing-like -brackets, to which curtains are attached, as I think people should have -as much air as possible, and I see no more reason for curtaining a bed -than there would be for curtaining one’s chair or sofa. A screen insures -privacy; curtains hide one’s head only, and cannot possibly avoid being -stuffy; if, however, the bare appearance of an uncurtained bed is -objected to, the draped alcove sketched on the previous page will be -found easy to arrange and very pretty indeed. This alcove is one of -Messrs. Collinson and Lock’s designs. - -I have been very sorry to notice a very strong attempt made by those who -ought to know better to revive that truly unhealthy and impossible thing -in a properly managed house--the wooden bedstead. I hear that these -detestable things are considered artistic--that to have a heap of -feathers sunk into a carved oak box in the height of luxuriance and -æstheticism, so I must beg my readers to carefully consider what a -wooden bedstead means and used to mean. - -It meant immense trouble with certain small animals that came there -mysteriously with the clothes. It meant a taking to pieces, a -scrubbing, and a putting together again continually; and, above all, it -meant a bonfire were any person with an infectious disease to sleep upon -it; and, in fact, I do not know one single thing in its favour, and yet -folks in their craving after a false sensation of antiquity are actually -thinking of going back to the wooden bedstead. - -One of the worst and silliest things I know is to go back into the -middle ages for those very articles that used to make our foremothers--I -don’t think our forefathers troubled much about their houses--miserable, -and when I see tiny diamond panes of glass, for example, when invention -has given us large sheets of glass through which light comes, and by -throwing open which we can admit as much air as possible; or when I hear -of the wooden bedsteads, I feel like a Philistine entirely, and long to -uplift my testimony on the great superiority of this present nineteenth -century of ours, when we are nothing if we are not sensible, and ought -to know enough to make use of all the beauty of past days, while we -reject unconditionally the futile, unhealthy nonsense that clings to -them. Still, after this no one will be surprised to hear that I consider -a brass or iron and brass bedstead a _sine quâ non_. Nothing is so -clean, so cheerful-looking, and so healthy. There are no draperies to -catch dust or to give the sleeper a headache, and, moreover, I never -have a valance--never will allow one. Why should there be one? Not one -single thing of any sort or description should be put under the bed, -which, in a servant’s room, or the room of an untidy person, serves as a -regular hiding-place for boots, boxes, even soiled linen, and if there -be nothing to hide there is no necessity that I can see for a valance. A -brass and iron bedstead can be bought, full size, at Maple’s for 3_l._ -10_s._, and, of course, very much handsomer ones can be procured; but -plain beds are much the best, for they can be rubbed free from dust in a -very few moments, and always look clean because they are so. - -I do not think any one who has ever tried it can for one moment doubt -that a spring mattress made entirely of finely woven chains is the very -best and healthiest sort of bed that one can have, it never seems to get -out of order, it is quickly made softer or harder by being wound up -tighter or unwound, and, above all, it is easily kept clean, and is as -easily disinfected, should any fever or other infectious disease attack -the owner thereof. - -I have had, and still possess, one of the old-fashioned spring beds that -resemble very large mattresses, and, though this is extremely -comfortable, it is not to be as highly recommended as a bed one can -brush and know is quite clean, for it is covered with a tick, and has a -mysterious internal arrangement of spiral springs that is apt at times -to get out of order, and invariably groans and squeaks in an agonising -way whenever one turns in bed, while the noise and motion are both very -trying when one’s nerves are a little unstrung and one is restless and -cannot sleep. It is expensive to have it taken to pieces and cleaned, -and the tick washed, which is not done half as often as it ought to be, -because it is costly and tiresome. There are several sorts of -chain-spring mattresses, and the ‘Excelsior,’ which is inexpensive, -answers every purpose; but I personally much prefer a very fine woven -chain, almost like chain-armour, which is expensive, but wears -splendidly, and only requires a nice hair mattress over it to be -complete. I always put over the chains themselves a square of brown -holland, tied to each of the four corners of the bedstead. This should -be washed twice, or even oftener, during the year, and it is also an -excellent plan to put the nice new hair mattresses and pillows into neat -brown holland pinafores, or cases; which can also be frequently washed -in order to keep the ticks themselves clean as long as we possibly can. -Unless this is done, the ticks become soiled and nasty-looking and -shabby, because housemaids are but mortal, and will not remember to wash -their hands and put on spotlessly clean aprons when they go up to make -the beds. If brown holland is too dear, ‘crash’ serves every purpose, -but the glaze on the holland resists dust better than anything, and -insures cleanliness. - -If people suffer very much from cold, I am luxurious enough to allow -them a feather bed on the mattress. I always feel I am doing very wrong, -and that it is a most unhealthy practice, though I have one myself, for -in the winter, and indeed during most of the year, I hardly know what it -is like to be even moderately warm in bed; but I still think I should be -doing well were I to put away my feathers entirely, and only use the -springs and the hair mattress, but I am not strong-minded enough, so, -though I know feathers are unhealthy in every way, I still use them, -believing that now I am too old to change my undoubtedly evil ways. - -A brass and iron bedstead furnished with the spring mattress, nice hair -mattress and bolster, and four pillows if a double, two if a single, -bedstead, is the beau-ideal of a sleeping place for health, and should -furthermore be provided with two under blankets--one in use, one in -store in case of illness--and two good pairs of nice Witney blankets, -and these should be marked in red wool with the date of purchase, -initials, and number of the room to which they belong. If the four -blankets are too much, those not in use should be very neatly folded -under the mattress, thus insuring that they are always aired and ready -for use. An eider-down quilt is also nice in winter, and should have an -extra covering made from cretonne like the window curtains, or in a -pretty contrast, edged all round with a two-inch goffered frill, and -furnished with buttons and buttonholes, in order that it can be easily -removed and sent to the wash. - -Three pairs of sheets are the least that can be allowed to each bed; -the top sheet of each pair should be frilled with Cash’s patent frilling -two inches and a half wide, and should have a large red monogram in the -centre to look really well; these can be worked by Angelina, if she has -clever fingers; and as it adds so very much to the appearance of the -linen, I do hope where she can she will embellish her house-linen with -nicely embroidered initials, repeating the same in the centre of the -pillow-cases; which should be frilled and placed outside the bed during -the day to look nice, the frilled cases being removed at night and -replaced by plain ones, from motives of economy. Four plain pillow-cases -for each pillow, and two or three frilled and embroidered ones for the -top pillows, are the least that can be allowed when the linen is bought; -for if Angelina have to stay in bed--and no doubt she will--a change -from the plain pillow-case of night to the frilled one for day, and a -removal of the plain counterpane for a pretty one, is as good almost as -a change of room, and makes far more difference in one’s feelings than -can readily be believed. Now one especial word in Angelina’s ear: I have -never yet found in all my experience a servant who can really and truly -be trusted to properly air the bed. Her first idea is to cover it up and -get it made, and unless Angelina copies me I am quite certain she will -find the bed stuffy and disagreeable, because it has not had time to get -properly aired, and because it has been made up as soon almost as -Angelina got out of it. - -Now there is not one single thing that should be left on the bed once -one is out of it. Do not be content with turning all the bed-clothes -over the rail; see they are all pulled out from under the mattress, -separated, and hung up, if possible. Then remove the pillows, and dot -them about on chairs and sofas; hang up separately the under sheet and -blanket where they will receive a current of air from the open window -wet or dry; and then pull off the mattress, placing it as close to the -window as it will go, which only takes about five minutes, as, of -course, Edwin will help with the mattress, and then, when dressed, open -all the windows possible. Leave the door wide open too, unless there are -torrents of rain and a windy tempest going on; and I venture to remark -that the bed will be all right and properly aired, even if Mary Jane -rushes wildly upstairs from the breakfast table and sets to work at -once. - -May I also add: don’t fold up your night attire! I used to be informed -by my governess that no lady ever left her towels on the floor--as if -any one wanted to--or went downstairs without neatly folding up her -night-garment. Now this I will not do. It should be left to air with the -beds, and should then be folded up, with the soft, woolly slippers in -attendance, and put neatly into an embroidered case provided for it. How -fussy and old-maidish all this seems, yet on these trifles depend so -very much that I feel I really cannot say too much about them. It may -seem silly of me here to tell most of my readers of things they may all -do daily, just as they have their meals, but I know a great many women -who never think of these items, and of course there may be a very great -many others who just want to be given the same sort of little hints too; -and as for the servants, I do not believe one exists who out of her own -head would air a bed daily, and who does not regard such airing as a -useless fad. - -While we are on the subject of beds, I may mention that a matchbox, the -boxes of Bryant and May’s, painted with enamel paint, and embellished -with a tiny picture, nailed to the wall just above one’s head, is an -excellent thing; and so is a bracket provided with either one of Mr. -Drew’s small paraffin lamps with a chimney, or else one of Field’s -candle-lamps, also with a glass shade; and that a bed pocket made out of -a Japanese fan, covered with soft silk, and the pocket itself made of -plush, and nailed within easy reach, is also very useful to hold a -handkerchief or one’s watch; and, furthermore, that great comfort is to -be had from a table at one’s bedside, on which can stand one’s book or -anything one may be likely to want in the night. - -The counterpane of the bed should be one of these nice honeycomb quilts -with a deep cotton fringe; in winter and summer both, the eider-down -should be always on the bed ready for use, for some of our English -summer nights are as cold and chilly as many of the autumn and winter -ones; and very charming-looking day coverings for the beds can be bought -for one guinea at Marshall and Snelgrove’s, and are called Madras -quilts. They have more substance than Madras muslin itself, and are -ready trimmed with a neat fringe. Guipure and lace strips make nice -quilts too, and very nice covers can be made of cretonne like the -curtains edged by the pretty nine-inch goffered frill of which I am so -fond; but if Angelina works, beautiful ones can be made from crash or -workhouse sheeting, embroidered in scrolls and pomegranates in red chain -stitch, a deep border of thicker work, also in a pomegranate pattern, -forming an appropriate and very handsome finish to it. These quilts can -be bought ready traced and begun at Francis’s, Hanway Street, Oxford -Street, W., at 30_s._; they should be lined with sateen, and finished -off by a wide border of furniture lace, turned over a band of sateen of -any colour that will harmonise with the room itself. - -A careful servant should brush under the bed daily to pick up any little -bits of fluff or dust, and once a week, without fail, all the corners -should be turned out and the room thoroughly cleaned. The floor, to be -perfect, should be stained all over, polished and rubbed bright, and be -furnished with nice rugs, which can be shaken daily, for nothing keeps -so clean, and it is undoubtedly healthy, for, much as I like matting, -and largely as I use it, it must fill up the corners entirely, and dust -cannot help accumulating there, in a bedroom. - -Furniture for the room itself could be had cheaply, did we know of any -man willing to work under our orders, but this seems impossible. - -I do not know if there are any trades-union rules among carpenters that -prevent them working for themselves; but, if not, I am quite sure an -honest mechanic could make a large fortune if only he set himself -seriously to work, and would keep to reasonable prices. - -[Illustration: FIG. 19.] - -Of course, skilled cabinet-making is one thing, and the sort of work I -mean is another; but I am constrained to remark on this, because -ordinary shops, even the very cheapest, charge such terrible prices for -furniture, and I have had such useful things made from my own -descriptions by a man in our own employ, that I am sure such a man near -London would soon be of almost world-wide fame, and we should all have -useful furniture, even if it were not of polished ash and oak, elegantly -finished, and in exquisite style. - -We should, of course, all prefer the very best furniture possible, if we -could afford it; but, as we cannot, I should like to find a carpenter as -good as my old one, who would work for himself and really give us honest -work at honest prices. - -There are some dressing-tables which I possess which this man made for -2_l._ 10_s._ out of strong, good deal. They have three very deep drawers -each side and one in the middle, and underneath the top drawer in one -case there is a rod to hold a curtain, and in the other there is a -species of cupboard for boots. The curtain also hides boots, but I -prefer the cupboard, as it is the tidiest, and has two divisions, one -for shoes and one for boots. These were stained deal, but I soon had -them painted, one turquoise blue, one terra-cotta, and added brass -handles, and they are now not only useful but extremely pretty. The -frames of the looking-glasses were painted to match, so that all was _en -suite_. - -There are, of course, many different sorts of dressing-tables, but I -like mine at 2_l._ 10_s._ as much as any for use. My own happens to be -much more expensive, because I had it, in the room I spoke of before, to -serve for both a toilet-table and washing-stand in a confined space; but -this came to about 9_l._, which is not so very much when one considers -it was instead of two things. This has a very large glass in the centre, -and drawers and recesses, which hold china odds and ends, and is very -pretty too. The part that was used as a washing-stand is tiled, but now -the tiles are covered, as I have at present plenty of room for another -stand, and it no longer does double duty. - -Mr. Smee has designed a charming table, and has given me the drawing, -which is produced here. This is without exception the very best style of -table for a small room, as the drawers are extremely deep, and would -hold an immense quantity of things. The looking-glass is in the centre, -the drawers extending as far back as they are in front, and the table is -provided with two brackets to hold either china or flowers. This is -painted any colour, and the handles are brass. In the very best quality -the price is 6_l._ 18_s._, but it can be made cheaper, and Mr. Smee -would no doubt tell any one who wrote to him how much cheaper it could -be made. He has not told me exactly the lowest price, but it is an -extremely charming piece of furniture, and it is as decorative as it is -undoubtedly useful. - -Then there are those truly abominable dressing-tables, the deal frame -covered with muslin and lace and glazed calico, like the frock of a -ballet-dancer, or else with some serge material that resembles nothing -so much as a church altar; and that should never be used except in cases -where the others really cannot be managed on the score of expense; but, -as there are many nice sets of furniture to be bought for about 12_l._ -12_s._, I think, somehow, a dressing-table can be managed by Angelina -that shall not serve as a dust-trap, a hiding hole for all sorts of -débris, or an attraction for fire; for many a death has been caused by -these flimsy petticoated things catching alight and flaring up in one -moment. - -I had one once which was rather a good possession, as it was in reality -a deep square box. I believe it had once been an old wooden crib, -retired from active service and covered with a lid; and although it was -very useful, and held all my spare blankets, I never could bear the look -of it, and it was finally shorn of its legs and turned into an ottoman -with a chintz cover. But it is desperately heavy, and I never see it -without feeling cross at its unalterable ugliness. - -I never use the ordinary white toilet-cover; this is another of my pet -detestations. I invariably have neat tapestry covers made to fit the -tables &c., and edged with a ball fringe to match. I use, moreover, -self-coloured felt and velveteen, also edged with furniture lace or -fringe, and this I use also to cover the box pincushions that are in -every room, and are invaluable for holding odds and ends, the gloves one -has in wear, shoestrings, and so on. For these, a large-sized cigar box -is an excellent foundation. This should be lined with wadding and glazed -lining, the top carefully wadded too, and all the outside covered with -lining; then cover it tightly with either plush, velveteen, or tapestry, -and put fringe round in such a way that the opening is hidden. Very tidy -folks tie these boxes together with ribbons. I do not; life is too -short, and I find the fringe hides any gaps, and looks very nice too. -The top part does for pins or one’s brooches, though I prefer to keep my -pins in a china Japanese dish, shaped like a fish, because I can’t bear -the pin-stuck look of a cushion; and I put my brooches away in their -boxes, because they are apt to be knocked off and lost or bent, unless -you are possessed of a maid or housemaid who is as careful as she ought -to be, and yet somehow never is! The brushes and combs live in a middle -drawer, the paper in which should be changed once a week, when the room -is properly cleaned. They should never be placed on the toilet-cover, -and, if there be no centre drawer, two cedar-wood trays covered with -tapestry covers over pieces of washing stuff should be provided, to -insure that they are not left on the toilet-covers, and that cleanliness -is duly respected. In front of the toilet-table, however the room is -covered, there should be an extra rug. Of course, if the carpet be new -the first beauty of the carpet may be used if you like, but this I do -not advise: first, because you may like to change your furniture--I -love changing mine--and in this case you could not, because the carpet -would be marked; and, secondly, because it is a pity to wear it out more -in one place than another, which you could not avoid doing if you do not -put a rug down in the place you use most. In the case of matting or -staining a rug would be imperative, and I strongly recommend one for a -carpet for the reasons mentioned above. Before we leave the -dressing-table for the washing-stand, I should like to say a few words -about the way to light it. Careful survey should be made of the room -before the gas-brackets are put in, and, if possible, one should be so -arranged as to bring the light over the centre of the glass. - -In a big room a bracket each side is advisable. Long brass brackets -should be used, which should be able to be moved either to the side or -to the middle of the glass, bringing the light well over the top -whenever it is possible, thus doing away at once with any necessity for -candles and the attendant dangers. If candles are used they should be -invariably protected with Price’s candle guards; but once more I say, -have one of Messrs. A. and A. Drew’s perfect little 1_s._ 6_d._ lamps in -every room. They are quite safe, and can be carried from room to room -without the very smallest danger. They never smell, are lighted and put -out in a moment, and are invaluable to any mother who pays domiciliary -visits to her children, and puts down her light to tuck up or kiss the -little sleepers, for she can place this lamp even in a draught and at -the same time need not consider if a curtain is blowing close by, for if -it did it could do no harm. They are useful even to the reader in bed, -as they give sufficient light for that, although they do not come up to -the excellent candle lamps recently invented, but which cost a guinea, -as contrasted with our modest 1_s._ 6_d._, and have no protection for -the flame, which, however, is far back in the lamp, and not easily -reached. Another item must also be mentioned before we leave the -toilet-table subject. Every scrap of hair should be collected by -Angelina herself before she leaves the toilet-table, and be placed -somewhere out of sight, to be burned by herself in the nearest fire. -Avoid those terrible things called toilet-tidies, which make me shudder -whenever I see them hanging up; but do not leave this item near a -servant’s hands: they cannot resist combing out the brush either into -the washing basin or the toilet-pail. The drains become clogged--no one -knows why, until that miserable creature the plumber has to be called -in, when, after spoiling all that comes within his reach, he discovers -the cause, and sends in a tremendous bill, all of which need never have -happened had Angelina looked after this item herself. If the nursery -fire be handy it can be disposed of every morning; if not, a little box -could be kept in one corner of the dressing-table drawer, and the -contents burned when the room is cleaned, which should be done with the -very greatest regularity once a week, on a stated day, which should -always be rigorously adhered to, and which, if properly done, minimises -in a remarkable manner the discomfort and disagreeables of that -abomination to the male mind, and to some female minds too--the spring -clean. Whatever Angelina is, I do hope and trust she will duly -appreciate her table-drawers, and not look upon them as a store-place -for rubbish. She will, of course, have a store of gloves, handkerchiefs, -and ribbons at first in her trousseau; and I most strongly advise her to -keep in the toilet drawers the things she has in use, not her whole -store. She should never allow herself more than three pairs of gloves in -wear, one of which should be for evening wear, nor more than a dozen -handkerchiefs in use; and she should never put away her gloves unmended -or lacking buttons, nor allow a fortnight to pass without putting every -drawer she possesses tidy, and seeing her handkerchiefs are correct in -number. Tidiness and tidy habits are great helps to economy of time and -money, and are therefore highly to be recommended for Angelina’s -consideration. - -There is nothing so expensive as a muddle; nothing so sure to unhinge -the servants and make them cross, captious, and anxious to move on -elsewhere. Keep straight and work is easy, because it is expected and -looked out for; allow arrears to accumulate, and nothing is done. - -And this also applies to the drawers in Angelina’s own wardrobe. -Unmended gloves, linen, or stockings should never for one moment be -allowed, neither should one set of linen be taken into wear until the -previous one is worn entirely out. This should be kept religiously, old -linen being invaluable for burns (if it be _linen_, not _cotton_) or -wounds, and to give away to the deserving poor who may be ill. Even in -one’s own illnesses old nightdresses are invaluable; as medicine, -poultices, and constant and daily washing soon ruins one’s nice new -things. I am no advocate for hoarding, but I do know the value of old -worn-out things, if only to have something to fall back upon if a friend -comes in, to beg for Kitty Jones’s ninth baby; or for old Mrs. Harris, -in bed and suffering agonies from rheumatic fever, when rags and old -flannel petticoats come in like a godsend for her use. If one’s servants -have good wages they do not need these things, and I do not think, in -any case, they should be given old clothes: they come to look upon them -as a right, and often enough one is prevented giving a far more -deserving object some cast-off garments because one fancies that -so-and-so will be offended; therefore I strongly advise Angelina to keep -one especial ottoman or drawer to go to for her charities. I am sure she -will find it a great help to her if she does so. - -One of the palm-leafed baskets for soiled linen should be in every -room; they are a little more expensive than the ordinary soiled linen -baskets, but they stand three times the wear, and always look nice. -Albeit this is an article I always put as much as possible in very -humble retirement behind my cheval-glass, there is no choice in my mind -between the palm-leaf and the wicker-work for wear, and I strongly -recommend both the dark brown and the light-coloured ones; they are -about 5_s._ 11_d._ each. - -If Angelina can possibly afford it she should buy a cheval-glass; of -course the long glass in the wardrobe shows one’s dresses pretty well, -but it cannot be moved about to suit the light like the cheval-glass -can, neither does it ever somehow act quite in its place. I dress very -hurriedly, for I have so little time generally for this operation. I am -always doing something up to the last moment before I go out either for -a drive or in the evening, so that I could not do without mine, and I -have often been saved quite fearful _contretemps_ by this faithful -friend, which truthfully points out strings and skirts out of place, and -has an unpleasant habit of suggesting that one’s hair must be done -again, by reflecting the back of one’s head in a crude, and startling -way, in the ordinary glass. Then it is of great use to visitors too, who -may not have a long glass at all in the spare-room wardrobe, and are -doubly thankful to find a cheval-glass there, lent of course out of -Angelina’s own room for the time being. - -Another thing that I should like to speak of is the necessity of always -having a clean brush and comb in the toilet drawer. A friend comes in -unexpectedly to luncheon or dinner, and we are struck with dismay to -find that it is the day before our own particular brushes are to be -washed, and we have none fit to give her. If we always keep a ‘company -brush and comb’ we need never be put to confusion as we otherwise -should, for often, in dusty weather particularly, and especially if we -drive much, our brushes look black almost after once using, and are not -suitable to give a friend, without being really dirty. - -This said washing of brushes is a vexed question. I have a friend who is -so particular about hers that she never uses them more than once, and -then has them washed rapidly in hot soapsuds. By holding the backs in -her hand so that they do not touch the water, and thus only immersing -the bristles, she gets them clean without spoiling them; they are dried -in the fender, and she always has six brushes in use. Now, I think if we -have three in use, and have them washed in routine, one a day, so as -always to have one clean one ready for a friend, we shall do very well. -And I think 5_s._ or 6_s._ ample to give for a brush; I have had some -excellent ones from Whiteley’s at 4_s._ 11_d._ and 4_s._ 6_d._ If we buy -extravagantly dear brushes, we grudge their wear and tear and their -numerous washings; but inexpensive ones can be kept cleaner, because we -can more easily afford to buy new ones if we do not give too much at -first. The old silver brushes at 5_l._, and beautiful ivory-backed ones -at almost any price we like to give, are delightful to possess; but -unless we can constantly renew the bristles, they soon get useless, and -as we can’t do that we must be content with ordinary ones; which same -remark applies to combs. I like a black vulcanite at 1_s._ 9_d._ or -2_s._ better than any, for a comb is difficult to keep really nice, and -one does not mind throwing a soiled or broken one away if one can easily -and cheaply replace it. - -Still, if Angelina should have beautiful brushes given to her in her -collection of wedding gifts, I strongly counsel her to keep them by her -for visiting and travelling, and to get other cheaper ones for every -day; and this same remark applies to tortoiseshell combs. I like better -things for visiting myself, and I am sure Angelina should keep her best -brushes for this purpose. If the toilet-table is chosen with brackets, -cut and scented flowers should never be allowed there. A few ferns and -immortelles look nice, especially the pretty pink everlastings one can -buy in the summer, but scented flowers are bad for a bedroom, though I -much recommend a growing plant or two; they look nice, and are very -healthy; but no flowers here even; a fern, a small palm, or the -ubiquitous aspidistra being all to be preferred, because the leaves give -out a healthy atmosphere, and are therefore useful as well as -ornamental, while strongly scented blossoms poison the air and render it -heavy and unfit for a sleeper to breathe. - -Without going to the outrageous lengths some lovers of fresh air -consider necessary, I strongly advise every one to try and sleep with -some little bit of window open. I always do in summer with all that I -can, in winter with one or two at the top only. The sudden change in -temperature that makes this dangerous is guarded against by having an -extra wrap handy on a chair, or thrown over the foot of the bed, which -can be drawn up if the change becomes perceptible; but I am certain that -two people in one room should never sleep with all the windows and doors -shut, and I have never slept with mine closed, since I can recollect, -without waking with a headache and a feeling of lassitude, though, of -course, when I lived in London itself the noise was very trying, yet I -became accustomed even to that; and I put down my singular immunity from -colds to this habit of mine, and also to the open windows and doors that -I always insist upon, and that for some part of the day always remain -open, winter and summer, though the moment the sun goes, or rather -begins to go, down, all windows, in the winter and autumn, should be -rigorously closed, with the exception of about a quarter of an inch at -the top. - -But then, in connection with my open-air fad, I am a great advocate for -good, jolly fires, and I do believe bedroom fires save a great amount of -doctors’ bills. Open your window a little, and have a fire, if you can -possibly manage it, and I am sure you will all find a great difference -in the expense. Of course this adds to the servant’s work; but if she -objects, equalise matters by helping her with the beds, and in dusting, -and in a thousand-and-one little ways. I am sure you will not repent it. - -Fires warm the whole house, take off the damp, raw feeling that is so -trying in our English atmosphere, and give a cheerful feel and look that -cannot be too highly esteemed. I would rather do without anything than a -fire, and even in the height of summer the instant it rains I have my -fires set going, with the windows open, not so much for the mere warmth -of course, but to dry the atmosphere and prevent the house-walls from -becoming chilled and damp and dangerous to health; while for three parts -of the year they are emphatically a necessity, unless we want the -doctor’s gig or brougham to be always turning in at our front gate. - -[Illustration: FIG. 20.] - -I could write pages about fires, I am so certain that in England nothing -is saved by scrimping the coal, but I must not dwell upon this subject. -I must pass on to the washing-stands, of which here are two drawings -from Mr. Smee’s designs, and which I consider the very perfection of -stands. I prefer the larger one of the two, not because I could for one -moment contemplate the odious notion of a double washing apparatus, but -because the smaller one does not seem to me to have room for sponge-dish -and all the etceteras one requires; but, of course, if the room were a -small one, the single washing-stand would be best, because in that case -space would be an object, and by placing a long painted shelf, or one of -those nice little hanging sets of shelves, half cupboard, half bookcase, -over it, we could obtain a place to put extra articles on. These -washing-stands in the best materials come to 5_l._ 5_s._ each. The -drawing, I think, will need but small explanation from me, as it will -show exactly the proper style for a washing-stand; but I should like my -readers to notice that the high-tiled back prevents the wall being -spoiled, and does away with the idea of a ‘splasher’ being required, -that the towels are to be hung on the round rails provided for them, and -that the deep cupboards are especially to be commended, doing away as -they do with any necessity for an extra piece of furniture, and they can -also be used for bottles of medicine, Angelina’s private duster, which -she should keep in every room, cardboard boxes, and other trifles that -are too useful to throw away and yet require to be hidden from sight. - -[Illustration: FIG. 21.] - -There is no doubt in my mind that the Beaufort ware sold by Maple is the -nicest and prettiest for bedroom use. It is pure white, and a most -charming shape. The jug has a double lip, and the handles are in the -centre, like a basket, simulating a twisted rope. The basin &c. have all -handles and embellishments of the same rope-like design, and the cost is -17_s._ 6_d._ The ware is most excellent, and though much cheaper ware -is, of course, to be procured, pretty blue and white sets being -purchasable at 3_s._ 11½_d._, my white set exists triumphantly, after -eleven years’ wear and two moves, while I have bought more cheap sets -for those all-devouring locusts the boys and the maids than I care to -think about. I am convinced, therefore, that very cheap china for -bedroom use is a mistake, for good ware stands rough usage much better, -and therefore is cheaper in the end. - -It is well, too, to buy the ware as much alike as possible for two or -even three rooms, as nothing is so difficult to match as this. Before I -became in the least _au fait_ at these small contrivances that save so -much, I had quite a regiment of ewerless basins and basinless ewers that -had accumulated because I found it impossible to get them matched, and -having them made was almost, nay quite, as costly as a new set. Of -course, these were gradually used up, and not very gradually either, -alas! by the servants; but they were ever so much too good for their -heedless clutches, and I should have been saved a great deal had I had -the sense to buy two sets alike, instead of exercising my taste by -seeing how many different ones I could possess myself of. - -Ware now is so extremely cheap that it is perhaps not of such vital -consequence as it used to be to do this; still, as I had the other day -to give 4_s._ for a jug to match a basin belonging to a set the whole of -which cost only 5_s._, I think it is still worth mentioning, as it may -save Angelina something, and every shilling is often a consideration to -young beginners. The blue and white ware at about 5_s._ a set is good -enough for any room, but, of course, Maple’s white Beaufort ware is much -prettier; and Mortlock, of Oxford Street, has or had some artistic pale -blue, yellow, and red sets that would be lovely in a room that was -furnished entirely in one of these colours. The soap-dish &c. are -included in the cheap prices, but not a sponge dish. This should always -be bought. Not only does it save the sponge from becoming sticky and -unpleasant, but it saves the wall and floor from those detestable -continuous dribbles of water that are the outcome of a sponge-basket, -that may be all very well in theory, but is worse than useless in -practice. A sponge-dish has all proper drainage, and may be more -expensive at first, but, like a great many other expensive things, saves -the whole of its cost in the long run. - -The covers of the soap and toothbrush dishes should never be left on; -the soap lasts ever so much longer than when it is shut up, and, of -course, the veriest ignoramus knows the effect on one’s toothbrush if it -is kept covered over. I infinitely prefer to have a tall species of -spill-holder or a rack for tooth and nail brushes, as this allows them -to drain; and for servants’ bedrooms one can buy iron things at -6½_d._ to hold the soap and two toothbrushes as well. These are not -bad for schoolboys’ rooms, as they are not ugly, but are not suitable -for grown-up people’s rooms, who are supposed reasonably to take care of -their things; but with the Beaufort ware the ordinary dish for -toothbrushes is sent, and is therefore used, but without the cover. - -I always keep on my washing-stand one of Perry’s invaluable sixpenny -sticks of ink-eraser. I sometimes ink my fingers dreadfully, but nothing -is too bad for Perry, whose delightful stick comes into use, and cleans -away the stains directly. This, too, must not be put into confinement, -as it becomes soft and melts away rapidly if it is. - -For the tooth-water and glass, I most thoroughly recommend the charming -little sets we buy at Douglas’s glass-shop in Piccadilly. For 1_s._ -6_d._, 2_s._, and even less (I have bought a green set there for 9_d._), -one buys the prettiest possible glass jugs and glasses, and they are -ever so much nicer than the old-fashioned glass water-bottles and -tumblers; they are charming to look at, and far more easily kept clean. -There are blue, red, green, and shades of opal; and the gas-globes -should match. The best gas-globes are the tinted green globes, pinched -in here and there in folds, which are 1_s._ 4½_d._ at Whiteley’s, and -3_s._ and 4_s._ at any other shop--why, I don’t know. The opal glasses -are prettier, but then they are dearer. A dozen towels should be allowed -to each washing-stand: four a week, or even three, are enough for most -people. One big Turkish towel is indispensable for the bath, and a clean -towel should be always on the second rail ready for the visitor, for -whom we have already provided the hairbrush. - -To every room should be apportioned a hot-water jug or can. There are -none so good as the charming brass cans at 7_s._ 6_d._ The painted ones -soon become shabby, and always smell of paint directly the hot water is -put in; and not at all a bad plan is to have a brass label chained to -the handle of the can, with the room’s name on to which the can belongs. -Cheaper brass cans can be had, but they hold less water, and as they -have no cover the water very soon becomes cold. A larger oak-painted can -should be provided for the housemaid. This she should use for refilling -the ewers, and to bring larger quantities of water if a foot-bath is -required in one’s own room; but the foot-bath and also the slop-pails -should be all of white china, and intense cleanliness should be insisted -on, especially for the last-named articles, which never, even in the -smallest establishment, should be made of anything save earthenware. -These china ones cost 4_s._ 9_d._, and have a basket-work handle and a -china cover. They should be scalded out every day with hot water and a -little chloride of lime, chloride of lime being kept in any separate -place, ready for use where there are any drains. - -Before passing to the dressing-room, which should open, if possible, out -of the bedroom, there are still one or two more trifles that can be -mentioned in connection with it, as on trifles after all depend a great -deal of our comfort, more especially in the upstairs department, and a -sleepless night might often be prevented were some of the commonest -precautions taken to insure rest. - -One thing no dweller in the ordinary suburban residence should be -without, and that is a wedge of wood attached to a brass chain to each -window, ready to wedge the window closely together should a storm -suddenly arise in the night. Who has not risen irate at the dismal -rattling, and crammed in anything--toothbrush, comb, or what -not--sacrificing often enough one or the other in one’s rage at not -being able in a moment to put a stop to this intolerable nuisance? Now a -wedge ready to hand, nailed to the window by its chain, so that it -cannot be lost or mislaid, obviates all this, and the window is secured -at once and rest is insured simply by a little precaution and -forethought. I believe that Whiteley keeps these wedges, but I used to -buy mine of a clergyman in Dorset, who made them beautifully, and sold -them in bunches in aid of the fund for restoring his church, and so -popular were they that he made quite a nice little sum by their sale; -but then Dorset is a very windy county, and I think the windows there -rattle more than anywhere else. - -Another thing should be secured, and that is a matchbox nailed to the -wall, close by the bed, and the servant should be strictly forbidden -ever to take the matches from one room to another; there should be a -match-box _nailed on_ in each room and in the passages, and Angelina -should see herself that matches are never lacking there. I buy Bryant -and May’s boxes, but not their matches, as they are expensive, but I -always have tiny boxes of Swedish matches at 5_s._ the gross, a gross -lasting me considerably over a year; naturally I keep them locked in a -store cupboard, in a room where there is sufficient warmth to keep them -dry, and the maids have to ask me for them when they are required. When -I used Bryant and May’s matches and had them in as wanted from the -grocer, I never spent less than 6_d._ and sometimes 1_s._ a week upon -them, so I consider my present plan worth mentioning, for the save is -really great, and in these small items much can be economised, if only -one has a little knowledge and keeps one’s eyes open. But the matchboxes -and wedges must be nailed on, or else they will disappear in the same -extraordinary way pins and hair-pins always contrive to do. Then, in -bedrooms and sitting-rooms alike, I have the most delightful tiny brass -hooks on which I hang a hearth-brush, for I have an immense dislike to -an untidy and dirty hearth. As my old nurse used to say, ‘These sort of -things don’t eat anything,’ and a brush lasts five times as long if it -have not to migrate from one room to another, and can instead have its -own especial hook. You can buy ugly black hearth-brushes at 1_s._ 3_d._, -but I always buy brass ones at 4_s._ 11½_d._ They last for years and -years, and then can have new bristles added at the cost of 1_s._; they -look nice too, and are always to hand when wanted. - -One of the principal things to remember all through these household -arrangements surely is this: a place for everything, and everything in -its place; time, temper, wear and tear of nerves, and servants being -saved a thousand times over by this simple remedy. If the brush be in -its place there is no need for Angelina to ring up tired Mary Jane to -make a tidy hearth. The hot-water cans on their shelves in the -bath-room, or in the pantry if there be no bath-room, allow of Angelina -getting her own hot water if the maid be busy or out of the way, and so -on through all the details of domesticity, which will only dovetail in a -little house if this principle of tidiness and thought animates the -mistress. And here let me beg that Angelina will resist with her might -getting into the bad habit of putting her boots on and buttoning them on -her nice cretonne chair covers. I mean the habit of putting the foot up -on the chairs while she fastens the buttons. I once had a visitor -staying with me who cut out a whole set of chair cushions in the month -or six weeks she was with me; and I discovered she had brass tips to her -heels, and these had cut out tiny holes all over the cushions, spoiling -them utterly; all because she had acquired this very bad habit. If -Angelina cannot button her boots without this action, she should take -care never to put her heel on the chair; to keep to one for the process; -and, if possible, to put down something, if only a scrap of paper, under -the toe of the boot, which must soil the cushion, even if it do nothing -worse. - -I have in my time suffered so much from careless and inconsiderate -visitors that I cannot help giving these little hints on which any newly -married girl can act if she will. Example speaks louder than precept, -and if Angelina scouts such actions herself, she influences her -servants, and suggests to her visitors tidy habits, that may benefit her -later on, if not on the first visit. I shall never forget one dreadful -visitor I had--a visitor who was possessed of the damp, unpleasant hobby -of searching in ditches and hedge-bottoms for clammy and awful things -which she insisted on bringing home and investigating by the aid of a -microscope. I should not have minded this one bit, if she had done it in -a room we had, where the boys made messes, and that nothing could hurt; -but I had just had my spare room done up, and the effect was so terrible -I have never forgotten it to this day. It was such a pretty flowery -room, too, that it deserves a word of description. The effect was purple -and green, and the paper was guelder-roses and heliotrope--not at all a -bad mixture of colour, remember, and one that lights up well; the paint -was all the dull Japanese green varnished that is _not_ arsenical; and -that is very artistic, and by great good luck I found a charming French -cretonne of the same style and almost the same pattern as the paper, and -this I used as dado fixed with a dull green rail of ‘scantling,’ and as -panels in the shutters and doors. I had a nice little brass bedstead, -with a gold and white embroidered Liberty quilt trimmed round with ball -fringe, and furniture, with gold, green, and blue and red tapestry -covers on toilet, chest of drawers, and a new pincushion box covered -with the same, and all trimmed with ball fringe. There was a nice new -box-ottoman for hats and bonnets, a most useful possession for any one, -especially if it be divided in two layers with a cheap tray, also -covered with cretonne, new matting, and nice Liberty rugs on the floor, -and several newly framed photographs on the walls; besides this there -was a pretty table covered with plush, for a writing-table, duly -furnished with blotter, inkstand, and wastepaper basket, &c.; a charming -basket-chair, and two other chairs in pretty cretonnes, and odds and -ends in the shape of ornaments. There were two gas brackets, so I did -not have any candles in the room. I never have if I can help it; the -servants are apt to light them and drop the grease about, so unless -specially desired I never put candles anywhere, and I am more than -thankful that in this case of which I am writing I did nothing of the -kind, for my excellent housemaid came to me one morning when my friend -was out ‘bog-trotting’--or whatever the word for the occupation is--and, -with a face of horror, begged me to come into the spare room before Mrs. -W. returned, as she really did not know how she was going to get it -straight again. - -Shall I ever forget my anguish! On the bed, on the top of the new quilt, -were spread specimens of all the nastinesses she had collected; on the -brass rail and hanging on the dado, on nails stuck in for the purpose, -and from most of the picture-nails, were mounted ghastlinesses on sheets -of paper that were drying in a fine breeze coming straight into the -room, laden with any amount of September damp and mist; the oil from the -microscope lamp was on every chair and every table, and a perfect -regiment of muddy boots and bedraggled skirts, cast about everywhere, -spoke volumes of the extent of Mrs. W.’s wardrobe, and her ingenuity in -filling up every hole and corner of that new and once pretty room. - -And all this was caused just by a little lack of thought and care for -other people’s things, for, as I said before, we had, and generally -have, a large unfurnished room, sacred to boys, where she could have -done her worst and injured no one, for she might have nailed her nails -and hung up specimens to her heart’s content, and only pleased the -legitimate owners of that chamber. I also forgot to mention that on the -newly painted mantelpiece was a row of bottles full of dirty water, all -of which either leaked or else had been put down there, wet from the -ditches from which they had been filled, and to find room for them all -my ornaments had been dislodged and were missing. We found them -afterwards in bits, more or less, at the bottom of the ottoman, the top -of which was spoiled by being used as a ‘boot-rest’ for Mrs. W. when she -either wished to button or unbutton those articles of attire. When she -had left me I simply had to do that room at the cost of 5_l._ or 6_l._, -which I did not want, naturally, to spend, but my friend has never been -to stay with me again, and she never will. I have told this long story, -which I did not mean to go in for when I began my chapter, to point out -to Angelina another caution. When ‘things’ are once nice and in order -they require incessant care, if Angelina has been carelessly brought up, -and if she has not acquired really nice habits; but if she avoids -messing and is duly careful, her possessions will last her years, and -give very little trouble. One more thing to remember is that, unless the -door be provided with a curtain suspended from one of Maple’s invaluable -7_s._ 9_d._ rods, nothing should induce Angelina to depend her dresses -from crooks fixed into the doors. It spoils them, as they are exposed -both to sun and dust, and the look of it is so unpleasantly suggestive -of Bluebeard’s wives that this is a habit that cannot, I think, be too -strongly condemned. Besides, I remember dresses being torn and spoiled -by being shut into doors and then taken down without seeing they are -shut in; which is an argument against hanging them there at all, even -covered with a curtain. Still, in a small house and with a large amount -of clothing, a door is sometimes very ‘handy’ as an overflow wardrobe, -and then a curtain arranged as suggested above is a _sine quâ non_. - -One need not go to very much expense about bedroom chairs. Old worn-out -drawing-room occasional chairs can be made beautiful for bedroom use by -painting them blue to match the suite with Aspinall’s -hedge-sparrow’s-egg blue enamel paint; particularly if one buys -cushions, which are sold, I believe, both at Maple’s and Whiteley’s very -cheaply, for about 1_s._ 2_d._ These should be re-covered with odds and -ends of Liberty’s Mysore cretonne; the yellow and white, blue and white, -and terra-cotta and white being all admirable--with the particular -shade of blue paint, I mean. The best bedroom chairs are these painted -chairs, or else the black-framed Beaconsfield chairs, rush-seated, and -also supplied with cushions in frilled cases, the cases being buttoned -on so as to be easily removed for the wash, and the cushions supplied -with tapes, so that they are fixed to the chairs, and neither move about -when one is sitting upon them nor drop on when least expected. - -There is no doubt that pictures should always be on a bedroom wall. -Pictures and picture-frames are so cheap nowadays that some can -generally be afforded even at first. Of course these gradually -accumulate, and in years to come the walla will doubtless be decorated -with photographs of the children at different stages; but Angelina’s -wedding photographs will be useful at first, and I cannot imagine a -nicer wedding present than some of the exquisite photographs from the -old masters that one buys ready framed at a shop close to Regent Circus, -the name of which I have forgotten, but which is between the Circus and -the meeting hall of the Salvation Army. These are not at all expensive; -for 10_s._ and 15_s._ each quite large and most beautiful photographs -can be obtained, and Angelina would have a vast amount of pleasure out -of 10_l._ spent judiciously on these lovely photographs for the -adornment of her house, especially of her bedroom. These make admirable -presents for young girls, who can none of them be taught too early to -take a great pride in their bedrooms, and to accumulate there their own -belongings in the way of pictures, books, and ornaments. I love to see a -girl ‘house-proud,’ as the Germans say; and my own house, when I married -first, was made habitable only because of the judicious manner in which -my dear mother had impressed on me to take care of, and pride in, the -many little sketches, engravings, and photographs I used to have given -me. We were exceptionally lucky in that way, as of course we had a great -many artistic friends; but still, all girls should remember they may -have houses of their own, and always must have one room of their own, -and should be taught to pride themselves on having pretty and artistic -chambers sacred to their own use. - -Naturally two sisters often have to occupy one room, but this need not -alter the idea, and I would rather a girl cared for her room, and -collected pictures, books, and china for that, than see her crave for -ornaments and jewellery, which can give but very little pleasure as -contrasted with pretty and delightfully artistic surroundings. - -Angelina’s task of making her bedroom pretty will be so much lightened -if she has begun collecting treasures as soon as she was promoted to a -room to herself, that I may, perhaps, be forgiven if I impress this fad -of mine on all my readers, young and old; for mothers of growing -daughters can perhaps benefit by an idea that may be useful to them, -and of which it is just possible they may not have thought themselves; -and I should let (as I do let) my daughter begin her collection as soon -as she is old enough to value having her very own things, even to the -sheets, pillow-cases, and towels, which she can embroider herself, and -to a small collection of silver and china and pictures, added to, on -birthdays and at Christmas, with an eye to a house of her own some day; -or even a couple of rooms, when she may end an honoured career of ‘old -maidism,’ made all the lighter and pleasanter by the store of pleasant -memories secured to her by her possessions, which thus serve a double -duty, and are both artistic and useful too. - -If Angelina cannot afford pictures in any way, she can, no doubt, afford -brackets. These are very cheap indeed in carved wood (which can be -painted to match the room), would hold a scrap of blue and white china, -and can be made even more decorative if surrounded by a ‘trophy’ or -artistic arrangement of the ever-useful Japanese fans, one of which -should be covered with silk and plush, and made into a bed-pocket for -handkerchief, watch, or keys, although I like my watch in evidence, as -then one sees exactly what time it is, and if it is the hour to rise, or -to put out the gas, if one indulges, as I do, in the fascinating but -wrong habit of reading in bed. I have a long bookcase in my room, as -shown in the drawing on page 72, and this is full of bound magazines to -fall back upon, should my own book be exhausted before I feel inclined -to go to sleep. Even if the windows are open the serge curtains should -be drawn, I think, unless one requires to get up very early, as I do not -believe the brain ever really rests if there be much light in the room. -That is another objection to blinds; they are never _dark enough_. The -serge curtains are cheaper, and keep out the strongest sunlight there -is. - -I do not think what are generically known as ‘short blinds’ ever look -nice in any bedroom. I can remember, however, when to have white -curtains there to match, or in some measure go with those in the rest of -the house, was considered the height of reckless extravagance, and a -sure index of the bad financial position of the person who was sinful -enough to indulge in them! - -Of course if we live with opposite neighbours’ eyes straight upon us we -must cover our windows, or run the risk of being seen at our toilet; but -even then we can curtain them by using the frequently advised double -fixed rods, either covering the lower sash entirely with a full fluted -blind of coloured Liberty muslin, or by draping the entire -window--always the prettiest way of setting to work--with frilled muslin -curtains meeting down the centre and almost covering the glass, at all -events covering it completely if it be necessary to do so (see page -60). And now opinion on this subject has changed so much, we can afford -to have our windows all look alike without exciting dismal prophecies -from people who really know nothing at all about us. - -Remember no house can possibly look pretty where white curtains are -conspicuous by their absence, any more than a girl can look pretty if -she has neither nice frilling or spotless collar and cuffs as a finish -to her costume. And by white curtains I mean muslin curtains of almost -any colour, with some white in them. Dark _thin_ curtains are an -abomination, I think. I once lived opposite some dark green muslin ones -that made me always feel the owners were dirty people, although I knew -quite well they were not. Muslin and guipure curtains, nicely made and -fixed, are my pet curtains, and next to these come Liberty’s printed -muslins and cheap artistic muslins, though I have seen soft-hued silks -used to great advantage in town houses; but this is, I should think, far -too expensive for us, modest beginners as we are. White Madras muslin is -not economical, as it cannot be said to wash well. It shrinks, pulls -crooked, and generally loses all its colour in a most distressing manner -the first, and always the second, time it pays a visit to the laundress, -and if we cannot have guipure and muslin we must fall back on plain or -printed muslin only. Cretonne curtains for a bedroom must invariably be -lined if no blinds are used; and a very good thing to do in a very sunny -room is to put an inner lining of very dark green twill inside the -cretonne lining, so that it shall not show, thus insuring the darkness -that I consider so necessary in a sleeping-room, the brain, as I said -before, refusing absolutely to rest if much light comes across the eyes, -and this is why a bed should never face the window, as this insures -light of some sort falling on the face of the sleeper. - -To sum up briefly, one’s bedroom should be pretty, tasteful, and quiet, -and should be as much thought about and kept as carefully as the -grandest sitting-room we possess; and I may further mention, for those -who cannot purchase Aspinall’s enamel in hedge-sparrow’s-egg blue, that -a very decent substitute can be made from Prussian blue, middle -Brunswick green, white lead, oil, and varnish, and just a little black -paint or ochre to tone it all down. This must be mixed until the colour -is precisely that of a hedge-sparrow’s egg or very old turquoise, and is -very troublesome to get right; therefore the above receipt will only be -really of use to those of my colonial readers who may not be able to -obtain Mr. Aspinall’s invaluable enamels for home-decoration. - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - -DRESSING-ROOM. - - -There is no doubt in my mind that the proper furniture for Edwin’s -dressing-room has not yet been evolved out of the inner consciousness of -some enterprising and clever designer of dressing-tables and wardrobes. -Of course there are plenty of so-called gentlemen’s wardrobes, but I -have never yet found one that was perfectly satisfactory, and if any one -knows of one I should be very glad to hear from that happy creature. - -I am quite sure gentlemen’s coats should never be suspended from hooks, -for if they are hung up there is always an unpleasant bulge in the -collar, and it is impossible to keep the wretched things in shape; -almost as impossible as it is to make a man look nice unless he has a -valet to look after his clothes, brush them, fold them, and, in fact, -turn him out respectably, with a neatly folded, clean umbrella and -decent hat--that is to say, the ordinary male, who has business -occupations, and gets up at the very last moment he can, to be able to -snatch his breakfast and then catch his train. - -I have, personally, no very expensive yearnings, but when I see one who -shall be nameless in a coat that looks as if it had voyaged up the -chimney and back, nether garments that, to put it mildly, have seen -better days, and a hat that would disgrace the Sunday get-up of his own -coachman, and hear that no one is to touch the venerable accumulation in -a wardrobe upstairs, I do long for a good, strong-minded man-servant -indoors who would see to his master’s clothes, and insist on their being -worn properly and treated decently. - -This sounds like straying from the subject, but it really is not, for -one unanswerable argument which puts a stop to a great deal of my -eloquence is, ‘If I had a decent place to keep my clothes in I should -always look respectable.’ Now, my readers shall give me their opinion as -to the decency, or otherwise, of the accommodation afforded to this -nameless individual. - -In the first place, there is a charming-looking wardrobe in ash. The top -is embellished by a ledge, on which artistic pottery is meant to stand, -but where at this present moment repose a microscope, a lamp, very grimy -and full of dreadful-looking oil that no one may touch, several dusty -piles of lectures and reports of divers societies, and on the plain -space below are at least five paper bandboxes, containing old and -dilapidated hats, all more or less suggestive of Noah’s ark and -scarecrows; yet one and all far too precious to give away, and which no -one dare touch, on pain of instant death. - -One half of this wardrobe is lined with striped calico, against the -dust, and is used for hanging up coats, dressing-gowns, &c., and where -there is quite a crowd of the most hideous old coats, all too precious -to part with--I can’t think why--and then on the other side there is a -deep space sacred to trousers, and three deep drawers besides, for -shirts and under-garments of all kinds. Now this is actually not -sufficient accommodation, and I have other drawers in the bedroom -itself, where stores of summer or winter raiment, as the case may be, -repose; and the dress things are also in yet another place; but I do -think it is rather a mistake to have so much space for spoiling coats by -hanging them up, and I am thinking of having shelves put in in that -division, and seeing if that will be any good at all, though, as it is -so much easier to hang up a coat than to fold it up, I much fear there -will be strenuous opposition to that plan--at least at the first. - -A wardrobe is a necessity in a dressing-room--unless one is lucky enough -to find a good deep cupboard there already--and they can be bought at -all prices. The one described above was about 10_l._, and is certainly -very pretty, but I am sure it is nothing like as useful or as well -arranged as it ought to be, and I have one in the nursery, which is all -drawers and shelves, that cost 4_l._ 10_s._, and is hideous, which I am -thinking of having painted turquoise blue, and adding brass handles and -substituting this for the ash one, which can go nicely into the spare -room, where it will no longer be desecrated with all sorts of débris -being placed where pretty china is meant to go. There is one piece of -furniture, invented by Mr. Watts, of Grafton Street, Tottenham Court -Road, W., which is, however, perfect for a dressing-room, and therefore -deserves more than a word of mention. - -It is a combination of dressing-table and washing-stand that is simply -invaluable. A long glass starts on the right-hand side from three -drawers, with a place for brushes and combs, while on the left is ample -space for washing, with a high tiled back, and a species of shelf to -hold bottles, glasses, &c. There is also a deep space under the marble -shelf on which the jug and basin stand, meant for boots, and covered in -with a cretonne curtain on a brass rod, and is altogether as charming, -artistic-looking, and useful a piece of furniture as any one would wish; -it costs 6_l._ 10_s._ in stained deal, is beautifully made, and would -not only be useful in a dressing-room, but in a young girl’s room or any -small place where there really is not sufficient accommodation for both -washing-stand and toilet-table. I have narrow tapestry mats trimmed with -ball fringe on the shelves, but I should not like to say how many have -been wanted there, for men never can remember that wet sponges should be -put in the sponge-dish and not on the new covers, or that brushes are -best in the drawers intended for them, and not for sundry bits and -scraps of paper, old soiled gloves, spoiled white ties, cartridges, -fly-books, bits of gut, string, ‘objects’ for microscopes, and other -nastinesses ‘too numerous to mention,’ as the auctioneers say when they -have come to the end of their descriptive resources. - -And, _apropos_ of this, let me beg Angelina never to allow accumulations -in either small or big drawers if she can possibly help it; nothing -breeds moths or harbours dust like this, and I should advise her -occasionally to brave Edwin’s wrath, and turn out on her own account, if -he is obdurate, and will keep every scrap and shred of rubbish that has -ever come into his possession, because he cannot believe a time will not -come when the possession of a few inches of paper, string, or catgut -will be of paramount importance to him, and when a store of old clothes -will stand between him and utter and entire destitution of raiment. - -Now, without emulating a silly little friend of mine, who was only saved -by the difference of a pot of snowdrops from bartering her bridegroom’s -best coat for a supply of flowers, with one of those engaging gentlemen -who frequent the suburbs with a supply of blossoms, warranted to fade -and die utterly within the space of twenty-four hours, I would strongly -suggest a little dissimulation to Angelina, should Edwin prove the -orthodox hoarder of old clothes that it appears to me, from judicious -questioning, most men are. - -Angelina should make a point of remembering the date of Edwin’s coats, -and should mark them in an invisible place (on the lining of the inside -of the sleeve is the best) with the date of the purchase; and with this -triumphant proof of her accuracy should she face and utterly confound -Edwin when he meets her request for the coat to be given away, with the -remark, ‘_That_ coat! What can you be thinking of? I only bought it a -month or two ago!’ He is often so flabbergasted at learning the treasure -is at least eighteen months old that he says no more, and allows -Angelina to bear it off to gladden the heart of some old pensioner, on -whose back it somehow looks so extremely well that Edwin cannot believe -Angelina was right in her dates, and at every opportunity points out its -excellent appearance on Jones or Styles as a proof of her reckless -extravagance. - -A little careful stealing from a husband who is an inveterate hoarder, -and will not even succumb to the uncontradictable date, can be practised -to advantage, and at the risk of exposing my own wickedness, and -believing that a male eye rarely, if ever, falls upon my words of -wisdom, I may tell Angelina in the very strictest confidence how I have -sometimes been driven to circumvent the nameless one spoken of before. - -I have watched the gradual overflow of the wardrobe--ay, even on to the -floor and the three chairs, and, biding my time, have neatly arranged -the drawers, being quite sure I shall be asked immediately what I have -done with all the precious things, missed the moment the dressing-room -is entered. I disclose them arranged elsewhere, and after a week or two, -when the gardener and the coachman’s children have been scanned -surreptitiously but eagerly to see if I have already given these -valuable relics away, they become forgotten, or are only asked after -occasionally; then, as time goes on, they are quite forgotten, and if -asked for after three months cannot be found, as they are already doing -duty elsewhere, under new and altered circumstances. Old boots it is -almost impossible to get rid of without a positive battle, though how a -man’s happiness or welfare depends on knowing he has fourteen pairs of -dreadful old boots under the kitchen dresser, to say nothing of as many -more concealed in his own room and his dressing-room, is really more -than I can understand, and must be one of those problems of life we are -compelled to take as such, and leave for time to solve, if it possibly -can. - -I do not think it is of the very smallest use to give Edwin anything -pretty of his ‘very own,’ as the children say, in his dressing-room. It -is always a narrow, circumscribed spot, and brackets are apt to be -knocked askew and their contents smashed, picture-glasses also coming in -for similar hard treatment, while extra shelves for books are soon -overloaded, and come rattling down in the dead of night, taking at least -ten years off one’s life with the awful fright received. - -Therefore, if Edwin have a really nice wardrobe, a chair, and a -dressing-table and washing-stand combined, as described previously, it -is really all he wants, unless, of course, the room be a good size, when -the walls can be decorated at will. Equally, of course, the wall-paper -and the dado should match the bedroom, and here more than anywhere else -should be the substantial dado of either cretonne or matting, as here -the walls get mysterious knocks and indentations even more than they do -in the passages and bedrooms. - -If the bath has to be taken in the dressing-room--and sometimes even now -old houses have not bath-rooms--the bath should stand on a large square -of oilcloth, covered by a ‘bath blanket.’ This should be taken up and -dried, and the oilcloth wiped carefully, as soon as the bath is emptied, -or both will soon rot and be spoiled. - -Very nice ‘bath blankets’ are made by taking the old-gold and dark brown -blankets one buys of Mansergh and Sons, Lancaster, from 3_s._ to 11_s._ -6_d._ a pair, according to size, though those at 7_s._ a pair are the -best size. A piece should be cut from one end to make the blanket -square; and one of Francis’s conventional designs should be ironed off -in each corner, which is then worked over in either outline or a thick -‘rope’ or twisted chain-stitch, in double crewels, in about two or -three colours. For instance, old gold looks well with the work in two -shades of brown crewels, with a dash of dull blue; the brown blankets -with golden crewels with, perhaps, a dash of red. But as it is rather -difficult to get the design clearly on the rough, fuzzy blanket, an -easier style is in cross-stitch. The canvas must be very coarse, and -tacked to the blanket. An edging, as well as corners, looks nice, and -the canvas threads must be pulled out afterwards. I think a big -cross-stitch, monogram, or cypher looks nice. The edges of the blanket -can be either button-holed over or hemmed with a line of cross-stitch -defining the hem. These blankets are a great ornament to a bath or -dressing-room, and are invaluable in any room where the bath must be -taken in the room itself. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -SPARE ROOMS. - - -I think it is a most excellent plan to have the bedrooms on one floor of -a house furnished as much as possible alike; that is to say, if economy -be an object, and also if, as in several houses I know, the rooms open -out either on a square landing or into a corridor that leads past them -all. - -Of course, the papers need not be alike, neither need they all have -cretonne dados; but the paint should harmonise, and so should the -wall-coverings, while the curtains and carpets should be identically the -same; as if one have to move, or the cretonnes shrink in the wash, and -the carpets become worn in patches, one thing can be made to supplement -the other, and so a large outlay to replace old things--always the most -worrying kind of outlay, I think--is avoided. - -I have been constantly much entertained at seeing the shifts people have -been put to to prevent things wearing out, but perhaps quite the most -hideous thing seen in this way was a succession of extra bits of carpet -edged all round with woolly black fringe to simulate mats, which were -arranged on every spot on the carpet where especial wear could be -expected, and these monstrosities were carefully put by each side of the -bed, and in front of the looking-glass, washing-stand, and fireplace, -with an especial tiny dab by the door. The consequence was that, when -one was dressed for dinner in a long garment, all these mats were neatly -rolled up in different corners of the room, and not only looked hideous, -but were positively useless. - -Now I see no use in preparing these species of save-alls in a room that -is not always in use. If a thing be worn, then cover it; but I can’t -bear anything to be covered over to be saved. Better let all fade -decently together, and do your patching out of a second carpet or a -second material that has already done duty in another room. It is -useless, I think, to cover handsome things; much better rub down the -gorgeousness and subdue the splendour altogether, for nothing looks -worse or, in my eyes, more atrociously vulgar than a room utterly unlike -one’s usual chamber, grandly prepared for the reception of ‘company.’ -Once one’s acquaintances and friends are given satin chairs to sit on, -instead of the usual cretonne, they become bores to me at least, and, -unless they can be satisfied to see me as I always am, I would rather -they stayed away. There is always a stiffness and uncomfortableness in -any gathering to entertain which we have felt it necessary to uncover -our chairs. - -In the same way let us in our upper chambers wear our things out -equally. Splashers have become almost unknown since the invention of the -high tiled-backed washing-stands, and so in another way mats have ceased -to exist because bath-rooms are now almost universal possessions, and as -most people--I will not say all--know how to behave themselves in one’s -house, there is no need even to put down the conventional square by the -washing-stand that really was necessary when a washing-stand was one’s -only chance of properly performing one’s ablutions. - -Now most people have bath-rooms; but, if they have not, the bath can be -prepared in the same way in the bedroom as described in our last chapter -for the dressing-room. - -I think every one who possibly can should possess something in the shape -of a spare room, although, as I remarked in one of my former chapters, I -have suffered so much from my visitors that I approach the subject -feeling as if I at least could not have very much sympathy with it. And -in no case will I advise any one to set apart for the use of the -occasional visitor one of the best rooms in the house, as is far too -often the case in those houses where the spare room should be either the -nursery itself or a room for some of the children of the house! I have -once or twice been literally so horrified at finding the room I should -have at once given for the children set apart for visitors as a matter -of course, and quite without a second thought, that I am compelled to -speak rather more emphatically, perhaps, on this subject than I -otherwise should do; but, after all, the house is the children’s home, -and for their sake I must beg attention from those who, as a matter of -course, take the best rooms themselves, the second and third best for -visitors, and then any rooms that may be over for the little ones, -keeping the worst of all for ‘the boys,’ as if boys were raging beasts, -to be put out of sight and hearing as far as ever the limits of the -house would allow. Whilst recognising that a spare room is a necessary -and pleasant thing, at once, so as to disarm criticism, I must ask my -kind, good readers to ponder for a moment on what putting aside the very -best room for one’s friends means in an ordinary building where there -are at the most three or four rooms on the floor above the ‘reception’ -rooms, to use a house-agent’s term, which said term means a great deal -more than perhaps meets the eye at first. - -It means keeping empty, perhaps, three parts of the year the brightest -and most cheerful apartments, and it means relegating the children to -inferior rooms, which, with a little taste and common-sense, can be made -pretty, comfortable, and charming for your friends, who come presumably -to see you, and not to spend the best part of their time in their -bedrooms, for if they do they may just as well have stopped at home. - -Now there is a great deal, to my mind, that can be written about the -ethics of visiting that insensibly calls for attention, when we ponder -over that problem of a spare room, and that may perhaps not be out of -place, so I dwell for a few moments upon them before going into the -decorative details of this particular chamber. One of the latest fads of -social life is to do away with introductions at parties, and another is -to ask people to stay with us, and, from the moment they enter our doors -to the moment they leave them, to go on with our own occupations and -engagements, exactly as if we had no friends staying with us; or rather -as if we kept an hotel, and the comings in and goings out of our guests -had no more to do with us than have those of the people staying in an -inn to the people who keep it. - -Perhaps the position and the luxurious comfort of the chamber prepared -for their reception--half sitting-room, half bedroom as it is--suggests -to the guest more than it is meant to do, and therefore should be -altered before hospitality has ceased from the face of the earth and -become a mere empty mockery. - -I have often enough seen all sorts and descriptions of ideas for writing -tables and other conveniences in a spare room, but of this I will have -none; if I ask people to come and see me I want them to be with me, and -not in their own rooms half the time; and letters can surely be written -either in my company, or in the dining-room, should I be occupied in my -own sanctum: while work of all sorts can be brought down after -breakfast, when the members of the male sex have gone off to business, -and there need be no reason for secluding oneself in one’s bedroom to do -one’s mending. - -I maintain that guests staying in one’s house should be treated to what -servants call company manners, and that we should make a difference for -them, and try and make their visits pleasant to them, considering that -they have come to us for a holiday; that leaving them to themselves, and -going our own way while they go theirs, is distinctly averse to all the -laws of old-fashioned and true hospitality; and that by making the spare -room into a species of boudoir we appear to hint to them that we do not -want them with us, except after dinner or for the afternoon drive, or -really on any occasion when we can possibly do without them. - -I should take as nice a room as I could for my guests after my -children’s convenience has been thought of--I like mine as near me as -possible, and if possible on the same floor, with a schoolroom upstairs, -a most invaluable possession in childish ailments, when change of room -is wanted without any risks of draughts run by going downstairs--and -though, of course, our proverbial bride and bridegroom will not have to -think of all this for some years to come, I find I have had so many -readers beside the bride for whom I meant to write this book that I -cannot help being a little discursive for their sakes, the while I beg -Angelina not to take the best room in the house for her guests, because -she will hesitate so very much more, if she does, over dismantling the -pretty room when the ‘king comes’ to his kingdom, and Miss or Master -Baby arrives to rule the household with an iron rod. - -Some of the charming painted suites of furniture are as nice as anything -for the spare room, and take a great deal of raiment, and I strongly -advise Angelina always to ask her guests if the boxes may be removed -from the room. As soon as they are unpacked they can be put in the -box-room until required, even if the visit is only for a few days, for a -dirty travelling trunk can do a great deal of mischief, and, if put -against the wall, has often enough ruined the paper, and dug holes in -the plaster by being continually opened and shut as things were taken in -and out. The paper and paint of the spare room should be a matter for -great and careful consideration, too, and here I very strongly advise a -dado of some kind or other. I always advise a dado in a bedroom of -cretonne or matting, however the bed is placed, as nothing saves the -walls so long from the tender mercies of the housemaid, and so keeps the -room looking nice. - -I heard of a bedroom in the country the other day that seemed to me the -very ideal bedroom for a guest. The paint was white, and the paper was -the very faintest possible shade of eau-de-Nil. There was a dado of -eau-de-Nil and white chintz, with, I believe, a pattern of -lilies-of-the-valley on, and the curtains were of the same. The bed had -an eider-down quilt in green silk--rather extravagant this--and the -furniture was all in white wood, with green and white mats &c. about. -The effect in summer was simply perfect. I am, however, afraid in -winter the effect would be too cold; but to be equally pleasant then, -however, the cold effect could be obviated by putting pink cretonne -curtains instead of the green chintz, and putting pink mats and a pink -cover to the eider-down; but the pink must be very carefully chosen, and -be either very faint or else almost terra-cotta, or it would look -tawdry, I am sure. - -The eider-down should always have a cover made of cretonne, like that -used for the curtains, or else of a contrasting hue. The usual cover for -an eider-down in turkey red would spoil any room, and as a motive of -economy, if not of beauty, an extra cover is a very good thing; it makes -the eider-down wear twice as long, and is able to be washed, a great -advantage to anything that has to do with a bed. - -There should always be four pillows and four or five good blankets to -the spare-room bed, three pairs of sheets, the top one edged with Cash’s -patent frilling two inches wide, and a large red monogram on the centre -of the top sheet, and at least twelve pillow-cases, with four extra ones -frilled, and with monograms in the centre, which should be removed at -bedtime and folded up. The counterpane should be a honeycomb one, with a -deep fringe all round, and these are the only counterpanes that should -be bought for real use. They always look very much better than any -others, and look as well after they are washed as they do before. A -Madras muslin quilt thrown over the bed in summer looks very nice; in -winter the eider-down is all that is required, though I dare say I shall -shock my readers by telling them that I never put away my eider-downs -anywhere through the house in summer. I rarely find it warm enough at -night, sleeping as I do with my windows open, to do without them. - -If we can only afford one spare room, that room should have a double bed -in, as often married folk would like to come to us for a night or two, -and I have found it very awkward myself, never being able to take in any -one, save a girl or a young man, because I personally have in my present -house no such accommodation, and a small room does not matter for one -night, if the bed be comfortable and large enough. - -Maple’s brass or black and brass bedsteads and ‘Excelsior’ mattresses -are the most inexpensive bedsteads I know; a brass one should be chosen -if one can afford this possibly, but a very nice black and brass one can -be bought for 2_l._ 5_s._; mattress (‘Excelsior’) at 2_l._ 9_s._; hair -mattress at 3_l._ 10_s._; bolster at 17_s._ 6_d._, and good pillows at -5_s._ each. A room can be nicely and entirely furnished for 34_l._ 9_s._ -8_d._ in good furniture that will wear, though, of course, cheaper and -less reliable furniture may be purchased. I actually hear that at -Cardiff excellent suites of furniture in walnut can be bought for -12_l._, but I must believe these are simply veneered, and will fall to -pieces at the least move or the smallest amount possible of wear and -tear. There is no doubt that a great deal of thought has to be expended -on a spare room, but there is not the smallest doubt that it ought to -look as nice without (please forgive me for being insistent on this) -suggesting a sitting-room, that our guests should feel at home in it at -once. A flowery paper, like the old-fashioned chintzes, is bright and -pleasant, but must not be too scrawly, or it will not be nice should -sickness overtake our guest; but it should be lively and charming, and -suggestive of pleasant thoughts, and then I am sure we shall be repaid -by hearing our friends exclaim, ‘Oh, what a sweet room! Why, I feel -rested already.’ - -And now let me whisper one or two little sentences in Angelina’s ear, -suggested by what I have let slip above about possible sickness -overtaking a guest, for very few people ever contemplate this side of -the guest-chamber question. - -It may be terribly bad for such a thing to happen in our new sweet room, -but, however horrid it is for us, let us all recollect it is just one -thousand times worse for the unfortunate ‘sick and ill,’ as the children -say; for, in addition to his or her own pain and sufferings, he has the -mental agony of knowing he has committed the one unpardonable sin, and -that he has dared to fall sick in some one else’s house, that he is some -miles from his own doctor (and who believes, I should like to know, in -any one’s doctor except one’s very own?), and that servants, hostess, -and host are all vowing vengeance on him for his untoward behaviour. - -But it is on such occasions as this that the hostess rises to the -occasion, shows her real self, and demonstrates the true lengths to -which a hospitable soul will go. She laughs his apologies to scorn, -declares she loves nursing, and so manages that the convalescent blesses -the hour when he fell ill under such tender handling, and in consequence -improves twice as soon as he otherwise would have done, had he fretted -and worried over the bother he was giving, and had he been shown plainly -he was as great a nuisance as he undoubtedly is. - -I am not writing on this subject ‘without book,’ as the saying is. -Naturally we should all exclaim indignantly, We should all do our very -best for any one who falls ill under our care; and you, most of you, -smile at me, doubtless, for daring to insinuate you would not; but I -know cases where, especially to relatives, the hostess’s conduct was so -chillingly all it ought to be, so freezingly polite, so intent on -perpetually telling the unfortunate he was no trouble at all, in a -martyr’s voice, that disclosed all her words sought to conceal, that I -must be forgiven if I say it needs real Christian charity, and the heart -and temper of a saint, to show real hospitality when sickness happens; -and it will not do any harm for any of us to contemplate circumstances -in which we may all of us some day be placed. - -One other special thing to remember as regards the spare room is that it -must always be in such order that, if necessary, it can be ready for -occupation in half an hour. I knew a most excellent housekeeper who, -scarcely before the last box of her friend had been carried downstairs, -had put her room into ‘curl-papers’ as it were, carefully banishing -everything from the light of day until such times as it was necessary to -prepare the chamber once more, with much ceremony, for a new-comer. - -Now I much object to this sort of thing. When I have brought a pleasant -visit to an end in a friend’s house, it gives me a positive pang to see -the pillows bereft of their cases and the bed of its sheets, and all -covered over with a species of holland pinafore. I hate to see the -toilet-covers taken off and folded up; and though this may be done when -I am not there to see, it gives me such an unpleasant feeling that I -never have the courage to put my spare room to bed; a room shrouded, -gloomy, and unoccupied in a house always seeming to me like the -unpleasant corpse of bygone pleasure, and as such to be strenuously -avoided. - -Then another reason, besides the mere sentimental one of disliking to -see that one’s visit is really over and done with, is that such a -dismantling of the room often puts it out of one’s power to entertain a -sudden or unexpected guest, who comes down perhaps to dinner, and would -be glad to spend the night, that may have turned out wet or cold, or -that pleasantest of all pleasant visits, the Saturday to Monday sojourn, -becomes impossible too, for it is not worth while to get the room ready -for such a short time, when so much of Saturday would be taken up in -airing the beds, and unpinning and putting up curtains, and shaking out -toilet-covers, &c. - -Now if the room be always straight, and requires nothing but the sheets -on the bed, there is no trouble in the matter, and we are neither -flurried ourselves nor allow our guests to be uncomfortably conscious -that their arrival has made any difference to our domestic arrangements -at all. I am quite sure, too, that it is a most excellent thing for most -people to have some one staying in the house with them occasionally; -much, secretly, as I dislike it myself, excusing myself to myself for my -boorishness by saying my work prevents me being really able to entertain -my visitors, still I never part with a guest without quite as secretly -acknowledging that it has done us all an immense amount of good to be -shaken out of our grooves--ay, even if our own special chair has been -taken, and the newspapers read and the magazines cut before I have -looked at them, another fad of mine, for, _entre nous_, nothing tries my -otherwise angelic temper more than for some one to read out choice bits -of news before I have seen them myself, or to read all the magazines -before I have carefully gone over them, peeping at the pictures, and -reading here and there a scrap, before settling down to them regularly -one after the other. - -One cannot help recognising these evil habits even in one’s own self, -and knowing that nothing makes a person more selfish, and therefore more -unendurable, than to have no one to interfere with one’s puerile little -fancies and equally puerile little rules and regulations! In a small -household rules and regulations that touch the servants, of course, must -be simply ‘Median and Persian,’ or the house would never get along at -all; but it puts no one out except ourselves, should we have to take the -left side of the fireplace instead of the right, and it does us more -good than I can say to have to control our small irritations at having -our routine of life broken into, and to be shown that the world will not -stop if we do go out in the morning instead of the afternoon, and that -nothing appalling will happen should we be obliged to talk at breakfast, -instead of, as usual, burying ourselves in our letters and our papers -generally. - -A constant supply of guests for the night, or on the Saturday-to-Monday -principle, insures a constant change in our ideas and thoughts, and does -away with that ‘Englishman’s house is his castle’ notion that is so very -pernicious, and that puts a stop to so much inexpensive and common-sense -hospitality; while a new, cheerful face at the dinner-table relieves the -strain of domesticity between husband and wife, and often insures a game -of chess, or music, instead of the books and silence which would -otherwise, perhaps, have been the order of the day. - -Another thing also to recollect about the spare room, too, is, not to -get into the habit of using the shelves and drawers in the wardrobe as a -species of store-place. I know nothing more enraging than to be shown -into a charming-looking room, with a beautiful great cupboard, and a -gallant chest of drawers, that seem to promise us ample breathing-room -for one’s things, and to discover half the space we were so very -gleefully looking forward to appropriating is already taken up by all -sorts and conditions of household plenishing, or of last year’s -garments, or even the garments of the year before. I remember quite well -once having such a receptacle turned out for me; and I saw carried away, -the hostess’s wedding dress and veil of some ten years back, all the -long clothes and short clothes of the babies, small and great, several -venerable opera-cloaks and fans, and, finally, a store of old linen put -by against emergencies. You can all of you imagine what I endured. Not -that I should have asked for this to be done, by the way, but the maid -came in to take my boxes, and I was obliged to say I could not part with -them, because if I did I should have nowhere to put my belongings. Of -course this insured the shelves being cleared, with the uncomfortable -result to me described above. I never dared ask what had become of all I -had turned out, but I cut my visit short and went on somewhere else, I -felt so unhappy at thinking of all the unfortunate garments bereft of -their usual resting-place. - -The spare room should be a cheerful, flowery-looking room, as, indeed, -should all bedrooms if possible, and, if a sofa cannot be squeezed in, -one of Maple’s charming sofa-ottomans should be put there, and also an -arm-chair and small table for books &c., for one’s guests sometimes have -headaches, and, especially if we live in town and have up our country -cousins, require occasionally half an hour’s rest after a long day’s -sight-seeing; or after the drive in the sleepy country air, if the cases -are reversed, and we, in our turn, are country cousins entertaining our -London friends with our own special sights and sounds. - -No matter where the house is situated, every bedroom window should open -at the top. This in London obviates a great many blacks flying in, as -they do when the sash is thrown wide open at the bottom; an inch at the -top seems to do more good than a yard anywhere else, and in the country -prevents the deluges and spoiled paint and carpets caused by a sudden -storm in the night, or, indeed, in the daytime, when the open window -allows the tempest to enter bodily, as it were--unrecognised in the -night, of course, unless one is awakened by any specially violent gust; -and unseen by the housemaid in the day, who, whoever she may be, never -seems to remember that such weather means that the windows should be -immediately closed. - -Every single thing belonging to the spare room should be religiously -kept for its own use: the brass can for hot water, the palm-leaf -soiled-linen basket, the little black cupboard for boots, which also -serves as a table, the pin-trays, and the pincushion--all should never -be allowed to stray away, and matches in a box nailed to the wall should -also never be forgotten any more than the candles in their fixed stands, -and the various little ornaments upon the mantelpiece, which should -include a very regularly wound and most trustworthy clock. - -If possible, I should have some pretty framed photographs on the wall, -and, above all, a small bookcase, with a cupboard below for medicine and -toilet bottles. I cannot bear the look of bottles standing about, and, -besides that, medicine bottles are apt to be put down after the medicine -is poured out, and sundry drops run down, and a sticky ring is left on -the new toilet-cover as a reminder of one’s guest, which is not as nice -as one could wish. The medicine cupboard conveys a hint the most obtuse -must take, and, as they only cost about 6_s._ 9_d._, are within the -reach of almost every one. A few judiciously chosen amusing novels and -good poetry can well be spared for the spare room, and often are of -considerable service to guests who may not go about provided with their -own literature. Reading often will lure back sleep, or pass away an hour -profitably; and should we breakfast later or go to bed earlier than our -guest is accustomed to at home, he takes a book and forgets he is -waiting, and blesses instead of ‘cusses’ the difference in our household -routine. - -It seems to me even now that I have not said half as much on the mere -relation of guest to host and hostess as I could have done, though I -have hardly yet mentioned the word ‘furniture,’ so a few more hints may -be dropped here. Never should any one be allowed to come to stay without -the hostess herself seeing that a new nice square of soap is in the -newly-washed soap-dish; that the towels are folded right, the water -fresh and pure in the ewer, and also in the artistic jug, bought, if she -be wise, at Douglas’s, in Piccadilly, in tints to match the ewer; and -making sure all is perfectly clean and in order. A small glass of -flowers should stand on the toilet-table as a special greeting to one’s -friend, and all should suggest that personal thought and care has been -given to the special shrine set apart for his or her reception. - -I wonder who ever forgets their first visit from home, or who can cease -to remember the sense of importance given to us, who once were brides, -when our first guest arrived to stay with us, and inspect our new home, -which we were then perfectly convinced was far prettier, neater, -brighter, and more redolent of love and perfection than any place had -ever been before, or could possibly be in the future. Ah! thank Heaven -for memory! _Tout lasse, tout passe, tout casse_, but memory never dies; -and if we in our first start in life have charming surroundings and -pleasant homes, even if they only are of the simplest nature, as long as -we live they are ours, and none can ever take them away from us. - -Then another thing in the spare room to be particularly looked to is the -arrangement for lighting it. Here gas is a _sine quâ non_. Candles are -most dangerous; a careless guest drops the grease about, or maids cannot -resist taking them about too, and more harm is done by candles in a -house than almost anything else. At the same time, if gas be not laid on -anywhere, the useful brass fixed brackets for candles are necessary; but -they should be fixed one or two above the looking-glass, one above the -bed, and one above the washing-stand, all the candles guarded by glass -shields, and none loose, able to be carried about in a careless or -heedless way. If there be no gas, a nightlight should always be -provided, with a bracket for its reception, for there are some people -who cannot sleep without a light, and nothing is so disagreeable as to -have to ask for these little things, and to find that by making such a -request we have upset the whole house; though, if a guest be -thoughtful, and has these little fads, she should take nightlights &c. -about with her. A quite model guest of mine the other day arrived with -her own hot-water bottle. Could thoughtfulness go further than this? - -If gas be in the house, there should always be a bracket as near the bed -as possible. It cannot hurt any one to read in bed if there be no danger -of setting the house on fire; and I am so fond of this pernicious habit, -and feel so unhappy myself if I cannot indulge in it, that I always, if -possible, make provision for my guests to read too, if they are ‘so -minded,’ as the people in Dorsetshire always say. - -So, before I describe one or two other arrangements of colours that -might be tried in the spare room, I may mention two things that should -never be lacking there. One is a clock; the other a list of the hours of -the household and the postal arrangements--two things that will go some -way to insure punctuality. - -I could at once sit down and write a chapter all to itself on the -inestimable blessings of punctuality, and the extreme rudeness of being -unpunctual in the house of a friend. - -In a small, or indeed in any ordinary, house, unpunctuality means -disorder and waste of time, and, in consequence, of money. It means loss -of temper both for mistress and servants, and it means throwing out all -the little rules and routine on which so much depends. If a clock be -provided in the spare room the two pet excuses, ‘Oh! I forgot to wind my -watch,’ or ‘My watch lost an hour in the night,’ are done away with; -while the hours of breakfast &c. contain a hint that cannot well be lost -on the most obtuse person possible. - -What does being late for breakfast mean? Let all lie-a-beds think over -that problem, and if they cannot solve it for themselves, if they apply -to me I will do so for them. - -After all is said and done, I think blue and some shades of green (not -arsenical shades--pray remember that) are the most restful colours for -bedrooms, though terra-cotta can be used to great advantage in rooms -where there is not much sun, and, while I like ivory paint if -judiciously used with a brilliant paper, I cannot imagine anything more -wretched than the little white bedroom old-time heroines used to rush up -to, and cast themselves down in, when their lovers proved faithless and -they wished to be alone. Nothing is colder-looking and more _un_restful -than white, and I do not like for a bedroom these white-enamelled suites -of furniture that one can buy. I much prefer them enamelled turquoise -blue. Nothing is so pretty as this for a spare room, or the room set -apart for the daughter of the house, except, of course, good ash -furniture with brass fittings. This I should always have, were I able to -afford it, in all my rooms, for I do not, and never shall, like dark -woods or dark furniture in a bedroom, or indeed, as far as that goes, in -any room, but a really good light wood is always pleasant to look at, -and in consequence is to be preferred to enamelled furniture, which -shines terribly somehow, and rather annoys me on the whole. I am now -speaking about bedroom furniture not about drawing-room furniture, where -the enamelled chairs and cabinets look charming and are all that they -ought to be, but simply of the bedroom furniture I would have if one -could afford it; but if one cannot afford really beautiful wood, I then -much prefer to paint the things a charming colour, than to see common -wood or the grained and stained horrors one used to be obliged to put up -with, before Aspinall’s came to our aid and suggested blue or white, -instead of the yellow streaks that were our portion in those unhappy -days. - -Now here is, I consider, one of the prettiest rooms I have yet succeeded -in doing. It has Maple’s floral paper, a design that is just as pretty -as ever it can be; the paint is all cream-coloured and ‘flatted,’ so -that it washes just as a boarded floor does; there is a red and white -matting dado, a dado rail painted cream-colour, and the cretonne, also -Maple’s, at 1_s._ 4½_d._ a yard, almost matches the paper, and looks -really charming. The floral paper has a sort of flowery scroll all over -it, and at first I was rather afraid it would turn out to be fidgety. I -feared the flowers would run after each other over the walls, and refuse -to be peaceable and quiet, but they are just what they ought to be, and -never seem to move at all, while the cheerful effect of the blues, reds, -and creams, that appear to make up the design without interfering with -each other in the least, is really wonderful. I have had the ceiling -papered with a very pretty blue and white paper, and on the walls I have -a great many pictures, and have surrounded the dark over-mantel with -Japanese fans and brackets, while the stove and mantelpiece came from -Mr. Shuffery, and are, in consequence, all that they ought to be. - -I have matting and rugs about the floor, and have light ash furniture, -which I think looks better in a bedroom than anything else, and is to be -preferred to all enamelled or painted suites, on which I fall back as a -_pis aller_, when I cannot afford really good light wood, as I remarked -before. - -This would make a charming room for the best spare room, particularly if -quilt and toilet-cover and pincushion box were covered with Russian -embroideries in red and blue; in this case, the towels and sheets and -pillow-cases should be worked with red and blue monograms too; in all -cases should the towels be worked to match the pillow-cases. This does -not take long, and at once gives an air of culture that nothing else -does. - -Perhaps a few words on the subject of a spare room set apart for -bachelors would not be out of place; for young men, as a rule, are so -careless that they require special legislating for. A quite charming and -very cheap room can be made by using a delightful little blue and white -paper sold by Messrs. Chappell and Payne, 11 Queen Street, Cheapside, at -10½_d._ a piece--it is 1,044; with this a dado of the willow-pattern -cretonne could be used, and the paint could be all cream, or the -grey-blue of the paper; the ceiling should be terra-cotta, and the floor -should be stained, and some dhurries put about; the curtains could be -dhurries too, or else terra-cotta ‘Queen Anne’ cretonne, sold by -Burnett, and the furniture simply enamelled grey or terra-cotta. The -hours of the household should be prominently displayed over the -mantelpiece, while the gas should be placed near the bed to allow of -reading, and no candles allowed, else may we run the risk of being -burned in our beds; one of Drew’s handy little 1_s._ 6_d._ lamps with -shades being quite enough light should anything be forgotten downstairs, -and it should be thought necessary to keep a light in a room, that we -can carry about. Candles do an immense amount of damage, and are very -costly: two excellent reasons why we should impress upon ourselves and -our readers never to use them unless we cannot positively avoid doing -so. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -THE SERVANTS’ ROOMS. - - -Before I proceed to touch on the most important question of all, that of -the nurseries, I will say a few words on the subject of the servants’ -bedrooms, for these are far too seldom seen by the mistress, who ought -to have a regular time for visiting them, and for seeing that all the -bedding and furniture generally is in a proper hygienic condition; for, -notwithstanding the School Board and the amount of education given -nowadays to the poorer classes, I am continually astonished at the -careless disregard of the simplest rules of health and cleanliness shown -by girls who ought to know a great deal better, and who will keep their -kitchens &c. beautifully, yet will heedlessly allow their bedrooms to -remain in a state that _ought_ to disgrace a resident, nowadays, in -Seven Dials. - -In the first place, the ceilings of all servants’ rooms should be -whitewashed once a year, and the walls colour-washed, unless these are -papered with the washable sanitary wall-papers that are really hygienic, -and which would look well, and are rather nicer than the colour-wash, -which is apt to come off on one’s clothes; and the floor should be bare -of all covering, and should simply have dhurries laid down by each bed, -and by the washing-stands &c. Those wash splendidly, and always keep -clean and nice, while the curtains at the window should be some cheap -cretonne that would wash nicely, and draw and undraw easily, or else -they will soon be rendered too shabby for use. - -Each servant should have a separate bed, if possible, and that bed -should be as comfortable as can be, without being unduly luxurious. The -perfection of a bed for a servant, as for any one else, is the chain or -wooden-lath mattress arrangement, with a good mattress on it, a pillow -or two, and a bolster. No valances or curtains of any kind should be -allowed, neither should their own boxes be kept in their rooms. One can -give them locks and keys to their chests of drawers and wardrobes; but -if their boxes are retained in the room, they cannot refrain somehow -from hoarding all sorts of rubbish in them. - -I should like myself to give each maid a really pretty room, but at -present they are a little hopeless on this subject--as witness the -smashed china and battered furniture that greets our alarmed sight at -the inspection that should take place at least twice a year--but, alas! -it is impossible. No sooner is the room put nice than something happens -to destroy its beauty; and I really believe servants only feel happy if -their rooms are allowed in some measure to resemble the homes of their -youth, and to be merely places where they lie down to sleep as heavily -as they can. - -The simpler, therefore, a servant’s room is furnished the better, and, -if possible, a cupboard of some kind should be provided for them where -they can hang up their dresses; this will enable them to keep them nice -longer than they otherwise would were chairs or a hook on the door the -only resting-place provided for the gowns. But, if this be impossible, a -few hooks must supplement the chest of drawers, washing-stand, bedchair, -and toilet-table with glass, which is all that is required in the room -of a maid-servant, whose sheets, pillows, blankets, and other ‘portable -property’ should all be marked with her name, and should be in her -individual care as long as she is in your service--that is to say, that -the property should be marked ‘Cook,’ ‘Housemaid,’ ‘Parlourmaid,’ &c.; -this individualises each single thing, and makes the temporary owner -responsible for it, and her alone. The sheets should be changed once in -three weeks, also the pillow-cases, while three towels to each maid a -week are none too much to allow them to use, do we desire them to be -clean. If two or more servants share one room, the washstands and chests -of drawers must be as many in number as the inmates of the room; this -will save endless discussions and disagreeables, for after all maids are -but mortal, and squabbles will arise out of small matters like these, -which, ridiculous as they sound, are very often at the bottom of the -troubles of those who are constantly changing their servants. - -And, while we are on the subject of servants’ rooms, I will just make a -few remarks on this most intricate subject of domestic management, and -will whisper what I really think is at the bottom of a good many of the -troubles anent servants that undoubtedly exist. In the first place, -mistresses are all too often like the parents of grown-up sons and -daughters, who cannot remember that the curled and frilled darlings of -the nurseries have become young men and women, and are exchanging the -control of the schoolroom for the kindly advice that should never be out -of place between parent and children, who, grow as tall as they will, -can _never_ be as old as those to whom they owe their existence. And -inasmuch as parents all too often exercise this control when advice -would be so much more in place, so do mistresses control and fret the -maids, who would not fret at all were the silk chain, ‘Don’t you think?’ -used instead of the arbitrary command, ‘I insist on the work being done -as I order it.’ Then, too, we are all apt to forget how dull the -ordinary routine of a servant’s life is. True, she has the joy of her -morning gossip with the tradesman, and her few hours on Sunday; but that -is not much for a young healthy girl, who appreciates pleasure as well -as do our tennis-playing, ball-going daughters, and it is much better to -try and give her some amusement oneself, instead of winking at the -‘evenings out’ and furtively stolen absences which most mistresses -allow, because, otherwise, their maids would not stay. This can easily -be done in these days by any one who lives in or near town; while even -in the country there are always excursions to be made, or the county -town to be visited, even if there are no picture-galleries or -exhibitions as there are in London. - -Besides which, servants like to know what is going on, even if they -cannot go to things themselves. They fully appreciate being told of what -one has seen oneself, and a cheerful account of a visit to London or to -the theatre, &c., is as much appreciated by a maid as by the friends we -regale with our experiences, who no doubt do not care for the account at -all, and only wonder at our foolishness in wasting our time and money. - -We have to face a great fact, also: in olden days our mothers as well as -their maids were content with very much less than we are. They may have -been, and no doubt were, much happier, but that is beside the question, -more especially as we cannot return to the ‘good old days’ even if we -would; but the fact remains the same. We have advanced, so have our -servants; and when they can beat us at sums and geography, stand too -much on our level to be thought of merely as the servants, who are to be -content with anything we may choose to give them, and therefore must be -treated in an entirely different manner to the old style. - -Realise this, and domestic management is much simplified, because if we -treat our maids just as we treat ourselves we shall find our trouble -almost disappear. I invariably leave my maids a good deal to themselves -about their work; and once they know what has to be done, I find it _is_ -done without my constantly being after them to see whether they have -finished what I have told them to do or not; and it is well also to -carefully consider what one’s housekeeping bills ought to be once and -for all, and if the books are less than that, praise the cook; if more, -_at once_ and firmly demonstrate that this is not right; but be prepared -with your facts, and let her see that you really do understand your -business, which is to carefully administer your income, and to see that -no waste is allowed. It is impossible for one person to tell another -what sum she ought to spend per week on her household, as one can only -make a guess; individual tastes must be consulted, and people do not eat -alike--for example, two or three people in my household never touch -butter, one or two never use sugar or tea, and therefore what does for -us does not do for the world at large; but for a household of ten -persons, including washing, and allowing for a constant flow of -visitors, the bills should never exceed 6_l._, and can very often be -very much less. It is not well to ‘allowance’ servants, it is not a nice -way of managing, and is no real save; honest servants do not require -allowancing, and dishonest ones will not refrain from taking your -property because they are only supposed to use just so much, on -themselves. - -To insure good servants, it is imperative that we should make real -friends of those who live under our roof. We may be deceived once now -and then; we may even be tricked and cheated, and be tempted to say in -our haste that ‘the poor in a loomp is bad’; but we must take courage -and go on again, being quite sure that sooner or later we shall be -rewarded by the love and care of one, if not more, of those who, while -dwelling in our midst, too often are quite strangers to us, and are no -more to us than the chairs on which we sit, and the tables at which we -write. - -How often, for example, do we understand the feelings with which a -servant enters a new place? Do we recollect that she comes a stranger to -strangers; that we have no idea of the hopes and fears, the thoughts and -dreads, with which she enters our portals; that she is wondering whether -we shall be distrustful or unkind or fairly sympathetic; and that she -may spend her first night in tears by the side of a girl who was a -complete stranger to her a few hours before, but with whom she will be -obliged to spend most of her days and nights, whether she be nice or -nasty, clean or the reverse? - -We may not be able to save our new maid from this, but we can help her -over a very ‘tight place’ if, when she arrives, we are at home to -welcome her, to point out her place in the domestic routine, and to give -her a few hints about those with whom she will have to live for the -future. - -If we had a guest coming among us on equal terms, free of all our -pleasures and amusements, would not this be done? Much more, then, -should we hold out a welcoming hand to those on whom so very much of our -pleasure and comfort depend. - -To know how much this is, we must, once now and then, be left without -one of our staff--which is, of course, not a very extensive one, or -those remarks would not apply. In an extensive staff the relations -between mistress and maid are only represented by a housekeeper, who has -all on her shoulders, and who must replace the missing maid in the -household or do the necessary work herself. - -Let, for example, our housemaid be laid aside by illness, or go home for -one of her well-earned holidays, and straightway we are miserable. A -thousand and one small omissions show us how much she remembered for us. -And as we gaze at our dusty writing-table, our chair put in exactly the -angle that most offends our eye, our breakfast-table laid in an -unaccustomed manner, our letters put just where they never are in -ordinary, we feel inclined to count the days that stretch unendingly, it -seems to us, between now and her return to work, and we wonder what is -before us when that ‘young man’ claims his bride, who, we are certain, -cannot be half as much wanted by him as by us. - -Or our cook may suddenly fall out of the ranks, and we get in temporary -help. Oh dear! chaos then has most certainly come again. Butter flees, -and is conspicuous for its vanishing powers; things have to be told in -detail, and we have not succeeded in getting the ‘help’ into our ways -before our own domestic comes back, to show us on what trifles depends -the easy-going roll of the chariot wheels of life, that never seem to go -so easily as after the jar occasioned by a temporary change of -charioteer. - -Looking back over a long stretch of life covered by many years of -domestic duties, and calmly and dispassionately thinking over the -mistakes--how many!--and the successes that have characterised it, I -freely confess that when I have failed with our servants (and thankful -am I to chronicle only two failures and one of these has since been -redeemed by an early marriage), it has been entirely my own fault. A -keener insight into character than I possess would have prevented our -engaging a girl spoiled for us by a too careless mistress and a wicked -master; and more judicious watchfulness would have saved a false step -that, as it happened, was discovered in time, but not before the -consequences were too apparent to be passed over, and which said false -step was entirely due to the evil influence of a fellow-servant, from -which we of course should have shielded her. We may accept it as an -axiom that we cannot have nice, good servants unless we take the trouble -of either training them ourselves, or get them from a mistress who has -had an eye over the well-being of her maidens. It is impossible to -obtain nice service from those who have never been taught how to serve, -who come to us from careless or bad mistresses, and of whom we know no -more than they do of us, and our likes and dislikes. If we, when -requiring a servant, take the first, or even the second, that applies to -us, not heeding where she was born, what her parents are, and knowing -still less of her disposition, how can we expect success? We may be -lucky enough to hit upon a good servant like this, but we very much -doubt that it is likely we should. If mistresses have a large -acquaintance it is possible to have a continual supply of good servants -without applying to the registry offices; but they themselves must have -as good a character as the required domestic, or else they will not be -easily suited. - -‘As good a character, indeed! What is the world coming to?’ says one -indignant reader. - -It is coming, we reply, to a better state of things--ay, even returning -to the time when servants were of the household, and in consequence -remained years in one place, when nowadays as many months are irksome to -them. - -Why? Because they like change. And so do we. Do we not go about from -place to place, entertaining and being entertained, when the presence of -a friend in the kitchen results in a reprimand and a pointing out of -some duty, neglected, say we, that the friend may be entertained? - -Are we never dull--we who have our music and our books? And are they -never to be dull, whose work is always going on, and who have no -relaxation unless we provide it for them? - -We are no advocates for spoiling servants, any more than we should be -for spoiling children, yet we are anxious that they should be happy; and -that they may be happy it is necessary that we have a set of rules that -must be kept, and that they should gradually learn that we wish to stand -in the same relation to them, while they are in our house, as their -parents would were they still in their care. - -Rule the first is, that no young servant should be out alone after dark, -giving reasons for this rule that are easily understood. Rule the -second, that no one comes to the back door after a certain hour, because -their friends are quite welcome to come to the front door, and once it -is dark bad characters are about, and young girls are easily frightened; -and rule the third, in which all the rest are comprehended, is that they -must learn that we are always ready to hear all their hopes and fears, -to help them choose their hats and dresses, to assist them in every way -they wish, and to give them sympathy and kindness, which we will take -from them in our turn should we be ill or in trouble. - -How much more cheerfully will the cook help you to retrench if, instead -of scolding about the waste, you ask her to help you to save what would -otherwise be given or thrown away. And much more pleasantly will your -housemaids help you when ‘company comes,’ if you tell them to look out -for this or that celebrity, to listen if Miss Smith sings or if Mr. -Brown plays; and how much they will do should you leave one or two of -the pleasanter parts of preparing in their hands, preferring rather an -ill-arranged flower vase than the idea that all the rough and none of -the smooth falls to their share of the work. It will not hurt us to do a -little dusting for once, or even to wash the china, and indeed it will -do us good, for it will teach us how monotonous and wearisome is the -work by which our ‘maidens,’ the dear old Dorset expression for our -servants, earn their daily bread, but that ceases to have half its -monotony and irksomeness should we help occasionally, when work is -pressing, and there is more than usual to do. To have good and loving -servants, then, it is necessary to have them tolerably young, to be -firm, kind, and, above all, sympathetic, to know as much about their -home life as is possible; and without telling them much, yet, when it is -advisable, to take them into our confidence, secure in our turn of -receiving sympathy, which is always precious, no matter from whom it is -received. - -Of course, this is not such an amusing life as the one lived by a -mistress who is always enjoying herself, and thinking of little save her -own garments, and the arrangement of the _menu_ and that of the -dinner-table, but it is a far more satisfactory one. We all have duties; -it rests with ourselves whether or not we shall neglect them or do them. -Still, if they are not done, if our servants turn out ‘thieves, liars, -and wretches,’ as they were characterised by one female writer the other -day, it were well to pause, and ask who should be blamed for such a -dreadful state of things. Surely not those who come to us for training -and care, but rather those who do nothing to earn the right to live, and -who, taking but a low view of life, look upon it as a playground instead -of regarding it as a field for work--a place where we can do as much -good as in us lies. - -Sympathy is the bond that binds men together--sympathy is the bond that -should unite mistress and maid; on the lowest ground it is politic, on -the highest it is ordained in a code of life given to all; and we shall -none of us regret treating our servants well, for, speaking from -experience, I can boldly state that, in trouble, sickness, and sorrow, -one can rely implicitly for help on the maids whom we have trained -ourselves, and whom we have treated exactly as we should wish them to -treat us, and that I have found in a time when Fortune appeared to have -turned her back on us, owing to matters on which we need not touch, that -the servants stuck manfully to the ship, and did their best to help us -weather a storm that, though sharp, was short, yet that might have -stranded us hopelessly on a lee shore. - -The only fault I cannot overcome at present is this bedroom question, -and the breaking of the china &c. provided for their use, hence my -advice about the simple furniture given to them; but I find daily -improvement here, and I hope that the next generation will be able to -give their servants pretty rooms as safely as they can at present give -them healthy ones. - -There is just one other point to touch upon, that of the meals of the -kitchen. It is quite enough to allow an ordinary middle-class household -good bread and butter, oatmeal porridge, and tea, coffee, or cocoa for -breakfast; the kitchen dinner should be the same as the dining-room -luncheon; tea might be supplemented by jam or an occasional home-made -cake; and supper should be presumably bread and cheese, but any soup -made from the receipts in the chapter on ‘entertaining,’ or odds and -ends left at the late dinner, can be consumed if you can trust your -cook; if you cannot, you must lay down a hard-and-fast rule of bread and -cheese, and insist on its being kept, otherwise you will find yourselves -in the case of a friend of mine, who went into her larder after an -enormous dinner-party, expecting to find herself free from the necessity -of ordering more food for at least a week, and discovered it empty, -swept, and garnished, because, the cook informed her, they always had -for their suppers any little thing ‘as was’ left over. - -Never be afraid to praise your servants, as one lady is I know of, for -fear they may think she cannot do without them: we _can’t_ do without -them--why should we pretend we can? They are far more likely to remain -where they are appreciated and cared for than where they know they are -only looked upon as so much necessary furniture; and do not be afraid to -blame them, emulating another friend of mine, who saw her servant -reading her letters at her desk, and stepped out of the room unobserved -because she shrank from the disagreeable but emphatically necessary task -of telling the maid of her odious and dishonourable fault; but say -straight out to the delinquent servant herself what you have in your -mind against her, never sending the message by another servant, nor -nagging, but remarking firmly what you have to say yourself in such a -way that she cannot avoid perceiving you mean emphatically what you -say. - -Let your maids have good books to read, and let them see newspapers, but -do not keep a kitchen bookshelf. This they distrust at once, and look -out for their own literature, which is generally pernicious; but if you -yourself have read a good story, recommend it to them, and talk to them -about it. You can always get a servant to read proper books by taking -care to read them yourself, and by letting them see you are sharing your -literature with them; even if they spoil or soil the book, books are -cheap, and they had better do this than soil their minds by the rubbish -they might buy, revolting naturally against ‘Lizzy, or a Parlourmaid’s -Duties, described in a story,’ or ‘Grace, or How to Clean Silver,’ or -the similar charming works which one generally finds in the houses of -those who keep ‘kitchen bookshelves,’ regardless of the fact that Ouida -and other exquisite feminine novelists are the favourite food of the -drawing-room, and that they could not read one page of the ‘books’ -themselves provided for the maid’s entertainment. - -If you have a garden, encourage the servants to walk and sit and work in -it; and, above all, take interest in their clothes, lend them patterns, -and, in fact, do all in your power to raise them to your station. The -lower classes, thanks to education, are rapidly climbing; they will rise -whether we like it or not, and we had better, on the lowest grounds, -assist them to share the place they will take and push us from, should -they find we are antagonistic and jealous instead of helpful and -sympathising. - -I have had twenty years’ experience of household management. I have had -three cooks in the time, and have never had a maid give me ‘warning’; -and though, no doubt, some day I shall find servants a ‘bother,’ because -they will get married, and I cannot expect to keep mine all their lives, -I think my twenty years of success entitle me to lay down the law on the -subject of the management of one’s maids just a little. But, lest my -readers should tire of the subject, I will pass on to the nurseries, -which, after all, are much more interesting to the young housekeeper. - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - -THE NURSERIES. - - -There are several things of course to be considered in the first choice -of a nursery, and, unfortunately, in far too many cases economy has to -be considered even before what is really and actually good for a child’s -health. ‘Economy: how I dislike that word!’ remarked a plaintive friend, -actually of the sterner sex, and how I agree with him only my own soul -knows; but economy is a stern, a hard fact, and above all has it to be -considered when expenses begin to advance by ‘leaps and bounds,’ and -Edwin regards the future, across the berceaunette, most dolefully; and -thinking over school bills and doctors’ bills, much in the distance yet, -but steadily advancing towards him, begins to wonder how two hands are -to do it all, and whether he had not better at once look up all the -papers he can possess himself of that relate to State emigration. It is -hard for me to keep the ‘juste milieu,’ for I am really possessed by the -idea of good nurseries; and when I recollect how much money is wasted on -keeping up appearances, and also in retaining that ‘spare room,’ I -almost feel inclined to throw prudence to the winds, and declare that -two good nurseries are as imperative for one child as I believe in my -heart they are. And, really, even in the orthodox suburban villa, with -its four or five bedrooms, this accommodation can be found, if only -Angelina uses her senses, and really desires to do her best for her -little ones. But this is not always the case, I am sorry to say, and -there is no doubt that in most houses the position of the nurseries is a -subject of very small interest. So long as it is tolerably out of the -way, and, in fact, ‘far from humanity’s reach,’ most parents are quite -satisfied, and ask little else than that their ears may not be assaulted -by cries, and their china shaken to its very foundations by little feet -rushing and jumping overhead in a way that is undoubtedly trying to the -nerves, but is very delightful to those who see in such noises ample -evidence of the health and good spirits of the small folk who are making -them. - -Perhaps, however, the ‘demon builder,’ the cause of so very many of our -domestic woes and worries, is as much to blame as the people who take -the houses he runs up for us. Still, demand creates supply, and I cannot -help thinking that, if the British matron insisted on nurseries as well -as the regulation ‘three reception-rooms’ of the house-agents’ lists, in -time we should be provided with large airy chambers, as much a matter of -course as the bath-room of recent years, that, once conspicuous by its -absence, in now a _sine quâ non_ in even tiny houses built for clerks, -and rented at about 30_l._ a year. - -I am very much divided in in my mind as to the manner in which to write -this chapter, as I cannot determine whether to describe an ideal -nursery--the nursery in which we were all brought up--or the orthodox -nursery, made out of the worst bedroom in the house, the one farthest -away from the sitting-rooms, and where nothing is considered save how to -prevent any visitors’ ears being assailed with shouts, and their nerves -tried by sudden bangs immediately overhead. I am not in the least -exaggerating when I say that, especially in London, the very top rooms -in a tall house are those set aside for the little ones, Pass along any -of our most fashionable squares and thoroughfares, and look up at the -windows. Where are the necessary bars placed that denote the nurseries? -Why, at the highest windows of all. My readers can notice this for -themselves, and can say whether I am right or wrong. And how often do we -not find an excellent spare room in a house where two, or perhaps even -more, children are stuffed into one room that is day and night nursery -combined, while half the year the best chamber is kept empty, sacred to -an occasional guest, whose presence should never be courted at all in a -house not large enough to allow of there being two nurseries for the -children’s own use. I am the very last person in the world to make -children into miniature tyrants; I do not allow mine to engross the -conversation or to be in evidence at all hours of the day. They do not -behave as if they were grown up at an early age, neither do they go out -to luncheon or tea perpetually, thus becoming _blasé_ before their time. -They are frankly children, and are treated as such, and I feel it rather -necessary to say this at the outset, for fear my readers may feel -constrained to write and tell me (after what I have said above) I have -fallen into the prevailing error of the day, and make my children a -nuisance to themselves and every one else by spoiling them; for, despite -the usual position of the nursery, there is no doubt that children will -soon cease to exist at all, and will become grown-up men and women -before they have changed their teeth. - -Despite the position of the nurseries, did I say? Nay, surely rather -should I write because of the position of the nurseries, which are so -far off that the mother scarcely ever climbs up to them, and in -consequence has her children downstairs with her in and out of season, -until they gradually absorb the grown-up atmosphere and become little -prigs who care nothing for a romp, and object to going into the country -for the summer because the country is so very dull, and have their own -opinions, pretty freely expressed too, about their clothes and the -cooking at their own or their friends’ houses. - -I feel I may perhaps be accused of being hard on the child of the -period, but I confess openly the child of the period is my pet -detestation--poor little soul!--not because of its personality as a -child, but because it is such a painful subject for contemplation. I -cannot bear to see poor innocent babies dressed out to imitate old -pictures, with long skirts sweeping the ground, because they are -picturesque, with bare arms and wide lace collars, and manners to match; -who go out perpetually to luncheon and tea-parties, and who, do they -happen to be passably good-looking, are worshipped by a crowd of foolish -women until the conversation is engrossed by the child, who very soon -becomes an intolerable nuisance; who cannot play because of its absurd -skirt, and will grow up the useless, affected, selfish, ball-loving girl -that is the terror of every mother who recognises that life has duties -as well as pleasures, and hopes that her daughters will do some good -work in a world where the harvest is indeed plenteous and the labourers -few. - -To have good and healthy children it is positively necessary to have -good and healthy nurseries, and as soon as Angelina becomes the proud -possessor of her first baby she should seriously and soberly consider -the great nursery question. Of course she will have thought of it before -the tyrant arrives, but so much depends on different small things that -she will not seriously and definitely determine what to do until she -sees what her nurse is like, and whether she is to have the baby at -night or to hand it over to somebody else. - -I could write pages about people’s first babies, poor little things! -What experiments are tried on them in the way of hygienic and stupid -clothes, the patent foods, the ghastly tins of milk, and the fearful -medicines! I do not believe one young mother exists who has not her own -special theories about babies, and who does not scorn proudly the -experience so freely offered her by her mother, who has brought up a -family, and may therefore be supposed to know something of children, or -by her numerous friends who have all made a more or less successful -effort in the same direction. And, between ourselves, I have often -wondered how any first child ever grows up, so wonderful are the trials -it goes through, so marvellous are the plans tried, to insure that -perfection that each Angelina in turn thinks lies latent in the small -red squalling person that makes such a remarkable change in all the -household arrangements all at once. - -The first danger that assails Angelina when baby arrives is that Edwin’s -life shall be made a burden to him because all his little comforts are -forgotten, the hours of meals altered, and Angelina herself is off -upstairs every two minutes, because the dear infant is howling, or -because she fancies he is howling. Even so, the nurse should be capable -of quelling the rage, unassisted by her mistress, or she is not worth -her wages, and had better go. - -I hope I shall not be considered hard-hearted if I tell Angelina quite -in confidence, that, if she can depend upon her cow, baby becomes a -pleasure instead of a nuisance, if he or she and the cow are introduced -at a very early stage of his or her career. In these days of ours few -women are strong enough or have sufficient leisure to give themselves up -entirely to the infant’s convenience; and I maintain that a woman has as -much right to consider herself and her health, and her duties to her -husband, society at large, and her own house, as to give herself up body -and soul to a baby, who thrives as well on the bottle, if properly -looked after, as on anything else. - -I know quite well that by saying this I may lay myself open to all sorts -of medical opinions, and I am sure to be told I am disgracing my sex. -But, as I have done all through my book, I am speaking from experience, -and only on subjects of which I have personal knowledge. - -For had I not beautiful theories too when my eldest daughter arrived on -the scene? We were living in one of the dullest, stupidest, nastiest -little country towns in the world in those days, and there were few -claims of society on me then. I had no particular occupations, and I was -going to devote my energies to that poor child. I did. She howled -remorselessly morning, noon, and night. The doctor, my dear old doctor, -old-fashioned, too, in his notions, said my ways were correct, and he -could not make out her shrieks at all. I confess I have struggled with -her until I have wept with exhaustion, and at last a blessing in the -shape of a good nurse arrived, and solved the mystery. The unfortunate -infant was starved, and her shrieks were shrieks of hunger. She was -introduced to a particularly nice Alderney cow; and from that day to -this her cries ceased, and she has grown and thrived, and become an -almost grown-up member of society, and a decidedly healthy one. - -Despite my experience with Muriel, I honestly attempted to ‘do my duty’ -with the two next; there were no shrieks this time, but there were all -sorts of other things, and the cow had soon to be called into -requisition; and my two youngest children, who are stronger and far less -liable to small ailments and colds than the other three, never had -anything else, and were as good and prosperous a pair of babies and -children as one may wish to see, for after No. 3 had proved to me my -theories were very beautiful as theories, but rather unworkable in -practice, I gave them up, trusted a great deal to my good nurse, and -clung to the cow. Naturally, Londoners are at the mercy of their -milkman, but the Alderney Dairy, for example, possesses a conscience and -good milk; and no one will ever convince me that milk out of tins can -ever come up to the fresh, nice, clean milk given by a properly managed -and constituted cow; and, of course, in the country one has one’s own -cows and sees exactly what is going on, and knows one has the same -milk, until the child is old enough to bear the change. - -The great things for young children are quiet and regularity, and these -are insured by having good nurseries and a good nurse. The nurse chosen -for a first baby should never be less than twenty-five. Your young -nurses are the most fearful mistakes for young mothers; they do not -understand handling or dressing a baby, and they send off for the doctor -at every moment, when an older woman would have the sense to know what -to do, thus spending on the physician what would have paid good wages -over and over again. They think of nothing save their own pleasure and -amusement, and have no real love either for the child, who wearies them, -or for the mistress, who, tired of their incapacity, is continually -scolding without making any real change in the conduct, that is bad -because the girl lacks what can only be given her by age, and a much -longer experience than she can ever possibly possess. A perfect nurse is -often obtained from a friend’s nursery where she has lived for some time -as second nurse in a good establishment. She should have some four or -five years’ character, and when found should be clung to, until -Angelina’s nursery is transformed into the ‘girls’’ sitting-room, when -nurse has often become so precious she stays on and on until transferred -to the nursery of the first girl who is married and requires her help. -What a comfort such a woman is to all in the house no one save the happy -mistress can ever know! She is delightful in sickness and trouble, ‘her’ -children are her first thought, their trials and joys are hers, and she -helps, as only a good nurse can, the overworked mother should any -special trials come, that are made bearable only because some one else -shares them too. - -But the perfect nurse presupposes the perfect nursery, and, as all young -mothers should strive for the first at all events, so I do not see why I -should not take it for granted that the baby is considered more than an -occasional visitor, and describe at once how a nursery ought to be -furnished and decorated, because I do not believe any child ought to be -in the room in the day in which he _and his nurse_ have slept all night; -nor that a child should sleep all night in a room where his nurse has -had her meals all day, and where he has been most of the twelve waking -hours; any more than I consider a child’s day nursery should be his -mother’s sitting-room, where visitors come, and all sorts of -irregularities are practised in the way of draughts, heat, light, &c., -that should never be allowed. - -The day nursery should be as roomy a room as can be had, and the window -should be able to be opened top and bottom; no blinds should be allowed, -but the nice muslin and serge, or rather cretonne, curtains should be -arranged here as elsewhere, to temper the light and make the room look -cheerful and pretty. - -Cheerfulness and prettiness should be the twin guardian angels of -Angelina’s nurseries; a bright paper of either a faint pink or blue -should be on the walls with a scarcely perceptible pattern; there should -be a cretonne dado with a painted rail; and all the paint should be -varnished to allow of its being frequently washed. That the cretonne -dado cannot be washed does not matter one bit; it can be brushed -frequently, and it always looks tidy, and defies the kickings of little -feet and the pickings of small fingers, that so soon make chaos in the -very smart rooms, unless particular care is taken that the children -shall respect these rooms in a way they can easily be taught to do with -very little trouble. I most successfully cured a young person of five, -whose depredations were something awful, by making him pay up all his -available cash towards a new paper. I never had to complain again, for -he seemed to realise very quickly that if mischief cost money it was not -worth the candle, and had better be given up. - -But with a cretonne dado half the temptation to tear tempting morsels -off corners is done away with, and the rail keeps off chairs from the -paper, and gives a reason for the short-frilled curtains, that are in no -one’s way and are never trailing on the ground, a trap for the unwary -and a regular home for dust. The ceiling should be whitewashed, and -should be done at least once every two years (it should really be done -every spring); and if a little blue is put into the wash one gets a hint -of colour, and does away with the utter ugliness and glare of the -orthodox ceiling, which is always trying, and, in my eyes, spoils any -house. - -The floor should be stained two feet from the wall, wiped every day with -a damp cloth to take up all the dust and fluff, and polished every -Saturday regularly with beeswax and turpentine, the clean smell of which -is always so nice and wholesome, I think, and makes a house pleasant at -once; but before the staining is done great care should be taken, to see -that the boards are planed, and that no splinters are in evidence, and -that any gaps that there may be are properly stopped to keep out the -draughts, then the staining may safely be done. A nice square of -Kidderminster can then be chosen, and put down over the warm carpet -felt, without which a thin carpet does not do for a nursery, because of -itself it is not warm enough. - -The walls and paint being of a pink, like the pink, say, of the inside -of a rose, or of the lighter shade of coral, with no distinct and -distracting pattern on the wall, a pretty flowery cretonne could be -chosen for the dado and window curtains. I have seen one in a pale green -shade, with fluffy balls of guelder-roses on, and groups of pinks which -would be perfect; but this was so long ago that I fear it could not be -had now, though, of course, others equally pretty are sure to be easily -procurable. The doors where this cretonne was used were painted with the -same flowers, which were also to be found on the cupboard doors, with -small bright English birds poised here and there among them. It had a -most cheerful effect, and a baby who lived there used to be contented -for a long time by himself if he could only lie and ‘talk’ to the birds -and flowers in a curious language all his very own. - -But, if a blue room is preferred to the pink, that can be managed very -cheaply, for I have lately discovered an almost perfect blue and white -paper, sold by Pither and Co., of Mortimer Street, that is all it should -be for a day nursery. The colour is clear and clean, and the pattern -cheerful without fussily calling attention to itself, while its -cheapness, 1_s._ a piece, would allow of its being renewed every now and -then should it become shabby, and the paint can be blue, and a blue and -white cretonne to harmonise with it can be had at Burnett’s for -9½_d._ a yard. It has a sort of pattern of daisies overlapping each -other on it, and is very pretty indeed. The rail should be painted blue, -and no little fingers can do any harm to this, while it would take years -to make the cretonne dirty, if it be brushed now and then and -occasionally cleaned with dry bread. The curtains to the windows can be -made of the same cretonne lined and frilled, and would do away with the -necessity of blinds if made as I so often recommend; and this would be -really a great economy in any nursery, for I know well how often tassels -are torn off and spoiled, the blind-cords broken, and the springs -rendered quite unworkable, not only by the children, but by the -under-nurses, who can never learn that a blind does not require the -putting forth of immense strength to make it move; and will not realise -that both bells and blinds answer to gentle handling as well as to the -fiercer tug, which often enough brings the blind down on one’s head, and -leaves the bell hanging out with its neck broken. - -If we use the blue arrangement we could panel the doors and cupboards -with cretonne, which always looks nice, and makes a wonderful difference -at once in the look of a room. - -If there are proper recesses by the fireplaces these should at once be -utilised for cupboards, flush to the wall, so that no little heads can -be banged against those cruel corners. These cupboards are most useful. -The lower shelves can be used for rubbish--the delicious rubbish that is -so much nicer than expensive toys; and the upper shelves can be used for -the work in hand and better toys, kept for Sundays and holidays and -those grand occasions when nursery company comes, and visitors may -arrive who have no imaginativeness, or only see old bits of wood once -sacred to cotton, shankless buttons, fir-cones, and scraps of silk and -paper, where other bolder folk perceive strings of diamonds and pearls, -and libraries of fairies, and wardrobes sacred to unknown but -much-beloved friends; whose houses are the fir-cones, and who dress -themselves magnificently in sweepings begged from the maid, or even from -that proud lady, the dressmaker, whose occasional visits, with her ‘own -machine,’ are something to look forward to by any small mother who has -an army of dolls, and very little indeed to clothe them in. - -Who amongst us cannot remember the intense bliss of our nursery -cupboard, the delicious joy of having one place all our own, where we -could hoard unchecked those thousand and one trifles that no -drawing-room could be expected to give house-room to--where even nurse -did not interfere, because our rubbish (rubbish, indeed!) kept us so -delightfully quiet? Ay, and who amongst us who does recollect this can -grudge a day nursery to even one child who requires it--all the more -because it is a solitary little girl, and can make its own companions -out of trifles, when otherwise its mother would be making it grown-up -before its time, by never leaving it alone for a moment to those devices -and play that keep it a child, and don’t allow it to grow up an ‘old -person’ almost before it can stand steadily on its fat legs? - -Given the blessed refuge of a nursery, with its appealing cupboard, and -very little other furniture is required. A nice solid round table, with -(please don’t faint, all ye æsthetic folk) oilcloth sewn strongly over -it as a cover, because then no tablecloth is needed, save at meals, and -there are no draperies to be caught hold of; and because this rubs clean -every morning, because nothing stains it, and even milk can be washed -off; a comfortable deep chair for nurse, low enough for her to hold baby -comfortably and easily; a chair for each child, and one for company; and -a delightful sofa, and nothing more is really required. - -Why a sofa, say you? Because no one who has not one in a nursery can -know how invaluable such a possession is. Children have often tiny -ailments that are not bad enough for bed, and bed should never be -resorted to in the daytime unless positively necessary. An aching head, -a ‘stuffy’ cold, all these are much more bearable if a broad cosy sofa -is available, while an occasional rest for a growing child is a great -thing always to be able to secure; a child, recollect, who ever -complains of being ‘so tired’ being a child that requires watching, -_not_ coddling, and to whom that sofa may prove little else but -salvation. - -This need not cost much either, for the beau-ideal of a nursery sofa is -one that no fashionable person would look at now; it stands square on -its feet, has a high square back and arms, no springs, only two big -square cushions, and has some pillows of soft feathers, to mitigate the -severity of the details, which--O shades of all my long-lost -youth!--were the best things I ever had in all my life for ammunition, -either at the sacking of a town or the defence of some Scottish castle; -when, arrayed in a broad plaid sash brought back from Scotland by some -one who knew how I adored the ‘Days of Bruce,’ and other works of the -kind, the very names of which I have forgotten, I became in a moment Sir -William Wallace himself, and was happier then, I dare say, than I have -ever been since. - -For there is another aspect to the nursery sofa that is not to be -despised, besides its great use in illness or fatigue; it is a -never-failing source of inspiration for regularly good games--it is a -fortress, a whole city, a ship at sea, an elephant--in fact, anything -any one likes to imagine it is. The broad square cushions are rafts to -put off to sea in when the ship itself is destroyed; they are -fire-escapes or desert islands, or icebergs at will; while no one who -has not had them can possibly tell the joy it is to throw the soft -pillows about, when nurse has put away the ornaments on the -chimneypiece, and retired with her chair and her baby into the next -room, where she is near enough to check unseemly revels, and yet not too -near to come in for a share of the fray, which waxes fast and furious -when the sofa and all its capabilities are fully appreciated, and where -the coverings are warranted not to hurt. - -I could write pages both about the nursery cupboards and the sofa, but -will mercifully refrain, because I have other things to say about the -furnishing of the walls, and the emphatic necessity of a high guard for -the fire fastened into the wall, so that it cannot be taken, as we took -ours once, for the gratings before a lion in an imaginary ‘Zoo,’ also -furnished by the sofa; while we have also to consider the night -apartment, for naturally the perfect nursery of which I would like to -think we were all possessed has its night apartment leading out of it. -This should be painted and papered _en suite_ with the day room, and -have very dark serge curtains to draw over the windows, so that all -light may be excluded, thus enabling the sense of darkness and quiet to -be obtained that is so very necessary for a small child. I do not think -I have mentioned what I should like to impress very much on my readers, -that on no account, _on no pretext whatever_, should that most -pernicious gas be allowed in any nursery, either day or night. There is -nothing more harmful for small lungs than the vitiated atmosphere caused -by gas, nothing worse for small brains and eyes than the glitter and -harsh glare of the gas, that a servant invariably turns up to its -height, and very often drags down, regardless that an escape of gas is -pouring out of the top of the outraged chandelier or bracket. There is -no reason, either, why gas should be allowed; a good duplex lamp gives -quite sufficient light to work by, and must be kept clean, or it will -smell and also give out no light at all, and all danger is done away -with if it be set well in the centre of the nursery table, which has, -remember, no cloth to drag off suddenly, and which should stand square -against the wall, or in a recess by the fire when not actually in use -for nursery meals. Or a really strong, good bracket, painted the colour -of the wall, just high enough to be out of the reach of little hands, -might be provided on purpose for the lamp, and the nurse could either -have a wicker-work table provided for her, or could put her wicker-work -covered basket on a chair by her side, and sit close under her lamp to -work; or it might even stand on the mantelpiece on a broad shelf, where -also it would be equally well out of the little folks’ way. You have -nothing to do, as I said in one of my former chapters, but to notice the -effect gas has on plants, and then notice how these same plants live on -and flourish without gas, to understand that my theory about the -unhealthiness of gas is a right one; and I think all will agree with me -in saying that directly one is ill one recognises for oneself how -disturbing gas is, and the first demand of a restless invalid is to have -the gas put out, and a candle given instead. I shall never forget one -case of illness I once had the unpleasantness of seeing. The wife, who -had constituted herself nurse, and who knew about as much of nursing as -an ordinary cat would, asked me to look in on the invalid and see what I -thought of him. I went into the dressing-room, and even there the evil -was apparent. A hot gust of air met me, and, to my horror, I saw no less -than three gas jets, in a small room, flaring away, because the lady -wanted plenty of light, and thought it would cheer the restless, fevered -creature whose uneasy head was tossing on the pillow, and whose wild -eyes looked in vain for relief; so out went all that gas, the windows -were opened at the top, two wax candles, provided with shades, were -lighted, and in less than an hour the room became cool, and the poor man -was asleep for the first time for--I had almost written days; and it was -certainly days since he had had any deep or restful sleep at all. - -I do not think, even, when we are grown up, we at all realise the -necessity or even the possibility of complete rest; but a baby does, -poor little thing, and is very often never allowed to have it. There is -no sense of peace in most houses, and I want dreadfully to impress upon -all my readers that they must ‘seek peace and ensue it’ for their -children, if they utterly refuse to do it for themselves, and, -therefore, the nursery should be quiet, and should even be a haven of -rest to the mother herself, when she is overdone with her unpaid-for, -never-ceasing work; and where she has her especial chair and footstool, -and where she comes not only to see the babies, but to have the quiet, -confidential talk with nurse, who should be able to have confidence -reposed in her; or she is most certainly not fit for her place, which, -if it be not a confidential one in the very highest sense of the word, -is positively nothing at all. - -The night nursery should, of course, have a fireplace and a ventilator. -The fire should not be a matter of course, unless the room is far from -the day nursery, when a fire should be lighted in cold weather as a -matter of course. A room for children should never be overheated in any -way; but no one should fall into the foolish idea that a fireless -bedroom is hardening, and a fire makes people tender, for it does -nothing of the sort; it simply makes life bearable to the chilly, and -prevents all those dreadful lung troubles that used to be the scourge of -so many English families, but that since the almost entire disappearance -of those foolish, wicked low frocks and short sleeves in our nurseries, -and the appearance of more fires, have well nigh been stamped out; and -will be stamped out entirely when the Queen, so sensible in all other -ways, puts a stop to the order she has given about low dresses, and -recognises that people can be quite as full dressed with their clothes -on as they are almost stripped to the waist and exposed, in the most -delicate part of the human frame, to the bitter winds from which we -English people are never entirely free. - -I hope I shall not be considered a hopeless faddist with my theories; -but at all events I have common-sense on my side, and most people who -think at all will, I am sure, see that I am right in all I say, and that -I speak from experience; and as a baby’s education begins quite as soon -as the mite is washed and dressed for the first time, I may be forgiven, -perhaps, if I insist on peace, quiet, rest, proper clothes, and absence -of gas, even as soon as a nursery is required at all. Of course for the -first few weeks the baby does not require a room all to itself, but it -should be ready for it, for sometimes it is just as well that it should -go into its own premises, thus giving its mother time and quiet to be -restored to her proper state of health again, which I do not think she -is allowed to do when she is wearied by hearing the infant howl when it -is dressed, and when she may be aroused any moment, even from most -necessary sleep, by the small tyrant, who cannot be relied on for -anything in certainty--at all events, at that early stage. If the -nursery has been properly aired and got ready for the baby, and a nurse -engaged to come on after the monthly nurse leaves, there is no reason -why the baby should not go there whenever his mother wants to get rid of -him; and I maintain that often far too much is sacrificed for the -infant, who, in his turn, suffers from too much kindness and -consideration, and who does not require half the fuss and trouble he -causes in a house where he is a first arrival, and, in consequence, is -something too precious and amusing--and, in fact, is almost treated like -a phenomenon, or at least like a very precious fragile new toy. - -Now, a baby is nothing of the kind, and here, then, common-sense must -act as a supplementary nurse, and come to the rescue. She must firmly -insist on the small person becoming used from the very first to take -his rest in his own berceaunette. She may look aside should the frilled -pillow be warmed, because, despite the flannel on the head, a cold -pillow is always an unpleasant surprise, and one promptly resented by a -baby; but she must insist on his neither being cuddled up by his mother -nor allowed to sleep with the nurse, just as much as she must frown on -his going to sleep with a full bottle (like a drunkard) by his side, -because if he does he will wake a little and suck, and then sleep a -little more, and so on, getting neither sleep nor food in a manner that -can possibly be of the smallest use to him. - -And now I should like to say a few words--_for ladies only, -please_--about the great necessity of having everything down to the -nurseries, or nursery, ready before the young person expected makes his -_début_ in a troublesome world. I have been astounded often by the -manner in which young matrons put off making the most necessary -preparations, until often enough, just at the last, the expectant mother -sets to all in a hurry to do what should have been done ages -before--wearies and agitates herself to death almost in her endeavours -to make up for lost time, and very often causes such a state of things -that danger to herself ensues; and at the best great trouble is caused, -simply because she would not listen to other people, and be a little -beforehand with the world. - -Do you know, I quite secretly think some of these young ladies believe, -that if no encouragement is given to the baby in the way of having a -pretty room and nice wardrobe ready for it, it may not, after all, -arrive in the world at all, and that this is the reason why so much is -left to do until very much too late; but though I dare say it is very -hard to realise that an infant can really and truly come to the small, -perfect house, where such an event has never happened before, I can -assure you all that, once it has given a hint of its intentions, its -arrival is only a matter of time, and that come it most undoubtedly and -certainly will, and therefore, under these circumstances, it is much -better to be ready for its arrival, and not have to distract yourself -and others at a critical time, by telling a strange nurse fetched in a -hurry where she may be able to borrow clothes that should have been -ready months before; or to know things are not aired, or that there is -not a room where nurse and baby can retire safely when you want to be -quite quiet; or to have half an hour’s talk either with your husband or -your familiar friends who are admitted to your room, where thus you can -have the freedom from supervision for a short time; or the perfect rest -I for one can never have with a nurse and baby perpetually in evidence. - -But all too often one is compelled to have the infant in one’s room -because of the absurd way in which our houses are arranged, and I do -wish architects and builders (to return to another old grievance, like -the gas subject) would consult a jury of matrons, even if they will not -consult their wives alone, before they set to work to give us any more -houses, for really they are one and all ignorant of the commonest -principles of their art as regarded from a purely feminine point of -view. Why won’t they recollect that one or two rooms should lead out of -each other? Why won’t they remember nurseries are wanted in most houses? -and why will they not arrange their plans with a memory of some of the -most common events of domestic life? If they did, the first floors of -most habitations would be very different to what they are now, and -domestic life would be much easier. I can only hope that the -conscientious male, whose eye of course ceased to fall on this page when -he read the warning words _For ladies only_, will take up the thread of -my discourse where it ceased to be private, and will read, mark, and -inwardly digest as much of this last paragraph of mine as he possibly -can. - -Of course, one of the first things to be provided is a bed for the small -infant, as from the very earliest dawn of its existence there is no -doubt in my mind that it ought to be taught to sleep in its own cot, and -that without any of the pernicious petting, patting, and putting to -sleep that mothers and nurses are so fond of, and that brings about its -own revenges in the forming speedily of a most unruly tyrant, who -promptly makes their lives a burden to them, refusing to go to his -slumbers without an attendant nymph. - -People fondly imagine that babies do not know in the least what their -caretakers do until they are, at the smallest computation, three months -old, and have begun, in nursery parlance, to ‘take notice.’ Now, let any -one who has ever seen an infant taken by some one who is ignorant of its -ways contrast the picture with that of this same baby taken by a ‘past -mistress’ of the art, and they will at once understand what I mean when -I declare solemnly that a child is never too small, too tiny, to feel -and know whether it has to deal with some one who knows its ways, and -means it to be brought up decently and properly, or with a well-meaning -idiot, who allows herself to be conquered and enslaved by a long-clothes -slobberer, who the more it is given in to the more it immediately exacts -from its worshippers. - -To hear some people with a baby is really quite enough to make one -forswear a nursery for ever; the talk, the abject drivel, that is poured -out like incense before it, the foolish petting, and the silly -humouring, all being as vexatious to listen to as it is bad for the -child itself, the ‘pigeon English’ provided for its entertainment often -resulting in the baby talk that makes the ordinary two-year-old a -perfect terror to any one who entertains it with conversation; while -the sense of super-importance given to it in its cradle makes it a -tyrant for the rest of its young life, until it goes to school or mixes -with other people, and is intensely miserable because then, and then -only, is it taught its real worth in the world. - -Therefore, on every ground, it is better to begin at the very beginning -and continue as one means to go on, and so I strongly advise the -berceaunette to be ready with the nursery, and that the first sleep be -taken in that sheltered spot. - -There are a variety of these articles, but to my mind only one to be -recommended, and that is the delightful hammock berceaunette to be -obtained of Mrs. S. B. Garrard, in Westbourne Grove, and these have such -a world-wide reputation now that I suppose all the world knows of them, -and therefore no description is necessary; but for fear there may be -folks who have not seen them, I may mention that the bed portion is -quilted and hung on four strong legs, exactly like a hammock is hung, -and that curtains are arranged in such a way that the light can be -excluded without at the same time unduly excluding a proper amount of -fresh air. - -There are innumerable ways of trimming and making these berceaunettes. I -have seen the hammock portion of quilted satin and silk and sateens of -all colours, covered with fine muslins and trimmed real lace; but, -honestly, even if we could afford such vanities as these, I do not -consider them suitable for a small baby, who should never have any -garments that cannot be properly washed constantly, and should not have -any belongings that cannot share the same fate; and I have discovered -that nothing looks, wears, and washes so well as plain white or figured -cambric, edged with torchon lace; the hammock part made of cambric too, -washable by any good nurse; and curtains tied back with -old-gold-coloured ribbons, bows of which can be used as decorations, -whenever this may be considered necessary. Terra-cotta ribbons look nice -too, but I prefer the old gold to anything else, and it is newer than -the everlasting pink or blue, which was all our foremothers ever halted -between; though a sweet arrangement of palest pink, palest blue, and -butter colour looks very French and uncommon. The only objection I have -ever had made to me about these hammock berceaunettes is that they are -easily knocked over. Well, all I can say is that I have never known them -to be knocked over, while I have seen a ‘good old-fashioned’ wicker-work -cradle, with the deep hood and flowery chintz, daisy-fringed flounces, -of our own infancy, prostrated by some one knocking against and -displacing one of the chairs, on two of which it was always necessary to -place it, and this catastrophe has occurred to my certain knowledge more -than once. The basket, which is such a necessary addition to baby’s -trousseau, should match the berceaunette; and these too can be -purchased of the hammock kind, and fold flat in a box for travelling. -But before we describe this and speak of the contents we must complete -our sketch of the bed, which would be incomplete without just a word -about the necessary bedding. - -One light hair mattress goes into the hammock part with a nice piece of -blanket, and then, instead of the universal mackintosh sheet, we always -have a thick piece of what country people call ‘blanket sheeting’; it is -not a blanket nor yet a sheet, but something between the two, and -invaluable for nursery use, as it can be washed daily--of course three -or four pieces should be in use--and is quite as useful as mackintosh -without being in the least bit unhealthy. Small pillows, very soft, and -shaped in to the neck, are sold with the berceaunettes, and these should -be provided with very fine cotton pillow-cases, edged with a tiny -cambric frill--linen is too cold--and the cotton, if fine enough, gives -no chill, and yet does not scrub the tender skin; the sheet should be -for appearance only at first, and should be simply a piece of cotton or -longcloth frilled, and tacked on the blanket, and folded over to look -nice, but only, as I said before, for appearance’ sake, for the warmth -of the blankets is most important for the infant, and should be -supplemented by a miniature eider-down quilt in a washing cover of -figured cambric edged with torchon, and, if fancied, embellished in its -turn with some pretty bows. - -Another thing: though I would always have an infant kept as quiet as -possible, utterly and strenuously forbidding long railway journeys, much -changing of nurseries, much seeing of company, I yet do say that to some -noises the baby must be early accustomed. I have been in young married -people’s households where the magic words, ‘Oh, if you please, mum, -nurse says baby is asleep, have brought about a state of things that -reminds one of the Sleeping Beauty’s palace. The canary bird is hustled -under an antimacassar, the piano is closed, and conversation is carried -on in whispers, until a shrill cry sets us free from bondage and the -spell is removed. In such a household Edwin’s song has been brought to -an abrupt conclusion, his cheery whistle announcing his home-coming -received with chill reprimand, and we have gone about the passages on -tiptoe, echoing in our souls Edwin’s hasty but understandable mutter of -‘Confound baby!’ which is a sentiment which should be on no one’s lips -for one moment, of course. - -Now if, when the young person first arrives, he is taught his proper -place in the economy of the household, we shall have none of this. -Precious, perfect, and beautiful as no doubt he is, the world is full of -others just exactly like him, and while we all of us, I hope, recognise -and believe in the serious and solemn side of maternity, while we know -and feel that here is an immortal soul committed to our charge to train -in the best way possible--for time and for eternity too, if we can--I do -maintain that the lives of the parents are to be considered too, and -that Edwin and Angelina have no right to sink themselves and their -identity in that terrible middle-class ‘pa’ and ‘ma’ which seems to -swallow, like some all-devouring serpent, the prettinesses and good -taste of so many of our young married people, and that causes more -unhappiness, I venture to state, than almost anything else. - -The cry of an infant is soon interpreted by his nurse, who easily -discriminates between hunger and temper, and the shrieks of temper must -be stopped at once, or else our lives will be made a burden to us. How -often have the untamed shrieks of children embittered my existence! and -I am sure hundreds of people have suffered as I do. Now, unless -something really has happened, I go so far as to say children can fall -and hurt themselves without announcing the fact to the neighbours. I -always make my own children try and exercise self-control, and the small -troubles that are the fate of all cease to be the terror of the -household when little ones bear them manfully, and have their wounds -dressed without roaring all the time, and the wounds cease to be -terrible to the children themselves, and pain becomes bearable, if the -sufferer sees that there is nothing so serious after all, and that -nothing terrible results from it; but this training must begin at the -very beginning--it cannot begin too early. Children must learn that they -can help their elders, who have so much an their shoulders already, and -babies must be taught to be decent members of society, so will their -coming be a pleasure, and not the torment and upsetting it all too often -is in a household. - -With a first baby the danger of this is always immense, and Angelina -requires almost superhuman courage to prevent it being otherwise. It is -a temptation to her to give herself airs to her friends, and to snub her -own and Edwin’s mothers, who, having brought up children, may be -presumed to know something about the subject, and to make Edwin’s life a -burden to him too; while some Edwins are worse than their wives, and -insist on dragging the poor child out of its bed at all seasons of the -day and night to exhibit it, being, of course, bitterly indignant when -the infant resents such treatment, and becomes crabbed and puny and -miserable in consequence. - -Therefore I consider I can hardly say too much or repeat too often the -axiom that both bed and nursery should be ready for the baby, and that -from the first he should be accustomed to both in that perfect house -which shall be built some day when my ship comes home, and I have time -to learn to draw. The nurseries shall lead past dressing-room and -bath-room from the mother’s bedroom itself--that is to say, that the -bedroom shall have all this leading out of it, and that the night -nursery shall be so close to the mother’s room that she can reach it at -once should she desire to do so, while the children, when old enough, -should run in and out when they like--a bolt being shot, of course, when -dressing goes on--and shall feel that they and their parents are always -within touch of each other. - -Here would, of course, come in once more the need of training, but why -should children rise at early dawn, and make grown-up people’s lives a -burden to them? They will not if properly trained, and this training -becomes possible when the nurseries are on the same floor as their -mother’s room, though a good big room can and _should_ be had in our -perfect house for tournaments, steeplechases, and theatrical -performances when the elders begin to grow up and learn duly how to -amuse themselves, while it is not necessary for Angelina to be always in -and out of her nurseries, worrying her nurse to death, when our prize -arrangement is possible, because she will be near enough to know nothing -goes wrong; which, if she be sharp and acute, she will discover quite -quickly enough for herself from the looks of the children and the -general atmosphere without always ‘poking about,’ as the servants call -it, to see how matters are. But all this must be begun at the beginning, -and with No. 1, if she wishes to be really happy; therefore she should -be quite sure of her monthly nurse, and be ready with her facts at her -fingers’ ends for this worthy, who, like every one else nowadays, has so -improved in her ways and manners as to be a real comfort and pleasure, -and can teach Angelina lessons of patience, neatness, and excellent -management that will be worth a Jew’s eye if she is lucky enough to get -a good nurse; but forewarned is forearmed, and so let the berceaunette -be ready, and let Angelina insist on this being used if she wishes to -have peace in her nursery after the monthly nurse has departed, and the -ordinary routine of life begins once more. - -But, before I touch upon the subject of the monthly nurse, I want to -impress upon my readers that, though the nursery is undoubtedly a -kingdom, where the children can do pretty much as they like providing -they do not get into mischief, and that they remember that, being ladies -and gentlemen in embryo, they must behave as ‘sich,’ they yet must look -upon the nursery as a lesson-ground, where good seed can be sown, and -one of the first lessons to teach any one, child or small maid, is to be -gentle and quiet. I never could understand why children cannot be happy -without yelling at the top of their voices, and servants without -stamping about in heavy boots, slamming doors, and shouting to each -other; and one of the first things I always impress on all my household -is that loud shrieks and strident voices are not allowed from any one. I -have actually had my life rendered a burden to me sometimes by -neighbours’ offspring, whose one end and aim in life seemed to me to -see who could scream loudest (I don’t mean cry, by the way, but simply -yell at the top of their voices, for the pleasure of hearing them, I -suppose); and remembering that we as children never were allowed to -indulge in a pastime that would have seriously impaired our father’s -powers of working--that we were perfectly happy, although we were not -permitted to shriek--I have had none of this elegant amusement in my -nursery, and we have found ourselves extremely comfortable without it; -and this same discipline of gentleness and quiet is also valuable in -keeping a room nice and being able to have pretty things in it. - -Why should children be destructive and untidy? A good nurse soon sees -they are not, and by giving the dear things nice surroundings you do -your best to insure nice tastes, though, of course, some untidy, -tasteless ancestor may crop out suddenly and utterly confound all one’s -theories, by giving us a child who will not learn the proper colours to -harmonise with each other, the while he or she puts boots on the beds, -and leaves a room looking as if hay had just been made therein. - -But with children, as with everything else, one can but do one’s best -and utmost for them, never relaxing one’s care and trouble--and one can -do no more. They are sure to come right in the end somehow, although we -cannot quite see how. And so, regardless of the ravages of boys and -small maids, I go on making my house pretty, and hope by silent example -to do yet more than I have already done towards humanising both of these -riotous elements in one’s household; for boys should not be the tyrants -they undoubtedly are, and should learn easily that things have a right -to respect as well as people. - -I am a great advocate for the silent teaching, too, of really good -pictures on the nursery walls. I do not like the idea of any rubbish -being good enough for there, any crudely coloured, badly designed -Christmas number atrocity being pinned up with pins or small nails, and -called ‘pretty, pretty’ to some baby, who, I am thankful to say, not -unseldom pulls it down and soon reduces it to the end it so richly -deserves. Often a good picture is full of teaching to a thoughtful -child. Excellent photographs can now be bought very cheaply, and some -etchings are not too dear, but all should be carefully selected, either -for the lesson or pleasant story they tell, for no one knows how much -early impressions do for children, save those who vividly remember the -small things that influenced themselves in their extreme youth, and are -thus enabled to use their experience for their own or other people’s -children; a lovely photograph of moonlight on the sea, for example, -having given me personally more pleasure as a child, than any amount of -dolls ever did, although I was heartily attached to them, and loved them -as few children do now in these highly educated days of ours. - -Why, I remember we had quite a serious revolt in our schoolroom once, -over this very picture subject. We as children were exceptionally lucky -in our surroundings, and our schoolroom was hung with really good -engravings of excellent pictures, many of them proofs of Sir Edwin -Landseer’s, while many of our father’s works were there too, at which we -were never tired of looking. I don’t think any one, save an artist’s -children, could ever feel towards these said engravings quite as we did, -for, being in a good many of them at all sorts of stages, we felt really -the proprietorship in them that only the author is supposed to feel, -while we were never tired of remembering the odds and ends of stories -connected with the progress of each picture; and made other histories, -too, for ourselves out of the motionless creatures that we were once, -but out of whose knowledge we had so quickly grown: and then to hear -that all these sources of our inspiration were to be torn from us, and -what for? why, because in an educational frenzy maps were supposed to be -better for us, and more in keeping in the schoolroom; and therefore our -beloved pictures were to be put elsewhere to give place, forsooth, to -glazed monstrosities, the very colours of which, crude greens and pinks -and yellows, were enough to cause an æsthetic fever; although in those -days æstheticism was a thing unknown, undescribed too, in any -dictionary! - -But an appeal to a higher power brought the pictures back, and the maps -were rolled up above them, and only allowed to fall over them at such -times as they were required to show their ugly faces to us in a -geography lesson; a subject I have detested, I am sorry to say, simply -because, I verily believe, of the rage we were in when we heard our dear -pictures were to be taken from us! - -I cannot help digressing, dear readers, when I think how happy children -may be, and how miserable they are too often made by their over-kind, -very foolish parents. We were let alone a great deal as children, -mercifully, and taught that if we wanted amusement we must find it in -ourselves; and I can never be too thankful for an education that has -enabled me, with only a small cessation, to be happy always in my own -company, without the everlasting craving for information as to ‘What -shall I do?’ If we used to make this most aggravating inquiry, we did -not do it twice, and soon discovered that we could make occupations for -ourselves without driving our elders nearly mad in the process. Children -cannot too early learn to amuse themselves, and therefore great care -should be taken by parents that they have the means for this, the while -the children do not know much care is taken, and are shown--what -children are so seldom shown nowadays--that they are not the head and -front of the household, and that something is due to the bread-winners -and managers of the establishment, as well as to themselves. - -I am sure good pictures are, therefore, or ought to be, indispensable in -all nurseries, while the moment a child is old enough to inhabit a -separate room, he or she should be encouraged to the utmost to begin to -care for the surroundings, and to carefully collect pretty things around -them, for in after life each thing so collected will be as a link to a -precious past, and serve to remind them of happy times, that may -influence their whole life if properly remembered and looked back upon. -This is another hint for parents, especially for young parents. A -child’s mind is a curious thing (or at least mine was, and I am -speaking, as I always speak, from actual experience), and receives -certain memories in the shape of pictures. My memory always seems to me -like a room hung round with paintings, and I recollect each incident of -my life as one remembers a picture one has once seen and never -forgotten. I have but to think for a moment, and I see--don’t faint, -please, I was only three; I am not quite a Methuselah, though it will -sound like it--I see the Duke of Wellington riding along with bowed -shoulders, and putting his hand, or rather his fingers, up to his hat -every few seconds in answer to every one’s respectful bows. I see flash -by from our play-place on ‘the leads’--the best play-place in the world; -now, alas! no more--the royal carriage with four grey horses and the -scarlet-jacketed riders, and I see the Queen in a hideous plaid-flounced -frock and large bonnet, and the Prince Consort, and two big boys, drive -by to look at some one’s pictures in our neighbourhood; and I remember -seeing two ‘Bloomers,’ followed by jeering boys, turn round the corner -by our house, and remember quite well how sorry I felt for the stupid -women, although I had profound contempt for their louder assertions of -women’s rights. Now I remember a great deal more than this, of course, -but I mention these three things to illustrate what I mean about the -pictures memory can paint; and to show that it is a parent’s duty to -provide the children with such mental pictures as shall always be a -pleasure and, if possible, a profit to contemplate. Let the children see -in reason all they possibly can. You can influence a child’s present, -but, once it is grown up, you cannot touch its future. You can see your -children have a pleasant series of pictures connected with their -childhood at any rate, and by making your child observe, and by showing -it pleasant things, you will give it a richer store of wealth than -anything else could do. Whenever we went out with our mother she always -did this. ‘Remember,’ she said to me, ‘that you have seen the Duke of -Wellington,’ and, though I was three only, I have never forgotten him. -Look at that beautiful colour; see yonder field of wheat; look at the -sea. No preaching here--but somehow the words stay by one, and -insensibly one learns to notice, and from this pass to the possession of -mental treasures nothing takes from us. - -But we must have a certain amount of enterprise, and never, never -neglect an opportunity, and we must see all we can, either as children -or grown-up people. Why, I have known people go to the seaside for six -weeks, and sit on the beach, morning after morning, because every one -else did, regardless of the fact that all round the place itself lay -lovely scenery and marvellously interesting country, into which they -actually had not the energy to penetrate. Think of the opportunities -wasted by them--the opportunities we all waste if we allow a day to pass -by while we shut our eyes and will not see for ourselves the new things -that come every morning for the observant ones among us! And do not let -your children exist ignorant of the thousand and one throbbing -historical events by which they are surrounded. Better spend your money -on showing them good pictures, beautiful scenery, celebrated men and -places, than on aimless gaiety, idiotic balls, and smart clothes and -expensive food; and above all let them have a bright, happy childhood -among charming surroundings. Believe me, you will give them a better -inheritance than if you had fed them and dressed them luxuriously, and -had laid up a large fortune for them. - -Let beauty and simplicity, honesty and frankness, be your guide in your -nurseries, and then you will not have very much trouble with your -children. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -IN RETIREMENT. - - -There comes a time in most households when the mistress has perforce to -contemplate an enforced retirement from public life; and I wish to -impress upon all those who may be in a similar plight that the time will -pass much more quickly and agreeably if the room selected for the -temporary prison is made as pretty, convenient, and as unlike the -orthodox sick-room as can be managed. - -Naturally these times are looked forward to with dread by all young -wives. They are fully convinced that they must die, and in fact make -themselves perfectly wretched and miserable because of their ignorance, -and of their not unnatural dislike to speak of their dreads and fears; -and though, of course, I can only lightly touch on these matters in a -book which I trust may be widely used and read, I want to whisper a few -words to reassure all those who may be contemplating the arrival of No. -1. If girls are brought up in a proper, healthy manner, if they do not -rush about from ball to party or from one excitement to the other, if -they realise their condition, and dress and rest themselves properly -beforehand, in nine cases out of ten the illness, being a natural one, -has no attendant dangers, and should therefore be looked upon in an -entirely different manner than it is at present. There is a most -excellent little book published by Messrs. Churchill, and written by Dr. -Chevasse, which all young wives should procure. It is called ‘Advice to -a Wife,’ and is a really necessary possession. This can be supplemented -later by ‘Advice to a Mother’ (same author and publisher); and, -possessed of these books, any young matron can manage herself most -successfully without the constant harassment of continually seeing the -doctor. But, besides the purely medical aspect of the case, there are -matters that can and must be arranged early, and by the expectant mother -herself alone; and one of these, and the most important of all, is -undoubtedly the choice of the nurse, who should be engaged as early as -possible, for most good nurses are secured as soon as it is probable -their services will be required later on. And as, to my mind, a good -nurse is ‘all the battle,’ this once secured the worst is over, and -Angelina may contemplate the future, if not with absolute calmness, at -all events with a brave and trustful heart. I do not think too much -stress can be laid upon this looking after a nurse. And though girls may -indeed congratulate themselves on their position to-day as regards the -orthodox monthly nurse, as contrasted with their mothers’ and -grandmothers’ accounts of all they suffered at the hands of the old-time -Mrs. Gamp, with whose vagaries we are all so familiar, still great care -must be exercised in the choice, as nothing is so important, especially -for No. 1, as to have a really good, kind woman in the nurse, and one -who will neither unduly coddle the patient nor allow her to do rash -things, of which she will most certainly repent unto her dying day; and -I should like to implore any one who is contemplating the arrival of -King Baby not to trust entirely to the doctor’s recommendation, but to -rely for once, at least, on her mother’s advice, and to employ some one -who is personally known to some member of the family. - -I have known, and still know, a nurse who is simply perfect. She is of -no use to the general public, as ‘her ladies’ keep her well employed -among themselves and their friends, but I shall write a little about her -here, as a guide to those who may be likely to require some one in a -similar capacity. - -But before I do this let me say a few words about the extreme folly, -from my point of view, of engaging what is called a lady-nurse. ‘She is -so companionable, so delightful, so much nicer than any mere working -woman can possibly be,’ say those who have friends they wish to find -places for; but I must declare I have never, in all my large experience, -found them in the very least bit satisfactory or of the very least use -practically. - -As a theory they are all they ought to be; but in practice they are a -most dismal failure! They will keep the room pretty with flowers, and -will forget to remove them at night; and they will do what I may term -the decorative parts of nursing, leaving all the more practical ones to -any of the already overworked servants who can be pressed into the -service, and who of course resent this immensely, and generally give -warning at a most inconvenient time; but I have really found them do -very little besides this! - -Thinking of my good nurse causes me to remember other things in -connection with these events, on which I will touch for one moment; the -while I maintain strenuously that, as a rule, not half enough loving -thought is bestowed upon the mother, who, I insist, should be the first -object of every one’s care until she has been for at least a fortnight -over her trouble; and I trace a good deal of my own nervous irritability -and ill-health to the fact that after my last baby arrived I had an -enormous quantity of small worries that the presence in the house of a -careful guard would have obviated, and to the fact that wearisome -details of an illness of a relative were carried to me as usual, and I -had to see to matters that should never have been even whispered about -before me, but the arrangement of all of which was left entirely to me; -and the only rest I obtained during all that weary time was literally -snatched for me, from the jaws of all those who are accustomed to depend -on me, by nurse, who was my one bright gleam of hope, and to whose -never-failing energy and thoughtfulness I always look back most -gratefully and thankfully. - -Speaking as I do from experience only, perhaps I may be forgiven if I -repeat myself, and beg for far more consideration for the mother than -she ever gets. I hope I shall not be considered a monster if I whisper -quite low that I do not believe a new baby is anything but a profound -nuisance to its relations at the very first. It howls when peace is -required, it demands unceasing attention, and it is thrust into -Angelina’s arms, and she has to admire it and adore it at the risk of -being thought most unnatural, when she really is rather resenting the -intrusion, and requires at least a week to reconcile herself to her new -fate. My nurse never allows _her_ baby to be a torment. Somehow she has -such a pleasant way with her that babies cannot be a trouble where she -is. She turns them out always as if they had just come out of a -band-box, and one never realises a baby can be unpleasant so long as she -has the dressing of them, and the seeing to them generally; but then she -is so very methodical, so clean, so bright, so cheerful, that somehow I -find, when I come to write down her method, I cannot remember so much -what she did as how she did it, and that I cannot recall her routine of -work half as easily as I can each detail of her neat form and _jolly_ -face, and the perfect joy it was to me to have about me a woman who -never fussed, never kept me waiting, always did to-day what she did -yesterday at the same time, and, above all, presented me with a nice -bright-looking baby to look at just when that infant was wanted, and not -at inopportune moments, or just at the special moment when she would -have been a worry. - -And oh, what a contrast she was to the good old-fashioned nurse who came -to me with No. 1! who had a routine and who kept to it, and who regarded -all new ideas and thoughts as dangerous and ‘flying in the face of -Providence,’ yet who was goodness and trustworthiness itself; but she -was too old to learn that people differ, and what is one man’s meat is -another man’s poison, and so made my life a burden to me because she -could not understand that I was really and truly different in my tastes -and likings to most of her other ladies, who loved to be fed constantly -and be as constantly ‘waited on’ and looked after, while all I required -was to be let alone in peace and quiet and fed rather less than most -people. Still she was a dragon of watchfulness, and kept away all those -small bothers which men can never refrain from bringing to their wives, -regardless that at such times the smallest worry becomes gigantic, and -assumes proportions that would be ludicrous, were they not really and -truly very real; and have real effects too on the nerves and temper of -the unfortunate invalid. And here let me say sternly, and as forcibly as -I can, that the life of the ordinary house-mother has never been -properly appreciated by the male sex; and, if at no other time can we -obtain consideration and thought, it is imperative that for at least -three weeks after the arrival of a baby the wife should have mental as -well as bodily rest, and that she should be absolutely shielded from all -domestic cares and worries. And every husband should be taught by the -doctor and nurse combined that there is real and great need for the wife -to be carefully kept from _little_ worries and bothers, until she has -regained her usual balance of health, and is able to hear with more -equanimity of the death of some dear friend, maybe, than she was a few -weeks before; to simply be told that cook had had a soldier to tea; and -that there had been so much butter used in the kitchen that the -Bankruptcy Court is in the near future. - -Husbands are far too apt to say and think that the life of a woman is a -mere giddy whirl of frocks and gaiety, that all the time he is ‘toiling -in the City,’ or doing the equivalent of that in some other walk in -life, she is airily fluttering from flower to flower, extracting all the -sweetness she can out of it, and bitterly resents it should she be tired -in the evening, or require a little lively talk, instead of hours of -contemplation of a sleeping countenance, at which perchance she looks -sadly, and wonders if she ever really did think it so good-looking, as -she seems to remember she once did, in some far-off existence long since -dead. But have men the smallest idea of what a never-ceasing, -uninteresting work a woman’s far too often is? Men never can be -acquainted with or realise--bless them!--the thousand worries a woman -knows all too well; the abject fears for her children that always haunt -her, the dread that Tommy’s whine may mean scarlet fever, or that -Trixy’s temper indicates measles; the impatience with which she would -fain greet the daily details of food and drink, and which she has to -smother; the sordid arrangements with butcher and baker, and the endless -trouble she has to keep the house nice, the children well, and the -expenses down to the lowest sum she can possibly manage with, and all -this is done within the walls of one house. A man’s work takes him far -afield; he rubs his intellect against those of hundreds of other people -daily. He goes to his ‘toil’ through amusing streets which always vary, -and he has the grand excitement of being paid for his ‘toil,’ while the -ordinary woman works on and on ceaselessly without pay, sometimes -without thanks; and handicapped by indifferent health and nervous dread -for her babies that no man--no _man_, I repeat, with a fine accent of -scorn on the noun--can ever comprehend, much less appreciate in the -least; gets through an amount of real positive labour, an account of -which might astonish the husband, but which he would most certainly not -believe in were it written out in plain words for his perusal, and -placed before him. Of course, I am not writing about the ‘upper ten,’ -about whose domestic arrangements I know nothing, and which, judging -from the papers, are not always as successful as they might be. Here, no -doubt, ladies spend their days in the ‘fluttering’ spoken of above, and -may not earn their keep--to put the matter a little coarsely--but we -ordinary folk cannot do much fluttering, even if we would; and I can but -hope that men will realise what a woman’s work means for the future, and -will take care she is really nursed and guarded, in a manner the husband -alone can see is done, at a time when the brain should be allowed to -rest, as well as the rest of the body. - -A man cannot realise that a woman ever can have ambition--that she can -sicken at the dusters and pudding-cloths that are supposed to be her -proper occupation, that she does sometimes feel even a little bit better -educated or cleverer than the clever creature who makes the money; and -if only I can get one of the male sex to believe that we do sometimes -want a little of his freedom, a little of his powers of money-making, a -little of his ability to take a holiday unhaunted by never-ceasing -dreads and fears of what awful ends the children are coming to at home -in our absence, I shall not have lived in vain, particularly if at the -same time he takes the double burden on his own shoulders, when his wife -has presented him with a small son or daughter, and takes care that not -even a whisper of the cook’s wickedness passes the bedroom door, until -Materfamilias is able to bring her mind to bear upon a matter that can, -no doubt, be explained as soon as the feminine intellect grapples with -it. - -And one more very serious word for the last on this subject: let Edwin -bear in mind that much more care is needed with No. 5 or No. 6 than was -ever bestowed at the time when No. 1 put the house in a stir, and -altered all the domestic arrangements. Angelina is not so young as she -was, dear soul; she is very tired. She is quite sure such a numerous -family must bring her to the workhouse, and unless Edwin is goodness -itself he may so depress and harass his wife by his depression that she -may slip out of his fingers altogether, and leave him to himself, that -most utterly to be pitied person on earth, a widower with young -children, to find out what he has lost, and to realise all too late what -he might have saved, had he remembered how desperately hard women do -work, and how unending and never-ceasing is their toil; which has -dulness as a background and utter sameness as a rule, as a drawback to -its being satisfactorily performed. - -Once let the nurse be secured for as early a date as one can -conveniently do with her, there are the small garments to be seen to. -These consist of very fine lawn shirts (12), long flannels (6 for day, -of fine Welsh flannel; 4 for night, of rather a thicker quality), fine -long-cloth petticoats (6), monthly gowns of cambric and trimmed with -muslin embroideries on the bodices only (8), and nightgowns (8); besides -this 4 head-flannels will be required, and a large flannel shawl to wrap -the child in as it is taken from room to room; about six dozen large -Russian diapers and six good flannel pilches. Three or four pairs of -tiny woollen shoes complete the outfit, which may furthermore have added -to it four good robes; but these I strongly advise no one to buy until -it is time to talk about the christening, for relatives often present -the baby with smart frocks; and as they are really worn very little, and -cost a great deal of money, are not necessary, especially in the -country, where really nice monthly gowns are good enough for any baby; -and the smart robes tempt young mothers to adopt the pernicious custom -of low necks and short sleeves, making these even shorter by tying them -up on the small shoulders with gay ribbons, that soon find their way -into the little mouths. Even in smart low-necked frocks I always had a -species of long-sleeved, extra high bodice tacked; for, apart from the -appearance of the small skinny arms and necks of most young babies, I -consider it suicidal of any mother to condemn her children to a style of -dress that is about as unsuitable to our climate as anything well can -be. I should put even a tiny baby into a high fine flannel vest. I -always make the long flannel barra-coats with three pleats in the -bodices back and front, and line the stay bodices with flannel, thus -reducing the chance of colds greatly; and I live in hopes of seeing in a -very short time the total disappearance of low dresses everywhere; for -to my mind this is a custom as foolish and indecent as any we still -retain from our savage ancestors. Besides the clothes enumerated above, -four or five strips of flannel about six inches wide, herring-boned each -side, and about eighteen inches long, will be required, and six swathes -to roll round the infant and give support to the back; this, -new-fashioned doctors try to dispense with, but from long experience I -am convinced these binders are a most important portion of a young -baby’s attire. - -The basket should contain a complete set of baby’s things ready aired, -and furthermore a skein of whitey-brown thread, a _new_ pair of -scissors, a pot of cold cream, pins, safety pins, and some old pieces of -linen; and the young mother will do wisely if she has the long pieces of -Russian diaper used as hand-towels for some three or four months before -taking them for the baby, as this softens them and makes them much -better for the nurse’s use. All these things should be in readiness -quite two months before they are required, and should be placed, with a -large mackintosh sheet, two old blankets, and three coarse -‘blanket-sheets,’ where, should they be required in a hurry, they can be -found at once. Attention to these particulars and directions saves fuss -and worry and often prevents danger. - -These matters seen to, the young wife may now turn her mind to the -arrangement of her own chamber, which she should do her very best to -make as pretty as she can; or she should carefully look at the rooms at -her disposal and see which will be the nicest and most cheerful for her -to occupy; for there is really no need, unless we like, for the event to -take place in the room usually occupied, and, if preferred, a pretty -room might be got ready beforehand; but, if this be impossible, at least -all the washing and toilet apparatus might depart, and some tables and -low pretty chairs and a sofa, books and plants, replace the -washing-stand and toilet-table, that can be relegated to another room -until Angelina is herself again. Taking into consideration that, as an -enterprising advertiser remarks, one half one’s time is spent in one’s -bedroom, we cannot possibly take too much care about them to have them -nice and pretty; for I am convinced one comes down to one‘s day’s work -far better tempered from a pretty and convenient room, than one does -from an ugly, inconvenient place, where we have worn ourselves out in -hunting for our properties, or been worried by contemplating hideous -papers and draperies, and ugly conventional walls without pictures or -decoration of any kind; while if one has to be ill, and, what is more, -has to contemplate a long period of convalescence in one spot, one -cannot too carefully select one’s surroundings, for there is no doubt -that one’s mind acts insensibly on one’s body, and that one’s -convalescence is a great deal more advanced or retarded, as the case may -be, than we think for by our surroundings; therefore, I am sure we shall -not be wasting our time if we think a good deal about the arrangement -of a room where the young mother will have to spend at least three -weeks, and where she will remain a much more willing prisoner, if she is -not harassed and worried by a bedroom where she cannot have any of her -usual surroundings, and where the bedroom aspect of the chamber -predominates over everything else, so preventing any visitors to her, -save of the most intimate and personal kind possible. I do hope that the -queer notion that nurse ought to sleep in the room with her patient has -almost, if not quite, died out. I never could make out why this was -considered necessary, unless in very severe cases, where sitting up is -thought of consequence; and even then (though it sounds Irish I can’t -help saying it) the nurse could take her rest in another room, leaving -some one else to sit up in turn; for I know nothing more truly -irritating than to see a second bed in the room, and to feel the eternal -presence of a stranger, who might just as well be snugly resting in the -adjacent dressing-room, where she could be reached quite as well by -ringing a small bell, that could stand on the table by the side of the -bed, as she is by a call from the patient, whose voice is sure to be -none of the strongest. - -I have often marvelled at the way people bear these small worries, and -never turn their minds towards relieving themselves of them. I suppose -we are most of us too conventional, and cannot get out of our grooves -easily, but I am quite sure from experience that no one requires a nurse -during the night in an ordinary case, and that one’s comfort is mightily -increased by seeing her depart into the dressing-room, with or without -the baby, as fires or other matters are arranged, and to know she will -not return until the next morning unless she has been rung for; and then -her departure leaves room for far more decoration than would otherwise -be possible, for, if the house is conveniently built, and the -dressing-rooms or nurseries are near enough to be available, I should -turn out all the bedroomy furniture into other rooms, and replace this -with some of the sitting-room furniture, only retaining the bed, which -in its turn can retire behind a screen when the sofa, is taken to, and -convalescence has really and truly begun. - -To do this satisfactorily, the bed must be specially thought about, and -should be provided with an extra lot of frilled and monogramed -pillow-cases; these are removed at night, and their presence, and that -of a nice piece of linen, frilled and worked too, and fashioned in such -a way that it appears like a frilled sheet, in the morning, is almost as -good as a complete change of linen, without any bustle. The eider-down -should be removed, and placed in another room to be aired, and the bed -should be covered with one of the beautiful embroidered quilts which -should be in every one’s possession. - -These quilts are copies of old work done by our grandmothers; or else -are embroidered in the red and blue ‘Russian-work,’ and are lined with a -coloured sateen or Bolton sheeting; they can be edged with lace, worked -with coloured threads to match, or by a band of the sateen over which a -coarse lace is turned; these quilts make any couch ornamental at once. -Of course the toilet-covers must correspond, and the towels should be -marked in similar colours, and should in some measure repeat the -prevailing tints of the bedroom itself, which is not complete without -both books and growing plants in pots, nor without some convenient -light. A good lamp can be placed on a bracket, if gas is disliked; or a -good bracket lamp in beaten iron can be fixed in the wall just above the -bed, or to one side thereof; and great comfort is found from either a -wall-pocket made from a Japanese fan and plush, or a big bag of plush -strung from the brass end of the bed, to contain one’s handkerchief, -keys, pencil, letters from the post, and the odds and ends that will -accumulate, and, furthermore, will lose themselves in a most peculiar -and aggravating manner, unless one has a distinct place to put them in -from whence they cannot possibly stray; while I again repeat that no -‘bedroomy’ atmosphere must be allowed, and that every medicine bottle, -towel, basin, sponge, &c., must be taken away out of the room the moment -they are done with, and that the sick-room must be looked upon for the -time being as much as possible in the light of a sitting-room, where -friends can come, and where life can go on smoothly and pleasantly, -without being reminded every five minutes that one is laid aside, and -unable to feel or look pleasant and like oneself. I wonder, too, if -other people know how useful a good heliotrope shade is for one’s -dressing-gown, and the short flannel jacket that should be one’s day -attire until the dressing-gown can be put on and one can lie on the -sofa? These dressing-jackets, or more properly ‘bed-gowns,’ are simply -invaluable--in winter especially, when one’s arms do get so cold in the -ordinary nightdress, and when the dressing-gown proper is a distinct -nuisance; and they should be wadded, and of fine heliotrope cashmere -with a soft fall, and frill of either torchon or yak lace, and are most -becoming to any one. The arms should be lined with wadding too; and, in -fact, they are just what one requires before one gets up, as they save -the dressing-gown from the inevitable crushing that is its portion if we -wear it in bed, while we have the required warmth over the chest, which -would not otherwise be ours, for reading or writing or using one’s arms -at all always disturbs the bedclothes in a most tiresome manner, which -does not trouble us when we are possessed of the proper short jacket. - -The bother I have had, too, to find a really comfortable way of reading -in bed. How one’s book does flop over just when one doesn’t wish it to, -and how tired one does get of holding it! And I have now discovered -that the only way is to have a couple of cushions or pillows, and to -shake them into a good position oneself, finally resting the volume -luxuriously upon them. - -Then, too, remember always to have some _fresh_ sweet flowers in your -room all day, and if your dinner leaves an odour of food behind it, burn -two of the joss-sticks sold at the Baker Street Bazaar at 6_d._ a -packet--those make your room at once like an Eastern palace, and are -simply delightful; and insist mildly but forcibly on your windows being -opened whenever the sun shines, and in the dressing-room when it -doesn’t; for there is, I am convinced after long experience, nothing -like fresh air for any and every one; and though I have been perpetually -told I should catch my death of cold at such times, I have never had a -suspicion of one, and am remarkably free from this tiresome ailment. - -Summer babies must be legislated for rather differently to winter ones; -they must be washed and dressed out of their mother’s room for one -thing, as they always require the fire, that would be cruelty itself in -the bedroom. They can often be taken out earlier, and are much easier to -manage. Still, I think all these details can be safely left to the -nurse, who should always be engaged for two months certain, and for -three if you know your woman and can afford it; for until a baby is -three months old it flourishes far better in the care of the monthly -nurse than in that of even one’s own nurse, who has grown a little -‘rusty’ in her knowledge of infants most likely, and who can never be as -_au fait_ with them as is any one who has a constant succession of these -tiny creatures always under her care. - -It is imperative in the case of a first baby that the monthly nurse -remains until the stationary nurse arrives, so that she can find out if -she has really been trained in nice ways, and can really handle a baby. -She can tell at once if she knows what she is about, and, if she does -not, can at once put her right, and tell her the ‘ways’ the child has -been used to. - -A general rule should be the daily bath in tepid water, using a high -standing bath in a wooden case; the child is washed all over quickly on -the nurse’s lap; protected by a large flannel apron, with a soft sponge, -and the best soap to be found; it is then floated gently into the bath, -and the water merrily and quickly dashed over the limbs, while the nurse -talks brightly and cheerfully to it; after about three or four minutes -of this it is taken out, and dried rapidly with an extremely soft towel, -powdered all over in every tiny crease and fold of fat, its flannel -binder is sewn on again, and its garments arranged with the flannel -petticoat and shirt tacked together, put on very swiftly; it should then -be fed and put into its bed warm, and there it should stop until time -for feeding again, when it can be taken out for an airing in the -garden, or in some sheltered spot according to the time of year and the -means at command. - -Regularity, quiet, and its own nurseries and nurse are the things to -keep a baby well and make it grow up strong; and for this one must -depend partly on one’s nurse, who should be a superior woman, possessed -of the real religion which caused the little maid who was converted to -sweep _under_ the door-mats, a duty she had not fulfilled before she saw -the error of her ways, and not a humbug, who would insist on leaving an -ailing or sick infant because it was her night for church or chapel; but -she must be a real friend too, and be treated as such, if we wish to -have peace and a well-ordered household, for in these hurrying days of -ours we must depend a good deal on our nurses if we are to keep bright -and strong, and be companions to our husbands, and later on to the boys -and girls, who will require so much more from us than the mere infant, -whose well-being we must, of course, superintend and legislate for -ceaselessly, but for whom we need not turn ourselves into domestic -animals merely, incapable of aught, because of our slavedom to the baby, -who in nine cases out of ten does far better with a really good nurse -than it can with us. - -I may, of course, have been exceptionally lucky with my nurse, and, -judging from what I hear of other people’s experiences, I suppose I must -have been; but during all my many years of being dependent on them I -have never had one selfish woman in my house, nor one who would not at -any moment sacrifice her own interests and comforts to mine. I cannot -account for this any more than I can account for other people’s -miseries; but I honestly say here that I never cease to wonder at the -cries that rend the air about the wickedness of domestics, for I have -never found one who has not honestly and _according to her lights_ done -her best to help me on my way; and I owe more than I can say now to my -friends in the kitchen, who will do anything to save me trouble, and -will when I am busy, as I generally am, do all in their power to assist -me; while no words of mine could express the unselfish care given by my -nurses both to me and the children during years that are past now, I -hope for ever, but that, while they lasted, would have driven a bad or -selfish woman away from us. Real, true, good friends are, I am sure, far -more often found among what we call the ‘lower classes’ than in those -ranks from whence we generally take our acquaintances! Of course, this -is all digression, but yet it really does relate to the nursery after -all, for there, if anywhere in her household, must our bride look for -her helpmate; and this should be all arranged and thought out with the -help of the monthly nurse in the time of retirement, for this first -arrival changes all the household arrangements entirely, and in such a -manner that the greatest tact and care is necessary to readjust the -establishment, or else misery and discomfort will be rampant, in the -once happy and well-managed home. - -Above all, let the young wife remember that her baby and her experience -are not either wonderful or unique; that she only possesses what -millions of women possess and know of; and let her rely just a little on -her own mother, who may have old-fashioned notions, but who has brought -her up successfully, and so doubtless has that best of all gifts, -experience, to hand on to her daughter, who cannot do better than listen -to her; the while she recovers her strength, keeps calm, and does her -best to get well, and looks out for all the assistance she can obtain -from her nurse, and further on from her own experience of what her -children are. - -Just one other thing: it is absolutely necessary in legislating for our -children to remember what they are likely to inherit in the way of -_tendencies_. - -We have long ceased to regard either the souls or the brains of our -children as strictly new and original compositions, as clean white paper -over which we and time can write exactly what we wish; for science has -taught us all about ‘heredity,’ and convinced us that we are all of us -bundles of odds and ends, or scraps of this grandparent, with curious -‘sports’ of that uncle or aunt suddenly cropping up; and so, if we -remember tendencies to consumption, or fevers, or gout, or, in fact, -anything that we or our forefathers have shown a tendency for, we shall -be able to manage our children much better than we otherwise should; for -those children who are constantly ‘catching’ things, or meeting with -accidents because of the brittleness of bone, or careless heedlessness -inherited from some ancestor, must be more carefully watched and looked -after than those who, coming of a healthy, splendidly constituted stock, -are rarely ill, and only require water, air, and a pure, good diet to -grow up splendid specimens of humanity, enjoying their lives thoroughly, -and fully appreciating every day they live. - -Heredity is a great, a most important fact; and if only this could be -taught in schools, if young men and women would recognise the wickedness -of cousins marrying, and of passing on sickly or vicious tendencies to -their children, we should look forward more and more hopefully to a -future, when health should be demonstrated as the best possession a man -can have--the best inheritance he can demand of his parents; for health -means happiness and beauty and pleasure, and without health we cannot be -either happy, good-tempered, or prosperous, or succeed in a world where -life is one constant procession of beauty and surpassing interest, to -those whose hearts are in the right place, and whose pure, wholesome -blood courses vigorously through the veins and arteries of the whole -body. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -THE SCHOOLROOM. - - -In the selection of the schoolroom there are several things to be -thought of; but if the nursery be done away with, and there should be no -upstairs sitting-room, I strongly advise the schoolroom being on the -bedroom floor. This is often a most useful institution, for sometimes it -serves as a refuge to invalids who are well enough to leave their -bedrooms, but not well enough to run the risks of draught on the stairs, -while the children are out of the way of visitors, and are not always -running up and down the passages in a distracting and untidy manner. - -Let me urge on all mothers of families to cling to either a day nursery -or a schoolroom until the children are really too old to be glad of some -place where they can do actually and positively as they like; that is to -say, of course, unless they like to behave like savages, but this rarely -happens in a household where the little ones have been accustomed to -nice surroundings, and to be treated like human beings from their -cradles. - -It is most important that children should be let a great deal alone, and -to insure this it is perfectly necessary that some room should be set -apart for their use entirely, furnished in such a way that one is not -constantly obliged to be saying ‘Don’t do this’ and ‘Don’t do that,’ and -yet in a manner that shall foster every nice taste and encourage every -good habit possible; and great care should be also taken to insure -sufficient sunshine, for sunshine is life and health, and a dark and -sunless room often fosters a dark and sunless nature. - -I should strongly advise the floor of the schoolroom to be covered with -Indian matting, if expense be no object, with rugs about at intervals: -this is always clean and fresh, and can be changed often. Next to Indian -matting comes the stained edge to the floor so often recommended, with -the nice square of Kidderminster carpet laid down over carpet felt, and -edged with a woollen fringe; the best carpets of this particular make -are called ‘three-ply,’ and are sold by the yard, and are infinitely -superior in every way to the ‘squares’ sold ready made in different -sizes, and edged by a border, which is generally far too large a pattern -to look nice. The carpets sold by the yard are much better designs and -colours, and wear three times as long as the cheaper makes; but under -_no_ circumstances should the schoolroom be the refuge for half-worn -costly carpets, which want wearing out, and yet are too shabby for the -downstairs apartments. These had far better be got rid of in some sale; -for an old carpet is nothing but a dust-bin on a small scale, and can -never be fresh enough to pat in a room where there are children. - -The walls could be covered with one of the washable sanitary papers, if -one can be procured in a sufficiently pretty pattern; but it is -emphatically necessary that the walls should have a real dado, either of -oilcloth painted some good artistic shade--four coats are necessary to -eliminate the pattern--of cretonne, or matting, which would be best of -all. This keeps the lower part of the wall tidy always; and if the -sanitary paper can be obtained in a self-colour, the plainness of this -can be done away with by a good selection of pictures, than which -nothing is more necessary in a schoolroom; and the children had far -better be plainly dressed and fed than have bad pictures provided for -them, or ugly drawings only relating to their work. - -In these days of cheap art there is no reason why we should be without -pictures of some kind everywhere, and they should be chosen carefully, -either for their beauty or for the lesson they teach. Having a positive -horror of gambling, horse-racing, or betting in any shape or form -myself, I cannot regard any house satisfactorily furnished without -autotypes of my father’s pictures of ‘The Road to Ruin.’ These admirable -pictures have pointed a moral over and over again in my house, and will, -I hope, point many another; for the children are always ready to look at -them and make out for themselves the dismal o’er-true tale. If, however, -these pictures should be objected to, I should advise autotypes of some -of Sir Joshua’s lovely child-pictures, Leader’s ‘At evening time it -shall be light,’ ‘Chill October,’ any of the etchings after Burton -Barber’s amusing dog-pictures, and those equally entertaining -fox-terrier sketches of Mr. Yates Carrington, Waller’s ‘The Day of -Reckoning,’ and, in fact, any of the beautiful etchings done of late -years, and that average 5_l._ each; these purchases being infinitely -more necessary in a house where there are children than diamonds or -plate or smart furniture and expensive decorations, and should be -bought, as soon as ever they can be afforded, by any householder who -really has the welfare of his family at heart. - -The ceiling should be papered in some bright blue and white paper, and -should have a good ventilator somewhere in the centre. No gas should be -allowed, and light should be furnished by two good hanging lamps -conveniently placed; while each child who is old enough to do its work -after tea in the winter should have its own shaded Queen’s reading lamp, -and should be taught to keep it clean and bright for itself; thus the -servants would not be troubled on this subject unduly, though, should -there be a schoolroom maid, she could take the lamps under her charge -with the rest of the schoolroom belongings. - -There should be two good cupboards in the room, which could be placed in -the recesses on each side of the fireplace, should there be any; these -could be simply made with shelves in the recesses and with wooden doors -to fasten over them; these could be painted some self-colour to match -the prevailing colour of the room, and the panels could be filled in -either with the ever-useful Japanese leather paper, or be embellished by -Mrs. McClelland’s clever brush with studies of some lovely flowers; -brass handles should be added, and while one cupboard should be set -apart for the governess and the schoolroom books, the other should be so -arranged that, if possible, each child should have its own shelf. The -top of these cupboards could form an excellent receptacle for toys and -games, while some of the hanging bookshelves spoken of before could -supplement the shelves should there not be room for the extra books. The -windows must open top and bottom, and should have short muslin and -cretonne curtains; no blinds, of course, but, should the situation be as -sunny as it ought to be, outside blinds should be provided, and, -furthermore, window-boxes for flowers should never be wanting; the -children learn a great deal looking after them, and lessons are far less -trying on a hot day if the room is kept cool by sun-blinds, while what -air there is blows in over a sweet scent caused perhaps by that best of -all mixtures, mignonette and ten-week stocks. - -Great care must be taken in selecting the proper tables and chairs; -these latter must be wide and comfortable, and the table _must_ be solid -and stand on good strong legs while lessons go on. I strongly advise the -tablecloth to be removed for fear of accidents with ink, and if oilcloth -is sewn over the top this is not as tiresome to write on as is a deal -surface, and though it may not look petty it is decidedly clean and -remarkably useful, and can be covered with the cloth when lessons are -over. Footstools should never be wanting, and a good broad window-seat, -that could be made to open and hold books &c., is very useful also, as -it will contain a great many odds and ends; while no schoolroom could be -complete in my eyes without kittens and puppies, the training and care -of which are often of the greatest service to the young masters and -mistresses, who, teaching their pets obedience and good behaviour, -insensibly learn quite as much as they are themselves teaching. - -Though I maintain that education of a certain kind is begun the moment a -baby learns to cry for what it wants, and that, no matter how small a -child is, it is never too small to be taught obedience, of course its -real education begins when it learns its letters. I could read at two, -and have read ever since, never being able to be happy without a book or -paper; and I am of opinion that the sooner a child can pick up its -letters the better, for the moment it can read it is independent, and -can amuse itself without always hankering after companionship and -entertainment. The best way to teach a child to read is to give it a -small wooden frame, made in compartments, and a box of red and black -letters; these it picks up one by one, and soon learns to slip them into -the frame, making small words. From this it passes easily to a book, and -becomes master of a store of amusement that will last all its life; -while the governess should be asked to read aloud as much as she can to -the children, taking care, of course, to select good and amusing -stories, the while she does not bore them with a too forcibly impressed -moral tag at the end. - -One cannot, of course, lay down any hard-and-fast rules for other -people’s children, and can only, after all, give very general hints as -to schoolroom arrangements and management, for each household is so -different that what suits one family is not of much use to another. -Still there are general hints on education that may be of assistance to -those who may be about to set up a schoolroom, and, though I feel rather -diffident about speaking as much about myself as I must, I think I must -tell just a little more of the way in which I have managed that most -important part of the establishment. - -To begin with: great cleanliness, order, regularity, and punctuality -must be insisted on and maintained by the dining-room example. The -children’s breakfast should be at eight, and should consist, if -possible, of oatmeal porridge every other day, followed by either an -egg, bacon, or some fish. I say advisedly ‘if possible,’ for some -children cannot touch porridge; and though I am no advocate for -pampering appetite, and scorn rich and elaborate cooking, which in -England all too often engulfs the money that would buy pictures or allow -of excursions and travel, I do protest most solemnly against the petty -tyranny of making children eat food that is actually and positively -nauseous to them: and, furthermore, without consulting the child, and so -making him unduly of consequence in his own eyes, it is imperative that -a judicious parent should notice likes and dislikes, and so legislate -that something should be provided that all the children can eat; and no -breakfast should pass without fruit of some kind being provided. -Children crave for fruit and sweet things, and a careful parent gives -enough, without allowing the excess that is so harmful, and that only -occurs in families, as a rule, where sweets are ignored, and fruit -handed round as a rarity after the conclusion of a large and expensive -meal. - -In winter lessons could be from nine until twelve, when the walk should -be taken, or some games indulged in. Luncheon should be at one, and -should far oftener include fish or chicken than it usually does. Tea, -with jam or cake, should be at five, and each child should be encouraged -to have milk and a biscuit before it goes to bed. A few pure sweets -should be given always after luncheon, and no punishment should ever be -inflicted through the appetite. This makes food too prominent a matter -in the small mind, and I have always found a few stern and forcible -words of more effect than any punishment could be after the first -struggle for authority, which invariably occurs once in the lifetime of -every child. In two or three cases in my own schoolroom one whipping has -been found quite sufficient; while two of the children have never -required anything more serious than an early retirement for reflection -in bed,] and a few serious sentences that were to the purpose, and did -not go beyond it. I am quite aware that in these days it is considered -abominable even to suggest a child shall be ‘smacked,’ but in the case -of deliberate obstinacy or unbridled howling there is nothing else for -it, and, this once done, trouble ceases--the child has found its master, -and then there is peace. - -I am so convinced that if one has a happy childhood one’s whole life is -sweetened by it, no matter whatever happens afterwards, that I cannot -impress too much upon my readers the absolute necessity of securing -this, at any rate, for their boys and girls. This, however, is not to be -had by dressing them finely, and dragging them about from drawing-room -to drawing-room, from late party to late party, or by pampering them and -considering them until one cannot call the house one’s own, neither does -it consist in leaving them to themselves altogether. Apparently, -children should be left greatly to themselves, but much in the same -manner that--I speak in all sincerity--a higher Power manages us and our -affairs. Let the free-will be there, but let the guiding hand, unseen -though it should be, never be lacking, and we shall find the children -happy and good, because they are surrounded with clean good air, and are -brought up in an atmosphere absolutely free from taint of any kind. - -The instant the schoolroom is started, that instant both mothers and -fathers should become in a measure omniscient and omnipresent; and, -above all, they should remember the clear sight and hearing of the -children, and should, furthermore, recollect that what they say and do -means a great deal more now than it ever did. Let them see their own -lives are full of interest, and are of good aim and intent, and they -will find example is greater than precept, and that they have succeeded -by unconscious example where everything else would have failed. - -Of course, it is absolutely necessary that all girls should learn to -sew, to cook, and to play the piano; and all boys should have some way -of employing their fingers, and no household should be complete without -its hospital box; into this the girls can collect all the frocks and -petticoats they can make, while the boys can make scrapbooks, paint -pictures with water-colours over prints from ‘Punch’ or the ‘Illustrated -London News,’ or cut out ships or wooden dolls; and while they are doing -this they could be read to from Scott, Dickens, Thackeray, or Miss -Yonge--a strange mixture, may be, but to those four writers the world -can never be grateful enough, try hard as it may, while the schoolroom -contingent brought up on these splendid people’s brains will be worth a -hundred of the present-day children, fostered on such idle rubbish as -Rider Haggard produces, and others that shall be nameless. And here let -me beg and pray the parents to make a stand for Dickens and Thackeray, -even if they will not for the other two authors of whom I have spoken. -Dickens has become neglected, I know, and Oxford undergraduates, taking -to Thackeray late, fall asleep over ‘Esmond’ and ‘The Virginians’; but -let these books be in the schoolroom, and boys and girls take to them -naturally, like ducks take to water, and are at once made happier by -them than they can be by anything else. - -Sewing must be learned by girls, because they never know how they may be -placed; but, once learnt, I trust no girl may be condemned to sew -because it is feminine, for unless she really and truly likes the -occupation--and most women do--there is no greater cruelty possible to -inflict on a young girl than to make her sew when her fingers are -itching to draw, practise, or even write a book. Never prevent her doing -this; the greatest happiness I have ever had is when I can get perfect -peace and quiet and take my pen in hand, and, even if I never succeed in -making a name for myself and startling a world that is over-full of -writers already, I can never feel I have lost the time I have spent in -writing, for then I have been perfectly contented, and then for me the -world has ceased to be--outside Nature--beloved Nature!--and my desk. -And then, harming no one, I trust, and helping just a few, I have passed -away entirely from all worries incidental to the life of any woman who -marries, and has children and a household always on her mind, and have -ceased to think of anything save the work on hand at the moment. Girls -must learn also to cook, because thus they become mistress of all the -details of the household expenditure; and they must learn music, because -they can be useful either to accompany songs and glees, or to play -dance-music to the little ones; but if no distinct taste is shown, hours -should not be wasted on an accomplishment that is most useless, save and -except as a mere background, unless decided talent is displayed, when, -of course, music should be encouraged as much as possible, for nothing -keeps a household more together than does music, and if the boys and -girls can only play and sing together there is small difficulty about -finding them occupation and keeping them happy at home. - -I am always sorry that the power to make music and the capacity for -enjoying games were left out of my composition, and in consequence are -conspicuous by their absence from our household; but reading has taken -their place, and not one of us is unhappy as long as books are to be -had; but one tires sometimes of this, and I could wish heartily we all -loved games or went in for music, for these tastes are most excellent -safeguards against _ennui_ and the craving for excitement and going -about that all modern folks seem to possess. - -Now one word about Sunday in the schoolroom, and we will pass on to -other matters. Whatever you do, never let Sunday be a day of dulness and -penance, but make it as bright and happy as you can. Let the household -rise as early as on a weekday, be regular at some bright, good service, -and make it altogether a bright and pleasant day; let the children see -the ‘Graphic’ and ‘Illustrated London News,’ and read their ordinary -books. If a book is fit for a weekday it is fit for Sunday. Dine early, -because the servants want a little rest, and as a culminating treat have -a nice supper about eight, and let the children share it. Don’t tease -them with strict rules and sad faces, but let them learn on this day to -appreciate rest and to learn something of a higher life, that need not -be kept for Sunday alone, but that one has more time to think of on -Sunday than on any other day of the week. - -I do not myself like to see tennis played or boating or driving for -pleasure indulged in, simply, I think, because of old-time prejudice, -and because of the noise made or the work given to one’s coachman and -horses; but logically there is not half as much harm in these pursuits -as there is in the spiteful gossip so many people indulge in after -church, or the wasted hours spent in sleep after a heavy dinner eaten -under protest and grumbled at everlastingly; and I would much rather my -boys played tennis than that they lounged about smoking and sleeping, or -wasted their time reading the ‘Sporting Times,’ and longing after their -far less harmful rackets. But I at present can manage without this, and -prefer to do so, for at present inspecting the animals and wandering -about the garden with them seems to suffice, while newspapers and books -come in on wet days; while we are all so busy during the week, that the -holiday comes as a blessed oasis for which we are all truly thankful. -And the children love the illustrated papers--a storehouse of knowledge -no parent should be without; and the money spent on them is never -wasted, though an Englishman, as a rule, will grudge a few shillings a -week for papers, while he never hesitates for a moment to spend double -the amount on his dinner, or on that Moloch of English households, the -tobacconist. - -Above all encourage your own and your children’s friends to come in to -tea and talk on Sunday afternoons. This gives no work to the servants, -and always makes a nice break. The tea can be set ready before the maids -go out, and if many cups are wanted they can be washed up early; and any -guest should be made welcome, and sometimes asked to remain for the -early supper, which, being cold, and prepared on Saturday, is again of -no trouble to the maids. I am very fond of Sunday visitors, and as few -English houses open their doors, especially in the country and more -distant suburbs, on that day, visitors are often glad to drop in when -they can be sure of a welcome and a cup of tea. - -Tea in the schoolroom is often, too, a very good institution, for thus -the governess sees a little more of life, and acts as hostess; and each -child should have its own cup and saucer and plate. This is a great -safeguard against breakages, for if one is smashed it must be spoken of -at once, and extra cups can be kept for the visitors; but all should be -different, so that any breakage may be seen at once, as generally the -schoolroom-maid is but young, and apt to conceal any small depredations -among the crockery. Now the two great difficulties in a schoolroom are -the governess and the schoolroom-maid, and infinite care must be taken -in the selection of both. Of course the governess is the first care, -and, though she should be mistress in the schoolroom, she yet must only -be a viceroy, and must act for the mother entirely, and not at all on -her own responsibility unless she is expressly desired to do so. No -governess should be engaged who cannot be in some measure a companion to -the mother, to whom and with whom she should be in perfect accord; for -there are endless ways in which the governess can save a mother of a -household, does she make herself really pleasant, if only in conveying -the children to the dentist--a necessary business, but one that need not -harrow the mother’s feelings if the governess is as good and useful as -she ought to be; for the governess does not feel, as a mother does, that -all her teeth are being taken out bodily the moment Tommy opens his -mouth for inspection, and endures none of the vicarious pangs that make -any fanciful mother’s life a burden to her, even though nothing happens. -The governess must be healthy, strong-minded, good-tempered, and, above -all, must have some nice hobbies, and be fond of teaching them; then the -schoolroom will indeed be the heart of the house, and will send out a -series of healthy, happy children into the great world. Make the -governess one with the household; let your interests be hers, the -children for the time being a mutual possession. Take any amount of -trouble to procure a really nice girl of a good family, and then you may -breathe freely; while if the schoolroom-maid comes young too, and is -carefully trained, you will then have a perfectly managed schoolroom, -and feel you can rest awhile should you desire it, secure that your -place is well filled by a competent minister, who will rule in your -place until you return both well and wisely. - -Never discuss your governess either with or before the children, and -take care that her life is as much as possible a fac-simile of yours. -Let her have books and papers and share in any gaiety that is going; and -above all try and make her think that she becomes part of the family, -should she really stay some time with you, and that your interest in -her will last as long as life itself. I can imagine nothing more wicked -than to cast off old governesses or servants, and to decline to keep -those who have helped us so much, and in a manner no amount of money -will repay. - -The schoolroom would not be complete in my eyes without just a few -sentences on the subject of the children’s dress. This would, in the -case of the girls, consist of good warm underclothing; in two sets of -combination garments, one in wool, the other in long-cloth; a -stay-bodice--never stays on any pretext whatever--made of ribbed -material, on which a flannel skirt should be sewn in winter; then -another skirt, also sewn on a bodice; and finally that invaluable -costume, the ‘smock-frock,’ the skirt trimmed with three rows of tucks, -the sleeves full, and the full bodice drawn in with either a loose band -or a soft sash of Liberty silk. From the day a baby is put into short -clothes until the girl of fifteen becomes too lanky for such a plain -dress, there is no other costume as suitable for all times of the year. -In summer very thin cashmere is enough, with perhaps a soft silk -handkerchief underneath for outdoor wear; in winter a long coat of -cashmere and soft cap make admirable outdoor garments, and are put on in -a very few moments, while all Liberty’s soft silks and cashmeres are -warm without an undue amount of weight, and are all of such lovely -colours that no one thinks of the plainness of the material used for a -moment. Until girls are fifteen they should always wear pinafores of -some kind. I use a very large white diaper pinafore tied with Liberty -sashes, and they should furthermore have shoes with straps and low wide -heels; while for boys nothing is so sensible as the much-copied Jack Tar -suit, with its serge trousers and wide loose shirts, though I personally -prefer the Scotch kilt; the sailor suits are soon shabby and generally -untidy, while the kilts always look well, wear for ever almost, and -there are no knees either of stockings or trousers always giving out and -requiring to be mended every moment or so. After the kilts boys can take -to jackets and trousers, which in perfection can only be bought of -Swears and Wells, Regent Street, W., whose charges are, of course, -rather awful to contemplate, but whose clothes undoubtedly outwear three -suits of any one else’s; and I speak from the experience of my three -boys, for whom I have often tried to go elsewhere, but have always had -to return to Swears, for nowhere else can I buy things that to a certain -extent will defy the rough usage given to them. The sailor suits can be -bought best of Redfern, at Cowes, in the Isle of Wight; the kilts of -Swears also. - -To conclude: the eye of the mother should really never be taken from the -children, as long as they are growing. Weak backs should be detected at -once, and allowed to rest on a proper sofa and carefully bathed with -salt water; weak ankles should be treated the same; cuts should be -dressed with calendula and soft rags; a supply of both and of -sticking-plaster should be in every schoolroom cupboard. Camphor is also -a good thing to keep ready; it stops many an incipient cold. A good -supply of fruit and jam and fresh air and regular exercise stop many an -illness and save many a doctor’s bill, and, in fact, a doctor should -indeed rarely be required nowadays in a house where mother, governess, -and nurse really know their business and really look after the children; -for, unless in real illness, doctors seldom are of any use in a -schoolroom, and only add up accounts that are really accounts of the -mother’s ignorance or selfishness or neglect. - -Naturally, when children inherit disease--and that people who inherit -diseases or are related should marry is nothing more or less than a -crime in my eyes, and should be to the world at large--or are -susceptible by inheritance to colds, fevers, &c., the above does not -apply; then skilled attention is necessary, and in real cases of need a -doctor should be consulted as early as possible; but all girls, and -indeed boys, should be taught always something about themselves and -their formation, and they should learn early those marvellous, -unchangeable laws of health which, once broken, render not only -themselves but future generations miserable and wretched for ever; but, -of course, great care must be taken here, as indeed everywhere else, to -keep the _via media_, else will the children become self-conscious -prigs, always anxious about themselves and their well-being. - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - -BOYS AND GIRLS. - - -There is yet a more critical time for the parents, I think, than even -the schoolroom time, and that is, first of all, when the boys go off to -school; and, secondly, when we have to realise that the small nursery -toddlers are grown up, and really as capable of taking care of -themselves as we are ourselves. Let me speak of the boys first, as, -after all, that terrible wrench is the worst experience of all, and one, -I hope most truly and sincerely, which will be saved for future mothers, -and that before many years have passed; for I maintain, and always shall -maintain most strenuously, that there never was a worse system of -education than the general education that present-day lads must go -through, or be entirely different to the rest of the male sex, though -even that would be a good thing in my eyes, for I cannot allow that the -male half of the world is so good or so perfect at present that it -cannot be improved, neither can I allow that the result of education as -at present given is in any way as perfect as it might be; and as an -example of what I mean it would be well to consider, I think, why the -return of the boys from school is as the letting loose of a horde of -barbarians on a peaceful land; and why, after the first week at all -events, the urchins cease to be regarded as returned angels, and one and -all are spoken of as ‘those dreadful boys.’ - -As an example of what I mean, I may speak of one household where the -girls are gently ruled and delicately brought up by their dead mother’s -bridesmaid, who gave up her own one chance of wedded happiness because -of her most romantic attachment to her girlhood friend, and who, when -father and mother died within a few years of each other, leaving a young -and turbulent household to ‘Aunt Mary and Providence,’ came to live -among the children, loving them all, but instinctively looking upon the -boys as just one remove from wild animals. - -At least the preparations for their return from Rugby would suggest as -much, for in the big country-house drawing-room the beautiful Indian -carpet is rolled up and replaced by a time-worn drugget, the little -brother’s best hat and coat are relegated from the hall to Aunt Mary’s -own room, covers are put on everything that can be covered, and lace -curtains are moved; and, in fact, when prepared for the holidays, the -whole house appears as if ready to stand a heavy and protracted siege. - -Even the garden and greenhouses are rigorously locked; wire shades and -iron hurdles protect tender seedlings and grass edges; the head gardener -wears a countenance of mingled dread and determination; and in the -stables nothing is left get-at-able save the boys’ own ponies, a -venerable ‘four-wheel,’ and sundry odds and ends of ancient harness, -which no one could hurt because its condition is quite hopeless already. - -And in a town house, when the holidays are within appreciable distance, -over and over again have I not seen similar preparations, though on a -smaller scale? Have I not noted how nurse puts away the children’s best -toys; how the girls in the schoolroom, aided by their agitated -governess, conceal all their beloved possessions, and train their pets -to ‘lie low,’ as ‘Brer Fox’ would say? Does not Paterfamilias rehearse a -long code of laws, all to be enforced, he says, the moment the boys come -home? And is not Materfamilias, after all, the only creature in the -whole establishment who has not one _arrière pensèe_, and who finds -nothing in the least to spoil the rapture of the return of those who -have never for one moment been out of her thoughts since the last time -she saw them off, through her tears, on their return to Dr. Swishey’s -academy for young gentlemen? - -Ah, the boys little know what they cause that tender soul to suffer when -an extra hour’s cricket excuses them for forgetting their weekly letter -home; how the omission makes her turn pale when a sudden ring at the -bell comes, lest it should be a telegram summoning her to the bedside -of the dear things, who are most likely rioting in the playground at the -very moment; and how she is only withheld by dread of ridicule and the -largeness of the railway fare from rushing off at once to see for -herself that all is well; and she has to content herself with writing a -loving letter of expostulation, doubtless characterised as ‘a jaw,’ and -thrown aside half read through. - -And when they are at home under her own roof she naturally looks forward -to peace, at all events, and safety from dreads and fears such as these; -but, poor soul, she soon finds out her mistake. - -Her days are spent in wondering where the boys have gone to, in -painfully concealing the marks of their ravages in library and staircase -and hall from the paternal eye, and in propitiating the outraged -schoolroom and nursery establishments, who do not see, as she does, that -the fact of its being holiday time accounts for all, and that all should -be forgiven those who are only at home for so short a period in the -year. - -But even mother begins to tire of acting as a buffer between her sons -and her husband and the other members of the family. And by the time -cook has given warning--heedless that she is the only woman who can cook -the dinner to suit the master--because Reggie will melt lead in her -spoons or playfully drop gunpowder in the fire, or because some pounds -of butter mysteriously disappeared and followers were hinted at--though -the state of her saucepans and George’s trouser pockets pointed out that -toffee, not the policeman, was at the bottom of the loss--Materfamilias -finds herself wondering how Dr. Swishey manages to look so well at the -end of the term, and begins to think that perhaps after all she will not -be quite as sorry as usual when the cab comes round and the boys go off, -leaving her free to go out to dinner without dreading to see flames -issuing out of the drawing-room windows when the carriage turns the -corner of the Square on her return home, or fearing a summons from the -festive board to bid her go back at once because one or other of the -boys has done something dreadful either to himself or some other member -of the family. - -Now, granted that this is not an isolated case--and, judging from a -large personal experience of ‘other folks’ children,’ I venture boldly -to state that this is the rule and not the exception--I as boldly remark -that the present manner of dealing with the _genus homo_ as expressed in -the schoolboy is entirely a wrong one, and, waxing bolder yet, I say -that the grown-up youth evolved from such an education as most lads -obtain nowadays is so emphatically unsatisfactory that I am quite sure -some radical change should be made in the way we bring up our boys. - -Born into a home where their sisters are sheltered and cared for until -they leave it for one of their own, from their very birth they are -treated in an entirely different manner. As little mites they govern the -house, because they are of the superior sex, and they are finally sent -away from home into the great world of school, where, neither by age nor -experience, can they be in the least fitted for the warfare, or enabled -by careful and judicious training to hold their own, or to choose -between the good and evil that is so freely offered them there. Small -boys are herded with big ones, who alternately bully and confide in -them; tender and sentimental fancies are derided; and the word ‘manly’ -is made to express ferocity, cruelty, uncleanness, and a thousand and -one awful things that, when we discover our children are aware of, we -wonder feebly when and how they have acquired their knowledge. - -What wonder the return of the boys is dreaded, when they come as -strangers into a home where God placed them for the careful training, -the unceasing supervision, of body and mind? How can a boy join in and -make part of a circle that for half or even three parts of the year is -complete without him? How can he respect and appreciate laws and routine -that are entirely different to all he has been accustomed to more than -two thirds of his time? And how can he help being spoiled, selfish, and -tyrannical, when the very shortness of his residence under the home-roof -is made an excuse for pampering him and making every one, man, woman, -and child, give way to him, because, poor dear lad, he is only at home -for the holidays, while the others are always there? - -There is no doubt in my mind that boys ought to go more into the world -and see more of human nature than girls need do; but with all my -strength I would maintain that the ordinary boarding-school plan is a -great and hideous mistake. By all means let them go to school all day; -but let them at night return home, where the mother’s eye can see how -they are, and how they progress with their lessons, and to insure them -that best of all feeling for any one--the certain knowledge that home is -home to them in the fullest sense of the word; and that, far from being -outsiders or honoured guests, feared as well as honoured, they are part -and parcel of the family, and bound to give and take, sharing the rough -with the smooth, and helping in every way they can to aid the weaker -vessels of the family, and becoming gentlemen in the widest sense of the -word. - -Of course, parents who keep their boys at home have little time for -rest, and cannot be incessantly in the very middle of society’s whirl; -but is any price too large to pay for the souls of our children--any -sacrifice too great to insure that one’s boys are to the fullest degree -given the benefit of our knowledge and our shielding care? And shall we -not be repaid for anything it may cost us in the wear-and-tear of our -brain-power if, instead of the stage-door-haunting, toothpick-gnawing -‘masher’ of the present day, we rear a race of manly, God-fearing, -home-loving youths, who may restore the age of chivalry and the strong, -pure, tender-hearted men that were once England’s boast? - -Like most problems presented to our minds as we go through the world, -there are here other sides to contemplate beyond the one we have just -attempted to sketch. For there are homes where the boy’s one chance of -salvation is given by a good training at school; where the vanity of the -mother and the evil example of the father are worse than anything else -can possibly be; and where the atmosphere is so pernicious that an -honest and true-hearted schoolmaster dreads to send his pupils home, for -they may once more acquire habits that he is only just beginning really -to eradicate. There are also intensely weak and foolish parents who, not -able to refuse themselves any gratification, cannot debar their children -from having their own way, and who, not having been trained themselves, -cannot train others; and there are yet others who send off their -children to rid themselves of the clear-eyed tormentors who ask such -tiresome questions, and will follow the example of their parents, not -content to be put off with the trite remark that grown-up folks can do -and say things little people would be severely punished and reprimanded -for doing and saying. - -Still, notwithstanding these sides to the picture, we can boldly state -that if boys were invariably part of a household, if their parents -accept their responsibilities and see they have no right to pay some -careless person--any one, in fact, who wants to make money by -teaching--to take their responsibilities off their hands, we should very -soon have a different state of things as regards the male sex as a -whole; and at all events we should cease to dread the holidays and speak -of our sons as ‘those dreadful boys.’ - -But the selfishness of the ordinary parent, and the cupidity of the -orthodox schoolmaster, whose real profits are made from the boarders, -and who, therefore, discourages to the best of his power the idea of -home-boarders, are twin giants in the way of those who only ask to be -allowed to bring up their own children in their own way, and I can but -look forward and hope for other mothers all that I have only been able -to demand for myself in part, and that a very small part of all I would -have wished for the boys, who, once given over to school, only return -for good for a few moments, as it were, on their way to the real battle -of life, which soon engulfs them entirely, and so we never really have -our boys our own, nor are allowed to train them for ourselves at a time -when we alone should be able to do it satisfactorily, because we alone -should understand them best and know what they inherit mentally and -bodily; in fact, the nursery and schoolroom once passed through, we have -lost our children, and have only now to think how we can make home -happy for them until they leave us for their own homes, which will -depend on our early training whether they are happy ones or not. - -And indeed one of the most abstruse of all our numerous domestic -problems is shadowed forth in the words ‘quite grown-up,’ for there are -few fathers and mothers who realise, it seems to me, that their children -have actually passed through nursery and schoolroom, and are in deed and -truth quite grown-up, and in consequence of this the domestic relations -become strained, and home ceases to be the pleasant retreat it used to -be from the throng and turmoils of the outside world. - -There are most certainly households where the relations are more than -strained, where open hostility replaces the old-time affection, and from -whence sons rush to ‘the bad,’ and daughters marry the first man that -asks them, simply because they wish for freedom and to be able to do as -they like. - -Naturally, they often enough discover they have exchanged King Log for -King Stork, and wish themselves at home once more over and over again; -but that such cases are not only possible, but are continually occurring -around us, seems to me so sad, that I should like to say a few words on -the subject of ‘The Proper Relations between Parents and Children,’ -hoping in some measure to propose a solution to the problem. - -In the first place, we are in some measure suffering from the rebound -that has taken place when the severe bonds that bound our parents were -removed. They suffered themselves so greatly from the petty tyrannies -that were considered the right thing in their youth, that, in desiring -to save their children from similar misery, they have gone to the other -extreme, and allowed such laxity of manner that children rule the house, -as in America, and barely condescend in their grown-up stage to consult -their parents at all about their engagements, their occupations, or even -their friendships or their marriages. - -Surely there is a medium between the discipline that enforced silence on -the child until all originality was crushed out of him, that thought -severe strictures on the dress and personal appearance of one’s -daughters the sole way of checking vanity, and that refused confidence -because it was lowering oneself from the awful height occupied by a -parent, and that which is conspicuous by its absence, and that results -in an independent race of young people, who respect nothing, and are -certainly not going to make an exception in the case of their father and -mother, who are either ready to go as great lengths as their children, -or else suddenly assert an authority that only exists in their own -imaginations, and that causes a turmoil because opposition is as -unexpected as it is arbitrary. - -If we would have authority we must have it from the very beginning, and -I am old-fashioned enough myself to be a great believer in the nursery -and nursery frocks for very little children. I am always angry, I -confess, when I see a small lady of four or five dressed up to the eyes -in a fantastic frock designed to attract attention to the tiny wearer, -of which she is all too conscious, and carried about from this luncheon -to that tea, to the weariness of herself and all who are not connected -with her; and indeed do well to be angry, for did not she, as one of -those specimens, refuse to go into the country because she found it so -extremely dull; and also because I know it is from such a bringing-up as -this that we obtain the emancipated female or the fast girl, who thinks -of nothing but ‘dress’ and ‘the service,’ and which results, all too -often, in making home miserable for the elder folk, who only see in the -pretty child a plaything flattering to their vanity, and do not -recognise the fact that, much sooner than we expect it, she in her turn -will be quite grown-up. - -The nursery stage should emphatically be a time for shabby clothes and -dolls and noise, and for healthy natural play. The midday meal should be -the only one taken with the mother, who, however, should make a point of -knowing all about the others, and should also contrive to be often in -the nursery, and have the children with her for not less than an hour or -two a day. - -To insure happiness with a grown-up family these tiny beginnings should -be well studied. The mother’s influence should be so much felt, and so -indispensable to the house, that when withdrawn for a while it should -indeed be something more than missed. But familiarity in early childhood -breeds contempt in youth; and it is well known that a child who is -always with grown-up people never knows what childishness is, and never -becomes as healthy-minded as one who has had a little wholesome neglect -from society and from perpetual supervision of its elders. - -When we as parents begin to see the children growing up, we should, I -maintain, then carefully see that our own immediate friends are those -whose society and conversation can do our girls no harm. When I have -occasionally heard talk that has brought blushes to my checks at my -mature age, and seen the young girls not only listening but joining in -it, I have almost been tempted to declare my girls shall never go into -society at all; but as I know this is impossible, I have made up my mind -whose houses they shall go to, reserving to myself the right to tell -them boldly why such and such a one is not a desirable acquaintance. - -Then, too, their own friends, made at school or at the homes of mutual -acquaintances, should be welcomed emphatically whenever they like to -come. I remember too well feeling much aggrieved at not being able to -ask an occasional friend to tea to refuse this privilege. But if the -friends become too numerous, it is easy to point out that either you -cannot afford such indiscriminate visiting, or to restrict the number of -visitors to a certain number; only let it be understood that their -friends are always welcome in moderation, and that, though you are -delighted to see them, you do not expect them thrown on your hands for -entertainment, and that you assume the right to point out to your -children the desirability or the reverse of any of their acquaintances, -and that you expect them to give due weight to your opinion. - -It is more than necessary, in my mind, to keep perpetually before one’s -children that the home into which they were born is their inheritance -that nothing can take from them. And by this I do not mean that I -consider a parent bound to provide fortunes for either sons or -daughters. I have too often seen the great harm of this to advocate it -for one moment; but that they should always not only be welcome there, -but claim as a right the shelter and counsel and affection that are -their due, no matter what they have done or how grievously they have -sinned. For _no_ cause should a father or mother refuse to see their own -child, and they should a thousand times more never allow the unmarried -daughter to feel herself a burden, whose food and shelter are grudged -her, any more than they should continually hint that marriage is a -woman’s only destiny, refusing to the girls the ample education lavished -on the sons, and so depriving them of every means of making their own -living. - -But grown-up daughters, in my eyes, are a most precious possession, if -properly brought up. They at last take some of the heavy burdens a -mother has always to bear alone off her shoulders; and if she be -moderately intelligent, and has intelligently brought up the girls, -there is no reason why they should not be a thousand times more valuable -in her eyes than they were as pretty babies and engaging little girls. - -But then we must remember that they are grown-up, that they have an -opinion more or less valuable, and that they have idiosyncrasies to be -respected, the while they respect ours, remembering our position towards -them, our fuller experience, and our affectionate care for them. As long -as the parents live, they should be master and mistress in the house; -but the children should be as viceroys, helping their parents in every -way that they can in their social duties and in the routine of the -house. It is trying, we know, to have the piano going and billiard-balls -rolling when we want to read Jones’s speech on Home Rule, or Gladstone’s -latest statements; but it is far more trying not to know where one’s -children are, and to feel they are happier anywhere else than in their -own homes. - -It is their home as much as it is ours, and it will be home indeed if by -judicious training in their youth we have made friends of our children, -if we have given them our confidence, our affection, and our best days, -and have not become strangers to them by being perpetually in society -when they were as perpetually sent to school; the while we have not -become too familiar, and make them old before their time, by taking them -with us to gatherings in smart frocks when they ought to have been -disreputably shabby in pinafores in the nursery. Then we shall discover -that our grown-up sons and daughters are not so many cuckoos pushing us -out of the old nest, but intelligent friends and companions--all the -more delightful to us because they are quite grown-up. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. - -ENTERTAINING ONE’S FRIENDS. - - -In a small house entertaining one’s friends is too often a most arduous -and tiresome business, because we will one and all of us attempt to do a -great deal too much, and appear to be able to afford all kinds of -luxuries that we cannot possibly manage, and I strongly advise any young -bride with small means and a smaller _ménage_ to confine herself -entirely to afternoon teas, which require no waiting and cost extremely -little, and to refuse on her part to go out to large dinners, which she -cannot return, and for which she can neither afford the necessary dress, -gloves, flowers, nor cabs, asking her friends to invite her to simpler -entertainments boldly, and giving her reasons, which, of course, will be -received kindly and in good faith by her friends. I am convinced that -this absurd striving after society is at the bottom of the falseness of -most of our English entertainments, and I trust some day to see -‘parties’ on a much broader and more satisfactory basis than they are at -present, and I therefore beg all young householders to pause before they -begin the same old round of costly gaiety, and to consider if they at -least cannot bring about a better state of things. I have often in -different houses seen with amazement how invitations are issued, and -wondered if I am the only person who is thus taken behind the scenes and -shown how hollow such invitations often are. Surely I must be, or else -the great crushes I read of would never come off, and the dinners I hear -about would lack guests, for I have rarely heard invitations talked over -without listening to some such conversation as this: ‘Ask the Joneses, -Gertrude.’ ‘Oh no, mother! she _is_ such a dowdy, and their last garden -party was maddening.’ ‘I can’t help it, my dear. I went to their party, -and we must pay them back. And then there are the Brownes; don’t forget -the _e_--ridiculous creatures! It’s astonishing how some people creep -up and others go down.’ ‘And he is dreadful, mother;’ and, in fact, I -could go on for pages, while other pages could be occupied with -descriptions of how the invitation is received at the Joneses’ and the -Brownes’, who all go expecting to be bored or starved, and who return -home to comment spitefully on an entertainment which, if successful, -carries in their minds the donors half-way to the Bankruptcy Court, and, -if a failure, is the cause of a good deal of violent abuse and unkind -sneers levelled at their hosts. And then the conversation at these -entertainments: ‘Have you seen the So-and-so’s lately?’ ‘Oh no; they -never go anywhere now. Didn’t you hear about her and So-and-so?’ But -really, when it comes to the talk I overhear at balls, dinners, -at-homes, or in the Park, I lose my temper, and so will turn at once to -other matters altogether. - -Afternoon teas, tennis-parties, and little dinners are all possible to -the young housekeeper, but the little dinners to be inexpensive must be -in the winter, and for them I have written out half a dozen menus which -may be of use in the ordinary household, with the ordinary plain cook of -the period, whose wages are about 20_l._ These will be found at the end -of the chapter, but to insure even such a modest dinner as one of these -makes being a success the mistress must see herself that her glass and -silver are spotless, the table well laid, and the flowers charmingly -arranged by herself. - -The very last fashion (which, however, may change next week, but is -worth mentioning because of its simpleness and sense) for table -arrangements is to have no dessert whatever on the table, which has a -piece of embroidery in the centre of the cloth, and then in the middle -of this place a large flat wide-open wicker basket, which you should -cover entirely with moss; border it with ivy or berberis leaves, and -stand any flowers you may be able to procure in such a way that they -appear growing; low groups of flowers are arranged in vases all over the -table with growing ferns in pots, and, in fact, the table is made to -look as much like a bank of flowers as possible. Candles with shades to -match the prevailing hue of the flowers should stand on the table, and -the dessert should be handed round after dinner, and should consist of -one dish of good fruit and one of French sweetmeats, thus simplifying -matters very much indeed. - -Flowers should never be mixed; daffodils and brown leaves look lovely -together, so do scarlet geraniums and white azaleas, pink azaleas, and -brown leaves; wisteria and laburnum, Maréchal Niel roses and lilacs, are -all good contrasts, but clumps of yellow tulips, or narcissi or roses, -all one colour, are undoubtedly more fashionable than even the small -contrasts just spoken of, while Salviati glass is beautiful on a table, -and the specimen glasses of that make hold flowers far better than -anything else: and should flowers be scarce the centrepiece could be -all brown ivy and mosses and evergreens, with just a few flowers in the -Salviati glasses only. - -But neither food nor flowers, nor, indeed, anything else, will make a -party successful if the mistress does not make a good hostess, and exert -herself to see her quests are happy. She should take care the right -people meet, and nothing should induce her to refrain from introducing -her guests; this is a most ridiculous practice, and is simply laziness. -A hostess is bound to see all her guests are amused, and this can only -be done by personally noticing who is talking to whom, and whether all -the people present have some one with whom to converse. - -This absence of introductions makes conversation almost a lost art, and -has made the ordinary ‘society’ nothing more or less than a bore and a -trouble; while, as the ambition of most people is to know more folks -than their neighbours and to go to more balls in one night than our -foremothers used to see in their lifetimes, entertaining has become a -farce and bids fair to die of its own immensity. - -Therefore, as these are undoubtedly hard times, and many people are not -‘entertaining’ at all because they cannot now afford to outdo their -neighbours, let me beg any young beginner to start well and simply, -confining herself to those friends she really wishes to see, and to -giving parties that are not above her modest means, and that do not -entail hiring extra help, who smash her crockery and cost a month’s -wages for a few hours’ work, and agitate her so by their vagaries that -she cannot talk sensibly to her neighbour; and let her furthermore ask -people sometimes who cannot ask her again, but who can talk amusingly, -and she will, I am sure, have much more out of her little dinners than -most people do out of a whole London season’s fatigue and expense, both -of which often ruin the health and the future of many a girl, who traces -back to the severe ‘pleasures’ of town the lassitude and suffering that -render the latter half of a woman’s life all too often hours of -suffering and sorrow; for she has used up in the year or two of her -girlhood all the strength and health that should have sustained her all -through her days, and repents at leisure the stupidity and culpable -weakness of the mother who allowed her to sacrifice the possessions for -a lifetime in a few months. - -To enable our young housekeeper to manage so that her housekeeping bills -will not overwhelm her after one of her little dinners, I have appended -to each of the menus the exact cost of each, and I strongly advise any -one to whom economy is an object to use New Zealand lamb or mutton. If -properly warmed through and gently thawed close to the fire before -putting it down to roast, the meat is simply delicious and as good as -the best English; but it must be treated carefully, or else it will not -be nice, but when properly thawed no one can tell it from English meat, -and I think housekeepers would be a little astonished if they knew how -often the ‘best English’ meat of the butcher’s book was really and truly -the New Zealand meat they speak of with such horror. - - MENU NO. I. - - White Soup. - Soles, Sauce Maître d’hôtel. - Stuffed Pigeons. - Roast Beef, Yorkshire Pudding. - Wild Duck. - Mince Pies. - French Pancakes. - Cauliflower au gratin. - Dessert. - -_White Soup._--A quart and a pint of milk, a dozen fine potatoes, piece -of butter size of a walnut, two onions, salt and pepper to taste. -_Simmer_ all together for two hours, then rub through fine hair sieve, -add two tablespoonfuls of sago, and bring all gradually to a boil. Serve -very hot, with dice of bread fried. Cost of soup for six persons, 1_s._ - -_Fried Soles._--A fine pair at 3_s._ Garnish with lemon and parsley, fry -in _lard_; serve with melted butter, with fine chopped parsley in, -flavoured with lemon. Cost, 3_s._ 6_d._ - -_Stuffed Pigeons._--Three pigeons at 10_d._ each. Bone them; make a -stuffing of thyme, parsley, crumbs of bread, small piece of ham, a -couple of mushrooms, one egg, salt and pepper to taste; chop altogether -and mix with egg; stuff pigeons and sew them up; put them into a -saucepan, with a small piece of bacon and any stock that may be in the -digester. Stew for half an hour, take them out, divide them into neat -portions, and put them in a hot dish ready for serving. Add a -teaspoonful of flour mixed with water to thicken the gravy they are -stewed in, and strain it through a sieve on the pigeons; then serve. -_Outside_ cost, 3_s._ 6_d._ - -_Rolled Ribs of Beef._--Six pounds, the bones from which can be used for -stock for the gravy for the pigeons. The beef is rolled by the butcher -ready for roasting. Serve with horse-radish neatly arranged about it, -mashed potatoes, stewed celery; and Yorkshire pudding--half a pint of -milk, six large tablespoonfuls of flour, three eggs, and a tablespoonful -of salt. Put the flour into a basin with the salt, and stir gradually to -this enough milk to make it into a stiff batter; when quite smooth add -the rest of the milk, and the eggs well beaten; beat well together, and -then pour into a shallow tin which has been rubbed with beef dripping; -bake an hour in the oven, and then put under the meat for half an hour. -Meat, 6 lbs. of New Zealand at 10_d._, 5_s._; pudding, 6_d._; -vegetables, 1_s._--6_s._ 6_d._ - -_Wild Duck_, 4_s._ 6_d._--Plainly roasted; served with cayenne pepper, -lemons cut in halves, and fried potatoes. 5_s._ - -_Mince Pies._--Make some good puff paste by allowing one pound of butter -to each pound of flour; line small patty pans and bake; fill with -mincemeat (which can be bought ready-made and excellent for 10_d._ a -jar, which is sufficient for a dozen pies), cover with thin paste, and -put into a brisk oven for twenty-five minutes; serve with sifted sugar -over them. - -_French Pancakes._--Take two eggs, and their weight in sugar, flour, and -butter; mix well together; add quarter of a teacupful of milk; mix well -together; bake in saucer for twenty minutes, filling each saucer only -half full; take out; spread small quantity of jam, then fold over; dust -sifted sugar over the top, and serve very hot. Cost, 8_d._ - -_Cauliflower au gratin._--Fine cauliflower nicely boiled; then grate a -quarter of a pound of cheese over it, and place small atoms of butter -about the top of it; add a little cayenne and salt to taste; put in the -oven to brown, and serve very hot. Cost altogether, about 8_d._ - -_Complete cost of dinner._--Soup, 1_s._; fish, 3_s._ 6_d._; entrée, -3_s._ 6_d._; beef, 6_s._ 6_d._; game, 5_s._; mince pies, 1_s._ 6_d._; -pancakes, 8_d._; cheese, 8_d._--1_l._ 2_s._ 4_d._ - - MENU NO. II. - - Clear Soup. - Turbot, Lobster Sauce. - Cutlets à la Réforme. - Turkey, Stuffed Chestnuts. - Teal. - Éclairs. - Pears in Jelly. - Prince Albert’s Pudding. - Cheese Fondu. - Dessert. - -_Clear Soup._--Sixpennyworth of bones, three carrots, three onions, -sprig of thyme, two sprigs of parsley, one blade of mace, a dozen -peppercorns, head of celery. Simmer whole day in three quarts of water, -let it stand all night, remove fat in the morning, boil it again next -day, let it come to boiling point, throw in the whites and shells of two -eggs, whip it altogether when it boils, remove from fire, then skim it, -and pass it through a jelly-bag; put a little macedoine in the bottom of -a hot tureen and pour soup over, add a glass of sherry and serve. -Outside cost, 1_s._ - -_Half a Turbot._--Tinned lobster, cut in dice, put into melted butter, -and flavoured with anchovy. Turbot, about 3_s._; sauce, 9_d._ - -_Cutlets à la Réforme._--Three pounds of the loin of pork cut into -cutlets and fried; make about a gill of melted butter, add to it two -tablespoonfuls of the liquor from a bottle of piccalilly and six or -eight pieces of the pickle cut small. When very hot put on your dish, -arrange cutlets in round, and put the pickle-sauce in the middle. -Outside cost, 3_s._ - -_Small Turkey._--Stuffed with ordinary stuffing, with about two dozen -chestnuts boiled soft and added to the stuffing, sausages, bread-sauce, -Brussels sprouts, mashed potatoes. Turkey, 6_s._; stuffing &c., 2_s._ -more; outside cost, 8_s._ - -Three teal at 1_s._ each, plainly roasted, and sent in on slices of -toast; lemons and cayenne pepper. 3_s._ 6_d._ - -_Eclairs._--Bought at any confectioner’s at 2_d._ each. 1_s._ - -_Pears in Jelly._--Six stewing pears, 2 oz. sugar, 2 oz. butter, one -pint water, half an ounce gelatine soaked in water; stew the pears until -they are soft, turn out into a basin, and add the gelatine when hot; -place pears when _comparatively_ cold round buttered mould, pour in -syrup, turn out when set, serve cold. 8_d._ - -_Prince Albert’s Pudding._--Quarter of a pound of bread-crumbs, quarter -of a pound of butter, 2 oz. sugar, two tablespoonfuls of raspberry jam, -two eggs, mixed thoroughly, placed in mould, and boiled for two hours -and a half; serve hot with sifted sugar over. Outside cost, 1_s._ - -_Cheese Fondu._--Two eggs, the weight of one in Cheddar cheese, the -weight of one in butter; pepper and salt to taste, separate the yolks -from the whites of the eggs, beat the former in a basin, and grate the -cheese, break the butter into small pieces, add it to the other -ingredients with pepper and salt, beat all together thoroughly, well -whisk the whites of the eggs, stir them lightly in, and bake the fondu -in a small cake tin, which should be only half filled, as the cheese -will rise very much; pin a napkin round the tin and serve very hot and -quickly, as if allowed to stand long it would be quite spoiled. Average -cost, 5_d._ - -Soup, 1_s._; fish, 3_s._ 9_d._; cutlets, 3_s._; turkey, 6_s._; teal, -3_s._ 6_d._; éclairs, 1_s._; pears, 8_d._; pudding, 1_s._--cheese, -5_d._--1_l._ 0_s._ 4_d._ - - MENU NO. III. - - Hare Soup. - Filleted Soles à la Maître d’hôtel. - Mutton Cutlets. - Sirloin of Beef. - Ptarmigan. - Peaches, whipped cream. - Cabinet Pudding. - Toasted Cheese. - Dessert. - -_Hare Soup._--Sprig of thyme, sprig of parsley, three onions, three -carrots, two turnips, one head celery, twelve peppercorns, half a dozen -cloves, three quarts of water, sixpennyworth of bones, a small hare cut -up into joints; simmer all together for about three hours. Take out the -meat of the hare and put bones back. Keep the soup simmering the whole -day, set aside at night; skim off fat next morning. When wanted thicken -with one tablespoonful of flour mixed with a little of the stock; put in -meat, rub all through sieve into a _hot_ tureen; serve with dice of -fried bread. Cost, 5_s._ - -_Soles._--Three small soles, filleted, plain boiled, each piece rolled -and placed on a small skewer, which is removed when the fish is sent to -table, served covered with sauce made as follows:--Half a pint of milk, -tablespoonful of flour, mixed to smooth paste with a little milk, piece -of butter size of walnut, salt and pepper to taste, two teaspoonfuls of -parsley, teaspoonful of lemon juice. Average cost, 2_s._ 9_d._ - -_Mutton Cutlets._--Two pounds best end of the neck of mutton (New -Zealand, 6½_d._ per lb.) cut thin, egged and bread-crumbed, fried in -boiling lard to a light brown, arranged in a crown with fried parsley in -centre, fried in same lard. 1_s._ 6_d._ - -Six pounds of the sirloin, at 10_d._, nicely roasted, and sent to table -garnished with horse-radish, Brussels sprouts, and fried potatoes; -Yorkshire pudding, as per receipt in menu. 6_s._ 6_d._, outside cost. - -_Ptarmigan._--Plainly roasted, sent in on to toast, basted _well_ with -dripping, or else they are very dry, bread-sauce, with a very little -cayenne pepper added, mashed potatoes. About 4_s._ - -Tin of American peaches, sweetened to taste, arranged round cream, -sixpennyworth whipped well, any whites of eggs can be added; flavour -with four drops essence of vanille; the cream must be heaped up in the -centre of the peaches. Tin of peaches, 10½_d._; cream, 6_d._; extras, -3_d._ Average cost, 1_s._ 7½_d._ - -_Cabinet Pudding._--Four sponge-cakes, 2 oz. raisins, currants, and -sultanas mixed, small piece of lemon-peel, nutmeg to taste, two eggs, -sufficient milk to soak cakes, 1 oz. sugar, teacupful of milk, in which -the two eggs should be beaten and poured over the sponge-cakes; set all -to soak for an hour; place the currants &c. first in a buttered mould, -then slices of sponge-cake, then more currants, and then sponge-cakes, -until the mould is three parts full; then mix eggs, milk, sugar, and -nutmeg all together, beat well, pour it over the pudding, set it for an -hour to swell, then tie tightly down, boil for two hours and a half; -serve very hot with melted butter poured over, flavoured with two -tablespoonfuls of brandy and a little sugar. 9_d._ - -_Toasted Cheese._--Grate a quarter of a pound of cheese on lightly -toasted bread, pepper and salt to taste, tiny piece of butter on each -square; put in the oven for a few moments to melt cheese, add cayenne, -serve very hot. Cost about 9_d._ - -Soup, 5_s._; fish, 2_s._ 9_d._; cutlets, 1_s._ 6_d._; beef, 6_s._ 6_d._; -ptarmigan, 4_s._; peaches, 1_s._ 7½_d._; pudding, 9_d._; cheese, -9_d._--1_l._ 2_s._ 10½_d._ - - MENU NO. IV. - - Carrot Soup. - Cutlets of Cod. Anchovy Sauce. - Curried Kidneys. - Rolled Loin of Mutton, stuffed. - Boiled Pheasant, Celery Sauce. - Plum Pudding, Brandy Sauce. - Chocolate Cream. - Cheese Soufflés. - Dessert. - -_Carrot Soup._--Three pints of stock, made of threepennyworth of bones -cracked, and put in about two quarts of water; add three carrots, three -onions, and a head of celery, a little thyme and parsley. Simmer the -whole day; allow the fat to rise during the night, removing every scrap -of it the next morning, when proceed as follows:--Put two onions and one -turnip into the stock and simmer for three hours; then scrape and cut -thin six large carrots; strain the soup on them, and stew altogether -until soft enough to pass through a hair sieve; then boil all together -once more, and add seasoning to taste; add cayenne. The soup should be -red, and about the consistency of pease soup. Serve hot with fried dice -of bread. Outside cost, 1_s._ - -_Cutlets of Cod._--About 4 lbs. of cod, at 4_d._, cut into large -cutlets; fry them, having previously covered them with egg and -bread-crumbs. Serve with plain melted butter, flavoured nicely with -anchovy. Cost, 1_s._ 8_d._ - -_Curried Kidneys._--Three nice-sized kidneys, cut and skinned and put -into any stock; one apple, one onion. Thicken all with a teaspoonful of -flour and a teaspoonful of curry powder; small piece of butter, pepper, -and salt. Stew for half an hour; add plain boiled rice, carefully done, -and serve very hot. Average cost, 10_d._ - -Six pounds of loin of mutton at 9_d._ a pound--New Zealand, bone, and -then prepare a stuffing with thyme, parsley, bread-crumbs, and about 2 -oz. of suet, all chopped very fine; add salt and pepper to taste, mix -with one egg. Put this thickly inside the mutton; roll it, and secure -with skewers. Serve with currant jelly (3½_d._ a pot), mashed -potatoes, and nice cauliflower. Outside cost, 6_s._ - -_Boiled Pheasant._--One quite sufficient for six people, plain boiled, -and covered with celery sauce, made as follows:--Half a pint of milk, -two teaspoonfuls of flour mixed to a smooth paste with a little milk. -Stew one head of celery in the milk until tender, then add a piece of -butter size of a walnut, and pepper and salt to taste. Pass all through -fine sieve into a hot tureen, and then serve. Pheasant, 2_s._ 6_d._; -sauce, 6_d._ - -_Plum Pudding._--Three-quarters of a pound of raisins, ¾ lb. of -currants, ¼ lb. of mixed peel, ¼ lb. and half a ¼ lb. of -bread-crumbs, same quantity of suet, four eggs, half a wineglassful of -brandy. Stone and cut the raisins in halves, do not chop them; wash and -dry the currants, and mince the suet finely; cut the candied peel into -thin slices and grate the bread very fine. Mix these dry ingredients -well, then moisten with the eggs (which should be well beaten) and the -brandy; stir well, and press the pudding into a buttered mould, tie it -down tightly with a floured cloth, and boil for five or six hours. Cost, -2_s._ Special sauce.--Two ounces of butter beaten to a cream, 2 oz. of -sugar, three parts of a glass of sherry and brandy mixed, beaten all -together to a stiff paste. Cost, 10_d._ - -_Chocolate Cream._--One and a half ounce of grated chocolate, 2 oz. of -sugar, ¾ of a pint of cream, ¾ oz. of Nelson’s gelatine, and the -yolks of three eggs. (N.B.--If the whites of the eggs are added to the -cream, and all well mixed, less cream can be used.) Beat the yolks of -the eggs well, put them in a basin with the grated chocolate, the sugar, -and rather more than half the cream, stir all together, pour into a jug, -set jug in a saucepan of boiling water, and stir all one way until the -mixture thickens, but do not allow it to boil, or it will curdle; strain -all into a basin, stir in the gelatine and the other portion of cream, -which should be well whipped; then pour into a mould which has been -previously oiled with the very purest salad oil; turn out when cold. -Outside cost, 2_s._ - -_Cheese Soufflés._--Quarter of a pound of cheese grated, two -tablespoonfuls of flour, piece of butter size of walnut, two eggs, half -a teacupful of milk, cayenne and salt to taste; mix well together, and -put in a saucepan over fire for about five minutes, stirring all the -time to prevent burning; drop a tablespoonful of the mixture into -buttered patty-pans; put in a steamer until set; then take them out and -put on a sieve to cool; cover with egg and bread-crumb, and fry in -boiling lard; serve hot. Cost, about 8_d._ Half this quantity sufficient -for six people. - -_Cost of Dinner._--Soup, 1_s._; fish, 1_s._ 8_d._; curried kidneys, -10_d._; meat, 6_s._; game, 3_s._; pudding and sauce, 2_s._ 10_d._; -cream, 2_s._; cheese, 4_d._--17_s._ 9_d._ - - MENU NO. V. - - Mulligatawny Soup. - Cod and Oyster Sauce. - Croquettes of Chicken. - Leg of Mutton à la Bretonne. - Pheasants. - Méringues à la crême. - Turrets. - Cheese Straws. - Dessert. - -_Mulligatawny Soup._--Three pints of stock, made by taking -threepennyworth of bones, breaking them small, and putting them to -simmer on one side of the fire for the whole of the day before it is -required, with three carrots, three onions, one head of celery, and one -clove, and a small piece of bacon; stand all night in larder; remove fat -next morning. Boil a rabbit, cut it in dice, and fry; then add it, with -a small amount of lemon juice and two tablespoonfuls of curry powder -mixed smooth with stock separately, to the stock. Serve very hot, with -plain boiled rice on separate dish. Cost of soup, 2_s._ 4_d._--rabbit, -1_s._ 6_d._; bones, 3_d._; vegetables, 3_d._; rice, 1_d._; bacon, 1_d._; -curry powder, 2_d._ - -Three pounds of cod at 6_d._ a pound, plain boiled; eight oysters cut in -half for sauce, which is made of the liquor of the oysters; teacupful of -milk, piece of butter size of walnut, salt, and two teaspoonfuls of -flour. Cod, 1_s._ 6_d._; oysters, 8_d._; milk, butter, &c., 3_d._--2_s._ -5_d._ - -_Croquettes of Chicken._--Take the two legs of a nicely cooked chicken -(the bones of which can be added to those for soup); mince the meat -small, then pound smooth in a mortar. Make a sauce with a piece of -butter size of a walnut, one onion chopped fine and browned, and half a -teacupful of milk; when at boiling point add one teaspoonful of flour, -mixed smooth with milk, salt, and pepper to taste, add the yolks of two -eggs, then put in the chicken and stir all together until thoroughly -mixed, remove from fire; when cold make up the mixture into croquettes, -cover with egg and bread-crumbs, and fry in dripping from leg of mutton; -serve very hot garnished with parsley. Any remains of cold chicken will -do for this dish. Portion of chicken, 9_d._; eggs (3), 2½_d._, -sometimes 3_d._; total cost, 1_s._ 2½_d._ - -_Leg of Mutton à la Bretonne._--Choose a leg of Welsh mutton about 6 -lbs. in weight, get four cloves of garlic, make an incision with the -point of a knife in four different parts round the knuckle and place the -garlic in it, hang it up for a day or two, and then roast it for an hour -and a half. Take a quart of French haricots and place them in a saucepan -with half a gallon of water. Add salt, half an ounce of butter, and set -them to simmer until tender, when the liquor must be poured into a -basin. Keep the haricots hot, peel and cut two large onions into thin -slices, put some of the fat from the dripping-pan into the fryingpan, -put in the onions, and fry a light brown. Add them to the haricots, with -the fat &c. that the mutton has produced in roasting, season with salt -and pepper, toss them about a little, and serve very hot on a large dish -on which the mutton is put, garnished with a frill. Serve with mashed -potatoes, Brussels sprouts, currant jelly. Cost, with best Welsh mutton, -8_s._; with New Zealand, _just as good_, 5_s._ - -_Roasted Pheasant_, 2_s._ 6_d._--Plainly and nicely roasted, sent in on -a bed of bread-crumbs made from crusts and pieces of bread dried in the -oven and rolled small with the rolling-pin. Potatoes plainly boiled and -rubbed through a sieve, with a very small piece of butter. 2_s._ 9_d._ - -_Méringues._--Use the three whites of the eggs the yolks of which you -have used for the croquettes; whisk them to a stiff froth, and with a -wooden spoon stir in quickly a quarter and half a quarter of a pound of -white sifted sugar. Put some boards in the oven thick enough to prevent -the bottom of the méringues from acquiring too much colour. Cut some -strips of paper about two inches wide, put this on the board, and drop a -tablespoonful at a time of the mixture on paper, giving them as nearly -as possible the shape of an egg, keeping each méringue about two inches -apart. Strew over some sifted sugar, and bake in a moderate oven for -half an hour. As soon as they begin to colour remove them; take each -slip of paper by the two ends and turn it gently on the table, and with -a small spoon take out the soft part. Spread some clean paper, turn the -méringues upside down, and put them into the oven to harden; then fill -with whipped cream just flavoured with vanilla and sweetened with sugar; -put two halves together and serve. Threepennyworth of cream is _quite_ -enough for six people, so this dish would cost about 4_d._, as the eggs -were charged for in the croquettes. 4_d._ - -_Turret Puddings._--Take two eggs, add their weight in flour, sugar, and -butter; beat the eggs thoroughly first, then add sugar and flour and the -butter melted; beat all together to a cream; fill small tins, bake for -twenty minutes; add sauce, made from milk, two teaspoonfuls of flour, -and a tablespoonful of brandy; serve hot. Outside cost, 1_s._ - -_Cheese Straws._--Two ounces of butter, 2 oz. of flour, 2 oz. of -bread-crumbs, 2 oz. of cheese grated, half a small saltspoon of mixed -salt and cayenne; mix all together to a paste, and roll it out a quarter -of an inch in thickness; cut it into narrow strips, lay them on a sheet -of paper, and bake for a few minutes; arrange them in a pyramid on a -napkin, and serve hot. Cost, 6_d._ - -_General cost of dinner._--Soup, 2_s._ 4_d._; fish, 2_s._ 5_d._; entrée, -1_s._ 2½_d._; mutton, 8_s._; game, 2_s._ 9_d._; sweets (2), 1_s._ -4_d._; cheese, 6_d._--18_s._ 6½_d._ Very excellent thick cream can be -had from the Gloucester Dairy Company, Gloucester, who send 16 oz. for -1_s._ postage paid. This is invaluable for méringues. The Gloucester -Dairy Company’s little Gloucester cheeses for 2_s._ 6_d._ are also very -useful for dinner-parties. - - MENU NO. VI. - - Almond Soup. - Salmon, Caper Sauce. - Beef Olives. - Grilled Mushrooms. - Saddle of Mutton. - Widgeon. - Tipsy Cake. - College Pudding. - Apple Jelly. - Macaroni Cheese. - Dessert. - -_White Soup._--Two pounds of veal, two quarts of water, one onion, -quarter of a pint of cream, an ounce of butter, two dozen sweet almonds -pounded to paste, salt and cayenne pepper to taste. Boil the veal, -water, and onion slowly all the previous day, take off all the fat, -strain, add other ingredients, thicken with one pennyworth of arrowroot, -and serve very hot. 2_s._ 10_d._ - -_Salmon._--Three pounds, nicely boiled, plain melted butter; add a small -amount of liquor from a bottle of capers, a teaspoonful of the capers -chopped fine, and half a teaspoonful of lemon juice. Fish, 7_s._ 6_d._; -sauce, 6_d._ - -_Beef Olives._--One pound of beefsteak, cut in squares about three -inches and half an inch thick, chopped thyme and parsley, pepper and -salt sprinkled over the beef, roll each piece, place on small skewer, -stew in stock for an hour, thicken stock with a little flour and butter, -pour over the olives, and serve very hot. 1_s._ 2_d._ - -_Grilled Mushrooms._--Wipe a dozen mushrooms carefully, place on tin in -front of fire with a small piece of butter, salt and pepper to taste on -each, have ready twelve little pieces of toasted bread, and when done -put a mushroom on each piece; serve very hot. Outside cost, 2_s._ 6_d._ - -_Small Saddle of Mutton_ (_about 8 lbs._).--Currant jelly, potatoes put -through sieve after well boiling, stewed celery covered with melted -butter, currant jelly. Outside cost of all, 10_s._ - -_Widgeon._--Plainly roasted, sent in very hot with their own gravy, -lemon juice, and cayenne; potato shavings--potatoes to be cut in thin -strips, fried a light brown in boiling lard, then placed on blotting -paper to remove grease, placed in _hot_ vegetable dish and served. 3_s._ - -_Tipsy Cake._--Take a sixpenny Madeira cake, cut it in three rounds, -spread the rounds with raspberry jam, scoop out the middle of the top -slices, soak it in a quarter of a pint of sherry until tender; fill up -centre with preserved fruit, and cover with whipped cream. Outside cost, -2_s._ - -_College Pudding._--Butter a shape, stick it all round with split -raisins, line with brown cut from a sally lunn, cut the rest in slices, -and put it with a few ratifias and macaroons into the mould; beat two -eggs in enough milk to cover the pudding; add a tablespoonful of sugar, -cover it with a buttered paper and a cloth; boil it for an hour. Cost, -1_s._ - -_Apple Shape._--Two pounds of apples, boiled to a pulp in half a -teacupful of water, juice of one lemon, two ounces of sugar, half an -ounce of gelatine, soaked in quarter of a pint of water; mix well -together, and rub together through a hair sieve whilst hot; butter a -mould, pour in, leave until cold. Serve with custard made as -follows:--Quarter of a pint of milk, one egg, teaspoonful of corn-flour, -sugar to taste; bring the milk to boiling point, and add other -ingredients; stir until thick, remove from fire, set to cool; when cold -pour it over the shape. 10_d._ - -_Macaroni Cheese._--Quarter of a pound of macaroni, two ounces of -butter, three ounces of Cheddar cheese, pepper and salt to taste, half a -pint of milk, one pint of water, bread-crumbs. Boil the macaroni until -tender in the milk and water, sprinkle cheese and some of the butter -among it, then season with the pepper, and cover all with finely grated -bread-crumbs. Warm the rest of the butter and pour it over the -bread-crumbs; brown it before a fire, and serve very hot. Cost, 9_d._ - -Soup, 2_s._ 10_d._; fish, 8_s._; beef olives, 1_s._ 2_d._; mushrooms, -2_s._ 6_d._; mutton, 10_s._; widgeon, 3_s._; sweets, 3_s._ 10_d._; -cheese, 10_d._ Total cost, 1_l._ 12_s._ 2_d._ - - * * * * * - -I think the receipts given above would form the nucleus for any amount -of moderate entertainment, but I may speak of two capital books which -would assist any young housekeeper, and which have done me so much good -I should be ungrateful not to mention them. One is Mrs. de Salis’s -‘Entrées à la Mode,’ published by Longmans at 1_s._ 6_d._, and the other -is Mrs. Beeton’s ‘Household Management,’ a 7_s._ 6_d._ book, but one no -mistress of a household should ever think of being without. - -Though naturally invalids’ cooking does not come in properly when one -should be thinking of nothing but pleasant matters, cooking reminds me -of a valuable piece of information given to me by a friend, and at the -risk of being called to order I must just give one hint in regard to -beef-tea, the making of which is often very wasteful and tiring to an -invalid’s patience, and which can be made most successfully by taking a -nice juicy beefsteak and cutting off all the superfluous fat; then this -should be salted and peppered to taste, and floured on both sides; then -the bottom of a stew-pan should be covered with just enough water to -keep the meat from sticking, and the meat should be allowed to stew by -the side of the fire from one hour and a quarter, according to size. The -gravy is excellent rich beef-tea, while the steak itself is beautifully -tender and fit to be sent to table. One or two allspice berries put in -with the meat give a flavour of wine, and thus we have good pleasant -beef-tea for an invalid and luncheon for ourselves, with none of the -waste that often accompanies the making of what is all too often a -tasteless, greasy, and disagreeable compound. - -Another dish for a convalescent is made by treating a chop in the same -way as a steak as regards the pepper, salt, and flour. It is then put on -a plate with a tablespoonful of water, covered with another plate -exactly the same size, and put into a slow oven for more than an hour. -When cooked, the top plate should be turned down to the bottom, so the -chop is hot to the last, and has not been disturbed, and is so tender -and thoroughly cooked it does not need masticating, and it is also so -nice that many clergymen are glad to find this ready for them after -leaving church, instead of the orthodox cold supper. It literally cooks -itself, and is therefore no trouble on Sundays; while for a country -doctor, whose hours are uncertain, and who all too often subsists on -either sodden or scorched-up food, it is a perfect dish, and should be -recollected by all those good housewives who are often enough at their -wits’ end to find something nice for the bread-winner when he returns -home after a long and fatiguing drive over country roads and open moors. - -So, that I may not be utterly condemned for dragging in my invalids, I -will just mention that a very nice dish for a small evening party is -made by simply grating raw chestnuts up very finely into a dish, and -covering them thickly with whipped cream, sweetened and flavoured to -taste; while tins of American peaches, placed in a deep dish and -sweetened to taste and covered with good whipped cream, are also things -most useful to the country housewife, who is often called upon to -provide a good _extra_ dish in a hurry, despite her distance from shops -and the impossibility of getting anything decent in her village; while -Edwards’ desiccated soup is an excellent ‘standby’ in any country house, -for with its aid soup is always forthcoming; and with soup and a -pretty-looking sweet the simplest dinner may be made to pass off with -sufficient _éclat_ to satisfy a guest who may have been cajoled into -sharing pot-luck, despite the fact that the nearest butcher is four -miles off and that it is not the game season--a species of entertaining -most trying to any one, especially in the country, but which even there -can be faced with equanimity if we have sense, a few tinned provisions -in our store-cupboards, and a cook who does not become flurried and who -has her stockpot always going. A very good dinner can be extemporised by -adding some of Edwards’ desiccated soup to the ordinary soup; a -side-dish can be made from poached eggs on spinach, from tinned lobsters -made into cutlets, from any remains of cold meat made into croquettes; -while pancakes and tinned peaches and cream add sufficient variety to -whatever had been prepared for the late dinner, which can be -furthermore supplemented and helped out by some of the cooked cheese -prepared in one of the ways given in the menu receipts; but a welcome -must be forthcoming too, else no amount of dinner will make the -unexpected guest feel as if he were being entertained. - -One last hint: always, unless you live in London, keep two or three new -toothbrushes and a clean brush and comb in the house; then, should your -guest be willing to remain until the next morning unexpectedly, you will -even be ready for that emergency, and will not have one tiny flaw left -to be found in your simple but most complete system of entertaining. - - - - -CHAPTER XX. - -THE SUMMING-UP. - - -I have been so continually asked what is the very smallest possible sum -of money that will suffice to furnish a little house for a young couple -beginning life, that I have drawn up from actual bills a short schedule -of the cost of furnishing the ordinary villa residence in the suburbs. -But to this must be added quite another 50_l._ should the householder -have literally every single thing to buy; for in this special house, as -will be seen from the list, several rather important items were already -procured, and wedding presents made a great and perceptible difference -in the appearance of the modest _ménage_, as is fortunately generally -the case with all young couples starting in life, who, if they are wise, -will only purchase necessaries at first, saving their money until they -are actually married, and know not only what their friends have given -them, but also what the house itself really requires. There is no doubt, -if this be done, the following will suffice at first; and on 150_l._ the -house will not only look nice but artistic too. - -DINING-ROOM. - - Bought of £ _s._ _d._ - A. and R. Smee Six oak-framed rush-seated chairs at 25_s._ 7 10 0 - Maple Mahogany table 3 5 0 - “ Kidderminster square carpet 1 17 6 - Burnett Felt for curtains 1 4 9 - Whiteley Fender 0 7 6 - “ Fireirons 0 9 6 - ------------ - £14 14 3 - -There were two deep cupboards in this special room, which rendered the -purchase of a sideboard unnecessary; if one be imperative, I recommend -the purchase of Maple’s ‘Vicarage’ suite of furniture at 20_l._ It is -both pretty and good, I _hear_; I have not actual personal experience of -it. - -DRAWING-ROOM. - - Bought of £ _s._ _d._ - Shoolbred Two squares of carpet 3 15 0 - Maple Sofa and pillows, covered velveteen 9 2 6 - Whiteley Fenders 1 5 6 - “ Fireirons 0 15 0 - Smee Walnut octagonal table 5 0 0 - “ Stuffed arm-chair 5 18 0 - “ Sutherland table 2 0 0 - “ Low chair 0 16 6 - “ Arm-chair in rush &c. 1 2 6 - “ Walnut and rush easy chair 2 5 0 - Whiteley Two low basket chairs 1 0 0 - “ Cushions made at home 0 12 0 - Burnett Cretonne for curtains &c. 1 10 0 - Holroyd and Barker Muslin for second curtains 0 10 6 - ----------- - £35 12 6 - -I strongly advise in addition to this one of Messrs. Trübner’s excellent -revolving bookcases, of which a drawing was made in my dining-room -sketch. I consider no lover of books should be without one of these -invaluable bookcases. - -BEST BEDROOM. - - Bought of £ _s._ _d._ - Maple Black and brass bedstead 3 5 0 - “ Excelsior spring mattress 2 9 0 - “ Hair mattress 3 10 0 - “ Bolster 0 17 6 - “ Four pillows (5_s._ each) 1 0 0 - Smee Washing-stand 5 5 0 - “ Dressing-table and glass 5 5 0 - Maple Kidderminster square 1 14 0 - Smee Two pretty chairs (5_s._) 0 10 0 - Maple Box ottoman 2 15 0 - Smee Chest of drawers 6 10 0 - Burnett Cretonne for curtains 0 15 0 - Smee Muslin for ditto (4½_d._) 0 6 0 - Whiteley Fender 0 4 3 - “ Fireirons 0 3 11 - ----------- - £34 9 8 - -Ware was in the possession of the young people, but a nice set can be -bought for 7_s._ 6_d._, and even a little less; glass jug and glass for -1_s._ 6_d._, at Douglas’s, the artistic glass-shop in Piccadilly. - -DRESSING-ROOM. - - Bought of £ _s._ _d._ - Treloar Rug on floor 0 12 0 - Whiteley Bath 1 1 0 - Watts Dressing-table and washing-stand combined 6 5 0 - Maple Wardrobe 5 0 0 - “ Set of ware &c. 0 8 6 - ----------- - £13 6 6 - -SPARE ROOM. - - Bought of £ _s._ _d._ - Maple Five-foot bedstead 2 5 0 - “ Excelsior mattress 2 9 0 - “ Hair mattress 3 10 0 - “ Bolster and pillows (4) 1 17 6 - Smee Washing-stand 5 5 0 - “ Dressing-table and glass, very deep drawers 5 5 0 - “ Two chairs (5_s._) 0 10 0 - “ Chest of drawers 4 10 0 - Burnett Cretonne for curtains 0 15 0 - Smee Muslin “ “ 0 6 0 - Treloar Kidderminster square 1 1 0 - Whiteley Fender 0 4 3 - “ Fireirons 0 3 11 - “ Set of ware 0 5 0 - ----------- - £28 6 8 - -SERVANT’S ROOM (ONE MAID). - - Bought of £ _s._ _d._ - Maple Japanned bedstead 0 13 6 - “ Palliasse 0 6 9 - “ Mattress 0 10 0 - “ Bolster and pillow 0 9 0 - “ Dressing-table 0 4 9 - “ Toilet-glass 0 5 0 - “ Set of ware 0 3 9 - “ Chair 0 2 0 - “ Washing-stand 0 5 0 - “ Dhurries for bedside 0 3 10 - ----------- - £4 5 1 - -STAIRCASE. - - Bought of £ _s._ _d._ - Shoolbred Kalmuc stair-carpet 2 15 0 - Maple Umbrella-stand 0 12 0 - “ Hooks and rails for hats 0 15 0 - ----------- - £4 2 0 - -KITCHEN. - -(Whiteley for all.) - - £ _s._ _d._ - Deal Table 1 1 6 - Two Chairs (3_s._ 9_d._) 0 7 6 - Three cups and saucers (2¾_d._) 0 0 8¼ - Three plates (2¼_d._) 0 0 6¾ - One bread-and-butter plate 0 2 4¾ - Two bowls 0 0 4½ - Set of jugs 0 1 6 - Bread-pan 0 1 6½ - Four brown jars 0 2 11 - Two pie-dishes 0 1 1½ - Hot-water jug 0 2 6 - Slop-pail 0 4 9 - Knife-tray 0 1 6 - Egg-whisk 0 0 7½ - Fish-slice 0 0 10½ - Mincing-knife 0 1 4½ - Sugar-tin 0 2 3 - Weights and scales 0 8 11 - Pestle and mortar 0 3 3 - Copper kettle 0 7 3 - Two wire covers 0 1 3½ - Sweep’s brush for stove 0 1 1½ - Two stove-brushes 0 3 4 - Banister brush 0 2 0 - Scrubbing-brushes 0 1 3½ - Broom 0 2 11 - Carpet-broom 0 2 11 - Knifeboard 0 1 1½ - Two plate-brushes 0 1 9½ - Plate-polisher 0 1 6½ - Salt-box 0 1 3½ - Leather 0 1 1½ - Housemaid’s box 0 2 3½ - One fork-tin 0 0 6½ - Colander 0 1 4½ - Spice-box 0 1 11½ - Cake-tin 0 0 7½ - Tart-tins 0 0 5¾ - Patty-pans 0 0 6½ - Meat-saw 0 1 11½ - Meat-chopper 0 1 11½ - Coalscuttle 0 4 6 - Coal-hammer 0 0 10¾ - Coal-shovel 0 2 3 - Toast-fork 0 0 6½ - Pepper-box 0 0 4¾ - Tea-tray 0 1 11½ - Paste jagger 0 1 11½ - Two flat irons 0 1 9½ - Pail 0 1 4½ - Brass water-jug 0 5 6 - Japanned can 0 5 11 - Two saucepans 0 9 6 - One saucepan 0 2 3 - One saucepan 0 1 9½ - ‘Digester’ 0 12 0 - Basting-ladle 0 0 11½ - Two tin moulds 0 3 6 - Oval fryingpan 0 1 2½ - Gridiron 0 1 9½ - Fish-kettle 0 3 11 - Tea-kettle 0 4 11 - Knives 0 0 8¾ - Dustpan 0 0 10¾ - Bread-grater 0 0 7¾ - Gravy-strainer 0 1 0½ - Flour-dredger 0 0 7¾ - Pasteboard 0 1 11½ - Rolling-pin 0 1 9½ - Steps 0 5 3 - Set of dinner-ware 1 1 0 - Set of tea-ware 0 12 6 - ----------- - £11 2 1½ - -SUMMARY OF ALL. - - £ _s._ _d._ - Dining-room 14 14 3 - Two drawing-rooms 35 12 0 - Best bedroom 34 9 8 - Spare room 28 6 8 - Servant’s room 4 5 1 - Staircase 4 2 0 - Kitchen things 11 2 1½ - Dressing-room 13 6 6 - --------------- - £145 18 3½ - -Besides this we spent about 5_l._ on blankets and odds and ends; but all -house linen was given, and several other things. However, the above will -demonstrate how it is possible to furnish a small house on 150_l._, and -have for this good, well-made furniture that will wear, and is not mere -cheap rubbish stuck together to sell, and not meant to last. - -To manage this satisfactorily it is necessary to keep one’s eyes open -and know precisely where to buy everything, for locality makes an -enormous difference, and different shops have always some one thing -cheaper than any other establishment; and while Whiteley will ask 1_s._ -4½_d._ for the glass globes that cost 3_s._ 6_d._ at Shoolbred’s, -Shoolbred will sell for 3_s._ 6_d._ a brass can that costs 4_s._ 6_d._ -or 5_s._ everywhere else. To furnish cheaply and satisfactorily, -therefore, one’s eyes must be kept open, and one must know exactly where -to go for everything. And I may mention here, as a short and succinct -guide, that cretonnes are cheaper and better at Burnett’s, King Street, -Covent Garden, and at Colbourne’s, 82 Regent Street, than anywhere else; -that Maple’s Oriental rugs and carpets, matting, wall-papers, and -brasses are also the cheapest in the market. Wicker chairs are to be had -at Colbourne’s for 31_s._ 9_d._, painted any colour with Aspinall’s -enamel, and cushioned and covered with cretonne or printed linen; that -artistic and beautiful draperies are to ha procured at Liberty’s and -Collinson and Lock’s, whose dearer cretonnes are unsurpassed; that Mr. -Arthur Smee’s furniture is the best and most artistic, in my opinion, in -London; that Stephens, 326 Regent Street, has the best and cheapest -Turkish embroidered antimacassars, and also possesses some beautiful and -inexpensive materials for curtains--notably a cheap brocade that is made -in exquisite colours and called Sicilian damask; that the brass rods and -ends for windows are to be had cheaper of Whiteley and Colbourne than -anywhere else, and are quite as good as the more expensive makes; -artistic pottery is to be had of Mr. Elliott, 18 Queen’s Road, -Bayswater; cheap chairs of Messrs. Harding Bros., Beaconsfield, Bucks; -and for all gas-fittings I strongly recommend Mr. Strode, 48 Osnaburgh -Street, Regent’s Park, N.W. I have tried all these firms for years, and -am speaking of them from experience entirely. - -It may not be out of place in my last chapter to mention the exact cost -of setting up and keeping a carriage; for by the time my readers have -come as far on their life’s journey as I have, they may reasonably -expect to have the great comfort and luxury of a modest equipage of -their own, than which there is no greater blessing in the world, and -which I would rather cling to than anything else I possess, and which -really does not cost half as much as the constant hiring of flys and -driving in cabs which are so dear to the heart of the orthodox British -matron, who goes on her weary round of society gaieties which she does -not really enjoy, little thinking how much happier she would be spending -her money in a thousand different ways. - -But one must keep one’s carriage with common-sense, like everything -else, and must not be under the thumb of one’s coachman, who must not be -allowed for one moment to buy his own corn &c., as no class receives -higher percentages than does the coachman who is allowed his own sweet -will in matters appertaining to the stable. A widow lady who cannot well -battle with tradesmen herself had much better apply to some good firm -like Withers and Co., of Oxford Street, who for a certain sum a year, -which varies according to the style of horse and man desired, will -provide everything, down to a safe place for the carriages, which can be -left unhesitatingly in their charge. But for a couple who desire to set -up their carriage and do not quite know how to do it, I think the -following will be sufficient guide for them:-- - -ESTIMATED COST OF SETTING UP ONE HORSE AND A CARRIAGE. - - £ _s._ _d._ - Good horse (should be bought in the country if possible) 50 0 0 - Set of good single harness (Stores) 7 0 0 - Brushes, leathers, sponges, &c. (Shoolbred) 2 0 0 - Rugs, rollers, &c. (Shoolbred) 3 0 0 - Brougham or victoria (Holland and Holland) 175 0 0 - Coachman’s livery (Goodall and Graham, Conduit Street) 10 11 0 - Boots--less discount (Thierry, Regent Street) 3 0 0 - Stable suit (Goodall and Graham) 3 0 0 - Mackintosh (Goodall and Graham) 1 10 0 - Mackintosh rug (Whiteley) 1 10 0 - Mats (Holland and Holland) 1 10 0 - Carriage rugs (Swears and Wells) 3 0 0 - ------------ - £261 1 6 - -Of course the carriage need not cost as much; but, if possible, a new -carriage is to be preferred to a second-hand one. Still, at Holland and -Holland’s, Oxford Street, W., one can often, especially at the end of -the season, pick up a second-hand carriage very cheaply, and at such a -place as this one can be sure that no rubbish is being bought; but sales -should be avoided, as should advertisements, and if a second-hand -carriage is necessary I strongly advise intending purchasers to go to -Holland and Holland and ask them to keep their eyes open, remembering, -likewise, that at the end of the season one is far more likely to do a -good stroke of business in this way than at any other time of the year. -In our climate, if only one carriage can be kept, a brougham is to be -preferred to any other; this makes one independent of weather entirely, -and one’s garments do not become as dusty and spoiled as they invariably -do in an open vehicle. Once the carriage is purchased, we have to -consider the cost of keeping it up, which, of course, varies -considerably in every locality, but I think the account given below -strikes the average, and allows the outside cost of everything. Of -course, very often the rent of the stables is covered in the rent of the -house, which includes also a place for the coachman. - -ESTIMATED COST OF KEEPING ONE HORSE AND CARRIAGE. - - £ _s._ _d._ - Coachman’s wages (from 23_s._ to 25_s._, say) 62 8 0 - Livery 13 0 0 - Corn, straw, hay, &c. 40 0 0 - Shoeing 3 0 0 - Repairs &c. 26 0 0 - Rent of stable &c. 20 0 0 - ------------ - £164 8 0 - -‘Repairs &c.’ include ‘depreciation,’ which is calculated on 20 per -cent. of estimated value of whole, less livery, otherwise provided for. -Of course, a second horse could be added for about 40_l._ a year more, -good double harness being procurable at from 18_l._ to 20_l._ - -Passing from the carriage to dwell for a moment on the great dress -question, which is a most serious one in these days of ours, I find I -can really lay down no laws on this subject, but I strongly advise all -young brides who cannot afford a maid to learn dressmaking for -themselves, or to search out some place where, for a reasonable cost, -the renovating of dresses and simple making can be carried on for her, -or else she will soon find herself in difficulties. Her under-linen in -her trousseau should last her ten or twelve years at least, and with -ordinary care her trousseau dresses should, with judicious management, -last her quite two years; this gets over the worst part of one’s life as -regards pecuniary bothers, as a rule; but the less she can spend on -dress the better, always allowing herself enough to look nice and be -tidy on. A man can dress himself well on 30_l._ a year, and a woman can -do likewise on 50_l._, but this requires, in both cases, the most -careful management, while the average cost of a child is from 10_l._ to -15_l._ Women with small means will do much better if they confine -themselves to one colour, and would look much nicer at a far less cost -if they would only purchase things to match; but English people, as a -rule, only buy things because they like them, never considering whether -they possess already any garment at home with which the new possession -will harmonise or agree entirely. Brown and red are good colours for -winter nowadays when so many people have seal-skins; greys are good -shades for summer, the ever-useful serge and washing silks looking -always delightfully cool and ladylike. - -Our book, now rapidly coming to a conclusion, would not be complete -without one word about the ‘garret’--otherwise the box-room--which, all -too often, is a storehouse for all sorts and conditions of rubbish, put -up there in a desperate hope that, sooner or later, the odds and ends -will come in usefully. There cannot be a greater mistake than hoarding, -and I strongly advise my readers never to allow this to be done. If -one’s clothes when worn out are not fit for one’s poorer friends, I -suggest some respectable dealer should be applied to, and that they -should be sold. I am aware this sounds an awful proposition to most -people, but how rarely are our dresses suitable for those who would wear -cast-off raiment? while, if we sell them, we can give the money in -charity, or buy pictures or flowers for our rooms. Still, if this should -be repugnant to the feelings of my readers, they can always send all -their rubbish to the Kilburn Orphanage of Mercy, the good sisters there -being able to use to the veriest fragment all they receive, and which -does then immediate good. - -Let the box-room or garret be thoroughly turned out and investigated -once every three months; keep there all pieces of paper similar to the -papers on your walls for mending purposes, and any travelling trunks or -boxes that may be wanted; but do not accumulate rubbish of any kind. -Even sentimental rubbish should be destroyed at once; when we die it -will be done by hands which are not as tender as ours are, and no good -is done by hoarding all sorts and kinds of letters and flowers, or even -babies’ first shoes. They may mean life itself to us; they will be -nothing but the veriest rubbish to our successors. - -Standing as it were in the garret, our long work of revising and writing -this book at last drawing to a conclusion, and feeling sad, as one -always feels when parting with an occupation that has been on one’s mind -for many a month, I should like to say a few words on that saddest of -all subjects, a death in the house--only a few words; but a house that -has never known a death is indeed an almost impossible thing to -contemplate, and so our record would not be complete without this. Thank -Heaven, we look out with brighter eyes on the other country than did our -ancestors, but we have still many customs to leave off, many others we -could adopt with benefit from the relics of past days. - -I would advocate great cheerfulness about our dead. They should never be -left alone, and candles and bright flowers should fill the room; where, -had I my way, the blessed sunshine should stream in always, gloom should -be discouraged, and the service with its music and the coloured pall -should suggest not our grief but the gain of those who, even to the -agnostic of the period, appear at rest, and can most certainly never -weary or hunger any more; while to us who hope to look beyond these -shadows their happiness should overshadow our grief entirely. Still, -whichever way we look on the silence that surrounds our little life, -there are certain things that I would urge on the survivors. Let all the -personal linen and garments of the dead friend be at once sent to -Kilburn, or to Miss Hinton’s, A. F. D. Society, 4 York Place, Clifton. -These garments are distributed at once among the families of poor -clergymen, and so immediately benefit a most deserving class. Do not -permit any hoarding (I once knew a whole valuable wardrobeful of clothes -consumed by the moth, because the widow’s feelings did not allow of the -garments being disturbed, though they were not too acute to prevent her -becoming engaged to be married before the year was out); and, above all, -burn all letters that may be left _unread_; this will save endless -mischief, and should be done at once. No one knows who may be the next -to depart and be no more seen, and so this should not be delayed any -longer than is possible. - -It is far better to do these things at once. If we close the room in -which our beloved have passed away, and think time will enable us to -face the task with more boldness, we shall find we are grievously -mistaken; the longer we put it off the worse it will be, and we shall -not forget them any quicker because their own possessions have been -given to those who can benefit by them. Each thing in life should always -be in use; hoarding of any kind in a garret is useless, and wicked too. - -And now I have come to the last hint, I think, I have to give my young -householders. Of course, the subject is practically inexhaustible, and -enlarges itself for one every day we live; but I have given you all my -own experience up to the present date, and if it should save one young -couple the mistakes I made in my first start in life, or give them the -help I should have been so glad of myself twenty years ago, I shall feel -I have not spent my time in vain; while let no one despise the homely -subject, for it is our first duty in life to try and make our homes so -bright and beautiful and pleasant that they may shed radiance on all in -their immediate neighbourhood, setting the example that is worth so very -much precept, and be like good deeds, ‘shining like a candle in this -naughty world.’ Let love, beauty, carefulness, and economy rule your -lives, O young householders! and then you will find that life is the -most interesting thing possible, and is always, to the very last day of -it, well worth the trouble of living. - - - - -INDEX. - - -Absurd arrangement of our houses, 171, 172 - -Account book, leaf from an, 24 - -Accounts, 23-25 - -A. F. D. Society, Miss Hinton’s, 231 - -Afternoon teas, 209, 210 - -Airing bedroom, 115, 116 - --- beds, 116 - --- nursery, 170 - -‘Allowancing’ servants, 154 - -American cloth, 77 - -Angelina’s bedroom, 103 - --- private duster, 125 - --- wardrobe, 121 - -Antimacassars, 74 - --- Stephens’, 227 - --- Turkish, 84 - -A place for everything, 129 - -Apple shape, 220 - -Arm-chair, 62-64 - -Arm-chairs, Colbourne’s, 62 - --- tapestry for covering, Maple’s, 62 - -Arsenic in wall-paper, 69 - -Art and the bitter lot of the poor, 7 - --- colours, 7 - --- furniture, 7 - -Artistic corners, 84 - -Aspinall’s paint, 68, 76 - - -Babies, baths for, 189 - --- clothing, 185, 186 - --- cow’s milk for, 163 - --- garments, 185 - --- special theories about, 162 - -Babies, their berceaunettes, 170, 171, 173, 174 - -Baby-talk, stupid, 172 - -Back of piano exposed, remedy for, 86, 87 - -Baker Street vases, 77 - -Bamboo brackets (Liberty’s, and at Baker Street Bazaar), 75 - -Basket chairs, 74 - -Baskets for soiled linen, palm-leaved, 121 - -Bath and bath blankets, 138, 139 - -Beaconsfield chairs, 75, 132 - -Beaufort ware, 126 - -Beautiful things, making them common, 7 - -Bed airing, 115 - --- gowns, 188 - --- making, 103 - --- pocket, 116 - -Bedroom brackets, 120 - --- carpet, 103, 104 - --- chairs, 131 - --- cupboards, 106-107 - --- curtains, 107 - --- door fittings, 107 - --- match-boxes, 116 - --- paper, 46, 105, 106, 107, 108 - --- -- colour for, 104, 106 - --- screen, 112 - --- ware, 126 - --- windows, muslin for, 92 - --- -- too many, 4 - -Bedrooms, 4, 5 - --- colour for, 103 - --- papering ceilings of, 107 - -Beds for servants, 152 - -Bedside, table near, 116 - -Bedstead, brass or iron, the best, 113 - --- wooden, 112 - -Beef, cold, 28 - --- olives, 220 - -Beer, 25 - -Beginning housekeeping, 25, 26 - -Bellows for dining-room, 68 - -Benson’s lamps, 102 - -Berceaunettes, 173, 174 - -‘Berry’ paper, 46 - -Bills, regular payment of, 20, 22, 23 - -Biscuit-box, 34 - -Black-lead, 85 - -Blankets, Witney, 114 - -Blinds and their rollers, doing away with, 91, 95 - -Blue and white paper for bachelor’s spare room, Chappel & Payne’s, 151 - -Boarding-school plan a mistake, 204 - -Bohemian ware, 31 - -Boiled rabbit, 28 - -Bolton sheeting, 188 - -Bookcase, bedroom, 133 - --- velveteen cover, 73 - -Bookcases, revolving American, 72, 73 - -Books for spare rooms, 147, 148 - -Boudoir, spare room made into, 142 - -Bow-windowed villas, window-seats in, 59, 92 - -Bow-windows, curtains for, 92, 93 - -Box ottomans for bedrooms, 106, 110 - --- -- -- -- Maple’s, 106 - --- -- -- hats and bonnets, 130 - --- pincushions, 119 - --- room, 142 - -Brackets, 133 - -Brandy the one spirituous liquor that should be kept in a house, 72 - -Brass brush for dining-room, 68 - --- door handles best, 80 - --- fire-irons, 85 - --- fittings for bedroom doors, Maple’s 106, 107 - --- headed nails, 80 - --- kettle, 72 - -Brass pots, 88 - --- pots for palms, Hampton’s, 88 - -Bread, 19 - --- brown, 27 - --- knives, Mappin & Webb’s, 35 - --- price of, 20 - --- stands, 35 - --- wasted, 16 - -Bread-pan with cover, 16 - -Breakfast, 26, 27, 34 - --- table, 32, 35 - --- -- gloomy, 5 - --- -- punctuality, 14, 15 - -Brewers, 25 - -Bromley, 3 - -Brooks, Shirley, 27 - -Brougham, cost of, 228 - -Brushes and combs, 122, 123, 223 - -Brushing under beds, 116 - -Buckland, Frank, 19 - -Burnett, address of, 227 - -Burnett’s ‘Marguerite’ cretonne curtains, 34 - --- serges, 84 - -Bush Hill Park, 3 - -Butchers, 25 - -Butter, cost of, 20 - -Buyers of bottles, rags, &c., 17 - - -Cabinet pudding, 216 - -Cabinets, 73, 74 - --- made by Smee, 74 - -‘Calls,’ doing away with, 89 - -Canadian custom respecting carpets, 96, 97 - -Candle shields, 101, 120 - -Candlesticks, Liberty’s, 45, 64 - -Carbolic acid, 13 - -Careless housemaid, 85 - --- servants, 29 - -Carlyle, Mr. and Mrs., 7 - -Carpentry, amateur, 4, 110 - -Carpet designs, Mr. Morris’s, 97 - --- for drawing-room, 80, 81, 82 - --- royal blue, Colbourne’s, 97 - -Carpets, 4, 5 - --- hints about, 96, 97 - --- Oriental, 98 - --- Wilton, 98 - -Carriage, cost of keeping a, 227, 228, 229 - --- rugs, rollers, &c., cost of, 228 - -Carrot soup, 216 - -Carson’s ‘detergent,’ 49, 109 - -Cauliflower _au gratin_, 213 - -Centre-piece, 34, 35 - -Chairs, bedroom, 131 - --- dining-room, 5, 51 - --- embellished by carvings, 51 - --- Harding Bros.’, 52 - --- Liberty’s, 85 - --- New Zealand pine, for dining-room, 51 - --- (rush-seated, black-framed) for dining-room, 52 - --- Smee’s, 52 - -Chambers, large, airy, 160 - -Chappel & Payne, address of, 151 - -Charming chair for drawing-room (rush-seated), 85 - -Checked muslin for bedroom windows, 92 - -Cheerful surroundings, 7 - -Cheese fondus, 214 - --- soufflés, 217 - --- straws, 219 - -Cheval glass, 122 - -Chickens, 20, 28 - -Child of the period, the, 162 - -Children and inherited tendencies, 191 - --- amusing themselves, 178 - --- authors for, 197 - --- collecting pretty things around them, 179 - --- destructive and untidy, 177 - --- diet for, 195 - --- grown-up, 206, 207 - --- helping their elders, 175 - --- hour for rising, 176 - --- hours for studying, 195, 196 - --- importance of quiet and regularity for, 164 - --- -- -- sunshine for, 192 - --- punishing, 196 - --- spoiling them, 161 - --- teaching them self-control, 175 - --- the home they were born in, 208 - -Children’s breakfast, 195 - --- dress, 200 - --- education, 195 - -Chimneys, 5 - -China, Crown, Derby, and Worcester, 33 - --- gilt on, 32 - -China, Minton’s ivy-patterned, 32 - --- Oriental, 34 - --- real, 33 - -Chippendale chairs, 51 - --- furniture, 8 - -Chocolate cream, 217 - -Choosing rooms, 7 - -Cigars in drawing-room, 86 - -Clean brush and comb in toilet drawer, 122 - -Clear soup, 213 - -Clock, necessity for, in spare rooms, 147, 149 - -Clocks, Oetzmann’s, 64 - -Coachman’s livery, cost of, 228 - -Coats hanging in rooms, 85 - -Coffee, 34 - --- cost of, 20 - -Colbourne, Messrs, address of, 62 - -College pudding, 220 - -Colours for bedrooms, 149 - -Combination dressing-table and washing-stand, Watts’s, 136 - -Common sense, 6 - -‘Confound baby!’, 124 - -Conservatory, tiny, 2 - -Cook, overburdened, 9 - --- thoughtful, 17, 18 - -Cooks, ‘experienced,’ 18 - -Cost of dinner, 217, 219 - -Cottage piano, 86 - -Counterpanes, 116 - -Cradles, 173, 174 - -Credit, nothing so dear as, 20 - -Cretonne, 47, 82 - --- curtain, 69, 71, 94 - --- on mantelpiece, 77 - -Croquettes of chickens, 218 - -Cruet-stands, 34 - -Cupboards forgotten, 4 - --- small, 106, 107 - -Curried kidneys, 216 - -Curtain, bedroom, 134 - --- rods, bedroom, 131 - --- -- Maple’s, 41 - -Curtains, 4, 5, 82 - --- _v._ screens, 112 - -Cutlets _à la réforme_, 213 - --- of cod, 216 - - -Dado, Collison and Lock’s, 82 - --- in dining-room, 58 - --- in drawing-room, 78 - --- leather paper for, 56 - -Dado rail, Maple’s, 56 - --- Treloar’s, 46 - -Damasks, Stephens’ ‘Sicilienne,’ 93 - -Day nursery, 164 - -Deal dressing-tables, 118 - -Decorating drawing-room, 82 - -‘Demon builder,’ the, 160 - -Dessert service, Hewett’s, 32 - --- -- Mortlock’s, 33 - -‘Digesters,’ 17 - -Dining-room, 5, 6, 7, 8, 27, 49-68 - --- mantelpiece, 64, 65, 66 - --- walls, 56 - -Dining-rooms, orthodox, 7 - -Dinner, complete cost of, 213 - --- service, best, 29 - --- sets, Mortlock’s, 31 - --- waggons, 54 - -Disagreeable details, 9 - -Dishes, 30 - -Disinfectants, 14 - -Doctors’ bills, 23, 25, 201 - -Domestic problems, 206 - -‘Do nothing in a hurry,’ 9 - -Door front, 47, 48 - --- -- brass stand behind, 42 - --- -- double curtains for, 41, 42 - -Double tray tables, 84 - -Dr. Chevasse, 181 - --- -- books by, for young mothers, 181 - -Drain disinfectant, 14 - -Drainage, 4 - -Drains, 13, 14 - --- time for seeing to, 14 - -Draped alcove, Collison & Lock’s design, 112 - -Drawing-room, 5, 60, 67, 71, 76, 77 - --- blue wooden mantelpiece for, 80 - --- carpet, Colbourne’s, 81 - --- -- Maple’s, 80 - --- -- Shoolbred’s, 80 - --- -- Smee’s, 81 - --- -- Treloar’s, 80, 82 - --- colour for, 78, 80, 82 - --- curtains, 93 - --- essentially a best room, 86 - --- mistress’s corner, 84 - --- tea-table for, 89 - -Dress and personal appearance of daughters, 206 - --- cost of, for man and wife, 229 - -Dress, wife’s, 20 - -Dressing jackets invaluable, 188 - --- gown, 188 - --- room, 128 - --- table and washing-stand combined, 136 - --- tables, price of, 118 - --- -- should not be dust-traps, 119 - --- -- Smee’s, 118 - -Drugget, hard-wearing, Pither’s, 46 - -Dulwich, 3 - -Duplex burners, 99 - -Dustbin, 4, 10, 14 - --- not a necessity, 18 - -Dusters, 36 - -Dust-sheets for furniture, 36 - -Dyeing, Pullar’s, 41 - - -Eclairs, 214 - -Edwin’s dressing room, 135 - --- -- substantial dado for, 138 - -Eider-down quilts, 114 - -Eggs, 30 - -Electric light, 98 - -‘Eligible residences,’ 3 - -Elliot, Mr., 73 - --- -- address of, 45 - -Enamel paints, 62 - -Enfield, 3 - -‘Excelsior’ mattresses for spare rooms, 143 - --- spring mattress, 114, 143 - -Exhibiting baby, danger of, 175 - - -Fashion and folly, 4 - -Feather beds, 114 - -Ferns and immortelles for toilet-table, 123 - -Field & Co.’s candle shields, 111 - -Finchley, 3 - -Finger-glasses, 31 - -Fire-keeping, recipe for, 67 - -Fireplaces, 5, 68 - --- misplaced, 4 - -Fires, benefit from, in winter and summer, 124 - --- in bedrooms, benefit of, 124 - -First babies, 162, 175 - --- -- washing them, 189 - -Fish, 20 - --- contracts for, 28 - -Fish Market, Central, 19 - --- markets, 19 - -Fittings, 37 - -Five o’clock tea, 89 - -Flannel pilches, 185 - -Flock papers, 2 - -Floor (bedroom), staining all over, 116 - -Floral paper for spare room, 150 - --- -- Maple’s, 150 - -Flour, 20 - -Flowers in bedrooms, 123 - -Foot-baths, 127 - -Footstools for dining-room, 68 - --- -- morning-room, Whiteley’s and Shoolbred’s, 75 - -Forest Hill, 3 - -Formal visiting, 88 - -Fowl, 20 - -French pancakes, 213 - --- parents, 21 - --- windows and curtains, 91 - -Fresh air, 2 - --- flowers in sick-room, 189 - -Friezes, 80 - --- Mrs. McClelland’s, 77 - -Frilling for sheets, Cash’s, 115 - -Fruit, 20 - -Frying-pans, 16 - -Furnishing, schedule of cost of, 223, 224, 225, 226, 277 - -Furniture, fearful expense of, 171 - - -Garden, small, 2 - -Gardening, 35 - -Garrard, Mrs. S. B. (beds, &c., for infants), 173 - -Garret, 229, 230 - --- regular investigation of, 230 - -Gas, best for spare rooms, 148 - --- effect of, on plants, 169 - --- fittings, Strode’s, 227 - --- in bedrooms, evil of, 101 - --- -- rooms where there are children, necessity for, 101 - --- -- sitting-rooms, 99 - --- _v._ paraffine, 100 - -Gentlemen’s wardrobes, 135 - -German lamp screens, 100 - -Gilt legs to chairs, 8 - -Glass, 31 - --- best, 29 - -Glass cloths, 32 - -Glasses and bottles, coloured, Douglas & Co.’s, 31, 32 - -Going off to school, 201, 202 - -Good hostess, 211 - --- monthly nurses all the battle, 181, 182 - --- servants, insuring them, 154 - -Gossip, spiteful, 198 - -Governess, 199 - -‘Graining,’ a barbarism, 47, 48, 80 - -Grand piano, 87 - --- -- made a decorative piece of furniture, 87 - -Grate, wasteful, 5 - -Grates, Barnard’s, 67 - -Green water, 13 - -Gridirons, 16 - -Grilled mushrooms, 220 - -Groceries, 19, 20 - -Grown-up daughters, 208 - --- families, 207 - -Guests, making them comfortable, 145 - -Guipure lace for curtains, 91 - - -Hall, 41 - --- candlesticks, 45 - --- ceilings papered, 47 - --- flooring, 43 - --- gas-lamps, 47 - --- lighted from the sides, 99 - --- -- -- -- top, 99 - --- oil lamp unsuited for, 89 - -Halls, stone, 48 - -Happy childhood, 196 - -Harding Bros., address of, 52 - -Hare soup, 214 - -Harness for carriage, price of, 228 - -Hassan and Co.’s chickens, 28 - -Healthy children, 162 - -Heavy mahogany, 2 - -Hewett’s bazaar, 32 - --- dessert services, 32 - -Hoarding in garrets, 230 - --- old clothes, 137 - -Honest mechanic, prospect for an, 117 - -Honeycomb quilts, 116 - -Horse, price of, for carriage, 228 - -Hot-water cans for bedrooms, 127 - --- dishes, 35 - -House decoration and the landlord, 37 - --- -- Collison & Lock’s, 37 - --- -- Morris’s, 37 - --- -- Smee’s, 37 - --- hunting, 4 - --- inspection, preliminary, 5 - --- rent, 19 - -Household books, 21 - --- economy, 20 - --- servants, young girls as, 18 - -Housekeeping bills, 154, 211 - -Housemaid’s duties, 35 - --- pantry, 29 - -House-mother, life of, not appreciated, 183 - - -Ideal and real nurseries, 161 - -Indian matting for schoolroom floors, 192 - --- tapestry, Liberty’s, 87 - -Infant and nurse, 175 - -Infants, knowingness of, 172 - -Informal gatherings, 89 - -Inherited tendencies, 201 - -Ink-erasers for hand cleaning (Perry’s), 192 - -Inkstands purchased at Baker Street Bazaar, 64 - -Invalids, cooking for, 221, 222 - -Inventions Exhibition, 99 - -Iron brackets and lamps, 99 - - -Jack Tar suit, 200 - -Jackets and trousers for boys, 200 - -Japanese fan, 76, 77 - --- -- for fireside, 85 - --- leather paper, 56, 58 - --- -- -- for the hall, 46, 86 - --- paper for wardrobe panels, 110 - --- screen for piano, 87 - -Joss-sticks, 189 - -Judicious watchfulness regarding servants, 156 - -Jugs and pots, Elliot’s, 45 - -Jury of matrons, 172 - - -Kidderminster squares, 80, 81 - -Kilburn Orphanage, 230 - -Kitchen arrangements, 9 - --- capabilities of, 9 - -Kitchen ceilings, annual white-washing of, 12 - --- dado in, 11 - --- dinner, 158 - --- dismal, 11 - --- grates skimped, 12 - --- -- smells from, 13 - --- management, 10 - --- passages, 11 - --- position of, 10 - --- staircase a cause of worry, 10 - --- underground, 10 - --- utensils, 15 - --- wash-tub not needed for, 18 - -Kitcheners, Steel & Garland’s, 12 - -Koffee Kanns, Ashe’s, 34 - -Kurd rugs, 46 - -Kyrle Society, 7 - - -Ladies’ chamber in retirement, 186, 187 - -Lahore cretonne, 106 - -Lamp brackets, 99 - --- screens, German, 100 - --- -- selecting colour of, 101 - -Lamps, beaten iron, 47, 99, 102 - --- Benson’s, 102 - --- brass, 111 - --- china, 99 - --- duplex, for nursery, 168 - --- glass hanging, 99 - --- Mortlock’s, 99 - --- paraffine, Drew’s, 102, 116 - --- Smee’s, 47 - --- Strode’s, 47, 99, 102 - -Landing, the, 4 - -Landseer, Sir Edwin, 178 - -Leases and structural repairs, 4 - -Legs of mutton, 19 - --- -- -- à la Bretonne, 218 - -Lemon pudding, 28 - -Liberty’s cretonnes, 78 - --- sashes, 200 - --- silk handkerchiefs, 41 - --- -- -- for curtains, 94 - --- tapestries, 83 - -Lighting bedrooms, 120 - --- of sitting-rooms, 98, 99 - -Linen marking, 115 - --- old-gold colour printed, Pither’s, 95 - -Linoleum mat for dining-room, 68 - -London markets, 28 - --- north side of, 3 - -Lordship Lane, 3 - -Low frocks and short sleeves for children, disappearance of, 170 - -Luncheon, 27 - --- hour (orthodox) for young wives, 76 - - -Macaroni cheese, 220 - -Madras muslin, 71, 82, 92 - -Mahogany sideboard, old, 8 - -Making a bedroom pretty, 132 - -Managing servants, 146 - -Mantelpieces, cheap wooden, Shuffery’s, 67 - -Maple, 30, 43 - -Maple’s bedsteads, 113 - --- box ottomans, 110 - --- Golden Pine carpet, 82 - -Marble mantelpiece, white, 5 - -Marguerite cretonnes, Burnett’s, 94, 108 - -Mats, 4, 5, 46 - -Matting for dining-room, 96 - --- price of, 96 - --- sweeping in one way, 98 - --- Treloar’s, 46 - -Mattresses, cases for, 114 - -Mayfair, tiny hovels in, 4 - -McClelland, Mrs., 77 - -Meal odours in rooms, 6 - -Meals and money, 13 - -Meat, ‘best English,’ often New Zealand, 212 - --- New Zealand, 19 - --- price of, 20 - -Medical attendance, 25 - -Menus, cost of, 211-221 - -Meringues, 219 - -Midday meal, 27 - -Middle-class parents, 21 - -Milk, 20, 25 - -Milkmen, Londoners at the mercy of, 163 - -Mince pies, 213 - -Minton’s china, 32 - -Monograms on cloths, 90 - -Monthly nurse, 176 - -Moreen curtains, 2 - --- damask, 8 - -Morning-room, books and magazines for, 71 - --- chairs, 74, 75 - -Morning-room decoration, 76 - --- desk for, 70 - --- embellishing door-panels of, 70 - --- no gas in, 72 - --- paper for, Smee’s, 96 - --- sage-green paper for, 69 - --- sofa, 71 - --- stand for papers, 71 - --- under care of housemaid, 77 - --- work-table, 71 - -Morocco, dull brown, 51 - -Morris, Mr., 97 - -Mortlock’s china, 31, 32, 33 - --- -- lamps, 99 - --- ware, 126 - -Mulligatawny soup, 218 - -Music, receptacle for, 87 - -Muslin curtains, 91, 92 - -Muslins, Liberty’s, 45 - -Mutton cutlets, 215 - -Mysore chintz, Liberty’s, 45 - --- muslin, 72 - - -Neck of mutton, 28 - -Nevill’s hot-water bread, 27 - -New babies, making ready for, 186 - --- baby a profound nuisance, 182 - -Night garments, 115 - --- -- embroidered case for, 115 - --- nursery, 170 - --- -- management of fire in, 170 - -Nurseries, 32 - --- bright paper for, 165 - --- cretonne, dado, and painted rail for, 165 - --- gas in, 168, 169 - --- good duplex lamp for, 168, 169 - --- pictures on walls of, 177-179 - --- position of, 161 - --- strong guard for fires in, 168 - --- two in a house, 160 - --- _v._ spare rooms, 161 - -Nursery a children’s kingdom, 176 - --- blue and white paper for, 166 - --- ceiling, 165 - --- chair for each child in, 167, 168 - --- choice of a, 160 - --- cretonne cleaned with dry bread, 166 - -Nursery cupboards, 166, 167, 168 - --- doors, 166 - --- floor, 165 - --- furnishing the walls of, 168 - --- made out of worst bedroom, 161 - --- sofa, 167 - --- table, 167 - --- walls, 165 - -Nursing, 169 - - -Occasional visitor, 140 - -Oetzmann, 64 - -Oilcloth, cheap, 11 - --- for walls, 11 - --- resembling old mosaic, 11 - -Old London lamps, 99 - --- night-dresses invaluable, 121 - -Oriental carpets for dining-room, 96 - --- -- Smee’s, for drawing-room, 81 - --- rugs and carpets, sweeping them one way, 98 - --- -- for hall, 46 - -Our dead, 230, 231 - -Ovens, cleansing, 13 - - -Painted suites of furniture, 142 - -Painting, 37 - --- spare rooms, 142 - -Palm-leaved baskets for soiled linen, 121 - -Panelled drawing-room, 80 - -Panes, of glass, tiny, 113 - -Pantry, housemaid’s, 29 - -Paper for day nursery, Pither’s, 166 - --- stand, 85 - -Papering, 37 - -Pears in jelly, 214 - -Penge, 3 - -Persian and Turkey carpets, 2 - -Personal expenses, wife’s, 20 - -Petty tyrannies, 206 - -Pheasant, boiled, 216 - --- roasted, 219 - -Photographs for bedrooms, where to buy, 132 - --- -- nursery, 177 - -Piano back, draping, 87 - --- chair, 87 - --- drapery for back, 86, 87 - -Piano, drawing-room, 86 - --- front, 87 - --- grand, 87 - --- stool unendurable, 87 - -Picture rail, Maple’s, 58 - --- teaching for children, 167 - -Pictures for bedrooms, 132 - --- hooks for, 80 - --- in schoolroom, 193 - -Pigeons, stuffed, 212 - -Pinafores, 200 - -Pincushions, 119 - -Pither, address of, 38 - -Pither’s papers, 58, 82, 109 - --- printed linen, 77, 95 - -Plain cook, wages of, 210 - -Plantation coffee, 34 - -Plants and flowers for rooms, 90 - -Plates, 30 - -Plum pudding, 216 - -Plumber, &c., 120 - -Pokerette, 85 - -‘Portable property,’ servants’, 152 - -Pretence of wealth, 22 - -Pretty room for each servant, 152 - -Prince Albert’s pudding, 214 - -Printed muslin, Liberty’s, 107 - -Professional decorator, 1 - -Ptarmigan, 215 - -Purchasing furniture, 2 - -Putting the feet on chairs, 129 - - -Queen Anne cretonne (terra cotta), 151 - --- -- table, 75, 84 - --- -- tables, Oetzmann’s, 75 - -Quilts, cretonne covering for, 114 - --- eider-down, 114 - --- Francis’s, 116 - - -Rabbits, buying them, 28 - -Reading in bed, 188, 189 - -Rebecca jars, 73 - --- -- Elliot’s, 73 - -Reception-rooms, the regulation, 3, 360 - -Recipes for menus, 202 - -Rents less out of London, 2 - -Rest, necessity of complete, 169 - -Returning from school, 202 - -Ribs of beef, 27 - -Rice pudding, 28 - -Rider Haggard, 197 - -Rolled ribs of beef, 212 - -Roman sheeting for curtains, 94 - -Room for children, heating properly, 170 - -Rooms, appropriation of, 5 - -Round tables, 52 - -Rugs, good, 82 - --- in front of fires, danger from, 85 - -Rush _v._ bamboo table, 89 - -Russian diapers, 185 - --- embroideries, 150 - -Rylands’ stain for floors, 97 - - -Saddle of mutton, small, 220 - -Salmon, 220 - -Salt-cellars, 35 - --- Doulton’s, 35 - -Salviati glass, 210 - --- ware, 31 - -Sanitary papers for children’s schoolroom, 193 - -Sanitas in saucers, 14 - -Satin chairs, 140 - -Saucepans, 16 - --- cleaning them, 10 - --- number of, 15 - --- Whiteley’s, 16 - -School training for boys, 205 - -Schoolboys, dealing with, 203-205 - -Schoolmaster, orthodox, 205 - -Schoolroom ceiling, 193, 194 - --- dresses, 200 - --- Indian matting for, 192 - --- Kidderminster carpet for, 192 - --- maid, 199 - --- papering walls of, 193 - --- position of, in house, 199 - --- tables and chairs, 194 - -Schoolrooms, 32 - -Scinde rugs, 46, 96 - --- -- price of, 98 - -Screens, 4 - --- in bedrooms, 112 - -Scullery, 10 - --- ceiling, 12 - --- walls, 12 - -Second-hand carriages, 228 - --- -- where sold, 228 - -Selfishness of parents, 205 - -Separate beds for servants, 152 - -Serge curtains, 107 - -Serges, Burnett’s, 84 - --- Colbourne & Co.’s, 93 - -Servants, 4, 33, 34 - --- apartments, 11 - --- bedrooms, 151 - --- clothes of, 159 - --- encouraging them to walk and work in the garden, 159 - --- feelings of new, 154 - --- giving them good books to read, 159 - --- harassing them, 13 - --- pretty furniture for, 158 - --- wasteful, 21 - -Sets of bedroom furniture, price of, 119 - -Settees (bamboo), Liberty’s, for the hall, 45 - -Sewing for girls, 197 - -Sheets, bed, 114, 115 - -Shelves for morning-room, 69 - --- recesses for, 4 - -Sheraton furniture, 8 - -Shoolbred, 19 - -Shoolbred’s curtains, 93 - -Shop specialties, 38 - -Shopping, judicious, 39 - -Short blinds in bedrooms, 133 - -Side lanterns, 99 - -Sideboards, 8, 54 - -Sink, 13 - --- regular flushing of, 14 - -Sinks, disinfecting, 14 - -Sitting-room and workroom for servants, 11 - -Sketches, Mrs. McClelland’s, 46 - -Slamming doors, 176 - -Sleeping with window open, 123 - -Slop-pails, 127, 128 - -Slovenly manners, 86 - -Small girls, 185 - --- house, price of furnishing, 227 - --- infant, bed for, 172 - -Smuts and blacks, 2 - -Soap, 127 - -Sofa-ottomans for spare rooms, 147 - -Sofas, 74, 82, 112 - --- covering for, 71 - --- Maple’s, 71 - --- nursery, 168 - --- striped curtains for, 71 - --- substitute for, 110 - -Soles, boiled, 215 - --- fried, 212 - -Soup from bones and vegetables, 28 - -Soups, excellent, 17 - -Spare glass and china, 30 - --- room beds, 143 - --- -- floor, 150 - --- -- furniture, 142, 148 - --- -- -- cost of, 143 - --- -- readiness for occupation, 145 - -Spring mattress best for beds, 113, 114 - -Squabbles about money, 29 - -Square black cupboards, receptacles for music, 87 - --- ottoman for piano, 87 - -Stained floors, 96 - -Stair carpets, 44 - -Staircases, 40 - -Stamped velveteen, 84 - -Stephens, address of, 227 - -Stores, 19, 20 - -Straight backed chairs, Smee’s, 62 - -Strange nurse, 171 - -Strode, address of, 227 - -Strode’s iron lamps, 102 - -Suburban clay, 3 - -Suburbs of London, 3 - -Sugar, 10 - --- price of, 20 - -Summer babies, 189 - -Sunday in the schoolroom, 198 - -Sunday’s supper, 28 - -Sundries, 23 - -Sunless rooms, 7 - -Sunshine, first necessity of, 5 - -Sutherland table for drawing-room, 89 - -Swiss ‘mull’ muslin, cost of, 92 - - -Table drawers, bedroom, 121 - -Tablecloths, 53, 54, 106 - -Tables, Chippendale design, 90 - --- rickety, 83 - -Tapestry, drawing-room, 83 - --- imitation, 73 - --- tablecloth, 107 - --- toilet covers, 119 - -Tea after dinner odious, 25 - --- cost of, 20 - --- in the schoolroom, 199 - -Tea cloth, five o’clock, 90 - -Tea-table in drawing-room, 89 - -Tea-things in morning-room, 72 - -Teetotallers, 25 - -Temporary ‘help’ for cook, 155 - -Tennis, 198 - --- parties, afternoon, 210 - -Terra-cotta chintz for bedroom doors, Burnett’s, 106 - --- paper, 106 - -Third room to sit in, 6 - -Tiled hearth, 5, 6, 67 - -Toasted cheese, 215 - -Tobacco, 59, 60, 61, 69, 72 - -Toilet covers, 106, 119 - --- drawers, 121 - --- ‘tidies’ to be avoided, 120 - -Tooth-brushes, 127, 223 - -Tooth water-glasses, 127 - -Treatment of servants, 153, 154, 155, 156, 157, 159 - -Treloar, 43, 46 - -Treloar’s matting, 10 - -Trübner & Co., 72 - -Tumblers, 30 - -Turbot, half a, 213 - -Turkey carpets, 39 - --- small, 214 - -Turret puddings, 219 - - -Umbrella stands, 44 - --- -- Maple’s, 43 - -Umbrellas, wet, 43 - -Unhealthiness of gas, 168, 169 - -Unpunctuality, effects of, 149 - -Upholsters, 39 - -Upholstering chairs, 51 - - -Varnished wall-paper, 11 - -Vases, 77 - -Vegetable dishes, 31 - -Visiting, ethics of, 141 - - -Wall-paper, 2 - -Wall-papers, E. Pither’s, 38 - -Wardrobe, Edwin’s dressing-room, 135, 136 - --- making, amateur, 110 - -Wardrobes, 4, 10, 109 - --- Hampton’s, 109 - -Washable papers, 11 - -Washing brushes, 122 - --- -- Whiteley’s, 19 - --- cost of, 20 - -Washing stand, 124, 125 - -Waste-paper bags, 70 - -Water-bottles, 31 - -Watts, Mr., address of, 136 - -Wedding finery, excessive display of, 22 - -White curtains, 134 - --- soup, 212, 220 - -Whiteley, 16, 19, 30 - -Wicker chairs for drawing-room, 82 - -Widgeon, 220 - -Wild duck, 213 - -Window-blinds, 4, 5 - -Windows, 4, 5 - --- cathedral glass top, 107 - --- open at the top, 147 - -Window wedges, 128 - -Winter babies, 189 - -Withers & Co., address of, 228 - -Witney blankets, 114 - -Women architects, 4 - -Wooden bedsteads, 112, 113 - --- mantelpieces, 66, 80 - -Woollen tapestry, 52, 75 - -Worrying the nurse to death, 176 - -Writing-desk for the dining-room, 62, 63 - - -Yorkshire pudding, 28 - -Young couples, 9 - --- -- decoration of house for, 9 - --- -- management of house for, 9 - --- nurses a mistake, 18, 164 - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of From Kitchen to Garret, by -J. 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E. (Jane Ellen) Panton - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: From Kitchen to Garret - Hints for young householders - -Author: J. E. (Jane Ellen) Panton - -Release Date: March 28, 2016 [EBook #51590] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FROM KITCHEN TO GARRET *** - - - - -Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - -</pre> - -<hr class="full" /> - -<p class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/cover.jpg" width="423" height="500" alt="cover" title="" /> -</p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="border: 2px black solid;margin:auto auto;max-width:50%; -padding:1%;"> -<tr><td> - -<p class="c"><a href="#CONTENTS">Contents.</a><br /> -<a href="#INDEX">Index</a>: -<a href="#A">A</a>, -<a href="#B">B</a>, -<a href="#C">C</a>, -<a href="#D">D</a>, -<a href="#E">E</a>, -<a href="#F">F</a>, -<a href="#G">G</a>, -<a href="#H">H</a>, -<a href="#I-i">I</a>, -<a href="#J">J</a>, -<a href="#K">K</a>, -<a href="#L">L</a>, -<a href="#M">M</a>, -<a href="#N">N</a>, -<a href="#O">O</a>, -<a href="#P">P</a>, -<a href="#Q">Q</a>, -<a href="#R">R</a>, -<a href="#S">S</a>, -<a href="#T">T</a>, -<a href="#U">U</a>, -<a href="#V-i">V</a>, -<a href="#W">W</a>, -<a href="#Y">Y</a></p> - -<p class="c"><a href="#ILLUSTRATIONS">List of Illustrations</a><br /> <span class="nonvis">(In certain versions of this etext [in certain browsers] -clicking on this symbol <img class="enlargeimage" src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" alt="" title="" height="14" width="18" />, -or directly on the image, -will bring up a larger version of the illustration.)</span></p> - -<p class="c">(etext transcriber's note)</p></td></tr> -</table> - -<p class="cb">FROM KITCHEN TO GARRET<br /><br /> -<small> -PRINTED BY<br /> -SPOTTISWOODE AND CO., NEW-STREET SQUARE<br /> -LONDON</small></p> - -<h1> -FROM KITCHEN TO GARRET</h1> - -<p class="cb"><i>HINTS FOR YOUNG HOUSEHOLDERS</i><br /> -<br /> -BY<br /> -J. E. PANTON<br /><br /> -<br /> -<i>SEVENTH EDITION</i><br /> -<br /><br /> -<span class="eng">London</span><br /> -WARD & DOWNEY<br /> -12 YORK STREET, CONVENT GARDEN<br /> -1890<br /><br /><br /> - -<small>TO</small><br /> -<br /> -‘PRIMROSE’ ‘MOLLIE’ ‘FRÄULEIN’ ‘CHERRY BLOSSOM’<br /> -<br /> -<small>AND MANY OTHERS<br /> - -WHO FROM CORRESPONDENTS HAVE BECOME FRIENDS<br /> -THROUGH THE MEDIUM OF<br /> -THESE HINTS TO YOUNG HOUSEHOLDS</small><br /> -<br /> -<span class="eng">This Work is Dedicated</span><br /> -<br /> -<small>BY THEIR ATTACHED MENTOR AND GUIDE</small> -<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 12em;">THE AUTHOR</span></p> - -<h2><a name="PREFACE" id="PREFACE"></a>PREFACE.</h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">In</span> presenting this book in a completed and augmented form to the public, -I think a few words of explanation are necessary, lest the way in which -the chapters are written may lay me open to a charge of egotism.</p> - -<p>About two years ago I began writing a series of short articles in the -pages of the ‘Lady’s Pictorial’ on the absorbing subject of -housekeeping, meaning to confine myself strictly to the house and home -of the British matron who begins life with little money and less -experience, never thinking anything more would come of them than a mere -temporary access of work for a few weeks; but I had not begun them for -more than a month when, through the office of the paper, a regular and -increasing mass of correspondence began to reach me, asking questions on -every subject under the sun, from the proper management of a house and -the feeding of a baby to the fearful inquiry whether I thought a wife -should leave her husband or not when she discovered all too late she -liked somebody else better than she did her lord and master. Since then -I have become a species of ‘mother confessor’ to hundreds of unknown and -valued friends in all parts of the world. I have correspondents in New -Zealand, India, America, and in all parts of the Continent, and they -have demanded of me that I shall produce a book evolved from my articles -and from the pages of ‘Answers to Correspondents,’ which have been my -work and my great pleasure since the articles on the home began; and as -they persist in asking for my experience and my opinions I am obliged to -give them, though knowing and fearing I shall be accused of speaking -everlastingly about myself; still I have never mentioned a thing I have -not tried or experienced, nor spoken of a single chair, table, or, in -fact, anything that I have not honestly and truly tried myself.</p> - -<p>From my correspondence I have evolved quite a new profession, which I -commend to any lady who has taste and may wish to earn her living, I go -to people’s houses and advise them about their decorations, and tell -them the best places to go to for different things; I buy things for -country ladies, and write them long letters on every subject under the -sun for a set fee, and have made some of the nicest friends possible -through this means; and I feel sure that any lady who cares to take up -the ‘profession,’ and is of <i>sufficient social status to be above the -suspicion of taking commission or bribes from tradespeople to advertise -their wares</i>, and who above all possesses a quick eye and a certain -amount of taste, can make a good and steady income in a remarkably -pleasant way, while a great future would be before any gentleman -possessed of the same qualifications, for he could see to estimates for -painting, repairing, &c., and could act as a buffer between the -purchaser and the workman, and, being thoroughly acquainted with his -business, would soon become the boon and benefactor, to the ordinary -person who requires his house done up and furnished, who is much wanted, -and that no lady can be, because of the necessary fighting powers and -technical knowledge.</p> - -<p>In connection with my work, we have now started a society for the -employment of ladies who will either decorate a house entirely, make the -chair-covers and curtains I recommend, or work at ladies’ houses at -dressmaking and upholstering, so that I may justly pride myself on the -fact that at least my particular column in the ‘Lady’s Pictorial’ has -been of some small practical good already. The address of the ‘Workers’ -Guild’ is 11 Kensington Square, W.</p> - -<p>I may mention, in conclusion, that I have revised and rewritten the -whole of the articles which appeared in the ‘Lady’s Pictorial,’ and in -some cases entirely evolved new matter out of my inner consciousness; -and if only the public extends to my book half the sympathy and -appreciation I have received from my thousands of correspondents for my -articles, I shall never regret the day when, at my editor’s request, I -seized the sceptre and became the ruling genius of many and many an -unknown home.</p> - -<p class="r"> -<span class="smcap">J. E. Panton.</span><br /> -</p> - -<p><span class="smcap">The Manor House, Watford, Herts.</span></p> - -<h2><a name="CONTENTS" id="CONTENTS"></a>CONTENTS.</h2> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary=""> -<tr><td class="rt"><small>CHAPTER</small></td><td> </td> -<td class="rt"><small>PAGE</small></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_I">I.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">Choosing a House</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_1">1</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_II">II.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">The Kitchen Arrangements</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_9">9</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_III">III.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">Meals and Money</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_18">18</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_IV">IV.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">The Housemaid’s Closet, and Glass and China</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_29">29</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_V">V.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">First Shopping</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_36">36</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_VI">VI.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">The Hall</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_40">40</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_VII">VII.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">The Dining-room</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_49">49</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">VIII.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">The Morning-room</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_69">69</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_IX">IX.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">The Drawing-room</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_78">78</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_X">X.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">Curtain, Carpets, and Lighting</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_91">91</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_XI">XI.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">Bedrooms</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_103">103</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_XII">XII.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">Dressing-room</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_135">135</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIII">XIII.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">Spare Rooms</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_139">139</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIV">XIV.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">The Servants’ Rooms</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_151">151</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_XV">XV.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">The Nurseries</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_160">160</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVI">XVI.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">In Retirement</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_180">180</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVII">XVII.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">The Schoolroom</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_192">192</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVIII">XVIII.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">Boys and Girls</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_201">201</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIX">XIX.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">Entertaining One’s Friends</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_209">209</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt" valign="top"><a href="#CHAPTER_XX">XX.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">The Summing-up</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_223">223</a></td></tr> -<tr><td colspan="2"><a href="#INDEX">Index</a>: -<a href="#A">A</a>, -<a href="#B">B</a>, -<a href="#C">C</a>, -<a href="#D">D</a>, -<a href="#E">E</a>, -<a href="#F">F</a>, -<a href="#G">G</a>, -<a href="#H">H</a>, -<a href="#I-i">I</a>, -<a href="#J">J</a>, -<a href="#K">K</a>, -<a href="#L">L</a>, -<a href="#M">M</a>, -<a href="#N">N</a>, -<a href="#O">O</a>, -<a href="#P">P</a>, -<a href="#Q">Q</a>, -<a href="#R">R</a>, -<a href="#S">S</a>, -<a href="#T">T</a>, -<a href="#U">U</a>, -<a href="#V-i">V</a>, -<a href="#W">W</a>, -<a href="#Y">Y</a></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_233">233</a></td></tr> -</table> - -<h2><a name="ILLUSTRATIONS" id="ILLUSTRATIONS"></a>ILLUSTRATIONS.</h2> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary=""> - -<tr><td class="rt"><small>FIGS.</small> </td> -<td> </td><td class="rt"><small>PAGES</small></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_1">1.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">Suggestion for Draping Arch in Hall</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_42">42</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_2">2.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">Suggestion for Draping Door in Hall</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_43">43</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_3">3</a>, <a href="#fig_4">4.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">Lamps</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_47">47</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_5">5-8.</a></td><td> <span class="smcap">Chairs</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_50">50-53</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_9">9.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">Sideboard</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_55">55</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_10">10.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">Dining-room at Gable-end, Shortlands</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_57">57</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_11">11</a>, <a href="#fig_12">12.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">Window-seat</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_59">59, 60</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_13">13.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">Chair (Wicker)</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_63">63</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_14">14.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">Bookcase</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_72">72</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_15">15.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">Drawing-room at Gable-end, Shortlands</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_79">79</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_16">16.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">Manor House Windows</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_95">95</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_17">17.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">A Corner in a Bedroom, Gable-end, Shortlands</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_105">105</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_18">18.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">Draped Alcove for a Bed</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_111">111</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_19">19.</a></td><td><span class="smcap">Dressing-table</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_117">117</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td class="rt"><a href="#fig_20">20</a>, <a href="#fig_20">21.</a></td> -<td><span class="smcap">Washing-stands</span></td><td class="rt"><a href="#page_124">124</a>, <a href="#page_125">125</a></td></tr> -</table> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_1" id="page_1"></a>{1}</span></p> - -<h1>FROM KITCHEN TO GARRET.</h1> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_I" id="CHAPTER_I"></a>CHAPTER I.<br /><br /> -<small>CHOOSING A HOUSE.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">In</span> the following chapters I propose to give young housekeepers, just -launching their bark on the troubled seas of domesticity, the benefit of -the experience that has been bought by me, occasionally rather dearly, -in the course of some eighteen or twenty years; for I have often been -struck with amazement at discovering how few really practical guides -there are that even profess to help newly married girls past those first -shoals and quicksands that so often wreck the little vessel, or that -spoil and waste so much that could have been usefully employed had -knowledge stood at the helm, and experience served as a lighthouse to -point out the rocks and narrows. Naturally, no one ever uses another’s -experience entirely: to do so would make life too near perfection and -too monotonous to be pleasant. Still, there are a hundred little hints -that I have constantly been asked to give, a great many helps to -household arrangement that I have bestowed on many of my young friends -starting in life; and I trust I may not be considered unduly egotistical -if I lay before my readers the result of some years of life, and a good -deal of experience obtained by looking about me generally.</p> - -<p>I shall propose in the first two or three chapters to sketch out some -‘notions,’ as our American cousins would say, about the questions of -house-choosing and house-furnishing, I shall then pass on to the -question of servants; then babies will have their turn; education, more -especially of girls, will not be forgotten; and I shall endeavour to do -my utmost to state plainly and describe accurately, not only how a house -should be furnished, but how it should be managed and kept going, -literally from garret to basement.</p> - -<p>As very rich people can place themselves unreservedly in the hands of a -professional decorator, and can moreover depend on<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_2" id="page_2"></a>{2}</span> their housekeepers -afterwards for all details of domestic management, I shall begin by -supposing the model couple who wish to choose a house and furnish it are -not rich; if they were they need not come to me for hints, for they -would be able to gratify every one of their own tastes, and need only -discover the best and most expensive shops, where skilled assistants -would be ready to hang expensive papers and brocades, and to fit up all -the thousand and one things that fashion calls necessary, without any of -my assistance. But neither are they very poor: they are young, happy, -and have taste, and are rather disheartened at finding out what a very -little way their money seems able to go. They have looked longingly at -Persian and Turkey carpets, at beautifully designed paper and exquisite -hangings, and have come home from a long day’s investigation of -shop-windows that has almost made Edwin forswear matrimony altogether, -and that has plunged Angelina into an abyss of despair that makes her -snappish to her brothers and sisters, and brings a sad look into her -mother’s eyes, who seems to see the first shadow ‘of the prison-house’ -close in around her child, and yet is powerless to help her escape, -because, poor dear soul, she has no means of doing so herself; being as -she is the victim of the old <i>régime</i> of flock papers and moreen -curtains and heavy mahogany, and being conscious, too, of the vast sums -it cost her to start in housekeeping. However, I refuse to hear any -grumblings at all, and demand calmly enough to know if I may see the -house that our young folks mean to inhabit. Ten chances to one that they -do not even know where it is likely to be: how then, I ask, can they -possibly know what they will want, or what is likely to suit the house -or the locality, or, indeed, any of the many things that are positively -necessary to know, before as much as a roll of wall-paper can be bought -or a chair or table purchased?</p> - -<p>Here is hint number one. It is from not knowing and understanding the -house in which one has to live, and through purchasing furniture simply -because we like it, and not because it suits us or our domicile, that -such mistakes are made. First know your house; then, and not until then, -can you proceed to furnish it in a manner that will result in pleasure -to you and your friends for as long as you live in it.</p> - -<p>To young people like my couple, I would strongly recommend a house some -little way out of London. Rents are less; smuts and blacks are -conspicuous by their absence; a small garden, or even a tiny -conservatory (the joys and management of which ought to have a chapter -all to themselves), is not an impossibility; and if Edwin have to pay -for his season-ticket, that is nothing in comparison with his being able -to sleep in fresh air, to have a game of tennis in summer, or a friendly -evening of music, chess, or games in the winter, without expense; and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_3" id="page_3"></a>{3}</span> -with Angelina’s absence from the temptations of shop-windows in town, -where, if she does not know of anything she wants when she goes out for -her aimless walk, she soon sees something that she cannot resist, which -she buys just because she has the money in her pocket, and likes the -look of an article she would never have thought of had she been outside -the range of temptation.</p> - -<p>Another reason for choosing the suburbs at the commencement of married -life is that in this case the rival mothers-in-law and the rival -families will not be running in and out perpetually; and neither will -Angelina be always contrasting the old ease, plenty, and amusements in -her sisters’ lives, and which used to be hers, with the somewhat -straitened and monotonous existence that she must put up with until -Edwin has made a mark in the world, and is able to keep his carriage and -live in style. Granted, then, that the suburbs have been selected, the -first few months of the engagement can be advantageously spent in -running down on Saturday afternoons to divers ‘Parks’ to look at houses -that sound so beautiful on paper, and are too often the very reverse in -the reality, in sauntering in the neighbourhood of each ‘eligible -residence’ and in endeavouring to discover what are the <i>pros</i> and -<i>cons</i> of each, and in finding out the soil and the aspect, and if there -are or are not any pretty walks to be found in the country round. Avoid -clay; let no persuasions, no arguments, persuade you that clay—at all -events suburban clay—can ever be anything save depressing and -rheumatic. You may drain, you may dig, but clay is like a ghost that -will not be laid, and that sooner or later asserts itself in the most -unpleasant and decided manner possible.</p> - -<p>One of the prettiest suburbs we know of is utterly spoiled by its clay -soil. In warm days it depresses, in damp it chills; and in an east wind -the soil looks so dreary, so parched, that the mere sight of it is -wretched, while fog and mist hang over it all the winter, and sour the -tempers and warp the minds of the inhabitants until there is a lack of -hospitality and an amount of work for the doctors that is wonderful, if -unpleasant to contemplate.</p> - -<p>Of course, all the S. or S.W. and S.E. suburbs are the most fashionable -and the most sought after; and although, to my mind, Penge and Dulwich -are dreary and damp, they are evidently well supported and much lived -in, but the higher parts of Sydenham are to be preferred; while Forest -Hill, the higher parts of Lordship Lane, Elmer’s End—where there are -some extremely pretty and convenient villas—and the best parts of -Bromley, Kent, are all they should be. Still, to those who do not mind -the north side of London, Finchley, Bush Hill Park—where the houses are -nice to look at and excellently arranged—and Enfield are all worthy of -consideration.</p> - -<p>Edwin’s work and its locality must, after all give the casting<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_4" id="page_4"></a>{4}</span> vote, -for, if it be at the West End, Liverpool Street Station is out of the -question, and Victoria, is a <i>sine quâ non</i>, and, of course, he may -choose to live in town. If he does, I should strongly persuade him not -to be guided by fashion, and to prefer a good-sized, old, well-built -house in an unfashionable locality, to a small, heated, stuffy, badly -put together residence in one of the parts of town that are inhabited by -those with whom he can never hope to associate.</p> - -<p>Indeed, when I have seen the tiny hovels in Mayfair where ladies and -gentlemen crowd together, and where their servants herd under tiles or -in the damp, dark cellars, I have thought that Fashion and Folly were -two names for one thing, and have had but a small opinion of those who -could condemn themselves and their poor domestics to such an unhealthy -and miserable existence, just because Park Lane is close by and it is -fashionable!</p> - -<p>Doubtless the great thing that strikes us when we are house-hunting is -that if women architects could get employment houses would be far better -planned than they are now. In each bedroom, it seems to me, that I have -inspected—and their name is legion—the male mind that designed the -rooms never took into consideration that a bed should not stand between -the windows and the door; which, by the way, is always put so that the -moment it opens the occupant of the bed has a full view of the passage -or landing; he has given us no recesses in which we can put shelves, and -by a judicious curtain arrangement do away with the necessity of buying -large and expensive wardrobes; he puts the fireplaces where, if we are -ill, we could not possibly enjoy ourselves with sitting over the fire -and warming ourselves; and he gives us far too many windows as a rule, -and almost ruins us in blinds and curtains, to prevent the neighbours -from gazing at us when we are dressing.</p> - -<p>He forgets cupboards, and in fact insists on producing month after month -an excellent shell, but one that requires altering considerably by a -lady before it really can be lived in at all; and I would strongly -suggest that female architects for domestic architecture solely would be -a great help to all who have to live in houses planned and executed by -men who have no idea of comfort, and but small appreciation for the -trifles light as air that make all the difference between that and great -discomfort.</p> - -<p>If Edwin be at all handy at carpentering he could do a great deal to -make even a builder’s design much better—he could rehang doors and -extemporise screens; but I look forward to a time when it shall be -necessary for houses to be passed by a sanitary commission before they -are allowed to be let at all; when all these discomforts will be -minimised, and when dust-bin refuse and bad drainage shall be penal if -used for foundations and put into houses; when the lesser evils of badly -placed<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_5" id="page_5"></a>{5}</span> doors, windows, and fireplaces will be looked after, as making -parts of what should be a perfect whole.</p> - -<p>Before taking his house in the suburbs, Edwin must see he holds it on a -lease that does not include structural repairs. He must give a properly -authorised inspector, <i>from a distance</i>, a fee to inspect all the -drains; he must examine the foundations and look to soil, see that the -doors and windows really fit, and that the skirting board has not shrunk -away from the flooring. He must look to the roof and the chimneys, and, -if possible, get a character for it from the last tenant; and then, and -then only, need he and Angelina come to me and say, ‘We have settled on -our Paradise; now please come and see it and tell us what we had better -buy first, and what we must do to furnish it and make it look as pretty -as we intend it to do.’</p> - -<p>And yet, even when Edwin and Angelina have at last settled on their -house, and have sensibly inspected it from top to bottom, I should, long -before buying any furniture, decide definitely which room was to be -dining-room, which bedroom, and which drawing-room, and, being guided by -the sunshine obtainable in each, rather than the builder’s plan, utterly -refuse to enter a shop until I had made up my mind how the rooms are to -be appropriated.</p> - -<p>Sunshine is the very first necessary of life; without it sickness comes, -low spirits are one’s portion, and a thousand and one tiny ailments hang -about us, until we sum up a tremendous doctor’s bill, utterly ignorant -that we could have cured ourselves comfortably had we had any sense, and -dispensed with our blinds, regardless of the fading of our carpets and -curtains; or moved our morning-room into the sacred precincts of the -drawing-room, which obtains all the early sunshine, and has none at all -during the hours when we should be sitting there. But the possession of -a large and hideous, white marble mantelpiece and a tiled hearth to the -ugly, wasteful grate says ‘drawing-room’ too plainly for the ordinary -mind to rise above the builder’s dictum; and so a cheerful breakfast -table is sacrificed, for conventionalities that I, for one, never see -without longing to disregard, simply because of their family likeness to -every one else’s possessions, and gloom and low spirits seize their -victim, and work their wicked will, sending off the husband to town with -an aching head, and causing the wife a long, laborious morning of -snapping at servants and children, simply because she had not begun her -day with a proper amount of sunshine. I could fill a whole chapter with -praises of the life-giver, the mighty, beautiful sun; and whenever I see -blinds hardly raised, or carefully adjusted to save the furniture, I -know that I shall find inside those guarded windows faded cheeks, even -if the chairs are fresh, and weary, tired people, who are hardly aware -what sort of a day it is outside, and who are shivering over a fire<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_6" id="page_6"></a>{6}</span> -that would not be wanted were the fire nature has given us allowed to do -its work. Therefore, do not be guided in your choice of rooms by the -fact that the builder has made a sunless, dark-looking room the -dining-room, and a cheerful, light, and pretty chamber the drawing-room. -The white marble mantelpiece does not matter one bit.</p> - -<p>I can soon alter that, and a tiled hearth is not such a dear or precious -luxury that one cannot afford to put in another in the drawing-room, and -it is extremely nice to have a hearth where we can put down our plates -and dishes to keep hot should any one be late; and the other details are -generally so small in their differences that I am sure there is no -reason why we should not have strength of mind to be different to our -next-door neighbour, who most probably has taken things as she found -them, and in consequence is rarely, if ever, without a headache.</p> - -<p>Even in the smallest houses in these days there is generally a third -room, and this I should advise being kept entirely to sit in. I cannot -imagine anything nastier than to sit in a room in which one has one’s -meals; the mere worry of seeing them laid would annoy me so that I don’t -think I should be able to enjoy them afterwards; and then nothing seems -to me to quite clear away the terrible sensation, and smell of meals, -that appear to saturate the walls of any room where food is constantly -served, while the additional fire that seems the only reason that -compels people to remain all day in one atmosphere is paid for over and -over again by the extra warmth of the house itself, and the satisfactory -manner in which damps and draughts are exorcised, while no one can tell -the advantage it is to health to have a change of rooms, and to sit in a -place where food and the evil odours attending meals never can come.</p> - -<p>And here let me impress upon you, my readers, always to be guided by -common sense, not by fashion and conventionalities; to do a thing -because it is healthy and sensible, not because Mrs. Jones next door and -Mrs. Smith over the way do it; to buy a thing because it is required, -because it is pretty and suitable to your house and your means, not -because it is ‘so very expensive,’ and so can never become ‘common,’ or -because it is the ‘very last thing out’; and, above all, do not mind -taking advice and using your eyes, being quite sure that older folks, -even if they are stupid and slow-going, have probably seen more and know -more than you do, simply because their lives have been longer by a great -many years than yours are at present. And do not be above letting other -people have the use of your talents, for the world would be much nicer -and happier altogether if we were not all so profoundly selfish and -exclusive, and were not so desperately afraid of soiling ourselves and -our garments by rubbing shoulders against anything or any one to whom we -can apply the word ‘common.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_7" id="page_7"></a>{7}</span>’</p> - -<p>I myself should like to see every beautiful thing common. I should love -to know that all the world saw, possessed, and cared for art colours and -art furniture, and had nice tastes, and I look forward to a time when -even our poor brethren will appreciate all the inexpensive lovelinesses -that are to be had now by those who know where to get them, and I trust -that some day free art exhibitions and lectures may teach them what real -beauty is, and so enlighten and enliven lives that at present are of the -dullest and most sober description.</p> - -<p>In stating that life itself may be changed by sunshine and by cheerful -surroundings, and that even the bitter lot of the poor would be bettered -by art, I am aware I lay myself open to the same jeers that greeted the -Kyrle Society—that blessed society that, regardless of cold water, goes -on its way, giving of its talents to the sick and needy; but I maintain -my position for all that, and regardless of the ridicule levelled at -them, anent sunflowers and dadoes taking the place of bread and clothes, -I point to the hospital wards, transformed from bare whitewashed prisons -into artistic, charming, home-like rooms, and I should like to have the -statistics given me of all who have recovered there, and the time they -took to recover in, in the two different aspects of the walls, being -perfectly certain that there would be more and quicker recoveries in the -reign of the Kyrle Society than when the wearied, suffering creatures -had nothing to look at or think about save their own painful, cruel lot.</p> - -<p>Or if you wish another example still, take the well-known famous -description of the sour tempers and hard days possessed and lived by -Thomas Carlyle and his wife, and then go and inspect the house in which -they lived together for some thirty-eight years. The house itself is -delightful—an old-world place, full of beautiful corners—and could be -made charming with a little money and taste, but the hideous paper and -paint still lingering behind them, the dark windows, in some cases -half-filled with ground glass to keep out the view of a building that -looks singularly like a workhouse—all accounted to me for a great deal -of Mrs. Carlyle’s ill-health and low spirits, and for a vast quantity of -Mr. Carlyle’s dyspepsia and ill-tempered behaviour; for he could be -nothing else in sunless rooms and with walls papered in the ugly, -depressing manner in which he doubtless considered them satisfactory, -or, still more likely, thought that any paper did as long as the walls -were covered.</p> - -<p>Therefore, in selecting house and furniture, and choosing your rooms and -appropriating them, remember the first thing is to be cheerful. Dark -days will come in life to us all, but they will not be hopeless and too -dreadful to be endured if we cultivate a cheerful, contented spirit, and -insist on having cheerful surroundings.</p> - -<p>Do you recollect, I wonder, the orthodox dining-rooms of<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_8" id="page_8"></a>{8}</span> twenty-five -years ago?—the heavy, thick curtains of red or green cloth or moreen -damask; the tremendous mahogany sideboard, generally with a cellarette -underneath it, which, I recollect, made an admirable tomb in which to -bury one’s dolls or obnoxious books, generally triumphantly taken from -the schoolroom; the chairs that required two people to lift them; the -carpet that seemed immovable, and that was too heavy to be shaken more -than once a year; and the woolly-bear hearthrug that always smelt of -dust, and that was a receptacle for all sorts of cinders, toy-bricks, -leaden soldiers, and bones dragged in and buried there by a delinquent -dog or cat? Why, the mere shaking of that rug once a week resulted in -the discovery of all sorts of treasures that had been lost, and the dust -that came out was enough to choke the neighbourhood, and doubtless would -have done so had the other inhabitants not all been engaged with their -own. Ah! if you do not all of you remember the dining-room of the past, -I do; but never without a shudder, or a wonder how we managed to live in -such a dark and dusty atmosphere, where work, reading, drawing, and -writing all had to be hustled out of sight and out of the way of the -parlour-maid, who came to ‘lay the cloth,’ and renew the foul odours, -which had only just been exorcised, which breakfast had left behind it -to poison the morning with. I should think that domestic furniture was -at its very lowest depths of despair then; but that is thirty years ago, -or perhaps forty, and nothing turned the tide for quite twenty years!</p> - -<p>In the beginning of those evil days the graceful furniture of -Chippendale and Sheraton was pushed away and consigned to attics, or -sold cheaply at country auctions to fit up inn parlours or rooms behind -shops; and the heavy ‘handsome’ furniture of mahogany and damask bore -down upon us, and made us for a time the most depressed of people, heavy -with our ugly furnishings, and the mock of all nations that had better -taste and lighter hearts than we were possessed of.</p> - -<p>It would take too long to trace the gradual development of taste and -cheerfulness since then, neither do I know to whom is due our present -state of emancipation and love of pretty things, but even sixteen years -ago light was only just beginning to be vouchsafed to us. Now it is -impossible to buy an ugly thing in good shops, and each person’s house -is no longer the reflection of one particular upholsterer’s shop or of -one particular style; but it is a carefully arranged shrine, cared for -and looked after, and judiciously managed by the owner, who, if she have -not taste herself, is now shamed into using some one else’s, by the -contrast she cannot help seeing her home presents to all the others into -which she enters; and one of the most hopeless people I know, who began -life with gilt legs to her chairs and a collection of family plate -(plated) on her sideboard, has become unobtrusive,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_9" id="page_9"></a>{9}</span> even if she can -never be tasteful, simply by seeing how different her own notions were -to those of the cleverer people with whom circumstances brought her into -contact!</p> - -<p>However, this chapter will become too long if I relate any more ‘fearful -examples,’ and, impressing on my readers the great necessity of sunshine -and cheerfulness in their scheme of furnishing, I will pass on to the -subject of the house itself, which must be most carefully chosen after -long and deliberate inspection thereof, as I remarked before; one of the -most necessary of all mottoes to be recollected in starting in life -being, ‘Do nothing in a hurry. More haste, less speed.’</p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_II" id="CHAPTER_II"></a>CHAPTER II.<br /><br /> -<small>THE KITCHEN ARRANGEMENTS.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">The</span> other day I was asked, as I so often am by young couples, to go with -them to look over a house they had just taken, and to give them some -advice on the decoration and management generally thereof; and when we -had thought about all the pretty colours and graceful draperies we -considered suitable, I asked to look at the kitchen department, and I -was truly horrified to discern that my young folks had only been into -the kitchen once, and had no idea of its capabilities.</p> - -<p>I at once departed to look at it, and found all the accommodation for -the unfortunate maids consisted of a square box, one half stove, the -other half door, a couple of shelves for all the bridal glass and china, -and a larder in which one could have placed the meat, butter, and bread -without moving from the fireside, and which, useless enough in winter, -would be doubly so when summer came, and added another trial to those of -the already overburdened cook. However, the agreement was signed and the -house taken for five years, during which, I am quite certain, no servant -would remain a moment over her month, and in consequence of which that -establishment will, I know, be in a continual state of misery and -turmoil.</p> - -<p>Of course one can hardly expect young people to think of these prosaic -and disagreeable details for themselves, but they are most necessary -details for persons to consider. Personally I would much rather regard -life as a smooth chariot gliding along a rose-embowered road, propelled -by some mysterious and wonderful power called Love, who is, of course, -entirely ignorant of anything save kisses and blisses. I do not want in -the very least really to know how dinner is cooked, how houses are -managed, and the very names of chairs and dusters are properly<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_10" id="page_10"></a>{10}</span> -obnoxious to me—or rather would be if we could only do without them. -But, alas! we cannot; we must be clean, we should be healthy, and it is -imperative that we should have kitchens and be warmed and fed; and, as -fairies are extinct and brownies no longer appear and do work -mysteriously and pleasantly before we are up in the morning, even a -bride must be told about these unpleasant localities, and must learn to -take an interest even in her scullery and the position of her dust-bin. -Therefore, on the principle of getting rid of our disagreeable duties -first, we will begin with hints for kitchen management before thinking -about the purchase of the rest of the furniture; for it is a very good -rule to buy what we must have first, and then keep any surplus we may -have to spend afterwards; and we will begin with the kitchen, for that -department is always the most uninteresting to the young housekeeper, -for she has only a certain amount of money to spend on everything, and -she grudges, I am sure, every pound she has to spend on pots and pans, -that she thinks would be so useful if added to the small sum she has at -her disposal, for extras and ornaments in the other rooms in her house.</p> - -<p>If their household consist of two maids and Edwin and Angelina alone, -their <i>batterie de cuisine</i> need be neither an extensive nor expensive -one, for after a lengthy experience of maidens and their ways I have -come to the conclusion that the fewer things they have the fewer they -will spoil, and that we are far more likely to have clean saucepans and -pots if there are none to put aside and no others to use, if, as the -maid thinks, she has not time at her disposal for the moment in which to -clean them. Now if she have only the saucepans in actual use they must -be cleaned as soon as they have been used, or the food will most -certainly tell tales of her.</p> - -<p>The position of the kitchen in a house makes an immense amount of -difference in the work, for if it be situated underground it makes quite -one servant’s work difference. Fortunately builders are more and more -inclined to think of this, and it is now rare to find in a new house the -unpleasant and unhealthy arrangement that exists in most London houses. -First of all, the staircase to the kitchen is always a dreadful source -of worry. We must cover the stairs to deaden the noise, and the wear and -tear is so great that the covering has to be renewed well-nigh yearly if -we are in any way to preserve a tidy appearance. The best material to -use on these stairs is a species of harshly woven Dutch carpeting. It is -made in art colours, and is about 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a yard; or Treloar’s -pretty crimson cocoanut matting, which is a trifle less in price, and -lasts more time, when, if it should show signs of wear, it can once more -be covered with oilcloth, and then I think the stairs will look as nice -and keep as tidy as long as possible.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_11" id="page_11"></a>{11}</span></p> - -<p>If there be any passages in and round the kitchen and servants’ -apartments generally, I have discovered that a most excellent plan here -is to have a high dado of oilcloth, headed by a real dado-rail painted -black, and then papered above with one of the blue and white washable -papers that resemble tiles, are moderately inexpensive, and always clean -and bright. At one time my passages in those regions were my despair; -they were narrow, and bits and corners—paper, plaster, and all—were -continually knocked out in the most depressing way, especially at the -back door, where, moreover, every boy who came for orders or with -parcels solaced himself while waiting by leaning his greasy head or -putting his dirty hands on the wall-paper, until the whole place looked -disgraceful almost before the paste was well dry. I was at my wits’ end. -Cretonne and matting were decidedly out of place. At last the idea of -oilcloth came into my head, and for six years it has now been up, and is -as good as the day it was purchased. I continued this up the back -staircase, with very favourable results as regards wear and tear, for a -box knocking against it does not hurt it in the least, and any marks can -be rubbed off at once with a dry duster. The oilcloth is not stretched -too tight, and it is nailed top and bottom, then secured at the top with -the dado-rail, which, being made of what is technically called -‘scantling,’ is most inexpensive; a neat pattern is chosen in -oak-browns.</p> - -<p>The oilcloth made like an old Roman mosaic would of course be preferable -as far as appearance goes, but this costs double, and therefore I was -obliged to have an ordinary and commonplace-looking one instead; but -should the æsthetic eye revolt against the ugly colours of cheap -oilcloth, I may mention it can be painted any colour easily, and this -can make it at once pretty to look at.</p> - -<p>I am of opinion that such a dado would be a great thing in the kitchen -itself, where the walls so speedily become soiled by the heat from the -hot-water pipes that the kitchen soon becomes dismal for the servants to -sit in. I do wish it would enter into the plan of even quite a small -house to have a tiny room where the servants could sit and work, or have -their meals, out of the kitchen atmosphere; and then perhaps I should -not mind the look of the kitchen quite so much; but even in a large -house there is seldom a room one can set aside for this purpose, and -often enough the only place a maid has to live in is the one in which -all the cooking is done, and where, winter and summer alike, a large -fire has to be kept going from morning until night.</p> - -<p>But until that happy day arrives we can make the orthodox kitchen almost -a model one, with a dado of oilcloth as high as we can get it, and a -light varnished paper above the dado; the varnishing allows of constant -washing, and though this is, of<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_12" id="page_12"></a>{12}</span> course, an expensive process, it -insures cleanliness, and, the first outlay once made, it does not -require renewing for some years. The ceiling, however, should be -whitewashed, with the scullery walls and ceiling, and those of the -cellars, &c., regularly once a year—about May. Nothing should be -thought more necessary than this; and once a year, when this is done, -the mistress should overlook every single possession she has, comparing -them with a list made at the time she entered the house, which she -should never let out of her own possession, and which she should alter -from time to time, as things are broken or lost or bought.</p> - -<p>The most important thing now to consider is the grate, and nowhere, I -think, does the ordinary landlord or builder ‘skimp’ more than in this; -and let me ask any young bride to put her pride in her pocket here, and -to consult her mother, or the last bride but four, or any one who has -had a grate in her own possession, before she passes the grate that the -landlord has provided her with. Of course I can only <i>hope</i> any new -householder will take advice; the dear things always know so much better -from theory than we do from practice, and are never going to make the -mistakes we did, and from which sprang the knowledge we are as anxious -to give them as they are unwilling to take, that I can only humbly ask -them to see about the grate before they really put themselves in its -power, and I beg them to insist on having a new one; for on no other -portion of the house does so much of our comfort depend, a bad grate -spoiling the cook’s temper and wasting the food horribly, while a good -one is an endless treasure, of which we really cannot make too much.</p> - -<p>If our young folks are too proud to ask advice, let them go to Steel and -Garland’s, on the Holborn Viaduct, where I have seen some most -picturesque kitcheners, which I must confess to hanker after in a manner -that perhaps is not right; but I cannot help it, they look so charming, -and are, I believe, so satisfactory in their working. They have -blue-tiled backs, and have also delightful ovens and a broad expanse -over the fire that would heat any amount of saucepans at the same time; -and if Angelina goes to live in her own house, I should certainly -recommend her to see these before buying any other kitchen grate. They -are most economical as regards coal; and if Angelina be wise enough so -to manage her cook as to impress upon her what an excellent fire can be -made and kept up in a kitchener using the small coal almost like dust, -that is so very inexpensive, and that the best Wallsend need not be -taken for the purpose, she will soon save the cost of her stove over and -over again in the difference in the price of the material she uses to -keep it going.</p> - -<p>Of course this small coal can be burned in a kitchener that<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_13" id="page_13"></a>{13}</span> has not -blue tiles, and is a simple, ugly thing; but these are not as reliable -as a good stove is, and the ovens burn and spoil so much, owing to the -inferior iron of which they are made, that an effort is worth making to -secure a good and <i>reliable</i> grate, else Edwin’s dinner may occasionally -not be quite as nice as could be wished for him to come home to. But, -cheap grate or dear grate, never allow for one moment that an odour -therefrom should pervade the house. This may require a battle; but it is -one to be won by the mistress if she exhibit firmness, and, above all, a -due knowledge of her business as manager of the household. The terrible -and sickening smell that so often has been known to fill a house simply -comes from grease having been allowed to fall on the oven plates inside. -This waxes hot, and then is followed by the odour, which there is -nothing like anywhere besides. To obviate this, a cook should always -carefully look after any spot or drop of grease, and if by any chance -the oven has become foul, it must be cleansed by burning some hay or -straw in it; but this need not occur at all if the cook be commonly -careful, any more than that green-water need smell, if a small crust of -bread be placed in the water while it is boiling, and then the water -should at once be emptied away into a corner of the garden, or down the -sink if there be no garden, when a little carbolic acid should be added, -which would take away the odour at once. These may appear very trivial -matters to write about, but a great deal of our comfort and, in -consequence, of our happiness depends upon these trifles. I know nothing -more disagreeable and trying than a bad smell, and if Edwin comes home -to a house reeking of dinner and the oven, what wonder that he flies to -his pipe and wishes himself back in his club; while his wife cannot -possibly smile and look pleased to see him, when she is suffering untold -miseries from the refractory grate, and a cook who would be only too -glad to save her the odours if only she knew how.</p> - -<p>I am no advocate for mistresses spending their lives in a perpetual -harassment of their unfortunate servants, but there is one thing that -should never be left to the tender mercies even of the best servant that -ever lived; and that is the sink, or, in fact, any drain that may be in -the kitchen regions. I cannot tell how it is, but a domestic appears to -me to be born into the world bereft of any sense of smell. They never -can smell anything. You will go into the kitchen and discover an odour -enough to appal you, and you will say, ‘What is this terrible smell, I -wonder?’ but your cook will reply, ‘Smell, mum? Oh, I don’t smell -anything; perhaps it have drifted in at the window.’ But do not be -daunted by that. Do not for one moment think you are wrong and she is -right, but persevere, and hunt that smell down, and ten chances to one -you will find something that requires your immediate attention in the -sink line, or else that, despite most<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_14" id="page_14"></a>{14}</span> stringent orders, cook has -started a private dust-bin, and has put away and forgotten something -that is breeding a fever under your very nose.</p> - -<p>Insist upon a regular flushing of every drain or sink every week, as a -matter of course; and I should advise you to see this done for yourself, -and, furthermore, that you should yourself supplement the flushing by -using liberally some disinfectant. If you do this yourself, keeping the -disinfectant locked up and labelled ‘Poison,’ there will be supplied to -your servant’s mind a reason why you should personally superintend the -flushing part of the business, and she will not then have the idea in -her mind that is so often in the mind of the ordinary servant, that you -are spying after her because you cannot trust her. The drains are far -too important a matter, you can tell her, to leave to any one, and -therefore you must see after them yourself. Sanitas in saucers is a very -good disinfectant, and smells most pleasantly; and permanganate of -potass diluted largely with water is excellent to put down the sinks and -drains themselves; but there is no smell about this, so I, personally, -prefer carbolic or chloride of lime, because then I know for certain -that something of the kind has been used, and the rather pleasant odour -from the disinfectant also seems to send away at once any disagreeable -smell that may have been hanging about. In the sinks themselves should -be kept a large lump of soda; this should weigh half a pound or more, -and be renewed every day or two; this prevents the grease from the -saucepans clogging the pipes, as such a large piece dissolves very -slowly, and all the water that passes over the soda serves to cleanse -the pipe in a most satisfactory way. It is always an excellent thing to -set aside particular days and hours for different duties. They are not -half so likely to be slurred or omitted as they are in a house where -<i>any time</i> does for <i>anything</i>. Therefore Saturday, immediately after -the orders have been given, is an excellent time for seeing to the -drains. Saturday morning most people are at home, and a quarter of an -hour takes little out of the morning, while a good deed has been done, -and the house has been purified for Sunday.</p> - -<p>And here let me just for one instant dwell on the great necessity of -regularity, order, and, above all, early rising, in a small household. -If you lie in bed, <i>Sundays</i> or weekdays, things cannot possibly prosper -with you; you cannot possibly either keep beforehand with life if you -live in a muddle or breakfast late; and should you be late on Sundays -you not only hurry to church yourself, or stay away altogether—a -wretched habit—but you prevent your servants attending, or allow them -to go when the service has begun, and they are too hurried and worried -to properly appreciate the weekly rest that should be such a help to -them. Every member of the household and every visitor should be punctual -at the breakfast table, and nothing save real illness<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_15" id="page_15"></a>{15}</span> should excuse a -breakfast in bed. A headache is more often cured by getting up than by -remaining in the bedroom atmosphere; and be sure of this, lying in bed -upstairs means waste, laziness, and unsatisfactory behaviour generally -in the regions of the kitchen. Hence I feel I cannot say too much -against it, or in favour of regularity, punctuality, and early rising, -without which excellent qualities no household can get along practically -or become anything save a place of hopeless muddle.</p> - -<p>Though it would be waste of space to write out an exact list of kitchen -utensils in these days, when every respectable firm publishes one at the -end of their catalogue, and which, by the way, may generally be halved -as regards the quantities with advantage, it may not be out of place -here to give a few general hints on the subject. And we may begin by -stating that ‘plenty makes waste,’ and that ‘enough is as good as a -feast,’ and then we will make up our minds to purchase only just -sufficient kitchen articles for the cook’s use, at all events until we -know our cook and learn if she be to be trusted; though even then I see -no reason why she should have more material at her command than she can -use; for I believe this idea of superfluity has done more harm in the -kitchen than enough, no servant being sufficiently strong-minded to -resolutely put aside anything she can do without.</p> - -<p>In a small and, shall I say, impecunious household it is not so much -what we want as what we can do without that has to be considered; and it -is really astonishing on how little we can ‘get along,’ as far as mere -existence is concerned, if we resolutely turn our back on all that is -not positively necessary for us, although I must confess that under such -circumstances life is certainly not worth living, and has to be a very -bare and barren matter altogether; and I hope that Angelina, at all -events, will not have to live quite such a Spartan existence as this; -still, great care must be exercised, especially in the kitchen, if she -be to have a pleasant time of it among nice and pretty things.</p> - -<p>In the first place, Angelina must show her cook that she really does -know her duties as mistress of a household, and she must be able to hold -her own when cook demands extravagant supplies; while at the same time -she must not expect a quart of milk a day to suffice for a household -consisting of a baby, two servants, the master and mistress, and last, -but not least, two cats, as a friend of mine did; but she must -diligently study beforehand quantities of divers things, so that she may -be ready when called upon to prove she really does know what she is -talking of; and a judicious selection of kitchen utensils will point out -to her cook at starting that her mistress has ideas of her own on the -subject of household management.</p> - -<p>Now six saucepans must suffice, and this is really a most<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_16" id="page_16"></a>{16}</span> liberal -allowance, as four might be made to do; two must be nicely lined with -enamel, and must be kept entirely for milk and white sauces, such as -melted butter, for nothing else should ever be cooked in a saucepan that -is required for delicate cookery. After a long experience, I must -confess that no one’s kitchen utensils please me as much as Whiteley’s -do; they are good and reasonable, and can be relied on to be as cheap -and wear as long as any one else’s. Indeed, for these things he is -really cheaper than any one I know of, and I now buy all there that I -require for kitchen use. He supplies a list of goods suitable for -different-sized houses; but no one requires, I think, all that he -considers necessary, and a little weeding should be done from even his -smallest list, according to the number of the rooms in the house. Still, -these lists are a great assistance, and Angelina would do well to write -for one before she finally makes up her mind what to order.</p> - -<p>There are generally three or four prices quoted for nearly all domestic -articles, such as fryingpans, gridirons, saucepans, &c., and it is safe -to make it a rule to take a medium quality. At a shop you can trust, the -very best, no doubt, must always be best, but ‘<i>good enough</i>’ for use -and wear is to be our rule, and when you have discovered that -such-and-such an establishment really tells you the truth, you may -depend that for your purpose the medium quality will answer as well as -anything, while even in some cases the lowest will occasionally be good -enough for the purpose for which you require it. There are certain -things no housekeeper should ever be without, and one is a bread-pan -with a cover, and this is sometimes quite a difficult thing to procure. -No one seems now to have time to put their bread in pans, and the milk -in those nice white-lipped basins I can never see without longing to -buy, but these two things should be insisted on in Angelina’s kitchen. -The bread taken in to-day should not be used until to-morrow, and when -received from the baker should be immediately put into the pan in the -larder and covered over. This keeps it moist and fresh, and, without -having the evil properties of new bread, is as pleasant to eat, which it -could never be if left to dry in the hot kitchen, or to become dusty and -dry, or may be even damp, on the larder shelf. The pan should be wiped -out every morning with a clean cloth, and on no account should pieces be -allowed to accumulate.</p> - -<p>There is, I think, more bread wasted in an ordinary household than is -quite pleasant to contemplate. Crusts are cut off and put on one side in -the dining-room, and of course no one in the kitchen will look at them -after that; or double the quantity is cut at luncheon and dinner that is -required, and once more this is put on one side. Now, it is quite easy -to calculate how much bread should be used in a small household, but it -is very difficult to find out where the waste is when the establishment<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_17" id="page_17"></a>{17}</span> -increases. Still it is possible, and I do hope Angelina will begin by -impressing on her cook that she will not allow waste, nor what makes -sometimes a fearful amount of waste, i.e. the calling at the back door -of those dreadful people with carts, who want to buy bottles, or rags, -or bones, or such like trifles; for these men often tempt young servants -to thieve, and often enough, too, snatch up a spoon or fork, should one -be lying about, while the servant’s back is turned, and she is searching -for her hoard of things, none of which really belongs to her at all.</p> - -<p>I recollect quite well one year, when I was at Bournemouth seeing these -carts going about regularly to different houses morning after morning, -and as my window faced the road, I had the curiosity to watch what they -received, more than once. Opposite to me lived a family, the mistress of -which had often enough lamented to me the fearful appetites possessed by -her servants, and one day, about 8.15, just when I was going down to -breakfast, I saw the cart arrive, and saw also half loaves of bread, -‘chunks’ of meat, and pieces of butter and bacon, all brought out in an -unappetising manner together, and shunted into the cart. My friend’s -breakfast-hour was half-past nine, so the cart had merrily gone on its -way long before her blinds were drawn up; but the very next time she -spoke of her servants’ gigantic capacities for putting away food, I ‘up -and spake’ of what I had seen in such a way that the cart never called -there again, and her bills were reduced to one-half in less time than it -takes to tell of them.</p> - -<p>The driver of that cart once stopped at my door and descended into the -kitchen. Luckily for me, I was, as usual, writing at the window at my -desk, and, seeing him come in, I waited a few moments, and then -descended into the lower regions too, and found him eloquently -persuading my good little cook to sell bones &c. to him, but she was -refusing staunchly; and then I appeared, and though, I confess honestly, -I was shaking with fright, and was only sustained by the knowledge that -the gardener was cleaning the boots near by, I gave that man a ‘piece of -my mind,’ and, informing him that it was he and his fellows who made -young servants thieves, bade him begone, telling him that if ever I -found him on my premises again I would give him in charge; which so -alarmed him that he fled at once to other houses, doubtless vituperating -me in his mind all the time; but that I did not mind, as long as he -transferred himself and his kindly attentions somewhere else.</p> - -<p>In a well-regulated household every morsel of food should be used; the -bones always are useful for soup, and a ‘digester’ should be one of -Angelina’s most indispensable possessions. This should always be at hand -for stock; and excellent soups, than which nothing is nicer on which to -begin one’s dinner, can be procured by aid of the digester, if Angelina -has a thoughtful<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_18" id="page_18"></a>{18}</span> cook, who uses every morsel to advantage, and never -throws away a bone, even a fish bone, all of which aid the soup, and -save buying other provisions.</p> - -<p>Care and thought are centred in the kitchen, and once Angelina has -carefully trained her maid into nice ways, the house will go like -clockwork, and that is why I should advise any young housekeeper to take -young girls as household servants (<i>not on any account, by the way, as -nurses; no young nurse is worth her keep save as an under-servant</i>); an -‘experienced cook’ quotes her experience, and Angelina, having none to -fall back upon, trembles and is conquered; but with a bright, -intelligent girl, Mrs. Beeton’s most excellent book on household -management (as regards food), a little common-sense, and a mother who -has brought her daughter up sensibly, Angelina can start on her way, -quite certain that she and her maidens will work together in a pleasant -and satisfactory manner, and that she will never be exposed to domestic -earthquakes such as occur with ‘experienced servants,’ who, having -brought themselves up in a big establishment where nobody cared for -them, go into Angelina’s small one in order to get as much out of it as -they can, regarding all mistresses as their natural enemies!</p> - -<p>One more subject as regards the kitchen. Never allow, on any pretext, -that a dust-bin or a ‘wash-tub’ is ever needed. With a kitchener every -morsel of <i>débris</i> should be burned in the close grate; and a dust-bin -is never a necessity to any one who knows her business, and is -determined never to allow of the smallest waste. There is nothing a -kitchener will not burn—remember that, please! and flatly refuse to -allow a dust-bin in any part of the house; it only means that waste will -go on <i>ad libitum</i>, and that dirt and untidiness are favoured by one’s -cook.</p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_III" id="CHAPTER_III"></a>CHAPTER III.<br /><br /> -<small>MEALS AND MONEY.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">I am</span> going to devote this chapter entirely to the matter of money—that -is to say, to indicating how the income should be apportioned, and what -it costs to feed a small family who are content with nice plain food, -and who do not hanker after elaborate cooking and out-of-the-way dishes; -in which case they must not come to me for advice, as I have really no -information to give them; and to further indicate as far as I -can—outside the limits of a cookery book—some of the meals that can be -managed without either much fuss and worry and an undue expenditure of -money and time.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_19" id="page_19"></a>{19}</span></p> - -<p>If Angelina really intends to marry on an income varying between 300<i>l.</i> -and 500<i>l.</i> a year, she must sit down and weigh the <i>pros</i> and <i>cons</i> -most carefully. Dress and house-rent are the two items that have risen -considerably during the last few years; otherwise everything is much -cheaper and nicer than it used to be before New Zealand meat came to the -front, and sugar, tea, cheese, all the thousand and one items one -requires in a house, became lower than ever they had been before; and -therefore, if she be clever and willing to put her shoulder to the -domestic wheel, she can most certainly get along much more comfortably -in the way of food than she used to do. For example, when I was married, -sugar was 6<i>d.</i> a pound, and now it is 2<i>d.</i>; and instead of paying -1<i>s.</i> 1<i>d.</i> a pound for legs of mutton, I give 7½<i>d.</i> for New Zealand -meat, which is as good as the best English mutton that one can buy. -Bread, too, is 5½<i>d.</i>—and ought to be considerably lower—as against -the 8<i>d.</i> and 9<i>d.</i> of seventeen years ago; and, besides this, there are -a thousand-and-one small things to be bought that one never used to see, -and fish and game are also infinitely less expensive, for in the season -salmon is no longer a luxury, thanks to Frank Buckland, while prime cod -at 4<i>d.</i> a pound can hardly be looked upon as a sinful luxury, and this -is the price we paid in the season in the Central Fish Market, where -fish is always to be obtained fresh, cheap, and in as great a variety as -at any West End shop; while of course those detestable Stores, much as I -personally dislike them, have done much for us in lowering the prices of -grocers, who are always willing to give ready-money purchasers every -advantage, the while they are civil, send the purchased articles home, -make out their own bills, and take care their customers are not worried -to death, as they are at the Stores by supercilious youths, who make the -place a rendezvous, and simper with girls who have been sent to do -shopping, and combine it with large instalments of flirtation. No, I -must say I have not one good word for the Stores; and, furthermore, I -detest them because, living as I do a little way out of town, I am -persecuted on my return journeys with enormous parcels, of all sorts and -descriptions, that jam one’s elbows, fall down incontinently on one’s -best bonnet, and are pushed under one’s feet, until the twenty minutes’ -travel are rendered purgatorial by people who will shop at the Stores, -and are in consequence turned completely for the nonce into beasts of -burden, all to save a very problematic shilling or two; but as cabs to -and from the station have to be added to the fare to town, I venture to -state they would be far better served by a local grocer, or by either -Whiteley or Shoolbred, whose prices are the same as at the Stores, and -whose carts come to one’s door. But these little points are just where -the ordinary woman’s finance comes utterly to an end. She can readily -comprehend that sugar at<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_20" id="page_20"></a>{20}</span> 2<i>d.</i> a pound is cheaper than sugar at 3<i>d.</i>; -but tell her to add to the cost of this the fare to town, wear and tear -of temper, gloves, and clothes, odd cabs, and the necessary luncheon, -and she is floored at once. She recognises the 2<i>d.</i> as against the -3<i>d.</i> immediately, but she cannot grasp the rest; besides which, at the -Stores she sees one hundred and one things that she buys simply because -they are cheap, and not because she requires them in the very least; so -if Angelina values her peace of mind let her eschew the Stores, and, -instead, talk to her nearest grocer on the subject, and see what can be -done with him before she goes elsewhere.</p> - -<p>Now, I think, that 2<i>l.</i>, or, at the most, 2<i>l.</i> 10<i>s.</i>, should keep -Angelina, Edwin, and the model maid per week in comfort, and yet allow -of no scrimping; but in this case Angelina must put a good deal of -common-sense in her purse as well as money. Meat for three people need -not be more than 12<i>s.</i>, 4<i>s.</i> for bread and flour, 2<i>s.</i> for eggs, -4<i>s.</i> for milk, half a pound of tea at 2<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>—if they will drink -tea—1lb. of coffee made of equal proportions of East India, Mocha, and -Plantation, comes to about 1<i>s.</i> 7<i>d.</i>, sugar 6<i>d.</i>, butter (2lbs., -enough for three people) 3<i>s.</i>, and the rest can be kept in hand for -fruit, fish, chickens, washing; and the thousand and one odds and ends -that are always turning up at the most unpropitious moments; such as -stamps, boot-mending (two items that have largely assisted in turning my -hair grey), ink, paper, string, and, in fact, all those things that an -unmarried girl rather fancies grow in the house, and that she is very -much surprised to find have to be purchased.</p> - -<p>In any case, let me implore Angelina to pay her books every week -herself, and never on any account to run up bills anywhere for anything. -Let her never be tempted to have any single thing that she cannot pay -for on the spot; and she will live happily, and be able to ‘speak with -her enemies’—if she have any—‘in the gate’; that is to say, she can -boldly interview her tradespeople, knowing she owes them nothing, and -coming cash in hand can demand the best article in the market, which is, -after all, the due of those who go and buy for ready money and should -never be given to those who will have credit. There is nothing so dear -as credit—please remember that, my readers, and start as you mean to go -on by paying for everything as you have it; and, above all, know from -your husband what he can give you, and have this regularly once a month. -If you are fit to be his wife at all, you are fit to spend his money, -and to spend it, moreover, without the haggling and worrying over each -item that is considered necessary by some men to show their superiority -over their women folk, but which should never be allowed for a moment; -and should our bride have a small income of her own, this should be -retained for her dress, personal expenses, &c., and should not be put -into the common fund, for the man should keep the house and be the -bread-winner;<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_21" id="page_21"></a>{21}</span> but, alas! middle-class brides have seldom anything to -call their own, their parents thinking they have done all they need for -them, should they find them a husband and a certain amount of clothes.</p> - -<p>I very much myself disapprove of the way middle-class parents have of -marrying off their daughters and giving them nothing beyond their -trousseaux; and I do hope that soon fathers and mothers will copy the -French more in this matter of a dowry than they do now. I maintain that -they are bound to give their daughters, beyond and over such an -education as shall allow them to keep themselves, the same sum when -married as they received when unmarried, so shall they be to a certain -extent independent and have a little something to call their own. Why, -in most cases, if Angelina wants to give Edwin a present she has to buy -it out of his own money! Can there be a more unenviable position for a -young wife, to whom very often the mere asking for money is as painful -as it is degrading? It would not hurt any father to give his daughter -50<i>l.</i> a year, and the difference it would make in that daughter’s -comfort and position is unspeakable; and would not be more than half -what she would cost him were she to remain on his hands a sour old maid.</p> - -<p>Another thing I disapprove of is placing the household books week by -week or month by month under the husband’s inspection; it leads to -endless jars and frets, and discussions; therefore, having talked -matters over once and for all, discuss money no more until you require -additions to your allowance as the family increases; or can do with -less; only know always how matters are going in business, so as to -increase or retrench in a manner suitable, should circumstances alter.</p> - -<p>Domestic matters must, of course, be discussed now and again between -husband and wife; but a sensible woman keeps these subjects in the -background, and no more troubles her husband with the price of butter, -or the cook’s delinquencies, than he does his wife over the more -intimate details of his office, which he keeps for his clerks and his -partners generally; while the day’s papers, the book on hand, people one -has seen, are all far more interesting things than Maria’s temper, -Jane’s breakages, or than the grocer’s bill, which, if higher than it -ought to be, is Angelina’s own fault, and can only be altered by -herself, and not by worrying Edwin.</p> - -<p>Common-sense housekeeping can only be done if the eyes be constantly -open to see and the ears to hear. Waste must never be allowed. No -servant should be kept who wastes, and if there be no dust-bin, save for -cinders, no pig’s tub, no man calling at the door for bottles, and, -above all, if there be a mistress who is always on the alert to use -anyone else’s experience, housekeeping need be nothing of a bugbear, and -can be done at one quarter the price that it usually costs. But most -girls marry in<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_22" id="page_22"></a>{22}</span> perfect ignorance of everything save the plot of the -last novel, the music of the last opera, the fashion of the last dress, -and undertake duties they neither care for nor mean to understand, -seeing nothing beyond the wedding finery, which is far too often an -occasion of almost criminal display, and that must indeed appear a -mockery to the poor bride, who contemplates her foolish wedding dress -and wishes profoundly she had the money it cost her.</p> - -<p>The great curse now of English households is this seeming to be what you -are not, this wretched pretending of 400<i>l.</i> to be 800<i>l.</i>; the shirking -of work, domestic details, and common-sense housekeeping that -characterises the bride of this day, who only wants to enjoy herself and -spend a little more, see a little more gaiety than the last bride did, -and who sees nothing holy in the name of wife, only a mere emancipation -from the schoolroom; who wants to decorate a house, not make a home; and -who sees in her children, not human souls to train for time and for -eternity, but pretty dolls to dress, to attract attention, or tiresome -objects to be got rid of at school at the earliest opportunity.</p> - -<p>That marriage means much more than this is gradually borne in upon the -butterfly, who either sobers down in the course of years, and becomes -faded and worn and peevish; or else, impatient of control, she breaks -all bounds, and the whole family is disgraced by an <i>esclandre</i> that is -as terrible as it is preventible. With such women as this we have -nothing to do; but many of these poor creatures would have been saved -had they been brought up properly, so I trust, after all, my words on -the subject of common-sense housekeeping will not be considered out of -place.</p> - -<p>Though they are certainly a little discursive, still they have to do -with money emphatically, and that was the first part of the subject I -proposed to treat of in this chapter, so before I leave it let me say -just a few words on the best system of keeping accounts, a most -necessary portion of any woman’s business as mistress of a household.</p> - -<p>The best authority I know on the subject of accounts is a personal -friend who began housekeeping many years ago on a very small and -uncertain income. Her husband was a literary man, and had of course that -most tiresome and extravagance-encouraging income—a fluctuating one; -yet she told me only the other day she could tell to a sixpence what she -had spent ever since she was married; that at the end of the year she -always sat down, first with her husband, then with her grown-up -daughters, and carefully went over each month’s expenditure, and in this -way she was enabled to manage well, for a glance would show her, if she -had spent too much, where she could retrench, or where, if the income -had increased, she could best ‘launch out’ in order to insure more -comforts and less forethought<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_23" id="page_23"></a>{23}</span> and worry: in consequence of her -arrangements she was always beforehand with the world, and never owed a -sixpence she could not pay. A young housekeeper is often bewildered -between account books. She buys one, of course, and then is bothered by -detail, or begins to find ‘sundries’ a most convenient entry—and so, -alas! it is. But our model housekeeper shrinks from sundries, or any of -these somewhat mean subterfuges, and boldly discovers how she has spent -her money, although I must confess I myself am such a bad hand at this -sort of thing that, could I be seen, I feel convinced I should be found -to be blushing violently at giving advice which I far too often do not -follow; indeed, I always feel inclined to imitate the old woman-servant -whose balance sheet consisted of so many ‘foggets,’ among other items, -that her master (of course he was a bachelor), confused with the idea of -having so much firewood, begged her for an explanation, when she -remarked, ‘ ’Taint faggots, master; <i>’tis forgets</i>.’ Fortunately her -honesty had been tried by many a long year’s service, or she might have -got into serious trouble; and I think when we too have ‘forgets’ we are -not unlikely to get into trouble when at last we have to face boldly a -day of reckoning, which must come sooner or later.</p> - -<p>But if I am not a good hand at accounts my friend is, and I here append -a leaf from her account book, which, ruled and written by herself, is to -me a model of what it should be. Of course the columns can be added to, -to any extent, but this will show at once how to keep one’s bills before -one: in such a manner, that one sees at once how and where the money has -gone, and I can but hope this capital system will be adopted at once by -all those who are starting in life with the best resolve of all, that -nothing shall persuade them to get into debt.</p> - -<p>And here let me say that there should always be a special column for -medical attendance; and without doubting the medical profession in the -least, let me impress upon all who have to call in a physician to note -his visits in the column set apart for the purpose. I always note a -doctor’s visits in my diary, as this often checks his accounts, for, -without meaning to be dishonest, a doctor often makes the most -astounding mistakes. For example, not long ago I saved myself 7<i>l.</i> on a -doctor’s bill by sending an exorbitant account back to my then doctor, -drawing his attention to the fact that by my diary only so many visits -had been paid, whereas so many had evidently been charged for; when the -clerk wrote back to say the error had been made in the addition, and -that of course this would have been rectified next time! I can’t say if -it would have been; all I know is, I was saved the money by always -putting down the visits; so I most strongly advise Angelina to put the -column in her account book as a reminder, even if she cannot put down in -that the exact sum; and I must say I do most heartily wish it were<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_24" id="page_24"></a>{24}</span></p> - -<table border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="font-size:75%;"> -<tr><td align="center"> </td><td align="center"> </td><td align="center"> Butcher,</td><td align="center"> Baker</td><td align="center"> Grocer</td><td align="center"> Greengrocer</td><td align="center"> Coal, Gas, &</td><td align="center"> Rent, Rates</td><td align="center"> Wages</td><td align="center"> Dress</td><td align="center"> Washing</td><td align="center"> Total</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"> </td><td align="center"> </td><td align="center"> Fishmonger</td><td align="center"></td><td align="center"></td><td align="center"></td><td align="center"> Lighting</td><td align="center"> and Taxes</td><td align="center"></td><td align="center"></td><td align="center"></td><td align="center"></td></tr> -<tr><td align="center">1887</td><td align="center"></td><td align="center"> £ <i>s.</i> <i>d.</i></td><td align="center"> £ <i>s.</i> <i>d.</i></td><td align="center"> £ <i>s.</i> <i>d.</i></td><td align="center"> £ <i>s.</i> <i>d.</i></td><td align="center"> £ <i>s.</i> <i>d.</i></td><td align="center"> £ <i>s.</i> <i>d.</i></td><td align="center"> £ <i>s.</i> <i>d.</i></td><td align="center"> £ <i>s.</i> d<i>.</i></td><td align="center"> £ <i>s.</i> <i>d.</i></td><td align="center"> £ <i>s.</i> <i>d.</i></td></tr> -<tr><td align="center">Jan. 1</td><td align="left"> Messrs. Slater & Co.</td><td align="center"> 5 0 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 5 0 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 5</td><td align="left"> Smith</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 1 0 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 1 0 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 6</td><td align="left"> Whiteley’s account</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 1 10 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 5 0 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 6 10 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 7</td><td align="left"> Income Tax</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 10 0 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 10 0 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 8</td><td align="left"> Water Rate</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 2 4 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 2 4 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 9</td><td align="left"> Poor Rate</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 5 0 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 5 0 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 10</td><td align="left"> Christmas Rent</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 25 0 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 25 0 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 11</td><td align="left"> One quarter Gas, due Christmas</td><td align="center"> </td><td align="center"> </td><td align="center"> </td><td align="center"> </td><td align="center"> 5 0 0</td><td align="center"></td><td align="center"></td><td align="center"></td><td align="center"></td><td align="center"></td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 15</td><td align="left"> Housemaid</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 5 0 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 5 0 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 16</td><td align="left"> Parlourmaid</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 6 0 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 6 0 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 17</td><td align="left"> Cook</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 7 10 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 7 10 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 18</td><td align="left"> Worth</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 20 0 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 20 0 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 19</td><td align="left"> Mrs. Jones</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 2 0 0</td><td align="center"> 2 0 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 20</td><td align="left"> Potatoes</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 0 10 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 010 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 25</td><td align="left"> Fish account</td><td align="center"> 3 0 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 3 0 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 27</td><td align="left"> Sundry Groceries</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 2 0 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 2 0 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"><span class="ditto">“</span> 28</td><td align="left"> Coal</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 5 0 0</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> —</td><td align="center"> 5 0 0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="center"> </td><td align="center"> Total</td><td align="center"> 8 0 0</td><td align="center"> 1 0 0</td><td align="center"> 3 10 0</td><td align="center"> 0 10 0</td><td align="center"> 15 0 0</td><td align="center"> 42 4 0</td><td align="center"> 18 10 0</td><td align="center"> 20 0 0</td><td align="center"> 2 0 0</td><td align="center">110 14 0</td></tr> -</table> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_25" id="page_25"></a>{25}</span></p> - -<p class="nind">etiquette for doctors to send in their bills made out in items, instead -of that business way of ‘To medical attendance, &c.,’ for I cannot see -why they should not. Even a lawyer gives items of his detestable; and what should we say to a modiste who sent in her bill, ‘To -dress and draperies to date,’ without items? I like to know what I am -paying for; and why should not my case, mentioned above, be the case of -many? One word before I leave the doctor—pay his bill at once; no one -is kept waiting longer than a doctor; no one <i>usually</i> deserves his -money more; it is a disagreeable bill to keep about, and should be -always settled as soon as possible.</p> - -<p>Now for one hint more, as applying both to meals and money. If you want -to save begin with the butcher and the brewer—not that I for one moment -want to run down beer—my husband being a brewer, I should not be likely -to do so; and I mention this fact to show I cannot be a rabid -teetotaler—but I do say and maintain that beer is not necessary for -women and for women servants, that young people especially do not -require stimulants—I, for one, never took either wine or beer until I -had passed the pleasant age of thirty-one or thirty-two—and that milk -is far better for both servants and children, youths and maidens, than -malt liquor of any sort or description, and that therefore milk should -be a somewhat large item in the housekeeping accounts. Angelina should -have milk for luncheon and milk instead of that odious tea after dinner; -Mary Jane should be encouraged to drink milk with her supper, and a -proportionate save is at once made in the accounts, though, after all, -one can only give general ideas on this subject, as, of course, -individual tastes have to be studied, and no one person’s expenditure is -quite a guide for another’s. Many people dislike milk, and this subject -of a pleasant beverage is one that often harasses me mentally a good -bit, for I don’t honestly think filtered boiled water pleasant -(unfiltered unboiled water is unsafe drinking), and unless we fall back -on milk and home-made lemonade, we are rather hopeless, for beer is out -of the question, as far as I am concerned, in kitchen and schoolroom, -and if some genius would invent something cheap, healthy, palatable, and -without alcohol in it, I for one will patronise him largely, and give -him honourable mention, if not a medal, all to himself.</p> - -<p>Still, until that is done I strongly advise Angelina to pay the milkman -rather than the brewer, and by drinking milk herself to set an example -which will speak louder than any amount of argument. And general ideas, -too, can only be given on the subject of meals. Yet general ideas are -most useful as a species of foundation on which to raise the rest of the -fabric, so I will shortly sketch out now a foundation scheme that should -be of great assistance to those girls who are beginning housekeeping<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_26" id="page_26"></a>{26}</span> on -small means, and less knowledge of the subject on which depends so much -of their welfare and happiness.</p> - -<p>It maybe of some little assistance to Angelina if I begin my short -dissertation on meals by giving her one or two hints as to what to have -for breakfast, before passing on to other subjects, as in some small -households this always appears to me to be somewhat of a stumbling-block -to a young mistress, accustomed to see a large amount of variety, -prepared for a grown-up family.</p> - -<p>What is eaten for breakfast depends, naturally, a great deal on -individual tastes, and there are endless little dishes that require the -attention of a first-rate cook; but Angelina and Edwin must rise -superior to this, for they will not be able to afford such things even -if they desire them, and I do hope they do not, for I do not know a more -despicable way of spending one’s time or one’s money than in squandering -it over food and expensive cooks. If things are nice and are nicely sent -to table, that should suffice, and I think perhaps a few simple hints on -the subject would not be out of place, for while Angelina should, of -course, order carefully all that is required, I see no reason why she -should rack her brain and harass her cook, particularly when that damsel -will have to do a great deal besides merely cooking the breakfast.</p> - -<p>Whatever else there is not, there should be a little fruit. Oranges, -pears, apples, and grapes are cheap enough if purchased with sense, and -as ‘dessert,’ as a rule, is unnecessary save for appearances—and we are -too sensible to think only of these—I should advise the fruit that -nobody appears to grudge the money for then; appearing at breakfast, -where it makes the table look pretty, and where it is really good for -both young and old folks, too. Then, if possible, have either honey or -marmalade, it is much healthier and cheaper than butter, and generally -try to have either a tongue (3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>) or a nice ham (8<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>) in -cut, it is such a useful thing to have in the house; as also are -sardines (1<i>s.</i> a box, large size, 6½<i>d.</i> small), as if unexpected -folk drop in to luncheon, or supper be required instead of dinner, they -are there to ‘fall back upon’; and if they appear at breakfast some -really fresh eggs, nicely fried bacon, curried kidneys or plain kidneys, -mushrooms, a most healthy dish, and not too expensive at some times of -the year; curried eggs and rice, bloaters, and bloater-toast, -occasionally a fresh sole, a mackerel split open, peppered, and salted -and grilled, a cutlet of cod, an occasional sausage (and ever since I -can remember we always have had sausages for breakfast on Sundays), form -a list from which a single dish can be chosen, and which should suffice, -more especially when we consider the honey and fruit, both of which look -nice on the table, are more wholesome, and save the butter and meat -bill. And once the cook is trained into our ways, and she knows what to -do, there is no need to order breakfast, a great<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_27" id="page_27"></a>{27}</span> comfort for those who -have much domestic routine of food to think of before beginning the day. -Do not have hot buttered toast or hot bread. Those two items make the -butter bill into a nightmare, and are also most unhealthy, but have nice -fresh brown bread, Nevill’s hot-water bread, the nicest bread made, -oat-cake (2<i>s.</i> a large tin at any good grocer’s), and fresh, crisp, dry -toast, and then I think neither Edwin nor Angelina can complain, more -especially if a nice white cloth (freshly taken from the press, in which -all cloths should be put folded the moment they are taken from the -table), with a pretty red border, and nicely folded napkins, each in its -own ring and each embroidered with initials in red, be used, and I think -that I shall not be suspected of being a fussy old maid, if I suggest -that the crumbs should be brushed off by the maid and the cloth folded -with Angelina’s assistance, in which case it will last twice as long as -it would if, as usual, it is crumpled up and shaken out at the back door -in a manner much affected by careless servants. But these trifles save -the washing bill, which in these days is no light consideration.</p> - -<p>At first another meal that will trouble our bride is that most necessary -of all meals—luncheon. By-and-bye, when little folks have to be thought -of, this midday dinner becomes a very easy business, but I must own that -luncheon and the servant’s dinner combined is a terrible trouble during -the first year or two of married life.</p> - -<p>I think it was Shirley Brooks who used to say he believed that were -women left to themselves they would never have dinner at all, and that -they would either keep something in a cupboard and eat from it when -positively driven to do so by the pangs of hunger, or else they would -have a tray brought up with tea, bread-and-butter, and an egg, and think -they had done well; and I confess freely that my first idea when I hear -that the lord and master of my establishment is going out to dine is, -‘Thank goodness, there will be no dinner to order;’ but this is all very -well occasionally, albeit I don’t see why we women should not have the -same amount of food alone as when in company, but it becomes serious if -it goes on for long; therefore I once more impress upon Angelina to be -sure and have her proper luncheon, just as she used to do at home with -her sisters and mother before she was married. Another reason for the -midday meal is that no servant will ever grumble at the food prepared -for them if it has first been into the dining-room, and a good deal of -trouble of this kind would be saved. It is, I own, very difficult to -find food for three women that is economical as well as satisfactory, -but a fair arrangement would be as follows:—Of course there will be a -small piece of beef on Sunday; for a small household about 6 lbs. of the -ribs of beef is best. This should be boned (the bones coming in for -Monday night’s soup)<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_28" id="page_28"></a>{28}</span> and rolled, and sent to table with horse-radish, -placed on the meat; Yorkshire pudding, which should be cooked <i>under the -meat</i>, and sent in on a separate very hot dish, and appropriate -vegetables according to the time of year. For a large hungry family a -piece of 12 lbs. of the top side of the round should be chosen. There is -only very little bone here, and not too much fat, and besides being -cheaper than any other joint it is most economical, and as nice as -anything else. But more of this anon.</p> - -<p>The beef can be cold for Angelina and the maids on Monday, with, say, a -lemon pudding. On Tuesday ‘dormers’ can be made, with rice and cold -beef, and sent in very hot, with nice gravy, and simple pudding; a mould -of cornflour and jam is delicious. Wednesday, a small amount of fish -could be purchased, and cold beef used if desired. Rice pudding, made -with a méringue crust, is very good indeed. Thursday, if no more beef be -left, a nice boiled rabbit could be had, with some bacon round, and a -custard pudding. Friday, 1½ lb. of the lean part of the neck of -mutton would make a delicious stew, and pancakes could follow. Saturday, -about three pounds of pork could be roasted, and sent in with a savoury -pudding and apple-sauce, and a sago pudding to conclude the repast. This -could be finished cold at Sunday’s supper. Here is variety and economy -combined. One great thing I find in housekeeping on a larger scale is to -have one or two good-sized joints, and to fill in the corners with fish, -poultry, and rabbits. Fish can always be contracted for cheaply. I pay -2<i>s.</i> a day, and get an ample supply for dinner and breakfast, and -sometimes enough for the schoolroom tea too; and poultry and rabbits can -often be bought at the London markets very inexpensively, while I -procure my chickens from delightful people in Liverpool, Messrs. Hasson -and Co., 12 Dawson Street, who sell them to me at prices varying from -4<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> to 5<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> the couple, according to the time of year.</p> - -<p>Edwin’s dinner requires, of course, more consideration, and he may have -very pronounced tastes that require special studying, but in any case I -say it is well and economical to have soup and fish before the meat. -Soup made from bones and vegetables is as cheap and as nice as anything -I know, and sixpence or a shilling a day will keep you in fish, if you -set about this properly; but the great thing about all meals is to have -what you may like sent to table looking nice, and to have none of the -accessories forgotten, an elaborate and expensive meal ungracefully -served on ugly china, or without flowers, and with half the condiments -forgotten, being often enough to spoil any one’s temper, when a cheap, -well-cooked dinner, prettily and tastefully put before Edwin, will -satisfy him, more especially when the household books are equally -satisfactory when pay-day comes.</p> - -<p>Let me conclude this chapter by once more impressing on<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_29" id="page_29"></a>{29}</span> our young -housekeepers never to allow jars and squabbles about money. At first -starting know everything about your income, and settle exactly what is -to suffice for dress and food, and have a settled day, once a month is -best, on which to receive that allowance. Should Edwin have a fixed -income this is a comparatively easy matter to settle between husband and -wife; but should it fluctuate, as the income does of a man who lives by -his pen, pencil, or even by stockbroking (a manner of living that would -drive me mad) or by rents from land, it is safe to arrange expenditure -on the basis of the <i>least</i> sum obtained by these means, drawing an -average for the last three years, any surplus going on joyfully towards -the second year, towards procuring books, taking a holiday, or bringing -something home for the house; there being no pleasure like that of -spending money we can feel is thoroughly our own, and that may actually -be wasted if we like on something delightful, because it is not required -to pay some odious bill or replace some ugly and necessary article.</p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IV" id="CHAPTER_IV"></a>CHAPTER IV.<br /><br /> -<small>THE HOUSEMAID’S CLOSET, AND GLASS AND CHINA.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">One</span> of the very first things to be recollected, either in the kitchen or -housemaid’s pantry, is that there should be a place for everything, and -yet no holes or corners where dilapidated dusters, old glass-cloths, -bottles, and other <i>débris</i> could be stuffed away; and another axiom to -remember is that every glass, tumbler, cup, saucer—in fact, every -possession one has—should be neatly scheduled and kept in a book, which -should be inspected and gone through twice a year, or when any change -takes place in the establishment. That disagreeable remark, that so -often completely floors a mistress, ‘ ’Twasn’t here when I came,’ would -in this case never be heard, as the sight of the list, duly signed and -dated by both mistress and maid, would of course be a complete answer to -any such statement; and seeing at stated intervals what glass and china -had fallen victims to the housemaid is a wonderful deterrent, and also -saves any large and sudden call upon the purse, which always comes at a -time when the exchequer is at its lowest, but which need never occur in -an appreciable manner should each article be replaced the moment it is -broken. I am no advocate for having what is called best things, holding -that one’s everyday existence should be as refined and cultured as when -one has ‘company,’ yet it is necessary in most of our households to have -best glass and a best dinner-service, and these should be kept in a -proper glass<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_30" id="page_30"></a>{30}</span> closet, under lock and key, as indeed should all spare -glass and china; for, if the most trustworthy housemaid has an unlimited -supply at her command, she will never tell of each separate smash, and -reserves the grand total for the bi-annual day of reckoning with the -book, when the mistress has often to make an outlay that is most -disheartening to her, as regards not only the cost, but the blow it is -to her to discover the carelessness and deception of, perhaps, a -favourite maid, who would have been neither careless nor deceiving had -she had to come to her mistress for every single glass over and above -the few she had at her command.</p> - -<p>Nothing has altered more in the last twenty years, both in character and -price, than glass and china, and nothing shows the taste of the mistress -of the house more than her plates and tumblers. No one has now any -excuse for having ugly things, because good glass is as cheap as bad, -and good china can be had by any one who has the taste to choose it, and -the knowledge where to go and buy each separate thing. Granted that we -have selected our saucepans, our basins, and other necessary things -known to any one, and to be chosen from a list either sent for from -Maple or Whiteley—for Maple, I have discovered, issues these lists -too—and which, it seems to me, would only be waste of paper and time -for me to enumerate here, we must, of course, now proceed to think about -our dinner set. The best everyday one I know of is a species of plain -white china supplied by Maple, and which has the owner’s monogram on the -edge of the dish. These plates and dishes are so extremely cheap that -when I say they are 2<i>s.</i> a dozen I scarcely expect to be believed, and -even now I cannot help thinking there must be a mistake; but the rest of -the service was equally inexpensive, and I really do not think I am -making an error in giving this as the price. I invariably have my -soup-tureens, sauceboats, and vegetable dishes made without handles—a -pretty, rather oval shape, with the monogram on the side and on the top -of the cover. There is nothing makes a table look worse than chipped or -mended crockery; and how often has quite a nice service been spoiled by -the fact that either the handles were knocked off and smashed, or else -they were riveted on. Now if we have no handles or ornamental knobs to -be knocked off, the service lasts three times as long as it otherwise -would. The plain white service also insures cleanliness and absence of -greasy or black finger-marks, and one never tires of this as one does of -the elaborate patterns and colours some people prefer, and which are -extremely difficult to match once the manufacturers have broken up the -design.</p> - -<p>I remember some friends of mine who had a service with a whole flight of -red storks on, flying over each plate, and anything more ugly and -incongruous it is difficult to think of. I never<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_31" id="page_31"></a>{31}</span> dined there without -remembering the storks, whereas a plain service would not have been -noticed in any way. For a best dinner service we should have something -better, for of course the china I have been speaking of is not china -really; that is to say, I would not see my fingers through it if I held -it up to the strongest light that was ever made, and young people who -are asked what they would like in the shape of a wedding present should -remember that Mortlock, in Oxford Street, has quite charming designs, -but even here I should distinctly advise, buy the plain ware, with -either monogram or crest, for of this one never tires.</p> - -<p>I once saw a charming dinner set that had been made by Mortlock; it was -a beautiful pale buff ground, with a black monogram, and the china was -of a delicious feel and touch, and as light as possible. Each vegetable -dish was an artistic shape, and, in fact, if ever my ship comes home I -shall have one like it; at present I have plain white china with a pink -and gold band, and the crest and monogram in the centre of each plate, -&c.; of course, this was a gift, and the nuisance it is is dreadful, for -when a plate is broken I have to send the bits to Staffordshire to be -copied, where they keep me waiting months for it, and charge me so -highly that I am beginning to detest the whole thing.</p> - -<p>The glass for everyday wear and tear should be as inexpensive as -possible. I like quite plain glass; tumblers cost about 6<i>s.</i> a dozen, -and the glasses for wine are equally cheap; but for best glass Salviati -ware is lovely, and really, if bought judiciously, is not so very -expensive after all. Besides which, it allows one to have a different -set of glasses for each person. I have a dozen different sets of three -each, so that if one be broken and cannot be replaced exactly like its -predecessor it is not a set of thirty-six that is done for, but only a -set of three, which after all need not be spoiled quite, as having odd -glasses one still more odd does not make the blot on the table that it -otherwise would.</p> - -<p>The finger-glasses should also be Salviati ware. Another suggestion for -Angelina, should she be asked to write down a list of things she is most -anxious to receive as presents—a good plan, by the way, for birthdays -and Christmas, and one we always follow, as then one is sure of -receiving something one requires, and not the endless rubbish that -accumulates when well-meaning friends send gifts <i>quâ</i> gifts to rid -themselves of an obligation; and who crack their brains pondering what -you would like, and at last send you something you not only don’t want -but think hideous, albeit it may have cost pounds. Water bottles should -invariable be coloured. The Bohemian ware—a lovely green hue—is -particularly useful for this purpose, and there is a charming shop in -Piccadilly where all sorts of coloured glasses and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_32" id="page_32"></a>{32}</span> bottles are to be -procured—opposite Burlington House—Douglas and Co.—and nowhere else -is this charming glass as cheap and pretty as it is there. I got a sweet -blue bottle and glass for a bedroom for 9<i>d.</i>, and another, quite a -beauty, for 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> At these prices one can well remain ‘mistress of -oneself though China fall.’ The teacups and saucers can also be white or -pale buff, but my favourite ware is Minton’s ivy patterned china. We -used to have it at home, and I have it still, as it is one of those -delightful things that one can always match. It is a little expensive, -but then it is so pretty! The cups are all white, but the handles -represent a bit of ivy, the leaves of which are in relief round the -handle, and just give a pleasant, fresh look to the breakfast table. The -plates have a wreath of ivy also in relief on them, and breakfast -dishes, cruets, and plates that stand heat are made to match; so that -all can be <i>en suite</i>, except the hot-water dishes. These are plain -white, with a double dish holding hot water, that keeps bacon &c. hot, -<i>not</i> for late comers—these lazy people should never be considered—but -for those who may prefer fish first, or like to have a second helping. -This tea ware is good enough for best as well as everyday wear; but be -sure and avoid the species that is not raised and has a gilt edge, for -no one who has not seen the two sets together could understand how -different they can be. I do not like gilt on anything; it is always -vulgar, always suggestive of <i>nouveaux riches</i>, and on china has a way -of washing off that is most trying, unless it happens to be burnished, -when it costs a young fortune, and one’s heart is broken every time a -cup or plate receives a jar. A very good way in schoolrooms or -nurseries, of which more anon, to secure the smallest amount of -breakages is to give each child its own cup, plate, and saucer, each set -to be of a different pattern. There are some lovely specimen cups, the -set of which costs about 7<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>—not a bad birthday present, -especially if a silver teaspoon is added, with pale yellow, marguerite, -and brown foliage depicted upon them. The same style of cup has also a -beautiful design of blackberries, and I have also seen a pale pink daisy -that was perhaps the most charming of the lot. If a child’s own plate -&c. get broken one hears of it at once, and they are at once replaced. -The governess has her own set too, and it is a good plan to have two or -three extra sets for schoolroom visitors, for in well-regulated houses, -where the governess makes herself pleasant, schoolroom tea is a -delightful meal, and, if shared by intimate friends, makes a pleasant -break for the governess, and gives the children an opportunity of seeing -outsiders, and learning how to behave when company is present.</p> - -<p>The best dessert service that I know of is to be bought at Hewett’s -Baker Street Bazaar. It is Oriental-looking and most uncommon. It has a -green ground, and a raised pattern of<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_33" id="page_33"></a>{33}</span> flowers, butterflies, &c., and -looks so good, no one has any idea of its cheapness; for example, a man -who set up to be a great judge of china once was dining with us, and -taking up one of my dessert plates, he began to expatiate to the lady on -his left hand on the beauty and rarity thereof. I let him go on for some -time, and at last I told him the price—2<i>s.</i> each plate; and, though he -was silent and appeared to believe me, I am certain he did nothing of -the kind. The dishes are dearer, but not too dear, and are all low and -nice shapes, and tiny plates can be obtained to match for preserved -fruits or French bonbons, all of which look nice upon a dinner-table.</p> - -<p>Mortlock has also a plain white dessert service, of which the edges of -the plate are pierced, and the dishes are like baskets, which are -charming, and not too expensive; but these are rather colourless on a -table unless a great deal of scarlet is used too in the flowers, and I -prefer a little colour introduced myself. Still, if we avoid those -terrible swans on sham ponds, with holes in their backs, like the Elle -women, to hold flowers, that used to be sold with the white service, we -might do worse than have this one. Of course, real china, Crown Derby, -and Worcester are all nice for this purpose; but we who cannot afford -this style of property can be consoled with the idea that there are -other things quite as pretty within our reach, although, maybe, they are -neither as costly nor as precious, nor as liable to be broken.</p> - -<p>While we are on the subject of glass and china I should like to say a -few words more about the arrangement of the glass and china, and -especially about the everyday dinner and breakfast table management, as -in a small establishment it entirely rests upon the shoulders of the -mistress whether the table presents a charming appearance or whether it -does not. I will not suppose that Angelina burdens herself with -experienced maidens, but I will think she has taken my advice and -secured a couple of bright pleasant girls, of whom she can make friends, -and who are not already spoiled for her use in some large establishment, -and this being so, she will no doubt at first have to lay her table -herself. This may be considered a hardship by our bride, but I am quite -sure she will soon cease to regard it as one. Anyhow, I beg she will try -my nice girls, and if they fail, why, she can but fall back on her -‘experienced’ ones after all, but she must not take them haphazard, but -must select them as she does her personal friends, because then she -will, knowing something about their family, their inherited tendencies -and their dispositions, be able to know how to manage them. We do not -‘make friends’ with strangers unless we know something of their -forbears, and this rule should apply to strange servants quite as much -as it does to acquaintances who do not live with us, and only come in -now and then, and are easily dropped should they prove uncongenial and -disagreeable.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_34" id="page_34"></a>{34}</span></p> - -<p>It is so easy to get your maiden into nice ways if she have no bad ones -of her own, out of which you have to take her first, and, beginning at -once to show her how you like things, you will soon be able to rely on -her, and she will take a pride in copying you, and you will soon have -your reward in service that is real, because it comes from the heart and -not from the eye.</p> - -<p>I am a great advocate for white china, because the washing of this -cannot be scamped, and as far as possible all breakfast china should be -white, with just a pattern of ivy or daisies, as described above; and -the breakfast-table could be laid something as follows, putting the -mistress at the head of the table if she wishes, and the master <i>at the -side</i>, not at the foot—a most dreary arrangement, unless the breakfast -table is filled by others besides the host and hostess, which in -Angelina’s case is most unlikely. In front of Angelina is arranged the -breakfast equipage, and I strongly advise her to have either cocoa or -nicely made coffee, and to taboo that wretched tea that destroys so many -digestions and unstrings so many nerves. Coffee is not more expensive, -and a charming drink is made from equal parts of Mocha, East Indian, and -Plantation coffee at 1<i>s.</i> 5½<i>d.</i> a pound and 1<i>s.</i> 4½<i>d.</i> It -should be bought in the berry, and ground each morning; but as this is -too much labour in our small household, I should suggest buying half a -dozen pounds, two of each kind at a time, mixing them carefully and -keeping them in a tin biscuit-box, filling up a smaller canister that -holds a pound as required. I always do this, and the coffee is as -fragrant and good the last day I use from it as on the first. This -should be made for two people in one of Ash’s kaffee kanns, purchasable -in Oxford Street, the best coffee machine I know of anywhere, and, being -furnished with a spirit-lamp, it has always means of keeping the coffee -hot, and the cheerful song of the little lamp is very pleasant when we -come down on a cold wet morning. Of course the milk must be boiled, and -sent in very hot in a china jug to match the china, and Barbadoes raw -sugar is better with it than the ordinary lump. Very pretty basins, both -for moist and lump sugar, can be bought at the Baker Street Bazaar, in -Oriental china, for 1<i>s.</i> or 2<i>s.</i>; butter-dishes at 6<i>d.</i>, in blue and -white china, also marmalade and honey pots, for about 2<i>s.</i>; and as the -blue harmonises with green, these pots can be used quite well with my -favourite ivy service, of which I spoke before.</p> - -<p>In the centre of the table there should always be an art pot with a -plant in. Of course I know people <i>will</i> consider that expensive, and -will sometimes even put another enemy of mine (a worse enemy even than -that terrible hat-stand!) in this place of honour—I mean a cruet-stand. -But let me tell you what this expensive item has cost me since this time -last year—just five shillings. I had my pot for years, naturally, and -this is not included in the outlay, but this some years ago cost 3<i>s.</i>, -so no<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_35" id="page_35"></a>{35}</span> one can object on the score of expense. In this pot I had planted -a cocos palm, 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, a most graceful plant, and the other 1<i>s.</i> -6<i>d.</i> went for three tiny ferns, all of which are flourishing mightily, -and will soon have to be transplanted and make room for smaller ones -again. Any lady fond of gardening could have planted these herself, and, -naturally, cheaper plants are to be had; but the fine, graceful foliage -of the cocos is so pretty, and the plant lasts so long, that I can -heartily recommend it from long experience.</p> - -<p>Of course, round the centre plant can be arranged three or four specimen -glasses of flowers; but this I have never time to do except on special -occasions, yet it adds much to the effect of a breakfast-table, and no -young housekeeper who has not a settled occupation, such as keeps me -employed from nine until one, should ever allow her table to be -flowerless or ugly. In front of Edwin should be placed any hot food -provided for breakfast, on nice china hot-water dishes; the bread should -be placed on a wooden bread platter, that has neither a text nor a moral -reflection carved on it—two things that always seem to me singularly -out of place on a bread-stand; and the knife should be one of those very -nice ivory-handled ones, made on purpose by Mappin and Webb, I believe, -that cost 7<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, but that last years.</p> - -<p>At the corner of the table, between Edwin and Angelina, should be neatly -arranged salt, pepper, and mustard. A tiny set of cruets for breakfast -can be bought to match the ivy festooned ware, and is as pretty as can -be. Very pretty white china salt-cellars &c. can be also purchased, with -white china spoons to serve with; and Doulton makes charming sets also, -which go with any service, and are very strong, but these have plated -mounts; and I am not nearly as fond of them as I am of plain china, as -these always look and are clean; and either plated ware or silver -tarnish very soon, and make a great deal of work for our one pair of -hands; which is one very strong reason why Angelina should put away all -the pretty silver salt-cellars she is sure to receive when she is -married; reserving these and other handsome possessions until she can -afford a butler, or until she has trained her maidens well, and is -justified in taking extra help, under the housemaid, when, if she likes, -she can bring it out and use it daily.</p> - -<p>As in every other department, in the housemaid’s department should rules -and regulations be found. She should clean certain rooms on certain -days; she should never leave her silver in greasy, or her knives in hot -water; she should keep soda in her sink just as the cook does; and she -should be instructed how to keep her glass clean and bright, a smeared -glass or plate being at once returned to her for alteration should she -bring it up to table.</p> - -<p>Let the housemaid, moreover, have two or three coarse dust-sheets<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_36" id="page_36"></a>{36}</span> for -covering the furniture when she is sweeping and dusting (and see she -uses them), a large piece of ‘crash’ to place in front of the fireplace, -when she is cleaning the grate, and a housemaid’s box and gloves. She -must, furthermore, have three dusters, three glass-cloths, a good -chamois leather, a set of brushes and plate-brushes, a decanter-drainer, -a wooden bowl for washing up in, which must be kept free from grease of -any kind, and she must wash out her dusters for herself. This makes them -last much longer than they otherwise would, and if she has only a -certain number she cannot waste and spoil them. Little things like these -are what almost ruin a young housekeeper, because she does not know how -to manage, and because she is too proud, as a rule, to ask any one why -dusters vanish into thin air, and why the washing bill adds up so -mysteriously.</p> - -<p>Silver can be kept beautifully clean if washed in clean soda water -daily, and then cleaned with a little whitening; which glass should be -always rubbed bright with a leather.</p> - -<p>These items appear insignificant, but I am sure they will be useful -hints to many of my less experienced readers.</p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_V" id="CHAPTER_V"></a>CHAPTER V.<br /><br /> -<small>FIRST SHOPPING.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">In</span> life, as in everything else, it is extremely difficult to draw the -line anywhere. I want both my young people to care about their house, -and know every detail of its management, but they must not become -domestic dummies, and think of nothing save how to make a shilling do -the work of two, and how to circumvent that terrible butcher, or that -still more awful laundry-woman. Once started, the details that seem so -ugly and wearisome on paper need never be gone into again, but it is -necessary to have some plan and stick to it, else the jarring of the -wheels of the domestic car will always be heard, and life will indeed be -stale, dull, and unprofitable. People provide their own poetry, my young -friends, and life is a very good thing if you do not expect too much -from it, or if you will not refuse to accept other folks’ experience, -for she has nothing new to give you, nothing to show you she has not -shown us all before you. You are not the only young people who have -started on a diet of roses and cream, and not the only ones either who -have found this disagree with them. So buckle too manfully, and work -your way onwards, being quite sure that every fresh home started and -kept going on excellent sound principles of health and beauty does a -work little known of, less understood about,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_37" id="page_37"></a>{37}</span> perhaps, by those who -inhabit it, but none the less beneficial to all those who come within -its influence.</p> - -<p>But I do not mean to preach a sermon, much as I should like to do so, -but only to preface my remarks on the subject of our first shopping and -how we should begin our scheme of decoration.</p> - -<p>It is usual for the landlord to allow a certain sum for the decoration -of a house; but rarely, if ever, does that sum allow of anything like -really artistic papering and painting. Yet, I maintain, artistic -surroundings are far more important than handsome furniture or even an -elaborate wedding dress; and I think if we have common sense, and find a -good journeyman carpenter and painter, who will work himself with his -men under our directions, we shall manage very well indeed.</p> - -<p>Could we afford it, of course, I would employ Morris, or Smee’s people, -or Collinson and Lock, with their delicious arrangement of ‘fittings’; -but we cannot, and our first business is to find some inexpensive man -who will do as he is told. Then we can buy our papers and set to work. -There is no saving like that we can make in this first work, if we can -only put our hand on our man. And when this is done our next step is to -describe the work we shall require to be done and to ask him to send in -a contract, which is to be for everything, and is not to be departed -from on any account whatever.</p> - -<p><i>The</i> great advantage to me in employing our own man is that we buy our -own wall-papers &c. just wherever we like, and can, moreover, obtain a -large discount on them if we pay cash, and insinuate that we expect the -aforesaid discount as a matter of course. Then we can start on our -shopping and to enjoy ourselves, though I question much if shopping be -quite as charming an occupation as one expects it to be. Certainly, -unless one starts with a clear conception of one’s needs, a long day’s -shopping can result in nothing save great confusion of ideas, and a -fearful consciousness that one has bought the very things one ought not -to have purchased, and entirely forgotten the very articles of which we -were most in want.</p> - -<p>To avoid this disagreeable termination to our day, we must never start -in a hurry, never be obliged to hasten over our purchases; and once our -minds are made up on the subject of colours, we must not allow a -‘sweetly pretty’ pattern or beautiful hue to tempt us. Having made up -our minds what we want, let us buy that, and nothing else.</p> - -<p>Therefore, before going out really to purchase, we must settle -definitely what are our requirements; and after really making the -acquaintance of our house, the next thing to do is to find out what -pretty things can be bought, at which shops, and at the most reasonable -rate; and this is only to be done by a painstaking inspection of what -the different establishments<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_38" id="page_38"></a>{38}</span> have to offer us, and by not disdaining to -look in at shop windows, keeping both ears and eyes open, and using our -senses and, if possible, other people’s experiences, as much as we can. -This is a long and tedious process, but one worth going through, if we -really want our house to be a home, and the experience we purchase with -our furniture will go a long way towards helping us to solve the problem -set before so many of us: how to live pleasantly on small means. One -axiom we can undoubtedly lay to heart and remember, and that is that no -one establishment should be resorted to for everything. Long experience -teaches me that each shop has its specialties; it may supply everything -from beds to food, from saucepans to grand pianos, still there is always -some one thing that another shop has better and cheaper, and it is as -well to find this out before we start away to buy our furniture, for I -have often been made very angry by seeing exactly the same thing I gave -5<i>s.</i> for in one shop sold at 2<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> in a less fashionable but -equally accessible neighbourhood, while nothing varies as much as the -price of wall-papers. I have known the self-same paper sold at 2<i>s.</i> -6<i>d.</i>, 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, and 4<i>s.</i> a piece by three different firms, all -within a stone’s throw of each other; and, naturally, patterns alter -from year to year, and we can scarcely ever match a paper unless we -purchase one designed by some well-known designer, such as Morris, -Jeffreys, Shufferey, Collinson and Lock, and Mr. E. Pither, of Mortimer -Street, W., for whose cheap artistic papers I for one can never be too -profoundly grateful.</p> - -<p>But even more important than to find where to get the cheapest things is -it to consult the house itself on what will suit it best in the way of -furniture, and we should never allow ourselves to buy a single thing -until we have taken our house into our confidence, and discovered all -about its likes and dislikes. This sounds ridiculous, I know; but I am -convinced a house is a sentient thing, and becomes part and parcel of -those who live in it in a most mysterious way. Anyhow, to put it on the -most prosaic grounds, what would be the use of buying a corner cupboard -that would not fit into any corner, or in purchasing a sofa for which -there was no place to be found once it was bought?</p> - -<p>It is, therefore, far better to know our house thoroughly before we -really begin to furnish; and I cannot too strongly advise all ladies to -buy merely the bare necessaries of life before they go into their houses -to live, reserving the rest of their money until they are quite sure -what the house really wants most. But here let me whisper a little hint -to our bride: a man before he is married is apt to be far more -generously minded than he is once he has his prize safe; therefore, -there should be a clear understanding that so much is to be spent really -and positively; otherwise the bridegroom may think, as many men do, -that, as<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_39" id="page_39"></a>{39}</span> things have ‘done’ for a while, they can ‘do’ for ever, and he -may button up his pockets and refuse to buy anything more than he has -already done. I have known more than one man do this; and even the best -man that ever lived—by which every woman means her own husband, of -course—never can understand either that things wear out or women -require any money to spend.</p> - -<p>When starting out on our shopping, we should put down first of all what -we wish to buy, and then what we wish to spend, and we should never be -persuaded to spend more on one thing than the outside price we have put -down for it in our own schedule. If we do, something will have to go -short, and that may be something very important both for health and -comfort.</p> - -<p>You know individually what you can afford, so make a note of that, and -keep to it firmly, never allowing yourself to spend any more on that -particular thing, thinking you can save elsewhere, for your list should -be so exact that you cannot possibly spare anything you have set down in -it.</p> - -<p>And now another axiom to be remembered when shopping: never allow an -upholsterer to direct your taste or to tell you what to buy, neither -allow him to talk you out of anything on which you have settled after -mature consideration.</p> - -<p>The best of upholsterers has only an upholsterer’s notions, and -naturally rather wishes to sell what he has, rather more than he desires -to procure you what you want. He spots an <i>ingénue</i> the moment she -enters his shop, and he cannot help remembering that here is the person -likely to buy his venerable ‘shop-keepers,’ and he brings them forward -until, bewildered by the quantity and ashamed not to buy after all the -trouble she thinks she has given, Miss Innocence spends her money, and -regrets her stupidity for the rest of her life.</p> - -<p>All young people starting in life are so very certain that they are -going to do better than any one else, that they invariably scoff at the -idea of an upholsterer being able to direct them, but let them start -prepared for this by my hint, and let them keep their eyes open; and if -they do not see things that have not been brought to the light of day -for ages at first, and before the man has realised he has a forewarned -damsel and no <i>ingénue</i> to deal with, they need never believe a word I -say for the future. But I have seen and watched this little comedy too -often not to know I am really stating a fact.</p> - -<p>Start on your shopping armed with this caution, your list, and a -determination to be content with what you can afford, and a -determination to get the prettiest things you can for your money, and -you will do well; and above all remember that your lines have fallen on -days when beauty and cheapness go hand in hand, and don’t hanker after -Turkey carpets, when the price of one would go far indeed to furnish the -whole of the room<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_40" id="page_40"></a>{40}</span> for which you would so like it, regardless of the -fact that if you purchase such an expensive luxury you will have nothing -whatever left with which to buy suitable chairs, tables, and plenishing -to match a carpet which is only fit to go where expense is no object.</p> - -<p>And please mark carefully the word ‘suitable,’ for there is no word so -absolutely set on one side in our English language. Do not be guided by -fashion, or by what some one else has done or means to do, or by -anything at all, save the length of your purse and the house where you -are to live; and recollect cheap things are easily replaced, while -expensive ones wear one to death in taking care of them, and in marking -sorrowfully how much sooner they fade or go into holes than we can -afford to replace them.</p> - -<p>If all this is remembered, laid to heart, and well thought over, the -first shopping can be commenced at any time, and should consist of a -careful selection of wall-papers and paints for at least the hall, -dining-room, and staircase.</p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VI" id="CHAPTER_VI"></a>CHAPTER VI.<br /><br /> -<small>THE HALL.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">Perhaps</span> the most difficult part of a house to really make look nice is -the hall, especially in one of the small houses of the period, where -that tiresome man, the builder, appears to consider either that an -entrance to the house is not necessary at all, or that the smaller it -is, and the more the stairs are in evidence, the better and more -appropriate it is to Angelina’s lowly station in life; indeed, this -idiosyncrasy is not confined to small houses, for I know of more than -one good-sized domicile that is entirely spoiled by the manner in which -the staircase rises from the front door, scarcely allowing that room -enough to open, or which has not space even for the hat-stand and -hall-table to which the British matron is as a rule so very fondly -attached. However, there is now a distinct advance in the matter of the -hall in many of the new houses; and we will take it for granted that we -have a small space at all events that we can make the very best of, for -nothing adds so much to the appearance of a house as a nicely arranged -hall. Indeed, were I now beginning housekeeping, nothing should induce -me to take a house where there was not an appreciable distance between -the sitting-rooms and the front door, for if this latter opens direct on -them it is impossible to avoid draughts and constant catching of cold; a -nicely warmed sitting-room becoming well-nigh uninhabitable<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_41" id="page_41"></a>{41}</span> when the -front door is opened on a cold or windy night: a chill and cutting -draught enters, and in a moment a bad cold is caught. I know nothing -more important, therefore, than to consider the position of a front door -in choosing a house, as not only one’s comfort but much of one’s health -depends upon this. I have had this ‘borne in upon me,’ as the Shakers -would say, often and often, when I have been staying in a house where -there is literally not a square yard of hall, where the stairs and the -front door seem all one, and where the drawing-room literally opens out -into the place where the front door is. Even in not particularly cold -weather, nothing keeps such a house even warm, and the sudden changes of -temperature caused by this arrangement are so great that I have had to -live in a shawl and yet could not rise above freezing point; and, of -course, what it must be in the depth of winter I must leave my readers -to imagine.</p> - -<p>The first thing to look at, then, is what we can do with our hall, when -we have it. If the front door is very near us, we must hang over it a -good thick curtain. I should advise a double curtain of serge or felt. -This could be arranged on one of those delightful rods that are, I -believe, only to be purchased of Maple, and that move with the door -itself in some mysterious way, with a bracket arrangement, and that -prevents the necessity of drawing the curtain itself when the door is -opened. Of course this would only be for winter use and for when the -delightful east wind was blowing; but over all the doors in my hall I -have curtains which remain up all the year round, because they look so -nice, and are really of a great deal of use in more ways than one. As -the doors open inwards, these are only put up on the ordinary narrow -brass poles with rings, and are tied back with Liberty silk -handkerchiefs, or in several instances looped high with cords, as in -Illustration No. 1. This allows of the curtain being dropped in one -moment should more warmth be desired. These cords and tassels are -procurable at Smee’s, while the handkerchiefs are Liberty’s. A 3<i>s.</i> -6<i>d.</i> handkerchief, cut in half and hemmed, is the proper size to use -for this purpose, should they be preferred to the cords. Some of the -curtains are made of stamped velveteen at 2<i>s.</i> 3<i>d.</i> and 2<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> -the yard, edged round the bottom and one side with a ball fringe to -match, and others are made of serge; but I prefer the velveteen—it -wears beautifully, and can be made to look as good as new by being -re-dipped by Pullar the dyer, who lives at Perth, who is very well -known, and has agents all over the kingdom, so there is no expense, -incurred in sending the things to him. The curtains over the doorways of -the sitting-rooms are always kept tied back, and I furthermore put in -tintacks down the sides nearest the wall to keep them in place, and to -keep out the draught. This does not harm the curtains in the least if -very small bits of tape are<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_42" id="page_42"></a>{42}</span> sewn on the material, and the nail inserted -in these, not in the curtains themselves. Over the door that leads into -the kitchen departments the curtains should be in one piece, capable of -being drawn; to keep this in place it is well to put the last ring over -the end of the pole, so that it cannot be drawn on more than one side. -This saves it from looking like a rag, which it would do could it be -drawn with equal ease both sides, and also secures that it shall remain -drawn over a door that would be always revealing all sorts of domestic -secrets were it not for the friendly shield of the concealing curtain, -in the praise of which I feel I cannot really say too much.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_1" id="fig_1"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-042_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-042_sml.jpg" width="202" height="244" alt="[Fig. 1.—Suggestion for draping arch in hall. -not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 1.—Suggestion for draping arch in hall.</span> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_43" id="page_43"></a>{43}</span></p> - -<p><a name="fig_2" id="fig_2"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-043_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-043_sml.jpg" width="196" height="219" alt="[Fig. 2.—Suggestion for draping door in hall.]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 2.—Suggestion for draping door in hall.</span> -</div> - -<p>The flooring of the hall is our next consideration. If we have tiles, -and very many houses have tiles nowadays, I think I should be inclined -to say, leave the floor just as it is. If you put down a nice rug, dirty -boots soon reduce it to a state of dirt and squalor; and nicely washed -tiles really look as well as anything. Of course a good thick mat must -be placed at the front door. This is best purchased at Treloar’s, in -Ludgate Hill, for I really do believe his mats never wear out. I have -had one for years with ‘Salve’ on in red letters, and that mat is as -good now as the day on which I purchased it, and it has had the wear of -boys to contend with, to say nothing of, first, an extremely chalky -soil, and then a clay one. Behind the door I should put a brass stand, -just to hold the wet umbrellas. Maple has very pretty brass stands -indeed for about 25<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; but when dry each member of the family -should be made to take his or her<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_44" id="page_44"></a>{44}</span> umbrella into their own room, and put -them in a corner there <i>not</i> rolled up. The life of an umbrella is quite -doubled in length if this simple rule is remembered, and, indeed, if -there be a room where the umbrella can be allowed to dry, I should -advise its being put there at once open, for umbrella stands wear out -one’s umbrella quicker than any amount of wear. Very pretty stands are -now made from drain-pipes, which are painted, and in some cases -embellished with flowers made from clay in imitation of Barbotine ware; -but these are easily broken, and I think a brass one much the best for -all purposes.</p> - -<p>Now, on no account allow any one to hang up a coat or wrap in the hall. -First of all, a collection of coats and hats tempts a thief; and, -secondly, I cannot imagine anything more untidy-looking. The men of the -household can be easily trained to take their own especial property at -once into their own rooms, where there should be accommodation for them; -and visitors’ hats and coats can be taken possession of by the maid, and -hung up in the passage behind the curtained door that leads to the -kitchen, where they are out of sight at all events, and can be given -back to their owners quite as easily as if they were making our hall -like an old clothes shop, or filling it with water from outside. On no -account, therefore, buy a hall stand, brass hooks or a row of pegs in -some unobtrusive corner answering every purpose, as far as I can see. Of -course if the master comes in wet his garments must go straight to the -kitchen fire, anyhow; if he be dry, why should he not take his hat and -coat into his own dressing-room? We do not put on our bonnets and -jackets in the hall, or keep them there either, and I cannot myself see -why he should. But it is all a matter of management and use, and if he -be asked to begin properly by taking his property upstairs, I am quite -sure there will be no trouble about that detestable piece of furniture, -a hat-stand.</p> - -<p>Of course, nowadays no one thinks of having imitation marble-paper in -the hall—that monstrosity is at last never now to be met with; but the -hall paper is rather a difficult business, and must be chosen especially -to suit <i>the</i> hall for which it is intended. A soft green paper makes -almost any hall and staircase look cheerful, but my pet paper is -undoubtedly Pither’s ‘blue blossom,’ at 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a piece, and I -especially recommend a dado here, but not a paper one—this soon gets -shabby. Children’s little paws, boxes going up and down, a thousand -things inseparable from a staircase, in the shape of wear and tear, all -have to be considered. Therefore, either a dado of matting, with a real -wooden rail, painted the colour of the paper or else a wooden dado, or -one of really pretty cretonne, are all to be preferred, because they -stand a good many hard knocks, and remain unspoiled to the last. A -matting dado, I think myself, is the very best, and, if desired, the -stair-carpets can be saved<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_45" id="page_45"></a>{45}</span> much wear by covering them in their turn -with narrow matting too. I really think a blue hall is as pretty as any, -and then old-gold curtains over the doors look charming; but a -sage-green hall looks extremely well, and I have seen a terra-cotta -paper, with a chintz dado, using Liberty’s Mysore chintz, that had a -very pretty effect indeed. If the banisters end in a round, a good -effect is procured by placing a plant in a pot there. I had one that -never got knocked over; but, for fear of a catastrophe, a brass pot with -an aspidistra should be selected, as, if this falls, it cannot be -utterly and entirely done for, as a china one would be containing a -fragile fern or a delicate palm, neither of which, by the way, would -stand the draught as the long-suffering aspidistra invariably does. I -like pictures up the staircase, and, should there be a staircase window, -artistic jugs and pots, more especially the Bournemouth and Rebecca -ware, sold by Mr. Elliot (who lives at the top of the Queen’s Road, -Bayswater, No. 18), should stand all along the window-ledge; and if the -outlook be ugly, the entire window should be covered by a fluted muslin -curtain in art colours, using either Madras, which does not wash well, -and must always be new here, or Liberty’s artistic muslins at 1<i>s.</i> a -yard, with the appearance of which I am delighted, either for window -blinds or summer quilts, or material for throwing over sofas, instead of -guipure and muslin. It is sold in all colours, and is one of the best -things I have seen for some time.</p> - -<p>How we furnish our hall must of course entirely depend on the room we -have. Liberty has some charming bamboo settees in black, and arm-chairs -to match. These are especially suitable for a hall, while an oak chest -with an oaken back is a most valuable possession; the chest holds -comfortably the year’s accumulation of papers and magazines until it is -time for them to go to the binder, and the top and back are charming -with heavy jugs on, made too heavy to be blown over by filling them with -sand, in which, when flowers are plentiful, blossoms can be put, and -when they are scarce, leaves and berries and pampas grasses show to -great advantage. If any small tables are about, have plants and books on -them, and above all avoid any appearance of a passage or hall—nothing -makes a house look so miserable. A good thing to bang in the hall is a -nicely illuminated card saying when the post goes out, with a box -underneath for the letters, and the time-table and a hat-brush should be -in some unobtrusive corner, whence they should never be moved on any -pretext whatever; a fixed matchbox, that should always be full, is -another institution, and a candlestick in good order should be put on -one of the tables when the hall gas is lighted. The painted -artistic-looking candlesticks sold by Liberty at 2<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i> are very -pretty, but a brass candlestick does not get shabby quite so soon, and -is not much if any dearer. One more axiom: never have loose mats at the -room<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_46" id="page_46"></a>{46}</span> doors outside; they only turn over with the ladies’ dresses, and -get untidy, while a piece of indiarubber tubing at the bottom of the -door keeps out far more draught than any mat possibly can. If the hall -be not tiled, I recommend it to be covered with Pither’s capital -hard-wearing drugget over felt, with one or two dhurries about, put down -carelessly, for sake of the colour; these wash beautifully and wear -excellently, and begin at 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> each, rising in price according to -size, while one or two of the Kurd or Scinde rugs would be even better -than these, as they stand a very great deal of wear and tear.</p> - -<p>Before passing away from the hall, I will just mention two or three -schemes of decoration that are absolutely certain to be a success, and -therefore can be adopted without any chance of a failure: No. 1 is -Pither’s invaluable red and white ‘berry’ paper at 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a piece; -a dado of red and white matting—Treloar, Ludgate Hill, has a capital -one at about 1<i>s.</i> a yard, and varnished paint the exact colour of the -red on the flower; blue hard wearing drugget on the floor, and red, -white, and blue striped dhurries for <i>portières</i>. No. 2.—Paper of a -good sage-green, with dado of Japanese leather paper in sage-green, and -gold all the paint varnished sage-green and Pither’s terra-cotta -hard-wearing drugget on the floor and stairs; terra-cotta and grey-blue -serge curtains would be safe here, and if there be a back staircase and -no boys in the house, the dado may be replaced by a frieze of Maple’s -grey-gold Japanese leather paper; this resembles a flight of birds among -palm branches, and this arrangement is simply a perfect hall, but not -suitable for one where there is much traffic. All the paint, on doors, -wainscot, and frieze or picture-rail alike, must be one shade of green -only, and I most strongly deprecate for any place the odious habit of -picking out styles and wainscoting with another shade of paint; this is -never needed, only adds to the work, and draws attention to the paint, -at which we do not want to look, and which would only serve as a -pleasant background to oneself and one’s belongings. The sides of the -stairs and the balustrading should all be painted to match, though the -mahogany handrail should be left alone.</p> - -<p>Scheme No. 3 would only do where expense was no object, but would -undoubtedly make a most lovely hall. This would be in cream-coloured -varnished paint, with a high wooden dado painted cream colour, and then -embellished with sketches of birds and flowers by Mrs. McClelland’s -clever fingers; the paper could be a good gold-coloured Japanese leather -paper, and the carpets could be Oriental rugs sewn together, while the -hall should have a handsome Oriental square of carpet, and one or two -divans placed about it; the draperies could be Liberty’s beautiful -chenille material in Oriental colours too, and great care should be -taken with their arrangement. In all cases I strongly<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_47" id="page_47"></a>{47}</span> advise the -ceilings to be papered, no one who has once indulged in a coloured or -decorated ceiling ever going back to the cold, ugly whitewash, with -which we have all been so contented so long. It is generally safe to put -a blue and white ceiling paper with a yellow or red wall paper, a -terra-cotta and white with green walls, and a yellow and white with blue -walls, taking care to carry out this combination of colouring in the -carpets, draperies, &c.</p> - -<p>Much as I dislike gas, it is a necessity in any hall, and I here produce -two sketches of beaten iron gas-lamps that would be suitable for almost -any style of decoration; these are from the designs of Messrs. Strode, -48 Osnaburgh Street, Regent’s Park, and cost respectively 5<i>l.</i> 15<i>s.</i> -and 1<i>l.</i> 4<i>s.</i> each; quite simple hanging lamps are to be had from Mr. -Smee at 35<i>s.</i>, in beaten iron, but these are not quite large enough by -themselves to light a hall, and two at least would be required.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_3" id="fig_3"></a></p> - -<p><a name="fig_4" id="fig_4"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-047_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-047_sml.jpg" width="197" height="207" alt="[Fig. 3. Fig. 4.]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 3. -<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Fig. 4.</span></span> -</div> - -<p>On no account, by the way, allow your front door to be disfigured with -the terrible ‘graining,’ against which I am always waging war. Painters -always beg to be allowed to ‘embellish’ at least the front door with the -hideous but orthodox arrangement of yellows and browns, scraped -mysteriously and agonisedly with a comb, or some such instrument, in a -faint and feeble attempt to deceive callers into believing that the door -is made of some highly polished wood, veined by nature, in a way<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_48" id="page_48"></a>{48}</span> that -could not deceive the veriest ignoramus; but I stoutly set my face -against such an idea, and denounce graining as the hideous and palpable -sham it undoubtedly is, advising all who come to me to have some good -deep self-colour for their front door, and generally suggesting a very -dark peacock-blue door for a ‘blue blossom’ hall, a very dark Indian red -for the red berry, and a dark sage-green for the sage-green hall, adding -brass handles and furniture; this stamps the house at once as an -artistic one, and one in which ‘graining’ will not be allowed at any -price.</p> - -<p>And here I will pause for a moment to beg any one who may need these -words of mine to refuse to allow any graining whatever in their houses; -it is a barbarism that should be allowed to die out as quickly as may -be; it is always ugly, always inartistic, and, being an undoubted -attempt to seem what it is not, I set my face against it always. I would -rather have deal, rubbed over with boiled oil, than the most -‘artistically’ imitated piece of walnut or mahogany ever produced by the -grainer’s tools; the one is neat, the other a vulgar sham—vulgar -because it is always vulgar to seem to be what one is not, and to -pretend to be what can be contradicted by the tiniest scratch, rather -than to be confessedly of a cheap material, and therefore graining -cannot be too strongly condemned.</p> - -<p>Many people cling to it who dislike it as much as I do, because they are -told nothing can be done to it, unless all the paint is burned off; -there never was a greater fallacy! To paint over graining all one has to -do is to have the paint washed thoroughly with strong soda and water, -and then rubbed down with glass-paper, then apply one coat of Aspinall’s -water-paint and one coat of his enamel, and you can possess at once all -the colour you require, without any trouble at all. Of course a perfect -‘job’ is only made by burning off the paint, but no one could ever tell -this had not been done, and very particular people can themselves apply -first of all Carson’s ‘detergent,’ sold at Carson’s paint works, La -Belle Sauvage Yard, for 5<i>s.</i> a tin; this brings off the old paint in -flakes, and leaves the bare wood ready for the painter’s brush. Still -this is not necessary, and people who have kept to graining because they -dread the burning-off process need do so no longer, unless they -positively cannot afford the new paint required to cover it over.</p> - -<p>A stone hall in the country looks much better if the stones are painted -a good red or blue, instead of being whitened daily, and Treloar’s -scarlet cocoanut matting is invaluable in back passages and on kitchen -stairs; and above all we must recollect that the hall gives the first -welcome to our guests, and that therefore the more it resembles a cosy, -comfortable, artistic room, the more likely is the rest of the house to -be a charming and successfully designed and furnished home.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_49" id="page_49"></a>{49}</span></p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VII" id="CHAPTER_VII"></a>CHAPTER VII.<br /><br /> -<small>THE DINING-ROOM.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">In</span> my first chapter I laid just a little stress on the word ‘suitable’; -but in looking back at it, I find I did not say half what I intended to -on the subject of making that most suggestive tri-syllable our guiding -star, as it were, in our whole scheme of life, and it may not be out of -place just to dwell upon it a little, before proceeding to lay out any -money, because if we calmly and dispassionately regulate our desires by -their appropriateness to our purse, and our standing in the social -scale, we shall find our requirements diminish sensibly, and our -purchasing powers increased in the most pleasing and comfortable way.</p> - -<p>Therefore, in starting to buy the furniture for our modest dining-room, -let us consider not what is handsome or effective or taking to the eye, -but what is suitable to Edwin’s position, and what will be pleasant for -Angelina to possess, without having unduly to agitate herself and worry -herself to death in nervously protecting her goods and chattels from -wear and tear, which often enough is reflected on her, and wears and -tears her nerves, and takes up her time in a manner that would be -pathetic, if it were not so ridiculous and so extremely unsuitable to -her position as a British matron. Therefore, with a small income it is -the reverse of suitable to make purchases that can never be replaced -without months of anxious striving and saving; for though, of course, -incomes may increase, they seldom increase in proportion to the wants of -the household; and it is better to buy strong plain furniture, to -purchase cheap and pretty carpets and draperies that can be replaced -without a serious drain on our income, than to revel in expensive chairs -and tables which, should they be scratched and broken, can never be -matched without much more sacrifice than they are worth; and if we march -along manfully, determined to act suitably, not fashionably, we shall -enjoy life a thousand times better, and have at the same time the -pleasing consciousness that we are doing good to our fellow-creatures, -without knowing it perhaps, but most satisfactorily; for example is -worth a thousand precepts, and practising is more than a million -sermons, all the world over.</p> - -<p>How often a well-managed house, an income carefully (not meanly, not -lavishly, but <i>carefully</i>) administered, or a pretty idea pleasantly -carried out, has shone like a bright light in this naughty world—other -people have seen our strivings, may be have noted our cheerful bright -house, and seen our small but comfortable <i>ménage</i>, and have gone on -their way cheered and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_50" id="page_50"></a>{50}</span> refreshed by our example, and in copying it have -influenced some one else in quite another part of London or the suburbs; -and, alas! how many may we not have helped on the downward path of -extravagance and foolish lavishness by our foolishness or our needless -display, which we have repented of, most likely, long before all the -bills were paid.</p> - -<p>Taking into consideration the fact that no one can live to themselves, -even in the purchase of chairs and tables, we may, perhaps, be forgiven -our sermon; but lest Angelina tires of our prating, and shrinks appalled -from the serious manner in which we cannot help regarding the starting -of any new home, we will leave off preaching on unsuitability, and -proceed on our journey in search of nice and suitable furniture for our -small dining-room.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_5" id="fig_5"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-050_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-050_sml.jpg" width="151" height="218" alt="[Fig. 5 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 5.</span> -</div> - -<p>Great care must be taken in selecting our dining-room chairs,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_51" id="page_51"></a>{51}</span> and we -earnestly advise all intending purchasers of these necessary articles of -furniture to look not so much at the appearance as to their capabilities -for affording a resting-place to a weary back; for I have often endured -a silent martyrdom at many a dinner-party, in the houses of those -amiable but mistaken people who go in for Chippendale chairs, -embellished by carvings just where one leans back, or for those other -still more agonising seats which have a round gap or space, and through -which one almost falls should one try to lean against them and so obtain -rest; and I am naturally anxious to save others from the sufferings I -have endured, either on the chairs just spoken of, or seated on one the -seat of which was so high from the ground that my legs have refused to -reach it, and I have hung suspended in mid-air, until I have hardly -known how to sit out the long and elaborate meal I was enduring, -certainly not enjoying.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_6" id="fig_6"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-051_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-051_sml.jpg" width="181" height="184" alt="[Fig. 6 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 6.</span> -</div> - -<p>Now here are five chairs illustrated, any one of which would be quite -safe to have. No. 5 is the most expensive of all, and would cost about -3<i>l.</i> 10<i>s.</i> each. These are ebonised New Zealand pine, and are -upholstered in a dull brown morocco, which has<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_52" id="page_52"></a>{52}</span> worn splendidly. Nos. 6, -7, and 8 are Mr. Smee’s designs, and are made with a peculiar curve in -the backs, which just takes one’s shoulders, and gives one a comfortable -resting-place without appearing to be in the least a lounge. These -chairs can be had for about 32<i>s.</i> and 42<i>s.</i> respectively, No. 6 being -upholstered in a species of woollen tapestry, which wears well, and -would be singularly suitable for a small <i>ménage</i>, and is, therefore, -not out of the reach of most of us; while for folks who require -something much less expensive than even the cheapest chairs just spoken -of, there are the 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> rush-seated black-framed chairs, sold by -Messrs. Harding Bros., Beaconsfield, Bucks, which are strong, artistic -in appearance, and infinitely to be preferred to the chairs in the -terrible ‘suites,’ that are such a temptation to the unwary, and to -those who make that most fatal of all mistakes, and do their shopping in -a hurry—than which there cannot be a greater error.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_7" id="fig_7"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-052_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-052_sml.jpg" width="188" height="186" alt="[Fig. 7 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 7.</span> -</div> - -<p>In a small room I am much inclined to a round table; these are much more -cosy, and much more easily arranged to look nice; but, in any case, the -table need only be stained deal, with<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_53" id="page_53"></a>{53}</span> fairly good legs, for in these -days the table is always kept covered by a tablecloth, and is never -shown as it used to be in the old times, when half the occupation of the -servants, and often enough of the unfortunate mistress too, was to -polish the mahogany incubus, and bring it up to a state of perfection. -We have other and better occupations now than this constant ‘furniture -tending,’ I am glad to say; and, oh! how much prettier our houses are, -to be sure, than they used to be.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_8" id="fig_8"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-053_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-053_sml.jpg" width="188" height="189" alt="[Fig. 8 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 8.</span> -</div> - -<p>There are two of these species of tablecloths especially to be -recommended, both for their artistic and their inexpensive merits, and -are far to be preferred to the tapestry cloths kept ready made in most -shops. Self-coloured felt or serge makes an admirable cover, especially -if a border is added of some contrasting colour. Peacock-blue serge -looks well with an old-gold border, about six inches wide; each side of -the border has a gimp combining the two colours, and the cloth itself is -edged with a tufted fringe. Two shades of red look well too; but, of -course, the cloth must be chosen to harmonise with the room in which it -is to be used, and not bought, as Englishmen all too<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_54" id="page_54"></a>{54}</span> often make their -purchases, because the thing is pretty in itself, forgetting that it -ceases to have even a claim on the score of beauty when placed among -incongruous surroundings. I may mention, now I am on the subject of -tablecloths, that I much dislike the custom of leaving the white -tablecloth on all day long; this invariably makes the room look like an -eating-house, and causes the cloth to appear messed, for dust from the -fire settles upon it; and I always insist on the white cloth being -brushed, <i>folded in its folds on the table by the two maids</i>, and then -placed at once in the press, a cloth managed like that lasting twice as -long and looking much better than the one that is left on for two or -three days at a time; for few if any of us can now afford a clean -tablecloth every day, not only on the score of the washing, but because -the washing process too often applied ruins our cloths, and results in -nothing save a series of holes, worn by chemicals and careless mangling; -therefore the white cloth must be removed, and replaced by a good art -serge or felt, made up, as suggested above, with a band of some -contrasting hue. This cloth careful people remove during meals, for no -one can be sure whether gravy or wine will not be upset; and teacups and -saucers have been known to be turned over bodily even in the -best-regulated families. These accidents do no positive damage if the -good cloth is removed; and, after all, this is a small thing to -recollect, and may save expenditure both of money and temper too.</p> - -<p>These tiny hints are of course meant for people who are not well off, -but may not be out of place even to those richer people who are lucky -enough not to be obliged to worry after every trifle. A penny saved is a -penny gained; and even the richest among us has need to be careful. What -he saves can after all be given to some poor brother.</p> - -<p>But however rich you are do not be persuaded to buy that ugly, -expensive, and tremendous thing a sideboard; neither waste your -substance on dinner-wagons, they spoil the appearance of everything; but -get some obliging and clever upholsterer to make you a cabinet or two, -one for each side of the fireplace, if you have recesses there, and take -care they are pretty, for much of the look of your home depends upon -what you have in the shape of armoires. I have two made in ebonised wood -from a design given me by a Royal Academician, which are illustrated -here. They have three shelves, then a broad space where are deep -cupboards, and then again an empty space, where books can be kept, or -great jars put to decorate it. On the three shelves I arrange china, -which is also arranged on the top of the part that has three cupboards. -These have brass hinges and good locks, and hold wine, dessert, dinner -napkins, and trifles, such as string, nails, and other necessary -articles, and answer every purpose of a sideboard, and, instead of being -ordinary, ugly things, are so<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_55" id="page_55"></a>{55}</span></p> - -<p><a name="fig_9" id="fig_9"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-055_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-055_sml.jpg" width="191" height="335" alt="[Fig. 9 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 9.</span> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_56" id="page_56"></a>{56}</span></p> - -<p class="nind">decorative that no one ever enters my room without noticing them and -asking me where they are to be procured. I have had mine some years now, -but extremely nice ones are made by Mr. Smee, the prices beginning at -6<i>l.</i> 6<i>s.</i> in plain deal ready for painting any special hue to suit any -room, to 10<i>l.</i> 10<i>s.</i> each in oak or walnut; and I very strongly -recommend them to people who really wish their home to be artistic, and -not a mere warehouse for necessary furniture, for while they answer the -same purpose as a sideboard, they are pretty to look at, and would not -be out of place in an ordinary sitting-room.</p> - -<p>Up to this present moment I have said nothing about the colour or -arrangement of the walls of the dining-room, and so, before proceeding -to dilate on the rest of the furniture, I will here give my readers a -few hints on this subject. In the first place, then, let all people -about to furnish determine that their dining-room shall be cheerful -somehow, and let them eschew anything like dark colours or dingy papers, -refusing to listen to the voice of the charmer, who has his -‘appropriate’ designs to sell, and does not care in the least for your -ideas on the subject; and, having mentally selected the colour that -appeals to their taste, let them refuse manfully to be talked out of -their purpose by a man who has no ideas beyond the conventional ones of -dark colours for a dining and light ones for a drawing-room.</p> - -<p>For those people who can afford it, I advise invariably a plain gold -Japanese leather paper, with a bold red and gold leather paper as a -dado. The plain paper is 4<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a piece of nine yards, <i>French</i> or -narrow width; the dado paper is 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a yard. All the paint in the -room should be the exact shade of the <i>red</i> of the ground of the paper, -and the painter should be instructed to keep entirely to one shade of -paint, to do no ‘picking out’ or embellishments at all, but to paint -wainscot, shutters, dado rail, and doors alike in one uniform shade of a -good red, mixing the last coat with varnish, or else giving one coat of -Mr. Aspinall’s invaluable enamel paint, which gives a smooth and -polished appearance, particularly suitable for this special tint of red. -The dado rail is sold by Maple ready to put up at 2¼<i>d.</i> a foot; thus -it would be easy for any one to calculate exactly how much such a scheme -of decoration would cost. Then the ceiling should be papered in pale -yellow and white. The cornice should in no case be outlined or ‘picked -out’ with colours, but should be a uniform shade of cream, thus just -shading into the paper without calling attention to itself.</p> - -<p>Here let me pause for one moment to impress emphatically on my readers -the great necessity of recollecting that paint and paper are after all -only a background to oneself and one’s belongings, and therefore are not -to be brought unduly forward. The paint must always be kept one shade of -one colour; the cornice must always be coloured a deep cream, and the -necessary<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_57" id="page_57"></a>{57}</span></p> - -<p><a name="fig_10" id="fig_10"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-057_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-057_sml.jpg" width="339" height="220" alt="[Fig. 10.—Dining-room at Gable-end, Shortlands.{58}]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 10.—Dining-room at Gable-end, Shortlands.</span> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_58" id="page_58"></a>{58}</span></p> - -<p class="nind">relief in doors and shutters is obtained by filling the panels thereof -with a good Japanese leather paper, which at once causes the proper -decorative effect with the expenditure of a very little money, the -effect being heightened by the addition of brass locks and handles, -which cost very little, and yet just add the finishing touches to the -room.</p> - -<p>Should the Japanese paper be too expensive, the red effect could be -obtained by one of Pither’s papers with a bold frieze in a good floral -design. This is united to the paper by a frieze or picture rail, sold by -Maple at 2¼<i>d.</i> a foot unpainted, and from this frieze the pictures -hang on brass hooks made on purpose; these are about 2<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a -dozen; and the pictures are suspended from them on copper wires; this, -however, only answers where there is no gas, as gas corrodes the wire -rather quickly, and then cords must be used; but where there is no gas -the copper answers perfectly, and looks far better than anything else -can possibly do.</p> - -<p>Should red be objected to altogether—and I hope it may not be—here is -another scheme of decoration; a dark sage-green paper, with a very -little gold in it; a gold and green Japanese leather dado; all the paint -one shade of sage-green, and a terra-cotta and white ceiling paper; -terra-cotta serge or damask curtains edged with ball fringe, and a -sage-green tablecloth with pale terra-cotta border. With the red -decoration the curtains &c. can be a rather faint pinky terra-cotta; -this produces an excellent effect, while in some rooms a dull blue would -harmonise most excellently with the red. Let me mention one other -trifle: always insist on that ghastly round in the centre of the -ceiling, above the gaselier, being removed. Workmen always say this is -impossible, just as they generally declare they cannot paint over -graining; but it is quite an easy business, and makes an immense -difference in the appearance of any room, and is another ‘little-thing’ -the forgetting of which always annoys one, and spoils what might -otherwise be a perfect whole.</p> - -<p>I generally advise a dado in the dining-room, because of the rubbing the -paper always receives from the backs of the chairs; but this said -rubbing can be obviated by putting all round the room on the floor -against the wainscot a two-inch border of wood. This does not show if -painted to match the wainscot, and always keeps off a great deal of the -wear and tear the wall receives. Yet sometimes, when the paper is a -really handsome one, a dado can be dispensed with for some time; the -placing of one when the paper itself has been up a few years having the -effect often of making a new room of it, and doing away with the -re-papering process; which is always such a terror by reason of the -dilatoriness and utter worthlessness of many of the British workmen we -are forced to employ, painters, as a rule, being the most unsatisfactory -of all; and I am quite sure many young<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_59" id="page_59"></a>{59}</span> men who now starve genteelly as -clerks, either in or out of place, could earn much more money, and be -constantly employed too, if they would take to honest papering and -painting, and carry out our ideas in our houses for us, giving us -honest, <i>sober</i> work in return for honest pay. However, we must not -sermonise more than we can help; and having suggested a few ideas for -covering the walls and buying the most necessary articles of furniture, -I now proceed to dwell upon those small extras which will make the room -comfortable, should Edwin have to sit in it when he is at home and has -letters to write; or should the bride-elect be obliged sometimes to make -it her morning room, to save the fire, or the extra work caused by a -third room to a servant. A simple window-seat, as in sketch 11, can -often be placed in a suburban bow-windowed villa, and at once makes a -cosy seat. This frame costs 7<i>s.</i>, and can be made by a local carpenter.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_11" id="fig_11"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-059_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-059_sml.jpg" width="207" height="104" alt="[Fig. 11 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 11.</span> -</div> - -<p>The top is made of sacking, and takes four yards at about 1<i>s.</i> a yard; -the front is made from a deep frill of cretonne lined with unbleached -calico, and is sewn on rings (fig. 12). These are suspended on nails, -and the whole of the top is cushioned with cretonne, cretonne cushions -being sewn on rings and hung on the wall to make a back for these seats. -The description of arrangement of curtains suitable for this will be -found in the chapter on curtains; and I maintain that no girl or woman -either need consider it a hardship if she have to spend her morning -sewing or reading here, while she could write her necessary letters at -the desk prepared for her husband, and which is a necessity in any house -for a man who has accounts to keep and letters to write. Still, if Edwin -is not a very much better specimen of a husband than the ordinary smoker -of the period makes, Angelina will have to sit in her third room -sometimes, for there is nothing more trying than an atmosphere of stale<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_60" id="page_60"></a>{60}</span> -smoke, and I look forward to a time when men of the rising generation -will be a little less selfish than they are at present in their -indulgence in a habit that, so far as I can perceive, has not one merit -to recommend it.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_12" id="fig_12"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-060_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-060_sml.jpg" width="199" height="223" alt="[Fig. 12 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 12.</span> -</div> - -<p>How often am I asked by girls how they can get rid of the disagreeable -effects of smoke after dinner! They say—and very rightly too—that they -really dread breakfast-time, and that their morning is poisoned for them -by the indescribable odour that greets them when they come down -refreshed from their night’s rest to take up their day’s work -cheerfully; that it would be worse if Edwin smoked in the drawing-room, -and they have no small room where they could allow him and his friends -to work their wicked will, and that therefore they feel hopeless. And I -cannot keep from wondering why men should smoke as they<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_61" id="page_61"></a>{61}</span> do; and -thinking over this, and remembering how terrible it has been to me to -come down to stale smoke, I should like to beg Edwin seriously to -consider whether he need indulge in this habit in his own domicile, and -whether the save of his after-dinner cigar would not conduce to his -happiness as well as to Angelina’s comfort; and really I have small -heart to describe how Edwin can have a comfortable corner in his -dining-room when I feel convinced the more comfortable he is made the -worse effect it will have on everything in any pretty room.</p> - -<p>I often wonder if men ever reflect on what their smoke costs them—how -many delightful books, pleasant journeys, pretty engravings and -photographs, and, in fact, all sorts of pleasant and permanent -belongings, fly off into thin air by means of those pipes and cigars -that really seem part of a man at present, and, in fact, are far too -often their first thoughts.</p> - -<p>I am not speaking for myself, gentle reader. The atmosphere of smoke is -absent from my own especial domicile, and is reserved for my atom of a -conservatory, should an occasional spoiled friend come down and look -miserable without his pipe or cigarette—for cigars I cannot have even -there; but I am writing for all the young people who are beginning life, -and who think they make their husbands happy by giving them <i>carte -blanche</i> to do just ‘as they like in their own house.’</p> - -<p>My dear girls, you cannot make a greater mistake with your husbands, and -later on with your sons, than to wait upon them and give in to all their -little lazinesses and selfishnesses at home. It may sound ridiculous, -but it is a fact that old coats and slippers in the home circle mean -manners to correspond; that bad manners often show a bad heart; and that -a man is far more likely to care for the wife who exacts the small -attentions that would have been lavished on the bride, than for her who -opens the door for herself, rings the bell when he is in the room, and -fetches things for him to save him steps that ought to be taken for her -and not by her; and that boys who are allowed to bully and ‘fag’ their -sisters and their mother are sure to make the selfish, inconsiderate -husbands of which we hear so much nowadays.</p> - -<p>And this great smoke question means a great deal too. It is a selfish, -disagreeable habit, verily; and I can but hope that Edwin will think of -this when in his pretty dining-room, and confine himself to the garden -or conservatory with the door shut, even if he does not seriously -consider how many pleasures for both vanish into smoke with the fumes of -his post-prandial cigar; while the odours in which he condemns Angelina -to begin her day would be done away with, and cheerfulness reign instead -of dulness and a sense of nausea that are most trying to any one who -does not like cigars.</p> - -<p>Hoping that these words may have due effect, we will contemplate<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_62" id="page_62"></a>{62}</span> -allowing our bridegroom to have a comfortable armchair in one corner of -the room, and a big desk in another. The armchair, of course, is rather -a serious item, and should really be made for the person who intends to -sit in it. This naturally means an expenditure of from 8<i>l.</i> to 10<i>l.</i>, -according to the covering; so this may be done without until Edwin is -older, if he cannot afford it. Now, in that case, I should recommend his -buying one of those delightful low wicker-work chairs, which can be -bought anywhere for 5<i>s.</i> or 6<i>s.</i> This can be painted to match the -room, or ebonised with Aspinall’s lovely and invaluable enamel -paints—paints that have a glaze upon them and wear beautifully, and can -be applied at home, and it can be cushioned by any local upholsterer, or -even by Angelina herself, if she be clever with her fingers. The best -material for covering these chairs is undoubtedly a strong tapestry at -about 5<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a yard. Maple has the best-designed tapestries for the -money in London, and one should be carefully chosen to harmonise with -the room; the cushion should be tied in its place, or sewn in its place, -with very strong tapes or thread, and should be buttoned down. It takes -two and a quarter yards double width material and four and a half single -width to make a cushion for the sides and seat, and the seat cushion -should be finished off with a frill two inches wide. The comfort of -these chairs is much enhanced by the addition of a small square soft -cushion to fill up the hollow in the centre and stuff into one’s back. -These can be easily made either out of paper torn up and rolled into -strips and then put into a piece of twilled cotton for a case, and a -second case made from the material saved out of the chair covering -itself, or small down cushions can be bought at Whiteley’s in -Turkey-pattern materials which can be hidden in a covering like the -chair, as suggested above, or—whisper this, please—the hair-cushions -placed in the back of ladies’ skirts now can be utilised for stuffing -these cushions to far more advantage than if they were retained in the -position suggested by the dressmaker; and then the appearance of the -chair is complete, with the addition of a Turkish embroidered -antimacassar at 2<i>s.</i>, which always makes any chair look nice, and even -expensive (see Illustration 13). These chairs can be bought, enamelled -any colour and cushioned complete, for 31<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i> at Colbourne’s, 82 -Regent Street, W., made to my pattern.</p> - -<p>If you have a more expensive chair, do not buy one with a straight back; -comfortable as they look, they are no use in practice, and every chair -should be rounded for comfort, even if our grandmothers would shake -their heads over the decadence of a generation that requires round backs -to their chairs. Then there should be solid square arms on which books -can be placed, if we like to put one down for a few moments, or even a -cup of tea allowed to stand there, should it be necessary. Mr. Smee<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_63" id="page_63"></a>{63}</span> -made me such a chair—it was 8<i>l.</i> 18<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, I think—and I would -not part with it on any consideration. It is covered with a very -beautifully designed tapestry, and is trimmed with a deep woollen -fringe, knotted and headed with broad gimp, and is simply perfect; but -he took an immense amount of trouble about it, and made it to suit me, -going on the same plan as that on which the wicker chairs are formed, -only making mine higher from the ground, the lowness of the wicker -chairs being their only failing; and even this, of course, is no failing -in the eyes of a great many of our younger brothers and sisters.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_13" id="fig_13"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-063_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-063_sml.jpg" width="190" height="174" alt="[Fig. 13 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 13.</span> -</div> - -<p>Edwin’s desk should be wide and strong, and should have good deep -drawers. This can be bought ready made for about 12<i>l.</i>, but I can -provide a similarly convenient article for 2<i>l.</i> 15<i>s.</i>; that is to say, -I can provide Edwin with ideas on the subject that any small carpenter -can carry out. I have had for years a writing-table made by our own -carpenter which cost me 2<i>l.</i> 5<i>s.</i>, and is now doing honourable service -as a dressing-table in a boy’s room. It was made simply in deal, had -three very deep drawers on each side, and one flat long drawer at the -top; and the top was covered neatly with a piece of Japanese leather -paper, which was quite as serviceable as good leather. I then<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_64" id="page_64"></a>{64}</span> had it -nicely painted to match the room, added brass handles and locks, and had -an extremely pretty desk or dressing-table for very little money. It is -now painted a very beautiful blue, Aspinall’s hedge-sparrow’s-egg blue, -and is most useful; deep drawers in a desk or dressing-table meaning -comfort, for there is nothing more uncomfortable than having nowhere to -put one’s things. Good inkstands—indeed, the best I know is the deep -blue-and-white china one to be bought at the Baker Street Bazaar for -sixpence—should never be forgotten. Two should be bought, one for red -and one for black (there is no ink, by the way, like Stephens’ -blue-black fluid; I cannot write without it, and always take it with me -wherever I go); a box for string, filled, a post-card case, a -letter-weigher, and a date-card and candlestick, and also a tray for -sealing-wax, pens, ink-eraser, &c., all should find places on the desk, -and above it, or on one side, should hang something to hold letters—a -basket at 4½<i>d.</i> does beautifully; beneath it should be a wastepaper -basket, and if Angelina be wise she will have a sack in a cupboard from -some paper works, into which all pieces of wastepaper should be put. The -sack soon fills, and from disposing of the contents there are seven -shillings, which come in handily for plants, or flowers, or any of the -many trifles that seem nothing to buy, but that run away somehow with so -very much money—trifles making up life after all. If possible, keep a -bunch of flowers on the desk. I am never without one winter or summer, -and there is ample room on the desk I describe for this and also for -dictionaries, two plants, and three brass pigs taking a walk, which I -always use as a letter-weight.</p> - -<p>The dining-room desk should always be looked after by the mistress -herself, who should also take care that fresh ink, pens that will write, -a blotting-book, and wastepaper basket are in every room in the house -that is used, including the spare bedroom. Seeing to this often saves a -good deal of time and temper too; for I know of nothing more irritating -than to have to write a note in a hurry and have nothing handy to do it -with.</p> - -<p>The dining-room, or, indeed, any room, would not be complete without a -few words on the subject of the mantelpiece, which is always rather a -difficult matter to arrange; for one must have a clock there, and that -means expense, unless we are content with a very charming specimen -Oetzmann, of the Hampstead Road, used to sell for 25<i>s.</i> I have had one -three, nay, four, years in my drawing-room, and it still goes -excellently. It is blue, and in a tall slender black case. It is called -the Chippendale clock. I dare say he keeps them still. Then there should -be candles in blue and white china candlesticks, and any pretty -ornaments Angelina may have, and, if none are given her, why, 1<i>l.</i> -judiciously laid out at Liberty’s or the Baker Street<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_65" id="page_65"></a>{65}</span> Bazaar will -furnish more than one mantelshelf delightfully. I could make my readers -smile over my hunt sixteen years ago for some nice candlesticks if I had -the time, and could contrast my difficulties then with the <i>embarras de -richesse</i> now. But space does not allow of these digressions. Still, -whatever else is done without, let us be sure to have a couple of -well-filled spillcases, and a matchbox with matches in it fixed to the -wall; though, if we have the ordinary marble incubus of the orthodox -suburban residence to deal with, we shall have to think over the -mantelpiece question most seriously, for this is indeed a burning -question, and one that would daunt the stoutest heart to answer -satisfactorily, and I look forward hopefully to a time when builders -will eschew the expensive and ugly marble in favour of wooden -mantelpieces, which are, to my mind, all they ought to be.</p> - -<p>In the first place, a wooden mantelpiece continues, as it were, the -scheme of decoration of the room, and, without being unduly prominent, -makes the necessary unobtrusive frame for the fireplace that a staring -white marble erection can never be. And, in the second, any stain from -smoke can be washed off the painted mantelpiece, while a few days’ -carelessness, a smoky chimney, or a housemaid’s unclean paws can ruin a -marble mantelpiece beyond the hope of redemption; therefore on all -accounts I think a wooden one is to be preferred.</p> - -<p>Of course, some people, even in a small house, regard the possession of -the marble in the light of a patent of nobility—it is so handsome -(odious word), so genteel; but these belong to the hopeless class, for -whom little or nothing can be done. As an illustration of what I mean, I -may tell you I once was asked by one of these individuals to come down -to her country house and give my opinion on the subject of some -wall-papers she was hesitating between; and when I entered her -drawing-room, where my lady was not, but was heard scouring about -upstairs, hastily changing her dress to be fit to be seen at four -o’clock in the afternoon, I saw just such a gorgeous marble erection, -and, in a species of compromise between the taste of the day and the -sense of proud possession given by the marble, there was a valance hung -round the edge of the shelf, supported, or rather tied on, with tapes, -so that the fact of the material of which the shelf was made was visible -to the eye of the visitor. I could not take my eyes off it, and on -learning that my opinion was asked in reference to the room in which I -was, I asked about the valance, suggesting how ridiculous it looked -suspended, poor thing, in mid-air, and hinting that a board would give -it a reason for its existence; but this was received with so much -surprise that I could not recognise how beautiful the marble was, that I -got out of the room as soon as I could, knowing that here any advice I -could give would be utterly thrown away.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_66" id="page_66"></a>{66}</span> In a great house where -gorgeousness, not prettiness, reigns, marble is, of course, more in -place than it is with us, but I do not like it at all in our cold native -land, where our grey skies and dark atmosphere cry out for colour, and I -would relegate it to Italy, where it contrasts charmingly with the -ardent skies and glowing air inseparable from that land of sun and -flowers. I do hope some builder, who is intent on building houses for -the Edwins and Angelinas of the day, may read my humble words, and, -turning his back on the marble, may put up in the pretty residences that -are now the rule and not the exception the simple wooden mantelpiece -that lends itself so kindly to decoration, and does not assert itself -like the ‘handsomer’ one does in a small house—in a manner that -resembles a rich relation come to call, and reduce the poor connection -to a sense of his position and utter lowliness.</p> - -<p>The mantelpiece of wood can have one or two little shelves in the comers -under the shelf itself; here can be placed cups or vases for flowers. -Then comes the shelf itself, and finally the over-mantel. In one of my -rooms where the slate mantelpiece is hopeless, I have covered the top -with a plain board, painted turquoise blue, the colour of the room. This -is edged by a goffered frill of cretonne, like the curtains, about a -foot deep. It is nailed on the front of the board, and the nails hidden -by a moulding, also painted blue. Over this I have a glass about two -feet wide with a bevelled edge, and framed in plain deal, painted blue, -and surmounted by a shelf about four inches wide, supported by two small -blue brackets. Of course the frame of the fireplace ought to be blue -too, and it is a sore subject, I can tell you, that it is not; but being -of black slate it is not so trying as it might be—not so trying, for -example, as another room would have been had I not boldly painted its -odious yellow and white marble mantelpiece black, to match my paint, and -so removed an eyesore that looked like nothing so much as poached eggs -very badly cooked and sent to table. I did go through the farce of -asking my good and indulgent landlord, who, fortunately for me, was -artistic, and gave his consent freely; but I am afraid, even if he had -not, I should have painted it quite as boldly, and trusted to ‘luck’ to -have escaped any fearful penalty when my lease was up, and I left my -decorations behind me for some one else—decorations that include -another painted mantelpiece, this time a dull grey stone thing, that is -quite lovely in a terra-cotta coat of paint, and its top covered, as I -have just described the blue covering, with a terra-cotta painted board, -and a frill of blue and white Mysore chintz.</p> - -<p>I am always being reminded of how much a fireplace is in a room by going -into quite charming chambers where nothing is wanting save and excepting -a nice arrangement there. The whole room is spoiled, and the ugliness -there contrasts so forcibly<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_67" id="page_67"></a>{67}</span> with the rest of the room that I can never -avoid mentioning it, and begging the owner to call at Shuffery’s, in -Welbeck Street, whose cheap wooden mantelpieces and tiled hearths cannot -possibly be too widely known, and are cheaper than those of any other -firm: though, of course, a clever draughtsman can make his own designs, -and a wooden mantelpiece could be made by an ordinary carpenter, but the -‘stuff’ must be well seasoned and carefully put up, so us to have no -risk of fire.</p> - -<p>Always, if possible, have a tiled hearth and a very simple fender. A -gorgeous fender is a mistake; if a tiled hearth is provided all one -requires is a black frame to enclose the hearth, with two brass knobs -just to brighten it up; then get some brass fire-irons and two standards -at Maple’s or else at Hampton’s, where brass things are very good and -cheap, and, if in any way obtainable, see your grates are Barnard’s. -They save their cost in coal in a very short time, and are very pretty -and simple. I have one that cost a little over 4<i>l.</i>; it has a simple -black frame, enclosing some pretty blue and white tiles, and has -firebrick sides and bottom, and is as low as the hearthstone. The fire -in this grate keeps alight from about 11 <small>A.M.</small> until 2 <small>P.M.</small> in the -coldest winter weather, and I have never once during that time to ring -for coals. Another ordinary stove during the same hours has to be -continually watched and replenished, and while the blue and white room -is always hot, the other room, possessed of the all-devouring grate, is -never even warm, and sometimes one end thereof is hardly above freezing -point. I have an equally good grate in the drawing-room, and here a fire -made up at eight burns steadily until eleven at night, and often is -quite a gorgeous fire at bedtime. I believe these grates are made at -Norwich, but Shuffery sends them or similar grates equally satisfactory -with his wooden mantelpieces; which, by the way, are supplied with -Doulton ware fenders like the tiled hearths. These save needless trouble -to the servants, as they only require dusting and an occasional -wash-over to be always clean.</p> - -<p>While we are on the subject of fires, I can tell my readers of a -comfortable manner to keep in a fire in a bedroom or drawing-room, when -a fire is wanted, but not a ‘regular blazer.’ To insure there being a -fire, line the bottom and front of the grate with a newspaper, then fill -it up, nearly to the top of the fireplace, with quite small coal, on the -top of this lay an ordinary fire, with nice lumps of bright coal, wood, -&c., and set light to it; this fire will burn downwards steadily, and -can be left to take care of itself; and then, when the room is required -for use, all that is wanted is a judicious poke, and a pretty cheerful -blaze rewards you, while you have the satisfaction of knowing your fire -is in, and no waste of fuel to any appreciable extent is going on, -should the room not be in occupation.</p> - -<p>Before I end this chapter I may just give some few hints as<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_68" id="page_68"></a>{68}</span> to what to -do with our fireplaces when a fire is not necessary though, in my own -case, an open Japanese umbrella suffices, because the temperature in -England changes so quickly and so often that I scarcely can feel fires -are an impossibility; but quite a pretty change in the room can be made -by placing the sofa or the grand piano straight across the fireplace, of -course removing fender, &c., and so making it appear as if it had -vanished; while another nice effect is made with putting a fender made -of virgin cork instead of the ordinary one, and filling up the grate -with great ferns and flowering plants or cut flowers, frequently -changed, for nothing save the ubiquitous aspidistra lives comfortably in -this lowly and draughty situation. The cork fender should be filled with -moss, and then jam pots sunk in it full of water; in these arrange your -flowers: put a hand-basin in the grate itself, and bend large leaves of -the <i>Filix mas.</i> fern over the edges; these completely cover the bars of -the grate; then large peonies can be arranged in the basin, and the -whole looks like a bank of flowers. This can only be managed in a -country room, where flowers are plentiful; but not a bad fire-screen is -made from a wire frame with a deep flower trough in front; ivy should be -trained all over the frame, and then flowers and ferns can be arranged -in the trough at it small cost. Let this, however, be done only in one -room in the house. Never put it out of your power to have a fire -whenever you feel cold. No one knows how much illness is saved by this -small precaution.</p> - -<p>One or two things must also be remembered before we leave the -dining-room altogether. Footstools must be provided, and by the side of -the grate should hang a bass brush to keep the hearth tidy, a pair of -bellows to coax a lazy fire, and a fan to screen any one who should -dislike the blaze in their eyes; and the wall-paper will last all the -longer if a Japanese paper fan is nailed in such a manner that the -bristles of the brush rest on it and not on the wall; just as the carpet -will last longer if the coalscuttle stands on its own small linoleum -mat, which can be painted any colour with Aspinall’s paint, and will -always wash clean, cheerfully every day.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_69" id="page_69"></a>{69}</span></p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VIII" id="CHAPTER_VIII"></a>CHAPTER VIII.<br /><br /> -<small>THE MORNING-ROOM.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">Even</span> in a small house I very strongly advise the third room to be set -aside emphatically for the mistress’s own room—sacred to her own -pursuits, and far too sacred to be smoked in on any occasion whatever. -And this room can hardly be made too pretty in my eyes, for undoubtedly -here will be struck the key-note of the house, for the chamber set aside -for the mistress of the house is unconsciously a great revealer of -secrets. Is she dreamy, lazy, and untidy?—her room tells of her. Is she -careful, neat, energetic?—her room brightens up and bears witness to -her own character. Does she write?—these are her pens, and her dirty -little inkstand, looking like business; or work, or paint? Well, ask the -room sacred to her use; it will tell you of her much better than I can, -and if she be only an honest English girl, anxious to rule her house -well, and to really make it ‘home,’ her room will disclose all this, and -will be always ready for her, and for any one else who will come to her -there for the help, pleasure, or counsel she in her turn will be so -happy to give once she has bought her own little experience.</p> - -<p>Or should it happen that Angelina has no pronounced tastes, and does not -intend to plunge head-first among the bread-winners with pen or pencil, -she will have all the easier task in arranging her tiny room. On the -walls we may hang a pretty sage-green paper, taking great care there is -no arsenic in it. In the recesses of the walls beside the fireplace I -should put shelves, painted sage-green, the colour of the paint, and -edged with narrow frills of cretonne similar to that used on the -mantel-board; these are sewn on tapes, and the tapes nailed to the -shelves, and hidden by a moulding similar to the one on the board. And -should Angelina desire a cheap, useful species of cupboard, one of these -shelf-fitted recesses can be draped by a cretonne curtain, which would -look pretty, the while it hid any baskets or boxes or odds and ends -wished out of sight yet close at hand at the same time. These shelves -are put in to the height of the mantelpiece, and, the tops being wide, -hold a nice quantity of decorative china, and, being backed by fans or -large blue and white plates, bought very cheaply at almost any glass and -china warehouse, add immensely to the artistic appearance of the room, -the walls of which will, I hope, be hung with pretty photographs or -engravings, or sketches of home friends, or places, done by friends or -even by our bride herself.</p> - -<p>If she can paint, or has any girl friend who can do so, she<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_70" id="page_70"></a>{70}</span> should now -embellish her door panels with graceful pale pink flowers, remembering -never to fall into that fatal and ugly mistake of drawing or -representing flowers in the colours that nature herself never uses for -them. There is my favourite pink flower, the flowering rush, to be -remembered, and this pictured among its own surroundings, marguerite -daisies and long grasses, would be admirable on the sage-green paint, -and doing this will occupy Angelina nicely during those long hours that -are hers when the honeymoon is over, and Edwin has once more to put his -neck into the collar and set to work to keep the little house going.</p> - -<p>I should also like Angelina to keep round her in this her own room as -many reminiscences as she can procure of her old home. If she have a -prudent, loving mother, I think many a little imprudence may be avoided, -if a photograph of the dear face is always looking down upon her; and if -she have an honoured father, his precepts will be recalled in a similar -manner, and insensibly she will be helped on her way, as she was in her -girlhood, by the loving counsel she can never be too old to require, -live as long as ever she may.</p> - -<p>Then there should always be something here in the shape of a desk, for -Angelina will have to write letters, if only to answer invitations, -though I trust sincerely she may have something better to do with her -time than that. And if she can copy Edwin’s writing table, she will find -it a great comfort to her, for the deep drawers will hold paper, -envelopes, and the thousand and one things she should never be without; -such as string, untied, <i>not cut</i> off parcels, and neatly rolled up in -lengths, half-sheets of letters to be used for notes to <i>familiar</i> -friends or for tradesmen’s orders, paid bills—no <i>un</i>paid ones, -please—and brown papers also saved from parcels, elastic bands, and -answered and unanswered letters; which, if important or private, should -never be left on a desk in a letter-rack, for ‘maidens’ are but mortals, -and an open epistle is too tempting a thing for most servants to leave -untouched and unread. Be sure and have a wastepaper basket, and -somewhere in a cupboard the sack I mentioned before, in which to put the -contents of the basket <i>at once</i>, as soon as it is full; and do not keep -any letters about in your possession once they are replied to, -especially if they are chatty letters about people and their sayings and -doings, but destroy them at once. They are safe in the wastepaper bag; -but a letter is like a ghost, and turns up when least expected, often -working irreparable mischief; in fact, in these days of penny postage, a -letter is only written for the moment, and should be put beyond the -power of doing harm by any honourable person the moment it has answered -its purpose. Remember how often one’s opinion changes. One makes friends -or quarrels with an acquaintance, and writes to one’s intimates about -these tiny circumstances, and no harm is done if the letter be<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_71" id="page_71"></a>{71}</span> -immediately destroyed, besides which there is always the chance that -death may pounce upon one, and leave one’s hoards defenceless, and our -friend’s confidences at the mercy of our successors. Who re-reads old -letters? Life is too rapid now for this. Once answered, tear up these -amusing, compromising epistles, and beg your correspondents to do the -same, and then not very much harm will be done by them after all.</p> - -<p>In Angelina’s room there should always be some sort of a sofa. Maple has -beautiful deep sofas, I think for 8<i>l.</i> 8<i>s.</i>; these can be covered with -serge, or else velveteen or corduroy velvet, in a good sage-green colour -or peacock blue, and finished at either end with a square pillow or -cushion covered with the same; the velveteen is 2<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a yard, and -wears beautifully; it is preserved too, when not in use, by throwing -over it a large cover made of either guipure and muslin, costing -30<i>s.</i>—rather a large item—or by two or three of the striped curtains, -joined. These cost 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> each at Liberty’s, but I personally -prefer the guipure, or else a large square of Madras muslin, edged with -a goffered frill, or else a cheap lace. This should be folded back, -should you require to lie down much on the sofa, as otherwise it soon -crushes and becomes dirty and untidy. Remember, young people, I am no -advocate for lying about on sofas, and I abhor idleness, but a proper -amount of rest and care often saves a long illness, and there will be -times in all your lives when a sofa is not a luxury but a positive -necessity. A book can always be read, or work be done, for, properly -pushed down at the back, the cushions support the shoulders, the while -the legs are supported too, and so proper rest is obtained; and if the -sofa be in Angelina’s own room, she will use it when she would think -twice before going solemnly into the drawing-room, where she may be -disturbed by visitors, or be, perhaps, fireless, to take the repose she -may possibly have been ordered.</p> - -<p>There should be two firm little tables, or even three, according to -space. The floor should be stained about two feet all the way round, and -the square of carpet should be as pretty as possible. Flowers and -pot-ferns should be as much used us the money will permit, as nothing -makes a room look so nice. The curtains should be cretonne and muslin -underneath, arranged as I shall describe in the chapter set apart for -curtains. There should be a work-table, a stand for newspapers with a -paper-knife attached—tied on, in fact, and re-tied when not in use, for -no possession takes quicker to its heel than does a paper-knife—and -plenty of books and magazines, obtainable from a library; or by -judicious exchanges among friends or acquaintances made by advertising; -for it is astonishing how many papers can be seen by a clever person, -who can manage to exchange the one or two she takes in for one or two -more, that in their turn go on again in exchange for others; and this is -neither extravagance<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_72" id="page_72"></a>{72}</span> nor waste of time, for every one should be as well -read in the events of the day, as most people are in the events of -bygone years; for one’s own times are, I think, quite as amusing and far -more instructive than even the events of those days when there were no -newspapers and nothing very much happened.</p> - -<p>Let me beg of you all to remember two things: one is, that on <i>no</i> -account is this little room to have gas, or to be smoked in under any -pretext whatever, and that here all must be to hand that Angelina is -likely to want; she must have her own duster, her sticking-plaster, her -little remedies for tiny hurts, her cotton, needles, thimble, her -string, her stamps, her pins, her gum, her glue, and be able to put her -hand on brandy, the one spirit that I would allow inside the house, and -which is a most invaluable necessary medicine; and if she be wise and -her servants are tired, she will be able to give a sister or very -intimate friend her cup of afternoon tea without ringing, should they -come in on a busy day and require refreshment, when it would be unkind -to take Jane off her work to provide it. No lady was ever the worse for -making her own tea, or even washing her own teacups, and a little -thought for Jane will insure Jane thinking of and for you, in a time -when you may be <i>very</i> dependent on her for this care and thought.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_14" id="fig_14"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-072_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-072_sml.jpg" width="188" height="96" alt="[Fig. 14 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 14.</span> -</div> - -<p>The tea-things can be kept ‘handy’ behind one of the curtained recesses, -and a small brass kettle can also be concealed there; but there are some -rooms, alas! so evilly constructed as to be positively without recesses -for the shelves, and in this case the books that Angelina will require -in her own room must have a bookcase made especially for them, and the -recess for the teacups must be made as in the drawing of the bookcase on -this page. The best bookcases are undoubtedly the revolving American -bookcases, first introduced by Messrs. Trübner, the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_73" id="page_73"></a>{73}</span> well-known -publishers, of Ludgate Hill. These hold a great many volumes, take up -small room, and on the top of them china can also be placed; but they -are expensive, a good-sized one costing 5<i>l.</i> 5<i>s.</i>, and so, if this be -out of the question, I recommend a long plain oak bookcase that I have -had made for me from the design of a relative, for they hold a vast -quantity of literature, and only cost the comparatively small sum of -1<i>l.</i> 18<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> This bookcase is about eight or nine feet long, and -consists of two rows of shelves, each wide enough to hold books the size -of a bound volume of ‘Good Words.’ The top of the last shelf has a -narrow battlement of oak just cut out in scallops to relieve the -plainness and to serve as a rail to support the china that stands on the -top of the bookcase; and the shelves are all edged with a two-inch frill -of velveteen or cretonne to harmonise with the rest of the room. The -shelves are divided into three parts, and the centre part looks very -well with a velveteen curtain over it, nailed to the top shelf, and -hanging in a straight line from top to bottom. Behind this curtain can -be placed all sorts and conditions of things, from paper-backed shilling -books, that are not in the least bit decorative, to string or gum, or -the cups and saucers spoken of above, if we have no other place to use -as a cupboard in the room. The shelves are hung on the wall, just -resting on the dado rail, and are supported with nails driven into the -wall and by the dado rail itself. On the top the big blue jugs and -coarse rod pottery Rebecca jars sold by Mr. Elliot, in the Queen’s Road, -Bayswater, should be placed, as then the bookcase is not only useful but -remarkably ornamental.</p> - -<p>To supplement the ordinary lack of cupboard room, it is occasionally -better to have one or two low square black cupboards about. Against the -wall, where a table may be put sometimes, they look very nice, and are -of incalculable use. They cost very little, and if the panels are filled -in, either with Japanese paper or imitation tapestry, and the top -covered with a cloth and used for books, plants, or pieces of china, -scarcely any one would see they were cupboards, and so you have a useful -piece of furniture doing double duty, as cupboard and table, for the -expense of one. I have in one corner of my especial room a most -beautiful cabinet which holds all my odds and ends comfortably, and is -such a success that I cannot help describing it here, although Angelina -may not of course care to go to the expense, but it is so pretty and -withal so inexpensive, as compared to the usual run of cabinets, that I -think I may venture to recommend it to her. It fits into one corner, and -is of deal, painted sparrow’s-egg-blue to match the room. It stands -about five feet eight. The under part is a cupboard. Then come three -deep drawers, flanked by two little shelves—two each side of the -drawers. The top shelf is hidden by a small curtain of old-gold<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_74" id="page_74"></a>{74}</span> -coloured velveteen, and in the under shelf stands a blue pot that cost -sixpence. There is a flat shelf forming the top of the cabinet with -china on, and at the back, which goes into an angle to fit the corner, -is another shelf about three inches wide on which more china stands. The -drawers and cupboard have brass handles and locks, and the whole thing -complete, made to order and measure by Mr. Smee, cost me 8<i>l.</i> 8<i>s.</i>, -and I often look at it and wonder how I existed, or where I put all my -papers and things generally, before I saved up money enough to buy it -for myself. The chairs here can be all the deep, low, basket-work -chairs, and these need not cost much, but these chairs must be bought -with great care and circumspection, they are all such different shapes, -and should never be purchased in a hurry—that fatal hurry that is at -the bottom of so much waste and extravagance in the world; for, remember -this, a thing obtained quickly and hastily seldom is the thing one -really requires, and then a double outlay is necessary, or else -perpetual discomfort is our portion, just because we were not judicious -enough in our behaviour to take enough time over our purchases; and -nowhere is hurry more fatal than in choosing one’s chairs. You young -people are apt to think only for the day, and do not care to remember -that a time will come when legs and backs will ache; but I know this, -and this is why I want you to be quite sure that you do not get the -basket-chairs that go back too far, or are too low, or too high, but -that the medium chairs are chosen, in which you can rest thoroughly when -they are cushioned; and furthermore supplied with an extra cushion to -fill up the gap in the back, and that are not high enough to require a -footstool, but yet are not low enough to send one’s feet to sleep, -because of the manner in which they leave no room for the length of limb -possessed by the unfortunate person who sinks into their -comfortable-looking depths to rest, and cannot understand why he is so -very uncomfortable when he has been there so short a time. Cretonne -makes pretty covers for the cushions, which should be stuffed with wool -and a little flock—all wool would make these cushions too expensive; -but cretonne is not heavy enough for a man’s wear, and either tapestry -or woollen brocade or serge should be used for cushions for Edwin’s -accommodation. If a sofa be afforded, three of these chairs, or four at -the outside, will amply furnish the little room; and they can have over -their backs, as a finishing touch, an embroidered Oriental antimacassar, -arranged to show both embroidered ends one above the other, and not tied -in bows—a most inartistic and ugly arrangement in my eyes, and one -quite useless and untidy too; for there is no doubt that a properly -arranged antimacassar saves the chair cushion a great deal of the wear -and tear and the rub of dusty shoulders, and need not be any trouble if -a little thought is given to their arrangement, both in sitting down and -rising from the chair.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_75" id="page_75"></a>{75}</span></p> - -<p>If other chairs are required, higher and squarer, although I cannot -think they are necessary myself in this small room, those painted blue, -red, or black, and with cane seats, costing about 12<i>s.</i>, are the best. -The cane seat should be provided with a square cushion, covered in any -odd pieces of damask or cretonne, and trimmed with a frill, and tied to -the chair by four pairs of stout black tape strings, so that the cushion -cannot slip about, as it otherwise would. These chairs would also do for -the extra chairs in the drawing-room, if even the rush-seated -Beaconsfield chairs at 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> each are not pronounced quite good -enough.</p> - -<p>A very good, useful table, called the Queen Anne table, can be obtained -from Oetzmann or Maple for about 25<i>s.</i> It is square, with square legs, -and has two useful shelves, and the whole is covered in art-coloured -velveteens. I have had one in very hard wear for seven or eight years, -and it is now as good as the day when I bought it. I had some charming -square stools made on the same plan for 7<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> each, to hold large -blue and yellow pots purchased at Whiteley’s for 2<i>s.</i> 11<i>d.</i> each, and -filled with palms, and these standing about in odd corners or in the -centre of a bow-window add very much to the appearance of any room, for -nothing gives so Oriental or artistic an appearance as plenty of plants, -ferns, and palms; and these need not be out of the reach of any one who -cares for pretty things, because with care they last and flourish for -years; while cut flowers and flowering plants are out of the reach of -any of those for whom I am especially writing these papers—that is to -say, unless they keep their eyes very wide open, and utilise every -morsel they can beg, or pick from the hedges and fields; that even in -the suburbs are not swept quite clear of daisies, grasses, and even -occasionally primroses and anemones.</p> - -<p>Footstools must be a <i>sine quâ non</i> in each room, and more than one or -two should, if possible, be provided. The square Oriental-looking ones, -at 4<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, purchasable at Shoolbred’s, are very nice, but big, -square, old-fashioned ones, made by the carpenter, or, better still, by -Edwin, are the best of all; they do not run away from you when you put -your feet on them, and their wear is everlasting. They are square frames -of wood, rather heavy, and stuffed a little with flock on the top, and -covered with a good stout woollen tapestry; they are quite half a yard -across each way, and serve for two people if necessary. Then there are -the ordinary round hassocks for 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, covered in odds and ends of -old carpets. These are soon made artistic by covering them over the -carpet with artistic serges embroidered in crewels; white narcissus, or -oranges and the blossoms looking very nice indeed on a terra-cotta -serge; and yellow daisies or pomegranates on a peacock-blue serge being -also quite charming to behold. Brackets are very useful for corners, and -I especially recommend the bamboo brackets to be bought at the Baker<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_76" id="page_76"></a>{76}</span> -Street Bazaar and at Liberty’s. They are so cheap and light-looking, and -hold odds and ends of china so nicely, and if many pictures or -photographs do not adorn Angelina’s walls, quite a grand effect can be -obtained by making a bracket the centre of a scheme of decoration; -elaborated from Japanese fans, that can surround the bracket like a -halo, sending out branches or beams of colour from such a centre in all -directions, in a manner invaluable to those who have no other means of -decorating their walls.</p> - -<p>Were I Angelina I should sit here in this tiny room, and do my work here -all the morning, having every meal in the dining-room, and resolutely -spending my evenings in the drawing-room. There is, of course, rather -more firing required, but not more than is necessary to warm the house -thoroughly, and this will save in health and spirits far more than the -house coal costs. Quite a different current to one’s thoughts is given -by a change of room, and a really dull feeling often disappears when -one’s surroundings are changed, and one goes into a fresh pure -atmosphere; for whatever the weather is, I do hope Angelina has her -windows open top and bottom, and, in fact, sleeps with them open too; -but this I shall say more about when I reach the bedrooms, and talk -about health, which will be later on; though before I describe the -papering &c. of this little room I must beg Angelina not to fall into -the habit of so many young wives, of having nothing between breakfast -and dinner save perhaps cake or a cup of tea, but to have a properly -cooked chop or morsel of meat at the orthodox hour for luncheon. For -while I know how difficult it is to do this because eating by oneself is -so dull, and it does not appear worth while to have cooking done for -oneself alone, I cannot too much impress upon my bride that she must -remember health is the first consideration, and that very bad effects -are often caused by the manner in which proper food is forgotten or gone -without in the middle of the day, a matter far too many girls never -think about at all.</p> - -<p>It is almost impossible to lay down any hard-and-fast rules for the -decoration of a morning-room without seeing the room itself, but I am -sure no colour is so entirely satisfactory as the blue which is the -exact shade of a sparrow’s egg or an old turquoise. Mr. Smee, at my -express desire, keeps this blue paper, at 4<i>s.</i> a piece, always in -stock, and a perfect room can be made by using this paper, Aspinall’s -enamel paint, the exact shade of the ground of the paper, and a frieze -of dead gold Japanese paper at 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> the piece of nine yards; a -frieze or picture rail painted blue unites the frieze to the ‘filling,’ -and the panels of the doors, shutters, &c., should be panelled with -<i>red</i> and gold Japanese leather paper. The painter must not be allowed -to pick out or embellish the paint at all (I cannot repeat this too -often), and the cornice must be one uniform cream colour. The ceiling of -this room should be papered yellow and white, and curtains<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_77" id="page_77"></a>{77}</span> could be -made from the yellow printed linen sold by Mr. Pither, 38 Mortimer -Street, Regent Street, at 1<i>s.</i> a yard, and edged by ball fringe sold by -Mr. Smee at 6½<i>d.</i> a yard.</p> - -<p>Another arrangement for a room which had much sun could be from a -sage-green paper, with a broad frieze of one of the many beautiful -floral papers to be purchased nowadays, with a good deal of pink in; or -better still would it be to go to Mrs. McClelland, of 33 Warwick Road, -Maida Hill, W., and get her to paint a frieze of pale pink and dark red -roses on American cloth; this is put up with drawing pins and taken down -like a picture, and would make a most admirable wedding present; it -would certainly be a joy to any bride for all her life long, and should -therefore be considered by those who are about to make a marriage gift.</p> - -<p>In this case all the paint must be sage-green, and we must get as much -pink—really pink—and <i>peacock</i> blue with it as we can muster. -Therefore, on the mantelpiece we can have a cretonne with pale pink -flowers; our over-mantel and board being painted sage-green, with, if -possible, sprays of pale pink chrysanthemums or roses on. And then place -on the mantelshelf first a candlestick, choosing the pretty small -embossed brass ones that Maple used to have at 2<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> each; then a -spill-case in blue and white china, always remembering to keep them full -of spills—they save a great deal of waste in winter both of matches and -temper; then a photograph frame, holding a <i>home</i> photograph of mother, -father, or sisters in an oak frame (the plush and leather ones soon soil -and look tawdry); then a vase for flowers—a low shape; then one of the -tall sixpenny Baker Street vases, that look beautiful with a single rose -or two; marguerites or fuchsias in summer; and with grasses and ferns in -winter; and then the clock, continuing the same arrangement the other -side; and, despite the sneers levelled at them, use Japanese fans as a -background as often as you can; the colour is so invaluable a help, and, -being excellently managed, goes with anything.</p> - -<p>The doors should be painted to match the frieze, and the over-mantel -should also be decorated in a similar manner, and the ceiling should be -papered with a good terra-cotta and white paper. Some terra-cotta or -pink should be introduced into the chair coverings, &c., but the exact -shades must be carefully chosen by some one whose eye for colour can be -trusted emphatically.</p> - -<p>This room should be under the care of the housemaid, who should dust and -sweep it before breakfast, and should also see to the hall. The cook -will have quite enough to do with the dining-room and her own kitchen, -while the drawing-room can be left to be looked after, when the bedrooms -are done and the breakfast things washed up; though the ornaments and -flowers must be entirely looked after by the mistress, should she only -be able to begin life with two servants.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_78" id="page_78"></a>{78}</span></p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IX" id="CHAPTER_IX"></a>CHAPTER IX.<br /><br /> -<small>THE DRAWING-ROOM.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">It</span> is quite useless to attempt to have a pretty drawing-room, unless the -owner really means to have it in constant use, and intends to sit in it -regularly. I am quite convinced that rooms resent neglect like human -beings do, and that they become morose and sulky-looking if they are -kept closed, or only opened when strangers are expected.</p> - -<p>It is no use then to bustle about to arrange this antimacassar, or to -put yonder chair just a little bit out of its constrained position, to -put flowers in the vases and books on the tables, in a spasmodic attempt -to give an air of life to the dead chamber. Something will betray you, -the chill atmosphere will inevitably chill your friends, your constraint -in an unaccustomed room will communicate itself to them, and you will -infallibly all be as stiff and unhappy as you can be, without perhaps -being able to define the cause.</p> - -<p>Therefore, as your room is to be lived in, let me beg of you to buy -nothing for it that you cannot replace easily, to have nothing gorgeous, -or that will not stand a certain amount of careful wear and tear, for as -sure as your room is too grand to be lived in every day, so sure will -your acquaintances find you out, and put you down at once upon the list -of dull folks to be avoided, that we all of us keep somewhere mentally -or otherwise.</p> - -<p>A light hue for a drawing-room has been found to be a necessity ever -since the days—those awful days—of white papers covered with gilt -stars. There is always something a little depressing about the evening. -One is tired with the day’s work, worried by domestic duties, or -disappointed at the very little fruit the long twelve hours have given -us; and therefore we should be careful to arrange our evening-room with -the intention of having cheerful surroundings, if we can have nothing -else, and that is why I should like to have our drawing-room in blue, or -else in yellows and whites.</p> - -<p>I must say I still hanker after a dado, because in the drawing-room I -like to hang all sorts of odds and ends upon it, which give an original -air to the room, and also insures favourite photographs, fans, or pretty -hanging baskets with flowers in being close to one’s chair, or near -one’s eyes, should we wish to look at them. A very pretty effect is -obtained by stretching a cretonne material round the base of the wall -for a dado, hiding the nails with a dado rail of bamboo. Liberty’s blue -and white cretonnes are invaluable for this, but then it is rather -difficult to<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_79" id="page_79"></a>{79}</span></p> - -<p><a name="fig_15" id="fig_15"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-079_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-079_sml.jpg" width="337" height="218" alt="[Fig. 15.—Drawing-room at Gable-end, Shortlands.]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 15.—Drawing-room at Gable-end, Shortlands.</span> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_80" id="page_80"></a>{80}</span></p> - -<p class="nind">obtain a blue paper to match. Still it is to be done and we are repaid -for the trouble, I think, by the effect when it is up. A -yellow-and-white paper looks charming with a blue dado, also a -terra-cotta paper and paint are not amiss, though I confess myself -rather disappointed with this effect in a drawing-room I once had; but -then the paint was put on in my absence, and I feel convinced it was not -the shade ordered. If people are really tired of dados, and will have -none of them, the walls can be papered blue to within about two feet of -the top; then a frieze of pale yellow and white can be put on either of -paper or cretonne, the join hidden by a rail, on which are placed hooks -which hold pictures. These then are brought down to the proper level for -light, and are not suspended out of vision, as are so many paintings and -engravings in houses of people who are artistic enough by birth and -education to know better; then, too, by using these hooks the great -expense of picture-rods going all round the rooms is saved, without -damaging the walls either by hammering in brass-headed nails.</p> - -<p>I think a panelled room painted blue for a drawing-room is perfect; but -unless the house that Angelina takes is panelled already, this is no use -for her, as panelling is expensive work, and would be the landlord’s -property, too, when the lease is up, so that is out of the question. -Still, I know of panelled rooms yet existent whose owners look at their -grained walls and wonder how they can make them less hideous, and -perhaps some of them may see this book, and may resolve to do away with -that terrible eyesore, a grained device, and set to work to paint the -walls a delicate sparrow’s-egg-blue, furthermore embellished by long -designs of rushes and grasses, either stencilled or painted on by some -one of the many girls who can paint, and who can be found always at Mrs. -McClelland’s studio, should we number not one of those useful damsels -among our acquaintances. Whatever style of decoration is adopted, I hope -we may have a blue wooden mantelpiece and over-mantel; brass bells, -brass locks and handles to the doors, and finger-plates must replace the -china abominations provided by the landlord; but these must be carefully -marked down as belonging to the tenant, and the china ones must be put -away carefully too, to replace the brass ones again when Angelina’s -lease is up, or she will have to feel that her money has gone into the -landlord’s pocket, which is never a cheerful subject for contemplation.</p> - -<p>Now for the carpet, the style and price of which can range from 35<i>s.</i> -6<i>d.</i> to almost any amount that you like to spend. The cheapest ones are -the Kidderminster squares, which can be purchased at Mr. Treloar’s, on -Ludgate Hill, or at Shoolbred’s or Maple’s. In fact, at the risk of -being vituperated by these gentlemen, I say, in low tones of caution, go -to all of these establishments, and, taking as usual plenty of time over -your<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_81" id="page_81"></a>{81}</span> choice, see all the blue carpets they have: at one or other of the -shops you will be sure to see exactly what you want. I do not think the -cheap squares are ever really artistic; but they are inoffensive, and -most wonderfully inexpensive, and wear beautifully. Still, the colours -and patterns are not quite my beau-ideal of a carpet design, but beggars -cannot, alas! be choosers, and if we must really be very economical we -can but be thankful for these carpets, because they replace the hideous -Dutch carpeting and frightful ‘Kidderminsters’ that used to be the -portion of such of our ancestors as could not afford Turkey or -Axminster, and had to fall back on these, and on the ‘best Brussels,’ -the crude and frightful greens and reds of which haunt my dreams -sometimes, when I am meditating on furniture and remember the days that -are no more; being duly and sincerely thankful that they are no more, as -far as carpets and furniture in general are concerned.</p> - -<p>Rising above the ‘squares,’ we ascend to the delightful blue carpets, -also in Kidderminster, that are sold by the yard. I once possessed one -which was the joy of my heart, which I bought at Shoolbred’s. But I took -a friend there the other day, having roused her to enthusiasm over mine, -to find no more were made; ‘for customers,’ said the polite man who -served us, ‘will insist on novelties, and grumble frightfully do they -see the same goods on show as they saw some years ago, whether or not -that they were as pretty as they can be. No, the cry is always for some -new thing.’ And so we could not buy any more of my blue carpet, and I -look at the one I have apprehensively, and cannot bear any one to walk -upon it, because I know, once gone, I can never replace it. It was about -4<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a yard, and wears beautifully. However, we were shown -another that quite put my poor carpet out of court, both in colour and -design; but then it was 5<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a yard, and though that did not -matter to my friend, fortunately, it mattered to me; and so I was left -carpetless, until I saw some beautiful self-coloured felt, which looks -very well with rugs on, but shows dirt, and what housemaids call ‘bits,’ -in rather a depressing manner. However, blue carpets are to be bought, I -feel convinced, and they are certainly worth the search.<a name="FNanchor_1_1" id="FNanchor_1_1"></a><a href="#Footnote_1_1" class="fnanchor">[1]</a> If money is -forthcoming for a really good carpet, I should propose, first, the blue -Kidderminster, at 5<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a yard, made into a square, and edged with -woollen fringe, put down over, first of all, brown paper, and then a -carpet-felt. This insures warmth, and trebles the chances of wear. -Secondly, a really good Oriental carpet with a good deal of white in it. -Mr. Smee has a charming one, that harmonises beautifully with blue, and -that costs about 10<i>l.</i> for rather a small room. Thirdly, one could have -a nice matting (putting this down over<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_82" id="page_82"></a>{82}</span> the brown paper) at about 1<i>s.</i> -6<i>d.</i> to 2<i>s.</i> a yard, with good rugs scattered about. These are -expensive items, and would cost 8<i>l.</i> or 9<i>l.</i> to provide enough, and of -the right sort; but the wear of really good rugs is marvellous. I have -two large ones I bought at Treloar’s nearly ten years ago; they are in -the dining-room, where there is a great deal of wear and tear, and they -are as good now in appearance as the day I bought them, but I think they -cost me a little over 2<i>l.</i> 10<i>s.</i> each.</p> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_1_1" id="Footnote_1_1"></a><a href="#FNanchor_1_1"><span class="label">[1]</span></a> Since writing the above I have found my blue carpet at -Messrs. Colbourne’s, 82 Regent Street, where it can always be procured.</p></div> - -<p>Of course, if we spend on our carpets we must be prepared to save -elsewhere; our curtains need not cost us much. They can be either yellow -and white, or blue and white Liberty cretonne, made to the height of the -dado rail, just to draw along the windows from top to bottom to exclude -light and to hide the room from outsiders when it is lighted up, thus -saving the great and useless expense of blinds, and they can be lined -with some cheap material, or made double, and then, white ones being -fixed as described later on, last a long time without washing, and can -be either made of figured Madras, with a good deal of colour in it, at -4<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a yard, double width, or of fine muslin and guipure, which -washes beautifully—a quality I have never discovered in the many Madras -muslins that I have bought, because I could not resist their decorative -qualities, though I was angry at my own weakness all the time.</p> - -<p>Naturally I can lay down no really hard-and-fast lines for decorating a -drawing-room, for so much depends on the style and shape of the chamber; -and what I said of the morning-room applies here equally well. Still, a -yellow and white room, made by using Pither’s yellow and white ‘berry’ -paper, with a dado of Collinson and Lock’s ‘47’ cretonne, with ivory -paint, and yellow and white ceiling paper, and a blue carpet, makes a -charming room; while one of the flowery, expensive papers, with a -cretonne dado, is also safe to be charming too. In this case pink must -be used in the ceiling, and the carpet should be either Maple’s ‘golden -pine’ or a very carefully chosen carpet in shades of sage-green.</p> - -<p>As to the furniture of the drawing-room, that must be determined on and -regulated simply by the amount of money we have to spend. If we have -plenty we can purchase as many nice deep arm-chairs and small occasional -chairs as we like—then it will only be a matter of taste; but if we are -limited and have little to spend, we must go about our work -circumspectly, and must not mind going into a great many shops before we -finally obtain what will furnish our room nicely.</p> - -<p>Here, again, the useful wicker chairs will come in, covered with pretty -cretonnes, made in such a manner that they can have their coverings -removed to be washed; and I should also once more advise one of the -charming square sofas already described. I think I should adhere to -velveteen for the covering,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_83" id="page_83"></a>{83}</span> unless we can procure a gold thread -tapestry sufficiently light and inexpensive for our purpose. Messrs. -Maple were the best people to apply to for these goods, but lately they -have not had the pretty ones of old days, change of fashion and need for -novelty accounting for the absence of some of the best designs I have -ever seen; but Liberty has some excellent tapestries now.</p> - -<p>If the room have a bow-window, a cosy summer corner can be made by -putting the sofa there, with a table in front or at the side, capable of -holding books and plants; and these tables are, again, things that we -must undoubtedly choose with a great deal of care, for there is nothing -more annoying than a rickety table, or one that is knocked over easily, -should the room be fuller than usual, or should we number an awkward -friend among the members of our acquaintances.</p> - -<p>I remember some years ago having to entertain such an individual in the -days when I did not know as much as I do now about the fitness of -things, and I really believe that unhappy man’s sufferings gave me a -lesson about tables I have never forgotten. I was always very fond of -pretty things, and then had the mistaken idea that one could not have -too many of them; so I fear that when we used to go in to dinner from -the drawing-room, our walk resembled nothing so much as Mr. Dickens’s -celebrated description of the family whose rooms were so full that they -had to ‘take a walk among furniture’ before they could get out of the -room.</p> - -<p>We were taking our walk among the furniture when the <i>contretemps</i> -happened. My unfortunate acquaintance had fidgeted unhappily for some -time, and he finally made a dart towards the lady he had to take in to -dinner, knocking over the chair next him, and arriving at his -destination with a fringed antimacassar neatly fastened to one of his -coat-buttons. He then backed into a small table, on which stood some -books and photographs, and only saved this, to send another spinning; -this time smashing the whole concern, and depriving me of one of my pet -flower-holders, the demolition of which I have never ceased to regret. -But worse was to come: in one heroic effort to get away from the scene -of the disaster he backed once more into a ‘whatnot’ full of china, and -I draw a veil over my feelings and his, as the most merciful thing I can -do.</p> - -<p>Still, when next morning I stood among the ruins, like Marius among the -ruins of Rome, I was honest enough to say, ‘This is certainly my own -fault,’ and ‘turning to,’ as the maids say, I so rearranged that long -and ugly room that when next I had a dinner party I was repaid a -thousandfold for my exertions and sacrifices by the expression of relief -on the countenances of the guests, who now saw themselves saved from the -usual dangerous promenade among my belongings that had used to be their -portion. Now fortunately we can purchase tables that are<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_84" id="page_84"></a>{84}</span> small and -safe, and I think those which are made with double trays, or rather with -one tray under the top, are perfectly safe. They are to be bought -covered with stamped velveteen, or with the pretty stuffs that imitate -Turkish saddle-bags, or with plush, but I prefer them made of plain dark -wood, and either polished or else painted ivory, and the top covered -with an ordinary cloth made from tapestry, or one of Burnett’s charming -serges edged with ball fringe; as, if plants in pots are placed upon -them, drops of water are apt soon to spoil the covering, whereas serge -will stand a good deal of water; although I am of opinion that plants -should always be watered outside the room, on a balcony or in a garden -if possible, as a little carelessness soon spoils one’s things, and I -have, alas! spoilt much by not enforcing this rule both on myself and -others.</p> - -<p>Another very good and useful table is the square ivory Queen Anne table, -that has four square rails as an extra support to the legs. These are -about 3<i>l.</i>, and can be procured in different sizes, when, of course, -the price alters too, and are extremely handy to hold the lamp for -reading books, work, &c., and are large enough to write a note upon -comfortably.</p> - -<p>I am a great advocate for corners—that is to say, for giving the -corners of the room an artistic look, and I also like to have my -favourite winter corner close to the fireplace. Naturally, it would be -intensely foolish if we all hankered after a corner. Still even then we -could be accommodated, if we do not mind screening ourselves off from -our fellows in a manner I must say I consider extremely ugly and silly.</p> - -<p>It will hardly be believed that in a house I have heard of the mistress -has erected a series of screens in her drawing-room, which resembles now -nothing so much as a restaurant fitted up with boxes. Rather than -suggest such a fearful idea I would abolish screens altogether; yet one -round the back of the sofa is often a great comfort, and, judiciously -arranged, makes the background for a very pretty corner.</p> - -<p>But the mistress’s corner can be arranged like this: put straight across -the corner of the wall a small black table, made safe with the -under-tray, and covered at the top with a Turkish antimacassar; this -holds a plant in the daytime and the lamp at night, and is large enough -to hold all the month’s magazines, half on each side of the centrepiece; -above this a black corner bracket for china, crowned by a big pot to -hold grasses or bulrushes, can be hung on the wall; and in front of the -table should stand a square stool, holding a large plant and pot, heavy -enough to hold its own should any one come near enough to knock it over, -were it too light. Then to the left of this, next the fireplace, put -your own particular chair, leaving room for a stool of some kind, that -is broad and low, and can hold your work-basket if you work, your -favourite book, or your newspaper<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_85" id="page_85"></a>{85}</span>-stand with the paper-knife attached; -and on the desk above and at the side of your chair hang a sabot for -flowers, your favourite photographs, and any pet piece of china or -ornaments you may fancy. One of mine consists of a mandarin’s fan and -case; the case is embroidered in silk, and gives a very pretty bit of -colour, and the fan serves as a fire-screen should any one object to the -cheerful blaze. Needless to add, I never use this screen myself.</p> - -<p>On the other side of the fireplace I have a pair of brass bellows and a -brass-handled brush, for I think an untidy hearth disturbs me more than -anything else; and another Japanese fan, tied to a nail by a riband, -which some of my friends find most useful when the fire is hot. Here, -too, I have a really charming chair I bought at Liberty’s. I think it -was 14<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, not more. It has rather a high back, and a rush seat, -and as the front legs are taller than the other two, it just tilts back, -and is most comfortable. I added a padded back cushion, tied on with -tapes, which adds much to the effect, but none is required on the seat, -as rushes make a very comfortable and easy support, and this chair is -preferred by what is rudely called ‘the master of the house,’ my pet -cat, to any other, and he is a gentleman who really knows what comfort -is. He has made it his study, during a long and honourable life, so I -think I am not wrong in quoting him as an authority.</p> - -<p>While not emulating a good friend of mine, in whose house the putting on -of coals partakes of the character of a protracted and arduous ceremony, -I must say I dislike to see coals standing in a room, but the -receptacles made for them in brass are so pretty now that they may -almost be forgiven, though I would rather not see them in a -drawing-room. However, if one is required, the brass baskets, <i>without</i> -covers, are the best, and hold quite enough coals for the evening, -indeed more than enough if the grate is as I described before, and -moreover judiciously laid and managed. Brass fire-irons and dogs are a -necessity, but then a little black poker, price 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, called a -‘pokerette’ in the shops, and ‘the curate’ in the drawing-room, must -supplement the brass one, or that will very soon be black and spoiled.</p> - -<p>I do not like a rug laid down in front of the fire, for more reasons -than one. I have known a little foot catch in it, and the owner -precipitated with his poor little head on the hard fender; and it always -is an assistance to a careless or dirty housemaid, who is thus served -with a screen should she break one of the rules that should be enforced -in every household, and proceed to clean her grate without first putting -down the rough piece of material with which she should be furnished. She -is obliged to do this should there be no rug, for then every mark would -show, and she would not dare to put down black-lead in a <i>cracked</i> -saucer, fire-irons, brushes, and a thin newspaper full<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_86" id="page_86"></a>{86}</span> of ashes, as I -once discovered a girl doing in an apartment furnished with a wide rug, -that hid this, as well as a multitude of other sins.</p> - -<p>While being lived in and used, a drawing-room is and must be essentially -a best room, and is invaluable as a teacher to the untidy or -unmethodical mistress or servant. Fine manners are a necessity, and a -certain amount of fine manners is maintained by use of a room that holds -our dearest treasures, and sees little of the seamy side of life. It is -on little things that our lives depend for comfort, and small habits, -such as a changed dress for evening wear with a long skirt, to give the -proper drawing-room air, the enforcement of the rule that slippers and -cigars must never enter there, and a certain politeness maintained to -each other in the best room, almost insensibly enforced by the very -atmosphere of the chamber, will go a long way towards keeping up the -mutual respect that husband and wife should have for each other, and -which is a surer means of happiness than anything I know—than any -amount of foolish terms of endearment, that are apt to be forgotten when -the gloss of the honeymoon is rubbed off, and life becomes too full of -anxieties and hurry for the old pet names.</p> - -<p>Remember, please, I am not writing for votaries of fashion or for rich -people, who could tell me doubtless a great many things I do not know, -but for the ordinary educated middle-class girl who may never leave her -country home until she is married, or may have had few opportunities of -seeing the world, even in London; and she does require, I know full -well, to be reminded that home should not excuse faded finery, -down-at-heel shoes, or slovenliness of mind or body in either husband or -wife, for nothing grows so easily as untidy habits or slovenly manners, -and it is worth a little struggle to prevent oneself or one’s friends -deteriorating ever such a little bit.</p> - -<p>The drawing-room would not be complete without a piano, and this is all -too often a very ugly piece of furniture. I am glad to say white frames -painted with beautiful flowers and designs are now being made, and these -are easy to treat, but in ordinary rooms the usual cottage piano has to -be thought of, and another corner can be made by placing the instrument -across one side of the room in such a manner that the performer could -see her audience. This naturally leaves the back of the piano exposed to -view, and, as piano manufacturers still adhere to the red flannel or -baize back, this is not a pretty object to contemplate. However, it is -one that is easily changed, as it can be replaced by either a -crewel-worked piece of art coloured serge, the useful and cheap Japanese -leather paper, or else by a square of cretonne similar to that used for -the curtains; but I prefer either the serge or paper to this. If the -serge be worked with bulrushes and iris and grasses, or with long sprays -of honeysuckle, the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_87" id="page_87"></a>{87}</span> effect is charming. Then along the top can be -placed a piece of serge, or felt or damask, worked too, and edged with -an appropriate fringe, which thus makes an excellent shelf for odds and -ends of china and bowls of flowers, as the top of the piano is seldom, -if ever, opened by the ordinary piano player.</p> - -<p>If a more careless arrangement be desired, a large square of drapery can -be arranged gracefully over the back, securing it with small tintacks on -the inside of the lid, or a large Japanese screen can be placed before -it; but I think the best thing to do is to replace the baize back as -suggested, not omitting to take out the crude red or green silk or -elaborate carved wood front, and treat that as you treat the back.</p> - -<p>I have seen a very pretty front to a piano made out of sage-green silk -worked with rosebuds, or of turquoise-blue material worked in pale -yellow campanulas, or yellow Scotch roses with their brown foliage. I -have also seen a painted front put in, with dancing figures depicted on -it; and, of course, all these arrangements are much to be preferred to -the one supplied by the piano manufacturer, who is the only man, it -seems to me, who resolutely refuses to march with the times, and makes -no effort to improve the appearance of his manufactures.</p> - -<p>The chair by the piano can be any pretty chair fancied by the owner. I -have a very nice one in white wood, with the seat covered in Indian -tapestry, which I gave a guinea for at Liberty’s. A very good plan is to -have an extra cushion, attached by ribbon to the side of the chair, for -the use of any one who may prefer a higher seat than we may happen to -care for. This should, of course, be made square, and be covered with -the same material that is used for the chair, and does away with the -necessity for a music stool with an adjustable seat—an article I cannot -endure, as it always shakes, is most unsteady, and squeaks appallingly -whenever there is to be a change in the weather. Another idea for a seat -by the piano is to have a square ottoman, made to open. Two people can -sit upon this to play duets; but I do not care for this very much, as -there is no back, but in a small room it is of great use, as it holds a -great deal of music, is cheap, and does not look badly if properly -covered with a pretty material, nailed on, and adorned with a frill that -serves a double purpose, being highly ornamental and hiding the opening -of the box at the same time. Another receptacle for music can be made -out of one of the small square black cupboards which I have spoken of -before, and which serve as tables besides, if the top be covered with -some sort of a cloth, and books and ornaments be scattered about too.</p> - -<p>The grand piano, coffin-like as it undoubtedly is, is far more easily -made into a decorative article of furniture, and while the bend in the -structure makes a capital ‘corner,’ the whole thing can be admirably -arranged if we commence by draping the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_88" id="page_88"></a>{88}</span> entire end with some square of -material, or, if we possess it, with a length of old brocade or an -Indian shawl. The drapery is placed so that it hangs over the end and -sides, and is secured in place by, first of all, a nice plant in a good -pot, which keeps the cloth in place, and has no effect whatever on the -tone of the piano. At the end I place Leech’s collection of sketches, -which we always call the ‘long Punches,’ in contradistinction to the -bound volumes, and then any small things that I think look -picturesque—not too many, nor any that cannot easily and comfortably be -moved, should I have to entertain a pianist who wishes to imitate -thunder, and cannot do so without having the lid opened widely. A good -arrangement in the bend is a big palm in a brass pot on a black stand. -These brass pots are to be procured at Hampton’s, in Pall Mall East, but -I fear they are very expensive. I have often looked and longed for one, -but never dared purchase it, much as I hanker after such a -possession—they are extremely decorative, and have a style of their -own. Failing that, a nice square table with more plants and books, and a -couple of low chairs, placed in a ‘conversational’ manner, are suitable, -with another plant on a square stool placed in front of the table. This -gives a very finished look to the piano, and I venture to state that -when this is done the piano is not the first thing visitors see when -they enter the room: indeed, I have once or twice been asked if I have a -piano, so little in evidence is this instrument to any one who merely -comes to make an ordinary call. Talking of calls reminds me, before we -leave the drawing-room, to make a small protest about one of the most -idiotic customs that still linger among us—that of making morning -calls; and I should like to see a good deal of reform in this matter.</p> - -<p>Formal visiting I never will or can go in for; and I have come to the -conclusion that, if people are only known casually and in such a manner -that to call on them is an effort, to make which we are braced up by the -idea, and cherished with the hope, that the person one calls on, -card-case in hand, will be out, life is too short for such nonsense, and -that calling as per fashion ordained is more honoured in the breach than -in the observance, and that for us ordinary folk, who have work to do in -life, this fantastic waste of time can quite well be given up. I should -much like to see, at the same time, more co-operation in our lives. I -should like more freedom among us, less of the idea that an Englishman’s -house is his castle, and therefore I am always glad to note any step in -the right direction, which is not followed when we set out in our best -garments to make a round of calls.</p> - -<p>Of course, people will say, ‘If we do not make calls, we can neither -extend our circle nor keep up our friendships,’ but I really cannot see -how cards conduce to either. That delightful<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_89" id="page_89"></a>{89}</span> institution of -five-o’clock tea has done more for us, who cannot afford to give big -entertainments, than a bushel of pasteboard; and I am convinced the idea -of calls could be done away with altogether with very little trouble, -and one way of doing this, especially in a small community, is to have -one day, or even one evening, a week, or even a fortnight, when we are -known to be at home and ready to see our friends.</p> - -<p>I know some people scoff at the notion of an ordinary middle-class woman -‘aping her betters,’ and having her day at home; but the scoffers should -reflect before they scoff, then, perhaps, they would alter their ideas. -First of all, in a small household the servants can so manage their work -that visitors on the day being expected, are no trouble at all. The fire -would always be burning brightly in winter, the flowers and plants would -be at their best in summer, and the mistress and her room together would -be ready to see any one. I can speak from experience that my friends -always turned up in shoals in dear hospitable Shortlands when I had my -Thursdays, and came week after week to see me, secure of a cup of tea -and a chat after a walk or drive; and I know how the winter sped along -when I felt confident that So-and-so would be in any day of the week, -and that I can ‘turn into’ this or that pleasant room any hour between 4 -and 5.30, and find a welcome and a cup of tea ready for me, neither -being in the least less warm because the previous Monday, and the Monday -before that too maybe, my feet took me in precisely the same direction. -In winter these informal gatherings are particularly pleasant, because I -think the hours between the end of your drive or walk and dinner are -occasionally a little depressing, and are not good preparation for the -evening, which goes off much better if we have had a chat in the -afternoon with a friend or two, which takes us out of our grooves and -gives us something to talk about over the meal; while in summer, the -fact that one is at home for certain on one day in the week brings -friends from a distance to see us, and often causes impromptu tennis -parties and little gatherings, all the pleasanter because they are -informal and almost unexpected; while in these days of ostentation and -glitter it is an excellent thing to know how to entertain well and -cheaply, and see one’s friends, without feeling each time we do so that -we are so many steps nearer the Bankruptcy Court. If we contemplate -seeing society in the way I have indicated above, a tea-table is a <i>sine -quâ non</i> in our drawing-room. A very good sort of table is the rush and -bamboo table, with little trays for cakes, that open and close, and -therefore take up very little room in a chamber; there is a second tray -under the top one where spare cups can be placed. And still another -table is the useful little Sutherland table, that shuts up and stands -modestly and unseen in a corner when not in use, and that is brought out -in a moment,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_90" id="page_90"></a>{90}</span> without fuss or trouble, and can be used for whist, chess, -or any ordinary game; while a small nest of four narrow tables, adapted -from an old Chippendale design, is an invaluable possession. Closed, the -‘nest’ takes up a very small space, and, opened out, the owner has four -little tables to put about beside her guests, who thus are provided with -places to put down their cups and plates upon, and are thus relieved of -what is sometimes an intolerable nuisance.</p> - -<p>The best five-o’clock teacloth is a fine white damask edged with torchon -lace, and with a torchon lace insertion which washes beautifully, and -this should be marked with a large monogram in scarlet thread. A really -large, good monogram has an excellent effect. I purchased my cloths at -Shoolbred’s, who also procured me some one to work the monograms, as I -am unfortunately no ‘stitchist,’ as Artemus Ward would say, and cannot -sew one bit. But they are a little expensive. Still, if any one can work -themselves, the cloths are only 5<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; the lace comes to about -3<i>s.</i> more; and then there is the monogram, which of course could be -saved to any one who possesses cleverer fingers than have been given to -me, but which are now worked for me at 1<i>s.</i> and 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> each by a -lady who thus is enabled to make a perceptible addition to her income, -and who may be heard of at the Workers’ Guild, 11 Kensington Square, W. -Other tablecloths have red and blue borders; but I prefer the plain -white with the monogram to any other. A nice bright copper kettle and a -trivet should be always brought in with the tea, and a cosey should -never be forgotten, while buns (home-made buns and scones are most -excellent), biscuits, and bread and butter suffice for quite a large -party of friends, and there is neither extra trouble nor fuss of any -kind. Of course, teacups and saucers are of all sorts and conditions, -but I think small blue and white ones on a china tray are the prettiest -of all, and can generally be replaced should a misfortune happen to -them; while Liberty’s ornamental china cups and saucers are always -pretty, and can invariably be matched.</p> - -<p>No room is bearable without, or looks ugly with, plants and flowers, so -I hope that these may always be found in the drawing-rooms, at least, of -any of those who do me the favor to read, mark, and inwardly digest the -pages of this little book.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_91" id="page_91"></a>{91}</span></p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_X" id="CHAPTER_X"></a>CHAPTER X.<br /><br /> -<small>CURTAINS, CARPETS, AND LIGHTING.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">Of</span> course, in writing on the subject of curtains, we must begin first by -saying that a great deal depends upon the shape and size of the windows, -for all these particulars have to be carefully considered before we -start on any expedition to inspect and buy our material for our -draperies; for if a window be small or high up it requires far less -management than the large bow-windows that take so much thought, and, -alas! so much material too. Then, as there are French windows to be -arranged for, and, in fact, square windows as well, we have to spend -much time and thought over how we shall arrange, so as to suit all, -before we cast our eyes over cretonnes, damasks, plushes, and the -thousand and one materials, all more or less suited to the purpose for -which they were designed.</p> - -<p>The ordinary window, with the two sashes and the square frame, is very -easily managed, even supposing that one has to keep out the neighbours’ -eyes as well as a certain amount of sunshine. The muslin curtains should -be put up on rods like small stair-rods, fastened against the window -frame top and bottom in such a way that they do not interfere with the -free raising of the sash, which must open top and bottom; this -arrangement—illustrated in my chapter on the dining-room—insures the -curtains remaining in their place, and prevents them floating in and out -on every dust-laden breeze that blows, while it leaves no long tail of -draggled muslin to sweep the floor, and get torn and dirty almost before -they have been up a week.</p> - -<p>The best white curtains are undoubtedly made of soft clear muslin, edged -and furthermore embellished by insertions of guipure lace—the insertion -is put in a slip close to the edge, and washes beautifully—but those -curtains, unless made at home, are undoubtedly expensive. Still, nothing -looks like them, and if they are arranged on the rods in such a manner -that the edges of the outside lace just touch, they form a complete -screen, and yet hide nothing from the owner of the house, who can see -from her windows comfortably without being spied over, and, being fixed, -last clean really a very long time indeed. And then, if the thicker -curtains are placed on a straight brass rod, as narrow as the weight -they have to support will allow, no blinds are required, for the warm -drapery draws straight over them, and either serves as a blind to keep -out the light or a screen to keep out the draughts, and so does away -with the expensive blind with its rollers, its cord eternally out of -order, and its ugly effect from both inside and outside the house.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_92" id="page_92"></a>{92}</span></p> - -<p>A good ‘book’ or Swiss ‘mull’ muslin costs about 10½<i>d.</i> a yard, the -guipure edging and insertion about 1<i>s.</i> 6½<i>d.</i>; therefore the cost -of these curtains is easily calculated by any one who measures her own -windows and sees what length and quantity of material is required for -them. Bedroom windows look extremely nice if treated in a similar manner -in the French checked muslin, such as the <i>bonnes</i> use for their caps -and aprons, and of which our Sunday summer frocks used to be made in our -young days, and which costs 10½<i>d.</i> a yard. If this be used, the -curtains must be edged with a two-inch goffered frill, which must -invariably edge all the curtains that are not treated with lace edgings, -for nothing looks worse than the hard line of a curtain that is neither -frilled nor lace-trimmed.</p> - -<p>Of the popularity of the soft and beautiful Madras muslins there is -scarcely any necessity to speak, as it is now familiar to most of us; -but despite its beauty and (in some cases) its cheapness, I must add a -word of warning on the subject of Madras, especially addressed to our -young friends with limited means, for the cheap sort of Madras does not -wash satisfactorily, and should, therefore, be avoided by all those who -have to study economy, and have not only to buy things, but to select -them in such a manner that they shall last after their first visit to -the wash-tub at the very least.</p> - -<p>The cheap Madras washes into holes, and all the pretty colours vanish, -and a limp rag returns to us instead of the charming curtains that gave -such a style to the appearance of the outside of our house; and the -expensive ones, too, are apt to ‘run’ in the washing, and are out of the -purchasing power of any one whose means are really limited; for these -cost from 6<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i> to 8<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i> a yard, and therefore become -expensive items in our expenditure at once, although they contrast -favourably with the fine lace and embroidered curtains sold ready to put -up at 5<i>l.</i> or 6<i>l.</i> a pair, or at times even more than that. But -ready-made curtains designed with large and marvellous patterns must not -even enter a really artistic home. They mean nothing, can never be -anything save vulgar and pretentious, and are therefore to be avoided; -for if we are rich we can have the best Madras, the finest guipure and -muslin; and if we are poor we can yet have our white muslin, either -frilled or edged with guipure, as rich as our modest means will allow; -or the valuable Mysore and artistic muslins at 9¾<i>d.</i> and 3¾<i>d.</i> a -yard, which wash excellently if done at home—in water without soda and -with a few drops of vinegar in to ‘set the colours,’ as the washerwomen -say.</p> - -<p>A bow-window, the orthodox suburban villa bow-window, is, I own, a very -difficult subject to treat, but I have circumvented even that by an -arrangement of curtains on rods managed as described above, and in the -first-named window have two narrow white curtains meeting at the top of -the window, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_93" id="page_93"></a>{93}</span> gradually sloping away until they are about five inches -apart at the bottom; the wider centre sash is treated in the same manner -with wider curtains, the plain edge of which meets the edge of the -curtain that fits the narrow sash on both sides of the broader window; -for the usual bow is made of a flat sash in the middle, between two -narrow sashes that bow slightly; the muslin is ‘taut’, as sailors would -say, and is always tidy, and by using these narrow <i>very</i> cheap rods all -expensive fitted and formed poles and valances are done away with, and a -most expensive and vexatious item in our expenditure completely swept -off our schedule of payments to be made. The muslin curtains neatly up, -a thicker rod can be fixed in three portions, each portion separate and -distinct, for the heavier curtains. Those in any dining-room can be made -of several materials. Shoolbred had a beautiful gold figured damask, -double width, at 4<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i>, which looks like silk, though naturally it -is nothing of the kind; this drapes beautifully and looks charming, as -it falls into folds and never fades; it can be edged with a ball fringe -to match, which adds a good deal to the expense, but looks better than -anything else, or else by a frill, but this is a little heavy, as the -material is thick. This material can be had in a beautiful pale blue and -a good terra-cotta as well as in the yellow, but I have no experience of -the wear of the two former colours, and therefore cannot tell whether -they last as well and as satisfactorily as the yellow does. To make the -window look really nice, you require one breadth hung down straight at -the end of the first slip of window against the wall, edged all round -the sides and bottom with ball fringe or the frill; then another breadth -on the other side of the slip to pull halfway across the wider window to -meet a third curtain hanging straight in the middle of the other -division, and being met in its turn by a fourth, which, when undrawn, -should hang straight against the wall in the same way that curtain -number one does.</p> - -<p>The artistic serges sold by Colbourne & Co., 82 Regent Street, at 1<i>s.</i> -11½<i>d.</i> a yard, and Stephen’s Sicilienne damasks at 7<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i> a -yard, are excellent curtain materials also, as are the stamped jutes and -corduroy serges sold for this purpose by Mr. Smee.</p> - -<p>But, whatever the material, in no case should the curtains be draped, or -tied up or chained as if they were wild beasts, with great gold or brass -chains (truly the very ‘foolishest’ things that were ever invented for -the purpose), and they should never come below the window sill or the -dado line, save and except in the case of a French window opening to a -garden or conservatory, when the white drapery should be fixed on rods -to the frame of the door, and the warmer curtains should be draped so as -to keep out the draughts and be drawn readily; and this is done by -sewing them to large rings that run easily on a brass pole, which must -be as small and unobtrusive as possible; and when<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_94" id="page_94"></a>{94}</span> not in use the -curtains must be drawn close to the wall and tied back, if wished, with -Liberty soft silk handkerchiefs—the 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> size makes two of these -ties—in a colour to harmonise or contrast with that employed in the new -curtains themselves. These curtains must be about an inch longer than -the length from the pole to the floor, and must rather more than touch -the floor, because a French window means a draught to one’s toes, that -can only be circumvented by longish curtains, and a thick mat, so placed -as to be easily moved, should the window open into the room itself.</p> - -<p>Roman sheetings are also excellent for curtains, and plush is the king -of materials, if we could afford it; the shades of colour in the folds -are perfect, and the tints in which plush is made are always lovely; but -as we cannot afford that, we must turn our eyes away from such -enchanting visions, and look out for a nice Mysore chintz for the -drawing-room, which must be lined, to make it warmer and more durable, -and trimmed with the goffered frill that always looks well in all -washing materials; the frill need not be lined. For bedrooms, there is -nothing better than the dark blue and white cretonne, the same both -sides; or Burnett’s excellent ‘marguerite’ cretonnes, in different -colours, at 9½<i>d.</i> a yard; the dark blue and white need not be lined -unless the bedroom receive the very early sun, when a lining is -necessary if blinds be done without; but I should make the curtains -double, as the material is as cheap as any lining procurable, and looks -far better than any self-colour could possibly look. These cretonnes -wash most beautifully, and begin at 9<i>d.</i> a yard. The chairs, frill to -the mantel-board, eider-down, and any bookcase edges should all be -finished with the same style of cretonne, though, of course, any other -harmonious colour can be introduced to avoid too much sameness. The -chair covers should be loose, and edged with a frill, as also should be -the eider-down cover; this spoils any room if kept in its -Turkey-patterned material, and should always be put into a cretonne -washable cover, as much for beauty as for health. But these details must -be kept for another chapter, as they do not enter into the great subject -of curtains.</p> - -<p>It may sound ridiculous, but I here state boldly that I can invariably -make a more than shrewd guess of the character of the folks who inhabit -a house by noticing what sort of ideas they have on the subject of -draperies; and I may safely say that I have never been mistaken. The -carefully and prettily and tidily arranged curtains tell me at once of -the pleasant folk I shall find inside; just as surely as the dirty, -untidy muslin or the gorgeously patterned, expensive, and pretentious -curtains warn me against the slattern, or the vulgarian with whom I have -nothing in common, should I ever have the bad fortune to have to enter -behind those warning marks; while the soft<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_95" id="page_95"></a>{95}</span> Madras or delicate lace -indicate an artistic mistress with whom I shall, I know, spend many -pleasant hours. This being the case, do not wonder, dear readers, that I -lay much stress and write at great length on this momentous subject, for -it is one on which almost volumes could be written; for while the inside -of your houses only speak to your friends and relations, the outside -tells a great deal to strangers, and either repels or attracts, -according to the manner in which you arrange your windows.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_16" id="fig_16"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-095_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-095_sml.jpg" width="197" height="188" alt="[Fig. 16 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 16.</span> -</div> - -<p>Unless your windows are very small, as in sketch 16, never be without -white curtains of some kind, for if you are the house resembles some one -who has forgotten her cuffs and collar or white frillings, but if they -are like the sketch, you cannot do better than use Pither’s -old-gold-coloured, printed linen edged with ball fringe; this serves all -purposes of blinds and curtains alike, and always looks artistic, while -the windows are not obscured and stuffed up, as are those in most of our -English houses.</p> - -<p>And here let me say most emphatically that ordinary blinds<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_96" id="page_96"></a>{96}</span> are not -necessary, and are never useful; if the house has very much sun, -<i>inside</i> blinds are no use at all; the heat that makes most town houses -unendurable is caused by the sun striking down on the glass of the -window, and to obviate this the glass itself must be covered <i>outside</i>. -Our summer is but a short one at best, but if we cannot bear the sun we -must put up <i>outside</i> blinds, or hang grass mats over the glass outside; -these are the only really necessary blinds; to say the least the others -are unhealthy. The sun is the life-giver, after all, and he had better -fade our curtains and our carpets than that the lack of his beams should -fade our own and our children’s cheeks! This, too, is another reason why -we should never buy very expensive curtains or carpets; fortunately -hardly any of the materials I have spoken of cost much, while -Kidderminster squares—my favourite matting and rugs—or even stained -floors and rugs, are all within the powers of the humblest of us.</p> - -<p>I myself prefer matting for a dining-room at 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a yard, and -covered here and there with rugs, put down where the greatest amount of -traffic may be expected; but this is expensive, if set against the -pretty carpets in art colours, made at Kidderminster, and sold by the -yard at about 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a yard, the colours of which are extremely -good. And if we cannot afford matting in the dining-room, a carpet that -would go very well with the room would be shades of very faint -sage-green, with dashes of terra-cotta in. But I much prefer the -matting, and should always advise this for any one who could afford it, -and yet could not afford the Oriental carpet that is, of course, the -carpet for a dining-room. The rugs range from 7<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, but these are -Scinde rugs, and do not wear very well. Liberty, Maple, and Shoolbred -have all an excellent choice, but I think Maple’s rugs are the best for -people with a small amount of money to spend; and there is this to -consider about rugs, they can be shaken at least once a week and -continually turned about, and when too shabby for downstairs they can be -taken upstairs, finally dying an honourable death before the kitchen -fire or by the bedsides of the maids. Still, much as I like matting, I -must confess the total cost is more than three times the cost of a -Kidderminster square, which in its turn can be taken up, shaken, and -moved about, as, being square, there are no corners to consider, and no -back and front and sides to think about either. But we must put carpet -felt or paper-felt under our squares if we wish them to wear and to feel -soft and pleasant under our feet; and it is as well to put down large -sheets of brown paper before even the felt goes down. All this adds -considerably to the wear of the carpet.</p> - -<p>There is a curious habit in some parts of Canada of making a species of -bed of hay under the carpet, and it gives a very pleasant feeling to any -one walking thereon; of course soft, fine<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_97" id="page_97"></a>{97}</span> hay is chosen, and it is most -carefully laid down, and evenly and tightly packed; and in a room on the -basement floor, as so often rooms are situated in small suburban houses, -it is a great comfort; it is very warm in winter and cool in summer, and -if the hay-bed is made about twice a year, I believe it requires no -further attention.</p> - -<p>An old friend of mine who lived in poor circumstances in a stone-floor -cottage in Dorsetshire, who had passed some years of her life in Canada, -always stretched her carpet over such a bed, and I well remember how -delightful her floor felt, and how she never suffered, as so many of her -neighbours did, from rheumatism and other evils inseparable from the -ordinary covering to a stone or brick floor. I have more than once -recommended this in a basement kitchen or servants’ sitting-room, and -never without hearing that it was pronounced a great and unfailing -success and source of comfort to the domestics.</p> - -<p>If, however, a Kidderminster square is chosen, the boards for about two -feet from the wainscot must be stained a good brown shade: if the boards -are pretty good, and do not require stopping with putty to keep out the -draughts, as so many of our suburban houses require ‘stopping,’ owing to -the shrinking of the green wood used, alas! for the purposes of floors, -doors, and windows, Edwin or Angelina can well manage this themselves. -Whiteley keeps Ryland’s stain ready prepared in a big tin jar, and with -the right sort of brush this is soon put on; when dry it should be well -and thoroughly polished with beeswax and turpentine, and if this is done -weekly I am sure the floor will never require staining for many years; -but if ‘stopping’ is necessary, the workmen employed can stain the -floors too; for the extra charge will be but small, and it will save a -back-ache, and insure the work being thoroughly and properly done.</p> - -<p>These hints about carpets are perhaps a trifle prolix, but they will do -for the whole of the house—of course varying the colours to suit the -rooms, and being very careful in the selection of patterns. Mr. Morris -has some of his very best designs manufactured in Kidderminster, so the -cheap make of the mere carpet need not be sneered at; but we cannot -afford Morris, much as we should like to do so, for his Kidderminsters -are as costly as most people’s Brussels; and if we are careful, we can -get nearly as pretty patterns elsewhere at one fourth the cost, but we -must be <i>very</i> careful, for there are some red carpets, some blue, and -some a fearful nondescript hue, suggestive of the workhouse—I know not -why—that would irretrievably and utterly spoil any room in which they -were put; but there is a royal blue with paler blue flowers, or rather -‘fan-like things,’ that is perfect; this is, however, sold by the yard, -and has to be made into a square, without a border, and just trimmed -with a woollen fringe, which is procurable at Colbourne’s, 82 Regent<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_98" id="page_98"></a>{98}</span> -Street, and which wears magnificently: I have had one down now for three -years in a room that experiences a great deal of traffic, and it is at -the moment of writing as good as ever it was, and is admired by every -one who comes in; and the sage-green carpet mentioned before is also -quite safe to suit almost any room. This is also sold by the yard, and -has to have a woollen fringe too.</p> - -<p>If the house have bow-windows, an extra square of carpet, or else a -Scinde rug at 7<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, can be laid down there; there is not much -‘traffic’ in a bow-window, and the rugs look nicer than anything, and -wear quite a reasonable time in such a locality, and these can be easily -replaced. A piece of the carpet itself always looks out of place -somehow, and spoils any room.</p> - -<p>For a really good carpet, I like a fine Oriental carpet, with a good -deal of white in it, or a Wilton, or velvet pile; but I always like -something cheaper myself, as I do not like <i>old</i> carpets or old -curtains. They must retain a certain amount of dust and dirt, and I -therefore infinitely prefer either a good Kidderminster, or else the -matting and rugs spoken of at first, which can be replaced when shabby -without too great an effort for a moderate income. There are just one or -two trifles that I should like to speak of here. Matting should be swept -<i>one way</i> regularly, and by a proper matting brush. It can be washed -with soap and a little water, and it has a wonderful way of never -collecting dust that is marvellous. Oriental rugs and carpets should be -swept <i>one</i> way only also; and the Kidderminster squares should be -shaken often, but not continually swept; the shaking gets rid of the -dirt, while sweeping wears them out much quicker than need be.</p> - -<p>In connection with the carpets and curtains, we may just as well speak -of the lighting of the sitting-rooms before passing away from them to -the bedchambers. And here I must impress upon my readers never to have -gas anywhere where they can avoid using it, and to pray heartily for -that bright day to dawn when the electric light shall be within the -reach of all, and when Mr. Swan tells us how to light our houses as -perfectly as he has done his own; and I confess that when I recollect -that charming abode, where fairies seem to superintend the lighting, so -wonderfully is it managed, I feel consumed with rage and anger, to think -that I was not born in a time when the electric light will be as much a -matter of course as the present odious system of lighting by gas is; but -as we are still unemancipated from the thraldom of gas, we must try to -make the best of a bad job, and confine the enemy to where it can do -least harm, and be of the most good at the same time.</p> - -<p>An oil lamp in the hall is apt to give a gloomy impression to guests, -and also is rather a difficult matter to manage. It is expensive, and is -apt to get out of order at a critical moment;<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_99" id="page_99"></a>{99}</span> so I think gas must be -adhered to here. A cathedral glass hanging lamp, square shape, and -framed in brass, and fitted with an Argand burner, is as good a thing as -one can possibly procure for gas, unless we select the more artistic -beaten iron lamps sold by Strode and Co., of 48 Osnaburgh Street, W. The -prices are about equal, I think, and quite a beautiful one can be bought -for about 4<i>l.</i> It requires no cleaning beyond the ordinary cleaning, -and gives a strong, steady light, the glass sides of the lantern or lamp -presenting any flickering when the hall door is opened suddenly. I have -occasionally seen a hall lighted from the sides, but I do not care for -this, as it does not have the genial effect of the lighting from the -top; but should this be preferred, a man at Whitechapel makes very -charming side lanterns, of cathedral glass, that go round and almost -cover in the gas bracket, thus preventing any danger of fire, and -keeping away a very great deal of the heat and burnt atmosphere that -make gas always so trying to any sensitive person. I think these -lanterns are from 5<i>s.</i> to 10<i>s.</i> each, and they are, at all events, -very artistic to look at.</p> - -<p>Then there are beaten shields of brass, with the owner’s initials on, -from whence protrude the gas bracket, also in brass, and there are, -furthermore, those delightful revivals of the old hammered iron trade -that were to be seen in the Old London street at the Inventions, and the -use of which would almost reconcile me to burning gas. These iron -brackets and lamps are expensive, quite small brackets costing 1<i>l.</i> -12<i>s.</i>; but they are well worth the money if we have it to spend, -because they are so nice to look at. In our sitting-rooms we should -never for one moment allow ourselves to have gas. I always burn in a -very large drawing-room two of Mortlock’s blue and white china lamps -fitted with duplex burners. At first, when the fiat went forth that gas -was tabooed, those lamps were the bane of my life. I had a most -excellent housemaid in those days, who did her work most beautifully, -but only in her own way and in none other. True to my principles of -non-interference, I had allowed her this way of hers, because it was as -good a one as could be wished for; but when it came to suddenly cutting -off her precious privilege of lighting up the gas and drawing the -curtains, I soon saw that war was before me, and felt that now or never -was I to maintain my right to my lamps, did I prefer them to what the -gas company of the tiny town I then lived in facetiously called gas; but -that was an awful smelling compound, which burned with a feeble and -ghastly blue flame on weekdays, and which generally failed us altogether -when Sunday meant gas in the church. Of course then we had comparatively -to go without, as <i>that</i> gas would not be in church and our houses at -the same time, and our lives bid fair to be & misery to us in the long -December afternoons and evenings; when my good genius<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_100" id="page_100"></a>{100}</span> said ‘Lamps,’ and -I then invested in those I still have, rejoiced to think we could see to -read now, whether the gracious gas company deigned to allow us any gas -(?) or no.</p> - -<p>I had received full directions with the lamps, and knew exactly what to -do with them. They were guaranteed not to smell, my one dread, and I was -accordingly armed at every point to meet Emily’s objections. She had -work enough. Well, beyond cutting the wicks and refilling the brass -cups, there was no addition; so she took them off with a flounce and a -bang into her own particular sanctum, and looked like a walking volcano -for the rest of the day. However, to make a long story short, those -lamps were made to behave as if they were possessed by the very spirit -of mischief. They smelt, they flared, they smoked, they sang a -blood-curdling little song I feared meant explosions; but insisting on -their being taken out of the room night after night and brought back -until they did burn finally conquered Emily, and as she saw I meant to -have my lamps she gave in, and they now never smell, and never give me a -moment’s trouble.</p> - -<p>I mention all this to guide those young people who are apt to be treated -as I was, and who, knowing paraffin <i>does smell</i>, may perhaps be -inclined to give in and return to gas, because their servant declares -she cannot manage the ‘dratted thing.’ The smell comes from some of the -oil having been dropped on the brass part of the lamp, which gets -heated, and, of course, smells abominably, and if the lamp be dull it is -because the poor thing is clogged with oil and literally cannot manage -to breathe; then drop the brass parts of the lamp, minus the wick, of -course, into some clean water, and boil them as you would an egg over -the fire. This loosens and gets away all the stale oil, which need never -be there if the housemaid is really careful, and your lamp once more -burns as brightly as ever it did. I use no screens over my lamps, as I -put them behind me in such a manner that the light falls only on my -book, and, of course, on the books and work of those who may also be in -the room; but charming screens can be made by taking a sheet of tissue -paper in such a manner in the centre that you can pass it rapidly up and -down through your hands until it is a mass of crinkles and waves; then -tear off the piece you have been holding and you have a pale pink -wavy-looking screen that is charming, and costs the fraction of a -farthing. The Germans also make beautiful lamp screens by cutting out -scalloped pieces of tissue paper, on which are placed real leaves and -coloured grasses. These are covered by another piece of tissue paper -gummed lightly round the edges, and the effect of these when nicely -arranged is really positively beautiful. About five of these scalloped -pieces of tissue paper make one shade, and they are tied together with -very narrow ribbon bows at the top, which allows of their being<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_101" id="page_101"></a>{101}</span> -regulated to the size of the lamp. And yet another still more beautiful -shade can be made by buying a wire frame made on purpose at Whiteley’s, -and covering all the divisions with thin blue silk, the palest shade -possible. Each division should be covered in such a way that the -stitches do not show. Round the edge sew a two-inch silk fringe, and -arrange fluffy ruches of the silk down each rib and round the edge of -the lamp-shade. This is not very expensive, and is the best shade -possible. By the way, red and yellow shades should always be avoided; -the first makes every one look like apoplectic fits, and the second as -if jaundice were imminent; and don’t ever buy the abominations of shades -that are meant for owls’ heads; they are monstrosities to be classed -with the Mahdi notepaper and other vulgarisms of the day. Other nice -occasional lamps are the very cheap brass lamps sold at 7<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> and -10<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> each. I do not think these good enough to read by, but they -are most useful for ordinary use at dinner or to write a note by, and -are also useful to put back on the buffets that do duty for sideboards -in my dining-room, to give a little more light when we have extra folk -to dinner, and I use my candelabra for lighting the larger table, but -for all everyday use at table those brass lamps are quite enough, and, -being easily lighted and kept clean, are really invaluable.</p> - -<p>One is obliged to have gas in rooms where there are children, because -candles and lamps are so easily knocked over, and it is useful, too, in -bedrooms where a sudden light may be required, but it is a most -unhealthy, destructive thing, and, as I said before, I look forward to -Mr. Swan doing as much for us as he has done for himself.</p> - -<p>If my readers—any of them—should doubt for one moment the truth of -what I have said about the relative values of lamps and gas, let them -for the next six months give the two things a fair trial in two separate -rooms in the same house; let them look at the ceilings in those rooms, -examine the picture-cords, and the relative cleanliness of the blinds -and draperies, and let them—no; they, poor things, will need no -examination. I was going to add, let them examine, too, their plants; -but in one of those rooms there will be none left to examine, for they -will be dead as surely as ever they were plants at all. Half the weary -headaches and lassitude we have all felt at times come from this -pernicious enemy; and there are few doctors whose first directions to an -invalid’s nurse do not contain emphatic orders to lower the gas and, in -fact, to substitute candles for it as soon as possible; but if bedroom -candles are used, they should never be allowed without a glass -shield—sold, I think, by Messrs. Field and Co., the nightlight people. -This insures that the carpets are free from being dropped upon by the -wax or composite, and furthermore insures a certain amount of safety -from fire, which<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_102" id="page_102"></a>{102}</span> is a vast consideration, for a draught, a floating -curtain, and a bare unguarded candle may often result in a serious -calamity, for, even if much damage by fire is not done, a serious fright -may be given to some who are ill able to bear anything of the kind. Gas -should never be in servants’ bedrooms—the best of them cannot help -burning it to waste; neither should they be allowed candles—they are -careless, the very best of them; and I always provide my maidens with -tiny paraffin lamps, costing 6<i>d.</i>, which I can only buy in a -Dorsetshire town (Messrs. A. and A. Drew, Wareham, Dorset, is the -correct address)—even Whiteley doesn’t keep them. These have a tiny -brass cap that puts out the light, and are not in any way dangerous, -because there is nothing to spill, the sponge and wick inside absorbing -all the oil, and if they are knocked over they are so small the light -pops out at once; yet there is light enough to dress by, if not to read -novels in bed by, and the maids themselves prefer these small lamps to -anything else.</p> - -<p>In conclusion, remember that crystal A 1 oil, at 10<i>d.</i> the gallon, is -the best, most economical oil to burn. It should be had in in a -five-gallon tin, which fills up the small tins from whence the lamps are -filled in their turn, which <i>must be filled by daylight</i>, and recollect -also that china lamps are much the cleanest, and least likely to smell -with the most careless housemaid, who must always be made to take her -lamps out of the room over and over again; the mistress never <i>once</i> -overlooking a smoking, dirty, or odoriferous lamp, until perfection is -attained. That this is possible—ay, and easy—to obtain I have, I hope, -demonstrated to all of my readers by the before-mentioned anecdote. If, -however, the housemaid is really a good one, I should prefer to use -Strode’s beautiful copper and beaten iron lamps, with tinted glasses for -shades; or else with pale blue silk shades, stretched between copper -ribs that give a wonderfully artistic look to any room. Benson, who -sells his wares at Smee’s and Liberty’s, designs perfect lamps also, and -all these should be seen by the intending purchaser before finally -deciding which to buy. Again I say, never do your shopping in a hurry: -if you do, you are sure to see something you like better—in the next -street may be, and, oh! agony, at half the price!<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_103" id="page_103"></a>{103}</span></p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XI" id="CHAPTER_XI"></a>CHAPTER XI.<br /><br /> -<small>BEDROOMS.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">At</span> first the only upstairs rooms that will have to be furnished are -Angelina’s bedroom, Edwin’s dressing-room, one spare room, and a room -for the maid or maids, leaving any others until a nursery be required; -for if our young people have only one servant it is quite impossible -that they will be able to have a constant succession of folks staying in -the house, and, therefore, one bedroom besides their own is all that -should be prudently ready for occupation. I say ‘prudently,’ for few -young housekeepers can resist at first the delights of showing off their -houses and their presents to their less fortunate relations, and, in -consequence, a stream of visitors is invited to pour into the house, to -the detriment of anything like order, and to the dismay of the servant, -who is most certainly right to grumble at all the extra work; and, by -the way, I may mention here that to this same stream is due more than -half the worry brides have at first with their domestics.</p> - -<p>Also, the bedrooms should be kept very nice. This no one servant can do, -unless she is considered and helped, and I should strongly advise -Angelina not to be above making her own bed, even if she have a -housemaid as well as a cook, for she and the housemaid together can -shake it up and fold the blankets and sheets nicely and neatly, while -the cook is clearing away breakfast, and interviewing the tradespeople -downstairs, whose orders should be ready written out for them by the -mistress, so that there should be no loitering at the back door, wasting -time for both the cook and the men too. But before I go into the divers -methods of bed-making, and speak of the beds themselves, I should like -to describe one or two rooms, as far as paper and paint go, and give -some idea of the colours I consider fittest for a bedroom. Formerly, -anything in that way did for a room, where no one then seemed to -remember we had to spend a good part of our lives, and where we had -occasionally to be ill and miserable, and wanted as much help over our -troubles as we could obtain from our surroundings; and who does not -recollect the orthodox bedroom of her youth—the fearful paper, all blue -roses and yellow lilies, or, what was worse still, the dreary drab and -orange, or green upon green scrolls and foliage, that we used to -contemplate with horror, wondering why such frightful papers were made! -Then came the carpet, a threadbare monstrosity, with great sprawling -green leaves and red blotches, ‘made over,’ as the Yankees say, from a -first appearance in a drawing-room, where it had spent a long and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_104" id="page_104"></a>{104}</span> -honoured existence, and where its enormous design was not quite as much -out of place as it was in the upper chambers. Indeed, the bedrooms, as a -whole, seemed to be furnished, as regards a good many items, out of the -cast-off raiment of the downstairs rooms; and curtains that had seen -better days, and chairs too decrepit to be honourable company in the -downstairs apartments, all crept up into the bedrooms, anything being -good enough for a room where ‘company’ would not be expected to enter.</p> - -<p>I myself remember a carpet that began life quite forty years ago, for it -was over ten years old when I made its acquaintance in a country -dining-room; it was drab, and was ‘enlivened’ with spots of brown, like -enlarged ladybirds. It lived for twenty years in that room, covered in -holland in the summer, and preserved from winter wear by the most -appallingly frightful printed red and green ‘felt square’ I ever saw; it -then was altered for the schoolroom, then went up into ‘the girl‘s’ -bedroom, and still exists in strips beside the servants’ beds, although -the original owner of that fearful possession has been dead over twenty -of those forty years; and when I consider the dirt and dust that has -become a part and parcel of it, I am only thankful that our pretty cheap -carpets do not last as carpets used to do, for I am sure such a -possession cannot be healthy; though the present proud possessor points -to the strips, as a proof of how much better things used to wear in her -mother’s days, than they do now, in these iconoclastic ones of ours.</p> - -<p>I am afraid I am not an orthodox housekeeper, for I confess most frankly -I do not want my things to wear for ever, certainly not my carpets and -curtains, and that is one reason why I am so thankful for the present -style of pretty light cretonnes, mattings, and Kidderminster carpets. -They are so clean and bright, and enable us to have our bedrooms fresh, -pleasant, and new, instead of making them up out of things that have -seen their best days in another sphere; and as I want Angelina to -recollect she may have to spend some little time in the bedroom -occasionally, as years go by, I wish to impress upon her to remember all -this in the arrangement of the house, and to be sure and buy only those -colours that give her pleasure, and to have no jarring ugliness to fret -her, and add in any measure to her time of illness and convalescence; -for, as I have said before, no one knows how much we are affected -insensibly by our surroundings, and how much our spirits are affected -too by what we have to look at!</p> - -<p>The first thing to recollect in choosing one’s paper is that there -should be nothing aggravating in it—no turns and twists that shall -bother us as we lie in bed; no squares or triangles that flatly refuse -to join; in fact, nothing special that can possibly worry us. I had once -on one of my walls a<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_105" id="page_105"></a>{105}</span></p> - -<p><a name="fig_17" id="fig_17"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-105_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-105_sml.jpg" width="337" height="220" alt="[Fig. 17.—A corner in a bedroom, Gable-end, Shortlands.]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 17.—A corner in a bedroom, Gable-end, Shortlands.</span> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_106" id="page_106"></a>{106}</span></p> - -<p class="nind">charming paper of Japanese chrysanthemum design. It had little colour -about it—only a faint pink flush, that just gave the idea of warmth -without a glare. To give body to this, the dado was of Indian matting -with a dado rail and wainscot paint of a good terra-cotta; the pink -shade, not the brown. The ceiling was papered with a pale -diaper-patterned terra-cotta paper, which was most pleasant to look at, -and I had matting and rugs on the floor. A slight idea of this room can -be obtained from the illustration on the previous page.</p> - -<p>The doors, mantelpiece, &c. were all painted to match, and the doors -were panelled with terra-cotta chintz at 9<i>d.</i> a yard at Burnett’s, and -had brass fittings, which I bought at Maple’s eleven years ago, and -which have done service in two houses, and will go with me to a third, I -hope, before long. On the mantelpiece I had a full flounce of blue and -white Lahore cretonne, which is also used for covering the eider-down, -and gave the necessary piece of blue colour there, which was repeated in -the tiles at the back of the washing-stand, and on a big settee in one -of the windows, which is a most useful possession, as it serves for a -sofa, and opens wide to hold the dresses in. Maple keeps these box -ottomans at about 2<i>l.</i> 10<i>s.</i>, covered with odds and ends of cretonnes; -to cover them with anything pretty costs a few shillings more, though, -of course, occasionally the original covering may be pretty enough for -use. Mine was hideous—great pink roses and green leaves, on a black -ground; but for 10<i>s.</i> I made it quite a thing of beauty with blue and -white cretonne, properly frilled, and I also added a big square frilled -pillow, and a large drapery of gold thread tapestry, the same pattern I -use for toilet-covers and tablecloths, over my two square -cupboard-tables that serve to hold boots and odds and ends inside, and -books, &c., on the top, thus answering a double purpose.</p> - -<p>I think these small cupboards are really the most useful things I have -ever invented, and so I will describe them fully, hoping other people -may find them as satisfactory as I have done. When I was in Dorsetshire, -I think I lived in the very awkwardest house in the whole county; and it -was so badly arranged that to have a morning-room at all I was obliged -to copy our French friends, and make what was a bedroom by night a -charming sitting-room by day. But perhaps I ought not to grumble, as it -was entirely due to this inconvenient house that I turned my mind more -especially to making the most of every room I had; and as I had to stow -away my belongings in pretty odds and ends, I thought of these small -cupboards, and they have proved the greatest success.</p> - -<p>They are made of deal, are about three feet high, and are quite square; -they are painted some self-colour to match the room, and panelled with -Japanese leather paper, and have one<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_107" id="page_107"></a>{107}</span> shelf inside; the handle is brass -and so is the lock, and the hinges might be brass too if further -decoration were required. They hold quite a quantity of things, and I -cover them with a tapestry tablecloth, place a fern in a pot in the -middle, and dot books and photographs about them just as one would on a -table. I had them made by our own man, and I think they cost about -10<i>s.</i> or 12<i>s.</i>, not more, and they are most useful, for they can be -put anywhere, and are never in the way; and this obviates any necessity -of the unsightly appearance of boots and shoes lying about the floor, -while it allows of keeping some in reserve, for boots and shoes should -never be bought and put on, but should be kept quite four months before -taking them into wear, as they wear twice as long if this very simple -precaution be taken.</p> - -<p>The curtains to this room are short, as so often described, and are of -the terra-cotta cretonne used to panel the doors, while loose muslin -curtains that draw, of Liberty’s yellow and white printed muslin, hang -over the glass to keep off the eyes of ‘over the way’; and as I had no -blinds I supplemented these in summer by large dark blue serge curtains, -at 1<i>s.</i> 11½<i>d.</i> a yard, which hang flat against the wall, and depend -from very narrow brass rods at the top of the windows, the other -curtains being only below the cathedral glass top windows (which are -never shut winter or summer), and which, being opaque, require no -permanent shading.</p> - -<p>I may mention, by the way, that even in the bedrooms I should always -remove the hideous china handles provided by the landlord and replace -them with brass fittings. These are undoubtedly cheaper at Maple’s than -elsewhere, and cost, the brass finger-plates 1<i>s.</i> 10½<i>d.</i> each, and -handles 1<i>s.</i> 11<i>d.</i> for two; brass bell-handles cost about 5<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> -each for downstairs, while very pretty brass rings are sold for about -2<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> at Maple’s, to be sewn on flat straps of plush, cretonne, or -serge worked in some conventional design for bell-pulls; these are the -nicest bell-pulls possible, and last years with care. All these fittings -can be removed when the tenant leaves the house, only remember to -carefully put away the china door-fittings yourself, or they will be -mysteriously lost when you wish to replace them—a wasteful item that -can be guarded against with just a little care. Especially also would I -paper the bedroom ceilings with some cheap and pretty paper. Maple has -an ideal bedroom ceiling at 4<i>d.</i> the piece in a peculiarly charming -shade of blue, which is always pleasant to look at; and furthermore -would I insist on a real dado, either of cretonne or matting, as this -always keeps a room tidy and prevents the wall being spoiled, by the -energetic manner in which the bed is always pushed into the wall, which -is the housemaid’s idea of placing it in position.</p> - -<p>All Mr. Pither’s papers are excellent for bedrooms, in either<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_108" id="page_108"></a>{108}</span> the -‘berry’ or the ‘blossom’ pattern; and the sage-green ‘blossom,’ with -sage-green paint, a dado of sage-green marguerite cretonne, and -terra-cotta ceiling papers and cretonnes, and ash furniture make an -excellent bedroom; while the darkest blue ‘berry,’ with yellow and white -cretonne dado and curtains, blue carpet and ceiling paper, and white, or -rather cream, paint and furniture make another charming room; the -flowery papers like old-fashioned chintzes in subdued colours, with -either a chintz or matting dado, and ivory paint can furthermore be -relied on to make a beautiful room. None of these decorations, by the -way, is expensive really, and as the dados wear as long as the walls -themselves they cannot be called a ruinous addition, and one is repaid -for the outlay over and over again by knowing that nothing can harm -one’s walls; and as I have the walls sized behind the dado material, and -have more than once taken down the dado to see if any dirt had crept -behind, and found the wall as clean as the day when the dado was put up, -I find the last objection to these dados done away with; for there are -only two that have ever been made to me—viz. expense, and possible -culture of dirt and creeping things.</p> - -<p>And here, reminded of the enemies spoken of above, let me impress upon -my readers never to buy bedroom furniture <i>at least</i> in sale-rooms. How -can we know we are not buying infection, or how can we guarantee that we -shall not become possessors of more than we have paid for? Therefore -avoid sales, and go to some respectable firm and buy one or two good -things, supplementing them later as money allows, and making shift for -extras, as far as one can, until one can afford good solid furniture. In -any case let the grate be seen to, and, if possible, buy one of Mr. -Shuffery’s slow-combustion stoves and pretty over-mantels, or at least -have the stove. A bedroom fire is <i>not</i> waste or extravagance. I never -believe firing is extravagance anywhere, and the slow-combustion stove -will save its own cost in one month’s consumption of coal; while a -narrow strip of looking-glass about a foot wide, and enclosed in a -painted deal frame, makes a pretty bedroom shelf; this can be -supplemented by fans, brackets, and the ever-useful cheap and pretty -chinas to be had of Gorringe.</p> - -<p>Expensive as it doubtless is, I cannot see how Angelina is to do without -something in the shape of a wardrobe, unless she is lucky enough to come -across a little house already provided with cupboards. Some of the new -houses, both at Bush Hill Park and at a queer, pretty little corner of -the world called Brookgreen, Hammersmith (that I stumbled upon the other -day, and was delighted with), have great receptacles that reminded me of -the good days of old, when recesses in bedrooms were part of the house, -and room-like cupboards were a portion of the structure; but I am -compelled to confess that such conveniences are few and far between.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_109" id="page_109"></a>{109}</span></p> - -<p>For example, most of the modern houses, and certainly one in which I -once lived, have not one single attempt at one, and have not even deep -recesses in which hooks and a curtain on a rod could be a substitute for -a cupboard, and in consequence we were compelled to spend a small -fortune on wardrobes. I purchased some very nice cheap ones at Maple’s -made out of deal, and painted a revolting drab colour, and also grained -to imitate maple—bird’s-eye maple. I only wish you could have heard the -chorus of anger when these arrived home, you would all have been amused; -but I said nothing, sent for my friend the painter, and gave them into -his hands, and in a short time they returned, one painted a lovely -sparrow’s-egg blue, further embellished with Japanese leather panels and -brass locks; the other an equally pretty shade of terra-cotta ‘treated’ -very much in the same way. I am almost afraid to say how little these -cost. One has a long glass in, and I think was 4<i>l.</i> 10<i>s.</i>, and the -other 4<i>l.</i>; but they have ample accommodation, and are extremely pretty -pieces of furniture, and match the dressing-tables, washing-stands, and -chairs, of which more anon. These painted wardrobes can be embellished -at home, if we use Aspinall’s invaluable enamel paints, remembering that -two coats of this make any old grained thing beautiful; all one has to -do is to scrub the old paint well with strong soda-water, rubbing it -down afterwards with glass-paper. All graining, by the way, can be -treated like this, though naturally painters much prefer to add up a -bill and insist on burning off all old paint. Should the graining be -very thick, an application of ‘Carson’s detergent’ is advisable; this -costs 5<i>s.</i> at La Belle Sauvage Yard, London, E.C., and removes the old -paint in flakes immediately—a much cheaper and far less offensive -proceeding than the burning off of the paint so dear to the soul of the -ordinary workman.</p> - -<p>In my own room I must confess to greater extravagance, for I had a large -dressing-table in light wood, and so fancied I must have all the rest to -match, and in consequence I had to give 12<i>l.</i> or 14<i>l.</i> for my -wardrobe. This I bought of Messrs. Hampton, in Pall Mall East, and -better tradesmen I for one do not know. After I had had that wardrobe a -few months the glass suddenly cracked straight across from no reason -that I could discover, save from pure ‘cussedness,’ as the Yankees say. -However, I wrote to the firm, telling them what had occurred, and they -at once sent down an employé, who discovered a warp in the wood, and -without a word or an atom of expense to me they removed the spoiled -glass and door, and sent me a brand-new one—a perfectly fair thing to -do, of course, as the fault was in the manufacture, but one very few -people would have done, I venture to state, without acrimonious -correspondence, and an attempt to charge at any rate. Why, only the -other day I bought an umbrella at a shop I should love to ‘name,’ as -they do in the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_110" id="page_110"></a>{110}</span> House, and when it went into holes, real holes, in less -than a month they declined altogether even to re-cover it, saying it had -not had fair wear. It was not worth a fight, but that shop will now lose -my custom, and I most certainly will never recommend it to any one. If -tradesmen knew how far a little civility and courtesy went, some of them -would, I am sure, imitate the noble conduct of the Messrs. Hampton.</p> - -<p>My wardrobe has a deep drawer for hats, a place for hanging jackets, and -plenty of shelves and other drawers for linen and dresses, and I could -not do without it in the least, though, of course, it may be too dear -for Angelina, in which case I must strongly recommend her to buy a cheap -deal one and have it painted to match her room, putting on brass -handles—the drop handles are the best and most decorative—and filling -up any panels that there may be with Japanese paper, or tightly -stretched cretonne, like that used for the hangings.</p> - -<p>If Edwin be a clever carpenter, he can easily make a frame to simulate a -wardrobe. The top can be formed of very tightly stretched holland (it -does not show, and the glaze resists dirt and damp, I think, better than -anything else), and the front can be hidden by a nice curtain—serge -lined with holland would be best. The sides of the frame should have -rings on, like picture rings, to fasten them to the flat surface of the -wall, and can be painted. Edwin could put in some wide shelves, but -these make-believe cupboards are best for hanging one’s dresses and -jackets in, as they will not stand much weight. A less costly thing even -than this can be made with an arrangement of curtains, rods, and -brackets, but the one suggested above should not cost 30<i>s.</i>, curtain -and all, would last years, and be removable from house to house, as no -cupboard is.</p> - -<p>The most valuable things I know, too, are Maple’s box ottomans. No one -makes them quite so cheaply as he does, and they are invaluable for -ball-dresses, spare blankets, ordinary dresses—in fact, for anything; -and, with a judicious arrangement of cushions, form sometimes an -excellent substitute for a sofa. Though, if the room be large enough, I -recommend Angelina to possess herself of what I always used to call ‘a -long chair,’ which was originally a camp bedstead, is made of iron and -sacking, lets down to a bed or rises up to an arm-chair, possesses an -extra leg for a sofa, and finally has a long cushion, covered with -cretonne or serge, that can be made to serve as a mattress if a spare -bed is wanted in a hurry. I think this curious article of furniture -costs 30<i>s.</i>, and there is nothing like it for comfort. The sacking -gives with one’s weight, and never fatigues one, and it is even superior -to a deck cane chair, which is very nice, but will creak and groan under -one, and is apt to feel hard and ridgy after lying there for some time.</p> - -<p>I do hope my readers will not think I am given to ‘lying<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_111" id="page_111"></a>{111}</span></p> - -<p><a name="fig_18" id="fig_18"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-111_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-111_sml.jpg" width="182" height="324" alt="[Fig. 18.—Draped alcove for a bed. not visible" - /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 18.—Draped alcove for a bed.</span> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_112" id="page_112"></a>{112}</span></p> - -<p class="nind">down’; it is an action I scorn when I am well; but I know, alas! too -well how necessary it is to be ready for an ‘emergency,’ and to know one -has a place of refuge and rest if life grows too much for one, and one’s -headache is just a little too bad to bear without retiring into private -life for a while. At first, of course, Angelina will have the house to -herself, but that will not last—at least I hope for her sake it will -not—and she will then be glad to have opportunities of resting for five -or ten minutes, secure of safety from interruptions, and servants, and -children, or visitors. Besides, when she is recovering after any illness -there would be her sofa ready, and she would not be perpetually fretted -and worried by seeing the room disorganised by the sudden introduction -of a strange piece of furniture; the bringing in of which, and the -bumping and banging inseparable from this same movement, often brings on -a nervous attack, and fidgets her so much that she would rather be -without it than witness the commotion caused by the moving.</p> - -<p>If one’s home has these little conveniences it adds immeasurably to -one’s comfort, and they are not costly; and here I may mention that I -consider a screen indispensable too, for this can be moved to circumvent -draughts or too much light, and can also be used to protect the patient -from worry when the bed is made, &c.; things that always drive me -distracted to witness, and that screened off cease to be, as far as I am -concerned.</p> - -<p>In most houses, too, the door opens confidingly on the only place where -the bed can stand, and then a screen is invaluable; it hides the bed -itself, and does not leave it exposed as it would were curtains used as -a substitute. Curtains, too, are things I always disapprove of. I do not -even like Mr. Arthur Smee’s most excellent arrangement of wing-like -brackets, to which curtains are attached, as I think people should have -as much air as possible, and I see no more reason for curtaining a bed -than there would be for curtaining one’s chair or sofa. A screen insures -privacy; curtains hide one’s head only, and cannot possibly avoid being -stuffy; if, however, the bare appearance of an uncurtained bed is -objected to, the draped alcove sketched on the previous page will be -found easy to arrange and very pretty indeed. This alcove is one of -Messrs. Collinson and Lock’s designs.</p> - -<p>I have been very sorry to notice a very strong attempt made by those who -ought to know better to revive that truly unhealthy and impossible thing -in a properly managed house—the wooden bedstead. I hear that these -detestable things are considered artistic—that to have a heap of -feathers sunk into a carved oak box in the height of luxuriance and -æstheticism, so I must beg my readers to carefully consider what a -wooden bedstead means and used to mean.</p> - -<p>It meant immense trouble with certain small animals that came there -mysteriously with the clothes. It meant a taking to<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_113" id="page_113"></a>{113}</span> pieces, a -scrubbing, and a putting together again continually; and, above all, it -meant a bonfire were any person with an infectious disease to sleep upon -it; and, in fact, I do not know one single thing in its favour, and yet -folks in their craving after a false sensation of antiquity are actually -thinking of going back to the wooden bedstead.</p> - -<p>One of the worst and silliest things I know is to go back into the -middle ages for those very articles that used to make our foremothers—I -don’t think our forefathers troubled much about their houses—miserable, -and when I see tiny diamond panes of glass, for example, when invention -has given us large sheets of glass through which light comes, and by -throwing open which we can admit as much air as possible; or when I hear -of the wooden bedsteads, I feel like a Philistine entirely, and long to -uplift my testimony on the great superiority of this present nineteenth -century of ours, when we are nothing if we are not sensible, and ought -to know enough to make use of all the beauty of past days, while we -reject unconditionally the futile, unhealthy nonsense that clings to -them. Still, after this no one will be surprised to hear that I consider -a brass or iron and brass bedstead a <i>sine quâ non</i>. Nothing is so -clean, so cheerful-looking, and so healthy. There are no draperies to -catch dust or to give the sleeper a headache, and, moreover, I never -have a valance—never will allow one. Why should there be one? Not one -single thing of any sort or description should be put under the bed, -which, in a servant’s room, or the room of an untidy person, serves as a -regular hiding-place for boots, boxes, even soiled linen, and if there -be nothing to hide there is no necessity that I can see for a valance. A -brass and iron bedstead can be bought, full size, at Maple’s for 3<i>l.</i> -10<i>s.</i>, and, of course, very much handsomer ones can be procured; but -plain beds are much the best, for they can be rubbed free from dust in a -very few moments, and always look clean because they are so.</p> - -<p>I do not think any one who has ever tried it can for one moment doubt -that a spring mattress made entirely of finely woven chains is the very -best and healthiest sort of bed that one can have, it never seems to get -out of order, it is quickly made softer or harder by being wound up -tighter or unwound, and, above all, it is easily kept clean, and is as -easily disinfected, should any fever or other infectious disease attack -the owner thereof.</p> - -<p>I have had, and still possess, one of the old-fashioned spring beds that -resemble very large mattresses, and, though this is extremely -comfortable, it is not to be as highly recommended as a bed one can -brush and know is quite clean, for it is covered with a tick, and has a -mysterious internal arrangement of spiral springs that is apt at times -to get out of order, and invariably groans and squeaks in an agonising -way whenever one turns in bed, while the noise and motion are both very -trying<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_114" id="page_114"></a>{114}</span> when one’s nerves are a little unstrung and one is restless and -cannot sleep. It is expensive to have it taken to pieces and cleaned, -and the tick washed, which is not done half as often as it ought to be, -because it is costly and tiresome. There are several sorts of -chain-spring mattresses, and the ‘Excelsior,’ which is inexpensive, -answers every purpose; but I personally much prefer a very fine woven -chain, almost like chain-armour, which is expensive, but wears -splendidly, and only requires a nice hair mattress over it to be -complete. I always put over the chains themselves a square of brown -holland, tied to each of the four corners of the bedstead. This should -be washed twice, or even oftener, during the year, and it is also an -excellent plan to put the nice new hair mattresses and pillows into neat -brown holland pinafores, or cases; which can also be frequently washed -in order to keep the ticks themselves clean as long as we possibly can. -Unless this is done, the ticks become soiled and nasty-looking and -shabby, because housemaids are but mortal, and will not remember to wash -their hands and put on spotlessly clean aprons when they go up to make -the beds. If brown holland is too dear, ‘crash’ serves every purpose, -but the glaze on the holland resists dust better than anything, and -insures cleanliness.</p> - -<p>If people suffer very much from cold, I am luxurious enough to allow -them a feather bed on the mattress. I always feel I am doing very wrong, -and that it is a most unhealthy practice, though I have one myself, for -in the winter, and indeed during most of the year, I hardly know what it -is like to be even moderately warm in bed; but I still think I should be -doing well were I to put away my feathers entirely, and only use the -springs and the hair mattress, but I am not strong-minded enough, so, -though I know feathers are unhealthy in every way, I still use them, -believing that now I am too old to change my undoubtedly evil ways.</p> - -<p>A brass and iron bedstead furnished with the spring mattress, nice hair -mattress and bolster, and four pillows if a double, two if a single, -bedstead, is the beau-ideal of a sleeping place for health, and should -furthermore be provided with two under blankets—one in use, one in -store in case of illness—and two good pairs of nice Witney blankets, -and these should be marked in red wool with the date of purchase, -initials, and number of the room to which they belong. If the four -blankets are too much, those not in use should be very neatly folded -under the mattress, thus insuring that they are always aired and ready -for use. An eider-down quilt is also nice in winter, and should have an -extra covering made from cretonne like the window curtains, or in a -pretty contrast, edged all round with a two-inch goffered frill, and -furnished with buttons and buttonholes, in order that it can be easily -removed and sent to the wash.</p> - -<p>Three pairs of sheets are the least that can be allowed to<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_115" id="page_115"></a>{115}</span> each bed; -the top sheet of each pair should be frilled with Cash’s patent frilling -two inches and a half wide, and should have a large red monogram in the -centre to look really well; these can be worked by Angelina, if she has -clever fingers; and as it adds so very much to the appearance of the -linen, I do hope where she can she will embellish her house-linen with -nicely embroidered initials, repeating the same in the centre of the -pillow-cases; which should be frilled and placed outside the bed during -the day to look nice, the frilled cases being removed at night and -replaced by plain ones, from motives of economy. Four plain pillow-cases -for each pillow, and two or three frilled and embroidered ones for the -top pillows, are the least that can be allowed when the linen is bought; -for if Angelina have to stay in bed—and no doubt she will—a change -from the plain pillow-case of night to the frilled one for day, and a -removal of the plain counterpane for a pretty one, is as good almost as -a change of room, and makes far more difference in one’s feelings than -can readily be believed. Now one especial word in Angelina’s ear: I have -never yet found in all my experience a servant who can really and truly -be trusted to properly air the bed. Her first idea is to cover it up and -get it made, and unless Angelina copies me I am quite certain she will -find the bed stuffy and disagreeable, because it has not had time to get -properly aired, and because it has been made up as soon almost as -Angelina got out of it.</p> - -<p>Now there is not one single thing that should be left on the bed once -one is out of it. Do not be content with turning all the bed-clothes -over the rail; see they are all pulled out from under the mattress, -separated, and hung up, if possible. Then remove the pillows, and dot -them about on chairs and sofas; hang up separately the under sheet and -blanket where they will receive a current of air from the open window -wet or dry; and then pull off the mattress, placing it as close to the -window as it will go, which only takes about five minutes, as, of -course, Edwin will help with the mattress, and then, when dressed, open -all the windows possible. Leave the door wide open too, unless there are -torrents of rain and a windy tempest going on; and I venture to remark -that the bed will be all right and properly aired, even if Mary Jane -rushes wildly upstairs from the breakfast table and sets to work at -once.</p> - -<p>May I also add: don’t fold up your night attire! I used to be informed -by my governess that no lady ever left her towels on the floor—as if -any one wanted to—or went downstairs without neatly folding up her -night-garment. Now this I will not do. It should be left to air with the -beds, and should then be folded up, with the soft, woolly slippers in -attendance, and put neatly into an embroidered case provided for it. How -fussy and old-maidish all this seems, yet on these trifles depend so -very<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_116" id="page_116"></a>{116}</span> much that I feel I really cannot say too much about them. It may -seem silly of me here to tell most of my readers of things they may all -do daily, just as they have their meals, but I know a great many women -who never think of these items, and of course there may be a very great -many others who just want to be given the same sort of little hints too; -and as for the servants, I do not believe one exists who out of her own -head would air a bed daily, and who does not regard such airing as a -useless fad.</p> - -<p>While we are on the subject of beds, I may mention that a matchbox, the -boxes of Bryant and May’s, painted with enamel paint, and embellished -with a tiny picture, nailed to the wall just above one’s head, is an -excellent thing; and so is a bracket provided with either one of Mr. -Drew’s small paraffin lamps with a chimney, or else one of Field’s -candle-lamps, also with a glass shade; and that a bed pocket made out of -a Japanese fan, covered with soft silk, and the pocket itself made of -plush, and nailed within easy reach, is also very useful to hold a -handkerchief or one’s watch; and, furthermore, that great comfort is to -be had from a table at one’s bedside, on which can stand one’s book or -anything one may be likely to want in the night.</p> - -<p>The counterpane of the bed should be one of these nice honeycomb quilts -with a deep cotton fringe; in winter and summer both, the eider-down -should be always on the bed ready for use, for some of our English -summer nights are as cold and chilly as many of the autumn and winter -ones; and very charming-looking day coverings for the beds can be bought -for one guinea at Marshall and Snelgrove’s, and are called Madras -quilts. They have more substance than Madras muslin itself, and are -ready trimmed with a neat fringe. Guipure and lace strips make nice -quilts too, and very nice covers can be made of cretonne like the -curtains edged by the pretty nine-inch goffered frill of which I am so -fond; but if Angelina works, beautiful ones can be made from crash or -workhouse sheeting, embroidered in scrolls and pomegranates in red chain -stitch, a deep border of thicker work, also in a pomegranate pattern, -forming an appropriate and very handsome finish to it. These quilts can -be bought ready traced and begun at Francis’s, Hanway Street, Oxford -Street, W., at 30<i>s.</i>; they should be lined with sateen, and finished -off by a wide border of furniture lace, turned over a band of sateen of -any colour that will harmonise with the room itself.</p> - -<p>A careful servant should brush under the bed daily to pick up any little -bits of fluff or dust, and once a week, without fail, all the corners -should be turned out and the room thoroughly cleaned. The floor, to be -perfect, should be stained all over, polished and rubbed bright, and be -furnished with nice rugs, which can be shaken daily, for nothing keeps -so clean, and it is undoubtedly healthy, for, much as I like matting, -and largely<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_117" id="page_117"></a>{117}</span> as I use it, it must fill up the corners entirely, and dust -cannot help accumulating there, in a bedroom.</p> - -<p>Furniture for the room itself could be had cheaply, did we know of any -man willing to work under our orders, but this seems impossible.</p> - -<p>I do not know if there are any trades-union rules among carpenters that -prevent them working for themselves; but, if not, I am quite sure an -honest mechanic could make a large fortune if only he set himself -seriously to work, and would keep to reasonable prices.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_19" id="fig_19"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-117_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-117_sml.jpg" width="173" height="226" alt="[Fig. 19 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 19.</span> -</div> - -<p>Of course, skilled cabinet-making is one thing, and the sort of work I -mean is another; but I am constrained to remark on this, because -ordinary shops, even the very cheapest, charge such terrible prices for -furniture, and I have had such useful<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_118" id="page_118"></a>{118}</span> things made from my own -descriptions by a man in our own employ, that I am sure such a man near -London would soon be of almost world-wide fame, and we should all have -useful furniture, even if it were not of polished ash and oak, elegantly -finished, and in exquisite style.</p> - -<p>We should, of course, all prefer the very best furniture possible, if we -could afford it; but, as we cannot, I should like to find a carpenter as -good as my old one, who would work for himself and really give us honest -work at honest prices.</p> - -<p>There are some dressing-tables which I possess which this man made for -2<i>l.</i> 10<i>s.</i> out of strong, good deal. They have three very deep drawers -each side and one in the middle, and underneath the top drawer in one -case there is a rod to hold a curtain, and in the other there is a -species of cupboard for boots. The curtain also hides boots, but I -prefer the cupboard, as it is the tidiest, and has two divisions, one -for shoes and one for boots. These were stained deal, but I soon had -them painted, one turquoise blue, one terra-cotta, and added brass -handles, and they are now not only useful but extremely pretty. The -frames of the looking-glasses were painted to match, so that all was <i>en -suite</i>.</p> - -<p>There are, of course, many different sorts of dressing-tables, but I -like mine at 2<i>l.</i> 10<i>s.</i> as much as any for use. My own happens to be -much more expensive, because I had it, in the room I spoke of before, to -serve for both a toilet-table and washing-stand in a confined space; but -this came to about 9<i>l.</i>, which is not so very much when one considers -it was instead of two things. This has a very large glass in the centre, -and drawers and recesses, which hold china odds and ends, and is very -pretty too. The part that was used as a washing-stand is tiled, but now -the tiles are covered, as I have at present plenty of room for another -stand, and it no longer does double duty.</p> - -<p>Mr. Smee has designed a charming table, and has given me the drawing, -which is produced here. This is without exception the very best style of -table for a small room, as the drawers are extremely deep, and would -hold an immense quantity of things. The looking-glass is in the centre, -the drawers extending as far back as they are in front, and the table is -provided with two brackets to hold either china or flowers. This is -painted any colour, and the handles are brass. In the very best quality -the price is 6<i>l.</i> 18<i>s.</i>, but it can be made cheaper, and Mr. Smee -would no doubt tell any one who wrote to him how much cheaper it could -be made. He has not told me exactly the lowest price, but it is an -extremely charming piece of furniture, and it is as decorative as it is -undoubtedly useful.</p> - -<p>Then there are those truly abominable dressing-tables, the deal frame -covered with muslin and lace and glazed calico, like the frock of a -ballet-dancer, or else with some serge material<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_119" id="page_119"></a>{119}</span> that resembles nothing -so much as a church altar; and that should never be used except in cases -where the others really cannot be managed on the score of expense; but, -as there are many nice sets of furniture to be bought for about 12<i>l.</i> -12<i>s.</i>, I think, somehow, a dressing-table can be managed by Angelina -that shall not serve as a dust-trap, a hiding hole for all sorts of -débris, or an attraction for fire; for many a death has been caused by -these flimsy petticoated things catching alight and flaring up in one -moment.</p> - -<p>I had one once which was rather a good possession, as it was in reality -a deep square box. I believe it had once been an old wooden crib, -retired from active service and covered with a lid; and although it was -very useful, and held all my spare blankets, I never could bear the look -of it, and it was finally shorn of its legs and turned into an ottoman -with a chintz cover. But it is desperately heavy, and I never see it -without feeling cross at its unalterable ugliness.</p> - -<p>I never use the ordinary white toilet-cover; this is another of my pet -detestations. I invariably have neat tapestry covers made to fit the -tables &c., and edged with a ball fringe to match. I use, moreover, -self-coloured felt and velveteen, also edged with furniture lace or -fringe, and this I use also to cover the box pincushions that are in -every room, and are invaluable for holding odds and ends, the gloves one -has in wear, shoestrings, and so on. For these, a large-sized cigar box -is an excellent foundation. This should be lined with wadding and glazed -lining, the top carefully wadded too, and all the outside covered with -lining; then cover it tightly with either plush, velveteen, or tapestry, -and put fringe round in such a way that the opening is hidden. Very tidy -folks tie these boxes together with ribbons. I do not; life is too -short, and I find the fringe hides any gaps, and looks very nice too. -The top part does for pins or one’s brooches, though I prefer to keep my -pins in a china Japanese dish, shaped like a fish, because I can’t bear -the pin-stuck look of a cushion; and I put my brooches away in their -boxes, because they are apt to be knocked off and lost or bent, unless -you are possessed of a maid or housemaid who is as careful as she ought -to be, and yet somehow never is! The brushes and combs live in a middle -drawer, the paper in which should be changed once a week, when the room -is properly cleaned. They should never be placed on the toilet-cover, -and, if there be no centre drawer, two cedar-wood trays covered with -tapestry covers over pieces of washing stuff should be provided, to -insure that they are not left on the toilet-covers, and that cleanliness -is duly respected. In front of the toilet-table, however the room is -covered, there should be an extra rug. Of course, if the carpet be new -the first beauty of the carpet may be used if you like, but this I do -not advise: first, because you<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_120" id="page_120"></a>{120}</span> may like to change your furniture—I -love changing mine—and in this case you could not, because the carpet -would be marked; and, secondly, because it is a pity to wear it out more -in one place than another, which you could not avoid doing if you do not -put a rug down in the place you use most. In the case of matting or -staining a rug would be imperative, and I strongly recommend one for a -carpet for the reasons mentioned above. Before we leave the -dressing-table for the washing-stand, I should like to say a few words -about the way to light it. Careful survey should be made of the room -before the gas-brackets are put in, and, if possible, one should be so -arranged as to bring the light over the centre of the glass.</p> - -<p>In a big room a bracket each side is advisable. Long brass brackets -should be used, which should be able to be moved either to the side or -to the middle of the glass, bringing the light well over the top -whenever it is possible, thus doing away at once with any necessity for -candles and the attendant dangers. If candles are used they should be -invariably protected with Price’s candle guards; but once more I say, -have one of Messrs. A. and A. Drew’s perfect little 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> lamps in -every room. They are quite safe, and can be carried from room to room -without the very smallest danger. They never smell, are lighted and put -out in a moment, and are invaluable to any mother who pays domiciliary -visits to her children, and puts down her light to tuck up or kiss the -little sleepers, for she can place this lamp even in a draught and at -the same time need not consider if a curtain is blowing close by, for if -it did it could do no harm. They are useful even to the reader in bed, -as they give sufficient light for that, although they do not come up to -the excellent candle lamps recently invented, but which cost a guinea, -as contrasted with our modest 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, and have no protection for -the flame, which, however, is far back in the lamp, and not easily -reached. Another item must also be mentioned before we leave the -toilet-table subject. Every scrap of hair should be collected by -Angelina herself before she leaves the toilet-table, and be placed -somewhere out of sight, to be burned by herself in the nearest fire. -Avoid those terrible things called toilet-tidies, which make me shudder -whenever I see them hanging up; but do not leave this item near a -servant’s hands: they cannot resist combing out the brush either into -the washing basin or the toilet-pail. The drains become clogged—no one -knows why, until that miserable creature the plumber has to be called -in, when, after spoiling all that comes within his reach, he discovers -the cause, and sends in a tremendous bill, all of which need never have -happened had Angelina looked after this item herself. If the nursery -fire be handy it can be disposed of every morning; if not, a little box -could be kept in one corner of the dressing-table drawer, and the -contents burned when the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_121" id="page_121"></a>{121}</span> room is cleaned, which should be done with the -very greatest regularity once a week, on a stated day, which should -always be rigorously adhered to, and which, if properly done, minimises -in a remarkable manner the discomfort and disagreeables of that -abomination to the male mind, and to some female minds too—the spring -clean. Whatever Angelina is, I do hope and trust she will duly -appreciate her table-drawers, and not look upon them as a store-place -for rubbish. She will, of course, have a store of gloves, handkerchiefs, -and ribbons at first in her trousseau; and I most strongly advise her to -keep in the toilet drawers the things she has in use, not her whole -store. She should never allow herself more than three pairs of gloves in -wear, one of which should be for evening wear, nor more than a dozen -handkerchiefs in use; and she should never put away her gloves unmended -or lacking buttons, nor allow a fortnight to pass without putting every -drawer she possesses tidy, and seeing her handkerchiefs are correct in -number. Tidiness and tidy habits are great helps to economy of time and -money, and are therefore highly to be recommended for Angelina’s -consideration.</p> - -<p>There is nothing so expensive as a muddle; nothing so sure to unhinge -the servants and make them cross, captious, and anxious to move on -elsewhere. Keep straight and work is easy, because it is expected and -looked out for; allow arrears to accumulate, and nothing is done.</p> - -<p>And this also applies to the drawers in Angelina’s own wardrobe. -Unmended gloves, linen, or stockings should never for one moment be -allowed, neither should one set of linen be taken into wear until the -previous one is worn entirely out. This should be kept religiously, old -linen being invaluable for burns (if it be <i>linen</i>, not <i>cotton</i>) or -wounds, and to give away to the deserving poor who may be ill. Even in -one’s own illnesses old nightdresses are invaluable; as medicine, -poultices, and constant and daily washing soon ruins one’s nice new -things. I am no advocate for hoarding, but I do know the value of old -worn-out things, if only to have something to fall back upon if a friend -comes in, to beg for Kitty Jones’s ninth baby; or for old Mrs. Harris, -in bed and suffering agonies from rheumatic fever, when rags and old -flannel petticoats come in like a godsend for her use. If one’s servants -have good wages they do not need these things, and I do not think, in -any case, they should be given old clothes: they come to look upon them -as a right, and often enough one is prevented giving a far more -deserving object some cast-off garments because one fancies that -so-and-so will be offended; therefore I strongly advise Angelina to keep -one especial ottoman or drawer to go to for her charities. I am sure she -will find it a great help to her if she does so.</p> - -<p>One of the palm-leafed baskets for soiled linen should be in<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_122" id="page_122"></a>{122}</span> every -room; they are a little more expensive than the ordinary soiled linen -baskets, but they stand three times the wear, and always look nice. -Albeit this is an article I always put as much as possible in very -humble retirement behind my cheval-glass, there is no choice in my mind -between the palm-leaf and the wicker-work for wear, and I strongly -recommend both the dark brown and the light-coloured ones; they are -about 5<i>s.</i> 11<i>d.</i> each.</p> - -<p>If Angelina can possibly afford it she should buy a cheval-glass; of -course the long glass in the wardrobe shows one’s dresses pretty well, -but it cannot be moved about to suit the light like the cheval-glass -can, neither does it ever somehow act quite in its place. I dress very -hurriedly, for I have so little time generally for this operation. I am -always doing something up to the last moment before I go out either for -a drive or in the evening, so that I could not do without mine, and I -have often been saved quite fearful <i>contretemps</i> by this faithful -friend, which truthfully points out strings and skirts out of place, and -has an unpleasant habit of suggesting that one’s hair must be done -again, by reflecting the back of one’s head in a crude, and startling -way, in the ordinary glass. Then it is of great use to visitors too, who -may not have a long glass at all in the spare-room wardrobe, and are -doubly thankful to find a cheval-glass there, lent of course out of -Angelina’s own room for the time being.</p> - -<p>Another thing that I should like to speak of is the necessity of always -having a clean brush and comb in the toilet drawer. A friend comes in -unexpectedly to luncheon or dinner, and we are struck with dismay to -find that it is the day before our own particular brushes are to be -washed, and we have none fit to give her. If we always keep a ‘company -brush and comb’ we need never be put to confusion as we otherwise -should, for often, in dusty weather particularly, and especially if we -drive much, our brushes look black almost after once using, and are not -suitable to give a friend, without being really dirty.</p> - -<p>This said washing of brushes is a vexed question. I have a friend who is -so particular about hers that she never uses them more than once, and -then has them washed rapidly in hot soapsuds. By holding the backs in -her hand so that they do not touch the water, and thus only immersing -the bristles, she gets them clean without spoiling them; they are dried -in the fender, and she always has six brushes in use. Now, I think if we -have three in use, and have them washed in routine, one a day, so as -always to have one clean one ready for a friend, we shall do very well. -And I think 5<i>s.</i> or 6<i>s.</i> ample to give for a brush; I have had some -excellent ones from Whiteley’s at 4<i>s.</i> 11<i>d.</i> and 4<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> If we buy -extravagantly dear brushes, we grudge their wear and tear and their -numerous washings; but inexpensive<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_123" id="page_123"></a>{123}</span> ones can be kept cleaner, because we -can more easily afford to buy new ones if we do not give too much at -first. The old silver brushes at 5<i>l.</i>, and beautiful ivory-backed ones -at almost any price we like to give, are delightful to possess; but -unless we can constantly renew the bristles, they soon get useless, and -as we can’t do that we must be content with ordinary ones; which same -remark applies to combs. I like a black vulcanite at 1<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i> or -2<i>s.</i> better than any, for a comb is difficult to keep really nice, and -one does not mind throwing a soiled or broken one away if one can easily -and cheaply replace it.</p> - -<p>Still, if Angelina should have beautiful brushes given to her in her -collection of wedding gifts, I strongly counsel her to keep them by her -for visiting and travelling, and to get other cheaper ones for every -day; and this same remark applies to tortoiseshell combs. I like better -things for visiting myself, and I am sure Angelina should keep her best -brushes for this purpose. If the toilet-table is chosen with brackets, -cut and scented flowers should never be allowed there. A few ferns and -immortelles look nice, especially the pretty pink everlastings one can -buy in the summer, but scented flowers are bad for a bedroom, though I -much recommend a growing plant or two; they look nice, and are very -healthy; but no flowers here even; a fern, a small palm, or the -ubiquitous aspidistra being all to be preferred, because the leaves give -out a healthy atmosphere, and are therefore useful as well as -ornamental, while strongly scented blossoms poison the air and render it -heavy and unfit for a sleeper to breathe.</p> - -<p>Without going to the outrageous lengths some lovers of fresh air -consider necessary, I strongly advise every one to try and sleep with -some little bit of window open. I always do in summer with all that I -can, in winter with one or two at the top only. The sudden change in -temperature that makes this dangerous is guarded against by having an -extra wrap handy on a chair, or thrown over the foot of the bed, which -can be drawn up if the change becomes perceptible; but I am certain that -two people in one room should never sleep with all the windows and doors -shut, and I have never slept with mine closed, since I can recollect, -without waking with a headache and a feeling of lassitude, though, of -course, when I lived in London itself the noise was very trying, yet I -became accustomed even to that; and I put down my singular immunity from -colds to this habit of mine, and also to the open windows and doors that -I always insist upon, and that for some part of the day always remain -open, winter and summer, though the moment the sun goes, or rather -begins to go, down, all windows, in the winter and autumn, should be -rigorously closed, with the exception of about a quarter of an inch at -the top.</p> - -<p>But then, in connection with my open-air fad, I am a great<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_124" id="page_124"></a>{124}</span> advocate for -good, jolly fires, and I do believe bedroom fires save a great amount of -doctors’ bills. Open your window a little, and have a fire, if you can -possibly manage it, and I am sure you will all find a great difference -in the expense. Of course this adds to the servant’s work; but if she -objects, equalise matters by helping her with the beds, and in dusting, -and in a thousand-and-one little ways. I am sure you will not repent it.</p> - -<p>Fires warm the whole house, take off the damp, raw feeling that is so -trying in our English atmosphere, and give a cheerful feel and look that -cannot be too highly esteemed. I would rather do without anything than a -fire, and even in the height of summer the instant it rains I have my -fires set going, with the windows open, not so much for the mere warmth -of course, but to dry the atmosphere and prevent the house-walls from -becoming chilled and damp and dangerous to health; while for three parts -of the year they are emphatically a necessity, unless we want the -doctor’s gig or brougham to be always turning in at our front gate.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_20" id="fig_20"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-124_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-124_sml.jpg" width="185" height="146" alt="[Fig. 20 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 20.</span> -</div> - -<p>I could write pages about fires, I am so certain that in England nothing -is saved by scrimping the coal, but I must not dwell upon this subject. -I must pass on to the washing-stands, of which here are two drawings -from Mr. Smee’s designs, and which I consider the very perfection of -stands. I prefer the larger one of the two, not because I could for one -moment contemplate the odious notion of a double washing apparatus, but<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_125" id="page_125"></a>{125}</span> -because the smaller one does not seem to me to have room for sponge-dish -and all the etceteras one requires; but, of course, if the room were a -small one, the single washing-stand would be best, because in that case -space would be an object, and by placing a long painted shelf, or one of -those nice little hanging sets of shelves, half cupboard, half bookcase, -over it, we could obtain a place to put extra articles on. These -washing-stands in the best materials come to 5<i>l.</i> 5<i>s.</i> each. The -drawing, I think, will need but small explanation from me, as it will -show exactly the proper style for a washing-stand; but I should like my -readers to notice that the high-tiled back prevents the wall being -spoiled, and does away with the idea of a ‘splasher’ being required, -that the towels are to be hung on the round rails provided for them, and -that the deep cupboards are especially to be commended, doing away as -they do with any necessity for an extra piece of furniture, and they can -also be used for bottles of medicine, Angelina’s private duster, which -she should keep in every room, cardboard boxes, and other trifles that -are too useful to throw away and yet require to be hidden from sight.</p> - -<p><a name="fig_21" id="fig_21"></a></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/ill_pg-125_lg.jpg"> -<br /> -<img class="enlargeimage" -src="images/enlarge-image.jpg" -alt="" -width="18" -height="14" /> -<br /> -<img src="images/ill_pg-125_sml.jpg" width="184" height="191" alt="[Fig. 21 not visible]" /></a> -<br /> -<span class="caption">Fig. 21.</span> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_126" id="page_126"></a>{126}</span></p> - -<p>There is no doubt in my mind that the Beaufort ware sold by Maple is the -nicest and prettiest for bedroom use. It is pure white, and a most -charming shape. The jug has a double lip, and the handles are in the -centre, like a basket, simulating a twisted rope. The basin &c. have all -handles and embellishments of the same rope-like design, and the cost is -17<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> The ware is most excellent, and though much cheaper ware -is, of course, to be procured, pretty blue and white sets being -purchasable at 3<i>s.</i> 11½<i>d.</i>, my white set exists triumphantly, after -eleven years’ wear and two moves, while I have bought more cheap sets -for those all-devouring locusts the boys and the maids than I care to -think about. I am convinced, therefore, that very cheap china for -bedroom use is a mistake, for good ware stands rough usage much better, -and therefore is cheaper in the end.</p> - -<p>It is well, too, to buy the ware as much alike as possible for two or -even three rooms, as nothing is so difficult to match as this. Before I -became in the least <i>au fait</i> at these small contrivances that save so -much, I had quite a regiment of ewerless basins and basinless ewers that -had accumulated because I found it impossible to get them matched, and -having them made was almost, nay quite, as costly as a new set. Of -course, these were gradually used up, and not very gradually either, -alas! by the servants; but they were ever so much too good for their -heedless clutches, and I should have been saved a great deal had I had -the sense to buy two sets alike, instead of exercising my taste by -seeing how many different ones I could possess myself of.</p> - -<p>Ware now is so extremely cheap that it is perhaps not of such vital -consequence as it used to be to do this; still, as I had the other day -to give 4<i>s.</i> for a jug to match a basin belonging to a set the whole of -which cost only 5<i>s.</i>, I think it is still worth mentioning, as it may -save Angelina something, and every shilling is often a consideration to -young beginners. The blue and white ware at about 5<i>s.</i> a set is good -enough for any room, but, of course, Maple’s white Beaufort ware is much -prettier; and Mortlock, of Oxford Street, has or had some artistic pale -blue, yellow, and red sets that would be lovely in a room that was -furnished entirely in one of these colours. The soap-dish &c. are -included in the cheap prices, but not a sponge dish. This should always -be bought. Not only does it save the sponge from becoming sticky and -unpleasant, but it saves the wall and floor from those detestable -continuous dribbles of water that are the outcome of a sponge-basket, -that may be all very well in theory, but is worse than useless in -practice. A sponge-dish has all proper drainage, and may be more -expensive at first, but, like a great many other expensive things, saves -the whole of its cost in the long run.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_127" id="page_127"></a>{127}</span></p> - -<p>The covers of the soap and toothbrush dishes should never be left on; -the soap lasts ever so much longer than when it is shut up, and, of -course, the veriest ignoramus knows the effect on one’s toothbrush if it -is kept covered over. I infinitely prefer to have a tall species of -spill-holder or a rack for tooth and nail brushes, as this allows them -to drain; and for servants’ bedrooms one can buy iron things at -6½<i>d.</i> to hold the soap and two toothbrushes as well. These are not -bad for schoolboys’ rooms, as they are not ugly, but are not suitable -for grown-up people’s rooms, who are supposed reasonably to take care of -their things; but with the Beaufort ware the ordinary dish for -toothbrushes is sent, and is therefore used, but without the cover.</p> - -<p>I always keep on my washing-stand one of Perry’s invaluable sixpenny -sticks of ink-eraser. I sometimes ink my fingers dreadfully, but nothing -is too bad for Perry, whose delightful stick comes into use, and cleans -away the stains directly. This, too, must not be put into confinement, -as it becomes soft and melts away rapidly if it is.</p> - -<p>For the tooth-water and glass, I most thoroughly recommend the charming -little sets we buy at Douglas’s glass-shop in Piccadilly. For 1<i>s.</i> -6<i>d.</i>, 2<i>s.</i>, and even less (I have bought a green set there for 9<i>d.</i>), -one buys the prettiest possible glass jugs and glasses, and they are -ever so much nicer than the old-fashioned glass water-bottles and -tumblers; they are charming to look at, and far more easily kept clean. -There are blue, red, green, and shades of opal; and the gas-globes -should match. The best gas-globes are the tinted green globes, pinched -in here and there in folds, which are 1<i>s.</i> 4½<i>d.</i> at Whiteley’s, and -3<i>s.</i> and 4<i>s.</i> at any other shop—why, I don’t know. The opal glasses -are prettier, but then they are dearer. A dozen towels should be allowed -to each washing-stand: four a week, or even three, are enough for most -people. One big Turkish towel is indispensable for the bath, and a clean -towel should be always on the second rail ready for the visitor, for -whom we have already provided the hairbrush.</p> - -<p>To every room should be apportioned a hot-water jug or can. There are -none so good as the charming brass cans at 7<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> The painted ones -soon become shabby, and always smell of paint directly the hot water is -put in; and not at all a bad plan is to have a brass label chained to -the handle of the can, with the room’s name on to which the can belongs. -Cheaper brass cans can be had, but they hold less water, and as they -have no cover the water very soon becomes cold. A larger oak-painted can -should be provided for the housemaid. This she should use for refilling -the ewers, and to bring larger quantities of water if a foot-bath is -required in one’s own room; but the foot-bath and also the slop-pails -should be all of white china, and intense cleanliness should be insisted -on, especially<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_128" id="page_128"></a>{128}</span> for the last-named articles, which never, even in the -smallest establishment, should be made of anything save earthenware. -These china ones cost 4<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i>, and have a basket-work handle and a -china cover. They should be scalded out every day with hot water and a -little chloride of lime, chloride of lime being kept in any separate -place, ready for use where there are any drains.</p> - -<p>Before passing to the dressing-room, which should open, if possible, out -of the bedroom, there are still one or two more trifles that can be -mentioned in connection with it, as on trifles after all depend a great -deal of our comfort, more especially in the upstairs department, and a -sleepless night might often be prevented were some of the commonest -precautions taken to insure rest.</p> - -<p>One thing no dweller in the ordinary suburban residence should be -without, and that is a wedge of wood attached to a brass chain to each -window, ready to wedge the window closely together should a storm -suddenly arise in the night. Who has not risen irate at the dismal -rattling, and crammed in anything—toothbrush, comb, or what -not—sacrificing often enough one or the other in one’s rage at not -being able in a moment to put a stop to this intolerable nuisance? Now a -wedge ready to hand, nailed to the window by its chain, so that it -cannot be lost or mislaid, obviates all this, and the window is secured -at once and rest is insured simply by a little precaution and -forethought. I believe that Whiteley keeps these wedges, but I used to -buy mine of a clergyman in Dorset, who made them beautifully, and sold -them in bunches in aid of the fund for restoring his church, and so -popular were they that he made quite a nice little sum by their sale; -but then Dorset is a very windy county, and I think the windows there -rattle more than anywhere else.</p> - -<p>Another thing should be secured, and that is a matchbox nailed to the -wall, close by the bed, and the servant should be strictly forbidden -ever to take the matches from one room to another; there should be a -match-box <i>nailed on</i> in each room and in the passages, and Angelina -should see herself that matches are never lacking there. I buy Bryant -and May’s boxes, but not their matches, as they are expensive, but I -always have tiny boxes of Swedish matches at 5<i>s.</i> the gross, a gross -lasting me considerably over a year; naturally I keep them locked in a -store cupboard, in a room where there is sufficient warmth to keep them -dry, and the maids have to ask me for them when they are required. When -I used Bryant and May’s matches and had them in as wanted from the -grocer, I never spent less than 6<i>d.</i> and sometimes 1<i>s.</i> a week upon -them, so I consider my present plan worth mentioning, for the save is -really great, and in these small items much can be economised, if only<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_129" id="page_129"></a>{129}</span> -one has a little knowledge and keeps one’s eyes open. But the matchboxes -and wedges must be nailed on, or else they will disappear in the same -extraordinary way pins and hair-pins always contrive to do. Then, in -bedrooms and sitting-rooms alike, I have the most delightful tiny brass -hooks on which I hang a hearth-brush, for I have an immense dislike to -an untidy and dirty hearth. As my old nurse used to say, ‘These sort of -things don’t eat anything,’ and a brush lasts five times as long if it -have not to migrate from one room to another, and can instead have its -own especial hook. You can buy ugly black hearth-brushes at 1<i>s.</i> 3<i>d.</i>, -but I always buy brass ones at 4<i>s.</i> 11½<i>d.</i> They last for years and -years, and then can have new bristles added at the cost of 1<i>s.</i>; they -look nice too, and are always to hand when wanted.</p> - -<p>One of the principal things to remember all through these household -arrangements surely is this: a place for everything, and everything in -its place; time, temper, wear and tear of nerves, and servants being -saved a thousand times over by this simple remedy. If the brush be in -its place there is no need for Angelina to ring up tired Mary Jane to -make a tidy hearth. The hot-water cans on their shelves in the -bath-room, or in the pantry if there be no bath-room, allow of Angelina -getting her own hot water if the maid be busy or out of the way, and so -on through all the details of domesticity, which will only dovetail in a -little house if this principle of tidiness and thought animates the -mistress. And here let me beg that Angelina will resist with her might -getting into the bad habit of putting her boots on and buttoning them on -her nice cretonne chair covers. I mean the habit of putting the foot up -on the chairs while she fastens the buttons. I once had a visitor -staying with me who cut out a whole set of chair cushions in the month -or six weeks she was with me; and I discovered she had brass tips to her -heels, and these had cut out tiny holes all over the cushions, spoiling -them utterly; all because she had acquired this very bad habit. If -Angelina cannot button her boots without this action, she should take -care never to put her heel on the chair; to keep to one for the process; -and, if possible, to put down something, if only a scrap of paper, under -the toe of the boot, which must soil the cushion, even if it do nothing -worse.</p> - -<p>I have in my time suffered so much from careless and inconsiderate -visitors that I cannot help giving these little hints on which any newly -married girl can act if she will. Example speaks louder than precept, -and if Angelina scouts such actions herself, she influences her -servants, and suggests to her visitors tidy habits, that may benefit her -later on, if not on the first visit. I shall never forget one dreadful -visitor I had—a visitor who was possessed of the damp, unpleasant hobby -of searching in<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_130" id="page_130"></a>{130}</span> ditches and hedge-bottoms for clammy and awful things -which she insisted on bringing home and investigating by the aid of a -microscope. I should not have minded this one bit, if she had done it in -a room we had, where the boys made messes, and that nothing could hurt; -but I had just had my spare room done up, and the effect was so terrible -I have never forgotten it to this day. It was such a pretty flowery -room, too, that it deserves a word of description. The effect was purple -and green, and the paper was guelder-roses and heliotrope—not at all a -bad mixture of colour, remember, and one that lights up well; the paint -was all the dull Japanese green varnished that is <i>not</i> arsenical; and -that is very artistic, and by great good luck I found a charming French -cretonne of the same style and almost the same pattern as the paper, and -this I used as dado fixed with a dull green rail of ‘scantling,’ and as -panels in the shutters and doors. I had a nice little brass bedstead, -with a gold and white embroidered Liberty quilt trimmed round with ball -fringe, and furniture, with gold, green, and blue and red tapestry -covers on toilet, chest of drawers, and a new pincushion box covered -with the same, and all trimmed with ball fringe. There was a nice new -box-ottoman for hats and bonnets, a most useful possession for any one, -especially if it be divided in two layers with a cheap tray, also -covered with cretonne, new matting, and nice Liberty rugs on the floor, -and several newly framed photographs on the walls; besides this there -was a pretty table covered with plush, for a writing-table, duly -furnished with blotter, inkstand, and wastepaper basket, &c.; a charming -basket-chair, and two other chairs in pretty cretonnes, and odds and -ends in the shape of ornaments. There were two gas brackets, so I did -not have any candles in the room. I never have if I can help it; the -servants are apt to light them and drop the grease about, so unless -specially desired I never put candles anywhere, and I am more than -thankful that in this case of which I am writing I did nothing of the -kind, for my excellent housemaid came to me one morning when my friend -was out ‘bog-trotting’—or whatever the word for the occupation is—and, -with a face of horror, begged me to come into the spare room before Mrs. -W. returned, as she really did not know how she was going to get it -straight again.</p> - -<p>Shall I ever forget my anguish! On the bed, on the top of the new quilt, -were spread specimens of all the nastinesses she had collected; on the -brass rail and hanging on the dado, on nails stuck in for the purpose, -and from most of the picture-nails, were mounted ghastlinesses on sheets -of paper that were drying in a fine breeze coming straight into the -room, laden with any amount of September damp and mist; the oil from the -microscope lamp was on every chair and every table, and a perfect -regiment of muddy boots and bedraggled skirts, cast about everywhere,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_131" id="page_131"></a>{131}</span> -spoke volumes of the extent of Mrs. W.’s wardrobe, and her ingenuity in -filling up every hole and corner of that new and once pretty room.</p> - -<p>And all this was caused just by a little lack of thought and care for -other people’s things, for, as I said before, we had, and generally -have, a large unfurnished room, sacred to boys, where she could have -done her worst and injured no one, for she might have nailed her nails -and hung up specimens to her heart’s content, and only pleased the -legitimate owners of that chamber. I also forgot to mention that on the -newly painted mantelpiece was a row of bottles full of dirty water, all -of which either leaked or else had been put down there, wet from the -ditches from which they had been filled, and to find room for them all -my ornaments had been dislodged and were missing. We found them -afterwards in bits, more or less, at the bottom of the ottoman, the top -of which was spoiled by being used as a ‘boot-rest’ for Mrs. W. when she -either wished to button or unbutton those articles of attire. When she -had left me I simply had to do that room at the cost of 5<i>l.</i> or 6<i>l.</i>, -which I did not want, naturally, to spend, but my friend has never been -to stay with me again, and she never will. I have told this long story, -which I did not mean to go in for when I began my chapter, to point out -to Angelina another caution. When ‘things’ are once nice and in order -they require incessant care, if Angelina has been carelessly brought up, -and if she has not acquired really nice habits; but if she avoids -messing and is duly careful, her possessions will last her years, and -give very little trouble. One more thing to remember is that, unless the -door be provided with a curtain suspended from one of Maple’s invaluable -7<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i> rods, nothing should induce Angelina to depend her dresses -from crooks fixed into the doors. It spoils them, as they are exposed -both to sun and dust, and the look of it is so unpleasantly suggestive -of Bluebeard’s wives that this is a habit that cannot, I think, be too -strongly condemned. Besides, I remember dresses being torn and spoiled -by being shut into doors and then taken down without seeing they are -shut in; which is an argument against hanging them there at all, even -covered with a curtain. Still, in a small house and with a large amount -of clothing, a door is sometimes very ‘handy’ as an overflow wardrobe, -and then a curtain arranged as suggested above is a <i>sine quâ non</i>.</p> - -<p>One need not go to very much expense about bedroom chairs. Old worn-out -drawing-room occasional chairs can be made beautiful for bedroom use by -painting them blue to match the suite with Aspinall’s -hedge-sparrow’s-egg blue enamel paint; particularly if one buys -cushions, which are sold, I believe, both at Maple’s and Whiteley’s very -cheaply, for about 1<i>s.</i> 2<i>d.</i> These should be re-covered with odds and -ends of Liberty’s Mysore cretonne; the yellow and white, blue and white, -and terra-cotta<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_132" id="page_132"></a>{132}</span> and white being all admirable—with the particular -shade of blue paint, I mean. The best bedroom chairs are these painted -chairs, or else the black-framed Beaconsfield chairs, rush-seated, and -also supplied with cushions in frilled cases, the cases being buttoned -on so as to be easily removed for the wash, and the cushions supplied -with tapes, so that they are fixed to the chairs, and neither move about -when one is sitting upon them nor drop on when least expected.</p> - -<p>There is no doubt that pictures should always be on a bedroom wall. -Pictures and picture-frames are so cheap nowadays that some can -generally be afforded even at first. Of course these gradually -accumulate, and in years to come the walla will doubtless be decorated -with photographs of the children at different stages; but Angelina’s -wedding photographs will be useful at first, and I cannot imagine a -nicer wedding present than some of the exquisite photographs from the -old masters that one buys ready framed at a shop close to Regent Circus, -the name of which I have forgotten, but which is between the Circus and -the meeting hall of the Salvation Army. These are not at all expensive; -for 10<i>s.</i> and 15<i>s.</i> each quite large and most beautiful photographs -can be obtained, and Angelina would have a vast amount of pleasure out -of 10<i>l.</i> spent judiciously on these lovely photographs for the -adornment of her house, especially of her bedroom. These make admirable -presents for young girls, who can none of them be taught too early to -take a great pride in their bedrooms, and to accumulate there their own -belongings in the way of pictures, books, and ornaments. I love to see a -girl ‘house-proud,’ as the Germans say; and my own house, when I married -first, was made habitable only because of the judicious manner in which -my dear mother had impressed on me to take care of, and pride in, the -many little sketches, engravings, and photographs I used to have given -me. We were exceptionally lucky in that way, as of course we had a great -many artistic friends; but still, all girls should remember they may -have houses of their own, and always must have one room of their own, -and should be taught to pride themselves on having pretty and artistic -chambers sacred to their own use.</p> - -<p>Naturally two sisters often have to occupy one room, but this need not -alter the idea, and I would rather a girl cared for her room, and -collected pictures, books, and china for that, than see her crave for -ornaments and jewellery, which can give but very little pleasure as -contrasted with pretty and delightfully artistic surroundings.</p> - -<p>Angelina’s task of making her bedroom pretty will be so much lightened -if she has begun collecting treasures as soon as she was promoted to a -room to herself, that I may, perhaps, be forgiven if I impress this fad -of mine on all my readers, young and old; for mothers of growing -daughters can perhaps benefit<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_133" id="page_133"></a>{133}</span> by an idea that may be useful to them, -and of which it is just possible they may not have thought themselves; -and I should let (as I do let) my daughter begin her collection as soon -as she is old enough to value having her very own things, even to the -sheets, pillow-cases, and towels, which she can embroider herself, and -to a small collection of silver and china and pictures, added to, on -birthdays and at Christmas, with an eye to a house of her own some day; -or even a couple of rooms, when she may end an honoured career of ‘old -maidism,’ made all the lighter and pleasanter by the store of pleasant -memories secured to her by her possessions, which thus serve a double -duty, and are both artistic and useful too.</p> - -<p>If Angelina cannot afford pictures in any way, she can, no doubt, afford -brackets. These are very cheap indeed in carved wood (which can be -painted to match the room), would hold a scrap of blue and white china, -and can be made even more decorative if surrounded by a ‘trophy’ or -artistic arrangement of the ever-useful Japanese fans, one of which -should be covered with silk and plush, and made into a bed-pocket for -handkerchief, watch, or keys, although I like my watch in evidence, as -then one sees exactly what time it is, and if it is the hour to rise, or -to put out the gas, if one indulges, as I do, in the fascinating but -wrong habit of reading in bed. I have a long bookcase in my room, as -shown in the drawing on page 72, and this is full of bound magazines to -fall back upon, should my own book be exhausted before I feel inclined -to go to sleep. Even if the windows are open the serge curtains should -be drawn, I think, unless one requires to get up very early, as I do not -believe the brain ever really rests if there be much light in the room. -That is another objection to blinds; they are never <i>dark enough</i>. The -serge curtains are cheaper, and keep out the strongest sunlight there -is.</p> - -<p>I do not think what are generically known as ‘short blinds’ ever look -nice in any bedroom. I can remember, however, when to have white -curtains there to match, or in some measure go with those in the rest of -the house, was considered the height of reckless extravagance, and a -sure index of the bad financial position of the person who was sinful -enough to indulge in them!</p> - -<p>Of course if we live with opposite neighbours’ eyes straight upon us we -must cover our windows, or run the risk of being seen at our toilet; but -even then we can curtain them by using the frequently advised double -fixed rods, either covering the lower sash entirely with a full fluted -blind of coloured Liberty muslin, or by draping the entire -window—always the prettiest way of setting to work—with frilled muslin -curtains meeting down the centre and almost covering the glass, at all -events covering it completely if it be necessary to do so (see<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_134" id="page_134"></a>{134}</span> page -60). And now opinion on this subject has changed so much, we can afford -to have our windows all look alike without exciting dismal prophecies -from people who really know nothing at all about us.</p> - -<p>Remember no house can possibly look pretty where white curtains are -conspicuous by their absence, any more than a girl can look pretty if -she has neither nice frilling or spotless collar and cuffs as a finish -to her costume. And by white curtains I mean muslin curtains of almost -any colour, with some white in them. Dark <i>thin</i> curtains are an -abomination, I think. I once lived opposite some dark green muslin ones -that made me always feel the owners were dirty people, although I knew -quite well they were not. Muslin and guipure curtains, nicely made and -fixed, are my pet curtains, and next to these come Liberty’s printed -muslins and cheap artistic muslins, though I have seen soft-hued silks -used to great advantage in town houses; but this is, I should think, far -too expensive for us, modest beginners as we are. White Madras muslin is -not economical, as it cannot be said to wash well. It shrinks, pulls -crooked, and generally loses all its colour in a most distressing manner -the first, and always the second, time it pays a visit to the laundress, -and if we cannot have guipure and muslin we must fall back on plain or -printed muslin only. Cretonne curtains for a bedroom must invariably be -lined if no blinds are used; and a very good thing to do in a very sunny -room is to put an inner lining of very dark green twill inside the -cretonne lining, so that it shall not show, thus insuring the darkness -that I consider so necessary in a sleeping-room, the brain, as I said -before, refusing absolutely to rest if much light comes across the eyes, -and this is why a bed should never face the window, as this insures -light of some sort falling on the face of the sleeper.</p> - -<p>To sum up briefly, one’s bedroom should be pretty, tasteful, and quiet, -and should be as much thought about and kept as carefully as the -grandest sitting-room we possess; and I may further mention, for those -who cannot purchase Aspinall’s enamel in hedge-sparrow’s-egg blue, that -a very decent substitute can be made from Prussian blue, middle -Brunswick green, white lead, oil, and varnish, and just a little black -paint or ochre to tone it all down. This must be mixed until the colour -is precisely that of a hedge-sparrow’s egg or very old turquoise, and is -very troublesome to get right; therefore the above receipt will only be -really of use to those of my colonial readers who may not be able to -obtain Mr. Aspinall’s invaluable enamels for home-decoration.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_135" id="page_135"></a>{135}</span></p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XII" id="CHAPTER_XII"></a>CHAPTER XII.<br /><br /> -<small>DRESSING-ROOM.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">There</span> is no doubt in my mind that the proper furniture for Edwin’s -dressing-room has not yet been evolved out of the inner consciousness of -some enterprising and clever designer of dressing-tables and wardrobes. -Of course there are plenty of so-called gentlemen’s wardrobes, but I -have never yet found one that was perfectly satisfactory, and if any one -knows of one I should be very glad to hear from that happy creature.</p> - -<p>I am quite sure gentlemen’s coats should never be suspended from hooks, -for if they are hung up there is always an unpleasant bulge in the -collar, and it is impossible to keep the wretched things in shape; -almost as impossible as it is to make a man look nice unless he has a -valet to look after his clothes, brush them, fold them, and, in fact, -turn him out respectably, with a neatly folded, clean umbrella and -decent hat—that is to say, the ordinary male, who has business -occupations, and gets up at the very last moment he can, to be able to -snatch his breakfast and then catch his train.</p> - -<p>I have, personally, no very expensive yearnings, but when I see one who -shall be nameless in a coat that looks as if it had voyaged up the -chimney and back, nether garments that, to put it mildly, have seen -better days, and a hat that would disgrace the Sunday get-up of his own -coachman, and hear that no one is to touch the venerable accumulation in -a wardrobe upstairs, I do long for a good, strong-minded man-servant -indoors who would see to his master’s clothes, and insist on their being -worn properly and treated decently.</p> - -<p>This sounds like straying from the subject, but it really is not, for -one unanswerable argument which puts a stop to a great deal of my -eloquence is, ‘If I had a decent place to keep my clothes in I should -always look respectable.’ Now, my readers shall give me their opinion as -to the decency, or otherwise, of the accommodation afforded to this -nameless individual.</p> - -<p>In the first place, there is a charming-looking wardrobe in ash. The top -is embellished by a ledge, on which artistic pottery is meant to stand, -but where at this present moment repose a microscope, a lamp, very grimy -and full of dreadful-looking oil that no one may touch, several dusty -piles of lectures and reports of divers societies, and on the plain -space below are at least five paper bandboxes, containing old and -dilapidated hats, all more or less suggestive of Noah’s ark and -scarecrows; yet one and all far too precious to give away, and which no -one dare touch, on pain of instant death.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_136" id="page_136"></a>{136}</span></p> - -<p>One half of this wardrobe is lined with striped calico, against the -dust, and is used for hanging up coats, dressing-gowns, &c., and where -there is quite a crowd of the most hideous old coats, all too precious -to part with—I can’t think why—and then on the other side there is a -deep space sacred to trousers, and three deep drawers besides, for -shirts and under-garments of all kinds. Now this is actually not -sufficient accommodation, and I have other drawers in the bedroom -itself, where stores of summer or winter raiment, as the case may be, -repose; and the dress things are also in yet another place; but I do -think it is rather a mistake to have so much space for spoiling coats by -hanging them up, and I am thinking of having shelves put in in that -division, and seeing if that will be any good at all, though, as it is -so much easier to hang up a coat than to fold it up, I much fear there -will be strenuous opposition to that plan—at least at the first.</p> - -<p>A wardrobe is a necessity in a dressing-room—unless one is lucky enough -to find a good deep cupboard there already—and they can be bought at -all prices. The one described above was about 10<i>l.</i>, and is certainly -very pretty, but I am sure it is nothing like as useful or as well -arranged as it ought to be, and I have one in the nursery, which is all -drawers and shelves, that cost 4<i>l.</i> 10<i>s.</i>, and is hideous, which I am -thinking of having painted turquoise blue, and adding brass handles and -substituting this for the ash one, which can go nicely into the spare -room, where it will no longer be desecrated with all sorts of débris -being placed where pretty china is meant to go. There is one piece of -furniture, invented by Mr. Watts, of Grafton Street, Tottenham Court -Road, W., which is, however, perfect for a dressing-room, and therefore -deserves more than a word of mention.</p> - -<p>It is a combination of dressing-table and washing-stand that is simply -invaluable. A long glass starts on the right-hand side from three -drawers, with a place for brushes and combs, while on the left is ample -space for washing, with a high tiled back, and a species of shelf to -hold bottles, glasses, &c. There is also a deep space under the marble -shelf on which the jug and basin stand, meant for boots, and covered in -with a cretonne curtain on a brass rod, and is altogether as charming, -artistic-looking, and useful a piece of furniture as any one would wish; -it costs 6<i>l.</i> 10<i>s.</i> in stained deal, is beautifully made, and would -not only be useful in a dressing-room, but in a young girl’s room or any -small place where there really is not sufficient accommodation for both -washing-stand and toilet-table. I have narrow tapestry mats trimmed with -ball fringe on the shelves, but I should not like to say how many have -been wanted there, for men never can remember that wet sponges should be -put in the sponge-dish and not on the new covers, or that brushes are -best in the drawers intended for them, and not for sundry<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_137" id="page_137"></a>{137}</span> bits and -scraps of paper, old soiled gloves, spoiled white ties, cartridges, -fly-books, bits of gut, string, ‘objects’ for microscopes, and other -nastinesses ‘too numerous to mention,’ as the auctioneers say when they -have come to the end of their descriptive resources.</p> - -<p>And, <i>apropos</i> of this, let me beg Angelina never to allow accumulations -in either small or big drawers if she can possibly help it; nothing -breeds moths or harbours dust like this, and I should advise her -occasionally to brave Edwin’s wrath, and turn out on her own account, if -he is obdurate, and will keep every scrap and shred of rubbish that has -ever come into his possession, because he cannot believe a time will not -come when the possession of a few inches of paper, string, or catgut -will be of paramount importance to him, and when a store of old clothes -will stand between him and utter and entire destitution of raiment.</p> - -<p>Now, without emulating a silly little friend of mine, who was only saved -by the difference of a pot of snowdrops from bartering her bridegroom’s -best coat for a supply of flowers, with one of those engaging gentlemen -who frequent the suburbs with a supply of blossoms, warranted to fade -and die utterly within the space of twenty-four hours, I would strongly -suggest a little dissimulation to Angelina, should Edwin prove the -orthodox hoarder of old clothes that it appears to me, from judicious -questioning, most men are.</p> - -<p>Angelina should make a point of remembering the date of Edwin’s coats, -and should mark them in an invisible place (on the lining of the inside -of the sleeve is the best) with the date of the purchase; and with this -triumphant proof of her accuracy should she face and utterly confound -Edwin when he meets her request for the coat to be given away, with the -remark, ‘<i>That</i> coat! What can you be thinking of? I only bought it a -month or two ago!’ He is often so flabbergasted at learning the treasure -is at least eighteen months old that he says no more, and allows -Angelina to bear it off to gladden the heart of some old pensioner, on -whose back it somehow looks so extremely well that Edwin cannot believe -Angelina was right in her dates, and at every opportunity points out its -excellent appearance on Jones or Styles as a proof of her reckless -extravagance.</p> - -<p>A little careful stealing from a husband who is an inveterate hoarder, -and will not even succumb to the uncontradictable date, can be practised -to advantage, and at the risk of exposing my own wickedness, and -believing that a male eye rarely, if ever, falls upon my words of -wisdom, I may tell Angelina in the very strictest confidence how I have -sometimes been driven to circumvent the nameless one spoken of before.</p> - -<p>I have watched the gradual overflow of the wardrobe—ay, even on to the -floor and the three chairs, and, biding my time,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_138" id="page_138"></a>{138}</span> have neatly arranged -the drawers, being quite sure I shall be asked immediately what I have -done with all the precious things, missed the moment the dressing-room -is entered. I disclose them arranged elsewhere, and after a week or two, -when the gardener and the coachman’s children have been scanned -surreptitiously but eagerly to see if I have already given these -valuable relics away, they become forgotten, or are only asked after -occasionally; then, as time goes on, they are quite forgotten, and if -asked for after three months cannot be found, as they are already doing -duty elsewhere, under new and altered circumstances. Old boots it is -almost impossible to get rid of without a positive battle, though how a -man’s happiness or welfare depends on knowing he has fourteen pairs of -dreadful old boots under the kitchen dresser, to say nothing of as many -more concealed in his own room and his dressing-room, is really more -than I can understand, and must be one of those problems of life we are -compelled to take as such, and leave for time to solve, if it possibly -can.</p> - -<p>I do not think it is of the very smallest use to give Edwin anything -pretty of his ‘very own,’ as the children say, in his dressing-room. It -is always a narrow, circumscribed spot, and brackets are apt to be -knocked askew and their contents smashed, picture-glasses also coming in -for similar hard treatment, while extra shelves for books are soon -overloaded, and come rattling down in the dead of night, taking at least -ten years off one’s life with the awful fright received.</p> - -<p>Therefore, if Edwin have a really nice wardrobe, a chair, and a -dressing-table and washing-stand combined, as described previously, it -is really all he wants, unless, of course, the room be a good size, when -the walls can be decorated at will. Equally, of course, the wall-paper -and the dado should match the bedroom, and here more than anywhere else -should be the substantial dado of either cretonne or matting, as here -the walls get mysterious knocks and indentations even more than they do -in the passages and bedrooms.</p> - -<p>If the bath has to be taken in the dressing-room—and sometimes even now -old houses have not bath-rooms—the bath should stand on a large square -of oilcloth, covered by a ‘bath blanket.’ This should be taken up and -dried, and the oilcloth wiped carefully, as soon as the bath is emptied, -or both will soon rot and be spoiled.</p> - -<p>Very nice ‘bath blankets’ are made by taking the old-gold and dark brown -blankets one buys of Mansergh and Sons, Lancaster, from 3<i>s.</i> to 11<i>s.</i> -6<i>d.</i> a pair, according to size, though those at 7<i>s.</i> a pair are the -best size. A piece should be cut from one end to make the blanket -square; and one of Francis’s conventional designs should be ironed off -in each corner, which is then worked over in either outline or a thick -‘rope’ or<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_139" id="page_139"></a>{139}</span> twisted chain-stitch, in double crewels, in about two or -three colours. For instance, old gold looks well with the work in two -shades of brown crewels, with a dash of dull blue; the brown blankets -with golden crewels with, perhaps, a dash of red. But as it is rather -difficult to get the design clearly on the rough, fuzzy blanket, an -easier style is in cross-stitch. The canvas must be very coarse, and -tacked to the blanket. An edging, as well as corners, looks nice, and -the canvas threads must be pulled out afterwards. I think a big -cross-stitch, monogram, or cypher looks nice. The edges of the blanket -can be either button-holed over or hemmed with a line of cross-stitch -defining the hem. These blankets are a great ornament to a bath or -dressing-room, and are invaluable in any room where the bath must be -taken in the room itself.</p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XIII" id="CHAPTER_XIII"></a>CHAPTER XIII.<br /><br /> -<small>SPARE ROOMS.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">I think</span> it is a most excellent plan to have the bedrooms on one floor of -a house furnished as much as possible alike; that is to say, if economy -be an object, and also if, as in several houses I know, the rooms open -out either on a square landing or into a corridor that leads past them -all.</p> - -<p>Of course, the papers need not be alike, neither need they all have -cretonne dados; but the paint should harmonise, and so should the -wall-coverings, while the curtains and carpets should be identically the -same; as if one have to move, or the cretonnes shrink in the wash, and -the carpets become worn in patches, one thing can be made to supplement -the other, and so a large outlay to replace old things—always the most -worrying kind of outlay, I think—is avoided.</p> - -<p>I have been constantly much entertained at seeing the shifts people have -been put to to prevent things wearing out, but perhaps quite the most -hideous thing seen in this way was a succession of extra bits of carpet -edged all round with woolly black fringe to simulate mats, which were -arranged on every spot on the carpet where especial wear could be -expected, and these monstrosities were carefully put by each side of the -bed, and in front of the looking-glass, washing-stand, and fireplace, -with an especial tiny dab by the door. The consequence was that, when -one was dressed for dinner in a long garment, all these mats were neatly -rolled up in different corners of the room, and not only looked hideous, -but were positively useless.</p> - -<p>Now I see no use in preparing these species of save-alls in a<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_140" id="page_140"></a>{140}</span> room that -is not always in use. If a thing be worn, then cover it; but I can’t -bear anything to be covered over to be saved. Better let all fade -decently together, and do your patching out of a second carpet or a -second material that has already done duty in another room. It is -useless, I think, to cover handsome things; much better rub down the -gorgeousness and subdue the splendour altogether, for nothing looks -worse or, in my eyes, more atrociously vulgar than a room utterly unlike -one’s usual chamber, grandly prepared for the reception of ‘company.’ -Once one’s acquaintances and friends are given satin chairs to sit on, -instead of the usual cretonne, they become bores to me at least, and, -unless they can be satisfied to see me as I always am, I would rather -they stayed away. There is always a stiffness and uncomfortableness in -any gathering to entertain which we have felt it necessary to uncover -our chairs.</p> - -<p>In the same way let us in our upper chambers wear our things out -equally. Splashers have become almost unknown since the invention of the -high tiled-backed washing-stands, and so in another way mats have ceased -to exist because bath-rooms are now almost universal possessions, and as -most people—I will not say all—know how to behave themselves in one’s -house, there is no need even to put down the conventional square by the -washing-stand that really was necessary when a washing-stand was one’s -only chance of properly performing one’s ablutions.</p> - -<p>Now most people have bath-rooms; but, if they have not, the bath can be -prepared in the same way in the bedroom as described in our last chapter -for the dressing-room.</p> - -<p>I think every one who possibly can should possess something in the shape -of a spare room, although, as I remarked in one of my former chapters, I -have suffered so much from my visitors that I approach the subject -feeling as if I at least could not have very much sympathy with it. And -in no case will I advise any one to set apart for the use of the -occasional visitor one of the best rooms in the house, as is far too -often the case in those houses where the spare room should be either the -nursery itself or a room for some of the children of the house! I have -once or twice been literally so horrified at finding the room I should -have at once given for the children set apart for visitors as a matter -of course, and quite without a second thought, that I am compelled to -speak rather more emphatically, perhaps, on this subject than I -otherwise should do; but, after all, the house is the children’s home, -and for their sake I must beg attention from those who, as a matter of -course, take the best rooms themselves, the second and third best for -visitors, and then any rooms that may be over for the little ones, -keeping the worst of all for ‘the boys,’ as if boys were raging beasts, -to be put out of sight and hearing as far as ever the limits of the -house would<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_141" id="page_141"></a>{141}</span> allow. Whilst recognising that a spare room is a necessary -and pleasant thing, at once, so as to disarm criticism, I must ask my -kind, good readers to ponder for a moment on what putting aside the very -best room for one’s friends means in an ordinary building where there -are at the most three or four rooms on the floor above the ‘reception’ -rooms, to use a house-agent’s term, which said term means a great deal -more than perhaps meets the eye at first.</p> - -<p>It means keeping empty, perhaps, three parts of the year the brightest -and most cheerful apartments, and it means relegating the children to -inferior rooms, which, with a little taste and common-sense, can be made -pretty, comfortable, and charming for your friends, who come presumably -to see you, and not to spend the best part of their time in their -bedrooms, for if they do they may just as well have stopped at home.</p> - -<p>Now there is a great deal, to my mind, that can be written about the -ethics of visiting that insensibly calls for attention, when we ponder -over that problem of a spare room, and that may perhaps not be out of -place, so I dwell for a few moments upon them before going into the -decorative details of this particular chamber. One of the latest fads of -social life is to do away with introductions at parties, and another is -to ask people to stay with us, and, from the moment they enter our doors -to the moment they leave them, to go on with our own occupations and -engagements, exactly as if we had no friends staying with us; or rather -as if we kept an hotel, and the comings in and goings out of our guests -had no more to do with us than have those of the people staying in an -inn to the people who keep it.</p> - -<p>Perhaps the position and the luxurious comfort of the chamber prepared -for their reception—half sitting-room, half bedroom as it is—suggests -to the guest more than it is meant to do, and therefore should be -altered before hospitality has ceased from the face of the earth and -become a mere empty mockery.</p> - -<p>I have often enough seen all sorts and descriptions of ideas for writing -tables and other conveniences in a spare room, but of this I will have -none; if I ask people to come and see me I want them to be with me, and -not in their own rooms half the time; and letters can surely be written -either in my company, or in the dining-room, should I be occupied in my -own sanctum: while work of all sorts can be brought down after -breakfast, when the members of the male sex have gone off to business, -and there need be no reason for secluding oneself in one’s bedroom to do -one’s mending.</p> - -<p>I maintain that guests staying in one’s house should be treated to what -servants call company manners, and that we<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_142" id="page_142"></a>{142}</span> should make a difference for -them, and try and make their visits pleasant to them, considering that -they have come to us for a holiday; that leaving them to themselves, and -going our own way while they go theirs, is distinctly averse to all the -laws of old-fashioned and true hospitality; and that by making the spare -room into a species of boudoir we appear to hint to them that we do not -want them with us, except after dinner or for the afternoon drive, or -really on any occasion when we can possibly do without them.</p> - -<p>I should take as nice a room as I could for my guests after my -children’s convenience has been thought of—I like mine as near me as -possible, and if possible on the same floor, with a schoolroom upstairs, -a most invaluable possession in childish ailments, when change of room -is wanted without any risks of draughts run by going downstairs—and -though, of course, our proverbial bride and bridegroom will not have to -think of all this for some years to come, I find I have had so many -readers beside the bride for whom I meant to write this book that I -cannot help being a little discursive for their sakes, the while I beg -Angelina not to take the best room in the house for her guests, because -she will hesitate so very much more, if she does, over dismantling the -pretty room when the ‘king comes’ to his kingdom, and Miss or Master -Baby arrives to rule the household with an iron rod.</p> - -<p>Some of the charming painted suites of furniture are as nice as anything -for the spare room, and take a great deal of raiment, and I strongly -advise Angelina always to ask her guests if the boxes may be removed -from the room. As soon as they are unpacked they can be put in the -box-room until required, even if the visit is only for a few days, for a -dirty travelling trunk can do a great deal of mischief, and, if put -against the wall, has often enough ruined the paper, and dug holes in -the plaster by being continually opened and shut as things were taken in -and out. The paper and paint of the spare room should be a matter for -great and careful consideration, too, and here I very strongly advise a -dado of some kind or other. I always advise a dado in a bedroom of -cretonne or matting, however the bed is placed, as nothing saves the -walls so long from the tender mercies of the housemaid, and so keeps the -room looking nice.</p> - -<p>I heard of a bedroom in the country the other day that seemed to me the -very ideal bedroom for a guest. The paint was white, and the paper was -the very faintest possible shade of eau-de-Nil. There was a dado of -eau-de-Nil and white chintz, with, I believe, a pattern of -lilies-of-the-valley on, and the curtains were of the same. The bed had -an eider-down quilt in green silk—rather extravagant this—and the -furniture was all in white wood, with green and white mats &c. about. -The effect in summer was simply perfect. I am, however, afraid in -winter<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_143" id="page_143"></a>{143}</span> the effect would be too cold; but to be equally pleasant then, -however, the cold effect could be obviated by putting pink cretonne -curtains instead of the green chintz, and putting pink mats and a pink -cover to the eider-down; but the pink must be very carefully chosen, and -be either very faint or else almost terra-cotta, or it would look -tawdry, I am sure.</p> - -<p>The eider-down should always have a cover made of cretonne, like that -used for the curtains, or else of a contrasting hue. The usual cover for -an eider-down in turkey red would spoil any room, and as a motive of -economy, if not of beauty, an extra cover is a very good thing; it makes -the eider-down wear twice as long, and is able to be washed, a great -advantage to anything that has to do with a bed.</p> - -<p>There should always be four pillows and four or five good blankets to -the spare-room bed, three pairs of sheets, the top one edged with Cash’s -patent frilling two inches wide, and a large red monogram on the centre -of the top sheet, and at least twelve pillow-cases, with four extra ones -frilled, and with monograms in the centre, which should be removed at -bedtime and folded up. The counterpane should be a honeycomb one, with a -deep fringe all round, and these are the only counterpanes that should -be bought for real use. They always look very much better than any -others, and look as well after they are washed as they do before. A -Madras muslin quilt thrown over the bed in summer looks very nice; in -winter the eider-down is all that is required, though I dare say I shall -shock my readers by telling them that I never put away my eider-downs -anywhere through the house in summer. I rarely find it warm enough at -night, sleeping as I do with my windows open, to do without them.</p> - -<p>If we can only afford one spare room, that room should have a double bed -in, as often married folk would like to come to us for a night or two, -and I have found it very awkward myself, never being able to take in any -one, save a girl or a young man, because I personally have in my present -house no such accommodation, and a small room does not matter for one -night, if the bed be comfortable and large enough.</p> - -<p>Maple’s brass or black and brass bedsteads and ‘Excelsior’ mattresses -are the most inexpensive bedsteads I know; a brass one should be chosen -if one can afford this possibly, but a very nice black and brass one can -be bought for 2<i>l.</i> 5<i>s.</i>; mattress (‘Excelsior’) at 2<i>l.</i> 9<i>s.</i>; hair -mattress at 3<i>l.</i> 10<i>s.</i>; bolster at 17<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, and good pillows at -5<i>s.</i> each. A room can be nicely and entirely furnished for 34<i>l.</i> 9<i>s.</i> -8<i>d.</i> in good furniture that will wear, though, of course, cheaper and -less reliable furniture may be purchased. I actually hear that at -Cardiff excellent suites of furniture in walnut can be bought for -12<i>l.</i>, but I must believe these are simply veneered, and will fall to -pieces at the least move or the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_144" id="page_144"></a>{144}</span> smallest amount possible of wear and -tear. There is no doubt that a great deal of thought has to be expended -on a spare room, but there is not the smallest doubt that it ought to -look as nice without (please forgive me for being insistent on this) -suggesting a sitting-room, that our guests should feel at home in it at -once. A flowery paper, like the old-fashioned chintzes, is bright and -pleasant, but must not be too scrawly, or it will not be nice should -sickness overtake our guest; but it should be lively and charming, and -suggestive of pleasant thoughts, and then I am sure we shall be repaid -by hearing our friends exclaim, ‘Oh, what a sweet room! Why, I feel -rested already.’</p> - -<p>And now let me whisper one or two little sentences in Angelina’s ear, -suggested by what I have let slip above about possible sickness -overtaking a guest, for very few people ever contemplate this side of -the guest-chamber question.</p> - -<p>It may be terribly bad for such a thing to happen in our new sweet room, -but, however horrid it is for us, let us all recollect it is just one -thousand times worse for the unfortunate ‘sick and ill,’ as the children -say; for, in addition to his or her own pain and sufferings, he has the -mental agony of knowing he has committed the one unpardonable sin, and -that he has dared to fall sick in some one else’s house, that he is some -miles from his own doctor (and who believes, I should like to know, in -any one’s doctor except one’s very own?), and that servants, hostess, -and host are all vowing vengeance on him for his untoward behaviour.</p> - -<p>But it is on such occasions as this that the hostess rises to the -occasion, shows her real self, and demonstrates the true lengths to -which a hospitable soul will go. She laughs his apologies to scorn, -declares she loves nursing, and so manages that the convalescent blesses -the hour when he fell ill under such tender handling, and in consequence -improves twice as soon as he otherwise would have done, had he fretted -and worried over the bother he was giving, and had he been shown plainly -he was as great a nuisance as he undoubtedly is.</p> - -<p>I am not writing on this subject ‘without book,’ as the saying is. -Naturally we should all exclaim indignantly, We should all do our very -best for any one who falls ill under our care; and you, most of you, -smile at me, doubtless, for daring to insinuate you would not; but I -know cases where, especially to relatives, the hostess’s conduct was so -chillingly all it ought to be, so freezingly polite, so intent on -perpetually telling the unfortunate he was no trouble at all, in a -martyr’s voice, that disclosed all her words sought to conceal, that I -must be forgiven if I say it needs real Christian charity, and the heart -and temper of a saint, to show real hospitality when sickness happens; -and it will not do any harm for any of us to contemplate circumstances -in which we may all of us some day be placed.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_145" id="page_145"></a>{145}</span></p> - -<p>One other special thing to remember as regards the spare room is that it -must always be in such order that, if necessary, it can be ready for -occupation in half an hour. I knew a most excellent housekeeper who, -scarcely before the last box of her friend had been carried downstairs, -had put her room into ‘curl-papers’ as it were, carefully banishing -everything from the light of day until such times as it was necessary to -prepare the chamber once more, with much ceremony, for a new-comer.</p> - -<p>Now I much object to this sort of thing. When I have brought a pleasant -visit to an end in a friend’s house, it gives me a positive pang to see -the pillows bereft of their cases and the bed of its sheets, and all -covered over with a species of holland pinafore. I hate to see the -toilet-covers taken off and folded up; and though this may be done when -I am not there to see, it gives me such an unpleasant feeling that I -never have the courage to put my spare room to bed; a room shrouded, -gloomy, and unoccupied in a house always seeming to me like the -unpleasant corpse of bygone pleasure, and as such to be strenuously -avoided.</p> - -<p>Then another reason, besides the mere sentimental one of disliking to -see that one’s visit is really over and done with, is that such a -dismantling of the room often puts it out of one’s power to entertain a -sudden or unexpected guest, who comes down perhaps to dinner, and would -be glad to spend the night, that may have turned out wet or cold, or -that pleasantest of all pleasant visits, the Saturday to Monday sojourn, -becomes impossible too, for it is not worth while to get the room ready -for such a short time, when so much of Saturday would be taken up in -airing the beds, and unpinning and putting up curtains, and shaking out -toilet-covers, &c.</p> - -<p>Now if the room be always straight, and requires nothing but the sheets -on the bed, there is no trouble in the matter, and we are neither -flurried ourselves nor allow our guests to be uncomfortably conscious -that their arrival has made any difference to our domestic arrangements -at all. I am quite sure, too, that it is a most excellent thing for most -people to have some one staying in the house with them occasionally; -much, secretly, as I dislike it myself, excusing myself to myself for my -boorishness by saying my work prevents me being really able to entertain -my visitors, still I never part with a guest without quite as secretly -acknowledging that it has done us all an immense amount of good to be -shaken out of our grooves—ay, even if our own special chair has been -taken, and the newspapers read and the magazines cut before I have -looked at them, another fad of mine, for, <i>entre nous</i>, nothing tries my -otherwise angelic temper more than for some one to read out choice bits -of news before I have seen them myself, or to read all the magazines -before I have carefully gone over them, peeping at the pictures, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_146" id="page_146"></a>{146}</span> -reading here and there a scrap, before settling down to them regularly -one after the other.</p> - -<p>One cannot help recognising these evil habits even in one’s own self, -and knowing that nothing makes a person more selfish, and therefore more -unendurable, than to have no one to interfere with one’s puerile little -fancies and equally puerile little rules and regulations! In a small -household rules and regulations that touch the servants, of course, must -be simply ‘Median and Persian,’ or the house would never get along at -all; but it puts no one out except ourselves, should we have to take the -left side of the fireplace instead of the right, and it does us more -good than I can say to have to control our small irritations at having -our routine of life broken into, and to be shown that the world will not -stop if we do go out in the morning instead of the afternoon, and that -nothing appalling will happen should we be obliged to talk at breakfast, -instead of, as usual, burying ourselves in our letters and our papers -generally.</p> - -<p>A constant supply of guests for the night, or on the Saturday-to-Monday -principle, insures a constant change in our ideas and thoughts, and does -away with that ‘Englishman’s house is his castle’ notion that is so very -pernicious, and that puts a stop to so much inexpensive and common-sense -hospitality; while a new, cheerful face at the dinner-table relieves the -strain of domesticity between husband and wife, and often insures a game -of chess, or music, instead of the books and silence which would -otherwise, perhaps, have been the order of the day.</p> - -<p>Another thing also to recollect about the spare room, too, is, not to -get into the habit of using the shelves and drawers in the wardrobe as a -species of store-place. I know nothing more enraging than to be shown -into a charming-looking room, with a beautiful great cupboard, and a -gallant chest of drawers, that seem to promise us ample breathing-room -for one’s things, and to discover half the space we were so very -gleefully looking forward to appropriating is already taken up by all -sorts and conditions of household plenishing, or of last year’s -garments, or even the garments of the year before. I remember quite well -once having such a receptacle turned out for me; and I saw carried away, -the hostess’s wedding dress and veil of some ten years back, all the -long clothes and short clothes of the babies, small and great, several -venerable opera-cloaks and fans, and, finally, a store of old linen put -by against emergencies. You can all of you imagine what I endured. Not -that I should have asked for this to be done, by the way, but the maid -came in to take my boxes, and I was obliged to say I could not part with -them, because if I did I should have nowhere to put my belongings. Of -course this insured the shelves being cleared, with<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_147" id="page_147"></a>{147}</span> the uncomfortable -result to me described above. I never dared ask what had become of all I -had turned out, but I cut my visit short and went on somewhere else, I -felt so unhappy at thinking of all the unfortunate garments bereft of -their usual resting-place.</p> - -<p>The spare room should be a cheerful, flowery-looking room, as, indeed, -should all bedrooms if possible, and, if a sofa cannot be squeezed in, -one of Maple’s charming sofa-ottomans should be put there, and also an -arm-chair and small table for books &c., for one’s guests sometimes have -headaches, and, especially if we live in town and have up our country -cousins, require occasionally half an hour’s rest after a long day’s -sight-seeing; or after the drive in the sleepy country air, if the cases -are reversed, and we, in our turn, are country cousins entertaining our -London friends with our own special sights and sounds.</p> - -<p>No matter where the house is situated, every bedroom window should open -at the top. This in London obviates a great many blacks flying in, as -they do when the sash is thrown wide open at the bottom; an inch at the -top seems to do more good than a yard anywhere else, and in the country -prevents the deluges and spoiled paint and carpets caused by a sudden -storm in the night, or, indeed, in the daytime, when the open window -allows the tempest to enter bodily, as it were—unrecognised in the -night, of course, unless one is awakened by any specially violent gust; -and unseen by the housemaid in the day, who, whoever she may be, never -seems to remember that such weather means that the windows should be -immediately closed.</p> - -<p>Every single thing belonging to the spare room should be religiously -kept for its own use: the brass can for hot water, the palm-leaf -soiled-linen basket, the little black cupboard for boots, which also -serves as a table, the pin-trays, and the pincushion—all should never -be allowed to stray away, and matches in a box nailed to the wall should -also never be forgotten any more than the candles in their fixed stands, -and the various little ornaments upon the mantelpiece, which should -include a very regularly wound and most trustworthy clock.</p> - -<p>If possible, I should have some pretty framed photographs on the wall, -and, above all, a small bookcase, with a cupboard below for medicine and -toilet bottles. I cannot bear the look of bottles standing about, and, -besides that, medicine bottles are apt to be put down after the medicine -is poured out, and sundry drops run down, and a sticky ring is left on -the new toilet-cover as a reminder of one’s guest, which is not as nice -as one could wish. The medicine cupboard conveys a hint the most obtuse -must take, and, as they only cost about 6<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i>, are within the -reach of almost every one. A few judiciously chosen amusing novels and -good poetry can well be spared for the spare room,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_148" id="page_148"></a>{148}</span> and often are of -considerable service to guests who may not go about provided with their -own literature. Reading often will lure back sleep, or pass away an hour -profitably; and should we breakfast later or go to bed earlier than our -guest is accustomed to at home, he takes a book and forgets he is -waiting, and blesses instead of ‘cusses’ the difference in our household -routine.</p> - -<p>It seems to me even now that I have not said half as much on the mere -relation of guest to host and hostess as I could have done, though I -have hardly yet mentioned the word ‘furniture,’ so a few more hints may -be dropped here. Never should any one be allowed to come to stay without -the hostess herself seeing that a new nice square of soap is in the -newly-washed soap-dish; that the towels are folded right, the water -fresh and pure in the ewer, and also in the artistic jug, bought, if she -be wise, at Douglas’s, in Piccadilly, in tints to match the ewer; and -making sure all is perfectly clean and in order. A small glass of -flowers should stand on the toilet-table as a special greeting to one’s -friend, and all should suggest that personal thought and care has been -given to the special shrine set apart for his or her reception.</p> - -<p>I wonder who ever forgets their first visit from home, or who can cease -to remember the sense of importance given to us, who once were brides, -when our first guest arrived to stay with us, and inspect our new home, -which we were then perfectly convinced was far prettier, neater, -brighter, and more redolent of love and perfection than any place had -ever been before, or could possibly be in the future. Ah! thank Heaven -for memory! <i>Tout lasse, tout passe, tout casse</i>, but memory never dies; -and if we in our first start in life have charming surroundings and -pleasant homes, even if they only are of the simplest nature, as long as -we live they are ours, and none can ever take them away from us.</p> - -<p>Then another thing in the spare room to be particularly looked to is the -arrangement for lighting it. Here gas is a <i>sine quâ non</i>. Candles are -most dangerous; a careless guest drops the grease about, or maids cannot -resist taking them about too, and more harm is done by candles in a -house than almost anything else. At the same time, if gas be not laid on -anywhere, the useful brass fixed brackets for candles are necessary; but -they should be fixed one or two above the looking-glass, one above the -bed, and one above the washing-stand, all the candles guarded by glass -shields, and none loose, able to be carried about in a careless or -heedless way. If there be no gas, a nightlight should always be -provided, with a bracket for its reception, for there are some people -who cannot sleep without a light, and nothing is so disagreeable as to -have to ask for these little things, and to find that by making such a -request we have<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_149" id="page_149"></a>{149}</span> upset the whole house; though, if a guest be -thoughtful, and has these little fads, she should take nightlights &c. -about with her. A quite model guest of mine the other day arrived with -her own hot-water bottle. Could thoughtfulness go further than this?</p> - -<p>If gas be in the house, there should always be a bracket as near the bed -as possible. It cannot hurt any one to read in bed if there be no danger -of setting the house on fire; and I am so fond of this pernicious habit, -and feel so unhappy myself if I cannot indulge in it, that I always, if -possible, make provision for my guests to read too, if they are ‘so -minded,’ as the people in Dorsetshire always say.</p> - -<p>So, before I describe one or two other arrangements of colours that -might be tried in the spare room, I may mention two things that should -never be lacking there. One is a clock; the other a list of the hours of -the household and the postal arrangements—two things that will go some -way to insure punctuality.</p> - -<p>I could at once sit down and write a chapter all to itself on the -inestimable blessings of punctuality, and the extreme rudeness of being -unpunctual in the house of a friend.</p> - -<p>In a small, or indeed in any ordinary, house, unpunctuality means -disorder and waste of time, and, in consequence, of money. It means loss -of temper both for mistress and servants, and it means throwing out all -the little rules and routine on which so much depends. If a clock be -provided in the spare room the two pet excuses, ‘Oh! I forgot to wind my -watch,’ or ‘My watch lost an hour in the night,’ are done away with; -while the hours of breakfast &c. contain a hint that cannot well be lost -on the most obtuse person possible.</p> - -<p>What does being late for breakfast mean? Let all lie-a-beds think over -that problem, and if they cannot solve it for themselves, if they apply -to me I will do so for them.</p> - -<p>After all is said and done, I think blue and some shades of green (not -arsenical shades—pray remember that) are the most restful colours for -bedrooms, though terra-cotta can be used to great advantage in rooms -where there is not much sun, and, while I like ivory paint if -judiciously used with a brilliant paper, I cannot imagine anything more -wretched than the little white bedroom old-time heroines used to rush up -to, and cast themselves down in, when their lovers proved faithless and -they wished to be alone. Nothing is colder-looking and more <i>un</i>restful -than white, and I do not like for a bedroom these white-enamelled suites -of furniture that one can buy. I much prefer them enamelled turquoise -blue. Nothing is so pretty as this for a spare room, or the room set -apart for the daughter of the house, except, of course, good ash -furniture with brass fittings. This I should always have, were I able to -afford it, in all my<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_150" id="page_150"></a>{150}</span> rooms, for I do not, and never shall, like dark -woods or dark furniture in a bedroom, or indeed, as far as that goes, in -any room, but a really good light wood is always pleasant to look at, -and in consequence is to be preferred to enamelled furniture, which -shines terribly somehow, and rather annoys me on the whole. I am now -speaking about bedroom furniture not about drawing-room furniture, where -the enamelled chairs and cabinets look charming and are all that they -ought to be, but simply of the bedroom furniture I would have if one -could afford it; but if one cannot afford really beautiful wood, I then -much prefer to paint the things a charming colour, than to see common -wood or the grained and stained horrors one used to be obliged to put up -with, before Aspinall’s came to our aid and suggested blue or white, -instead of the yellow streaks that were our portion in those unhappy -days.</p> - -<p>Now here is, I consider, one of the prettiest rooms I have yet succeeded -in doing. It has Maple’s floral paper, a design that is just as pretty -as ever it can be; the paint is all cream-coloured and ‘flatted,’ so -that it washes just as a boarded floor does; there is a red and white -matting dado, a dado rail painted cream-colour, and the cretonne, also -Maple’s, at 1<i>s.</i> 4½<i>d.</i> a yard, almost matches the paper, and looks -really charming. The floral paper has a sort of flowery scroll all over -it, and at first I was rather afraid it would turn out to be fidgety. I -feared the flowers would run after each other over the walls, and refuse -to be peaceable and quiet, but they are just what they ought to be, and -never seem to move at all, while the cheerful effect of the blues, reds, -and creams, that appear to make up the design without interfering with -each other in the least, is really wonderful. I have had the ceiling -papered with a very pretty blue and white paper, and on the walls I have -a great many pictures, and have surrounded the dark over-mantel with -Japanese fans and brackets, while the stove and mantelpiece came from -Mr. Shuffery, and are, in consequence, all that they ought to be.</p> - -<p>I have matting and rugs about the floor, and have light ash furniture, -which I think looks better in a bedroom than anything else, and is to be -preferred to all enamelled or painted suites, on which I fall back as a -<i>pis aller</i>, when I cannot afford really good light wood, as I remarked -before.</p> - -<p>This would make a charming room for the best spare room, particularly if -quilt and toilet-cover and pincushion box were covered with Russian -embroideries in red and blue; in this case, the towels and sheets and -pillow-cases should be worked with red and blue monograms too; in all -cases should the towels be worked to match the pillow-cases. This does -not take long, and at once gives an air of culture that nothing else -does.</p> - -<p>Perhaps a few words on the subject of a spare room set apart<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_151" id="page_151"></a>{151}</span> for -bachelors would not be out of place; for young men, as a rule, are so -careless that they require special legislating for. A quite charming and -very cheap room can be made by using a delightful little blue and white -paper sold by Messrs. Chappell and Payne, 11 Queen Street, Cheapside, at -10½<i>d.</i> a piece—it is 1,044; with this a dado of the willow-pattern -cretonne could be used, and the paint could be all cream, or the -grey-blue of the paper; the ceiling should be terra-cotta, and the floor -should be stained, and some dhurries put about; the curtains could be -dhurries too, or else terra-cotta ‘Queen Anne’ cretonne, sold by -Burnett, and the furniture simply enamelled grey or terra-cotta. The -hours of the household should be prominently displayed over the -mantelpiece, while the gas should be placed near the bed to allow of -reading, and no candles allowed, else may we run the risk of being -burned in our beds; one of Drew’s handy little 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> lamps with -shades being quite enough light should anything be forgotten downstairs, -and it should be thought necessary to keep a light in a room, that we -can carry about. Candles do an immense amount of damage, and are very -costly: two excellent reasons why we should impress upon ourselves and -our readers never to use them unless we cannot positively avoid doing -so.</p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XIV" id="CHAPTER_XIV"></a>CHAPTER XIV.<br /><br /> -<small>THE SERVANTS’ ROOMS.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">Before</span> I proceed to touch on the most important question of all, that of -the nurseries, I will say a few words on the subject of the servants’ -bedrooms, for these are far too seldom seen by the mistress, who ought -to have a regular time for visiting them, and for seeing that all the -bedding and furniture generally is in a proper hygienic condition; for, -notwithstanding the School Board and the amount of education given -nowadays to the poorer classes, I am continually astonished at the -careless disregard of the simplest rules of health and cleanliness shown -by girls who ought to know a great deal better, and who will keep their -kitchens &c. beautifully, yet will heedlessly allow their bedrooms to -remain in a state that <i>ought</i> to disgrace a resident, nowadays, in -Seven Dials.</p> - -<p>In the first place, the ceilings of all servants’ rooms should be -whitewashed once a year, and the walls colour-washed, unless these are -papered with the washable sanitary wall-papers that are really hygienic, -and which would look well, and are rather nicer than the colour-wash, -which is apt to come off on one’s clothes;<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_152" id="page_152"></a>{152}</span> and the floor should be bare -of all covering, and should simply have dhurries laid down by each bed, -and by the washing-stands &c. Those wash splendidly, and always keep -clean and nice, while the curtains at the window should be some cheap -cretonne that would wash nicely, and draw and undraw easily, or else -they will soon be rendered too shabby for use.</p> - -<p>Each servant should have a separate bed, if possible, and that bed -should be as comfortable as can be, without being unduly luxurious. The -perfection of a bed for a servant, as for any one else, is the chain or -wooden-lath mattress arrangement, with a good mattress on it, a pillow -or two, and a bolster. No valances or curtains of any kind should be -allowed, neither should their own boxes be kept in their rooms. One can -give them locks and keys to their chests of drawers and wardrobes; but -if their boxes are retained in the room, they cannot refrain somehow -from hoarding all sorts of rubbish in them.</p> - -<p>I should like myself to give each maid a really pretty room, but at -present they are a little hopeless on this subject—as witness the -smashed china and battered furniture that greets our alarmed sight at -the inspection that should take place at least twice a year—but, alas! -it is impossible. No sooner is the room put nice than something happens -to destroy its beauty; and I really believe servants only feel happy if -their rooms are allowed in some measure to resemble the homes of their -youth, and to be merely places where they lie down to sleep as heavily -as they can.</p> - -<p>The simpler, therefore, a servant’s room is furnished the better, and, -if possible, a cupboard of some kind should be provided for them where -they can hang up their dresses; this will enable them to keep them nice -longer than they otherwise would were chairs or a hook on the door the -only resting-place provided for the gowns. But, if this be impossible, a -few hooks must supplement the chest of drawers, washing-stand, bedchair, -and toilet-table with glass, which is all that is required in the room -of a maid-servant, whose sheets, pillows, blankets, and other ‘portable -property’ should all be marked with her name, and should be in her -individual care as long as she is in your service—that is to say, that -the property should be marked ‘Cook,’ ‘Housemaid,’ ‘Parlourmaid,’ &c.; -this individualises each single thing, and makes the temporary owner -responsible for it, and her alone. The sheets should be changed once in -three weeks, also the pillow-cases, while three towels to each maid a -week are none too much to allow them to use, do we desire them to be -clean. If two or more servants share one room, the washstands and chests -of drawers must be as many in number as the inmates of the room; this -will save endless discussions and disagreeables, for after all maids are -but mortal, and squabbles will arise out of small matters like these, -which, ridiculous as they sound, are<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_153" id="page_153"></a>{153}</span> very often at the bottom of the -troubles of those who are constantly changing their servants.</p> - -<p>And, while we are on the subject of servants’ rooms, I will just make a -few remarks on this most intricate subject of domestic management, and -will whisper what I really think is at the bottom of a good many of the -troubles anent servants that undoubtedly exist. In the first place, -mistresses are all too often like the parents of grown-up sons and -daughters, who cannot remember that the curled and frilled darlings of -the nurseries have become young men and women, and are exchanging the -control of the schoolroom for the kindly advice that should never be out -of place between parent and children, who, grow as tall as they will, -can <i>never</i> be as old as those to whom they owe their existence. And -inasmuch as parents all too often exercise this control when advice -would be so much more in place, so do mistresses control and fret the -maids, who would not fret at all were the silk chain, ‘Don’t you think?’ -used instead of the arbitrary command, ‘I insist on the work being done -as I order it.’ Then, too, we are all apt to forget how dull the -ordinary routine of a servant’s life is. True, she has the joy of her -morning gossip with the tradesman, and her few hours on Sunday; but that -is not much for a young healthy girl, who appreciates pleasure as well -as do our tennis-playing, ball-going daughters, and it is much better to -try and give her some amusement oneself, instead of winking at the -‘evenings out’ and furtively stolen absences which most mistresses -allow, because, otherwise, their maids would not stay. This can easily -be done in these days by any one who lives in or near town; while even -in the country there are always excursions to be made, or the county -town to be visited, even if there are no picture-galleries or -exhibitions as there are in London.</p> - -<p>Besides which, servants like to know what is going on, even if they -cannot go to things themselves. They fully appreciate being told of what -one has seen oneself, and a cheerful account of a visit to London or to -the theatre, &c., is as much appreciated by a maid as by the friends we -regale with our experiences, who no doubt do not care for the account at -all, and only wonder at our foolishness in wasting our time and money.</p> - -<p>We have to face a great fact, also: in olden days our mothers as well as -their maids were content with very much less than we are. They may have -been, and no doubt were, much happier, but that is beside the question, -more especially as we cannot return to the ‘good old days’ even if we -would; but the fact remains the same. We have advanced, so have our -servants; and when they can beat us at sums and geography, stand too -much on our level to be thought of merely as the servants, who are to be -content with anything we may choose to give them,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_154" id="page_154"></a>{154}</span> and therefore must be -treated in an entirely different manner to the old style.</p> - -<p>Realise this, and domestic management is much simplified, because if we -treat our maids just as we treat ourselves we shall find our trouble -almost disappear. I invariably leave my maids a good deal to themselves -about their work; and once they know what has to be done, I find it <i>is</i> -done without my constantly being after them to see whether they have -finished what I have told them to do or not; and it is well also to -carefully consider what one’s housekeeping bills ought to be once and -for all, and if the books are less than that, praise the cook; if more, -<i>at once</i> and firmly demonstrate that this is not right; but be prepared -with your facts, and let her see that you really do understand your -business, which is to carefully administer your income, and to see that -no waste is allowed. It is impossible for one person to tell another -what sum she ought to spend per week on her household, as one can only -make a guess; individual tastes must be consulted, and people do not eat -alike—for example, two or three people in my household never touch -butter, one or two never use sugar or tea, and therefore what does for -us does not do for the world at large; but for a household of ten -persons, including washing, and allowing for a constant flow of -visitors, the bills should never exceed 6<i>l.</i>, and can very often be -very much less. It is not well to ‘allowance’ servants, it is not a nice -way of managing, and is no real save; honest servants do not require -allowancing, and dishonest ones will not refrain from taking your -property because they are only supposed to use just so much, on -themselves.</p> - -<p>To insure good servants, it is imperative that we should make real -friends of those who live under our roof. We may be deceived once now -and then; we may even be tricked and cheated, and be tempted to say in -our haste that ‘the poor in a loomp is bad’; but we must take courage -and go on again, being quite sure that sooner or later we shall be -rewarded by the love and care of one, if not more, of those who, while -dwelling in our midst, too often are quite strangers to us, and are no -more to us than the chairs on which we sit, and the tables at which we -write.</p> - -<p>How often, for example, do we understand the feelings with which a -servant enters a new place? Do we recollect that she comes a stranger to -strangers; that we have no idea of the hopes and fears, the thoughts and -dreads, with which she enters our portals; that she is wondering whether -we shall be distrustful or unkind or fairly sympathetic; and that she -may spend her first night in tears by the side of a girl who was a -complete stranger to her a few hours before, but with whom she will be -obliged to spend most of her days and nights, whether she be nice or -nasty, clean or the reverse?<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_155" id="page_155"></a>{155}</span></p> - -<p>We may not be able to save our new maid from this, but we can help her -over a very ‘tight place’ if, when she arrives, we are at home to -welcome her, to point out her place in the domestic routine, and to give -her a few hints about those with whom she will have to live for the -future.</p> - -<p>If we had a guest coming among us on equal terms, free of all our -pleasures and amusements, would not this be done? Much more, then, -should we hold out a welcoming hand to those on whom so very much of our -pleasure and comfort depend.</p> - -<p>To know how much this is, we must, once now and then, be left without -one of our staff—which is, of course, not a very extensive one, or -those remarks would not apply. In an extensive staff the relations -between mistress and maid are only represented by a housekeeper, who has -all on her shoulders, and who must replace the missing maid in the -household or do the necessary work herself.</p> - -<p>Let, for example, our housemaid be laid aside by illness, or go home for -one of her well-earned holidays, and straightway we are miserable. A -thousand and one small omissions show us how much she remembered for us. -And as we gaze at our dusty writing-table, our chair put in exactly the -angle that most offends our eye, our breakfast-table laid in an -unaccustomed manner, our letters put just where they never are in -ordinary, we feel inclined to count the days that stretch unendingly, it -seems to us, between now and her return to work, and we wonder what is -before us when that ‘young man’ claims his bride, who, we are certain, -cannot be half as much wanted by him as by us.</p> - -<p>Or our cook may suddenly fall out of the ranks, and we get in temporary -help. Oh dear! chaos then has most certainly come again. Butter flees, -and is conspicuous for its vanishing powers; things have to be told in -detail, and we have not succeeded in getting the ‘help’ into our ways -before our own domestic comes back, to show us on what trifles depends -the easy-going roll of the chariot wheels of life, that never seem to go -so easily as after the jar occasioned by a temporary change of -charioteer.</p> - -<p>Looking back over a long stretch of life covered by many years of -domestic duties, and calmly and dispassionately thinking over the -mistakes—how many!—and the successes that have characterised it, I -freely confess that when I have failed with our servants (and thankful -am I to chronicle only two failures and one of these has since been -redeemed by an early marriage), it has been entirely my own fault. A -keener insight into character than I possess would have prevented our -engaging a girl spoiled for us by a too careless mistress and a wicked<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_156" id="page_156"></a>{156}</span> -master; and more judicious watchfulness would have saved a false step -that, as it happened, was discovered in time, but not before the -consequences were too apparent to be passed over, and which said false -step was entirely due to the evil influence of a fellow-servant, from -which we of course should have shielded her. We may accept it as an -axiom that we cannot have nice, good servants unless we take the trouble -of either training them ourselves, or get them from a mistress who has -had an eye over the well-being of her maidens. It is impossible to -obtain nice service from those who have never been taught how to serve, -who come to us from careless or bad mistresses, and of whom we know no -more than they do of us, and our likes and dislikes. If we, when -requiring a servant, take the first, or even the second, that applies to -us, not heeding where she was born, what her parents are, and knowing -still less of her disposition, how can we expect success? We may be -lucky enough to hit upon a good servant like this, but we very much -doubt that it is likely we should. If mistresses have a large -acquaintance it is possible to have a continual supply of good servants -without applying to the registry offices; but they themselves must have -as good a character as the required domestic, or else they will not be -easily suited.</p> - -<p>‘As good a character, indeed! What is the world coming to?’ says one -indignant reader.</p> - -<p>It is coming, we reply, to a better state of things—ay, even returning -to the time when servants were of the household, and in consequence -remained years in one place, when nowadays as many months are irksome to -them.</p> - -<p>Why? Because they like change. And so do we. Do we not go about from -place to place, entertaining and being entertained, when the presence of -a friend in the kitchen results in a reprimand and a pointing out of -some duty, neglected, say we, that the friend may be entertained?</p> - -<p>Are we never dull—we who have our music and our books? And are they -never to be dull, whose work is always going on, and who have no -relaxation unless we provide it for them?</p> - -<p>We are no advocates for spoiling servants, any more than we should be -for spoiling children, yet we are anxious that they should be happy; and -that they may be happy it is necessary that we have a set of rules that -must be kept, and that they should gradually learn that we wish to stand -in the same relation to them, while they are in our house, as their -parents would were they still in their care.</p> - -<p>Rule the first is, that no young servant should be out alone after dark, -giving reasons for this rule that are easily understood. Rule the -second, that no one comes to the back door after a certain hour, because -their friends are quite welcome to come to<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_157" id="page_157"></a>{157}</span> the front door, and once it -is dark bad characters are about, and young girls are easily frightened; -and rule the third, in which all the rest are comprehended, is that they -must learn that we are always ready to hear all their hopes and fears, -to help them choose their hats and dresses, to assist them in every way -they wish, and to give them sympathy and kindness, which we will take -from them in our turn should we be ill or in trouble.</p> - -<p>How much more cheerfully will the cook help you to retrench if, instead -of scolding about the waste, you ask her to help you to save what would -otherwise be given or thrown away. And much more pleasantly will your -housemaids help you when ‘company comes,’ if you tell them to look out -for this or that celebrity, to listen if Miss Smith sings or if Mr. -Brown plays; and how much they will do should you leave one or two of -the pleasanter parts of preparing in their hands, preferring rather an -ill-arranged flower vase than the idea that all the rough and none of -the smooth falls to their share of the work. It will not hurt us to do a -little dusting for once, or even to wash the china, and indeed it will -do us good, for it will teach us how monotonous and wearisome is the -work by which our ‘maidens,’ the dear old Dorset expression for our -servants, earn their daily bread, but that ceases to have half its -monotony and irksomeness should we help occasionally, when work is -pressing, and there is more than usual to do. To have good and loving -servants, then, it is necessary to have them tolerably young, to be -firm, kind, and, above all, sympathetic, to know as much about their -home life as is possible; and without telling them much, yet, when it is -advisable, to take them into our confidence, secure in our turn of -receiving sympathy, which is always precious, no matter from whom it is -received.</p> - -<p>Of course, this is not such an amusing life as the one lived by a -mistress who is always enjoying herself, and thinking of little save her -own garments, and the arrangement of the <i>menu</i> and that of the -dinner-table, but it is a far more satisfactory one. We all have duties; -it rests with ourselves whether or not we shall neglect them or do them. -Still, if they are not done, if our servants turn out ‘thieves, liars, -and wretches,’ as they were characterised by one female writer the other -day, it were well to pause, and ask who should be blamed for such a -dreadful state of things. Surely not those who come to us for training -and care, but rather those who do nothing to earn the right to live, and -who, taking but a low view of life, look upon it as a playground instead -of regarding it as a field for work—a place where we can do as much -good as in us lies.</p> - -<p>Sympathy is the bond that binds men together—sympathy is the bond that -should unite mistress and maid; on the lowest ground it is politic, on -the highest it is ordained in a code of life<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_158" id="page_158"></a>{158}</span> given to all; and we shall -none of us regret treating our servants well, for, speaking from -experience, I can boldly state that, in trouble, sickness, and sorrow, -one can rely implicitly for help on the maids whom we have trained -ourselves, and whom we have treated exactly as we should wish them to -treat us, and that I have found in a time when Fortune appeared to have -turned her back on us, owing to matters on which we need not touch, that -the servants stuck manfully to the ship, and did their best to help us -weather a storm that, though sharp, was short, yet that might have -stranded us hopelessly on a lee shore.</p> - -<p>The only fault I cannot overcome at present is this bedroom question, -and the breaking of the china &c. provided for their use, hence my -advice about the simple furniture given to them; but I find daily -improvement here, and I hope that the next generation will be able to -give their servants pretty rooms as safely as they can at present give -them healthy ones.</p> - -<p>There is just one other point to touch upon, that of the meals of the -kitchen. It is quite enough to allow an ordinary middle-class household -good bread and butter, oatmeal porridge, and tea, coffee, or cocoa for -breakfast; the kitchen dinner should be the same as the dining-room -luncheon; tea might be supplemented by jam or an occasional home-made -cake; and supper should be presumably bread and cheese, but any soup -made from the receipts in the chapter on ‘entertaining,’ or odds and -ends left at the late dinner, can be consumed if you can trust your -cook; if you cannot, you must lay down a hard-and-fast rule of bread and -cheese, and insist on its being kept, otherwise you will find yourselves -in the case of a friend of mine, who went into her larder after an -enormous dinner-party, expecting to find herself free from the necessity -of ordering more food for at least a week, and discovered it empty, -swept, and garnished, because, the cook informed her, they always had -for their suppers any little thing ‘as was’ left over.</p> - -<p>Never be afraid to praise your servants, as one lady is I know of, for -fear they may think she cannot do without them: we <i>can’t</i> do without -them—why should we pretend we can? They are far more likely to remain -where they are appreciated and cared for than where they know they are -only looked upon as so much necessary furniture; and do not be afraid to -blame them, emulating another friend of mine, who saw her servant -reading her letters at her desk, and stepped out of the room unobserved -because she shrank from the disagreeable but emphatically necessary task -of telling the maid of her odious and dishonourable fault; but say -straight out to the delinquent servant herself what you have in your -mind against her, never sending the message by another servant, nor -nagging, but remarking firmly what you have to say yourself in such a -way<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_159" id="page_159"></a>{159}</span> that she cannot avoid perceiving you mean emphatically what you -say.</p> - -<p>Let your maids have good books to read, and let them see newspapers, but -do not keep a kitchen bookshelf. This they distrust at once, and look -out for their own literature, which is generally pernicious; but if you -yourself have read a good story, recommend it to them, and talk to them -about it. You can always get a servant to read proper books by taking -care to read them yourself, and by letting them see you are sharing your -literature with them; even if they spoil or soil the book, books are -cheap, and they had better do this than soil their minds by the rubbish -they might buy, revolting naturally against ‘Lizzy, or a Parlourmaid’s -Duties, described in a story,’ or ‘Grace, or How to Clean Silver,’ or -the similar charming works which one generally finds in the houses of -those who keep ‘kitchen bookshelves,’ regardless of the fact that Ouida -and other exquisite feminine novelists are the favourite food of the -drawing-room, and that they could not read one page of the ‘books’ -themselves provided for the maid’s entertainment.</p> - -<p>If you have a garden, encourage the servants to walk and sit and work in -it; and, above all, take interest in their clothes, lend them patterns, -and, in fact, do all in your power to raise them to your station. The -lower classes, thanks to education, are rapidly climbing; they will rise -whether we like it or not, and we had better, on the lowest grounds, -assist them to share the place they will take and push us from, should -they find we are antagonistic and jealous instead of helpful and -sympathising.</p> - -<p>I have had twenty years’ experience of household management. I have had -three cooks in the time, and have never had a maid give me ‘warning’; -and though, no doubt, some day I shall find servants a ‘bother,’ because -they will get married, and I cannot expect to keep mine all their lives, -I think my twenty years of success entitle me to lay down the law on the -subject of the management of one’s maids just a little. But, lest my -readers should tire of the subject, I will pass on to the nurseries, -which, after all, are much more interesting to the young housekeeper.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_160" id="page_160"></a>{160}</span></p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XV" id="CHAPTER_XV"></a>CHAPTER XV.<br /><br /> -<small>THE NURSERIES.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">There</span> are several things of course to be considered in the first choice -of a nursery, and, unfortunately, in far too many cases economy has to -be considered even before what is really and actually good for a child’s -health. ‘Economy: how I dislike that word!’ remarked a plaintive friend, -actually of the sterner sex, and how I agree with him only my own soul -knows; but economy is a stern, a hard fact, and above all has it to be -considered when expenses begin to advance by ‘leaps and bounds,’ and -Edwin regards the future, across the berceaunette, most dolefully; and -thinking over school bills and doctors’ bills, much in the distance yet, -but steadily advancing towards him, begins to wonder how two hands are -to do it all, and whether he had not better at once look up all the -papers he can possess himself of that relate to State emigration. It is -hard for me to keep the ‘juste milieu,’ for I am really possessed by the -idea of good nurseries; and when I recollect how much money is wasted on -keeping up appearances, and also in retaining that ‘spare room,’ I -almost feel inclined to throw prudence to the winds, and declare that -two good nurseries are as imperative for one child as I believe in my -heart they are. And, really, even in the orthodox suburban villa, with -its four or five bedrooms, this accommodation can be found, if only -Angelina uses her senses, and really desires to do her best for her -little ones. But this is not always the case, I am sorry to say, and -there is no doubt that in most houses the position of the nurseries is a -subject of very small interest. So long as it is tolerably out of the -way, and, in fact, ‘far from humanity’s reach,’ most parents are quite -satisfied, and ask little else than that their ears may not be assaulted -by cries, and their china shaken to its very foundations by little feet -rushing and jumping overhead in a way that is undoubtedly trying to the -nerves, but is very delightful to those who see in such noises ample -evidence of the health and good spirits of the small folk who are making -them.</p> - -<p>Perhaps, however, the ‘demon builder,’ the cause of so very many of our -domestic woes and worries, is as much to blame as the people who take -the houses he runs up for us. Still, demand creates supply, and I cannot -help thinking that, if the British matron insisted on nurseries as well -as the regulation ‘three reception-rooms’ of the house-agents’ lists, in -time we should be provided with large airy chambers, as much a matter of -course as the bath-room of recent years, that, once conspicuous by its<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_161" id="page_161"></a>{161}</span> -absence, in now a <i>sine quâ non</i> in even tiny houses built for clerks, -and rented at about 30<i>l.</i> a year.</p> - -<p>I am very much divided in in my mind as to the manner in which to write -this chapter, as I cannot determine whether to describe an ideal -nursery—the nursery in which we were all brought up—or the orthodox -nursery, made out of the worst bedroom in the house, the one farthest -away from the sitting-rooms, and where nothing is considered save how to -prevent any visitors’ ears being assailed with shouts, and their nerves -tried by sudden bangs immediately overhead. I am not in the least -exaggerating when I say that, especially in London, the very top rooms -in a tall house are those set aside for the little ones, Pass along any -of our most fashionable squares and thoroughfares, and look up at the -windows. Where are the necessary bars placed that denote the nurseries? -Why, at the highest windows of all. My readers can notice this for -themselves, and can say whether I am right or wrong. And how often do we -not find an excellent spare room in a house where two, or perhaps even -more, children are stuffed into one room that is day and night nursery -combined, while half the year the best chamber is kept empty, sacred to -an occasional guest, whose presence should never be courted at all in a -house not large enough to allow of there being two nurseries for the -children’s own use. I am the very last person in the world to make -children into miniature tyrants; I do not allow mine to engross the -conversation or to be in evidence at all hours of the day. They do not -behave as if they were grown up at an early age, neither do they go out -to luncheon or tea perpetually, thus becoming <i>blasé</i> before their time. -They are frankly children, and are treated as such, and I feel it rather -necessary to say this at the outset, for fear my readers may feel -constrained to write and tell me (after what I have said above) I have -fallen into the prevailing error of the day, and make my children a -nuisance to themselves and every one else by spoiling them; for, despite -the usual position of the nursery, there is no doubt that children will -soon cease to exist at all, and will become grown-up men and women -before they have changed their teeth.</p> - -<p>Despite the position of the nurseries, did I say? Nay, surely rather -should I write because of the position of the nurseries, which are so -far off that the mother scarcely ever climbs up to them, and in -consequence has her children downstairs with her in and out of season, -until they gradually absorb the grown-up atmosphere and become little -prigs who care nothing for a romp, and object to going into the country -for the summer because the country is so very dull, and have their own -opinions, pretty freely expressed too, about their clothes and the -cooking at their own or their friends’ houses.</p> - -<p>I feel I may perhaps be accused of being hard on the child<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_162" id="page_162"></a>{162}</span> of the -period, but I confess openly the child of the period is my pet -detestation—poor little soul!—not because of its personality as a -child, but because it is such a painful subject for contemplation. I -cannot bear to see poor innocent babies dressed out to imitate old -pictures, with long skirts sweeping the ground, because they are -picturesque, with bare arms and wide lace collars, and manners to match; -who go out perpetually to luncheon and tea-parties, and who, do they -happen to be passably good-looking, are worshipped by a crowd of foolish -women until the conversation is engrossed by the child, who very soon -becomes an intolerable nuisance; who cannot play because of its absurd -skirt, and will grow up the useless, affected, selfish, ball-loving girl -that is the terror of every mother who recognises that life has duties -as well as pleasures, and hopes that her daughters will do some good -work in a world where the harvest is indeed plenteous and the labourers -few.</p> - -<p>To have good and healthy children it is positively necessary to have -good and healthy nurseries, and as soon as Angelina becomes the proud -possessor of her first baby she should seriously and soberly consider -the great nursery question. Of course she will have thought of it before -the tyrant arrives, but so much depends on different small things that -she will not seriously and definitely determine what to do until she -sees what her nurse is like, and whether she is to have the baby at -night or to hand it over to somebody else.</p> - -<p>I could write pages about people’s first babies, poor little things! -What experiments are tried on them in the way of hygienic and stupid -clothes, the patent foods, the ghastly tins of milk, and the fearful -medicines! I do not believe one young mother exists who has not her own -special theories about babies, and who does not scorn proudly the -experience so freely offered her by her mother, who has brought up a -family, and may therefore be supposed to know something of children, or -by her numerous friends who have all made a more or less successful -effort in the same direction. And, between ourselves, I have often -wondered how any first child ever grows up, so wonderful are the trials -it goes through, so marvellous are the plans tried, to insure that -perfection that each Angelina in turn thinks lies latent in the small -red squalling person that makes such a remarkable change in all the -household arrangements all at once.</p> - -<p>The first danger that assails Angelina when baby arrives is that Edwin’s -life shall be made a burden to him because all his little comforts are -forgotten, the hours of meals altered, and Angelina herself is off -upstairs every two minutes, because the dear infant is howling, or -because she fancies he is howling. Even so, the nurse should be capable -of quelling the rage, unassisted by her mistress, or she is not worth -her wages, and had better go.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_163" id="page_163"></a>{163}</span></p> - -<p>I hope I shall not be considered hard-hearted if I tell Angelina quite -in confidence, that, if she can depend upon her cow, baby becomes a -pleasure instead of a nuisance, if he or she and the cow are introduced -at a very early stage of his or her career. In these days of ours few -women are strong enough or have sufficient leisure to give themselves up -entirely to the infant’s convenience; and I maintain that a woman has as -much right to consider herself and her health, and her duties to her -husband, society at large, and her own house, as to give herself up body -and soul to a baby, who thrives as well on the bottle, if properly -looked after, as on anything else.</p> - -<p>I know quite well that by saying this I may lay myself open to all sorts -of medical opinions, and I am sure to be told I am disgracing my sex. -But, as I have done all through my book, I am speaking from experience, -and only on subjects of which I have personal knowledge.</p> - -<p>For had I not beautiful theories too when my eldest daughter arrived on -the scene? We were living in one of the dullest, stupidest, nastiest -little country towns in the world in those days, and there were few -claims of society on me then. I had no particular occupations, and I was -going to devote my energies to that poor child. I did. She howled -remorselessly morning, noon, and night. The doctor, my dear old doctor, -old-fashioned, too, in his notions, said my ways were correct, and he -could not make out her shrieks at all. I confess I have struggled with -her until I have wept with exhaustion, and at last a blessing in the -shape of a good nurse arrived, and solved the mystery. The unfortunate -infant was starved, and her shrieks were shrieks of hunger. She was -introduced to a particularly nice Alderney cow; and from that day to -this her cries ceased, and she has grown and thrived, and become an -almost grown-up member of society, and a decidedly healthy one.</p> - -<p>Despite my experience with Muriel, I honestly attempted to ‘do my duty’ -with the two next; there were no shrieks this time, but there were all -sorts of other things, and the cow had soon to be called into -requisition; and my two youngest children, who are stronger and far less -liable to small ailments and colds than the other three, never had -anything else, and were as good and prosperous a pair of babies and -children as one may wish to see, for after No. 3 had proved to me my -theories were very beautiful as theories, but rather unworkable in -practice, I gave them up, trusted a great deal to my good nurse, and -clung to the cow. Naturally, Londoners are at the mercy of their -milkman, but the Alderney Dairy, for example, possesses a conscience and -good milk; and no one will ever convince me that milk out of tins can -ever come up to the fresh, nice, clean milk given by a properly managed -and constituted cow; and, of course, in the country one has one’s own -cows and sees exactly<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_164" id="page_164"></a>{164}</span> what is going on, and knows one has the same -milk, until the child is old enough to bear the change.</p> - -<p>The great things for young children are quiet and regularity, and these -are insured by having good nurseries and a good nurse. The nurse chosen -for a first baby should never be less than twenty-five. Your young -nurses are the most fearful mistakes for young mothers; they do not -understand handling or dressing a baby, and they send off for the doctor -at every moment, when an older woman would have the sense to know what -to do, thus spending on the physician what would have paid good wages -over and over again. They think of nothing save their own pleasure and -amusement, and have no real love either for the child, who wearies them, -or for the mistress, who, tired of their incapacity, is continually -scolding without making any real change in the conduct, that is bad -because the girl lacks what can only be given her by age, and a much -longer experience than she can ever possibly possess. A perfect nurse is -often obtained from a friend’s nursery where she has lived for some time -as second nurse in a good establishment. She should have some four or -five years’ character, and when found should be clung to, until -Angelina’s nursery is transformed into the ‘girls’’ sitting-room, when -nurse has often become so precious she stays on and on until transferred -to the nursery of the first girl who is married and requires her help. -What a comfort such a woman is to all in the house no one save the happy -mistress can ever know! She is delightful in sickness and trouble, ‘her’ -children are her first thought, their trials and joys are hers, and she -helps, as only a good nurse can, the overworked mother should any -special trials come, that are made bearable only because some one else -shares them too.</p> - -<p>But the perfect nurse presupposes the perfect nursery, and, as all young -mothers should strive for the first at all events, so I do not see why I -should not take it for granted that the baby is considered more than an -occasional visitor, and describe at once how a nursery ought to be -furnished and decorated, because I do not believe any child ought to be -in the room in the day in which he <i>and his nurse</i> have slept all night; -nor that a child should sleep all night in a room where his nurse has -had her meals all day, and where he has been most of the twelve waking -hours; any more than I consider a child’s day nursery should be his -mother’s sitting-room, where visitors come, and all sorts of -irregularities are practised in the way of draughts, heat, light, &c., -that should never be allowed.</p> - -<p>The day nursery should be as roomy a room as can be had, and the window -should be able to be opened top and bottom; no blinds should be allowed, -but the nice muslin and serge, or rather cretonne, curtains should be -arranged here as elsewhere, to temper the light and make the room look -cheerful and pretty.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_165" id="page_165"></a>{165}</span></p> - -<p>Cheerfulness and prettiness should be the twin guardian angels of -Angelina’s nurseries; a bright paper of either a faint pink or blue -should be on the walls with a scarcely perceptible pattern; there should -be a cretonne dado with a painted rail; and all the paint should be -varnished to allow of its being frequently washed. That the cretonne -dado cannot be washed does not matter one bit; it can be brushed -frequently, and it always looks tidy, and defies the kickings of little -feet and the pickings of small fingers, that so soon make chaos in the -very smart rooms, unless particular care is taken that the children -shall respect these rooms in a way they can easily be taught to do with -very little trouble. I most successfully cured a young person of five, -whose depredations were something awful, by making him pay up all his -available cash towards a new paper. I never had to complain again, for -he seemed to realise very quickly that if mischief cost money it was not -worth the candle, and had better be given up.</p> - -<p>But with a cretonne dado half the temptation to tear tempting morsels -off corners is done away with, and the rail keeps off chairs from the -paper, and gives a reason for the short-frilled curtains, that are in no -one’s way and are never trailing on the ground, a trap for the unwary -and a regular home for dust. The ceiling should be whitewashed, and -should be done at least once every two years (it should really be done -every spring); and if a little blue is put into the wash one gets a hint -of colour, and does away with the utter ugliness and glare of the -orthodox ceiling, which is always trying, and, in my eyes, spoils any -house.</p> - -<p>The floor should be stained two feet from the wall, wiped every day with -a damp cloth to take up all the dust and fluff, and polished every -Saturday regularly with beeswax and turpentine, the clean smell of which -is always so nice and wholesome, I think, and makes a house pleasant at -once; but before the staining is done great care should be taken, to see -that the boards are planed, and that no splinters are in evidence, and -that any gaps that there may be are properly stopped to keep out the -draughts, then the staining may safely be done. A nice square of -Kidderminster can then be chosen, and put down over the warm carpet -felt, without which a thin carpet does not do for a nursery, because of -itself it is not warm enough.</p> - -<p>The walls and paint being of a pink, like the pink, say, of the inside -of a rose, or of the lighter shade of coral, with no distinct and -distracting pattern on the wall, a pretty flowery cretonne could be -chosen for the dado and window curtains. I have seen one in a pale green -shade, with fluffy balls of guelder-roses on, and groups of pinks which -would be perfect; but this was so long ago that I fear it could not be -had now, though,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_166" id="page_166"></a>{166}</span> of course, others equally pretty are sure to be easily -procurable. The doors where this cretonne was used were painted with the -same flowers, which were also to be found on the cupboard doors, with -small bright English birds poised here and there among them. It had a -most cheerful effect, and a baby who lived there used to be contented -for a long time by himself if he could only lie and ‘talk’ to the birds -and flowers in a curious language all his very own.</p> - -<p>But, if a blue room is preferred to the pink, that can be managed very -cheaply, for I have lately discovered an almost perfect blue and white -paper, sold by Pither and Co., of Mortimer Street, that is all it should -be for a day nursery. The colour is clear and clean, and the pattern -cheerful without fussily calling attention to itself, while its -cheapness, 1<i>s.</i> a piece, would allow of its being renewed every now and -then should it become shabby, and the paint can be blue, and a blue and -white cretonne to harmonise with it can be had at Burnett’s for -9½<i>d.</i> a yard. It has a sort of pattern of daisies overlapping each -other on it, and is very pretty indeed. The rail should be painted blue, -and no little fingers can do any harm to this, while it would take years -to make the cretonne dirty, if it be brushed now and then and -occasionally cleaned with dry bread. The curtains to the windows can be -made of the same cretonne lined and frilled, and would do away with the -necessity of blinds if made as I so often recommend; and this would be -really a great economy in any nursery, for I know well how often tassels -are torn off and spoiled, the blind-cords broken, and the springs -rendered quite unworkable, not only by the children, but by the -under-nurses, who can never learn that a blind does not require the -putting forth of immense strength to make it move; and will not realise -that both bells and blinds answer to gentle handling as well as to the -fiercer tug, which often enough brings the blind down on one’s head, and -leaves the bell hanging out with its neck broken.</p> - -<p>If we use the blue arrangement we could panel the doors and cupboards -with cretonne, which always looks nice, and makes a wonderful difference -at once in the look of a room.</p> - -<p>If there are proper recesses by the fireplaces these should at once be -utilised for cupboards, flush to the wall, so that no little heads can -be banged against those cruel corners. These cupboards are most useful. -The lower shelves can be used for rubbish—the delicious rubbish that is -so much nicer than expensive toys; and the upper shelves can be used for -the work in hand and better toys, kept for Sundays and holidays and -those grand occasions when nursery company comes, and visitors may -arrive who have no imaginativeness, or only see old bits of wood once -sacred to cotton, shankless buttons, fir-cones, and scraps of silk and -paper, where other bolder folk perceive strings<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_167" id="page_167"></a>{167}</span> of diamonds and pearls, -and libraries of fairies, and wardrobes sacred to unknown but -much-beloved friends; whose houses are the fir-cones, and who dress -themselves magnificently in sweepings begged from the maid, or even from -that proud lady, the dressmaker, whose occasional visits, with her ‘own -machine,’ are something to look forward to by any small mother who has -an army of dolls, and very little indeed to clothe them in.</p> - -<p>Who amongst us cannot remember the intense bliss of our nursery -cupboard, the delicious joy of having one place all our own, where we -could hoard unchecked those thousand and one trifles that no -drawing-room could be expected to give house-room to—where even nurse -did not interfere, because our rubbish (rubbish, indeed!) kept us so -delightfully quiet? Ay, and who amongst us who does recollect this can -grudge a day nursery to even one child who requires it—all the more -because it is a solitary little girl, and can make its own companions -out of trifles, when otherwise its mother would be making it grown-up -before its time, by never leaving it alone for a moment to those devices -and play that keep it a child, and don’t allow it to grow up an ‘old -person’ almost before it can stand steadily on its fat legs?</p> - -<p>Given the blessed refuge of a nursery, with its appealing cupboard, and -very little other furniture is required. A nice solid round table, with -(please don’t faint, all ye æsthetic folk) oilcloth sewn strongly over -it as a cover, because then no tablecloth is needed, save at meals, and -there are no draperies to be caught hold of; and because this rubs clean -every morning, because nothing stains it, and even milk can be washed -off; a comfortable deep chair for nurse, low enough for her to hold baby -comfortably and easily; a chair for each child, and one for company; and -a delightful sofa, and nothing more is really required.</p> - -<p>Why a sofa, say you? Because no one who has not one in a nursery can -know how invaluable such a possession is. Children have often tiny -ailments that are not bad enough for bed, and bed should never be -resorted to in the daytime unless positively necessary. An aching head, -a ‘stuffy’ cold, all these are much more bearable if a broad cosy sofa -is available, while an occasional rest for a growing child is a great -thing always to be able to secure; a child, recollect, who ever -complains of being ‘so tired’ being a child that requires watching, -<i>not</i> coddling, and to whom that sofa may prove little else but -salvation.</p> - -<p>This need not cost much either, for the beau-ideal of a nursery sofa is -one that no fashionable person would look at now; it stands square on -its feet, has a high square back and arms, no springs, only two big -square cushions, and has some pillows of soft feathers, to mitigate the -severity of the details, which—O shades of all my long-lost -youth!—were the best<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_168" id="page_168"></a>{168}</span> things I ever had in all my life for ammunition, -either at the sacking of a town or the defence of some Scottish castle; -when, arrayed in a broad plaid sash brought back from Scotland by some -one who knew how I adored the ‘Days of Bruce,’ and other works of the -kind, the very names of which I have forgotten, I became in a moment Sir -William Wallace himself, and was happier then, I dare say, than I have -ever been since.</p> - -<p>For there is another aspect to the nursery sofa that is not to be -despised, besides its great use in illness or fatigue; it is a -never-failing source of inspiration for regularly good games—it is a -fortress, a whole city, a ship at sea, an elephant—in fact, anything -any one likes to imagine it is. The broad square cushions are rafts to -put off to sea in when the ship itself is destroyed; they are -fire-escapes or desert islands, or icebergs at will; while no one who -has not had them can possibly tell the joy it is to throw the soft -pillows about, when nurse has put away the ornaments on the -chimneypiece, and retired with her chair and her baby into the next -room, where she is near enough to check unseemly revels, and yet not too -near to come in for a share of the fray, which waxes fast and furious -when the sofa and all its capabilities are fully appreciated, and where -the coverings are warranted not to hurt.</p> - -<p>I could write pages both about the nursery cupboards and the sofa, but -will mercifully refrain, because I have other things to say about the -furnishing of the walls, and the emphatic necessity of a high guard for -the fire fastened into the wall, so that it cannot be taken, as we took -ours once, for the gratings before a lion in an imaginary ‘Zoo,’ also -furnished by the sofa; while we have also to consider the night -apartment, for naturally the perfect nursery of which I would like to -think we were all possessed has its night apartment leading out of it. -This should be painted and papered <i>en suite</i> with the day room, and -have very dark serge curtains to draw over the windows, so that all -light may be excluded, thus enabling the sense of darkness and quiet to -be obtained that is so very necessary for a small child. I do not think -I have mentioned what I should like to impress very much on my readers, -that on no account, <i>on no pretext whatever</i>, should that most -pernicious gas be allowed in any nursery, either day or night. There is -nothing more harmful for small lungs than the vitiated atmosphere caused -by gas, nothing worse for small brains and eyes than the glitter and -harsh glare of the gas, that a servant invariably turns up to its -height, and very often drags down, regardless that an escape of gas is -pouring out of the top of the outraged chandelier or bracket. There is -no reason, either, why gas should be allowed; a good duplex lamp gives -quite sufficient light to work by, and must be kept clean, or it will -smell and also give out no light at all, and all danger is done away -with if it be set well in the centre of the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_169" id="page_169"></a>{169}</span> nursery table, which has, -remember, no cloth to drag off suddenly, and which should stand square -against the wall, or in a recess by the fire when not actually in use -for nursery meals. Or a really strong, good bracket, painted the colour -of the wall, just high enough to be out of the reach of little hands, -might be provided on purpose for the lamp, and the nurse could either -have a wicker-work table provided for her, or could put her wicker-work -covered basket on a chair by her side, and sit close under her lamp to -work; or it might even stand on the mantelpiece on a broad shelf, where -also it would be equally well out of the little folks’ way. You have -nothing to do, as I said in one of my former chapters, but to notice the -effect gas has on plants, and then notice how these same plants live on -and flourish without gas, to understand that my theory about the -unhealthiness of gas is a right one; and I think all will agree with me -in saying that directly one is ill one recognises for oneself how -disturbing gas is, and the first demand of a restless invalid is to have -the gas put out, and a candle given instead. I shall never forget one -case of illness I once had the unpleasantness of seeing. The wife, who -had constituted herself nurse, and who knew about as much of nursing as -an ordinary cat would, asked me to look in on the invalid and see what I -thought of him. I went into the dressing-room, and even there the evil -was apparent. A hot gust of air met me, and, to my horror, I saw no less -than three gas jets, in a small room, flaring away, because the lady -wanted plenty of light, and thought it would cheer the restless, fevered -creature whose uneasy head was tossing on the pillow, and whose wild -eyes looked in vain for relief; so out went all that gas, the windows -were opened at the top, two wax candles, provided with shades, were -lighted, and in less than an hour the room became cool, and the poor man -was asleep for the first time for—I had almost written days; and it was -certainly days since he had had any deep or restful sleep at all.</p> - -<p>I do not think, even, when we are grown up, we at all realise the -necessity or even the possibility of complete rest; but a baby does, -poor little thing, and is very often never allowed to have it. There is -no sense of peace in most houses, and I want dreadfully to impress upon -all my readers that they must ‘seek peace and ensue it’ for their -children, if they utterly refuse to do it for themselves, and, -therefore, the nursery should be quiet, and should even be a haven of -rest to the mother herself, when she is overdone with her unpaid-for, -never-ceasing work; and where she has her especial chair and footstool, -and where she comes not only to see the babies, but to have the quiet, -confidential talk with nurse, who should be able to have confidence -reposed in her; or she is most certainly not fit for her place, which, -if it be not a confidential one in the very highest sense of the word, -is positively nothing at all.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_170" id="page_170"></a>{170}</span></p> - -<p>The night nursery should, of course, have a fireplace and a ventilator. -The fire should not be a matter of course, unless the room is far from -the day nursery, when a fire should be lighted in cold weather as a -matter of course. A room for children should never be overheated in any -way; but no one should fall into the foolish idea that a fireless -bedroom is hardening, and a fire makes people tender, for it does -nothing of the sort; it simply makes life bearable to the chilly, and -prevents all those dreadful lung troubles that used to be the scourge of -so many English families, but that since the almost entire disappearance -of those foolish, wicked low frocks and short sleeves in our nurseries, -and the appearance of more fires, have well nigh been stamped out; and -will be stamped out entirely when the Queen, so sensible in all other -ways, puts a stop to the order she has given about low dresses, and -recognises that people can be quite as full dressed with their clothes -on as they are almost stripped to the waist and exposed, in the most -delicate part of the human frame, to the bitter winds from which we -English people are never entirely free.</p> - -<p>I hope I shall not be considered a hopeless faddist with my theories; -but at all events I have common-sense on my side, and most people who -think at all will, I am sure, see that I am right in all I say, and that -I speak from experience; and as a baby’s education begins quite as soon -as the mite is washed and dressed for the first time, I may be forgiven, -perhaps, if I insist on peace, quiet, rest, proper clothes, and absence -of gas, even as soon as a nursery is required at all. Of course for the -first few weeks the baby does not require a room all to itself, but it -should be ready for it, for sometimes it is just as well that it should -go into its own premises, thus giving its mother time and quiet to be -restored to her proper state of health again, which I do not think she -is allowed to do when she is wearied by hearing the infant howl when it -is dressed, and when she may be aroused any moment, even from most -necessary sleep, by the small tyrant, who cannot be relied on for -anything in certainty—at all events, at that early stage. If the -nursery has been properly aired and got ready for the baby, and a nurse -engaged to come on after the monthly nurse leaves, there is no reason -why the baby should not go there whenever his mother wants to get rid of -him; and I maintain that often far too much is sacrificed for the -infant, who, in his turn, suffers from too much kindness and -consideration, and who does not require half the fuss and trouble he -causes in a house where he is a first arrival, and, in consequence, is -something too precious and amusing—and, in fact, is almost treated like -a phenomenon, or at least like a very precious fragile new toy.</p> - -<p>Now, a baby is nothing of the kind, and here, then, common-sense must -act as a supplementary nurse, and come to the rescue. She must firmly -insist on the small person becoming<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_171" id="page_171"></a>{171}</span> used from the very first to take -his rest in his own berceaunette. She may look aside should the frilled -pillow be warmed, because, despite the flannel on the head, a cold -pillow is always an unpleasant surprise, and one promptly resented by a -baby; but she must insist on his neither being cuddled up by his mother -nor allowed to sleep with the nurse, just as much as she must frown on -his going to sleep with a full bottle (like a drunkard) by his side, -because if he does he will wake a little and suck, and then sleep a -little more, and so on, getting neither sleep nor food in a manner that -can possibly be of the smallest use to him.</p> - -<p>And now I should like to say a few words—<i>for ladies only, -please</i>—about the great necessity of having everything down to the -nurseries, or nursery, ready before the young person expected makes his -<i>début</i> in a troublesome world. I have been astounded often by the -manner in which young matrons put off making the most necessary -preparations, until often enough, just at the last, the expectant mother -sets to all in a hurry to do what should have been done ages -before—wearies and agitates herself to death almost in her endeavours -to make up for lost time, and very often causes such a state of things -that danger to herself ensues; and at the best great trouble is caused, -simply because she would not listen to other people, and be a little -beforehand with the world.</p> - -<p>Do you know, I quite secretly think some of these young ladies believe, -that if no encouragement is given to the baby in the way of having a -pretty room and nice wardrobe ready for it, it may not, after all, -arrive in the world at all, and that this is the reason why so much is -left to do until very much too late; but though I dare say it is very -hard to realise that an infant can really and truly come to the small, -perfect house, where such an event has never happened before, I can -assure you all that, once it has given a hint of its intentions, its -arrival is only a matter of time, and that come it most undoubtedly and -certainly will, and therefore, under these circumstances, it is much -better to be ready for its arrival, and not have to distract yourself -and others at a critical time, by telling a strange nurse fetched in a -hurry where she may be able to borrow clothes that should have been -ready months before; or to know things are not aired, or that there is -not a room where nurse and baby can retire safely when you want to be -quite quiet; or to have half an hour’s talk either with your husband or -your familiar friends who are admitted to your room, where thus you can -have the freedom from supervision for a short time; or the perfect rest -I for one can never have with a nurse and baby perpetually in evidence.</p> - -<p>But all too often one is compelled to have the infant in one’s room -because of the absurd way in which our houses are<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_172" id="page_172"></a>{172}</span> arranged, and I do -wish architects and builders (to return to another old grievance, like -the gas subject) would consult a jury of matrons, even if they will not -consult their wives alone, before they set to work to give us any more -houses, for really they are one and all ignorant of the commonest -principles of their art as regarded from a purely feminine point of -view. Why won’t they recollect that one or two rooms should lead out of -each other? Why won’t they remember nurseries are wanted in most houses? -and why will they not arrange their plans with a memory of some of the -most common events of domestic life? If they did, the first floors of -most habitations would be very different to what they are now, and -domestic life would be much easier. I can only hope that the -conscientious male, whose eye of course ceased to fall on this page when -he read the warning words <i>For ladies only</i>, will take up the thread of -my discourse where it ceased to be private, and will read, mark, and -inwardly digest as much of this last paragraph of mine as he possibly -can.</p> - -<p>Of course, one of the first things to be provided is a bed for the small -infant, as from the very earliest dawn of its existence there is no -doubt in my mind that it ought to be taught to sleep in its own cot, and -that without any of the pernicious petting, patting, and putting to -sleep that mothers and nurses are so fond of, and that brings about its -own revenges in the forming speedily of a most unruly tyrant, who -promptly makes their lives a burden to them, refusing to go to his -slumbers without an attendant nymph.</p> - -<p>People fondly imagine that babies do not know in the least what their -caretakers do until they are, at the smallest computation, three months -old, and have begun, in nursery parlance, to ‘take notice.’ Now, let any -one who has ever seen an infant taken by some one who is ignorant of its -ways contrast the picture with that of this same baby taken by a ‘past -mistress’ of the art, and they will at once understand what I mean when -I declare solemnly that a child is never too small, too tiny, to feel -and know whether it has to deal with some one who knows its ways, and -means it to be brought up decently and properly, or with a well-meaning -idiot, who allows herself to be conquered and enslaved by a long-clothes -slobberer, who the more it is given in to the more it immediately exacts -from its worshippers.</p> - -<p>To hear some people with a baby is really quite enough to make one -forswear a nursery for ever; the talk, the abject drivel, that is poured -out like incense before it, the foolish petting, and the silly -humouring, all being as vexatious to listen to as it is bad for the -child itself, the ‘pigeon English’ provided for its entertainment often -resulting in the baby talk that makes the ordinary two-year-old a -perfect terror to any one who entertains<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_173" id="page_173"></a>{173}</span> it with conversation; while -the sense of super-importance given to it in its cradle makes it a -tyrant for the rest of its young life, until it goes to school or mixes -with other people, and is intensely miserable because then, and then -only, is it taught its real worth in the world.</p> - -<p>Therefore, on every ground, it is better to begin at the very beginning -and continue as one means to go on, and so I strongly advise the -berceaunette to be ready with the nursery, and that the first sleep be -taken in that sheltered spot.</p> - -<p>There are a variety of these articles, but to my mind only one to be -recommended, and that is the delightful hammock berceaunette to be -obtained of Mrs. S. B. Garrard, in Westbourne Grove, and these have such -a world-wide reputation now that I suppose all the world knows of them, -and therefore no description is necessary; but for fear there may be -folks who have not seen them, I may mention that the bed portion is -quilted and hung on four strong legs, exactly like a hammock is hung, -and that curtains are arranged in such a way that the light can be -excluded without at the same time unduly excluding a proper amount of -fresh air.</p> - -<p>There are innumerable ways of trimming and making these berceaunettes. I -have seen the hammock portion of quilted satin and silk and sateens of -all colours, covered with fine muslins and trimmed real lace; but, -honestly, even if we could afford such vanities as these, I do not -consider them suitable for a small baby, who should never have any -garments that cannot be properly washed constantly, and should not have -any belongings that cannot share the same fate; and I have discovered -that nothing looks, wears, and washes so well as plain white or figured -cambric, edged with torchon lace; the hammock part made of cambric too, -washable by any good nurse; and curtains tied back with -old-gold-coloured ribbons, bows of which can be used as decorations, -whenever this may be considered necessary. Terra-cotta ribbons look nice -too, but I prefer the old gold to anything else, and it is newer than -the everlasting pink or blue, which was all our foremothers ever halted -between; though a sweet arrangement of palest pink, palest blue, and -butter colour looks very French and uncommon. The only objection I have -ever had made to me about these hammock berceaunettes is that they are -easily knocked over. Well, all I can say is that I have never known them -to be knocked over, while I have seen a ‘good old-fashioned’ wicker-work -cradle, with the deep hood and flowery chintz, daisy-fringed flounces, -of our own infancy, prostrated by some one knocking against and -displacing one of the chairs, on two of which it was always necessary to -place it, and this catastrophe has occurred to my certain knowledge more -than once. The basket, which is such a necessary addition to baby’s -trousseau, should match the berceaunette; and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_174" id="page_174"></a>{174}</span> these too can be -purchased of the hammock kind, and fold flat in a box for travelling. -But before we describe this and speak of the contents we must complete -our sketch of the bed, which would be incomplete without just a word -about the necessary bedding.</p> - -<p>One light hair mattress goes into the hammock part with a nice piece of -blanket, and then, instead of the universal mackintosh sheet, we always -have a thick piece of what country people call ‘blanket sheeting’; it is -not a blanket nor yet a sheet, but something between the two, and -invaluable for nursery use, as it can be washed daily—of course three -or four pieces should be in use—and is quite as useful as mackintosh -without being in the least bit unhealthy. Small pillows, very soft, and -shaped in to the neck, are sold with the berceaunettes, and these should -be provided with very fine cotton pillow-cases, edged with a tiny -cambric frill—linen is too cold—and the cotton, if fine enough, gives -no chill, and yet does not scrub the tender skin; the sheet should be -for appearance only at first, and should be simply a piece of cotton or -longcloth frilled, and tacked on the blanket, and folded over to look -nice, but only, as I said before, for appearance’ sake, for the warmth -of the blankets is most important for the infant, and should be -supplemented by a miniature eider-down quilt in a washing cover of -figured cambric edged with torchon, and, if fancied, embellished in its -turn with some pretty bows.</p> - -<p>Another thing: though I would always have an infant kept as quiet as -possible, utterly and strenuously forbidding long railway journeys, much -changing of nurseries, much seeing of company, I yet do say that to some -noises the baby must be early accustomed. I have been in young married -people’s households where the magic words, ‘Oh, if you please, mum, -nurse says baby is asleep, have brought about a state of things that -reminds one of the Sleeping Beauty’s palace. The canary bird is hustled -under an antimacassar, the piano is closed, and conversation is carried -on in whispers, until a shrill cry sets us free from bondage and the -spell is removed. In such a household Edwin’s song has been brought to -an abrupt conclusion, his cheery whistle announcing his home-coming -received with chill reprimand, and we have gone about the passages on -tiptoe, echoing in our souls Edwin’s hasty but understandable mutter of -‘Confound baby!’ which is a sentiment which should be on no one’s lips -for one moment, of course.</p> - -<p>Now if, when the young person first arrives, he is taught his proper -place in the economy of the household, we shall have none of this. -Precious, perfect, and beautiful as no doubt he is, the world is full of -others just exactly like him, and while we all of us, I hope, recognise -and believe in the serious and solemn side of maternity, while we know -and feel that here is an<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_175" id="page_175"></a>{175}</span> immortal soul committed to our charge to train -in the best way possible—for time and for eternity too, if we can—I do -maintain that the lives of the parents are to be considered too, and -that Edwin and Angelina have no right to sink themselves and their -identity in that terrible middle-class ‘pa’ and ‘ma’ which seems to -swallow, like some all-devouring serpent, the prettinesses and good -taste of so many of our young married people, and that causes more -unhappiness, I venture to state, than almost anything else.</p> - -<p>The cry of an infant is soon interpreted by his nurse, who easily -discriminates between hunger and temper, and the shrieks of temper must -be stopped at once, or else our lives will be made a burden to us. How -often have the untamed shrieks of children embittered my existence! and -I am sure hundreds of people have suffered as I do. Now, unless -something really has happened, I go so far as to say children can fall -and hurt themselves without announcing the fact to the neighbours. I -always make my own children try and exercise self-control, and the small -troubles that are the fate of all cease to be the terror of the -household when little ones bear them manfully, and have their wounds -dressed without roaring all the time, and the wounds cease to be -terrible to the children themselves, and pain becomes bearable, if the -sufferer sees that there is nothing so serious after all, and that -nothing terrible results from it; but this training must begin at the -very beginning—it cannot begin too early. Children must learn that they -can help their elders, who have so much an their shoulders already, and -babies must be taught to be decent members of society, so will their -coming be a pleasure, and not the torment and upsetting it all too often -is in a household.</p> - -<p>With a first baby the danger of this is always immense, and Angelina -requires almost superhuman courage to prevent it being otherwise. It is -a temptation to her to give herself airs to her friends, and to snub her -own and Edwin’s mothers, who, having brought up children, may be -presumed to know something about the subject, and to make Edwin’s life a -burden to him too; while some Edwins are worse than their wives, and -insist on dragging the poor child out of its bed at all seasons of the -day and night to exhibit it, being, of course, bitterly indignant when -the infant resents such treatment, and becomes crabbed and puny and -miserable in consequence.</p> - -<p>Therefore I consider I can hardly say too much or repeat too often the -axiom that both bed and nursery should be ready for the baby, and that -from the first he should be accustomed to both in that perfect house -which shall be built some day when my ship comes home, and I have time -to learn to draw. The nurseries shall lead past dressing-room and -bath-room from the mother’s bedroom itself—that is to say, that the -bedroom shall<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_176" id="page_176"></a>{176}</span> have all this leading out of it, and that the night -nursery shall be so close to the mother’s room that she can reach it at -once should she desire to do so, while the children, when old enough, -should run in and out when they like—a bolt being shot, of course, when -dressing goes on—and shall feel that they and their parents are always -within touch of each other.</p> - -<p>Here would, of course, come in once more the need of training, but why -should children rise at early dawn, and make grown-up people’s lives a -burden to them? They will not if properly trained, and this training -becomes possible when the nurseries are on the same floor as their -mother’s room, though a good big room can and <i>should</i> be had in our -perfect house for tournaments, steeplechases, and theatrical -performances when the elders begin to grow up and learn duly how to -amuse themselves, while it is not necessary for Angelina to be always in -and out of her nurseries, worrying her nurse to death, when our prize -arrangement is possible, because she will be near enough to know nothing -goes wrong; which, if she be sharp and acute, she will discover quite -quickly enough for herself from the looks of the children and the -general atmosphere without always ‘poking about,’ as the servants call -it, to see how matters are. But all this must be begun at the beginning, -and with No. 1, if she wishes to be really happy; therefore she should -be quite sure of her monthly nurse, and be ready with her facts at her -fingers’ ends for this worthy, who, like every one else nowadays, has so -improved in her ways and manners as to be a real comfort and pleasure, -and can teach Angelina lessons of patience, neatness, and excellent -management that will be worth a Jew’s eye if she is lucky enough to get -a good nurse; but forewarned is forearmed, and so let the berceaunette -be ready, and let Angelina insist on this being used if she wishes to -have peace in her nursery after the monthly nurse has departed, and the -ordinary routine of life begins once more.</p> - -<p>But, before I touch upon the subject of the monthly nurse, I want to -impress upon my readers that, though the nursery is undoubtedly a -kingdom, where the children can do pretty much as they like providing -they do not get into mischief, and that they remember that, being ladies -and gentlemen in embryo, they must behave as ‘sich,’ they yet must look -upon the nursery as a lesson-ground, where good seed can be sown, and -one of the first lessons to teach any one, child or small maid, is to be -gentle and quiet. I never could understand why children cannot be happy -without yelling at the top of their voices, and servants without -stamping about in heavy boots, slamming doors, and shouting to each -other; and one of the first things I always impress on all my household -is that loud shrieks and strident voices are not allowed from any one. I -have actually had my life rendered a burden to me sometimes by -neighbours’ offspring,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_177" id="page_177"></a>{177}</span> whose one end and aim in life seemed to me to -see who could scream loudest (I don’t mean cry, by the way, but simply -yell at the top of their voices, for the pleasure of hearing them, I -suppose); and remembering that we as children never were allowed to -indulge in a pastime that would have seriously impaired our father’s -powers of working—that we were perfectly happy, although we were not -permitted to shriek—I have had none of this elegant amusement in my -nursery, and we have found ourselves extremely comfortable without it; -and this same discipline of gentleness and quiet is also valuable in -keeping a room nice and being able to have pretty things in it.</p> - -<p>Why should children be destructive and untidy? A good nurse soon sees -they are not, and by giving the dear things nice surroundings you do -your best to insure nice tastes, though, of course, some untidy, -tasteless ancestor may crop out suddenly and utterly confound all one’s -theories, by giving us a child who will not learn the proper colours to -harmonise with each other, the while he or she puts boots on the beds, -and leaves a room looking as if hay had just been made therein.</p> - -<p>But with children, as with everything else, one can but do one’s best -and utmost for them, never relaxing one’s care and trouble—and one can -do no more. They are sure to come right in the end somehow, although we -cannot quite see how. And so, regardless of the ravages of boys and -small maids, I go on making my house pretty, and hope by silent example -to do yet more than I have already done towards humanising both of these -riotous elements in one’s household; for boys should not be the tyrants -they undoubtedly are, and should learn easily that things have a right -to respect as well as people.</p> - -<p>I am a great advocate for the silent teaching, too, of really good -pictures on the nursery walls. I do not like the idea of any rubbish -being good enough for there, any crudely coloured, badly designed -Christmas number atrocity being pinned up with pins or small nails, and -called ‘pretty, pretty’ to some baby, who, I am thankful to say, not -unseldom pulls it down and soon reduces it to the end it so richly -deserves. Often a good picture is full of teaching to a thoughtful -child. Excellent photographs can now be bought very cheaply, and some -etchings are not too dear, but all should be carefully selected, either -for the lesson or pleasant story they tell, for no one knows how much -early impressions do for children, save those who vividly remember the -small things that influenced themselves in their extreme youth, and are -thus enabled to use their experience for their own or other people’s -children; a lovely photograph of moonlight on the sea, for example, -having given me personally more pleasure as a child, than any amount of -dolls ever did, although I was heartily attached to them, and loved them -as few children do now in these highly educated days of ours.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_178" id="page_178"></a>{178}</span></p> - -<p>Why, I remember we had quite a serious revolt in our schoolroom once, -over this very picture subject. We as children were exceptionally lucky -in our surroundings, and our schoolroom was hung with really good -engravings of excellent pictures, many of them proofs of Sir Edwin -Landseer’s, while many of our father’s works were there too, at which we -were never tired of looking. I don’t think any one, save an artist’s -children, could ever feel towards these said engravings quite as we did, -for, being in a good many of them at all sorts of stages, we felt really -the proprietorship in them that only the author is supposed to feel, -while we were never tired of remembering the odds and ends of stories -connected with the progress of each picture; and made other histories, -too, for ourselves out of the motionless creatures that we were once, -but out of whose knowledge we had so quickly grown: and then to hear -that all these sources of our inspiration were to be torn from us, and -what for? why, because in an educational frenzy maps were supposed to be -better for us, and more in keeping in the schoolroom; and therefore our -beloved pictures were to be put elsewhere to give place, forsooth, to -glazed monstrosities, the very colours of which, crude greens and pinks -and yellows, were enough to cause an æsthetic fever; although in those -days æstheticism was a thing unknown, undescribed too, in any -dictionary!</p> - -<p>But an appeal to a higher power brought the pictures back, and the maps -were rolled up above them, and only allowed to fall over them at such -times as they were required to show their ugly faces to us in a -geography lesson; a subject I have detested, I am sorry to say, simply -because, I verily believe, of the rage we were in when we heard our dear -pictures were to be taken from us!</p> - -<p>I cannot help digressing, dear readers, when I think how happy children -may be, and how miserable they are too often made by their over-kind, -very foolish parents. We were let alone a great deal as children, -mercifully, and taught that if we wanted amusement we must find it in -ourselves; and I can never be too thankful for an education that has -enabled me, with only a small cessation, to be happy always in my own -company, without the everlasting craving for information as to ‘What -shall I do?’ If we used to make this most aggravating inquiry, we did -not do it twice, and soon discovered that we could make occupations for -ourselves without driving our elders nearly mad in the process. Children -cannot too early learn to amuse themselves, and therefore great care -should be taken by parents that they have the means for this, the while -the children do not know much care is taken, and are shown—what -children are so seldom shown nowadays—that they are not the head and -front of the household, and that something is due to the bread-winners -and managers of the establishment, as well as to themselves.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_179" id="page_179"></a>{179}</span></p> - -<p>I am sure good pictures are, therefore, or ought to be, indispensable in -all nurseries, while the moment a child is old enough to inhabit a -separate room, he or she should be encouraged to the utmost to begin to -care for the surroundings, and to carefully collect pretty things around -them, for in after life each thing so collected will be as a link to a -precious past, and serve to remind them of happy times, that may -influence their whole life if properly remembered and looked back upon. -This is another hint for parents, especially for young parents. A -child’s mind is a curious thing (or at least mine was, and I am -speaking, as I always speak, from actual experience), and receives -certain memories in the shape of pictures. My memory always seems to me -like a room hung round with paintings, and I recollect each incident of -my life as one remembers a picture one has once seen and never -forgotten. I have but to think for a moment, and I see—don’t faint, -please, I was only three; I am not quite a Methuselah, though it will -sound like it—I see the Duke of Wellington riding along with bowed -shoulders, and putting his hand, or rather his fingers, up to his hat -every few seconds in answer to every one’s respectful bows. I see flash -by from our play-place on ‘the leads’—the best play-place in the world; -now, alas! no more—the royal carriage with four grey horses and the -scarlet-jacketed riders, and I see the Queen in a hideous plaid-flounced -frock and large bonnet, and the Prince Consort, and two big boys, drive -by to look at some one’s pictures in our neighbourhood; and I remember -seeing two ‘Bloomers,’ followed by jeering boys, turn round the corner -by our house, and remember quite well how sorry I felt for the stupid -women, although I had profound contempt for their louder assertions of -women’s rights. Now I remember a great deal more than this, of course, -but I mention these three things to illustrate what I mean about the -pictures memory can paint; and to show that it is a parent’s duty to -provide the children with such mental pictures as shall always be a -pleasure and, if possible, a profit to contemplate. Let the children see -in reason all they possibly can. You can influence a child’s present, -but, once it is grown up, you cannot touch its future. You can see your -children have a pleasant series of pictures connected with their -childhood at any rate, and by making your child observe, and by showing -it pleasant things, you will give it a richer store of wealth than -anything else could do. Whenever we went out with our mother she always -did this. ‘Remember,’ she said to me, ‘that you have seen the Duke of -Wellington,’ and, though I was three only, I have never forgotten him. -Look at that beautiful colour; see yonder field of wheat; look at the -sea. No preaching here—but somehow the words stay by one, and -insensibly one learns to notice, and from this pass to the possession of -mental treasures nothing takes from us.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_180" id="page_180"></a>{180}</span></p> - -<p>But we must have a certain amount of enterprise, and never, never -neglect an opportunity, and we must see all we can, either as children -or grown-up people. Why, I have known people go to the seaside for six -weeks, and sit on the beach, morning after morning, because every one -else did, regardless of the fact that all round the place itself lay -lovely scenery and marvellously interesting country, into which they -actually had not the energy to penetrate. Think of the opportunities -wasted by them—the opportunities we all waste if we allow a day to pass -by while we shut our eyes and will not see for ourselves the new things -that come every morning for the observant ones among us! And do not let -your children exist ignorant of the thousand and one throbbing -historical events by which they are surrounded. Better spend your money -on showing them good pictures, beautiful scenery, celebrated men and -places, than on aimless gaiety, idiotic balls, and smart clothes and -expensive food; and above all let them have a bright, happy childhood -among charming surroundings. Believe me, you will give them a better -inheritance than if you had fed them and dressed them luxuriously, and -had laid up a large fortune for them.</p> - -<p>Let beauty and simplicity, honesty and frankness, be your guide in your -nurseries, and then you will not have very much trouble with your -children.</p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XVI" id="CHAPTER_XVI"></a>CHAPTER XVI.<br /><br /> -<small>IN RETIREMENT.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">There</span> comes a time in most households when the mistress has perforce to -contemplate an enforced retirement from public life; and I wish to -impress upon all those who may be in a similar plight that the time will -pass much more quickly and agreeably if the room selected for the -temporary prison is made as pretty, convenient, and as unlike the -orthodox sick-room as can be managed.</p> - -<p>Naturally these times are looked forward to with dread by all young -wives. They are fully convinced that they must die, and in fact make -themselves perfectly wretched and miserable because of their ignorance, -and of their not unnatural dislike to speak of their dreads and fears; -and though, of course, I can only lightly touch on these matters in a -book which I trust may be widely used and read, I want to whisper a few -words to reassure all those who may be contemplating the arrival of No. -1. If girls are brought up in a proper, healthy manner, if they do not -rush about from ball to party or from one<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_181" id="page_181"></a>{181}</span> excitement to the other, if -they realise their condition, and dress and rest themselves properly -beforehand, in nine cases out of ten the illness, being a natural one, -has no attendant dangers, and should therefore be looked upon in an -entirely different manner than it is at present. There is a most -excellent little book published by Messrs. Churchill, and written by Dr. -Chevasse, which all young wives should procure. It is called ‘Advice to -a Wife,’ and is a really necessary possession. This can be supplemented -later by ‘Advice to a Mother’ (same author and publisher); and, -possessed of these books, any young matron can manage herself most -successfully without the constant harassment of continually seeing the -doctor. But, besides the purely medical aspect of the case, there are -matters that can and must be arranged early, and by the expectant mother -herself alone; and one of these, and the most important of all, is -undoubtedly the choice of the nurse, who should be engaged as early as -possible, for most good nurses are secured as soon as it is probable -their services will be required later on. And as, to my mind, a good -nurse is ‘all the battle,’ this once secured the worst is over, and -Angelina may contemplate the future, if not with absolute calmness, at -all events with a brave and trustful heart. I do not think too much -stress can be laid upon this looking after a nurse. And though girls may -indeed congratulate themselves on their position to-day as regards the -orthodox monthly nurse, as contrasted with their mothers’ and -grandmothers’ accounts of all they suffered at the hands of the old-time -Mrs. Gamp, with whose vagaries we are all so familiar, still great care -must be exercised in the choice, as nothing is so important, especially -for No. 1, as to have a really good, kind woman in the nurse, and one -who will neither unduly coddle the patient nor allow her to do rash -things, of which she will most certainly repent unto her dying day; and -I should like to implore any one who is contemplating the arrival of -King Baby not to trust entirely to the doctor’s recommendation, but to -rely for once, at least, on her mother’s advice, and to employ some one -who is personally known to some member of the family.</p> - -<p>I have known, and still know, a nurse who is simply perfect. She is of -no use to the general public, as ‘her ladies’ keep her well employed -among themselves and their friends, but I shall write a little about her -here, as a guide to those who may be likely to require some one in a -similar capacity.</p> - -<p>But before I do this let me say a few words about the extreme folly, -from my point of view, of engaging what is called a lady-nurse. ‘She is -so companionable, so delightful, so much nicer than any mere working -woman can possibly be,’ say those who have friends they wish to find -places for; but I must declare I have never, in all my large experience, -found them in the very least bit satisfactory or of the very least use -practically.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_182" id="page_182"></a>{182}</span></p> - -<p>As a theory they are all they ought to be; but in practice they are a -most dismal failure! They will keep the room pretty with flowers, and -will forget to remove them at night; and they will do what I may term -the decorative parts of nursing, leaving all the more practical ones to -any of the already overworked servants who can be pressed into the -service, and who of course resent this immensely, and generally give -warning at a most inconvenient time; but I have really found them do -very little besides this!</p> - -<p>Thinking of my good nurse causes me to remember other things in -connection with these events, on which I will touch for one moment; the -while I maintain strenuously that, as a rule, not half enough loving -thought is bestowed upon the mother, who, I insist, should be the first -object of every one’s care until she has been for at least a fortnight -over her trouble; and I trace a good deal of my own nervous irritability -and ill-health to the fact that after my last baby arrived I had an -enormous quantity of small worries that the presence in the house of a -careful guard would have obviated, and to the fact that wearisome -details of an illness of a relative were carried to me as usual, and I -had to see to matters that should never have been even whispered about -before me, but the arrangement of all of which was left entirely to me; -and the only rest I obtained during all that weary time was literally -snatched for me, from the jaws of all those who are accustomed to depend -on me, by nurse, who was my one bright gleam of hope, and to whose -never-failing energy and thoughtfulness I always look back most -gratefully and thankfully.</p> - -<p>Speaking as I do from experience only, perhaps I may be forgiven if I -repeat myself, and beg for far more consideration for the mother than -she ever gets. I hope I shall not be considered a monster if I whisper -quite low that I do not believe a new baby is anything but a profound -nuisance to its relations at the very first. It howls when peace is -required, it demands unceasing attention, and it is thrust into -Angelina’s arms, and she has to admire it and adore it at the risk of -being thought most unnatural, when she really is rather resenting the -intrusion, and requires at least a week to reconcile herself to her new -fate. My nurse never allows <i>her</i> baby to be a torment. Somehow she has -such a pleasant way with her that babies cannot be a trouble where she -is. She turns them out always as if they had just come out of a -band-box, and one never realises a baby can be unpleasant so long as she -has the dressing of them, and the seeing to them generally; but then she -is so very methodical, so clean, so bright, so cheerful, that somehow I -find, when I come to write down her method, I cannot remember so much -what she did as how she did it, and that I cannot recall her routine of -work half as easily as I can each detail of her neat form and <i>jolly</i> -face, and the perfect joy it was to me to have about me a woman who -never fussed, never<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_183" id="page_183"></a>{183}</span> kept me waiting, always did to-day what she did -yesterday at the same time, and, above all, presented me with a nice -bright-looking baby to look at just when that infant was wanted, and not -at inopportune moments, or just at the special moment when she would -have been a worry.</p> - -<p>And oh, what a contrast she was to the good old-fashioned nurse who came -to me with No. 1! who had a routine and who kept to it, and who regarded -all new ideas and thoughts as dangerous and ‘flying in the face of -Providence,’ yet who was goodness and trustworthiness itself; but she -was too old to learn that people differ, and what is one man’s meat is -another man’s poison, and so made my life a burden to me because she -could not understand that I was really and truly different in my tastes -and likings to most of her other ladies, who loved to be fed constantly -and be as constantly ‘waited on’ and looked after, while all I required -was to be let alone in peace and quiet and fed rather less than most -people. Still she was a dragon of watchfulness, and kept away all those -small bothers which men can never refrain from bringing to their wives, -regardless that at such times the smallest worry becomes gigantic, and -assumes proportions that would be ludicrous, were they not really and -truly very real; and have real effects too on the nerves and temper of -the unfortunate invalid. And here let me say sternly, and as forcibly as -I can, that the life of the ordinary house-mother has never been -properly appreciated by the male sex; and, if at no other time can we -obtain consideration and thought, it is imperative that for at least -three weeks after the arrival of a baby the wife should have mental as -well as bodily rest, and that she should be absolutely shielded from all -domestic cares and worries. And every husband should be taught by the -doctor and nurse combined that there is real and great need for the wife -to be carefully kept from <i>little</i> worries and bothers, until she has -regained her usual balance of health, and is able to hear with more -equanimity of the death of some dear friend, maybe, than she was a few -weeks before; to simply be told that cook had had a soldier to tea; and -that there had been so much butter used in the kitchen that the -Bankruptcy Court is in the near future.</p> - -<p>Husbands are far too apt to say and think that the life of a woman is a -mere giddy whirl of frocks and gaiety, that all the time he is ‘toiling -in the City,’ or doing the equivalent of that in some other walk in -life, she is airily fluttering from flower to flower, extracting all the -sweetness she can out of it, and bitterly resents it should she be tired -in the evening, or require a little lively talk, instead of hours of -contemplation of a sleeping countenance, at which perchance she looks -sadly, and wonders if she ever really did think it so good-looking, as -she seems to remember she once did, in some far-off existence long since -dead. But have men the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_184" id="page_184"></a>{184}</span> smallest idea of what a never-ceasing, -uninteresting work a woman’s far too often is? Men never can be -acquainted with or realise—bless them!—the thousand worries a woman -knows all too well; the abject fears for her children that always haunt -her, the dread that Tommy’s whine may mean scarlet fever, or that -Trixy’s temper indicates measles; the impatience with which she would -fain greet the daily details of food and drink, and which she has to -smother; the sordid arrangements with butcher and baker, and the endless -trouble she has to keep the house nice, the children well, and the -expenses down to the lowest sum she can possibly manage with, and all -this is done within the walls of one house. A man’s work takes him far -afield; he rubs his intellect against those of hundreds of other people -daily. He goes to his ‘toil’ through amusing streets which always vary, -and he has the grand excitement of being paid for his ‘toil,’ while the -ordinary woman works on and on ceaselessly without pay, sometimes -without thanks; and handicapped by indifferent health and nervous dread -for her babies that no man—no <i>man</i>, I repeat, with a fine accent of -scorn on the noun—can ever comprehend, much less appreciate in the -least; gets through an amount of real positive labour, an account of -which might astonish the husband, but which he would most certainly not -believe in were it written out in plain words for his perusal, and -placed before him. Of course, I am not writing about the ‘upper ten,’ -about whose domestic arrangements I know nothing, and which, judging -from the papers, are not always as successful as they might be. Here, no -doubt, ladies spend their days in the ‘fluttering’ spoken of above, and -may not earn their keep—to put the matter a little coarsely—but we -ordinary folk cannot do much fluttering, even if we would; and I can but -hope that men will realise what a woman’s work means for the future, and -will take care she is really nursed and guarded, in a manner the husband -alone can see is done, at a time when the brain should be allowed to -rest, as well as the rest of the body.</p> - -<p>A man cannot realise that a woman ever can have ambition—that she can -sicken at the dusters and pudding-cloths that are supposed to be her -proper occupation, that she does sometimes feel even a little bit better -educated or cleverer than the clever creature who makes the money; and -if only I can get one of the male sex to believe that we do sometimes -want a little of his freedom, a little of his powers of money-making, a -little of his ability to take a holiday unhaunted by never-ceasing -dreads and fears of what awful ends the children are coming to at home -in our absence, I shall not have lived in vain, particularly if at the -same time he takes the double burden on his own shoulders, when his wife -has presented him with a small son or daughter, and takes care that not -even a whisper of the cook’s wickedness passes the bedroom door, until -Materfamilias is able to bring<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_185" id="page_185"></a>{185}</span> her mind to bear upon a matter that can, -no doubt, be explained as soon as the feminine intellect grapples with -it.</p> - -<p>And one more very serious word for the last on this subject: let Edwin -bear in mind that much more care is needed with No. 5 or No. 6 than was -ever bestowed at the time when No. 1 put the house in a stir, and -altered all the domestic arrangements. Angelina is not so young as she -was, dear soul; she is very tired. She is quite sure such a numerous -family must bring her to the workhouse, and unless Edwin is goodness -itself he may so depress and harass his wife by his depression that she -may slip out of his fingers altogether, and leave him to himself, that -most utterly to be pitied person on earth, a widower with young -children, to find out what he has lost, and to realise all too late what -he might have saved, had he remembered how desperately hard women do -work, and how unending and never-ceasing is their toil; which has -dulness as a background and utter sameness as a rule, as a drawback to -its being satisfactorily performed.</p> - -<p>Once let the nurse be secured for as early a date as one can -conveniently do with her, there are the small garments to be seen to. -These consist of very fine lawn shirts (12), long flannels (6 for day, -of fine Welsh flannel; 4 for night, of rather a thicker quality), fine -long-cloth petticoats (6), monthly gowns of cambric and trimmed with -muslin embroideries on the bodices only (8), and nightgowns (8); besides -this 4 head-flannels will be required, and a large flannel shawl to wrap -the child in as it is taken from room to room; about six dozen large -Russian diapers and six good flannel pilches. Three or four pairs of -tiny woollen shoes complete the outfit, which may furthermore have added -to it four good robes; but these I strongly advise no one to buy until -it is time to talk about the christening, for relatives often present -the baby with smart frocks; and as they are really worn very little, and -cost a great deal of money, are not necessary, especially in the -country, where really nice monthly gowns are good enough for any baby; -and the smart robes tempt young mothers to adopt the pernicious custom -of low necks and short sleeves, making these even shorter by tying them -up on the small shoulders with gay ribbons, that soon find their way -into the little mouths. Even in smart low-necked frocks I always had a -species of long-sleeved, extra high bodice tacked; for, apart from the -appearance of the small skinny arms and necks of most young babies, I -consider it suicidal of any mother to condemn her children to a style of -dress that is about as unsuitable to our climate as anything well can -be. I should put even a tiny baby into a high fine flannel vest. I -always make the long flannel barra-coats with three pleats in the -bodices back and front, and line the stay bodices with flannel, thus -reducing the chance of colds greatly; and I live in hopes of seeing in a -very short time the total disappearance of low dresses everywhere; for -to my mind this is a custom as<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_186" id="page_186"></a>{186}</span> foolish and indecent as any we still -retain from our savage ancestors. Besides the clothes enumerated above, -four or five strips of flannel about six inches wide, herring-boned each -side, and about eighteen inches long, will be required, and six swathes -to roll round the infant and give support to the back; this, -new-fashioned doctors try to dispense with, but from long experience I -am convinced these binders are a most important portion of a young -baby’s attire.</p> - -<p>The basket should contain a complete set of baby’s things ready aired, -and furthermore a skein of whitey-brown thread, a <i>new</i> pair of -scissors, a pot of cold cream, pins, safety pins, and some old pieces of -linen; and the young mother will do wisely if she has the long pieces of -Russian diaper used as hand-towels for some three or four months before -taking them for the baby, as this softens them and makes them much -better for the nurse’s use. All these things should be in readiness -quite two months before they are required, and should be placed, with a -large mackintosh sheet, two old blankets, and three coarse -‘blanket-sheets,’ where, should they be required in a hurry, they can be -found at once. Attention to these particulars and directions saves fuss -and worry and often prevents danger.</p> - -<p>These matters seen to, the young wife may now turn her mind to the -arrangement of her own chamber, which she should do her very best to -make as pretty as she can; or she should carefully look at the rooms at -her disposal and see which will be the nicest and most cheerful for her -to occupy; for there is really no need, unless we like, for the event to -take place in the room usually occupied, and, if preferred, a pretty -room might be got ready beforehand; but, if this be impossible, at least -all the washing and toilet apparatus might depart, and some tables and -low pretty chairs and a sofa, books and plants, replace the -washing-stand and toilet-table, that can be relegated to another room -until Angelina is herself again. Taking into consideration that, as an -enterprising advertiser remarks, one half one’s time is spent in one’s -bedroom, we cannot possibly take too much care about them to have them -nice and pretty; for I am convinced one comes down to one‘s day’s work -far better tempered from a pretty and convenient room, than one does -from an ugly, inconvenient place, where we have worn ourselves out in -hunting for our properties, or been worried by contemplating hideous -papers and draperies, and ugly conventional walls without pictures or -decoration of any kind; while if one has to be ill, and, what is more, -has to contemplate a long period of convalescence in one spot, one -cannot too carefully select one’s surroundings, for there is no doubt -that one’s mind acts insensibly on one’s body, and that one’s -convalescence is a great deal more advanced or retarded, as the case may -be, than we think for by our surroundings; therefore, I am sure we shall -not be wasting our time if<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_187" id="page_187"></a>{187}</span> we think a good deal about the arrangement -of a room where the young mother will have to spend at least three -weeks, and where she will remain a much more willing prisoner, if she is -not harassed and worried by a bedroom where she cannot have any of her -usual surroundings, and where the bedroom aspect of the chamber -predominates over everything else, so preventing any visitors to her, -save of the most intimate and personal kind possible. I do hope that the -queer notion that nurse ought to sleep in the room with her patient has -almost, if not quite, died out. I never could make out why this was -considered necessary, unless in very severe cases, where sitting up is -thought of consequence; and even then (though it sounds Irish I can’t -help saying it) the nurse could take her rest in another room, leaving -some one else to sit up in turn; for I know nothing more truly -irritating than to see a second bed in the room, and to feel the eternal -presence of a stranger, who might just as well be snugly resting in the -adjacent dressing-room, where she could be reached quite as well by -ringing a small bell, that could stand on the table by the side of the -bed, as she is by a call from the patient, whose voice is sure to be -none of the strongest.</p> - -<p>I have often marvelled at the way people bear these small worries, and -never turn their minds towards relieving themselves of them. I suppose -we are most of us too conventional, and cannot get out of our grooves -easily, but I am quite sure from experience that no one requires a nurse -during the night in an ordinary case, and that one’s comfort is mightily -increased by seeing her depart into the dressing-room, with or without -the baby, as fires or other matters are arranged, and to know she will -not return until the next morning unless she has been rung for; and then -her departure leaves room for far more decoration than would otherwise -be possible, for, if the house is conveniently built, and the -dressing-rooms or nurseries are near enough to be available, I should -turn out all the bedroomy furniture into other rooms, and replace this -with some of the sitting-room furniture, only retaining the bed, which -in its turn can retire behind a screen when the sofa, is taken to, and -convalescence has really and truly begun.</p> - -<p>To do this satisfactorily, the bed must be specially thought about, and -should be provided with an extra lot of frilled and monogramed -pillow-cases; these are removed at night, and their presence, and that -of a nice piece of linen, frilled and worked too, and fashioned in such -a way that it appears like a frilled sheet, in the morning, is almost as -good as a complete change of linen, without any bustle. The eider-down -should be removed, and placed in another room to be aired, and the bed -should be covered with one of the beautiful embroidered quilts which -should be in every one’s possession.</p> - -<p>These quilts are copies of old work done by our grandmothers;<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_188" id="page_188"></a>{188}</span> or else -are embroidered in the red and blue ‘Russian-work,’ and are lined with a -coloured sateen or Bolton sheeting; they can be edged with lace, worked -with coloured threads to match, or by a band of the sateen over which a -coarse lace is turned; these quilts make any couch ornamental at once. -Of course the toilet-covers must correspond, and the towels should be -marked in similar colours, and should in some measure repeat the -prevailing tints of the bedroom itself, which is not complete without -both books and growing plants in pots, nor without some convenient -light. A good lamp can be placed on a bracket, if gas is disliked; or a -good bracket lamp in beaten iron can be fixed in the wall just above the -bed, or to one side thereof; and great comfort is found from either a -wall-pocket made from a Japanese fan and plush, or a big bag of plush -strung from the brass end of the bed, to contain one’s handkerchief, -keys, pencil, letters from the post, and the odds and ends that will -accumulate, and, furthermore, will lose themselves in a most peculiar -and aggravating manner, unless one has a distinct place to put them in -from whence they cannot possibly stray; while I again repeat that no -‘bedroomy’ atmosphere must be allowed, and that every medicine bottle, -towel, basin, sponge, &c., must be taken away out of the room the moment -they are done with, and that the sick-room must be looked upon for the -time being as much as possible in the light of a sitting-room, where -friends can come, and where life can go on smoothly and pleasantly, -without being reminded every five minutes that one is laid aside, and -unable to feel or look pleasant and like oneself. I wonder, too, if -other people know how useful a good heliotrope shade is for one’s -dressing-gown, and the short flannel jacket that should be one’s day -attire until the dressing-gown can be put on and one can lie on the -sofa? These dressing-jackets, or more properly ‘bed-gowns,’ are simply -invaluable—in winter especially, when one’s arms do get so cold in the -ordinary nightdress, and when the dressing-gown proper is a distinct -nuisance; and they should be wadded, and of fine heliotrope cashmere -with a soft fall, and frill of either torchon or yak lace, and are most -becoming to any one. The arms should be lined with wadding too; and, in -fact, they are just what one requires before one gets up, as they save -the dressing-gown from the inevitable crushing that is its portion if we -wear it in bed, while we have the required warmth over the chest, which -would not otherwise be ours, for reading or writing or using one’s arms -at all always disturbs the bedclothes in a most tiresome manner, which -does not trouble us when we are possessed of the proper short jacket.</p> - -<p>The bother I have had, too, to find a really comfortable way of reading -in bed. How one’s book does flop over just when one doesn’t wish it to, -and how tired one does get of holding<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_189" id="page_189"></a>{189}</span> it! And I have now discovered -that the only way is to have a couple of cushions or pillows, and to -shake them into a good position oneself, finally resting the volume -luxuriously upon them.</p> - -<p>Then, too, remember always to have some <i>fresh</i> sweet flowers in your -room all day, and if your dinner leaves an odour of food behind it, burn -two of the joss-sticks sold at the Baker Street Bazaar at 6<i>d.</i> a -packet—those make your room at once like an Eastern palace, and are -simply delightful; and insist mildly but forcibly on your windows being -opened whenever the sun shines, and in the dressing-room when it -doesn’t; for there is, I am convinced after long experience, nothing -like fresh air for any and every one; and though I have been perpetually -told I should catch my death of cold at such times, I have never had a -suspicion of one, and am remarkably free from this tiresome ailment.</p> - -<p>Summer babies must be legislated for rather differently to winter ones; -they must be washed and dressed out of their mother’s room for one -thing, as they always require the fire, that would be cruelty itself in -the bedroom. They can often be taken out earlier, and are much easier to -manage. Still, I think all these details can be safely left to the -nurse, who should always be engaged for two months certain, and for -three if you know your woman and can afford it; for until a baby is -three months old it flourishes far better in the care of the monthly -nurse than in that of even one’s own nurse, who has grown a little -‘rusty’ in her knowledge of infants most likely, and who can never be as -<i>au fait</i> with them as is any one who has a constant succession of these -tiny creatures always under her care.</p> - -<p>It is imperative in the case of a first baby that the monthly nurse -remains until the stationary nurse arrives, so that she can find out if -she has really been trained in nice ways, and can really handle a baby. -She can tell at once if she knows what she is about, and, if she does -not, can at once put her right, and tell her the ‘ways’ the child has -been used to.</p> - -<p>A general rule should be the daily bath in tepid water, using a high -standing bath in a wooden case; the child is washed all over quickly on -the nurse’s lap; protected by a large flannel apron, with a soft sponge, -and the best soap to be found; it is then floated gently into the bath, -and the water merrily and quickly dashed over the limbs, while the nurse -talks brightly and cheerfully to it; after about three or four minutes -of this it is taken out, and dried rapidly with an extremely soft towel, -powdered all over in every tiny crease and fold of fat, its flannel -binder is sewn on again, and its garments arranged with the flannel -petticoat and shirt tacked together, put on very swiftly; it should then -be fed and put into its bed warm, and there it should stop until time -for feeding again, when it can be taken<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_190" id="page_190"></a>{190}</span> out for an airing in the -garden, or in some sheltered spot according to the time of year and the -means at command.</p> - -<p>Regularity, quiet, and its own nurseries and nurse are the things to -keep a baby well and make it grow up strong; and for this one must -depend partly on one’s nurse, who should be a superior woman, possessed -of the real religion which caused the little maid who was converted to -sweep <i>under</i> the door-mats, a duty she had not fulfilled before she saw -the error of her ways, and not a humbug, who would insist on leaving an -ailing or sick infant because it was her night for church or chapel; but -she must be a real friend too, and be treated as such, if we wish to -have peace and a well-ordered household, for in these hurrying days of -ours we must depend a good deal on our nurses if we are to keep bright -and strong, and be companions to our husbands, and later on to the boys -and girls, who will require so much more from us than the mere infant, -whose well-being we must, of course, superintend and legislate for -ceaselessly, but for whom we need not turn ourselves into domestic -animals merely, incapable of aught, because of our slavedom to the baby, -who in nine cases out of ten does far better with a really good nurse -than it can with us.</p> - -<p>I may, of course, have been exceptionally lucky with my nurse, and, -judging from what I hear of other people’s experiences, I suppose I must -have been; but during all my many years of being dependent on them I -have never had one selfish woman in my house, nor one who would not at -any moment sacrifice her own interests and comforts to mine. I cannot -account for this any more than I can account for other people’s -miseries; but I honestly say here that I never cease to wonder at the -cries that rend the air about the wickedness of domestics, for I have -never found one who has not honestly and <i>according to her lights</i> done -her best to help me on my way; and I owe more than I can say now to my -friends in the kitchen, who will do anything to save me trouble, and -will when I am busy, as I generally am, do all in their power to assist -me; while no words of mine could express the unselfish care given by my -nurses both to me and the children during years that are past now, I -hope for ever, but that, while they lasted, would have driven a bad or -selfish woman away from us. Real, true, good friends are, I am sure, far -more often found among what we call the ‘lower classes’ than in those -ranks from whence we generally take our acquaintances! Of course, this -is all digression, but yet it really does relate to the nursery after -all, for there, if anywhere in her household, must our bride look for -her helpmate; and this should be all arranged and thought out with the -help of the monthly nurse in the time of retirement, for this first -arrival changes all the household arrangements entirely, and in such a -manner that the greatest tact and care is<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_191" id="page_191"></a>{191}</span> necessary to readjust the -establishment, or else misery and discomfort will be rampant, in the -once happy and well-managed home.</p> - -<p>Above all, let the young wife remember that her baby and her experience -are not either wonderful or unique; that she only possesses what -millions of women possess and know of; and let her rely just a little on -her own mother, who may have old-fashioned notions, but who has brought -her up successfully, and so doubtless has that best of all gifts, -experience, to hand on to her daughter, who cannot do better than listen -to her; the while she recovers her strength, keeps calm, and does her -best to get well, and looks out for all the assistance she can obtain -from her nurse, and further on from her own experience of what her -children are.</p> - -<p>Just one other thing: it is absolutely necessary in legislating for our -children to remember what they are likely to inherit in the way of -<i>tendencies</i>.</p> - -<p>We have long ceased to regard either the souls or the brains of our -children as strictly new and original compositions, as clean white paper -over which we and time can write exactly what we wish; for science has -taught us all about ‘heredity,’ and convinced us that we are all of us -bundles of odds and ends, or scraps of this grandparent, with curious -‘sports’ of that uncle or aunt suddenly cropping up; and so, if we -remember tendencies to consumption, or fevers, or gout, or, in fact, -anything that we or our forefathers have shown a tendency for, we shall -be able to manage our children much better than we otherwise should; for -those children who are constantly ‘catching’ things, or meeting with -accidents because of the brittleness of bone, or careless heedlessness -inherited from some ancestor, must be more carefully watched and looked -after than those who, coming of a healthy, splendidly constituted stock, -are rarely ill, and only require water, air, and a pure, good diet to -grow up splendid specimens of humanity, enjoying their lives thoroughly, -and fully appreciating every day they live.</p> - -<p>Heredity is a great, a most important fact; and if only this could be -taught in schools, if young men and women would recognise the wickedness -of cousins marrying, and of passing on sickly or vicious tendencies to -their children, we should look forward more and more hopefully to a -future, when health should be demonstrated as the best possession a man -can have—the best inheritance he can demand of his parents; for health -means happiness and beauty and pleasure, and without health we cannot be -either happy, good-tempered, or prosperous, or succeed in a world where -life is one constant procession of beauty and surpassing interest, to -those whose hearts are in the right place, and whose pure, wholesome -blood courses vigorously through the veins and arteries of the whole -body.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_192" id="page_192"></a>{192}</span></p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XVII" id="CHAPTER_XVII"></a>CHAPTER XVII.<br /><br /> -<small>THE SCHOOLROOM.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">In</span> the selection of the schoolroom there are several things to be -thought of; but if the nursery be done away with, and there should be no -upstairs sitting-room, I strongly advise the schoolroom being on the -bedroom floor. This is often a most useful institution, for sometimes it -serves as a refuge to invalids who are well enough to leave their -bedrooms, but not well enough to run the risks of draught on the stairs, -while the children are out of the way of visitors, and are not always -running up and down the passages in a distracting and untidy manner.</p> - -<p>Let me urge on all mothers of families to cling to either a day nursery -or a schoolroom until the children are really too old to be glad of some -place where they can do actually and positively as they like; that is to -say, of course, unless they like to behave like savages, but this rarely -happens in a household where the little ones have been accustomed to -nice surroundings, and to be treated like human beings from their -cradles.</p> - -<p>It is most important that children should be let a great deal alone, and -to insure this it is perfectly necessary that some room should be set -apart for their use entirely, furnished in such a way that one is not -constantly obliged to be saying ‘Don’t do this’ and ‘Don’t do that,’ and -yet in a manner that shall foster every nice taste and encourage every -good habit possible; and great care should be also taken to insure -sufficient sunshine, for sunshine is life and health, and a dark and -sunless room often fosters a dark and sunless nature.</p> - -<p>I should strongly advise the floor of the schoolroom to be covered with -Indian matting, if expense be no object, with rugs about at intervals: -this is always clean and fresh, and can be changed often. Next to Indian -matting comes the stained edge to the floor so often recommended, with -the nice square of Kidderminster carpet laid down over carpet felt, and -edged with a woollen fringe; the best carpets of this particular make -are called ‘three-ply,’ and are sold by the yard, and are infinitely -superior in every way to the ‘squares’ sold ready made in different -sizes, and edged by a border, which is generally far too large a pattern -to look nice. The carpets sold by the yard are much better designs and -colours, and wear three times as long as the cheaper makes; but under -<i>no</i> circumstances should the schoolroom be the refuge for half-worn -costly carpets, which want wearing out, and yet are too shabby for the -downstairs apartments. These had far better be got rid of in some sale; -for an old carpet is nothing but a dust-bin on a small scale, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_193" id="page_193"></a>{193}</span> can -never be fresh enough to pat in a room where there are children.</p> - -<p>The walls could be covered with one of the washable sanitary papers, if -one can be procured in a sufficiently pretty pattern; but it is -emphatically necessary that the walls should have a real dado, either of -oilcloth painted some good artistic shade—four coats are necessary to -eliminate the pattern—of cretonne, or matting, which would be best of -all. This keeps the lower part of the wall tidy always; and if the -sanitary paper can be obtained in a self-colour, the plainness of this -can be done away with by a good selection of pictures, than which -nothing is more necessary in a schoolroom; and the children had far -better be plainly dressed and fed than have bad pictures provided for -them, or ugly drawings only relating to their work.</p> - -<p>In these days of cheap art there is no reason why we should be without -pictures of some kind everywhere, and they should be chosen carefully, -either for their beauty or for the lesson they teach. Having a positive -horror of gambling, horse-racing, or betting in any shape or form -myself, I cannot regard any house satisfactorily furnished without -autotypes of my father’s pictures of ‘The Road to Ruin.’ These admirable -pictures have pointed a moral over and over again in my house, and will, -I hope, point many another; for the children are always ready to look at -them and make out for themselves the dismal o’er-true tale. If, however, -these pictures should be objected to, I should advise autotypes of some -of Sir Joshua’s lovely child-pictures, Leader’s ‘At evening time it -shall be light,’ ‘Chill October,’ any of the etchings after Burton -Barber’s amusing dog-pictures, and those equally entertaining -fox-terrier sketches of Mr. Yates Carrington, Waller’s ‘The Day of -Reckoning,’ and, in fact, any of the beautiful etchings done of late -years, and that average 5<i>l.</i> each; these purchases being infinitely -more necessary in a house where there are children than diamonds or -plate or smart furniture and expensive decorations, and should be -bought, as soon as ever they can be afforded, by any householder who -really has the welfare of his family at heart.</p> - -<p>The ceiling should be papered in some bright blue and white paper, and -should have a good ventilator somewhere in the centre. No gas should be -allowed, and light should be furnished by two good hanging lamps -conveniently placed; while each child who is old enough to do its work -after tea in the winter should have its own shaded Queen’s reading lamp, -and should be taught to keep it clean and bright for itself; thus the -servants would not be troubled on this subject unduly, though, should -there be a schoolroom maid, she could take the lamps under her charge -with the rest of the schoolroom belongings.</p> - -<p>There should be two good cupboards in the room, which could be placed in -the recesses on each side of the fireplace,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_194" id="page_194"></a>{194}</span> should there be any; these -could be simply made with shelves in the recesses and with wooden doors -to fasten over them; these could be painted some self-colour to match -the prevailing colour of the room, and the panels could be filled in -either with the ever-useful Japanese leather paper, or be embellished by -Mrs. McClelland’s clever brush with studies of some lovely flowers; -brass handles should be added, and while one cupboard should be set -apart for the governess and the schoolroom books, the other should be so -arranged that, if possible, each child should have its own shelf. The -top of these cupboards could form an excellent receptacle for toys and -games, while some of the hanging bookshelves spoken of before could -supplement the shelves should there not be room for the extra books. The -windows must open top and bottom, and should have short muslin and -cretonne curtains; no blinds, of course, but, should the situation be as -sunny as it ought to be, outside blinds should be provided, and, -furthermore, window-boxes for flowers should never be wanting; the -children learn a great deal looking after them, and lessons are far less -trying on a hot day if the room is kept cool by sun-blinds, while what -air there is blows in over a sweet scent caused perhaps by that best of -all mixtures, mignonette and ten-week stocks.</p> - -<p>Great care must be taken in selecting the proper tables and chairs; -these latter must be wide and comfortable, and the table <i>must</i> be solid -and stand on good strong legs while lessons go on. I strongly advise the -tablecloth to be removed for fear of accidents with ink, and if oilcloth -is sewn over the top this is not as tiresome to write on as is a deal -surface, and though it may not look petty it is decidedly clean and -remarkably useful, and can be covered with the cloth when lessons are -over. Footstools should never be wanting, and a good broad window-seat, -that could be made to open and hold books &c., is very useful also, as -it will contain a great many odds and ends; while no schoolroom could be -complete in my eyes without kittens and puppies, the training and care -of which are often of the greatest service to the young masters and -mistresses, who, teaching their pets obedience and good behaviour, -insensibly learn quite as much as they are themselves teaching.</p> - -<p>Though I maintain that education of a certain kind is begun the moment a -baby learns to cry for what it wants, and that, no matter how small a -child is, it is never too small to be taught obedience, of course its -real education begins when it learns its letters. I could read at two, -and have read ever since, never being able to be happy without a book or -paper; and I am of opinion that the sooner a child can pick up its -letters the better, for the moment it can read it is independent, and -can amuse itself without always hankering after companionship and -entertainment. The best way to teach a child to read is to give it a<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_195" id="page_195"></a>{195}</span> -small wooden frame, made in compartments, and a box of red and black -letters; these it picks up one by one, and soon learns to slip them into -the frame, making small words. From this it passes easily to a book, and -becomes master of a store of amusement that will last all its life; -while the governess should be asked to read aloud as much as she can to -the children, taking care, of course, to select good and amusing -stories, the while she does not bore them with a too forcibly impressed -moral tag at the end.</p> - -<p>One cannot, of course, lay down any hard-and-fast rules for other -people’s children, and can only, after all, give very general hints as -to schoolroom arrangements and management, for each household is so -different that what suits one family is not of much use to another. -Still there are general hints on education that may be of assistance to -those who may be about to set up a schoolroom, and, though I feel rather -diffident about speaking as much about myself as I must, I think I must -tell just a little more of the way in which I have managed that most -important part of the establishment.</p> - -<p>To begin with: great cleanliness, order, regularity, and punctuality -must be insisted on and maintained by the dining-room example. The -children’s breakfast should be at eight, and should consist, if -possible, of oatmeal porridge every other day, followed by either an -egg, bacon, or some fish. I say advisedly ‘if possible,’ for some -children cannot touch porridge; and though I am no advocate for -pampering appetite, and scorn rich and elaborate cooking, which in -England all too often engulfs the money that would buy pictures or allow -of excursions and travel, I do protest most solemnly against the petty -tyranny of making children eat food that is actually and positively -nauseous to them: and, furthermore, without consulting the child, and so -making him unduly of consequence in his own eyes, it is imperative that -a judicious parent should notice likes and dislikes, and so legislate -that something should be provided that all the children can eat; and no -breakfast should pass without fruit of some kind being provided. -Children crave for fruit and sweet things, and a careful parent gives -enough, without allowing the excess that is so harmful, and that only -occurs in families, as a rule, where sweets are ignored, and fruit -handed round as a rarity after the conclusion of a large and expensive -meal.</p> - -<p>In winter lessons could be from nine until twelve, when the walk should -be taken, or some games indulged in. Luncheon should be at one, and -should far oftener include fish or chicken than it usually does. Tea, -with jam or cake, should be at five, and each child should be encouraged -to have milk and a biscuit before it goes to bed. A few pure sweets -should be given always after luncheon, and no punishment should ever be -inflicted through the appetite. This makes food too prominent a matter -in the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_196" id="page_196"></a>{196}</span> small mind, and I have always found a few stern and forcible -words of more effect than any punishment could be after the first -struggle for authority, which invariably occurs once in the lifetime of -every child. In two or three cases in my own schoolroom one whipping has -been found quite sufficient; while two of the children have never -required anything more serious than an early retirement for reflection -in bed, and a few serious sentences that were to the purpose, and did -not go beyond it. I am quite aware that in these days it is considered -abominable even to suggest a child shall be ‘smacked,’ but in the case -of deliberate obstinacy or unbridled howling there is nothing else for -it, and, this once done, trouble ceases—the child has found its master, -and then there is peace.</p> - -<p>I am so convinced that if one has a happy childhood one’s whole life is -sweetened by it, no matter whatever happens afterwards, that I cannot -impress too much upon my readers the absolute necessity of securing -this, at any rate, for their boys and girls. This, however, is not to be -had by dressing them finely, and dragging them about from drawing-room -to drawing-room, from late party to late party, or by pampering them and -considering them until one cannot call the house one’s own, neither does -it consist in leaving them to themselves altogether. Apparently, -children should be left greatly to themselves, but much in the same -manner that—I speak in all sincerity—a higher Power manages us and our -affairs. Let the free-will be there, but let the guiding hand, unseen -though it should be, never be lacking, and we shall find the children -happy and good, because they are surrounded with clean good air, and are -brought up in an atmosphere absolutely free from taint of any kind.</p> - -<p>The instant the schoolroom is started, that instant both mothers and -fathers should become in a measure omniscient and omnipresent; and, -above all, they should remember the clear sight and hearing of the -children, and should, furthermore, recollect that what they say and do -means a great deal more now than it ever did. Let them see their own -lives are full of interest, and are of good aim and intent, and they -will find example is greater than precept, and that they have succeeded -by unconscious example where everything else would have failed.</p> - -<p>Of course, it is absolutely necessary that all girls should learn to -sew, to cook, and to play the piano; and all boys should have some way -of employing their fingers, and no household should be complete without -its hospital box; into this the girls can collect all the frocks and -petticoats they can make, while the boys can make scrapbooks, paint -pictures with water-colours over prints from ‘Punch’ or the ‘Illustrated -London News,’ or cut out ships or wooden dolls; and while they are doing -this they could be read to from Scott, Dickens, Thackeray, or Miss -Yonge—a strange mixture, may be, but to those four writers the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_197" id="page_197"></a>{197}</span> world -can never be grateful enough, try hard as it may, while the schoolroom -contingent brought up on these splendid people’s brains will be worth a -hundred of the present-day children, fostered on such idle rubbish as -Rider Haggard produces, and others that shall be nameless. And here let -me beg and pray the parents to make a stand for Dickens and Thackeray, -even if they will not for the other two authors of whom I have spoken. -Dickens has become neglected, I know, and Oxford undergraduates, taking -to Thackeray late, fall asleep over ‘Esmond’ and ‘The Virginians’; but -let these books be in the schoolroom, and boys and girls take to them -naturally, like ducks take to water, and are at once made happier by -them than they can be by anything else.</p> - -<p>Sewing must be learned by girls, because they never know how they may be -placed; but, once learnt, I trust no girl may be condemned to sew -because it is feminine, for unless she really and truly likes the -occupation—and most women do—there is no greater cruelty possible to -inflict on a young girl than to make her sew when her fingers are -itching to draw, practise, or even write a book. Never prevent her doing -this; the greatest happiness I have ever had is when I can get perfect -peace and quiet and take my pen in hand, and, even if I never succeed in -making a name for myself and startling a world that is over-full of -writers already, I can never feel I have lost the time I have spent in -writing, for then I have been perfectly contented, and then for me the -world has ceased to be—outside Nature—beloved Nature!—and my desk. -And then, harming no one, I trust, and helping just a few, I have passed -away entirely from all worries incidental to the life of any woman who -marries, and has children and a household always on her mind, and have -ceased to think of anything save the work on hand at the moment. Girls -must learn also to cook, because thus they become mistress of all the -details of the household expenditure; and they must learn music, because -they can be useful either to accompany songs and glees, or to play -dance-music to the little ones; but if no distinct taste is shown, hours -should not be wasted on an accomplishment that is most useless, save and -except as a mere background, unless decided talent is displayed, when, -of course, music should be encouraged as much as possible, for nothing -keeps a household more together than does music, and if the boys and -girls can only play and sing together there is small difficulty about -finding them occupation and keeping them happy at home.</p> - -<p>I am always sorry that the power to make music and the capacity for -enjoying games were left out of my composition, and in consequence are -conspicuous by their absence from our household; but reading has taken -their place, and not one of us is unhappy as long as books are to be -had; but one tires sometimes of this, and I could wish heartily we all -loved games or went in for music, for these tastes are most excellent -safeguards<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_198" id="page_198"></a>{198}</span> against <i>ennui</i> and the craving for excitement and going -about that all modern folks seem to possess.</p> - -<p>Now one word about Sunday in the schoolroom, and we will pass on to -other matters. Whatever you do, never let Sunday be a day of dulness and -penance, but make it as bright and happy as you can. Let the household -rise as early as on a weekday, be regular at some bright, good service, -and make it altogether a bright and pleasant day; let the children see -the ‘Graphic’ and ‘Illustrated London News,’ and read their ordinary -books. If a book is fit for a weekday it is fit for Sunday. Dine early, -because the servants want a little rest, and as a culminating treat have -a nice supper about eight, and let the children share it. Don’t tease -them with strict rules and sad faces, but let them learn on this day to -appreciate rest and to learn something of a higher life, that need not -be kept for Sunday alone, but that one has more time to think of on -Sunday than on any other day of the week.</p> - -<p>I do not myself like to see tennis played or boating or driving for -pleasure indulged in, simply, I think, because of old-time prejudice, -and because of the noise made or the work given to one’s coachman and -horses; but logically there is not half as much harm in these pursuits -as there is in the spiteful gossip so many people indulge in after -church, or the wasted hours spent in sleep after a heavy dinner eaten -under protest and grumbled at everlastingly; and I would much rather my -boys played tennis than that they lounged about smoking and sleeping, or -wasted their time reading the ‘Sporting Times,’ and longing after their -far less harmful rackets. But I at present can manage without this, and -prefer to do so, for at present inspecting the animals and wandering -about the garden with them seems to suffice, while newspapers and books -come in on wet days; while we are all so busy during the week, that the -holiday comes as a blessed oasis for which we are all truly thankful. -And the children love the illustrated papers—a storehouse of knowledge -no parent should be without; and the money spent on them is never -wasted, though an Englishman, as a rule, will grudge a few shillings a -week for papers, while he never hesitates for a moment to spend double -the amount on his dinner, or on that Moloch of English households, the -tobacconist.</p> - -<p>Above all encourage your own and your children’s friends to come in to -tea and talk on Sunday afternoons. This gives no work to the servants, -and always makes a nice break. The tea can be set ready before the maids -go out, and if many cups are wanted they can be washed up early; and any -guest should be made welcome, and sometimes asked to remain for the -early supper, which, being cold, and prepared on Saturday, is again of -no trouble to the maids. I am very fond of Sunday visitors, and as few -English houses open their doors, especially in the country<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_199" id="page_199"></a>{199}</span> and more -distant suburbs, on that day, visitors are often glad to drop in when -they can be sure of a welcome and a cup of tea.</p> - -<p>Tea in the schoolroom is often, too, a very good institution, for thus -the governess sees a little more of life, and acts as hostess; and each -child should have its own cup and saucer and plate. This is a great -safeguard against breakages, for if one is smashed it must be spoken of -at once, and extra cups can be kept for the visitors; but all should be -different, so that any breakage may be seen at once, as generally the -schoolroom-maid is but young, and apt to conceal any small depredations -among the crockery. Now the two great difficulties in a schoolroom are -the governess and the schoolroom-maid, and infinite care must be taken -in the selection of both. Of course the governess is the first care, -and, though she should be mistress in the schoolroom, she yet must only -be a viceroy, and must act for the mother entirely, and not at all on -her own responsibility unless she is expressly desired to do so. No -governess should be engaged who cannot be in some measure a companion to -the mother, to whom and with whom she should be in perfect accord; for -there are endless ways in which the governess can save a mother of a -household, does she make herself really pleasant, if only in conveying -the children to the dentist—a necessary business, but one that need not -harrow the mother’s feelings if the governess is as good and useful as -she ought to be; for the governess does not feel, as a mother does, that -all her teeth are being taken out bodily the moment Tommy opens his -mouth for inspection, and endures none of the vicarious pangs that make -any fanciful mother’s life a burden to her, even though nothing happens. -The governess must be healthy, strong-minded, good-tempered, and, above -all, must have some nice hobbies, and be fond of teaching them; then the -schoolroom will indeed be the heart of the house, and will send out a -series of healthy, happy children into the great world. Make the -governess one with the household; let your interests be hers, the -children for the time being a mutual possession. Take any amount of -trouble to procure a really nice girl of a good family, and then you may -breathe freely; while if the schoolroom-maid comes young too, and is -carefully trained, you will then have a perfectly managed schoolroom, -and feel you can rest awhile should you desire it, secure that your -place is well filled by a competent minister, who will rule in your -place until you return both well and wisely.</p> - -<p>Never discuss your governess either with or before the children, and -take care that her life is as much as possible a fac-simile of yours. -Let her have books and papers and share in any gaiety that is going; and -above all try and make her think that she becomes part of the family, -should she really stay some time with you, and that your interest in -her<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_200" id="page_200"></a>{200}</span> will last as long as life itself. I can imagine nothing more wicked -than to cast off old governesses or servants, and to decline to keep -those who have helped us so much, and in a manner no amount of money -will repay.</p> - -<p>The schoolroom would not be complete in my eyes without just a few -sentences on the subject of the children’s dress. This would, in the -case of the girls, consist of good warm underclothing; in two sets of -combination garments, one in wool, the other in long-cloth; a -stay-bodice—never stays on any pretext whatever—made of ribbed -material, on which a flannel skirt should be sewn in winter; then -another skirt, also sewn on a bodice; and finally that invaluable -costume, the ‘smock-frock,’ the skirt trimmed with three rows of tucks, -the sleeves full, and the full bodice drawn in with either a loose band -or a soft sash of Liberty silk. From the day a baby is put into short -clothes until the girl of fifteen becomes too lanky for such a plain -dress, there is no other costume as suitable for all times of the year. -In summer very thin cashmere is enough, with perhaps a soft silk -handkerchief underneath for outdoor wear; in winter a long coat of -cashmere and soft cap make admirable outdoor garments, and are put on in -a very few moments, while all Liberty’s soft silks and cashmeres are -warm without an undue amount of weight, and are all of such lovely -colours that no one thinks of the plainness of the material used for a -moment. Until girls are fifteen they should always wear pinafores of -some kind. I use a very large white diaper pinafore tied with Liberty -sashes, and they should furthermore have shoes with straps and low wide -heels; while for boys nothing is so sensible as the much-copied Jack Tar -suit, with its serge trousers and wide loose shirts, though I personally -prefer the Scotch kilt; the sailor suits are soon shabby and generally -untidy, while the kilts always look well, wear for ever almost, and -there are no knees either of stockings or trousers always giving out and -requiring to be mended every moment or so. After the kilts boys can take -to jackets and trousers, which in perfection can only be bought of -Swears and Wells, Regent Street, W., whose charges are, of course, -rather awful to contemplate, but whose clothes undoubtedly outwear three -suits of any one else’s; and I speak from the experience of my three -boys, for whom I have often tried to go elsewhere, but have always had -to return to Swears, for nowhere else can I buy things that to a certain -extent will defy the rough usage given to them. The sailor suits can be -bought best of Redfern, at Cowes, in the Isle of Wight; the kilts of -Swears also.</p> - -<p>To conclude: the eye of the mother should really never be taken from the -children, as long as they are growing. Weak backs should be detected at -once, and allowed to rest on a proper sofa and carefully bathed with -salt water; weak ankles should be treated the same; cuts should be -dressed with calendula and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_201" id="page_201"></a>{201}</span> soft rags; a supply of both and of -sticking-plaster should be in every schoolroom cupboard. Camphor is also -a good thing to keep ready; it stops many an incipient cold. A good -supply of fruit and jam and fresh air and regular exercise stop many an -illness and save many a doctor’s bill, and, in fact, a doctor should -indeed rarely be required nowadays in a house where mother, governess, -and nurse really know their business and really look after the children; -for, unless in real illness, doctors seldom are of any use in a -schoolroom, and only add up accounts that are really accounts of the -mother’s ignorance or selfishness or neglect.</p> - -<p>Naturally, when children inherit disease—and that people who inherit -diseases or are related should marry is nothing more or less than a -crime in my eyes, and should be to the world at large—or are -susceptible by inheritance to colds, fevers, &c., the above does not -apply; then skilled attention is necessary, and in real cases of need a -doctor should be consulted as early as possible; but all girls, and -indeed boys, should be taught always something about themselves and -their formation, and they should learn early those marvellous, -unchangeable laws of health which, once broken, render not only -themselves but future generations miserable and wretched for ever; but, -of course, great care must be taken here, as indeed everywhere else, to -keep the <i>via media</i>, else will the children become self-conscious -prigs, always anxious about themselves and their well-being.</p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XVIII" id="CHAPTER_XVIII"></a>CHAPTER XVIII.<br /><br /> -<small>BOYS AND GIRLS.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">There</span> is yet a more critical time for the parents, I think, than even -the schoolroom time, and that is, first of all, when the boys go off to -school; and, secondly, when we have to realise that the small nursery -toddlers are grown up, and really as capable of taking care of -themselves as we are ourselves. Let me speak of the boys first, as, -after all, that terrible wrench is the worst experience of all, and one, -I hope most truly and sincerely, which will be saved for future mothers, -and that before many years have passed; for I maintain, and always shall -maintain most strenuously, that there never was a worse system of -education than the general education that present-day lads must go -through, or be entirely different to the rest of the male sex, though -even that would be a good thing in my eyes, for I cannot allow that the -male half of the world is so good or so perfect at present that it -cannot be improved, neither can I allow that the result of education as -at present given is in any way as perfect as it<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_202" id="page_202"></a>{202}</span> might be; and as an -example of what I mean it would be well to consider, I think, why the -return of the boys from school is as the letting loose of a horde of -barbarians on a peaceful land; and why, after the first week at all -events, the urchins cease to be regarded as returned angels, and one and -all are spoken of as ‘those dreadful boys.’</p> - -<p>As an example of what I mean, I may speak of one household where the -girls are gently ruled and delicately brought up by their dead mother’s -bridesmaid, who gave up her own one chance of wedded happiness because -of her most romantic attachment to her girlhood friend, and who, when -father and mother died within a few years of each other, leaving a young -and turbulent household to ‘Aunt Mary and Providence,’ came to live -among the children, loving them all, but instinctively looking upon the -boys as just one remove from wild animals.</p> - -<p>At least the preparations for their return from Rugby would suggest as -much, for in the big country-house drawing-room the beautiful Indian -carpet is rolled up and replaced by a time-worn drugget, the little -brother’s best hat and coat are relegated from the hall to Aunt Mary’s -own room, covers are put on everything that can be covered, and lace -curtains are moved; and, in fact, when prepared for the holidays, the -whole house appears as if ready to stand a heavy and protracted siege.</p> - -<p>Even the garden and greenhouses are rigorously locked; wire shades and -iron hurdles protect tender seedlings and grass edges; the head gardener -wears a countenance of mingled dread and determination; and in the -stables nothing is left get-at-able save the boys’ own ponies, a -venerable ‘four-wheel,’ and sundry odds and ends of ancient harness, -which no one could hurt because its condition is quite hopeless already.</p> - -<p>And in a town house, when the holidays are within appreciable distance, -over and over again have I not seen similar preparations, though on a -smaller scale? Have I not noted how nurse puts away the children’s best -toys; how the girls in the schoolroom, aided by their agitated -governess, conceal all their beloved possessions, and train their pets -to ‘lie low,’ as ‘Brer Fox’ would say? Does not Paterfamilias rehearse a -long code of laws, all to be enforced, he says, the moment the boys come -home? And is not Materfamilias, after all, the only creature in the -whole establishment who has not one <i>arrière pensèe</i>, and who finds -nothing in the least to spoil the rapture of the return of those who -have never for one moment been out of her thoughts since the last time -she saw them off, through her tears, on their return to Dr. Swishey’s -academy for young gentlemen?</p> - -<p>Ah, the boys little know what they cause that tender soul to suffer when -an extra hour’s cricket excuses them for forgetting their weekly letter -home; how the omission makes her turn pale when a sudden ring at the -bell comes, lest it should be a<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_203" id="page_203"></a>{203}</span> telegram summoning her to the bedside -of the dear things, who are most likely rioting in the playground at the -very moment; and how she is only withheld by dread of ridicule and the -largeness of the railway fare from rushing off at once to see for -herself that all is well; and she has to content herself with writing a -loving letter of expostulation, doubtless characterised as ‘a jaw,’ and -thrown aside half read through.</p> - -<p>And when they are at home under her own roof she naturally looks forward -to peace, at all events, and safety from dreads and fears such as these; -but, poor soul, she soon finds out her mistake.</p> - -<p>Her days are spent in wondering where the boys have gone to, in -painfully concealing the marks of their ravages in library and staircase -and hall from the paternal eye, and in propitiating the outraged -schoolroom and nursery establishments, who do not see, as she does, that -the fact of its being holiday time accounts for all, and that all should -be forgiven those who are only at home for so short a period in the -year.</p> - -<p>But even mother begins to tire of acting as a buffer between her sons -and her husband and the other members of the family. And by the time -cook has given warning—heedless that she is the only woman who can cook -the dinner to suit the master—because Reggie will melt lead in her -spoons or playfully drop gunpowder in the fire, or because some pounds -of butter mysteriously disappeared and followers were hinted at—though -the state of her saucepans and George’s trouser pockets pointed out that -toffee, not the policeman, was at the bottom of the loss—Materfamilias -finds herself wondering how Dr. Swishey manages to look so well at the -end of the term, and begins to think that perhaps after all she will not -be quite as sorry as usual when the cab comes round and the boys go off, -leaving her free to go out to dinner without dreading to see flames -issuing out of the drawing-room windows when the carriage turns the -corner of the Square on her return home, or fearing a summons from the -festive board to bid her go back at once because one or other of the -boys has done something dreadful either to himself or some other member -of the family.</p> - -<p>Now, granted that this is not an isolated case—and, judging from a -large personal experience of ‘other folks’ children,’ I venture boldly -to state that this is the rule and not the exception—I as boldly remark -that the present manner of dealing with the <i>genus homo</i> as expressed in -the schoolboy is entirely a wrong one, and, waxing bolder yet, I say -that the grown-up youth evolved from such an education as most lads -obtain nowadays is so emphatically unsatisfactory that I am quite sure -some radical change should be made in the way we bring up our boys.</p> - -<p>Born into a home where their sisters are sheltered and cared<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_204" id="page_204"></a>{204}</span> for until -they leave it for one of their own, from their very birth they are -treated in an entirely different manner. As little mites they govern the -house, because they are of the superior sex, and they are finally sent -away from home into the great world of school, where, neither by age nor -experience, can they be in the least fitted for the warfare, or enabled -by careful and judicious training to hold their own, or to choose -between the good and evil that is so freely offered them there. Small -boys are herded with big ones, who alternately bully and confide in -them; tender and sentimental fancies are derided; and the word ‘manly’ -is made to express ferocity, cruelty, uncleanness, and a thousand and -one awful things that, when we discover our children are aware of, we -wonder feebly when and how they have acquired their knowledge.</p> - -<p>What wonder the return of the boys is dreaded, when they come as -strangers into a home where God placed them for the careful training, -the unceasing supervision, of body and mind? How can a boy join in and -make part of a circle that for half or even three parts of the year is -complete without him? How can he respect and appreciate laws and routine -that are entirely different to all he has been accustomed to more than -two thirds of his time? And how can he help being spoiled, selfish, and -tyrannical, when the very shortness of his residence under the home-roof -is made an excuse for pampering him and making every one, man, woman, -and child, give way to him, because, poor dear lad, he is only at home -for the holidays, while the others are always there?</p> - -<p>There is no doubt in my mind that boys ought to go more into the world -and see more of human nature than girls need do; but with all my -strength I would maintain that the ordinary boarding-school plan is a -great and hideous mistake. By all means let them go to school all day; -but let them at night return home, where the mother’s eye can see how -they are, and how they progress with their lessons, and to insure them -that best of all feeling for any one—the certain knowledge that home is -home to them in the fullest sense of the word; and that, far from being -outsiders or honoured guests, feared as well as honoured, they are part -and parcel of the family, and bound to give and take, sharing the rough -with the smooth, and helping in every way they can to aid the weaker -vessels of the family, and becoming gentlemen in the widest sense of the -word.</p> - -<p>Of course, parents who keep their boys at home have little time for -rest, and cannot be incessantly in the very middle of society’s whirl; -but is any price too large to pay for the souls of our children—any -sacrifice too great to insure that one’s boys are to the fullest degree -given the benefit of our knowledge and our shielding care? And shall we -not be repaid for anything it may cost us in the wear-and-tear of our -brain-power if, instead of the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_205" id="page_205"></a>{205}</span> stage-door-haunting, toothpick-gnawing -‘masher’ of the present day, we rear a race of manly, God-fearing, -home-loving youths, who may restore the age of chivalry and the strong, -pure, tender-hearted men that were once England’s boast?</p> - -<p>Like most problems presented to our minds as we go through the world, -there are here other sides to contemplate beyond the one we have just -attempted to sketch. For there are homes where the boy’s one chance of -salvation is given by a good training at school; where the vanity of the -mother and the evil example of the father are worse than anything else -can possibly be; and where the atmosphere is so pernicious that an -honest and true-hearted schoolmaster dreads to send his pupils home, for -they may once more acquire habits that he is only just beginning really -to eradicate. There are also intensely weak and foolish parents who, not -able to refuse themselves any gratification, cannot debar their children -from having their own way, and who, not having been trained themselves, -cannot train others; and there are yet others who send off their -children to rid themselves of the clear-eyed tormentors who ask such -tiresome questions, and will follow the example of their parents, not -content to be put off with the trite remark that grown-up folks can do -and say things little people would be severely punished and reprimanded -for doing and saying.</p> - -<p>Still, notwithstanding these sides to the picture, we can boldly state -that if boys were invariably part of a household, if their parents -accept their responsibilities and see they have no right to pay some -careless person—any one, in fact, who wants to make money by -teaching—to take their responsibilities off their hands, we should very -soon have a different state of things as regards the male sex as a -whole; and at all events we should cease to dread the holidays and speak -of our sons as ‘those dreadful boys.’</p> - -<p>But the selfishness of the ordinary parent, and the cupidity of the -orthodox schoolmaster, whose real profits are made from the boarders, -and who, therefore, discourages to the best of his power the idea of -home-boarders, are twin giants in the way of those who only ask to be -allowed to bring up their own children in their own way, and I can but -look forward and hope for other mothers all that I have only been able -to demand for myself in part, and that a very small part of all I would -have wished for the boys, who, once given over to school, only return -for good for a few moments, as it were, on their way to the real battle -of life, which soon engulfs them entirely, and so we never really have -our boys our own, nor are allowed to train them for ourselves at a time -when we alone should be able to do it satisfactorily, because we alone -should understand them best and know what they inherit mentally and -bodily; in fact, the nursery and schoolroom once passed through, we have -lost our children,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_206" id="page_206"></a>{206}</span> and have only now to think how we can make home -happy for them until they leave us for their own homes, which will -depend on our early training whether they are happy ones or not.</p> - -<p>And indeed one of the most abstruse of all our numerous domestic -problems is shadowed forth in the words ‘quite grown-up,’ for there are -few fathers and mothers who realise, it seems to me, that their children -have actually passed through nursery and schoolroom, and are in deed and -truth quite grown-up, and in consequence of this the domestic relations -become strained, and home ceases to be the pleasant retreat it used to -be from the throng and turmoils of the outside world.</p> - -<p>There are most certainly households where the relations are more than -strained, where open hostility replaces the old-time affection, and from -whence sons rush to ‘the bad,’ and daughters marry the first man that -asks them, simply because they wish for freedom and to be able to do as -they like.</p> - -<p>Naturally, they often enough discover they have exchanged King Log for -King Stork, and wish themselves at home once more over and over again; -but that such cases are not only possible, but are continually occurring -around us, seems to me so sad, that I should like to say a few words on -the subject of ‘The Proper Relations between Parents and Children,’ -hoping in some measure to propose a solution to the problem.</p> - -<p>In the first place, we are in some measure suffering from the rebound -that has taken place when the severe bonds that bound our parents were -removed. They suffered themselves so greatly from the petty tyrannies -that were considered the right thing in their youth, that, in desiring -to save their children from similar misery, they have gone to the other -extreme, and allowed such laxity of manner that children rule the house, -as in America, and barely condescend in their grown-up stage to consult -their parents at all about their engagements, their occupations, or even -their friendships or their marriages.</p> - -<p>Surely there is a medium between the discipline that enforced silence on -the child until all originality was crushed out of him, that thought -severe strictures on the dress and personal appearance of one’s -daughters the sole way of checking vanity, and that refused confidence -because it was lowering oneself from the awful height occupied by a -parent, and that which is conspicuous by its absence, and that results -in an independent race of young people, who respect nothing, and are -certainly not going to make an exception in the case of their father and -mother, who are either ready to go as great lengths as their children, -or else suddenly assert an authority that only exists in their own -imaginations, and that causes a turmoil because opposition is as -unexpected as it is arbitrary.</p> - -<p>If we would have authority we must have it from the very beginning, and -I am old-fashioned enough myself to be a great<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_207" id="page_207"></a>{207}</span> believer in the nursery -and nursery frocks for very little children. I am always angry, I -confess, when I see a small lady of four or five dressed up to the eyes -in a fantastic frock designed to attract attention to the tiny wearer, -of which she is all too conscious, and carried about from this luncheon -to that tea, to the weariness of herself and all who are not connected -with her; and indeed do well to be angry, for did not she, as one of -those specimens, refuse to go into the country because she found it so -extremely dull; and also because I know it is from such a bringing-up as -this that we obtain the emancipated female or the fast girl, who thinks -of nothing but ‘dress’ and ‘the service,’ and which results, all too -often, in making home miserable for the elder folk, who only see in the -pretty child a plaything flattering to their vanity, and do not -recognise the fact that, much sooner than we expect it, she in her turn -will be quite grown-up.</p> - -<p>The nursery stage should emphatically be a time for shabby clothes and -dolls and noise, and for healthy natural play. The midday meal should be -the only one taken with the mother, who, however, should make a point of -knowing all about the others, and should also contrive to be often in -the nursery, and have the children with her for not less than an hour or -two a day.</p> - -<p>To insure happiness with a grown-up family these tiny beginnings should -be well studied. The mother’s influence should be so much felt, and so -indispensable to the house, that when withdrawn for a while it should -indeed be something more than missed. But familiarity in early childhood -breeds contempt in youth; and it is well known that a child who is -always with grown-up people never knows what childishness is, and never -becomes as healthy-minded as one who has had a little wholesome neglect -from society and from perpetual supervision of its elders.</p> - -<p>When we as parents begin to see the children growing up, we should, I -maintain, then carefully see that our own immediate friends are those -whose society and conversation can do our girls no harm. When I have -occasionally heard talk that has brought blushes to my checks at my -mature age, and seen the young girls not only listening but joining in -it, I have almost been tempted to declare my girls shall never go into -society at all; but as I know this is impossible, I have made up my mind -whose houses they shall go to, reserving to myself the right to tell -them boldly why such and such a one is not a desirable acquaintance.</p> - -<p>Then, too, their own friends, made at school or at the homes of mutual -acquaintances, should be welcomed emphatically whenever they like to -come. I remember too well feeling much aggrieved at not being able to -ask an occasional friend to tea to<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_208" id="page_208"></a>{208}</span> refuse this privilege. But if the -friends become too numerous, it is easy to point out that either you -cannot afford such indiscriminate visiting, or to restrict the number of -visitors to a certain number; only let it be understood that their -friends are always welcome in moderation, and that, though you are -delighted to see them, you do not expect them thrown on your hands for -entertainment, and that you assume the right to point out to your -children the desirability or the reverse of any of their acquaintances, -and that you expect them to give due weight to your opinion.</p> - -<p>It is more than necessary, in my mind, to keep perpetually before one’s -children that the home into which they were born is their inheritance -that nothing can take from them. And by this I do not mean that I -consider a parent bound to provide fortunes for either sons or -daughters. I have too often seen the great harm of this to advocate it -for one moment; but that they should always not only be welcome there, -but claim as a right the shelter and counsel and affection that are -their due, no matter what they have done or how grievously they have -sinned. For <i>no</i> cause should a father or mother refuse to see their own -child, and they should a thousand times more never allow the unmarried -daughter to feel herself a burden, whose food and shelter are grudged -her, any more than they should continually hint that marriage is a -woman’s only destiny, refusing to the girls the ample education lavished -on the sons, and so depriving them of every means of making their own -living.</p> - -<p>But grown-up daughters, in my eyes, are a most precious possession, if -properly brought up. They at last take some of the heavy burdens a -mother has always to bear alone off her shoulders; and if she be -moderately intelligent, and has intelligently brought up the girls, -there is no reason why they should not be a thousand times more valuable -in her eyes than they were as pretty babies and engaging little girls.</p> - -<p>But then we must remember that they are grown-up, that they have an -opinion more or less valuable, and that they have idiosyncrasies to be -respected, the while they respect ours, remembering our position towards -them, our fuller experience, and our affectionate care for them. As long -as the parents live, they should be master and mistress in the house; -but the children should be as viceroys, helping their parents in every -way that they can in their social duties and in the routine of the -house. It is trying, we know, to have the piano going and billiard-balls -rolling when we want to read Jones’s speech on Home Rule, or Gladstone’s -latest statements; but it is far more trying not to know where one’s -children are, and to feel they are happier anywhere else than in their -own homes.</p> - -<p>It is their home as much as it is ours, and it will be home indeed if by -judicious training in their youth we have made<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_209" id="page_209"></a>{209}</span> friends of our children, -if we have given them our confidence, our affection, and our best days, -and have not become strangers to them by being perpetually in society -when they were as perpetually sent to school; the while we have not -become too familiar, and make them old before their time, by taking them -with us to gatherings in smart frocks when they ought to have been -disreputably shabby in pinafores in the nursery. Then we shall discover -that our grown-up sons and daughters are not so many cuckoos pushing us -out of the old nest, but intelligent friends and companions—all the -more delightful to us because they are quite grown-up.</p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XIX" id="CHAPTER_XIX"></a>CHAPTER XIX.<br /><br /> -<small>ENTERTAINING ONE’S FRIENDS.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">In</span> a small house entertaining one’s friends is too often a most arduous -and tiresome business, because we will one and all of us attempt to do a -great deal too much, and appear to be able to afford all kinds of -luxuries that we cannot possibly manage, and I strongly advise any young -bride with small means and a smaller <i>ménage</i> to confine herself -entirely to afternoon teas, which require no waiting and cost extremely -little, and to refuse on her part to go out to large dinners, which she -cannot return, and for which she can neither afford the necessary dress, -gloves, flowers, nor cabs, asking her friends to invite her to simpler -entertainments boldly, and giving her reasons, which, of course, will be -received kindly and in good faith by her friends. I am convinced that -this absurd striving after society is at the bottom of the falseness of -most of our English entertainments, and I trust some day to see -‘parties’ on a much broader and more satisfactory basis than they are at -present, and I therefore beg all young householders to pause before they -begin the same old round of costly gaiety, and to consider if they at -least cannot bring about a better state of things. I have often in -different houses seen with amazement how invitations are issued, and -wondered if I am the only person who is thus taken behind the scenes and -shown how hollow such invitations often are. Surely I must be, or else -the great crushes I read of would never come off, and the dinners I hear -about would lack guests, for I have rarely heard invitations talked over -without listening to some such conversation as this: ‘Ask the Joneses, -Gertrude.’ ‘Oh no, mother! she <i>is</i> such a dowdy, and their last garden -party was maddening.’ ‘I can’t help it, my dear. I went to their party, -and we must pay them back. And then there are the Brownes; don’t forget -the <i>e</i>—ridiculous<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_210" id="page_210"></a>{210}</span> creatures! It’s astonishing how some people creep -up and others go down.’ ‘And he is dreadful, mother;’ and, in fact, I -could go on for pages, while other pages could be occupied with -descriptions of how the invitation is received at the Joneses’ and the -Brownes’, who all go expecting to be bored or starved, and who return -home to comment spitefully on an entertainment which, if successful, -carries in their minds the donors half-way to the Bankruptcy Court, and, -if a failure, is the cause of a good deal of violent abuse and unkind -sneers levelled at their hosts. And then the conversation at these -entertainments: ‘Have you seen the So-and-so’s lately?’ ‘Oh no; they -never go anywhere now. Didn’t you hear about her and So-and-so?’ But -really, when it comes to the talk I overhear at balls, dinners, -at-homes, or in the Park, I lose my temper, and so will turn at once to -other matters altogether.</p> - -<p>Afternoon teas, tennis-parties, and little dinners are all possible to -the young housekeeper, but the little dinners to be inexpensive must be -in the winter, and for them I have written out half a dozen menus which -may be of use in the ordinary household, with the ordinary plain cook of -the period, whose wages are about 20<i>l.</i> These will be found at the end -of the chapter, but to insure even such a modest dinner as one of these -makes being a success the mistress must see herself that her glass and -silver are spotless, the table well laid, and the flowers charmingly -arranged by herself.</p> - -<p>The very last fashion (which, however, may change next week, but is -worth mentioning because of its simpleness and sense) for table -arrangements is to have no dessert whatever on the table, which has a -piece of embroidery in the centre of the cloth, and then in the middle -of this place a large flat wide-open wicker basket, which you should -cover entirely with moss; border it with ivy or berberis leaves, and -stand any flowers you may be able to procure in such a way that they -appear growing; low groups of flowers are arranged in vases all over the -table with growing ferns in pots, and, in fact, the table is made to -look as much like a bank of flowers as possible. Candles with shades to -match the prevailing hue of the flowers should stand on the table, and -the dessert should be handed round after dinner, and should consist of -one dish of good fruit and one of French sweetmeats, thus simplifying -matters very much indeed.</p> - -<p>Flowers should never be mixed; daffodils and brown leaves look lovely -together, so do scarlet geraniums and white azaleas, pink azaleas, and -brown leaves; wisteria and laburnum, Maréchal Niel roses and lilacs, are -all good contrasts, but clumps of yellow tulips, or narcissi or roses, -all one colour, are undoubtedly more fashionable than even the small -contrasts just spoken of, while Salviati glass is beautiful on a table, -and the specimen glasses of that make hold flowers far better than -anything else:<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_211" id="page_211"></a>{211}</span> and should flowers be scarce the centrepiece could be -all brown ivy and mosses and evergreens, with just a few flowers in the -Salviati glasses only.</p> - -<p>But neither food nor flowers, nor, indeed, anything else, will make a -party successful if the mistress does not make a good hostess, and exert -herself to see her quests are happy. She should take care the right -people meet, and nothing should induce her to refrain from introducing -her guests; this is a most ridiculous practice, and is simply laziness. -A hostess is bound to see all her guests are amused, and this can only -be done by personally noticing who is talking to whom, and whether all -the people present have some one with whom to converse.</p> - -<p>This absence of introductions makes conversation almost a lost art, and -has made the ordinary ‘society’ nothing more or less than a bore and a -trouble; while, as the ambition of most people is to know more folks -than their neighbours and to go to more balls in one night than our -foremothers used to see in their lifetimes, entertaining has become a -farce and bids fair to die of its own immensity.</p> - -<p>Therefore, as these are undoubtedly hard times, and many people are not -‘entertaining’ at all because they cannot now afford to outdo their -neighbours, let me beg any young beginner to start well and simply, -confining herself to those friends she really wishes to see, and to -giving parties that are not above her modest means, and that do not -entail hiring extra help, who smash her crockery and cost a month’s -wages for a few hours’ work, and agitate her so by their vagaries that -she cannot talk sensibly to her neighbour; and let her furthermore ask -people sometimes who cannot ask her again, but who can talk amusingly, -and she will, I am sure, have much more out of her little dinners than -most people do out of a whole London season’s fatigue and expense, both -of which often ruin the health and the future of many a girl, who traces -back to the severe ‘pleasures’ of town the lassitude and suffering that -render the latter half of a woman’s life all too often hours of -suffering and sorrow; for she has used up in the year or two of her -girlhood all the strength and health that should have sustained her all -through her days, and repents at leisure the stupidity and culpable -weakness of the mother who allowed her to sacrifice the possessions for -a lifetime in a few months.</p> - -<p>To enable our young housekeeper to manage so that her housekeeping bills -will not overwhelm her after one of her little dinners, I have appended -to each of the menus the exact cost of each, and I strongly advise any -one to whom economy is an object to use New Zealand lamb or mutton. If -properly warmed through and gently thawed close to the fire before -putting it down to roast, the meat is simply delicious and as good as -the best English; but it must be treated carefully, or else it will not<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_212" id="page_212"></a>{212}</span> -be nice, but when properly thawed no one can tell it from English meat, -and I think housekeepers would be a little astonished if they knew how -often the ‘best English’ meat of the butcher’s book was really and truly -the New Zealand meat they speak of with such horror.</p> - -<p class="c"> -<span class="smcap">Menu No. I.</span><br /> -<br /> -White Soup.<br /> -Soles, Sauce Maître d’hôtel.<br /> -Stuffed Pigeons.<br /> -Roast Beef, Yorkshire Pudding.<br /> -Wild Duck.<br /> -Mince Pies.<br /> -French Pancakes.<br /> -Cauliflower au gratin.<br /> -Dessert.<br /> -</p> - -<p><i>White Soup.</i>—A quart and a pint of milk, a dozen fine potatoes, piece -of butter size of a walnut, two onions, salt and pepper to taste. -<i>Simmer</i> all together for two hours, then rub through fine hair sieve, -add two tablespoonfuls of sago, and bring all gradually to a boil. Serve -very hot, with dice of bread fried. Cost of soup for six persons, 1<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Fried Soles.</i>—A fine pair at 3<i>s.</i> Garnish with lemon and parsley, fry -in <i>lard</i>; serve with melted butter, with fine chopped parsley in, -flavoured with lemon. Cost, 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Stuffed Pigeons.</i>—Three pigeons at 10<i>d.</i> each. Bone them; make a -stuffing of thyme, parsley, crumbs of bread, small piece of ham, a -couple of mushrooms, one egg, salt and pepper to taste; chop altogether -and mix with egg; stuff pigeons and sew them up; put them into a -saucepan, with a small piece of bacon and any stock that may be in the -digester. Stew for half an hour, take them out, divide them into neat -portions, and put them in a hot dish ready for serving. Add a -teaspoonful of flour mixed with water to thicken the gravy they are -stewed in, and strain it through a sieve on the pigeons; then serve. -<i>Outside</i> cost, 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Rolled Ribs of Beef.</i>—Six pounds, the bones from which can be used for -stock for the gravy for the pigeons. The beef is rolled by the butcher -ready for roasting. Serve with horse-radish neatly arranged about it, -mashed potatoes, stewed celery; and Yorkshire pudding—half a pint of -milk, six large tablespoonfuls of flour, three eggs, and a tablespoonful -of salt. Put the flour into a basin with the salt, and stir gradually to -this enough milk to make it into a stiff batter; when quite smooth add -the rest of the milk, and the eggs well beaten; beat well together, and -then pour into a shallow tin which has been rubbed with beef dripping; -bake an hour in the oven, and then put under the meat for half an hour. -Meat, 6 lbs. of New Zealand at 10<i>d.</i>, 5<i>s.</i>; pudding, 6<i>d.</i>; -vegetables, 1<i>s.</i>—6<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_213" id="page_213"></a>{213}</span></p> - -<p><i>Wild Duck</i>, 4<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>—Plainly roasted; served with cayenne pepper, -lemons cut in halves, and fried potatoes. 5<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Mince Pies.</i>—Make some good puff paste by allowing one pound of butter -to each pound of flour; line small patty pans and bake; fill with -mincemeat (which can be bought ready-made and excellent for 10<i>d.</i> a -jar, which is sufficient for a dozen pies), cover with thin paste, and -put into a brisk oven for twenty-five minutes; serve with sifted sugar -over them.</p> - -<p><i>French Pancakes.</i>—Take two eggs, and their weight in sugar, flour, and -butter; mix well together; add quarter of a teacupful of milk; mix well -together; bake in saucer for twenty minutes, filling each saucer only -half full; take out; spread small quantity of jam, then fold over; dust -sifted sugar over the top, and serve very hot. Cost, 8<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Cauliflower au gratin.</i>—Fine cauliflower nicely boiled; then grate a -quarter of a pound of cheese over it, and place small atoms of butter -about the top of it; add a little cayenne and salt to taste; put in the -oven to brown, and serve very hot. Cost altogether, about 8<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Complete cost of dinner.</i>—Soup, 1<i>s.</i>; fish, 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; entrée, -3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; beef, 6<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; game, 5<i>s.</i>; mince pies, 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; -pancakes, 8<i>d.</i>; cheese, 8<i>d.</i>—1<i>l.</i> 2<i>s.</i> 4<i>d.</i></p> - -<p class="c"> -<span class="smcap">Menu No. II.</span><br /> -<br /> -Clear Soup.<br /> -Turbot, Lobster Sauce.<br /> -Cutlets à la Réforme.<br /> -Turkey, Stuffed Chestnuts.<br /> -Teal.<br /> -Éclairs.<br /> -Pears in Jelly.<br /> -Prince Albert’s Pudding.<br /> -Cheese Fondu.<br /> -Dessert.<br /> -</p> - -<p><i>Clear Soup.</i>—Sixpennyworth of bones, three carrots, three onions, -sprig of thyme, two sprigs of parsley, one blade of mace, a dozen -peppercorns, head of celery. Simmer whole day in three quarts of water, -let it stand all night, remove fat in the morning, boil it again next -day, let it come to boiling point, throw in the whites and shells of two -eggs, whip it altogether when it boils, remove from fire, then skim it, -and pass it through a jelly-bag; put a little macedoine in the bottom of -a hot tureen and pour soup over, add a glass of sherry and serve. -Outside cost, 1<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Half a Turbot.</i>—Tinned lobster, cut in dice, put into melted butter, -and flavoured with anchovy. Turbot, about 3<i>s.</i>; sauce, 9<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Cutlets à la Réforme.</i>—Three pounds of the loin of pork cut into -cutlets and fried; make about a gill of melted butter, add to it two -tablespoonfuls of the liquor from a bottle of piccalilly<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_214" id="page_214"></a>{214}</span> and six or -eight pieces of the pickle cut small. When very hot put on your dish, -arrange cutlets in round, and put the pickle-sauce in the middle. -Outside cost, 3<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Small Turkey.</i>—Stuffed with ordinary stuffing, with about two dozen -chestnuts boiled soft and added to the stuffing, sausages, bread-sauce, -Brussels sprouts, mashed potatoes. Turkey, 6<i>s.</i>; stuffing &c., 2<i>s.</i> -more; outside cost, 8<i>s.</i></p> - -<p>Three teal at 1<i>s.</i> each, plainly roasted, and sent in on slices of -toast; lemons and cayenne pepper. 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Eclairs.</i>—Bought at any confectioner’s at 2<i>d.</i> each. 1<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Pears in Jelly.</i>—Six stewing pears, 2 oz. sugar, 2 oz. butter, one -pint water, half an ounce gelatine soaked in water; stew the pears until -they are soft, turn out into a basin, and add the gelatine when hot; -place pears when <i>comparatively</i> cold round buttered mould, pour in -syrup, turn out when set, serve cold. 8<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Prince Albert’s Pudding.</i>—Quarter of a pound of bread-crumbs, quarter -of a pound of butter, 2 oz. sugar, two tablespoonfuls of raspberry jam, -two eggs, mixed thoroughly, placed in mould, and boiled for two hours -and a half; serve hot with sifted sugar over. Outside cost, 1<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Cheese Fondu.</i>—Two eggs, the weight of one in Cheddar cheese, the -weight of one in butter; pepper and salt to taste, separate the yolks -from the whites of the eggs, beat the former in a basin, and grate the -cheese, break the butter into small pieces, add it to the other -ingredients with pepper and salt, beat all together thoroughly, well -whisk the whites of the eggs, stir them lightly in, and bake the fondu -in a small cake tin, which should be only half filled, as the cheese -will rise very much; pin a napkin round the tin and serve very hot and -quickly, as if allowed to stand long it would be quite spoiled. Average -cost, 5<i>d.</i></p> - -<p>Soup, 1<i>s.</i>; fish, 3<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i>; cutlets, 3<i>s.</i>; turkey, 6<i>s.</i>; teal, -3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; éclairs, 1<i>s.</i>; pears, 8<i>d.</i>; pudding, 1<i>s.</i>—cheese, -5<i>d.</i>—1<i>l.</i> 0<i>s.</i> 4<i>d.</i></p> - -<p class="c"> -<span class="smcap">Menu No. III.</span><br /> -<br /> -Hare Soup.<br /> -Filleted Soles à la Maître d’hôtel.<br /> -Mutton Cutlets.<br /> -Sirloin of Beef.<br /> -Ptarmigan.<br /> -Peaches, whipped cream.<br /> -Cabinet Pudding.<br /> -Toasted Cheese.<br /> -Dessert.<br /> -</p> - -<p><i>Hare Soup.</i>—Sprig of thyme, sprig of parsley, three onions, three -carrots, two turnips, one head celery, twelve peppercorns, half a dozen -cloves, three quarts of water, sixpennyworth of bones, a small hare cut -up into joints; simmer all together for<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_215" id="page_215"></a>{215}</span> about three hours. Take out the -meat of the hare and put bones back. Keep the soup simmering the whole -day, set aside at night; skim off fat next morning. When wanted thicken -with one tablespoonful of flour mixed with a little of the stock; put in -meat, rub all through sieve into a <i>hot</i> tureen; serve with dice of -fried bread. Cost, 5<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Soles.</i>—Three small soles, filleted, plain boiled, each piece rolled -and placed on a small skewer, which is removed when the fish is sent to -table, served covered with sauce made as follows:—Half a pint of milk, -tablespoonful of flour, mixed to smooth paste with a little milk, piece -of butter size of walnut, salt and pepper to taste, two teaspoonfuls of -parsley, teaspoonful of lemon juice. Average cost, 2<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Mutton Cutlets.</i>—Two pounds best end of the neck of mutton (New -Zealand, 6½<i>d.</i> per lb.) cut thin, egged and bread-crumbed, fried in -boiling lard to a light brown, arranged in a crown with fried parsley in -centre, fried in same lard. 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i></p> - -<p>Six pounds of the sirloin, at 10<i>d.</i>, nicely roasted, and sent to table -garnished with horse-radish, Brussels sprouts, and fried potatoes; -Yorkshire pudding, as per receipt in menu. 6<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, outside cost.</p> - -<p><i>Ptarmigan.</i>—Plainly roasted, sent in on to toast, basted <i>well</i> with -dripping, or else they are very dry, bread-sauce, with a very little -cayenne pepper added, mashed potatoes. About 4<i>s.</i></p> - -<p>Tin of American peaches, sweetened to taste, arranged round cream, -sixpennyworth whipped well, any whites of eggs can be added; flavour -with four drops essence of vanille; the cream must be heaped up in the -centre of the peaches. Tin of peaches, 10½<i>d.</i>; cream, 6<i>d.</i>; extras, -3<i>d.</i> Average cost, 1<i>s.</i> 7½<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Cabinet Pudding.</i>—Four sponge-cakes, 2 oz. raisins, currants, and -sultanas mixed, small piece of lemon-peel, nutmeg to taste, two eggs, -sufficient milk to soak cakes, 1 oz. sugar, teacupful of milk, in which -the two eggs should be beaten and poured over the sponge-cakes; set all -to soak for an hour; place the currants &c. first in a buttered mould, -then slices of sponge-cake, then more currants, and then sponge-cakes, -until the mould is three parts full; then mix eggs, milk, sugar, and -nutmeg all together, beat well, pour it over the pudding, set it for an -hour to swell, then tie tightly down, boil for two hours and a half; -serve very hot with melted butter poured over, flavoured with two -tablespoonfuls of brandy and a little sugar. 9<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Toasted Cheese.</i>—Grate a quarter of a pound of cheese on lightly -toasted bread, pepper and salt to taste, tiny piece of butter on each -square; put in the oven for a few moments to melt cheese, add cayenne, -serve very hot. Cost about 9<i>d.</i></p> - -<p>Soup, 5<i>s.</i>; fish, 2<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i>; cutlets, 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; beef, 6<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; -ptarmigan, 4<i>s.</i>; peaches, 1<i>s.</i> 7½<i>d.</i>; pudding, 9<i>d.</i>; cheese, -9<i>d.</i>—1<i>l.</i> 2<i>s.</i> 10½<i>d.</i><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_216" id="page_216"></a>{216}</span></p> - -<p class="c"> -<span class="smcap">Menu No. IV.</span><br /> -<br /> -Carrot Soup.<br /> -Cutlets of Cod. Anchovy Sauce.<br /> -Curried Kidneys.<br /> -Rolled Loin of Mutton, stuffed.<br /> -Boiled Pheasant, Celery Sauce.<br /> -Plum Pudding, Brandy Sauce.<br /> -Chocolate Cream.<br /> -Cheese Soufflés.<br /> -Dessert.<br /> -</p> - -<p><i>Carrot Soup.</i>—Three pints of stock, made of threepennyworth of bones -cracked, and put in about two quarts of water; add three carrots, three -onions, and a head of celery, a little thyme and parsley. Simmer the -whole day; allow the fat to rise during the night, removing every scrap -of it the next morning, when proceed as follows:—Put two onions and one -turnip into the stock and simmer for three hours; then scrape and cut -thin six large carrots; strain the soup on them, and stew altogether -until soft enough to pass through a hair sieve; then boil all together -once more, and add seasoning to taste; add cayenne. The soup should be -red, and about the consistency of pease soup. Serve hot with fried dice -of bread. Outside cost, 1<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Cutlets of Cod.</i>—About 4 lbs. of cod, at 4<i>d.</i>, cut into large -cutlets; fry them, having previously covered them with egg and -bread-crumbs. Serve with plain melted butter, flavoured nicely with -anchovy. Cost, 1<i>s.</i> 8<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Curried Kidneys.</i>—Three nice-sized kidneys, cut and skinned and put -into any stock; one apple, one onion. Thicken all with a teaspoonful of -flour and a teaspoonful of curry powder; small piece of butter, pepper, -and salt. Stew for half an hour; add plain boiled rice, carefully done, -and serve very hot. Average cost, 10<i>d.</i></p> - -<p>Six pounds of loin of mutton at 9<i>d.</i> a pound—New Zealand, bone, and -then prepare a stuffing with thyme, parsley, bread-crumbs, and about 2 -oz. of suet, all chopped very fine; add salt and pepper to taste, mix -with one egg. Put this thickly inside the mutton; roll it, and secure -with skewers. Serve with currant jelly (3½<i>d.</i> a pot), mashed -potatoes, and nice cauliflower. Outside cost, 6<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Boiled Pheasant.</i>—One quite sufficient for six people, plain boiled, -and covered with celery sauce, made as follows:—Half a pint of milk, -two teaspoonfuls of flour mixed to a smooth paste with a little milk. -Stew one head of celery in the milk until tender, then add a piece of -butter size of a walnut, and pepper and salt to taste. Pass all through -fine sieve into a hot tureen, and then serve. Pheasant, 2<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; -sauce, 6<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Plum Pudding.</i>—Three-quarters of a pound of raisins,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_217" id="page_217"></a>{217}</span> ¾ lb. of -currants, ¼ lb. of mixed peel, ¼ lb. and half a ¼ lb. of -bread-crumbs, same quantity of suet, four eggs, half a wineglassful of -brandy. Stone and cut the raisins in halves, do not chop them; wash and -dry the currants, and mince the suet finely; cut the candied peel into -thin slices and grate the bread very fine. Mix these dry ingredients -well, then moisten with the eggs (which should be well beaten) and the -brandy; stir well, and press the pudding into a buttered mould, tie it -down tightly with a floured cloth, and boil for five or six hours. Cost, -2<i>s.</i> Special sauce.—Two ounces of butter beaten to a cream, 2 oz. of -sugar, three parts of a glass of sherry and brandy mixed, beaten all -together to a stiff paste. Cost, 10<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Chocolate Cream.</i>—One and a half ounce of grated chocolate, 2 oz. of -sugar, ¾ of a pint of cream, ¾ oz. of Nelson’s gelatine, and the -yolks of three eggs. (N.B.—If the whites of the eggs are added to the -cream, and all well mixed, less cream can be used.) Beat the yolks of -the eggs well, put them in a basin with the grated chocolate, the sugar, -and rather more than half the cream, stir all together, pour into a jug, -set jug in a saucepan of boiling water, and stir all one way until the -mixture thickens, but do not allow it to boil, or it will curdle; strain -all into a basin, stir in the gelatine and the other portion of cream, -which should be well whipped; then pour into a mould which has been -previously oiled with the very purest salad oil; turn out when cold. -Outside cost, 2<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Cheese Soufflés.</i>—Quarter of a pound of cheese grated, two -tablespoonfuls of flour, piece of butter size of walnut, two eggs, half -a teacupful of milk, cayenne and salt to taste; mix well together, and -put in a saucepan over fire for about five minutes, stirring all the -time to prevent burning; drop a tablespoonful of the mixture into -buttered patty-pans; put in a steamer until set; then take them out and -put on a sieve to cool; cover with egg and bread-crumb, and fry in -boiling lard; serve hot. Cost, about 8<i>d.</i> Half this quantity sufficient -for six people.</p> - -<p><i>Cost of Dinner.</i>—Soup, 1<i>s.</i>; fish, 1<i>s.</i> 8<i>d.</i>; curried kidneys, -10<i>d.</i>; meat, 6<i>s.</i>; game, 3<i>s.</i>; pudding and sauce, 2<i>s.</i> 10<i>d.</i>; -cream, 2<i>s.</i>; cheese, 4<i>d.</i>—17<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i></p> - -<p class="c"> -<span class="smcap">MENU No. V.</span><br /> -<br /> -Mulligatawny Soup.<br /> -Cod and Oyster Sauce.<br /> -Croquettes of Chicken.<br /> -Leg of Mutton à la Bretonne.<br /> -Pheasants.<br /> -Méringues à la crême.<br /> -Turrets.<br /> -Cheese Straws.<br /> -Dessert.<br /> -</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_218" id="page_218"></a>{218}</span></p> - -<p><i>Mulligatawny Soup.</i>—Three pints of stock, made by taking -threepennyworth of bones, breaking them small, and putting them to -simmer on one side of the fire for the whole of the day before it is -required, with three carrots, three onions, one head of celery, and one -clove, and a small piece of bacon; stand all night in larder; remove fat -next morning. Boil a rabbit, cut it in dice, and fry; then add it, with -a small amount of lemon juice and two tablespoonfuls of curry powder -mixed smooth with stock separately, to the stock. Serve very hot, with -plain boiled rice on separate dish. Cost of soup, 2<i>s.</i> 4<i>d.</i>—rabbit, -1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; bones, 3<i>d.</i>; vegetables, 3<i>d.</i>; rice, 1<i>d.</i>; bacon, 1<i>d.</i>; -curry powder, 2<i>d.</i></p> - -<p>Three pounds of cod at 6<i>d.</i> a pound, plain boiled; eight oysters cut in -half for sauce, which is made of the liquor of the oysters; teacupful of -milk, piece of butter size of walnut, salt, and two teaspoonfuls of -flour. Cod, 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; oysters, 8<i>d.</i>; milk, butter, &c., 3<i>d.</i>—2<i>s.</i> -5<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Croquettes of Chicken.</i>—Take the two legs of a nicely cooked chicken -(the bones of which can be added to those for soup); mince the meat -small, then pound smooth in a mortar. Make a sauce with a piece of -butter size of a walnut, one onion chopped fine and browned, and half a -teacupful of milk; when at boiling point add one teaspoonful of flour, -mixed smooth with milk, salt, and pepper to taste, add the yolks of two -eggs, then put in the chicken and stir all together until thoroughly -mixed, remove from fire; when cold make up the mixture into croquettes, -cover with egg and bread-crumbs, and fry in dripping from leg of mutton; -serve very hot garnished with parsley. Any remains of cold chicken will -do for this dish. Portion of chicken, 9<i>d.</i>; eggs (3), 2½<i>d.</i>, -sometimes 3<i>d.</i>; total cost, 1<i>s.</i> 2½<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Leg of Mutton à la Bretonne.</i>—Choose a leg of Welsh mutton about 6 -lbs. in weight, get four cloves of garlic, make an incision with the -point of a knife in four different parts round the knuckle and place the -garlic in it, hang it up for a day or two, and then roast it for an hour -and a half. Take a quart of French haricots and place them in a saucepan -with half a gallon of water. Add salt, half an ounce of butter, and set -them to simmer until tender, when the liquor must be poured into a -basin. Keep the haricots hot, peel and cut two large onions into thin -slices, put some of the fat from the dripping-pan into the fryingpan, -put in the onions, and fry a light brown. Add them to the haricots, with -the fat &c. that the mutton has produced in roasting, season with salt -and pepper, toss them about a little, and serve very hot on a large dish -on which the mutton is put, garnished with a frill. Serve with mashed -potatoes, Brussels sprouts, currant jelly. Cost, with best Welsh mutton, -8<i>s.</i>; with New Zealand, <i>just as good</i>, 5<i>s.</i><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_219" id="page_219"></a>{219}</span></p> - -<p><i>Roasted Pheasant</i>, 2<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>—Plainly and nicely roasted, sent in on -a bed of bread-crumbs made from crusts and pieces of bread dried in the -oven and rolled small with the rolling-pin. Potatoes plainly boiled and -rubbed through a sieve, with a very small piece of butter. 2<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Méringues.</i>—Use the three whites of the eggs the yolks of which you -have used for the croquettes; whisk them to a stiff froth, and with a -wooden spoon stir in quickly a quarter and half a quarter of a pound of -white sifted sugar. Put some boards in the oven thick enough to prevent -the bottom of the méringues from acquiring too much colour. Cut some -strips of paper about two inches wide, put this on the board, and drop a -tablespoonful at a time of the mixture on paper, giving them as nearly -as possible the shape of an egg, keeping each méringue about two inches -apart. Strew over some sifted sugar, and bake in a moderate oven for -half an hour. As soon as they begin to colour remove them; take each -slip of paper by the two ends and turn it gently on the table, and with -a small spoon take out the soft part. Spread some clean paper, turn the -méringues upside down, and put them into the oven to harden; then fill -with whipped cream just flavoured with vanilla and sweetened with sugar; -put two halves together and serve. Threepennyworth of cream is <i>quite</i> -enough for six people, so this dish would cost about 4<i>d.</i>, as the eggs -were charged for in the croquettes. 4<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Turret Puddings.</i>—Take two eggs, add their weight in flour, sugar, and -butter; beat the eggs thoroughly first, then add sugar and flour and the -butter melted; beat all together to a cream; fill small tins, bake for -twenty minutes; add sauce, made from milk, two teaspoonfuls of flour, -and a tablespoonful of brandy; serve hot. Outside cost, 1<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Cheese Straws.</i>—Two ounces of butter, 2 oz. of flour, 2 oz. of -bread-crumbs, 2 oz. of cheese grated, half a small saltspoon of mixed -salt and cayenne; mix all together to a paste, and roll it out a quarter -of an inch in thickness; cut it into narrow strips, lay them on a sheet -of paper, and bake for a few minutes; arrange them in a pyramid on a -napkin, and serve hot. Cost, 6<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>General cost of dinner.</i>—Soup, 2<i>s.</i> 4<i>d.</i>; fish, 2<i>s.</i> 5<i>d.</i>; entrée, -1<i>s.</i> 2½<i>d.</i>; mutton, 8<i>s.</i>; game, 2<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i>; sweets (2), 1<i>s.</i> -4<i>d.</i>; cheese, 6<i>d.</i>—18<i>s.</i> 6½<i>d.</i> Very excellent thick cream can be -had from the Gloucester Dairy Company, Gloucester, who send 16 oz. for -1<i>s.</i> postage paid. This is invaluable for méringues. The Gloucester -Dairy Company’s little Gloucester cheeses for 2<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> are also very -useful for dinner-parties.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_220" id="page_220"></a>{220}</span></p> - -<p class="c"> -<span class="smcap">Menu No. VI.</span><br /> -<br /> -Almond Soup.<br /> -Salmon, Caper Sauce.<br /> -Beef Olives.<br /> -Grilled Mushrooms.<br /> -Saddle of Mutton.<br /> -Widgeon.<br /> -Tipsy Cake.<br /> -College Pudding.<br /> -Apple Jelly.<br /> -Macaroni Cheese.<br /> -Dessert.<br /> -</p> - -<p><i>White Soup.</i>—Two pounds of veal, two quarts of water, one onion, -quarter of a pint of cream, an ounce of butter, two dozen sweet almonds -pounded to paste, salt and cayenne pepper to taste. Boil the veal, -water, and onion slowly all the previous day, take off all the fat, -strain, add other ingredients, thicken with one pennyworth of arrowroot, -and serve very hot. 2<i>s.</i> 10<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Salmon.</i>—Three pounds, nicely boiled, plain melted butter; add a small -amount of liquor from a bottle of capers, a teaspoonful of the capers -chopped fine, and half a teaspoonful of lemon juice. Fish, 7<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; -sauce, 6<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Beef Olives.</i>—One pound of beefsteak, cut in squares about three -inches and half an inch thick, chopped thyme and parsley, pepper and -salt sprinkled over the beef, roll each piece, place on small skewer, -stew in stock for an hour, thicken stock with a little flour and butter, -pour over the olives, and serve very hot. 1<i>s.</i> 2<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Grilled Mushrooms.</i>—Wipe a dozen mushrooms carefully, place on tin in -front of fire with a small piece of butter, salt and pepper to taste on -each, have ready twelve little pieces of toasted bread, and when done -put a mushroom on each piece; serve very hot. Outside cost, 2<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Small Saddle of Mutton</i> (<i>about 8 lbs.</i>).—Currant jelly, potatoes put -through sieve after well boiling, stewed celery covered with melted -butter, currant jelly. Outside cost of all, 10<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Widgeon.</i>—Plainly roasted, sent in very hot with their own gravy, -lemon juice, and cayenne; potato shavings—potatoes to be cut in thin -strips, fried a light brown in boiling lard, then placed on blotting -paper to remove grease, placed in <i>hot</i> vegetable dish and served. 3<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Tipsy Cake.</i>—Take a sixpenny Madeira cake, cut it in three rounds, -spread the rounds with raspberry jam, scoop out the middle of the top -slices, soak it in a quarter of a pint of sherry until tender; fill up -centre with preserved fruit, and cover with whipped cream. Outside cost, -2<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>College Pudding.</i>—Butter a shape, stick it all round with split -raisins, line with brown cut from a sally lunn, cut the rest in<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_221" id="page_221"></a>{221}</span> slices, -and put it with a few ratifias and macaroons into the mould; beat two -eggs in enough milk to cover the pudding; add a tablespoonful of sugar, -cover it with a buttered paper and a cloth; boil it for an hour. Cost, -1<i>s.</i></p> - -<p><i>Apple Shape.</i>—Two pounds of apples, boiled to a pulp in half a -teacupful of water, juice of one lemon, two ounces of sugar, half an -ounce of gelatine, soaked in quarter of a pint of water; mix well -together, and rub together through a hair sieve whilst hot; butter a -mould, pour in, leave until cold. Serve with custard made as -follows:—Quarter of a pint of milk, one egg, teaspoonful of corn-flour, -sugar to taste; bring the milk to boiling point, and add other -ingredients; stir until thick, remove from fire, set to cool; when cold -pour it over the shape. 10<i>d.</i></p> - -<p><i>Macaroni Cheese.</i>—Quarter of a pound of macaroni, two ounces of -butter, three ounces of Cheddar cheese, pepper and salt to taste, half a -pint of milk, one pint of water, bread-crumbs. Boil the macaroni until -tender in the milk and water, sprinkle cheese and some of the butter -among it, then season with the pepper, and cover all with finely grated -bread-crumbs. Warm the rest of the butter and pour it over the -bread-crumbs; brown it before a fire, and serve very hot. Cost, 9<i>d.</i></p> - -<p>Soup, 2<i>s.</i> 10<i>d.</i>; fish, 8<i>s.</i>; beef olives, 1<i>s.</i> 2<i>d.</i>; mushrooms, -2<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>; mutton, 10<i>s.</i>; widgeon, 3<i>s.</i>; sweets, 3<i>s.</i> 10<i>d.</i>; -cheese, 10<i>d.</i> Total cost, 1<i>l.</i> 12<i>s.</i> 2<i>d.</i></p> - -<hr style="width: 45%;" /> - -<p>I think the receipts given above would form the nucleus for any amount -of moderate entertainment, but I may speak of two capital books which -would assist any young housekeeper, and which have done me so much good -I should be ungrateful not to mention them. One is Mrs. de Salis’s -‘Entrées à la Mode,’ published by Longmans at 1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, and the other -is Mrs. Beeton’s ‘Household Management,’ a 7<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> book, but one no -mistress of a household should ever think of being without.</p> - -<p>Though naturally invalids’ cooking does not come in properly when one -should be thinking of nothing but pleasant matters, cooking reminds me -of a valuable piece of information given to me by a friend, and at the -risk of being called to order I must just give one hint in regard to -beef-tea, the making of which is often very wasteful and tiring to an -invalid’s patience, and which can be made most successfully by taking a -nice juicy beefsteak and cutting off all the superfluous fat; then this -should be salted and peppered to taste, and floured on both sides; then -the bottom of a stew-pan should be covered with just enough water to -keep the meat from sticking, and the meat should be allowed to stew by -the side of the fire from one hour and a quarter, according to size. The -gravy is excellent rich beef-tea, while the steak itself is beautifully -tender and fit to be sent to table. One or two allspice berries put in -with the meat give a flavour of<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_222" id="page_222"></a>{222}</span> wine, and thus we have good pleasant -beef-tea for an invalid and luncheon for ourselves, with none of the -waste that often accompanies the making of what is all too often a -tasteless, greasy, and disagreeable compound.</p> - -<p>Another dish for a convalescent is made by treating a chop in the same -way as a steak as regards the pepper, salt, and flour. It is then put on -a plate with a tablespoonful of water, covered with another plate -exactly the same size, and put into a slow oven for more than an hour. -When cooked, the top plate should be turned down to the bottom, so the -chop is hot to the last, and has not been disturbed, and is so tender -and thoroughly cooked it does not need masticating, and it is also so -nice that many clergymen are glad to find this ready for them after -leaving church, instead of the orthodox cold supper. It literally cooks -itself, and is therefore no trouble on Sundays; while for a country -doctor, whose hours are uncertain, and who all too often subsists on -either sodden or scorched-up food, it is a perfect dish, and should be -recollected by all those good housewives who are often enough at their -wits’ end to find something nice for the bread-winner when he returns -home after a long and fatiguing drive over country roads and open moors.</p> - -<p>So, that I may not be utterly condemned for dragging in my invalids, I -will just mention that a very nice dish for a small evening party is -made by simply grating raw chestnuts up very finely into a dish, and -covering them thickly with whipped cream, sweetened and flavoured to -taste; while tins of American peaches, placed in a deep dish and -sweetened to taste and covered with good whipped cream, are also things -most useful to the country housewife, who is often called upon to -provide a good <i>extra</i> dish in a hurry, despite her distance from shops -and the impossibility of getting anything decent in her village; while -Edwards’ desiccated soup is an excellent ‘standby’ in any country house, -for with its aid soup is always forthcoming; and with soup and a -pretty-looking sweet the simplest dinner may be made to pass off with -sufficient <i>éclat</i> to satisfy a guest who may have been cajoled into -sharing pot-luck, despite the fact that the nearest butcher is four -miles off and that it is not the game season—a species of entertaining -most trying to any one, especially in the country, but which even there -can be faced with equanimity if we have sense, a few tinned provisions -in our store-cupboards, and a cook who does not become flurried and who -has her stockpot always going. A very good dinner can be extemporised by -adding some of Edwards’ desiccated soup to the ordinary soup; a -side-dish can be made from poached eggs on spinach, from tinned lobsters -made into cutlets, from any remains of cold meat made into croquettes; -while pancakes and tinned peaches and cream add sufficient variety to -whatever had been prepared for the late dinner, which can be -furthermore<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_223" id="page_223"></a>{223}</span> supplemented and helped out by some of the cooked cheese -prepared in one of the ways given in the menu receipts; but a welcome -must be forthcoming too, else no amount of dinner will make the -unexpected guest feel as if he were being entertained.</p> - -<p>One last hint: always, unless you live in London, keep two or three new -toothbrushes and a clean brush and comb in the house; then, should your -guest be willing to remain until the next morning unexpectedly, you will -even be ready for that emergency, and will not have one tiny flaw left -to be found in your simple but most complete system of entertaining.</p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XX" id="CHAPTER_XX"></a>CHAPTER XX.<br /><br /> -<small>THE SUMMING-UP.</small></h2> - -<p class="nind"><span class="smcap">I have</span> been so continually asked what is the very smallest possible sum -of money that will suffice to furnish a little house for a young couple -beginning life, that I have drawn up from actual bills a short schedule -of the cost of furnishing the ordinary villa residence in the suburbs. -But to this must be added quite another 50<i>l.</i> should the householder -have literally every single thing to buy; for in this special house, as -will be seen from the list, several rather important items were already -procured, and wedding presents made a great and perceptible difference -in the appearance of the modest <i>ménage</i>, as is fortunately generally -the case with all young couples starting in life, who, if they are wise, -will only purchase necessaries at first, saving their money until they -are actually married, and know not only what their friends have given -them, but also what the house itself really requires. There is no doubt, -if this be done, the following will suffice at first; and on 150<i>l.</i> the -house will not only look nice but artistic too.</p> - -<p class="c"><span class="smcap">Dining-room.</span></p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="font-size:80%;"> -<tr><td align="left"> Bought of</td><td align="left"> </td> -<td class="rt">£</td> -<td class="rt"><i>s.</i></td> -<td class="rt"><i>d.</i></td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">A. and R. Smee </td><td align="left">Six oak-framed rush-seated chairs at 25<i>s.</i></td><td class="rt">7</td><td class="rt">10</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Maple</td><td align="left">Mahogany table</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Kidderminster square carpet</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">17</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Burnett</td><td align="left">Felt for curtains</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">4</td><td class="rt">9</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Whiteley</td><td align="left">Fender</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">7</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Fireirons</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">9</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"> </td><td align="left"> </td> -<td class="bt">£14</td> -<td class="bt">14</td> -<td class="bt">3</td></tr> -</table> - -<p class="nind">There were two deep cupboards in this special room, which rendered the -purchase of a sideboard unnecessary; if one be<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_224" id="page_224"></a>{224}</span> imperative, I recommend -the purchase of Maple’s ‘Vicarage’ suite of furniture at 20<i>l.</i> It is -both pretty and good, I <i>hear</i>; I have not actual personal experience of -it.</p> - -<p class="c"><span class="smcap">Drawing-room.</span></p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="font-size:80%;"> -<tr><td align="left"> Bought of</td><td align="left"> </td><td class="rt">£</td><td class="rt"><i>s.</i></td><td class="rt"><i>d.</i></td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Shoolbred</td><td align="left">Two squares of carpet</td><td align="left">3</td><td align="left">15</td><td align="left">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Maple</td><td align="left">Sofa and pillows, covered velveteen</td><td align="left">9</td><td align="left">2</td><td align="left">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Whiteley</td><td align="left">Fenders</td><td align="left">1</td><td align="left">5</td><td align="left">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Fireirons</td><td align="left">0</td><td align="left">15</td><td align="left">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Smee</td><td align="left">Walnut octagonal table</td><td align="left">5</td><td align="left">0</td><td align="left">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Stuffed arm-chair</td><td align="left">5</td><td align="left">18</td><td align="left">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Sutherland table</td><td align="left">2</td><td align="left">0</td><td align="left">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Low chair</td><td align="left">0</td><td align="left">16</td><td align="left">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Arm-chair in rush &c.</td><td align="left">1</td><td align="left">2</td><td align="left">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Walnut and rush easy chair</td><td align="left">2</td><td align="left">5</td><td align="left">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Whiteley</td><td align="left">Two low basket chairs</td><td align="left">1</td><td align="left">0</td><td align="left">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Cushions made at home</td><td align="left">0</td><td align="left">12</td><td align="left">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Burnett</td><td align="left">Cretonne for curtains &c.</td><td align="left">1</td><td align="left">10</td><td align="left">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Holroyd and Barker</td><td align="left">Muslin for second curtains</td><td align="left">0</td><td align="left">10</td><td align="left">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"> </td><td align="left"> </td> -<td class="bt">£35</td> -<td class="bt">12</td> -<td class="bt">6</td></tr> -</table> - -<p>I strongly advise in addition to this one of Messrs. Trübner’s excellent -revolving bookcases, of which a drawing was made in my dining-room -sketch. I consider no lover of books should be without one of these -invaluable bookcases.</p> - -<p class="c"><span class="smcap">Best Bedroom.</span></p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="font-size:80%;"> -<tr><td align="left"> Bought of</td><td align="left"> </td><td class="rt">£</td><td class="rt"><i>s.</i></td><td class="rt"><i>d.</i></td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Maple</td><td align="left">Black and brass bedstead</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Excelsior spring mattress</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">9</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Hair mattress</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">10</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Bolster</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">17</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Four pillows (5<i>s.</i> each)</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Smee</td><td align="left">Washing-stand</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Dressing-table and glass</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Maple</td><td align="left">Kidderminster square</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">14</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Smee</td><td align="left">Two pretty chairs (5<i>s.</i>)</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">10</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Maple</td><td align="left">Box ottoman</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">15</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Smee</td><td align="left">Chest of drawers</td><td class="rt">6</td><td class="rt">10</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Burnett</td><td align="left">Cretonne for curtains</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">15</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Smee</td><td align="left">Muslin for ditto (4½<i>d.</i>)</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">6</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Whiteley</td><td align="left">Fender</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">4</td><td class="rt">3</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Fireirons</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">11</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"> </td><td align="left"> </td> -<td class="bt">£34</td> -<td class="bt">9</td> -<td class="bt">8</td></tr> -</table> - -<p>Ware was in the possession of the young people, but a nice set can be -bought for 7<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, and even a little less; glass jug and glass for -1<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, at Douglas’s, the artistic glass-shop in Piccadilly.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_225" id="page_225"></a>{225}</span></p> - -<p class="c"><span class="smcap">Dressing-Room.</span></p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="font-size:80%;"> -<tr><td align="left"> Bought of</td><td></td><td class="rt">£</td><td class="rt"><i>s.</i></td><td class="rt"><i>d.</i></td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Treloar</td><td align="left">Rug on floor</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">12</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Whiteley</td><td align="left">Bath</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Watts</td><td align="left">Dressing-table and washing-stand combined</td><td class="rt">6</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Maple</td><td align="left">Wardrobe</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Set of ware &c.</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">8</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"> </td><td align="left"> </td> -<td class="bt">£13</td> -<td class="bt">6</td> -<td class="bt">6</td></tr> -</table> - -<p class="c"><span class="smcap">Spare Room.</span></p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="font-size:80%;"> -<tr><td align="left"> Bought of</td><td align="left"> </td><td class="rt">£</td><td class="rt"><i>s.</i></td><td class="rt"><i>d.</i></td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Maple</td><td align="left">Five-foot bedstead</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Excelsior mattress</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">9</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Hair mattress</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">10</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Bolster and pillows (4)</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">17</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Smee</td><td align="left">Washing-stand</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Dressing-table and glass, very deep drawers</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Two chairs (5<i>s.</i>)</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">10</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Chest of drawers</td><td class="rt">4</td><td class="rt">10</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Burnett</td><td align="left">Cretonne for curtains</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">15</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Smee</td><td align="left">Muslin <span class="ditto">“</span><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">6</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Treloar</td><td align="left">Kidderminster square</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Whiteley</td><td align="left">Fender</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">4</td><td class="rt">3</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Fireirons</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">11</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Set of ware</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"> </td><td align="left"> </td> -<td class="bt">£28</td> -<td class="bt">6</td> -<td class="bt">8</td></tr> -</table> - -<p class="c"><span class="smcap">Servant’s Room (one Maid).</span></p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="font-size:80%;"> -<tr><td align="left"> Bought of</td><td align="left"> </td><td class="rt">£</td><td class="rt"><i>s.</i></td><td class="rt"><i>d.</i></td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Maple</td><td align="left">Japanned bedstead</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">13</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Palliasse</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">6</td><td class="rt">9</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Mattress</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">10</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Bolster and pillow</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">9</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Dressing-table</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">4</td><td class="rt">9</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Toilet-glass</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Set of ware</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">9</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Chair</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Washing-stand</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Dhurries for bedside</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">10</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"> </td><td align="left"> </td> -<td class="bt">£4</td> -<td class="bt">5</td> -<td class="bt">1</td></tr> -</table> - -<p class="c"><span class="smcap">Staircase.</span></p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="font-size:80%;"> -<tr><td align="left"> Bought of</td><td align="left"> </td><td class="rt">£</td><td class="rt"><i>s.</i></td><td class="rt"><i>d.</i></td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Shoolbred</td><td align="left">Kalmuc stair-carpet</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">15</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Maple</td><td align="left">Umbrella-stand</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">12</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"><span class="ditto">“</span></td><td align="left">Hooks and rails for hats</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">15</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"> </td><td align="left"> </td> -<td class="bt">£4</td> -<td class="bt">2</td> -<td class="bt">0</td></tr> -</table> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_226" id="page_226"></a>{226}</span></p> - -<p class="c"><span class="smcap">Kitchen.</span></p> - -<p class="c">(Whiteley for all.)</p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="font-size:80%;"> -<tr><td> </td><td class="rt">£</td><td class="rt"><i>s.</i></td><td class="rt"><i>d.</i></td></tr> -<tr><td>Deal Table</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td>Two Chairs (3<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i>)</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">7</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td>Three cups and saucers (2¾<i>d.</i>)</td><td class="rt">0 </td><td class="rt"> 0</td><td class="rt">8¼</td></tr> -<tr><td>Three plates (2¼<i>d.</i>)</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">6¾</td></tr> -<tr><td>One bread-and-butter plate</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">4¾</td></tr> -<tr><td>Two bowls</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">4½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Set of jugs</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td>Bread-pan</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">6½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Four brown jars</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">11</td></tr> -<tr><td>Two pie-dishes</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">1½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Hot-water jug</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td>Slop-pail</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">4</td><td class="rt">9</td></tr> -<tr><td>Knife-tray</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td>Egg-whisk</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">7½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Fish-slice</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">10½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Mincing-knife</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">4½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Sugar-tin</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">3</td></tr> -<tr><td>Weights and scales</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">8</td><td class="rt">11</td></tr> -<tr><td>Pestle and mortar</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">3</td></tr> -<tr><td>Copper kettle</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">7</td><td class="rt">3</td></tr> -<tr><td>Two wire covers</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">3½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Sweep’s brush for stove</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">1½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Two stove-brushes</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">4</td></tr> -<tr><td>Banister brush</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td>Scrubbing-brushes</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">3½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Broom</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">11</td></tr> -<tr><td>Carpet-broom</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">11</td></tr> -<tr><td>Knifeboard</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">1½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Two plate-brushes</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">9½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Plate-polisher</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">6½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Salt-box</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">3½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Leather</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">1½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Housemaid’s box</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">3½</td></tr> -<tr><td>One fork-tin</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">6½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Colander</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">4½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Spice-box</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">11½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Cake-tin</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">7½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Tart-tins</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">5¾</td></tr> -<tr><td>Patty-pans</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">6½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Meat-saw</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">11½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Meat-chopper</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">11½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Coalscuttle</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">4</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td>Coal-hammer</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">10¾</td></tr> -<tr><td>Coal-shovel</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">3</td></tr> -<tr><td>Toast-fork</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">6½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Pepper-box</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">4¾</td></tr> -<tr><td>Tea-tray</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">11½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Paste jagger</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">11½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Two flat irons</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">9½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Pail</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">4½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Brass water-jug</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td>Japanned can</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">11</td></tr> -<tr><td>Two saucepans</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">9</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td>One saucepan</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">3</td></tr> -<tr><td>One saucepan</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">9½</td></tr> -<tr><td>‘Digester’</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">12</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td>Basting-ladle</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">11½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Two tin moulds</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td>Oval fryingpan</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">2½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Gridiron</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">9½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Fish-kettle</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">11</td></tr> -<tr><td>Tea-kettle</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">4</td><td class="rt">11</td></tr> -<tr><td>Knives</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">8¾</td></tr> -<tr><td>Dustpan</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">10¾</td></tr> -<tr><td>Bread-grater</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">7¾</td></tr> -<tr><td>Gravy-strainer</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">0½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Flour-dredger</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">7¾</td></tr> -<tr><td>Pasteboard</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">11½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Rolling-pin</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">9½</td></tr> -<tr><td>Steps</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">3</td></tr> -<tr><td>Set of dinner-ware</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td>Set of tea-ware</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">12</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td> </td> -<td class="bt">£11</td> -<td class="bt">2</td> -<td class="bt">1½</td></tr> -</table> - -<p class="c"><span class="smcap">Summary of all.</span></p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="font-size:80%;"> -<tr><td align="left"> </td><td class="rt">£</td><td class="rt"><i>s.</i></td><td class="rt"><i>d.</i></td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Dining-room</td><td class="rt">14</td><td class="rt">14</td><td class="rt">3</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Two drawing-rooms</td><td class="rt">35</td><td class="rt">12</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Best bedroom</td><td class="rt">34</td><td class="rt">9</td><td class="rt">8</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Spare room</td><td class="rt">28</td><td class="rt">6</td><td class="rt">8</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Servant’s room</td><td class="rt">4</td><td class="rt">5</td><td class="rt">1</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Staircase</td><td class="rt">4</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Kitchen things</td><td class="rt">11</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">1½</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Dressing-room</td><td class="rt">13</td><td class="rt">6</td><td class="rt">6</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"> </td> -<td class="bt">£145</td> -<td class="bt">18</td> -<td class="bt">3½</td></tr> -</table> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_227" id="page_227"></a>{227}</span></p> - -<p>Besides this we spent about 5<i>l.</i> on blankets and odds and ends; but all -house linen was given, and several other things. However, the above will -demonstrate how it is possible to furnish a small house on 150<i>l.</i>, and -have for this good, well-made furniture that will wear, and is not mere -cheap rubbish stuck together to sell, and not meant to last.</p> - -<p>To manage this satisfactorily it is necessary to keep one’s eyes open -and know precisely where to buy everything, for locality makes an -enormous difference, and different shops have always some one thing -cheaper than any other establishment; and while Whiteley will ask 1<i>s.</i> -4½<i>d.</i> for the glass globes that cost 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> at Shoolbred’s, -Shoolbred will sell for 3<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> a brass can that costs 4<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> -or 5<i>s.</i> everywhere else. To furnish cheaply and satisfactorily, -therefore, one’s eyes must be kept open, and one must know exactly where -to go for everything. And I may mention here, as a short and succinct -guide, that cretonnes are cheaper and better at Burnett’s, King Street, -Covent Garden, and at Colbourne’s, 82 Regent Street, than anywhere else; -that Maple’s Oriental rugs and carpets, matting, wall-papers, and -brasses are also the cheapest in the market. Wicker chairs are to be had -at Colbourne’s for 31<i>s.</i> 9<i>d.</i>, painted any colour with Aspinall’s -enamel, and cushioned and covered with cretonne or printed linen; that -artistic and beautiful draperies are to ha procured at Liberty’s and -Collinson and Lock’s, whose dearer cretonnes are unsurpassed; that Mr. -Arthur Smee’s furniture is the best and most artistic, in my opinion, in -London; that Stephens, 326 Regent Street, has the best and cheapest -Turkish embroidered antimacassars, and also possesses some beautiful and -inexpensive materials for curtains—notably a cheap brocade that is made -in exquisite colours and called Sicilian damask; that the brass rods and -ends for windows are to be had cheaper of Whiteley and Colbourne than -anywhere else, and are quite as good as the more expensive makes; -artistic pottery is to be had of Mr. Elliott, 18 Queen’s Road, -Bayswater; cheap chairs of Messrs. Harding Bros., Beaconsfield, Bucks; -and for all gas-fittings I strongly recommend Mr. Strode, 48 Osnaburgh -Street, Regent’s Park, N.W. I have tried all these firms for years, and -am speaking of them from experience entirely.</p> - -<p>It may not be out of place in my last chapter to mention the exact cost -of setting up and keeping a carriage; for by the time my readers have -come as far on their life’s journey as I have, they may reasonably -expect to have the great comfort and luxury of a modest equipage of -their own, than which there is no greater blessing in the world, and -which I would rather cling to than anything else I possess, and which -really does not cost half as much as the constant hiring of flys and -driving in cabs which are so dear to the heart of the orthodox British -matron, who goes on her weary round of society gaieties which<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_228" id="page_228"></a>{228}</span> she does -not really enjoy, little thinking how much happier she would be spending -her money in a thousand different ways.</p> - -<p>But one must keep one’s carriage with common-sense, like everything -else, and must not be under the thumb of one’s coachman, who must not be -allowed for one moment to buy his own corn &c., as no class receives -higher percentages than does the coachman who is allowed his own sweet -will in matters appertaining to the stable. A widow lady who cannot well -battle with tradesmen herself had much better apply to some good firm -like Withers and Co., of Oxford Street, who for a certain sum a year, -which varies according to the style of horse and man desired, will -provide everything, down to a safe place for the carriages, which can be -left unhesitatingly in their charge. But for a couple who desire to set -up their carriage and do not quite know how to do it, I think the -following will be sufficient guide for them:—</p> - -<p class="c"><span class="smcap">Estimated Cost of setting up one Horse and a Carriage.</span></p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="font-size:80%;"> -<tr><td align="left"> </td><td class="rt">£</td><td class="rt"><i>s.</i></td><td class="rt"><i>d.</i></td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Good horse (should be bought in the country if possible)</td><td class="rt">50</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Set of good single harness (Stores)</td><td class="rt">7</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Brushes, leathers, sponges, &c. (Shoolbred)</td><td class="rt">2</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Rugs, rollers, &c. (Shoolbred)</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Brougham or victoria (Holland and Holland)</td><td class="rt">175</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Coachman’s livery (Goodall and Graham, Conduit Street)</td><td class="rt">10</td><td class="rt">11</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Boots—less discount (Thierry, Regent Street)</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Stable suit (Goodall and Graham)</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Mackintosh (Goodall and Graham)</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">10</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Mackintosh rug (Whiteley)</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">10</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Mats (Holland and Holland)</td><td class="rt">1</td><td class="rt">10</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Carriage rugs (Swears and Wells)</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"> </td> -<td class="bt">£261</td> -<td class="bt">1</td> -<td class="bt">6</td></tr> -</table> - -<p>Of course the carriage need not cost as much; but, if possible, a new -carriage is to be preferred to a second-hand one. Still, at Holland and -Holland’s, Oxford Street, W., one can often, especially at the end of -the season, pick up a second-hand carriage very cheaply, and at such a -place as this one can be sure that no rubbish is being bought; but sales -should be avoided, as should advertisements, and if a second-hand -carriage is necessary I strongly advise intending purchasers to go to -Holland and Holland and ask them to keep their eyes open, remembering, -likewise, that at the end of the season one is far more likely to do a -good stroke of business in this way than at any other time of the year. -In our climate, if only one carriage can be kept, a brougham is to be -preferred to any other; this makes one independent of weather entirely, -and one’s garments do not become as dusty and spoiled as they invariably -do in an open vehicle. Once the carriage is purchased, we have to -consider the cost of keeping it up, which, of course, varies -considerably in every<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_229" id="page_229"></a>{229}</span> locality, but I think the account given below -strikes the average, and allows the outside cost of everything. Of -course, very often the rent of the stables is covered in the rent of the -house, which includes also a place for the coachman.</p> - -<p class="c"><span class="smcap">Estimated Cost of keeping one Horse and Carriage.</span></p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="font-size:80%;"><tr><td align="left"> </td><td class="rt">£</td><td class="rt"><i>s.</i></td><td class="rt"><i>d.</i></td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Coachman’s wages (from 23<i>s.</i> to 25<i>s.</i>, say)</td><td class="rt">62</td><td class="rt">8</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Livery</td><td class="rt">13</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Corn, straw, hay, &c.</td><td class="rt">40</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Shoeing</td><td class="rt">3</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Repairs &c.</td><td class="rt">26</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left">Rent of stable &c.</td><td class="rt">20</td><td class="rt">0</td><td class="rt">0</td></tr> -<tr><td align="left"> </td> -<td class="bt">£164</td> -<td class="bt">8</td> -<td class="bt">0</td></tr> -</table> - -<p>‘Repairs &c.’ include ‘depreciation,’ which is calculated on 20 per -cent. of estimated value of whole, less livery, otherwise provided for. -Of course, a second horse could be added for about 40<i>l.</i> a year more, -good double harness being procurable at from 18<i>l.</i> to 20<i>l.</i></p> - -<p>Passing from the carriage to dwell for a moment on the great dress -question, which is a most serious one in these days of ours, I find I -can really lay down no laws on this subject, but I strongly advise all -young brides who cannot afford a maid to learn dressmaking for -themselves, or to search out some place where, for a reasonable cost, -the renovating of dresses and simple making can be carried on for her, -or else she will soon find herself in difficulties. Her under-linen in -her trousseau should last her ten or twelve years at least, and with -ordinary care her trousseau dresses should, with judicious management, -last her quite two years; this gets over the worst part of one’s life as -regards pecuniary bothers, as a rule; but the less she can spend on -dress the better, always allowing herself enough to look nice and be -tidy on. A man can dress himself well on 30<i>l.</i> a year, and a woman can -do likewise on 50<i>l.</i>, but this requires, in both cases, the most -careful management, while the average cost of a child is from 10<i>l.</i> to -15<i>l.</i> Women with small means will do much better if they confine -themselves to one colour, and would look much nicer at a far less cost -if they would only purchase things to match; but English people, as a -rule, only buy things because they like them, never considering whether -they possess already any garment at home with which the new possession -will harmonise or agree entirely. Brown and red are good colours for -winter nowadays when so many people have seal-skins; greys are good -shades for summer, the ever-useful serge and washing silks looking -always delightfully cool and ladylike.</p> - -<p>Our book, now rapidly coming to a conclusion, would not be complete -without one word about the ‘garret’—otherwise the box-room—which, all -too often, is a storehouse for all sorts and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_230" id="page_230"></a>{230}</span> conditions of rubbish, put -up there in a desperate hope that, sooner or later, the odds and ends -will come in usefully. There cannot be a greater mistake than hoarding, -and I strongly advise my readers never to allow this to be done. If -one’s clothes when worn out are not fit for one’s poorer friends, I -suggest some respectable dealer should be applied to, and that they -should be sold. I am aware this sounds an awful proposition to most -people, but how rarely are our dresses suitable for those who would wear -cast-off raiment? while, if we sell them, we can give the money in -charity, or buy pictures or flowers for our rooms. Still, if this should -be repugnant to the feelings of my readers, they can always send all -their rubbish to the Kilburn Orphanage of Mercy, the good sisters there -being able to use to the veriest fragment all they receive, and which -does then immediate good.</p> - -<p>Let the box-room or garret be thoroughly turned out and investigated -once every three months; keep there all pieces of paper similar to the -papers on your walls for mending purposes, and any travelling trunks or -boxes that may be wanted; but do not accumulate rubbish of any kind. -Even sentimental rubbish should be destroyed at once; when we die it -will be done by hands which are not as tender as ours are, and no good -is done by hoarding all sorts and kinds of letters and flowers, or even -babies’ first shoes. They may mean life itself to us; they will be -nothing but the veriest rubbish to our successors.</p> - -<p>Standing as it were in the garret, our long work of revising and writing -this book at last drawing to a conclusion, and feeling sad, as one -always feels when parting with an occupation that has been on one’s mind -for many a month, I should like to say a few words on that saddest of -all subjects, a death in the house—only a few words; but a house that -has never known a death is indeed an almost impossible thing to -contemplate, and so our record would not be complete without this. Thank -Heaven, we look out with brighter eyes on the other country than did our -ancestors, but we have still many customs to leave off, many others we -could adopt with benefit from the relics of past days.</p> - -<p>I would advocate great cheerfulness about our dead. They should never be -left alone, and candles and bright flowers should fill the room; where, -had I my way, the blessed sunshine should stream in always, gloom should -be discouraged, and the service with its music and the coloured pall -should suggest not our grief but the gain of those who, even to the -agnostic of the period, appear at rest, and can most certainly never -weary or hunger any more; while to us who hope to look beyond these -shadows their happiness should overshadow our grief entirely. Still, -whichever way we look on the silence that surrounds our little life, -there are certain things that I would urge on the survivors. Let all the -personal linen and garments of the dead friend be at<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_231" id="page_231"></a>{231}</span> once sent to -Kilburn, or to Miss Hinton’s, A. F. D. Society, 4 York Place, Clifton. -These garments are distributed at once among the families of poor -clergymen, and so immediately benefit a most deserving class. Do not -permit any hoarding (I once knew a whole valuable wardrobeful of clothes -consumed by the moth, because the widow’s feelings did not allow of the -garments being disturbed, though they were not too acute to prevent her -becoming engaged to be married before the year was out); and, above all, -burn all letters that may be left <i>unread</i>; this will save endless -mischief, and should be done at once. No one knows who may be the next -to depart and be no more seen, and so this should not be delayed any -longer than is possible.</p> - -<p>It is far better to do these things at once. If we close the room in -which our beloved have passed away, and think time will enable us to -face the task with more boldness, we shall find we are grievously -mistaken; the longer we put it off the worse it will be, and we shall -not forget them any quicker because their own possessions have been -given to those who can benefit by them. Each thing in life should always -be in use; hoarding of any kind in a garret is useless, and wicked too.</p> - -<p>And now I have come to the last hint, I think, I have to give my young -householders. Of course, the subject is practically inexhaustible, and -enlarges itself for one every day we live; but I have given you all my -own experience up to the present date, and if it should save one young -couple the mistakes I made in my first start in life, or give them the -help I should have been so glad of myself twenty years ago, I shall feel -I have not spent my time in vain; while let no one despise the homely -subject, for it is our first duty in life to try and make our homes so -bright and beautiful and pleasant that they may shed radiance on all in -their immediate neighbourhood, setting the example that is worth so very -much precept, and be like good deeds, ‘shining like a candle in this -naughty world.’ Let love, beauty, carefulness, and economy rule your -lives, O young householders! and then you will find that life is the -most interesting thing possible, and is always, to the very last day of -it, well worth the trouble of living.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_232" id="page_232"></a>{232}</span></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_233" id="page_233"></a>{233}</span></p> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="INDEX" id="INDEX"></a>INDEX.</h2> - -<p class="c"><a href="#A">A</a>, -<a href="#B">B</a>, -<a href="#C">C</a>, -<a href="#D">D</a>, -<a href="#E">E</a>, -<a href="#F">F</a>, -<a href="#G">G</a>, -<a href="#H">H</a>, -<a href="#I-i">I</a>, -<a href="#J">J</a>, -<a href="#K">K</a>, -<a href="#L">L</a>, -<a href="#M">M</a>, -<a href="#N">N</a>, -<a href="#O">O</a>, -<a href="#P">P</a>, -<a href="#Q">Q</a>, -<a href="#R">R</a>, -<a href="#S">S</a>, -<a href="#T">T</a>, -<a href="#U">U</a>, -<a href="#V-i">V</a>, -<a href="#W">W</a>, -<a href="#Y">Y</a></p> - -<p class="nind"> -<a name="A" id="A"></a>Absurd arrangement of our houses, <a href="#page_171">171</a>, <a href="#page_172">172</a><br /> - -Account book, leaf from an, <a href="#page_24">24</a><br /> - -Accounts, <a href="#page_23">23-25</a><br /> - -A. F. D. Society, Miss Hinton’s, <a href="#page_231">231</a><br /> - -Afternoon teas, <a href="#page_209">209</a>, <a href="#page_210">210</a><br /> - -Airing bedroom, <a href="#page_115">115</a>, <a href="#page_116">116</a><br /> - -— beds, <a href="#page_116">116</a><br /> - -— nursery, <a href="#page_170">170</a><br /> - -‘Allowancing’ servants, <a href="#page_154">154</a><br /> - -American cloth, <a href="#page_77">77</a><br /> - -Angelina’s bedroom, <a href="#page_103">103</a><br /> - -— private duster, <a href="#page_125">125</a><br /> - -— wardrobe, <a href="#page_121">121</a><br /> - -Antimacassars, <a href="#page_74">74</a><br /> - -— Stephens’, <a href="#page_227">227</a><br /> - -— Turkish, <a href="#page_84">84</a><br /> - -A place for everything, <a href="#page_129">129</a><br /> - -Apple shape, <a href="#page_220">220</a><br /> - -Arm-chair, <a href="#page_62">62-64</a><br /> - -Arm-chairs, Colbourne’s, <a href="#page_62">62</a><br /> - -— tapestry for covering, Maple’s, <a href="#page_62">62</a><br /> - -Arsenic in wall-paper, <a href="#page_69">69</a><br /> - -Art and the bitter lot of the poor, <a href="#page_7">7</a><br /> - -— colours, <a href="#page_7">7</a><br /> - -— furniture, <a href="#page_7">7</a><br /> - -Artistic corners, <a href="#page_84">84</a><br /> - -Aspinall’s paint, <a href="#page_68">68</a>, <a href="#page_76">76</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="B" id="B">B</a>abies, baths for, <a href="#page_189">189</a><br /> - -— clothing, <a href="#page_185">185</a>, <a href="#page_186">186</a><br /> - -— cow’s milk for, <a href="#page_163">163</a><br /> - -— garments, <a href="#page_185">185</a><br /> - -— special theories about, <a href="#page_162">162</a><br /> - -Babies, their berceaunettes, <a href="#page_170">170</a>, <a href="#page_171">171</a>, <a href="#page_173">173</a>, <a href="#page_174">174</a><br /> - -Baby-talk, stupid, <a href="#page_172">172</a><br /> - -Back of piano exposed, remedy for, <a href="#page_86">86</a>, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -Baker Street vases, <a href="#page_77">77</a><br /> - -Bamboo brackets (Liberty’s, and at Baker Street Bazaar), <a href="#page_75">75</a><br /> - -Basket chairs, <a href="#page_74">74</a><br /> - -Baskets for soiled linen, palm-leaved, <a href="#page_121">121</a><br /> - -Bath and bath blankets, <a href="#page_138">138</a>, <a href="#page_139">139</a><br /> - -Beaconsfield chairs, <a href="#page_75">75</a>, <a href="#page_132">132</a><br /> - -Beaufort ware, <a href="#page_126">126</a><br /> - -Beautiful things, making them common, <a href="#page_7">7</a><br /> - -Bed airing, <a href="#page_115">115</a><br /> - -— gowns, <a href="#page_188">188</a><br /> - -— making, <a href="#page_103">103</a><br /> - -— pocket, <a href="#page_116">116</a><br /> - -Bedroom brackets, <a href="#page_120">120</a><br /> - -— carpet, <a href="#page_103">103</a>, <a href="#page_104">104</a><br /> - -— chairs, <a href="#page_131">131</a><br /> - -— cupboards, <a href="#page_106">106-107</a><br /> - -— curtains, <a href="#page_107">107</a><br /> - -— door fittings, <a href="#page_107">107</a><br /> - -— match-boxes, <a href="#page_116">116</a><br /> - -— paper, <a href="#page_46">46</a>, <a href="#page_105">105</a>, <a href="#page_106">106</a>, <a href="#page_107">107</a>, <a href="#page_108">108</a><br /> - -— — colour for, <a href="#page_104">104</a>, <a href="#page_106">106</a><br /> - -— screen, <a href="#page_112">112</a><br /> - -— ware, <a href="#page_126">126</a><br /> - -— windows, muslin for, <a href="#page_92">92</a><br /> - -— — too many, <a href="#page_4">4</a><br /> - -Bedrooms, <a href="#page_4">4</a>, <a href="#page_5">5</a><br /> - -— colour for, <a href="#page_103">103</a><br /> - -— papering ceilings of, <a href="#page_107">107</a><br /> - -Beds for servants, 152<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_234" id="page_234"></a>{234}</span><br /> - -Bedside, table near, <a href="#page_116">116</a><br /> - -Bedstead, brass or iron, the best, <a href="#page_113">113</a><br /> - -— wooden, <a href="#page_112">112</a><br /> - -Beef, cold, <a href="#page_28">28</a><br /> - -— olives, <a href="#page_220">220</a><br /> - -Beer, <a href="#page_25">25</a><br /> - -Beginning housekeeping, <a href="#page_25">25</a>, <a href="#page_26">26</a><br /> - -Bellows for dining-room, <a href="#page_68">68</a><br /> - -Benson’s lamps, <a href="#page_102">102</a><br /> - -Berceaunettes, <a href="#page_173">173</a>, <a href="#page_174">174</a><br /> - -‘Berry’ paper, <a href="#page_46">46</a><br /> - -Bills, regular payment of, <a href="#page_20">20</a>, <a href="#page_22">22</a>, <a href="#page_23">23</a><br /> - -Biscuit-box, <a href="#page_34">34</a><br /> - -Black-lead, <a href="#page_85">85</a><br /> - -Blankets, Witney, <a href="#page_114">114</a><br /> - -Blinds and their rollers, doing away with, <a href="#page_91">91</a>, <a href="#page_95">95</a><br /> - -Blue and white paper for bachelor’s spare room, Chappel & Payne’s, <a href="#page_151">151</a><br /> - -Boarding-school plan a mistake, <a href="#page_204">204</a><br /> - -Bohemian ware, <a href="#page_31">31</a><br /> - -Boiled rabbit, <a href="#page_28">28</a><br /> - -Bolton sheeting, <a href="#page_188">188</a><br /> - -Bookcase, bedroom, <a href="#page_133">133</a><br /> - -— velveteen cover, <a href="#page_73">73</a><br /> - -Bookcases, revolving American, <a href="#page_72">72</a>, <a href="#page_73">73</a><br /> - -Books for spare rooms, <a href="#page_147">147</a>, <a href="#page_148">148</a><br /> - -Boudoir, spare room made into, <a href="#page_142">142</a><br /> - -Bow-windowed villas, window-seats in, <a href="#page_59">59</a>, <a href="#page_92">92</a><br /> - -Bow-windows, curtains for, <a href="#page_92">92</a>, <a href="#page_93">93</a><br /> - -Box ottomans for bedrooms, <a href="#page_106">106</a>, <a href="#page_110">110</a><br /> - -— — — — Maple’s, <a href="#page_106">106</a><br /> - -— — — hats and bonnets, <a href="#page_130">130</a><br /> - -— pincushions, <a href="#page_119">119</a><br /> - -— room, <a href="#page_142">142</a><br /> - -Brackets, <a href="#page_133">133</a><br /> - -Brandy the one spirituous liquor that should be kept in a house, <a href="#page_72">72</a><br /> - -Brass brush for dining-room, <a href="#page_68">68</a><br /> - -— door handles best, <a href="#page_80">80</a><br /> - -— fire-irons, <a href="#page_85">85</a><br /> - -— fittings for bedroom doors, Maple’s <a href="#page_106">106</a>, <a href="#page_107">107</a><br /> - -— headed nails, <a href="#page_80">80</a><br /> - -— kettle, <a href="#page_72">72</a><br /> - -Brass pots, <a href="#page_88">88</a><br /> - -— pots for palms, Hampton’s, <a href="#page_88">88</a><br /> - -Bread, <a href="#page_19">19</a><br /> - -— brown, <a href="#page_27">27</a><br /> - -— knives, Mappin & Webb’s, <a href="#page_35">35</a><br /> - -— price of, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -— stands, <a href="#page_35">35</a><br /> - -— wasted, <a href="#page_16">16</a><br /> - -Bread-pan with cover, <a href="#page_16">16</a><br /> - -Breakfast, <a href="#page_26">26</a>, <a href="#page_27">27</a>, <a href="#page_34">34</a><br /> - -— table, <a href="#page_32">32</a>, <a href="#page_35">35</a><br /> - -— — gloomy, <a href="#page_5">5</a><br /> - -— — punctuality, <a href="#page_14">14</a>, <a href="#page_15">15</a><br /> - -Brewers, <a href="#page_25">25</a><br /> - -Bromley, <a href="#page_3">3</a><br /> - -Brooks, Shirley, <a href="#page_27">27</a><br /> - -Brougham, cost of, <a href="#page_228">228</a><br /> - -Brushes and combs, <a href="#page_122">122</a>, <a href="#page_123">123</a>, <a href="#page_223">223</a><br /> - -Brushing under beds, <a href="#page_116">116</a><br /> - -Buckland, Frank, <a href="#page_19">19</a><br /> - -Burnett, address of, <a href="#page_227">227</a><br /> - -Burnett’s ‘Marguerite’ cretonne curtains, <a href="#page_34">34</a><br /> - -— serges, <a href="#page_84">84</a><br /> - -Bush Hill Park, <a href="#page_3">3</a><br /> - -Butchers, <a href="#page_25">25</a><br /> - -Butter, cost of, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -Buyers of bottles, rags, &c., <a href="#page_17">17</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="C" id="C">C</a>abinet pudding, <a href="#page_216">216</a><br /> - -Cabinets, <a href="#page_73">73</a>, <a href="#page_74">74</a><br /> - -— made by Smee, <a href="#page_74">74</a><br /> - -‘Calls,’ doing away with, <a href="#page_89">89</a><br /> - -Canadian custom respecting carpets, <a href="#page_96">96</a>, <a href="#page_97">97</a><br /> - -Candle shields, <a href="#page_101">101</a>, <a href="#page_120">120</a><br /> - -Candlesticks, Liberty’s, <a href="#page_45">45</a>, <a href="#page_64">64</a><br /> - -Carbolic acid, <a href="#page_13">13</a><br /> - -Careless housemaid, <a href="#page_85">85</a><br /> - -— servants, <a href="#page_29">29</a><br /> - -Carlyle, Mr. and Mrs., <a href="#page_7">7</a><br /> - -Carpentry, amateur, <a href="#page_4">4</a>, <a href="#page_110">110</a><br /> - -Carpet designs, Mr. Morris’s, <a href="#page_97">97</a><br /> - -— for drawing-room, <a href="#page_80">80</a>, <a href="#page_81">81</a>, <a href="#page_82">82</a><br /> - -— royal blue, Colbourne’s, <a href="#page_97">97</a><br /> - -Carpets, <a href="#page_4">4</a>, <a href="#page_5">5</a><br /> - -— hints about, <a href="#page_96">96</a>, <a href="#page_97">97</a><br /> - -— Oriental, <a href="#page_98">98</a><br /> - -— Wilton, <a href="#page_98">98</a><br /> - -Carriage, cost of keeping a, <a href="#page_227">227</a>, <a href="#page_228">228</a>, <a href="#page_229">229</a><br /> - -— rugs, rollers, &c., cost of, 228<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_235" id="page_235"></a>{235}</span><br /> - -Carrot soup, <a href="#page_216">216</a><br /> - -Carson’s ‘detergent,’ <a href="#page_49">49</a>, <a href="#page_109">109</a><br /> - -Cauliflower <i>au gratin</i>, <a href="#page_213">213</a><br /> - -Centre-piece, <a href="#page_34">34</a>, <a href="#page_35">35</a><br /> - -Chairs, bedroom, <a href="#page_131">131</a><br /> - -— dining-room, <a href="#page_5">5</a>, <a href="#page_51">51</a><br /> - -— embellished by carvings, <a href="#page_51">51</a><br /> - -— Harding Bros.’, <a href="#page_52">52</a><br /> - -— Liberty’s, <a href="#page_85">85</a><br /> - -— New Zealand pine, for dining-room, <a href="#page_51">51</a><br /> - -— (rush-seated, black-framed) for dining-room, <a href="#page_52">52</a><br /> - -— Smee’s, <a href="#page_52">52</a><br /> - -Chambers, large, airy, <a href="#page_160">160</a><br /> - -Chappel & Payne, address of, <a href="#page_151">151</a><br /> - -Charming chair for drawing-room (rush-seated), <a href="#page_85">85</a><br /> - -Checked muslin for bedroom windows, <a href="#page_92">92</a><br /> - -Cheerful surroundings, <a href="#page_7">7</a><br /> - -Cheese fondus, <a href="#page_214">214</a><br /> - -— soufflés, <a href="#page_217">217</a><br /> - -— straws, <a href="#page_219">219</a><br /> - -Cheval glass, <a href="#page_122">122</a><br /> - -Chickens, <a href="#page_20">20</a>, <a href="#page_28">28</a><br /> - -Child of the period, the, <a href="#page_162">162</a><br /> - -Children and inherited tendencies, <a href="#page_191">191</a><br /> - -— amusing themselves, <a href="#page_178">178</a><br /> - -— authors for, <a href="#page_197">197</a><br /> - -— collecting pretty things around them, <a href="#page_179">179</a><br /> - -— destructive and untidy, <a href="#page_177">177</a><br /> - -— diet for, <a href="#page_195">195</a><br /> - -— grown-up, <a href="#page_206">206</a>, <a href="#page_207">207</a><br /> - -— helping their elders, <a href="#page_175">175</a><br /> - -— hour for rising, <a href="#page_176">176</a><br /> - -— hours for studying, <a href="#page_195">195</a>, <a href="#page_196">196</a><br /> - -— importance of quiet and regularity for, <a href="#page_164">164</a><br /> - -— — — sunshine for, <a href="#page_192">192</a><br /> - -— punishing, <a href="#page_196">196</a><br /> - -— spoiling them, <a href="#page_161">161</a><br /> - -— teaching them self-control, <a href="#page_175">175</a><br /> - -— the home they were born in, <a href="#page_208">208</a><br /> - -Children’s breakfast, <a href="#page_195">195</a><br /> - -— dress, <a href="#page_200">200</a><br /> - -— education, <a href="#page_195">195</a><br /> - -Chimneys, <a href="#page_5">5</a><br /> - -China, Crown, Derby, and Worcester, <a href="#page_33">33</a><br /> - -— gilt on, <a href="#page_32">32</a><br /> - -China, Minton’s ivy-patterned, <a href="#page_32">32</a><br /> - -— Oriental, <a href="#page_34">34</a><br /> - -— real, <a href="#page_33">33</a><br /> - -Chippendale chairs, <a href="#page_51">51</a><br /> - -— furniture, <a href="#page_8">8</a><br /> - -Chocolate cream, <a href="#page_217">217</a><br /> - -Choosing rooms, <a href="#page_7">7</a><br /> - -Cigars in drawing-room, <a href="#page_86">86</a><br /> - -Clean brush and comb in toilet drawer, <a href="#page_122">122</a><br /> - -Clear soup, <a href="#page_213">213</a><br /> - -Clock, necessity for, in spare rooms, <a href="#page_147">147</a>, <a href="#page_149">149</a><br /> - -Clocks, Oetzmann’s, <a href="#page_64">64</a><br /> - -Coachman’s livery, cost of, <a href="#page_228">228</a><br /> - -Coats hanging in rooms, <a href="#page_85">85</a><br /> - -Coffee, <a href="#page_34">34</a><br /> - -— cost of, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -Colbourne, Messrs, address of, <a href="#page_62">62</a><br /> - -College pudding, <a href="#page_220">220</a><br /> - -Colours for bedrooms, <a href="#page_149">149</a><br /> - -Combination dressing-table and washing-stand, Watts’s, <a href="#page_136">136</a><br /> - -Common sense, <a href="#page_6">6</a><br /> - -‘Confound baby!’, <a href="#page_124">124</a><br /> - -Conservatory, tiny, <a href="#page_2">2</a><br /> - -Cook, overburdened, <a href="#page_9">9</a><br /> - -— thoughtful, <a href="#page_17">17</a>, <a href="#page_18">18</a><br /> - -Cooks, ‘experienced,’ <a href="#page_18">18</a><br /> - -Cost of dinner, <a href="#page_217">217</a>, <a href="#page_219">219</a><br /> - -Cottage piano, <a href="#page_86">86</a><br /> - -Counterpanes, <a href="#page_116">116</a><br /> - -Cradles, <a href="#page_173">173</a>, <a href="#page_174">174</a><br /> - -Credit, nothing so dear as, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -Cretonne, <a href="#page_47">47</a>, <a href="#page_82">82</a><br /> - -— curtain, <a href="#page_69">69</a>, <a href="#page_71">71</a>, <a href="#page_94">94</a><br /> - -— on mantelpiece, <a href="#page_77">77</a><br /> - -Croquettes of chickens, <a href="#page_218">218</a><br /> - -Cruet-stands, <a href="#page_34">34</a><br /> - -Cupboards forgotten, <a href="#page_4">4</a><br /> - -— small, <a href="#page_106">106</a>, <a href="#page_107">107</a><br /> - -Curried kidneys, <a href="#page_216">216</a><br /> - -Curtain, bedroom, <a href="#page_134">134</a><br /> - -— rods, bedroom, <a href="#page_131">131</a><br /> - -— — Maple’s, <a href="#page_41">41</a><br /> - -Curtains, <a href="#page_4">4</a>, <a href="#page_5">5</a>, <a href="#page_82">82</a><br /> - -— <i>v.</i> screens, <a href="#page_112">112</a><br /> - -Cutlets <i>à la réforme</i>, <a href="#page_213">213</a><br /> - -— of cod, <a href="#page_216">216</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="D" id="D">D</a>ado, Collison and Lock’s, <a href="#page_82">82</a><br /> - -— in dining-room, <a href="#page_58">58</a><br /> - -— in drawing-room, <a href="#page_78">78</a><br /> - -— leather paper for, 56<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_236" id="page_236"></a>{236}</span><br /> - -Dado rail, Maple’s, <a href="#page_56">56</a><br /> - -— Treloar’s, <a href="#page_46">46</a><br /> - -Damasks, Stephens’ ‘Sicilienne,’ <a href="#page_93">93</a><br /> - -Day nursery, <a href="#page_164">164</a><br /> - -Deal dressing-tables, <a href="#page_118">118</a><br /> - -Decorating drawing-room, <a href="#page_82">82</a><br /> - -‘Demon builder,’ the, <a href="#page_160">160</a><br /> - -Dessert service, Hewett’s, <a href="#page_32">32</a><br /> - -— — Mortlock’s, <a href="#page_33">33</a><br /> - -‘Digesters,’ <a href="#page_17">17</a><br /> - -Dining-room, <a href="#page_5">5</a>, <a href="#page_6">6</a>, <a href="#page_7">7</a>, <a href="#page_8">8</a>, <a href="#page_27">27</a>, <a href="#page_49">49-68</a><br /> - -— mantelpiece, <a href="#page_64">64</a>, <a href="#page_65">65</a>, <a href="#page_66">66</a><br /> - -— walls, <a href="#page_56">56</a><br /> - -Dining-rooms, orthodox, <a href="#page_7">7</a><br /> - -Dinner, complete cost of, <a href="#page_213">213</a><br /> - -— service, best, <a href="#page_29">29</a><br /> - -— sets, Mortlock’s, <a href="#page_31">31</a><br /> - -— waggons, <a href="#page_54">54</a><br /> - -Disagreeable details, <a href="#page_9">9</a><br /> - -Dishes, <a href="#page_30">30</a><br /> - -Disinfectants, <a href="#page_14">14</a><br /> - -Doctors’ bills, <a href="#page_23">23</a>, <a href="#page_25">25</a>, <a href="#page_201">201</a><br /> - -Domestic problems, <a href="#page_206">206</a><br /> - -‘Do nothing in a hurry,’ <a href="#page_9">9</a><br /> - -Door front, <a href="#page_47">47</a>, <a href="#page_48">48</a><br /> - -— — brass stand behind, <a href="#page_42">42</a><br /> - -— — double curtains for, <a href="#page_41">41</a>, <a href="#page_42">42</a><br /> - -Double tray tables, <a href="#page_84">84</a><br /> - -Dr. Chevasse, <a href="#page_181">181</a><br /> - -— — books by, for young mothers, <a href="#page_181">181</a><br /> - -Drain disinfectant, <a href="#page_14">14</a><br /> - -Drainage, <a href="#page_4">4</a><br /> - -Drains, <a href="#page_13">13</a>, <a href="#page_14">14</a><br /> - -— time for seeing to, <a href="#page_14">14</a><br /> - -Draped alcove, Collison & Lock’s design, <a href="#page_112">112</a><br /> - -Drawing-room, <a href="#page_5">5</a>, <a href="#page_60">60</a>, <a href="#page_67">67</a>, <a href="#page_71">71</a>, <a href="#page_76">76</a>, <a href="#page_77">77</a><br /> - -— blue wooden mantelpiece for, <a href="#page_80">80</a><br /> - -— carpet, Colbourne’s, <a href="#page_81">81</a><br /> - -— — Maple’s, <a href="#page_80">80</a><br /> - -— — Shoolbred’s, <a href="#page_80">80</a><br /> - -— — Smee’s, <a href="#page_81">81</a><br /> - -— — Treloar’s, <a href="#page_80">80</a>, <a href="#page_82">82</a><br /> - -— colour for, <a href="#page_78">78</a>, <a href="#page_80">80</a>, <a href="#page_82">82</a><br /> - -— curtains, <a href="#page_93">93</a><br /> - -— essentially a best room, <a href="#page_86">86</a><br /> - -— mistress’s corner, <a href="#page_84">84</a><br /> - -— tea-table for, <a href="#page_89">89</a><br /> - -Dress and personal appearance of daughters, <a href="#page_206">206</a><br /> - -— cost of, for man and wife, <a href="#page_229">229</a><br /> - -Dress, wife’s, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -Dressing jackets invaluable, <a href="#page_188">188</a><br /> - -— gown, <a href="#page_188">188</a><br /> - -— room, <a href="#page_128">128</a><br /> - -— table and washing-stand combined, <a href="#page_136">136</a><br /> - -— tables, price of, <a href="#page_118">118</a><br /> - -— — should not be dust-traps, <a href="#page_119">119</a><br /> - -— — Smee’s, <a href="#page_118">118</a><br /> - -Drugget, hard-wearing, Pither’s, <a href="#page_46">46</a><br /> - -Dulwich, <a href="#page_3">3</a><br /> - -Duplex burners, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -Dustbin, <a href="#page_4">4</a>, <a href="#page_10">10</a>, <a href="#page_14">14</a><br /> - -— not a necessity, <a href="#page_18">18</a><br /> - -Dusters, <a href="#page_36">36</a><br /> - -Dust-sheets for furniture, <a href="#page_36">36</a><br /> - -Dyeing, Pullar’s, <a href="#page_41">41</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="E" id="E">E</a>clairs, <a href="#page_214">214</a><br /> - -Edwin’s dressing room, <a href="#page_135">135</a><br /> - -— — substantial dado for, <a href="#page_138">138</a><br /> - -Eider-down quilts, <a href="#page_114">114</a><br /> - -Eggs, <a href="#page_30">30</a><br /> - -Electric light, <a href="#page_98">98</a><br /> - -‘Eligible residences,’ <a href="#page_3">3</a><br /> - -Elliot, Mr., <a href="#page_73">73</a><br /> - -— — address of, <a href="#page_45">45</a><br /> - -Enamel paints, <a href="#page_62">62</a><br /> - -Enfield, <a href="#page_3">3</a><br /> - -‘Excelsior’ mattresses for spare rooms, <a href="#page_143">143</a><br /> - -— spring mattress, <a href="#page_114">114</a>, <a href="#page_143">143</a><br /> - -Exhibiting baby, danger of, <a href="#page_175">175</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="F" id="F">F</a>ashion and folly, <a href="#page_4">4</a><br /> - -Feather beds, <a href="#page_114">114</a><br /> - -Ferns and immortelles for toilet-table, <a href="#page_123">123</a><br /> - -Field & Co.’s candle shields, <a href="#page_111">111</a><br /> - -Finchley, <a href="#page_3">3</a><br /> - -Finger-glasses, <a href="#page_31">31</a><br /> - -Fire-keeping, recipe for, <a href="#page_67">67</a><br /> - -Fireplaces, <a href="#page_5">5</a>, <a href="#page_68">68</a><br /> - -— misplaced, <a href="#page_4">4</a><br /> - -Fires, benefit from, in winter and summer, <a href="#page_124">124</a><br /> - -— in bedrooms, benefit of, <a href="#page_124">124</a><br /> - -First babies, <a href="#page_162">162</a>, <a href="#page_175">175</a><br /> - -— — washing them, <a href="#page_189">189</a><br /> - -Fish, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -— contracts for, 28<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_237" id="page_237"></a>{237}</span><br /> - -Fish Market, Central, <a href="#page_19">19</a><br /> - -— markets, <a href="#page_19">19</a><br /> - -Fittings, <a href="#page_37">37</a><br /> - -Five o’clock tea, <a href="#page_89">89</a><br /> - -Flannel pilches, <a href="#page_185">185</a><br /> - -Flock papers, <a href="#page_2">2</a><br /> - -Floor (bedroom), staining all over, <a href="#page_116">116</a><br /> - -Floral paper for spare room, <a href="#page_150">150</a><br /> - -— — Maple’s, <a href="#page_150">150</a><br /> - -Flour, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -Flowers in bedrooms, <a href="#page_123">123</a><br /> - -Foot-baths, <a href="#page_127">127</a><br /> - -Footstools for dining-room, <a href="#page_68">68</a><br /> - -— — morning-room, Whiteley’s and Shoolbred’s, <a href="#page_75">75</a><br /> - -Forest Hill, <a href="#page_3">3</a><br /> - -Formal visiting, <a href="#page_88">88</a><br /> - -Fowl, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -French pancakes, <a href="#page_213">213</a><br /> - -— parents, <a href="#page_21">21</a><br /> - -— windows and curtains, <a href="#page_91">91</a><br /> - -Fresh air, <a href="#page_2">2</a><br /> - -— flowers in sick-room, <a href="#page_189">189</a><br /> - -Friezes, <a href="#page_80">80</a><br /> - -— Mrs. McClelland’s, <a href="#page_77">77</a><br /> - -Frilling for sheets, Cash’s, <a href="#page_115">115</a><br /> - -Fruit, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -Frying-pans, <a href="#page_16">16</a><br /> - -Furnishing, schedule of cost of, <a href="#page_223">223</a>, <a href="#page_224">224</a>, <a href="#page_225">225</a>, <a href="#page_226">226</a>, <a href="#page_227">227</a><br /> - -Furniture, fearful expense of, <a href="#page_171">171</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="G" id="G">G</a>arden, small, <a href="#page_2">2</a><br /> - -Gardening, <a href="#page_35">35</a><br /> - -Garrard, Mrs. S. B. (beds, &c., for infants), <a href="#page_173">173</a><br /> - -Garret, <a href="#page_229">229</a>, <a href="#page_230">230</a><br /> - -— regular investigation of, <a href="#page_230">230</a><br /> - -Gas, best for spare rooms, <a href="#page_148">148</a><br /> - -— effect of, on plants, <a href="#page_169">169</a><br /> - -— fittings, Strode’s, <a href="#page_227">227</a><br /> - -— in bedrooms, evil of, <a href="#page_101">101</a><br /> - -— — rooms where there are children, necessity for, <a href="#page_101">101</a><br /> - -— — sitting-rooms, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -— <i>v.</i> paraffine, <a href="#page_100">100</a><br /> - -Gentlemen’s wardrobes, <a href="#page_135">135</a><br /> - -German lamp screens, <a href="#page_100">100</a><br /> - -Gilt legs to chairs, <a href="#page_8">8</a><br /> - -Glass, <a href="#page_31">31</a><br /> - -— best, <a href="#page_29">29</a><br /> - -Glass cloths, <a href="#page_32">32</a><br /> - -Glasses and bottles, coloured, Douglas & Co.’s, <a href="#page_31">31</a>, <a href="#page_32">32</a><br /> - -Going off to school, <a href="#page_201">201</a>, <a href="#page_202">202</a><br /> - -Good hostess, <a href="#page_211">211</a><br /> - -— monthly nurses all the battle, <a href="#page_181">181</a>, <a href="#page_182">182</a><br /> - -— servants, insuring them, <a href="#page_154">154</a><br /> - -Gossip, spiteful, <a href="#page_198">198</a><br /> - -Governess, <a href="#page_199">199</a><br /> - -‘Graining,’ a barbarism, <a href="#page_47">47</a>, <a href="#page_48">48</a>, <a href="#page_80">80</a><br /> - -Grand piano, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -— — made a decorative piece of furniture, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -Grate, wasteful, <a href="#page_5">5</a><br /> - -Grates, Barnard’s, <a href="#page_67">67</a><br /> - -Green water, <a href="#page_13">13</a><br /> - -Gridirons, <a href="#page_16">16</a><br /> - -Grilled mushrooms, <a href="#page_220">220</a><br /> - -Groceries, <a href="#page_19">19</a>, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -Grown-up daughters, <a href="#page_208">208</a><br /> - -— families, <a href="#page_207">207</a><br /> - -Guests, making them comfortable, <a href="#page_145">145</a><br /> - -Guipure lace for curtains, <a href="#page_91">91</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="H" id="H">H</a>all, <a href="#page_41">41</a><br /> - -— candlesticks, <a href="#page_45">45</a><br /> - -— ceilings papered, <a href="#page_47">47</a><br /> - -— flooring, <a href="#page_43">43</a><br /> - -— gas-lamps, <a href="#page_47">47</a><br /> - -— lighted from the sides, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -— — — — top, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -— oil lamp unsuited for, <a href="#page_89">89</a><br /> - -Halls, stone, <a href="#page_48">48</a><br /> - -Happy childhood, <a href="#page_196">196</a><br /> - -Harding Bros., address of, <a href="#page_52">52</a><br /> - -Hare soup, <a href="#page_214">214</a><br /> - -Harness for carriage, price of, <a href="#page_228">228</a><br /> - -Hassan and Co.’s chickens, <a href="#page_28">28</a><br /> - -Healthy children, <a href="#page_162">162</a><br /> - -Heavy mahogany, <a href="#page_2">2</a><br /> - -Hewett’s bazaar, <a href="#page_32">32</a><br /> - -— dessert services, <a href="#page_32">32</a><br /> - -Hoarding in garrets, <a href="#page_230">230</a><br /> - -— old clothes, <a href="#page_137">137</a><br /> - -Honest mechanic, prospect for an, <a href="#page_117">117</a><br /> - -Honeycomb quilts, <a href="#page_116">116</a><br /> - -Horse, price of, for carriage, <a href="#page_228">228</a><br /> - -Hot-water cans for bedrooms, <a href="#page_127">127</a><br /> - -— dishes, 35<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_238" id="page_238"></a>{238}</span><br /> - -House decoration and the landlord, <a href="#page_37">37</a><br /> - -— — Collison & Lock’s, <a href="#page_37">37</a><br /> - -— — Morris’s, <a href="#page_37">37</a><br /> - -— — Smee’s, <a href="#page_37">37</a><br /> - -— hunting, <a href="#page_4">4</a><br /> - -— inspection, preliminary, <a href="#page_5">5</a><br /> - -— rent, <a href="#page_19">19</a><br /> - -Household books, <a href="#page_21">21</a><br /> - -— economy, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -— servants, young girls as, <a href="#page_18">18</a><br /> - -Housekeeping bills, <a href="#page_154">154</a>, <a href="#page_211">211</a><br /> - -Housemaid’s duties, <a href="#page_35">35</a><br /> - -— pantry, <a href="#page_29">29</a><br /> - -House-mother, life of, not appreciated, <a href="#page_183">183</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="I-i" id="I-i">I</a>deal and real nurseries, <a href="#page_161">161</a><br /> - -Indian matting for schoolroom floors, <a href="#page_192">192</a><br /> - -— tapestry, Liberty’s, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -Infant and nurse, <a href="#page_175">175</a><br /> - -Infants, knowingness of, <a href="#page_172">172</a><br /> - -Informal gatherings, <a href="#page_89">89</a><br /> - -Inherited tendencies, <a href="#page_201">201</a><br /> - -Ink-erasers for hand cleaning (Perry’s), <a href="#page_192">192</a><br /> - -Inkstands purchased at Baker Street Bazaar, <a href="#page_64">64</a><br /> - -Invalids, cooking for, <a href="#page_221">221</a>, <a href="#page_222">222</a><br /> - -Inventions Exhibition, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -Iron brackets and lamps, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="J" id="J">J</a>ack Tar suit, <a href="#page_200">200</a><br /> - -Jackets and trousers for boys, <a href="#page_200">200</a><br /> - -Japanese fan, <a href="#page_76">76</a>, <a href="#page_77">77</a><br /> - -— — for fireside, <a href="#page_85">85</a><br /> - -— leather paper, <a href="#page_56">56</a>, <a href="#page_58">58</a><br /> - -— — — for the hall, <a href="#page_46">46</a>, <a href="#page_86">86</a><br /> - -— paper for wardrobe panels, <a href="#page_110">110</a><br /> - -— screen for piano, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -Joss-sticks, <a href="#page_189">189</a><br /> - -Judicious watchfulness regarding servants, <a href="#page_156">156</a><br /> - -Jugs and pots, Elliot’s, <a href="#page_45">45</a><br /> - -Jury of matrons, <a href="#page_172">172</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="K" id="K">K</a>idderminster squares, <a href="#page_80">80</a>, <a href="#page_81">81</a><br /> - -Kilburn Orphanage, <a href="#page_230">230</a><br /> - -Kitchen arrangements, <a href="#page_9">9</a><br /> - -— capabilities of, <a href="#page_9">9</a><br /> - -Kitchen ceilings, annual white-washing of, <a href="#page_12">12</a><br /> - -— dado in, <a href="#page_11">11</a><br /> - -— dinner, <a href="#page_158">158</a><br /> - -— dismal, <a href="#page_11">11</a><br /> - -— grates skimped, <a href="#page_12">12</a><br /> - -— — smells from, <a href="#page_13">13</a><br /> - -— management, <a href="#page_10">10</a><br /> - -— passages, <a href="#page_11">11</a><br /> - -— position of, <a href="#page_10">10</a><br /> - -— staircase a cause of worry, <a href="#page_10">10</a><br /> - -— underground, <a href="#page_10">10</a><br /> - -— utensils, <a href="#page_15">15</a><br /> - -— wash-tub not needed for, <a href="#page_18">18</a><br /> - -Kitcheners, Steel & Garland’s, <a href="#page_12">12</a><br /> - -Koffee Kanns, Ashe’s, <a href="#page_34">34</a><br /> - -Kurd rugs, <a href="#page_46">46</a><br /> - -Kyrle Society, <a href="#page_7">7</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="L" id="L">L</a>adies’ chamber in retirement, <a href="#page_186">186</a>, <a href="#page_187">187</a><br /> - -Lahore cretonne, <a href="#page_106">106</a><br /> - -Lamp brackets, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -— screens, German, <a href="#page_100">100</a><br /> - -— — selecting colour of, <a href="#page_101">101</a><br /> - -Lamps, beaten iron, <a href="#page_47">47</a>, <a href="#page_99">99</a>, <a href="#page_102">102</a><br /> - -— Benson’s, <a href="#page_102">102</a><br /> - -— brass, <a href="#page_111">111</a><br /> - -— china, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -— duplex, for nursery, <a href="#page_168">168</a><br /> - -— glass hanging, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -— Mortlock’s, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -— paraffine, Drew’s, <a href="#page_102">102</a>, <a href="#page_116">116</a><br /> - -— Smee’s, <a href="#page_47">47</a><br /> - -— Strode’s, <a href="#page_47">47</a>, <a href="#page_99">99</a>, <a href="#page_102">102</a><br /> - -Landing, the, <a href="#page_4">4</a><br /> - -Landseer, Sir Edwin, <a href="#page_178">178</a><br /> - -Leases and structural repairs, <a href="#page_4">4</a><br /> - -Legs of mutton, <a href="#page_19">19</a><br /> - -— — — à la Bretonne, <a href="#page_218">218</a><br /> - -Lemon pudding, <a href="#page_28">28</a><br /> - -Liberty’s cretonnes, <a href="#page_78">78</a><br /> - -— sashes, <a href="#page_200">200</a><br /> - -— silk handkerchiefs, <a href="#page_41">41</a><br /> - -— — — for curtains, <a href="#page_94">94</a><br /> - -— tapestries, <a href="#page_83">83</a><br /> - -Lighting bedrooms, <a href="#page_120">120</a><br /> - -— of sitting-rooms, <a href="#page_98">98</a>, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -Linen marking, <a href="#page_115">115</a><br /> - -— old-gold colour printed, Pither’s, <a href="#page_95">95</a><br /> - -Linoleum mat for dining-room, 68<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_239" id="page_239"></a>{239}</span><br /> - -London markets, <a href="#page_28">28</a><br /> - -— north side of, <a href="#page_3">3</a><br /> - -Lordship Lane, <a href="#page_3">3</a><br /> - -Low frocks and short sleeves for children, disappearance of, <a href="#page_170">170</a><br /> - -Luncheon, <a href="#page_27">27</a><br /> - -— hour (orthodox) for young wives, <a href="#page_76">76</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="M" id="M">M</a>acaroni cheese, <a href="#page_220">220</a><br /> - -Madras muslin, <a href="#page_71">71</a>, <a href="#page_82">82</a>, <a href="#page_92">92</a><br /> - -Mahogany sideboard, old, <a href="#page_8">8</a><br /> - -Making a bedroom pretty, <a href="#page_132">132</a><br /> - -Managing servants, <a href="#page_146">146</a><br /> - -Mantelpieces, cheap wooden, Shuffery’s, <a href="#page_67">67</a><br /> - -Maple, <a href="#page_30">30</a>, <a href="#page_43">43</a><br /> - -Maple’s bedsteads, <a href="#page_113">113</a><br /> - -— box ottomans, <a href="#page_110">110</a><br /> - -— Golden Pine carpet, <a href="#page_82">82</a><br /> - -Marble mantelpiece, white, <a href="#page_5">5</a><br /> - -Marguerite cretonnes, Burnett’s, <a href="#page_94">94</a>, <a href="#page_108">108</a><br /> - -Mats, <a href="#page_4">4</a>, <a href="#page_5">5</a>, <a href="#page_46">46</a><br /> - -Matting for dining-room, <a href="#page_96">96</a><br /> - -— price of, <a href="#page_96">96</a><br /> - -— sweeping in one way, <a href="#page_98">98</a><br /> - -— Treloar’s, <a href="#page_46">46</a><br /> - -Mattresses, cases for, <a href="#page_114">114</a><br /> - -Mayfair, tiny hovels in, <a href="#page_4">4</a><br /> - -McClelland, Mrs., <a href="#page_77">77</a><br /> - -Meal odours in rooms, <a href="#page_6">6</a><br /> - -Meals and money, <a href="#page_13">13</a><br /> - -Meat, ‘best English,’ often New Zealand, <a href="#page_212">212</a><br /> - -— New Zealand, <a href="#page_19">19</a><br /> - -— price of, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -Medical attendance, <a href="#page_25">25</a><br /> - -Menus, cost of, <a href="#page_211">211-221</a><br /> - -Meringues, <a href="#page_219">219</a><br /> - -Midday meal, <a href="#page_27">27</a><br /> - -Middle-class parents, <a href="#page_21">21</a><br /> - -Milk, <a href="#page_20">20</a>, <a href="#page_25">25</a><br /> - -Milkmen, Londoners at the mercy of, <a href="#page_163">163</a><br /> - -Mince pies, <a href="#page_213">213</a><br /> - -Minton’s china, <a href="#page_32">32</a><br /> - -Monograms on cloths, <a href="#page_90">90</a><br /> - -Monthly nurse, <a href="#page_176">176</a><br /> - -Moreen curtains, <a href="#page_2">2</a><br /> - -— damask, <a href="#page_8">8</a><br /> - -Morning-room, books and magazines for, <a href="#page_71">71</a><br /> - -— chairs, <a href="#page_74">74</a>, <a href="#page_75">75</a><br /> - -Morning-room decoration, <a href="#page_76">76</a><br /> - -— desk for, <a href="#page_70">70</a><br /> - -— embellishing door-panels of, <a href="#page_70">70</a><br /> - -— no gas in, <a href="#page_72">72</a><br /> - -— paper for, Smee’s, <a href="#page_96">96</a><br /> - -— sage-green paper for, <a href="#page_69">69</a><br /> - -— sofa, <a href="#page_71">71</a><br /> - -— stand for papers, <a href="#page_71">71</a><br /> - -— under care of housemaid, <a href="#page_77">77</a><br /> - -— work-table, <a href="#page_71">71</a><br /> - -Morocco, dull brown, <a href="#page_51">51</a><br /> - -Morris, Mr., <a href="#page_97">97</a><br /> - -Mortlock’s china, <a href="#page_31">31</a>, <a href="#page_32">32</a>, <a href="#page_33">33</a><br /> - -— — lamps, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -— ware, <a href="#page_126">126</a><br /> - -Mulligatawny soup, <a href="#page_218">218</a><br /> - -Music, receptacle for, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -Muslin curtains, <a href="#page_91">91</a>, <a href="#page_92">92</a><br /> - -Muslins, Liberty’s, <a href="#page_45">45</a><br /> - -Mutton cutlets, <a href="#page_215">215</a><br /> - -Mysore chintz, Liberty’s, <a href="#page_45">45</a><br /> - -— muslin, <a href="#page_72">72</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="N" id="N">N</a>eck of mutton, <a href="#page_28">28</a><br /> - -Nevill’s hot-water bread, <a href="#page_27">27</a><br /> - -New babies, making ready for, <a href="#page_186">186</a><br /> - -— baby a profound nuisance, <a href="#page_182">182</a><br /> - -Night garments, <a href="#page_115">115</a><br /> - -— — embroidered case for, <a href="#page_115">115</a><br /> - -— nursery, <a href="#page_170">170</a><br /> - -— — management of fire in, <a href="#page_170">170</a><br /> - -Nurseries, <a href="#page_32">32</a><br /> - -— bright paper for, <a href="#page_165">165</a><br /> - -— cretonne, dado, and painted rail for, <a href="#page_165">165</a><br /> - -— gas in, <a href="#page_168">168</a>, <a href="#page_169">169</a><br /> - -— good duplex lamp for, <a href="#page_168">168</a>, <a href="#page_169">169</a><br /> - -— pictures on walls of, <a href="#page_177">177-179</a><br /> - -— position of, <a href="#page_161">161</a><br /> - -— strong guard for fires in, <a href="#page_168">168</a><br /> - -— two in a house, <a href="#page_160">160</a><br /> - -— <i>v.</i> spare rooms, <a href="#page_161">161</a><br /> - -Nursery a children’s kingdom, <a href="#page_176">176</a><br /> - -— blue and white paper for, <a href="#page_166">166</a><br /> - -— ceiling, <a href="#page_165">165</a><br /> - -— chair for each child in, <a href="#page_167">167</a>, <a href="#page_168">168</a><br /> - -— choice of a, <a href="#page_160">160</a><br /> - -— cretonne cleaned with dry bread, 166<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_240" id="page_240"></a>{240}</span><br /> - -Nursery cupboards, <a href="#page_166">166</a>, <a href="#page_167">167</a>, <a href="#page_168">168</a><br /> - -— doors, <a href="#page_166">166</a><br /> - -— floor, <a href="#page_165">165</a><br /> - -— furnishing the walls of, <a href="#page_168">168</a><br /> - -— made out of worst bedroom, <a href="#page_161">161</a><br /> - -— sofa, <a href="#page_167">167</a><br /> - -— table, <a href="#page_167">167</a><br /> - -— walls, <a href="#page_165">165</a><br /> - -Nursing, <a href="#page_169">169</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="O" id="O">O</a>ccasional visitor, <a href="#page_140">140</a><br /> - -Oetzmann, <a href="#page_64">64</a><br /> - -Oilcloth, cheap, <a href="#page_11">11</a><br /> - -— for walls, <a href="#page_11">11</a><br /> - -— resembling old mosaic, <a href="#page_11">11</a><br /> - -Old London lamps, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -— night-dresses invaluable, <a href="#page_121">121</a><br /> - -Oriental carpets for dining-room, <a href="#page_96">96</a><br /> - -— — Smee’s, for drawing-room, <a href="#page_81">81</a><br /> - -— rugs and carpets, sweeping them one way, <a href="#page_98">98</a><br /> - -— — for hall, <a href="#page_46">46</a><br /> - -Our dead, <a href="#page_230">230</a>, <a href="#page_231">231</a><br /> - -Ovens, cleansing, <a href="#page_13">13</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="P" id="P">P</a>ainted suites of furniture, <a href="#page_142">142</a><br /> - -Painting, <a href="#page_37">37</a><br /> - -— spare rooms, <a href="#page_142">142</a><br /> - -Palm-leaved baskets for soiled linen, <a href="#page_121">121</a><br /> - -Panelled drawing-room, <a href="#page_80">80</a><br /> - -Panes, of glass, tiny, <a href="#page_113">113</a><br /> - -Pantry, housemaid’s, <a href="#page_29">29</a><br /> - -Paper for day nursery, Pither’s, <a href="#page_166">166</a><br /> - -— stand, <a href="#page_85">85</a><br /> - -Papering, <a href="#page_37">37</a><br /> - -Pears in jelly, <a href="#page_214">214</a><br /> - -Penge, <a href="#page_3">3</a><br /> - -Persian and Turkey carpets, <a href="#page_2">2</a><br /> - -Personal expenses, wife’s, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -Petty tyrannies, <a href="#page_206">206</a><br /> - -Pheasant, boiled, <a href="#page_216">216</a><br /> - -— roasted, <a href="#page_219">219</a><br /> - -Photographs for bedrooms, where to buy, <a href="#page_132">132</a><br /> - -— — nursery, <a href="#page_177">177</a><br /> - -Piano back, draping, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -— chair, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -— drapery for back, <a href="#page_86">86</a>, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -Piano, drawing-room, <a href="#page_86">86</a><br /> - -— front, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -— grand, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -— stool unendurable, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -Picture rail, Maple’s, <a href="#page_58">58</a><br /> - -— teaching for children, <a href="#page_167">167</a><br /> - -Pictures for bedrooms, <a href="#page_132">132</a><br /> - -— hooks for, <a href="#page_80">80</a><br /> - -— in schoolroom, <a href="#page_193">193</a><br /> - -Pigeons, stuffed, <a href="#page_212">212</a><br /> - -Pinafores, <a href="#page_200">200</a><br /> - -Pincushions, <a href="#page_119">119</a><br /> - -Pither, address of, <a href="#page_38">38</a><br /> - -Pither’s papers, <a href="#page_58">58</a>, <a href="#page_82">82</a>, <a href="#page_109">109</a><br /> - -— printed linen, <a href="#page_77">77</a>, <a href="#page_95">95</a><br /> - -Plain cook, wages of, <a href="#page_210">210</a><br /> - -Plantation coffee, <a href="#page_34">34</a><br /> - -Plants and flowers for rooms, <a href="#page_90">90</a><br /> - -Plates, <a href="#page_30">30</a><br /> - -Plum pudding, <a href="#page_216">216</a><br /> - -Plumber, &c., <a href="#page_120">120</a><br /> - -Pokerette, <a href="#page_85">85</a><br /> - -‘Portable property,’ servants’, <a href="#page_152">152</a><br /> - -Pretence of wealth, <a href="#page_22">22</a><br /> - -Pretty room for each servant, <a href="#page_152">152</a><br /> - -Prince Albert’s pudding, <a href="#page_214">214</a><br /> - -Printed muslin, Liberty’s, <a href="#page_107">107</a><br /> - -Professional decorator, <a href="#page_1">1</a><br /> - -Ptarmigan, <a href="#page_215">215</a><br /> - -Purchasing furniture, <a href="#page_2">2</a><br /> - -Putting the feet on chairs, <a href="#page_129">129</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="Q" id="Q">Q</a>ueen Anne cretonne (terra cotta), <a href="#page_151">151</a><br /> - -— — table, <a href="#page_75">75</a>, <a href="#page_84">84</a><br /> - -— — tables, Oetzmann’s, <a href="#page_75">75</a><br /> - -Quilts, cretonne covering for, <a href="#page_114">114</a><br /> - -— eider-down, <a href="#page_114">114</a><br /> - -— Francis’s, <a href="#page_116">116</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="R" id="R">R</a>abbits, buying them, <a href="#page_28">28</a><br /> - -Reading in bed, <a href="#page_188">188</a>, <a href="#page_189">189</a><br /> - -Rebecca jars, <a href="#page_73">73</a><br /> - -— — Elliot’s, <a href="#page_73">73</a><br /> - -Reception-rooms, the regulation, <a href="#page_3">3</a>, <a href="#page_141">141</a><br /> - -Recipes for menus, <a href="#page_202">202</a><br /> - -Rents less out of London, <a href="#page_2">2</a><br /> - -Rest, necessity of complete, <a href="#page_169">169</a><br /> - -Returning from school, <a href="#page_202">202</a><br /> - -Ribs of beef, 27<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_241" id="page_241"></a>{241}</span><br /> - -Rice pudding, <a href="#page_28">28</a><br /> - -Rider Haggard, <a href="#page_197">197</a><br /> - -Rolled ribs of beef, <a href="#page_212">212</a><br /> - -Roman sheeting for curtains, <a href="#page_94">94</a><br /> - -Room for children, heating properly, <a href="#page_170">170</a><br /> - -Rooms, appropriation of, <a href="#page_5">5</a><br /> - -Round tables, <a href="#page_52">52</a><br /> - -Rugs, good, <a href="#page_82">82</a><br /> - -— in front of fires, danger from, <a href="#page_85">85</a><br /> - -Rush <i>v.</i> bamboo table, <a href="#page_89">89</a><br /> - -Russian diapers, <a href="#page_185">185</a><br /> - -— embroideries, <a href="#page_150">150</a><br /> - -Rylands’ stain for floors, <a href="#page_97">97</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="S" id="S">S</a>addle of mutton, small, <a href="#page_220">220</a><br /> - -Salmon, <a href="#page_220">220</a><br /> - -Salt-cellars, <a href="#page_35">35</a><br /> - -— Doulton’s, <a href="#page_35">35</a><br /> - -Salviati glass, <a href="#page_210">210</a><br /> - -— ware, <a href="#page_31">31</a><br /> - -Sanitary papers for children’s schoolroom, <a href="#page_193">193</a><br /> - -Sanitas in saucers, <a href="#page_14">14</a><br /> - -Satin chairs, <a href="#page_140">140</a><br /> - -Saucepans, <a href="#page_16">16</a><br /> - -— cleaning them, <a href="#page_10">10</a><br /> - -— number of, <a href="#page_15">15</a><br /> - -— Whiteley’s, <a href="#page_16">16</a><br /> - -School training for boys, <a href="#page_205">205</a><br /> - -Schoolboys, dealing with, <a href="#page_203">203-205</a><br /> - -Schoolmaster, orthodox, <a href="#page_205">205</a><br /> - -Schoolroom ceiling, <a href="#page_193">193</a>, <a href="#page_194">194</a><br /> - -— dresses, <a href="#page_200">200</a><br /> - -— Indian matting for, <a href="#page_192">192</a><br /> - -— Kidderminster carpet for, <a href="#page_192">192</a><br /> - -— maid, <a href="#page_199">199</a><br /> - -— papering walls of, <a href="#page_193">193</a><br /> - -— position of, in house, <a href="#page_199">199</a><br /> - -— tables and chairs, <a href="#page_194">194</a><br /> - -Schoolrooms, <a href="#page_32">32</a><br /> - -Scinde rugs, <a href="#page_46">46</a>, <a href="#page_96">96</a><br /> - -— — price of, <a href="#page_98">98</a><br /> - -Screens, <a href="#page_4">4</a><br /> - -— in bedrooms, <a href="#page_112">112</a><br /> - -Scullery, <a href="#page_10">10</a><br /> - -— ceiling, <a href="#page_12">12</a><br /> - -— walls, <a href="#page_12">12</a><br /> - -Second-hand carriages, <a href="#page_228">228</a><br /> - -— — where sold, <a href="#page_228">228</a><br /> - -Selfishness of parents, <a href="#page_205">205</a><br /> - -Separate beds for servants, <a href="#page_152">152</a><br /> - -Serge curtains, <a href="#page_107">107</a><br /> - -Serges, Burnett’s, <a href="#page_84">84</a><br /> - -— Colbourne & Co.’s, <a href="#page_93">93</a><br /> - -Servants, <a href="#page_4">4</a>, <a href="#page_33">33</a>, <a href="#page_34">34</a><br /> - -— apartments, <a href="#page_11">11</a><br /> - -— bedrooms, <a href="#page_151">151</a><br /> - -— clothes of, <a href="#page_159">159</a><br /> - -— encouraging them to walk and work in the garden, <a href="#page_159">159</a><br /> - -— feelings of new, <a href="#page_154">154</a><br /> - -— giving them good books to read, <a href="#page_159">159</a><br /> - -— harassing them, <a href="#page_13">13</a><br /> - -— pretty furniture for, <a href="#page_158">158</a><br /> - -— wasteful, <a href="#page_21">21</a><br /> - -Sets of bedroom furniture, price of, <a href="#page_119">119</a><br /> - -Settees (bamboo), Liberty’s, for the hall, <a href="#page_45">45</a><br /> - -Sewing for girls, <a href="#page_197">197</a><br /> - -Sheets, bed, <a href="#page_114">114</a>, <a href="#page_115">115</a><br /> - -Shelves for morning-room, <a href="#page_69">69</a><br /> - -— recesses for, <a href="#page_4">4</a><br /> - -Sheraton furniture, <a href="#page_8">8</a><br /> - -Shoolbred, <a href="#page_19">19</a><br /> - -Shoolbred’s curtains, <a href="#page_93">93</a><br /> - -Shop specialties, <a href="#page_38">38</a><br /> - -Shopping, judicious, <a href="#page_39">39</a><br /> - -Short blinds in bedrooms, <a href="#page_133">133</a><br /> - -Side lanterns, <a href="#page_99">99</a><br /> - -Sideboards, <a href="#page_8">8</a>, <a href="#page_54">54</a><br /> - -Sink, <a href="#page_13">13</a><br /> - -— regular flushing of, <a href="#page_14">14</a><br /> - -Sinks, disinfecting, <a href="#page_14">14</a><br /> - -Sitting-room and workroom for servants, <a href="#page_11">11</a><br /> - -Sketches, Mrs. McClelland’s, <a href="#page_46">46</a><br /> - -Slamming doors, <a href="#page_176">176</a><br /> - -Sleeping with window open, <a href="#page_123">123</a><br /> - -Slop-pails, <a href="#page_127">127</a>, <a href="#page_128">128</a><br /> - -Slovenly manners, <a href="#page_86">86</a><br /> - -Small girls, <a href="#page_185">185</a><br /> - -— house, price of furnishing, <a href="#page_227">227</a><br /> - -— infant, bed for, <a href="#page_172">172</a><br /> - -Smuts and blacks, <a href="#page_2">2</a><br /> - -Soap, <a href="#page_127">127</a><br /> - -Sofa-ottomans for spare rooms, <a href="#page_147">147</a><br /> - -Sofas, <a href="#page_74">74</a>, <a href="#page_82">82</a>, <a href="#page_112">112</a><br /> - -— covering for, <a href="#page_71">71</a><br /> - -— Maple’s, <a href="#page_71">71</a><br /> - -— nursery, <a href="#page_168">168</a><br /> - -— striped curtains for, <a href="#page_71">71</a><br /> - -— substitute for, 110<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_242" id="page_242"></a>{242}</span><br /> - -Soles, boiled, <a href="#page_215">215</a><br /> - -— fried, <a href="#page_212">212</a><br /> - -Soup from bones and vegetables, <a href="#page_28">28</a><br /> - -Soups, excellent, <a href="#page_17">17</a><br /> - -Spare glass and china, <a href="#page_30">30</a><br /> - -— room beds, <a href="#page_143">143</a><br /> - -— — floor, <a href="#page_150">150</a><br /> - -— — furniture, <a href="#page_142">142</a>, <a href="#page_148">148</a><br /> - -— — — cost of, <a href="#page_143">143</a><br /> - -— — readiness for occupation, <a href="#page_145">145</a><br /> - -Spring mattress best for beds, <a href="#page_113">113</a>, <a href="#page_114">114</a><br /> - -Squabbles about money, <a href="#page_29">29</a><br /> - -Square black cupboards, receptacles for music, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -— ottoman for piano, <a href="#page_87">87</a><br /> - -Stained floors, <a href="#page_96">96</a><br /> - -Stair carpets, <a href="#page_44">44</a><br /> - -Staircases, <a href="#page_40">40</a><br /> - -Stamped velveteen, <a href="#page_84">84</a><br /> - -Stephens, address of, <a href="#page_227">227</a><br /> - -Stores, <a href="#page_19">19</a>, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -Straight backed chairs, Smee’s, <a href="#page_62">62</a><br /> - -Strange nurse, <a href="#page_171">171</a><br /> - -Strode, address of, <a href="#page_227">227</a><br /> - -Strode’s iron lamps, <a href="#page_102">102</a><br /> - -Suburban clay, <a href="#page_3">3</a><br /> - -Suburbs of London, <a href="#page_3">3</a><br /> - -Sugar, <a href="#page_10">10</a><br /> - -— price of, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -Summer babies, <a href="#page_189">189</a><br /> - -Sunday in the schoolroom, <a href="#page_198">198</a><br /> - -Sunday’s supper, <a href="#page_28">28</a><br /> - -Sundries, <a href="#page_23">23</a><br /> - -Sunless rooms, <a href="#page_7">7</a><br /> - -Sunshine, first necessity of, <a href="#page_5">5</a><br /> - -Sutherland table for drawing-room, <a href="#page_89">89</a><br /> - -Swiss ‘mull’ muslin, cost of, <a href="#page_92">92</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="T" id="T">T</a>able drawers, bedroom, <a href="#page_121">121</a><br /> - -Tablecloths, <a href="#page_53">53</a>, <a href="#page_54">54</a>, <a href="#page_106">106</a><br /> - -Tables, Chippendale design, <a href="#page_90">90</a><br /> - -— rickety, <a href="#page_83">83</a><br /> - -Tapestry, drawing-room, <a href="#page_83">83</a><br /> - -— imitation, <a href="#page_73">73</a><br /> - -— tablecloth, <a href="#page_107">107</a><br /> - -— toilet covers, <a href="#page_119">119</a><br /> - -Tea after dinner odious, <a href="#page_25">25</a><br /> - -— cost of, <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -— in the schoolroom, <a href="#page_199">199</a><br /> - -Tea cloth, five o’clock, <a href="#page_90">90</a><br /> - -Tea-table in drawing-room, <a href="#page_89">89</a><br /> - -Tea-things in morning-room, <a href="#page_72">72</a><br /> - -Teetotallers, <a href="#page_25">25</a><br /> - -Temporary ‘help’ for cook, <a href="#page_155">155</a><br /> - -Tennis, <a href="#page_198">198</a><br /> - -— parties, afternoon, <a href="#page_210">210</a><br /> - -Terra-cotta chintz for bedroom doors, Burnett’s, <a href="#page_106">106</a><br /> - -— paper, <a href="#page_106">106</a><br /> - -Third room to sit in, <a href="#page_6">6</a><br /> - -Tiled hearth, <a href="#page_5">5</a>, <a href="#page_6">6</a>, <a href="#page_67">67</a><br /> - -Toasted cheese, <a href="#page_215">215</a><br /> - -Tobacco, <a href="#page_59">59</a>, <a href="#page_60">60</a>, <a href="#page_61">61</a>, <a href="#page_69">69</a>, <a href="#page_72">72</a><br /> - -Toilet covers, <a href="#page_106">106</a>, <a href="#page_119">119</a><br /> - -— drawers, <a href="#page_121">121</a><br /> - -— ‘tidies’ to be avoided, <a href="#page_120">120</a><br /> - -Tooth-brushes, <a href="#page_127">127</a>, <a href="#page_223">223</a><br /> - -Tooth water-glasses, <a href="#page_127">127</a><br /> - -Treatment of servants, <a href="#page_153">153</a>, <a href="#page_154">154</a>, <a href="#page_155">155</a>, <a href="#page_156">156</a>, <a href="#page_157">157</a>, <a href="#page_159">159</a><br /> - -Treloar, <a href="#page_43">43</a>, <a href="#page_46">46</a><br /> - -Treloar’s matting, <a href="#page_10">10</a><br /> - -Trübner & Co., <a href="#page_72">72</a><br /> - -Tumblers, <a href="#page_30">30</a><br /> - -Turbot, half a, <a href="#page_213">213</a><br /> - -Turkey carpets, <a href="#page_39">39</a><br /> - -— small, <a href="#page_214">214</a><br /> - -Turret puddings, <a href="#page_219">219</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="U" id="U">U</a>mbrella stands, <a href="#page_44">44</a><br /> - -— — Maple’s, <a href="#page_43">43</a><br /> - -Umbrellas, wet, <a href="#page_43">43</a><br /> - -Unhealthiness of gas, <a href="#page_168">168</a>, <a href="#page_169">169</a><br /> - -Unpunctuality, effects of, <a href="#page_149">149</a><br /> - -Upholsters, <a href="#page_39">39</a><br /> - -Upholstering chairs, <a href="#page_51">51</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="V-i" id="V-i">V</a>arnished wall-paper, <a href="#page_11">11</a><br /> - -Vases, <a href="#page_77">77</a><br /> - -Vegetable dishes, <a href="#page_31">31</a><br /> - -Visiting, ethics of, <a href="#page_141">141</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="W" id="W">W</a>all-paper, <a href="#page_2">2</a><br /> - -Wall-papers, E. Pither’s, <a href="#page_38">38</a><br /> - -Wardrobe, Edwin’s dressing-room, <a href="#page_135">135</a>, <a href="#page_136">136</a><br /> - -— making, amateur, <a href="#page_110">110</a><br /> - -Wardrobes, <a href="#page_4">4</a>, <a href="#page_10">10</a>, <a href="#page_109">109</a><br /> - -— Hampton’s, <a href="#page_109">109</a><br /> - -Washable papers, <a href="#page_11">11</a><br /> - -Washing brushes, <a href="#page_122">122</a><br /> - -— — Whiteley’s, <a href="#page_19">19</a><br /> - -— cost of,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_243" id="page_243"></a>{243}</span> <a href="#page_20">20</a><br /> - -Washing stand, <a href="#page_124">124</a>, <a href="#page_125">125</a><br /> - -Waste-paper bags, <a href="#page_70">70</a><br /> - -Water-bottles, <a href="#page_31">31</a><br /> - -Watts, Mr., address of, <a href="#page_136">136</a><br /> - -Wedding finery, excessive display of, <a href="#page_22">22</a><br /> - -White curtains, <a href="#page_134">134</a><br /> - -— soup, <a href="#page_212">212</a>, <a href="#page_220">220</a><br /> - -Whiteley, <a href="#page_16">16</a>, <a href="#page_19">19</a>, <a href="#page_30">30</a><br /> - -Wicker chairs for drawing-room, <a href="#page_82">82</a><br /> - -Widgeon, <a href="#page_220">220</a><br /> - -Wild duck, <a href="#page_213">213</a><br /> - -Window-blinds, <a href="#page_4">4</a>, <a href="#page_5">5</a><br /> - -Windows, <a href="#page_4">4</a>, <a href="#page_5">5</a><br /> - -— cathedral glass top, <a href="#page_107">107</a><br /> - -— open at the top, <a href="#page_147">147</a><br /> - -Window wedges, <a href="#page_128">128</a><br /> - -Winter babies, <a href="#page_189">189</a><br /> - -Withers & Co., address of, <a href="#page_228">228</a><br /> - -Witney blankets, <a href="#page_114">114</a><br /> - -Women architects, <a href="#page_4">4</a><br /> - -Wooden bedsteads, <a href="#page_112">112</a>, <a href="#page_113">113</a><br /> - -— mantelpieces, <a href="#page_66">66</a>, <a href="#page_80">80</a><br /> - -Woollen tapestry, <a href="#page_52">52</a>, <a href="#page_75">75</a><br /> - -Worrying the nurse to death, <a href="#page_176">176</a><br /> - -Writing-desk for the dining-room, <a href="#page_62">62</a>, <a href="#page_63">63</a><br /> - -<br /> -<a name="Y" id="Y">Y</a>orkshire pudding, <a href="#page_28">28</a><br /> - -Young couples, <a href="#page_9">9</a><br /> - -— — decoration of house for, <a href="#page_9">9</a><br /> - -— — management of house for, <a href="#page_9">9</a><br /> - -— nurses a mistake, <a href="#page_18">18</a>, <a href="#page_164">164</a><br /> -</p> - -<hr class="full" /> - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of From Kitchen to Garret, by -J. 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