Ladies' Column.

Clutha Leader, Volume II, Issue 91, 6 April 1876, Page 7

Ladies' Column.

So long* as good men and women can' be found on the earth, God's angels are visiting it; for tiiey indeed are the angels, if we only see" them aright. . '

Five Children at a Birth.— The ' Batavia Handelsblad ' of 11th November says : — At the Sugar Factory, Wonoridio, near Pasoeroean, at the east end of Java, the wife of a native .coachman named Slokoo, has presented her husband with five children — three sons and two daughters — at a birth. One of the female children has ten fingers on each hand— five being of full size, and five barely half size 1

Served Out. — A .young dandy connected with a banking establishment was passing up Shakespeare Road, Napier, and wishing for an excuse to speak to a young female with whom he was unacquainted, he placed his hand in his coal-pocket as he approached her, drew therefrom a nice white cambric handkerchief, and enquired if she hadn't dropped it. The lady glanced at the handkerchief, nodded . assent, took it, and walked off, leaving the amorous youth to the laughter of his companions. This young man is just cutting his wisdom teeth. — ' Mercury.'

Leap Year Improved. — A younggentleman of our acquaint mcc residing in Coromandel (says the ' Mail ') keeps up a correspondence of a friendly nature (but nothing more) with a young lady in Auckland. She wrote him a letter last mail, and at the end of it he was referred to the portion of scripture contained in Ruth, 1 1th chapter, 10th verse. The point of the joke will be seen when we observe that the verso in question reads as follows: — " Entreat me not to leave thee, for whither thou goost I will go, also where thou lodgest 1 will lodgp, and thy people will be my people." This was a delicate but ingenious way of laying the matter before him.

A Good Housewife. — A good housewife i*-** one of the first blessings in the economy of life. Men pu*: a great value upon the qualifications of their partners after marriage, however they mny weigh them before, and there is nothing which tends more to mar the felicities of married life than recklessness, or want of knowledge of the new housekeeper of the, duties which belong to her station. Men admire beauty, order, and system in everything, and some admire good fare. lsA these are found in their dwellings, and nre sea-, soned with good nature and good sense, men will seek their chief enjoyments at home— .they will love their home and their partners, ancl strive to reciprocate the kind offices of duty and affection. Mothers who study the welfare of of daughters will not fail to instruct them, in the qualifications of married life, and daughters -who appreciate tho value of these qualification's 'will not fail to acquire them.

Marriage. — At a Maori marriage at Wellington, a Mr Baker, addressing the married couple, said : " F will hot say much to you, but I will tell you a little story. A man and his wife throw a rope over the roof of their house, each taking hold of one end. Thp.n they commenced pulling against each other ; they pulled long and strong*, but neither could overcome the other and obtain, possession ofthe rope. At length the woman went to the side of the house where the husband was, and she takinghold of 'the-- rope, came down, at once. So let it be with you : stand both on one side of the house and pull together, otherwise ''you will not get the rope." The 'Dunedin Guardian' adds this note, " We know some men who would prefer -to haul on the ono end of tho rope themselves if tho wife had the other end fastened round her neck." We . add, we trust our contemporary has not allowed personal feeling to influence him in making the remark he has done.

Poisoned Dresses. — On the subject of " poisoned dresses," " Iron " writes : — Por the sake of cheapness, for a comparatively petty saving in outlay, manufacturers are distributing the material of garments almost as deadly as that which the foolish Dejanira gave to her husband ; and* Blue Beard or Mr Palmer, if they had lived in this age of enlightenment, might have got rid of inconvenient spouses by the easy and welcome'present of a cheap dress. At a meeting ofthe MarylebOne Vestry the other day, the Medical Officer of Health pnd Analyst of the Parish reported that two young ladies having recently exhibited symptoms of arsenical poisoning . after wearing dresses of green tarlatan, he had analysed several pieces of that fabric, and in two of a bright green color had 'found the poisonous mineral in considerable quantities Haberdashery had. -no place : in the Adulteration Act, butit would be worth while trying whether, by selling deleterious articles of this nature, the tradesman has. not infringed the general law ofthe land. ■ • *

', A Beautiful Idea.— ln the monn-. tains of Tyrol it is the custom of the women and children to come out when' it is bedtime ; and sing their national; songs, until they hear "their husbands, ! •fathers, and brothers them from^ the hills ori their return home. " On the. shores of the Adriatic, such a custom prevails. There, the wives of the fisher- ' men come down about sunset and" sing, a melody. After singing the first, stanzas they listen a while for an 'answering

melody from off the water, and continue, to sing* and listen till the well-known: voice comes borne off, the waters, telling that the loved one is almost home. How. sweet to the weary fisherman, as the shadows gather around him, : must be the songs of the loved ones at home,that' sing to cheer him; and now they must, strengthen and tighten the links thatbind together these humble dwellers by the sea. Truly it is among tho lowly in this life that we find some of tho most beautiful Customs in practice.

-Spain's Future Queen. — The Princess Mercedes, the affianced of King Alfonso, of Spain, is thus alluded to by a correspondent of the London c Times :' — " The Princess is one of the most graceful persons who could occupy a throne. Evidently the Princess is yet too young to become immediately a royal bride, for she is not jet fourteen: but I am sure that the young king, who knows her and must have preserved a recollection of her, will easily become the accomplice of those who dream of giving Spain the princess who to-day breathes grace, and who to-morrow at the wished for hour will add to this grace the kindly dignity ofa queen, and the seductive charms of a woman. I donot know how far Spain is in a position to give up its .struggles, competition, and incessant war. Ido not know how far one ought to wish that this young princess should become the' instrument of this difficult undertaking. I do not know, shouldifc be accomplished, if one day I shall not think with sadness of this young lady whom people, are trying to thrust into the Spanish furnace; but in leaving Ranpan, and while laughing at the thought that I had been assisting at the conspirators' feast, I was obliged to confess that this marriage might well be ' pleasing to Spaniards sincerely desirous of procuring* a halt for their country on the path of agitation which it has trod so lon jr."

Maori Polygamy. — A. few goodnatured people of the Exeter -Hall type are accustomed to. believe that polygamy is no longer practised by the Maoris. The common notion if? that it was banished by missionary inllucnce and went out of fashion with cannibalism. This, however, is a mistake, for the 'Southern Cross' says : it. must be true that polygamy amongst the natives has very largely diminished, but in* many of the kaingas there still lurk disciples of Mormonism, whose barenrs are only limited by the extent of their means. In some ofthe settlements patriarchal reprobates may still be found united to several old cbieftainesses, while many of the youngest and prettiest daughters of the tribe are " sealed unto' them," as the flSormorrs phrase it. Amongst those whose affections require thpse manifold solaces -is a Coromandeb chief named Te Ilangi, whose creed is that il one wife is a blessing to a man two wives arc a great deal be? tor, and accordingly Te- Ilangi basin the course of somo fifty-five years been united after the simple, and unostentnious ceremony of the Maoris to no fewer than six partners of his joys and sorrows. His last wife was a gentle half-caste creature of somo sixteen summers, all light and sunshine, and on hor he appears to have lavished all the warmth of his elastic and accommodating heart. But this latest addition to his household, so fur from reciprocating his mature affections, sought the companionship of a younger gallant in Auckland. Hither she has been' pursued by her-in-jured lord and master, and at last advices he was seen going about more in sorrow than in anger in search of his lost love.

Diplomas for Domestic Management. — If young men whose incomes, are under £500 a year were bound over not to marry anyone who had not earned a diploma in domestic management and elementary physiology, a race might be produced by a process of artificial selection who would ' be able and willing to do all that is required of them. This new race could not marry before five-and-twenty, for, having to learn so many things, they Would have to continue their education much longer than at present. -This would, however, have the advantage of giving their Con-

stitutions time to harden. But love, that unfortunate disturber -of the best laid schemes, steals in, and men marry pretty little nonentitiesn tities wi thout diplomas, for the 'foolish reason that they like them. They must be. prepared fo take the consequences, and must net expect the pleasant girl they meet at the ball to turn into the housewife of the /Proverbs, with the accomplishments thrown in. In households where there are grown-up spinsters, it is most desirable •that they should help in the work ofthe house. They should spare no pains to add to the "cor. fort and elegancies of their home. : They ought to learn cooking and -nursing, plain sewing, nnd everything that is useful.' Oh 'the other hand, it can scarcely be expected that a young married* woman with children, and with only -the assistance of a raw girl, should -cook for hours .every, day, dust her rooms, nurse her babies, keep up her acomplishrherits, -arid retain her 'hold on society and hor-husbandi. Perhaps^, little wholesome simplicity, arid war to the -knife; with . Mrs Grundy, might, 46 'more , for the happiness ,of y6ung; -couples .with Vli-mited! means than an atteiript on the part ofthe wives to, do the work, of three servah'ts, and, to keep up an appearance of nothing to'do' but to .amuse themselves. — 'Saturday Review.' ■ ' '' y r - : y-y-'- -> . _/y\