THE GENTLEWOMAN.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume III, Issue 179, 17 June 1864, Page 5 (Supplement)

THE GENTLEWOMAN.

Messrs. Chapman and Hall have recently published an elegant little volume bearing the above title, from the pen of the author of “ Dinners and Dinner Parties.” We quote his graceful portraiture of THE ENGLISH GENTLEWOMAN. It is only in the soil where weeds cannot live that the fairest of all flowers is to be found, and on which weeds cannot be engrafted. The gentlewoman is a genus of the most .assiduous cultivation, peculiarly interesting in truth, nature, and reason; producing an equality of temper, exercising all the niceties of ceremony that makes her welcome wherever she may go ; her conversation is habitually cautious ; all that she mentions is honest and agreeable ; she is an enemy to ill-na-ture and pride, and laments that they are so frequent in the world ; with a self-respect and consideration for others, she secretly condemns the follies and weaknesses of “keeping up appearances.” Disdaining all fashionable outrage, she appeal's as the pink of neatness, the type of contentment, and when she goes abroad may be known by her innate grace and motion. Her home is elegant, and her table dainty, free from all vicious luxury ; every hour of the day has its employment; she attends to trifles, which saves more than suffices to pay all the imposts of her household, where reigns a serenity that is truly refreshing. Happy arc the men that have such homes, for to a surety poverty never enters. The earlier pages of this little book contain some very interesting and judicious remarks and anecdotes, chiefly bewailing the decadence of household knowledge among the fair ladies of the present day. That this neglect of woman’s mission does not find favour with the lady of the land we have ample evidence in the following interesting particulars respecting THE HOTAL HOUSEHOLD. But what will these ten millions of females say when they learn the Queen Victoria, the highest gentlewoman in the land, did, down to the lament-

ed death of the Prince, pay daily visits of inspection of her kitchen, pantry, and confectionery, and stillroom, and ■was proud of, and did herself show those rooms to her visitors when staying at the Castle ; and, carrying out the recognised principle of female duty, model kitchens were constructed at Windsor and Osborne, where all the princesses, from the eldest downwards, have passed a portion of each day in acquiring a knowledge of the various duties of domestic economy in the management of a household. In their model kitchen the princesses have daily practised the art of cookery and also confectionery in all its various branches. There is a small store-room adjoining each kitchen, where each princess in turn gives out the stores, weighing or measuring eacli article, and making an entry thereof in a book kept for the purpose; besides which, the princesses make bread ; and that is not all, they have a dairy where they churn butter and make cheese.