As a country cannot be governed without laws, neither can a household; and the mistress should be as absolute in her own house as a sovereign in her dominions. Order and regularity are the key-stones to comfort, and our housewife must carefully arrange and digest her scheme of government in the first place, and be always alive to any modifications which emergencies, or prudence, or circumstances, may call for. And she must understand what she is about, or her scheme will be worthless; she must be able to teach, nay, to demonstrate upon occasions; she must be regular in her own habits if she would have those about her regular, neat in all that concerns herself, attentive to the details of housekeeping, economical, just, active, and considerate. She must neither hold the reins of government loosely and negligently, nor too sternly, but must quietly exercise a general and regular surveillance over every part of her house and household; and this can be done without tyranny, without vexatious interference, or exhibitions of temper. Let the servants once feel that this is her habit, and they will act accordingly; and if the place is good, conduct themselves so as to endeavor to please and keep it. And it is the interest, as well as duty, of every mistress, to make her servants comfortable; to see that they have a sufficiency of good food, that they are well lodged; that they have time to mend and wash their own clothes nay, that they know how to do so, and do it.

"Do not send your clothes home to your mother to wash and mend," said a friend of ours to a new servant; "you will have plenty of time to arrange them yourself."

"Please, mum, I don't know how!" replied the girl.

"Well, Mary, you shall be taught, then, for it is time you did know how!"

"But please, mum, I don't want to learn!" said the girl; and learn she would not, for the foolish indulgence which leads mothers to spare their children all occupations they do not like, is as prevalent among the poorer as among other classes.

To return: a mistress need never forget herself, nor weaken her authority, nor show any false indulgence; but in numerous ways she will have the opportunity of endeavoring to guide, to advise, and to benefit those dependent upon her; but she must be patient, if she would really do good. She must remember what may have been the early education, the trials and temptations, the experiences of those girls, and must not expect too much from them. As we have before said, she must hold the reins of government with a firm hand; she must not overlook neglect of duties, irregularities of conduct, want of order or cleanliness, or inattention to her commands; but she can notice these things quietly, without loss of temper, and when alone with the offender; and she can also notice and praise neatness, attention, obedience, and such like, and not accept the good as mere matters of course, and only mark the evil. She should likewise endeavor to induce her servant, by example and precept, to be regular in attendance on religious worship, and make Sunday to them in some degree a day of rest, instead of one of extra cooking and work, and should have a supply of those excellent little works to lend them, which are published by the religious societies. While she inculcates economy in things relating to herself, she should try to induce them to save; to put by regularly a certain portion of their wages, and not be extravagant in clothes, but make and mend their things properly.

There is little saved by giving paltry wages; a useful servant will not accept them, and those who do, cannot clothe themselves respectably, and will too often eke out their means by peculation. It is well to begin with moderate wages, and promise an annual increase, which promise both induces a wish to, please, and takes away one great excuse for leaving, viz., a desire of "bettering herself." Even in the present "degenerate age," attached servants are to be found, and may be created. "We are all more or less human, and human affections and home ties act upon us; we learn to love those who are kind, courteous, and considerate; we value the notice and regard of our superiors, and we take a certain pride in deserving their good opinion. The fault lies in that antagonism of classes, that want of understanding each other, that forgetfulness that all are fellow-creatures, that tendency to regard each other as mutual enemies to be conquered or circumvented.

But we will pass to another topic. The amount of the income will determine what sum can be allowed per annum for housekeeping; for besides, there will be clothing expenses to be provided for, sundries of Various kinds, expenses of illness, on which we must all reckon, and there ought to be a reserve fund regularly laid by to provide for any unforeseen emergency, or form the "nest egg" of a provision for a rising family. Well, suppose the sum determined! the next question is, how to apportion it so as to combine economy with comfort, and secure a regular and uniform style of living; not luxuries to-day and parsimony to-morrow. Now, how can our young housekeeper do this, if she knows little or nothing of the prices of provisions; if she scarcely remembers when things are in season and may be purchased at a reasonable rate, and when they are actual extravagances; if she has no idea what quantity of this or that ought to be consumed, by a family of a certain size, per week or per month; and, above all, if she has little aptitude for domestic management, and considerable contempt for. all such vulgar details? Few who have read that truthful sketch of Dickens, the "child-wife," will forget the pretty helplessness of Dora; but, although this reads well in a novel, very few such girls, and there are many of them, will meet with husbands as indulgent; for men like to see their home well ordered, and to feel the comforts of good management. Every girl, or almost every girl, looks upon marriage as the great aim and end of her existence; but unfortunately, she regards it, as it is treated in novels, as the concluding chapter, the entrance to that "and-lived-happily-ever-after " state of bliss which we read of in fairy tales. And certainly it is the entrance to a new life, though not one so rose-colored as she dreamed; it takes her from the home where she has been nurtured, cared for, provided for, perhaps petted and indulged, and places her where she will have to be the presiding intelligence; where all will look to her for guidance and instruction; where her happiness and comfort, and that of her husband, will depend upon how she is qualified to fulfil the duties she has undertaken. Mothers, wishing to have your daughters well married, how have you prepared them for the duties you well know they will have to perform? Perhaps you were domestically educated, for our grandmothers were more careful in their generation, and thought it no degradation to be good housewives! Perhaps you have had to fight your way through a host of painful lessons, of annoyances, losses, and domestic worries. Do you never look back upon that miserable time, and feel anxious to spare your children a similar probation? Life, even at its best, has enough of painful experiences, without our doubling them by neglecting to teach each individual, in proper time, the things she will be expected to know when she reaches woman's estate.