Anne Cobbett

“ The great art of economy in domestic life, is comprised in the two very homely phrases, "to turn every thing to account," and "to make the most of what you have." But their meaning is often perverted, and the habit of turning every thing to an account, and of making the most of every thing, is ascribed to those who are actuated, not by a laudable desire to produce as much comfort as their circumstances will admit, but by an inclination to indulge in a strong propensity to stinginess. ”

“ The sparrow-pudding is known in many country places, but is not often seen. Indeed, in this land of beef and mutton, it would be hard if these little creatures could not be left to sing and build their nests in peace. With the French there is such an avidity for all sorts of small birds, that a string of them is one of the most ordinary articles in the larder. Nothing that flies in France above the order of humming-birds in its size, is too insignificant to come within the scope of the sportsman's ambition, and the purveyor's nets and springes. ”

“ True hospitality conceals from guests any trouble which their presence may unavoidably occasion; but in the luxurious taste of the times, there is little real hospitality left: friendly intercourse seems lost in ostentatious display, and in our vain attempts to equal, if not to outshine, each other. Most persons acknowledge this to be the case, and lament that it is so; yet few have the courage to pursue a different system. ”

“ It is certainly desirable that every possible saving should be made in the consumption of coals; but it is not possible to have cooking in perfection, without a proper degree of heat; and, as far as my observation has gone, meat cannot be well roasted unless before a good fire. I should save in many things rather than in coals; and am often puzzled to account for the false economy which leads persons to be sparing of their fuel, whilst they are lavish in other things infinitely less essential. ”

“ The benefit of a good kitchen is well known to every housekeeper, but it is not every mistress that is aware of the importance of having a good cook. I have seen kitchens which, though fitted up with every convenience, and certainly at considerable expense, yet failed to send forth good dinners, merely because the lady of the house was not happy in her choice of a cook. ”

“ The rage for vying with our superiors shows itself in the bad taste which encumbers houses with unsuitable furniture. Massive sideboards, and unwieldy chairs, occupy too much space in a small room, while draperies not only obscure the light, but have an inelegant appearance, unless the room be large and lofty, or in keeping with the size and weight of cornices, cords, tassels, and other ornaments, which give offence to the eye when too gorgeous or prominent. ”

“ In the way of practical education, there are many things of importance to the poor, which ought to be taught them in early youth. At the age of fifteen or sixteen, a girl should already have learned many of the duties of a servant; for if her education up to that age have been neglected, she must necessarily, for the next three or four years of her life, be comparatively useless and little worthy of trust. The poor do not, as some may suppose, inhale with the air they breathe any of that knowledge which is necessary to make them useful in the houses of their parents or their employers. ”

“ When a young woman is called upon to exercise her judgment in the choice of a house, she must pause before she rejects one which, though she may consider it rather too small, might, nevertheless, be made to accommodate the family well enough, and might be fitted up at a less cost than a larger one. Such a house would require fewer servants, and would certainly present a better appearance, than one that is rather too large for the quantity, or for the style of its furniture, and is, perhaps, larger than is actually required for the number of its inhabitants. ”

“ I am a great enemy to the system of periodical scrubbings and general house-cleanings, which prevails to so great an extent, and especially in the country, where, when the appointed day comes round, carpets are taken up, and floors, even though they be delicately clean, are washed, whether the weather be suitable or otherwise, the health of the family being left to take its chance. The day of general house-cleaning is no other than a day of commotion and discomfort. One attendant evil is, the make-up dinner, which does not, perhaps, content all the family ”

“ When ladies take the trouble to teach the poor to read and write, they mean well, no doubt, and think they are doing the best they can for their pupils. But teaching industry is more to the purpose; for when learning has been found insufficient to preserve the morals of princes, nobles, and gentry, how can it be supposed that it will preserve those of their dependents? ”

“ Often when the Doctor's skill has saved the life of his patient, and it remains for the diligent nurse to prepare the cooling drinks and restorative foods, the taste and the appetite of sick persons are so capricious that they will reject the very thing which they had just before chosen: and frequently, if consulted upon the subject, will object to something which, if it had appeared unexpectedly before them, they would, perhaps, have cheerfully partaken of. Everything which is prepared for a sick person should be delicately clean, served quickly, in the nicest order ”

“ If they obtain employment, their labour is perhaps repaid by wages barely sufficient to keep them alive; destitute of the means of practising anything like household management, never having known what it is to have a home, worthy to be so called, for a single day, it is scarcely possible for them to obtain that knowledge, simple as it is, which is required to contrive the various modes of making much out of a little. ”

“ Some of these are nice eating, particularly the Wheat-ear, which, from its superior flavour, has been called the English ortolan. A roast of small birds is so much the fashion in France, that you seldom travel many days together without finding it one of the principal dishes of the supper table. In the autumn, and, indeed, through the winter, you will constantly see a partridge, or a woodcock, served up in the midst of a numerous company of blackbirds, thrushes, larks, and a variety of such small birds; a truly "dainty dish to set before a king." ”

“ Of the same importance as the cooking is neatness in serving the dinner, for there is a vast difference in its appearance if neatly and properly arranged in hot dishes, the vegetables and sauces suitable to the meat, and hot—there is a vast difference between a dinner so served, and one a part of which is either too much or too little cooked, the meat parting from the bone in one case, or looking as if barely warmed through in the other case ”

“ Above all, the pure mother English in which his instructions are conveyed, makes him a double teacher; for whilst the reader is ostensibly receiving instruction on some subject of rural economy, he is at the same time insensibly imbibing a taste for good sound Saxon English—the very type of the substantial matters whereof his instructor delights to discourse. Most of Cobbett's works on rural and domestic economy, though written for the industrious and middle classes of this country, are admirably adapted to the use of settlers in new countries. ”

“ The prejudice against French soup, arising from a belief that it must be maigre, is as ridiculous as was the assuming that all Frenchmen are the small, thin, miserable looking creatures which they used to be represented in caricatures. Soup is nourishing, and also economical, as it converts into palatable food, the coarser parts of meat, all trimmings, and much that could not be cooked with effect in any other way. ”

“ For pudding crust, nothing is so good as veal suet finely shred, though beef suet and beef marrow make light crust. Fresh dripping is also very good. Lard is not so good, for either meat or fruit puddings. Meat puddings (or dumplings, as they are called, in some of the counties in England) are generally liked, and are, either in crust or in batter, an economical dish, when made of the trimmings of beef or mutton, or the coarser parts of meat, which, though very good, would not so well admit of any other species of cooking. The meat should be quite fresh, and a due mixture of fat and lean. ”

“ I am by no means singular in lamenting that the advantages of a knowledge of housekeeping seem to be so entirely lost sight of by those who have the responsibility of bringing up either their own or other people's daughters; and I find it frequently the subject of remark that the ladies of the present day have become incapable of being so skilful in the discharge of their domestic duties as the ladies of a former period were, in proportion as they have become more cultivated and more accomplished. ”

“ There is no species of decoration which produces so much effect in ornamenting a house as flowers. The artificial productions of the painter and the upholsterer, the gilded ceilings, glittering mirrors, and couches of brocade, are more splendid and durable, and are worthy of admiration for their individual beauty and the ingenuity and industry which has produced them, but they have not the lively, gay, and varied attractions of flowers. ”

“ The French excel, merely because they take such pains in making soup, and not from the quality or quantity of their ingredients. A little meat with slow and regular boiling, will produce richer soup, than double the quantity, if the soup kettle be suffered to boil fast one quarter of an hour, and to stop boiling altogether the next quarter of an hour.—The fault most common in English soup is, the want of the juice of meat, caused by too quick and irregular boiling, to remedy which want, recourse is had to pepper, herbs, and wine. ”

“ Scald the fruit, and pulp it through a sieve, sweeten it, and put a thick layer in a glass dish. Mix 1⁄2 pint of milk, 1⁄2 pint of cream, and the yolk of 1 egg, scald it over the fire, stirring all the time, add sugar, and let it become cold, then lay it on the fruit, and on it a whip, as directed in the last receipt.—Or: scald, pulp, and sweeten the fruit, then stir it over the fire, into a thin custard: when cooked enough, pour it into a glass dish, to get cold. If apple, grate nutmeg and cinnamon, or lemon peel, over the top, add also lemon juice, and lay a whip on the top. ”

“ To be loved, and to be cheerfully served, is for those only who respect the feelings, and consult the comfort of their dependents; and, as a single trait is often sufficient to reveal the whole character, they will most assuredly be disappointed, who expect to meet with the qualities which conduce to the happiness of domestic life, in a woman who considers the feelings of a female servant as unworthy of the same consideration as that which she gives to the feelings of others of her own sex. ”

“ The cook who knows how to preserve the pot-liquor of fresh meat to make soup, will, whenever she boils mutton, fowls, or rabbits, &c., &c., carefully scum it, and, by adding peas, other vegetables, or crusts of bread, and proper seasonings, make some tolerable soup for poor {36}people, out of materials which would otherwise be thrown away.
To be a good cook she must take pleasure in her occupation; for the requisite painstaking cannot be expected from a person who dislikes the fire, or who entertains a disgust for the various processes necessary to convert meat into savoury dishes. ”

“ As soon after breakfast as she conveniently can, the mistress of a house should repair to the kitchen; which ought to be swept, the fire-place cleaned, tea-kettles, coffee-pots, and anything else used in preparing the breakfast, put in their appropriate places, and the cook ready to receive her orders for the day. Without being parsimonious, the mistress should see, with her own eyes, every morning, whatever cold meat, remains of pastry, bread, butter, &c., &c., there may be in the larder, that she may be able to judge of the additional provision required. ”

“ But a cook who takes pride in sending a dinner well dressed to table, may be depended upon, and that is of great importance to the mistress of a house: for though Englishmen may not be such connoisseurs in eating as Frenchmen, I question whether French husbands are more dissatisfied with a badly-cooked dinner than English husbands are. ”

“ It is certainly a more simple process to clean a house, than it is to keep a house clean; for mere labour is required for the one, while method is necessary for the other. But this method every young housekeeper should endeavour to acquire. Sweeping, dusting, and polishing, should proceed daily. Carpets should be swept every day with a hair broom; but only once a week with a carpet broom, because it wears them: and damp tea leaves should always be used, whether in sweeping carpets or boards, as they lay the dust, which would otherwise fly over the furniture, and again settle on the floor. ”

“ I have occasionally been astonished at the quickness with which a servant has made the discovery, that some upstart person, notwithstanding her lofty bearing, "was no lady." The behaviour which characterises such persons is more likely to give rise to contempt, in those who are beneath them, than any behaviour that is unaffectedly conciliating and kind. ”

“ Those persons who have excelled in dairy work, have generally learnt their business when quite young, as a knowledge of it is not to be hastily acquired. The great art of butter and cheese-making, consists in extreme care and scrupulous cleanliness; and an experienced dairy maid knows, that when her butter has a bad taste, some of the dairy utensils, the churn, the pail, or the pans, have been neglected in the scalding, or, the butter {349}itself not well made: unless, indeed, as is sometimes the case, the fault lies in the food provided for the cows. ”

“ Care should be taken to watch the first moment of the scum's appearing in order to remove it, and then, by throwing in a little salt, the remainder will be caused to rise; and if the fast boiling of the water render the scumming difficult, pour in a very little cold water. The practice of boiling meat, such as poultry, veal, and lamb, in floured cloths, to keep it white, must have been the invention of lazy cooks, if not of tasteless and extravagant housewives; for the meat is rendered less juicy, and the liquor in which it has been boiled, so good for broth or gravy, must be lost. ”

“ Whatever difference of opinion may exist as to Cobbett's political writings, and as to his peculiar views and prejudices, there cannot be a doubt that all his works on domestic management, on rural affairs, and on the use of language, are marked by strong sense, and by great clearness of thought and precision of language. His power of conveying instruction is, indeed, almost unequalled; he seems rather to woo the reader to learn than to affect the teacher ”

“ Perfect and uniform neatness is indispensable, not only for comfort, but appearance. By uniform neatness, I mean, that nothing which presents itself, whether about the house, in the dress of mistress, children, or servants, should be left open to unfavourable remark. A young lady who relaxes in attention to her own dress, merely because she has more important cares after, than she had before her marriage, does wrong ”

“ The honesty of servants depends, principally, upon their bringing up. But it also depends much, with young servants especially, upon the temptations to be dishonest they may have had to contend with; and it is the duty of every master and mistress to put all such temptations out of their way, as much as possible. The practice of locking up does not, as a matter of course, imply distrust, but it denotes care; and surely carefulness is one of the first principles to impress upon the mind of a poor person. ”

“ Every woman who presides over a home, and who wishes to preserve its attraction, should bear in mind the many minute cares which all contribute to give to that home, not only the semblance, but the substance of enjoyment ”

“ For an old and thickly-peopled country like England, perhaps Cobbett carried his notion of doing everything at home a little too far; but in a new country, where a man is at times compelled to turn his hand to everything, it is really well to know how everything connected with rural economy should be done, and we really know of no works whence this extended knowledge can be acquired so readily as from those of Cobbett. ”