Various

“ So the sheep-washing began again, and Mrs. Shelley, who had brought some work with her, promised Fairy to remain till tea-time, on condition that she then accompanied her home.
“I do enjoy it so, mother,” said Fairy; “it would be wicked to spend such a bright warm sunny day as this shut up in a house; it is so delicious out in this field. I wonder how much they pay those washers; it must be dreadfully hard work; they ought to pay them well.” ”

“ It should be borne in mind that economy in the use of food is a duty clearly pointed out to us by the highest of all authority. The age of miracles has passed, but were it in our power to multiply our food miraculously, we are taught that it would still be a duty to gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost.
At present I will confine myself to the consideration of tinned meats in relation to their value to housekeepers, and I will illustrate my subject by supposing the following case, which is by no means a rare one in England in the present day. ”

“ As to the future, it is doubtful if she ever gave it a thought; she lived as all children do, for the present, at least, as far as this world is concerned, though neither she nor any one else could have been brought up by good John Shelley without learning that life here is but a preparation for the life to come. Ignorant as the shepherd was in many things, he was by no means ignorant in things spiritual, and his knowledge of the Bible, large portions of which he knew by heart, would have put many an educated man and woman to shame. ”

“ When people have money there are three things they can do with it; they can spend it, or place it out at interest, or tie it up in a parcel and hide it away. Perhaps they do not need at the moment to spend it; in that case of the two ways that are left the only wise one is to place it out at interest. ”

“ On the roadside were some stragglers of all grades, watching the performance, one or two farmers on horseback who had a lively interest in the washing of their flocks, and on the banks several shepherds, among them Jack and his father, all armed with large, toothless wooden rakes, with which they push the sheep about, holding them under water when necessary, and steering them from pulpit to pulpit. ”

“ Cheques payable to bearer can be cashed by anyone. Those payable to order, however, must be endorsed by the person in whose favour they are drawn before the money can be received. But what is to endorse a cheque? It is simply to write your name on the back of it.
Cheques payable to order are certainly safer than those payable to bearer. And they have another advantage. In the event of receipts being lost or mislaid, they supply evidence that the money was received by the person to whom it was owing. ”

“ These preparations consisted of pens made of hurdles by the side of the river for the sheep; in the stream itself, opposite to each other, were erected two rough pulpits or deal boxes, in which stand the sheep-washers. When Jack and his father arrived, it was so early that no one was there, not even the washers; but at ten o’clock, when Mrs. Shelley and Fairy went, the scene was a most lively one.
Hundreds of sheep were in the pens, some white and clean, their agonies over; others still dirty, with their tortures to come. ”

“ The majority of persons, especially in this country, look upon them simply as a convenience to housekeepers, but the subject should be regarded from a far higher point than one of mere convenience, for by means of tinned provisions the whole food supply of the world is increased, and thereby the happiness and enjoyment of mankind at large.
By means of tinned meats the superfluities of one country help the deficiencies of others. Owing to this useful invention, no longer are sheep slaughtered for their wool and tallow only, and the carcasses wasted, but the whole is utilised. ”

“ Though cheques are usually made out on engraved forms, you may write a cheque on a sheet of note-paper should a cheque-book not be at hand. In that case, remember to put a penny stamp on it, and to cancel the stamp by writing on it the date and your initials.
Keep your cheque-book always under lock and key. If you leave it about, it only puts temptation in the way of people to abstract a blank form and make free with your signature. Should your book ever be lost or stolen, give notice at once to the bank.
Lodging money is one of the easiest of business operations. ”

“ He must also know his customer’s handwriting, so, should he pay a cheque or bill which turns out to be a forgery, he must bear the loss. If he neglects to carry out any instructions within the legitimate sphere of banking business, such as the payment of premiums on a life insurance or the purchase of shares, he may be called to account for any loss the customer may suffer through his carelessness.
The simplest bank in the country, and the most important to depositors of small means is the Post Office Savings Bank, about which we must now speak. ”

“ The pass-book is really a copy of the bank ledger. When received again from the bank it should be gone over carefully to see that all the entries are just as they should be.
Current accounts, as a general rule in England, do not bear any interest, in other words, the banker pays nothing for the use he enjoys of any balance left in his hands. Unless the balance is large he thinks he does enough in taking the trouble of keeping the account. In Scotland interest is usually given on current accounts, but it is only a slight advance upon nothing. ”

“ Shelley wisely stopped the discussion by remarking that there was plenty of time to settle the details, as the sheep-washing was not begun yet.
“It begins to-morrow though; Jack and I are off with half our flock at daybreak to-morrow. Charlie, you must follow the rest for a day or two; I must have Jack with me to-morrow,” said the shepherd.
“And I shall come too. If mother can’t take me, I shall get the Leslies to come. I always go to see our sheep washed every year,” said Fairy. ”

“ To drive in a sledge at all was to me a novel and delightful experience, and the sledge to which I was now conducted was particularly pretty, with its body of light carved wood, its fur rugs lined with crimson, its pair of cream-coloured Russian ponies, with their harness studded with silver knobs, and arches of silver bells over their heads ”

“ And what is interest? Interest is the sum paid by anyone who gets the loan of money, for the use of it. Selina, say, gets the loan of £50 for a year—not for nothing—oh, no, she pays £2 for the twelve months. This £2 is the interest. At the end of the year the lender receives back her £50 and £2 added to it, so, you see, it is for a good reason that we recommend lending in preference to unfruitful hoarding. Money—and this is a wise rule—should never be allowed to lie idle.
The sum lent is known as the principal, and on the principal the interest is calculated at so much per cent. ”

“ If you don’t approve of spirits being used in the kitchen (I don’t approve of it myself) , add a little sherry, and rub a few lumps of sugar on the outside of a lemon, and also two drops of essence of almonds. (You can, indeed, leave out the sherry, and still have a good sauce.)
The plum pudding will be hot through after the water has boiled for over half an hour. Open the tin, take out the pudding, and serve with a little sauce poured over it, and the rest in a tureen.
The jelly should be served in glasses, for the simple reason that there is no time to melt the jelly. ”

“ You cannot, in the Post Office Savings Bank, open an account from which, by means of cheques, you can draw money at any hour. It does not provide cheque books, and makes the withdrawal of money comparatively a slow process, for its leading idea is not to facilitate present business, but to provide for future need. ”

“ It is such fun to see the poor sheep tumbled into the water and then rolled over on its back and rubbed from head to foot in the bright, clear stream, first by one washer in his pulpit, and then, after sundry pushes and thumps from the toothless rakes, to be seized by the other washer and subjected to another vigorous rubbing and scrubbing, and splashing and dashing, and finally to be pushed off to scramble or swim as best it might out of the river. ”

“ Once in every year, on the anniversary of the day on which the first deposit was made, the deposit book should be forwarded to the Controller of the Savings Bank Department in London, that the entries may be checked, and that the sum due for interest may be added. When sending the book, do not pay postage: all communications on Savings Bank business go free.
Deposits may be made by married women, and in that case their husbands have no control over the money. They can draw from it when they please, and bequeath it by will to any person they choose. ”

“ These bands are now a thing of the past, though the shearing is still done by men who go round for the purpose, but no lambs are shorn nowadays, so the work is very much lessened.
“There is plenty of work for you, Polly; you’ll have to get someone in to help you; we shall have to have the White Ram here for the future,” said John.
“Oh, what fun!” exclaimed Fairy; “now I shall see it all, and hear the shearing songs. Mother, you must let me help; John says no one can make plum heavies, not even you, mother, like me: can they, John?” ”

“ But the business of receiving money on deposit has always been, and is now, universally combined with that of lending it out. A banker does not hoard all the money deposited with him—he gives the greater portion out in loan. The lending of money is as much a part of his business as the receiving of deposits.”
You cannot go into a banker’s and say, “I{183} have come to open an account,” just as you would enter a grocer’s with, “Be so good as send me half a dozen tins of the best sardines.” ”

“ Besides receiving money on current account, however, bankers receive it on deposit. Deposit accounts are those in which sums of money are lodged in a bank on the understanding that a certain rate of interest is to be paid upon them, and that a certain number of days’ notice is to be given before they are withdrawn. There is no such thing as drawing cheques on a deposit account.
When money is received on deposit, a deposit receipt is given. ”

“ Ox Tail Soup. Salmon Mayonnaise. Hashed Mutton and Pickled Walnuts. Curried Rabbit. Asparagus. Plum Pudding. Brandy Sauce. Jelly in glasses. Pine Apple (whole in syrup) .
If the cook is smart, the whole dinner could be served easily within an hour, and should one or two of the girls in the house be willing to assist (and who would not, under such circumstances?) , the dinner might be sent to table in considerably less time. ”

“ First class curry can be obtained in tins. Remember that tinned meats are like everything else in the world—some are good, and some are bad. If you wish for a bottle of really good wine, you must go to a first class wine merchant; and if you wish your tinned provisions{179} good, you must get them from first class people, or see that some well-known name is on the label. Unfortunately, this country has been flooded, from time to time, with worthless imitations, introduced by unknown men who have no name to lose.
The curry, having been made hot in the tin, should be turned out in a deep dish ”

“ This first step being taken, you open what is called a current or drawing account; that is to say, an account into which you can pay money whenever it suits you, and from which you can draw money at any time by means of orders, or cheques, as they are called. In a current account in a good bank money is kept safely—which is a great matter—and at the same time you can make use of it as readily as if it were lying in your pocket. ”

“ If the season of the year is suitable, and we have some lettuces in our garden, of course we should cut one or two lettuces, and surround the salmon with the best part of the lettuce. Next to ornament the salad. Take a bottle of capers, and with a spoon take out about a couple of dozen, throw these into a cloth and dry them, and place them at intervals on the sauce. Then take three or four anchovies out of the bottle, cut them into strips, remove the bone, and place these little strips of anchovy round the base of the light pyramid of sauce like trellis work. ”

“ When the curry has been turned out into the dish, you might add a few fresh bayleaves and serve them up in the curry whole, and if you feel anxious to have the dish ornamental you can proceed as follows, and, should your guest be an “old Indian,” he will probably appreciate the addition:—Take some red chilis and bend each chili in the middle, so as to make it look like one of the small claws of a lobster, and place these red chilies round the edge of the dish in a triangular shape, exactly as if you were placing the small claws of a lobster around a lobster salad mayonnaise. ”

“ The fact that he has endeavoured to induce you, a minor, to rebel against them and “marry him secretly,” shows him to be devoid of all honour and right principle. He is taking a disgraceful advantage of your youth, weakness, and inexperience. ”