FEMININE CHIT-CHAT.

Evening Post, Volume XLVII, Issue 82, 7 April 1894, Page 1 (Supplement)

FEMININE CHIT-CHAT.

It was with some astonishment and some aruusemeut I read in the Evening Post a local giving an account of the meeting of the Education Board, at which it said that some parents objected to Shakespeare's "As You Like It " as a study for sixth and seventh btandard children. Knowing as I do my Shakespeare well, I ask what can they object to in "As You Like It?" — a play full of Nature and Nature's beauties ; a play calculated to do young minds good instead of harm ; a play with good pure thoughts clothed in eloquent words, and as Mr. Blair aptly remarked, it is the School Edition that is used — Shakespeare improved (a keen bit of satire, Mr. Blair). There is no immoral teaching in this play. Children getfarmorehannfiomreadingthose ill- written rubbishy tales called the Garlield Series, and others of a like tendency. Shakespeare will never hurt an innocent mind. Is it the fact that Rosalind wears the doublet and hoso that shocks the modern minds of these good people? In these days of the Franchise it would not surprise iue jf the wpmen tqok tq the male attire altogether. It is tending that way, so that cannot he the objection. Anyway, if Shakespeare is condemned as a school bqok, it will be a crying shame and a lasting disgrace, for in his plays there are high moral lessoi.s, great truths, and pure teaching tq be learnt. Grand Old Will would turn jn hid grave could he but hear that one of his comedies was condemned by a portion of little Wellington to be unfit for children. The old motto comes in here :—fJoni soil gui inal y pense. In the summer weathur when bathing is so much indulged in, I have often thought what a good thing, it would be if girls at the Stute Schools were taught to swim, it being made coinpulsoiy. Let a lady who is a good swimmer take a class of girls to the Baths and give them a lesson twice or three times a week. Thty could soon learn, and very likely iv the tuture it might be the means of saving life, besides being a most healthful recreation. f. wonder more girls here do not take to tricycle and bicycle riding ? It is a delightful way of getting about. I hear there is a club in Christchurch, and numbers ot ladies belong to it. There is quite enough flat ground here. People stufe and make rude remarks (which shows their bad taste) when they see a lady bicyclist ; but if ladies went in for this pleasant exercise more, these silly people would get accustomed to the unwonted sight. There are very pretty costumes now worn by lady bicyclists. BECIPES. Split P-B*. Soujj. — Tp make whiph you require a breakfast cup of peas, which must be washed, picked over carefully, and allowed to eoak iv cold water all night. Next morning put the peas with the water in whiph they soaked into a saucepan ; add three pints of goud stock, and simmer gently until the peas are perfectly soft. Add three fresh tomatoes well bruised, and pass the whole through a sieve. Pour back into the saucepan, season with salt and pepper, thicken with flour and butter, and serve with slices of thin dry toast. Stewkd Wakehou. — Procure two or three cutlets, about an inch thick, cut from near the tail end ; wash and dry them, squeeze lemon juice liberally over both bides of each, and dust with black pepper and ground ginger. Now melt a small piece of butter in your stewpau ; lay iv your cutlet, sprinkle over it, a dessuii spoonful of pireley and spri-jj onions fiuely minced ; put in another cutlet, more parsley, &c ; pour in half a cupful of water, cover closely, and simmer very gently for about half an hour. If served hot, the cutlets should bo placed on a dish, a couple of hard-boiled eggs, chopped vp r _heated in the liquor, and then poured over the fish. But cold, with a few drops of tarragon vinegar and some good Lucca oil. Le3(on DvrapLTh-qs. — Lemon dumplings can be made quite cheaply with 1 large lemon, { lb. suet, lb. flour, and J lb. moist sugar, 1 egg, rfnd a |ittle milk. Peel the lemon very thinly and chop the peel i with tho suet, mix with the flour and sugar, beat up the egg, and mix in, using sufficient milk to make rather a stiff paste. Tie in small cloths and boil 1 hour, or it may be boiled as a pudding all in one, in which case it will take 2 hours to cook. Madeira Sandwiches.— Ingredients : 3lb enc-h of biigur mid butter, lb. flour, 4 eggs, 1 tciispoouful baking Powder, J teaspoonlul .mi It, h gill uf milk. Mix baking powder and wilt with fljur, beat butter to a cream, add sugar, thtn eggs one at a time, lastly stir in flour. Bake in a flat buttered tin. When done, split open and spread with raspberry j.nn, press- both together, and cut into sandwiches; powder with flue sugar.