 28 Getting ready for the great responsibility. Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou exellest them all. Most good girls become wives and mothers. There are some true-hearted women who do not, but they will very nearly all tell you, as old age creeps on them, that they feel certain they have missed the best that life could have given them. One woman who had given her life in noble and uplifting work, whose name is familiar in every home for her influence in the lives of other women, said when questioned on this very point, for she had never married, I would give it all for the touch of little hands. There is a heart-cry in every woman that cannot be satisfied except in motherhood. If a girl knew that she was to be a teacher, an artist, or a musician, she would not put off all thought and preparation for her life-work till she was ready to begin it, but instead would fit herself for it by study and practice. There would be years of hard work between her and success in her chosen calling. There is no calling higher than that of motherhood, and the place of wife is nearly as high. The wife, if she is what God means for her to be, is a help-meat, a strength and constant blessing to her husband. He is a better man with a fuller and more useful life because of her influence. Without her, his life could not be perfect. To be this to one person all through a lifetime may mean much to any woman, and by making his life fuller, her own life is enlarged, and others are blessed thereby. It is a wonderful and a noble thing to be a good wife and the mistress of a real home. But the calling of a mother is yet higher. Then the woman brings into the world other beings and is responsible to God and to the world for their care and training. It is a lifelong job, and one that will tell for good or bad to the end of the world. Not one woman who has been a mother has failed to leave her imprint on the world. There are now, on record, the names of women whose wicked lives and ungodly children and children's children down to the present generation have cost their states and cities thousands of dollars, and there are other women whose names are on record in life's history whose godly and upright lives have so influenced their children that they, down to the present generation, are a blessing and benediction in the world. Motherhood is a far-reaching destiny indeed. It is the highest calling, the noblest work, the greatest honor that can come to any woman. This is also what will, if used rightly, bring her the most happiness and genuine satisfaction of anything in life, for this God made her and fitted her by nature. Nature begins when the girl is just entering her teens rapidly to fit the girl's body for motherhood. Those organs that are especially given for that work begin to grow and develop, and the nature of the girl begins to change, as we have shown, to make her ready to desire and appreciate her calling when the right time comes. This bodily change is now completed so that the girl is ready for her wonderful work till she has finished her teens. There are a few girls who develop into full womanhood before they are twenty, but they are not many among us, and some are not mature until several years above twenty. There are six to ten years of life given by nature to this special work in the body, and if she is not hindered she will give her child a beautiful temple of health in which to live and fulfill her work. But many girls strive against the design of wise providence to their own sorrow. The wise girl will dress in proper clothing so that her body will not be bound and choked in its efforts to develop. Her clothing will also be sufficient to protect her from cold and dampness so that no shock shall hinder nature in her work. The girl will take proper exercise in the open air so that her muscles will develop and her lungs can be filled with a life-giving oxygen. For nature never meant that her children should be hot-house plants. She will eat properly and regularly, not making her stomach a dumping-ground for all the foolish likes and fancies of the palette. She will take a sufficient amount of sleep in a properly ventilated room, not keeping laid hours either in retiring or rising. She will seek in all she does to live a quiet, simple, natural life, giving nature a chance to do her best. The keeping of these simple rules of health will be of untold benefit and their breaking may lead to lifelong regret. The body is not the only part of a girl that should be fitted for the duties of womanhood. The girl needs knowledge of many things. The responsibilities that will be hers as wife and mother go out in every direction and she needs to learn to be an all-around woman. First in importance in this consideration is the cultivation of her own nature so that she can be true in affection, steady in purpose, and reliable in responsibility. She needs to be able to control herself so that she can give up her way for the peace of her little realm, to be able to hold all the members of her kingdom through the bonds of love. The selfish and self-willed, the tempestuous and stormy, the indolent and sluggish, the careless and indifferent, all are out of the race. They can never make the best mothers. It takes real women to make good mothers, and real women can govern and direct their own actions aright. The girl needs to have a working knowledge of the responsibilities that will be hers. She should know how to cook and bake, to wash and iron, to scrub and clean, to sew and mend. In fact, how to do everything that a housewife needs to have done. If her circumstances are such that she does not actually have this work to do, she can direct the efforts of others the better for knowing how the work is done. The girl should know how to buy economically, both for the kitchen and household and for the wardrobe. Without this knowledge she will waste her husband's means and make his path hard in the beginning of their lives together. Last of all, but far from the least, the girl should learn to love little children and to make them her friends. She ought to learn how to care for infants and how to build up in her heart a desire for motherhood. No, my girls, it is not a thing to be ashamed of, that desire in you for little children. God put it there, and if you really feel, as some girls will lightly say of themselves, that you never want to be bothered with babies, then you are an unnatural girl. Somewhere poison has been put into your mind and heart which should be purged out and write principles of life implanted instead. Getting ready for womanhood is serious business and not to be taken lightly. Every girl should have a thorough knowledge of herself and of the proper care of her body. There are books that treat on this very subject, and from them every girl can learn what she needs and really desires to know about herself. The real woman's life is so filled with love and gladness that all the suffering and pain that must come as a portion of motherhood is forgotten in the joy it brings. May God bless the dear mothers to be, and help them to get ready for the work that will be theirs. End of Chapter 28 CHAPTER 29 She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff. Every girl should be able to make her own living if it becomes necessary. It is not wise for every girl to go out into the working world, and they are content for her own livelihood. For many homes need the services of a loving daughter more than she needs the extra spending money that her work will bring. More unwise yet is it for women who should be housekeepers and homemakers to give their homes over to the hands of servants or close their doors altogether, to go forth to earn money for the money's sake. But there are many women and girls whose circumstances compel them to be breadwinners, and not one girl knows that such will not sometime be her lot. The field from which a girl may choose her life work is much wider than once it was. In the days of our grandmother's youth the girl who was forced to earn her livelihood had only two or three vocations to choose beyond that of a house servant. But the girl of today has almost as wide a choice as her brother, for nearly every vocation that is open to him is also open to her. The act of choice, therefore, becomes harder, and more depends upon the girl herself. If circumstances are such that the girl should stay in her own home and not become one of the breadwinners of the day, she should, if possible, prepare herself in some particular way so that in case of future need she could use her knowledge for gain. There are many things to be taken into consideration by the girl who's making choice of her life work. She wants to make a success, not only in her work, but in her life, so that as much good as possible will be the result of her having lived. The first consideration with any girl is no doubt her own desires and taste. What would be pleasure to one would be irksomeness to another, and no one can do her best at what is always unpleasant. Her next consideration will be her ability to do what she wants to do. Has she talent for that particular work? Are her health and physical strength sufficient to warrant her undertaking it? What would be foolish to give time and means in preparing for that for which one is naturally unfitted? Another point to consider seriously is the associations into which her choice would lead her. She must remember that to fill her place in life she must first be all a woman, with all that that can mean, and to undertake any work that would make her less womanly, less able to fill the ideals of real womanhood would be both unwise and sinful. There are many things that a woman could do, but which in doing she would be thrown into company with all kinds of men in a way so intimate that she could keep neither their respect nor her own. Such a choice would be madness, for she would be destroying what in woman is the most beautiful, modesty and purity. A work, to be worthy of a choice, should be needful, uplifting and noble. No other choice is worthy the consideration of any girl. She should ask herself seriously, will this work I intend to do make the world better, or help in any of its necessary toil? Shall I, in doing it, be doing my part in lifting the burdens of life? Will it make me a better woman for the doing? Or at least leave me as good a woman as I am. Life is not all made up of pleasure and frolic, and our work should be something that is of real service. There is no work that is worthwhile and yet learned and performed without effort. Sluggards never make successes anywhere. The girl who would win for herself a place in the earning world must be ready to work long and hard. There is no nobler profession for any girl to choose than that of a teacher. Her years of preparation will be filled with hard work and persistent efforts, and the performing of that work is both wearing and vexing, but the results can be great. Not only should the teacher guide her pupils in paths of knowledge, but also into ways of truth and uprightness. Her moral and spiritual influence for good can be great in the schoolroom, if she properly prepares herself for it and performs her work with the highest aims in view. The artist and musician can bring much pleasure and happiness into the world through their gifts. Happiness that needs to are only the best that is in men and women, but this work is perfect only after long effort and persistent application. The writer of books and short stories has a field before her which, followed in the right direction, can do much good in the world, but which, followed in another direction, will add only to the curse that is already in the world. The wrong kind of stories are better never written. The writer also meets much difficulty in getting started in life. Many who try never succeed. It is at best a long, hard way, but one that is pleasant indeed to follow by those who love to do that kind of work. There are many openings for a girl in the business world that she can fill without detracting from her womanliness. Though it takes less preparation for business in the beginning, the work itself is one long school of hard work. There is another class of work into which many young girls are forced by circumstances, work that makes them a living and is honest enough, but which will not show the personality of the girl herself as do the professions I have been mentioning, and that work is such as is found in the factory, shop, or store. The girl who must do this kind of work can do well what she does, can fill a worthy place, but in the majority of cases the girls found here are doing only such work till the time when they shall go to life's greatest responsibility, the making of a home. There is a strong prejudice against the doing of housework for a living. This arises no doubt from the idea of servitude, but all work is service of one kind or another. There is no work that is more necessary or capable of bringing more real pleasure than housework. Any girl who can do this work will need not be ashamed of her calling. If she uses the spare moments she can find for study and reading, she need not let her mind starve, and become but a drudge, because this is her calling. All needful work is honorable if it is done well and for a good purpose. A mistake that many girls make who must go out to work is that of neglect of home duties. They allow themselves to go on from year to year with no knowledge of household work. They cannot cook a good meal, nor make a garment. It would be impossible for them to do a washing and ironing properly, both for lack of skill and because of fatigue. Such girls, many of whom can hope to marry only poor men, are able to give them but a small allowance for household purposes, come to marriage without any knowledge of housework, or of the buying value of money. Here is the cause of many home wrecks. Every girl should remember that first of all she is a woman, and the woman in her will desire and claim a home of her own some day, and if she is to be a success there she must make some preparation for that calling. CHAPTER XXXIII. I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit. There is no life so unhappy and discontented as one that is aimless. For any life to be satisfying it must have a goal that leads the path upward. Some people indeed succeed in what they undertake, but their goal is so low that when they accomplish their aim it is as bad as failure could have been. To one who aims low, or not at all, success can never come, for it is only when we approach near to what God intended we should be, the very best that is in us, that real success can be attained. Success can mean nothing less than the accomplishment of good. Though one might hitch her wagon to a star, so high and noble are her aspirations, yet if after all that star is an earthly one, knowledge, personal influence, ability, riches, honor, and her aspirations be realized, and she arise high in the world, she will not find the satisfaction in her attainments that she hoped for. We in our natures are not altogether earthly. There is in us a nature that craves to be in tune with heaven. A life that gives exercise to this part of being, and provides a way for the satisfying of the hearts craving for God, is the only one that brings what every person desires—soul rest. That is why I wish to talk to you about the consecrated life, the life all given and humble, willing service to God. Under the old Mosaic law one tribe of the children of Israel was chosen for the service of God in a peculiar sense, and they were set apart from the rest for that purpose. Out of that tribe the priestly family was chosen, and they were to serve at the altar and in the tabernacle. The vessels that were used about the altar and everything consecrated to the temple service were to be used for that purpose only, and if in any way they became unfit for that service they were destroyed. Never were they used part of the time for common purposes. Our service now is not according to that old formal worship. For now hearts and affections, not pots and pans, are asked in consecration. Then the service of God consisted to a great extent in the proper keeping of certain forms and ceremonies. Now the service of God is counted only that devotion which comes from a sincere and consecrated heart. The consecration of earthly vessels, then, is a picture of the complete consecration of heart now, for we are to be fully the lords for all time, not giving a portion of our time and affection to the world and sin, and to the following of selfish purposes. Every act of life, every thought of the heart, every affection of the soul, all for God and done in the glory of God. This consecrated life is expected of every Christian. In fact, no person can live in conscientious, Christian life long without finding such a consecration necessary. Either he must give himself fully to God or drop back into the cold formal life that many live, but none enjoy. Do not let anyone think that such a devoted life is irksome, for it is not. We are so consecrated that the heart naturally craves God, and when the powers of sin that bind have been broken and the soul has been set free to follow its right course, the highest pleasure is found in sincere service to God. One of the ranks of those who fully follow him, God chooses some whom he sees in his wisdom could particularly glorify him in special service, and these he calls to the work he would have them to do. To such there comes a conviction of heart and inward knowledge that makes them know they are set apart for special service. There are many kinds of work that are in a peculiar sense the lords. Work among the poor and needy, visiting them and ministering to their wants, especially to the sick and helpless among them, is to be found almost everywhere, and for those who will do this work humbly and gladly there is a rich reward in heaven. One of the tests put to true religion is, has he who professes to possess it visited the fatherless and widow in their affliction? To think that we can be Christians and shut our hearts against those who are in need shows that the first principles of true Christianity have not been learned by us. Again there is the ministry of song, when the voice which God has given is used to win souls to God and encourage those who are cast down. This is a wonderful and noble work. Another noble and wonderful calling is the work of a missionary. There are many departments of this work for which women are especially fitted, and there is ever room for more persons willing literally to leave all, to follow Jesus. And no other calling can one so fully give all for Jesus. To be successful in this field, years of hard work are necessary, and some must lay down their lives on the battlefield. The call is for consecrated workers, whether home missionaries, gospel workers, or missionaries to foreign lands. From all, God wants a consecrated and willing service. The one who is thus called and accepts the call must expect a long and in some respects a difficult preparation. Those vessels that are the most precious are often the longest in the hands of the potter, and the process is through which they must pass the most severe. The one who is to stand before the people as an example of the grace of God, a pattern for others to follow, must expect to be made like the great pattern. Preparation for God's work is on our part of two kinds, that which is acquired through study and application, and that which is learned in the school of experience. My dear girl, if deep in your heart of hearts you feel that God is calling you, that you should dedicate your life to the work of God, then turn your face resolutely to the things of God, study the word of God, and all other books that will give you the knowledge you will need for your work. If a vocation is considered that requires more schooling, it should only be undertaken upon proper counsel, all the while keeping ready to do the little things for God that you find need doing by the way. Besides this, live close to God in prayer, fighting your life battles through, seeking in everything to follow the guiding of the Lord. To you will come many experiences that will test your grace and fortitude, many temptations to try you, that you may prove your strength and courage, and that you may know the battles that others have to fight. If God has called you to his work, look not upon it as a hardship, but go forth gladly, willing and ready to go and to suffer and die for the cause you love. From your ranks, you who are girls now, God will call many for service. Let him find willing servants who will fully yield their whole lives to him. But I would not forget the rank and file, those who are not specially called, but whose lives are set in the ordinary channels, who are to make the home women of our land. Let not one think that only in special service is consecration needed. Every act of our lives can be a service to God, she who makes a good home where others are encouraged and strengthened, she who is ready to speak a kind and encouraging word to those in need, she who keeps up a humble and quiet everyday service to God. She is glorifying him, just as much as are they who go on special missions. CHAPTER XXXI OF BEAUTIFUL GIRLHOOD This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. BEAUTIFUL GIRLHOOD by Mabel Hale CHAPTER XXXI A PURE HEART Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. What a pleasure to look forth upon the bosom of the earth on a clear morning after a snowstorm, when over all is spread the covering of pure whiteness, hiding every defect and blemish, surmounting all that is unclean and ugly, transforming every stick and clod into things of beauty, leaving only blue sky above and pure whiteness below. Or what a pleasure to stand at the brink of a clear, calm pool, licking into its steps without observing one thing unclean. And then to put to your lips a cup of the crystal liquid fresh from the string that feeds the pool and drink to your fill. What a sense of the infinite one feels standing on the top of the mountain height, far above the dust and smoke from the lower regions, and there drinking in the pure air, and gazing as far as the eye can carry in every direction, the sight unobstructed by the thickness and gloom of lower levels. Or again, what a sense of the infinite one feels out under the clear sky, there beholding the stars shining forth with all their beauty and brightness. Never revelations of the mighty power of God. To look into the depths of a child's innocent eyes and see there but the innocence and guiltlessness of one who has never sinned will soften the hard heart. To look into the clear, fearless eye of the man or woman whose heart is free from the condemnation of sin. Or to see the quietness and confidence of old age that has come to its own with cleanness of hands and purity of heart. With strength to those who falter. The look of innocent pleasure in the eyes of a modest maiden claddens all who behold it. Everywhere purity and clearness are admired and appreciated. Pure air, pure water, pure food, pure associations, pure ideals, pure aspirations, all are needed for the perfect living. The purity that counts for most in your life and mine is purity of heart. It is possible for us to live with the very seed of our affections cleansed from that which is sinful, and our hearts made pure. The heart can be made a fit temple into which to ask the Lord to come and be the inhabitant. One of the things every young Christian girl soon becomes aware of is the natural sinfulness of her own heart. When she is trying to do that which is right, evil thoughts and feelings will arise. She is tempted to be proud and selfish, and under certain provocation she feels the workings of anger in her heart. Though by looking to God for help she keeps her lips from speaking out her feelings. Sometimes she is startled by feelings of jealousy and envy, two things that must not be allowed in the life of a Christian. She will find it hard at times to follow the Lord fully, to entirely do his will. If she will seek out the real desire of her heart, she will find that she wants a closer walk with God. Yet when she tries to walk closer, she is all the more conscious of these sinful impulses. If she understood herself, she would know she needed a pure heart. If a girl will come to God with her perplexities and tell him the struggles she is having with foes within, and fully consecrate her life to him, saying from the depth of her heart, Lord, I give my life to thee. Thou mayest have every part of it, cleanse my heart, and make it a fit place for thee to dwell. And trusting God to do what she has asked him to do, she may have a pure heart. God will cleanse out those sinful principles from her nature, and make her a conqueror. Not that she will no more be tempted, but instead of those inward struggles that are so hard to master, she will find inward grace and strength to overcome. There is a heavenly visitor who will come in and fill the heart that is fully given to God, so that instead of those sinful impulses ruling there, this sweet spirit of God will reign. The experience of heart purity is not for everyone who cherishes any thought or feeling that is impure. If envy, or jealousy, or pride, or arrogance, or any kindred evil is allowed a place, the spirit of God will not come to cleanse and fill his temple. It seems to me a most wonderful thing, this deliberate giving over of oneself and life for God alone. We think of the young nun who leaves all the world and takes the veil for life, and wander at her fortitude, and bewail her needless sacrifice. But on the other hand we too often fail to see that there is a consecration and sacrifice in genuine Christian service. Not that sacrifice which in a sense buries one alive, but the consecration of service that will allow no desire or thought or aspiration, to linger that is known to be contrary to the will of God. There is a rest of spirit and a quiet confidence, a joyfulness and a perfection of love and peace in the heart of one thus given over to God, that cannot be described in words. Nor is this experience for only a favoured few. Everyone who will seek God with all his heart, who will draw close, may have this experience of a pure heart. END OF CHAPTER XXXI. CHAPTER XXXII OF BEAUTIFUL GIRLHOOD. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org. BEAUTIFUL GIRLHOOD. By Mabel Hale. CHAPTER XXXII. A FEW FALTS DISCUSSED. To him that over cometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna. There are none among us who can truthfully boast a faultlessness. I wish to speak particularly now to those who are earnestly endeavouring to live a Christian life. Such girls will have seasons of inward searchings and examinations that will bring them face to face with their own shortcomings and weakness. What shall they do with them? There is a fault of irresolution. A person to be of strong character must be able to make of his mind. To make decisions and to stand by those decisions in the face of hindrances and opposition. He who is irresolute is not sure of himself. He is ever going back to see whether or not he made a mistake in his decision. We have read of the character in Pilgrim's progress who saw lions in the way and was not strong enough to march up to them. They who did not face their lions found them bound so that they could not reach the path. But he who is irresolute never gets that far. The girl who has acquired the habit of halting between opinions of never making up her mind on anything needs to take herself in hand sternly, look problems in the face, march right out to meet them, and fight her own battles through. To the one who is determined to win, victory will come. Self-consciousness is a sister of irresolution. She causes her victim to keep his eyes on only himself, to study his own thoughts and feelings and acts, and to look to condemn. When he goes into the company of others he feels that all eyes are upon him. When he undertakes to do anything he is conscious of his every word and act, and blushing, stammering, apologizing, he succeeds in doing just the thing he hates, getting eyes upon himself. The girl who is self-conscious needs to begin doing something for others. If you go into company seek out someone who needs encouragement, a helping hand, and give it. Possibly you will see another more miserably embarrassed than you are. If so, help that one. There is no cure for self-consciousness like keeping busy and interested in others. Those terrible feelings come only to those who have time to entertain them. Here is a girl whose besetting fault is sharpness of speech. It may come from nervousness of temperament, from environment, or from some other cause, but no matter what the cause the result is always the same, hurting and wounding those who hear. Such a girl needs first of all to guard her thoughts. Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. If sharp critical thoughts are allowed then sharp critical words will be the result. If we will form the habit of watching for good things in others and of speaking about them, kindness will become a habit. Another fault is an inordinate love for pretty things. I say inordinate, for there is a proper appreciation for those things that are beautiful, that is allowable in everyone. But she who has too great a love for these things sets great value upon their possession. Pride and vanity are almost certain to be the close companions of a love for personal adornment. Money that should go for more necessary things is given for things beautiful. The girl becomes dissatisfied with the home and surroundings as she finds them, developing a deep dislike for what should be dear to her, all because they do not meet her ideal of beauty. Such a girl needs to learn to look well to the good that is about her. Her love is, real beauty can be found. There is nothing more beautiful than a happy, satisfied heart. If your love for pretty things so fills your heart that you cannot see the good that loving hands and hearts would bring to you, then you need to give a serious attention to that which is obstructing your vision. There is a spirit of discontent that makes the girl restless and uneasy. Now I would not have you fully satisfied with things just as they are, so that you will not strive to improve. But that dissatisfaction that keeps a girl fretting about her fate spoils her happiness now, and unfits her to appreciate what may be in the future. Selfishness is another fault that spoils the beauty of many lives. He who is selfish looks always to his own pleasure first. If others are displeased and inconvenienced, it matters little to him if his own desires are met. This form of selfishness can creep into the lives of those who desire to serve God. I have seen girls who, though they were Christians, were so insistent about little things, so determined to have their own way that they spoiled the beauty that Christ would have put into their lives. This kind of selfishness will show out again in the way that a girl will enter into her church work. She can become so engrossed with her Sunday school or league or her attendance at the general services that her presence there, or her time given to work for her beloved church, may mean the robbing of her mother of opportunity to get out at all. It is pitiful to see a girl engaged in even a good cause if such continually keeps her mother or her sister at home with the cares found there. A fair division is the right thing under such circumstances. Again selfishness will show out in the fact that the girl's clothes are so much nicer and more up to date than what her mother wears. It may be that mother is willing for her daughter to have the best, but that does not change the fact that the daughter is selfish if she takes the best always. Sensitiveness is another great fault. Dima, a young woman of beautiful character, had sensitiveness as a besetting fault. At the least rebuke her criticism she would become so hurt and mortified that she would weep for hours, and many times when the speaker had not thought of bruising her at all she would suffer greatly with wounded feelings. She was visiting for some time in the home of a gentleman who was able to see the beauty of her character in spite of this outstanding fault. One day she had wept till her eyes were red over something that had not been intended as a thrust at her at all. When she reappeared in the family circle he watched her closely and finding her alone he called her attention to a sensitive plant growing outside the window. "'If I should touch that plant ever so lightly, Dima, what would be the result?' he asked. "'I have often watched it,' she replied, and touched it just to see its behavior. It will close up every leaf upon the whole plant and remain just so till it has recovered from the shock of my gentlest touch. It is called rightly a sensitive plant.' "'Dima, you are a sensitive plant. We have to be as careful in handling you as if you were indeed just such a plant. We should enjoy you much more if you were not so sensitive.' The fountain of tears again burst forth as poor Dima saw herself pictured by the little plant. But going to her room she asked God to help her to overcome. Such earnest prayers do not go unanswered, especially when the supplicant is willing, as was Dima, to fight against the weakness. There are many faults, but every one of them can be overcome if the girl sets her heart to be victorious. CHAPTER 33 OF BEAUTIFUL GIRLHOOD This is the LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. BEAUTIFUL GIRLHOOD by Mabel Hale CHAPTER 33 THE GIRL OF TODAY Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all. Times are always changing, bringing new customs and manners, and laying aside old customs and manners as worn out and unfit for use. What was just right and up to date when your parents were your age looks queer and odd now, and what seems exactly right to you will in a few years be as much out of style. These changes have always been taking place, and they will continue to do so. We hear much talk about our modern young people, as if young people of your time were the first to ever moved out and did things differently than their parents had done. But every time has had its modern young people who would be up to date in everything. All that is old in customs and manners is not ready to be discarded and all that is new is not always for the best. It is wise for all of us, whether old or young, to learn to choose wisely so that we do not lose our standard of measurements and become unable to tell what is right and what is wrong. Because a thing is being done does not make it right and really proper, and because it is not being done by a large percentage of the people does not make it wrong or improper. We should remember that the true standards of right and honor and purity remain the same from the beginning to the end. There are no fluctuations in the standards that will always govern what is right and clean and proper in true upright Christian manhood and womanhood. While it is true that customs change all the time, there are circumstances which cause these changes to come much faster at some periods than others. These seasons of rapid change, of course, bring more problems than are found at other times. Since the Great World War, we have been passing through one of those seasons of rapid change, and our girls have had problems to meet that are different from those which had come before. One of the greatest changes is the place allowed to women and girls in the business and working world and the confusion of manners and customs that have come as they adjust themselves to the new conditions. While girls have many more opportunities, their temptations are also more, and our girls have not always met these changes and temptations to the best advantage. One great change is in the manner of dress. In your grandmother's youth, girls wore too many heavy, close-fitting clothes for health and comfort. Now both health and comfort are so well considered that those who designed the clothes forget that they are also meant as a covering to the body. But our girls should remember that, no matter what the style or cut of her clothes, the real woman is always modest and unassuming, with nothing in her manners or the way she is dressed that will lower the conception of true womanhood in the minds of those who see her. It is always the careless and thoughtless girl or woman who dresses and conducts herself in a way to arouse un-chased thoughts in others. In many circles smoking is common for women and girls. The changing custom that makes health and dress such a fetish skips over the unhelpful effects of tobacco. Yet the effects of tobacco are just as bad now as they ever were. While we would not say that smoking destroys all the beauty of girlhood, we must admit that this habit is becoming a serious blot on American girlhood, and that every girl indulging in the habit is placing herself in bondage to something that may seriously injure her health and make her unfit for the better things of true womanhood. Because many are doing it, the habit has lost none of its evil points and has gained not a single good one. More dangerous still is the temptation to strong drink. So much has been said derogatory of total abstinence that many fear they appear old-fashioned or narrow if they will not take a drink. But drunkenness is just as ugly and its effects just as ghastly now as they ever were, and the only safe person, boy or girl, is the one who will not drink at all. Any indulgence in this respect is a serious blot on a girlhood that would be beautiful. Our girls who are seeking for beautiful character and who place worth upon their influence as real women will not take up the habit. They will dare indulge occasionally, either in smoking or drinking any liquor. They will dare to stand out from their associates if necessary as total abstainers. The path of beautiful girlhood leads away from every habit that tends to lower the standard of true womanhood. Girls and women mix with men and boys as equals in the business and work world, and many of those little courtesies that used to come to them because they were women were dropped. Because it is not expected of her that she shall be helpless and inefficient, the girls should not go to the opposite extreme and act bold or forward, nor by any of her actions make herself unwomenly. In her work life as in her social life she should show herself a friend, sociable and approachable, but her guards should always be up that all may know that she remembers her place as a woman. The wise girl learns how to be friendly without being fresh and to be sociable without being silly. She may do many things her mother and grandmother never did in their girlhood, but she holds within herself just as high a standard of womanly purity and cleanness of life as they ever had. At heart our girls are just as sweet and pure and innocent of wrong intent as girls ever were, and any lowering of that standard comes about because of something wrong in the condition of heart or purpose in the girl who does it, not because our modern girls are all wrong. Clear waters come out of a clean fountain, and every girl who will keep her fountain of desire and purpose clean and true will show forth a true Christian spirit in her life, and will possess her own allotment in the land of beautiful girlhood. CHAPTER 34 THE FULL BLOWN ROWS And God saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was very good. A thing of beauty is a rose in full bloom. What a pleasure to hold in the hand a perfect rose and admire its soft, velvety petals, to smell of its rich fragrance and to feast upon its beauty of coloring. One would be tempted to say, in this nature has done her best. But nature and the God of nature gives us many beautiful and glorious things. After the uncertainties of girlhood, when the crudeness and lack of symmetry and body and mind have been put away, and the woman of promises before us in all her beauty and grace, we are privileged to see in her, who was once the girl, one of the most blessed of God's creation, a good, true woman, just such a fulfillment of hope and expectancy every true mother wants in her daughter. The grown woman who stands just at the door of life's responsibilities, ready to enter in upon her life-work, represents powers and possibilities unbounded. Her influence in the world is sure to go on down to the end of time. It is impossible that she should live entirely for and to herself. First is her influence upon woman kind. There are none of us so weak and insignificant, but that someone will pattern after us, or draw courage from us. But our trueness to principle, our loyalty to right and truth, we can each be a stay and fortress to the weaker sisters about us. In the home, in the neighborhood, in the congregation, everywhere a good woman is a mighty force among women. And just as powerful is the influence of a woman who is not good. It lies in the power of a woman to lift up, and terribly in her power to pull down and destroy. The woman has influence unbounded with mankind. A good woman can be like a star of hope, a beacon light, a safe retreat, to the man who is struggling against the obstacles of the world. In her he can see the ideal of purity and truth, and the manhood in him will survive to be worthy of her. But if she steps down from the path of true, virtuous womanhood, and becomes petty or sinful, she will be his downfall. There is no true woman who does not know that in a great measure she is her brother's keeper. Then comes the influence of a true woman upon the youth of her acquaintance. It may be that the boys and girls about her seem to be full of nonsense and foolishness, that they do not see her example of earnest, lovely nobility. But in a few years more she will see that her life does bear fruit among those with whom she associates. Every girl has her ideal woman, and that woman is picked from among her acquaintances. No woman can live to herself. If the influence of a bad woman is great among her sisters, yet more so among her brothers, it is far worse among the young. A woman with a sweet smiling face and a heart that is unclean is as great a curse as can come into the life of either a boy or girl. Oh, girls, girls, life is so great, so wonderful, so full of possibilities, that none of us can afford to be anything but what is good and pure and true. Let us make the perfect rose and emblem of our womanhood, and strive that its fragrance shall bless all who come in contact with it. End of Chapter 34 End of Beautiful Girlhood by Mabel Hale