that, if you are consistent in your conduct. You must, however, be firm. If you meet her in the street, and she stops you, say, 'I cannot stay-I am sent on an errand.' If she looks for you at doors or windows, let her not find you. If she should openly call and ask you to go out with her, civilly decline; and if she asks the reason of your conduct, you must humble yourself to own that you are sensible you have done wrong and must do so no more. She will, perhaps, ridicule you; you have laid yourself open to this; and when you are buffeted for your faults, you must consent to take it patiently. you had been led away from your duty, she could have felt only unmingled respect for you; but the next best thing to correctness is penitence. Show that your repentance is sincere by a steady resolution to avoid temptation, and act consistently; if you do this, light companions will soon leave you to yourself."

If

Poor Jane returned to her duty with a more peaceful heart than before, though it was a humbled and contrite heart, she was relieved of a burden, and she soon found that the evils of which she had complained were of her own making; that by avoiding idle companions, and doing her errands quickly, she had no need to hurry through her daily labour, but could do it faithfully and pleasantly, and give satisfaction to her mistress.

The Young Servant.

ON ATTENDING THE SICK.

THE comfort, and perhaps the lives, of patients are often, humanly speaking, more in the hands and at the mercy of a nurse than of the physician; and yet it is in a number of ways, such as in health appear to be mere trifles, that a good girl will become a good nurse. To one who is condemned to long illnesses, trifles become great events; and a good nurse will acquire a tenderness for her charge, which will lead her to be very considerate in order that she may add to the comfort of the sufferer. In watching over the sick, nurses should endeavour to accommodate the minds as well as the bodies of their patients; and by learning what they like, and acquiring

some knowledge of their tastes and habits, they will not only become more useful, but save themselves much trouble and difficulty.

A kind temper and a fair judgment are of prime importance; but to possess this sort of temper amidst all the trials of patience which occur in a sick-room, requires a disposition. which only belongs to a sincere Christian. Let not the following hints be considered trifling:

A fearful or melancholy countenance has in itself a depressing effect; and a steady cheerful temper of mind and manner, is almost as requisite in a nurse as tenderness and affection.

If the patient wishes to be read to, you should read rather loud, slowly, and distinctly, but not with much emphasis; the sick require to be soothed, rather than excited.

In reading to yourself in a sick-room, turn over the leaves gently; even the noise of paper is often very disturbing to invalids; you will not be heard if, in turning over a leaf, you shut the book and open it again on the other side the leaf. Do not talk to the patient, except as she may lead to conversation, or show that she wishes it.

A nurse when out of the room should never fancy that she knows what the bell rings for, but answer it instantly; most serious consequences have been known to follow from the delay of a very few minutes, as from fainting, fire, and many other causes.

In passing a bed, be careful that your clothes do not catch the curtains; the nervous sensibility of a sick person makes the smallest motion of the curtains, or bed, or chairs, or tables, to be very distressing.

Keep things in their places, or have the necessary changes made at proper times, so that the invalid may not be disturbed by frequently going in and out of the room; take care to have towels, water, and a little tub, ready, so that the teacups or medicine-glasses be readily washed as soon as used, that they may be ready for the next occasion: never give a cup or spoon twice without washing. In preparing or taking food for an invalid, make it delicately, and offer it in the way most likely to coax a weakened appetite;-a neat cloth on a little waiter, a bright tea-spoon, a clean and half-full cup of arrowroot, with a small piece of well-made toast, may tempt the invalid to try and eat, particularly if brought unexpectedly. It is, however, sometimes very wrong to give a sick person every thing he may wish for; the safest way is to

inquire of the doctor the food best suited to the state of the patient, and obey all his orders most faithfully.

The sick-room cannot be kept too quiet; one or two people at most should be near an invalid, and quietness is essential; no talking or gossiping should be allowed.

In replenishing the fire, put on an old glove, and put a piece of coal on here and there very quietly, and have dry wood to revive it, if it has got low while the patient has been dozing.

Keep plenty of cold water in the room, and a basin, and wash your hands often; a little vinegar and water is very refreshing to bathe the sick person's hands and face in a fever; and (if strong enough to bear it) combing the hair is very refreshing also.

Above all things, keep the room perfectly clean; change the body-linen and bed-linen frequently; remove all bad smells, and air the chamber, either by an occasional current of air or a small fire.

Should you be called up in the night, in case of sudden sickness, rise instantly, for a life may be lost by a minute's delay; and do not grudge either extra work, trouble, or watching, for even if it is wearisome to you, what is that in comparison of sickness and suffering? Be very careful, if you sit up late, to place the candle safely; it is best to put your candlestick into a hand-basin, so that you will neither set yourself on fire if sleep overpowers you, nor, if during your sleep the wick of the candle should fall, will it do harm, provided you use this precaution.

One thing more: remember, when there is sickness in a family, expenses necessarily increase, therefore guard more than ever against waste and extravagance; remember, if your mistress is unable to look after household affairs, there is an eye that watches your conduct, and observes if you are a faithful servant or not. It is a hard thing for a mistress to find on returning to her family duties, perhaps weakened by sickness or worn out by watching anxiety for others, that the servant whom she trusted has, through carelessness, indolence, or, it may be, actual dishonesty, taken this opportunity to wantonly destroy property, or defraud her benefactress.

Irish Society's Reading Book for Girls.

SITTING UP AT NIGHT, &c.

WHEN going to sit up with a sick person, do not eat a heavy supper. Keep tea or cocoa in the room all night. There is generally a good deal to be done before a patient settles for the night, and therefore the preparations should be begun in good time, that all may be ready, and the room still, at an early hour, as sick persons are often made feverish, and their night's rest spoiled, by not being settled early. Young nurses occasionally do injury by an over. anxious desire to be attentive; they will wake them from sleep to ask if they want anything, or urge them every few minutes to take a little drink or nourishment. It is very seldom right to wake a patient for anything, and should never be done without orders from the doctor.

Clothe yourself neatly and warmly when you sit up, though without any stiff dress or tight ligatures; and provide some additional article, such as a shawl or a flannel gown, and always put on a cap if you are about to sit up all night, and easy light shoes. A nurse should always be particularly

neat.

It is important to have some signal to show those out of the room when the patient is asleep, or particularly desirous of being quiet; such as a long piece of paper, or a goosequill, put through the key-hole of the door. It is also well to have a plan agreed for relieving the anxiety of friends below stairs, or for giving any needful directions when an attendant is kept long confined in the room by fearing to wake or disturb a person very ill for this purpose a note may be slipped under the door.

After being washed and dressed afresh in the morning, a nurse who has watched all night will require a good breakfast, and a slice of cold meat is beneficial. Take a little rest after dinner if you can; and if you cannot go to bed, you can sit in a high-backed chair, and raise your feet on another. Rest should be got some time in the day, when there is the best opportunity. The nurse should not waste her strength when there is no occasion; for if she rests when she can, she will be the better able to get through her duty, and thus render the best service to her charge.

Those who attend the sick are, above all others, interested in having the sick-room kept clean. Idle nurses, who allow a sick person to remain with unchanged linen, or dirty

sheets, for several days, and neglect to open windows and doors, often foolishly imagine they secure themselves from infection by smelling-salts, vinegar, or camphor, or by keeping lozenges in the mouth; all which are useless, whilst, at the same time, they allow the air about the patient to become very disagreeable, and will conceal such bad smells as ought to be removed. There is less danger of infection to nurses than might be supposed, if they will but keep the room and the patient clean, live pretty well, without intemperance, are cheerful, active, and, except when actually attending to the sick person, place themselves near the window or door, so as not to be exposed to the continued stream of air from the patient. Nurses becoming accustomed to the air of a sick-room are not so liable as others to be affected with infectious disorders.

Friends and neighbours, who visit occasionally, should not make long visits, nor sit too near them, nor inhale their breath. If there is any bad smell in the room, they should wait till it has passed away. They may shake hands with the patients, but should not kiss their lips. If a window is open, they should sit between it and the bed; if not, between the door and the bed; that the air may be carried from them towards the sick person, rather than from the sick to them.

No clothes that have been used by the patient should be put into drawers with the clothes of other persons; and all dirty linen, sheets, &c., when taken off, should at once be put into water out of the house, and then hung up in a free current of air. The best fumigation is, to use chloride of lime, thus:-A pound of it (which may be bought at any druggist's shop for sixpence) should be dissolved in a gallon of water. Some of this water should be sprinkled over the bed-room twice a day, or oftener; not in great quantity at a time, because it is too stimulating to the lungs of a sick person. The stairs and passages may be sprinkled also. The vessel, or jar, in which the chloride of lime and water is kept, should have a cover.

In case of death, all the bed-clothes and linen used by the sick should be purified in the same way, then put into water, and dried in the open air; the bedstead and bed-room, and all the articles of furniture, should be scoured, the room thoroughly ventilated, and, if possible, white-washed, before being slept in again. The drying of the room will be done best by keeping a fire in, and having the windows and doors open,