lady, always sought and courted by old pupils or their children, free from personal cares, and full of scholarly interests, as well as instructive experiences. Not long ago, one was seen closing a very long life, in the course of which she and her younger sisters had educated many hundreds of girls in a way which was then superior to anything commonly seen, though it would hardly do now: but it was so congenial a mode of life to the venerable head of the household that, during a long decline, and to the very last, her never-failing delight was in the Odes of Horace. Charming old pedagogue that she was! nobody would have insulted her by pity for her mode of life.
The daily-governess also has that great security for health—a home. That is, in the provinces, and for the most part in London, the daily-governess lives with parents, brother or sister: and if alone in a lodging, that retreat has the comfort of independence and quietness, at all events. To a woman who has seen many faces in the course of the day, heard many lessons, and walked several miles, there is great comfort in the solitary room in the evening, where she can study, or think, over her sewing, or write letters, or otherwise institute some contrast with the bustle of the day. “Let me only have some room where I can throw myself down on the rug in the evening, and have myself to myself,” was once the aspiration of a diligent worker; and the same thing is in the minds of hundreds of women always. In possessing this partial liberty and repose, daily governesses have one of the advantages of the schoolmistress. But much of the benefit is lost from the absence of another.
When physicians tell us that by far the largest classes of insane women in asylums are the maids-of-all-work and the governesses, we see at once that the two classes may have been affected by the same evil influences,—overwork and underpay. The daily-governess is not usually so overworked as to be deprived of a due supply of sleep, as the maid-of-all work is; but, if successful, her vocation is one of great fatigue; and if not particularly successful, she is sadly poor. At best, if she is employed in two or three families for six days in the week, and about her work from seven or eight in the morning till seven or eight in the evening, she cannot possibly save money to secure anything like an independence for her latter days. Moreover, few women so employed are at liberty to appropriate the whole of their own earnings. They are seldom alone in the world; and some broken-down parent, some young brothers needing education, or means to start in life; some sick sister, or some graceless member of the family, may carry off every shilling that is left, after the barest food and clothing are paid for. It is probable that very few of the sixty thousand female teachers in England work for themselves alone; and it is certain that an exceedingly small proportion of them have any effectual provision whatever laid by for the years when they can no longer earn. It is no wonder that the gloom and the risks of such a prospect weigh upon the spirits, and fret the nerves. It is rather anxious work, counting the weeks till the pay-day comes round; wondering whether the employer will remember to be punctual when the landlord is sure to be so; and when a new dress is absolutely wanted, and perhaps school-books and stationery have to be paid for; or family calls are pressing. It is dreary work emptying the purse when all is received that can come in for weeks or months, and there is no way of planning which will make the sum suffice. If any is laid by, it is such a trifle that each act of deposit is a reminder of the long series of years during which the same pinching must go on, without any chance of a sufficiency at last. This sort of anxiety acting upon a frame already worn with fatigue, may account for the overthrow of many minds, and the shortening of many lives.
The daily-governess is subject to the evils of our climate, like any out-door worker, and with less choice than most as to working or staying at home. Weary or rested, with or without a headache or a cold, the giver of daily lessons must fulfil her engagements, in all weathers, and with perfect punctuality. She cannot rest in bed an hour longer. She cannot wait till a shower is over: at each house she must appear as the clock strikes, through all difficulties. The omnibus is an admirable invention for the class—cabs being entirely out of the question, except at the sacrifice of the means of living; but the omnibus is no longer to be depended upon for speed or regularity: and a mere sixpence a day—two threepenny rides—amount to nearly 8l. in a year of working-days. A stout heart and generous spirit will reduce these evils to something very endurable. The necessity of disregarding variations of health is an evil, certainly; but it presses upon many of the most prosperous people in society, from cabinet ministers and the Speaker of the Commons down to the popular preacher and the commercial traveller. The weather is really a matter of small consequence to a healthy, active woman, prudently dressed, and sensible in self-management. Rain-proof coverings and stout shoes, put off on entering the house; a bonnet that covers the head; and under-garments that may defy keen winds, may make the worst weather as safe as the best. The regular exercise is anything but a hardship, if it is not immoderate in amount; and it need not often be that. Perhaps the greatest temptation to a solitary, hardworking woman is to live too low. If the physicians are right in saying that few Englishwomen take enough of nourishing food (though enough in bulk of food that is not serviceable), the solitary diner is too likely to take up with what is cheapest and gives least trouble, instead of regarding it as a duty to get good meals of the best articles of diet.
A great blessing to this class has lately risen up in the Ladies’ Reading-room, at 19, Langham Place. This institution, which has grown up out of various needs, answers various excellent purposes; and among these there is none more pleasant to think of than the comfort and privilege it yields to working-ladies. Till now there has been no establishment where a lady could go alone for a luncheon, or half an hour’s rest, such as daily-governesses need in the intervals of their engagements. Now, by an easy subscription, and