to be ignorant of what is going on in the world, and yet perhaps she meets no one who has absolutely come in contact with the busy world itself. Now, the best thing for her to do is to see the world as in a looking-glass, that is, to read good newspapers, as many of the magazines as possible, and, best of all, to discuss with someone else the questions of the day; it may be with her father, her brother, or her mother. She can keep herself well informed in this way, I am positively certain; many a country girl does, I am equally certain. Then, too, whenever there is an opportunity it will be wise for her to blot out the petty gossip that exists in her own particular set, and gently, but easily, interest her companions in events and things in the outside world rather than the affairs of the neighborhood. The country girl who will think out, as she works away at her daily tasks, that which is of interest to the whole world, is armed to go anywhere and to meet anybody, for she is feeding her mind with a diet that will strengthen and widen it. Don't, my dear girl, as I said before, let yourself drift into the personalities of the neighborhood, for as sure as you do you will become quite as narrow as the city cousin, who thinks that what we do in "our set" is as important as the actions of Mr. Gladstone.
