Letters to Persons Who Are Engaged in Domestic Service

by Catharine Esther Beecher

The great art of good cooking is taking care. Take care that your fire is not too hot, nor too low—that your oven is not too hot, nor too cold—that your bread is not too much raised, nor too little; that your mixtures have not too much, nor too little of any particular ingredient.—It is care, care, watch, watch, that alone can secure the art of cooking well. And there are few persons whose business it is to cook, who view their duty on this subject in a proper light. To illustrate my meaning, I will give an example. The domestic of a family in which I have

resided, was remarkable for always having good bread, at all seasons, even when the hot weather spoiled all other yeast but hers.

And such light, such sweet, such beautiful looking bread rarely is seen. Now the amount of pleasure and comfort given to this family by this one thing, few would appreciate. The master of the house always seemed to rejoice at every new baking, in seeing his family so well supplied. His wife always seemed pleased when her husband, children, and visitors praised the bread, and every member of the family, at every meal, felt a sort of satisfaction every time they looked at the bread plate. Now multiply these comfortable feelings at each meal, by the number of all the family, and then by the number of meals in a year, and what a large amount of enjoyment was thus made, simply by taking care always to have good bread! Change this bread to merely tolerable bread, and how much enjoyment would be lost!—Turn it to heavy and sour bread, and then how much discomfort would take the place of enjoyment!

Now is it not God who gives us all the common comforts of life, and do we not thank and praise him for them? And is it not worthy the aim of his creatures to follow his example, in contributing to the daily enjoyment of a family? And ought we not to dignify and ennoble all the common cares of life, by regarding ourselves, as co-workers with God in providing for the comfort and enjoyment of his creatures?

This view of the subject teaches us the true meaning of the direction: “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” Now the glory of God consists in that perfect benevolence of his character, which leads him always to find pleasure in providing for the comfort, and caring for the happiness of his creatures. And the more happiness is made, the more his glory is promoted. And the more we labour to promote the comfort and enjoyment of others, the more we are becoming like him, and are promoting his glory. Thus, in the humblest of all positions, every one of us can do something to add to the stock of happiness, which exhibits the glory of God, as the

author of all being, and the source of all enjoyment.

Now it is much to be lamented, that people should fancy that there are some particular ways of doing good, that are especially acceptable to God. This is not so. It is the temper of mind, that God looks at and approves, and not the particular thing done.—A woman may go about and visit the poor, and give money to send education and the gospel to others, with very little self-denial, and perhaps from the mere love of the credit thus gained. And in this case, in God’s sight, the offering is of little value. But the domestic, who in her humblest employments, goes about trying to do every thing in the best manner, aiming thus to serve God, by promoting the comfort of his creatures—she is the one who receives his approving smile—she is the one who, whatever she does, is doing all “for the glory of God.” I wish all who read this would thus regard their daily pursuits in the kitchen, and then they will not feel, as too many in humble circumstances are apt to do, that they have no way in which they can serve God, or

do much good in the world. None of us can tell who does the most, or the least good. God appoints each one of us our lot, and requires all to do what they can, to complete the great sum of enjoyment, which He designs to secure. And the great thing for each to aim at is, not to have some great thing to do, but to possess that benevolent and submissive temper of mind that will rejoice to do good, wherever God appoints the place.

In the first of Corinthians, you will find a chapter in which “charity” is described. Now when the Bible was translated from the Greek 200 years ago, this word “charity” meant what the word benevolence means now, and we should so understand it. In this chapter you find it thus written: “And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, (that is, benevolence,) I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity—it profiteth me nothing.”

Now this is the very thing I have been explaining.