Page:Advice to young ladies on their duties and conduct in life - Arthur - 1849.djvu/45

Rh habits, if a disposition to be orderly do not exist, a young lady should begin by having in her own room a place for every thing, and next she should be very careful always to have every thing in its place. This will require a little thoughtful arrangement at first, and afterwards call for only a moderate degree of resolution and watchfulness. The fact of being in a hurry should never be admitted as an excuse for breaking through this rule. The time gained by throwing a thing down upon the bed, a chair, or a table, instead of restoring it to its appropriate place in the drawer, or closet, is so small that it is not worth considering. Fifteen or twenty seconds, or a minute at most, are always sufficient for this purpose.

A proper regard for time is a thing of great importance, and absolutely necessary to the formation of an orderly habit of doing things. Some persons will waste one hour, and then crowd into the next the duties of both. Of course, the duties are discharged imperfectly. It could not be otherwise. This habit is the parent of much disorder. How often is it the case that a young lady has an engagement to pay some visits with a friend, for whom she is to call at a certain hour. The friend is ready precisely at the time appointed, but the young lady