Page:Advice to young ladies on their duties and conduct in life - Arthur - 1849.djvu/48

40 Such must be the inevitable result, not only in these instances, but in every thing that pertains to a woman’s domestic and social relations.

Order, then, is the essential prerequisite of every truly efficient action. Without it, nothing can be done well; with it, there is no duty in life that may not be rightly performed. Without it, the lightest task is burdensome; with it, that which to look at seems almost herculean becomes a matter of easy accomplishment.

But let it not be forgotten that the habit of order must be formed in early years. When life’s most serious duties press upon the mind, and demand the exercise of all its energies, there is no time to think about systems of order, and little inclination to attempt doing so.

Neatness almost invariably accompanies order; indeed, the one is nearly inseparable from the other. When we see a neat person, we expect to find one who is orderly in all her habits, and we are rarely mistaken. Neatness in dress should be regarded as much as neatness in every thing that is done. A want of neatness, as well as a want of order, shows a defect in the mind, the correction of which is essential to happiness. The only way to correct any such defect is to act in opposition to it. Into every action there must come down, as its principle of life, some