Letters to Persons Who Are Engaged in Domestic Service. Catharine Esther Beecher
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the products of their lands for clothing and furniture. This request was granted, on this condition, that each individual might bring all he raised himself, and get whatever he wanted, but that no one should take any thing that he did not pay for with the fruits of his own labour.
After this arrangement was made, a great change took place in the palace. Those who were diligent, active and bright, discovered various ways of raising large crops, or of making ingenious articles, which they exchanged at the store for such furniture and clothing as they liked. But those who were dull, or lazy, or vicious, did not succeed in raising the means to buy new things, and were obliged to put up with old or very cheap ones. Sometimes those who lived in the finest rooms would agree to give up those rooms to those who were most successful, in order to share in some of their profits. And thus it came about that many who had the plainest rooms, and clothing, and furniture, by their industry and enterprise, finally came to possess the finest rooms and handsomest clothing and furniture. And so on the other hand, some of those who at first by lot had gained the best of every thing, were driven by their ignorance or indolence, to take the poorest of every thing.
These changes at first produced great discontent. But the good minister took unwearied pains to convince the discontented ones, that though some evils came from having some persons gain so much superior advantages, yet on the whole, it was far better than to have them hold property in common, and all fare alike. For, as he showed them, a great part of mankind are disposed to be careless and indolent, and would never exert themselves, unless some great advantage was to be gained by care and industry. For this reason, it is a great advantage to every body to have persons around them, who own beautiful, or convenient things that can be gained by themselves only by intelligence and industry. For thus every one will be stimulated to improve his mind, and employ his time diligently.
On the contrary, if every body dressed and ate and fared just alike, whether they were industrious or not, the stimulus to exertion would be taken away, and many would become lazy, ignorant and vicious. These teachings of the minister were effectual in most cases, so as to preserve harmony and peace.
But another difficulty arose, that caused still more trouble. The company was so large, that they could not all sit together in one parlour, nor all eat together at one table; and very often the question came up, as to who should associate together. The minister taught them that this was a point where every man had a right to consult his own taste and feelings. No person had a right to go and visit another person’s room when he was not wanted, and every one might decide for himself what company he would have visit him, and who he would not have as a friend or companion. By following this rule, it came about that persons whose tastes, pursuits, and characters were most alike, became most interested in each other, and thus they found it pleasantest to eat together and to sit in the same parlour. Thus those who, either by lot, or by their intelligence and industry, gained the finest clothes and furniture, and had similar employments and habits, formed one circle by themselves. In like manner those who worked together in the fields became best acquainted, and they formed another circle. And thus, too, those who worked in the kitchen became best acquainted and associated together.
But the good minister found many hard feelings coming up from this state of things. For those who had the most talents, and the finest clothing and furniture, began to take airs of superiority, and to treat the others with discourtesy and disrespect, while those who had less advantages grew envious, jealous and discontented. It was a very difficult matter to rectify the wrong state of feeling on both sides. Though the minister taught those who had the most advantages, that they should set an example, to all the rest, of gentleness, humility and courtesy, he could not prevent some of them from appearing haughty and proud, nor induce them to treat all persons with respect and courtesy, whatever were their employment or appearance.
And it was just as difficult to make those who were less fortunate, feel kindly towards those who were better off than themselves. They all insisted that none should visit them in their rooms, or eat with their circle, unless their company was wanted, but when other people used the same privilege and excluded them they felt grieved and offended. They were so unreasonable as to insist that nobody should treat them as they were determined to treat others. And though the minister laboured more to make them feel and act reasonably about this than for any thing else, he often sighed over his poor success.
LETTER IV.
The manner in which this story illustrates the state of things in this country.
My Friends:
I will now point out some respects in which you will see that the people of this nation are situated very much like the shipwrecked travellers. In the first place then, we have received from God, that great and benevolent King over all, a noble country, filled with an abundance of all kinds of treasures. And the two conditions on which we enjoy it are, first, that we shall take care of ourselves, and do our own work, and, secondly, that we shall all be “free and equal,” and all “equally entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” in any way that each one may think best for himself.
We also are bound by the same grand rule that was adopted by the shipwrecked company, that, every one shall do that which will secure the most enjoyment to the whole company, and not that which each one likes best. It is according to this rule that all our laws are made, which restrain men from seeking their own pleasure by sacrificing the public good. And our laws are made by men appointed by the people for the purpose, and executed by judges and officers appointed by the people, from among themselves. In this also we resemble the company in the story.
The question as to who shall work, and what kind of work each one shall do, and who shall have the best rooms and furniture and clothes, is also settled just as it was in the story.
For by common agreement women are appointed to work in the house, and men to work out doors.
Then it is God decides what our lot shall be when we are born into the world. God determines who shall be born of poor parents and who of rich, and this decides what kind of work each one shall do, and what kind of accommodations and furniture each shall possess. It was thus in the story. By casting lots, the company gave to God the business of deciding what stations and employments each should take, and this determined what clothes and accommodations each should take. But more depends on our intelligence, industry, and virtue, than on the particular lot in which we are born, so that the people in this country are in exactly the situation of the shipwrecked company after they began to trade at the store. Though some few keep the place they got by the lot of birth, almost every thing depends on intelligence, skill, industry and virtue. In this country, any man who is well educated, active, skillful and industrious can become comparatively rich. Of course, in this land, men have more inducements to become well educated, virtuous, and industrious than the people of any other nation on earth.
In like manner, each kind of work has overseers appointed to direct others. Who these overseers shall be, in most cases, also, is decided on the same plan as in the story. Those who know the most, generally, become overseers. In cases where persons hire laborers to work on farms, or in their families, then the master of the house, or the farm, is the overseer, and directs those he hires, because they agree, for a reward, to do as he directs. But in almost all trades and professions, it is those who know the most, who rise to stations where they are overseers to others.
This is a great benefit to all the community, because it is an encouragement to all persons to improve their minds, and to be industrious in acquiring skill and knowledge.
In this country too, we have men who spend all their time in studying about diseases and in attending to the sick, and others who educate the young, and others who discharge the duties performed by the good minister in the story.
And we find among us too, some people who think that it would be much better for us if every body earned money for the common stock, instead of laying it out for themselves, so that nobody should have any handsomer rooms, or furniture, or clothing than all the others have. Such persons think it would be wise to give up carpets, sofas, china, glass and