or three
amiable pieces of poetry, a very moral article upon "Napoleon at St.
Helena," one upon the tyranny of fashion, in which young ladies are
advised to "lay aside all glittering ornaments, all expensive
trappings," and to present instead the charms of a cultivated mind and
good disposition. There is one article in the number which Mr. Dickens
would have enjoyed for its own sake. It is "A Letter from Susan;" Susan
being a "mill girl," as she honestly calls herself. She describes the
life of the girls in the mill and in the boarding-house. She gives an
excellent character both to her companions and to the overseers, one of
whom had lately given her a bouquet from his own garden; and the mills
themselves, she remarks, were surrounded with green lawns kept fresh all
the summer by irrigation, with beds of flowers to relieve their
monotony.

According to Susan, the mills themselves were pleasant places, the rooms
being "high, very light, kept nicely whitewashed, and extremely neat,
with many plants in the window-seats, and white cotton curtains to the
windows."

"Then," says Susan, "the girls dress so neatly, and are so pretty. The
mill girls are the prettiest in the city. You wonder how they can keep
so neat. Why not? There are no restrictions as to the number of pieces
to be washed in the boarding-houses. You say you do not see how we can
have so many conveniences and comforts at the price we pay for board.
You must remember that the boarding-houses belong to the company, and
are let to the tenants far below the usual city rents."

Much has changed in Lowell since that day, and it is probable that few
mill girls would now describe their life as favorably as Susan did in
1844. Nevertheless, the present generation of operatives derive much
good from the thoughtful and patriotic care of the founders. More
requires to be done. A large public park should be laid out in each of
those great centres of industry. The abodes of the operatives in many
instances are greatly in need of improvement. There is need of half-day
schools for children who are obliged to assist their parents. Wherever
it is possible, there should be attached to every house a piece of
ground for a garden. The saying of the old philosopher is as true now as
it was in the simple old times when it was uttered: "The way to have
good servants is to be a good master."

ROBERT OWEN,

COTTON-MANUFACTURER.

The agitation of labor questions recalls a