household arts in which Charlotte afterwards was such an
adept. Their regular lessons were said to their father; and they were
always in the habit of picking up an immense amount of miscellaneous
information for themselves. But a year or so before this time, a school
had been begun in the North of England for the daughters of clergymen.
The place was Cowan Bridge, a small hamlet on the coach-road between
Leeds and Kendal, and thus easy of access from Haworth, as the coach ran
daily, and one of its stages was at Keighley. The yearly expense for
each pupil (according to the entrance-rules given in the Report for 1842,
and I believe they had not been increased since the establishment of the
schools in 1823) was as follows:

"Rule 11. The terms for clothing, lodging, boarding, and educating, are
14_l_. a year; half to be paid in advance, when the pupils are sent; and
also 1_l_. entrance-money, for the use of books, &c. The system of
education comprehends history, geography, the use of the globes, grammar,
writing and arithmetic, all kinds of needlework, and the nicer kinds of
household work--such as getting up fine linen, ironing, &c. If
accomplishments are required, an additional charge of 3_l_. a year is
made for music or drawing, each."

Rule 3rd requests that the friends will state the line of education
desired in the case of every pupil, having a regard to her future
prospects.

Rule 4th states the clothing and toilette articles which a girl is
expected to bring with her; and thus concludes: "The pupils all appear in
the same dress. They wear plain straw cottage bonnets; in summer white
frocks on Sundays, and nankeen on other days; in winter, purple stuff
frocks, and purple cloth cloaks. For the sake of uniformity, therefore,
they are required to bring 3_l_. in lieu of frocks, pelisse, bonnet,
tippet, and frills; making the whole sum which each pupil brings with her
to the school--

7_l_. half-year in advance.
1_l_. entrance for books.
1_l_. entrance for clothes.

The 8th rule is,--"All letters and parcels are inspected by the
superintendent;" but this is a very prevalent regulation in all young
ladies' schools, where I think it is generally understood that the
schoolmistress may exercise this privilege, although it is certainly
unwise in her to insist too frequently upon it.

There is nothing at all remarkable in any of the other regulations, a
copy of which was doubtless in Mr. Bronte's hand