,,youthful ,,folly ,,detected4 ,,written ,,for ,,the ,,benefit ,,of ,,youth1 ,,particularly ,,the ,,female ,,sex4 ,the maid that walks in folly's path1 ,thoughtless and heedless as she goes2 ,will land in misery at last1 ,beset around with many foes3 ,but she who minds instruction young1 ,attentive to her bus'ness stays2 ,in sweetest notes her name is sung1 ,on harps of gold1 where virtue plays4 ,,walpole1 ,n4 ,h4 ,,printed ,,at ,,the ,,observatory ,,press1 ,,by ,,david ,,newhall4 #ahjd4 ,,advertisement4 ,the following hints were originally designed for the benefit of a few individuals1 for whom the author had a particular regard1 and also felt himself under obligations to give them all that instruction which might be deemed necessary to guide them in the paths of virtue and morality1 and to shun those vices which often ruin the female sex1 and are too predominant in the world4 ,but as all young people are in one predicament1 and instructions that are suitable for one1 may be equally applied to the whole2 therefore1 for the benefit of the present1 and future rising generations1 these few lines are made public4 ,and although the ,author would not blush to own this piece of work1 yet1 for certain reasons1 his name is concealed4 ,illustration ,,to ,,young ,,females1 c4 ,the most critical time of youth1 especially of the female sex1 is while they are in their juvenile years4 ,at this age1 when they are entering as it were upon the borders of life1 to act in some degree for themselves1 the greatest care and attention ought to be paid to them4 ,and from the age of puberty1 until they arrive to maturity1 and are settled in the world1 they ever ought to be considered as under the care and protecting eye of their parents1 guardians1 or masters4 ,how can parents1 guardians1 or masters1 feel as though they had discharged their duty towards their children1 and those under their care1 in this respect1 when they see them1 entering on the wheels of time1 exposed to all the temptations of an alluring world1 and scarcely or never give them one check or caution6 ,and as it is to be feared that some parents1 c4 are guilty of too much neglect on this hand1 so others govern with too much restraint on the other4 ,if you mean that your children should learn to govern themselves1 you must learn it to them by experience2 that is1 by giving them a little lenity1 together with your good counsel and advice1 and according to their improvement1 give them more and more1 until they learn the art of self-government4 ,but if you endeavor to keep them wholly under restraint1 and never let them learn from experience the different manners and customs of people abroad2 if they should happen to break out of your reach 7as most likely they will1 at certain times7 they will 7according to the vulgar expression7 behave more like hogs let out of the sty2 than like ladies2 and not knowing the art of self government1 they will be likely to break over all rules of decency and decorum4 ,but although parents1 c4 may pay the strictest attention to their children1 c4 unless there is the greatest degree of caution and circumspection attended to1 on the part of the children1 it will avail but very little4 ,young people are apt to be insensible to the danger they are in1 until their name is stained with a blot that is very hard to wipe away4 ,the wise man has justly observed1 that 8,a good name is rather to be chosen than great riches1 and loving favor rather than silver and gold40 ,the reputation of youth1 a young maiden more especially1 may be compared to china ware1 or transparent glass1 which is very easily broken1 but impossible to mend1 so but what it will leave a blemish behind4 ,how often does the thoughtless youth1 in some unguarded hour1 fall into some trifling folly or other which stamps a blur upon their characters1 and fills their minds with shame and remorse4 ,and it is too frequently the case1 that in order to prevent the evils of one piece of bad conduct1 they run into another1 which only sinks them deeper and deeper4 ,they then begin to give up all hopes of recovery1 their minds become dissipated1 and they give themselves over to all the vain delusions and allurements of time and sense4 ,and as they travel on in the paths of folly1 they become lost to all sense of virtue and morality1 consequently happiness is fled1 and they generally become slaves to misery and discontentment4 ,such a life as this would be thought scarcely worth possessing6 yet how often do we behold those who appeared to be very promising when they first started in life1 and presented to us the most pleasing prospects1 land on these shores at last1 and drag out a miserable life1 with shame and ignominy3 while on the other hand1 it often happens1 that those who make a small appearance1 and are thought but a very little of1 when they first set out in life2 yet by attending to good instruction1 and the strictest caution and prudence1 they have arisen to honor and dignity in the world1 and are loved and esteemed by all virtuous people4 ,if these are facts1 they show the importance of early attending to instruction4 ,and that you1 my young friend1 blooming with virgin beauty1 unsullied with vice1 and unimpaired with age2 that you may shun those pernicious practices that will lead you in shame and disgrace1 and pursue those paths that will lead you to honor and dignity in the world1 and gain you a name that is more valuable than silver or gold1 ,i leave you the following ,,rules4 #a4 ,keep a due regard over all your thoughts1 and see that they are intent upon the business in which you are employed1 that you may pay a proper attention to the same4 ,nothing is more dangerous than an absent mind4 ,it is rude to indulge the thoughts to rove upon indifferent objects1 even when you are in company2 but more especially when attending to your domestic concerns4 ,if your thoughts are not mostly engaged in the business before you1 time will steal away faster than you are aware of2 night will come on before you are ready for it1 many things must go undone that you ought to have attended to1 and that which you have done will be apt to be slighted1 or done to the halves2 and you will thereby get to yourself rebukes and reproaches1 which you might have easily prevented1 and you will now begin to repent when it is too late to mend a bad day's work4 ,by indulging an absent mind1 young people are apt to be deaf to all that is said to them1 or at least1 it does not make an abiding impression on their minds2 by which means they are apt to do their work wrong1 have it to undo1 and do over again1 and sometimes spoil it in the end2 which will make them feel very much chagrined1 and also it will fret1 perplex1 and weary the patience of those who employ them4 ,all this might have been easily avoided by care and attention2 and not only so1 but you would improve in your business1 and thereby make it become habitual and easy4 ,you cannot expect to become master of any kind of business1 without much care and attention2 and this ought to make you more studious in the same1 for remember1 that there is no business that you will be likely to be called to attend to1 now when young1 but what 7if you should ever have a family of your own7 you must attend to the same for yourself1 or at least1 have it attended to2 and therefore it is highly necessary that you should now become master of it4 ,this is what ought to excite your mind now when young1 that you may be well qualified to be mistress of your own family2 and even if you should never have any family1 this will do you no harm4 #b4 ,never flatter yourself that you know how the business should be done better than your teachers2 therefore hear with patience their instructions1 and always be submissive to their directions4 ,never contradict them in any sense whatever2 but if you think that any other way1 different from what they direct1 would do better1 you may inform them of it1 but do it with the greatest modesty and circumspection2 and if they comply with what you say1 it is well1 but if they do not1 add no more1 but obey as you were first directed4 ,always make the business of the day the first object1 and then if you have any leisure hours1 you may improve them to the best advantage and for your own profit and satisfaction4 ,never allow yourself to be peevish and fretful about your work1 food1 dress1 or any thing of the like nature1 even if the business does not go on to suit you2 for this will only make the business more irksome and fatiguing1 without any kind of benefit to yourself4 #c4 ,do not expect even from your best endeavors wholly to escape without censure4 ,for the mind of youth is so fickle1 it would be very strange if you did not sometimes go astray1 and not do so well as you might2 and if you do1 you must expect reproof1 and rebuke1 and you ought to take it kindly1 and endeavour to do better for the future4 ,but even if you should always do your best1 you must expect that you will sometimes do wrong1 even for want of knowledge2 and you cannot expect that people will always exercise that patience1 so but what they will many times chide you1 and find fault1 even when you have done your best4 ,all this you ought to bear with patience without a murmuring word3 for if you are conscious to yourself that you have done as well as you could1 even a sharp rebuke need not trouble you2 for you may gain some knowledge by it1 and therefore it may terminate for your own advantage4 ,besides1 if you bear it with patience1 and try to convince them by your future conduct that you used your best endeavors to have every thing done as it should be1 this will have a tendency to convince them of their error1 and cause them to exercise more patience for the future4 ,always pay a proper respect to your parents1 guardians1 or masters1 and ever be submissive to their commands4 ,never try to aggravate them1 even if they should find fault at trifles2 that is1 to treat the matter with a kind of indifferency1 though you did not care to displease them2 for this will only make them more fretful for the future4 ,but if you are sensible that you have done wrong1 you ought to confess it1 and endeavour to reform2 but if you think you are not to blame let the whole matter pass in silence4 #d4 ,you must not only pay the greatest attention to your domestic concerns1 but a proper decorum in all your words and actions must be attended to4 ,your leisure hours should be employed in reading useful books1 which will be most likely to furnish your mind with a store of religious and moral improvements4 ,read the characters of those ladies who have lived virtuous and pious lives1 and endeavour to imitate their examples4 ,and if you should ever happen to read the characters of any profligate women 7not to call them ladies7 endeavour to make only this use of their characters2 that is1 to shun their vices1 avoid their pernicious practices1 and thereby escape the miseries that attend them4 #e4 ,endeavour to treat all persons with civility4 ,pay a proper respect to your superiors1 complaisance to your equals and courteously treat those whom you shall deem to be your inferiors4 ,establish in your own mind a certain rule of decency and modesty1 to be attended to in all companies1 and at all times1 whether at home or abroad4 ,in all companies1 give each one an opportunity for their proper share of conversation4 ,remember that a talkative1 loquacious woman1 a young woman more especially1 often exposes her weakness1 and sickens the ear with her babblings4 8,the torrent of her words overwhelmeth conversation40 ,therefore every species of rudeness ought to be avoided as unbecoming your sex4 ,again1 frequent and loud laughter doth not become any person1 especially a woman1 and a young woman more especially4 ,therefore it ought to be avoided on all occasions as not belonging to the rules of decency1 and as unbecoming the fair sex4 #f4 ,the strictest attention must be paid to the conversation which you may occasionally have with the other sex4 ,be not forward in beginning a conversation with them2 but be always ready to return all compliments that may be given to you with an easy address1 and in a becoming manner1 without being daunted or even put to the blush4 ,in order to facilitate this business1 endeavour to treasure up in your memory1 those addresses and compliments1 that by constant observation1 you may hear drop from those whom you deem to be your superiors2 and endeavor to make them familiar to yourself1 so that you may be able to use them on any occasion1 with propriety1 without the appearance of affectation or dissimulation4 ,and as you would avoid a prudish disposition on the one hand1 so you must equally avoid a volatile1 idle1 and wanton disposition on the other4 ,to facilitate which1 give yourself more to thinking and less to talking1 so that when you do speak1 you may always speak with decency1 modesty1 and propriety4 ,always mind to speak plain and distinctly1 and loud enough to be understood1 with a modest smile on your face1 without a rude look in your countenance4 ,but let your speeches be short and comprehensive2 and never try to prolong a conversation1 unless it be upon topics that are becoming your sex4 ,but if the conversation should be disagreeable and unbecoming1 endeavor to turn the attention to some other object1 introduce some other topic1 or else find an occasion of absence4 #g4 ,remember that the bloom of your youth1 your healthy and ruddy countenances1 the rose on your cheeks1 and the sparkling vigor of your eyes1 will gain you more admirers than real lovers4 ,here pause for a few moments and consider6 for it is the most delicate point for you to steer through and your name and reputation to remain unsullied4 ,how often doth the blooming and most promising youth1 by one fatal misstep1 stain their characters with ignominy1 and blast their reputation forever4 ,it is much easier to avoid temptation1 than to resist the deceitful arts of the tempter4 ,the deceitful heart of a fond admirer1 out of a vain pretence of love and affection1 will work upon every passion that wit can invent or lust suggest1 in order to allure your affections1 intrude upon your chastity1 and win you over to their fond embraces1 and carnal appetites4 ,o heed not their flatteries1 neither give way to their alluring and licentious persuasions6 for when they have ruined you1 their flatteries will be turned into contempt1 and their pretended love into downright hatred4 ,and in the end1 they will even forsake you1 without regard or pity4 ,therefore beware of sycophants6 and be not deceived by their enticing words6 ,even if they reproach you to your face for your rigorous treatment1 yet behind your back1 they will applaud your constancy4 ,remember that the taste may be satiated with the sweetest fruit1 where there is a full enjoyment2 but let a person participate only by anticipation1 and the nearer to enjoyment1 the more valuable the prize will be4 #h4 ,learn to distinguish between true1 genuine love1 and mere fancy4 ,he who truly loves or respects you1 will not wish to have you violate your honor or chastity1 neither will he violently intrude upon the same1 although he may endeavour to prove your constancy4 ,therefore when you have reason to believe that any one sincerely respects you1 and if you also wish to continue to be worthy of his esteem2 remember that you cannot do any thing more against yourself than to give over your chastity1 or go beyond rules of decency4 ,but if you have reason to believe that any one's pretended love is nothing more than mere fancy1 which will generally shew itself by a vehement fondness2 vows1 promises1 c4 learn to treat it with a silent neglect2 for his utmost wishes will never promote your real happiness4 #i4 ,be not anxious to be admired by every one1 but only be careful that the virtuous have no occasion to speak evil against you2 to avoid which you have only to live a virtuous life4 ,keep a due regard over all your words and actions2 not only when you are with those whom you esteem to be virtuous1 but even if you should happen to fall in company with those of the baser sort4 ,it hath been an old maxim1 that when we are with the ,romans1 we must do as the ,romans do4 ,and the maxim may be a good one1 so far as we can comply with it1 and not break over the rules of decency and propriety2 but no farther4 ,for it is no rule1 neither will it be any excuse for you1 to be loose1 vain1 or lascivious1 even if you should happen to fall in company with persons of this description4 ,but the wiser method is1 to avoid all such company2 for the characters of persons are often judged by the company they keep4 ,therefore1 if you would wish to avoid the reproaches of every one1 you must not only abstain from vice yourself1 but you must forsake the company of the vicious4 #aj4 ,do not reveal your secrets to any one1 unless it will be as much for their interest to keep1 as it will be for yours to have them kept2 and never reveal the secrets of others1 when it will not injure you to keep them4 ,never make any promise that you do not mean to perform2 and fulfil all your promises when you have once made them2 unless you find that you were deceived when you made them1 and therefore ought not to have promised4 ,never speak of the failings of another to a third person1 but with the greatest reluctance1 especially those of your own sex4 ,if you can say no good of persons1 you had better say nothing about them4 ,for as you would not wish to have your own failings published to the world1 so you must be exceeding careful not to publish the failings of others4 ,but should you discover a failing in your friend1 you may1 and ought to remind him or her of it1 between you and them alone1 but do it with the greatest modesty4 ,and if your friends should tell you of a fault1 take it kindly of them and endeavor to reform4 ,never appear to slight the company of any one1 while in their presence1 even if it should be disagreeable2 but rather endeavor to find some just occasion of absence1 and avoid their company for the future4 ,treat every one with civility1 but use no flattery nor dissimulation to any one2 but let the words of your mouth be the sentiments of your heart4 #aa4 ,do not try to outvie all others in dress1 c4 but let your dress be modest1 and suited to your circumstances4 ,remember that a real character doth not consist in the outward adornings of the body1 but in the inward adornings of the mind and understanding4 ,although a fop1 or a coxcomb1 might be charmed at the sight of fine ribbons1 and embroidered apparel2 yet the man of understanding will look for the more refined beauties2 the adornments of the mind4 #ab4 ,but however you may appear in company1 and abroad1 your real character for lasting reputation and future happiness in the world1 must be formed and established at home2 even in the kitchen1 and in attending to your domestic concerns4 ,here is where you are to form your character1 not only for happiness1 but also for usefulness in the world4 ,by attending to industry1 cookery1 and all the domestic employments1 you will qualify yourself to become the mistress of a family2 and not only so1 but here you will prepare yourself to be a worthy companion for a good and honest farmer1 a laborious mechanic1 a rich merchant1 or even a minister of the gospel1 or any other character whatever4 ,i am willing to own1 that was a flaunting beau or a coxcomb1 going to choose a partner for an afternoon or an evening1 he would be likely to make choice of one that was set out in what they are pleased to call complete bon ton1 that would please his fancy for just a moment to pass away an idle hour4 ,but was a virtuous young man about to make choice of a partner through life2 one with whom he expected to participate1 not only in the pleasures1 but also in the sorrows and afflictions of life2 one to be his bosom companion and mistress of his family1 and to travel with him thro' all the chequered scenes of the thorny maze of this wilderness world2 he would be likely to choose one who was studious in business1 well acquainted with domestic concerns1 of an unsullied character1 with a soft and easy temper of mind and one to whom the cares of her family would be her chief delight4 ,such a companion as this would ever make home agreeable4 ,and whether it should be their fortune to be rich or poor1 every thing would go on harmoniously1 and the domestic affairs would be attended to in season1 and all things kept in proper order4 ,and finally to conclude1 we may join with the poet1 and say1 that 8,this man while others roam1 ,among the sons of strife2 ,would be always happ'est when at home1 ,in converse with his wife40 ,,finis4 ,transcriber's ,notes3 ,text in italics is enclosed by underscores 7italics74 ,punctuation and spelling inaccuracies were silently corrected4 ,archaic and variable spelling has been preserved4 ,variations in hyphenation and compound words have been preserved4