The Girl's Own Paper, Vol. VIII, No. 370, January 29, 1887

In Short

The Girl’s Own Paper, Vol. VIII, No. 370 is a late-nineteenth-century weekly periodical designed to instruct, entertain, and morally guide young female readers. Through a diverse collection of contents—including an installment of Rosa Nouchette Carey’s serialized novel Merle’s Crusade, essays on classical church music, practical guides on contemporary dress and color harmony, natural history notes on field-voles and pike, and answers to readers' personal queries—the magazine reflects the domestic ideals, cultural pursuits, and everyday concerns of Victorian girlhood. It has lasted as a vivid cultural artifact, capturing the specific texture of middle-class life, educational ambitions, and social expectations of its era.

The Story

The issue opens by inviting readers across the globe, especially foreign and colonial competitors, to enter a biographical essay competition for notable women in honor of Queen Victoria’s approaching Jubilee, offering gold medal-brooches and certificates of merit.

Shifting to narrative fiction, the focus centers on Mrs. Fenner and her daughter Eveline living a quiet country life in Rosenhurst. A letter arrives from Mrs. Fenner’s cousin, Miles Echlin, offering a warm invitation for them to move to London to live with him and Mark, a young man already established there. After consulting the local rector and Lady Elgitha—whose reception is marked by a touch of east wind—Mrs. Fenner accepts, deciding to spend the winter in Manchester-square. Mark, kept in the dark about the surprise, continues his busy life in town, rushing home one October evening to find his mother and Eveline waiting for him in a brilliantly lit drawing-room, resulting in a joyful reunion.

Interspersed with these narratives are instructional articles detailing the history and structure of musical forms such as cantatas, motetts, anthems, and masses, highlighting how composers like Bach and Palestrina shaped sacred music. Practical columns follow, offering precise advice on winter fashion, color harmony in dress, proper waist measurements, and the cutting of a new "blouse polonaise" paper pattern using vicuna serge.

The natural history section takes readers on a reflective walk along a brook near Oxford, exploring the cunning habits of large river pike, the agricultural depredations of the short-tailed field-mouse or campagnol, and how kestrels and owls help preserve the balance of nature.

Returning to the serialized novel Merle’s Crusade, the governess narrator takes her charges to Wheeler’s Farm to visit Hannah, a young woman courted by the honest, steady Luke Armstrong. While the visit delights the children and gladdens the Sowerby family, it draws harsh disapproval from the haughty Mrs. Markham, who rebukes the nurse for taking such liberties without her direct consent.

Finally, the issue concludes with an extensive editorial correspondence column. The editors field inquiries on art perspective, lace-designing careers, haunted houses, rheumatism remedies, dandruff treatments, metrical composition, and household etiquette, alongside an apology for a plagiarized poem discovered in a contemporary publication.

How It Unfolds

• The Jubilee competition announced — Readers of all ages, including foreign and colonial participants, are invited to submit lists of notable women to win specially struck gold medal-brooches.
• An invitation from London — Mrs. Fenner receives a welcome letter from her cousin Miles Echlin, proposing that she and Eveline leave their country cottage to live with him and Mark in Manchester-square.
• Surprise in Manchester-square — Mark returns home from a busy day in town to discover his mother and sister waiting for him in a brilliantly lit drawing-room.
• The evolution of church music — An informative musical essay traces the history of cantatas, motetts, and polyphonic masses from early plain-song to the reforms of Palestrina.
• Winter fashion and dressmaking — Practical style notes instruct readers on color harmony, the proper use of plush mantles, and the cutting instructions for a new grey vicuna serge blouse polonaise.
• Reflections by the brook — Natural history observations examine the cunning of river pike, the plague-like habits of field-voles, and the ecological role of kestrels and owls.
• An afternoon at Wheeler’s Farm — The narrator visits the Sowerby family with the children to meet Hannah's sweetheart, Luke, prompting an unwarranted rebuke from the haughty Mrs. Markham.
• Answers to correspondents — The issue closes with editorial advice addressing everything from art studies and dandruff cures to family etiquette and a retracted plagiarized poem.

The People

• Eveline Fenner is a country-bred young woman accustomed to open-air life and household duties, devoted to her mother and her brother Mark, who joyfully relocates to London at her cousin's invitation.
• Mrs. Fenner is Eveline's mother, who receives the generous relocation letter with trepidation and tears, ultimately deciding to move her family to London for the winter.
• Mark is Mrs. Fenner’s hardworking, modest son established in London, who remains entirely unaware of his family's impending move until he walks into the drawing-room and finds them waiting.
• Miles Echlin is Mrs. Fenner’s well-to-do cousin who graciously offers his London home as a refuge and family gathering place.
• Lady Elgitha is a local relative whose practical, somewhat chilly counsel—marked by a touch of east wind—influences the family's decision to accept the London move.
• Hannah Sowerby is the youngest daughter at Wheeler’s Farm who is courted by the steady young miller, Luke Armstrong.
• Molly Sowerby is Hannah’s sensible, hardworking sister who manages the farm household, dispenses plain-spoken advice, and resigns herself to remaining single.
• Mrs. Markham is a stern, self-absorbed relative in the household who fiercely guards her social standards and reprimands the nurse for visiting the Sowerbys.

In Its Own Voice

“No endeavour is in vain, / Its reward is in the doing; / And the rapture of pursuing / Is the prize the vanquished gain.”

This encouraging verse is offered to console readers who fail to win a prize in the magazine's literary competitions.

“What a long letter!”

Mrs. Fenner makes this remark upon first receiving the unexpected correspondence from her cousin, Mr. Echlin.

“Shut your eyes, and don’t see it.”

The editors offer this tongue-in-cheek piece of advice to a reader asking how to handle a haunted house.

What It's Really About

The magazine explores the intersection of traditional domestic duty, self-improvement, and intellectual curiosity for young women in late-Victorian society. It asks how a young woman ought to cultivate her mind, dress with tasteful economy, engage with the natural world, and navigate shifting social landscapes—from country cottages to bustling London drawing-rooms. Beneath the practical tips and serialized fiction lies an underlying argument for purposeful activity, whether through studying classical music, entering biographical competitions, or performing household and familial roles with quiet dedication.

Why Read It Today

Modern readers will love this text for its incredible window into nineteenth-century domestic life, offering a tactile sense of how Victorian girls were educated, dressed, and entertained. Reading it feels like stepping into a sunlit parlor filled with the rustle of vicuna serge, the notes of a Mendelssohn Lied ohne Worte, and the earnest moral earnestness of a bygone era. While contemporary readers may find the dense musical essays, archaic formatting, and period class attitudes occasionally challenging or slow-paced, the genuine warmth, detailed observation, and charmingly direct editorial voice make it a rewarding historical journey that stays with you long after closing the page.

What specific aspect of nineteenth-century domestic life or periodical culture interests you the most?