Eight Cousins

Rose surprises Uncle Alec by seeking his advice on a trade to pursue so that, if she ever loses her fortune, she will be able to provide for herself. Uncle Alec suggests that she learn the practical art of housekeeping, which he values for its effect on the family who lives there. He suggests that she learns from Aunt Plenty, who is a domestic powerhouse. He challenges Rose to demonstrate her accomplishment in cooking by baking a “handsome, wholesome loaf” of bread from scratch (244). This task of teaching Rose flatters Aunt Plenty, and Rose decides to include Aunt Peace as well and learns how to darn socks and sew buttonholes. Uncle Alec cheekily admits that while he can sew and cook well enough, he’s unable to make “bread and buttonholes” (253).

Rose catches Charlie and Archie smoking on a Sunday, after their mother has asked them not to, and chastises them. Charlie suggests that if she wants him to give up smoking, then Rose should take out her earrings. To his surprise, she agrees, believing that Charlie’s smoking is a bad influence on the other boys and that the sacrifice would be worth it for her cousins’ sake.

Uncle Alec and Aunt Jessie walk in and hear of the deal, approving of Rose’s choice. Aunt Jessie suggests that Will and Geordie should give up reading popular adventure novels, which teach the boys to admire heroes who are shallow and vainglorious rather than wholesome. Aunt Jessie insists that her sons throw their books into the fire where Archie and Charlie threw their cigars. Uncle Alec praises Rose for her influence on the boys’ development into moral young men.

Aunt Clara has Rose try on a winter outfit that looks fashionable but restricts Rose’s movement. However, Uncle Alec has pre-empted Aunt Clara and ordered an unusually constructed but practical winter outfit for Rose to try. While Rose puts on the alternative outfit in her room, Uncle Alec argues with Aunt Clara about Rose’s figure, which she complains is getting “stout.” Uncle Alec praises Rose’s healthy shape and banishes the corset, which he calls an “instrument of torture” (281).

Rose comes out wearing Uncle Alec’s simple but practical outfit. She praises the comfort of its fit and her ability to move freely in it, which she demonstrates by hopping over a chair. When given the choice of the two, Rose decides she prefers the one in which she can move easily, despite being attracted to the finery of the other. Then, Uncle Alec announces that he is going to teach Rose physiology.

Aunt Myra walks in on one of Rose’s physiology lessons, for which Uncle Alec has brought a real anatomical skeleton to use as a model, which startles the older woman. When Rose eagerly describes what she has learned about bones, Aunt Myra claims that thinking about such things is unladylike and causes her to feel squeamish. Rose invites Mac to join the lesson, feeling that learning from Uncle Alec’s lectures might cheer him up. Uncle Alec switches the lesson plan and teaches the science of sight, which shocks Mac to learn. He vows to take better care of his eyes in future, wondering why his parents never taught him such useful things.

The boys try to spook Rose with the skeleton, but she is too wily and realizes their trick. She chastises them for treating the skeleton without respect. Uncle Alec explains that the skeleton was a gift to science donated to him by a patient who knew that he was dying and wanted to help the doctors who had cared for him.