y," "What Girls can
Do," &c._

"How clear and bright the fire is, Mary," said Margaret, when she
came into the kitchen, and found Mary already busy setting plates and
dishes to warm, rubbing the gridiron, and placing everything in
readiness for the lesson in Cookery.

"Yes, Miss Margaret, it _is_ bright, and I made it so," said Mary,
with pride in her voice. "Mistress said we were to learn to broil
to-day, so I came here in good time, cleared away the dust, put on
some coal, and swept up the hearth; and now how hot and clear the
fire is; exactly the fire for broiling, I know."

"You seem to know all about it before you are taught, Mary."

"I am not so clever as that comes to, miss. But I know that for
broiling you need a bright hot fire without blaze, and that you need
to have everything quite ready before you begin to cook at all,
because when you have once made a start you cannot leave the broil to
attend to anything; so I thought it was as well to be prepared
before-hand."

"Why are you rubbing the gridiron so hard then? Was it not cleaned
the last time it was used?"

"Of course it was cleaned; but aunt says that no matter how clean a
gridiron looks, we should always give it an extra rub before using
it, 'for safety,' and that then we should make it hot over the fire,
and afterwards rub the bars with mutton-fat to grease them, and keep
the meat from sticking to the bars. But here comes mistress."

"You appear to be cooking without my help to-day," said Mrs. Herbert,
smiling, as she looked round and saw what had been done.

"No, ma'am. I have finished all I know," said Mary.

"Then let me tell you a little more. Broiling is a very convenient
way of cooking meat, because it is very quick, and it makes meat very
tasty and very wholesome. I should like you to understand it,
therefore. It is only suitable, however, for small things, such as
chops, and steaks, and kidneys, and fish. To-day we will broil a
steak."

"The gridiron is greased ready, ma'am," interrupted Mary.

"Quite right. I am glad to see it, Mary. This should always be done.
But now notice. This steak, though I call it small, is still cut
fairly thick--it is nearly an inch thick. If it were cut in a thin
slice, to broil it would make it hard and dry, and we wish it to be
brown and well cooked on the outside, and tender and juicy inside. I
wonder if you recollect what I said when we first began these lessons
in Cookery about making a case on th