The Sun.
London, England, 1864-05-20 00:00:00

NEWSPAPER

Vreit
when the very earth trembles ti d,
- 7-
tread of armed men going down tuba
'
roof throughout the land shelters some ns er ent „
the son who has fallen gloriously with his face to the foe,
or a widow whose husband lies buried so deeply among the
masses of slain heroes, that she will never learn to seek for
his grave ?
When the wife of a great prince whose husband was
absent at the siege of Troy was urged by her friends to put
on her royal robes and be cheerful, she answered—" My
husband is under the walls of Troy ; shall I adorn my hair
while he wears a helmet? Shall I dress in new robes while
he carries arms? No S my raiment shall be like his hard
labours, and in sadness while I pass the time of this
mournful war." Patriotism is beautiful in all eyes, and
was shared alike by the lady of classic story end the
mother of the revolution, clad in her home-spun dress and
steadily performing more than household clutks. Com-
pare the spirit of these women with the reckless extra-
vagance which has marked the duration of this terriblo
struggle for the Union, and the contraet is indeed humiliat-
ing. Still the women of America are not unworthy of their
ancestors. Thoughi less they may be, and luxuriantly ex-
travagant from long habits of prosperity, but cruel and un-
just never. ApEeal to their reason and gentle feelings, an I the women of this day will prove themselves as capable of
as noble deeds as ever marked the struggles of the revolu-
tion. Convince them of the evils their thou:;htlessncss is
producing, and the remedy is certain.
It has not been Euirrientiy impressed upon them that the
encouragement of extravagant importations is injurious
to
the public good. To impress this vital truth upon the
women of the Union, we have entered into this solemn
covenant, not only holding ourselves to a general system'
of economy in our persons, but holding it as a duty to frit-
press upon others how unwomanly it is to make fiattwerd
display a paramount sutject of thought, when the nation is
in the throes of a rebellion such as the world never saw.
Gathered here in the centre of the nation, a handful of
women, intent on a single object, anxious only for the good
of the country, we appeal to the patriotism and intelligence
of our sister women throughout the length and breadth of
the land. Let it be well understood, that every ounce of
gold that goes from the country detracts from the pay of
the soldier who is fighting for our salvation, and diminishes
the wages of our sister women, who'toil for their bread into
a miserable pittance that scarcely suffices to keep them from
starvation, The precious metal that flows from this coun-
try to Europe for the luxuries we do not need increases the
price of gold here, depreciates the value of our national cur-
rency, and helps to sweep the necessaries of life beyond the
reach of the working man.
It is a painful truth, for which we shall yet learn to
blush, that the exportations of the most expensive goods
manufactured in Europe have been far greater during the
war than at any time in the history of our country. The
importations last week at the New York custom house alone
amounted to 5,000,000; and all that week—which will
yet find its ignoble record in history--the streets of Wash-
ington were blocked up with weary soldiers, marching
through mud, rain, or dust, down to the army of the Poto-
mac, which now lies with bated courage waiting for the
carnival of death which is almost flinging its crimson
shadow over us.

9,
e-
. c'

For the good of our country and the honour of our sex
let us redeem ourselves from this reproach of wanton. ex-
travagance. Let us prove by cheerful retrenchment that
the women of the country are not so wedded to luxurious
self-indulgence that they cannot fill a glorious page in the
history of this war and yet retain all that is retiring and
beautiful in womanhood. In all humane works they
have proved themselves charitable, kind, and munificent.
Let these comprehend that self-abnegation will accomplish
more than works of charity, and they will not be less
earnest to sacrifice than they have been to act. It must
not be said of us that we have been willing to give up our
husbands, sons, and brothers to tight or die for the Union,
and yet refuse to renounce our laces, silks, velvets, and
diamonds. That thought would cover us with shame
before the nations of the earth. No; our women of the
Union only lack knowledge of the means by which they
can prove themselves true help-mates of the heroes who
are fighting our battles. Impress it upon them that in
discouraging excessive importations and adopting goods
manufactured at home they keep gold in the country, re-
duce the rates of exchange, and establish confidence in
the Government, and they will prove how far patriotism
can rise above feminine vanity in the hearts of American.