Wheeling times and advertiser. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1839-1849, 1843-02-09

- "S "ob huoNieuSc, ana iecilug
and taste, bat little more than a ckId,
ana SO far from adjoining the station in
which Providence has set her, proyes.to
ms lnhnuc modification, 10 BE- a mere
cypher-
II was a shrewd remark OF a foreign
traveller, speaking or the American sex.
'Stris are unknown here.' A sadly mis-
taken view OF the true interests aud re-
latlons oi society, is SO apt Ia hurry the
child on 10 womanhood that the sarcasm,
however cutting, must be confessed TO
be too true
This unhappy haste in hurrying our
daughters into the hustle. the excite
Inent, and the Innumerable engagements
o! society, IS fraught with much snk,nd
ness TO them; for il abbreviaies the mos,
Joyous period of their lives, and for the
pursuits of mental culture which nature
dictates as being appropriate to their age,
aud whica the pure and unsophisticated
mind always loves, introduces them into
a notoriely and gaze from which their
Innate modesiy matt rally ~recoils, and it
calls them 20 duties aud scenes in con.
v~erSation Tor which they are conscious
that they have made no adequate pre-.
ParatIon The tlmid girls, as VET I'M
hacknIed al the frivolities and dissipa
lion that deform our social intercourse
to SO sad an extent, shrinks from the at
t%entlon tina, youth and loneliness attract
towards her--what would she not give
Tor her books, her music, q ramble with
her beloved schoolrnaies!-and We b'ame
her want of spirit, OF breeding, and per
haps OF scnsc4 We persevere. One by
one, the BARRIERS Of the loveliest modes
~ IRE beAtea down; and, for our
pains, we are rewarded with The sirht of
u prodigy-a girl in her earliest teens
enact,ng the lady, and liable at least To
mistake noise and the loudest laugh Cor
wit, :erwarduoss for good breeding, and
the notice OF the me rest tops as proofs
OF her own grace, accomplishments, and
attractiveuess.
That the young lady, thus Disciplined,
IS only preparing misery for hcrselc,rhc
fond father must one day learn, the I'M
happy victim Of q false system must one
day cxOe renee 10 her sorrow. and the
correct observer of human life has fore
seen for the first. The consciousness of
her wan: of any men al resources sufi
clent 10 enable her TO rea n Of maintain
the influence and station she acoyets. ex.
pos Is her TO painful modification: but
Infinitely more painful than any de-
served sights from the world to which
She devotes herself. must DC the selc.re.
Proaches Of her solitary houIs, and her
destiiution Of pleasures TO fill up the'ach.
ing void left by a weird 20 full of vexa-
lions as ours.
But there is another aspect Of this
subject which forces itself irresistibly
upon the mind This idol of a frivolous
cttcle IS mortal the thought OF eternity
lcLH present itself at times TO the most
heedl IS, and the idea OF any efec; i've
religious training being secured for the
young, IN connection with an unre
strained devotion to the pleasures and
irlvotlties of the world, is utterly pre-
Pos,crous. The spirit of gay society is
uncOngenial to the modesty, the humility
the lowliness of mind, which Christiani-
ty demands. Ii offers u sufficient trial
TO the religious principles of The settled
and confirmed believer, as is never re-
sorted TO by him EXCEPT under PECULIAR
circumstances, that call upon him to-
sacrifice his predictions and tastes for
obtaining some U~lterior end that sane
tons the sacrifice. But when these
rare exceptions are made rule, and the
young devoiee is permitted 10 find her
highest pleasures in the destinations Of.
gaie'y, It will be a miraculous thing in
the philosophy Of mind, if her tastes,
feelings, and principles do not prove to
be wortdLy-exhibiting either a melun.
choiy aversion to the contemplation of
religious subjects, or q total destitution
Of spirituality OF mind.
"What, then, would you dot Would
you have our daughters brought up in
ignorance Of the usages Of that society
IN which, sooner or later, they must
take their station and enact their part2"
We do not hesitate 10 answer Yes!-ir
this knowledge CANNOT be acquired but
at sacrifices which will be felt through
eternlty!-How is The thing managed
in older communitios2 II is done, IN one
word, by making Education a matter Of.
much more lmpOrtauc e, and embracing
a far greater range in its aims, than we
Of the Southwest have been accustomed
to assign TO il.
The special benefit sought for the
young by Introducing them into society
during the period Of pupiluge. is that
they may learh-in classical phrase
TO behave themselves before folks. THIS
benefit, il strikes as, can far better be
secured by a careful and anxious atten-
ton both to mental culture and the per
sonal mien young ladies', whether al
home or 10 a boarding school. The
grace Of elegant manners-one Of the