The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1855-12-22
The Sex vindicatcsl,

! MEssRs. EDITORS In reply TO an arti
Gle from !" Bach upon the subject Of Social
! Gatherings" | wish to say a few words.
! lie says there is not one woman in many
who can talk upon any subject of real inter
est. She can talk Of "moon- beams" /" dew
drops. piercing eyes" g.. &,,-as much
as TO say that woman has no mind that she
is mere purpe;--a rlaythnc. created sole
~ for the amusement Of mans leisure hours
And Why is it; Isl. because she is not
endowed with the same strength Of mind .
Or is it the result of et!uca,ion-of the in
iincnces to which she has been sui icc:ed ?
She has been taught to believe and feel her
inftrIori'y; she has not been entrusted with
the keys Of neutrality-suspicious. then can she
unlock its treasures? The walks of science
have always been to her forbidden paths -
she has not thos" powerful inducements to
intellectual effort which the other sex en;ovs
Who then hoe a right 10 disbe!ievc tho exist
"n"c OF latent power, where Influences have
contributed rather to reprcss than 70 develop
it? The young lady, when she has arrived
Year, Or 1P'e'fhips longer psriod q at fashion
aoie ooar'ilng-schoo., where she is taught to
sing, to play, to Gance, and few other suoer.
iIclai accomplishments. which will enable her
to make sensation and sparkle in societv.-
And then-shc graduates. Her cdma,lon is
completed. il she desires TO drink dr.oe,
at the fountain of knowledge, and unray,l
the mysteries Of science she is told that these
things are too deep for her, that her mind is
not capable Of sraspinc them; that she must
leave them for the lords of creation" whom
God has seen fl: to gift with stronger minds
and more capacious intelccts. With such
an education, how can she be experte1 70
rise as high in the scale of Intellectual beino
as man But the mind must be occupicd
with something, and if told that it is CAPABLE
Ct digestinc nothirg more substantial. she
reads with aviditv great number of idle ro-
mances and pucrile tales, which corrupt her
imagination and cloud her UNDERSTANDING.
Is 1t surprising that with such an education
she should become Ii "ht and trillinc, ard her
conversation vain and frivolous? Bat Give
hcr the educatIon of man-oive her his ia
c'l'''cs for Obtaining information - educate
her as an immortal bcing-teach her TO thnI,
TOR herseIf-to investigate truth. and TO 60
down INTO the well where it is said to be hid
den. and bring it up-to dive herself for the
hidden treasure teach her TO mediate
to reflect and act from her own rational con.
'c''on' ana IRON principle, let her mind be
strengthened by conflict of opinion-bv the
eNr''ement OF study, and the quickcninc in
fucnce OF argumcntation-let the shackloc
winch have so long enthraIied her he thrown
OF; and hesitate not to saw that her intel.
lect would shine forth with power ana bril-.
liancy fully equal to that of mans.
Now, Bach. if men we're less ecot;st;c
and more intellectual themselves, and not So
blinded by their own pride and vanity. they
would have learned better long ago than to
believe in the stcreo,yped falsehood of wo-
mans intellectual inferiority. NJ. Wv.
North Danville, Dec. IS.