The Kansas herald of freedom., 1858-05-08

physicians to the New York Infrmary fer
INDECENT women and children, and women
were admitted as students of medicine in
colleges at Philadelphia, Boston, Roches-
ter and Cincinnati. There was no good
objection against women speaking in pub
lie. Fanny Kimble's lectures illustrated
this. Mrs. Jamison, in a work on Com
nsailioa Of Labor, recommended women
being employed to superintend hospitals,
work-houses, &c. Single women might
have these occupations, if married had
not. Art should not exclude women.-
Rosa Bonheur, and the sculptor of Bea-
trice Cenci, proved this. He compared
the condition of the lower classes in Eng
land, the continent and here, and contend
ed that men should be excluded from
many pursuits in which women might be
engaged. He considered the difficulty of
correcting the evils of prostitution from
the want of employment for reformed
females, and as to married women, he
insisted that their condition might legally
be improved. He showed how the old
law stood in this respect, and how little it
had generally been improved, and sug-
gested whether she should not inherit her
husbands estate in preference to his blood.
In this connection he spoke of Mr.. Fields
labors in the cause of Law Reform, and
said it was worthy Of consideration whether
divorces should not be granted for entire
incompatibility of temper, moral coercion
in matters of religious faith, desertion,
habitual intemperance or infamy. With
out at present contending that the elective
franchise should be extended to women,
he insisted that, in principle, by the theory
of our Government, she had a right to
suffrage. Even slaves were basis of
representation under our Federal Consti-
tuition.
The following passage he cited from the
English notes to Blackstone: With re-
gard to the property of women, there is
taxation without representation, for they
pay taxes without having the liberty of
voting for representatives; and indeed
there seems no substantial reason why
single women should be denied this privi-
lege."
Yet absolutism exists under every Gov
ernment. Here it resides in the majority.
The elective franchise was limited by
arbitrary bounds, as in the case of men,
to the age of II years. 1t was not certain
that woman's taking part in public affairs
would necessarily injure them or disturb
her property relations to man. He sup
posed the country would be as well gov
erned under that change as it is now. If
women are wholly excluded from govern
ment, we should at least give them the
utmost benefit government Can bestow.-
Single women are already equal in civil
rights to men, except as to the franchise.
In NewYork married women can hold
real and personal estate, collect their sep
arate deposits in Savings Banks, and vote
as stockholders of corporations.
A general reform for the benefit of wo-
men must, for the present, at least, depend
on moral influences, and to accomplish
this, prejudices and customs must be as
sailed. But. first, the united influence of
woman and the Press would be indispensi-
BILE to any such result.
The lecturer concluded with an appeal
to both sexes to unite in reasonable mea-
sures for woman's elevation and happiness.