Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1859-04-06

Ol SuCu Say pIeliLiej iuii oii "N0e
boys and find out the road to ruin. so to-
with the mother: Her simplest song, II la
den with pure moral, may sink into tn
heart of her son, never to be forgotten ;-no
because it was either executed with skill o
rendered with elegance, but because
"It was the song his mother sung I,
When bo was but child"
Move cannot go with the speaker to tn
extent of his hints on this subject. But whel
he comes to talk of another one of woman'
qualifications for society, we join him hear
and soul:
"The Occidental nations all require tht
presence Of woman in society; amongst US
she constitutes its brightest ornament; hel
influence preserves it from rudeness ano
and excess. 1t is of great consequence, there
fore. that her education should fit her to
shine in society.
sNow, the charm of social life is converse,
tion-conpersation as distinguished on, the
one hand from prosy monologue, and, on
the other from flippant gossip-a genial dis,
course, in which two or more persons, haV-
ing many points Of sympathy, freely inter:
change their thoughts for mutual profit ans
pleasure. Far inferior to this are all ;the
gaudy, but icceitlul trappings Of the card
table, and the dance. If she would diiuse
the greatest pleasure most widely, letAer
talk 1cell. But in order to talk well, she must
talk intelliyently, and she cannot talk intelli-
gently unless she be intelligent. j
SIN order that the superiority of an edqca-
ted person, in conversation, may appear, y is
not necessary that the particular topics should
be introduced on which he is specially in
formed but it will he seen, whatever may
be the subject Education gives fecundity
of thought, copiousncss Of illustration, quick
ness, vigor. fancy, words, images it lecorates
everything, and gives the power of-triding
without being undignified or absurd"
"Now, can the whole round Of the orna-
mental branches give these7 Can a smatter-
ing of Grammar, snatch Of History, and o
total ignorance Of the Bellies Lettres afford
thern7 There must lie thorough culture ;
young ladies must study; must study hard
and Iona their days and nights musts be
given to the whole field of polite literature.
They cannot talk Of that which they have
learned by rote it is not enough that they
retain half an idea here, ana the fourth OF
one there; their knowledge will break down
too soon; they will never be quite certain
about anything, aud hence will tc afraid to
venture remark. That they may be easy
in society, they mnst be on the general leYel
of the intelligence Of those aronnd them.
Nothing can be more delightful tLan the
conversation of an educated and refined lady.
Her bird.like voice charms tue sense; her
flowing thoughts charm the soul; her beam
ing eyes, and kindling cheek, thrill and trans
fix the heart. Words take on fresh forms ss
they fall from her lips; and common ideas
are transmitted into poetic lancies aud picss
aspirations as they pass through the alembic
of her mind. NJ wonder that men gather
around her, anil with chivslrou' devotion,
lay down at her feet their free-wil offerings
of homage, respect, and love- Sne reign. a
Queen in the hearts Of the other sex--she is
the glory Of her own."
Truly thought and beautifully said; but
there is still no conflict, We maintain, between
the cultivation of this requirement and proper
attention to the accomplishments" The
first we would hare them do, and not leave
the others undone.
The necessity Ito tue child's proper dcvel,
opnent) of thorough education in the mother
is touched upon thus:
"Woman has almost entire charge of the
future generation Of men, during the most
important period Of their lives. In the course
Of these eight 10 ten years. indelble impress
sions are made, and the bent of their minds
determined: this must be done by the plastic
hand Of d mother.
"What measure Of fitness should be required
in her7 Can she be too highly prepared for
this task 2 Will mere house-wifery suffice
her2 Is it enough that she brush her chid's
hair, and wash his face 1t is very impor-
tant that she do this. Of the two, | would
prefer a mother who gives gool victuals,
clean clothes, and kind words to her boy, to
one who, neglcctful Of domestic comfort, is
mainly bent on cramming him with the un-
ripe fruit Of the Tree Of knowledge; and
who, when her son asks bread, tosses him q
flower of rhetoric or Latin root. II is in
dispcnsabe that she feed and ciothe, and
wash her children; Lut this is not the whole
duty Of mother. She must care for tue
mind as well ai for the badly oil her child,
and must see that he grows, not only in stat
urc, but also in knowledge.
Ii Sue he unelucaled, what now remains
but, in her intercourse with her son, to sink
down into frivolous AID empty go,sip2 She
is unable to lead him along the verdant meals
and babbling brooks of Poetry, or up the
bill Of Science, OF upon the high tablc-lands
of History.
GAIL these departments Of knowledge are
uneyplored regions to her. And then, when
her boy comes back irum school, where he
has learned Nil these, md many other Things,
he |. paired tp discover great gulf fixed
be.wrcn lia mother and hiulnelt--s chastn,
over which It is too late for her " pass to
him, and which be cnnnot recross to her"
We conclude our extracts from this excel.
lent address with some impressive observa.
tiuns on the worth Of education, and its spe-
cial value to woman as areSource in her more
advanced years:
"a mind, fired with srdor in tue pursuit
Of knowledge, trained to acquire it, aud able
to enjoy it; this is the most precious of the
goodly pearls, and second in value only to
the "one Of great price" And though oil
su6lunary things teach us what shadows we
are, and what shadows we pursue" yet, there
is no earthly blessing that will so outlive the
vicssiiudes of fortune, and the lapse of years,
Us a cultivated mind and literary tastes.
Wealth may taketo itself wings and ily away
friends may fall on our right hand, and Oh
our left old age may creep on with stealthy
step but amid LIES wreck and woes, there
is reserved this solid ground to stand upon
this sweet trysting place of the soul and truth,
alt is pleasure TO stand upon the shore,
ana sec ships tossed upon the sea pleasure
to stand in the window of castle, and to
see battle, and the adventures thereof be-
low; but no pleasure is comparable to the
standing upon the vantage ground of truth
"a hill not to be commanded, and where the
aim is always clear and serene,) and to see
the errors and wanderingS, the mists and
tempests in the vale below SO always that
this prospect be with pity, and not with
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