St. Cloud Democrat. [volume] (Saint Cloud, Stearns County, Minn.) 1858-1866, 1861-02-14

away from tho "scnsuality" written on
their lips, while they watch to see if the
moving inccndiary come in contact with
the hem Of any woman's garment, when
they cry out in horror, that they see
blue blaze, and smell burning birthstone.
Thus they ooatrive to set whole commu-
nifty on the scent of tho flames which exist
only in their own impure imaginationss:
We do not often have any quarrel with
Pious Prudery, for we think of her as
Wendell Holmes docs of his heroine
"Elsie," in "The Professors Story" that
she should not be Judged by the rules
which apply to woman in her normal
state; but we cannot consent that all
women should be measured by the COM
pass necessary to her. exceptional exist
ence, any more than we should consent
that every ono should wear cork sole.
four inches thick on one shoe, because
some one has one leg shorter than the
other; and finds this essential to locomo-
ton.
We know that the evil of which we
complain has its origin in her exceptional
case-know that large-hearted, brotherly
men are excluded from the social inter-
course they might enjoy but for the
poison of her suspicious. Right minded
women naturally shrink from being ex-
ternally defled by her Shiny SANDERS, as
one shrinks from getting mud or tar on
ones garments; but people should not al
ways stay indoors for fear Of mud, or out
of the woods because there are skunks
there. In order to correct judgment,
every one should learn to know this class
Of women at first sight: and they
may be known by their mouths, which are
always as coarse as the opinions which
proceed from them, and when they are
known, let their sayings be set down at
their true value. Let not the other wo-
men be deferred from tho exercise of a
plain, christian duty by the fear Of their
Interpretation. Remember the old lady
who ian screaming after the boy on a
runaway horse who, when some one asked,
"Is it your son, madame =" replied,
"No; but he is somebody's son!''
When you see man without wife, or
mother, or sister to take interest in him,
remember that he is somebody's son
that he is brother man, going to the
same eternal destiny, subject to many
temptations. Do what you can to sur
round him with home influences, to keep
up in his soul the memories of the wife,
or mother, or sister, or daughter he has
left behind
This subject was brought to our atten-
ton by hearing some one remark, Of a
young man, that he had been so many years
in St. Cloud without having been in a
private house. lie had left refined
and luxurious home, with a mothers
last kiss upon his lips. If he were not
an outlaw, at the end Of these years of
exclusion from domestic life, it was no
thanks to St Cloud ladies.
A mother writing to her son who
had been i'll here says,
al hope, my son, that God raised
you up friends in your hour of need"
But The, too, had been treated as a
Parian. True, Mrs. Stearns and Mrs.
Willis have each a kind of motherly
supervision of all this neglected class;
and in this are as true missionaries as any
ever sent out by Miasicn Board; but
they cannot do the duty of the whole
town.
We are also led to think of this by the
general mourning there il, among men,
over the death Of Carrie Stearns. Her ia
Tiers house was general resort for that
class of our population for which we set
up this plea; and the universal sen timent
amongst that class is, that "The light of
that house is gone" Was it because she
was pattern of prudence and technical pi-
ETY. :? Nota bit of it; but that she was gay as
bird, graceful as pure as wild rose, and
lily, giving about as much thought to
propriety as fish to swimming-keeping
her love to God and man in her heart,
whence they unconsciously revealed them
selves in pleasant acts Of courtesy and
kindness, in laug liter and song and ready
sympathy with the wants of others. She