The Portland daily press., 1862-09-05
[For the Daily Press. ]
Appeal to the Women of Portland.


"when the wild clash of steel-the heavy step
0farmed men, break on our morning dreams;
When. hour by hour, the noble and the brave
Are falling round us, and we deem it much
To give them funeral rites and call them bIest,
Ifthe good sword, in its stormy hour
Hath done its work upon them, ere disease
Had child their fiery blood: IL is no time
For the light mein ,chere,cih in happier hours
We trod the Woodland maSes, when young leaves
Were whispering in the gale"
And yet-"As it was in the days of Noah,
they did eat, they drank, they married wives,
they were given in marriage until the day that
Noah entered into the ark, and the flood came
and destoyed them ALL" even so it seems to be
now and here. Concerts, pic-nics, celebrations,
excursions, &c, &c. Who that values life and
liberty can have heart for such things, when
the cry for aid and sympathy comes up to us
"from the couches of our braves, now stretch
ed sick and wounded-some perhaps on the
cold ground with no kind hand to alleviate
their agony,"-sufering and dying for want of
such comforts and aleviations, as might have
been purchased and sent them, or the money
spent by some of our people upon their own
pleasures and luxuries +? Fathers, brothers,
friends-going forth by thousands to preserve
for us our homes and freedom-and we living
In comfort and peace under our own vine and
fig tree! Well may we ask, are these things SOP
Who shall speak the word-in tones of thun-
der, if fneedlbe-that shall wake us out of this
lethargy that seems to rest so heavily upon us /?
Shall we wait till our own New England is in
vaded by rebel hordes, our homes laid waste,
our fellow citizens murdered before our eyes.
ere we are thoroughly awake to our dangers
and our duty?
"What have we at the North, with all our
wealth of means and men, done in comparison
with the almost bankrupt concern at the
South?" asks one Of our soldiers. What are
we doing in our own city for "God and our
country?" How many of our ladies are ready
to give up their luxuries, and deny themselves
every unnecessary indulgence for the sake of
their country, and to relieve the agonics of the
sick and wounded soldiers? Many of our wo-
men have done nobly-some have labored far
beyond their strength-but, have all the wo-
men Of Portland done what they could? In
many of our towns and cities the women of all
classes are far before us in their labors and self
sacrifice
We would ask if there are not five thousand
womes in our great city, who are willing to
follow the example of our sister city, and save
two cents week, to be paid into fund for the
suffering soldiers? How many lives might be
saved by this fifty dollars n week so aas;lv
raised and scarcely missed by most of
those who might give it. How many, many
are these who could give half hours work
daily, or more than that, and be themselves
the better and happier for it. When our last
account is rendered up-shall it be said of us,
'She hath done what she could" for the cause
of Liberty and Christianity? "This appeal is
most earnestly and affectionatey made to all
loyal and humane persons. They have already
done much, but redoubled efforts in all depart-
ments ofthe war must now be made. The
100000 new recruits will not be without their
sick and wounded. and mauy hard battle
must yet be fought. Let the rich give of their
abundance. Let the poor spare all they can"
Let us each and all, men, women and chill
dren, faithfully perform our duty towards God
and our country, and in his own good time,
the God in whom we trust viii give us the VIC
tory. p.
SEPTEMBER, 1862.