The Republican journal., 1869-06-17
DON'T WEAR IRON SHOES.

DON'T WEAR IRON SHOES.
Tba busy >eed-tme for few weeks has had our
nught>; the Household ,iow claims a portion Of
Wa are
among the upper circles, the ;ui>tocracy, of that
..lAgo people, the Chinese, the barbarou> custom
s-I~Ney prevails of putting the feet of the fe-
a5c children into small iron shoe, shaped that
e loot. which must grow into the form of the shoe
aomc, forever q sadly delormed tiny. useless
Hdug-this being considered the certain sign of tluC
utility. And how are We shocked a> often as We
blink of this cruel, this monstrou> custom. for
uAo>c removal great expenditure of mean, fol
.-,lonary and other work i, yearly made.
HlIi here in uNr own enlightened America. anc
throughout Ihe civilized world. behold the same
'ron ,Aoe worn hN what countless numbers. pro
.Wcu4 utter dytornity no Of The human foot mere
h. lut Of the entire being; body. mind. SOUL
Go begin with mflutile lite The common idea is
lla infants are all alike, and must have the same
t1ntmcnt that they are al born sick With the
red goom," a> ii is called, and which must bC
.rNcu ott lay an infinite amount Of harsh dosing
rhere never WIS greater delu>ion than this re,
f,pn' hn,inc>>; and the eternal dosing pertaining
ro IT, aud to all il Kindred error, i, terrible iron
hoe more shameful and injurious than the Chimes,
one. To bc born Totally depravcd,'' as certain re
gou> beliefs have it, i, bad enough; but to he born
r. sick. rlniring instant, universal and rough dos
ua is tn charge the creator With Il nature for cru
nv which both hi> revelation and his work, de
Jarr false. And if the infant escapes. with lis life
Q4i- Iinchng process, the shoe j. put ON again any
.s.m in the false notions of Diet dress, and in al
management Of carly life.
.1lilB Yll fbi~ 'liOp~p trp1t-
mont. and has sufficient tality to be good for any
rue, Ae will desire, and Will at times, by stealth
perhaps, Seek % satisfy the wants of his being with
iAo innocent inu>pmento which are as much natural
NJ. and demanded 10y. the wants of that being, a,
ilua. air and sunshine. Then from a large portion
If the ncw spapcr press, and from numerous Gle
.s.u public speakers stands. comes the alarming
rv that all thi, Gol-giveu jovousnrss is Il wrong
ul grevou> sin, and that the youthful character
elf must 90 INTO the iron shoe
In hooks and sehoo,-in all the costly contry-
.urv- for educating the human mind, you behold
,he ~alnt thng. One form and routine of study for
ll when mind, are as diverse i'll their structure,
ltudc~ and wants as their bodies, is only trying
The terrible task of moulding them i'll alike in the
ron shoe And so much has this been the ease i'll
or Acadcmca institutions for ages, that when re-
emily Il distinguished Uublic educa0r-Alr. Eliot
"a some able ESSAYS on the New Fducation (see
Atlantic Monthly, Feb and Mar. 1869 proposed to
remoye the Shoe 50 that our institutions Of learning
may be able to give larger and better growth to the
mind. and better answer the wants of the agc,-;l
-rcat commotion was raised among the friends OF
uur old Chinese customs, threatening To defeat the
4nthor of these ideas for the high position he
T. 50 well fitted TO fill, and 10 which he has just now
been apponel--tho presidency Of Harvard Uni
Ycraity.
And 50 OF the school, Of philosophy, of law and
If medicine too large q part of all their " ork is
thi~ miserable pinching and squeezing mems idea,
uto these tiny and dcforned patterns.
And equally, and not les, rliinou>ly, does This
u ,rrid implement contine and crush into shape
mass the social, moral and political elements Of
humanity. Parie, and cliquc>; what are their
members too often. but the dwarfed and hobbne
'L'tIms of This ChinrSo practice For here, to-day.
m pur midst, we witness the Spectacle of some who
laln 10 have been brought up AT the feet of the
temperance tiamael, threatening 10 Danish one
"t9 ha, magniiied his office, instead of the office
hlhi,-the u"',rn'r NJ the ct"t"-' 'oe>,.o hi rr"'
cctlscs 10 60 into The very narrow Shoe they insist
4pon hi wearing.
If we turn to the higher and uobler elements o
man. the religious and spiritual, shall find tha
mere this cruel pinching and dcformng process ha>
1rcn the most frequent and fatal in its operation,
aud results. For all along the age what has bacI
The history of facts, from the ancient re-Worship
pers. through Judaism and the countless crced> o
christianity to the latest phase of Liberalism, bu
putting alike Divine teachings and human opinions
aud beliefs, into the closest and most CALLING Of mar
row, iron bound enclosures ;-kceping the world il
darkness and error, and drencling it how often il
hnman blood. For unwillingness to wear the hare
ron Shoe Of the Jewish creed> and practices, stone,
The prophets Of Old, sacrificed the Saviour upon tho
cross, caused the various martyrdOms of the apo>
Ties, and murdered with pitilcs, hand the Christians
and these last in their turn, had no sooner burst th
handages which lad bound their UNIV illlng feet il
he relentless vice. than they sought to cripple lnt
deinrm dissenters aud intidels, 50 called, bv til,
same IRON device. For to this fen instrument tho
world will never forget that are due all such of it
wars Is the spanish lnqui~iOn; the hOrrid 1ne>>a
rlc of IT. Bartholomew, and, indifcctv of Glen
coe; the 'rusadeS, sacrificing millions of hIlmaI
live, to secure its sway the long and cruel impri,
0nng the one for scientific. the other for religion
opinions sake, Of Calico and Blnyan: the burn
ing at the stake of Rogers by iron-shod catholicism
and of SerVeus by Calvin ana his adherents: as
in this land, their sad feet scarcely unbound
the Puritans prosecuted and banishcd the Quaker,
a Unitarian convention refused to pray for one 0
us dying dsaenters; School street church expcllcG
llN worthy pastor on the charge that . we saw one
eaStm9 OUT devils in Thy name and he followed not
tisl"
To all our kind hearted readers our best and mos
earnest word is-Dont wear, nor want others t,
wear, iron shoes