The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-01-21
THE GRIM FEMALE.
An Austere Typo OF the Modern Betsy
Irotw0od.
from the London Saturday Review.l

The grim female must be carfully dlstln-
puished from tho masculine women, Tor they
are by no means essentially the same, though
the types may run into each other, and some
times do. But the masculine woman, II not
grim. but only Amazonian, has often much
that ia fine and beautiful III her, as We see I'D
her great prototype Pallas Athene; but the
grim female pur sang is mover noble, never
beautiful: and the only meaning OF her e1ls-
tenco-the only mission she seems sent into
tho world to fulfll-is that OF serving as q
warning to the young as to what TO aYoie.
The grim female IS not necessarily an oia msio, a
as would appear likely at first sight. we hnd
her uf nil conditions indiferently-as maid,
wife, widow, Us mother and childlcss alike
and we do not find that her condition In any
way affects her character. Ii she il born grim,
she remains grim to the end; and neither mar
riape nor motherhood modifies her. Inc grim
female OF novclists is generally, an old mao;
but q caricature printed IN the Dros lest INES
and from the outsides OF things: Sne ls cm-
nhatically All odd woman; odd in her dress,
her mode her stale. She wears mapping
can. skinny skirts, and rusty brown mlttens
on her bony hands; she has passionate aver
SION to men and matrlmony; and she hves
oneerly bchIud barricaded house door: with
small slavey, or an elderly female alnlctod
with deafness, TO do her work ana Doar Inc a.,
brnnt of her temper. But she is always odd
and inf, ,shionable, and unlike everybody olse,
and could never be mistaken for an ordinary
woman. from tho first moment when enc ap-
poars on the page 20 the last paragraph OF nor
existence. e,.,, :, ,or
want of any OF the womanly passion for chill
drcn. She may havo so much maLernai III
stjnct peryertcd as to be OIL friendly terms
with dog or two, OF cat, or may be co;ka-
foo. but she has no real affection for children,
no comprehension Of child nature, and the
..subllmo nonsense" of the nursery Is thing
unknown 10 her from first to last. Ii she mas
chiIdren of her own, she treats them IN O hard
wooden way that has nothing OF tine IDEAL
mother about it. Hence sho IL one 70 Wnom
tho present generation 10 undenapiy worse
than the past, ono who groans over the i,s tUn.Ss
aud shortcomings vi tho times, and VINO thinks
that good conduct died out with her own youth,
and that it is NOT likely, by the look OF tLlngs,
n he restored, In fact, youth itself ID the root
and basis OF offence; and II she cJcrces chill
dren. sho tyrannizes over girls and snoDs
Young men with quito impartial iianu.
The grim female ls not necessarily a slroub-
minded womaI, or learned woman, IKE :nose
,qhu wear sCectacles, go to sclentluc meotlnSs:
onI orc orcat in tho classics anu tho 'oloSles.
Sac nly be Of tue cmancipated class; IL ali
,le ,e,,,ls on ch ncc; and grim female, "nen
ot the eiuaucipatcd, is I Very formidable pors
son indeed: but she is not necessarily ono VI
tncs, On tile contrary, part or her very eriln-
ness comes from her intense conservatism aho
nncom romisius convc Itiopality. Nothing is
so ALI ,orraut To her as innovation or no'eNy
in ary shape. She does no. ho With any one
ont OF the Larrawest groove of respectable D.
i Is, il what direction s1eYor thc ulferSIu5
Inc NAV an. A RJmanisJ or q Baptist, q DC"
or an inf lcl, it is all onc 10 her; eacI Is cq1
" drcalfui TO il \, and otcrnall, f1redoonicu.
Sho is the Orth luox Church, W.tnou. i% - :
I,ls. us far removed from Ritua:lsIl as sue IS
from rlntlng, and demanding lor hersen @ lnaU
luf. libiiity vi judgment and aDSo.uic POSSES
sion of lhe truth willcn she denies u ehe Eopc
and all his cardinals. Beware now you DrHacn
naw doctrines in her presence. onc nas pceu
known before now TO abjTe lcT nearesS reil-
lives for no greater m Dral lapse than weak
h .,;cf IN cloDuies; while as tor anything ike
rraycr alterations, say on the ape theory Oh
on the plurality OF RACES, o. on historical re- re-
ii,rion shc has 70 to.eraton whatever Ii lne
SmItl,firIu fires xisted ut the present dly, tue
Grim female would BE- tho first to LINT Inc
ingots, IL is all the same II she belongs 10 any
dlsseliing pei suhs.on, part OF Her 6rinlaGes
cun;l,g f. ON her intolerance, and her own De-
licfs being simply the sprinsboArd on WHICH
she stands. .,,. LII al
newcomers. She is like one of the giants OF
black knights OF oil romance, who ilvod 10
castles or cavcs, whence they pounced iike
tigers on all passers-by and either wrung tnell
necks il they conquered, or re:reateu HOW'LL"
4 discomli,tcl. lhls is whaU tbs grim icmale
does in her degree. Sac dashes on all #hs