The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1869-01-25
The Woman,s Rights Convention Mt
washington.

Don Piatt, writes to the Cincinnati
| Commercial from Washington:
made one of the audience attendant
on this collection of strOng-minded
women and weak. minded men: soon
| grew tired of the affair and withdrew.
left the delegated homeliness of the
female sex for the Capitol. I had been
sitting for half an hour listening to
Parker Pillsbury-that is, his voice
beat on my ear, but my mind was on
| the crowd about me. I saw women
whose brain and hearts, working to-
Cether, had written strange characters
| on their faces. And these characters so
written were not lovely-however low
able to one who could appreciate their
goodness; and their garments were not
graceful, nor attractive. There was Il
general contempt manifested for the
little fascinating things of the female
world. These l left behind, and wend-
tinuous stream of female loneliness,
rustling along the marble floors, and
up and down the graceful stairways,
and clustering about the Hobbies, or set
in rows like flowers in bed, along the
galleries, all adorned in the latest fash
ions, and beautiful in their soft downy
cheeks and bright eyes. And left
sorry for the brave hearted women 1
had left in the convention, for here was
the pOwer-there only the hope.
realized the fact, long since thought
of, that women do not vote because
women do not want to vote. And wo-
men do not want to vote because it is
questionable. Our good sisters of the
holy cause are at work at the wrong
end. 1t is not to convince men, but
women; and they must learn how 10
approach their own sex.
Some years since it was tho fashion
to sweep the streets with long trails.
A vile fashion, filthy fashion, and
some sensible women undertook re-
form. They elevated the bloomer. 1t
was laughed at, satirized, abused, and
generally avoided. Yesterday saw all
the dear, delicate, refined, fashionable
creatures, as they tripped along the
floors, but especially as they assembled
the stairs, had on bloomers, without the
more necessary article of dress-that,
my modest pen refuses to name-the
same that was mysteriOusly found in
an honorable members room the other
morning; and thereby hangs a tale, of
which Washington gossip now makes
merry. And l asked why is this? And
the answer was, because the brainless
goddess, living in Paris and worshiped
the world over, has decreed that short
dresses are fashionable. Let that same
goddess of chignom and PGnier declare
that to vote is fashionable, and COnSti-
tutions will be amended in "a trice.
/ entered the diplomatic gallery. and
seated myself by the lovely Mrs. S.,
who nearly year since said to me that
good thing about MOrmOnism that L put
in print, and have seen going the
rounds ever since, to the effect that for
one man in these days to have several
wives was simply atrocious. The fact
being that each woman ought to have
four husbands, as it would take that
many to support one woman deceutly.
Where have you BEEN" she said,
tapping my glOved knuckle with her
dainty fan.
~ have been in search OF strong
minded item in convention OF strong
minded women"
Ibid any one ever hear of such nom
SENSE? They want us TO be masculine, to
think. Thinking, my dear friend,
wrinkles the face, and Injuries the di-
gestiOn. We want education enough
TO be wi,ty-that is very well-but no
more. A woman's kingdom is her
beauty. 1t is brief, and not given to all
but shall we give it up altogether for
the dry, hard lines of masculine life?
No, never. Girls should be reared as
they make the pate de fOic 0rGS. Nail
your goose to u board in Il dark cellar,
then stuff ii with food until yOn bring
on disease of the liver; tho liver is
the delic0cy. So with girls; make us
soft and tender, TINT we may be at
trActive. VOiLu tOWt.''