New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1870-07-25

woman was promptly elevated to the old an
cello nights where The chivalry of old delighted
70 nloce her. upon her spotless purity" cries
one reverend gentleman, rests tue Wclife Oh
"manllind Worry her not. Drag her rot from
cher empyrean hight of purify and modeSty.
"Soil not the garments Of Southern womanhoou
"by the dust and dirt of dingy Surroundings
"Kather allow her TO be the faithful CUSTODIAN
"of the Lqrcg and PcHCtcs." Professor |ena-
BE wiiidrew Lis resolution and the ladies' paid
for their railroad tickets home.
Now. common sense is only foot rule, but
Imagination such as that of orr chiyalrOus
Virginians can bear TO be measured by IT. II
the brains Of these young women were nece5-
sarily to be employed in teaching, would the
"sDollcss purity Of such brains be impaired
by being shown how to teach intcilSently
If their Southern wOmanhOOd was subjected to
the dust and dirt, end the eanm of the eter-
nal young idea of district school, would 1t
be soilcd by the church in which the reverend
gentleman and his colleagues met, or by their
companionshp7 What are the Lares and Pen
ates of a boys schooll And, finally, would
these aforesaid young ladies climb the empy-
rcan nights less readily with free pass over
the railroad in their pockets But II our |lr-
gilman friends struggle to shut their women
folks up indoors, our effort in Newly 0rk Is as
vigorous to bring them to the streets and high
road. Our second item is the account OF a
triuuphal commencement of "Female Col
I" legen in this city. Now, " Female Colleges
Academies of Design, or any other educational
naclineries which develop the capabilities OF
woman. are good things; worthy Of all praise;
useful agents in civilization. Let there he
every opportunity FOX "a girl fully to qualiy
herself in any science, language, or knowledge
Which can make her an effective helper in the
world. But need she for that become the
property OF the public as a show2 sit fitting
chat "nincty-six delicate young girls, athrcd
" in bridal white" should be paTaded before
an Immense and enthusiastic audience such
"as Patti or RistGri never had drawn| The
streets, we are told, were packed for square
Now, what business ought that struggling
crowd to have had with the fact that few
schoolgirls had finished their term of study
and were going homer Is it altogether the
best thing that all New-Tork should be re-
called with q criticism of the /" fair Miss C
"and her essay or poem;" or gloat over de
scrption of " the delicate Miss julia B as
" she led the orchestra, hcr slight figure sway
inc 10 and fro" etc. Are our women, in
word, to be pushed on exhibition out OF doors
en- mQsSe from their earliest girhOOdl
When a woman like Lucretia Mott comes
before the world with a great message on be-
half of God or man, which must be spoken,
we acknowledge the divinity Of her GRAND. A
force greater than herself is upon her, and
oycrcomcs her womanly sense of shame; she
speaks rs the oracles of old, and it is given to
her what words she shall say. But is every
girl OF sixteen to be thrust upon platform,
dressed probably (as in some other Commence
mcnts in tli, State last week. in Oriental or
classic costumes, and taught to bear unblush-
ingly the gaze of a curious crowd Of men and
boys? The lady-oratOrs of misery, who have
so long deplored the wrongs Of their SEX have
familiaIizcd us with the sight Of women in
public. 1t is time now to stop short and ask
ourselves if we are not too familiar with it ?
Was modesty. the old fashioned impulse which
made a sensitive woman Shrink from public
notice, an altogether evil tLing9 Is it to be
left totally ont of the education of our
daughters in future9 There is social class in
this country by whom the training of their
daughters is conducted with an almost French
regard to seclusiOn; the effort is made, sue
ce5sfully or not, to preserve the mind and heart
of young girl as innocent and dcwy fresh
as a chds. Is this the healthfullost training
Or are we to take the undauntcd young Miss,
reading her valcdictOry TO a packed audience,
or "attircd as Haidee, singing n Greek song
"with perfect aplomb," as the admirable model
and type of American women The school
Girls that crowd our streets are the mothers
Of The next generation. 1t is worth our while
TO examine what manner of stuff it is Of which
they are made.