Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1870-09-20
WOMAN'S RIGHTS.
The Abolition Of Marriage the True Issue OF
the Woman Rights Question.
From woodruff q clatii.s weekl,

lFrcm Woodruff 4 Clanias Weekly
Whatever may be said to the con-
trary by the advocates of woman's
rights, the true tendency and ulti.
mate end of that movement is to
very materially change, if not en-
tlrely destroy, the present marriage
system. Devotion to any one pur-
suit for any considerable time i'm
plies an understanding of its princi-
Piles and purposes. This being as
true OF reform as of any other occu-
patton, such an assertion as the above
is unnecessary to the leaders in that
work or to those actively engaged in
it. They knooo it although many
of them choose for polite reasons to
dony the fact. But that the most
prominent and intelligent leaders
know this fact and ignore it | assert
and intend to prove. Who
ever heard any one connected with
any woman suffrage advocate, make
speech on the subject-and all of
them have made many-who did not
denounce and deplore the unhappy
condition of married womenP In
deed, since the suffrage agitation
first began, what instance Of hus-
bands tyranny or brutality ever be-
came known that was not used az an
additional argument for woman's suf-
frage2 Is there no significance to
be found in such facts as these-no
refutation of subsequent denials p
When brought 20 bay with these
questions, the reply IS that suffrage
is the remedy. When women can
legislate, they will so amend the laws
that woman shall be made mans
equal; and, being his equal, she will
be placed beyond his control and be-
yond his oppression. Now, all that
sounds very plausible to the uninitiat-
ed. But his Legislation to remedy
the wrongs growing out of certain
condition, if the condition itself is
not to be interfered with 2 Answer
that, oh We savansi De-
pend upon it, we have begun at the
wrong end of the snarl; and it is la
Dor lost TO work tor woman's rights
until she has tho right to herself
and she can never possess that right
until the marriage mummery, that
gives her to man, is abolished. When
that intrepid little pioneer sheet,
named the Revolution, was first
launched upon the journalistic wave
of this city, it was honest and firm
in its intention to help the work OF
social regeneration in the right way,
the right way being the honest,
straightforward one of announcing
the principle and end in view, and
working always on that principle
and toward that end. The ReUolu.
ton discussed marriage and its kin
dred evil fearlessly for time. Soon
however, it begain to grow conserva.
tive, and continued growing in that
direction until il became sort OF
mongrel. Thence it became an or.
thodox trucker of the weakest type,
and then, at last, it blazoned forth
with this ridiculous motto "Whom
God hath joined together let no man
put asunder" Thus were marked
the three stages Of its moral decline
As was natural, nothing could be ex-
pected for such an apostate to It's
protested faith but certain DEATH
Just here, | should like TO ask how il
is known "whom God has joined to-
getherp In the absence of any di.
rect communication from God to the
contrary, ARE notthe feelings of the par
ties themselves toward each other
tbs best suggestions for their actions:
1t seems to me about time that these
self-constituted deputies of God AL
mighty were compelled by their vic
TINS to relinquish their claims to di
vine authority, or else to prove be-
yond peradventure that they are the
select" and "chosen" for regulating
the relation of the sexes, and pro
nouncing upon marriage by produc
ing credentials from headquarters tC
that effect.
| Furthermore, | wish some light
ming calculator, or something, woulC
find out the exact state of civilization
needed to do away with that reli
gious can't that first binds two antag
onistic natures together as man anC
wife, and then compels them to ,
life-long:.fght, in "the name of Godl'
How did the idea first bscom,
prevalent that won sn's rights mean
the abolition of marriage, unless EN-
bodied in the question ? Or, TO b'
more explicit; if proposition die
not involve certain results, woulC
the results ever suggest themselvei
in connection with the proposition
That such is the prevailing opinion
among all classes, no intelligent per
son will attempt to deny; and ID il
because of this that the suffrag,
movement proper "hangs fire." SO t
speak. Ii has reached that point in
its progress where its tendencies are
gederally OWNED, and nearly every
one engaged in the work becomes
suddenly silent or judiciously con
sentative, for the sole reason tina
everybody fears to be first to toucl
the subject which lies nearest every
body's heart.
No retrograde movement is pos
sible in the realm of thought. Tha
the work is suspended, | admit, anC
| for this reason the workers on tina
branch of the social question hav,
reached their conservative line.-
There is nothing more for them to do
aud the whole suffrage movement i
in allegiance, waiting to be taken VI
whore they have ended, and that j
is exactly the point where the sufl
rage question ends, and the marriag
question begins. SARAH +. NORTON.
ss- A frightful scene occurred a
the Bowery Theatre, New York,
few nights ago. The young womal
who performs in the cage with tn
puma lions was seized by the throa
by one Of the beasts, and terribl
| lacerated hafora aho couId be ri