The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1870-02-10
From the n. Y. Times.l


What has become of the old fashioned
help-mate? Or, perhaps-since cherished
and wonder-striking specimens still inger
here and there around us-we should
rather say what is becoming of her? The
notion appears to be slowly but surely
gaining ground that for woman in. her
conjugal relation to help man is an alb
surd and exploded fallacy. eff cannot
be allowed to pet my wife," said back
sliding reformer in the Woman's Conven-
ton last week, 81 shall not go for female
Embarrassment" The observation is
responsive to the notion we speak Of
Women are to be pets, dolls, toys crea-
lures to be founded, prettily dressed,
played with-anything, in brief, but CO.
workers or helpmates to their husbands.
There is always danger of exaggeration
in the discussion of social topics; but it
will hardly be said that we strain truth in
affirming that, in our great cities at least,
feminine responsibility in marriage is get.
ting to be sadly attenuated, and that the
facts augurs no good for the average do
nestle happiness of the future.
Young men complain on all sides that
they are not rich enough to marry. When
thought of at all, this is commonly attrib-
uted to the hard times but there were
hard times long ago, and people then
married and were given in marriage in
the spring of the their lives, before the
freshness and gaiety of youth had depart
ed and head and heart had alike grown
gray in the struggle for gold. 1t was
formerly thought that with health and
strength one pair of hands could win
bread for twO--provided always thrift
and cheerfulness abode in the home to
take care of what was gained and impart
the needful spirit to gain more. We
have changed or are changing all that
More is expected nowadays from the man
and less from the woman. A girl with
any pretensions to beauty or family looks,
in marrying, to be maintained in luxury
without physical effort of her own, and
even those moral repayments which of
yore were things of course-the tacit &C
acknowledgements that brighten the fireside
and smooth the rugged masculine path
are now, we fear, all too seldom regarded
as obligatory. Instead of these, the aver
age husband is perhaps treated to a daily
expOsi ton of woman's wrongs, inform-
ed that man is her tyrant and enslaver,
but that thanks to Providence and Mr..
John Stuart Mill year of deliveranee is
surely at hand.
We are not of the number who would
turn deaf ear to the reasonable COM
plants of the sex, or decline to revise le-
gal or social usages that discrim-
mate unfairly against them. But
it is surely not without significance,
at period when the clamor is
so loud for woman's rights, and so sharp
in reprobation of her alleged slavery,
that there should be so many useless
wives, drones of women, who, whether as |
girls or mothers, seem to think-when |
they think at all, that their sex shields |
them from every responsibility, and that |
it is the business of men to fight the whole |
of the battle of life alone 1t is no doubt
true that this is In part the fault of the |
men. They want to pet their wives, to
make babies of them, to array them in pur-
pie and fine linen, to see them dazzle the /
opera house and saloon with their silks
and ermine and pearls and diamonds.
Too busy to "dress" themselves. men
have, IN fashion, assigned the monop-
bly, to wives and daughters. The facts
mas tended to stimulate the greed of wo-
men for dress, and to augment their self
owe while naturally weakening their
bowers of selfcontrol and draining the
purse of their husbands. The subject is
me that admits of being estimated from
many sides and discussed from different
,oints of view but there can be no harm
il q period when so much is said about
he rights Of woman that are uniustly
withheld BIZ man IN suggesting some slight
consideration of the possible rights Of man
hat are withheld by Women Whatever
he result of such consideration with diff.
erent thinkers, it viii hardly be gain
aid that women ought to have duties in
ife whether they generally acknowledge !
nd perform them on not; slnd that in /
bis struggling century men have but q
oubtfnl right to have, and women still
aore questionable right to be. what we
ave stigmatized under the name Of Toy
Wives.