Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1871-03-14
THE HERALD.
Farm.work For Women.


President Abbot of the Michigan
Agricultural College States that the
experiment of admitting women to
the institution has proved in the
highest degree successful. "They
study" he says, botany, chemistry,
horticulture, Surveying, and other
branches. Their progress 10 study
is exceptionally rapid. Their work
so far has been to prepare seed for
the ground, to transplant the lighter
plants, prune shrubbery, "ctc. Here
is a career for all grades OF women
which has common sense 10 commend
il. There is no reason why girls
should not be taught scientific agri
culture es well as boys, and made fit
to transact the head-work Of Il farm
Notwithstanding the inertness of the
Southern woman, il has long been
10 uncommon thing 20 find them in-
telligept and skilifli planters. Some
Of the largest estates ia Virginia be-
fore the war were under the manage
ment ofthe women and in Kentucky,
among the most successful stock
raisers, who amassed large fortunes
by sales 10 Government, were some
half dozen OF the fair but shrewd sex.
These women obtained their knowl-
edge insensibIy by home-training
but it is certainly as easily acquired
by study as that Of medicine or the
ology, and is surely more whole
some and safer work. A woman may
have q message from God to the
world TO deliver or not. Shs may or
may not have the peculiar mental
and physical skill to fit her for q
surgeon but the ground is always
waiting TO DO tiled and seed to be
planted. Besides, If her crops fail,
she alone is the loser she has tam
pered with the bodies and souls only
of turnips and potatoes.
The very lowest grades Of farm
work ought TO DO open to women.
There is a sort of chivalric horror in
this country of a woman doing field
work, whereas tho fact is that half
Of the stout Irish aud German women
who come here have been ueed to il
at homo, aud, with our OWE negro
fisld-h1nds, are among the few healthy
women in the country. The Soil is
light the instruments for tightening
labor are in general use. If half the
women striving in New York to-day
over needle and wash-tub were put
at outdoor work in the Spring, thew
would find themselves better paid for
less actually exhausting labor, and in
stronger health than ever before in
their lives. Our social structure is
crowded, stihed we might say, with
educated idle, young girls, with
ont work, or lovers, or enough to eat,
crying ont, "What shall we do to be
saved 2 Ordinarily they betake them-
selves to occurring or writing, on
the hypothesis that because thew
waut bread and butter they are quail
fled to be the worlds teachers. A
young man of their caliber, not fancy
ing that idleness or discomfort could
annoint him with holy chrism, would
go TO q trade and become respectable
carpenter or blacksmith. Those wo-
men, who fancy suffrage will give
them healthier souls in sounder
bodies, could find both ifthey chose
in the skill, the head and hand.craft.
the opon air, the softening contact
with Nature of this sighted farm
work Many branches OF it seem to
be only anitsble for a woman's nicer
eye and DIETER fingers; the whole
nursery business, from the care Of
seedlings budding, grating, 10 the
dnal labelling and sa,cs .ae cultiya-
ton Of me smaller fruits--especiallv
the berries--seed-fai n4, the planting
and sorting Of herbs, ali OF which
are the most rapidly profitable divis-
ions Of agriculture, are peculiarly
fitted TO women, and successfully
worked by them.