The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1871-06-22
FOR BUSINESS WOMEN.

From the NJ Y. Tribune.
A number of statements have been recently
sent to us which exhibit the difficulties which
women, especially If at all young or good
looking, encounter in the cities when trying
to earn their living by any business that
brings them into contact with men. We are
told that respectable ladies who have gone out
to solicit advertisements have been obliged
to give up the work, having been so fire.
quently insulted, even by merchants and pro-
fesslonal men of high standing. One young
lady has found her bright, sparkling eyes
curse, from constantly drawing towards her
improper advances. "Her experience leads
her to suppose that men think any woman of
her class likely to be lacking in morality. She
once lost all control of herself, and slapped
mans face before all of his clerks for making
an indecent proposal to her" member of
Sorosis (or rather her husband) complains that
she is constantly in receipt of letters, some-
times signed, containing the most infamous
proposals. Another lady was in the habit of
sending her little girl to newspaper Offices
with MSS. until the child was grossly insulted
in the Office of morning daily journal And
so the list goes on.
We have no reason to doubt the truth of
these statements, but, knowing nothing of
the details and peculiar circumstances, we do
not feel inclined to base any opinion upon
them. Certainly not that which they would at
first suggest, that men, as we ordinarily meet
them, are 30 hestial in their habits and in-
clipatons that pare woman absolutely can
not come in contact with them without dan
ger of outrage. We prefer to decide the
question of the practicability of these out
door kinds of work for modest women by the
simple rules which govern human nature
rather than by these few exceptional cases.
Here are the facts There is now in New
V4r1y a1 Is vii
Lewdness is not confined to brothels; the
tsint, or at least the apparent signs of it,
can be detected in every class of society. 1t
is not to be denied that many men, modest
and refined in manner while with their pure
wives and their associates, are gross enough
when in contact with this other lower class;
and are just now doubly suspicious and
watchful of their presence in unlikely places.
Nor is it to be denied that a large class of
educated women in this and other cities are
driven to choice between unusual modes of
bread getting or starvation. Now, are the
characters of such women in any danger of
being mistaken by these men, simply because
of their occupation? We answer promptly
No. There are exceptions, as we have Just
been told. But the rule is almost absolute
that pure woman, provided always that her
dignity and quiet manner express her purity,
needs no lion to protect her, wherever she may
go. The old fable of Una has not lost its
truth to-day. Counting. rooms aud Offices in
New York are surely not peopled by more
brutal ruffians than the dens of Newgate,
through which Elizabeth Fry passed alone and
undefended. We have seen young, attrao-
tive girl employed as painter in japanning
factory with three hundred worknisn, from
whom she received the respect due to q queen.
The danger of evil which women do run,
however, in these occupations, is that which
they do to themselves 1t is quite possible
for a middle-aged woman to pursue them
without alteration in her former habits
of thought Or manners; but every
rational man will agree with us that
no child of twelve or young girl of eighteen
could spend her daily life in hawking about
advertisements or MSS. from shop to shop,
and retain the delicacy and womanly charm
which home life would have given her. Una
herself would have grown pert and brazen in
such an ordeal. The graces and tenderness
of manner which make young girl enchant-
ing by her fathers hearth would be out of
place in dozen successive Offices arch
espiegleTfe, fine coquetry, pleading softness,
beft her there, as glowing colors and mellow
song do the bird in spring, but when exhi-
blted, however unconsciously, to dapper
young clerks and portly.merchants on Change,
would soon be named, and deserve to be
named, by grosser terms.
''Are women then to starve?" we are asked.
By no means. The Tribune broke ground
upon this subject twenty years ago, demand
ing new and wider careers in which women
could find bodily and mental food. 1t occu.
pies precisely the same position now, only
requiring of them that they shall meet Their
difficulties with ordinary common sense in,
stead of rhodomontade of sentiment, anG
that in order to get bread they shall not need
lessly throw away the modesty and gentleness
wherein lies their chief strength. Common
sense suggests that, as it is not likely mol
desirable that young girl going out
as an advertising agent would
deport herself with the gravity
of a woman of forty, such dangerous situa
tions be left for the older women. There are
other ways, which we have pointed out time
and again, by which young woman can sup
port herself and live secluded and secure, moi
only chaste, but modestin in manner. Innumer-
able hand-crafts, designing, nursing the sick
the higher kinds of domestic service which re-
quire as much culture and are quite as re-
spectacle as advertising" are all practicable
in the city. Outside of it, the same modes
of money-gettipg are attainable, added tc
horticulture in all its branches. There, too
there is no danger of insult or outrage
"a willing horse, says the Yorkshire pro
verb, ''need not be shown the road twice."