The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1874-08-28


Men say: al mean TO oust that other
JeIloa0 from his place; and I can turn
my wife's talents to account ia aid OF
this design. OF course she cannot OBJ
jeet to doing this for me, for am | not
the head Of the woman? And then
nobody will think of censuring her in
the matter"
Thus is woman's brain and conscience
stultified. Mems household words, their
literature, their preaching, their law
making, all present a woman's duty as
being to themselves, rather than to
God. It is true they have refined upon
the first rude demands Of absolute obe-
dienee in one way and another; but the
spirit of their teachings remains the
same.
1t is eighteen hundreds years since
Christ taught freedom and equality in
all spiritual matters and one hundred
years since the American Government
was founded on the rights Of conscience
Women begini very justly, to question
whether their Creator meant them tC
be mere helpless instruments in the
hands of men, for the carrying out ot
their selfish purposes and desires; and
whether they have not done wrong in
so long yielding up all individual moral
responsibility to men.
Gfit is right for women TO yield them.
selves unquestloningly 10 men, it i:
right that men should answer to God
for the sins and failures of women. But
has God in His laws made any provis.
ion for such substitution If il is true
that each soul stands or falls for itself
are not women accommodating a terrible
burden through their completely in sin:
not originating in themselves, but al
the same time not resisted as sinful both
in themselves and others?
How can a woman be honest who
knows her husband is wronging n neigh
bor, yet will not warn that neighbor ?
To be sure, the law can not touch her
But if had anything to do with max
Ing laws, would see that they should
hold the wife who conspired in her hus-
bands wrong-dOing as accountable as
he, legally as well as morally. How
can woman be pure and yet allow heI
husband to keep vile company? The
only excuse for her is, that her forbear.
ing self-sacrifice more than equals hel
sense Of propriety, or her selErespect.
And yet pure and honest women have
spent their lives at the side of impure
and dishonest men. II was sometime.
the sin of ignorance, sometimes fear
/ and sometimes a selfish dislike TO EN-
counter pecuniary loss, or social disrup
tion, which caused them to consent {,
it; but quite as often it was a feelin,
that In some way she, the wife, Nigh
carry the sin of the husband to Christ
and He to the Father; and so by circl
of vicarious atonements, all might COM
right at last
However, women begin to question
the truth Of this. They begin to say
and very properly, life and death, healtl
and rottenness cannot be joined. Tha
is false and conventional state o
things that requires or permits such un
ions. Men have been false-whethe
Intentionally or not-in telling us W,
have nothing to do or say about til,
right and wrong Of things
We haze a right to say that we viii
not associate with uncleanness. We
hare a right TO say that we will not give
truth for untruth. We hare a right "a
hold nice sense OF honor, and to keen
the highest principles of our religious
natures untarnished by contact with
evil. We have right to hold men ac-
countable to US, as we have ever been
held accountable TO them.
The woman movement, like the tenn
perance movement, began by lectures
upon its merits as a matter of social and
political economy, and by attempts at
legislation. Now, there is nothing bet
ter established than that you cannot
legislate convictions into anybody's
head or heart. Aud what we require at
this particular point OF our progress, is
earnest conviction of our duty i'm this
matter-sober, religious conviction.
If we have made up our minds that it
is wrong for us to go on silently or
openly abetting any aud every form of
evil in the world that by our resistance
could be diminished, then we must COM
mence our own reform in that direction,
and refuse TO remain any longer silent
and passive. II it is necessary to have
the ballot, the ballot we must demand
until we get it. If it is necessary to
overturn some prejudices that are obstl-
nate, and ought to be obsolete, let us
overturn them-doing nothing rashly,
or petalantly, or unressonably-but ev-
erything with pure and elevated sense
Of the responsibility imposed upon us.
A word about the eonservativeness of
the pulpit. In the first place, I, for one,
do not wish to quarrel with it. There
must be conservatism somewhere, and
nowhere more properly than here. But
this ! think: If women will have the
wisdom TO +" make haste slowly" in de
maDding everything of which custom
has so long deprived them; if they will
show that their hearts and consciences
are in the work as well as their wills;
if, in short, they can feel to pray for po-
litical and moral freedom, as for other
right aud good things, their wish will
be accomplished. I think the exhibit
tion of this spirit must lead the minis
try 10 consider the iusfice of onr de-