The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1875-12-30
Mrs. Livermore,s Lecture at Brandon.

cd with Mrs. Julla ward Howe ana MITE. |
lucy Stone, are the acknowledged leaders
If the intelligent, cultivated and moderate
,arty in New England who urge woman
suffrage, delivered her lecture on "Super-
luous women" before the lecture associa-
ion of Brandon last evening.
A representative of The GLOBE took the
to call on Mrs Livermore and
enquire of her how she thought the cause
which she has 30 much at heart is progress
ing. While she considers woman suffrage
is making rapid Roadway, yet, as
Lord Broughan had said, no one
can predict with certainty the course of
the progress of reform. Within the last
two years 1t had taken new channel as it
were. The iniudcous advocacy and reck-
less course pursued by Mrs. Stanton, Miss |
Anthony, Tilton, Woodruff, etc, had re-
tarded the reform. Their avowed policy |
to destroy the safeguards of society in order |
to rebuild, had shocked thinking people in
to conservatism. Mr.. Stanton had vir-
tually advocated free love, and had really
connived at open adultery, and while Miss
Susan b. Anthony, in company with
George Francis Train, had been equally
reckless in their teaching, Tilton and
Woodruff had advanced doctrines of pro-
miscuity while pleading for female suf-
frage.
The mere privilege of becoming voters
and participating in partisan politics was
not, in fact, desirable to women, but the
results of woman suffrage and IFS advo-
cacy come even ia advance of the cause,
in the mental and moral growth of woman,
her rising influence aud equality.
The lecture was given in the town hall
before large audience, the hall being well
filled. She spoke without notes, and her
vivid descriptions, her facie speech and
eloquent manner kept the audience in
wrapt attention to her discourse, parts of
which were strong protest against war
and drunkenness the enemies of man and
| the main cause of the existence of super
abundance of women. Mr.. Henry G..
Copeland introduced Mrs. Livermore to
the audience. The following is the SUBJ
stance of her lecture
After briet preface, in which she sum-
med up the gains of woman during the
last twenty-five years, such as the abroga-
ton of unjust legal statutes, the opening to
them of colleges and professional schools,
their admission to an ever-increasing nun.
Der of remunerative employments, and
their recognition in the highest and best
society as the honored peers and beloved
companions of noble men, she proceeded
1t is not of the general elevation of woman
that / propose to speak tonight. 1t il
rather with the generally accepted theory
of woman's life that | propose to deal
with the theory that the final cause OF wo
man, the reason why God created her, wa
simply that man needed her, and that sh'
has answered the end and aim Of her beip!
when she has become some mans Wit
and the mother of her children. The Bos
ton Conqregationalist says, "Female edu
! cation, as o rule, should ever hold wife
hood in view, and should shape its specia
culture toward the end of fitting youn
women, physically, mentally, and spirit
ually, to be good wives and mothers.
| "rhe British Association for the Protee
I ton of the Franchise against the En-
croachments OF Women" has its avowe
origin in the conviction that the sole dutie
of a woman are those of wife and mott
er. "The problem; Of woman's ,ssph3eeTree;
sys. Dr. T. u iarEe' sPsan.,s . e. S
solved by principles of abstract right an
wrong, but by physiology alone" An
thus defined, again is her sphere declare
e to be wifehood and motherhood. Accort
ing to this theory, the woman who hs
married and given birth to a son has fu
{ filled her mission. The celibete woman
g though as gifted as Charlotte Cushman {
q Harriet Hosmer, useful as Florence Nigh
8 ingae or the Sisters of Charity as learne
v as Margaret Fuller or Maria Mitchell-h,
: entirely missed it.
:, Let me not be understood as depreciatir
marriage. and setting myself against
3 Nay, magnify marriage True marrial
gives an antetaste of heaven. There CT
d be no country worth living for that is nj
J. based on home and family, resulting fro
marriage. Nevertheless | object to Il
" theory that marriage is the final cause
:. woman, the sole object of her creation. b
n cause ii is incorrect and harmful. TIL
theory that marriage is the only busine
of a woman's lie cannot be practical
8, carried out with all women. Facts o.
h against II. While there are, on an averag
usually about los or 106 boys born into Il
h world to every 100 girls, there has bee
e such waste of life among men throup
y war, dangerous pursuits, drunkenness ar
profligacy, that taking the world owe
there are and always have been, since t.
|. days of authentic history, more marriag
d able women in the world than men.
1860 the average number of marriages
le the United States was seventy-iive to II
manageable women. Since then we hal
passed through the five years war of Il
l. rebellion, in consequence of which near
100000 of men lost their lives. In add
,r ton there has since then been growing
morbid luxury among both men al
women, which, added to the eXpensivene
of Lying, has tended to greatly restrict ma
n rage. The state census of Massachuset
informs us that there are 63,0S4 mo
* women than men in the state, and that Il
rs disparity is increasing yearly.
x Mr.. Greg, the charming English essays
~ calls unmarried women redundant" al
If "superfuous women" and has written ,
RS elaborate paper in answer to the questio
III "Why are women redundant" He Il
"a only attempts to answer this question, su
oeeding only indifferently well, but
le raises another query, which he also undt
takes to answer, "What shall we do wi
g these superiluous women ?" And after
full discussion Of the whole subject,
which he carried kindly spirit he is Il
e able to suggest any other provision +
these superfluous women than exportatio
1t You must do with them as you do wi
any other commodity with which the ms
ket is oveTstocKed,- as Delaware did Ia
summer, when its peach crop was Owe
whelmingly superiluous you must expo
them. The women must emigrate.
What is to be done for aud with the