Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1875-12-29


"I'm sorry I've kept the dinner wait
ing" said | to 1chabod, "but it was
unavoidable. Miss Curtis, a lady
lagent for little machine for marking
books, clothing, etc. had detained mt
from my work for nearly an hour
. wearying me with a perfect torrent Of
apologies and explanations for being
thus employed. l bought one of the
machines out ofpity for her mother
who is Il poor widow--a sewing
. woman living in the suburbs--but
almost repenic,l of it afterwards"
"Surely, my dear" said Ichabod
''yon ought rather to feel glad that ii
is in your power to assist any poor
girl who is eudeavoring to earn her
own living" i
Earn her own living. n cried I,
"1ou could not tinsult her more deep
" than to intimate that she is selling
those things because she is poor and
needs the money. She says that she
does 1t for pastime; ma thought lit
ITO out-do0r exercise would be good
for her. She gets SO tired of sitting
around doing nothing, and she might
as we'll do II as not. as she has so much
leisure time ; and she makes far more
effort to conceal her necessities than
| TO sell her machines, The long and
the short tho story is. that She is
ashamed OF her occupation-afraid
that people -will think she is Il poor
\ girl ana obliged TO work Cor her daily
bread. Now, why should this be so?
1t man undertakes To pursue any
branch Of business or trade. from
banking to selling peanuts or ped
ding cabbages. he does not bore one
with q long preamble and set Of reso-
lutions respecting his family affairs,
Enor his reasons for beipg engaged in
tsneh q business neither does he in
innate that he does it only by way of
amusing himself. He very plainly
gives you to understand that it is your
money he is after, for which he is
/ willing to give you an equivalent in
in whatever article he deals. Women
expect men to work--they feel SUI
preme contempt for the man who is
satisfied to live rs dependent on the
bounty of his friends yet they sneer
coldly on those of their own sex who
are willing to labor and accept a re-
Enumeration for that labor. Here is
our neighbor Mrs. Jones, who takes
boardefs for company. She gives
up all her large airy chambers, re-
serving only the attic for a sleeping
i apartment for herself and family
slaves early. and late, as only the
keeper of n boarding -house does slave
lis the first one up In the morning,
and the last one TO go to bed ut night
lis harrassed with cares which the
supervision Of such u large family
necessarily entails upon her: yet she
assures you, with bland smile. that
her house is so large-so much more
room than she needed, you know
that she filled il with boarders for the
sake of their company. Does any one
believe this little fiction! Is it not
generally known that her husbands 5
salary is small and insufficient to meet
the wants of their growing family.
and that all this extra amount of bak-
ing and working over the hot stove
this sweeping and dusting, and max
4 ing of beds this sacrifice of her
4 comfortable sleeping rooms to siran-
gers, while she occupies the poorest
is not for the pleasure she takes in the
society of her boarders, hut for the
money they pay her? And Mrs.
Jones attempts to practice this dccep-
n tian because she does not want to be
stigmatized as poor Her false pride
prevents her from seeing that. in the
estimation of all sensible people. these
sacrifices and efforts to assist her hus-
band arc in the highest degree COM
mendable. Society has ordained that
Il woman may perform the most me-
nial Offices for her own household and
il causes no remark. it is only when
she performs those labors for the
household of some one else, and re-
ceires pay for IL, that we hold aside
our skirts To let her pass, and cry.
away with her. There is scarcely
one woman in a hundred who possess
es the moral courage TO say, Il can't
afford it, when demand is made on
her purse by one of hel. own rank.
We women are SO weak when we
think our social standing is at stake
1t is easy enough to turn away an inn
. Fortunate book agent or troublesome
, peddler by saying that Won have nc
, money or You cannot afford TO buy
but when the solicitor is a lady ac.
quaintancc-one of 'our own set
who comes in elegantly gloved and
attircd. and wishes You to give five
; dollars toward the purchase of a wed
ding present for Miss Smith. Gone OF
the Sabbath-School teachers.) ii is i
much more. difficult thing to do. amt
, requires a degree of heroism of which
, the average woman is not capable
,i While your visitor eypatiates ON tn,
propricty of the gift being somcthin.
expensive and elegant. laying muci
stress on the fact that it will look II
9 mean to give anything cheap or com
!. mon place. You sit silent. trying Il
! muster up courage to decline giving
| Knowing well the Impoverished stat,
OF your pocket-book. and how mucl
! You need the money for your owi
! family. Yet. by the time she had fin
, ished her TRADE. your little stock o
, courage has all oozed away and yo,
open your purse. and with a forcet
tcordiality hand her the money vo,
: can.so ill spare-too cowardly to b,
Y honest, too cowardly to confess tina
5 YOU cannot afford it---and you boy
s your fashionable friend out with
smile. inwardly despishig yonrsei
;. for your own weakness. Truly W,
, exclaim with the poet, and sii@h
. variation of the text---s.Ilow dot
!. lp,ade make towards ofus all !"
"Yes." said lchabod. If womel
could but look a. il in the light ii
: which men regard it they might b
5 shorn of their folly"
Men," I answered impaiiently
"men are the very ones who encour
\ age and foster the growth OF this alb
i surd pride in women. They conside
!. lii reproach TO themselves il il i
. known their wives help to earn tn
i living. They are afraid the worI,
will think they are poor managers
they are ashamed TO have other mel
know that their wives work for stran
! gers. and they oppose all efforts mad
: in this direction. What wonder. then
= that il is regarded as a fall in the so
cial scale when women work and re
a lccive pay for ii i.
: You remember cousin Mary. Sh,
1 married a man who was 50 unfortu
f nate as TO lose their all in all nulnck,
' speculation, and she proposed tha
she should help him to regain footin:
by getting a position in Il printing OF
: flee in the village in which they lived
) and by folding and addressing pa
pcrs and acting rs Il composition. ado
il little to his earnings aud make TIL,
9 task lighter for him. Her father ha,
been an editor and publisher, and be
!. ing in his office she had acquired
: knowledge of the trade. until at las
! made herself almost indispensable I,
! him. both as compositor and scissors
!. so of course she, ,feltno fear on tha
score of incompetency.
did her husband aceede to he
wishes z" asked Ichabod
!, , s.Not he: people would talk Ii,
!, said. and think il strange that sh,
! should work and earn money; sh,
!, must dismiss the subject from he
mind--hc woula..try and provide TO
her. So, because he was too proud t,
{ let the world know that his wife wa
c working for money, She was forced {,
| do without many comforts that sh