The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1876-05-05
LETTER FROM SALEM.
He EDITOR OF THE NEW NORTHWEST:

uduuS 6nOOlueu me 10 dSh dSdlu lOI
space in your journal, first, for the fol-
lowing "blood drawn from porpoise,"
which clipped from the Salem States
man, and signed by one "Seth," and
second, for few comments.
It would seem that the daughters OF Eve, in
our day, would sympathize and sustain each
other in this, their day of need, when our sex
are trampling them under foot, depriving
them OF their "rights," and letting thousands
of them live in single-blessedness all their
days. But, on the contrary, the dear creatures
90 after each other sometimes with "vim."
They dress more to spite each other than
to please US. And, let but one fair creature
turn aside from the path of virtue, and her own
sex are down on her, and show her less mercy
than we do. It is too often the case that, when
a woman falls fIom virtue and a fair name,
her sex pursues her, and never tires until she
is utterly beyond hope.
1t is said that whenever blood is drawn from
a porpoise, however little the amount, every
other porpOise will pursue the wounded one
till its life is taken. Our dear ladies, who are
contending so strongly for their ''rights," find
more opposition from their sex than from us.
But the strong-minded ones will yet outride
the storm, and land tn cir craft safe in the har-
Dor of freedom.
And now 1 desire to address few
words to "Seth" in friendly, but plain
manner.
Do you say that woman is less mer
ciful than man? To say this is one
thing, and to prove it is another. True,
there are women who, because of their
education, and watchful of their own
social position, slight or pass by an
erring sister, but in most cases it is be-
cause of these things, and not that
woman is less merciful. Pause a mo-
ment, beseech you, and ask yourself
how men treat the unfortunate of both
sexes. What, pray you, is the burden
of the news that flashes across the con-
tinent, and fills the columns of our
newspapers What the subject of flip
pant and often unjust editorial COM
ment, when the brother overtaken in
misfortune or crime happens to hold po-
litIcal views opposite to your own ?
What indeed but scathing comment
upon the downfall of your brethren.
Surely, women could do no worse than
this. Do not mothers and sisters and
daughters, who are the innocent vic
Tins in many instances of the mistakes
and crimes of fathers, brothers, and
sons, receive more tender, loving SYM
pathy from women than from men?
Christ placed all culprits about on
par. "Let him that is without sin
cast the first stone" And here please
to observe that this Magdalen's accusers
were all men, and all laws then, as now,
were man-made.
1t seems that women are rebels, and
possibly have been from time immemo-
rial; but the progress of this age enables
them to be more prominent rebels than
in any other age. A few of these long
ago endeavored to arouse the human
race to the importance of yielding jus.
tice to all, but, Notwithstanding theil
valiant labor, the selfishness of the
sons of father Adam still prevails, and
together with the customs of barbariC
ages, still so fetters woman that she i:
not dealt with in justice and equity
Yet these workers do not falter, but
with courage that is sublime, keeI
striking at the rock of superstition anC
custom and prejudice, until, in due
! time, it will be demolished.
Let US gee if this war for equal right.
does not belong as justly to fathers as tC
mothers, to brothers as to sisters. A
man never yet wrOnged woman but
that he committed a crime against the
mother who bore him and the sistel
who shared his boyish pleasures. TrutL
and mercy are equally beautiful anC
desirable, and, inasmuch as the tender
mercies of men toward unfortunate
women whom the treachery of man hal
caused to be ranked in that sad cat
egory are cruel, it would be as well
l think, to retract the assertion that
"her own sex are down on her, anC
show her less mercy than we dO.'
Even if this were true, men certainly
should extend mercy to women wher
shame, caused by the treachery of man
overwhelms them. The truth is, we
all condemn more than we can afford tC
do. Brothers can lily afford to con
denim sisters, and sisters can as lily
afford to condemn brothers; but it is al
undeniable fact that, in all ages, man
condemns, and woman pities anC
forgives.
Brothers say to their sisters, "YoU
must not associate with this or thai
person." The sister rebels, and the
father is appealed to. He answers, "My
daughter, your brother knows best.n
Who now is responsible ? Have you
ever known a husband to consent fol
his wife to associate with an unfortu.
nate sister? No one can be ignorant Of
the dependent position OF women in
these matters-bound first by COM
mands laid upon them at.home, second,
by the terrible fear of society's ban, and
all the time by a shrinking from asso-
Citations that cannot be pleasant. To
plead ignorance of this state of affairs is
to declare ones self a bachelor, abject
and forlOrn, mOtherless, sisterless, cous-
Unless and Tilted, and that such an up-