Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1876-03-24
A WOMAN'S WORK.

we naYe JUST laid down IAN Essay de-
livered by Miss VIRGINIA PAUL before
the Teachers Institute at Bridgewater on
the 24Lh of February" 1t was just by the
best of luck we found it, hid away, as it
was, on the outside of the Harrisonburg
commonwealth. 1t is hard to tell
whether the writer is an old, or a middle
aged, or young person. If we were to
judge from the mature thought and calm
reasoning, we should take it to be an old
woman; if from the broad views and con-
sideration for the opinions of others, we
should say middle-aged person; and if
from the vigorous and heartsome style, we
should say young one; but the combina-
ton of all three puzzles us. But the age Of
quality of the work and some thoughts
suggested by it of which we would speak.
Its quality is equal to any article en- the
same subject-school-tea and school
teachers, that has been written in Vir-
ginia. The elevation of it's thought is as
high as that attained by any writer of the
male persuasion; it's information is abound
ing, and will quicker reach the public
mind, because not embroidered with that
wretched gimp called statistics, with which
the head men in the public school business
cover their efforts, and from which the
public shrink ,shuddering. And yet it will
never be heard from again, for the weighty
reason thai it is written by a woman. 1t
will not be put in pamphlet form, nor will
it be quoted as authority" which last
would indeed be objectionable. Just
Heaven think of it! A woman quoted as
authority in school matters in Virg mia!
The thought suggested is: Does it pay us
to suppress these women? We pay them
for their brains. Why not use them?
There are other women in this profess
sion Of school-teaching in Virginia, the
highest profession that is open to them at
the South, that could do as well as the
writer of whom we have been speaking. 1t
would be strange if there were not. They
have minds as strong and bright as their
male co-laborers. The steel is of the same
temper. 1t is polished at the same wheel
day and day through the year, and takes
the same polish. Why are these goods
kept in the back shop? 1t is question
easily, but, we fear, fruitlessly answered
The answer butts its head against the
granite wall Of prejudice, which can't
be broken down. Women like GEORGE
ELIOT, MARIA MITCHELL, and others,
have stormed, mounted, and gone over it,
but never broken it down. But, few wO-
men have their courage. They have been
kept under hack as far as their speed is
concerned so long, that they are content
with a dog-trot in harness. They fall back
on the expedient of marriage as a means
for obtaining and keeping footing in the
world. They have not confidence in them
selves, and submit with gentleness to the
They are kept out of prominence with a
strong hand. That exaggerated Paradise,
known as Home, is held over them as a
perpetual terror. w hen woman engages
in any public movement, even to the ex-
tent of exp1 essing her opinion about il, she
is inundated with the observation that
she had better attend to her duties at
home: when she prints on some affair of
vital interest, the vulgar wit suggests that
she had better be engaged about the Stock
ing darning of the family; if she was to b.
an applicant for some prominent post in
the School Department Of a State, which
is grudgingly conceded her as a legitimate
sphere because she is helpless, and, more
mercenary still, because she is cheap, she
would be laughed off the stage.
But we did not intend so long a sermon
from our text. We only wantedito hail tae
essayist before the Bridgewater Institute
as the advance guard of what should be ii
great army of intelligent, thoughtful wo-
men, and we congratulate the School De-
partment of Rockingham on having such
representative.