The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1876-08-11
PRO AND CON.

The Liberal Association of this city
a body composed of men and women
who profess to be bound by no creed
and ruled by no prejudice-has recently,
on two occasions, discussed the question
of "equal rights without regard to
SEX" On the latter of these two occa-
sions-Sunday, the 9th inst.-the debate
was led by DR.. Mary A. Thompson,
who stated, in concise and forcible
manner, some of the disabilities under
which women labor, and clearly demon
strated her right to equality before the
law. The opposition, such as it was, re-
hearsed the old ideas, and gave the old
assumptions that have been a thousand
times answered relative to woman's
place at home and in society, her duties
as mother of the race, ETC., etc. All of
this we are prepared to expect from
men who, while they take pride in
being called 'Giberalists," are only as
liberal in their views as their prejudices
will allow them to be; and to these we
can listen with patience, feeling that,
as they are struggling up toward the
light, they may possibly after while
receive ray or two that will dispel the
prejudices that now befog them.
When, however, we hear a man who
pretends to have learning and culture,
with the broad and liberal views which
these inevitably bring, spend ten min
utes in attempting to prove the intel
lectual inferiority of woman, her men,
tai ineapacity for business, legislative,
executive, and financial; hear him cite
Vassar with its half-dozen years of col
legiate existence, and claim that, by
reason of the superior advantages there
offered, women should, in the world of
science, the arts and learning, be able
to compete with men who, for centuries
have had the exclusive benefits of Har-
ward and Yale, we confess that the
belief forces itself upon our mind that
the man is either talking to tickle the
vanity of those who oppose equal
rights, or that he himself, instead of
being a scholarly, liberal-minded gen.
tleman, is a narrow tool of prejudice
When we hear a man declare that
woman's intellect cannot cope with the
science of astronomy, we think of Maria
Mitchell devoting her time and skill to
the examination of nebule and search
for comets; of her discovery of a tel
escopic comet, for which she received a
gold medal from the King of Denmark)
and her calculation of the elements of
the same communicated to the Smith
who "Catalogued the Stars" discovered
eight comets, and received for her valu-
able assistance in astronomical calcula-
tions pension from George Ill, a gold
medal from the astronomical society Of
London, and an honorary membership
in the same, and of her contributions tc
science, most of them in her brothers
works and under his name, which mer
everywhere, versed in the science of as.
tronomy, pronounce 'valuable;;" and
pondering over these facts, we are com
PEELED to think that our scholar has no
read history impartially. When ht
speaks lightly of women as rulers, VIZ
wonder if, in his readings and research
he never came across the name of EIiz
abeth, or read the oft-repeated assertion
of historians that cher reign is Justly
considered one of the most importan
and successful that England has eve
known" When he attempts to carica
ture woman upon the rostrum, and dub
women speakers as monstrosities, W,
think of the womanly women all owe
the land who have demonstrated tn
fact beyond cavil, or, peradventure, tha
women are not exceeded as publi
speakers in eloquence, logic, pathos, o
power by their brethren.
1t is idle, and worse than idle, to max
assertions that history will not sustain
idle, and of no avail, to attempt to ARA
woman against her own nature by re
fusing to allow her to obey the demand
of her own intellect and conscience
idle to charge them with extravaganc
and financial inability, when, in poin
of fact, they practice most of the econ
omy that is practiced in the world
idle to charge them with business inca
pacity, when they, in numberless in
stances, are carrying on business wit
honor, profit, and credit; idle to sa
that they shirk maternal duties, care
and responsibilities, when the world
thronged with juveniles. In shor
men and women too must give over th
attempt to confine woman to a certai
sphere and say what shall be her wor
therein, and recognize the fact ths
everybody, whether man or woman
has an undisputed right to choose for
life work that which he or she can bes
and most successfully perform. Lt
''woman's spheren be bounded only
her own judgment, taste, and capabil
ties. And to this end let ''liberalists,
if they would deserve the name, be lit
eral in their views regarding she poll
ical, social, educational, and industris
status Of woman as well as of man.