The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1878-04-11
from the Detroit Free Press1
THE WOMEN OF NEW VIRGINIA.

o From the Detroit Free Press.1
: THE WOMEN OF NEW VIRGINIA.
) BY MARY W. EARLY, OF LYNCHBURG.
9 Of country gentlemen says 'iThey spen
, long, calm days. filled with mystic reyerie,
which passage as ], read it recent.
drew from me smile partly of sadness an
partly Of amusement, so ahtipodal to, Pen
dennis picture was the life Of care and bu
, tie and responsibility that our Virginia cour
try gentlemen had nowadays, ssMystic rex
: erie" indeed. How is a woman to indnlg
! in such luxury when a little raw negro
waiting to be instructed how to churn, o
} perhaps the churn stands waiting to- be man
) ipulated by the fair hands Of The dame, her
self. n
The Virginia women bore themselve
bravely under the new regime. They hav
adapted themselves to their great reverse
with the fortitude that belongs to ever
true women and the versatility that espec
tally characterizes American women ami,
their changed circumstances. They hay,
kept up their culture and refinement in
way that is surprising, while no amount Of
tpoyerty can querch their love and striving
for nicely and beauty in the details Of their
surroundings. o' 7f''l i'''a 1881" l..
Every one who lived in or visited the
South before the war knows how tenderly
the women of the better class we're shelter
ed from contact with the outer world. The
winds of heaven were not suffered to blow
on their check too roughly. but in the last
thirteen years great revolution has taken
place in their lot. Many women were left
widows or fatherless by the casualties of wal
and the men who survived have met with
| such serious changes In their fortunes that
they are no longer able to shield the women
Of their household from care and poverty.
The changes in their circumstances and sur
roundings have necessarily modified the
characteristics Of Virginia women. Not be.
ing so closely sheltered from the storms of
life as heretofore, contact with its hard re-
alities has rubbed off somewhat Of their for
mer shrinking s5ftness, and lessened the
pliabiity Of their disposition. Nowadays
they are often called on to think and decide
aud act for themselves, hence they are much
more self-reliant than formerly, and in con-
duct as well as in conversation take much
more decided stand. They no longer answer
you ''with pretty: may it please you,'' or
$50 it is, but express their views and opin-
ions with considerable firmness and deci-
sion. iA }sJW iff4 f'ty|
- OF late years we have not infrequently
known women to carry onenterprises which
siyely to the masculine sphere, such, for In
stance, as carrying On a spoke mill, filling a
contract for tan bark, ETC.. Isknow a young
lady who for some time supported herself by
writing series OF articles for a Canada pa
per describing the political status of Virgin
ia, all of which shows that under the pres
sure of necessity, Virginia women are equal
to the emergency, although there are no
women more feminine or domestic. They
illustrate the fact that when the oak gives
way the vine of modern times has Inaugural
ted new mode OF proceeding. n Instead OF
sinking to the earth and being crushed, it
struggles to hold itself up and grow as best
it can without its prop. i.lt gal
As an illustration of the turn, given to
feminine character and pursuits by the
changes of late years, ! may mention lit
tie incident of recent occurrence. Going
one day to visit a young lady who had just
returned home, after teaching a session,
found my young friend with sleeves rolled
back to the elbow, paint pot in hand, dill
gently laying coat Of paint on the parlor
mantel piece. This task completed she took
from her trunk bundle OF window panes
and with her own fair hands, inserted them
in window sashes garnished with old pill
lows. II am resolved" said the young
girl as she deity fulfilled her task, ''to re-
pair the wastes as far as l can. and 10 make
my home prettier and more comfortable, for
l do love it, although it leaks like a sitter
and looks like the walls OF Balcluthd." Hav-
ing concluded this performance, this versa
tile young lady sat down to she, piano and
treated us to charming German song, schu-
bert's lovely ''Naehe des Geliebsen,' for she
did not suffer the practical affairs Of life to
usurp her time and attention to the exclu-
sion of accomplishments and culture.
recall another instance that illustrates the
Iii tanner in which young Southern women
have learned to meet emergencies of late
years. During the epizootc panic of 1872 a
widow lady living on farm with her two
daughters, became afraid that one of her
horses was taking the disease. The young
ladies, although women Of culture and high
social position, were always ready to meet
any emergency and take it by the horns, so
they made a little negro ''bring forth the
steed," and on the ANIMAL giving sound
that they interpreted into an epizootic sneeze
they decided at once ON vigorous course OF
treatment. They had been told that it was
very important to cover up horses and keep
ease, so they hunted up an old Counterpart
and some ragged strips Of carpet for the pur-
pose. 1t was a remarkable household, NUM-
bering not single male. The cook and
housemaid protested to be afraid to swathe
the horses, so the young ladies, to shame the
towards, said they would do it themselves,
as they knew the horse to be perfectly gen.
tie. The strips Of old carpet they sewed
with coarse needles around tile horses legs,
that animal regarding them the while with
an air of thoughtful inquiry, but standing
patient and quiet while undergoing the OPP
Grafton. Next an old red couterpane was
called into play, put around the horses
body and sewed up on one side. Still fur
ther mystifcation on the part Of the horse.
The browning act of the performance was to
pound up some glass very fine and put in
his nostri.s. When they arrived at this
sage the animal felt that he had reached
pnint Of which forha q ra ', es t.aase1 tC he