The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1879-09-18
sITUATIONs-WO4AN.
Pertinent and Practical Propositions
From a Prominent Preacher.

Rerunent and Practical Propositions
From a Prominent Preacher.
To the American
My attention has to-day been called
to an article in your paper Aug. 19,in
which the writer asks my views on the
need for more employments for South
ern women. At the time the article
appeared | was not in the city and it
escaped my attention. The question
is one Of deep interest to every South
ern philanthropist. 1t is one on which
| have spoken frequently ana earnestly
both from pulpit and rostrum. There
can be no question upon the part of
any liberal thinking mind that the po-
sitiOn Of our educated women who are
compelled to seek support by their
personal exertions is deeply depiorablc.
The only avenues opened are the school
room and the needle Seventy five
applicants for two vacancies In the
public schools tells Il tale Of sad and
hidden wretchedness. The needle does
not work with fearful rapidity ON the
disappointed. 1t is one OF the painful
duties Of a city pastor to watch these
women fade through few shcrt years
Of poorly recompensed labor and then
to give them christian burial.
After years Of effort to correct the
false sentiment prevalent among our
Southern Teop'e as to woman's sphere
coupled with effort to find employment
for individual women in our city; |
have found the problem far more COM
plicated than l at first apprchend it to
be.
Where / have once succeeded by APP
peal or personal influence in securing
positions for women in new spheres OF
labor l have found it moro difficult to
succeed a second time with the same
employers. The reasons assigned are
in some cases those mentioned by z.
5. in the article above referred to, such
rs the fact that our women i'll shopping
give decided preference to male clerks.
This thoughtlcssness upon the part Of
our women certainly merits decided
censure. But alas, the trouble lies
deeper still. In too many cases the
women who seek and obtain such places
depend on retaining them through the
sympathetic philanthropy of the en-
ployes rather than by resolute effort to
make this employment matter Of ne
cessity to the employers. They are
tlmid, hesitate, expect shrinking and
delicate manners to accomplish what
only earnest, careful work can achieve.
The employer, both in store and home
hesitatcs to ask Of them certain work,
yet that work must be DONE The only
way to cut the knot IS, for the party
wanting work, to be so on the alert
that the work is done before the en-
ployer begins to be perplexed as who to
do IT. Our women for generations
have been educated to almost absolute
he'plcssness, until they become mat
rons and centers Of family circles, many
Of the most useful features in the char
acter Of either man or woman are so
! little called into service that they are
almost obliterated 1t is this radical
defect which pervade3 every effort to
help them. No one can be helped
who is not resolute in the purpose to
help themselves.
Let it be understood that it is
the duty Of young women as it
is of young men, to find useful
employment, that to work docs not
bring social ostracism; that only idle
ness or moral degradation can do this.
Let it be realized that in finding such
work as she can do as well as man, Il
woman is but filing her proper place;
then she will throw aside her timid
hesitation, and unshackled by false
ideas, compete successfully with men
in score Of places which men now
in Nashville monopolize.
In this war on effcte modes of fami-
ly education suffering women may ever
command my voice, pen and hand
As | have often said, ii is blrbarous to
wiring tears from women as we are do
ing by shutting them out from en-
ployment which they are fully comp =
tent to fill, for the first time l have
dared i'll this paper topoint out to them
the fact that the remedy lies with
them. ID. c. KELLEY.