Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1879-10-14
HUMAN FREEDOM.
A Mastery Lecture by Mrs. Matte A
Bridge at the Opera House.

| A Mastery Lecture by Mrs. Matte A
Bridge at the Opera House.
The announcement that the talented lectur.
ess, Mrs. Matte A. Bridge, would deliver hel
| celebrated address on Human Freedom" al
the Opera House last evening drew out large
and very intelligent audience. The captivat.
ing nature of the subject, the mastery manner
in which it was handled and illustrated, the
graceful delivery, perfect self possession and
| flowing language of the lecturer, placed her.
! self and auditors en- rapport from the begin
! ming to the end of the address
| wdich was heard with the deepest interest
The lecturess was introduced by Maj. T. M.
NeWson, who adverted in appropriate terms tC
the gifted lady, speaking of her address as 's
lecture of SURPRISING characteristics" EN-.
bodying, as it did, the observations and ex
perience of her life. Upon taking the plat
| form she said there is a sense in which no
two human beings are equal; nature had never
duplicated herself and never would. In look
ing around we encountered infinite variety
from the loftiest mountain to the minutest
mole hill; a manifed variety in all the phases
of human and organic life.
The danger to be apprehended from the end.
less variety displayed in nature, arose from the
ascendency Of the lower impulses. In the
lower order of nature the brute impulses pre-
dominated. The big fish eat up the little ones
ing law from the nebulous cloud to the swing
ing worlds around us; all spoke of an ire
pressible conflict. ...
glowing tribute was paid to the matchless
power exerted by woman when her intelligence
was given free scope. and the speaker knew of
no law, however divine, that could quench the
immortal fire kindled in women like Madame
De Stael, Mary Sumerville or Elizabeth Barrett
Browning.
Mrs. Bridge passed in rapid review many of
the historical achievents of woman, and enun-
ciated this sentiment:
'fWhat we want is that shall withdraw all leg
islation and all prejudice and. let woman find her
own level in creation. So long as woman cannot, in
womanly way, carve out her own destiny; SO long
women are all crowded and jostled into one
straight and narrow path'-the domestic and ma
ternal-sacred and holy though that is and ever
must remain still many of her energies and aspira-
tons which lie beyond must forever remain dor
mant." -a.- .E. .
A scathing rebuke was administered to the
system of lust, righteousness and brutality
that enslaved women in all parts of the world
and the lecturer said that Turkish markets
were not the only places where women were
Passing from this thought she called atten-
ton to the fact that the great tendency of all
nations was to Capitalization and monopoly,
and that the powerful nations which had fall
len and become practically extinct owed their
downfall to this evil. The poor are made
slaves, their patriotism is crushed by poverty,
while the rich become effeminate and weak by
tics to show that in England there are
but 30, GOO freeholders, and twelve families own
half of the island. With %, LIS, 622 acres of
land owned by her citizens more than half is
owned by 4736 persons, or $50, 600 to each in
dividual. The result is that over three hun
dred millions were expended last year to sup
port her paupers. The population of Ireland
five and half by landed monopoly. Similar
statistics relative to the reign Of monopoly
and Capitalization were given in regard to
Scotland, Wales, Russia and other countries.
Coming to our country. she cited similar
evidences of Capitalization. The army of
tramps swarming through the land were the
outgrowth of the grasping of wealth by the
few, leaving the multitude to indulge in pover-
ty and crime. Such men as the Vanderbilts,
the Gonlds and the Tom SCOTS were sapping
the country. In Minnesota the railroads have
seven million acres, and real estate mortgages
carpet the Northwest.
Forty years ago we were out of debt and had
thirty millions in the treasury. Now we owe
two thousand four hundred millions nationally
and over twelve thousand million of other
debts, public and private. Out of 700 furnaces
500 are idle, and every industry is FRUSTRATED.
After elaDOratlng tnlS cOnQlGlOn OF affairs she
said:
II charge yoa look about you and see these signs
Of poverty, of wretchedness, of hunger of sin, of
bereavement, and gather into your heart and the
arms of your prayer all the sorrow, all the 1osses all
the suerings of those you pass, and carry them not
to your church alone but everywhere-to your fire.
sides, your workshops and counting houses-the
arena Of politics, the halls of legislation-every-
where, and see if there is not way in which the
great boon of human freedom and relief may be Sc
cured for earth's toiling Millions
She cited the fact that women in New York
are making broadcloth caps for one cent each,
and in Boston they make fine fancy aprons at
rs cents per dozen, two days being required to
make q dozen. The lecturer alluded with
much sarcasm to Beecher's memorable bread
and waDer one dollar per day speech, speaking
of him as an orator but not as divine.
Being only woman she said she would not
speak Of the Credit Mobilicr frauds, the whisky
frauds, sale of post traderships, etc. She de-
clared the perpetual change of contracts was
anti Democratic in policy and sentiment.
The platform on which she stands was terse-
ly enunciated, in concluding, as follows:
"Let us demand free press, free speech, free
education, free religion, free money, free land and
free votes by men who are born Of women who are
Free"
She was frequently greeted with applause
during the delivery of the lecture and deserved
it. Her style of speaking and gesture are ex-
'cellent, and there is no lady in the lecture field
her superior and very few her equal.