The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1880-01-10
THE DAILY STAR
TIT PROFESSORS DECLARATION.
CHAPTER III.

crowded to overfowing long before the
chairs on the platform were occupied.
OF course the Marchesa was there, snuff
box and all, and had taken care to
secure place in the middle of the
front row, exactly opposite the lecturers
table. Admiring friends supported her
on either side, and she loudly announced
her intention of rising to contradict the
orator should he dare to promulgate any
of his subversive doctrines.
"Your eye will be sufficient to keep
aim within bounds" suggested one of
her suite, a peace-loving Abate; and the
Marchesa accepted the compliment, for
she prided herself OH the scathing power
of her glance.
Professor Marcotti had procured an
an invitation for his English friends, and
Mrs. Peel, with her younger daughter,
was comfortably ensconced on sofa in
the embrasure of window to the right of
the platform, post of vantage command
ing view of the whole assembly. Our
Professor sat near them, and pointed
out the various notabilities present.
Mrs. Peel, with her sweet, faded counte-
nance, her snowy hair, and the delicate
lace and ribbons that so much displeased
the Marchesa, was model English mat
ron; while Nelly, with her fresh young
face, her blue eyes bright with expecta-
ton, and her unpretending dress, pre-
sented an equally fair specimen of Eng
lish maidenhood. Her well-formed head.
with its abundance of soft brown hair
brushed back in gracious curve and
gathered into simple knot, gave her a
distinction of her own amid that crowd
of heads deformed by unnatural pufs
and plaits.
The Professor seemed to think 50 too,
for his eyes were always resting on-this
or that detail of her appearance, when
ever they could do so without meet
ing her glance. And now, with much
rustling Of silk and clinking of bracelets,
tall Countess c. bustled into the room
Oh the arm of member of the commit
tee, whom she overtopped by head,
dispensing mods and smiles on all Sides
took her place at the further end of the
platform. The Circ0lo lectures always
enjoyed her patronage, and she was said
to take special interest in the evenings
proceedings. The lecturer himself slip
ped in almost unobserved in that great
Iady's wake, and an arrow of triumph
shot from the Marchesa's eyes as he took
his seat unwelcomed, and began, rather
nervously, to arrange his papers. But
the next moment salvo of applause ran
through the hall; the orator rose to bow
his thanks, and, whether by accident or
design, smiled (defantly, she said) into
the Marchesa's awe-inspiring counten-
ance. He began to speak. In a quiet
conversational tone he described the ex-
isting system of female education, and
pointed out its most salient defects.
Then, with gleam of fun in his eyes, he
gave some graphic illustrations of the
way in which all real education was sac
rificed to vanity and prejudice, how girls
time was spent upon half-taught accom-
plishments, their reasoning powers left
undeveloped, and how at the age of six
teen they returned from school or convent
with smattering of many things, gen.
uine knowledge of none. In fact, he
said, all that parents required was, that
their daughters should chatter in two or
three foreign. tongues, play and sing,
and comport themselves well in society.
He had been puzzled once by the per-
sistence with which lady of his ac-
quaintance urged that her daughter
should be taught the harp. He had sug-
gested that it would be waste of time,
as the young lady had no ear for music.
"You don't understand, Professor" an
swered the lady, with superior smile;
"don't you see that my Clelia has lovely
hands and arms"
Marriage was looked upon as the sole
aim of girls life, and all efforts to in
augurate reform were met by the reply
that a woman's mission was to be good
mother. Why nuns should be considered
specially qualified to prepare them for
that mission he failed to perceive, and
certainly solid instruction would scarcely
unfit them for its manifold duties. It
was quite as desirable, he went on to say,
that men should be good fathers, yet
parents never made that a pretext for
limiting their boys studies. For his
part, be thought that the defects usually
attributed to women, their lack of logic,
their frivolity, were directly assignable
to the nature of their education; and he
hoped that the day would soon come
when parents would give as careful a
training to their daughters as to their
sons, and prejudice would no longer de-
bar girls from the benefits Of higher edu-
cation. And now he would utter an
opinion, which would, he was. aware, ex-
cite a thrill of horror in many present.
Why should not girls be University stu
dents? 1t was true there was no law
closing University doors upon them, but
they were practically closed by the alb
sence of secondary schools supplying the
preliminary training and the indispensa-
BILE certificates.
The speakers voice had warmed into
earnsstness long before he reached this
stage of his discourse, and its clear,
steady tones reached the farthest corner
of the room. He deprecated the current
prejudice that women's wit was an affair
Of instinct, which regular training would
DESTROY without substituting grasp of