Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1881-07-22
Edueltion for Young Women

1t is with reluctance" replied Car
lyie, ";bat | write anything to you on
his spl,jtct Of female emancipation,
w!,ich is now rising to such height;
and 10 it only on the strict condition
that whatever I say shall be strictly
private, and nothing OF it get into the
newspapers. The truth is. tie topic
for tive-apd-twonty years past, espa-
cialiy for the last three or four, has
been mere sorrow 10 nc; one OF the
most affecting prooi5 Cf the miserable
ANARCHY tha; prevails liz human eocirty.
and | have avoided thinking e i. ox-
cept when fairly compelled. What
li!ti has become clear to ne OH 1t /
will now cndeayor to tell y0ll. have
never doubted the true and ncb,e fuic.
tion Of woman in this world wss, is.
and forever will Dr, that of being wife
ard hejpmeet 10 worthy man; and
,lischarging well the duties that devolye
on her in consequence. AS mother Of
children ana mistress Of household
duties high, noble, silently important
;s any that can fall 10 human crpa-
ture; duties which, il well discharged. =.
constitute woman. lii 2 soft, beautiful,
and almost sacred way, the queen OF
the world, and Icy her natnis! faculties,
grscos, strengths ani weaknesses are
every way Indicated as specifically hers.
The true destiny Of q woman, therefore,
ls to wed man she can love and es-
teen; and to lead noiselessly, under
his protection. with all the wisdom,
grace and heroism that is III her, the
life prescribed IN consequence. Ii
1eems furthermore indubi,able that if
woman miss this destiny, or have re-
nouIced il, she has every right, before
\ God and man, to take up whatever
honest employment she can tiud open
to her in the world; probably there are
several or many employments, now ex-
clusively in the hands Of men, for which
women mighs be moro or less fit
printing, tailoring, weaving, clerkirg,
etc., etc. That medicine Is Intrinsic
ally lot unfit for them is proved from
the fact that in much more sound and
earnest ages than ours, before the med
icsi profession rose into being, they
were virtually the ply sicians and sur
goops as we'll us sick nurses, all that
the world had. Their form OF intel
lect, their sympathy, their wonderful
acuteness Of observation, etc, seem to
indicate in them peculiar qualities for
dealing with disease; and evidently in
certain departments (that of female dis
eases) they have quite peculiar oppor-
tunities of being useful. My answer
to your question, then. may be that two
tLipgs are uot doubtful to mo in this
matter: 1t. that women, any woman
who dclibera.ely SO determines, have il
light to study medicine; and that it
might be profitable and serviceable to
have facilities, "f at least possibilities,
offs red them tor so doing. But, %,
that, for Obvious reasons, female stu
dents Of medicine ought to have, if
possible, female teachers, or else eE
extremely select kind Of men; and in
particular that to have young women
present among young men in anatomi-
Cal classes, clinical lectures, or gener-
ally studying medicine in concert, is an
incongruity of the first magnitude, and
shocking to think of to every pure and
modest mind. This is all have to say,
and send it to you. under the condi-
ton above mentioned, as friend for
The use of friends.-IA letter of Car
lyles, from VIM. Howie Wylie's "Ihom-
u as Car)Yle."