The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1881-06-06
UPWARD n ONWARD
Has Baen the Course OF woman IN Life
BaeenlAuFOAl0 Sermon OF Rev, ]. ID,
HOmAll In b second PFesbyleFlhu
Church Last Night

Church LAST Might,
The large auditorium Of the Second
Presbyterian Church asAlterally packed
with people last night, the occasion being
the preaching Of the Baccalaureate sermon
to the graduating class Of the Wheeling
Female College, by Rev. ]. d. Moftatt,
pastor Of the church. A chorous consist
Ing OF MessEs. W. B. Howell, Frank Orr,
VIII Day and Mrs, ], MerrimAn, Misses
Addie Coen and Hattie DalZell, with ProL
E, A. Weber, as organist, furnished some
choice sacred selections.
The class Of 81 occupied seats at the
right OF the centre aiale, while the other
yound ladies' and pupils Of the College
were seated nearly opposite,
Rev. y. P. MRsden. OF the Fourth street
NJ. E. Church led in prayer. Dr.. Clancy,
OF the College, read the Scriptures, alter
which Mr.. MotfRtt announced his text %
tollowa: John iv; q, "And, upon this
came His disciples and maryelled that He
talked with the woman" Mr.. MofEatt said
the revised version read, "And they nal:
yelled that heiwas speaking witha woman"
This change" Mr., MOfatt argued, lis Q
proper one, for in the Greek language
there Ia no definite article, while there Ia
an indefinite one. The surprise Of the
disciples was also proper, and was due TO
the, what seemed 10 them, improper or
strange conduct OF the Saviour. Oriental
ideas OF proprlety, then Rs now, were
against any familiarity with woman, The
Tslmud explicitly lays 1t down, NO rabbi
Ia to speak with q woman, even II she be
his wife, on the street. DR.. Geike says 1t
was forbidden to greet q woman or take
any notice OF her in the public street."
Mr.. MotTatt then proceeded to show the
contempt and disregard with which wo-
men had been and are still held In Asiatic
and some European countries In all time,
and gave many illustrations Of "Woman's
inferiority In mans esteem" She has
ever been Rslave to Q tyrant, a toileri In the
field, q beast OF burden, kept In q state OF
Ignorance, secluded from society, dis
graced, corrupted and desplsed, and was
regarded with less affection by her hus:
band than his dog or horse. Through all
these ViClssitudes oil fortune, In every
walk and condition, the speaker traced the
lovliness OF the character OF this suffering
half OF humanity, sometimes worshipped
as a goddess, then fondlsd as a toy, OF at
other times punished as a victim,
In the rise OF the Greek and Roman
empires, the condition oil woman was toll
cradle, but when these reached the climax
OF their glory and civilization then
they were reduced 10 q condition OF
slavery and degradation, similar to that
prevailing In the East, Aristotle charac'
terized woman as beings Of On inferior
kind. Socrates one day asked q friend,
"Is there a human being with who you
talk less than with your wiie?" Demos.
themes spoke CONTEMPORARY oil women,
and Plato'sideao Of disorganization ola State
was when slaves were d~isobedient and
wives were put on an equality with their
husbands.
From these dark and repulslye pictures
OF ~heathenish practices and ideas, the
speaker gently led his auditors to the
high plane now occupied by woman,
and demonstrated the various stages
OF progress. The first man to preach
feminine equality was Jesus Christ.
Man has despised her, Jesus has
honored her; man has degraded her, Je'
sus has elevated and shown that she Ia the
social equal, capable Of receiving instruc'
ton. "Ihe longest conversation our Say.
Tor aver held was with q woman; his first
avowaloi MeRslahship was TO q female; bis
hrst convert was q woman; the first mis-.
sionary was q woman; his best friends
while on earth we're the sisters, Mary and
Martha; his first appearance after his res.
direction was TO a woman, whom he sent
90 q messenger to announce the Tact; his
hrst convert In Europe was q woman"
The speaker then went on to show the
elevation Of the female sex since the death
OF the Savior In all countries which pro.
fsssed Christianity. II was q woman,
Bertha, daughter OF the King Of Paris, that
first introduced Christianity into South
Britain. II was her daughter who spread
II and ChriStianized the northern part OF
the Island.
Women are our modern philanthropists,
and are organizers Of charities on common
sense principles. Men talked and sChemed
in London about organizing its lAvtsh
charities, but II was q woman, who first
brought together the relief agencies Of a
great district In harmonious cooperation,
setting, the pattern, after which the other
districts are working wisely, and other
cities are moulding their systems. Her
sphere Is In tho hospitals and on the
battle fields. Florence Nightingale gave
herself 10 the task Of 0resting q real yoCa-
ton OF nursing. HowRM reformed pris.
ons, but Elizabeth Fry wrought q change
In the prisoners themselves, started schools
for them and labor for their employment.
The labors Of Miss 81. John and 0Ctayia
Hall In reforming tenement house abuses
In New York were introduced To show the
capabilities Of woman and her interest In
behalf OF humanity. Mr.. Moffatt con.
cluded bis interesting sermon by exhort.
ing the young ladies who bad not made .
choice OF Christ To make II now, and
quoted from pr. Jonathan Edwards.
Thus beautifully did Jonathan Edwards
write OF her who afterwards became
his witei They say there A
young lady in New Haven who Is beloved
Of that Great Being who made and rules
the world and that there are certain sea.
sons In which the Great Being In some
way or other, copes 10 her and Oils her
mind with exceedingly sweet delight and
that abe hardly cares Tor anything except
to mediate on Him., She has q singular
purity In her affections, is most lust and
conscientious In all her affections, and you
could not persuade her to do any thing
wrong or sinful II you weuld give her all
the world, lcnt she should offend this
Great Being. She Is Of q wonderful calm.
ness, sweetness and universal beneyo.
lence, especially alter this Great God has
manifested Himself 10 her mind. She
will sometimes 20 about from place 10
place singing sweetly and seems TO be al.
ways full Of Joy and pleasure and no one
knows for what. She loves to be alone,
SHnIktA- L. Az naI1. -
seems to have some invisible Being talk.
ing always 10 her.
QUAKER LECTURE AT THE FOURTH STREET
n. L. CHURCH.
In our nelghborinR settlements over In
Ohio, Ia q goodly number OF Friends or
Quakers. The small but quaint advertise.
ment Ia the daily papers Of Saturday, an.
nouncing that Mrs. Hannah Hall would
preach yesterday afternoon 10 the Fourth
Street NJ. y. Church, caused a ANAL N,