The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1881-09-01
A NEIGHBOR'S VOICE.
Defending Mrs. DR.. Ferguson from
an UnnanIy Attack. ]

& Under the heading, "a Former
Normal Doctress to take the Field
to Show the Beauties Of Mormon
Wifehood," the Bloomington Qlls.,)
Paragraph, Of August 18th, has
the following:
at is authoritatively announced
from Utah that about August Goth,
two Mormon women will start east
on lecturing tour. They are I'M
der the sanction of the church
authorities, and are coming to pre-
sent the WOman's side of the Nor
mon problem to explain to the
deluded females of the older states
how much happier they would be as
the half, or fifth, or tenth of a wife
than as whole one. The lecturers
are DR.. Ellen b. Ferguson, formerly
Of Bloomington and Normal, and
Zina d. Young. Very many of the
ladies o. this city and Normal will
remember Mrs. DR.. Ferguson. She
came here seven or eight years ago,
and endeavOred t, found a health
institute. She was accompanied by
an Insignificant looking man, who
was her husband, and she his ruler
in things both great and small. She
failed IN the institute enterprise,
and turned her attentions to lectur-
ing, and gave a number Of pri-
Vate lectures 10 ladies. After that
she undertook the scheme of acting
as guide and chaperone to party
of young ladies, she made up mostly
in Chicago. This enterprise she
really carried out. They lived III
Normal. From there they went di-
rect 10 Salt Lake City, and she is
now a full-hedged Mormon. Mrs
DR.. Ferguson is small, dark com
pleXiOned woman, rather slOvenly
in attire, and unattractiVe in per-
sOnal appearance. She has an I'M
limited amount of self-asSurance
and was not hampered with excess
of modesty, but rather the reverse
AS lecturer on Happy Marriage
relations she will probably not Offer
her matrimonial experience as al
exponent of her knowledge and
judgment on such matters"
We presume the Mrs. Ferguson
referred to above is the widow OF
the DR.. Ferguson who died in thi;
city last winter. The lady ought tt
make an excellent missionary
Shortly after the fearfully cold day!
of last NoVember-the coolest of TIT
winter, and the coolest for sew
eral WinterS-an old man came
into the Tribune Office, ant
taking off his hat, sheweC
where his whole scalp had beer
frozen. He said he was close upOl
eighty years of age; that he wa
once clergyman in London; that
being infatuated with a woman be
low him in station, he had marriet
her, and joining the Mormon
Church, had come with her here
He said with age and disease he ha
become incapaciated for work an,
that she had nearly starved him, sh
herself being infatuated with a MAJ
here in this city. He added tina
three nights before, in the extrem,
cold weather, he, in his nigh
clothes, went out of the house for
moment. when this tigress Of a wifi
sprang up, locked the door and KEEP
him there until the skin of his I'm
protected head was frozen
He brought his head, scared b,
frost, as a proof of the truth o
what he said. He finished by say
ing: 81 am very old, 1 feel strangely
and L wanted to tell you this be
cause something may happen" Thi
was on Tuesday, if we remembe,
correctly, and on Saturday Of tina
same week, the DeSeret NeoOS pub
lished the announcement of the dealt
by pneumonia, of DR.. Ferguson
We should think that Mrs. DIR. Fer
guson would make an excellent Lat
ter-day Saint missionary. She car
not only tell of the beauties Of Nor
mon wifehood, but if put to the tes
might explain what it was possible
for a Mormon wife to accomplish
when her husband became old and
helpless. Above we have given but
! Ul1O u1Cl OOO OUO1llICo VI W ndb buO O1O
man told us. 1t was a story Of
cruelty such as only a woman
turned fiend, could invent, and the
most striking proof that it was true
was that no ordinary mortal coulC
invent such a tale. 1t was said OF
the ancient Medusa that all who
looked upon her were turned to
stone. AS a symbol of this modern
Medusa's power, Mrs. DR.. Ferguson
should have painted picture of an
old man, bowed with four score
years and with the skin Of his bare
and wrinkled scalp frozen into blood
less ridges. 1t is of such materia
that modern female missionaries art
made, that is, some Missionaries
Tribune, Salt Lake City, August Is
1881.
Editors Herald:
On the 18th inst. the above ap
peared in the tribune of this city tt
which 1 shall be glad to reply, i
you can find space for insertion il
your widely circulated paper, to
gether with my notice of the same
lit is in defense of Mrs. DR.. Fergu
son who is now absent from thi
lcity. and at present in a Dositiol