Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1882-02-23
NUMBER 80.

Epping forest, even In broad dsyiiTht. sea-
men that were paid on were often robbed on
their way home. Every European Govern
ranean Sea, and other adjacent waters, to
guard agsinst pirates, who had even navies OF
their own. We have an occasional robbery
| on one OF our railroads, which creates excite
ment and strikes CONSERVATION to those who
travel; yet 200 years ago . robber WIS 70 be
| FOUND on euery hiQhscGy at al hours Of the
day. Now and then there Ia theft among
US; but in London, in the times Of Charles
L. tmeyes piled their trade with impunity,
iating the law. Pirates then carried on their
trade to such an extent that ocean commerce
and travel were perilous and hazardous.
| Now piracy has disappeared from the civil
| made safe and easy by land and sea. Has the
education of the masses humanized and soft-
ened society? Shall harrow up your feel
ings by reciting some Of the horrible atroci-
these is enough to make Us shudder. The
brutal punishment that was often inflicted
upon man and woman alike evidenced most
degraded and savage condition Of society.
IN the hands and often in the faces. They
were put in stocks and the pillory. They
were put to death by breaking their bones,
and all manner of torture. They were tied
to carts and mercilessly whipped. Poor
debtors rotted In prison, while their wives
and children suffered for bread. They were
hung, and before they were hung, they were
tied to cart and dragged to the place Of eX-
ecution. Their bowels were taken out and
burned in their sight, while they were yet
alive; and often they were hung up, they were
again let down, and then hung again. and af.
ter they were dead, they were cut up in four
parts, and these parts were at the disposal of
the king: They were tied to stakes and burnt
by slow fires, until death brought relief to the
suffering. victims. And the populace took
hideous delight in these atrocities. II an Of
render was put In the pillory, It was well If he
escaped with life from shower Of brickbats
and paving stones. II he was tied to the CARTS
tail, the crowd pressed round him, implOring
the hangman to give it to the fellow well and
make him howl. Parties of pleasure were
arranged for the purpose Of seeing wretched
pressed to d~ath for refusing to plead, a wo-
man burned for coming, excited less sympa-
thy than is now felt for a CALLED horse or an
oyerdriyen OK. Fights, compared with which
spectacle, were among the favorite diversions
OF large part OF the town. Multftudes as
sembled to see gladiators hack each other to
pieces with deadly weapons, and shouted
with delight when one of the combatants lost
u finger or an eye. The prisons were hells on
earth-seminaries OF every crime and every
disease. At the courts the lean and yellow
culprits brought with them from the cells to
the dock, an atmosphere Of stencil and pesti-
lence which often avenged them on the bench.
bar and jury. But on all this misery society
looked with profound indifference. Sensf-
tive and restless compassion was nowhere to
be found. All classes OF society have felt
the modifying influence Of civilization; but
condition 6as been 81 5sssss @ 1ne.r
extent. But nowhere are these refining and
elevatfng influences more apparent than
among the women. Woman's condition less
than 200 years ago was little better than that
of the slave. She had no rights that her i'm
perious master was bound to respect. The
husband had lawful right to chastise the
partner Of his bosom, and men Of decent sta
ton were not ashamed to beat their wives,
conclude, therefore, that the public naind
has softened as it ripened, and we have in the
course of time not only wise, but kinder
and better people.
Has scattered verdurs oes .he land
Thus I.have tried to prove that tho
education OF the masses is an essenti a.
condition of prosperity; that the cas mu
progress must be pushed forward .hyasfxs
many and not blythe few. But do pnde
desire to be understood as claiming tGo,
Bacon, Taylor, Milton, Dryden, ant
Hale and the universities of England
and America did nothing toward the
civilization of the 10th century. Not
that blazed the way for us. We are
gathering the bread cast by tbemupon
the waters years ago. The great up
heavals of society in England in the
18th century showed the worth of man
whether noble by birth or low born
and since then the masses have been
slowly but surely and constantly push
ing their way to the front. And az
Governments put their hands down
beneath and elevated the people-the
men who held the plow, who showed
the plane, who welded the forge's hop
pers, and the women whose daily toll
provided comforts and deIicacies for
the rich as we'll as themselves-so did
the Governments feel the modifying in
nuences Of the progress, and sociey
grew better as we'll as wiser. Whiie
the rank and file of the people Of En-
gland have been wonderfully benefited
and elevated, it remained for our Gov
ernment to take all-the high and low.
the rich and pOor-by the hand and saw
to them: "Step up higher and stand on
the same plane of civil and religions
When our forefathers pro-
in the immortal Declaration
Of Independence, that all men are Gre
oted equal, great truth was proclaim
ed, the breadth and depth and height
OF which has not yet been realized and
appreciated. But the spirit of that
truth ls stili marching on, and the time
10 near at hand when 1t will produce
its matured fruit. tits true that among
US we recognize the full and complete
of men before the law. but
what can we say for the women? Do
We recognize them as equal before the
law with men? We know we do not.
Not only do we debar them from hav-
ing any voice in the Government of the
country, but We also often deny their
right 10 the same pay for the same SER
vice as men get. AS the denial of the
rights of freemen to the men Of the 18th
century rose up to curse the Govern
ernmsnt and society then, so will the
denial Of these full rights to any portion
of society continue to rise Up and curse
US. We must come right square up to
The proposition, and the doors must be
thrown wide open, and all-both male
and female-must be invited on to the
same plane, where they can carve out
their own fortunes and where there
shall be no favored class. Let the con-