The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1883-04-05
THE MODERN sPIEsTER.
a Plea for the Unmarried.


face, a breast-pin made from the hair OF
departed lover, and with a general
affectation of girlishness in her dress and
manner. She was excessively tinid in
the matter of mice and dark halls, and
looked upon any and every man with
awe and admiration. seeing in each one
a possible or probable lover If she was
assigned to the strong minded class q
use the term in its popular acceptance,
she was tail and angular, wore her hair
twisted fiercely in n tight little knot,
scorned useless adornments of her per-
son, and divided her time between driV-
ing children and animals from her
premises, and slandering her neighbors
her hand against every man and
every mans hand against her. Now,
either the pictures were in fault or the
types have passed away, for the old
maid of to-day is quite another person.
In the first place she is not sentimental.
Indeed, / do not know but that she
leans in the opposite direction, being
rather cool and practical. However that
may be, neither is she man-hater.
For having ceased to regard men in the
light of lovers, she has discovered that
they make very good friends, and il is
quite likely that among her acquaint-
ances there are a number whom she re-
CARDS with clear-sighted, slightly judi
cial. but very genuine friendship. And
with the friendship has grown up GER
tain pity or sympathy; for, going out
into the world herself, she has gained
some idea of the burdens MEN carry,
and the odds against which they fight.
And on this footing she meets her
brother man in society or business with
a frank friendliness which is very com
Portable for both sides. Secondly, she
does not slander her neighbors; she has
other things to engross her time and her
thoughts, for she is a busy woman. If
fortune has been kind to her. she keeps
up some old house in old-fashioned
state; she is prominent in church affairs;
her name appears among the officers OF
employment societies and orphans
homes. Her scrutiny OF cases is rig
orous, but once satisfied, she gives with
discreet liberality. Her advice is solic-
tied and respected. She is i recognized
power in the community. If fortune
has been less generous with her, and she
depends on her head or hands for sup
port. what work she does is done faith
fully; for. being relieved of the necessity
of keeping one eye on the door for the
coming man, she is able to devote all her
energies to the business in hand, and il
is an established fact that some of the
clearest heads. quickest wits, and most
facile fingers are found among these
same Old maids. After her day of use
ful work she goes home to her cozy
room (plainly or elegantly furnished, it
is quite sure to be coy and home-like),
and sits down by the fire with her mag
azine or new book, with none to modest
or make her afraid. No visions of knee
less little trousers or toeless stockings
fit between her and the pages; she has
no guilty half-consciOusness of pile of
unmade shirts, whose neckbands will
invariably be a sixteenth of an inch too
long or too short; but she rocks and she
reads. and lays up much mental food
She goes into society (being socially in
clined), where she sometimes opens her
mouth with wisdom and talks on sub
iects outside the range of the shortcom-
ings of servants, the last bit of scandal,
or the cost of provisions. | once heard
it said by very intelligent woman cher
self married) that she did not enjoy the
society of married women because they
were always talking about the prices OF
things. Now, this seems a rather harsh
criticism on those wives and mothers
whose minds and hearts are necessarily
racked by the question Of prices, and
who speak out of the abundance of THEN
anxieties; but the fact remains that as
staples Of conversation they are not
pleasant of profitable, and it sometimes
happens that husband will turn from
the consideration of these topics to cor
verse with some woman who has tinie
and space to think OF other things
which, considering the fact that this
mental limitation in his wife has been
caused by marrying him. always looks
unbecominr in him The old maid of
TODAY, besides being worker and n
reader, is 4 traveller She takes little
trips in the summer, with other congen-
ial spinsters, TO the mountains or sea
shore. She ranges from Maine to Cali
fornia-she even goes abroad. y gov
erned only in her perigrinations by
or the length of her purse
which purse, be it long or short, is
hers. Her days are days of pleasantness,
and her nights are nights indeed OF
peace. She goes to bed when she pleases
and does not leave one ear uncovered to
listen for the uncertain steps and waver-
ing night key of a late-coming husband.
Neither does she turn restlessly on her
pillow beside a sober snoring spouse
ana wonder. wonder, WHefe the cnliQ-
zen 3 school books or the family fan
nels are 20 come from; but she drops
into a quiet peaceful slumber to dream
of her old love, and wakes to wonder
whether married life with him could
ever become the sordid, meagre affair
which it is to so many husbands and
wives. Do YOU say: "A selfish life, lived
only for her own ease and comfort |
do not think the charge of selfishness
can be proved against the sisterhood;
for they who read history. or keep their
ewes open. cannot fail to see that a large
share of the hard and disagreeable
work of the world has been, and is be-
ing, done by single women. Inhospitals,
III reformatory institutions, in the fami-
lies of relatives, they spend and are
spent, physically, mentally, and finan-
cially. for the good of others. A lonely
life? Yes. sometimes; but loneliness is
not the worst evil in life; il is bliss com
pared to uncongenial or half-hearted
companionship. and a silence broken
only by the creak of ones rocker is mel
ody beside fault-finding and pickering.
She herself is sometimes invited to
change her condition, for the masculine
mind (of a certain order) reasons with
rr,-aat t,o-.c.aioa eifx- fhaf q Woman who