, 1884-08-22
JANE GREY SWIssHELM
The Pioneer Woman JournRlist--A
Remarkable Character.
The Anu-sIavery .svi.itery-In h
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. OF Attire
Not "A Woman s~nnrngist-
The Pathetic Part.

[Gertrude Garrison ia New York Graphic
1t was an event OF national Importance
when in 1S4s, in Pittsburg, Mrs lane Grey
SwiSshelm jumped suddenly from her sphere"
and landed in the Journalistic arena in com
mand Of a little paper called Thu Visiter
Spelled with an zen. A political paper,
tool Worse than that-an antislavery
paperl The new craft was little but mighty.
1t created what she styled "a pantaloon panic. ~
The editors from shore 10 shore considered
their bifurcated garments imperilled by this
daring woman, and defended them by neer-
ing at her.
Over the pen namo JEANNE Deans Mrs..
Swisshelm had contributed articles and
stories TO Meals Saturday Gazette Of Phila-
dolphin, The Dollar Newspaper and the Pitts
burg Spirit OF Liberty, but the little Visitor
soon made her famous in two countries. The
Visiter not only few in tho face OF public
sentiment by advocating the abolition Of
slavery but it taught the incendiary doctrine
that a woman was entitled TO the same legal
protection as a man, and that as matters
were she didn't got it.
Mrs Swisshelm re-ostabllshed The Visiter
at st. Cloud, Mimi, and went through a
siege Of border rufianlsm on It's account that
endangered her life and the lives Of her
friends. She also became u lecturer, and
after n stormy editorial and oratorical
career went to Washington as a correspond
emit for The New York Tribune, the first
woman ever employed in that capacity in
this country.
After the war broke out she spent two
years in tho hospital as nurse. In her auto
biography she grows more enthusiastic over
his part Of her work than over anything else
she has lone. She elected subjects for her
care exactly as she would have voters chosen
by reason OF their fitness. When she found
a man whose face bore evidence Of O clean
mind and a manly spirit, whose life would be
worth something TO the world II prolonged,
she dill all she could TO save him. But when
,he read grossness, sensuality and selishness
in a sick mans countenance she wasted no
effort on him. She saw no merit in saving
human life at the expense Of botter mn
teriRl.
Mrs. Swisshelm never wore n flower, a
feather, a bow OF ribbon, a ring or bit Of
jewelry In her life. She told mo she never
allowed the expenses OF her wardrobe to ex-
coed $40 a year. In the summer she usually
wore a ginghnm gown that cost about n dol
lar, with a sun bonnet TO match; and once
she paid s. for a yard Of volvet out Of which
sho made a bonnet that she wore sevon years.
While In Office doing editorial work she wore
a net scarf tied under her chin which looked
like a cap. She didn't ah0st this originality
Of costume because she was e~ccantric, but 70
avoid tho dubious felicity OF being
talked about"-to confute by her appear
anco as well as her conduct any lie that
any BLACKBOARD might set afoat about her.
She wanted 10 DO able 10 look a man straight
In the face whilo she talked with him, and
never for IN instant have him think that
she was anything more than = mind In q
washerwoman's dress
For tho same reason she never accepted the
sl'ghtest attention from any gentleman. To
nl offors Of seeing her TO a carriage or car
she answered that sho needed no suca cour.
tesy. When size went to the Office or else
where at night she took a small office boy
with her as escort
With all her severe plainness Of attire she
never looked lesa than an empress. She
had n beauty OF figure and face and O
majesty of carriage that common gar.
ments could not conceal She was
an illustration OF how little, after all, we arr
indebted to clothes for our appearance. She
had an oval face, with a broad, smooth
forehead, dark, arched eyebrows, big, clear,
gray-blue eyes, q perfectly straight nose and
q large, firm mouth. In conversation she
was charming. She talked as she wrote,
with n choice OF language at once powerful
and beautiful, and in n voice strikingly un'
emotional, clear and deep, with no high keyE
and no womanish quavers in 1t.
Mira Swisshelm's chirography Is q sort Of
photograph OF hor character. Its a curious,
original and beautiful hAnd-straight. strong
and without a superfiuous line. Besides
some Of tho affected furries of younger
writers 1t looks like a leaf from On en-
g~raver's book OF samples.
Mrs. Swisshelm is often spoken OF as a
"woman's rights woman. She really mover
favored suffrage, andhad no sympathy what
ever for the original type OF equal suffragists,
who fairly fayed man, the oppressor,p alive,
when thoy treated the world to a specimen
of their oratorieai powers. She wantcd
women to be equal before the law with men,
10 have the same chance In life, the Same
pay for their labor, and the same tolerance
towards their faults-to share equally In
everything.
Her matrimonial star was eva. After
twenty years Of unhappy wedlock she tool
her only child, then q baby, In her arms and
went up into the forests OF Minnesota, hop
ing to live a peaceful life, far from all pub
lie strife and contention. The dream was
vain. Mont Of US can escape our destiny.
The busiest and stormiest part of her life was
yet to come. She made but one direct charge
against her husband. 1t was that he @wai
not much better than the average man.
The most pathetic part OF Jane Swisshelm'i
history is the surrender OF her love Of art K
the ignorant prejudice Of her time. Sh,
never saw any paintings until after she was
married. A travelling artist stopped at the
village; she saw his pictures and a now worlt
was opened TO her-opened only TO be rudely
closed again in her face. She tried painting
and was at once lost TO all other interests
but the sentiment Of the times was against 4
married woman doing anything but house
work. While she was experimenting on can
yrs and hesitating in her mind about the lin,
OF duty, she met ole OF those newspaper
paragraphs with which men are won't to pei
women into srbjeotion: "A man does moi
marry an artist, but q housekeeper." "This
fitted my case" she said, sand my doom was
sealed. l put away my brushes; resolutely
cruciied my divine gift, and while 1t hung
whitening on tho cross, spent my best year
and power cooking cabbage"
Fruitful Frost.
[John Swinton's Paper.l
In northern Dakota tho farmers utilize ths
frost, and they put it to good use, The frosi
goes down Ave and six foet This froit serves