Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-05-14
raE
Facts Proving That She Is Entitled to
More Credit Than She Receives.

IL mas become InC laSIllOu VI ldtc W
say Il great deal about the extravaganza
of girls and their untitness for self
denial. for economical housekeeping as
poor mems wives, or, in fact. for any
thing more than q gay society life.
The girl of the period is depicted as
| devoted to dress and amusement, I'M
able to keep house orto direct servants.
| and with no aim in life beyond that Of
making Il good marriage by which she
will be enabled to dress more hand
somely and live more l%uxuriously than
before.
There are doubtless girls whose habits
theories give color to this belief. But
it is time Il plea should be advanced for
the much greater number whose lives
are Il complete contradiction to such
charges. The average girl is fit for
something far better than Il mere butter
fly existence. While she may not
always make intellectual pursuits her
chief employment, she is generally
tolerably deficient in what 4 majority
of men rank above these, namely,
h%ousewifely accomplishments.
The helpless fashionable young lady,
who, if she did not quite carry out the
programme offered by the Mother Goose
melody,
Sit on a cushion and sew up a seam
And live on es, sugar and cream,
at least was supposed to pass most Of
her waking hours that she did not de.
vote to the subjugation Of her admirers
in dawdling over j bit of useless fancy
work, has been consigned to the top
shelf along with ''Clarissa Harlowce"
and 'Sir Charles Grandson" Some
times a non-progressive author reintro-
duces her to the general public under
the impression that he is keeping up
with the times, but as Il rule she re-
mains in obscurity. Her successor, the
dashing young woman who danced the
german all night and slept all day, and
who tlourished to perfection in Miss
Warmers books to throw the virtuous
heroine into stronger relief, still pre-
serves Il shadowy existence, but her
days, happily, are numbered.
The average girl, carefully observed,
offers a REPUTATION to the popular libels
that too often pass for truthful descrip-
tons. She has a healthy enjoyment of
young society and of gaiety-it would
be peculiar if she had not-but she can
also turn her attention to graver pur-
suits with equal interest. Many girls
are no mean students, and conduct
courses of reading after leaving
school with a perseverance that puts to
shame their brothers neglect of study
when the %latter's college days are over.
Very seldom does one find Il man who
gives even a small portion of his leisure
to reading that does not bear directly
upon his business or profession. There
is an amazingly small proportion of
really idle girls. If the result of their
labors sometimes seems to demonstrate
that the game has not been worth the
candle, it is not because they do not
| give due time and energy to their m
Payments, but that these employments
themselves are unworthy. Nor is this
altogether the girls fault. A man
usually carve out his own niche in
lif~ A girl is as often born in hers,
or placed there by circumstances over
which she has-or thinks she has-no
control.
Even against her disadvantages of.
training and environment the girl
achieves a fair result. The number of.
those who are slaves to the pleasure of
society and to a greed for excitement
and admiration shrinks into insigniti-
canoe when compared to those who led
diligent, active lives.
The girl of to-day is generally prof.
cientin needle-work. She can not only
alter her own dresses, but cut and make
those and her underclothinS as well.
She has a knack at trimming her hats
and furnishing up her wardrobe, and
does her full share at helping the dress
maker. who comes to assume charge of
the spring and fall sewing. She under
stands the various branches of mend
ing, and takes that division of labor off
her mothers hands, as we'll Us the care
of parlor and dining-room, the arrang-
ing of flowers, the supervision of the
manners and apparel of the younger
children, and sometimes oftheir studies,
too.
Let full justice be done to the .'girl
of the PERIOD" or, rather, let there be
q clear comprehension of what should
be really represented by that much
abused phrase. 1t is not fair to take
the weakest specimens of the sex as
types of a class comprising earnest
workers, with strong conceptions Of
life. its responsibilities and burdens.
and a steady purpose to bear them &C
cording to the best of their ability
Christine Her15ck, IN PHILADELPHIA Press.
TO BECOME RICH.