The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1888-07-06

the wnEELsARRow ROAD.

A AlleeoricalP sn-Pie3urs Of the Obstacles
In womaa's Path In Lie.
When was . bachelor I lived by myself
| And All the bread and cheese I had put upon
| the shell,
But the rats and the mice they made such q
| strife,
was obliged to go to London to get myself .
| wife
| Now the roads we're wide, but the gates were
SO narrow
I was obliged to bring my wife home in wheel
barrow.
The wheelbarrow broke, my wife had fall
Down came the wheelbarrow. my wife and all
All along the roadway of life there
were strewr wrecked benedicts. wrecked
wives, wrecked wheelbairows. Still the
tireless throng toiled on. Now and then
l saw man stop on his way and give
to q weary traveller helping hand.
But this was not often. All seemed
bent on gaining the goal. each with his
own burden, each with his own Wheel
barrow.
Now, when the benedicts looked upon
their bachelor friends trudging along so
comfortably. picking out the messy
spots on which to tread. they sometimes
CRASHED their teeth and wished they
were as one Of them.
There were many gates along the
road, and each gate was held by a
keeper who collected toll. and each
gatekeeper was a man.
As l gazed / beheld a man, with a
| very heavy burden; wife and several
little ones. His shoulders were bent,
and he seemed very weary. The wife
walked by his side and with words of
encouragement she sought to cheer him
on. But the road was very rough, and
one day he lay down and died. And
the woman wiped away her tears and
the tears of her little ones, and took up
her burden alone. But whenever she
reached a gate the toll was very heavy
more even than when her good hus-
band was alive. She sighed and looked
very sad, for she had no one to help her.
Now the gates were very narrow.
and the rudely fashioned barrOws of the
poor were charged a heavy toll. And
no poor man escaped. But the neatly
wrought barrOws of the rich, which en-
tered easily through the gates, were
charged less. Indeed, some of them
slipped through with no toll at all.
And saw many strange things, and
I marvelled greatly. The woman with
the many little children prayed for
strength and toiled YEARLY on. And
one day saw man salute her on the
road. He had barrow fashioned in a
right handsome style, and he babe her
enter and rest from her burdens. But
there was no room for her little children
and she said mo" And the spirit of
her husband afar off rejoiced greatly. :
Then-O wondrous to relate!-I saw
a very comedy man with three daugh-
tiers. He had mo wife; the sacred
charge was his alone. And when a
woman with soft voice and a pretty
face smiled on him, he babe her come
and share the barrow. And she came.
And straightway it became very small,
and the daughters were pushed out
among the thorns by the wayside, and
naught but the spirit of their angel
mother watched over them as they bore
their own burdens the rest of the way.
Then there were beautiful ladies in
barrows richly cushioned in satin, with
springs a plenty. that they might know
no jOlting over rocks and ruts, with
lace canOpies to protect them from the
SUMS rays, and the arms Of loving hus-
bands to shield them from all harm.
By their very side travelled poor. half
fed, half-clad women, with burdens of
aged parents and crippled brothers and
helpless little children. Creatures who
worked and shaved with their needle for
the husbands Of the very women of the
satin cushions and the canopies of lace.
But the ladies saw them not nor heard
the wall of the helpless humanity at
their very side. The toll at the gate
was very heavy. Alas! alas! And the
poor women, with thorn-pierced feet,
bruised and bleeding, journeyed on.
There was no one to help them.
Then / saw numbers of women trun-
ding great. heavy-loaded wheel-bar-
rows containing husbands hus-
bands-men with red eyes and dull
brains. Now and then they halted.
And who would credit it? The men re-
tired behind green blinds and fancy
screens with a spring that closed rapid
ly. And the woman waited, and when
the man saw fit to come, they then jour-
neyed on. o, remarkable sight! o. more
remarkable man! o, most extraordin-
airy woman!
BY and by came woman with a
brave. stern tread, but with gentle.
womanly face, and she had a very
Strengthening burden. And when
they asked her what she bore. she said,
"Ideas." And then every one laughed.
Who ever heard of so strange, so UNI
womanly burden? When they said.
'.What will you do with them?" she
said. ''You shall see." Then strong
men with broad shoulders and we'll
shod feet laughed aloud. the while they
disapproved. They said, go home
and attend to your children" and she
said, 81 have none" And the breeze
of their disapproval waited the ideas
far and wide. ''What will you?" said
they. Il would a be gatekeeper," said
she. And they laughed her to scorn.
IF must pay toll, why shall not be
q keeper of the gate?" ''You unsex
yourself" said they. And the women
whose burdens were husbands stood
very erect and joined her at the gate.