Huntsville gazette., 1889-11-30
ONE WOMAN'S WORK.


''Well, it shall not be, if we women
can help it," thought Janet Grayden, as
she wended her way through the sleet
and slush to the school where her duties
lay. "We teachers are teaching and
training future citizens, and we must be
consistent, and place in Offices of trust
and responsibility only such citizens as
our boys and girls may respect, and
those whose example it would be safe
to follow. Very little sense in teaching
our youth to be honest, sober, righteous,
truthful, and then going and giving the
offices of trust and honor to men known
to be the reverse of all thesep'
In this line ran her thoughts; for
Janet was endowed with the right of
voting in the coming election for school
trustees and municipal officers. and the
sense of her responsibility in the dis
charge of her duty led to these refec-
tions.
The municipality was preparing for
these elections, and the usual array of
candidates were coming out" The
town paper, issued weekly, contained
their Cards soliciting the suffrages of
the electors, and their promises torwork
for all the interests intrusted to them.
: OF the, candidates presenting them
selves for school trustees and council.
ors, two were openly opposed to prohibit
ton and total abstinence; one was an
habitual drinker, and two openly i'm
moral. Here was a fine ticket truly.
How did all this come about? Very
easily. The. truly intelligent and
Christian element had not sufficiently
: awakened to the important duties of
citizenship. The best men were i'm
mersed in their own business, and
thought they had no time to give the
town. forgetting the bearing which the
rule of unprincipled men must have up
on their children. Alas! that in our
country, the spirit of true patriotism is
SO lightly esteemed, and the high claims
of citizenship so frequently ignored by
good people.
woman were aroused, and as Janet
Grayden conducted her school that day,
the elder boys and girls noticed that she
was possessed of an unusual spirit
which seemed even to express itself in
her steps around the room. They saw
and wondered. Ontario boys and girls
are quick to perceive. They felt sure
some new movement was bursting upon
them.
When the duties of the day were over
this heart-full teacher opened her
case, and Startled her pupils with the
question:
''What is patriotism?"
Up went several hands, and the defini.
tion. was. satisfactory. 8
Various questions followed in regular
course, concerning government, national,
municipal, educational, their several
functions, eliciting peculiar and varied,
but on the whole intsiligent, replies
from these citizens in embryo. The alb
Bolute need of good men TO enforce good
laws was dwelt upon, in short, con-
densed and interesting study, which the
pupils were then pledged to report and
discuss at home.
In the course of the next few days the
following results ensued. The Methodist
minister, whose children had communi-
Gated the substance of the. teachers
study at the tea-table that evening, was
visited with the laudable desire to en-
large upon the responsibilities of Chris
tian citizenship at the prayer-meeting
that night. One of the prominent mem
bers, hearing him, suggested that the
discourse be repeated on the succeeding
Sunday. This idea suggested to the
minister to ask the other ministers of
the town to co-operate; and, all feeling
the Importance of the matter, the citi-
Eens were informed in the Friday issue
of the paper of their decision.
- ,Fhus on Sunday all the churches were
brought to the point of considering the
practical istianity which is neces-
sary to the upbuilding of God-fearing
nation, and to the great fact that God
calls too often in vain to good, indus
trious, honest men to go into His vine
yard of government and work for him.
So prone are we to think that the church
Is the vineyard. and the church alone!
In his discourse that day, the good old
Presbyterian minister, who had labored
+, there before the present generation came
upon the scene, received new inspira-
ton, and, amazed his congregation by
Stating that the hope of his heart for the
publication of all government, and the
infusion of righteousness into public
affairs. was about to be realized by the
introduction of the voice of woman
through the ballot. ''The limited bal
lot now in the hands of woman is a
power we are just beginning to feel the
good of, he declared, 'and 1 am con-
tent to repudiate all past opposition and
$ prejudice on my part, by the strong con-
viction which l have to-day that the
conscience of womanhood, crystallized
in the ballot-box, will be the protection
Of our youth from untold evil, and the
stimulation of our manhood to hitherto
unanticipated good"
A citizens meeting was called for the
next evening to consider the coming
contest; and the. final result of this was
an addition to thenumber of candidates,
SO that, when nomination day arrived, q
new and more cheering phase of affairs
was presented to the electors.