The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1889-05-31
QUESTIONABLE PURPOSES.
Mans Motives In Lowering the Intel
lectual Status of Women.

Mans Motives In Lowering the Intel.
lectual Status of Women.
There is something particularly I'M
kind i'll that remark about carrying on
over into eternity the UNDERSTANDS of
the female" In the sixth volume of
"Sir Charles Grandson. that ponder
Gus prince of gentlemen is asked by his
sprightly sister, "Do you think that
there is a natural inferiority in the
faculties of the one sex? A natural
superiority in those OF the other?" He
answers, Generally speaking, l have
no doubt but there is" After pro-
longed discussion, in which the argu-
ments used seemed very familiar. and
show that the folly of the last century
bore a strong family likeness TO the
folly of this, Sir Charles comfortingly
assures his lady friends that their in
tellectual inferiority is only imposed
upon them for temporary purposes:
"When those purposes are at an end,
this difference will be at an end too =. -.
and women will certainly be on a foot
with men. as intellectuals, in Heaven"
The difficulty is to see what good
purpose, either permanent or tempo
rary, could be served by intellectual in
feriority. The most prominent char
acteristjc of stupidity is to make trou-
BILE, delay things, and get in the way
generally. Even assuming that women
exist solely for the purpose of being
usuful to men. it is evident that an in
telligent wife can be twice as useful to
her husband as a stupid one. If she
became too intelligent. however. she
might not care TO make herself useful
to him unless he deserved it. A GER
tain scientist has said that the perfcc-
ton of horse lies in his stupidity,
since if he were as intelligent as his
master. he would not let his master
ride him-unless he did il for love, we
may add, like the black horse in John
Brent" Perhaps that curious saying
that 1.-THE perfection of character in a
woman is to be characterless' had its
origin in Il similar idea. II a man
wants to be always admired, no matter
whether he is admirable or not, then it
is evidently TO his interest that the wo-
men of his family should not be intelli-
gent enough to discriminate. As some
body in one of Oliver Wendell Holmes
books says: 81 don't want Il woman to
weigh me in n balance. The judicial
character isn't captivating in females,
A
rs often by what she. ovc:.looks az by
what she sees" This doctrine is likely
to bepopular, especially with those who
have good deal to be overlooked.
1t may be questioned whether the
masculine half of the human race has
not lost something by idealizing and |
encouraging that type of feminine
character.
Meanwhile, from the point OF view Of |
the woman suffragist, all these little |
ebullitions of conceit have a distinct |
practical value. They serve to make |
feminine readers indignant, and thus
help us to carry out the frequent ex-
hortations of our opponents to ''cOn-
vert the women"
ut is well for him that l am not |
God" grim old Puritan says. in Har-
riet Beechcr Stoves "Oldtown Folks"
to the man who has wronged
his sister When some small potentate,
from the petty elevation OF his pulpit
or OF the editorial desk. lays down the
law regarding women in a lofty and
manner, we think how fOrtu-
nate it is for us that he is not the Ruler
of the universe Ga fact of which he
does not always seem to be clearly
aware), and that after all it does not
rest with him to determine the status
Of the female. Alice Stone Blackwell,
in Woman's Journal