The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1890-12-04
ones. The mouse in the fable taunted
the lioness with having so few ofsprings,
and the lioness retorted, "But they are

the liouess with having so feW ofisprlngs,
and the lioness retorted, "But they are
lions"
Well, don't believe in that. don't
believe in anything that is not according
to nature. l never eaw right healthy.
mature woman who was n0ta mother. l
never saw good one who did not wish to
be-.
Mrs. Austin wrotes most terderly and
truthlully about that, and asserts that
maternity brings back youth and keeps
it fresh and buoyant She says: I was
born over seventy years ago, and now in
my serene old age I look upon my chill
dren and grandchildren as workman
looks upon piece of work with which
he is satisfied. My children are still my
babies, and their little ones bring back
my youth.
That's so. l know it is so. My wife
has hourished on it, She has gone to see
sick one now. What would we be
without them? Why. wouldn't enjoy
my last illness if there were no children
around to love me and weep when I was
gone.
But old Mrs Beecher writes a cold,
hard letter, too hard, 1 think, and tells
how she had to do the washing and iron
ing and make cheese and COOS, and sew
and darn and plait straw, and was never
idle except when asleep, and she thinks
the girls should be raised that way. All
that is we'll enough if she was happy, and
she says she was, but she declares that if
she had dozen girls she would make
then do the same thing, and would never
mention marriage to them, and fthey
did not marry che would send them out
to service-yes, hire them out to work in
somebody's kitchen. May the coed Lord
forbid! That is what l call poverty
hard, pinching poverty when an educated
girl has come to that. She says: "Our
little girl had a beautiful shock of golden
hair that curled in ringlets. and one day
lady called and said to the child:
what beautiful hair you have got-you
are 80 pretty I..want a kiss In the after
noon I cav my child standing on chair
looking at herself in the mirror. Her
father saw her too and lifted her down
aud told me to cut off those curls. I did
so and the little lamb was sheared."
If I had ever done the like of that to
my child I woulden't own it now. Bless
God I never did nor had any desire to.
That child's maker gave her that hair as
an ornament, and it was no more harm
to be proud of it than to be proud of her
beautiful eyes. The mother might, with
as much reason, make her 60 barefooted
to crush her pride. The old lady closes
her letter with "Cut off the curls, close
the piano and the fiddle box, and give
the girls plenty of work to d."
This puts me to thinking either Mrs.
Beecher is hard woman, or I am very
soft man, for shall not cut off the curls
nor close the piano or fiddle box. They
are all pleasure and treasure at any
house.
But in all these letters there are good
thoughts and food for reflection. The
gist of the whole matter is that every re.
spectacle family ought to do the very
best they can for the girls, and / reckon
they will. Good example and good pre-.
cepts and happy 6reside are the best
safeguards. If the girls do not have these
at home there is no security abroad.
BILL ARP.