Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-03-29
THE WOMAN QUESTION.

A writer in the Inter Ocean, which has
opened its columns to the discussion of
THE Woman Question" claims, in the
matter Of the employment of women in
business vocations, that it is her right to
enter them, and that the need for her be-
coming self-helpful is imperative But
when she has said all that, and supported
1t by ingenious argument addressed more
to the sympathies than to the reason, she
adds thai after all it is not woman's true
sphere. That is to say, business is irksome
to a woman as it is not TO a man. Among
other reasons this graceful writer advances
some in support of this view, that are not
often mentioned: That housewifery admits
of infinite variation, while business has
none; it is treadmill work all the time,
f6ut;ne day after day the same. She says:
In housewifely duty certain daily routine
rnnst he gone through, but there are, even in
the busiest day, half hours thst can De spent IN
reading, in setting few stitches " oiE OF
fascinating embroidery, chatting wv" cA-4eE'
running out for a breath Of fresh air or a look
at the sunshine. In business these are all
luXuries which must be sacrificed entirely. II
must be business only, from S 10 6, or longer,
and every selfindulgence or neglect of the
work in hand, means blunder, waste OF precious
time, and failure.
The woman who expects 10 succeed can not
stroll down town when the fancy suits her, seat
herself at her desk or her type-writing machine,
and do the things that please here. snow and
mud and ram must have no terroTs, and aches
and pains must be banished and forgotten. Not
only must exactness, promptness and reliability
be cultivated from the very beginning, but there
must be- in most work, an entire reIlnqu!sh-
ments OF personal prejudices and desires. II all
the virtues can be cultivated and the faults
eliminated there is still another quality hard
est of ALTO be cultivated, and that is en-
thusiasm in ones calling, or as It is termed
professional pride. This means loving work for
work sake: finding in il satisfaction the pleas
ure in doing it well; willingness to endure
fatigue possibly injustice, and lack of apprecia-
ton, and finally, 10 receive less than man
would be paid Tor doing the same task perhaps
not half so well. The latter requirements con-
stitute the sentiment of business. but II IS as
necessary for success in business as Il IS 10 hap
piness in life. And if the conditions are too
hard, then the young woman Who wants
career would better remain at home.
Precisely, and with very few exceptions
the best place for all women is home.
Business life for women means weaving
away from home tastes, destruction of do
mestIcity, disinclination and unhtness for
matrimony and maternity, breaking down
of the chivalrous sentiment, and the strip
ping from woman of that temininity that
is her chief charm and her strongest,
broadest shield. Moreover, entry into bust
ness lowers wages, and excludes from bust
ness walks men who could earn more and
become the builders of homes. If, as the
correspondent of the Inter Ocean SAYS,
there is here and there woman who is
successful in business, it is because she has
passed through the fires of bitter expert
cree.
she has learned dispatch by days of toilsome
drudgery; she has acquired correctness by re-
pairing a thousand Notifying mistakes, and
every hour of leisure represents days and
months of overwork for which there was no APP
parent compensation of any sort Her success
Is the outward and visible sign OF struggle
in which any but less determined nature
must have despaired. Wei Tor her If in the
and sweetness, and sacrifice her faith in human
nature. Not one privilege does She enjoy but
that it has had an equivalent in failure and
anguish known only 10 herself
And we repeat with the writer, well
for her if in the struggle she does not lose
her womanly grace and sweetness, and sac
rifce her faith in human nature" and all
simply because business life is unnatural
for her, and in it she is out of line with
the purpose Of her being. However harsh
it may seem to say so, We have no hesi-
fancy in declaring that the worst use a
man can put his daughters to in reputable
life is to take them from the home and
place them in what is ordinarily under
stood to be business vocations. There are
certain callings in line with domestic life
and womanly nature, and in the fine arts,
for which women are fitted by their femi-
nine attributes, and in these there is a
wide field for employment, but beyond
them the area of occupation offered is in
antagonism to her natural self. In another
column of the REcoRD-UNIoN this subject
is discussed more deliberately. The article
may repay the thoughtful to read and
ponder upon.