The morning call., 1890-12-26
THE RUTHLESS SEX.

THE RUTHLESS SEX.
as. s." Wants to Know IL the Female
Sex Is More Ruthless Than the Male.
Editor Womdns Column. Morning Call:
Oh, Oscar Fay Adams, we know thee now.
Thou art that heather. old Adam, reincar-
mated, with an added to thy surname and
nineteenth century pranomen. And this
is what thou sayest Of the " Ruthless Sex"
the Ewes OF the present day:
woman Is cruel, angry, when her sex is
attacked" but ready to attack the ndivid-
ual woman. Women have no sympathy
for each other" woman is Indifferent to
suffering; she wears birds and is indiffer-
emf to the suffering of car hOrses-that
proves the statement. Feminine cruelty
is the outcome of ignoDle qualities rising
from indifference, vanity, jealousy, and is
seldom kept in check by reason" Mans
cruelty springs from motive not altogether
to be condemned, ambition to certain ex-
tent desirable a seeking of power for laud-
able ends, or to obtain wealth to reason
able extent" The excess IF laudable am
bitioE seems to be the motive of mans
cruelty in other words an excess of virtue.
Wonan is cruel to fallen women" Well.
well! lei us cry peccavI. improve on our les
SON and make life bearable by inspecting
THE SEX NOT RUTHLESS"
Woman has usually been held account
able to master, been in his power, and. as
rule, Is unaccustOmed to cooperation, and
regards everything from an individual
standpoint. Her life-work makes her SEN
sitive TO responsibility, and having so gener-
ally been held responsible for the sins of
other women she is touchy, where a man
would not feel hurt Some man commits a
monstouS outrage or murders, disgraces
humanity, but no other man feels the Slight
est responsibility, no one hints that all men
should be dsfranchised or debarred from
opportunities therefor; but if woman
commits sin, an indiscretion even, il is
trumpeted abroad, masculine wisdom dis
Germs profound reasons why woman, the
sex, should not be trusted with self-control
because one woman has proved unworthy.
Women feel that wholesale charges are I'M
just and resent them, but at the same time
they have suffered SO much for Others sins
that they at first feel resentment for her
who causes the charge. Seriously, hold all
men responsible for the wrong-doing of
each for generations. and withhold rights
from all because some are unworthy, and
they would be touchy too. We should like
TO know on what ground Mr.. Adams states
that women have no sympathy for each
other, Who
BY PERSONAL SACRIFICE
Have organized missions in disreputable
places? Who organize protection and relief
Who have rescue homes? homes that 1t is
most difficult to maintain, because So many
voters net OF the ruthless SEX do not wish
their victims TO expose them, and SO do all
they can to break up protective agencies.
The ladies of San Francisco who have tried
to save the fallen Can tell what walls and
pitfalls mice. respectable voters" put in
their way. There is not in our country
woman's organization to promote evil, and
most of them are expressly TO aid women,
though tha ha mol of L.
much harder to save men than each other
Men have built a wall of silence about vice.
Behind 1t they drag youth, innocence, ignor-
ance. frivolity and the few women who are
willingly unchaste; all other women are
warned to Keep away and not to speak of il.
Woman'S life and heart are largely in the
keeping OF those men. She sees the wrecks,
but often does not know the cause. She
trembles for her boys, and, as taught hides
her head in the sand. falcying that unseen
danger is less potent But she is learning
that silence is CONSENT and that the only
way
TO SAVE HER own
Is to save fallen women" Women are do
ing much in social purity. When men help
them, as they do in many places, there will
be fewer fallen women" In this fallen
women question, woman is not alone
ruthless" Woman is accused of wearing
birds and being cruel on car horses A
brd's corpse Is questionable ornament,
Dut SNiilt NUllltll Iikt IL. Stlll the man VINO
goes cunning or fishing for fun seems almost
as ruthless" Thoughtlessness and igno-
rance sometimes make women cruel; they
see the pretty feathers but do not see the
agony that accompanied their capture and
so think nothing about it. Some regard or
naments as necessary bait 10 secure nus
bands, and beauS have not seemed to be re-
PEELED by dead birds when properly posed.
True, women often stop car in the middle
OF a block. So do men. Persons usually
think Of their own affairs; pay for thing
and trace it no further. Women do
not think that starting cars is harder
than continuous pulling. They pity
poor Rosnante, but it is choice between
cruelty to self or the poor horse whom the
Why should woman care? Car horses
should be protected by municipal law, and
that IS none OF her business. Men pile ana
pile on TO cars. Why dues not the consd-
crate, knowing sex either walk or legislate
for the abused horse? 1t seems that femi-
nine cruelty comes from vanity, jealousy
and is not held in check by reason" very
bad indeed But masculine Cruelty springs
from motive not altogether to be CON
demned. ambition, seeking power for lauda-
Bile ends" Leonora'S bumming bird on her
winter hat 20 please John or TO fill Mar
tlana with bitter envy, is without defense,
but Fourth of July creased pigs ana cock
lights, horse-raee, that send the steeds quiy-
ering to their stables; slogging matches and
pugiiistic combats, attended by admring
thousands, are merely the outcome of "lauda-
Bile ambition" hardly cruel enough to place
man In the ruthless SEX" We saw three
men and two dogs after one little rabbit, lust
now, but that was not cruel no vanity or
jealousy there, only fun, Standardization.
Let us air this question Of the ruthless
SEX" SIS.
Giiroy, December. $780,