The Forrest City times., 1891-02-27
WHAT TO TEACH GIRLS
MRS. BEeCHER ADVISES SEWING,
 COOKING, AND THE LIKE.
She Charges Strong Minded Women and Blames Mothers for Badly Educat-
 ing Their Children.

the widest possible range. Perhaps the most interesting because it is q solid assault against the strong minded woman-such an assault as ordinarily comes from a bear of man-and for other reasons is under the signature of Mrs. Henry Ward Beecher. Mrs. Beecher says:
 Home is the place for woman, and when she engages in any work or un- dertakes an enterprise that does not come under the head of home duties or home training l think she is out of her place. l know that our women and girls are in business and in politics, but according to my notion. they are doing work that does not belong to them and for which they are not fitted. l believe that the female politician who goes on the platform, makes speeches. and does lobbying only antagonizes the people. In an assembly of men she must be a positive intolerance and an obstruction as q prohibitionist. beheve that if 1 were man and lot of women tried to make prohibition ist of me l should drink more than ever. Their ofiiciousness in raiding saloons I think not only unwomanly but most culpable. That she can exert a powerful influence for good both in the interest of politics and temperance every body admits, but there is time for everything and proper place. The youth IS always ready to take im- pressions and she has her relatives and friends among the adults, but she cannot attempt even to reform strang- CTS or to carry her work iuto public places without personal loss and neglect of the home or school.
 Il cannot abide woman as a pub lie speaker, preacher or teacher. If n woman has anything to say let her say
 it in writing and have the matter pub lished. There is no better way of reaching the people than by means of the press. l don't like the idea of q woman cheapeniug herself by psblic exhibition. l cannot bear 10 have q woman rise in church even Mir. Beecher used repeatedly to invite the people to get right up if they had any thing to say or any question 10 ask, and he gave the women of the eongre- eation special invitation. although l repeatedly objected and regretted he did SO heard, too, the brilliant Anna Dickinson lecture, but it was a punishment for with all her eloqueuce she could not make me forget that she was a woman and out of place. l never yet saw n woman on her feet ad- dressing meeting or presiding off cer that l did not tiud myself wishing she would sit down.
 No, l have absolutely no sympathy for or interest iu the leagues or re- forms that are being conducted by so- called strong minded women. Ladies come here almost every day asking me to sigu petitions or lend my name to the so-called movements. but 1 always refuse. l don't care anything about female suffrage If we bad it couldn', be dragged to the polls. l never had l any rights that were ever denied me and l am sure that l took a great many more than l deserved. Oui women don't want suffrage; they wan to go to work aud learn how to raise their children. Girls are not trained as they should be. They can't do any
 thing, and the saddest feature is Lh.
 mother doesn't know how to instruc them either The education our girls get at school is largely wrong. It is aot education in the home sense, for 1t | ioes not fit them for anything. Most of the training consists of accomplish nents. l believe in teaching her how to make bread and soup. to cook beef | l. .,&I hAr own clothes and to keep house. l made bread when 1 was so small tha, 1 had to stand on foot-rest to reach the pan. We lived in the country. where It was so hard to get help that we agreed to do the housework ourselves and my mother divided it in such 2 way that we had equal shares. Bott my sisters had married aud gone from home. and for fifteen years 1 was al home. We played sisters, mother and l, and worked like girls rather than mother and child.
 ''One Monday mother did the wash. ing aud l made the cheese. The nexi week l was at the tubs and mother was in the dairy. Tuesday she ironed and did the baking and we had ouI turns at sewing and darning. Ws made everything that was worn shirts, dresses, trousers and all, and even after l was married 1 made al my husbands clothes but his coat Father was in debt for new land hs had purchased and every body saved and every body helped to pay for the farm. Even our pennies for ginger bread and butter-scotch went to hell father. and remember how proudly plaitcd straw that gave me $50 year and. when l became more skillful Sl50. This sum kept me, and there was always some money left to buy present fer mother and father or some pretty ornansnt for the honse.
 When We began housekeeping ant went west Mir. Beccher had salary 0 S300 year, aud was too proud to le my people know how little we had That was not even Sl day. l couls not live on it as had been accustomed to live. and so took in boarders ane took n sewing. Then came the inval uable teachings of my mother. Ml husband and l worked side by side only a partition separating his desl from my table. When he wrote any thing that pleased him particularly h' | would call to me to come aud hear it anu 1 dropped my work. dried my hands, listened to him and told hin just what thought about it. In tn, evening had my mending and darn ing to do and he read to me. If h, was very tired put away my work basket and l read"