Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-05-17

criticises the width of her bonnet strings,
the cut of her gowns and the vanity Of
her ruf1es. The woman who by virtue
of her brains can manage q house, bring
comfort and prosperity into her home, and
delight people by her lectures upon the
platform is far beyond the average, but she,
too, is ordered to stay at home, and keep her
mouth shut, and is moreover told that all
the good she can do in the great world at
large is as nothing to her possibilities at
home as wife or mother.
Another nlustrious Example.
Mrs. Julia Ward Howe is another trans
gressor of this keeping at home rule. She
is the mother of talented family whose
care and training did not prevent her from
spending part of her time in the recreation
of attending conventions, delivering lect-
ures and going about the world. She is an
advocate Of the independence of women.
By her talents she has won fame and high
appreciation.
Perhaps no better illustration of the
brothers audacity in limiting the sphere of
women to the home is presented than Mrs.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, whose brilliant
ability as writer and speaker upon the
platform placed her name high among her
country WOMEN. NILS. Otdntou WIS Ouc Ol
the pioneers of woman's progress, and had
large family of children, but she found
time to attend conventions, and make
speeches filed with arguments that no man
has vet been able to answer. She addressed
legislatures, sent in petitions, wrote for the
newspapers, and withal, has brought up her
family in the way they should go. On one
occasion she made a speech to the New
York Legislature. Some of the ladies pres
ent, when congratulating her, said in a de-
precating tone: "But what do you do with
your chi1dren?''
Ladies' she replied, 'tit takes me no
longer to speak than you to listen; what
have you done with your children during
the two hours you have been sitting here?"
No more sweet, motherly, noble woman
is to be found than Mrs. Lucy Stone, who
has attended public meetings, spoken upon
platforms, has stood up for the rights of the
slave, and the rights of women since she
was graduated at college many years ago.
Nobody has anything to say of her neglect
ing her family by so doing, or of making
mistake in the mission marked out for her
by ordinance of heaven.
Mrs. Motifs Statement of the Case.
Apropos to this subject Mrs. Mott has
said in one of her speeches: "Why should
not woman seek to be reformer? If she
is to fear to exercise her reason and her
noblest powers, lest she should be thought
to attempt to act the man and not acknow-
ledge his supremacy; if she is to be satisfied
with the narrow limits laid down by man,
truly there is a mournful prospect for
woman. We would admit all the difference
that our great and benefcent Creator has
made in the relation of man and woman, nor
would we seek to disturb this relation, but
we deny that the present position Of
woman is her true sphere of usefulness; nor
will she attain to this sphere until the disa-
bilities and disadvantages, religious, civil
and social, which impede her progress are
removed out of her way. These restrictions
have enervated her mind and paralyzed her
powers. >"
Another man who thinks women should
be confined to the home is DR.. Shrady, of
New York. He says an ambition beyond
being the affectionate sister, the loving wife,
the fond mother is not to the real advance
ment Of woman. Just as if woman could
not be all of these and yet be good doctor
He then goes on to ask what recompense
would be the discovery of new bacillus or
writing of prize thesis, when husband and
children may be suffering from neglect?
Just as if q "real smart" woman with brains
and the requisite ability could not possibly
attend to both.
How Other Women Spend Time.
Society women spend days and nights in
the pursuit of pleasure, church women
spend days at church, missionary meetings,
and sewing societies, yet nothing is heard
of their neglect of husband and children.
1t is only when the brainy women presume
a.ooo1 1or- To xrrifa ac
says, to enter the profession of medicine, to
make speeches, that they are denounced as
heading in the wrong direction. When the
up delicious dinners for the clergy at
their convention, when they hold
fancy fairs to rake in money for
the church or some charitable object, when
they hold all day missionary meetings to
sew for the heather, nobody hauls them
over the Goals for staying at home; but to
attend public meetings, to make speeches,
to lecture for money to help educate their
children-these sort of doings are shocking
to the nice, little-minded man who believes
that women should be hedged in by his mar
row ideas and prejudices, while he revsls in
the freedom of his own sweet Will
But before the advancement Of women
stops to suit his views and those of Bishop
Vincent, of Chautauqua, it would be well to
look back and consider whether in
the old days, before the railroads
were introduced, the old days of
half a century ago when women
never got out of the rut of domestic life,
when no outings frightened their lives,
when toll was their portion from day to day
and year to year, with no holidays for rest,
homes were sweeter and brighter and hus-
bands happier than they are to-day? The
'beloyed brethren" who are in such state
Of chronic scare as to the evil Of independ-
ence for women need to know that ''the sis
tern" propose to hold their own, and call no
man master. The home is henceforth to be
no long monarchy, but republic.
BESSIE BRAMBLE,