Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1893-10-19
a FIN DE SIECLE IDEA.
SEWING AND HoUsEWoRK NOW "BE-
LATED TRADEsD FOR WOMEN

Such Employment Infra Dignitaten1 as APP
piled to the Fair srx-An Up to Date
Address-''What's the World A-coming
To?'
1 Irecently heard Miss Jane Adams Of
Hull House fame read . paper on Two
Belated Trades Her ideas, if carried
out, would create revolution in socie-
ty, for she asserts that sewing and house
work are ''belated trades and no longer
in keeping With the progress Of the
times The old time method of keeping
one woman in every family tied to
cookstove and kitchen sink is far be-
hind the advancement of the age, and
the incongruous arrangement is the cause
Of the unsolvablef servant girl problem
and other domestic difficulties The idea
that there is anything iInmodest, unwor-
thy or lazy about avoiding that kind Of
work when woman is better fitted for
something else is becoming obsolete, or 4
should be very soon.
The discomfort of middle class house
keepers. the troubles of mistress and
maid, the intolerabIe drudgery accom-
panying the satisfying of our daily
]
wants, can never be done away with un-
til housekeeping is placed upon scien-
tific basis and homework elevated to the
dignity of a trade, or of many trades, for
it is now conglomeration Of numerous
crude occupations. When this has been
done and men and women left free to
choose their trades or occupations with
out fear or favor, homes will be happier
and society in general more harmonious.
The old fear that women would lose
the qualities which make them lovable
should they cease to consider cooking
and cleaning sacred duties is unfounded. I
Woman grew only more charming as
various kinds Of work were gradually
weeded from her province. Even now
the woman who is most assiduous in the
kitchen is least attractive in the parlor. 4
This should not be so, but the cold fact
remains, and the only solution is the
elimination of isolated, individual kitch-
ems. iaittl Ha Hrlii4B aui sgAH
These new ideas Of woman's position
seem to be making havoc with economic,
social and domestic arrangements The
introduction of machinery, with woin-
en- newly aroused and looking about
for new fields ready to attend them,
apparently caused great disturbance
and mischief in the labor world. The
growing ideas Of woman's independence
and freedom of action have tendency
| to disturb and shatter old societary in
stitutions which have been the land
marks of our civilization so many cen
turies, and in the so called higher classes
aspecies Of womankind has been evolved
that was never known in the past.
refer to the cultivated woman, the
beautiful, delicately attuned, sensible,
| fin de steele woman, with the soul of an
artist, the ambition Of a successful finan-
cier, the activity of Il bricklayer the
fine, nervous strength of thoroughbred
and, alas! the heart Of a tender young
girl. Society as it exists has no place
for her. It is not necessary that she
should toll for her daily bread, and she
is not needed in the business world. If
she paints or plays or sings or models
dainty little clay heads, it is only for the
amusement of her friends, who envy
rather than thank her. She longs to be
active, useful-great in some work-and
no one needs her except as she brightens
their leisure moments.
Yet with all these seemingly bad re-
! suits of woman's newer freedom and her
introduction into industrial fields, no
really thoughtful person can regret that
the change has begun. The path to lib
erty and truth has never been an easy
one, but the way out of its difficulties is
not backward Repression now, or any
attempt to put woman back into the old
seclusion with penalties attached, could
but work more mischief and suffering.
In time all society will adjust itself to
the advancements of science.
I But the time is approaching, is here
now, when it is not SO necessary to plead
woman's cause as a cause apart from the
rest of the race. The cause of humanity
| sufficient. Too many reformers of the
| resent day seem to forget that women
IRE people-justa part of hepeople, with
faculties, needs, sympathies, abilities,
not so very different from the rest Of
them. When women were really ex-
| pected to "obey.n to keep silent. to keep
1 solely within the seclusion Of home. no
matter what her circumstances or pow
ers, this was necessary. But now. wher
ever woman's interest is identical with
those of men, common sense would die
tate that she be not singled out. but
classed as part of the human race. tau
The establishment of woman's build
ing at the Worlds fair is q case in point
Why a 'woman's building" any more
than mans buildingT' Why should
not her productions beclassifed as other
exhibits are2 The fair is free for all, and
the starting of a little exposition by it
self seems to admit Of either inferiority
exclusiveness or peculiarity. as preco-
cious children sometimes do to show
what they can do "all by themselves
Woman suffragists who see no other
cause in the world worth working for
form another illustration. Many Of them
are willing promise allegiance to any
party, no matter what its principles, SO
that it will help them to a vote. If the
/ franchise is not the means by which we
hope to establish the highest principles
why in the world should we strive for
4 it? 1t should be a means. not an end.
4 Ii WOLldu lcll. llCc W NGNClOp
act, she will find her true limitations
If better { ted for seclusion and domes-
tic relations, eventually she will find her
equilibrium there. If in developing her
brain and physical powers she must sac
rifce the sweetness. nobility. beauty Of
her nature, development will cease But
this seems absurd. The most intelligent
and active women are the most loving
and tender.
Freedom of opportunity is the great
4 principle Only through it can men and
women find their proper spheres" and
reach their highest possibilities of deyel-
opment. LIzzIE M- HOLMES. .il
Chicago, Oct. 2 sHa..
A Clever Landlady. I'D sisg
The two landladies were comparing
\ notes. Hfts
II find iG pays to serve the breakfast pip
ing hot" said one, except on Sundays.
! Then serve it cold"
"Why do you do thatf' asked the other,
''Well, on week days my boarders have
to cat breakfast in hurry, and if it is hot
they don't have time to wait for it to cool
off. So they eat very little. Sundays they
eat less because it is cold. assure you,
\ Mrs Jones, but for this discovery should
1 have lost money this season. ."-Harper's
Bazaar.
The Bachelor.