The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1893-11-03
EARNEST LUCY STONE
4 LIFE FULL OF ROMANCE AND PuR-
POSE AND STRUGGLE.

what shs Endured 90 secure nm Educa-
tion--Dinculties She Encountered as q
Lecfurer-odd Things About Her Mar
riags--Gone Over to the Bright sids.
seventy-fye years ago a baby girl was
horn IN West Brookfeld, Mass, and when
they told the mother she sighed and said;
''I am sorry the baby is girl. A woman's
life is so hard" But the child grew and
Rourished despite the calamity of the sex,
and they named her Lucy-Lucy Stone.
A short time ago Lucy Stone died in the
happy consciousness that woman's life was
easier and broader, her opportunities great
er and her outlook brighter, because the
baby born so many years ago was woman
child, great Of heart and brain, and had de-
voted her time and talent to the advance
ment Of her sex.
The personality of Lucy Stone was little
known, and the general idea of the woman
was that she was masculine in appearance,
of strident voice, assertive manners and
pronounced eccentricity indress. To those
who had seen the small, gentle lady with
the soft white cap over the snowy hair, the
low, gentle voice, the simple, unassuming
manner. this champion OF all things strong
minded In womanhood seemed the embodi-
ment of perfect peace.
When Lucy Stone was n tiny maid, she
read in the Bible, Thy desire shall be TO
thy husband and he shall rule over thee"
At first she wanted 10 die. Then she made
MP her mind to 90 TO college, study Greek
and Hebrew, read the Bible and see for her
self whether the texts were rightly trans
lated.
She did go to college. despite the fact
that her father, who had helped his son
through college, called her crazy and would
have nothing TO do with the project. She
picked berries and chestnuts and sold them
TO buy books. She taught school, studying
during the time and saving her money to
the great end. Work as she would, she
was 25 before she could accumulate sufii-
cient means to take her TO Oberlin, the
only college that would receive her. She
crossed Lake Erie as deck passenger to
save her money and slept at night on q
pile Of grain sacks in the open air.
At Oberlin she taught, did housework
for cents a&hour. cooked her food in her
room and lived on so cents a week. She
had only one new dress, and that a cheap
print, during the college course. She
graduated with honors, losing neither her
health nor her self respect, and was appoint
ed TO write a commencement essay. Per
haps nothing more suggestive of woman's
progress can be told than this fact, that be-
cause IL was considered unwomanly for a
woman to appear on the platform and read
her own work, she declined TO write the
essay rather than consent to have u professor
read IL for her.
Lucy Stone began her public work lectur-
I xvxrx f<xf ha nh ne hftf In
she mixed the subject dearest to her heart
that of equal rights for men and women
$50 much with that of freedom for the
slave that the abolitionist leaders remon-
strated with her.
II cannot help It," she answered. 'Twas
. woman before was an abolitionist, and
must speak for women"
When she began to labor for woman's
cause, there were no suffrage associations in
existence and she had no backing. She trav-
eled through the country, putting up her
own handbills with tacks, and, woman
fashion, using stone for a hammer. Some
times the boys followed her to tear down
the bills. but she usually won them over to
leave the bills unharmed. Once, when she
was speaking at an antislavery meeting.
the boys broke out pane of glass and
turned the bose on her. She put on her
shawl and calmly went on with her speech
At another time a mob broke up the
meeting and roughs climbed upon the plat
form. Every one fed but Lucy Stone. AS
the flying speakers ran they asked her what
she was going to do. II am going to ask
this gentleman" she said, turning to the
leader of the mob, Ito protect me-" He
did 1t. She went through the mob un-
harmed, her hand on his arm.
Lucy Stone did not mean to marry, but
like ordinary women, she fell in love, and
making him promise to devote his life not
70 herself, but to her cause, she married
Henry b. Blackwell. They drove 30 miles
TO find minister so unorthodox as to be
willing TO marry them and leave out the
word 'obey" At the time of their mar
riage they published joint protest against
the injustice of the laws which gave the
husband contrsl of the wife's property,
earnings, children and person. This pro-
test made great stir at the time and had
much to do with getting the laws amended.
Lucy Stone looked upon the loss of
woman's name at marriage as n symbol OF
the loss Of her legal personality and per
sonal rights, and with the full consent of
her husband, with whom her relations
were always peculiarly happy, retained her
maiden name and was known as Lucy
Stone. Her one daughter is called Alice
Stone Blackwell
Her later years have been devoted TO work
In the American Woman's Suffrage asso-
citation, of which she and William Lloyd
Garrison and Julia Ward Howe were the
founders, and in the editorship OF the Bos-
ton Woman's Journal. in which Mrs.
Blackstone and her daughter were associ.
ated also as editors. Her home i'm Dor.
chester was an ideal establishment. and she
was the pink of New England housekeepers
Just before her death she said, Il look
forward to the other side as the brightest
6de, and / expect still TO be busy for good