The record-union., 1893-11-16


of the nation and the race by reducing
the marriage rate.
"A woman's meeting was held some
months ago in one of our large cities and
several eloquent speeches were made by
the ladies' present. It was stated that u
the United States there were three mill
ion men OF marriageaDIe age who still re-
manned IN single blessedness. One OF the
ladies went so far as to say that no man
had moral right to lead single life.
w lille L am not going to question whether
the statements are sound or not, VIII
venture to suggest that the fault lies with
the ladies. Their competition with men
has increased the strain and stringency
OF the already oVercrowded labor market.
Every position filled by woman, which
was heretofore filled by a man, means
one less home for the State. When l was
IN New York last winter l heard an elo-
quent address given by an agent OF of the
Trades Unions. He touched upon this
point and said with some bitterness that
events seemed to point to the time when
women would do the work and men stay
at home and rock the empty cradle.
Nor are these the only evils. If
women are to be independent Of men and
to compete with them in the labor mar
kets terrible things will follow. Woman
Will lose ner womanlineSS, which will be
most deplorable thing, and man will
lose his chivalry, which will be a most
disastrous thing. You can read between
the lines of worse things. Ii women are
to be independent of marriage, then they
will become careless Of mans good opin-
ion and will not seek to gain it. The
boundary walls OF immortality will be
broken down and great will be the flood
OF wlckedness and misery and woe. l
touch lightly on these things and leave
you to think them out. Nor can | more
than hint at the deterioration of the race
how we shall become physically weaker
and weaker, as well as fewer and fewer.
France is a case in point. In the last
fifty years marriage has been declining,
immortality been increasing and the con-
sequence has been that the race is becom-
ing dwarfed-so much so that the Gov
ernment has had to reduce the standard
nights of recruits for the army. Men
such as Napoleon had cannot be had for
love nor money. The sin OF the French
people carries with it its punishment"
Continuing, he said that when Napoleon
was asked, what would make France the
greatest nation i'll the world, he said:
Mothers" Napoleon was not a relig-
ious mau, but he was a statesman, who
knew that mothers formed and nodded
the State, leaving the impress of their
characters and training on their children.
Mr.. George spoke of Miss Mulock' IS
powerful and charming story, "A
Woman's Kingdom" giving sketch of
it as far as his memory served. The les
son taught by il is that home and the
throne OF motherhood make woman's
kingdom the happiest place on earth.
That was the view he would like to inn
press upon his hearers. God made
WOmau'S sphere and ordained that in
filling that ; sphere she should find
abundant happiness. The story runs,
he said, that the sanity Macarus
was informed that two poor women eX-
ceeded him in holiness and in favor with
the Almighty. Full of curiosity to know
them and find what they had done, he
sought them out and questioned them.
70 his dismay and surprise they told
him that they knew nothing of good
works, they had only striven 10 make
their husbands happy and be true to
them; to be helpineets, and aid to make
/ their families happy, and were careful to
speak no evil of any one. They reigned
in the kingdom God had given them,
filled it and enjoyed it.
He spoke of the custom in some coun-
tries in Europe where the bride puts on a
crown of pure gold. 1t is fitting en-
blem of her entering into her Kingdom.
We all know how we love woman's king
dom; how desolate it is when she is sick,
absent, or gone to her long home. Nor
uOeS WOIudu Suluo an Wl6I6 0lS6 50 IuuCu
as in her own kingdom-doing her own
work. The proudest jewel woman can
wear is womanliness.
The sermon was replete with anecdotes
and arguments, illustrating the fact that
bv her tact, fidelity. sympathy, kind
heartedness, love and all womanly quail
ties, woman can make her kingdom a
heaven upon earth, a place of solace and
refuge from the cares and butfets of the
world, but that when she steps outside to
struggle with men for supremacy, moth
ing but disaster and decay to the race can
follow.