The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1895-10-09
Woman's Rights.

DEAR IETELLIGENCER: consider II Cne
highest and most honorable devotion to
woman to defend her rights against those
false and destructive honors with which it
is sought to endow her.
I have been reading the speeches OF
ladies Clay, Neblett and Young before the
Constitutional Convention, and felt the
demure regret that Southern ladies were
not sensible of position doubly unnatur
al: first, position against which her con-
stitution protested; second, q position
against which her Bible protested.
|. It was and is an outcome of 10Th century
.degeneracv that the nymph with small
feet, and flowing dress and tight succinc,
ture and smooth face and feminine squeal
can, in all these significant circumstances,
stand on platform and make speech to
whiskered men without blushing; and
make speech in her o,rn beh0y, when
everything about her and in her speaks
more eloauently for her than her lips.
You seldom fail to admire every move
mert Of woman and everything she does.
In her womanly sphere she does every
thing deity. But when she publicly sd-
vocates her claim to suffrage power. q
mean and insignificant power compared to
the power che Yields 10 enlightened co "a
munities, your admiration sinks.
Mr. Editor, I put this matter on co'.sts-
tutionGL grounds, and affirm that when
appeal Is made to serual consultation. tae
original and eternal difference between
men and women and to their respective
missions TO this world, the instructive
sense OF the race is, that the political
equality of the sexes is an opinion false to
nature. In the respective spheres which
Gcd has assigned them each is superior to
thg other. Out of It each is inferirr.
Female suffrage confounds these spheres
by invading the pure devotion Of man to
woman and the holy trust OF woman in
man. No family can remain unbroken in
It's trustful affections with the disturbing
conflict of political opinions. BE is the
out. door man she, of necessity, is the
,indoor-man. He is the war man, whether
It be the war of " ords or the war OF guns
she Ia the womb-men and must abide that
divine order of things. whether sbe bears
children and takes care of them or attempts
the infamy of obfoetation. She cannot
kill her instincts.
made rapid strides within the last decade
or two towards her rights in England as
we'll as the United States, and that public
favor. What sort Of argument is 1t to
addlce public opinion when that public
opinion may be q gross degeDeracy? I
plead. air, that divorce and divorce legis-
riation has been making rapid strides for
more than decade or two. plead that
connnbial iptrigues have had and are
having an infamous publicity in the
Courts OF the United States. You may
read Of them any day in your papers.
plead. that at any Of our great expositions,
the most attractive spectacle accompany
ing the exposition, ID the Gymnastics"
OF men and women half naked. I plead,
that your streets are lined now with gor-
geous expositions Of false women tossing
the feet and legs as high al their heads; 40
exposition fast killing out the virtuous
thoughts of this generation. I plead, that
for the last fifty years, all advertisement
of polpeamy has been erected in Utah /;
which, while 1t has stood there. advertis
ing to the disgust Of g yirtuous population,
It has been silently, covertly appealing to
the most uDgovernable propensity OF the
race, q. g the sexual. Aud it has had lts
effect in degrading the virtuous sentiment
of the generation. Ia the hope OF State
hood and under the influence of Congres
slonal legislation, Utah has repealed her
polygamy But have you not noticed now
much effect legislation has upon sgrown
human propensity? Is 1t not conVen,
lent disguise to cover witbou' eradicating :
It will take longer to eradicate polygamy
than it has taken Utah to nurse 1t. The
miserable venanshs and harems of the
East have, in modified form, taken root in
American soil. Let not public opinion be
urged as growing in favor Of woman's
rights and woman publicity, when the
popular literary journals Of the time are
replete with. the finest specimens of the
pictorial art, exhibiting women too often
half naked. It Is this degeneracy of taste
that is constantly killing the finer senti-
ments of women and leading them to
assert with unwomanly JorWard'eSs,
their political rights. D. E +.