The herald., 1895-05-23
Relation OF Home to Education
by Miss Anthony
TESSA'S VIEWS ON MARRIAGE
And the Place OF the Parent in Modern
Education
Were Read, With a Numbsr OF Other
Addresses, in San Francisco
Last 1onday

cation. The IN orning session was occu-
pied with addresses, by Governor Budd.
Mayor Sutro ana Mrs. Sarah b. Cooper,
president Of the congress. During the
afternoon Susan b. Anthony OF Roches'
ter, n. Y, and Miss Tessa Kelso OF Los
Angeles took part in the programme.
After having read the address for which
she was down, the Call of Tuesday says:
"a generally expressed desire on the
part OF the audience TO again hear Miss
Anthony was gratitied by an announce
mcnt from tho chair til at tho oyangcl OF
woman's rights would respond. Again
there was applause as Miss Anthony rose
to her feet waving OF handkerchiets and
claiming of hands. She said, speaking OF
the training of children:
Every woman who marries, the in
slant she enters upon the relation. she is
legally robbed OF her right to the custody
and control of her own person. More
than that, she is robbed of tie right 10
the ownership and control OF the ser
vices of her own hands. The proceeds OF
the labor OF her own hands inside OF the
marriage copartn ership belong to another
not to herself. legally. Another feature
of the relation ship into which she enters
is that if children are born unto her she
has no right to the guardianship OF tho Sc
children.
''How can you expect that u woman
who has no more self respect than to en-
ter into such lega relation, who is by
the law of every state IN the union-near-
ly every one--.deprived of the ownership
OF herself to possess herself legally, who
ceases to own the proceeds OF the labor OF
her own hands-how can you expect such
creature, so devoid OF everything that
goes to make humanity-how can that
woman teach the boy or the girl any
thing? -
who are mothers is to get into the condi-
ton of freedom. You might about as
well, under the old slave regime, have
talked the slave women into sense OF
their responsibility as to talk the women
into a knowledge of their responsibility.
The wives of today are not absolutely
bought and sold Oh the auction block
but, still il there is not u sufficient
know ledge of freedom and of self respect
in themselves in that relation to secure
the laws of the state to be so amended as
to leave the wife and mother in freedom
and control of herself and children, you
cannot hope much for her Intelligence
in relation to her children.
''This is very severe talk, but remem-
ber years ago. OF my speaking of this
legal slave condition of the wives of the
country, and every single married woman
on the platform protested and said it
wasn't so. Lucy Stone said it wasn't so.
Then Mrs Livermore said it wasn't so.
Some moments later heard her tell what
nice man her husband was. Neverthe-
less he could have, under the laws OF Hi
nos, if he had wished, tied her to her
bedpost ana not allowed her to como to
the convention.
"Get out from that law and come into
the law of freedom. After that talk
about what you will do and what your re-
spon sbiities are,
There was no doubt about it-Miss An
thony's utterances had caused a commo-
tion. They struck deep; whether favora-
bly, received or not, the women only know.
Some of them certainly did not view them
in an enthusiastic manner. Among these
was Miss Tessa kelso Sne was on the
card to read paper at this point and,
on the introduction by President Cooper,
arose, paper in hand, and bowed to the
audience.
II want to say something" she began,
''in reply to the statements OF Miss An
thony. AS spinster | am going to pro-
test against marriage being brought into
the suffage question. No one is in Eo-
sition to know more about the disadvant-
ages of the lack OF the franchise than 1
am, and l do not believe that you are 60
ing to discourage the young men, or the
young women, from marriage, with all
this talk about the frghtful lack of free
dom. You leave out one tremendous ele-
ment that every young man and every
young woman believes, that there is q law
OF love that operates in these things and
is going to fix all things.
81 disagee with Miss Anthony and
state that we must first have the mar
riage bondage before we can discuss the
training OF children. | am always advo-
eating marriage to the young women of
my acquaintance.
''To the young men too?" asked some
lady in the audience.
Yes" answered Miss Kelso, ''the
young men too | believe girl can
marry any man she chooses"
She then began the reading of her
paper, as follows:
For two years past have been making
careful investigation of the use of books
by men, women and chldren: have
analyZed and classified the results. | tind
the readers of the best books in literature
history, biography books of culture-to
be women-.women OF family. OF social
position, of wealth. OF leisure; that is
records of books on modern education. on
Psychology, heredity. ethics, hygiene
kindergarten, manual training, etc.,
Such absorbingly interesting material for
parents. men anu women, l founu their
only readers to be that overwol ked, BRAIN
tagged caretaker of other peoples child
rem, the teacher the public school teach
er; spinster who after eight hours
grind with fifty children drags herself to
the library to get Il book on heredity and
treatses on the education OF delinquent
chldren because she has two or three
pupils that cannot be made to fit the
universal scheme of education, and this
poor overworked teacher sets herself
seriously to work to devise some special
plan suitable for this other WON ans boy
or girl and this other woman who is
the mother of this boy or girl sits by in
differently and lets the family skeleton be
hauled out and analysed and guessed
about by strangers. Why not-what do
we have public school teacher for?
What is the consequence? A growing
shifting of parental responsibility upon
the teacher. destruction of respect for
home on the part of the children, and a
distinct lowering of the teacher standard.
This tendency is the fatal spot in our
American free school system.
One of the chief causes for the steadily
growing load of responsibility for the
moral and physical and mental welfare
of the chilrdre which is put on teachers
is because so large per cent of them are
women-there is a sentimental attitude
of the public mind about the woman
school teacher that is decidedly harmful.
The ind fferent mother says. with
great uncton: "a woman is the nat
, I, +bx,