Birmingham state herald., 1895-10-13
OUR SOCIAL WORLD

JUL DUUlAu II ullLD
 (All items of social interest will be gladly noted in these columns if sent 10 Mrs. George c. Ball. Nineteenth street. between Tenth and Eleventh avenues. South High lands Telephone 9SS.)
 The news brought by recent telegrams of the divorce of Ameie Rives Chanler is said to be a surprise to her immediate friends, and certainly is something of a shock to the general public. Coming as it does when the question, Whether brilliant women should marry?" is being agitated by newspaper and magazine writers, it is more than unfortunate. Some writers are just now contending that women of genius are not suited for the duties which pertain to wives and mothers, and that those talented women who achieve success are so injured by the evidences of that success (which kindly public gives ,them) that their otherwise strong mental qualities lose their balance and they become filled with vanity and conceit, and are thereby unfitted for the requirements of home life. These tra- ducers of intellectual women cite rare and occasional examples to prove the force of their arguments. As a sweet morsel they will enjoy this instance of .1pcompatibility, of temper" furnished by MT. and Mrs. Chanler and will at tempt to make strong case to prove the antagonism between heart and brain. That such sad examples do exist--as they exist in all the walks of life and with persons of all grades of inteilect-no one can deny There has been no period in the history of mans development when instances of domestic misery have not occurred. But it Is certainly unfair and ungenerous to argue that the present en- larged sphere of women is the cause of increased discord in the family circle. To true. noble woman, with mind which has been cultivated and broadened intellectual intercourse is essential She, no less than man, needs the friction of mind upon mind. The gifts bestowed up- on her by her Creator cause her to cravd congenial surroundings, and so does her heart also.
 human being, whether man or wom- an, Is made up of divers instincts, each necessary to the complete whole, and neither can claim this completeness when any part of their nature is dWarfed or stained. A man or woman whose sym pathies are entirely dominated by their intellectual instincts lacks one of the essentials to true greatness. Our brains, properly diracted. twill keep company with our hearts and souls, and whenever they are divorced by our unnatural tastes sorrow and disappointment will quickly follow. A few instances of cratic and unhappy genius should not have much influence in prejudicing the cause of gift ed women any more than the miserable domestic experiences of Lord Byron should be cited against other well-regu- lated literary men of the world. The home life of the majority of the literary men of the past and present will com pare favorab bly with that of other men. And the writing women of the world bear the closest comparison In their domestic life with other good women whose tastes lay in different directions. Go over in your minds the names and lives of wom- en who have become famous because of intellectual endowments. and how many of them do you find guilty of the charges made against them by the cynics? How many of them are. overwhelmed with small vanities and indifferent to .hepar- amount duties that pertain to the sacred office of wife and mother? Very, very few, be it said to their credit. We have just here in Alabama a notable example of great literary success. combined with absolute devotion to home duties In the person of Mrs. Augusta Evans Wilson. No southern woman in quicker time ever reached quite such an elevated literary position as that attained by Mrs. Wilson. and yet her home life has always been one of the sweetest and most satisfac- tory. Many other examples could be given to prove the falseness of the posi- ton assumed by cynical writers. but the individual experience and observation of every cultivated man and woman denies the unjust impeachment.
 There is. as we all are aware an nm fortunate form of genius that claims inn munity from the laws which govern the rest of humanity because of this same genius. But this immunity should not he granted them. to the detriment of oth- CT more intelligent women. who do not consider 1t necessary to affiict the world with eccentricties in order to esta ablish their position as women of talent. Ge- nius may be closely allied to insanity, as many experts claim. but 1t is we'll to learn that there are many cratic tendencies that cannot establish our right to genius. The gifts of our Creator in any line or direction have been put to 8 miserable use If they do not contribute to tlf,S hap piness and well being of those about us. No woman is well rounded or complete whose heart and mind are not equally developed; and if they are then her life will surely be one of noble endeavor, and of upright effort. whether she writes ar whether she does not
 This seems to be an age when women are succeeding in almost every field of labor, and the indications are that the women of the south are competing with success along all the lines of effort and without in any wise destroying their claims to a refined womanhood A New York paper of recent date says: "Eve's display at Atlanta, do almost as much delving as Adams sons. It appears from the agricultural and horticultural ex- hibit that the south contains many suc- cessful women farmers. The head of the committee having charge of this ex- hibit Is Mrs. Henry Wilson, herself farmer on alrge scale. and an author