The herald., 1896-06-14
Woman's Ideal Rights


In the beginning after God had Great
al every living thing, the fowls of the
air. the fish of the sea, the beasts OF the
field. he created man in His own image.
But. should man be the connecting link
between the brute creation and the Gre
ator? No, there must be higher link
in the mighty chain of creation. Then
the golden link was made, the link OF
purity and love, and woman was created
to be the connecting link between man
and God.
God made woman, the last and noblest
creation of all his mighty and wonderful
works, to be sheltered from the storms
and adversities of life by the strong arm
of man, to whom she should in return
be the gentle helpmate, so twining the
.armor of her love, made of the golden
threads of a happy home life, about
him that he would be impregnable
against the shafts of temptations hurled
at him in the battle of life.
Some of my sisters are clamoring for
womans rights. Have we not already
bestowed upon us the right an angel
might covet? Oh, how could we clamor
for right that is grander, sweeter.
nobler than the right of maternity. The
right God has invested in us to become
mother to an immortal soul. Has He
not abundantly blessed us with rights
far superior to those of man?
What greater right on earth or heaven
could any true woman crave than when
her child is first laid in her arms. to feel
its little head against her breast, to
know its pure little soul is just from the
hand of the Creator who has trusted ii
to her to train for heaven or hell.
child whose mind is like the bed of earth
in whose fertile soil can be sown the
seeds which will ripen into a noble
Christian life of usefulness; life whose
influence for good will affect generations
long after its soul has passed to the
great beyond. Or, by mothers ruth
less hand can be sown the seeds which
will bring forth the thorny deeds of
avarice, theft and murder. Deeds that
will send the soul once so pure and white
down the dark abyss of eternal night
But some women claim that they have
no political rights.
Would the mother of Washington have
done as much good for the country had
she been round lecturing on Woman's
Rights as when she made that beautiful
country home so dear to her son, that
love of home and country was so strong
ly implanted in his heart that he, with
others who had been trained by noble
mothers. fought from under the despot-
ism Of monarch and established this
land Of freedom, land where every
home is kingdom, with woman as its
queen. What greater rights should a
woman desire than to be queen of a
home. where all is love and peace;
haven of rest for the tired wanderers
at even-tide, who return from the toll
and strife of the world outside. God pity
the woman who lectures on Woman's
Rights and Political Economy when ex-
travagance, slothfulness and discord
reign IN the home which, If ruled by her.
would be the abode of thrift, cleanliness
and order
Oh, woman, If we would preserve this
grand nation of America which has been
given to us by the blood of our fore
fathers, let us guide the ship of state.
while we preserve its glorious destinies
by guarding and keeping pure the homes
or our beloved country, for in the purity
ana prosperity of the homes only can
we hope to preserve its glorious free
dom and prosperity. Said a wise man:
Show me the homes of a country and
l Will tell you its political condition"
snow me the home where the mother
lectures on politics and spends her
evenings at woman's rights debates, and
with few exceptions, will show you
the filth and squalor of a home where
The husband washes dishes and performs
her duties in the home. God pity such
a home where the duties of man and
woman are SO topsy- -turvy. Dust pre-
walls In parlor. the beds with their soiled
linen are so repulsive that balmly sleep,
AdtdIc . STcdt TeSlOTeT, never rests
upon the sleeper. The kitchen, reelsing
In filth. in which breeds the germs of
disease to which the children often fall
Victims. or. If they escape, grow up to
Iweql the ranks of the reform schools.
Now look at the contrast of another
home where the wife is content with the
lights nature intended for her All.
Iuch cosy home, where the sun shines
brightly on its vine-clad porch. the
birds sing gaily in the trees of the trim
garden at eventide and mingle their
notes with the voices OF the happy chill |
1ren as they run to meet their father re-
burning from his days labor. All, how
quickly the sorrows and burdens of the |
day vanish as he clasps them in his |
lrms and sees the bright face of his |
neat little wife and as she gives him the
evening kiss, the savory odors from the !
delicious dinner, prepared by her own |
hands, mingles with the fragrance of the |
bright flowers on the mantel, and as he
sinks into his easy chair and puts on the
slippers which are waiting on the we'll
swept hearth, he feels that he is the !
most blest of mortals; that his home is
. kingdom Of rest, with the rosy checked !