The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1896-12-12
WOMEN BACHELORS VS.. SPIN
STEERS.

While women as sex are undoubtedly
rapidly advancing along all the lines of II
progressive and cultured civilization, yet
along with her evolution, are being devel-
oped some Alterations which the ill-natured
may properly term weaknesses.
The substitution of the title Bachelor"
for that of ''Spinster, " as descriptive of I'M
married women, is one of the alterations to
which the uneducated ear has not yet grown
accustomed
1t is, of course an advanced word, limi-
ted as yet to the special circle of the 81
rosis or woman's Literary Club, and not yet
current in the rural districts.
But if sanctioned as fashionable fad in
the city social centres, it will certainly soon
find place in the provincial vocabulary.
But whether the word Bachelor shall Fl,
nally supplant the familiar old title of Spin
ster or not in these evolutionary times, it is
noticeable at least, how obsolete the latter
word has grown.
Once. properly applicable to the unmar-
ried woman of tender as we'll as more adj
vanced years, its limited use is now by
common consent restricted to the special
class of females, who have not been connu-
bially inclined, or to whom untoward Cir
cumstance has denied the blessing Of ma
ternity.
We mourn the loss Of the poetic old word
which associateswith it the romantic distaff,
and the winsome maiden at her wheel
Indeed it has come to pass, that you risk
an affront in it's use, which circles most re-
fined, not to say courtly, once fully sane
| toned.
Only recently on the streets of Elkton, a
feminine "Bachelor'i of no uncertain age,
insisted most vehemently that the term
Spinster was inapplicable to her. That it
was term limited by time and usage to
her more experienced sisters.
AS to the obsoletencss Of the word she
was correct, but she was no less spnster,
because herself a young unmarried female.
| Commenting at once timely and peril
nently on this themc,au Exchange dcplores
the fact that the useful old word 'Spinster'
has fallen upon dccalcnt days, few counter
ancing its use save in the marriage service,
or on legal documents. People prefer in
stead to talk Of women bachelors, which an
old Euclid would say. is an ahsurdity. This
dislike to perfectly legitimate word shove
Il singular weakness on the part of women
who are pr0claiming their strength. An
unmarried woman is a spiuster whether
she calls herself bachelor" or something
else. This protest has been suggested by
an article in "Scrhner's Magazine" writ
ten by Mary Gay Humphreys, and called
"Women Bachelors in New York; Save
the exception of the first two words in the
title, we have no quarrel with what is reall y
an interesting paper. How very true are
the following remarks: "Women used to
save; now they earn. Formerly when they
had 20 face hard times they retrenched in
servants, did their own work, cut down
the table, the fires, made their own clothes.
The literature of the last generation is
largely a history of small economics.
Women might 90 hungry, but their heads
were high and their fingers were as blue
as their blood"
Now, il losses come, women set about
earning money themselves rather than
relnquish any of life's little luxuries,
The New York woman, it seems, has a
wider knowledge of the world than her
Southern or Western sisters Consequently,
when she has to earn her living she casts
about for something original instead of
combining herself to the old feminine ways.