The Opelousas courier., 1896-06-27
WOMAN IN SPAIN,
Nliterate and W~tetched. Her Lot Is Very
Deplorable.

If there be any truth in the statement
that the civilization of a country is to
be measured by the status of its wom-
en- the Spanislpiingdom is on the verge
of barbarism. Internationally it is be-
low Turkey, China, Japan and even
Siam. Seventy-two per cent. of its
adults are illiternte. AS between the
exes the figures are so per cent. for
men and 81 pr m "a large ladies'
library" in Hadrid usually consists of
80 or 20 trsahy p~aper-covered novels.
If a woman-1or man, for that instance
requires a higher education they
must go abroad. Very few go. The
social conditions make women worse
han dolls. \ little girl is seldom nl-
lowed to play in the open air. From
the < of eight until at least so she
never goes alone in the street nor is al
lowed to speak to or approach a man ex-
cept in the presence OF a duenna.
Usually she is married off by her par
ents, as in France.
Marriage means a change of masters,
the husband replacing the father or the
guardian. She is raised in ecclesiastical
darkness. She believes it is her duty to
accept her lot as the will of Heaven, no
matter how horrible it may be. Divorce
from a husband who has murdered her
only child would be a mortal sin. Under
such circumstances most women in
that land grow up mere children in in
telligence and knowledge. At 80 few
of them know as much as American
contented with their lot the convent
doors are always open. The number of
Iuns and monks is enormous. AS a
Euass they are consumers and not pro-
d4ters, and are therefore a grievous
burden on the community. Woman's
wages are insignificant, and the fields
in which she can labor may be counted
on the fingers of one hand. The univer-
sal illiteracy is appropriately accompa-
MED by a poverty and a low moral
standard. The industrial classes are in
despair and are continually immigrant
ing to other Latin lands. The best
types of Spanish w~omanhood are to be
found in the South American republics.
IN. Y. Mail and Express.
The Earliest sword.
In the early ages, before men knew
anything about civilized ways, they
lived in caves and had to protect them
selves not only from the attacks of ami
mails, but from those of their human
brothers as well. The first weapon
their unaccustomed fingers shaped was
a war club. Experience, however, soon
taught them that a deadlier blow could
be delivered with a weapon that would
cut rather than crush, and they made
a Ratchet. Then one day some one dis
covered a substance in the secret stores
of the good brown earth on which he
finally learned to put a keener edge
than he had ever been able to chip on
his stone Ratchet, and the sword was
made.-Chicago Chronicle.
Oyster Shells in Westminster Abbey.
There is a singular feature in the
early mason work of Westminster Alb
hey, as, when removing or repairing
any of the more ancient stonework of
the abbey, it is always found that the
large stones are set or leveled with oy-
tiers shells. The shells are very fiat and
thick, measuring four and a half inches
in diameter, and retain the small shell
in~crustations on the outside. AS the
story of the abbey's foundation points
to it's association with fishermen, the
oyster shells were probably used for
special religious reasons.-Chicago In
ter Ocean.