The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1896-05-24

one, out of which It developed with the change in
the plane OF life. What want is not that the
born into The world, and that women should be a
little higher order of domestic animals. The need
is Tor more intelligent motherhood and father
hood, and better-born and better-educated chill
dren. When the human will and reason develop
they should more and more take the place of blind
instincts and irrational forces in the working out
OF life.
1t is this progressive change in the plane Of seec-
ton which is so often ignored in the current scien
tific thinking. No fact of human life is in any way
degraded by throwing new light on its origin and
history Love and personal modesty are in way
less noble or less true When view them as re-
suits of a long struggle up from low primitive
plane. The fact that the whole meaning OF mar
rage once lay in reproductive and industrial econ
omy in no way detracts from its spiritual and
human meaning on the plane of life which human
i,y has attained.
Our time is transitional, and hence it is one OF
complication and suffering There countless
misadiustments in the sphere of the personal rela-
tons Women whose instincts, developed by CEN
turtles of life prompt to sink themselves utterly in
the life of the family are united to men who crave
the constant meeting with strong, fresh, inde-
pendent personality.
Women Often Misunderstood.
Still greater is the suffering when men who wish
their homes to stand somewhat aside from the
main interests Of theirlives and who desire their
wives to have no interests except the narrower do
mestic ones, united to women who have an in.
tellectual hunger and deep desire realize their
best possibilities of life. The suffering is much
greater in the second case, because women have Sc
much less opportunity to readiust their lives.
Every effort they make in such situations is mis-
understood, and is as apt TO crush as to elevate
them.
Yet we can AFFORD to submit to all sorts OF mis-
adjustments with their consequent suffering for The
sake OF the higher ideal which is being worked out
OF IL all. Transition epochs always painful
but they lead to better conditions in the life OF
The future. We need to work out to the higher
plane. Letourneau and others have pointed ont
that the degree of freedom possessed by women Is
the best test of the progress of civilization.
hltw
not TO be overcome, and it is altogether wrong to
attempt to destroy them. Differentiation and
specialization have made the character and func-
eion OF each sex permanently different from that
OF the other. Nothing is uglier and more offensive
IMAM masculine women and effeminate men. The
1anuy relation VIII always I'LL more important
place In the lives of women than of men. There
are typical differences In mind and heart between
men and women which It would be as impos ible
as undesirable to overcome. Thus we shall always
nave :, the eternal womanly," as Goethe expresses
Yet we need TO recognize that there is a third
plane IN the evolution of the higher human life
which is often ignored in current discussions
Wneil any special junction is developed its usefu-
ness depends upon It's being bound closely in the
organic whole of life. This is especially true of
the more complex sphere of human life.
The Evolution of Woman.
The evolution of higher human activities shows
three distinct stages. We begin, as Spencer has
shown, with a simple homogeneous unity at the
beginning and pass to differentiation and speciar
ization. But the important fact is that we tend q
pass to more organic unity on higher plane. n
unity which includes the greatest differentiation
and specialization.
Thus in the evolution of government from
loose tribal and family conditions, all possible
types Of social organizations are Differentiated in
Guiding aristocracies. oligarchies, tyrannies mon
greatest pc ssibe differentiation. We tend TO pass
on to a type OF social organization which shall be
democratic and combine the most organic unity
with the greatest possible freedom Every stu
dent OF modern CIVILIZATION will recognize the