The record-union., 1897-01-25
HAVE THE BEST OF IT.
Modern Women Have the Whole Field
Before Them.
They Can Do Almost Anything
They Please Now Without
Criticism.

(FTom the Sam Francisco Chronicle) }
The eternal complaint which has
rung all through the century from the
woman side of humanity is that the
sex is sorely restricted in its enjoy
ments. The man forsooth can cut a
wide swath. The world is his oyster.
1t was made for him. The gates are
ajar on all sides and the pealing bells
welcome him to unending banquets-
rosaries of feastS where the songs are
never hushed and the roses never
Wither. But woman must only peer in
at the windows and hear the ecnoes of
the melodies from afar off. She is for
ever chained to conventionality. And
in order to retain the respect of society,
she must watch the merry procession
go by, yet never join the throng. She
is always in the gallery while the
maskers are on the floor And this
state of things she resents, sheds the
cuticle of the old and boldly enters the
lists under the cognomen Of the new
woman.
While many points in this grievance
are Well taken and many of the most
serious charges can be maintained the
earnest new woman neglects to note
the advantages which accrue to her
through the law of compensation. Now
in the playroom we have the bog and
girl on equal terms. Their sports are
shared, their enjoyments are mutual,
they live on the plane of perfect equal
ity. Together they paddle In the brook,
and, while the boy usually dominates,
he still recognizes the right of the girl
to the marble and top ground. He
presses his authority still further and
will order her to hunt stray balls, and
wade after derelict toy boats, and fetch
and carry-all of which she does with
meekness, because she is a partner in
his amusements and is content TO ac
cept the larger share of the toll. Thus
We have in civilization that condition
of affairs which exists amorg sGvages.
But with this difference, that While the
squaw is always the drudge and the
brave" the claimant to all the luxury
of the wigWam, in civilization, when
the boy and girl arrive at ma turity,
their relations are changed. 1t is he
then who waits upon the female; it is
she who commands, and he who obeys,
while the glamour of youth is upon
them.
This to the girl dawning into woman
hood is at first incomprehensible and
delightful. She fails to understand the
gradual change in her playmate. No
longer is she gruffiy dispatched to get
the forgotten bat or boat and heartily
scolded for her neglect. She has taken
a cuff on the ear in meekness in the
past. But she is cuffed and pinched no
more. The tyrant who did not hesi-
tate to push her into the mud puddle
and salute her tears with a brutal
laugh has become not only mild but
timid in her presence. Wonderful
transformation indeed when he re-
lieves her of her shawl and is grieved
if she stubs her foot against d stone
Only a few years ago such an accident
would have afforded him the keenest
qualification When more than usually
savage he would have tripped her UP
and threatened to whop her if she COM
planned of his deviltry.
Here we have the compensation-oh,
so precious to the maiden heart, tender
and susceptible to all things beautiful
in life, and knowing nothing of its sad
realis1ns and whitening harshness She
does not regard it as compensation
yet, for the balance is all on her side,
and there are no wounds to be healed,
no indignities to be condoned. The
draught is so sweet she drains the COB
let, nor pauSes to discover the lees.
There is no discord in the music, no
canker in the rose. The tree of knowl-
edge has not yet been plucked and she
in hat of ha
dark side of the world which is bliss in
deed.
When the unselfishness of youth de-
parts and its romance wanes, and the
flowers have faded on the banks of the
Bendemeer, over the most glorious Gre
alton in life, a fresh-hearted, joyous
young girl, begins to creep the mold of
the new woman. There are happy eX-
ceptions, and it is we'll there are, who
go along the fragrant meadows of love
and peace, hand in hand with the king
of their souls, and never cherish a reb-
ellious thought. They see nothing but
flowers, and even their sorrows are 50
gently tempered by their loyalty that
the chaplet of rue which every brow
must bear sooner or later rests lightly
is to them an unreality, and they know
nothing of her woes and her complain
ings But she is in arms against the
man, and protests against the unfair
distribution of the license to enjoy. She
claims to be the more perfect being,
and denounces the general lack of rec
ognition of this fact.
The man on the streets is thirsty. A
dozen saloons within the area of a few
blocks await his pleasure. He can
range through gamut of fifty drinks
and select his potation. The woman is
thirsty on the street There remains
for her nothing but the drug store or
the candy shop, and. if she desires "A
stimuant, she cannot obtain it with
out winking at the drug clerk, and that
bit Of optical gymnastics is capable Of
This is the limitation.
But should the monster man come
along he will procure her a more pal
atable and invigorating draught, and
moreover, pay for it. This is the COM
pensation. The man on the street meets
other men on the street with whom he
wishes to converse. They move into
a coy place and the conversation is
seasoned with comforting liquids. The
woman on the street who wants to do
more talking than any man, meets her
cronies She has a thousand things
to tell them. But she cannot obstruct
the sidewalk and she has to depart
with her cargo of gossip but half un-
loaded Were she a man, she might
brace against the bar, and reel off her
yarn with all its dips spurs and angles
complete. This limitation makes her
savage.
SO far as clubs are concerned women
al have NOT rll1nh for