The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1897-05-26
i,hnn d moral Freedom?

will bring voluntary obedience to the
moral law. and release man from the
| bondage Of sorrow, sin and death.
/ Freedom to worship God is only ply
| steal freedom on moral lines. The heather
| and the Christian both enjoy it, though
! widely apart in the exercise Of it. 1t is
/ the first step toward moral freedom.
| Education is equally necessary to each
| phase Of freedom. Education Of the
body, that is the training and development
| of limbs and muscles, is necessary to
| give physical strength to maintain free
| dom of action
| Education of the mind is necessary to
| give mental strength to maintain free
| dom of thought Education of The spirit
| or soul culture is necessary to give moral
| strength to find and accept all truth,
| the knowledge of which brings true free
| dom. Now, possibly you are wondering
| what all this has to do with woman, ana
| woman's clubs, and womans education,
| etc. Yet they bear strong relations TO
each other as l hope to show.
Man, having attained physical freedom,
| woman attained it also, and without OPP
| position. because with her the liberty to
| act is always subordinatcd to her CON
| science.
| Then man attained great power and
| influence through his political freedom.
| which state he proudly declares to be
| good for man.
| Consequently woman also learned to
| think, and to argue that what is good
| for man. must be good for his compile
ment, woman, on the principle that things
| which are equal to each other must be
| equal 70 the same thing Hence woman
| has aspired to political freedom, and man
| stands aghast at her intrepid demands
| .Ae ballot has not proved an unmiXed
| blessing to man. and he knows it. So,
while holding through his own political
| freedom. her political bondage he has
said to woman: Beware, it is not good
for You to have. I have tasted of the
| fruit. and it is bitter" But woman says:
No; so; | will make 1t sweet for us
both ! will with the sunshine Of my
moral nature. turn its evil into good,
and vet man makes no sign Of breaking
| her bonds. of which he holds the key, in
his ballot Now to me this seems sig
nifcant and wise Woman does not need
neIitical freedom. It is maintained by
! brute force. il WhicA she has never been
| victor Nor a factor. She is the moral
force Of tae universe and she may at
,ala neral freedom. vhira win bring all
tae tca blessings OF political freedom
4hor eS oriencing It's ills She has
| 5aersy to aet, 10 fbink, to Study, % search
st3d ID sp;ge tho knowledge Walc5 Will
f.e,s*afe her 20 moral freedom, which man
las not attained and 10 which she mUs5
| lead aiM There is no need that she
should soil her garment Of womanliness
By contact with the stained methods Of
political effort II her object is to elevate
oh 4epss 70, E9itT -
feriance. that which has not elevated
lin, and going on unto the heights Of
moral freedom. reap all the blessings Of
political freedom, without risking It's
cares and blighting responsibilities.
An object lesson on this line has re
Gently been given to the world which it
| may be we'll for woman TO study Phoebe
Couzins is Il name which has long been
Identified with the Most ultra lines Of
thought and work for women. She was
enc or the first woman lawyers IN the
| United States. Sac possessed rare legal
| ability ard considerable beauty. but <ac
imifihed the idea that nan is . .tyraut
and woman a down-trwlaen and o:}-
pressed creature from whom nothing
| could be expected until her chains 7yesc
! broken. Hence. moved rs the self-sac-
| riacing spirit whiea characterjzas I'll
| women, she determined never 80 marry
| but to devote her life 10 the work af
| freeing her sex. She became an ARDEN
/ and rntiring worker for the cause IL
/ Waman's suffrage. believing that tho bal-
/ lat would remove under woman's III
fuence All other evils. She practiced her
| chosen profession % law with urques-
toned ability and maintained Fhe re-
speut Of those who knew her. though an
unmercful unsymnathetic. uumanlv press
/ sllowerod ignominy upon her. Her
/ father at the time OF his deala was
marshal Of the State Of Missouri.
| and she was appointed to serve
/ his uneXp.red time and afterwards for Il
I new term, and served to the satisfaction
! of her people. But every reform demands
its victim, every cause develops Il mar
| tyr. and she has become the victim Of her
mistaken ideals. Now great change of
/ mind has GENE to her. Bed-ridd2n because
/ of rheumatism, unblessed by husband or
! children, without a home, neglected by
/ the Suffrage Association for whose work
/ her life has been devoted. upon a cor in
q hospital, where unfranchised but tender
women minister to her needs she has
at last learned that love is the key 10
life for women. She has openly av0w,d
that her life has been n mistake, that
suffrag &c for women is of doubtful benefit
and that if she could live her life again
she would marry, have Il fireside OF her
own and perform her own individual mis-
sion instead of trying to force others into
uEtIied paths. But her life will not
have been in vain if her warning is heed
ed by other women. If she had given
the same time and talent, the same en-
ergy and devotion, the same investigation
and thought to the pursuit of moral free
dom, which she applied to the pursuit
Of political freedom; her own personality,
her sex, and her country might have been
benefited.
Those who seek the ballot for women
think that if they could enact laws and
meet man with the same power de exer-
c;ses, they could make him better by conf
pelling him to rise to higher standards.
But would il be so? Would he not regard
denial Of his wishes as oppression and