Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1898-01-22
WOMEN ENCOURAGED
DIR. TALMAee's WORDS OF CHEER TO
THE GENTLE SEX.


THE GENTLE SEX.
Better Single BIessodress Than . Life o.
Misery with an Unworthy Husband
Girls Should BE Taught to Take Caro- Of
Themselves.
Ecopyright. 1893. by American Press Asso,
citation.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 16.-This sermon
of DIR. Talmage is great encourage
ment to women who have to earn theil
own living, US well as to all toilers with
hand or brain; text, Proverbs xiv, l,
Every wise woman buildeth hel
house.
Woman mere adjunct to man, an
appendix to tho masculine volume, an
appendage, n sort of afterthought. solne'
thing thrown in to make things even
that Is thu hereRy entertained and i'm.
piled by some men. This iseyident tc
them, because Adam was FIRST created,
and then Eve. They don't read the
whole story, or they would find that the
porpoise and the bear and che hawk
were created before Adam, so that this
argument, drawn from priority Of crea,
ton, might prove that the sheep and
the dog were greater than man. No.
Woman was an independent creation
and was intended, if che chose, to live
alone, to work alone, act alone, think
alone and fight her battles alone. The
Bible says it is not good for man to be
alone, but never says it is not good for
woman to be alone, and the simple fact
ia that many women who are harncssed
for life in the marriage relation would
BIO a thousandfold better off if they were
alone.
Who are these men who year after
year hang around hotels and engine
houses and theater doors and come Ill
and out to bother busy clerks and mer-
chants and mechanics, doing nothing
when there is plenty to do? They are
men supported By their wives and moth,
ers. If the statistics of any of our cities
could be taken on this subject, you
would find that vast multitude OF wo-
men not only support themselves, but
masculines. A great legion Of men
amount to nothing. and woman by
marriage nlanaclod to one Of these non
entities needs coincidence. A woman
standing outside the marriage relation
is several hundred thousand times bet
ter Off than woman badly married.
Many bride, instead Of a wreath OF
orange blossoms, might more properly
wear bunch of nettles and nightshade,
and instead of the wedding march a
more appropriate tune would be the
dead march in Saul, and instead OF
banquet Of confectionery and ices
there might be more appropriately
spread table covered with apples OF
Sodom.
Mistakes of Marriage.
Many al attractive woman OF good
sound sense in other things has married
one of these men to reform him. What
was the result? Like when dove, no.
ticing that yulture was rapacious and
cruel, set about to reform it and said,
81 have mild disposition, and | like
peace and was brought up in the quiet
of doy ecot, and l will bring the vul-
ture to the same liking by marrying
him." 60 one day, utter the vulture de-
clared he would give up his carniyorous
habits and cease longing for blood OF
flock and herd, at al altar Of rock COW
cred with moss and lichen the twain
were married, baldheaded eagle off,
ciating, the vulture saying, with all
my dominion of earth and sky thee
endow and promise to love and cherish
till death do us part. But one day the
dove in her fright saw the rulture busy
at carcass and cried: stop that Did
you not promise me that you would quit
your carniyorous and filthy habits if |
married YOU" Eyes, " said the vulturc,
"but if you don't like my why you can
leave" And with one angry stroke OF
the beak and another fierce clutch OF
the claw the vulture left the dove eye
less and wingless and lifeless, and a
fock of robins flying past cried to each
other and said: "See there! That comes
from a dove marrying vulture to re-
form him. :"
Many woman who has had the hand
of young inetriute offered, but de.
clined it, or who was asked to chain
her life to man selfish or of bad tenn
per and refused tho shackles, will bless
God throughout all eternity that she es-
capped that earthly randemonium.
Husbands Not Necessary.
Besides ell this, in our country about
100000 men were sacrificed in our
OWL war, and that decreed 1000, OOO
women to celibacy. Besides that, since
the war several armies of men as large
as the Federal and Confederate armies
put together have fallen under malt
liquors and distilled spirits, 60 full OF
poisoned ingredients that the work was
done more rapidly, ard the victims fell
while yet young. And if so, 600 men
are destroyed every year by strong drink
before marriage that makes i'll the 80
years since the war $50, 900 men slain
and DEGREES 1850, 900 women to celib-
acy. Take, then. the fact that SO many
women are unhappy in their marriage
and the fact that the slaughter OF
2,550,00O men by war and rum COM
bined decides that at least that number
of women shall be unaffiancd for life,
my text comes in with cheer and po'
tency and appropriateness that You may
never have seen in it before when ii
says, EVERY wise woman buildeth her
house" -thas is, let woman be her own
architect, Ivy out her own plans, be he1
own supervisor, achieve her own des'
tiny.
In addressing those women who have
to fight the battle alone congratulate
you on your happy escape. Rejoice for
ever that you will not have to navigate
&1,a f,,1te rs tho other cor vrben Won