Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1900-03-23
IL ALMAGE'S
SERMON.
subject: The Needles Havoc-An Appeal
For Mercy For Oppressed womanhood
Let Her Have an Equal Chance With
Man in the struggle of Life.
Copyright 1900. !


Man in the struggle of Life.
Copyright 1901
WASHINGTON, d. C.-This discourse OF
DR.. Talmage Is an appeal for mercy in be-
half OF oppressed womanhood and offers
encouragement to those struggling for II
livelihood; text Ecclesastes, iv., /. "Be-
hold the tears OF such as were oppressed,
and they had no comforter"
Very long ago the needle was busy. It
was considered honorable for women to
toll in olden times. Alexander the Great
stood in his palace showing garments made
by his own mother. The finest tapestries
at DayeuX was made by the queen of Will
lam the Conqueror. Augustus, the en-
peror. would not wear any garments ex-
cept those that were fashioned by some
member OF his royal family. So let the
toiler everywhere be respected.
The needle has slain more than the
sword. When the sewing machine was in
vented, some thought that invention would
alleviate woman's toll AMI put an end to
the despotism of the needle. But no.
While the sewing machine has been great
blessing to well-to-do families in many
cases it has added to the stab OF the needle
the crush of the wheel, and multitudes of
women, Notwithstanding the re-enforce-
ment OF the wing machine, can only
make, work hard as they will, between 81
and So week.
The greatest blessing that could have
happened to our first parents was being
turned out of Eden after they had done
wrong. Adam and Eve, in their perfect
state, might have got along without work
or only such slight employment as a per-
feet garden with no weeds in 1t demanded.
But as soon ms they had sinned the best
thing for them was to be turned out where
they would have to work. We know what
whitening thing it is for a man to have
nothing to do. OF the thousand prosper
Gus and honorable men that you know 999
had to work vigorously ut the beginning.
But l am now to tell you that industry is
Just as important for n woman's safety and
happiness. The most unhappy women In
our communities to-day are those who have
no engagements to call them up in the
morning; who, once having risen and
breakfasted, lounge through the dull fore
noon in slippers down at the heel and with
disheveled hair, reading the last novel,
and vino, having dragged through
wretched forenoon and taken their after
noon sleep and having passed an hour and
half at their toilet, pick up their card
case and go out to make calls, and who
pass their evenings waiting for somebody
to come in and break up the monotony.
Arabella Stuart never was imprisoned in
so dark n dungeon as TINT.
There is no happiness In an idle woman.
II may be with hand, 1t may be with brain,
be wretched forever. The little girls of
our families must be started with that
idea. The curse of American society is
that our young women are taught that the
arst. second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth,
seventh, tenth, fftieth, thousandth thing
In their life is to get somebody to take care
Of them. Instead of that the first lesson
should be how under God they may take
care of themselves. The simple fact is
chat majority of them do have to take
care OF themselves, and that, too, after hav-
ing through the false notions Of their par
ents wasted the years in which they ought
to have learned how successfully TO main
tain themselves. We now and here declare
the inhumanty, cruelty and outrage of
that father and mother who pass their
daughters into womanhood, having given
them no faculty for earning their liveli-
hood.
Nine. de stael said, at is not these
writings that I am proud OF, but the fact
that l have facility In ten occupations, in
any one Of which l could make u liveli-
hood" You say you have a fortune to
leave them. Oh, man and woman, have
you not learned that, like vutures, like
--i-s 'ai-~-- 49,, 4i-i. - wings anu
fly away? Though YOU should be success
full in leaving q competency behind you,
the trlckery of executors may swamp it in
night or some Official in our churches
may get up II mining company and induce
your orphans to put their money into n
hole in Colorado and IL by the most skillfuI
machinery the sunken money cannot be
brought up again prove to them that it
was eternaly decreed that that was
The way they were to lose it aud that
it went in the most orthodox and heav-
emily style. Oh, the damnable schemes that
protested Christians will engage in until
God puts His fingers into the collar OF the
bypocrite's robe and strips it clear down
to the bottoml You have no right, because
you are we'll off, to conclude that your chill
dren are going to be well of. man died
leaving large fortune. His son fell dead
In Philadelphia grogshop. His old com
rades came in aud said as they bent over
his corpse, "What is the matter with YOU
Boggsy?" The surgeon standing over him
said: "Hush vel He is deadv' "Oh, he is
dead" they said. Come, BOYS; let us go
and take drink in memory OF poor
Boggsyw Have YOU nothing better than
money to leave YOUR children? II YOU have
not, but send your daughters into the
world with empty brain and uuskilled
hand, you are guilty of assassination.
homicide, infanticide.
| There are women toiIing in our cities for
| 60 or SO week who were the daughters OF
merchant princes. These suffering ones
now would be glad to have the crumbs
that once fell from their fathers table.