The Roswell daily record. [volume] (Roswell, N.M.) 1903-current, 1905-03-14

er, able and willing to perform the
first inc greatest duty of womanhood,
able and willing to bear, and to bring
up as they should be brougLt up.
healthy children sound in body. mind,
and character, and numerous enough
so hat the race shall increase and
not decrease.
There are certain old truths which
win be as true as long as this world
endures, and which no amount OF pro-
gress a alter.
One of these is the truth that the
primary duty of the husband is to be
the home maker, the bread-winner
for his wife and children. and hat
the primary duty of the woman is tC be
the help-meet, the housewife and mo-
Their. The woman should AVE ample
educational advantages; but save in
exceptional cases the man must be.
and she need not be and generally
ought not to be, trained for a life
long career as the family bread-win-
ner; and. therefore, after a certain
point the training OF the two must
normally be different because the du-
ties of the two are normally different.
This doe not mean inequality of
function, but 1t does mea that nor
iudIIy lHcIC u OS OASS4Ll1ldAA ly o1
function. On the whole, | think the
duty of the woman the more lmpor-
tant, the more difficult, and the more
honorable of the two; on the whole
| respect the woman who does her
duty even more than l respect the
man who does his.
No ordinary work done by a man is
either as hard or as responsible as
the work OF a woman VINO is bring
ing up a family of small children
for upon her time and strength de
mandS are made not only every hour
of h day but often every hour of the
night h may have to get up night
after night to take care of a sick child
and yet muse by day continue to dc
all her household duties as we'll,
n if the family means are scant
she must usually enjoy ever her rare
holidays taking her whole roo OF
children with her. The birth pangs
make all men the debtors of all WON
en-. Above all our sympathy and re-
gard are due to the struggling wives
among those whom Abraham Lincoln
called the plain people, and whom
he so loved and trusted; for the lives
OF these women are often led on the
lonely heights of quiet, se~lf-sacrific
ing heroism.
Just as the happiest and most hon
orable and most useful task that car
be set any man is to earn enough for
| the support of his wife and family,
for the bringing up and starting in
life of his children, so the most i'm.
portant, the most honorable n de
sirable task which can be set any
woman is to be a good and wise
mother in a home marked by self-re
spect and mutual f~orbearance, by
Willingness to perform duty, and by
refusal to sink into self-indulgence OF
avoid hat which entails effort and
s~elf-sacrifice. OF course there are ex-
ceptional men and exceptional women
who can do and ought to do much
more than this, who can lead and
ought to ead great careers of IL
side usefulness in addition to-not
as substitutes for-their home work
but | am not speaking of exceptions
I am speaking of the primary duties
| am speaking of the average citizens
the average men and wOmen who
make up the Nation.
Inasmuch as am speaking to al
assemblage of mothers / shall have
nothing whatever to say in praise OF
an easy life. Yours is the work which
is never ended. No mother has ar
| easy time. and most mothers have
very hard times; and yet what true
mother would barter her experience
| of joy n sorrow in exchange for a
life of cold selfishness, which insists
upon perpetual amusement and the
avoidance of care. and which often
finds its fit dwelling place in some
fat designed to furnish with the
least possible expenditure of effort the
1 40 f oo-nfo-+ 4,l - -..--
but in which there is literally nc
| place for children?.
The mother who is a good wife,
a good mother. is entitled 10 our re-
pect as is NJ one else; but she is en-
| titled to it only because. and so Ions
as she is worthy of it. Effort and self.
sacrifice r the law of worthy life
for the man as for the woman; though
neither the effort nor the self-sacri-
flee may be the same for the one as
for h other. | do not in the least be-
lieve in the patient Griselda type of
woman, in the woman who submits
to gross and long continued i'll treat
ment, any nor than | believe in a
man who tamely submits to wrongful
aggression. No wrong doing is SO alb
horrent as wr~ong-doing by a man
towards the wife and the children
who should arouse every tender feel
ing in his nature. Selfishness towards
them, lack of tenderness towards
them, lack of consideration for them,
above all brutality in any form tow
ards them, hould arouse the heartiest
scorn and indignation in every up
right soul.
/ believe in the wcman's keeping
her self-respect just as / believe in
the mans doing so. / believe in her