The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1908-03-18
TALKS TO WOMEN
President Roosevelt in an Address
Condemns Race Suicide.
EXALTS MOTHERHOOD

preme Asset Of the Nation, ant
That He Abhors the Man Wht
Mistreats Women, Most Especial
~ the Women of His Own House
hold.
The White House was the scene
Tuesday of the formal opening o.
the first International congress on the
welfare of the child, which is being
held under the auspices of the Ma
tional Mothers congress. The zoe
delegates representing all the States
and territories and a dozen or more
Of the leading countries of the world
were received at the White House al
$50 o'clock that afternoon when
President Roosevelt delivered an ad.
dress to them in which he declared
that he placed the society ahead OF
the Civil War veterans, because he
said in the final analysis, it Is the
mother only who is a better citizen
than the soldier who fights for his
country.
The president said In part:
THE successful mother, the moth
or who does her part in rearing and
training Alright the boys and sill.
who are be the men and wor1cl If
the next generation, is of greater use
to the community AMI oc:u; les, did
she only realize it, a IIore adorable
as we'll as a more important position
than any successful man in 1t.
Nothing in life that is really
worth having comes w at the cost
Of effort. No life Of self-indulgence
of mere vapid pleasure can possibly,
even in one point Of pleasure itself,
yield so ample a reward as comes to
the mother at the cost of self-denial,
Of effort, of suffering childbirth, Of
the long, slow, patient, trying work
Of bringing up the children arght.
No system Of education, no system of
moral training can be right unless
it is based fundamentally upon the
recognition of seeing that the girl is
trained to understand the supreme
dignity, the supreme usefulness of
motherhood. Unless the average
woman Is a good mother, unless she
bears a sufficient number of children
so that the race shall increase and
not decrease, unless she brings up
these children in soul and mind and
body-unless this is true of the aver
age woman, no brilliancy Of
genius, no material prosperity,
no triumphs Of science and
industry, will avail to save the
race from ruin and death. The
mother is the one supreme asset of
national life; she is more important
by far than the successful statesman
or business man, artist or scientist.
II abhor and condemn the man
who Is brutal, thoughtless, careless
selfish with women, and especially
with the women Of his W house
hold. The birth pangs make all men
the debtors OF all women. ] abhor
and condemn the man who fails to
recognize all his obligations to the
woman who does her duty. But the
woman who shirks her duty as wife
and mother IS just as heartily to
be condemned. We despise her as
we despise and condemn the soldier
who flinches in battle.
Because We so admire the gooo
woman, the unselfish woman, the
farsighted woman, VIC have scant pa,
thence with her unworthy sister VINO
! fears 10 do her duty: exactly as 1ol
the very reason that, we respect
man who does his duty honestly ano
fairly. All honor to the man or Wo'
man who does duty. who q ser
vice. and we can only honor him OF
her if the weight of our condemna
t,on is felt. by those who finch IRON
their duty.
81 want to ask your assistance To-
two or three matters that are no
Immediately connected with the ll1e
IN tho family itself, but thai are O
vital to the children. IL
the first place, in the school, that I'M
school work be made practical a
possible. For the boys l want to Sc
training provided that shall trall
Them toward, and not away from
their life work; that will train then
toward the farm or the shop, no
away from it. With the girl, see tina
If Is not made q matter of mlrth ina
the girl who goes to college come
ont %unprepared to do any OF the or
dirarv duties of womanhood.
AS regards our public school, es
neciaIly I want to put In a specla
word in behalf of the right kline o
plav grounds. No school IS a goo
school if it has not a good play
i, ground. Help the children 10 play
and remember that YOU can oi'e
helm them most by leaving them en-
, tirely alone. .,
You can not have good citizens
; ,ood mon and good women OF IN
:, next generation if the boys ana slrl
are worked in factories to the stun
ing of their moral. mental ana phA
steal growth. Wherever the naIioi
al government can reach II si'ou,
do away with the evils OF chil
labor, and trust this will be dohe
I but much must be done by the d.