Elmore County Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1910-1915, 1913-07-19
CURSE or INDIA GETS FooTHolD
IN AMERICA
Reverend Trawin Of Baptist Church
Issues . Stern Warning To
Women Of Country

of the United States against the re
ligions brought to this country BY
Yogis and Swamis from India under
the guise Of philosophy. reincarnatior
and the so-called higher life. He
said, taking his text from II
Timothy 3:6, Z "Of this sort
are they which creep into houses
and lead captive silly women laden
with sins, led away with divers lusts
never learning and never sble to
come to the knowledge Of the truth
| My purpose this evening in lifting
the veil that hides midas crushed
and Borrowing womanhood Is to pre-
sent 4 sufficiently dark background
to bring out in terrible relief certain
women OF fairer skin who are moving
in the foreground Women 81
America with rythmic movements
and weird incantations and dreamy,
eclipsed minds are under the subcon'
scious spell OF an eastern occultism
that is leading their feet to take fast
hold on hell.
| In every heather land the heav-
lest burdens and the most heart.
breaking sorrows fall to the lot Of
woman. Even at birth she is met
with the question as to whether she
shall be allowed to live or exposed
to die and ever unwelcome, her
journey through lie is q weary pill
grimage, a starved existence ending
in q foresaken and cheerless death.
In no land are the sorrows Of
womanhood and the tragedies OF
motherhood more hopeless than in
India. There are many Hindu sects
in India, but upon two main points
they are agree-the sancity Of the
COW and the depravity Of woman. /"
Woman Is great whirlpool OF sus-
picion, dwelling place Of vices. full
Of deceit, hindrance in the way Of
heaven. the very gate Of he'll" Hin
du proverbs.
The first duty OF woman in India
| Is that she must be married The
religious books teach that all un-
married women are going to hell,
doomed to eternal punishment. Mar
riage is for woman the end and aim
Of life, and the only medium Of re-
generation. No other purifactory
rite is permitted to her. Hundreds
Of thousands Of girl babies are be-
trothed before they have reached
their first birthday. The. husband
| to be, may be Of similar age or a
man of mature years. Formerly the
marriage was actually contaminated
when the girl had reached the age
Of eight or ten. This revolving Gus
tom frequently resulted in the death
of these child wives in lingering and
untold agony. Not until 1891 was al
law passed forbidding actual mar
riage until the girl had reached the
age of IL. Those familiar with con-
ditions tell us that religious conyic-
lions are SO strong that this law is
frequently violated and the sacrifice
Of childhood upon the altar Of super
stitionA and lust continues. Pundita
Ramabai, cultured woman Of In.
dia, declares it to b.. her belief that
TOO out of 1000 Of the girls Of India
are married under ten years Of age.
No high caste girl of that land Ia al
lowed by her. parents to remain un-
married after she Is u years of age.
There is no limit to the number
Of wives a man may have, some
high caste people have from 100 to|
$50 consorts. Since the husband is
immortal, the Hindu religion says
la woman may never marry again
when her husband dies. Seventy
years ago the widows were burned|
alive with the bodies of their hus-
bands, but this is now forbidden, not
by religion, but by English law. To
day she must suffer the living death
OF widowhood. 1t Ia the belief that
the wife has committed some hor-
rible crime in a previous existence
for which her husband has been
punished by death and for which
she must suffer untold outrage. She
must 60 with shaved head wearing al
single coarse garment and eating but
one meal In "a hours. The house
hold drudge, she must rise before all
others. carry the water, and prepare
the morning meal in the home OF
her husbands people. Mistreated
and cursed by all, 1t IL unlucky to|
meet her, and her only release isl
found In death. The latest census
figures report 115,000,000 women in
India. Placed nine abreast on both
sides Of each Of our four great trans
continental railroads they would
reach all the way from the Atlantic
to the Pacific. AZ we looked upon
them from the windows Of the NOV
ing train during that long journey
surely our hearts would melt with