The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1917-07-24
A WORD FOR STEPMOTHERS
AS NALIGNED INDIVIDUALS
World Has Always Put Worst Con-
structioa On Their Every Deed,
\ Denying Them Credit for Good
and Seeing in Everything They
Do Seeds of Evil.

o. much misjudged and misrepre-
sented class of persons.
The sentiment against step-mothers
arose ages ago; and it has been so
general and so strong, that it has
Rbeen incorporated in several Ian
guages. In Greek, the word for step
pmother (matrula) is another name
for an unlind person, and the verb
derived from it (matruiazo) means to
act unkindly A dangerous coast was
called matruia neon-a step mother
to ships. The word matruiodes-a
step-mother's treatment-meant harsh
treatment. 1t was similar with the
Latin word noverca. In German
Observation-Disclosures p-motherly- means
hsrshness, or unkindness. In French,
fnaratre means both a step-motner
and cruelty In Italian, matrlgna
means both step-mother and cruel
mother: and the matrignare-ro act
like step-mother-means to act cruel
ly. And the phrase far viso oil ma
trigna-to exhibit the face Of step
nlcther-means to scowl, or show an
unfriendly countenance.
And the step-mother has the like
eatment in literature. In America
and all over Europe, the favorite nc
4tion OF "Condrella" makes the sweet
girl the victim of a cruel step-mother
&tui helped by fairy and good for
trRe. One of the ancient traditions
OF Greece, on which much has been
written, was that of Phrixus and his
sister Helle prosecuted outrageously
by their step mother Ino. EurlpioeS'
in his play, "Alcestis,,' has Alcestls'
when about to give her life to save
her husband Admetus, exactlng from
him the promise not to marry again.
and endeavoring to console her two
children with the assurance that they
shall not fall into the hands of step
mother, and adding that step-uota-
lAer is no kinder than q serpent. Thes
have Horace specifying as a Pc
yirtus OF the married women
he Scythiams, or Getae, that they
treat their ,step-chilareR kindly. Ano
the same author has a boy, about To
"a be murdered by a conjuring woman TO
saw that she has the look OF step
mother or wounded wild beast JuVe-
nal in his abuse Of Roman women,
says, that they are tolerated IN msr-
dering step-sons. Virgil speaks OF a
poison employed by step-nothers IN
Media. and, in another place, OF the
poison hippomanes as often used by
bad stepmothers Shakespeare has the
wife of King Cymbelene saying to ner
daughter Imogene:
ssYou shall not find me, daaghter,
After the slaader Of most step-mofners
gil-eyed unto you,"
!. a little later preparing poison rof
X Imogen. In "Troilus and Cres-
we find the expression "as false
eep-mother to her son." Then we
Rheye the old current Greek story
u (fhe material of plays by Euripiles;
sereca, Racine, Gilbert and others
,and OF a poem by Ovid OF Phaedra
who first prosecuted her step-son
Hj1rotytus, then fell in love with him
ord when he respulsed her advances
accused him falsely to his father ano
nrocured his Punishment, which lee
TO his death. Uike the case OF Pou
phar's wife and Joseph, and that Of
Fausta and Crispus, to be mentioned
nresently.) Schiller, by the way, II
his translation of Racine's "Phedre,
goes out of his way to have Thera-
men, tutor of Hippolytus, say to the
s1atter. that Phaedra, being stlefmue-
terlich gesinnt-step-motherly minded
made it her first work to send h1n
lElppolytus) into exile. Racine has
him saw that Phaedra is q danger
GUS step-mother, who had barely seen
uiDnolytus when her influence Was
exhibited in his banishmeat:
,ssI,ansereuse maratre, a 9eiae ellie
vous Wit
Ono yotre exil d'sSoPd sgaaA son
credit"
n anC there is Milton, in Ais Com0s
= helping to perpetuate the British le-
gend of the step-mother Guendolen