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IN DEFENSE OF HER OWN SEX

Mrs. Peattie Writes a Reply to the Communication of A. M. M.

She Maintains That Women Are Not Light Minded, but Are Frequently the Family Strength.

Some Sharp Arrows Which Are Shot Without Rancor in This Joust Over the "New Woman."

A. M. M. has a bitter and somewhat excited article in the Public Pulse columns of a recent issue of this journal concerning women's rights-as she is fair enough to term them. One does not, of course know what should have caused A. M. M. to write so earnestly upon a question which at the present time appears to be abeyance. Very likely it was some private discussion which stirred her and impelled her to give voice in public to the personal indignation which she felt. At any rate as her ideas represent those of a large class of women and as they are set forth with the most evident sincerity, they are entitled to the consideration of women who are willing to bear with some pride the epithets heaped upon them by those of shallow wit--epithels which were intended to be opprobrious. As "Yankee" was a term of contempt, yet came to be born with honest pride by those whom it was applied, so "the new woman," which was meant for a slur, has come to be a shibboleth, and the women who work in science, in art, in the professions, in the trades, in the home, the church and the school have come to accept with dignity that application and to fraternize under it.

The arguments which A. M. M. advances against the political enfranchisement of women are very old. Though really that is nothing against them. Almost all good things ate old, as well as most bad things. Nothing is older than injustice. F w things are older than sophistry. And without injustice we should not have had the heroic triumphs of justice. Without sophistry we could not have had the background over against which in place the fair figure of truth. One does not mind that what A. M. M. says is very old and lacking in originality. One could hardly expect, indeed, that a member of the"light minded foolish and frivolous" sex should be anything but a plagiarist. How could a creature so abject create anything-save children like any other mammal? It is A.M.M. who after talking about all for which the Creator intended us, says that we are "light minded, frivolous and foolish." Perhaps she knows. But indeed, could she look in the hearts that however foolish we may be, however frivolous we might have been long ago, we are not light minded! Perhaps if we could be for a while the world might not seem so old. Perhaps if we could let the burdens drop, and the duties fall, and the awful of what we owe to out children and in others who live us be forgotten for a while life would seem very day and wonderful to some of us. No, really believe me A. M. M., we are not light minded. We cannot conduct homes with all the fine economies necessary, we cannot [trust?] our children with all the hopes and prayers and fear attendant upon that sacred task, we cannot mix in a world so filled with injustice and sorrow and be light minded. Perhaps you are, dear A. M. M. But there are many, many of us who are not, and who never can be again, though we may have been so once when we were little girls and ran over the meadows of our youth, where the butterflies were. But that was such a very long time ago!

We cannot even retain out "light mindedness, A. M. M., and contemplate the awful errors made by "our wisest men," of whom you speak with such abject reverence that it reminds me of the "Japanese grovel" with which good Mr. Gilbert had the subjects of the mikado approach his most illuminated majesty. You are indeed under the thrall of sex. I congratulate you upon your masculine acquaintance. I have known many fairly good men and two remarkably good ones: I have enjoyed the acquaintance of hundreds of interesting men, and thousands of comparatively inoffensive ones. But the wisdom of which I speak I have not seen, neither in the men whom I have been permitted to shake the hands at public levees-such as Mr. Cleveland, for instance. I have often perceived that men became famous by a mere trick of fate, over which they had no control. I have seen men as heroic as the most successful fall because of another trick of fate. And as for wisdom-merciful heavens: is not this country bewildered by the errors of men? Is not this state in abject trepidation- are not men regarding one another with pitiable eyes, conscious past words of their own fallibility and of the wreck in which they have precipitated themselves? Have you not seen many and many a time, families dragged to ruin by the mistaken judgment of good men, and the selfish vices of bad ones? Have you not observed pretenders everywhere? Have you not learned it is often greed which triumphs coarseness which succeeds, tyranny which wins respect, and does not the whole world bow before a shining yellow metal, which will make the possessor of snowwhite swan in the eyes of those who erstwhile, before they came into possession of that metal, though him or her a goose? The "wisdom" of men! Truely they are as wise as women-but what a little thing is that. And do not women know how weak these men are-how the beat of them must be cared for, petted, cajoled, encouraged! The world is a very cruel place, and there never was a man yet who did not now and then falter before the strife of it, and shrink from it, hurt and afraid. It is easy to believe that Josephine may have seen Napoleon weep; quite easy to think that Martha may have kissed courage into the lops of Washington-lips which men thought so implacable.

You think, do you madam, that a wrangle over "rights" is unseemly? Why, then, so was the American revolution unseemly; so was the wrangle which secured the manumission of slaves, so has been every struggle of liberty! Unseemly! All vial things are unseemly. Do you think that superstitions-such for instance, as the unquestioning respect for all things masculine which you entertain--are to be crushed with a cambric needle? Seemly? Is it seemly for the man in the factory to cry out with oaths, that for the pittance for which he works he has sold his life, his vote, his freedom of thought? Is it seemly for Debs to shout out his words of protest against a new tyranny? Is it seemly for women to starve on even less than men, because, forsooth, they have not a vote with which to argue! Seemly, madam. There is nothing seemly-unless it be a 5 o'clock tea or a bread mixing. The women who argued and bore calumny for the liberties which you now enjoy, who secred for women the right to the education of which you have probably availed yourself, were not "seemly." They were merely heroic. Probably you would therefore not have associated with them. The standard of seemliness which some women entertain is that of profound nullity. To be perfectly respectable one must needs have done nothing at all. A sawdust doll, dear madam is always seemly.

A. M. M. appears to think that all women are loved and protected, and she wants to know, why they cannot be content with such felicity. She has again show herself to be fortunate in her acquaintances. I have myself had the misfortune to know many women who were never offered the love or protection of any man; I have known many who, having being offered such love and protection, could not accept it because their own hearts would not respond; I have known many how were widowed, and many others who appeared to be born without the wifely or maternal instinct, just as some men are incapable of happy domesticity. Then, too, I have seen women who could not narrow themselves to domesticity. However much they might envy those women who could be happy bu a fireside, they themselves could not, but were impelled by some great power to immolate themselves for humanity. Some of these have been in convents, some have been in hospitals, some in pulpits, and some in teachers' chairs. They felt a "call" to their wide vocation, as I suppose Whitfield felt a call to his, and John Brown a call in his. There are isolated and remarkable beings who are thus implied to the unusual, and since they are disinterested, and even suffer martyrdom for their convinctions, one cannot afford to disbelieve in the "call" though one may be commonplace one's self, and never have responded to any sort of a call unless it be the dinner bell.

Indeed, A. M. M., I would have been entirely indifferent to all you had to say with those weary old arguments, about the objections to women's rights, if it had not been that you called us light minded, frivolous and foolish. Was your mother so? Some of us have memories of silent patience, of loving forbearance, of courage in poverty, of heroism in suffering, and charity to all, of self subduing of endless sacrifices which makes us wonder and bow the head. Some of us have friends now, young women, who bear shameful burdens imposed upon them but these wise men whom you so admire, and who bear these burdens with a noble dignity, their lips sealed against complaint, their heads held high in loyalty, though their spirits cower in secret shame! With such memories of those who are gone, or past their work, with such knowledge of living friends, one cannot but protest against the accusation of "light mindedness, frivolity and foolishness." Even Mr. Pope would not have said anything so mean as that, and Walter Scott, you remember very well, though admitting that we might be somewhat uncertain and hard to please in our idle moments, was eager to pay tribute to our fidelity and courage when the occasion arose, for the exercise of those virtues. Myself, I think if homes are sustained and generations raised by creatures of so little account, it were well if humanity were at an end and "the fever called living" well over for the whole of us.

You talk about the modesty of women. My dear madame, that modesty was not protected in this or any other country till women arose and protested that they would have laws protecting women. Modestly It has been the modesty of women that has kept them from protesting with sufficient effect against the laxity of laws in certain directions and that permits a man like George Morgan to commit his brief confinement and come out to crush another innocent victim. It would well befit the modesty of any of us to work to secure in the legislature a penalty for such wretches commensurate with the trime they commit, insteady of having them confined for the same length of time they would be if they had stolen a man's fattened pig or burned his barn. Believe me, modesty is one of those things which vary in the mind of each person. There are women who have never thought it immodest to have an interest in civic affairs or to labor for the betterment of their community, I remember very well listening to a white-headed gentleman not long ago who declared with a great deal of bluster that "women never had any public spirit. They had only prejudices." A few minutes later when one was speaking of a lady in this town who certainly has a public spirit--the lady who was the second president of the Woman's club and is now the president of Woman's Christian association--he said;: "Woman were very much better attending to their own affairs. He believed in card clubs, but he didn't see why ladies should meet except to play whist or drink tea." The inconsistency of this old gentleman, which one did not mind, because he seemed to be so very ignorant of what was going on in the world, is very common among persons of this class. They complain of the women for not knowing anything and much more bitterly complain of them if they endeavor to learn. It is only when women appear to take a similar stand that one feels discouraged. It was the foes who ate at mess with him that filled the soul of Washington with the great grief that that whitened his hair. None of us are Washingtons, and we are not going to grow white-headed over your disinclination to agree with. There are many hundred thousand women in the world who will go about their tasks with as much patience and courage as if you had not thought them light-hearted, and who will perhaps make a home, keep it well and do a deal outside of home too. They will give you cards and spades and beat you then, dear madam. I hope you play cards? They are good, things to play when one has very stupid company with whom one cannot sustain a conversation.

Please let me speak of one thing more. You speak of hirelings. Hirelings is a good word to use in England, or Russia, but in America it doesn't sound well. We are all hirelings here, except a few of us, who make our bread by the sweat of some one's else brow. No doubt your husband is a hireling I hope so. He probably is if he is honest. We all serve in one way or another. Nor does the wage make us conscienceless. The hirelings who hold our little children, or who help in any other way with the domestic labors, may have hearts as tender as our own. Who has not seen their tears dropping at the illness of the little ones they have cared for, or noticed their sympathy with any other affliction of the family? There are houses where the "hirelings" are the best part of the household--the most healthy, industrious, virtuous and best looking. "Hirelings" is not a word for this nation of shop keepers and road workers and writers and scrubwomen.

It does seem as if they were two or three other things I wanted to say to you, but I have forgotten them.

Oh, yes, I remember you repeated parrot-like that old objection that many respectable women would not. want to vote and that the disreputable would. I don't how you know. But what if they did? What has that to do with the abstract justice of the thing? When we freed the negroes--I say we, though no doubt you and I were born long after our fathers had got through with all inconvenience of the glorious action--were we worrying about the attitude of the negro toward enfranchisement? Or about the morals of the negro? Not at all. It is a question of justice, of "right" as you were kind enough to say yourself, though I think you said it inadvertently.

You say women are clinging by nature. I have sometimes amused myself when I have been our at some pleasant social affair in reflecting upon the histories of the women around me, and I have often noticed that a large proportion of the company present was composed of women who had held up, in one way or another, some weak or worthless man. Some of them had cared for their families after being deserted. Some had great terrible histories of betrayal, and suicide and shame and -ah! it is all too dismal to think of! many of them were simply energetic and sensible women who had kept the household together in spite of prodigality, bad judgment and a large array of small vices on the part of "the head of the family." some had brought to the family name all the credit that ever attached to it. Do not think I belittle the men, I think them no worse than ourselves. But indeed, dear A. M. M. I can think them no better.

I think you said some dreadful fate might be in store for you. If nothing worse befalls you for your utterances than this casual protest of mine, your apprehensions will not be realized. I would not have had said a word--for your arguments were not worth bothering with--if you had not called us light minded, frivolous and foolish. Come and see me some time, and we will shake hands over this disagreement while I give you a list of several hundred women who are nothing of the sort. I would let the list reach into the thousands, the millions, if I only knew the names. It is not the women who are lacking to disprove your statement, but my acquaintance with them.

No rancor. A. M. M. One likes a joust-and you began!
Elia W. Peattie

Chats of Books and Bookmen.

In view of the early coming of a short season of grand opera in Omaha the "Stories of the Wagner Operas," by H. A. Guerber, will prove of more than usual interest to lovers of books and music. The handsome little volume, containing short sketches, which may be read in a few moments' time, affordes the reader a very clear outline of the great dramatist-composer's work, and is arranged in a manner at once interesting and instructive. There is not a dull line in the book, and it is really one which should be in the hands of every reading and thinking person who desires to familiarize himself with the stories upon which the operas of Richard Wagner are founded. For those who have a knowledge of the great master's work this little tome will prove helpful as a refresher of the memory, while to those who are yet unacquainted with his creations it will be immensely serviceable, giving a clear, concise description of his writings and perhaps be an incentive to further reading on the subject. The volume comprehends eleven operas, is handsomely illustrated and neatly bound. Dodd, Mead & Co. (New York) are the publishers, and the book is on sale at the store of the Megeath Stationery company in this city.

Perhaps no book of the year has caused more comment or been give a wider publicity in both the literary publications and the daily newspapers than those rather resentful reminiscences of Senator John Sherman, which have been read with intense interest and have made everybody mad. This two volume autobiography from the pen of the senior senator from Ohio covers his recollections of forty years in the house, senate and cabinet, and fairly bristles with interest. The work is published by the Werner company of Chicago, and is having an immense sale. A casual notice of this contribution to historical literature would be farcical and will not be attempted here, but I am glad to be able to state to the readers of the World-Herald that it will be reviewed for this paper by a gentleman of national reputation, a student and active participant in national politics, who will consider the work at length and present his views on the subject in the columns of this paper in the near future.

Boys, old and young, will be interested to know that one of those famous tales of Captain Mariyat, "Mr. Midship-