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THE SUNNY SOUTH. ATLANTA, GEORGIA SEPTEMBER SO 1895.
MY WISH.
Fair maid, thy life, like an unwritten tale.
Now lies before tnee an onsullied sheet;
Its mysteries are bidden by that vail
Of Innocence which renders life ro sweet.
Wbate’er is written on its snowy page
Thine own fair hand from day to day must
trace;
And may thy heart, from youth to weary age
Find not one line that thou wouldst ' ■
erase.
fain
has
Perchance it may not be thy lot to dwell
In castles that thy youthful mind
planned;
And time these airy visions may dispel.
And give contentment with a life less grand
Not all the luxury that wealth can give,
Nor all that sated pride can e’er impart,
Can add one b'essing to the life we live
Unless content abide within the heart.
Heaven guide thy feet to pure and fragrant
bowers.
And tune thy heart but joyful notes to sing;
Ah I would no thorns might lurk among thy
flowers,
Or would that else, they were deprived of
sting,
May fate dea’ kindly at the blushing morn
Of youth so promising to one so fair;
May transient clouds, that on thy sky are borne,
Pass swiftly o er, and vanish into air.
Haply old Father Time may smile on thee,
And lightly touch thy brow with seams of
care;
Still youth will pass, and hastening years will
U00
Despite the pleadings of thy fondest prayer.
Our dainty longings mar not rust with years,
Nor our aesthetic tastes be dulled by age;
And if not stained by our remorseful tears,
Fair as the first will be our closing page.
Whatever love or kindly care could give,
To thee has, hitherto, been freely given;
But no vicarious soul thy life can live,
Nor bear thy journey to the gates of heaven.
The dew of youth is still upon thy brow,
«s, fresh and pure, thy record has begun;
Life’s highway lies untried before thee now;
Unsullied be thy name when it is donel
—Edward A. Boy den.
(ghat.
W
E SEE that two of our band
were constrained to respond to
Cundurango’s letter concern
ing women as wage-earners. There
is much that is pathetic in the inner
life of many of the girls that have
been disposed to tread these advanced
paths. One girl, whose brothers are
wealthy and as long as she stayed at
home they dressed her beautifully,
told me that by crying and pleading
she got them to give her five hundred
dollars. She determined to go to a
certain famous school as long as her
money lasted. When she got there
she kept her eyes open and soon saw
a way to help herself. She sang in an
out-of-town church, and received just
enough to pay her board.
Then she did beautiful mending and
was quite a comfort to the girls whose
genius did not lie in that line. Thus
she made her glove money and inci
dentals. But she laughed and said :
“I had to make two dresses do me.
I just could not squeeze out money
for dresses.”
Suppose you should see the experi
ences of the girls in Boston? Some of
the statistics would not be accepted,if
published. Pathos and self-denial,
laughter and jests, are so interwoven
that the one who hears these stories
does not appreciate the bravery as
much as it should be.
* * * •
iARIE A. HENSON is right,
'and I am happy to state that
►the chivalry is not confined to
Virginia. Men are always willing to
treat a woman with the courtesy that
should be accorded her; but they are
not always willing to put their hands
into their pockets and give them
money to fit themselves for a career.
* * * *
B UT don’t you all think that there
is a lot of gush and foolishness in
this idea about how the woman
are treated?
There are separate classes of society,
as there ever has been, and they have
no idea how the next class manage.
The so-called society folks are very
well in their way. They spend money
and keep it circulating. The men in
that set have nothing in common
with the girls that work and
would be like fish out of water if they
should be thrown with them. Just as
the young man who burns the mid
night oil in his pursuit ot knowledge
would feel if he should have to escort
Lady Clara Vere De Vere from New
York to Washington.
B ON’T imagine that we could do
without “Sooiety.” As the age
becomes more enlightened, the
rays permeate all classes. The veriest
butterfly is now the devotee of some
fad that is to improve her. Then the
charity of “sooiety,” while not always
the “tactful charity” it should be, is
widespreading and generous.
* • •
T HE World moves and we who
vex our minds with the problem
of the day have comfort in the
thought that if we plow our furrow
straight the next one will be helped
thereby. Suppose Cadmus could come
baok and see the era of printing that
Is upon us. I some times wonder
what A. D., 1993 will unfold.
T\, ATELY" I
have kept still and
trr\ listened to
the teachers. Pho-
l J netic spelling has been one topic,
and it is claimed that it would revo-
lutionize things.
For my part it cer-
fRinly would. When I saw run; ill a
certain magazine I said that they had
a careless proof
reader. Now here
are some of the
words that you are
likely to meet in a days reading.
Present way.
New way.
Affront
Affrunt
Angle
Angl
Ample
Am pi
Adorable
Adorabl
Apple
Apl
Are
Ar
Awed
Awd
Arise
Arize
Ankle
Ankl
Become
Becum
Balked
Balkt
Begged
Begd
T HERE was one teacher rejoicing
over this new method. Sne say9
that one of her classes invariably
pronounces alone “all-one,” and if it
is not al-one what is it? But I must
not let my pen run any more. Some
who commenced to read this chat .may
have put it down in disgust. ’Tis not
a sermon nor yet a song. You who
have followed me to the end may won
der what it is. Merely the love and
best wishes, for all of you, from she
who is Faithfully yours,
Mother Hubbard.
Madison, Fla.
Music, Literature and Flowers.
For sometime I have been sitting
out on the porch in “dolce far niente,”
watching the sunlight and shadows
on the mountains. It reminds me of
‘Happy Mother’s” beautiful little
sketch, “Sunshine and Shadows.”
Truly, it does matte a beautiful pic
ture, the sun bathing the mountain
sides with its glowing light, then the
shadows silently deepening over all—
darkly, beautifully blue.
Sunshine and shadows! Yes, verily
it does take both to complete the pic
ture; and the shadows are as beauti
ful as the sunshine. So in life we can
make the dark places very beautiful if
we will. Oft-times we are surrounded
by troubles and vexations, so that we
seem almost bewildered, but through
the tangled web of life we can see
threads of gold; the shadows will pass
away, and the sweet sunlight will fall
so softly over us that we will wonder
that we did not see the brightness all
the time.
“After all so long as one has a little
blue sky above one, life may be lived
somehow.” ....
Dreamily drift my thoughts to the
sweet music I heard last Sunday
morning. It was a beautiful volun
tary, “The Lost Chord,” played ex
quisitely by Mrs. A. Her music is so
soulful and grand, that the organ
seemed inspired by her enchanting
touch.
“And as it trembled away into silence
As if it were loth to cease.”
I felt that I could sob my life away.
The deep grand tones of the organ
seem to lift us up to a higher life, and
I lost myself to all save the sweet ten
der chords, which vibrated in unison
with my thoughts.
“And it lay on my fevered spirit
With a touch of infinite calm.”
I seem to hear it now; my soul ever
longs to hear again such sweet music
f
“Which came from the soul of the
organ,
And entered into mine.”
I wonder if in Heaven I will ever
hear again that grand amen.
I heard a good sermon, too—one
that awakened the soul to a longing
for a better life—a sermon so pure in
thought, clothed in such beautiful
language that one was reminded of
Ruskin.
John Ruskin is my ideal of all that
is grand and noble. The world has
grown better through his pure and
lofty thoughts. I would be satisfied
with only his books to read. I am so
glad that he is Poet Laureate of Eng
land.
I have been reading Christian
Reid’s novels and I like them very
much, for they are something more
than a sensational plot—they are de
scriptive and interesting. Her de
scription of old Roman cities and
their cathedrals are well drawn, so
one could imagine they were in reality
visiting those ancient cities.
Her description of Ninfa, the Pom
peii of the Middle ages, is well worth
reading. It seems that this city was
deserted by its inhabitants, and its
castles, convents and churches, are
buried in flowers, presenting a fairy-
like scene, wild, strange and beauti
ful. It is a mystery why this city was
deserted and what became of its in
habitants; there is not even a tradi
tion to tell the story. Perhaps it was
the home of fever, as one does not
dare to remain in this enchanted city
after sunset.
The Nymphaeus, a beautiful stream
which flows past the deserted oity, falls
into a lake which is said to be the
very haunt of fever, and outside of
the walls is a pool from which deadly
miasma rises constantly.
She says: “I cannot imagine any
thing more impressive than its ap
pearance, especially toward sunset.
One thinks of Virgil and Dante and
of souls being ferried over to Hades or
Purgatory. One can fanoy no fig
ure, except that of Charon, on
the glittering death-bearing expanse,
around which tall reeds rustle mourn
fully, and only the sobbing cry of the
water here comes at intervals.”
Could you imagine anything more
beautiful than a city whose streets
are filled with flowers, which seem to
march in a procession to the ruined
churches and climb every tower?
“They lie smiling and laughing in
all the deserted windows, and barri
cade every dGor, for within the houses
reside elves, fairies, water nymphs,
and a thousand charming spirits of
the fabled world.”
Surely, one would imagine all its
inhabitants were changed into flow
ers.
I wish I could see Ninfa, for my
thoughts are full of such wild exquis
ite fancies. I think I will dream of
this enchanted city with its walls
covered with ivy, and its beautiful
lake covered with water lilies, and
fringed with for-get-me-nots.
Carhersville, Ga. “Hope.”
A Reply to Cundurango.
What relic of barbarism have we
here! What a strange freak of nature
to give us, in this enlightened nine
teenth century, a Cundurango that
would have been so highly apprecia
ted in the Dark Ages! Poor man!
’Tis but the irony of Fate.
Would that some intellectual wom
an would push aside the barricade be
hind which he so wisely crouches, and
brush the cob-webs from his brain. Do
not tell me to try it. I do not pretend
to be intellectual, and should I under
take the job,I know I should first brush
off a huge bump that I am sure adorns
his cranium. Just out of good will,
you know; for I realize ’tis but
“weakness to be wroth weakness.”
Is there any other man in theUnited
States who oeases to respect a woman
because she works for a living, because
she is a teacher, typewriter, stenog
rapher or the like? if so, I thank the
Lord that no such specimen of narrow
minded masculinity comes within the
pale of my acquaintance.
For ten years (I am a quarter of a
century good folks) I have worked in
the three aforesaid professions, and
have found among the men of Vir
ginia a spirit of genuine comradeship
that is dearer far to a true woman’s
heart than the courtly affectations
offered to the ball room beauty. I can
see their manly faces flush with indig
nation at such statements as Cudu-
rango’s, and then hear them laugh
merrily with me at their absurdity.
I speak of Virginia gentlemen, for
few others do I know; but ye maidens
who have your living to earn, of this
be assured: There are few Cunduran
go’s in this enlightened age to point
the finger of scorn, and many noble
men abroad in the land who will hon
or you for your independence.
The finger of scorn is rarely pointed
by the men, nor yet by the women of
true culture of mind and heart; but
by that class who have been reared to
believe that a woman’s mission in life
is to look pretty, praotice all the
known arts of coquetry, and finally
capture a wealthy husband.
There are many such, and the reason
is obvious: their mothers before them
were so reared.
The crying need of the world is
mothers—mothers of true culture—
breadth of intellect and greatness of
heart—mothers who will teach their
daughters that life is but a glorious
opportunity for the development of
mind and heart, that
“Great objects make great minds,
enlarging as their views enlarge;”
and that; “The more our spirits are
enlarged on earth, the deeper draught
shall they receive from Heaven.”
Mothers who will teach their daugh
ters that a true marriage, though one
of God’s greatest blessings, is not the
aim of woman's existence. Mothers
who will teach their daughters to
value a man for his intrinsic worth,
and not for his money-bags or the soft
nothing he whispers in their ears.
A woman so reared, may marry a
man not so well educated as herself.
One nature may be the complement of
the other. She may find that, in him,
which her own nature lacketh; and
thus is made a perfect whole. Much
less likely is he to be snubbed wedded
to a woman of true culture, to whom
“All littleness is an approacn to woe,”
than to a society butter-fly should he
ever be so unfortunate as to exhibit
his ignorance of the latest society fad.
Thank the Lord, we are advancing!
It is believed that the University of
Virginia will open its doors to women
in 1894. Many uot&ble institutions of
learning have already done so. What
a grand opportunity for those who
have had true cultured mothers to
rear them! With the opportunities
now opening to them, the intelleotual
women of the coming generations will
far outnumber those of the present
day; though there will always be
some not so wise as they might be.
Mrs. Poyser in “Adam Bede” explains
this admirably: “God Almighty made
some of ’em foolish to match the men”
—the Cundurangos.
Marie A. Henson.
A Word Concerning Women.
the
and
re-
por
Pa had been reading the Sunny,
but suddenly he put it aside and pro
ceeded to fill his meerschaum. I look
ed at him from one corner of my eye
and awaited the result. I .knew that
he was preparing for a talk. When
he had ignited the tobacco, he said.
“My son, no civil, political or social
change occurs within a day. It re
quires a long series of conditions and
measures, and a combination of infiu
ences, all tending, and striking in the
same direction for a number of years,
to create any visible change in any
fixed law.
While it is characteristic of
American people to speculate,
experiment it nevertheless
mains a fact that a large
tion of our people prefer fostering the
old to takmg up the new. And it is
well that sentiment finds such a di
vision, for the reason that advocates
of new measures might in a moment
of enthusiasm precipitate sooiety into
a condition of material injury, from
which it could not recover except
through years of strife and servitude.
However, no great revolution in any
of these lines ever occur, except
through the instrumentality of so-
called enthusiasts and “cranks.” The
fostering of the old by many of our
people serves to subdue and hold in
abeyance any wild cat schemes those
branded enthusiasts may wish to pro
mote, thereby serving as a check upon
their enthusiasm but really developing
their plans into practicability by
changing of errors that at first had
been over-looked
The optimist looks with favor upon
the approaching storm, though every
indication is that it is fraught with
destruction. The cloud comes, and
the storm passes, leaving in its wake
evidences of its great magnitude,
while the optimist looks with placid
satisfaction upon the results.
Apropos of the fore-going, I wish to
say a few words upon the subject of
woman, which, after a relapse of
several years, has again come to The
Sunny South. Every one knows
that a spirit of restleseness permeates
our entire country, and to say that
our women have escaped this condi
tion would be folly. No, they have
not. There is a revolution in their
ranks. It is not the sentiment of a
day to be extinguished by a new emo
tion tomorrow, nor is this movement
of recent origin. It dates back several
years, and its promoters were first
termed enthusiastic cranks, like all
other originators of evolutionary pro
positions.
Methinks I can see men, when wo
men first begun to speak of a new era
for themselves, laughing at the
thought of women existing in a sphere
other than that prescribed by man.
But if there ever were any such con
jectures, they remain no longer, for
women have not only submitted their
wishes in the premises, but are ac
tually existing in the premises!
The era for women is upon us. She
has gained it by her own effect, and
today she is working out her own sal
vation in the curriculum of the world’s
progress. Women, like others, must
labor diligently, definitely and un
ceasingly if she would be first in the
ranks of progress. She should not ex
pect men to favor her any more than
they favor one another, and unless
she can prove herself equal to the
competition she can not hope to sus
tain herself on equal footing with
man. There are many and varied
suggestions concerning the work she
is especially adapted to.
For my part I am willing that she
should do aoy thing that she can do
with honor to herself, her country and
her God. However, if we take pol
itical economy as authority her voca
tions will be limited.
Way land says: “Women are by
physical and mental constitution in
ferior to men in the qualities essential
to highest efficiency,” and that “there
are feminine instincts which prompts
women to draw back from many occu
pations because they are coarse, or in
volve too rough jostling with the
world.”
That the work of women will be re
stricted to those vocations that do not
encroach upon the delicate and en
nobling charms of womanhood is very
evident, for women are not so foolish
as to enter, nor men so base as to
wish to see her engage, in pursuits
that would rob her of feminine in-
stinots, and consequently, prove disas
trous to civilization.
Come what will there need be no
fears about what she shall do, for she
will decide that matter for herself. It
is not good for man to be alone; neith
er is it good for woman to stand alone,
and wherever such conditions prevail
there is a vicious demoralization of
society—hence, we find that it is bet
ter for the sexes to intermingle by
marriage.
Marriage being the foundation for
progressive civilization it follows as
r ?L COn9e( l U0Ilce th &t the hnn
hold is the essential sphere f QP U3e ~
man, and it is hardly nrnh«hi
she will ever universally depart 6 f thit
this threshold to engage in
of self-support, exclusfvely for th. 009
muneration connected there-wiX r ®*
As I understand the m,J n '
among women, for women, and b?» 1
men, it is to break down the erh J 0 *
prejudicial, and restrictive, min 22*
laws, and make it possible for hw ?
operate according to the dictate!
her own free-will and conschL f
That is to say if she wishes to Lv*?'
in any profession, or work, of her nJ 9
free-will and choice, or from necessnv
no social law or other measure enJtL
by man will confront herVilh S 4
strictive features to defeat the
of her will.
Instead it will be possible for hert«
D 0*0 OO in O n tr vrapIt f Knf 2 — i_ _ »
re-
degire
engage in any work that is honorahi#
without the fear of ostracism bv un'
just and contracted social measure*
That they have partially received thu
right is made manifest by the msn T
women tc-day at work in the various
vocations of the world. And it is m y
opinion the future has in store for her
that freedom of mind that liberty of
conscience for which her heart yearm
The statement that school teacherj
are not respected is foolishness itself
All sensible civilized people respect
any one who is honest and industri-
ous, whether they earn their bread by
the sweat of their brow, or by the
workings of their brain.
There is a class of people, however
of some social standing, who abhor la
bor in any form, and it may be that it
is this class who find it disrespectful
to train up the youth in science and
art, and the essentials to good citizen
ship.
Sensible people do not consider
school teaching disrespectful,—foolish
people are not responsible for what
they say.
There is much prejudice in the
world of women, and an effort must
be made to ‘break the tyranny of fash
ion and prejudice and mawkish senti
mentalism, and to open for women
free access to all fit occupations.’
The hardest fight that women are
having to make is in their own ranks,
among those who prefer fostering the
old to receiving the new.”
At this juncture of pas philosophy
ma interrupted him with, “Yes, an’I
don’t see why the fool women don’t
learn some sense an’ take hold of the
opportunity while they’ve got it.
Genie, give ear unto thy father for h
speaketh with a tongue of wisdom.”
Eugene Edwards.
A EtruDB« Xxptritnce.
Bernard Quist, a white-haired
Scandinavian boy, age seven years, is
probably the only human being liv
ing, or who ever did live, to undergo
the experience of being swallowed by
a monster serpent and escaping alive.
The incident occurred at Baraboo,
Wisconsin, where a large meDagerie
had wintered. Among the curiosities
were several enormous boa-constric
tors, one, it is said, exceeding thirty
feet in length. Young Bernard took
a boyish interest in observing tha |
proceedings, and despite the warn
ings of the men engaged in the work
of transferring the serpents from one
cage to another, persisted in hanging
about the place. While changing the |
quarters of one of the smaller ser
pents, a faint cry was heard, but the
men were so busy handling then
dangerous charge that they did not
give immediate attention, audit waH
some minutes ere a by-stander notices
that the largest boa-constrictor had
seized the boy and was in the act o:
swallowing him. Of course, there
were shouts for help and an im
mediate rush of the attendants ensued,
but at first glance young Quist seemed
beyond the reach of human assistance,
for the boa had swallowed him head
first as far as the knees. A large rope
was procured and fastened around the
body of the serpent just below the
point where the boy’s head was sup
posed to be, and willing hands tight
ening the noose, further efforts on the
part of the snake to continue swallow
ing were rendered futile.
Bars of iron were procured and the
reptile’s jaws were pried asunder and
the boy dragged forth more dead than
alive. .
He soon revived under the care ot a
physician, and was sent home, where
his mother first oried at the though!
of what might have been his terrible
fate, then thrashed him soundly {or f
going about the menagerie, a 9 P® 1
she had strictly forbidden him to
visit. hP
Bernard will get well; indeed,
has already recovered, for he is ag&j“
going to school; but it is not li* e \
that he will forget the experience o
being engulfed in a boa-constrictor
maw.
France is B oon to adopt an * ntere8 /
ing innovation in the postal card
tem. The cards will be issued in
form of check books, with stubs. Tb
sender of the postal card can
memoranda of its contents on
stub, and can have this stamped »
the postoffice before the card is n
tached, so that a verified record of t c
correspondence can be kept.