230 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



July 



it upon the farm than any other occupation in life. 



The gentleman refers to barbarous nations where 

 women work out doors, and thinks their condition 

 far from enviable. I would like to inquire who 

 would have her husband or son on the level with 

 the males of those nations ? If one comparison 

 is applicable, so is the other. 



Our friend thinks that "girls should be able to 

 tend their flowers and gardens, ride horseback, 

 harness and saddle a horse and turn him to pas- 

 ture, but when this is done the idea of her taking 

 her team and going into the field to plough for a 

 livelihood is too much of a good thing." Sure 

 enough, it is shocking, Mr. Talcott. It would do 

 very well for her to take hold a little -while, jtist 

 fur fun ; but she must return to the house im- 

 mediately, before any one happens to see her, and 

 go to work at cats and dogs in worsted, or some 

 Mrs. Grundy will raise a terrible hue and cry of 

 "a woman out of her sphere," "trying to become 

 a man," or something else equally ridiculous and 

 nonsensical. 



Throughout the whole of the article mentioned, 

 the impression is carried that it is the tcork that 

 degrades ; but when it is sifted to its foundation 

 we shall find, instead, that it is ignormu-e. Any 

 one, whether male or female — whether his occu- 

 pation is farming or anything else — will be coarse, 

 unrefined, awkward and vulgar, in proportion to 

 his lack of intelligence ; and it is worse than folly 

 in this age of the world to attribute it to anything 

 else. A young lady once came some way to work 

 for us. She had heard some one speak of the in- 

 terest there was always to be found in all pertain- 

 ing to an out-door life, and sighing for change 

 sought it here ; but she was not of a tempera- 

 ment to see God in flowers, and hear Him in the 

 brooks ; and so, very often that wliich would give 

 us instruction and be of interest for days, would 

 call forth the remark from her, "I can see nothing 

 interesting in this ;" so commonly did she use it, 

 that it almost became a play-word with us. Noth- 

 ing was of interest to her, — a strange plant, tree, 

 or fossil — because she could see only with her 

 temporal eyes. The past, present or future was 

 nothing, even Avhen it pertained to the beautiful 

 unfolding of Nature's laws. 



At last, Mr. Editor, we find that the grand 

 finale of the eloquent epistle under consideration 

 is simply this : Women may do anything they 

 please in the world that amoiods to nothing. She 

 may make shirts at three cents apiece, take in 

 washing, or do housework at fifty cents a week. 

 Man has monopolized every honest employment 

 and left her to cling helplessly to fathers and 

 brothers for support, or waste her energies in striv- 

 ing to catch a husband to perform the office. Mr. 

 Talcott says that it is an object worth striving for 

 to correct such abuses. And that is our only ob- 

 ject in pursuing the course that we do ; and now 

 that we have spread open the only door that is 

 not pertinaciously closed, there is a terrible breeze 

 created on the instant, and somebody has raised 

 the frightful bear-in-the-corner of masculine wo- 

 men, vulgarity, ignorance, and all of the other 

 bug-a-boos that are commonly used to frighten 

 children, with the expectation that we will run 

 like sheep before the butcher. But they have 

 only succeeded in proving themselves mistaken. 

 We have tried both sides of the question and are 

 as competent to judge of its eflScacy as those who 



stand in the corner and shout their surmises. 



Mr. Talcott does not object so much to woman's 

 doing anything she chooses, provided that she turns 

 it to no account. He thinks there is no harm in 

 her working on a farm if she does it for recreation 

 and' pleasure ; but if she does it for a "means of 

 gaining a livelihood," it is awful, shocking, out- 

 rageous, and not to be tolerated. Now, if it is 

 right to do any such thing in "Jun," it is right to 

 do it in earnest, and for j)ay ; and if it is right for 

 man to work on a farm and draw rich inspiration 

 from such heavenly beauties, it is just as right for 

 woman, and if he can do it without growing base, 

 so can she, and be just as lovable, just as good, 

 and watchful, and kind ; and as she grows strong- 

 er and more healthy, (as she cannot avoid doing,) 

 she will be more patient and far more competent 

 to fill the office of wife and mother with credit to 

 herself, and bring honor to her husband and chil- 

 dren. The reason that such labor has had so sad 

 an efi'ect upon women is because they are never 

 satisfied to let well enough alone. If she is weak- 

 er than man, then she should work with more 

 moderation ; but no ! — after a long day's work in 

 the field she returns to the hduse, and while the 

 men are enjoying a cosy chat, or reading, she is 

 setting things "to rights" and preparing for the 

 next day's work. Let Mr. Talcott go into the 

 house, put on woman's rig and content himself 

 within the limits that have been laid down for wo- 

 man, and if he is possessed of an aspiring, ambi- 

 tious mind, and he thinks the position desirable 

 at the end of three years, then we may think his 

 opinion entitled to more weight. 



The story of our work is looked upon as re- 

 markable almost beyond belief, when taken into 

 consideration only our ages, and judge of com- 

 mon farming ; but I assure you there is nothing 

 strange or marvellous about it, after all. The sou 

 of our farm is very light and easily tilled. 

 Throughout the whole three hundred acres there 

 is scarcely a stone, and all is smooth and level. The 

 rest is not so easy to manage, but we do not have 

 much trouble with it. We are none of us afraid 

 of horses, and working around and with them is 

 a pleasure. Machinery has very much facilitated 

 farming of late — so we are able to do a great deal 

 of work without injury to ourselves. We are none 

 of us very sickly, and are improving in that re- 

 spect all of the time. Neither are we deformed, 

 but are growing to age cheerful, independent, 

 trusting and happy. Our parents have not forced 

 this life upon their children, either, as many have 

 tried to prove, but were loth to have us enter it ; 

 yet, when they saw our determination, they yield- 

 ed and lent u§ encouragement and assistance. 

 Wishing that the lives of all other girls might be 

 as far from trouble and care, and hoping that Mr. 

 Talcott may soon gain a broader and more chari- 

 table view of nature and its eff'ects, I will close. 

 Bella A. Roberts. 



PeTcin, Xiagara Co., N. Y. 



A Remedy for Melon Bugs. — A gentleman 

 who has had much experience in raising melons, 

 informs us that the best thing to keep bugs from 

 the vines is, — 



Sulphur, one table spoonful. 

 Yellow snuff, one table Bpoonful. 

 Cayenne pepper, one table spoonful. 

 Ground mustard, one table spoonful. 



Mix the whole with half a pint of flour, and apply 

 to the plants when they are moisn 



