6 9 



family of six, eight, or possibly a dozen, and all this often with 

 less fatigue than the woman who does nothing feels, who says 

 she does not work mentally? 



And yet we feel there is considerable room for improve- 

 ment in the mental part of the work. The temptation is great 

 to allow household and other cares to crowd out much of read- 

 ing and study that is certainly an influence that tends to lift us 

 above our own little narrow worlds. Women have no more 

 right to neglect the cultivation of the mind than men have. 



As a rule, farmers agree that a farmer's wife earns her bread 

 and butter. But judging from the actions of many of them they 

 believe she earns nothing more. Their actions say: "Well, 

 our wives and daughters do lots of work ; they make our homes 

 pleasant places to stay in, and it would be a hard, dull world 

 without them. But pshaw! their work is easy, and does not 

 count money. A woman doesn't know how to handle money 

 anyhow." Such a thinker ought to do the housework a week, 

 for even a small family, to have his ideas reformed somewhat. 

 Or, if he should prefer it, hire the work done for a year that is 

 done by his wife and see if a shortage in income did not appear 

 from more than one direction. We have observed that the more 

 a man knows by actual experience of housework, the more 

 respect he has for that part of " woman's sphere." The sense 

 of justice is just as keen in woman as it is in man. 



We never could understand why there should be any differ- 

 ing between a farmer and wife about money matters, when both 

 work just as hard as they can, both are saving persons, and are 

 working for a common purpose. Now, why should one more 

 than the other have the entire say about every dollar that leaves 

 the purse? It is simply exasperating to hear a woman begging 

 of her husband for money that is her own by actual earning; 

 and it is as exasperating for a man to beg of his wife for money. 

 It is not so common, but we have known women to hold the 

 purse strings as selfiishly as ever did any man. 



A woman has a right to know at all times how she is situated 

 financially, and then, naturally, she asks herself the questions, as 



